Almond meal can be pretty pricey when purchased as is, which is usually why I've never attempted cake recipes involving the ingredient previously. But when I had a substantial amount of already ground sweet almonds left over from making almond milk, I decided to give a low-carb cake recipe a try.

Well, technically, it wasn't a recipe. I simply followed the general guideline of a recipe off Pinterest and improvised as the project progressed, finally topping the cake with some fresh strawberries we had in the fridge.

The attempt turned out to be satisfactorily successful in the end, and resulted in a easy, great-tasting afternoon snack!

Ingredients

- 2 eggs*
- 1/2 cup skim evaporated milk*
- 3 tbsp sweetened condensed milk*
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 2 cups of ground sweet almonds*
- 1/2 cup melted butter
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 3/4 cup large strawberries, thinly sliced (opt.)

Directions:

1) Preheat oven to 375 F.
2) Melt the butter in a large bowl. Then crack in the eggs and whisk quickly to prevent them from scrambling. Add in sweetened condensed milk once eggs and butter are fully incorporated.
3) Sift in baking powder and add in vanilla extract.
4) Whisk in ground sweet almonds in three to four additions before pouring in evaporated milk.
5) Grease a large round pan and pour in the batter. Top with sliced strawberries as desired.
6) Bake for 35-40 minutes. Once the surface becomes golden brown, remove from the oven and let cool for at least 10 minutes.
7) Using a plastic knife, carefully remove the cake from the pan and allow it to completely cool on a cooling rack.
8) Serve and enjoy!

Notes
- The ground almonds used in this recipe are smaller in size and sweeter in nature, and are a common ingredient in Chinese almond milk desserts. As opposed to the elongated oval-shaped almonds, these are rounder and plumper. An image of the almonds can be viewed HERE.
- Feel free to use regular skim milk (or even almond milk!) in place of skim evaporated milk. 1% or 2% could also be used for a richer taste if so desired.
- For a vegan option, feel free to use maple syrup or cane syrup in place of sweetened condensed milk. Please be aware that both of these have a stronger taste than sweetened condensed milk and have the potential to overpower the almond taste in the cake.
Butter could also be switched out for a vegan alternative if so desired, though I cannot vouch for the results as I have not attempted this.
- As my cake came out slightly crumblier than I would have preferred, I would recommend adding one more egg to the batter to allow the cake to have a stronger cohesive property.

What better way to start the New Year than with a batch of freshly-made crêpes and fresh fruit! And as an avid matcha fan, I also included a dollop of matcha cream!

Ingredients

Crêpe
- 1 egg
- 1/2 - 1 cup milk
- 1 tbsp baking powder
- 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- a pinch of salt

Matcha Cream Filling
- 1 tbsp matcha*
- 1/3 cup Cool Whip (defrosted) or whipped cream

Fillings and Toppings
- 1/3 cup berries
- half of a banana, thinly sliced
- icing sugar (optional)
- chocolate sauce (optional)
- sweetened condensed milk (optional)

Directions:

Part i: Crêpe
1) In a large bowl, sift in baking powder, flour, sugar, and salt. Add in vegetable oil, egg, and 1/2 cup of milk. Whisk until no lumps remain. Add in vanilla extract and mix again.
2) The batter should ideally be able to form very thin ribbons upon lifting the whisk. If it is too thick, continue to add in the rest of the milk until the desired consistency is achieved.
3) Grease a large pan and set it on medium-high heat. Set aside a piece of paper towel saturated with oil for re-greasing the pan after each crêpe has been made.
4) Once the oil reduced in viscosity, decrease the temperature to low heat and ladle the batter onto the pan. Quickly swirl to evenly distribute.
5) Continue to swirl as bubbles begin to form around the edges and migrate towards the center. After 25 - 30 seconds, flip the crêpe over and allow the other side to cook.
6) Transfer to a large plate once both sides are evenly browned.
7) Repeat until there is no more remaining batter.

Part ii: Matcha Cream*
1) Mix matcha and Cool whip (or whipped cream) until well combined.
2) Chill in the refrigerator until ready to use.

Part iii: Assembly
1) Trim off frayed edges of crêpe if necessary and assemble using matcha cream and fruit of choice.
2) Dust with icing sugar and drizzle with sweetened condensed milk and chocolate sauce if desired.
3) Serve and enjoy!

Notes
- For the matcha cream in this recipe, I have used Izu matcha (from China). However, I would highly recommend using Uji matcha if you are able to gain access to it; it provides a deeper, richer green colour and has a stronger matcha flavour.
- Before preparing the matcha cream, ensure that the Cool Whip has been completely defrosted if it had been stored in the freezer prior. I made the mistake of not letting defrost fully and added milk to the mixture in hopes of helping it incorporate faster. This caused the cream to be runnier than I had originally hoped.
- Fillings and toppings are not limited to berries, bananas, and icing sugar, and can be changed based on user/consumer preferences.