Waste Not

I, like many of you, love a good deal.  Buy two get one free?  Sure.  One basket of strawberries for $4.00 or three baskets for $8.00?  Is that a serious question?

Deals are fabulous when you are feeding a family, or maybe even two people, but when all you have to worry about is feeding yourself, three baskets of anything can feel a bit excessive.  This really becomes a problem when the bulk product on hand is fresh-- in other words, perishable.  The last thing I want to do is save a few bucks on some gorgeous produce and then throw half of it out at the end of the week.  These are the issues that keep me up at night.  

This week my mission was to do something useful with the aforementioned three baskets of strawberries I just couldn’t pass up at the market.  Cake has often been my method of choice for using up a whole bunch of strawberries at once, and this time I chose to try a recipe from My New Roots.  I am always on the lookout for a solid cake base that uses no refined ingredients, and, let me tell you, this cake delivered.  

However, the cake is definitely not for those of you who expect intense sweetness from dessert.  In fact, I would argue that a piece of this cake would be just as welcomed at breakfast as it is at dessert (maybe just skip the ice cream...or don’t), so you make the call.  The original recipe includes a rhubarb-honey sauce to be served atop each piece of cake, but since I did not see rhubarb at the market this week (did I already miss the window?) I opted for a side of ice cream and a drizzle of maple syrup instead.  Any way you choose, I don’t think you’ll be disappointed.

Strawberry Cake
via My New Roots

Just a quick note about the chia seeds, since I know that this is not an ingredient everyone has on hand: the chia seeds in this recipe function as a replacement for an egg, so please do not omit them unless you plan to use an egg instead!  If you would rather use an egg, just omit the seeds and use 3 tablespoons less milk, although I encourage you to experiment and try the chia seeds in baking.  As a rule of thumb, 1 tablespoon chia seeds + 3 tablespoons water (or, in this case, milk) = 1 egg.

1 ½ cup whole wheat pastry flour
½ cup rolled oats, plus a sprinkle for the top of the cake
½ tsp. salt (I used kosher)
1 tsp. baking soda
zest of one lemon
1 heaping cup strawberries, chopped
½ cup milk (I used almond milk)
1 cup unsweetened applesauce
⅓ cup maple syrup (or honey)
3 tbsp. coconut oil, melted
1 tbsp. chia seeds

Preheat the oven to 375 F and line a cake pan (or small square baking dish) with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, combine the milk, applesauce, oil, maple syrup, and chia seeds.  Set aside for about 10-15 minutes, giving the seeds time to form a gel with the liquid ingredients.

In a medium bowl, mix together all remaining ingredients, except for the strawberries.  Gently stir the dry mixture into the wet mixture until just combined.  Fold in the strawberries in as few strokes as possible.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan, sprinkle some rolled oats over the top, and bake for 30-35 minutes, or until a tester inserted in the middle of the cake comes out clean.

Allow the cake to cool completely in the pan, then serve with a drizzle of maple syrup and ice cream.