Date-walnut cake with warm honey sauce

The Mayo Clinic has some very healthy and delicious recipes worth checking out. This cake kept getting better each day, although it only lasted 3 days between the two of us (I’m embarassed to say!) Back to the diet this week.

Date-walnut cake with warm honey sauce (slightly modified from this recipe to keep it non-dairy)

3/4 cup old fashioned rolled oats

1 cup boiling water

1/4 cup firmly packed light brown sugar

1/4 cup dark honey

1/4 cup canola oil

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

3/4 cup flour

1/2 cup whole wheat cake flour (I used regular whole wheat flour)

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/8 teaspoon salt

1/3 cup plain soy yogurt

1/4 cup chopped dried dates

1 1/2 tablespoons chopped walnuts

for the sauce:

1/2 cup nondairy creamer

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/4 cup dark honey

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly coat a 9″ round cake pan with cooking spray.

In a large bowl, combine the oats and boiling water. Stir to mix. Let stand until the water is absorbed, about 20 minutes. Stir in the brown sugar, honey and canola oil. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Stir in the vanilla.

In a small bowl, combine the flours, cinnamon, baking soda, nutmeg and salt. Whisk to blend. Add the flour mixture to the oat mixture, alternating with the soy yogurt, beginning and ending with the flour mixture. Gently fold in the dates and walnuts.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake until the cake springs back when touched lightly in the center, 25 – 30 minutes. Place the pan on a wire rack to cool slightly. Transfer the cake to a serving plate.

To make the sauce: in a small saucepan over medium-low heat, combine the creamer and nutmeg and bring to a simmer. Whisk in the honey, raise the heat to medium and bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Continue cooking and stirring until the mixture thickens slightly, about 3 minutes.

Cut the cake into 8 wedges and serve warm or at room temperature. Drizzle with the warm honey sauce.

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