Ingredients for Quicked Whipped Topping
- ¾ cup heavy cream
- ¾ cup nonfat Greek yogurt, preferably Fage
- 2 ½ tablespoons sugar
Ingredients for Walnut Cake
- Nonstick pan spray
- ¾ cup all-purpose flour
- ½ cup whole wheat flour
- ¾ cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ⅛ teaspoon ground cloves
- Pinch of salt
- ⅓ cup plus 1 tablespoon liquid egg substitute
- ⅓ cup plain nonfat Greek yogurt, preferably Fage
- ¼ cup plus 1 tablespoon mild flavored olive oil
- 1 tablespoon finely grated orange zest
- 2 tablespoons fresh orange juice
- ⅔ cup walnut halves, toasted
Ingredients for Thyme Syrup
- ½ cup sugar
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 5 branches thyme, 2 ½ inches long, plus 3 more for garnish
- 2 small oranges
- 1 blood orange
- Additional walnuts, roughly chopped, for garnish
Directions:
To make the whipped topping:
1. Replace about half of the heavy cream in the whipped topping with fat free Greek yogurt, for a healthy, protein rich addition.
2. Use egg substitute, which is made with egg whites, to cut back on a bit of cholesterol.
3. Add heart-healthy walnuts and olive oil, instead of butter.
4. Make the cake and whipped topping sugar-free for diabetics by following my sweet & sugar-free sidebars
To make the syrup:
1. Put the sugar into a small saucepan and add one-half cup water.
2. Stir in the honey and 5 of the thyme branches. Bring to a boil over medium heat, then continue to boil for several minutes to fully dissolve the sugar.
3. Pull out and discard the thyme. The syrup can be made up to two weeks in advance, and refrigerated.
To make the cake:
1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. with a rack in the center position. Coat a 9” cake pan with pan spray.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the all-purpose and whole wheat flour, sugar, baking soda, cinnamon, clove, and salt.
3. In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg substitute, yogurt, olive oil, zest, and juice.
4. Process the walnuts in a food processor for about 20 seconds, or until it has the texture of gravel. Add the flour mixture and process for 20 seconds. Add the liquid ingredients and pulse just until the dough clumps up around the blade.
5. Spread the batter into the cake pan. 25 to 35 minutes, until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean.
6. Cool the cake in its pan on a wire rack for 5 minutes, then remove from the pan. Poke the cake several times with a knife and pour the cool syrup over the cake.
7. To serve: Remove the peel off from the oranges, trimming away any white pith. Working over a small bowl, use a paring knife to cut between the membrane and flesh to release the orange segments into the bowl.
8. Once the cake is cool, dollop the whipped cream onto the cake. Top with the citrus segments, a few pieces of toasted walnuts, and the remaining sprigs of thyme.
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