Wednesday, July 13, 2016

Chocolate Zucchini Cake Recipe and Zucchini Lemon Cranberry Walnut Muffins Recipe

This original post from 2009 disappeared from my blog.  Not sure how or why.  But here’s a new current repost of it---It's that time of year.  You practically have them growing out your ears.  I'm talking about zucchini.  Some of them are huge.  They aren't quite as good for savory cooking when they get too big.  But they make a dang good killer chocolate cake!  Bah--look at this!

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Yep, believe it or not, there is zucchini in there!  I know.  I hear ya.  You just would NEVER know it's there.  So this means this cake is healthy, right.  Well, we can pretend anyway.  Sigh. 

Yeah, it's not healthy.  But for goodness sake, it's delicious!  (Dad--it's chocolate cake!)

After buying two giant, cheap zucchini at the farmer's market last week, I went on a Google search for just what to do with them.  I already shared with you my zucchini ("apple") crisp.  I knew there were all kinds of quick breads and muffins out there with zucchini and I even knew there were zucchini snack cakes.  But THIS cake, it's not just your run-of-the-mill "snack".  This is big time dessert here.  Kevin was even a little bummed that I didn't have any ice cream to serve with it.  (I know, me, slacking on the ice cream making! ;)

I found this beauty on Em's blog,  The Repressed Pastry Chef.  I actually didn't even know she was a fellow TWD baker.  (What?  I can't read them all.  I wish.  But after finding this cake on her blog and browsing around a bit, I've added her blog to my reader.)  Em found this recipe on the King Arthur Flour website.  I halved the recipe and baked it in an 8x8 inch baking pan.  I made some minor changes, so here's the recipe as I made it, but please when you're done with me, go look at Em's!

Chocolate Zucchini Cake, adapted by Katrina from The King Arthur Flour Company and Em at The Repressed Pastry Chef (halved)

1/4 cup unsalted butter, softened

1/4 cup canola oil

6  1/8 ounces granulated sugar (1/2 cup plus 6 tablespoons)

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 large egg

1/4 cup buttermilk (original recipe calls for sour cream or yogurt)

1  1/4 cup unbleached all purpose flour

1  1/8 ounces Dutch-process cocoa

(optional 1 teaspoon espresso powder)  I did not use it

1 cup zucchini, finely grated (middle/seeds removed)

1/2 cup (3 ounces) chocolate chips  (I used 58% cacao Ghiradelli chips)  (I didn't halve the chips)

Ganache Icing--

3 ounces heavy cream

4 1/2 ounces dark chocolate (I used the Ghiradelli chips)

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.  Line an 8x8 inch baking pan with foil.  Spray with cooking spray.  Set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream together the butter, oil, sugar, vanilla, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.  Beat in the egg.  Scrape sides of bowl. 

Stir in the buttermilk alternately with the flour.  Then add the cocoa.  Mix until well combined.  Fold in the zucchini and chocolate chips.

Pour and spread the batter evenly in the baking pan.  Bake for 30-35 minutes (mine took 32 minutes), until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  Cool the cake on a wire rack.  Remove the cake from the pan using the foil edges.

Prepare the ganache by heating the cream to a simmer.  (I actually used the microwave and it worked great, just do it in 20-30 second intervals and stir in between.)  Pour the cream into a bowl with the chocolate chips.  Let sit a minute or two.  Stir the melted chocolate and cream until combined and smooth.  Spread over cake evenly with an offset spatula.  See how long you can wait before cutting slices of the cake and eating it.  (The ganache hardens as it sits, but doggonit it's good right away! ;)

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You know you want a bite.  I'm not kidding, there's zucchini in there.  (You would never in a million years know it, Bob!)

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Now after all that, take a deep breath, it's going to be okay.  Breathe.  Okay.  I kind of feel like these poor little muffins will take a huge back seat to that cake, BUT just keep in mind, sometimes you feel like a muffin and sometimes a little cake and the muffins really could be considered somewhat healthy and a great grab and go breakfast or perfect snack and they are also delicious if I do say so myself.   You'll have to try them and give them the credit they too deserve just as much as that cake.  Again, in my Googling around, I ran across this Low Fat Lemon Zucchini Bread on about.com.  These muffins were inspired by that bread, but I changed many things and came up with these darn-tootin' good muffins.

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Zucchini-Lemon Cranberry Walnut Muffins, by Katrina

1  3/4 cups whole wheat pastry flour (or could use all purpose)

1  1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

2/3 cups sugar

1 tablespoon lemon zest (zest of 1 lemon)

1/4 cup coconut oil (or any vegetable oil)

1 large egg

1 egg white

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/4 cup low fat buttermilk

1 cup zucchini, seeded and finely grated

1/2 cup walnuts, toasted and chopped

1/2 cup dried cranberries

turbinado sugar for sprinkle over top

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line muffin tins with paper liners (this made 14 muffins). 

In medium sized bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, nutmeg, and cinnamon.  Whisk together and set aside.  In another bowl, combine the sugar and lemon zest, combining it together with your fingers until the sugar is moist, yellow and fragrant.  (I got this idea from Dorie Greenspan and love it.)  Combine the zesty sugar, oil, eggs, vanilla and buttermilk until well mixed with a wire whisk.  Stir in zucchini.  Add the dry ingredients with the wet and fold together just until moist.  Fold in nuts and cranberries.  Fill each muffin cup with a good sized scoop of batter.  Sprinkle each with turbinado sugar.  Bake for 14-16 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of one comes out clean.  Set pan on wire rack and cool for five minutes.  Remove the muffins from the tin and cool to room temperature on wire rack.

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There is some nutty, berry-sweet goodness hiding in there and a wonderful lemon flavor!

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You've seriously got to try these.  Coming soon--more zucchini!  I bought two giant ones remember.  These two recipes didn't even use one whole one.  Did you know you can grate the zucchini and freeze it in plastic bags?  It will last a couple months in the freezer.  Run to your gardens, neighbor's gardens, farmer's markets, grocery stores now and stock up!  You'll for sure want to make this cake and these muffins over and over again! ;) 

Easy Three Ingredient Berry Ice Cream

3 Ingredient All Natural Ice Cream (Strawberry Blueberry Banana)

I know super easy “ice creams” made with frozen fruit, especially bananas has been done many times and I’ve made it many times myself.  I usually make it with only bananas and sometimes add peanut butter and/or chocolate to it, which IS probably my favorite.  But last night I had a hankering for a sweet treat and saw how much frozen fruit I have in my freezer right now so I threw some in the food processor and made this heavenly version.

 

SO easy!  Perfect.  Healthy.  I even was so kind to share some with Parker, who is trying out veganism right now.  Going crazy trying to keep him fed!  This is my kid whose favorite foods were bacon and A1 Steak Sauce and steak.  I’m going crazy and hope this doesn’t last too long for him.  To each his own, but I think someone shouldn’t go all certain-diet crazy unless they can buy their own food and feed themselves!  Back to the delicious treat!

 

I went a little crazy (ha!) and drizzled some melted Enjoy Life chocolate chips on mine.  It was just like Magic Shell, but way, way healthier!  Love!

 

Easy Three Ingredient Berry Ice Cream, by Katrina, Baking and Boys!

 

1 cup frozen bananas

1 cup frozen strawberries and blueberries (there were probably more strawberries)

2 tablespoons Enjoy Life (or any of your choice) chocolate chips, optional

 

You can easily do 2-3 cups of any fruit of your choosing.

Add the frozen fruit to a food processor.  Blend for 3-5 minutes until smooth, scraping down the sides of the bowl every minute or so.

While it is blending, melt the chocolate in a small microwaveable dish in 20-30 second intervals until melted.  Drizzle over ice cream. Yum!

 

Easy 3 Ingredient Berry Ice Cream with Chocolate

I know this probably isn’t a very exciting post and something you’ve seen before but I decided to document it on my blog, which has been suffering from neglect lately. I’m going to try to get back into sharing……and making more goodies!  I miss it!

 

Easy 3 Ingredient Frozen Fruit Ice Cream

Friday, July 01, 2016

MELT Grain Free Chocolate Chip Cookies and MELT Buttery Baking Sticks and Spreads

MELT Grain Free CCC's

Have you seen or heard of MELT Organic?  It’s a company that makes organic coconut oil baking sticks and spreads. They sent me some samples.  They are really good!  They are made of all organic ingredients and are vegan.  This is good news for me, since my 14 year old is trying out being vegan right now.  Not sure how long he’ll go on with that diet plan, but it’s been interesting for me to try to keep him fed.  He seems to be living off peanut butter sandwiches right now.  But I hadn’t realized these baking sticks and spreads were vegan, so I can’t wait to tell him to have some toast!  It’s kind of a family joke—whenever the boys tell me their stomach hurts and that they’re hungry, I tell them to have toast.  It became such that they were really annoyed every time I’d say that.  So now lately whenever they have any issues at all, a stubbed toe, sunburn, headache, you name it, I tell them the best thing for them is to have toast.  They LOVE it. (eyeroll)  Try it next time you have any ailment, have some toast.  Try it with MELT.  I’ve made a couple grilled cheese sandwiches with it (with gluten free bread for me).  Good stuff!

 

MELT Grilled Cheese Sandwich

Hello, back to cookies—you know, really what life is all about. Winking smile

Since I have My Favorite Grain Free Chocolate Chip Cookies already, I simply used the MELT Organic baking sticks in place of the coconut oil in the recipe and they turned out delicious and perfect.  I love them.  They are all for me. Winking smile  One thing I realized as I made them a couple days ago, they seem to be better with age.  Which is quite the opposite with regular chocolate chip cookies.  If you’re looking for a grain free, refined sugar free chocolate chip cookie recipe, you should definitely try mine that I’ve linked here.  Try them with MELT! 

MELT Grain Free Chocolate Chip Cookies

 

Want a cookie?  I’ve got plenty.

 

MELT Grain Free Chocolate Chip Cookies 2

But hurry, they won’t last long…………..

MELT Grain Free Chocolate Chip Cookies 4

 

Guess what, MELT also makes a Chocolate MELT Organic Spread!  (It’s not vegan, as it has some honey), but it’s good!  I actually haven’t tried it on just some toast, but all the sudden that sounds really good and now I must.  MELT Organic mention that even their spreads can be used for baking, so I have tried the Chocolate MELT Spread a couple times with a brownie recipe.  But I’m still tweaking it.  I don’t think it’s the MELT that is causing me to not be perfectly in love with the recipe yet, I think it’s my substitutes for regular granulated sugar (using coconut sugar and raw honey) that I haven’t gotten just right yet.  My goal (and we should all have goals, right?) is to keep making brownies, brownies, brownies until I get it right.  Then I’ll share the recipe.

 

Thanks for the samples, MELT!  Toast, cookies, brownies and grilled cheese sandwiches, gluten free and all pretty healthy.  Sounds good to me!  Check them out on Facebook and Twitter.