Vegan Babies aka Banana-Chocolate Brownie Bites

My continued search for vegan brownies for my vegan girl took a turn for the better this week when I hit on these delish brownies. This recipe is a mish-mash of several things I've tried or seen online.

Pulverize in a food processor or blender, until very, very smooth:
1 15-oz. can of black beans, rinsed and drained
3 Tbs. vegetable oil
1 Tbs. ground flax seed whisked with 2 T. water
4 Tbs. cocoa
1 ripe banana
1/2 c. sugar (I used Turbinado)
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp. instant coffee granules (optional but adds nice flavor)

Scrape into a bowl and fold in:
1/2 cup flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt

Add:
3/4 cup chocolate chips (mini preferred)

Scoop into mini muffin tins that are well greased.
Bake for 23 minutes at 350 degrees.
Cool for 10 minutes before turning out to cool completely.

Makes 24 minis.

Birthday Dinner, Part Three: Molten Chocolate Cakes

So last but not least, Molten Chocolate Lava Cakes. Hate on them all you want, but seriously, who doesn't love a cake that basically makes its own hot fudge sauce? This recipe comes to me by way of Natalie Bortoli from Food and Wine. These were delicious, if a little over "greased and floured", and they really are super, super easy. Make them soon and make someone very happy. 

Pre-lava action.

http://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/molten-chocolate-cakes-vongerichten  

Note: The recipe calls for 4 6-oz ramekins, but I think you can easily stretch to make 5 or 6. Just make sure to adjust the cooking time down.

Big Chewy Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies

I found the base of this recipe on line. A woman named "PANTHERA" (I know.) modified a recipe from a woman named Beatrice, then I took suggestions from the comments, made those changes, and a couple more of my own. I'm not exactly sure whose recipe it is now. But, I assure you, it's a good one.

Preheat your oven to 350.

Mix, in a stand mixer until very light and fluffy:

3/4 c. butter, softened

1/4 c. Crisco

1 c. packed brown sugar

1/2 c. white sugar

Add, and mix until very pale:

2 eggs

2 t. vanilla

Add, and mix until barely mixed:

1 1/4 c. all-purpose flour

1/2 c. spelt or white wheat flour (or whole wheat or just more all-purpose flour)

1 t. baking soda

1 t. salt

Scrape down sides and mix in by hand:

3 c. oats (I used half quick cooking and half regular, rolled oats)

1 c. chocolate chips

1/2 c. mini chocolate chips

Chill dough for at least two hours, the longer the better. Six hours was very good.

Spoon rounded tablespoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets with ample room for spreading. Work quickly and get those cookies in the oven whiles the dough is still cold. Bake for 12-13 minutes. The cookies should be golden around the edge and nice and soft in the middle.  Yields about 40 cookies.

Warning: If you make these on a Sunday then go to Washington, D.C. Monday through Wednesday, you will be disappointed to find these nearly GONE when you return.

Al Di La's Torta di Pere

I didn't make this recipe up, I've never eaten it at the restaurant and I didn't even blog about it first. But it is a true third-hand winner. And I've made it a half dozen times, without adjusting the recipe one smidge. Imagine a warm Toll House cookie filed with little soft pear pieces nestled inside. It's that good.


The point of origin: Al Di La
The recipe I use from: Smitten Kitchen

Blog-esque photo of the stuff you need.

Couldn't even wait to transfer off the pan before eating some.

Melty goodness.

Chocolate Waffle Cakes from Waffleizer

Most of you already know that my son is crazy for waffles and anything related to waffles, waffle irons, and Belgium, so you can imagine my delight at finding a website for all things waffleized. Waffleizer.com will show you how to waffle up a whole bunch of stuff, none better than these truly delicious little chocolate cakes. Just think, no pans to wash and really, really happy children.

When this posted on facebook, a (grown) friend asked if she could move in with us. Such is the power of the chocolate waffle.

Ingredients:

1 stick butter

2 large eggs

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 cup sugar

1/4 teaspoon salt if using unsalted butter

1/4 cup dutch-process cocoa powder

3/4 cup all-purpose flour

Optional: 1/2 ounce cocoa nibs, broken down into bits in a food processor, or in a plastic bag with a blunt object (meat tenderizer, rolling pin, old waffle iron, etc.)

Powdered sugar for dusting

Directions:

1. Melt butter in a saucepan. Let cool slightly.

2. Put eggs, vanilla, and sugar in the bowl and mix with an electric mixer on medium speed until pale, 4 to 5 minutes. Mix in butter, salt, cocoa powder, cocoa nibs (if using -- I didn't) and the flour.

3. Heat a waffle iron until hot. (I found this recipe worked best with a regular, not Belgian, waffler.) Lightly grease iron with a neutral oil, such as canola. Spoon about 1 tablespoon batter onto center of each waffle-iron section to make 1 1/2-inch rounds. Close cover; cook until set, about 1 1/2 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack. Let cool. Repeat with remaining batter, coating grids with oil after each batch.

4. Dust with powdered sugar. I suggest eating them with ice cream and some nice hot fudge sauce, too.

Eulie's Chocolate Snack Cake

This is another one from the Grandma Eulie archives. When you drink about 14 cups of coffee a day, like she did, you might need a little something to go along with it. Hence, her arsenal of not-too-sweet, no-frosting, all-in-one-pan snack cakes. This is a gem. She apparently adapted it from a recipe on the Gold Medal package, sometime in the mid-1970s.

NOTE: You may mix in entirely in the pan, making this a one pan wonder, to boot.

1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup brown sugar, packed

1/4 cup cocoa

1 t. baking soda

1/2 salt

1/3 cup vegetable oil

1 t. vinegar

1 t. vanilla

1 cup water

Mix dry ingredients well, then add liquids. Bake in an 8x8 ungreased pan. 35-40 minutes or until a wooden pick (seriously, who keeps wooden picks around?) comes out clean. No temp specified, but I think I do about 350.


*Because this is a "wacky" cake, there is no egg in it.  Vegan by accident. Lovely.*

Chocolate Fantasy Brownie Bites from food52

I made these Chocolate Fantasy Brownie Bites this weekend after seeing them in my friend Jennifer's blog on food52. (The original contributor is a woman named drbabs and she has loads of recipes on food52. While you're there, do please check out the foodpickle feature. I had a question about whether I could use mini-muffin tin paper liners, so I posted it there and who should answer me but drbabs herself!  Pretty cool.) Anyways, these are pretty fan-frickin'-tastic so next time you're looking for something super chocolate-y and a little salty, make these. I put a Junior Mint into the center of each one, per the suggestion of a commenter on Jennifer's blog. It was a not a mistake. The fact that these remained in the house for three days was nothing short of a miracle. They aged well, too.

Another view. Experimenting with food photography. Not so easy.

Fauxstess Cupcakes

Originally known as Six Minute Chocolate Cake from Moosewood Restaurant Cooks at Home.

Barbara served these yummy cupcakes at Book Group and we were blown away by how delicious and "Hostess-cupcake-like" they were! I took it a step further and have experimented with stuffing them with a bit of buttercream, cream cheese frosting, or (gulp) some Marshmallow Fluff for true Hostess-y goodness.

Please note that the cake is vegan and the ganache can be, too. This recipe only makes 12 cupcakes, which is kind of nice/appropriate, unlike lots of recipes that make 24.

 Next time I make these, I am for sure going to pipe on the little loop-de-loops.

Cake:

1 1/2 cups flour

1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1 cup cold water or coffee (I keep "high-quality" instant coffee granules in the house for recipes)

2 tsp vanilla

2 tbs vinegar

Preheat oven at 375.

• Sift together dry ingredients into a bowl.
• Combine liquid ingredients (except for vinegar) in 2 cup measuring cup and pour into dry ingredients mixing with a fork or small whisk. When batter is smooth, add the vinegar and stir quickly until evenly distributed.
• Distribute evenly into a 12-cupcake pan, lined with cupcake papers.
• Bake 20 minutes.  (If you're out of cupcake papers and desperate for chocolate and need to make this as a cake, bake for 25-30 minutes in an ungreased 9x9 or 9 in round pan.)
• Optional, but really very important, step: Cool cupcakes completely. Use a melon baller or small spoon to scoop out a little depression in the top of each cupcake. Fill with Fluff or frosting of your choice. Cover with icing.

Icing:
1/2 pound bittersweet chocolate

1/4 cup hot water, milk or 1/2 and 1/2

1/2 tsp vanilla

For the icing just put all the ingredients together into a measuring cup and heat in in the microwave until you can whisk them together to make a smooth glaze. Spoon it over the cooled cupcakes and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before serving.

Banana Bread

My daughter has taken a peanut butter and banana sandwich for lunch pretty much every day for seven years running. Which means I always have a lot of bananas in the house and then sometimes she gets lucky and can take leftover pizza or pierogi for lunch and we end up with a backlog of too-ripe bananas. So I puree them with a stick blender and freeze them in one-cup or two-cup portions in freezer bags.  What to do with tons o' banana puree? The answer is always banana bread.  This version is Martha Stewart's lightened slightly due to the applesauce in lieu of some butter (thanks, Amy Spar) and the low fat Greek yogurt.

Makes two large loaves or six small loaves. This recipe can easily be halved.

1/4 pound (1 stick) butter, softened
1/2 c. unsweetened applesauce
2 c. sugar
4 eggs
3 c. unbleached all-purpose flour
2 t. baking soda
2 t. salt
2 c. mashed or pureed very ripe bananas
1 c. Greek yogurt or sour cream or a combo of the two (low-fat or no-fat is fine)
2 t. vanilla extract (I like Nielsen-Massey because boozy flavor)
1 c. mini chocolate chips

• Preheat the oven to 350F. Butter (or Pam for Baking) your pans of choice.
• With an electric mixer, cream the butter, applesauce and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, beating well.
• Sift/mix (Who am I to judge?) the dry ingredients together and add to the butter mixture. Blend well at a low speed.  Add the banana puree, yogurt or sour cream, and vanilla. Mix well. Don't over mix.
• Fold in the chocolate chips and pour into the prepared pans.
• Bake one hour for large loaves and maybe about 45 minutes for small. Either way, they should be nicely browned and a cake tester should come out clean. Turn out on a rack to cool.

Midge's Grown-Up Birthday Cake from food52

First things first.  If you're a serious home cook and you haven't checked out food52, do that now.  


One of the best parts of that site is my dear friend Jennifer's blog, Jenny's in the Kitchen. She's a great writer and will make you laugh no matter what recipe she's writing about, so go check that out now, too.


So now that you're in love with food52, you'll agree that it's a great source of inspiration and understand why I couldn't wait to make Grown-Up Birthday Cake.  In fact, Jennifer reviewed it here and despite some of the excitement in the comment section, I was determined to make it for a dinner party last night.

Details: I used a nice fruity Chardonnay and really fruity olive oil.  I was fearful of doming or sinking so I baked it at just under 350 for a bit longer than specified.  I was rewarded with perfect, even layers.  The texture was fantastic. Super moist and a perfect, not-too-fine crumb.  I used  a hand mixer for both the batter and the frosting, and the frosting came together well.  I used apricot jam in the center.


It wasn't my favorite cake ever but was a big hit with all the guests.  The olive oil flavor was very pronounced.  I think I would have preferred a more chocolaty icing.  Maybe a ganache would have helped matters?  Then again, one self-proclaimed cake-hater licked his plate.


It's worth making.  Let me know what you think.