Chocolate Pud-n-Cake

When I was a little girl we would go to Grandma's house every Sunday.  There was always a lot of food.  Fried chicken or rabbit (Grandpa raised rabbits), pinto beans, green beans, raspeberries, peaches, and if we were lucky, maybe, this cake.  More recently I was watching The Great British Baking Show and learned it has another name and is part of a whole class of cakes "self-saucing cake".  It's meant to be served by turning it upside down as you take each portion out of the pan.

Chocolate pud-n-cake

1 cup flour

2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 cup milk

1 teaspoon vanilia

3 tablespoons cocoa

3/4 cup sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons melted butter

1/2 cup nuts (optional)

Mix wet ingredients together, sift dry ingredients together and add to wet

Pour into ungreased pan.

mix together:

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup brown sugar

2 tablespoons  cocoa

sprinkle this mixture on top of cake batter in pan.  Pour 1 cup cold water on top

Bake for 45 min at 375 F

Notes and Comments:

You can easily substitute a gf flour.  Better Batter is my current favorite.
I don't use nuts, I like the creamy texture it has w/o them.

You can serve w/ whipped cream or ice cream if you want.

Flourless Chocolate Cake

Sometimes I just need a chocolate cake.  Especially if it's my birthday.

Since going gluten free I've discovered a flour I like (Better Batter) and I can make just about any regular recipe using that flour.

But, when you want a really rich decadent chocolate cake, a flourless chocolate cake can't be beat. 
So, here's a recipe I've been using for a couple of years, taken from the internet, but tweaked until it's just right for me.

Flourless Chocolate Cake
Put in a microwave-safe bowl and microwave 20-30 seconds at a time, stirring each time until it's smooth and creamy:

2/3 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup butter (or coconut oil if you're dairy free)


Meanwhile beat 3 eggs (sorry, this just can't be made egg free)
 beat into the eggs:
3/4 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup cocoa powder

Mix chocolate/butter mixture into egg mixture.


Line bottom of a small spring form pan, or small cake pan (~8" or less) with parchment paper
Pour cake batter into lined pan and bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes.

Let cool, use dull blade to detach edges of cake and pop it out of the pan.


 Notes and Modifications:

If I'm feelling a little guilty about all this decadence I sometimes mix in 1-3 tablespoons flax seed, doesn't change the taste, just adds a bit of texture

A double boiler can be used if you don't have a microwave

This is lovely as is, but you if you want a fancier cake or an even bigger indulgence, you can put chocolate ganache  on top.

Chocolate Ganache

1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/4 cup butter (or coconut oil, or cream)
adjust fat/cream to get texture you want
(optional 1/2 teaspoon vanilla, rum, or other flavor)

Put in microwave-safe bowl, heat in microwave 20-30 seconds at a time, stirring after each time until smooth.  Pour on top of cooled cake, smooth, put in fridge so ganache firms up.  Serve at room temperature

A Frozen Treat on a Frozen Day

Brrr!  It's literally freezing here.  I'm talking negative numbers. -22 F when I got up this morning, it was up to -6 when I left to run our morning errands at 10 am.

You'd think it'd be a good time to cook and bake, and you'd be right, but it's also apparently a good time to make gelato.  We've been having this treat at least once a week for a couple of weeks now.  Perhaps it's because we never get our fill.  This recipe makes just a quart, which is barely enough to give everyone in our family of 5 a small bowlful.  Perhaps it's because it's just down right yummy, and easy enough to make often, even if you're 9 years old, like Hot Dog.



Basic Gelato Recipe

3 eggs
1/2 cup cream
2 1/2 cup milk
3/4 cup sugar
dash of salt
2 teaspoon vanilla

Whisk the 3 eggs in a pot until homogeneous
Add milk and cream, whisk again
Add sugar and salt, whisk again

Heat on medium or medium low heat whisking occasionally until thick and starting to bubble.  Cool in fridge (or outside on a freezing day) for 2 + hours (or a couple of days, if like me you get busy and forget about it)

When cool add vanilla, whisk one last time, and freeze in ice cream maker according to manufactures instructions.


Notes and Modifications

The other thing that's been making this addictive is that I finally learned how best to add chocolate chips - heat the oven on low (~200 F) put a piece of wax paper on a cookie sheet and put ~1/2 cup of chocolate chips on the wax paper and set in warm oven until chocolate is soft and gooey.  Pull it out and scrape liquid chocolate into the cold gelato, whisk, then freeze according to instructions.  The chocolate hardens in ribbons that are lovely in the finished product.

You can vary the flavor - use almond extract, mint extract, orange extract etc... instead of vanilla
I want to try chocolate sometime, oooh, or maybe chocolate orange w/ bits of orange zest in it.   Yea, that would be good.  If I could ever not make the basic chocolate chip that we all keep craving.

Easter Treats

Here is an Easter gift for you. Cream puffs are delicious and super easy. They also use up eggs, which are becoming abundant this time of year.



Cream Puff Pastry

1 cup water
1/2 cup butter
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
4 eggs (or 3 large duck eggs)
1/4 teaspoon salt

Boil water, salt, and butter until liquid, dump in flour, stir.
Let stand 5 minutes.
Stir in eggs one at a time.

Drop on greased cookie sheet.
Bake at 375 degrees F (350 convection) for ~40 minutes.

Cool thoroughly.
Cut in half along equator and remove "guts".

Fill with whipped cream and dust with powdered sugar (for cream puffs) or ???

Notes and Modifications:

Unfilled these can be stored for a couple of days. I put in largish container and cover loosely so they don't dry out, but also don't get soggy.

The size is entirely up to you. I make mine smallish, using a whopping tea spoon to drop. (In this case the "tea spoon" isn't the measuring spoon, but the one used for tea or coffee.) I've seen them made huge, which is easier to make, but sometimes more of a commitment than I want to make with regards to eating.

These can be filled with more than whipped cream.

Try something savory - an egg scrambler inside topped with salsa or maybe ham, egg and asparagus topped with hollandaise sauce. Fill shells with left-overs, top with a cream sauce and present these as if they're what you were planning all along.

Drop into longer shapes to make shells for eclairs - fill finished shell with custard and top with chocolate sauce or chocolate frosting. Oh man, I think I just talked myself into making custard tomorrow!