Paleo Meyer Lemon Dreamcake
Once upon a time, I came across this Dream Cake recipe on one of my favourite blogs, “My New Roots” When I gave up dairy, I said goodbye to cheesecake forever; and then WOW, like a dream I found this healthy Cashew *cheese* cake!!! But wait…oh yea, I am now allergic to nuts 
I will never get to taste this…”I’m so hard done by” as the saying goes… At that moment, I really was stuck in the feeling sorry for myself state…how was I ever going to shake it…I wasn’t just gluten free or dairy free anymore, I didn’t fit into any *diet* category, I am just some kind of food freak.
Time has gone on and I have begun to understand my allergies and oral allergies better and I am now optimistic about my health and the future, and about the food I CAN eat. I had my mind set on some day making a version of this Dream Cake that I COULD eat; a symbol of moving on from the grieving stage of food allergies. Today is that day my friends 
I thought at one time I would make a white bean *cheese* cake after getting the idea of making beans sweet! (Inspired by this recipe) but I never got around to making it. Recently I have been very intrigued with the Paleo diet. I know that grains bother me, and I do better without any (even gluten free ones) but what about beans? Well I know that beans bug me also, but really I have always just assumed it’s because they have so much fibre…I mean there is a song about it; “Good for your heart, the more you eat them the more you …..?” well you get the idea…Thinking maybe if I ate them more often my body would get use to them…or maybe as suggested by the paleo diet…we are just not meant to eat legumes.
I have noticed it’s pretty common to find cauliflower or even rutabagas in paleo recipes for thickening pies, and sauces. I was eager to give it a whirl in my personal Dreamcake. The Result was AMAZING if I do say so myself! Dreamy creamy and so much lighter than beans would be. I think I have a new obsession; finding ways to use vegetables in desserts
So without further ado, I share this recipe dubbed Acceptance with you. Cheers to reaching the final stage of grief. Thank you for following my journey, and if you are still in the grieving stage yourself, I hope you too, find your Dreamcake some day. xxo
This recipe is Grain free, Dairy Free, Soy Free, Nut Free, Refined Sugar Free, Paleo Friendly
If you tolerate Coconut, skip the crust and this is Autoimmune Friendly
- 1-1/2 cups ground raw Sunflower seeds
- ½ cup ground raw pumpkin seeds
- 1 cup coconut flakes
- ½ cup coconut sugar
- ⅓ cup Coconut Oil, liquefied
- Vanilla *Cheesecake* Layer
- 500g bag of frozen cauliflower cooked until tender
- 1 cup coconut butter (not oil, you want the butter)
- ½ cup pure maple syrup
- ½ tsp ground vanilla beans
- Lemon Curd
- 6 egg yolk
- ½ cup fresh squeezed Meyer lemon juice
- 1-1/2 tbsp Meyer lemon zest
- ½ cup pure maple syrup
- 2tbsp coconut oil
- 4 tbsp coconut butter
- 2 tbsp tapioca flour
- Crust Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F
- Line Springform Panwith parchment paper (bottom)
- Place all ingredients in a bowl and using a fork mix together until large crumbs form.
- Press firmly and evenly in the bottom of the pan
- Bake for about 12 minutes, until lightly golden; melt sugar to help harden the crust.
- Set aside to cool
- *Cheesecake* layer instructions
- Place all ingredients in your food processor with the S blade attachment. Blend until smooth.
- Now line the sides of the spring form pan with parchment paper.
- Pour the vanilla mixture into the pan and spread evenly and smoothly on top of the crust. Place in the fridge to cool and set slightly
- Lemon Curd Instructions
- In a glass or stainless steel mixing bowl (that fits in a pot as a double boiler – or your
- double boiler if you have one) whisk egg yolks, lemon juice, zest and maple syrup.
- Place on top of simmering water and whisk constantly for 10-12 minutes until a thick and fluffy mixture forms. Remove from heat.
- Now add the coconut oil, and butter and whisk to combine. Now add the tapioca flour one tbsp at a time. Set in the fridge to cool slightly.
- Pour the Meyer Lemon curd on top of the Vanilla layer in the spring form pan and allow it to set in the fridge for several hours (I left it over night)
- Remove the cake form and parchment paper. Using a damp pallet knife you can smooth the outside edges if you desire.
What a fun, creative and delicious looking cake. Lemon is my favorite!! I love reading recipes like this and I love how you've adapted this to meet your needs. Big wow! Great job. Thank you for sharing it.
Be Well,
–Amber
Thank you Amber! It has been a journey getting here; being able to adapt to meet my needs…and understanding what the heck my needs are to begin with! This cake makes me smile
Yummy! This sounds so tempting! I'll have a slice now please!
Thank you Tessa
Wish I could bring some to you!
This looks so yummy and creative!! I can`t wait to try it:)) mmmmm I think this is an Easter desert! Hint Hint
HA-HA Requests! love it! but can you eat it right now?
I am glad you shared this with us on AFW, i can't wait to give this go, i love lemon! you are so creative, I love it!
Thanks for hosting!!
I am featuring this divine cake this week on Allergy-Free Wednesdays
Oh Yeah! Thank You so much Laura
me too! And I STILL want a piece of it…..
This looks tasty, so interesting and so unique – what a great idea to use cauliflower this way!
Thank you Vicky, I am obsessed with cauliflower these days
Beautiful! I love your “secret” ingredient – cauliflower!
Thank You!
Very creative and tempting. There are 2 vegetable dessert cookbooks out there (glutenous ones but you may find some inspiration inside): “Vegetable Desserts: Beyond Carrot Cake and Pumpkin Pie” by Elisabeth Schafer and “Desserts With A Difference: Carrot Cake, Fennel Tart, and Other Surprising and Delicious Vegetable Desserts” by Martin Stone. They both are out of print unfortunately but you can find used copies.
However there is a third book (that I had to import from amazon UK at the time but is now available in the US) that uses mainly almond and rice flours (along with veggies): “Red Velvet & Chocolate Heartache” by Harry Eastwood
Thank you for the book ideas! I am always on the look out for cookbooks to add to my collection. The older out of print ones can be the greatest source of inspiration.
Oh my! I HAVE to test it… THIS WEEK!
Thank you so much for sharing!
Love
Danielle this is an incredibly inventive recipe- I love it! I use cauliflower a lot as a sub for different carbos, but I've never tried it for a dessert. You were thinking way outside the box with this one!
Thank you Andrea! It really is so good! I think I am going to tackle a fluffier Key lime pie version next
Any idea how much fresh cauliflower to sub in?
I would say a little over 2 cups, not quite 2.5.
I did it this way (with the bag of frozen organic) in hopes of making it easier. With fresh whole pieces, depending on how big you chop it the amount could vary as you packed it into the measuring cup…then I thought I could puree it, take it out and measure, then put it back in and add the coconut…but that just seemed like an inconvenient extra step.
next time I make it, I will measure out the puree and add it to the recipe.
I made this last night and wanted to come give you some feedback. Boy, was it an awful lot of work but worth it! I used steamed fresh cauli, about 2 heaping cups…that was perfect. For those without a springform pan, I made it in a cake pan lined with plastic wrap and when cooled, I pulled it right up and out. The kids declared it “really yummy”! Much to my surprise, cauli was delicious in this dessert. Thanks for sharing such a unique recipe.
I am so glad the kids liked it!! It is a lot of work for sure! I think I should come up with more topping options, so you don't have make the curd, but it is so yummy!
Thank you so so much for the feedback!
thank you for this amazing recipe! I first time I made it I did it with lemon. Since then I’ve made it several times without the lemon. This. I topped it with plain yogurt and cooked blueberries thickened with tapioca starch & a bit of stevia – so good! This time I added a few spoons of coconut oil, flaked coconut & vanilla to the “cheesecake” layer. Haven’t tried it yet but it smells yummy!
oh yum! that sounds amazing Linda! Thank you for sharing
love the recipe and i’ve featured it on my blog post on vegetables in desserts!
http://happyxbelly.blogspot.co.uk/2014/08/vegetables-in-desserts.html