Mint Paleo Gluten-Free Chocolate Cake

Preheat oven to 350ºF and line the bottoms of two 9 1/2-inch cake pans with parchment paper. Generously rub the sides with coconut oil and set aside.

In a large bowl, mash the avocado until it’s very smooth, but a few small lumps are totally okay. Add eggs, honey, vanilla and peppermint extracts and beat on high speed with an electric hand mixer, until the mixture begins to thicken and lighten in color, about 2 minutes.

Add sifted coconut flour, tapioca starch, salt and baking powder to the bowl. Stir the flour in with a spoon and then, once no flour streaks remain, beat on medium speed until the batter is smooth. Stir in the minced chocolate and let the batter stand for 10 minutes so that the coconut flour can begin absorbing the moisture.

Divide the batter between the 2 cake pans and smooth out evenly. Bake until the edges are lightly golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 25 minutes. Let the cakes cool in the pan and then run a sharp knife along the edges of the pan, and turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely, about another 15–20 minutes.

When the cake comes out of the oven, it’s a good time to start making the ganache. Whisk together the coconut milk and honey in a small sauce pan set over-medium high heat. Keep the pan on the heat until the coconut milk is just about to boil (but don’t let it boil!) and then remove the pan from the heat. Add in the chopped chocolate and let it sit in the milk for 30 seconds.

Once 30 seconds are up, whisk until the chocolate is melted, smooth and creamy. Let the ganache sit at room temperature for about an hour, until it begins to thicken, but is still spreadable and pour-able.

Once the cake and ganache have cooled, it’s time to assemble: Place one of the cake layers. bottom-side up, onto a cake pan, or stand, and dump a heaping 1/4 cup of the ganache on top. Using a flat, metal spatula, spread the ganache evenly over the top of the cake. Gently place the second layer, bottom-side up, on top of the ganache and refrigerate for about 15 minutes, or until the ganache filling just sets.

Once set, pour the remaining ganache over top of the cake and spread out evenly, letting it drip over the sides, and then smoothing to coat the entire cake with your metal spatula. The ganache will begin to firm up quickly, so smooth it out as fast as you can.

Serve and devour.