Decadent Flourless Chocolate Cake (Made Four Ways)

24 Mar FlourlessChocolatecake2

What can I say? Who doesn’t love a good flourless chocolate cake. Well, me I guess. But I understand that most people really do love chocolate.

It is Hubby’s favorite food this time of year (really anytime of year).  This cake is rich, chocolatey, and dense. And since it’s flourless, it’s perfect for passover and the gluten intolerant. Best of all, it’s super easy to make and only has a few ingredients.

Chocolate

I’ve topped it several ways over the years, but this year I decided to test out several of them at once for a real taste test.  I made a simple dairy free ganache, a (dairy free) salted caramel, and a strawberry coulis.    I also dusted one cake with cocoa (for unadulterated chocolate flavor).  The winner?  It was hard to tell because they all received high praise; though not surprisingly, Hubby voted for the extra chocolate of the ganache.

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Almond & Coconut Macaroon Tartlettes

20 Mar Almond and Coconut Tartlettes

These little beauties were inspired by a wonderfully generous gift: a giant set of little tart pans. I was so excited I started baking right away!

Overhead

Oh man, I’m glad I was inspired. If you make only one dessert for passover (or your next dinner party), this should be it. After sampling these tartlettes yesterday, Hubby claimed they were the best thing I’ve ever made.  And I have to admit they are quite tasty, not to mention easy to make.

The crust, reminiscent of my favorite passover treat, is made by simply stirring together ingredients – no fussy doughs here.  The filling, though it has a few more steps involved, comes together quickly as well.  At first I was worried that the almond paste flavor would come through too strongly;  I was wrong.  It is just right.  I couldn’t resist going back for seconds.

Alas, the woes of a baker.

Almond and Coconut Macaroon Tartlettes

I modified the original recipe and for a first, made it not vegan.  Perhaps I was avoiding one more “soy bomb,” as my friend Steve loves to call it.   If you are vegan or keep kosher and want to serve this after brisket, you can can easily sub in soy milk and vegan cream cheese.

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Thin Mints Cupcakes

14 Mar ThinMintCupcakeFeatured

I am (slightly) embarrassed to say it, but I spend a lot of time on my iPhone these days.  When I need to fill a few minutes, I often turn to it for a source of entertainment. My go to distractions: word games, Instagram, and Pinterest. Pinterest is completely addicting. I am constantly seeing delicious things that I must make soon.  Sadly, I too rarely get around to making them, though my pins do serve as wonderful inspiration.

Since I mostly follow fellow food lovers, my stream of pins is filled with gorgeous dishes; lately everyone seems to be pinning minty chocolate things like crazy (especially this great blogger).  Since minty chocolate things are the bees knees (and one of the only ways I like chocolate), and I had been looking for some more green things to make for St. Patty’s day, the Thin Mints Cupcake was born (and made gluten free, just because I like a challenge).

ThinMintCupcakeTop

Whoever suggested too much of a good thing is bad, hasn’t tried these cupcakes.  They take everything that is wonderful about a thin mint – and double it. If you too are looking for something green for this weekend, try out these cupcakes!

ThinMintCupcake

I promise these don’t taste “gluten free” but if making the cookies from scratch isn’t your thing, just sub in regular Thin Mints and 3/4 cup APF for the GF flours in the cake. Also don’t be afraid to split the project up – you can even take three days to make them (cookies one day, cakes the next, frosting the day you are serving)!

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Mean Green Tropical Smoothie

12 Mar BB

I am obsessed with kale.  Sometimes, I have a hard time deciphering whether I love something on its own or whether I have fallen in love with it because I know it’s good for me. I guess at some point, there isn’t a difference.  Kale is something that’s easy to love and its ridiculously good for you.

One of the easiest (and IMHO the most delicious) ways to enjoy this leafy green is in a smoothie.  Many people have already joined the kale band wagon, but if you still haven’t this smoothie might hurry you along. For those of you who shudder at the thought of eating your greens this way, I urge you to try: it literally tastes like something from a Caribbean resort, minus the rum.  On second thought, maybe rum would be a good addition….  Hello, St. Patty’s day!

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Chia Seed Muffins à la Pain Quotidien

7 Mar IMG_2242

I could wax rhapsodic about the nutritional wonder of chia seeds, but I won’t bore you again. Bottom line is I dig them.

Bowls

These little beauties are inspired by the chia seed muffins at Le Pain Quotidien. Theirs are freaking delicious and I can barely stop myself from getting one every time I pass a store while walking around NYC.  Armed with the basic ingredients, I tinkered around until I found a recipe I could make at home, saving money and satisfying my cravings while in the far dinkier city of New Haven.

The result was awesome and I’m pretty positive they are healthier than their counterpart; I limited the fat by subbing in apple sauce and ended up making them gluten free.  I experimented both with a 50/50 wheat/white flour blend and this gluten free version.  Surprisingly, the gluten free muffins were far tastier and much closer to the ones I knew and loved.

They aren’t super pretty, but these muffins are definitely a “super” food.

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