amazing bundts and I cannot lie

I've got to be honest, until a few weeks ago I had no idea what a bundt cake was. I kept seeing these fantastic shaped, highly photogenic, cakes on instagram and vero, which after closer inspection, turned out to be this cake called bundt.

It seems, from what I can find, that a bundt cake is not any particular recipe, but just one cooked in a bundt pan, or tin. I think the tins are beautiful and as I do love a bit of kitchenalia, may have to get a few. Based on a European Gugelhupf, a bundt is more about the shape, always in a ring, with fluted sides. 

I followed the recipe I mentioned in my previous post, from eighty20nutrition for Rose and Pistachio bundt cake,  although I didn't have the dried ligonberry powder or the rose petals, but instead found some freeze dried raspberry bits. I do think the lingonberry powder sounds lovely, so may have to treat my baking cupboard to a jar.

I also had a bit of a mis-hap with the rose essence, and perhaps will be sure not to overdo it next time. 

The topping is a bit naughty but incredibly tasty, not too sweet and adds to an already moist and fluffy cake. It uses coconut cream which opened up a whole debate over whether coconut oil is good or bad for cholesterol. My good friends on instagram/vero - Alternative Ageing (who is a nutritionist) and Jax both sent me links about how,  although coconut oil is high in saturated fat, it does not create bad cholesterol. If you look on the 'Trust Me, I'm A Doctor' website, you will see that in tests the group who had coconut oil had no increase in the bad cholesterol, just a minor drop in it. 

So, while I'd been googling about whether I should or should not have coconut oil, some of the reports were not entirely accurate.

Back to this gorgeous recipe, the great thing about the coconut cream is how it stays looking perfect and doesn't sink into the cake and it also gives a lovely look to the decoration, running exactly where it is poured. The ingredients are free from flour as the recipe is nutritionally very good, containing dates, ground almonds, olive oil, apple cider vinegar ... so many good whole food ingredients. See the site http://eighty20nutrition.com 

I can honestly say this is one of the most delicious cakes I've ever tasted, even after a few days it was still moist. I'm actually not a lover of cake normally, I find it too sweet and I don't want to consume butter and sugar in large quantities. If you are looking for a healthy alternative to normal cake then this is the one for you.

I also think that the shape of the bundt lends itself perfectly to decoration, fill the centre with fruits and sprinkle nuts and dried fruits on top of the coconut cream.  

I've got my eyes on a bundt recipe using blueberries and yoghurt but I will definitely be going back to this one time and time again. 

On the Eighty 20 nutrition site I've also seen a beetroot and chestnut soup, oh hello!  Two of my favourite ingredients. 

If you have any cholesterol busting recipes then message me the link over on any of the social media platforms - Instagram, Vero and Facebook.  I will happily give it a try and feature you on my blog, (you also get to keep photos of what I've cooked if you like!).

Happy Baking .... Janice Issitt