Dark Chocolate Date Cake with Pecans – Gluten Free

Makes about 10-12 servings
NOTES:

• I prefer to use high quality unsweetened chocolate pieces in this cake. If you want it sweeter and don’t mind the added sugar than use bitter-sweet or semi-sweet chocolate instead.
• Walnuts taste great in this cake too.

INGREDIENTS

• 16 pitted Bard Valley Medjool Dates, divide into 10 (for cake batter) and 6 chopped (for topping)
• 1 cup boiling hot Water
• 3/4 cups Corn Flour
• 3/4 cups Brown Rice Flour plus 1 tablespoon
• 1/2 cup Oat Bran
• 2 1/2 teaspoons Baking Powder
• 1/2 teaspoon Sea Salt
• 1/2 cup unsweetened Cocoa Powder
• 1/2 teaspoon ground Ginger
• 1 teaspoon Stevia Powder -or- 7 droppers full of Vanilla Stevia Drops, adjust sweetness to taste
• 1 large Egg, whisked
• 1 cup fat free Ricotta Cheese
• 2 tablespoons Unsalted Butter, melted
• 1/2 cup fat free Milk
• 1 teaspoon pure Vanilla Extract
• 3 ounces bitter-sweet or unsweetened Chocolate, Chips or chopped pieces
• 3/4 cup chopped, toasted pecans, divided into 1/2 and 1/4 cup portions

METHODToasted Nuts: Preheat oven to 350˚F with the rack in the center. Chop nuts to the size you want them & arrange on a single layer on a baking sheet. Bake for about 8-10 minutes, tossing once or twice to toast evenly. Toast until slightly browned and fragrant. Date Cake: Pre-heat oven to 350˚F with the rack in the middle. Line a 9×2 round pan with parchment paper. In a blender or food processor, purée dates with hot water. Set aside and let it cool. Whisk together flours, oat bran, salt, cocoa powder and ginger in a medium bowl. In another bowl combine date purée, egg, ricotta, butter, milk and vanilla. Mix together wet and dry ingredients. Toss chocolate pieces and 1/2 cup pecans with 1 tablespoon flour. Gently mix in chopped pecans and chocolate. Add stevia to sweeten and adjust to taste.
Put cake batter in the pan, be sure to flatten the top so cake bakes evenly. Gently press chopped dates and 1/4 cup pecans into the top of the batter. Bake for about 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick comes out crumb free. Let cool in the pan for about 20 minutes. Loosen cake from the edges of pan with a spatula and flip the cake onto a plate, remove parchment paper. Flip again so the dates and nuts are on the top of the cake. You can do this by topping the cake with a dinner plate, firmly pressing and flipping again.
Serving Suggestions

• Serve with dollops of sweetened whipped cream, thick Greek yogurt, ice cream or frozen yogurt.
• Make a Greek yogurt parfait by layering pieces of cake with yogurt.
• Serve with chocolate sauce.
• Purée up some extra date sauce and drizzle over and dip away.