With the arrival of the holidays upon us, it’s time to get creative and and start planning our menus now. Today, I decided to experiment in the kitchen with this new Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free Banana Coconut Mango Cake recipe.

Since my daughter, Lexi, is strictly gluten and dairy-free, I make an effort to come up with new recipe ideas that she can enjoy too. Sometimes they work and sometimes…well…not so much. Today I achieved success!

There are so many things I like about this recipe including its flavor and texture. In my experience, gluten-free baked goods can often be dull and dry with a taste that is over-shadowed by the odd chalky feeling left in your mouth after only a few bites. Not my idea of a worth-while dessert. This recipe, however, has none of those characteristics which makes it perfectly suited for the entire family, even those who aren’t limited by food intolerance’s.

My favorite part of this dessert is how easy it is to make and utterly versatile in every way. If you are not a fan of mango, feel free to use your favorite fruit puree in the cake batter in place of the mango puree. Add your choice of fruit topping including raspberries, blueberries, strawberries, peaches, pears, bananas, or a combination of all. Also, feel free to use heavy whipped cream instead of coconut whipped cream if you aren’t serving it to a dairy-intolerant eater.

If you really want to have some fun, serve it with my Frozen Banana Ice cream, and you’ll be the hit of the dinner-time show! Go nuts, and have fun with this dessert. After all, isn’t that what dessert during the holidays is supposed to be? Fun, festive and delicious? I declare a resounding “Yes!” Happy Holidays!