Gingerbread Custard Cake (grain-free : gluten-free : nutrient-dense)

Creamy and spicy: Gingerbread Custard Cake is a great complement to the holiday season. I developed this recipe with my husband in mind;  he loves gingerbread and likes to eat Custard Cake for breakfast most mornings.  For an extra special treat, this custard cake can be topped with sweetened whipped cream.

This will be my last post until 2015. Happy Holidays and Merry Christmas to you all!

Gingerbread Custard Cake
Serves 8

• 12 Tb (1&1/2 sticks) butter, preferably from grassfed cows
• 1/2 cup sucanat
• 6 eggs, preferably from local hens
• 3/4 cup sour cream  
• 1&1/2 tsp organic vanilla extract, or use homemade
• 1/2 tsp organic almond extract 
• 3 Tb blackstrap molasses
• 3/4 tsp ground cinnamon
• 3/4 tsp ground ginger
• 1/2 tsp fresh pressed ginger (or add another 1/4 tsp of dried ginger, but fresh has the best flavor)
• pinch ground nutmeg
• 1/2 tsp celtic sea salt 
• zest from one clementine or half an orange
• 5 Tb coconut flour* 
• 2 cups unsweetened applesauce
• Helpful equipment:
• A garlic press works well to press the ginger. Otherwise, make sure to peel it and mince it very finely.
• I use a microplane zester to zest the orange. 
• An immersion blender works wonderfully to mix this recipe.  If you are not using an immersion blender, the coconut flour needs to be sifted before adding it to the recipe.

1. Melt the butter in a small saucepan over low heat.  Turn off heat and allow to cool a bit.
2. In a large bowl, combine eggs, sucanat, sour cream, molasses, vanilla, almond extract, spices, orange zest, and salt.  I like to use my immersion blender to mix it all up together, but you could certainly use a whisk or mixer instead.
3. Add melted butter to wet ingredients and whisk or blend.
4. Add coconut flour* and blend until well-combined (or use a mixer or whisk until smooth).
5. Add the applesauce, and whisk well to combine.  I prefer to use a whisk for this step so the applesauce still remains a tiny bit chunky.
6. Use a bit of cold butter to generously grease an 8X8 glass dish.
7. Pour the batter into the glass dish and bake at 325° for 70-80 minutes. The custard cake is done when the edges are lightly browned and the center is no longer wet with just a bit of jiggle.
8. Remove from oven and cool.  Don't cut into this while it is piping hot. This can be served at room temperature or cold. For a special treat, top with a bit of sweetened whipped cream (recipe follows). 

*The coconut flour will need to be sifted if you are not using an immersion blender.   

Sweetened Whipped Cream

• 2 cups cream, preferably raw
• pinch of fine ground celtic sea salt
• 1/2 tsp organic vanilla extract
• 2-4 Tb raw mild-flavored honey, to taste**

1. Beat the cream and salt together until the mixture starts to get thick and fluffy.  I like to use my Kitchen-Aid stand mixer with the wire whip attachment, but you could also use a hand mixer.
2. Add the vanilla extract, and drizzle in the honey while the mixer is running.  Alternatively, you could drizzle in the honey a little at a time and mix between each honey addition. 
3. If you're using a stand mixer, use a silicone spatula to scrape down the sides of the bowl a few times to make sure you don't have any clumps of honey at the bottom.  I like to beat it until it gets a bit stiff since it will tend to soften up a bit in the fridge over the next few days.
4. Store the whipped cream in the fridge in an airtight bowl.

**If your raw honey is very crystallized, place it over a bowl of warm water to make it a bit runny.

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