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Italian Paleo Hazelnut Cake Recipe [Dairy-Free]

I recently visited the Piedmont region of Italy, home of the Slow Food movement and the famous Barolo wines.

And one of the things that struck me was how many of their traditional dishes were really close to Paleo.

For example, I had some of the most tender sliced veal with a delicate mayo sauce, a traditional jelly chicken recipe (wow – it was really tender and flavorful and gelatinous), and a zucchini soup with marinated mackerel.

What surprised me even more was that their traditional desserts were also remarkably Paleo!

Hazelnuts are very common in the Piedmont region (in fact, Nutella originated in the city of Alba in the Piedmont region) and you can get all sorts of hazelnut desserts there.

The city of Cherasco is famous for their baci de Cherasco, which are small “kisses” made from dark chocolate and pieces of roasted hazelnuts!

We also found hazelnut cake in this city. And when I inquired what it was made from, I was happily surprised that the ingredients consisted of hazelnuts, eggs, and sugar.

Italian Paleo Hazelnut Cake Recipe

So, here’s my Paleo version of the traditional Piedmont hazelnut cake. Enjoy a slice with an espresso for a truly Italian experience.

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Italian Paleo Hazelnut Cake Recipe [Dairy-Free]

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• Author: Louise Hendon
• Prep Time: 10 minutes
• Cook Time: 25 minutes
• Total Time: 35 minutes
• Yield: 8 servings 1x
• Category: Dessert
• Cuisine: Italian

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Ingredients

• 2 cups hazelnuts, skin removed
• 1/2 cup coconut sugar
• 1/4 cup honey, melt slightly
• 5 medium eggs
• Dash of salt

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Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 F (175 C).
2. Grease a 9-inch cake tin.
3. Food process the hazelnuts to form a flour.
4. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together all the ingredients really well.
5. Pour into cake tin.
6. Bake for 20-25 minutes until a cocktail stick inserted into the middle comes out clean.
7. Let cool completely.  Serve and enjoy!

Notes

All nutritional data are estimated and based on per serving amounts.

Nutrition

• Calories: 300
• Sugar: 22g
• Fat: 20g
• Carbohydrates: 26g
• Fiber: 3g
• Protein: 7g