Have you ever wondered what is the difference in cake texture using different ingredients? Can butter really be substituted? One thing for sure about banana loaves – you can’t really go wrong with the taste because bananas and cinnamon have such strong flavours but the texture sets the loaves apart. So, today I’ve decided to embark on a little experiment using three different types of ingredients to make banana loaves. Aim 1: To determine if butter can be substituted with grape seed oil Aim 2: To examine the difference in texture between the use of buttermilk and non-fat yoghurt Let’s take a look at the ingredients used (click here for the full recipe) As we all know, butter is high in saturated fats – the kind of fats that increases your risk for cardiovascular diseases and also makes you fat. But are healthier options such as olive oil and grape seed oil really healthier? Let’s check out the nutritional values for the various cakes.   Looking at the chart above, it’s no doubt that the amount of …

To be honest, bananas are my least favourite fruits. I even get upset when my fruit platter is served with bananas because it makes the rest of the fruits smell and taste like bananas. But when bananas are used in cakes, I absolutely love them! It’s one of those strange things where people don’t eat cheese but yet they eat pizza or that they don’t take chilli but they eat curries. I’m definitely one of those contradicting people. Today I’ve decided to make a chocolate banana cake. I decided to make a healthier option by using grape seed oil instead of butter. You can use olive oil as well if you prefer. To add an “umph” factor to the cake, I’ve made a chocolate ganache because one can never have too much chocolate! Nutrition per slice (8 servings) Ingredients 100g plain self raising flour 100g wholemeal self raising flour 80g caster sugar 2 ripe bananas 40g cocoa powder 100ml buttermilk 100ml grapeseed oil 50g walnuts 50g dark chocolate chips 2 eggs For the ganache 100g …

This is my first time making a cake for my friend’s birthday and I’ve decided to combine two of her favourite cakes into one. It took me slightly over an hour preparing the ingredients for the cake and my hands were sore from grating all that carrots. But the birthday girl loved the cake and everyone had a great time and that’s all that matters! Ingredients for the cake Preheat the oven to 160 degrees Preparation time: 1 hour Baking time: 30min or when the cake turns brown and the skewer comes out clean 200g self-raising plain flour 200g self-raising wholemeal flour 200g unsalted butter 160g brown sugar 4 eggs 2 tsp bicarbonate soda 2 tsp cinnamon powder 1 tsp nutmeg 180ml buttermilk 250g pitted dates 175ml hot water 300g grated carrots zest 1 orange 100g walnuts Ingredients for the frosting 300g cream cheese (I used Philadelphia light cream cheese) 70g icing sugar 1 tsp vanilla essence Nutrition per slice (one cake serves 12) Click on the images below for the baking instructions