Mint Chocolate Cake

What I made for St. Patrick's day:

Leprechaun-friendly.  Will trade for pot of gold.

MmmMmm. I made 4 mini cakelets.

THE RECIPE:

Flourless Chocolate Cake:

4 ounces fine bittersweet chocolate -- I used a little under 4 oz unsweetened chocolate, plus ~ 4 tbs coconut sugar
1/2 cup ghee (or other butter substitute)
3/4 cup coconut sugar
3 large eggs
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
pinch of salt

---> Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease an 8 inch round springform pan, or four 4-inch springform pans.  Line bottom of pan with a round of parchment paper, and grease the paper.
Chop chocolate into small pieces. In a microwave safe bowl, Melt the chocolate over low heat, and stir in butter substitute until they are melted together.
Add cocoa, then whip in eggs, vanilla, and salt.
Pour the batter into cake pan(s).
Bake for ~25 minutes.  Let cool in springform pan.

Mint Frosting:
1 can full-fat coconut milk, chilled. --> scoop the thick coconut fat off the top of the can, after it has chilled. leave the watery stuff behind.
mint extract, to taste (i used ~1/8 tsp)
green food coloring (I usually don't use food coloring.... but i couldn't resist!!)
Add powdered xylitol and erythritol in 1:1 amounts until desired consistency
     Note: to make powdered xylitol/erythritol, add the granulated form to a magic bullet, with a dash of tapioca starch or potato starch.  The starch will help it to 'powder' easily. Bullet until powdered.

Topping:
Shaved mint chocolate bar.
    I used Endangered Species Chocolate, Mint Chocolate and shaved off curls using a vegetable peeler.

Assembly:
After cake has cooled in springform pan, pour frosting on top of cake. Chill until frosting is firm.  Then add chocolate shavings on top of frosting.  Garnish with mint leaves if desired.

To serve, gently remove sides of springform pan, then transfer cake onto serving platter.  Enjoy!

The Best Chocolate Cookies in the Universe

Note: sandwiching with mint chocolate chip ice cream only makes the best even better.

Best in the Universe? --prove me wrong, I DARE YOU.

They're fudgey, chewy, soft, gooey, crinkley, sweet, and delicious.  (And grain-free, gluten-free, sugar-free, dairy-free, of course.)

Recipe can easily be doubled for twice the aweseomeness.

Adapted from the 2013 Washington Post Christmas cookie section.


THE RECIPE:

Prep:
- toast 2 3/4 c chopped walnuts:  spread them on a baking sheet and place in a 350 degree oven, shaking sheet occassionally, for 8-10 minutes.  Watch carefully to make sure you don't burn them.

- separate 4 large eggs, saving the whites **

- powder 3 cups coconut sugar:  I used a magic bullet blender for this, powdering small amounts at a time.  A Vitamix could probably handle all of it at once and save considerable time.  I put ~1/2 c at a time in the bullet with a pinch of tapioca or potato starch each time, and blended until powdered. Adding starch helps create the 'powdered' consistency.

- locate parchment paper or silicone baking mats to line cookie sheets before dropping cookies.

- heat oven to 350 degrees

[** save those yolks and make some Gluten Free Pasta!! It's no coincidence that a double cookie recipe takes 8 whites, and a double spinach-pasta recipe takes 8 yolks..... :) ]


THE ACTUAL RECIPE:

1/2 c plus 3 tbs cocoa powwder
3 c powdered sugar
pinch of salt
2 3/4 c walnuts, toasted
4 large egg whites, at room temperature
1 tbs vanilla

Combine the cocoa powder, powdered sugar, salt, and walnuts - beat on low for 1 minutes.

With the mixer running, slowly add the egg whites and vanilla.  Beat on medium for 3 minutes, until the mixture has thickened slightly and looks lumpy. Do not over-mix, or the eggwhites will over-thicken.

Use a 2-ounce cookie/ice cream scoop (or let's be honest... a normal spoon) to scoop that batter onto the LINED cookie sheets.  Space cookies about 3 inches apart.

After placing cookies in the oven, immediately reduce temperature to 320.  Bake 15-20 minutes, rotating pans font to back and top to bottom halfway through. (note... this entire step is optional, but is included in the original recipe, and would probably would help for optimal results.)

Pull parchment paper with cookies onto a cooling rack and cool completely before moving cookies.

Eat and enjoy!

Pumpkin Madness!

Pumpkin snickerdoodles!

A new post? Shocking, right-- seeing as I've been completely AWOL for a very long time.... sorry about that. This week I got caught up in the fall pumpkin-everything craze!  It started with pumpkin snickerdoodles and then progressed to pumpkin-sauce pasta. I still have some pumpkin left in the can... so there may be some pumpkin pancakes in store for tomorrow morning.

I still have been being food-lazy, so I mainly used other peoples' recipes for these creations.  I made the pumpkin snickerdoodles using the awesome recipe on The Nourishing Gourmet.  They are definitely some of my favorite cookies ever!! The pumpkin gives them a delightfully fluffy texture.

In the recipe, I used coconut sugar for the sweetener.  For gluten-free flour, I used 1 cup millet flour, and 1 cup of mixed garbanzo flour and brown rice flower.  I also threw in about 1/4 or 1/2 tsp guar gum for good measure.  I also added Enjoy Life mini chocolate chips to half of the batter...... but those do have cane sugar in them. (I was feeling adventurous!)  I love the combination of pumpkin and chocolate, but these cookies were so good they barely needed the addition.

Pumpkin (sauce) pasta

Now, for the pasta, I cooked up some gluten-free brown rice penne and twisty things (don't know the proper pasta-name!) and whipped up some pumpkin sauce with the left-over canned pumpkin.

I really just made the sauce by taste, and followed the basic seasonings listed here. The base was pumpkin, olive oil, almond milk, and pasta water.  The seasonings were salt, pepper, sage, onion powder, garlic powder, nutmeg, and cinnamon.  It ended up having a great blend of savory taste, plus the implied sweetness of the touch of cinnamon.  Definitely also a winning creation.

Happy fall! Now the big question.... what are you being for Halloween???

Chocolate Easter Bunny

Yes, it's belated. But pour it into a different mold, and it can be chocolate whatever-you-want!

Hi, I'm cute! Also, delicious!

 THE RECIPE:

2 oz unsweetened baker's chocolate
1 tbs coconut oil  (I used the kind that doesn't taste like coconut to make it more standard-chocolate-y)
1 tbs agave (or stevia to taste)

Melt and mix - then pour into a candy mold!
If you're feeling fancy, try to temper your chocolate... I wasn't, so I didn't.

Almost-deaf.

The Sticky Bun Experience

 Also known as, How I Spent My Easter:

Sticky Bun: aka, giant brick of sweet, rich, caramely decadence.

I made Pecan Sticky Buns, invented from a recipe in April's Bon Apetit magazine.  Problem is, they somehow ended up taking half the day to make!  This was pretty much due to a few "mishaps" that occurred along the way.  In the future, I will also make everything the night before, roll them out, and then will only need to slice and bake them in the morning.



At any rate, these turned out sinfully rich, sweet and delicious.  Since I didn't use yeast in the recipe, they have a more flakey than doughy consistency, but still fine nonetheless. 

This recipe has three parts: the dough, the filling, and the topping/glaze.  Before I go into the making of them, let me explain the "mishaps" that I had. 

1. First of all, gluten-free flour must absorb less water than normal flour. (Maybe? Let's blame it on that?) - I added less milk than called for to my batter at the last step, yet still turned it to a sticky, unrollable mess.  So, I had to keep adding more and more flour....  I was already making a double recipe, so this nearly made my mixer bowl overflow.  (It also prompted some delirious song... "25 gallons of sticky bun dough, 25 gallons of dough.... add some flour, mix it around, 26 gallons of sticky bun dough.....")  After adding about a cup, I gave up, threw it in the fridge, and it ended up fine after chilling.

2. Second major issue-- Bon Apetit recipe calls for 1 cup of the glaze to be poured into the pan before putting the raw buns in, before cooking.  I somehow missed the "1 cup" part, so I dumped the whole pot in.  This led to sticky buns swimming in a pool of caramel sauce.  When I realized my mistake, I tried to pour some out.... this did not end well either. (Actually it was fine- but sticky buns were still baked in WAY more glaze than necessary!) - So that one definitely changed the final product.

The moral of the story is, they're still delicious, even if you mess up a little. (Or "improvise!")

Without further ado....

THE RECIPE:

DOUGH:
1/2 c millet flour
1/2 c brown rice flour
1/2 c tapioca flour
1/2 c potato starch
3/4 c all-purpose GF flour
1.5 tsp guar gum
2 tsp baking powder
5 tbs coconut sugar
1 tsp sea salt                       --> combine dry ingredients, stir to mix

2 large eggs                        --> break into a cup, whisk until smooth
~1/3 c almond milk-- or less!
1/4 c ghee
1/4 c coconut oil  (soft, but not melted)

Place dry ingredients in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook. (Dough hook is probably optional, especially since we're not using a yeast dough... but I used one anyway)  Gradually add all eggs, and about 1/4 c almond milk. Add milk slowly until dough is moist enough, but not too wet to roll.  Mix in butter a little bit at a time.  Mix on medium speed for ~5 minutes.  Place in refrigerator to chill (2-3 hrs).

FILLING:
1/4 c ghee
1/4 c coconut oil  (soft, not melted)
1/2 c coconut sugar

ROLL OUT!

3/4 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp salt

Mix all ingredients using an electric mixer on high speed, beating until light and fluffy, 2-3 mins.  Set aside.

TOPPING/GLAZE

1 3/4 c chopped pecans, toasted     (toast on a cookie sheet in oven, if not pre-toasted: 10-12 mins at 350)
1/4 c coconut oil
1/4 c ghee
3/4 c coconut sugar
1/3 c agave
2/3 c almond milk + 2 tbs soymilk powder + 1/8 tsp guar gum  (= "heavy cream" substitute!)
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp finely grated orange zest (optional- I did one batch with, one without-- both great!)

Melt oil/ghee in a small heavy saucepan over medium heat. Stir in all other ingredients. (Coconut sugar will probably separate out/turn tar-like... this is okay! Proceed!)  Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium, and simmer for 3-4 minutes.  (MAGIC!) Sauce should be uniform, glossy, and smell (/taste) like caramel. :)

What NOT to do: pour entire pot of glaze into pan.

ASSEMBLY:
Pour ONE CUP :) of glaze into a 8x8 baking pan, and tilt to coat sides. Set aside the rest for later use.  Sprinkle 1/2 c toasted pecans over bottom of baking pan, and let cool.

Roll out dough- I recommend between 2 sheets of waxed paper, or between two silicone rolling sheets.  Either way, flour surface liberally (I used brown rice flour.) Roll into a 12"x16" rectangle, about 1/4" thick, with the long side facing you.  Spread the filling over the rectangle, leaving a 1" plane border on the edge farthest from you (so it doesn't goo-out post-rolling!)

Sprinkle 3/4 c chopped pecans over filling.

Starting with the long edge closest to you, roll up the dough, trying to tighten as you go.  Use a metal knife/spatula to help free it if necessary.  Pinch long seam together when rolled. Pat open ends to make them flat (un-tapered). Arrange log seam-side-down.

Buns swimming in glaze.... yummo!

Use a knife to slice log into 9 pieces (buns)... or more if you want lots of shorter ones! (but then you will need more pans... possibly with more glaze in them....)  Turn buns cut-side up, and pat top to flatten slightly.  To make a bun more round in shape, cup it in floured hands, and gently push and turn it in a circular motion. 

Place buns in prepared pan, evenly spaced, and preferably not touching.

Preheat oven to 350, with a middle rack available. Whisk one egg with 1/2 tsp water in a bowl, and brush tops of buns with egg wash.  Bake for ~50 minutes, "rotating pan halfway through and tenting with foil if browning too quickly" (--yeah right Bon Apetit, I did neither of those two things).  Buns should be golden-brown, and filling (/glaze goo) should be bubbling.

Let cool for 5 minutes, then spoon remaining glaze over them.  Sprinkle on remaining 1/2 pecans, then let cool completely.  --Bon Apetit also says to lightly sprinkle sea salt over them. I forgot to do this, but I think it would be good! --> so let's say sea salt optional.

THE END!

Outta the oven.  Maybe more like Sticky-Bun-Loaf... but delicious all the same.

For me, the experience of making these was equally important as the outcome.

(Sadly, I can barely eat the outcome, as they're just so darn sweet and rich! ..and probably calorie rich too... oh well!)

Oh oh and you know what my favorite part was??? Making the glaze taught me that coconut sugar does indeed caramelize, and if you boil it with almond milk./agave, it WILL melt! (contrary to its low-heat tar-like behavior!) Yay!

Waffle Cookies! (Wookies?)

Waffleization #1: Chocolate Oatmeal Waffle-Cookies!

Look like waffles, taste like cookies. True Waffleization.

Waffleized cookies are cookie batter cooked in a waffle iron.  I whipped up some chocolate-oatmeal batter, and popped it in my belgian waffle maker... instant waffle-cookies! (wookies?)

THE RECIPE:

1 c flour  (1/4 all-purpose GF, 1/4 brown rice, 1/4 c millet, 1/4 c GF oat)
3/4 c GF oats

1/2 tsp baking powder
3/8 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp nutmeg
3 Tbs cocoa powder
1 Tbs cacao nibs (optional)

1/4 c coconut oil
1/4 c agave
1/4 c coconut sugar
1 egg
1/2 tsp vanilla

Combine dry ingredients in a bowl, and separately whisk together all wet ingredients in a large bowl. Add dry ingredients, and stir/beat until well combined. (I did it by hand using a wooden spatula/paddle thingy.)  The batter should be cookie-consistency: Holds its form, but still moist/a little sticky.

Fire up the waffle iron! I used a medium-high setting, but still needed to watch them carefully.  It's a balance between cooking them long enough that they're firm enough to be removed in one piece, but also not cooking them too long/too high that the outside burns.  A little bit of dark toastiness is fine, and to be expected. The inside will still be gooier than the outside, which is also fine (and delicious)!

Scoop on blobs of the batter, and flatten them slightly.  I chose not to make them full-waffle sized, but any size should work.  Since I didn't fill the griddle, my "green light" was going off before the waffle-cookies were truly all the way done... so as I said, I had to check them to see when they were really done.

Overall, this worked very well! They taste just like normal cookies, but have the added benefits of being (a) waffle-shaped (thus possibly still passing as breakfast), and (b) TWICE AS BIG as normal cookies (thus allowing you to eat twice as much). :)

SUCCESS! Wookies rock.

Part 2 - Brownies w/ Irish Creme Frosting

I used the recipe from my Chocolate Raspberry Truffle Cake, but doubled it and baked it in a 9x13 pan.  And then made Irish Creme Frosting using flavored agave. (What I REALLY wanted to do was incorporate whiskey flavor using my whiskey flavored tea from Scotland.... but then I forgot it at work!)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9x13 pan.

THE RECIPE:

1 c coconut oil
1/2 c ghee (or more coconut oil)
2 c coconut sugar
1/2 c light agave          ---> if oil is solid, heat on stove until melted; whisk together/stir continuously. Let cool slightly.  (the components may remain separate, but that's okay for now)

4 eggs
2 tsp vanilla    ---> after wet ingredients cool slightly, whisk in eggs and vanilla. At this point, stir until all ingredients are mixed.


Combine in a separate bowl:

1 1/3 c flour combination: oat, GF all-purpose, brown rice, millet, tapioca  (basically whatever you have!)

1/2 tsp guar gum

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

1 c cocoa powder    ---> combine dry ingredients in a bowl, then add them to the wet ingredients. Mix well.

Pour batter into pan, and bake ~30 minutes, or until toothpick inserted into center comes out clean. Let cool.

IRISH CREME FROSTING:

I made this in a very small quantity, since I'm basically out of irish creme agave. Multiply the proportions as necessary:

1/4 c coconut oil  (softened, but not melted)

1/4 c irish creme agave   ---> whisk together until frothy/creamy

1 tbs cocoa (or more/less to taste)

1/8 tsp lemon juice (makes it less sweet)

If you want it thicker, place in fridge for a while.

Povitica v.2.0

Yum yum yum yum yum!

Much tastier version than the last, albeit not quite as authentic as far as the thin-rolling goes.

The following recipe makes FOUR LOAVES plus a bit extra filling.


THE RECIPE:

Dough:  Cream together...

1/2 c coconut oil
1/2 c ghee
1.5 c coconut sugar
4 eggs
1/2 c brown rice syrup

Mix and add....

2 c brown rice flour
1/2 c garbanzo bean flour
2 c millet flour
1 c gluten-free oat flour
1 c tapioca flour
3 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt


Filling:   Melt together...

1.5 c ghee
1.5 c almond mulk
1 c agave nectar
1 lb ground walnuts
3 tbs cinnamon
2 tsp guar gum (to thicken)


Separate the dough into four quarters- one for each loaf.  Roll out one portion between plastic. Spread cooled filling onto dough, then roll dough. Fit each portion into a greased loaf pan.  Bake at 350 for ~40 minutes.

Slice and enjoy!

Maple Walnut Pie

One again... ate 90% of it before a photo could be taken..... :)

Happy Thanksgiving! This is a festive pie that I actually made for a pre-Halloween pumpkin carving party.  It was delicious, and I liked that it was less traditional than your typical pecan pie. (and also... walnuts are cheaper than pecans! :) )

Crust:

1/2 c + 3 tbs millet flour
1/2 c garbanzo bean flour
1 tbs potato starch
1/8+ tsp salt           ---> combine dry ingredients
3 tbs ghee              ---> mix into dry ingredients to make velevety consisitency
3 tbs ghee              ---> mix coarsely to form pea sized balls
~1 tbs ice-cold water   ---> drizzle in, gently mixing until dough forms into a ball

Roll out for a 8.5" pie pan (8 or 9" would work too) on waxed paper. Place the pie pan upside-down on the rolled dough, and use the waxed paper to flip the crust into the pan. Repair any cracks that may form, then crimp edges
Prick bottom and sides of pastry with fork. Line edges of crust with double thickness of foil. Bake 8 minutes at 450 F.. Remove foil, them bake 5 minutes more or until crust is lightly browned cool. Reduce oven to 350 F.


Filling:


1.5 c maple flavored agave (or maple syrup, if you can eat it)
3 eggs
4 tbs ghee
2 tbs coconut oil
1/3 c coconut sugar
1/4 c erythritol (or more coconut sugar)
2 c chopped walnuts, toasted
1 tbs vanilla
1/4 tsp nutmeg
2 tsp tapioca flour


Beat eggs until thick and lemon colored, ~5 minutes. Add ghee/coconut oil (softened), beat in. Add all other ingrdients and mix, then fold in walnuts. Pour into crust. Bake on baking sheet for ~45 minutes, or until middle just begins to set but edges are not burned. If edges seem to be cooking too quickly (browning) before middle begins to set, turn temeprature down slightly.  Cool before serving.


Tastes like a cross between a pecan pie and maple stick donuts. :)

Apple Cider Donuts with Apple Cider Syrup

MmmMMmm... pre glazed.

Perfect for the fall.  TRUTH: I ate 48 mini donuts in 3 days.  Pretty easy to make, and the result has a true cake donut crumbly-but-melt-in-your-mouth consistency.  Top them with cinnamon coconut-sugar, or drizzle with home made apple cider syrup.... or both!


 THE RECIPE:

1/3 c brown rice
1/3 c teff flour
1/3 c tapioca Flour
1 c millet flour            (totals 2c GF flour)

1 tsp guar gum
1 tbs baking powder
½ tsp salt
½ tsp nutmeg (or more to taste)
½ tsp cinnamon (or more to taste)

2 tbs applesauce
¾ c apple juice
5 (/7, or scant ¼ tsp) drops apple cider vinegar
3/4 c coconut sugar          
2 tbs agave
2 tbs coconut oil, melted
½ tsp vanilla extract
1 egg

Combine dry ingredients. Combine wet ingredients. Make sure coconut oil is melted—place in hot water bath/heat gently on stove if not. Mix wet into dry.

Preheat donut maker; fill donut wells—DO NOT overfill, these WILL rise well. To top, spray with sprayable coconut oil, then sprinkle with cinnamon+coconut sugar. For a sweeter taste, drizzle with apple cider syrup (and cinnamon-coconut sugar, if desired). The syrup does take away a bit from the delicate donut taste, though - so take your pick!

Apple Cider Syrup:

1 gallon apple cider

First, measure 2.5 cups cider into a large (at least a gallon) pan, and note the liquid level. Add the rest of the cider. Boil for approximately 5 hours, stirring frequently (especially at the end as it thickens), until volume is reduced to 2.5 cups. Pour into sterile (boiled) glass jars for storage. Keep refrigerated. Syrup will thicken as it cools.

Boil it down!

As it begins to thicken (~5 hrs) it will begin to froth! Exciting!

Dark Chocolate Ribbon Fudge

In addition to being delicious, this fudge is incredibly flexible when sliced into thin strips. The sculpting possibilities are endless, but of course I ate it all before getting around to shape more than a simple spiral. I also added raspberry sauce, home-made with raspberries from my back yard.

THE RECIPE:

1/2 c coconut oil
8oz unsweetened baking chocolate
1/2 c agave + small dump (~2 tbs)
1 c coconut sugar
1/3 c cocoa powder
1 tsp vanilla
1/8 tsp sea salt (or, to taste)

Line a 8x8 baking pan with waxed paper.

Use a double boiler to prevent chocolate from burning. Before pan is hot, add all ingredients except vanilla and sea salt.  Turn heat on to medium, and stir continuously until chocolate is just melted, and all ingredients are combined. Do NOT overheat. Then add vanilla and salt, stir to mix.

Pour fudge into lined pan, and set in fridge to cool. (Takes about 2 hours)

After the fudge has set, when it is left out of the fridge for a few minutes, thin strips will be very flexible- hence, it's "ribbon fudge!"

Also-- RASPBERRY SAUCE
THE RECIPE:

~2c raspberries
~1/4 c orange juice concentrate
agave - to taste

Bring all ingredients to a boil and mix. Let cool, and keep in fridge.

Magic Cookies Bars

Magic! (cookie bar)

Magic cookie bars (also known frequently as Seven Layer Bars-- although I'm nver quite sure what the 7th layer is... maybe the pan?!) are one of the first desserts I learned to make by myself. The original recipe came from an EagleBrand Sweetened Condensed Milk can. I remember layering the graham cracker crumbs, melted butter, sweetened condensed milk, chocolate chips, walnuts, and coconut flakes on many a late-night dessert-making spree, often accompanied assisted by friends, and often followed by gobbling up the whole pan while watching movies and gossiping in my basement.




Fast forward to now, and my current recipe is really just as easy to make and just as delicious to eat. (I may or may not have eaten it for breakfast all week... which actually worked great!) Benefit over the traditional version: no crushing graham crackers. Downside: spreading marshmallow fluff is a pain. Either way, they're still easy and worth it.

MmmMmm, pan of gooey deliciousness...

THE RECIPE:

Layer in a baking pan: (8x8, or 9x13)

Uncooked.

crust, in 2:2:1 ratio - almond meal, flaxseed meal, coconut sugar
melted coconut oil - add to crust, mix with fork until consistency is gooey but not wet, and covers entire bottom of the pan
vegan marshmallow fluff (I get mine at WholeFoods) - spread (or rather, lump/drizzle on) until it more-or-less thinly covers the whole pan
chocolate chips - use ~10 oz to cover the whole area
chopped walnuts - again, sprinkle or spread over surface
shredded coconut - sprinkle over surface


By now the chocolate chips, walnuts, and coconut should have entirely covered the gooey fluff layer-- thus, you can use your hands to gently press all along the top layer to compact the layers together. 


Heat oven to 350 and bake until chocolate is melted and coconut begins to toast - around 20 minutes.

Cooked, served, half-eaten.

 

5-Minute Fudge

yummo.

 FUDGE!
I may or may not have gained ten pounds from eating two batches of this in four days. (The uncertainty comes from the fact that I refused to get on a scale!) No worries though, it was worth it!

Now, you may think that the name (5-Minute) comes from assembly time, but that's not entirely the case-- it's more like, that's how long it will last before being completely devoured, because it's that deliciously addictive. (I'm only sort of kidding.)

 Can you actually make this in five minutes? Try it and let me know. I probably can't, because I'm perpetually mis-estimating time, BUT it only has four ingredients, and really all you need to do is mix them in a bowl, spread the goop into a pan, and pop that baby into the fridge. (Fridge setting > 5 minutes- it doesn't count!)


THE RECIPE:

1/4 c coconut oil
1 c almond butter (I used raw creamy unsalted)
1/2 c agave
3/4 c cocoa powder

Combine all ingredients, stir until mixed.  Line an 8x8 pan with waxed paper, pour in fudge goo, and place in fridge to set (~30 mins, or until firm), or, if you can't wait- just eat it wet. And then smooth over the area you ate to destroy the evidence! :)

 This stuff is delicious, and super rich. It's kind of like gold, in food form, only chocolate colored instead of gold colored. (Also, you don't have to dig and dig and diggety dig for it.)

Oh, oh, also, this recipe's raw! (provided you use raw almond butter, and whatever cocoa powder you accept as 'raw')

 ~~~~~~~~~~

 Also, I got a new surfboard! Thanks to my mom for a FANTASTIC yardsale find, scoring me my first longboard.

MmmMmmm, beeeeaaaaach....

Chocochip Cookies

MmmMmmmmmm, choco chips!!!

Amazing chocolate chip cookies: yes, this just happened.

In college, Frist Campus Center used to have the most amazing, soft and gooey chocolate chip cookies- they were by David's Cookies, and were one of the highlights of pre-ACD campus life.

I haven't eaten a genuine chocolate chip cookies since then! In place, I just guzzle Sunspire grain-sweetened chocolate chips straight from the bag. But, a couple weeks ago, I was inspired to make a David's quality ACD-friendly chocolate chip cookie recipe, and because I'm awesome, I succeeded- in taste, texture, and deliciousness!!


THE RECIPE:

4 tbs ghee
4 tbs coconut sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla

2 tbs oat flour 2
1 tbs millet flour 1
1 tbs tapioca flour
3 tbs teff flour
1  tbs brown rice flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp guar gum
1/4 tsp cinnamon
dusting stevia
2 tbs + 5 tsp flax seed meal

~1/2 10oz bag of Sunspire

Cream eggs and coconut sugar; add ghee and vanilla. Seperately combine dry ingredients and stir well; slowly add dry ingredients.

Cook for ~15 minutes at ~375. Makes about 20 cookies.

Also, I ate them all before remembering to take a plated picture. :)

Chocolate Raspberry Truffle Cake

My birthday was a couple weeks ago, and I made myself a cake.

Back in the day, when I wanted to make something truly decadent, I used to look up recipes on the Godiva chocolate website (they have a great gourmet recipe selection). Birthday desserts, boyfriend desserts- Godiva had me covered for all of 'em. So, I decided to take on the challenge of adapting a truly decadent chocolate cake recipe.

Also influencing my inspiration- around this time for the past 4 years was Lawnparties at my eating club in Princeton. This involved an enormous brunch with just about every type of gourmet cake / tart imaginable... and thus resulted in a total deterioration of my diet, for at least a couple days. Obviously I had to make a substitute for that experience, too.

So, I present, the best cake EVER, and of course, gluten-free, sugar-free, dairy-free.
I also submitted this recipe for the Daily Dietribe's Gluten-Free Birthday Cake Challege (awesome).

Chocolate Raspberry Truffle Cake

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a round (~9 inch?) springform pan.

LAYER 1: Dense Chocolate Cake

¾ c ghee/coconut oil mix
1 c coconut sugar
¼ c light agave          ---> heat on stove until melted and well-mixed; whisk together/stir continuously. Let cool slightly.

2 eggs
2 tsp vanilla    ---> after wet ingredients cool slightly, whisk in eggs and vanilla

2/3 c flour combination: oat, all-purpose GF, brown rice, millet, tapioca

¼ tsp guar gum

½ tsp baking powder

½ tsp salt

½ c cocoa powder    ---> combine dry ingredients in a bowl, then add them to the wet ingredients. Mix well. 

Pour batter into springform pan, and bake ~30 minutes, or until toothpick inserted into center comes out clean. Let cool in springform pan.

 

LAYER 2: Raspberry Layer

2 c rapsberries
1 tsp powdered chia seeds
½ truvia packet
Stevia dusting       ---> combine all ingredients. I used about half frozen raspberries and half fresh raspberries.

LAYER 3: Chocolate Truffle Ganache Layer

1 c canned coconut milk (the more thick/fatty, the better)
10 oz Sunspire chocolate chips

1 tsp vanilla                           ---> heat coconut milk until hot. Pour over chocolate chips, add vanilla, stir until all chips are melted/smooth consistency is obtained. Let cool slightly.

ASSEMBLY:

After cake layer has cooled, (leaving it in spring form pan) spread a thin layer of truffle layer on top (so that raspberry layer won't make cake soggy). Next, spread on raspberry layer. Finally, top with truffle/ganache layer. Place in fridge to chill.

Before serving, remove sides of spring form pan.
Keep chilled before/after serving, or top layer will "sweat."

Hope you enjoy this delicious treat! Everyone's response to it was "I love how buttery the cake tastes!" And I said, "well, there's no butter in it!" Oh, the magic of quality ACD baking! :)












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In other news, I just went to my 1st Princeton Reunion! I'm proud to report that ate and drank (aka, didn't drink) well all weekend. Hooray for good life choices!!

Saturday fireworks show-- Goodness gracious, great balls of fire!!

View of the 5th reunion dancefloor from the Grass Knoll, c. 1am Friday Night.

Meet the Pizzelle

Pizzelle sandwich!

Meet the Pizzelle- traditional Italian waffle cookies. They can be crisp or chewy, sweet or savory, and are typically made with flour, eggs, sugar, and butter/oil.

Carob pizelle ice cream roll.

Dessert pizzelle with strawberry purree and shipped kream.

I had never heard of pizzelle before- and then I found a pizelle maked at a yardsale for 5 dollars! I couldn't resist. These will now be a staple of my regular repertoire, because they made a thin wafer perfect for sandwiches OR dessert toppings. They're just as easy to make as waffles, but provide a lower-carb alternative, since they're thinner and smaller. I did a little research, and whipped up the following all-purpose recipe:

PIZZELLE:

1 egg
1 tbs extra light olive oil
1 tbs millet flour
1 tbs garbanzo bean flour
1 tbs all-purpose gluten free flour
2 tbs brown rice flour
1.5 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp vanilla
10 drops liquid stevia
1 tbs almond milk
1 tbs ghee

Mix all ingredients together. Consistency should be thicker than waffle batter, but thinner than cookie dough. Place a heaping teaspoon of batter onto each pizzelle circle on hot pizzelle maker, close lid, and bake for ~5-10 seconds for soft, flexible pizelle, or ~30-45 seconds for crispy pizelle. I like soft better for ice cream sandwiches, but crispy better for sandwiches or dessert toppings.





CAROB PIZELLE:

see above, but substitute 1-2 tsp flour for 1-2 tsp carob powder
(Yes, it's my first Carob Month carob recipe!)

What I used them for--

 

Sandwiches with rice cheese, pizza sauce, and spinach

Dessert with strawberry purree, soyatoo whipped cream, and raspberries

Ice cream sandwiches, taco-style (with carob pizzelle and mint carob chip Rice Dream)

Awesome, a whole new food item!