Today I’m sharing a very unique Valentine’s Day heart shaped chocolate cake.  This recipe is easy to make and falls into the healthy-ish catagory because it’s made with heart healthy ingredients.  Read on to get all the details!

This time of year the sky is always gray and it seems to rain nonstop, perhaps this is why many of us here in the pacific northwest are coffee drinkers .. and chocolate eaters:) Having a little chocolate every now and then isn’t a bad thing especially if it’s dark chocolate.

Watch me make the cake here!

  This chocolate treat is unique because it falls into the healthy-ish category. I used olive oil and cacao powder, which is said to health some nutritional benefits. You’re probably thinking, how can this be good when using olive oil?  Honestly, you can’t even tell there’s olive oil in the cake.  It’s moist and delicious and a hit every time I serve it.

Why we like our heart shaped Valentine’s Day chocolate cake

It’s supper moist and packed full of heart healthy olive oil and cacao powder which is said to have a few health benefits. Cacao powder is packed with flavonoids, nutrients that may help lower blood pressure, improve blood flow to the brain and heart, and aid in preventing blood clots.

This cake freezes well.  If you’d like to save a few pieces for a rainy afternoon treat, freeze in a zip lock or stasher bag.

I’m not going to go so far as to say you can enjoy a slice of this cake anytime but I will it’s kinda healthy so it’s perfect to have when you are craving something and don’t want to eat too much sugar.

Use a heart shaped cake pan and cake stand for presentation.

How to make a heart shaped Valentine’s Day chocolate cake

If you don’t have a heart shaped pan, just use a regular cake pan.  Grease and flour the pan if it’s not nonstick.  Mix all the dry ingredients in one bowl and whisk until combined.  In a seperate bowl, mix the wet ingredients.  Add the wet ingredients to the dry and stir until well incorporated.  Pour into your cooking pan and sprinkle with chocolate chips if you’d like.  Bake in a preheated oven until done, about 25 minutes or when a tooth pick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean.

Remove the cake from your cooking pan and allow to cool.  Serve with a dollop of whip cream or vanilla ice cream.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup all-purpose flour (you can also use almond flour for a denser cake)
• ½ c. cocoa
• ½ tsp. baking soda
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• ¼ tsp. salt
• 1/2 c. sugar
• ½ c. almond milk, hemp, or buttermilk
• 2/3 c. extra virgin olive oil
• 3 eggs (room temperature)
• 1/2 c. honey
• 1 and 1/2 tsp. vanilla (try using 1/2 almond extract)
• 3/4 – 1  cup chocolate chips

Top with unsweetened coconut flakes and a dollop of Coconut Whip (I buy mine at Whole Foods Market).

Directions:

• Preheat the oven to 325F
• Spray or grease and flour (my preference) a 9″ baking dish.  A few months ago I purchased an Emile Henry Dish and love it!  The baking is consistent unlike some of the tin or nonstick pans.
• Whisk together the flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, salt and sugar in a large bowl.
• Whisk your milk of choice, olive oil, eggs, honey, vanilla and almond extract until well combined.
• Pour the liquid ingredients into the dry ingredients together and stir until well combined.
• Use your spatula to pour the batter into the prepared pan and then sprinkle chocolate chips on top.
• Bake for 25-30 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out (almost) clean;)  This cake is best when it’s really moist so careful not to over bake it.
• Cool for 10 -15 minutes and then carefully invert.

If you love chocolate as much as I do, make sure to make these chocolate chunk banana muffins too!  They are so good and the perfect breakfast treat!