FAQ #4: Do you make ____ free cake?

FAQ #4: Do you make ____ free cake?

Let me explain this question. It’s really multiple questions wrapped into one, just insert any of the following words for the dashes: gluten, dairy, sugar, peanut, carb, fat, oil, butter, etc. You get the idea.

While I wish I could answer yes, unfortunately I haven’t had the time, energy, or resources to devote to creating a diet-friendly menu. As important as it is to meet specific dietary needs, I can’t bring myself to offer products anything less than spectacular, and I’ve found that rather challenging without using gluten or sugar or butter or dairy.

However…

I had the perfect opportunity to experiment last week for a very special birthday that required Keto cupcakes. The Ketogenic diet is a high-fat, low-carb diet. It excludes gluten, added sugar, and basically everything on my menu aside for, maybe, the fresh strawberries I occasionally use as a garnish.

I searched the depths of Pinterest for Keto Chocolate Cake recipes, and found the best-reviewed recipe for Chocolate Fudge Brownie Cake with Chocolate Ganache. I have to say, it’s not bad. Admittedly, the ganache is a little bitter because of the 100% unsweetened cocoa, but the cake actually tastes like a fudge brownie. The texture is a bit crumbly, and serving it warm relieves some of the density, but overall I’d eat it again, especially since it’s only 5 carbs per serving.

I was meaning to snap a picture of the leftover one I ate for breakfast, but apparently I ate it too fast! The plain cupcake with a spoonful of almond butter, microwaved for 20 seconds, was an incredible way to start the day. I did hear decent reviews from the customer, though she’s been on a Keto diet long enough that anything that even resembles chocolate will be well-received!

While these won’t be on my permanent menu, I’d highly recommend all my health-conscious customers to check out this recipe if you’re craving something sweet.

I think this is the perfect time for me to announce that for the next 30 days I’ll be living off of meat, veggies, and the occasional fruit on the Whole 30 diet. You might’ve heard of this, but it’s very similar to Keto in that it excludes sugar, grains, alcohol, soy, legumes, and dairy in favor of whole foods.

Please send prayers.

Seriously. All of those things I just named, I LOVE.

You might wonder why I’m committing to 30 days of basically celery sticks and water, and actually I’m wondering the same thing, but I’ve always been a health geek, researching nutrition, exercise, and how the body works in my free time (ironic, I know, considering my life purpose revolves around creating things purely out of sugar). Whole 30 is a crazy experiment to see how the body reacts to eliminating processed foods. I’ve thought about it before, but this time my housemate is committing with me, so on day 3 when I’m hangry and threaten to quit, I can’t!

I’m telling you this because in my pre-Whole 30 research, it suggests telling as many people as possible so you have a greater likelihood of holding yourself accountable. So, faithful followers, I’m doing Whole 30 for the month of September!

I’d invite you to join me in this 30-day whole-foods-only journey, but I’d really like you to keep ordering cakes (wink!). So instead, you can follow my 30 days on my Facebook and Instagram Stories. Basically, with my updates, you can do Whole 30 without doing Whole 30. You’re welcome.

We’ll see if the next 30 days influence me to add gluten/dairy/sugar free options to my menu (one day, I really do hope to have these readily available for all of my customers—after all, everyone deserves to celebrate with a piece of cake!), but until I can legally ensure they meet dietary criteria, and until I can make them taste not like you’re eating a raw cocoa bean, I’ll keep experimenting when I get the chance.

I’m looking forward to seeing everyone online for the next 30 days and beyond. If you’ve got any recipes, tips, or tricks, I’m all ears. And in the mean time, for all my customers who’ve placed orders for September—I’m begging you, have a slice for me!

Cheers!

jorie