Easy Moist Chocolate Cake ... with chocolate ganache.

Easy Moist Chocolate Cake ... with chocolate ganache. I know this isn't something new... it's just chocolate cake. BUT... it's a moist cake with deep chocolate flavor. Ok, maybe most chocolate cakes can vouch for that. However, I like this cake for it's simplicity... and well, for the fact that it doesn't use 2 cups of sugar... nor does it use lots of eggs, because sometimes you only have a single egg in the fridge. I like it because it reminds me of those box cake mixes... and yet it's made from scratch. The cake is light, tender and fluffy, but with enough structure to take on a chocolate ganache.... and somehow, a slice doesn't feel too heavy when eaten with a cup of coffee.

You can make this cake using simple ingredients, but the outcome can be anything but simple... depending on how you adapt it. It's super delicious with the addition of a chocolate ganache. While I posted the basic recipe, feel free to add all sorts of flavorings to the cake or ganache (orange zest, mint, Irish cream, etc.)... a sprinkle of chopped nuts would be good too. For Christmas, crushed mint candies would be nice on top of the ganache. For Thanksgiving, you could add some warm spices to the cake batter and top the ganache with some chopped dried cranberries and maybe some crushed nuts.  The cake is simple to make and can be "stretched" to feed quite a few people....

I made this cake awhile back... a few times... and found the cake adaptable to many uses. This cake is great as a simple snack cake with powdered sugar(no ganache), also good crumbled to make cake pops... or served elegantly with ganache along with a scoop of ice cream, whipped cream or even a drizzle of raspberry coulis. However it's served, I found it worthy to post:). Hope you enjoy...

You will need: adapted from Food and Wine

Chocolate Cake

2 oz chopped chocolate, or chips

3/4 cup oil, I used extra light olive oil

1 cup sugar

1 large egg

1 TBS vanilla extract

2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 cup Dutch-process cocoa powder, I used Hershey's dark

1 tablespoon baking soda

3/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup strong-brewed coffee, cooled

1 1/3 cup sour cream, original recipe uses 1 cup buttermilk

Ganache

1/3 cup heavy cream

3 ounces bittersweet chopped chocolate/ or chips

Optional, 

mini chocolate chips for topping

Directions:

• Preheat the oven to 350° F. 
• Oil a 12-cup Bundt pan.... I oiled and floured mine

1. In a small saucepan, melt 2 ounces of the chopped chocolate over low heat, stirring constantly. 

2. Scrape the chocolate into a medium bowl and let cool slightly. 

3. Whisk in the oil and sugar until smooth, then whisk in the egg and the vanilla extract.

4. In a small bowl, whisk the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt. 

5. Add half of the dry ingredients to the chocolate mixture along with 1/2 cup of the coffee and 1/2  of the sour cream(or buttermilk, if using); whisk until smooth. 

6. Add the remaining dry ingredients, coffee and sour cream(or buttermilk, if using)  and whisk until smooth.

7. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake in the lower third of the oven for about 45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out with a few moist crumbs attached. 

8. Let the cake cool on a rack for 10 minutes, then turn it out and let cool completely.

9. In a small saucepan, bring the cream to a boil. Remove from heat and add the 3 ounces of chopped chocolate.  Let stand until melted, about 5 minutes. Whisk until smooth. Let the ganache glaze cool until thick but still pourable, about 5 minutes.

10. Pour the ganache over the cooled cake... sprinkle mini chips, if desired. Let the cake stand until the glaze is set, at least 30 minutes, before serving.

Spiced Cauliflower "Couscous"... with toasted cashews and pomegranate.

Spiced Cauliflower "Couscous"... with toasted cashews and pomegranate. I know cauliflower has emerged as a "genius" substitution  for a variety of rice or wheat based dishes. Recipes have been created to minimize the carbohydrate laden dishes and making them wheat-free, rice-free , etc.... I've posted my take on "fried rice" before... using cauliflower instead of traditional rice. Even ventured to  try the cauliflower crust pizza... which I loved. But recently I ended up substituting a cauliflower "couscous" for the usual wheat based couscous... and loved the result. Why, it even looks like couscous!

While I made a spiced (Middle Eastern) version of couscous, you can easily turn this into a tabbouleh-style sort of dish, skipping the spices and increasing the amount of parsley.  But I must say I simply loved the addition of the toasted nuts along with the pomegranate seeds. It not only makes the dish look beautiful, but it imparts a ton of flavor to the overall dish. 

I was inspired to make this spiced version after seeing the recipe win a contest for the best picnic-style side dish on Food52.  While I loved everything about it,  I knew I  didn't care for the added golden sultanas. Not a fan of too sweet a dish...  though I always fall for sweet and sour chicken:).

There were a few pomegranates in my fridge, pomegranates that I had received from my sister during our last Thanksgiving vacation. She had collected a bagful of pomegranates from her tree and gave me some to take back home... for which I was quite grateful! Love pomegranates. Since coming back home we had eaten the pomegranates mostly as a snack, but I had kept on to a few. In my mind I was thinking to use them in a savory dish of some sort. It's interesting, but those pomegranates lasted well into January... sure the skin wrinkled, but inside, well, they were just perfect. Of course, I immediately thought of the last few pomegranates I had lingering in the fridge when making this dish. 

I just knew the pomegranate seeds would work much better than the sweet sultanas. Well, at least I thought so:). Obviously the original recipe had won a contest with the sultanas, but you know, those pomegranate seeds  really added that extra pop of tartness that I loved... actually felt they were needed to balance out the sweetness of the cooked cauliflower. Not to mention the bright red color made the dish totally stand out.

This dish is the type of dish you will have to adjust to taste. If you feel the cauliflower couscous isn't sour enough, then adjust by adding extra lemon juice.  The dish can also take more olive oil, if you like. And definitely add salt to taste. While I liked it the first day, I loved it even more so the following days as the spices mellowed out a bit. I could easily see how this dish could be made ahead and brought to a potluck/picnic without too much hassle... and you wouldn't need to worry about it staying out too long. No mayonnaise, no eggs, no meat. Just healthy and tasty. 

A great side addition that would go well with a variety of dishes... great used as a base for lamb chops, koftas, or grilled fish. Hope you enjoy...  

You will need:

1 large head cauliflower

3- 4 TBS olive oil

Spiced Vinaigrette:

4 TBS meyer lemon juice

1/4 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp za'atar

1/2 tsp garlic flakes, can use raw crushed garlic

2-3 TBS olive oil

salt and pepper, to taste

Additional:

1 green onion, chopped

2 TBS minced parsley and/or cilantro and/or  mint, etc  

 seeds from 1 pomegranate

1 cup raw cashew pieces

Directions: 

1. Dry toast raw cashews till charred in spots... a few minutes on medium low heat, stirring often. Set aside. 

2. Mix marinade. Set aside.

3. Process cauliflower florets in 3 batches... 15 short pulses... till size of rice/couscous.

4. To a dry skillet, add 3-4 TBS olive oil. Heat on medium  heat and cook cauliflower for about 7 minutes... stirring constantly and scraping the bottom of any brown bits.

5. Remove cauliflower "couscous" from skillet and place in a large bowl. Allow to cool.

6. Pour vinaigrette over cooled couscous, stir until combined.

7. Add minced herb/s of choice, chopped green onion and pomegranate seeds(I like to rinse the seeds of any clinging juice so it will not stain the "couscous"). Stir to combine.

8. Adjust seasoning if needed with extra salt, lemon juice, and olive oil. 

9. To maintain the crunch, stir in cashews just before serving salad.

Pumpkin Oatmeal Sandwich Cookies... glazed or filled.

Pumpkin Oatmeal Sandwich Cookies... can be glazed or filled. 

NOTE: I will be taking a break from blogging, and will be back sometime in December. Until then, I wish you all a most wonderful and blessed Thanksgiving with your loved ones... Thanksgiving is a time to be thankful to God for His abundant mercy and grace upon us... and His faithfulness.

For the past couple of years I've posted a series of cookies that I usually make for our local church youth retreat. The series usually contained about 8 or so posts...  and it was all about cookies or some other type of dessert. In any case, if you've been following for that long, you might be familiar with the yearly cookie or dessert posts on this site. This year I didn't bake as many new recipes as I have in the past, rather I used some of the recipes I've posted over the years... recipes that are tried and true for me:). 

However, I did manage to bake a couple of new recipes... 2 to be exact. And they are a keeper. I only managed to take complete photos of one of the cookies. So I think I'll have to re-bake the other cookie to post here another time... only because my husband LOVED that cookie. And anything that my husband loves, I try to post  here:). Anyway, I'll share the recipe for the cookie I did manage to photograph. It's a wonderful cookie... perfect for this time of year, especially around Thanksgiving time.

Pumpkin cookies have always been on my list to make. I've bookmarked plenty of recipes in the last few years, but just never got the chance to try any of them. Interestingly, this recipe caught my eye just a week or so ago a month ago... and I wanted to try it asap! Kind of forgot all about the the other bookmarked recipes, and proceeded to make the one I'm posting today. I loved everything about the recipe, including the interesting addition of the oatmeal. The oatmeal gives the cookie that hearty texture, making it a bit more wholesome. Though in reality, I would love to substitute some of the oatmeal  with chopped nuts next time... just because it's always nice to have another variation of the cookie.

If you've ever made the famous Libby's Pumpkin Roll, and love it, well these cookies are the mess free version. Mess free, because there's no rolling or slicing involved. I just find them much easier to make and bake... even easier using a cookie scoop. Oh, and there's no towel involved:). 

If you don't care for the cream cheese frosting, you can always leave the cookies plain. Or if you want, you can drizzle them with a bit of maple icing for a more festive look. Actually, the cookies from the original recipe weren't made into sandwich cookies, but rather left plain or drizzled with icing. 

Sandwich cookies are always more fun:), so I decided to make mine as sandwich cookies... and filled them with  a cream cheese frosting, reminiscent of "whoopie pies". But feel free to try another filling besides the cream cheese frosting. I love nutella and pumpkin together, so that might be another option. Of course, you can also use a marshmallow type of frosting as well. 

If you are looking for a new pumpkin related dessert that's simple to make... and delicious, you might want to give these cookies a try. They are moist, hearty, pumpkin-y and look pretty. The surface of the cookie, over time, tends to get a bit moist, so the cookies are easier to store individually in cupcake liners(if filled). This way they don't stick to one another. You can also place a small piece of parchment paper between the cookies, if you want, especially if you don't fill them. Hope you enjoy...    

Note: I made my cookies smaller, however you can always make them bigger and bake them for longer. 

Tip:  If you don't want the oatmeal to be too "rough looking", opt to quickly pulse them in the food processor to cut them up a bit. The oatmeal does give the otherwise soft cakey cookie a slight "rough" texture. 

You will need: adapted from CHOW

Cookies:

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/3 cups rolled oats (not instant)

1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder

1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

3/4 -1 tsp ground ginger, to taste

1/2 tsp fine salt

1/2 tsp freshly ground nutmeg

2 sticks (8 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 cup packed brown sugar

1 cup granulated sugar

1 ex-large egg, at room temperature

2 tsps vanilla extract

1 (15-ounce) can pumpkin purée(1 3/4 cups)

For the glaze:

1 1/2 cups powdered sugar, sifted

3 TBS milk or water, plus more as needed

2 TBS maple syrup

pinch of cinnamon and/or nutmeg, optional

Cream Cheese Frosting: You can easily double this if you want to make all the cookies sandwich

3-4 oz cream cheese, room temperature

1/3 cup butter, room temp (I tend to skip this... and use 4 oz cream cheese instead)

2 cups powdered sugar (taste and adjust amount to your liking, I try to use less sugar)

1 tsp vanilla (or less of almond extract... can add a bit of grated orange/lemon zest)

a pinch of salt

Directions: 

• Heat the oven to 350°F
• Arrange the racks to divide the oven into thirds. 
• Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.

1. In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, oats, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger, salt, and nutmeg to fully combine and aerate. Set aside.

2. In the bowl of a stand mixer( fitted with a paddle attachment), add butter and sugars . Beat on medium speed until lightened in color and fluffy, about 5 minutes. You will need to stop the mixer and scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.

3. Add egg and vanilla, and beat until incorporated on medium speed, about 30 seconds. Scrape down sides of the bowl as needed.

4. On low speed, add 1/2 of the flour mixture and mix until just incorporated. Then add 1/2 of the pumpkin and mix until just incorporated. Repeat with the second half of the flour mixture and pumpkin.

5. Using a 1 1/2 TBS cookie scoop, place 12 dough rounds on one cookie sheet and 12 more on the second cookie sheet, making sure to space the dough about 2 inches apart. Place the remaining dough in the refrigerator. NOTE: Feel free to bake one sheet at a time instead of two.  

6. Place both sheets in the oven one on top rack one on the bottom....  and bake for about 8 minutes. Rotate the pans from top to bottom and front to back and continue baking until the cookies are golden brown on the bottom and around the edges, about 8 more minutes or as needed per your oven.

7. Let cookies cool on the sheets for 3-5 minutes( they are soft at this point) and using a flat spatula, transfer the cookies to wire racks to cool completely. 

8. Let the baking sheets cool to room temperature, before repeating with the remaining dough. I like to re-use the same parchment paper.  Keep the parchment papers for glazing cookies later... that is, if you are planning on glazing them 

9. Glaze cookies... and/or fill them with frosting. The cookies freeze well, glazed or filled. 

For the glaze:

1. Place all of the ingredients in a medium bowl and whisk until evenly combined. (You may need to add more milk by the 1/2 teaspoon if the glaze is too thick to drizzle.)

2. Place all of the cooled cookies on the reserved parchment sheets, then dip a fork in the glaze... or use a small spoon to  drizzle glaze over the cookies in a zigzag pattern. Let the cookies sit at room temperature until the glaze has set. You can then fill them with frosting.

For the Frosting: You can always make a nutella frosting for variation.

1. Beat cream cheese, butter vanilla and salt until light and fluffy. Add sugar gradually until smooth. You can easily add some citrus zest, or other spices, if you like.

2. Add frosting in a pipe bag fitted with small plain tip.... or use a sandwich bag and snip off a small corner. Pipe frosting on one cookie and sandwich with another cookie. Because the cookies can be quite moist, I like to place them in cupcake liners.

Using the Gluten- Free Flour blend... to make a couple of desserts.

Using the Gluten- Free Flour blend... to make a couple of desserts. As promised in a previous post, I am posting a couple of recipes I made for a GF dinner gathering I hosted recently. One of the recipes was apple pie tartlets... a mini version. I ended up using a semi-cooked apple filling...  a filling I usually make when baking apple turnovers. I have included the link to the apple pie filling below, so you can click on it if you would like to see the recipe. And because I made mini tarts, I used my toaster oven to make things even simpler, but feel free to use a regular oven.  

The second recipe was an apple and pear cake I made on the spur of the moment... it was an adaptation from a golden apple brownie I had in one of my cookbooks. The cake somewhat  falls apart when warm... because I omitted the xanthan gum in my flour, and probably because my fruit pieces were cut a bit too big. But my husband loved the apple/pear cake, as did my guests, so I'm posting the recipe for the cake as well. The cake is a light and fluffy sort of cake with a caramel-y flavor from the coconut sugar I used. However, the cake should still work with brown sugar, if you choose to use it... it might even hold together better. 

Since I had some leftover pie crust (and some extra apple pie filling) I managed to line 3 (6 inch) tart pans with the pie crust and froze them... for baking another day. The day I chose to bake them, I used the leftover apple pie filling(also frozen) from the mini tarts I made earlier to make an apple tart. However, I still had a couple of pastry lined tarts, so I ended up making a pumpkin filling to fill the remaining tart shells. With the leftover pumpkin filling, I simply made a few extra mini crustless pumpkin pies... ended up being more like a custard/souffle. They were good and healthy for breakfast:).

In any case, these are just some ideas for using the gluten- free flour and GF pie crust I posted earlier.  The post might seem long, but I ended up posting the recipes I made... as a guide, with lots of pictures. However, they are just ideas... you can easily use your own apple pie filling, or any fruit filling for that matter... and use your own favorite pumpkin pie filling. The apple/pear cake was delicious, but you can play around with the fruits... and using toffee chips instead of the nuts, or  adding some chocolate in the mix. Be creative and make the recipes your own. Hope you enjoy...        

You will need:

Cooked apple pie filling

GF pie crust

Extra: 

powdered sugar

drizzle of icing

caramel

dollop of sweetened cream

ice cream

Directions:

1. Make apple pie fill per directions in above link. Allow to cool somewhat and proceed to roll out pastry dough to line mini muffin tin/s.

2. Roll out pie crust between floured parchment paper... make sure to use a GF flour blend. 

3. Using a circle cookie cutter, cut out circles that are about 1/2 inch wider than the mini muffin well. 

4. Using a small offset spatula lift the pie crust circle and place in mini muffin tin well. Press to fit in. 

5. Continue with the rest of the pastry until all the muffin tin is lined with the pie crust.

6. Fill each muffin well with about 1 TBS of the apple filling. 

7. Bake in a preheated 425 deg F  oven for 10-12 minutes... or until crust is nicely golden and filling is bubbly. 

Note: I used my toaster oven to bake the mini pies.

Gluten-Free Apple and Pear Cakelets... with walnuts and coconut sugar.

Note: Since I didn't use any xanthan gum in my flour blend, my cakelets had the tendency to fall apart a bit, especially when warm. I chose to chill /freeze them  a bit before removing from pan. I think it would work much better if the cakes would be baked in muffin liners... wouldn't have to worry too much with them falling apart. Now, if you add a bit of xanthan gum, you might not have the falling apart issue.

You will need: I used a pan with 8 mini loaf pan wells, but muffin pans lined with cupcake liners should work equally well, if not better.

2/3 cup coconut sugar (can be substituted with lt. brown sugar)

1/3 cup packed light brown sugar

1/4 cup melted butter

1/4 cup light olive oil

1 ex-large egg

1 medium pear, diced*

1 large granny smith apple, peeled and diced*

1/2 cup chopped walnuts/pecans

2 tsps vanilla extract

1 cup gluten-free flour blend (I didn't add xanthan gum, nor any stabilizer)

pinch of salt

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp cinnamon

1/8 tsp grated nutmeg

1/8 tsp powdered ginger 

*I chopped my fruits a bit bigger than I should have, ideally it would be a ton better if fruits are diced small

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 350 deg F
• Butter mini loaf pan and line with parchment paper... or use muffin tin lined with cupcake liners.

1. In a large bowl, mix sugar, melted butter, oil, and egg until fluffy... about 2-3 minutes.

2. Chop nuts along with the pear and apple. Fold them into the egg mixture. Mix in the vanilla. 

3. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, salt baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger.
4. Stir in the dry mixture into the wet mixture until just blended.

5. Using an ice cream scoop, fill the mini loaf pans (or muffin tins) and spread batter evenly with a spatula. 

6. Bake for about 20-35 minutes (depending what pan you use, timing will vary)... OR until toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.

7. Remove from oven and allow to cool in pan.... since I made the cake in mini loaf pans, I let them  cool in the pan completely and even chilled them a bit so they wouldn't fall apart. But it 's up to you how you want to cool them:)... Serve with caramel sauce, ice cream, or sweetened whipped cream.

Pumpkin Pie / Apple Pie...

You will need:

Apple Pie Filling

I used leftover semi-frozen apple pie filling from the mini tartlet recipe above. 

Directions:

1. Line tarts with GF pie crust, and place apple filling on top... I piled my apple pie filling on high, as it was semi-frozen.

2. Bake at 425 deg F for 15 or so minutes... or until crust is golden and filling is bubbly.  Drizzle with caramel, or dust with icing sugar. Serve with vanilla ice cream, if desired. 

Note: I used my toaster oven to bake the tart.

Pumpkin Pie Filling:  Filling is not very sweet using the coconut sugar, so if you like it sweeter, use regular sugar or increase coconut sugar... or pour some maple syrup over the cooled pie and add sweetened whipped cream as a topping. Also, the spice is there, but on the milder side, so increase amount of pumpkin spice if you like it spicier. While a normal pumpkin pie contains evaporated milk, I subbed a bit of cream... 

15 oz pumpkin puree

3/4-1 cup coconut sugar( you can substitute with 3/4 cup cane sugar)

2 ex- large eggs, beaten

1/3 cup heavy cream (you can add more if you like)

1 tsp pumpkin pie spice

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp kosher salt

Directions:

1. In a small bowl whisk and combine the sugar, spices and salt. In another bowl, add the pumpkin puree and mix in the beaten eggs. 

2. Add the sugar mix and whisk to combine. Pour in the cream and whisk to fully combine.

3. Pour the pumpkin filling into GF pastry lined tarts. 

2. Bake in a preheated oven at 425 F for 10-12 minutes. Decrease temperature to 350 F and bake for an additional 15-18 minutes or until center is almost set(it will continue to cook as it cools).  Allow to cool completely. Chill. Serve drizzled with maple syrup, honey, caramel, ... or simply topped with sweetened whipped cream, or ice cream.  

Note: I used my toaster oven to bake the tarts.

Make Ahead Homemade Pie Crust... store in freezer.

Make Ahead Homemade Pie Crust... store in freezer. You know, sometimes you want to have ready made pie crusts at your fingertips... for those days you need to make a quick pie from fruits you may have around. Opting to buy the pre-made pie crusts is an option I suppose, but I find making your own ahead of time far exceeds the store-bought variety.

This post is mainly a re-posting of an old recipe I posted quite a few years back.... you can find the original post HERE. I've reposted the pie crust only, and if you want further step-by-step photos you can click on the link above. Today though, I wanted to show you how quickly you can make some pie crusts for storing in the freezer. This pie crust is one I make all the time. It's flaky, buttery and delicious. My husband's absolute favorite... actually, he prefers I make no other pie crust aside from this:). 

I know many of you may already be making pie crusts and storing them in the freezer.... it's nothing new, maybe you've done it all the time:), but just bear with me this time around. I thought, with the holidays coming upon us, that maybe some of you might want to get a head start...  I find it such a great tip to store the pie crusts in the freezer ahead of time, so that when the holidays come around, baking will be a breeze. Well, easier anyway:). So I'm posting it today, a month or two in advance...  for those of you who care to try it. Hope you enjoy...        

Note: Always, always work with VERY cold butter...

Tip: You can use this dough for making apple pie pops or small hand pies... you don't have to be limited to making regular pies. And feel free to add some coarse sugar on top of the crust before baking... 

  

You will need: add flavoring amounts as you like or skip all together, I like to add vanilla... sometimes even almond extract or citrus peel depending on my mood:).

Makes: 2 double crust pies

4 cups all purpose flour

1 3/4 cups very COLD unsalted butter, cut up*

1 TBS sugar

2 tsp salt (I use kosher)

1 TBS vinegar

1 egg

1/2 cup water

vanilla/almond extract, optional

* I like to cut up my butter in 1/4 inch slices and then freeze them as I get all the other ingredients ready, this way the butter is always cold.

Egg wash: for double pastry crust

1 egg 

1 TBS water

coarse sugar, optional

Directions:

1. Mix first 4 ingredients together with a fork or pastry blender. 

I have, of lately, started to use my food processor for this... pulsing it until the butter pieces are a bit bigger than peas, more like kidney beans.

2. In separate bowl, beat remaining ingredients.

3. Combine the 2 mixtures, stirring with a fork until all ingredients are moistened.... or if making in food processor, add through feeding tube and pulse for a few seconds until just combined.

4. Then, with hands, mold dough into a ball.

5. Chill at least 20 minutes(I like to leave mine longer, even overnight), before rolling.

6. Divide the dough(1100 grams) into 4 equal parts.......divide and weigh out the 4 equal portions, making 4 flat balls. This way, you know you have enough dough for 2 double crust pies. 

7. Roll one of the dough balls thinly between  2 pieces of parchment paper or a silicone mat and a single parchment paper.... Roll dough in a circle, keeping a 9 inch pie plate as a guide, and having about 1-2 inches overhang. Basically rolling out a 10-11 inch circle.

8. Remove one of the parchment papers(or the silicone mat) and using the bottom parchment paper, roll the pie dough circle along with the parchment into a scroll. Set aside and repeat with the remaining dough. You will have 4 rolled pie crusts you can wrap and freeze for later use.

9. Before baking, defrost pie crust and unroll unto a pie plate, top with filling. 

If making a double crust  pie, brush pie dough with an egg wash( beaten egg with a bit of water) before baking...

~Bake pie dough in a preheated 425 deg F for about 15 minutes and lower heat to 350 F  for the remaining time(another 30-45 minutes) or as needed ...  sometimes I leave it at 425 F, just depends on the filling inside. Of course,  you can use your favorite pie recipe. I simply made an apple pie....shown in photos.

Cauliflower Pear Soup... with toasted walnuts and chives(Gluten, Dairy Free)

 

Cauliflower Pear Soup... with toasted walnuts and chives(Gluten, Dairy Free). Sometimes the simplest of ingredients make a delicious and healthy meal. I've been wanting to make a cauliflower and pear soup for quite some time now. I loved the idea of combining cauliflower with pear. And as much as I don't make pureed soups very often, I like to introduce them in our meals from time to time... especially so during the fall season. 

I love butternut squash or pumpkin soups. They're the type of soup that's quite comforting on a cold day, and with a side of toasted cheese sandwich, well, it really makes for a nice fall meal. This time around though, I wanted to step aside from the usual pumpkin soups and make the cauliflower pear soup that's been on my mind. The cauliflower soup can be made with all sorts of variations, including mixing in some gorgonzola, or adding a bit of curry paste and finishing off with some coconut milk...or if you like, a bit of heavy cream. While the variations all sound delicious,  I chose to go the simpler and healthier option. Decided to skip all form of dairy and made it gluten-free.... this meant no cream or croutons. 

As with most pureed foods, the silky smooth texture is essential for making a luxurious mouth feel. At the same time, I like to add another textural element to the smoothness of the soup, which is usually done by introducing some sort of "crunch". Normally croutons work really well, as would crispy chips of sorts, be it tortilla or vegetables crisps. But since I wanted to go a bit healthier, I chose to reserve a few of the cooked vegetables pieces from the soup and added some toasted walnuts instead. The toasted walnuts brought the extra crunch the soup needed, along with additional flavor. 

You can easily top the soup with other healthy alternatives, be it by simply roasting some cauliflower florets seasoned with a bit of spice... or even some baked thin pear slices that have been made into chips. While I finished off the soup with a drizzle of olive oil, other flavored oils could be added instead. Walnut oil would be super nice.

The soup is simple to make and quite budget friendly... can easily feed 6 people. The nice part is that while it is a homey type of soup, it can easily be served at any elegant dinner gathering... and it really wouldn't be out of place. The soup can double up as an amuse bouche or even served as a first course. I'm thinking it would be a great little starter for Thanksgiving. In any case, if you like to make a different sort of soup, you might try this version, adjusting spices and toppings to preference if you like. Hope you enjoy...   

  

Note: You can easily adjust the consistency of the soup by adding more or less chicken stock, until you reach desired thickness.

Tip: You can substitute butter or oil of choice for the coconut oil... You can opt to skip the potato if  you like. An Asian pear can easily be substituted for the regular pear. And while I haven't tried it yet, an apple instead of pear could work just as well. Feel free to add a bit of garlic along with the onion... even a shallot or leek will work.

Opt to use fresh thyme instead of the dried, and include a bay leaf, if you like. Other herbs could work, such as tarragon, sage, etc... Celery, fennel, carrots can be added to make a variation off the basic soup... Stirring in a bit of cashew cream would be lovely. Be creative and make the soup your own...

You will need: 

Soup

3 TBS coconut oil

1 yellow onion, sliced

1 large pear, peeled and diced 

1 medium russet potato, peeled and diced 

1 head cauliflower, cut in florets

1 tsp dried thyme

6 cups homemade chicken stock, or as needed

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper, or to taste 

salt, to taste

Toppings/Mix-ins of choice: just some ideas, but you can be quite creative.

toasted walnuts, chopped

chives

drizzle of olive oil(can try other oils, such as walnut oil)

freshly cracked pepper

even hot sauce( my husband's addition:))

croutons 

a bit of acidity in the form of (sherry vinegar, lime, lemon juice)

gorgonzola cheese/parmesan/goat cheese

cream or half and half

crumbled bacon

roasted cauliflower florets seasoned with smoked paprika

caramelized pear

Directions:

1. Heat the oil in a large soup pot over medium heat. 

2. Add the sliced onion and cook until they are soft, stirring occasionally, about 8-10 minutes. 

3. Add the diced potato and pear  stirring to thoroughly coat them with the oil  and cook for another 3-5 minutes. Season with a bit of salt, being careful not to add too much in case your stock is on the saltier side. 

4. Add the cauliflower and thyme and cook stirring frequently until lightly browned in areas, about 5-7 minutes. You want a bit of caramelization to occur, so you get some flavor. 

5. Add the chicken stock. Season with a bit of salt.

6. Bring to a simmer, cover and cook until all of the ingredients are very tender, about 25-30 minutes. At this point you can reserve a few pieces of cauliflower, potato, and pear for garnish later on.

7. Puree the soup until it’s silky smooth.... using a Vitamix (what I used), regular blender, or even an immersion blender. If using a blender you will need to blend in batches( be very careful as the soup is hot, place a towel over lid) and then return the soup to pot. You can thin soup with more chicken stock if you like. 

8. Season to taste with salt. Garnish with reserved vegetables, chives, toasted walnuts, freshly cracked pepper, and a drizzle of olive oil... or oil of choice.

Flash-Roasted Broccoli... with Crisp Panko Topping

Flash-Roasted Broccoli... with Crisp Panko Topping. I've been on vacation for some time

now. Finally got home. Back in my kitchen again. My vacation had me trying out new dishes... in a world full of talented chefs. NYC to be exact. For years I've wanted to personally taste food that I had only heard or read about... readily available in the vast city of New York. I had a list of foods I wanted to try. Ended up trying out most of them on my list... like the NY-style pizza, the pastrami cured-smoked salmon bagel sandwich, the NY black and white cookie, the famous Levain cookies, the cupcakes, the mile high pastrami sandwich and so many other foods that I don't have time to list. Didn't realize that I would also get the chance to try out foods I hadn't planned on ...  like the Italian sfogliatelle, the Japanese cheesecake, the Ukranian pierogi, and even the Romanian mititei. I loved,  loved NYC... and came back inspired.

While in NY, I had the chance to visit Chelsea Market.... a fun little place! Chelsea Market is a quaint indoor shopping/eating area that offers unique food or kitchen related products... among other things. There's also various food stalls offering delicious pastries, freshly baked breads, and sandwiches as well as other meals. But you'll find items that vary from shop to shop.... and they are all unique in the wares they sell. But among the shops that are in the Chelsea Market area, one particular shop had me lingering there for some time. The shop sold various food items mostly imported from Italy with a few items from other European countries. Some of the products were foods that you normally couldn't transport back to the US after your visit in Europe.... such as deli items. So while we were browsing, my husband spotted some dry chorizo from Spain. He loves the fresh chorizo we get here in Montana from our local butcher, so the dried chorizo got his attention. The ingredient list for the chorizo was free of preservatives, so I was thrilled. Ended buying the chorizo. When I came home, I quickly knew how I would use some of it.

 I first saw the recipe for this roasted broccoli with crisp panko topping a week or so before heading out to NYC. I knew I wanted to make it when I got back, so I bookmarked it. At the time, I was thinking I was going to use pepperoni as per original recipe. But with my new find, I swapped the pepperoni for the dry chorizo. As much as I don't care for broccoli, the crisp chorizo-panko topping elevated the broccoli to a new level.  And if you are looking for a new way to serve broccoli, the crisp topping is a great way to add a ton of flavor to the somewhat ordinary vegetable. Hope you enjoy...  

Note: I made the recipe 2 ways... using the technique of spreading mustard on the roasted broccoli and then dipping it into the panko topping. That yields a beautiful presentation. I also spread some with dijon mustard and some with sour cream. I liked both. The second way I made this was a bit quicker... so if you are in a rush, it's another option. I ended up tossing the roasted broccoli in a bowl with a mixture of sour cream and mustard... then I sprinkled the panko topping and tossed again. This version wasn't as pretty in presentation, but tasted just the same. The photos above reflect the 2 versions. 

Tip:Even if you don't care for broccoli, the crisp panko topping is worth making. You can sprinkle the topping on other vegetables as well... I loved sprinkling it on top of a salad.  It would be great on top of pasta, chicken, etc...

You will need: adapted from Food and Wine

2 ounces chopped dry chorizo or sliced pepperoni

1 garlic clove, sliced

1 cup panko (Japanese bread crumbs)

1/4 cup plus 2 TBS extra-virgin olive oil

2 pounds broccoli, trimmed and cut into long spears

Salt as needed

2 TBS Dijon mustard and/or sour cream*

* if you don't care for mustard, try replacing the mustard with sour cream or do half mustard half sour cream. I liked both versions. Alternately, I am sure you can also use a thick salad dressing such as blue cheese, buttermilk, ranch, etc...

   

Directions:

• Preheat the oven to 425°F. 

1. Place the chopped chorizo (or sliced pepperoni) and garlic in a small food processor. Pulse until finely chopped.

2. Add the panko and pulse just to combine.

3. Heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a medium skillet.  Add the crumb mixture and cook over moderate heat, stirring... until crisp and golden. This should take about 3-5 minutes.... just be careful not to burn. Lower heat if need be. 

4. Remove the toasted crumbs unto a onto a plate and allow to cool. Set aside.

5. Toss the broccoli with the remaining 1/4 cup of olive oil and season with salt. 

6. Spread the broccoli on a baking sheet  in a single layer and roast for about 15 minutes. You can turn the broccoli over once as it's roasting. Roast until tender and browned in spots. 

7. Using a pastry brush, spread the mustard( or sour cream) on one side of the broccoli and press the broccoli into the crumbs. 

8. Transfer the broccoli to a platter, sprinkle with any remaining crumbs and serve.

Light and Tender Pumpkin Muffins... using Spelt Flour.

Light and Tender Pumpkin Muffins... using Spelt Flour. I know, I know... pumpkin related baked goods are more of a norm during the Fall season or for the Thanksgiving holiday. But I am sure many of us have leftover pumpkin puree stashed in our freezers... or extra cans in our pantry. Well, I do anyway:). Actually, I make sure to have some extra pumpkin puree, so I could bake these muffins throughout the year.... because pumpkin is good for you:)!

Some time ago I invented this pumpkin muffin recipe when I realized I could substitute pumpkin puree for the mashed banana in my banana bread recipe....truthfully, I had some leftover pumpkin I needed to use up and just took my chance:). But the Starbucks Banana Bread recipe is probably the most used recipe off this site... and I'm not kidding. I tend to have banana bread/muffins in my freezer most of the times and I no longer make any other banana bread. Actually I stopped searching for other banana bread recipes ever since I made the Starbucks' version. Too simple. Too good. But I do need to back up a bit and mention that I now make an adapted version of the original..... using less sugar and some extra light olive oil. Slight changes, but we like the recipe that way.

This is the type of recipe comes together quickly(I use a fork to mix everything, but you can use a mixer)... and the muffins come out light and moist. Plus, I've managed to vary the recipe from time to time, by using all sorts of flours and mixing in various additions... like nuts, chocolate, apple chunks, dried fruit, etc. So we never get tired of it:).

This past Thanksgiving, I received a hostess gift from a sweet friend who came over for a week-long visit. I'm always amazed how some people really make it a point to gift you with items that are such a blessing. Gifts that get used in practical ways.... such as beautiful kitchen towels (I really needed some, but how did my friend know?!), a package of tea, some vanilla pods, and a container of pumpkin pie spice... among other things. Such practical gifts, yet lovingly put together... and every time I use the pumpkin pie spice, I think of her.

The pumpkin puree can easily be exchanged with any winter squash/butternut squash puree. Actually, I made a 9x5 inch loaf, instead of the muffins... using some winter squash from the fall that was baked and pureed. It was delicious. I haven't yet experimented with using homemade apple sauce, carrot puree, zucchini , beets or other similar purees... though I have used pureed frozen strawberries We really loved the the strawberry flavor, and plan on experimenting with other purees... I've also substituted the sugar with less honey... which works.

In any case, I thought to share a recipe that has been made over and over in our house. Normally, I'll make more than one batch at a time... to freeze for later. While I've never added a frosting to these muffins... a good spiced cream cheese frosting would really go well together... and then you can just call them cupcakes:). Hope you enjoy...               

Note: A 29 oz can of pumpkin puree, makes about 3 batches... with a bit of pumpkin puree leftover( maybe 1/3 cup). I tend to add an extra TBS of pumpkin to each batch, this way I don't have to worry about the extra puree... really, doesn't affect the outcome too much. You can likewise freeze the extra puree and use it in scones, pancakes, cookies, etc.

Tip: You can easily bake this in a 9x5 pan... increase baking time to 50-60 minutes.

You will need: Feel free to adjust sugar to taste. We don't mind less sugar, but if you are not used to less sugar in your sweets (or if you are making these for guests), you might want to use the full cup amount. 

2 cups whole-grain spelt flour( can use all purpose flour)

1 tsp baking soda

1 ⁄4 tsp salt

2 tsps ground cinnamon

1 tsp pumpkin pie spice

1 ex-large egg

2/3-1 cup sugar

1 ⁄2 cup light olive oil

1 tsp vanilla extract

3-4 TBS buttermilk*

1 cup pumpkin puree

chopped pecans, optional

* I add 2-3 tsps lemon juice to whole milk and let sit until curdled. I've used 3 TBS soured milk...and I've also used 1/4 cup(to use up all my soured milk); the reason for the range. 

Directions:

Preheat oven to 325 deg F. Line muffin tin with liners. Set aside.

1. In a bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, spices and salt. Set aside.

2. In another bowl, mix together the egg, sugar, vanilla and oil until combined. Add to the flour mixture and mix thoroughly.... it's quite stiff.

3. Add the buttermilk and pureed pumpkin and mix until combined.... batter loosens up a bit. If using nuts, fold in 1 ⁄2 c chopped walnuts ... otherwise scoop batter( one regular ice scream scoop should fill each muffin liner) into prepared muffin tins. Top batter with remaining 1 ⁄3 c chopped walnuts( if using).

4. Bake for 24-25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

5. Cool for 10 minutes on a wire rack before removing from pan. 
~After the muffins cool, I like to freeze mine... they somehow get better, sort of like banana bread which is best eaten on the following day.