I am so tired of hearing people talking bout jumping on the treadmill or running a few miles just cause they ate a slice of cake. Darling, it’s not the end of the world. At least for me it isn’t. Here’s the truth: YOU CANNOT OUT EXERCISE UNHEALTHY EATING HABITS.  Don’t think that just ’cause you jogged, lifted weights, did some squats or ran a mile, that it’s going to reverse all the toxic chemicals, artificial colorings, natural flavorings and hydrogenated oils found in refined foods and unhealthy meals. That’s just not how it works.

Food should always be celebrated; all day, everyday, not just on man made holidays or special occasions. Just like I don’t reserve Saturdays for cleaning the house OR waiting for a special event to create a fabulous meal OR dine with a gorgeous tablescape while eating from my prettiest plates; I don’t wait around for the holidays to indulge in my favorite Jamaican Black cakes aka Rum cakes.

I refuse to deprive myself of the foods that I love. I EAT EVERYTHING and I DON’T diet. Being a holistic health coach who empowers others to nourish their bodies with REAL FOOD doesn’t translate to eating bland food or starving yourself. The reason most folks are afraid to embrace a healthy lifestyle is because they believe that they have to give up their most beloved meals OR they have no desire to create their meals from scratch with healthier choices. Well have no fear, because I Ange’luscious will ensure that you can enjoy your meals AND DESSERTS without any fear or guilt.

Recently I discovered that I have a gluten sensitivity. I do not have celiac disease. Occasionally I do eat gluten.  Now that I understand my body’s threshold for gluten, I keep it minimal and don’t go overboard, otherwise inflammation takes over. Being that I fear the pain from endometriosis (and I’ve come a long way with healing myself). I choose not to indulge in gluten too often and try to avoid it in every way I possibly can.

In enters the chef, holistic health coach who is majorly greedy and doesn’t believe in sacrificing flavors. OMG! Can I tell you how happy I am, that I have mastered this whole gluten free cake thingy and can eat whatever I want, whenever I truly want. I don’t know about any one else, but whenever I bake a cake as freaking good as this, I can eat it all by myself. Not in one setting, but I can eat it really quickly. Ain’t no shame in my game. It’s gluten free, refined sugar free, and the dried fruits are also free from sulphur dioxide. See that’s another thing most folks don’t realize. They pick up dried fruits under the assumption that it’s healthy, without being aware that it’s laced with poison. I refer to everything that is toxic as poison.  I do look for little things like that. Yes, I can get a little extreme with reading my ingredients. Imagine if this cake was made from wheat? Inflammation would be raging inside my body. You know what’s the most amazing thing? This is the kinda cake where you simply can’t eat one slice. Are you crazy? Where they do that at?

Hello! This is a Rum Cake. Who doesn’t like Rum Cake? Well I’m sure there are lots of people who probably don’t and that’s okay, because I shall and will eat it for you! I used my favorite Jamaican white rum but I didn’t use the traditional Red Label Wine when baking Christmas rum cakes. Here’s why: I wanted a wine WITHOUT sulfites, artificial flavorings and colorings and Red Label wine doesn’t meet that requirement. Once upon a time I used to use it, but now that I’ve made every effort to heal my body, I avoid it. Now don’t get me wrong, I’m not perfect. However if I’m going to soak/infuse dried fruits in rum and wine for months or years, it better be some excellent stuff. I don’t wanna take a bite of my cake then shove it aside cause I’m in pain. This cake is meant to be devoured.

Oh and those little red, green and gold fruity looking peels that are traditionally used in Jamaican Christmas Cakes aka Rum Cakes aka Black Cakes; I don’t use them either. They have always been suspect to me and every time I picked one up and read the ingredients, I immediately put it back on the shelf. It has never made it’s way into my shopping cart. As I mentioned before, I use fruits without the toxic gas/preservative, sulphur dioxide.  Dried mangoes, dates, cherries are some of the fruits that I use interchangeable in my cakes. In this version I also added fresh blueberries which were dispersed all throughout the cake. That burst of flavor in each and every bite heightened the foodgasm experience. It was indeed pleasurable. I also added a few nutritional immunity boosters in my cake cause I’m all about getting those nutrients in.

Now would you like a slice of my gluten free and refined sugar free cake?