Tag Archives: chocolate

Cherry and Chocolate-Filled Mini-Heart Tarts

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Take a bite. The small cup made of flaky pastry will melt in your mouth, leaving a hint of rich flavor only cream cheese and butter can deliver. The moist filling made of cherry and chocolate offers just enough sweetness to satisfy and just enough chocolate to make you want more.

I’ve used a a version of this dough made of cream cheese, butter and flour to make savory bite-size appetizers as well as rich, decadent desserts. In February, a month of chocolate and cherries, it only seemed fitting to make mini-heart tarts filled with a mixture of canned sweet cherries, dried cherries and almonds with a generous helping of semisweet chocolate.

The three-ingredient pastry needs a little chill time before it’s ready to form into little balls to pat into mini-muffin tins. As little as an hour should do the trick, but an overnight in the refrigerator doesn’t hurt.

Make the cherry filling well in advance. After it cooks for a few minutes to thicken, it needs plenty of time to cool completely before adding the chocolate.

A light sprinkling of streusel topping made of sugar, flour and butter adds a tiny bit of sweetness and crunch to each tempting little tart.

Cherry and Chocolate-Filled Mini Heart Tarts are just the right sweet treat for February. Just right anytime, really.

Disks of this dough can be stored in the freezer for a few months. Very convenient!

Cherry and Chocolate-Filled Mini-Heart Tarts

  • 1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
  • 4 ounces cream cheese, softened
  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 (15-ounce) cans pitted sweet cherries, drained
  • ½ cup dried cherries
  • ½ cup sliced almonds
  • ¼ teaspoon almond extract
  • 1/2 cup mini semisweet chocolate morsels
  • Powdered sugar, for serving

Topping:

  • 2 tablespoons
  • 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • 1 tablespoon butter, softened

In a mixing bowl, beat butter and cream cheese together until creamy. Add flour and beat on low speed until flour disappears and large crumbs form. Use your hands to gather up the dough. Form a ball. Cut the ball of dough into 4 equal pieces. Flatten each piece to form a disk, wrap in plastic and refrigerate at least 4 hours or overnight.

Put drained cherries and dried cherries into a food processor or heavy-duty blender. Process until mixture is quite smooth. Add almonds and process until finely chopped. Transfer mixture to a small saucepan. Cook over low heat, stirring frequently, for about 10 minutes, or until mixture is thick. Remove from heat and stir in almond extract. Transfer to a glass bowl. Allow to cool completely, then stir in chocolate morsels.Cover and refrigerate. The filling can be made a day or two before baking.

Make Topping by combining sugar, flour and butter. Rub together with fingers until crumbly. Set aside.

When it is time to make tarts, preheat oven to 375 degrees. Take one disk of dough from refrigerator and allow to sit for a few minutes to warm up a little. Divide disk of dough into 12 equal pieces. Roll each piece into a ball. Press into bottom and up sides of lightly greased mini-muffin pans.  Fill each pastry cup with cherry-and-chocolate filling. Sprinkle with Topping. Repeat with remaining disks of dough. Bake in preheated 375-degree oven for about 10 to 12 minutes, or until edges are just beginning to turn light brown.

Allow tarts to cool in pans for a few minutes. Use a knife to nudge tarts from pan and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Dust liberally with powdered sugar before serving. Makes 4 dozen mini-tarts.

*I used heart-shaped mini-muffin tins to make these tarts. Regular mini-muffin pans work just as well.

Easy Valentine Brownies with a surprise inside

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I’ve pulled out my heart-shaped muffin tins, cake tins, springform pan, ramekins, cookie cutters, lollipop molds, waffle irons and pancake forms. I’ve stocked up on chocolate. I’ve begun my February baking.

These easy-to-make brownies are made with a recipe I’ve used ever since my two sons were in grade school. A woman who had children going to the same school shared her recipe. It’s the kind of brownie that delivers a slight crunch as you bite through to the moist, chewy inside. It’s my kind of brownie.

The filling, though, is a new twist. When I was doing my Christmas baking last December, I made some chocolate thumbprint cookies with a dab of coconut-pecan filling in the middle of each. I had some filling still remaining after making the cookies, so I put it in a small, tightly sealed container and stored it in the freezer for another time. I thought it would be a nice filling for these brownies.

The layer of coconut-pecan filling gives the brownies a touch of elegance. The filling can be made a day or two before making the brownies. Store it in the refrigerator.

I spooned the same chocolate mixture over these brownies that I used as one of the layers in Chocolate and Raspberry Cream Tarts.

I baked the batter in 1/3-cup capacity heart-shaped muffin tins. And, I used some of the batter to bake a Valentine to share in a heart-shaped ramekin, as you see in the photo at the top of this post. My husband and I shared it the other night. We added a big puff of whipped cream to the plate and dipped every forkful of coconut-pecan brownie before it went into our mouths. Decadent!

The brownies can be frosted with your favorite frosting or just dusted with powdered sugar. Make them now and eat them, or freeze them until you’re ready to start sharing with everyone you love.

Valentine Brownies with Coconut-Pecan Filling

  • 1/4 cup baking cocoa
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Coconut-Pecan Filling

  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1/2 cup evaporated milk
  • 1/4 cup butter
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 egg yolk, beaten
  • 3/4 cup coconut
  • 3/4 cup chopped pecans

Make coconut-pecan filling by combining sugar, evaporated milk, 1/4 cup butter, vanilla and egg yolk in saucepan. Blend well. Cook over medium heat until thickened, stirring frequently, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat. Stir in coconut and pecans. Cool to room temperature.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease heart-shaped muffin tins.

Sift cocoa, flour and salt into a bowl. Set aside. Cream butter and sugar together. Add eggs and vanilla. Blend well. Add sifted dry ingredients and mix just until they disappear into the batter. Spoon brownie batter into prepared cupcake tins, filling 1/3 of the way to top. Flatten a heaping tablespoon of cooled coconut-pecan filling and layer over brownie batter. Cover completely with more brownie batter, filling just about to the top of each cup. Bake in preheated 350-degree oven for 18 to 20 minutes, until done. Allow to cool slightly in pan. Remove brownies and cool completely on wire rack.

Frost with your favorite chocolate frosting or make a rich chocolate topping by melting 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate morsels with 3 tablespoon butter in a saucepan over low heat. Stir until chocolate is melted. Allow to cool slightly. Spoon over brownies. It will get firm at room temperature.

If you’d rather not frost the brownies, just dust with powdered sugar and nestle a scoop of premium ice cream over the top at serving time.

Makes 9 brownies when using 1/3-cup capacity cupcake tins.

Chilled Berry Soup in Chocolate -cozy dessert for two

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The berries of summer will soon be a sweet, delicious memory that must hold me until next summer.

After making Raspberry Brownies the other day, I had about 1/2 cup of the luxurious, dark Chocolate Drizzle still remaining in the bowl. There was a cup of fresh raspberries in my refrigerator. I also had some organic strawberries I snatched up when I was in the co-op this morning. In my mind, I was putting together an easy but elegant dessert that I would serve when my husband returned home from a long-weekend golf outing.

I slowly reheated the chocolate. When it was smooth and just slightly warm, I spooned it into a couple of dessert dishes, turning them to coat the sides. The extra chocolate collected in the bottom of each dish.

Fresh strawberries filled the chocolate-coated dishes, sitting pretty in a bath of chilled raspberry puree. A soup, of sorts. A decadent, sexy soup.

If you just love raspberries, use them to fill the chocolate dessert dishes rather than strawberries. Raspberry liqueur is a bit on the expensive side. I did buy a bottle of Chambord, though. Only because my friend, Ann, sent me a recipe for Chambord Brownies that she claims are to die for. She’s had the recipe for years. I’ll be posting those brownies later this week. I can’t wait to try them.

I couldn’t help myself from eating one of the Chilled Berry Soup in Chocolate desserts after shooting the picture. So, tomorrow when my husband is home and we are ready for dessert in the evening, I will serve one dessert with two spoons. We’ll share. He’ll love it. I will, too.

Hurry and try this dessert while the fresh berries of summer are still available. Will you share one and eat one yourself? I recommend it.

Chilled Berry Soup in Chocolate

  • 2 tablespoons heavy whipping cream
  • 1 tablespoon butter
  • 1 cup semisweet chocolate morsels
  • 1 cup fresh raspberries
  • 2 tablespoons sugar (superfine sugar works well in this recipe)
  • 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed orange juice
  • 2 tablespoons raspberry liqueur, Chambord or Framboise
  • 1 teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
  • 1 cup of quartered fresh strawberries
  • Whipped cream and fresh mint sprigs, for garnish

In a small heavy saucepan, heat whipping cream and 1 tablespoon butter until it just begins to bubble around the edges. Remove from heat and add chocolate morsels. Stir until chocolate melts and mixture is smooth.

Working quickly, spoon chocolate into 2 individual dessert dishes (or martini glasses). Turn the dishes to coat sides evenly with chocolate. Let remaining chocolate pool in the bottom of the dessert dishes. Place the dishes in the freezer until the chocolate is firm. Transfer to refrigerator and store until needed.

The raspberry can also be prepared ahead and refrigerated until needed. Process rapsberries, sugar, orange juice, raspberry liqueur and lemon juice in blender or mini food processor until smooth. Pour mixture through a fine-mesh strainer into a bowl, pressing against sides of strainer with back of a spoon. Discard seeds. Cover and chill the puree.

About 20 minutes before serving, remove chocolate dessert dishes from refrigerator. This will give the chocolate time to soften as it comes to room temperature. Pile the strawberries into the chocolate dessert dishes. Pour chilled raspberry puree over the berries, being generous. Garnish with whipped cream and mint sprigs. Serves 2.

  • Just a reminder that the recipe for the chocolate mixture makes enough to drizzle over Raspberry Brownies. If you are making it just for the Chilled Berry Soup, you may have more than you need. I’d just make more of these desserts.

I’ll bet you’ll love this chocolate Bette

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Mmmmmmmmmmm. Chocolate. And more chocolate. Rich, not too sweet and not one bit of flour. That’s Bette LeMae. It’s a traditional dessert that’s been served at northern Minnesota’s Ruttger’s Bay Lake Lodge for years. And, I had a taste of it at the Twin Cities Food and Wine Experience a couple of weeks ago.

Just one of the two-bite-sized cube of Bette LeMae flew me right back in time to my first experience with flourless chocolate cake. I was at a cooking class with about five other people in Andrea Halgrimson‘s kitchen. She was teaching us how to make a cake she described as so decadent, so breathtaking she just had to name it, "Chocolate O." You know what that "O" stands for, right? The chocolate dessert lived up to its name.

Ruttger’s Bette LeMae is just like that. They were so kind to share their recipe as they offered samples of the sublime cubes of chocolate dipped in chocolate.

As you read through the recipe, you’ll notice that the mixture of boiling water, chocolate, eggs, sugar and butter must be strained before baking. This removes any little bits of cooked egg, creating a perfectly smooth flourless cake. Use a fine mesh strainer or a colander lined with a double thickness of cheesecloth.

The batter is poured into a round pan and baked in a hot water bath, or Bain Marie (bane mah-ree). This method cooks the cake gently, creating a smooth, custard-like texture. As it cools after baking, this cake becomes something like fudge — only much better. Smothered in a rich blend of chocolate and heavy cream, this dessert becomes simply dreamy.

You can go directly to a printable version of Ruttger’s Bette LeMae recipe by clicking right here. They’ve got a recipe archive that’s worth checking out, too. Click here.

I just registered for my first bike ride of the season. This year, the Tour of Lakes starts at the high school in Crosby, Minnesota. Deerwood is right next door. And, that’s where Ruttger’s Bay Lake Lodge is located. Tour of Lakes has a reputation for for the quality, variety and quantity of the food at the rest stops. Maybe I’ll find Bette LeMae at one of the stops? A hungry (chocoholic) biker can only hope.

In the meantime, (I can’t wait for June 5th) I’ll make my own Bette LeMae. Mmmmmmmm. Chocolate. And more chocolate.

Thanks for sharing the recipe, Ruttgers!

 

 

 

 

Bette LeMae — A Signature Recipe from Ruttger’s Bay Lake Lodge

  • 2/3 cup boiling water
  • 1 2/3 cups sugar
  • 2/3 cup butter
  • 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
  • 3 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
  • 6 whole eggs

In saucepan, mix water and sugar and boil for 2 minutes. Add butter, bittersweet chocolate and chocolate chips. Bring to a boil and boil for 2 more minutes.

While mixture is boiling, beat 6 eggs in mixing bowl. Slowly add boiled mixture to eggs, beating at low speed. Let mixture beat for 2 – 3 minutes. Strain mixture into stainless steel bowl and pour into prepared wax paper-lined and floured 9-inch round pan. Place pan in hot water bath and bake for 1 hour at 325 degrees. When done, remove from water bath and place on towel. Scrape around side of pan and allow to set for 10 minutes.

Turn Bette LeMae over onto plate. Let cool for 1 hour before frosting.

Bette LeMae Frosting Glaze

  • 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
  • 1 1/2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

Scald whipping cream and remove from heat. Add chocolate chips and stir until melted. Let stand until cooled. Frost Bette LeMae. Store in the refrigerator.

Chocolate for the pasta bowl

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More than 20 years ago, I used to take cooking classes from Andrea Halgrimson in Fargo. At that time, she was the librarian and food columnist at the daily newspaper in Fargo and had a reputation for her expert cooking skills. She’d have a small group of eager home cooks into her intimate condo kitchen. We’d give our full attention to Andrea as she prepared gourmet meals, teaching us her tips and techniques as she deftly created the most beautiful and delicious meals I’d ever eaten. I still have all the recipe handouts from those classes, with my notes written in the margins.

I remember one of the classes I attended in Andrea’s kitchen focused on chocolate. One of the desserts was based on chocolate crepes, cut into strips to resemble fettuccine. She served the chocolate pasta in large balloon glasses. A sauce of dark chocolate was drizzled over the dessert and served with whipped cream.

I’ve made the Chocolate Fettuccine several times since that class, but never with a glass of champagne as Andrea did those many years ago. I was a young mother at the time, and that class was probably one of the most extragavant things I had ever experienced.

The chocolate crepes along with dark chocolate sauce can be used in many ways. The sauce can be used as an ice cream topping, of course. It’s also good drizzled over cheesecake, pound cake, pecan pie or poached pears. The possibilities are endless.

The crepes don’t have to be cut into strips to become a decadent dessert. I’ve come up with an almond filling to stuff into the thin disks of chocolate and then use raspberry and chocolate sauces to serve with the dessert crepes. You can see a picture of them and find the recipe in my column this week.  Click here to go right to the recipe for Almond-filled chocolate crepes.

If you like crepes, you may be interested in the recipes I posted for Hungarian-style crepes with ricotta filling. Just click here and here.

The good news: Anyway you serve chocolate crepes, they’re chocolate. And that’s a good thing. The bad news: Andrea no longer teaches cooking classes in Fargo, but you can sample some of her recipes in a column that she writes for The Forum.

Push in your thumb and pull out a plum: a premium holiday thumbprint cookie

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For as long as I can remember, Thumbprint Cookies have been my favorite holiday cookie treat. My paternal grandmother started the Thumbprint tradition. The cookies soon became a favorite of her little son Ronny (my dad.) So, of course, my mom had to learn how to make them and carry on the Thumbprint tradition. My mom’s been gone for many years, so the Thumbprint tradition was left to me. I’m certain the tradition will be carried on for generations. My daughter-in-law makes them now, too.

Our Thumbprint cookies are made of a rich, buttery dough that is rolled into a ball, coated with coconut and poked in the middle to make a bowl to hold creamy frosting — red and green, of course. Long ago, my grandma may have used her thumb to push a shallow indentation into each little ball of cookie dough, thus the name Thumbprints. Somewhere along the line, though, my mom began using the end of a wooden spoon for the job. It may have been because the thumb-pressing process doesn’t take place until the cookies have baked for 5 minutes. It makes for a very hot, steamy thumb. Ouch!  The end of a wooden spoon creates a space for frosting much too small for my taste. Over the years, I’ve started using the end of the handle on a small Swedish butter knife made of wood. It’s the only thing I ever do with that wooden tool. The rest of the year it stays tucked in a kitchen drawer. The end of that knife makes a large basin to hold lots of frosting. Perfect!

When I gathered with friends a few weeks ago to make Swedish Ginger Snaps, Judy, our host, pulled some holiday cookies from her freezer. At that time, she already had a good start on her Christmas cookie baking. They were not only beautiful, they were delicious. She was kind enough to share the recipes for two kinds of cookies that I wanted to add to my holiday baking list.

I’ve already tried one of the recipes Judy gave me. And, a couple of highly-regarded tasters have already decided these Chocolate Caramel Thumbprints will be granted a spot in our "Keep Forever" Christmas baking file.

Oh, I know they are a little bit putsy to make. But it’s that attention to detail that results in beautiful cookies, which is one of the requirements for any cookie that wants a spot on my Christmas cookie platter.

I’ve started to wonder how it happened that my grandma’s Thumbprint Cookies became a holiday tradition. Where did she get the recipe? Maybe one of her friends shared the recipe with her as they shared holiday treats with one another. Was it a tradition in that friend’s family? So, does that mean there could be other people out there using the exact same recipe at holiday time that my family has been using? I wonder.

Use your thumb or find something else that becomes the official tool for making Thumbprint Cookies. The bigger the indentation, the more caramel filling it will hold. Who knows? Chocolate Caramel Thumbprint Cookies may become one of your holiday traditions.

Enjoy!

Chocolate Caramel Thumbprint Cookies

  • 1/2 cup butter, room temperature
  • 2/3 cup sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 2 tablespoons milk
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 16 vanilla caramels, unwrapped
  • 3 tablespoons whipping cream
  • 1 1/4 cups finely chopped pecans
  • 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate morsels
  • 1 teaspoon shortening

In a large mixing bowl, beat butter with an electric mixer until creamy. Add sugar and beat well.

Separate egg, setting the egg white aside to use later. Beat in egg yolk, milk and vanilla. In another bowl, sift together the flour, cocoa powder and salt. Add flour mixture to butter mixture and beat until wll combined. Chill the cookie dough in plastic wrap for at least 2 hours.

In a small saucepan, heat and stir caramels and whipping cream over low heat until mixture is smooth. Set aside.

Shape the dough into 1-inch balls. Slightly beat reserved egg white with a couple of drops of cold water. Roll the dough balls in egg white and then in chopped pecans. Place 1 inch apart on a lightly greased or parchment-lined cookie sheet. Using your thumb, (I use the end of a wooden Swedish butter knife) make an indentation in center of each cookie.

Bake in a preheated 350-degree oven for abut 10 minutes, or until edges are firm. Remove from oven and spoon some melted caramel mixture into indentation of each cookie. Transfer cookies to wire rack to cool. (If necessary, reheat caramel mixture to keep it spoonable.)

In another saucepan, heat and stir chocolate morsels and shortening over low heat until chocolate is melted and mixture is smooth. Let cool slightly. Transfer the chocolate mixture to a plastic zip-top bag. Close bag and cut a small hole in one corner. Drizzle cookies with chocolate mixture. Let cookies stand until chocolate is set. Makes 36 cookies.

Tips from the cook

  • These cookies can be stored in a tightly sealed container in the freezer for a month or two.
  • 1 (14-ounce) bag of caramels will be enough to make 3 batches of these cookies.

See the Thumprint Cookies that are a tradition in my family right here.

 

Chocolate Cinnamon Rolls Save a Cookbook

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I’m still rolling through my office, trying to organize every inch of it, with the help of my friend, the professional organizer. We’re making great progress. Tops of my desks have stayed mostly clear. My files are filling up. I’m finally seeing blank space on the shelves in my storage closet, the result of some purging.

There is much more to do before the job is done. My organizer strongly suggests I get my cookbook collection all in one place and that place should be my office. Cookbooks live on shelves in the storage closet in my office, on shelves and in a bookcase in an extra bedroom, in a pile next to my bed and a few on the ottoman in the living room. I shudder when I think of consolidating this enormous number of books into one space in my office. I fear the "organizer" will tell me to start choosing cookbooks to put in a "give-away box."

I started looking through some of the cookbooks lined up on my shelves. I admit there are many church and community cookbooks I’ve collected over the years that I haven’t cracked open in a long time. I started paging through a few. How can I get rid of a cookbook that has a recipe for Root Beer Caramel Rolls? I must keep the book with the recipe for Lemon Angel Halos. And then there is the book with a recipe for Rice Pudding. I added a note on that page when I prepared it on April 25, 1994 that says my husband thinks this is the bes rice pudding he’s ever had. And I don’t think I’ve thought about that recipe since April 25, 1994. But now I’ve got the page marked with a sticky note. And then I came upon a recipe for Chocolate Cinnamon Rolls in a church cookbook from Tulsa, Oklahoma. It must be a book I picked up at a second=hand store or a garage sale. The recipe was contributed by Dolores Wilson. Thank you, Dolores, wherever you are.

I made the rolls the same day. I have a weakness for the combination of chocolate and cinnamon. Somewhere in my past, there was a deep dark chocolate cinnamon roll with a thick slather of chocolate frosting on the top. I’ve never forgotten that delicous sweet roll. The possibility of recreating that sweet treat using a recipe from this book that I’d ignored for years was enough to get me right into the kitchen.

The rolls were still warm from the oven when I drizzled them with sweet white glaze. The sugar-cinnamon filling was melted into the spirals of softness. Crunchy bits of pecans stuck to each chubby chocolate roll of dough. Delicious.

Don’t let this yeast dough intimidate you. It’s not difficult to mix up and almost no kneading is required. Just follow the directions Dolores shares with her recipe and you will wind up with nine beautiful Chocolate Cinnamon Rolls.

These Chocolate Cinnamon Rolls kept the church cookbook from Tulsa on my shelf. Who knows what other great recipes are held within its pages?

Oh, how am I ever going to get rid of any cookbooks?

Chocolate Cinnamon Rolls

(contributed by Dolores Wilson to Madalene Cooks–50 Years of Good Taste)

  •  1 package active dry yeast (2 1/4 teaspoons)
  • 3/4 cup warm water (105 to 115 degrees)
  • 1/4 cup butter, softened
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1 large egg
  • 1/3 cup cocoa
  • 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 tablespoon butter, softened
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
  • 3 tablespoons sugar
  • 1/2 cup chopped pecans
  • 2 cups sifted powdered sugar
  • 2 1/2 tablespoons milk

Combine yeast and warm water in a 2-cup liquid measure. Let stand for 5 minutes.

Combine yeast mixture, 1/4 cup butter, salt, 1/4 cup sugar, egg, cocoa and 1 cup flour in a large mixing bowl. Beat at medium speed of an electric mixer until well blended. Gradually stir in enough remaining flour to make a soft dough. Place dough in a well-greased bowl, turning to grease top. Cover and let rise in a warm place free from drafts, 50 minutes or until doubled in bulk.

Punch dough down. Turn out onto a lightly flourd surface, and knead until smooth and elastic, about 2 minutes. Roll dough into a 12- x 9-inch rectangle, positioning a short side nearest you. Spread 1 tablespoon butter over dough. Combine cinnamon and 3 tablespoons sugar. Sprinkle over butter. Sprinkle pecans over cinnamon mixture. Roll up dough, starting at short side, pressing firmly to eliminate air pockets. Pinch seams to seal. Slice dough into 9 rolls. Place rolls on a greased baking sheet. Cover. Let rise in a warm place, free from drafts, 15 minutes or until doubled in bulk. Bake at 425 degrees for 8 to 10 minutes or until golden.

Meanwhile, combine powdered sugar and milk, stirring until blended. Drizzle hot rolls with powdered sugar glaze. (To make the glazing easy, simply place glaze in a heavy-duty, zip-top plastic bag, and seal securely. Then snip off one tiny corner of the bag and pipe glaze over rolls. Makes 9 rolls.

 

Star-Spangled 4th of July Chocolate Cake

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Some people are so creative, aren’t they? A friend of mine made a rich, decadent chocolate dessert last weekend. She turned it into a perfect 4th of July cake by arranging the wedges into the shape of  a star.  It is French Chocolate Cake from “The Cook’s Encyclopedia of Chocolate” by Christine McFadden & Christine France. I looked all over the internet trying to find the recipe so I could give you a link, but just couldn’t find it.

There is a recipe over on the Saveur magazine web site that is very similar to the one pictured. The texture is similar to fudge. Each bite melts in your mouth. A few tablespoons of the flour in the recipe keep it off the list of flourless chocolate cakes.

I had my first taste of flourless chocolate cake when I took a cooking class in Fargo in the early to mid 1980′s. Chocolateir magazine had just started publishing. I think it was the second issue that had a recipe for flourless chocolate cake. My cooking teacher made it for us in class. It was divine. I’m pretty sure I remember her referring to the decadent dessert as " Chocolate O." That was her name for it, not the magazine’s. I’ve made it a few times since that long-ago introduction. It’s rich with butter, lots of chocolate and a little sugar. And no crust.

You can click right here to go quickly over to the chocolate cake recipe in Saveur. And, lucky you if there is a copy of "The Cook’s Encyclopedia of Chocolate" on your book shelf.

May your 4th of July be filled with fun and good food.

 

Planks on a grill with bananas

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Although the method of cooking food on a wooden plank has been used for ages, it was just 10 or 12 years ago when I first discovered it. One of my husband’s buddies brought the idea back with him from a fishing/camping trip he’d been on. He had watched fresh salmon being prepared on a cedar plank. They decided to try this technique on the grill in our backyard. It was a delicious success.

Since that time, we’ve occasionally used cedar planks as a tray for grilling meats on our grill. Just recently, though, I received a copy of "Napoleon’s Everyday Gourmet Plank Grilling," by Ted Reader. I’d never thought about preparing appetizers and sides on a plank, let alone dessert. And I had never thought of soaking the planks in anything but water before placing them on the grill. But, Reader often suggests soaking planks in a mixture of water and wine or juices, sometimes along with fresh herbs, in large zip-top plastic bags. As I read through the book, I caught the plank-grilling bug. I’m not a big steak lover, but the photo of Reader’s Red Wine-Planked Peppercorn New York Strip Steaks was tough to pass up. I soaked cedar planks in a red wine and water mixture for several hours. Once the steaks have almost cooked through, they are topped with a gorgonzola and red grape mixture. The steaks were tender, moist and flavorful with just a hint of smokiness. The topping surprised me with its perfect combination of sweet and tangy — so good with the steak. You can click here to get the recipe and see my photo of a planked steak. I think it would make a great grilled meal for beef-loving men on Father’s Day.

Friday night we prepared a meal centered around grilled Jerk Pork Tenderloin, using a recipe from the June 2009 issue of Eating Well magazine. Dessert didn’t come from Reader’s book. Cider-Planked Stuffed Bananas was an idea born from our love of chocolate-banana anything and a desire to come up with another food to grill on wet planks. My son and daughter-in-law were with us. My daughter-in-law readily admitted she did not like warm bananas, but said she’d give them a try.

I’ve been using grilling planks from Maine Grilling Woods. They are slices of tree trunk, the bark still attached. I’ve got a few different sizes of the oval planks and several varieties, such as white cedar, olive and apple. I find they don’t start burning on the grill like some rectangular cedar planks I’ve purchased that come wrapped in packages of two or three planks. The planks from Maine Grilling Woods smolder on the grill, adding interesting flavor to the food that rests on them.

I slid the planks into a large zip-top bag and poured in a mixture of half water and half apple cider, sealed up the bag and let them soak all day. At dessert time, I set out bananas with brown-speckled skin which was a sign they would be perfectly sweet. I cut a deep slit into the flat side of each banana, being very careful not to go through the other side. Bowls of "stuffing" ingredients surrounded the bananas. There was peanut butter, both chunky and creamy, mini-marshmallows, coconut. Whatever you like to eat with bananas would probably work as a stuffing ingredient.

Each person created their own stuffed banana and then set it on a small, wet plank and onto the grill it went. The bananas heated up in the closed grill, sweet cider-spiked smoke swirling around them as they cooked, adding more flavor. In 5 to 10 minutes, the peanut butter was melting and the chocolate was soft.

The warm bananas can be eaten right out of the skin, scooped out with a spoon. We decided to scoop our stuffed bananas out of their peelings and right into a bowl full of ice cream. Premium vanilla ice cream is a good addition to this dessert, but I had mine with a scoop of Luna and Larry’s Coconut Bliss, a non-dairy frozen dessert that I discovered at my local natural food co-op last week. It’s made with coconut milk. It comes in several flavors. I’ve only tried the Naked Coconut. It satisfies my coconut-loving tastebuds.

The verdict: My daughter-in-law had two bites and turned it over to her husband to finish. She went with the ice cream only. I liked the warm banana with my scoop of Coconut Bliss. The two guys each downed their grilled stuffed bananas with lots of ice cream. It’s a fun dessert that makes sense to make when the grill is still warm after cooking the entree.

Next time you’re gathering family and friends for an outdoor picnic, soak some grilling planks and set up a make-your-own stuffed banana bar. And have the ice cream ready to scoop.

Cider-Planked Stuffed Bananas

  • 1 banana per person
  • Plenty of stuffing ingredients of your choice — chocolate, butterscotch and peanut butter morsels, creamy and crunchy peanut butter, coconut, marshmallows
  • Grilling planks
  • Apple cider for soaking planks

Early in the day you plan to serve the Stuffed Bananas, mix equal parts water and apple cider. Pour over grilling planks in large zip-top bags. Set aside.

Place bananas on work surface, laying them on a flat side. Use a sharp paring knife to cut through the skin into the banana but not all the way throught to the other side. Use a clean finger to run through the slice, opeing it up a bit. Push stuffing ingredient into the slit. Place bananas on soaked planks and place on grill. Close lid of grill and heat over medium temperature until stuffing in bananas is melted and banana peels have turned dark. Eat warm right from the skin or scoop out of skin and eat with ice cream.

 

 

Chocolate. Raspberries. Cake. Need I say more?

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Who do you know who would absolutely love a big piece of this cake? You’re probably thinking, "Me!, Me! I want a huge piece of that cake." And, really, it’s such a big cake, there will be plenty to share with a friend or two.

This cake was prepared by Bemidji bakers, Jeanette Proulx and Carla Mandrell, for the 2008 Chocolate Affair, a fundraiser for three nonprofit charitable organizations in Bemidji, Minn.: Northwoods Interfaith, Sexual Assault Program, and Community Resource Connections.

The Chocolate Affair has been held for the last four years in Bemidji. The last one was held in December, just in time for participating tasters to buy some candies and baked treats for all the chocoholics on their holiday gift list.

According to Ruth Sherman, one of the organizers of the event, the idea for a Chocolate Affair occurred when staff from Northwoods Interfaith and Community Resource Connections (CRC) were celebrating the birthday of a CRC staff member. "We were all sitting around the table eating some WONDERFUL chocolate cake, commiserating at how broke our agencies were, and wishing that we could come up with some fundraiser that involved something we all love: eating and chocolate. Somewhere during the silly conversation that followed… someone remarked that they couldn’t imagine having an affair…but if they did it would definitely be with chocolate. By the end of the birthday celebration (and the end of the cake) we had formed the concept of “The Chocolate Affair.”

Area chocolate lovers of all ages, home cooks, children and professional chefs, are invited to participate by preparing 100 one-inch samples of their sweet chocolate treat along with a beautifully decorated platter of it…for sale at a silent auction during the event. Contestants also provide their recipe, which is published in a small cookbook that is available for purchase at the event.

The samples are used as taste samples; people attending the event are charged a small amount to choose 10 items to taste and then vote on their favorites.

I attend these events and choosing favorites is a difficult task. But a sinfully delicious one, at that.

The item with the most votes wins first place.

The 2008 first place Taster’s Choice Award went to Proulx and Mandrell for their Raspberry Forest Cake.

So dig out all your favorite chocolate recipes. Sit down and read them as you leisurely enjoy a large piece of Raspberry Forest Cake. If you live in the Bemidji area, you can stop in at Minnesota Nice Cafe, right downtown. You see, Jeanette Proulx, who came up with the idea for this cake with her friend, Carla Mandrell, owns the cafe and her Raspberry Forest Cake is often on the menu. And if you’re feeling like having a bunch of chocolate-loving friends over, make the cake yourself and impress them all. 

Decide which of your recipes you’ll be entering into the 2009 Chocolate Affair. It may take another piece of cake before you can come to a decision.

Mandrell and Proulx assembled a Raspberry Forest Cake in my kitchen a couple of weeks ago. Chocolate. Raspberries. Cake. I will say this: It’s a chocolate cake I could eat everyday. To be able to stop into Minnesota Nice Cafe for a piece of this cake any day is waaaaay dangerous.

Raspberry Forest Cake

  • 1 1/2 cups cake flour
  • 1/2 cup Dutch-processed cocoa
  • 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 1/2 cups sugar
  • 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
  • 3 eggs
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 cup buttermilk

Frosting:

  • 1 cup heavy whipping cream
  • 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut up
  • 12 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped, divided
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 3 cups fresh raspberries, divided

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Spray bottom of 9-inch square pan with cooking spray. Line bottom with parchment paper, spray parchment.

Whisk flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt in medium bowl. Beat sugar and 1/2 cup butter in large bowl at medium speed 2 minutes or until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in 1 teaspoon vanilla. At low speed, beat in flour mixture alternately with buttermilk until blended, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Pour batter into pan, smooth top with spatula.

Bake 40 to 45 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out with a few moist crumbs attached (do not overbake). Cool in pan on wire rack 15 minutes. Invert onto wire rack; remove parchment. Cool completely.

Meanwhile, combine cream and 3 tablespoons butter in medium saucepan; heat over medium heat until butter melts andmixture is hot. Remove from heat; add 12 ounces of chocolate. Let stand 1 minute. Stir until chocolate is melted and smooth. Stir in 1 teaspoon vanilla. Let stand at room temperature to cool and thicken slightly while cake cools. (Cooled frosting should be thick enough to cling to cake.)

Slice cake in half horizontally. Spread about 1 cup of the frosting over bottom cake layer; top with 2 cups of the raspberries. Top with remaining cake layer; spread top and sides with remaining frosting. Let stand 1 hour. Place remaining 1 cup raspberries on top of the cake. Cover carefully and refrigerate. Serve cold.

Cake can be made 1 day ahead. Refrigerate leftovers.