Mediterranean Diet Chocolate Cake

Yes, you can say chocolate cake and Mediterranean Diet in the same title. Even better, this Mediterranean Diet Chocolate Cake is made with sourdough starter and is vegan. Delicious, chocolaty, moist and with just the right amount of sweetness. It checks off all my boxes for being useful (using my Herman Sourdough Starter) and entertainment worthy as it fits the diet requirements of ALL of my friends.

How can chocolate cake be delicious AND diet?

I love cake. As a kid, my mother would start planning my birthday cake a few months before my birthday. It was such a treat to pick out the cake that would celebrate the day you were born. I would spend days debating which cake flavor I wanted. Now that I am into the second half century of my life, I choose to celebrate my birthday by honoring my health and maintaining the Mediterranean Diet way of eating. I make sure my special occasion sweets adhere to the following standards:

• Use only natural sweeteners such as honey, syrup, fresh and dried fruits.
• Instead of relying on white flour, include whole grains or nut flours.
• Use extra virgin olive oil and avoid butter, shortening, lard or other oils.
• As a bonus, use sourdough (want to start your own sourdough?).

On the Mediterranean Diet I am no longer on the sugar addiction wheel, I am not a slave to sweets. This makes it really easy to adhere to the expectation that sweets are a treat for special occasions.

I am happy with my decision to enjoy sweets that honor my way of eating. When I enjoy a dessert I do not feel poorly or regret after I eat it. Many of my sweet recipes come from one of my go-to Mediterranean Diet cookbooks America’s Test Kitchen, The Complete Mediterranean Cookbook (it is #5 on my must have cookbook list). This cookbook has a plethora of delicious recipes to be enjoyed once in awhile. But sometimes you just want a piece of cake. A simple cake, like when you were a kid. Olive Sunshine’s Mediterranean Diet Chocolate Cake totally fits the bill. One bite will make it hard to believe it has the word diet in the name.

A Delicious Chocolate Cake!

The Mediterranean Diet Chocolate Cake is super moist, but has a flaky crumb. When you see the batter it resembles a brownie batter. But thanks to the sourdough it bakes up with a rich chocolate taste and just the right amount of sweetness. It reminds me of a dark cocoa bar, but not a bitter 90%, more like a sweet but grown up 70% chocolate bar. This cake would be perfect served with with a brush of powdered sugar if you are feeling a little bit naughty. Yummy served warm with a glass of milk (or in my case Oat Milk), or the next morning with a cup of piping hot coffee (if I only eat desserts for special occasions you can bet I am going to have the left overs the next day)!

Interested in another Olive Sunshine cake recipe?