Chocolate

Daring Bakers-Swiss Roll Ice Cream Cake

August 4, 2010 by Lynsey Leave a Comment

The July 2010 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Sunita of Sunita’s world- life and food. Sunita challenged everyone to make an ice-cream filled Swiss roll that’s then used to make a bombe with hot fudge. Her recipe is based on an ice cream cake recipe from Taste of Home .

I was so excited when I saw this month’s challenge. I had actually seen one of these cakes in a bakery a few weeks ago and thought it looked so neat and I knew I would love to try to make a cake like that at some point in time. Well, that time came sooner than later since Sunita decided to make that our challenge this month for the Daring Bakers. When I saw the cake in the bakery I was curious as to what process they had used to accomplish the finished product, but I couldn’t really figure it out but this challenge took me through the step by step process. I followed this recipe step by step because I wanted to make sure everything turned out properly and it did, but I want to make this again and try out some different ice cream flavors and some different fillings.

Swiss Roll Ice Cream Cake

Ingredients-

6 Medium sized eggs
1 Cup plus extra for rolling
6 Tbsp All purpose flour + 5 tblsp Natural unsweetened cocoa powder, sifted together
2 Tbsp Boiling water
A little oil for brushing the pans

For the filling-

2Cups Whipping cream
1 Vanilla pod, cut into small pieces of about ½ cm (or 1 tsp vanilla extract)
5 Tbsp. Caster sugar

Directions:
Pre heat the oven at 200 deg C /400 deg F approximately. Brush the baking pans ( 11 inches by 9 inches ) with a little oil and line with greaseproof baking paper. If you have just one pan, bake one cake and then let the pan cool completely before using it for the next cake.
In a large mixing bowl, add the eggs and sugar and beat till very thick; when the beaters are lifted, it should leave a trail on the surface for at least 10 seconds.
Add the flour mixture, in three batches and fold in gently with a spatula. Fold in the water
Divide the mixture among the two baking pans and spread it out evenly, into the corners of the pans.
Place a pan in the centre of the pre heated oven and bake for about 10-12 minutes or till the centre is springy to the touch.
Spread a kitchen towel on the counter and sprinkle a little caster sugar over it.
Turn the cake on to the towel and peel away the baking paper. Trim any crisp edges.
Starting from one of the shorter sides, start to make a roll with the towel going inside. Cool the wrapped roll on a rack, seam side down.
Repeat the same for the next cake as well.
Grind together the vanilla pieces and sugar in a food processer till nicely mixed together. If you are using vanilla extract, just grind the sugar on its own and then add the sugar and extract to the cream.
In a large bowl, add the cream and vanilla-sugar mixture and beat till very thick.
Divide the cream mixture between the completely cooled cakes.
Open the rolls and spread the cream mixture, making sure it does not go right to the edges (a border of ½ an inch should be fine).
Roll the cakes up again, this time without the towel. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill in the fridge till needed, seam side down.

The vanilla ice cream-

Ingredients:

2½ Cups Whipping cream

1 Vanilla bean, minced or 1 tsp Vanilla extract

½ Cup Granulated sugar

Directions:

Grind together the sugar and vanilla in a food processor. In a mixing bowl, add the cream and vanilla –sugar mixture and whisk lightly till everything is mixed together. If you are using the vanilla extract, grind the sugar on its own and then and the sugar along with the vanilla extract to the cream.

Pour into a freezer friendly container and freeze till firm around the edges. Remove from the freezer, beat till smooth and return to the freezer. Do this 3-4 times and then set completely.

The Hot fudge sauce

Ingredients:

1 Cup Caster sugar

3 Tbsp Natural unsweetened cocoa powder

2 Tbsp Cornflour/cornstarch

1½ Cup Water

1 Tbsp Butter

1 Tsp Vanilla extract

Directions:

In a small saucepan, whisk together the sugar, cocoa powder, cornflour and water.
Place the pan over heat, and stir constantly, till it begins to thicken and is smooth (for about 2 minutes).
Remove from heat and mix in the butter and vanilla. Keep aside to cool .

The chocolate ice cream

Ingredients:

2Cup Whipping cream

1 Cup caster sugar

3 Tbsp natural unsweetened cocoa powder

Directions:

Grind together the sugar and the cocoa powder in a food processor .
In a saucepan, add all the ingredients and whisk lightly.
Place the pan over heat and keep stirring till it begins to bubble around the edges.
Remove from heat and cool completely before transferring to a freezer friendly container till firm around the edges. If you are using an ice cream maker, churn the ice cream according to the manufacturer’s instruction, after the mixture has cooled completely.
Remove from the freezer, beat till smooth and return to the freezer. Do this 3-4 times and then set completely.

Assembly:

Cut the Swiss rolls into 20 equal slices ( approximately 2 cms each ).

Cover the bottom and sides of the bowl in which you are going to set the dessert with cling film/plastic wrap.

Arrange two slices at the bottom of the pan, with their seam sides facing each other. Arrange the Swiss roll slices up the bowl, with the seam sides facing away from the bottom, to cover the sides of the bowl. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and freeze till the slices are firm (at least 30 minutes).

Soften the vanilla ice cream. Take the bowl out of the freezer, remove the cling film cover and add the ice cream on top of the cake slices. Spread it out to cover the bottom and sides of the bowl. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and freeze till firm ( at least 1 hour)

Add the fudge sauce over the vanilla ice cream, cover and freeze till firm . ( at least an hour)

Soften the chocolate ice cream and spread it over the fudge sauce. Cover with plastic wrap and freeze for at least 4-5 hours till completely set .

Remove the plastic cover, and place the serving plate on top of the bowl. Turn it upside down and remove the bowl and the plastic lining. If the bowl does not come away easily, wipe the outsides of the bowl with a kitchen towel dampened with hot water. The bowl will come away easily.

Keep the cake out of the freezer for at least 10 minutes before slicing, depending on how hot your region is. Slice with a sharp knife, dipped in hot water.

Daring Bakers June Challenge-Chocolate Meringue

June 29, 2010 by Lynsey Leave a Comment

The June 2010 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Dawn of Doable and Delicious. Dawn challenged the Daring Bakers’ to make Chocolate Pavlovas and Chocolate Mascarpone Mousse. The challenge recipe is based on a recipe from the book Chocolate Epiphany by Francois Payard.

I was so excited when I saw what the challenge was for June for two reasons; it’s been a while since we’ve done anything with chocolate so I was happy and I’ve never made anything like this. After reading about this recipe and looking at the pictures she posted, I couldn’t wait to attempt this challenge. I always look forward to the challenges; some are variations of recipes I’ve tried before while others are things that either I hadn’t thought about/heard of or things I thought I just couldn’t even begin to attempt. I always learn things from these challenges and they encourage me to step out of my comfort zone from time to time. This challenge was no different; I made something that I would not have otherwise made and I learned some new recipes and techniques to incorporate into my cooking.

This challenge had a few steps but the end result was incredible. This would make for a wonderful and impressive dessert and with fruit added to it, it would serve as the perfect, light dessert for the hot summer time!

Chocolate Meringue (for the chocolate pavlovas)

Ingredients:

3 Large egg whites

1/2 Cup plus 1 Tbsp granulated sugar

1/4 Cup confectioners sugar

1/3 Cup cocoa powder

Directions:

Place rack in the center of the oven and preheat oven to 200. Line 2 baking sheets with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper and set aside.

Put the egg whites in a bowl and beat until soft white peaks form. Increase the speed to high and gradually add in the granulated sugar until stiff peaks form. (they should be firm but still moist)

Sift the confectioners sugar and cocoa over the whites, and gently fold ingredients together.

Fill a pastry bag with cream and pipe onto the line baking sheets in desired shape.

Bake for 2-3 hours, until meringue becomes dry and crisp. Cool and store in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

Chocolate Mascarpone Mousse ( for the top of the pavlova base)

Ingredients:

1 1/2 Cups heavy cream

Grated zest of lemon

9 Ounces chocolate, chopped

1 2/3 Cup mascarpone

pinch of nutmeg

2 Tbsp Grand Marnier or orange juice

Directions:

Pour 1/2 cup of heavy cream in a saucepan and add the lemon zest, place over medium heat. Once warm, add the chocolate and whisk until the chocolate is melted and smooth. Remove from heat, and transfer mixture to another bowl and let cool until room temperature.

Place the mascarpone, remaining cream, and nutmeg in a mixing bowl and whip on low until the marscapone is loose. Add the Grand Marnier and whip on medium speed until soft peaks begin to form. (Do not over whip)

Mix about 1/4 of the mascarpone mixture into the chocolate to lighten. Fold in the rest of the mascarpone mixture until well incorporated. Fill a pastry bag with the mousse, and pipe on the palvova.

Mascarpone Cream (for drizzling)

Ingredients:

1 Recipe for creme anglaise – recipe below

1/2 Cup mascarpone

1 Tbsp sambucca (optional)

1/2 Cup heavy cream

Directions:

Prepare the creme anglaise and slowly whisk in the mascarpone and Sambucca and let the mixture cool. Put cream in a bowl and beat until peaks begin to hold. Fold in the mascarpone mixture.

Creme Anglaise

Ingredients:

1 Cup whole milk

1 Cup heavy cream

1 Vanilla bean, split OR 1 tspn pure vanilla extract

6 Large egg yolks

6 Tbsp sugar

Directions:

In a bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and and sugar until the mixture turns pale yellow.

Combine the milk, cream and sugar in a saucepan over medium-high heat and bring to a boil. Remove from heat once it reaches a boil.

Pour about 1/2 a cup of the hot mixture into the egg mixture (to temper the eggs), whisking constantly to ensure the eggs don’t scramble. Pour the egg yolk mixture into the pan with the remaining cream mixture and put back over the heat. Stir constantly , with a wooden spoon, until the mixture begins to thicken and can coat the back of a wooden spoon. Do NOT overcook.

Remove the mixture from the heat and strain through a fine, mesh sieve into a bowl. Cover and refrigerate until the mixture is thoroughly chilled, at least 2 hours or overnight.

For the assembly:

Pipe the mousse onto the palvovas and drizzle with the mascarpone cream. Dust with confectioners sugar and serve with fresh fruit (if desired).

Additional Information:

Wikipedia’s definition of Pavlova

The history of Pavlova

Videos:

Great video on Youtube – How to Make Pavlova

Another great video that uses whipped cream instead of the Mascarpone cream – Pavlova

One more from Epicurious – Australia Pavlova

Some great photos on Flickr:

La Tartine Gourmand – Red and Orange Pavlova
VROG in Bristol – Birthday Pavlova

Marco Veringa – Pavlova 6 (the fruit on this one is stunning)

Katiequinndavies – Double Chocolate & Raspberry Pavlova

My Food Obsession – Chocolate Banana Rolled Pavlova (something different!)

Chocolate Spiced Pork Chops

April 30, 2010 by Lynsey Leave a Comment

When I saw these pork chops on Paula’s Best Dishes; she was doing a chocolate episode so I was already interested since I’m a huge chocoholic but when she said she was making chocolate spiced pork chops I was glued to the t.v. because it sounded very interesting. After I saw her make these I knew I had to try them, there isn’t a lot of chocolate in the recipe so don’t be worried about them being over chocolatey, but there is just enough to add a different depth of flavor. The rub itself was incredible, it had all the different flavor elements; sweet, salty and spicy and they blended together perfectly and created a wonderful flavor. The rub would be great not only on pork, but we inted to try it on some red meat as well as chicken. This has quickly become one of our favorite recipes; it’s easy and the ingredients are ones that most people usually have on hand at all times.

Everyone was very intrigued by the recipe when I first told them about it, mainly because of the chocolate. Spencer was very skeptical, and at first he wanted me to omit the chocolate from the rub but when I started mixing it up he had a change of heart and decided it would venture out of his comfort zone and give it a try. He was very pleasantly surprised with the end result, and he couldn’t get enough. My parents were over at our house the night I made these and my dad tried a little bite of mine because his curiosity got the best of him since there was chocolate in it and he loved them. A few days later they asked if we could eat together and asked if I would make the pork chops again, and I gladly did so! Needless to say these are definitely a crowd pleaser and they are also wonderful for week night meals since there isn’t a lot of prep time.

Chocolate Spiced Pork Chops

Ingredients:

2 Tablespoons packed brown sugar

1 Tablespoon Italian seasoning
2 Teaspoons onion powder
1 1/2 Teaspoons unsweetend cocoa powder
1 1/2 Teaspoons garlic powder
1 Teaspoon paprika
1/2 Teaspoon ground red pepper flakes
1/2 Teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 Teaspoon salt
1/2 Teaspoon fresh, ground black pepper
4 (1 1/2 inch thick) bone-in pork chops
1 Tablespoon vegetable oil

Directions:

Pre-heat oven to 350.

In a bowl combine all the dry ingredients. Rub the mixture evenly on the pork chops.

Add the vegetable oil to a large cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. Add the pork chops to the heated skillet and cook on both sides for 3 minutes each. Put the skillet in the oven and bake pork chops until cooked through, the time will vary depending on the size of the pork chops. I cooked mine in the oven about 15 minutes.

Remove skillet from oven and serve pork chops while hot.

Recipe Source: Paula Deen, Food Network

Brownie Cookies

April 26, 2010 by Lynsey Leave a Comment

I absolutely love brownies and I love cookies, so what could be better than combining the two and making brownie cookies? Cookies are a dessert that is so easy to eat; it is so easy to pick on up and nibble on it while continuing with other tasks. Brownies are incredible too, but they aren’t necassarily as easy to eat on the go but the ooey gooey goodness of them makes it worth while to stop whatever is going on and savor every bite. Combining the two gives you the best of both worlds; the convenience of a cookie and the gooey chocolately goodness of a brownie, plus these are the perfect solution when sending brownie goodies on a road trip or camping trip where utensils aren’t readily available.

I’ve made brownie cookies a few times in the past and they’ve always been a hit but I’ve never made them from scratch. Since I had a little bit more time this time I decided to attempt a scratch version and I’m so happy I did, these were so good. Of course they were great fresh out of the oven but even after they had been sitting around for a couple of days they were still very good and ooey gooey.

Brownie Cookies

Ingredients:

2/3 Cup butter, room temperature
1 Cup brown sugar
1/2 Cup granulated sugar
1 Teaspoon water
2 Eggs
1 1/2 Cup all-purpose flour
1/3 Cup cocoa
1/4 Teaspoon baking soda
1/4 Teaspoon salt
2 Cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 Cup white chocolate chips

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350. Line cookie sheet with silicone baking sheet.

In a bowl, sift together flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt.

With a stand mixer, cream butter and sugars. Once well combined add water, eggs and vanilla and beat well. Slowly add in flour mixture, until well blended. Stir in chocolate chips.

Drop cookies 2 inches apart on prepared cookie sheet. Bake for 8-9 minutes, remove from oven and let cool on cookie sheet for 3 minutes then remove to cooling rack to finish cooling.

Recipe Source: Adapted from Food Geeks

Raspberry Chocolate Cake

March 24, 2010 by Lynsey Leave a Comment

Yum, yum yum…this conclusion to our Valentine’s meal was pure deliciousness. While I had no problem deciding what I wanted to make for our meal I did have a delima when it came to choosing what our dessert would be. I have so many desserts that I want to try bookmarked, then I found a lot more around Valentine’s day it was extremely tough trying to decide which on I should make. I narrowed it down to 3 and told Spencer it was his duty to choose what we would have for dessert and that’s when he chose this Raspberry Chocolate Cake. This was the perfect Valentine’s dessert; chocolate plus the flavor of raspberries equals pure heaven on a plate. If you are a fan of chocolate and raspberries then this cake is a must try!

Raspberry Chocolate Cake

Ingredients:

For the cake-

3 Cups sugar

2 3/4 Cups all-purpose flour

1 Cup baking cocoa

2 Tsp baking soda

1 1/2 Tsp salt

3/4 Tsp baking powder

1 1/4 Cups buttermilk

3/4 Cup canola oil

3 Tsp vanilla extract

3 Eggs

1 1/2 Cups strong brewed coffee, room temperature

For the filling-

3 Tbsp all-purpose flour

6 Tbsp milk

6 Tbsp shortening

3 Tbsp butter, softened

3 Cups confectioners’ sugar

2 Tbsp raspberry liqueur

1/4 Tsp salt

2 Drops red food coloring, optional

4 Tbsp seedless raspberry jam, melted

For the frosting-

1 8oz Package cream cheese, cold

1/3 Cup butter, softened

1/2 Cup baking cocoa

1 Tbsp raspberry liqueur

4 Cups confectioners’ sugar

Directions:

For the cake-

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.

Line three greased 9 inch cake pans with waxed paper, grease paper and set aside. In a large bowl combine the first six ingredients. In a separate bowl, combine oil, buttermilk and vanilla and add to the dry ingredients. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition, beat for 2 minutes. Gradually add coffee (batter will be thin).

Pour batter into prepared pans, bake for 35-45 minutes, or until toothpick inserted close to the center comes out clean. Cool the cakes for 10 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks to cool completely, discard waxed paper.

For the filling-

In a small saucepan, whisk together the flour and milk until smooth. Cook over medium heat for 1 minute or until thickened, stir constantly. Remove from heat and let stand until cool.

In a large bowl, cream shortening and butter until light and fluffy. Gradually add confectioners’ sugar and mix well. Gradually add cooled milk mixture; beat for 4 minutes or until light and fluffy. Beat in liqueur, salt and food coloring if desired.

If necassary, level tops of cake. Place one layer on a serving plate, place about 2 tablespoons on the cake layer. Place remaining layers on waxed paper and top one of the layers with the remaining jam. Let stand for 30 minutes.

Spread 1/2 cup filling over the cake on the serving plate to within 1/4 inch of the edges. Top with jam covered cake, then spread with remaining filling and top with last layer.

For the frosting-

In a large bowl, beat cream cheese and butter until smooth and fluffy. Add the cocoa and liquer and beat. Gradually add in the confectioners’ sugar until fluffy. Frost top and sides of cake and refrigerate for storage.

Recipe Source: Taste of Home

Hot Buttered Rum Pancakes

February 26, 2010 by Lynsey Leave a Comment

There were many different recipes that went through my mind when I was deciding what to make for our Valentine’s Day breakfast; I thought about something hearty, then something sweet, then savory and the options were definitely endless but I finally decided on something sweet…since it was for Valentine’s day! These pancakes were absolutely incredible; they were light and fluffy and the perfect breakfast to start out such a wonderful day. To top these wonderful pancakes I used whipped cream and a few chocolate chips, we usually wouldn’t top them with the extras like we did but since it was a special occasion we splurged. The pancakes themselves had a great flavor, the hint of cloves was awesome! This recipe definitely didn’t dissapoint and I’m sure we will be having them many more times! These would be soemthing fun to make for a weekend breakfast, and with the cloves added to the batter it makes them feel like a special occasion meal!

Hot Buttered Rum Pancakes

Ingredients:

1 1/3 Cups flour

2 Tbsp sugar

1 Tbsp baking powder

1/4 Tsp ground cloves

Salt to taste (I used 1/2 teaspoon)

2 Eggs

1 Cup milk

1/4 (1/2 stick) butter, melted and cooled

1 Tbsp dark rum, or 1 tsp rum extract

1 Tsp vanilla extract

Directions:

In a large bowl combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, cloves and salt. Mix well and set aside. In a separate bowl, beat the eggs and then add milk, butter, rum and vanilla and whisk together. Add to the flour mixture and mix until smooth.

Ladle onto an oiled medium-hot griddle. Cook until bubbles appear and being to pop. Turn and cook for 1 to 2 minutes longer or until golden brown.

Serve with additional melted butter. Also, 1/2 cup of semisweet chocolate chips if desired and serve with whipped cream.

Recipe source: Beach Appetit by the Junior League of the Emerald Coast

Double Chocolate Chip Cookies

February 15, 2010 by Lynsey Leave a Comment

Chocolate chip cookies are one of my all time favorite cookies. Although I’ve never had a type of cookie I don’t like, it seems when I want to make cookies chocolate chip cookies are the first thing that come to mind. They area classic and are a favorite of pretty much everybody. It’s amazing to me how many differnt takes there are on one type of cookie, but it seems like there are endless options as far as recipes go for this one particular type of cookie. I have tried a few different recipes and haven’t been disappointed yet, every time I come across another recipe for them I bookmark it because I just can’t get enough of chocolate chip cookies. This recipe was no exception, I liked this one just as much as the others I’ve tried. These cookies were amazing and I loved the combination of the white chocolate and semi-sweet chocolate, it just gave it another dimension of flavor. These cookies didn’t come out as fluffy or chewy as others I’ve tried but they still didn’t disappoint. I’ve made these a couple of times since the first time I’ve made them and they are always a hit and eaten up within a matter of a few days; although quite a few seem to quickly disappear right after they come out of the oven. Enjoy!

Double Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients:

2 1/4 Cups flour

1 Tsp baking soda

3/4 Tsp salt

2 Sticks unsalted butter, softened

1 Cup light brown sugar

1/2 Cup sugar

2 eggs

1 Tsp vanilla

12 oz semi-sweet chocolate chips

6 oz white chocolate chips

1 Cup pecans, chopped (I omitted)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375.

Sift flour, baking soad, and salt together into a large bowl.

With paddle attachment cream butter and sugars together in a mixing bowl until light and fluffy. With mixer on low, beat in eggs, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla and then stir in flour mixture until well blended. Stir in chocolate chips.

Drop rounded spoonfuls onto an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake until golden brown, about 8 minutes gives you a soft and chewy consistency. Rotate the baking sheet from top to bottom and front to back half way through. Once removed from oven leave the cookies on the cookie sheet for 5 minutes and then transfer to wire racks to finish cooling.

Recipe Source: The Baker’s Bible

Gluten-Free Graham Wafers and Nanaimo Bars

February 1, 2010 by Lynsey Leave a Comment

The January 2010 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Lauren of Celiac Teen. Lauren chose Gluten-Free Graham Wafers and Nanaimo Bars as the challenge for the month. The sources she based her recipe on are 101 Cookbooks and www.nanaimo.ca.

I was pretty excited when I read this challenge for many reasons, but mainly because it called for a lot of products that I wasn’t familiar with. It is always interesting to learn about how other areas of the world cook and what they use to cook, one of the many things I like about the daring bakers is that it has members from all over the world. It’s easy to get in a routine cooking with ingredients that we’re accustom to using and never challenge ourselves with using or working with new ingredients. I really liked this challenge because it challenged me to find the ingredients that weren’t a common staple in my kitchen and also because I had to make crackers, which I had never done before. I really learned a lot in this challenge and really enjoyed working on the wafers and bars, it was fun but it was definitely a challenge!

For Gluten-Free Graham Wafers
Ingredients
1 cup Sweet rice flour (also known as glutinous rice flour)
3/4 cup Tapioca Starch/Flour
1/2 cup Sorghum Flour
1 cup Dark Brown Sugar, Lightly packed
1 teaspoon Baking soda
3/4 teaspoon Kosher Salt
7 tablespoons Unsalted Butter (Cut into 1-inch cubes and frozen)
1/3 cup Honey, Mild-flavoured such as clover.
5 tablespoons Whole Milk
2 tablespoons Pure Vanilla Extract

Directions:
1. In the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade, combine the flours, brown sugar, baking soda, and salt. Pulse on low to incorporate. Add the butter and pulse on and off, until the mixture is the consistency of a coarse meal. If making by hand, combine aforementioned dry ingredients with a whisk, then cut in butter until you have a coarse meal. No chunks of butter should be visible.
2. In a small bowl or liquid measuring cup, whisk together the honey, milk and vanilla. Add to the flour mixture until the dough barely comes together. It will be very soft and sticky.
3. Turn the dough onto a surface well-floured with sweet rice flour and pat the dough into a rectangle about 1 inch thick. Wrap in plastic and chill until firm, about 2 hours, or overnight.
4. Divide the dough in half and return one half to the refrigerator. Sift an even layer of sweet rice flour onto the work surface and roll the dough into a long rectangle, about 1/8 inch thick. The dough will be quite sticky, so flour as necessary. Cut into 4 by 4 inch squares. Gather the scraps together and set aside. Place wafers on one or two parchment-lined baking sheets. Chill until firm, about 30 to 45 minutes. Repeat with the second batch of dough.
5. Adjust the rack to the upper and lower positions and preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit (180 degrees Celsius).
6. Gather the scraps together into a ball, chill until firm, and reroll. Dust the surface with more sweet rice flour and roll out the dough to get a couple more wafers.
7. Prick the wafers with toothpick or fork, not all the way through, in two or more rows.
8. Bake for 25 minutes, until browned and slightly firm to the touch, rotating sheets halfway through to ensure even baking. Might take less, and the starting location of each sheet may determine its required time. The ones that started on the bottom browned faster.
9. When cooled completely, place enough wafers in food processor to make 1 ¼ cups (300 mL) of crumbs. Another way to do this is to place in a large ziplock bag, force all air out and smash with a rolling pin until wafers are crumbs.

Nanaimo Bars
Ingredients:

For Nanaimo Bars — Bottom Layer
1/2 cup Unsalted Butter
1/4 cup Granulated Sugar
5 tablespoons Unsweetened Cocoa
1 Large Egg, Beaten
1 1/4 cups Gluten Free Graham Wafer Crumbs (See previous recipe)
1/2 cup Almonds (Any type, Finely chopped)
1 cup Coconut (Shredded, sweetened or unsweetened)

For Nanaimo Bars — Middle Layer
1/2 cup Unsalted Butter
2 tablespoons and 2 teaspoons Heavy Cream
2 tablespoons Vanilla Custard Powder (Such as Bird’s. Vanilla pudding mix may be substituted.)
2 cups Icing Sugar

For Nanaimo Bars — Top Layer
4 ounces Semi-sweet chocolate
2 tablespoons Unsalted Butter

Directions:
1. For bottom Layer: Melt unsalted butter, sugar and cocoa in top of a double boiler. Add egg and stir to cook and thicken. Remove from heat. Stir in crumbs, nuts and coconut. Press firmly into an ungreased 8 by 8 inch pan.
2. For Middle Layer: Cream butter, cream, custard powder, and icing sugar together well. Beat until light in colour. Spread over bottom layer.
3. For Top Layer: Melt chocolate and unsalted butter over low heat. Cool. Once cool, pour over middle layer and chill.

Additional Information:

These bars freeze very well, so don’t be afraid to pop some into the freezer.

The graham wafers may be kept in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks. Mine lasted about that long.

If making the graham crackers with wheat, replace the gluten-free flours (tapioca starch, sweet rice flour, and sorghum flour) with 2 ½ cups plus 2 tbsp of all-purpose wheat flour, or wheat pastry flour. Watch the wheat-based graham wafers very closely in the oven, as they bake faster than the gluten-free ones, sometimes only 12 minutes.

For the Nanaimo Bars, if making with wheat, replace the gluten-free graham wafer crumbs with equal parts wheat graham wafer crumbs.

German Chocolate Cake

September 25, 2009 by Lynsey 3 Comments

I have never attempted German Chocolate cake before, partially because Spencer has never been a big fan of coconut so I didn’t want this huge cake to go to waste after making it. While I was looking at different cake recipes I came across a German Chocolate cake recipe and showed Spencer and he said “that’s one of my favorite cakes” and I just looked at him in shock. After telling me that I asked if he wanted me to make this and he immediately said yes. I just couldn’t believe we had been together this long and I never knew that this was one of his favorite cakes. He’s eaten a few things with coconut in but not a whole lot and I never thought he would be a fan of this recipe since there is quite a bit of coconut in it. Once I found out that he was a fan, I knew I had to make this cake. The recipe that I decided to use was David Lebovitz’s. I’ve previously tried one of his recipes and loved it and I’ve heard tons of good things about his other recipes so I figured this would be a safe one to go with.

Spencer’s birthday was last week, so I decided I would make this for him for his birthday cake. I wanted him to be surprised by this, so while he was out with the guys one night I made it. He absolutely loved it. It turned out so good, and I was very pleased with the end result. Everyone that tried it went on and on about it. The cake was very moist, the filling was great as well as the icing. It was definitely a hit, to say the least.

Everything came together pretty easily. Since this is a layered cake it is a little involved, but it’s not overwhelming at all. The recipe for the syrup makes a lot, I added generous portions to all of the layers and even brushed the sides with it but there was still tons left over so you could half the syrup recipe and still have plenty. If you like a lot of filling you may consider doubling the recipe, I spread it on the layers fairly thin but if you would rather have a thicker filling it would be best to double the filling recipe. The only problem that I encountered was with the icing. I’m not really sure what happened, but it never thickened up. I let it chill for a few hours and it was still as runny as it started out, then I let it chill over night and it was still the same as it started out. After that I let it chill for a few more hours and when there was no improvement I started looking for other frosting recipes. Most of the German Chocolate frosting recipes I cam across were basically the same as the filling recipe, since I wanted to stick with the chocolate on the outside (like the original recipe) I looked for chocolate frosting recipes. The recipe I finally decided on was Hershey’s Perfectly Chocolate Frosting. I’ve heard so many good things about this frosting so I figured I wouldn’t be disappointed in it, and I wasn’t, it turned out great. I will try to attempt the original frosting again, but I did love the cake exactly the way it was.

German Chocolate Cake

Ingredients:

Cake:

2 Ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate chopped
2 Ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
6 Tablespoons water
8 Ounces (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 ¼ Cup + ¼ Cup sugar
4 Large eggs, separated
2 Cups all-purpose flour
1 Teaspoon baking powder
1 Teaspoon baking soda
½ Teaspoon salt
1 Cup buttermilk, at room temperature
1 Teaspoon vanilla extract

Filling:

1 Cup heavy cream
1 Cup sugar
3 Large egg yolks
3 Ounces butter, cut into small pieces
½ Teaspoon salt
1 Cup pecans, toasted and finely chopped
1 1/3 Cups unsweetened coconut, toasted

Syrup:

1 Cup water
¾ Cup sugar
2 Tablespoons dark rum

Icing:

8 Ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, chopped
2 Tablespoons light corn syrup
1 ½ Ounces unsalted butter
1 Cup heavy cream

Directions:

Butter two 9 inch cake pans, line the bottoms with parchment (or wax) paper and preheat oven to 350.

Place both chocolates and 6 tablespoons of water in either a double boiler or microwave safe dish. Melt chocolates and stir frequently to ensure it doesn’t burn. Once it’s melted and smooth, set aside to let cool to room temperature.

With a mixer beat butter and 1 1/4 cups sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in chocolate and then egg yolks one at a time.

Sift together the flour, salt, baking soda, and baking powder.

Mix half of the dry ingredients into the creamed butter mixture, then mix in the buttermilk and vanilla and then finish adding the dry ingredients.

In a separate bowl, beat the egg whites until soft peaks form. Beat in 1/4 cup of sugar until the mixture is stiff.

Fold 1/3 of the egg white mixture into the batter, then fold the remaining egg whites in until no whites can be seen.

Divide the batter evenly and pour into the two 9-inch, greased cake pans. Bake for about 45 minutes, until toothpick can be inserted in the center and come out clean.

Cool layers completely.

While the cakes are baking and cooling prepare frosting, filling and syrup.

To make filling:

In a medium saucepan mix the cream, sugar and egg yolks. In a separate bowl put three ounces of butter, salt, toasted coconuts, and pecan pieces.

Heat the cream mixture and stir constantly. Heat until mixture thickens and coats spoon.

Pour the hot custard immediatly into the coconut mixture. Mix and stir until the butter is completely melted. Set aside and let cool completely.

For the Syrup:

In a small saucepan heat the sugar and water until the sugar has dissolved. Remove from heat and add the rum, stir well.

For the icing:

Place 8 ounces of chopped chocolate in a bowl with corn syrup and 1 1/2 ounces butter.

Heat the cream until it just begins to boil. Remove from heat and pour over chocolate. Let the mixture sit for 1 minute and then stir together. Let sit until room temperature.

***Like I said earlier, I couldn’t ever get this icing to come to the right consistency for me so I used Hershey’s Perfectly Chocolate Frosting. It turned out great, so if you don’t want to attempt the original frosting this one works just fine.

To assemble the cake:

Remove cakes from the pans and cut both cakes in half, horizontally with a sharp knife.

Place the first cake layer on a plate, brush with syrup, spread 3/4 cup of the coconut filling over the layer. Be sure the filling is spread over the entire layer. Set another layer on top of the cake.

Repeat process using the syrup to brush on each layer, spread thin layer of filling-3/4 cup of filling over each layer, including the top layer.

Ice the sides with the chocolate icing. Use a decorative tip and pipe the top of the cake around the coconut filling mixture.

Recipe Source: David Lebovitz

Frosting: Hershey’s

S'more Cupcakes

September 18, 2009 by Lynsey 1 Comment

Over the past month or so I’ve seen the recipe for s’mores posted many times and each time I saw it I told myself that I had to make this. They are so cute and each time I see a picture of them my mouth starts watering. I love s’mores and always have; I don’t know what it is about the combination of crackers, chocolate and a freshly toasted marshmallow but it’s awesome.

A lot of people have made these cupcakes as a tribute to summer, but when I think of s’mores and toasting marshmallows I think of fall. I guess our summers around here are just too hot and sticky to even think about sitting around a campfire, let alone cooking over one. Although a lot of people have posted this recipe to their blog as a tribute or farwell to summer, I’m posting it as a welcome to fall and the nice cool weather that we are now starting to enjoy.

Since I’ve seen this on so many blogs I knew it wasn’t going to disappoint. I loved the concept of taking 3 simple ingredients and creating a cupcake around the idea, and that made me even more excited about making these. It was really pretty easy to make these, I also tried a different technique with these as well. I had never made a cake that directed you to add water after the batter was already made, so I found it very interesting, but it made the batter a little easier to work withand pour and the cupcakes came out super moist. Ialso had fun while I was putting them together. It can get kind of messy, but that’s not a problem, and it would really be a fun project to include kids in as well. If you haven’t tried these you should definitely put them on your “to make” list!

S’more Cupcakes
S'more Cupcakes
Ingredients:

For the graham crust:
1/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs (from about 20 squares)
1/3 cup unsalted butter, melted
1/2 – 1 cup bittersweet chocolate chips

Directions:

Heat oven to 350°F. Grease muffin cups or line with paper liners.
Combine 1/4 cup sugar,graham cracker crumbs and melted butter in a small bowl. Spoon 1 tablespoon of graham cracker mix into the bottom of each muffin cup. Press crumbs firmly, using the bottom of a small glass. Save the remaining mixture for topping. Top graham cracker mix with several bittersweet chocolate chips.
Bake graham mixture for about five minutes, or until the edges are golden brown. Remove from oven and set aside.

Ingredients:

For the cupcakes:
2 cups sugar
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup cocoa powder
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
2 eggs
1 cup milk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup boiling water

Directions:

Stir together sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt in medium bowl. Set aside.
In a large bowl, combine eggs, milk, oil and vanilla. Stir until well blended.
Add flour mixture to large bowl and beat on medium speed 2 minutes. Stir in boiling water (batter will be thin). Pour batter into prepared pans. Fill prepared muffin cups 3/4 full with batter (about 1/4 cup). Sprinkle batter with small amount of remaining graham cracker mixture.
Bake 22 to 25 minutes. Let cool completely, then frost.

Marshmallow Buttercream Frosting:

Ingredients:

2 1/4 Cups marshmallow creme

1/2 Cup shortening

1/4 Cup water

2 1/2 Cups powdered sugar

Directions:

Cream shortening and marshmallow creme together.

Add in 1/2 of the water followed by 1/2 of the powdered sugar.

Add the remaining powdered sugar and enough water to bring the frosting to a smooth consistency.

To assemble the cupcakes:

Place a small amount of frosting on the center of the cupcake and the spread over the top of the cupcake.

***The frosting is very soft, so it will run off if too much is on the cupcake.

Sprink the frosted cupcakes with graham cracker crumbs and chocolate sprinkles or chopped chocolate pieces. (optional)

***This frosting recipe was very good, but next time I think I’m going to try the Marshmallow Buttercream recipe from Proceed With Caution.

Recipe Source:

Seen on: Proceed with Caution

Originally from: Domestic Pursuits

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