At Surf Maroc, we’re all enjoying the indulgences that Christmas time brings (like we should!). But of course, we’re looking towards the New Year, and we’re getting ready for a little bit of a detox to kick-start our 2019. Luckily enough, we’ve got the amazing yoga team at Villa Mandala to have us covered for to fully revitalise our body and soul!
Our first Yoga Surf Retreat of the New Year is a special detox one with a little soul food and soul move. We cannot wait for our special yoga programme of dynamic sunrise yoga and sunset mobility/restorative sessions to get our soul moving. Plus, we have some incredible soul food lined up for our yogis. That doesn’t mean a menu of lettuce and celery soup – we’re talking about delicious, nutritious meals full of choices so we can nourish our bodies the way we want!
To give you an idea of what we will have on offer for this special week, we’ve got a couple of recipes to share with you from the Villa Mandala Chefs themselves.
Chocolate & Carrot Cake
This cake is a hot favourite at Mandala for afternoon tea. Post-surf, you need something yummy and refuelling, and this recipe is perfect. You can also make it vegan and gluten-free with just a few easy swaps. So you can have your cake and eat it!
Ingredients
Cake
– 1 1/2 cups flour (all purpose or Gluten-free)
– 1/3 cup cacao powder or unsweetened cocoa powder
– 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
– 1/4 tsp vanilla extract
– 1 tsp baking powder
– 1 1/4 cups grated carrots
– 1 cup orange juice
– 3 tbsp honey (or maple syrup)
– 1 cup melted dark chocolate
– 1 tbsp fresh grated ginger
– 1/4 cup olive oil
Frosting (omit if vegan)
– 3 cups icing sugar
– 1/4 fat-free sour cream
– 2 tbsp softened butter
– 1/2 teaspoon vanilla essence
3 fresh figs sliced for decoration
Cake
Preheat the oven to 180C degrees.
Line two six-inch-diameter cake pans with 2-inch-high sides with parchment paper. Coat the paper and pan sides lightly with a little oil to stop the cake from sticking to the bottom.
Mix the flour, cacao powder, baking powder and baking soda in a large bowl to blend well.
Place the oil, orange juice, honey, fresh ginger and vanilla extract into a blender and blend until smooth.
Whisk wet and dry mixtures together the two mixture until well blended.
Mix in the carrots.
Transfer cake mixture to prepared pans and bake for about 30 mins or until the tester inserted into centre comes out clean.
Cool cakes completely in pan on a rack, about 1 hour, then cut around sides of pan to loosen.
Turn cakes out onto rack and peel off parchment paper. Let cool completely before adding the topping!
Frosting (non-vegan)
Combine all ingredients in large bowl.
Beat at medium speed until creamy.
Spread over cooled cake.
Add sliced figs for decoration!
Delicious and fresh chocolate and carrot cake!
Smoothies
We love our smoothies, and being in Morocco, we’re spoilt with lots of beautiful fresh ingredients to create tasty smoothies. They’re the ideal vitamin boosting compliment to your chocolate carrot cake! Check out a selection below – all you do is put together in a blender and whizz to perfection!
Carrot and Beetroot
1 beetroot
1 apple
1/4 cup carrots
1 tbsp grated ginger
ice & water to thin
Avocado and Date
1 banana, fresh or frozen
1 cup fresh milk or nut milk
2 dates pitted
1/2 large avocado, peeled
1 tsp vanilla extract
Mango and Orange
1 cup ripe mango
1 orange
2 bananas
1/3 cup fresh or nut milk (optional)
We could have the whole jug!
Fancy joining us on our January Detox Yoga Surf Retreat? Book now and get a free spa treatment and 20% off when you book with a friend!