Happy 1st Birthday Blossom!

Can you believe it's been a whole year already!? And what a year it's been. Creating and sharing recipes these past twelve months has honestly been a dream come true for us. We are so appreciative of our amazing family, friends, and loyal blog followers for all of your love and support. So this post is truly for all of you as a celebration of an amazing year. We hope that you love this cake as much as we do and enjoy it while celebrating something really, really special. We sure did. 

This cake is special for many reasons; it is 100% homemade, a delicious use of vegetables, and is finished with a mouthwatering, unique, and protein packed frosting. But that's not all! It also contains a nice dose of omega-3 fatty acids (or omega 3s). This is special because omega-3s are nutritionally wonderful. Omega-3 fats come in three different forms. The first is ALA (alphalinolenic acid) and is most commonly found in flax seeds. ALA is an essential fatty acid, meaning our body does not make it and is therefore crucial to get from food. There are two other omega-3s, DHA (decosahexaenoic acid) and EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid). These two omegas are commonly found in wild caught salmon. Omega-3s have anti-iflammatory properties, may support circulation by transporting oxygen from red blood cells to the tissues, can act similar to blood thinners when taken in the right doses, and DHA found in wild salmon plays a large role in the developing brain of a human fetus. We used plant based forms of omega-3s in this recipe including walnuts, chia and flax seed. Ground flax seed specifically contains a great deal of ALA and is also considered a good source of dietary fiber, with a 4 Tbsp serving of ground flax seed providing 8 grams! So now that you know a little more about omega-3s, let's get on to making this carrot omega cake!!

Rainbow Carrot Omega Cake with Goat Cheese Frosting 
PREP TIME: 20 mins
TOTAL TIME: 60 mins
Servings: 8-10

Ingredients:
Cake
1 1/2 cup white whole wheat flour
1/4 cup coconut flour
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp allspice
4 Tbsp ground flax seed + 1 Tbsp reserved for middle frosting layer 
12 Tbsp warm water
1/2 cup honey
1/4 cup + 2 Tbsp pure maple syrup
2 Tbsp molasses
1/2 cup melted coconut oil
3 cups carrot shavings (we used rainbow carrots-purple, yellow, & orange)  

Frosting
3/4 cup thick vanilla Greek yogurt (we used Siggi's 4% fat)
3/4 cup soft goat cheese
3 Tbsp honey
2 Tbsp coconut butter, melted
1/2 vanilla bean, inside scraped out

Candied Nut/Seeds
1/2 cup walnuts
1/8 cup chia seeds
1 Tbsp honey
Sprinkle of sea salt

Preheat over to 375 degrees. Prepare 2, 9" round cake pans with a parchment lined bottom and make sure to oil the sides of both pans. Using a food processor, or this can be done by hand using a large grater, process or shave carrots until you have ~3 cups of shavings.  In a large bowl, sift white whole wheat flour, coconut flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and allspice and set aside. Combine ground flax seed and warm water and whisk until fully combined. Allow flax and water mixture to sit for a few minutes to thicken. In a separate bowl, combine honey, maple syrup, molasses, coconut oil, and thickened flax mixture. Add liquid ingredients to dry ingredients and stir until just combined. Add carrot shavings to the bowl and again mix until just combined. Avoid over mixing the batter. Pour batter into prepared pans and place on  middle rack of the preheated oven. Bake for ~40 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Allow cake to fully cool before removing from the pans.

In a small sauce pan on medium heat, combine walnuts, chia seeds, honey, and sea salt. Stir mixture until lightly toasted, take off the heat and set aside.

To make the frosting, using a standing mixer or hand held mixer, combine yogurt, goat cheese, honey, coconut butter, and vanilla bean. Mix on high until light and fluffy and set aside.

To assemble the cake, carefully invert one cooled cake onto cake stand. Spread half of the frosting on top of the cake then sprinkle with 1 Tbsp ground flax seed. Carefully invert second cake on top of the first cake, then finish frosting the top of the second cake. Sprinkle with cooled candied nut/seed mixture, serve, and enjoy!

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One bite and we swear you will be hooked. The cake itself is just delicious and has the perfect amount of sweet carrot flavor, but the frosting is a whole other level! Creamy, sweet, salty, and tangy all in one and definitely something to celebrate. We would like to send a special thank you to Jess's brother Max for this delicious cake inspiration! And as we enjoy this recipe we are looking forward to another year of amazing food. So stay with us here at TGBK, there is so much more to come!

Happy birthday blossom,
​Jess and Cecelia

Yum