On Saturday October 12th we had a very exciting day at the Lots for Tots Show at Mickleover Court Hotel. 

As part of the show, we had a competition on our stall to guess the mystery ingredient in some of our yummy homemade cake, made by our award-winning Catering Manager Kate Creswell.

We were demonstrating to parents that vegetables can be turned into almost anything, that even the fussiest of children will eat, and who can resist a piece of chocolate cake!

If you attended the show, did you guess that the cake included Aubergine?

The recipe for the cake is here for you to make at home, we hope you enjoy!

Cocobergine Cake

This gooey delight of a chocolate cake contains the remarkable ingredient – Aubergine. Its soft, fleshy texture blends beautifully with cocoa and coconut sugar.

Not only can it be counted towards your 5 a day but it contains vital vitamins, minerals and fibre that our body needs for digestion, healthy blood pressure and immunity. Enjoy a slice with a spoon of Greek yoghurt, crème fraiche or just a glass of milk or a cuppa.

Ingredients:

  • 300g aubergine
  • 75g cocoa
  • 150g coconut sugar
  • 50g self-raising flour
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 100ml vegetable oil
  • 2 eggs

Method:

  1. Pre-heat the oven to 180*C and grease and line an 8-inch cake tin.
  2. Wash the aubergine and chop into small pieces (no need to peel), steam for about 20 minutes, until soft then drain in a colander squashing out excess moisture.
  3. Put the aubergine into a food processor and blitz until it becomes a puree, making sure that there are no bits. Add the 100ml vegetable oil.
  4. Add the cocoa powder to the mix a bit at a time and blend.
  5. Pour the aubergine mixture into a larger bowl and add the sugar, flour, baking powder and eggs, beat well with a wooden spoon.
  6. Pour the batter into the prepared tin and bake for 30 minutes. Test with a skewer. If you want a gooier cake, take it out the oven when there are a few crumbs still clinging to the skewer. If you prefer a more thorough bake leave it in until the skewer comes out clean.
  7. Leave to cool in the tin.
Posted on
The DEN Nursery bears playing in the forest school