Healthy Pumpkin Cake (Gluten-Free)

Healthy Pumpkin Cake (Gluten-free, dairy-free)

I borrow a line or two from my literary background and bring it into the kitchen from time to time. One that I found particularly useful the moment it fell on me came from W.B. Yeats (who, I’m sure, was completely unaware of his line’s bizarre culinary future):

 “If there is a violent revolution, and it is the last phase where political revolution is possible, the dish will be made from what is found in the pantry and the cook will not open her book.”

As an avid fan of pumpkin bread (or rather, bread in general), I had to rack my brain into finding a good gluten-free replacement of the traditional one. The moment I found out I had Hashimoto’s was an extremely pivotal point in my life, and more so in the life of my kitchen. That was where I linked “political revolution” (Hashimoto’s) with to my kitchen (“pantry”, “cook”). Going gluten-free and ruling out other food allergies could easily leave someone wound up in another one of those “Why me?” bouts of theatrical drama, but I wasn’t letting that happen to me. On the contrary, my love for cooking, and food in general was about to climb one extra rung up the culinary ladder and take my cooking up the next level (Yeats style). If I could still have good pumpkin bread every fall (pun intended), then why not try to find a way to make some?

So that was the revolution, when I had to make do with whatever was in the pantry–or whatever I can eat without causing an autoimmune response. But that was all under one condition: It had to taste good, really good. I wasn’t going to lower any standards or settle for less just because I couldn’t eat wheat anymore.

And perhaps this is when I conjure up another voice from history, this time hearing Marie Antoinette cry out, “Let them eat cake.” Why not? I would totally agree with her–in this context, of course.

What I like best about this pumpkin bread recipe is the three M’s: mellow, moist, and melt-in-the mouth. And despite the lack of glutenous goodness, it doesn’t lose its cakey softness or harden into a rubbery loaf. Soft, sweet, and full of healthy facts and antioxidants, this is a great way to reap the benefits of the season’s star, Mr. Jack-o-Lantern’s ancient ancestor: the pumpkin.

So here’s all what it takes:

• 1/2 cup (brown) rice flour
• 1/2 cup almond flour
• 1/4 cup coconut flour
• 1/2 tsp sea salt
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
• 3/4 cup cooked, mashed pumpkin
• 1/4 cup date syrup
• 1/4 cup coconut oil
• 3-4 eggs

For the pumpkin spice mix (which you might want to prepare and store in a jar for other future recipes):

• 1/4 cup ground cinnamon
• 4 teaspoons ground nutmeg
• 4 teaspoons ground ginger
• 1 tablespoon ground allspice

After mixing all the ingredients together, pour into a lightly-greased loaf pan and bake for around 45 minutes. And that’s it!

Enjoy!

Roula 🙂