A few months ago I saw a post by Chosen Foods on facebook asking if any bloggers would like to try their avocado oil. I had actually already tried it, but I’m not one to turn down a free sample! I quickly signed up and was contacted by one of their marketers, who later asked me if I would also like to sample their chia seeds. Yes please! I offered to create a recipe using the two ingredients, which leads us to this post….
I was really intrigued when I saw the avocado oil at Costco this summer. I keep hearing about how some oils aren’t stable when heated to a certain temperature, like my beloved olive oil. The avocado oil can be heated to 500 degrees! And—it has hardly any taste, so it is great for baking. A perfect substitute for canola oil, and the avocado oil is non GMO!
And we all know how much I love chia seeds! I’ve been really in to using them as an egg replacer lately. Depending on the use, I will put them in a little coffee/spice grinder and grind them so that they don’t leave any texture. They gel up in water making a perfect binding agent in baked goods.
Since chia seeds and avocados both have ties to Latin cuisine I thought they would pair perfectly with a spiced Mexican Chocolate Torte. This cake reminds me a little bit of an almond torte that my mom used to make when I was a kid. It is dense, fudgy, and a little bit brownie like, but without feeling heavy at all. You will find yourself going back for seconds…and thirds…and…..well, just make it and you’ll see!
And thanks to the generous folks over at Chosen Foods, I have a 500 mL bottle of avocado oil AND a 2 pound jar of chia seeds to pass on to one lucky reader! Entry form is below the recipe—contest ends Tuesday at 11:00pm, PST.
Mexican Chocolate Torte
2 T chia seeds, gelled with 6 T water
1/2 cup almond milk
½ t apple cider vinegar
1 c flour
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder, (not Dutch-process)
3/4 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoons baking soda
½ t cinnamon
dash of cayenne pepper (optional)
1/8 teaspoon salt
8 oz avocado
¼ c maple syrup
1/4 cup avocado oil
2 t vanilla extract
Chocolate Drizzle:
3 T chocolate chips (I like Enjoy Life)
1 t avocado oil
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Grease an 8-inch cake pan with avocado oil. Cut a circle of parchment paper to line the bottom and grease paper as well. Dust with 1 teaspoon of cocoa powder.
Mix the chia seeds with water and set aside (no need to grind the chia seeds).
Mix the almond milk with vinegar. If you have one, mix it in a 2 c measuring cup (like a Pyrex) so that you can later measure the avocado easily.
In a large bowl, mix the dry ingredients—flour through salt. Set aside.
Cut open an avocado and scoop into the measuring cup with the almond milk. You need 8 ounces, or 1 cup (this was a little less than 1 medium avocado for me). By using water displacement, watch the milk level rise to 1 ½ cups and you will have your 8 ounces of avocado. Place the gelled chia seeds, maple syrup, avocado oil, vanilla, milk, and avocado into a blender. Blend thoroughly, breaking up the chia seeds and avocado. Pour over top of the dry mix and mix well so that all of the dry mixture is incorporated.
Pour prepared cake batter into pan. Bake at 375 for 35 minutes, or until toothpick comes out clean.
Allow to cool 10 minutes on rack, and then remove from pan. Allow to cool completely on rack. Place on serving plate, with the baking bottom side up (you may need to trim the baking top with a large bread knife so that it sits flat).
Melt the chocolate chips and 1 teaspoon of avocado oil in the microwave in 15 second intervals, stirring between. Mine melted after 1 minute. Using a fork, drizzle the chocolate back and forth over the cake. I drizzled in one direction, then sprinkled with cinnamon, and the drizzled the other direction.
Hint: for the cinnamon—I used a small wire tea ball and sifted the cinnamon over the top for a fine sprinkle. I find that the sprinkle tops on cinnamon bottles are always too big for a decoration!
This is delicious with coconut whipped cream, or your favorite ice cream! I love it with coconut sorbet! Enjoy!
I received the avocado oil and chia seeds free of charge from Chosen Foods. All opinions are my own.
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