Sunday, December 26, 2010

Chocolate Roll

Chocolate Roll

chocolate roll recipeIt would not be Christmas without Chocolate Roll. I think that between my mom and my Nonnie, that they have made thousands of these chocolate and whipped cream creations. This is what my mom used to make for our teachers every year. Surprisingly, this was the first time that I have ever made one myself, despite the fact that I have eaten chocolate roll for most of the years that I have been alive.

This is a strange little recipe. Of course, I was reading my mother’s recipe and there was very little in the way of instruction. So I had to go back and remember watching her make it. I do have vivid memories of chocolate cakes rolled up in towels all over the counter tops. It is a very easy cake to make, but you do need to have a little faith. She would make these, and then freeze them, filled with the whipped cream until she was ready to frost them.

chocolate roll recipe

For the cake:
4 eggs
3/4 cups sugar
1/4 cup flour
1/4 t. baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup cocoa
1 teaspoon vanilla
4 Tablespoons coffee

For the whipped cream:

2 cups whipped cream
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla

Chocolate Butercream

chocolate roll recipe

In the bowl of a mixer, beat the eggs for about 5 minutes. Gradually, add the sugar and beat until the eggs are pale and lemon colored.

chocolate roll recipeSift the flour, baking powder, salt, and cocoa over the bowl.

chocolate roll recipeGently fold the dry ingredients into the egg mixture. Pour in the coffee and vanilla. Fold together.

chocolate roll recipePour the cake batter into a 10×15 jelly roll pan that has been lined with parchment and sprayed with cooking spray.

chocolate roll recipeBake in a preheated 375 degree oven for 15 minutes. The cake will be ready when the cake pulls away from the sides and the cake springs back when you touch it.

chocolate roll recipeHere is where this recipe gets a little weird. While the cake is still hot, turn it out onto a hand towel that has been coated with confectioners sugar.

chocolate roll recipeRoll the cake up and let it cool completely in the towel.

chocolate roll recipeWhen the cake is cool, whip the cream and add the sugar and vanilla.

chocolate roll recipeUnroll the cake, and spread the whipped cream evenly over the top.

chocolate roll recipeRoll the cake back up and put in the fridge to set up. Maybe a half hour or so?

chocolate roll recipeDoesn’t that look delicious?

chocolate roll recipeMeanwhile, make some Chocolate Buttercream. I reduced the butter to 1 1/2 sticks and added a few Tablespoons of cream cheese.

chocolate roll recipeFrost the chocolate roll with the Chocolate Buttercream. I piped the extra frosting onto the bottom, but you do not have to do that.

chocolate roll recipeSprinkle with some powdered sugar. Merry Christmas Eve!

CHERRY COCONUT & DARK CHOCOLATE SLICE



choc_cherry_coconut_slice_01


Does anyone else love Cherry Ripes chocolate bars? I have to say that chocolate bars in general do not really interest me...I can't remember the last time I ate one. I am a dark chocolate girl all the way so will always choose some fruit and nut dark chocolate, some homemade creation or 80% cacao bar instead of the sweeter commerical chocolate bar. However, Cherry Ripes with their dark chocolate coating a possibly an exception...and I do believe this is genetic as I'm pretty sure they are a favourite of my mums.

That said, again I can't actually remember the last time I ate a Cherry Ripe bar. So I decided that I would create my own version and take them down to Melbourne with me to give to my mum for Christmas. I tried a bite of these the other day and I have to say that I am quite pleased with the flavour and texture and overall 'Cherry Ripeness' of them! The only difference is the lesser amount of dark chocolate; I chose not to coat the bars entirely as I have to take these on the plane and thought the more chocolate the higher chance of ending up with a melty mess. Even for a dark chocolate nut like me though, it is rich enough and the addition of brandy essence brings that sophisticated touch to them...perhaps leave this out if you are serving to the kiddies though.

It took me ages to find a recipe as a starting point, apparently no one else wants to make their own Cherry Ripes...go figure! But I found a cherry coconut bon bon recipe on My Food Obsession which I halved and changed a few things. I almost didn't use glace cherries because I hate these but once they are chopped up finally it was ok. Luckily!



choc_cherry_coconut_slice_02


Cherry Coconut & Dark Chocolate Slice
adpated from My Food Obsession
printable recipe

Ingredients
170ml sweetened condensed milk
1 tsp brandy flavoured essence
1/2 tsp vanilla bean paste (or 1 tsp vanilla extract)
pinch sea salt
70g icing sugar
170g dessicated coconut
200g red glace cherries, finely chopped
260g dark chocolate, melted (or more if you wish to entirely coat individual bars)

Method
Line a 9 x 13 inch pan with baking paper.
In a large bowl, combine the condensed milk, brandy essence, vanilla bean paste and salt. Sift the icing sugar and stir until smooth. Next, stir in the coconut and finely chopped glace cherries. Spoon the mixture into the tray and press down until smooth. Allow to set in the fridge until firm, and then remove from pan and use a sharp knife to cut into bars or squares. Drizzle with melted dark chocolate and allow to set in the fridge before serving.
You can also all the mixture to firm up a bit in the fridge and then roll into balls and dip in melted chocolate if you prefer to make truffles. Or cut into bars and coat entirely in chocolate if you like the more classic Cherry Ripe.



First of all, I'd like to wish you all a very Merry Christmas and the coming New Year. May this Christmas and New Year be the time for us to think and reflect all the blessing that we have been given and that we can channel those blessings to other people as well.

Christmas is coming too soon, so fast in fact that I'm not prepared to it, not at all. It's not just me that has crazy holiday schedule (in my case, it's work and lots of birthdays), but I'm sure that everybody experience the same thing, and I hope in a good and jolly way :). I see a lot of Christmas dishes, Christmas desserts, Christmas parties, Christmas decors, Christmas everything and it is very exciting! It is Christmas morning when I typed this and although the weather is somewhat crappy outside, so cloudy and windy, I have my morning cup of Cappuccino and also a very good freshly-baked chocolate croissant on my side :)


With my mom, my twin sister, and three of my eight brothers are here (it's usually two brothers and their family), we plan to go on a road trip this holiday break. It's been a while since I've been on a road trip and this time, we're going to LA, Vegas, and Utah. There's going to be A LOT of driving involved and with that long drive, I think we need lots of snacks, but let's see if we can actually manage to squeeze in some time to do it.


I almost ran out of new things to post on this blog lately, not that I bake less (it's more like the opposite), but I find myself baking mostly the same thing for the past few weeks.Ever since the wedding had passed, I received quite a number of request to bake the chocolate and hazelnut cake I baked for the wedding. At first, I wasn't planning on making this cake so often, more so by request, mostly because how time-consuming it is to make and the ingredients I used are pretty costly. If you recall this cake, it has about 8 different components. I made a simple version of it for the wedding, which only consists of about 6 components, but it is still a complex one to make.



I bake this same cake four times in a row just in two weeks, and I think that breaks the record for me. I did bake some other cake for different occasions, but I thought I'd combine this one in one post so that I won't post the same thing over and over again.

Most of these are for birthdays, different ones of course, and even though I always reluctant to make this cake due to the above reasons, it's always a joy when they come back and tell you how much they enjoyed it, makes me want to bake some more and more :). Since I don't like making the same exact cake multiple times, at least I tried to decorate it differently, I see this as an opportunity to practice my poor decorating and glazing skill. Some of the glazing looks very poor and not shiny, this is because I was re-using the leftover glaze from the previous cake, which is something new to me.



Again, have a joyful Christmas everyone!!

Chocolate Giveaway

It is Christmas day and I have come to a place I don’t visit often. It is the “I don’t want to cook, bake, dirty a dish, wash a dish, put away a dish ever again” place. I made an epic dinner for my parents last night. Normally, I stretch a meal like this out so I am doing as much in advance as possible. Over the years of cooking for my family, throwing many dinner parties, and cooking for clients, I have gotten to be a master of the do-ahead meal. But I didn’t expect my house to be overrun by illness – stomach flu, colds, fevers, ear infections, and pneumonia to be exact. And so, I had to cram a lot of cooking, baking, and cleaning into a very short amount of time. For the record, dinner was great. The following was the menu:

Chestnut Soup
Roasted Beet Salad with Ricotta Salata
Wild Mushroom, Wild Rice, and Root Vegetable Roulade
Celery Root Mash and Blasted Broccoli
No-Knead Bread (my first time making it and WOW, was it good)
Nutella Pound Cake
Crème Fraîche Ice Cream

You may remember that I said I would post everyday last week. Because of the sick house and this menu, that did not happen and I apologize. To make up for it, I am doing a giveaway! Chocolate!

My dad is a retired physican. He had a private practice and every year at this time he would come home with lots of presents from patients. They were mostly food-related and there was a lot of chocolate. I thought it was the greatest thing in the world. Randy does not have the type of job where people give him treats and I have the type of job that, if someone gives me treats, it’s me who made them and I’m giving them to myself. But imagine my surprise when Randy walked in one day last week with a giant box of Vosges chocolate.

I think I’ve made it clear, about 1,000 times, that I love chocolate. But there is too much here for me to eat and it is of such high quality that some bars come with “best enjoyed by” dates. And I love to share. So, leave me a comment about the best gift you got this season, and I will pick two winners. Each one will get 5 3-ounce bars of some funky flavors (curry, chipotle, etc), some chocolate covered nuts, and something involving marshmallows (I haven’t opened the box so I can’t be sure). Deadline for entry is Wednesday, December 29th, noon PST. Happy holidays to everyone.

Health & Nutrition Facts Of Chocolate

Health and Nutrition Facts Of Chocolate


Health & Nutrition Facts Of Chocolate

Chocolate is one of the yummiest type foods in around the world and is highly unlikely to ever go out of fashion. There are actually hundreds of facts connected with chocolate, but recently, many people are simply not aware of the fact that chocolate has plenty of health and nutritional benefits. Chocolate has many uses and comes in many forms. It is used in candies, beverages, ice cream and baked goods. It appears in liquid, powered, and solid forms. Cocoa and chocolate are very helpful to health. Cocoa and chocolate contain a large amount of antioxidants (flavinoids). Cocoa and dark chocolate may keep high blood pressure down and reduce the blood’s ability to clot, thus the risk of stroke and heart attacks may be reduced. A small square (20 g) of dark (bittersweet) chocolate every three days is the ideal dose for cardiovascular benefits.

A single chocolate chip can provide enough energy for an adult human to walk 150 ft. It also helps in depression, high blood pressure, Tumors and Pre-menstrual syndromes. Chocolate is a helpful for people but it can be deadly for dogs because chocolate contains Theobromine can be toxic to a dog’s central nervous system and cardiac muscles.

Every year people spend more than billion dollars on chocolate. One small amount of baking chocolate or cocoa contains 10% of the daily recommended intake of iron. Milk chocolate is the most preferred type of chocolate. The Amount of caffeine in Chocolate is very little – about 5 to 10 milligrams of caffeine in one ounce of bittersweet chocolate, 5 milligrams in milk chocolate, and 10 milligrams in a six-ounce cup of cocoa. Compare this to 100-150 milligrams found in a cup of coffee.

Chocolate makers use 40% of the world’s almonds and 20% of the world’s peanuts. It has also rich magnesium and iron. Chocolate contains high-quality anti oxidants that can protect you from developing cancer and heart disease. Chocolate provides in three forms milk chocolate, white chocolate and dark chocolate.

Milk Chocolate Nutritional Facts:

Serving Size : 1oz.or28.6g
Calories : 157
Protein : 1.7g
Total Fat : 10g
Saturated Fat : 6g
Cholesterol : 5g
Fiber : 0.57g
Carbohydrates : 15.44g
Sugars : 15.15g
Sodium : 26.8mg
Potassium : 98mg
Calcium : 52mg
Vitamin E : 128mg
Riboflavin : 84mg

White Chocolate Nutritional Facts

Serving Size : 1oz.or28.6g
Calories : 162
Protein : 2g
Total Fat : 10.58g
Saturated Fat : 6.57g
Cholesterol : 8.58g
Fiber : 0
Carbohydrate : 14.87g
Sugars : 14.87g
Sodium : 31mg
Potassium : 97mg
Calcium : 78mg
Vitamin E : 147mg
Riboflavin : 118mg

Dark Chocolate Nutritional Facts

Serving Size : 1oz.or 28.6g
Calories : 150
Protein : 1.7g
Total Fat : 10g
Saturated Fat : 6g
Cholesterol : 0.28g
Fiber : 3.14g
Carbohydrate : 13.15g
Sugars : 12.58g
Sodium : 29.5mg
Potassium : 153mg
Calcium : 9.1mg
Vitamin E : 102.49mg
Riboflavin : 32.3mg

L.A. Burdick’s Hot Chocolate

L.A. Burdick’s Hot Chocolate Goodness

Yahoo recently ran a feature on the best hot chocolates in the nation, taken from the longer listing by Travel + Leisure. And while they were wise enough to mention L.A. Burdick Chocolate, they opted for the location in Walpole, New Hampshire and neglected the charming location in Cambridge’s Harvard Square. Well, we want to right that wrong, as we would agree, it is perhaps one of the best hot chocolates we have ever consumed, and that’s just the beginning.

To begin, this isn’t any old hot cocoa powder you might make yourself at home. This is the real deal hot chocolate available in milk, dark or white chocolate. To make this stunning concoction, shaved chocolate is whisked into steamed milk, and then topped with foam and a grated spice ball.

If you are a true connoisseur of all things chocolate, as we all should be, up the ante and order a single origin hot chocolate. Choose from Grenadian, Venezuelan, Dominican, Bolivian, Madagascan or Ecuadorian for a virtual hot chocolate hot spot tour. Or venture off the purist’s path for a peppermint hot chocolate or a mocha drink selection.

Every rich drink deserves a pastry companion. Offset the chocolately goodness with a Linzer torte made with hazelnut, almonds and lingonberry or blonde madeleines infused with lime and a raspberry baked inside it’s spongy cake. Or, should you be one who knows no chocolate boundaries, the chocolate treats continue with chocolate mousse cake, chocolate birthday cake layered with raspberry ganache, chocolate cake with coconut and lime, and the Harvard Square – a dense, rich chocolate cake with walnuts and vanilla.

Chances are, if you have not tried L.A. Burdick’s in Cambridge (or there other locations in Walpole, NH or New York City), after doing so you will immediately want to share the experience with others. For those that are too far away to visit the café with you, there are a slew of chocolate treats available for shipping from their website. Try their New Year’s packages which include champagne truffles, chocolate penguins or chocolate snowmen.

Chocolate chip and walnut cookies

Chocolate chip and walnut cookies

Chocolate chip and walnut cookies

Posted on 12-26-10 · Print this article Visit the kitchen shop See more on: Brownies & cookies, Sweets & desserts; ,

I made liver paté earlier and I wondered what could go into the oven after it. No preheating in between and that saves time and power.

Not too thin, not too thick, lightly crisp and mildly chewy — that about sums up what these chocolate chip and walnut cookies are like. A result of an experiment with the best basic butter cookie recipe I can muster and I think I’m getting there.

I have a weakness for walnuts — I used the last of the walnuts in my pantry — but you may substitute just about any nuts that you prefer.

Makes about 18 pieces of 2-1/2 inch cookies.

Ingredients:

1/2 c. of butter at room temperature
3/4 c. of sugar
1 large egg
3/4 c. plus 2 tbsp. of all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. of baking powder
1/2 tsp. of salt
1/2 tsp. of vanilla essence
1/2 c. of chocolate morsels
1/2 c. of chopped walnuts

Roast the walnuts in an oil free frying pan for a couple of minutes, tossing often. Do not allow to darken. Cool.

Preheat the oven to 350F.

Whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt.

In a large mixing bowl, beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla essence. Beat until smooth.

Add the flour mixture. Mix until smooth.

Fold in the chocolate morsels and cooled chopped nuts. The cookie dough will be soft but not runny.

Drop by teaspoonfuls onto an ungreased cookie sheet keeping the mounds at least two inches apart. I used two cookie sheets.

Bake for 15 to 18 minutes or until the edges are lightly browned.

Cool the cookies in the pan for a couple of minutes to firm them up a bit as they are still soft when they come out of the oven. Using a spatula, carefully lift them and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. The cookies turn crisp after cooling.

Chocolate Hazelnut Cupcakes

Chocolate Hazelnut Cupcakes


Post image for Chocolate Hazelnut Cupcakes

by Mele Cotte on December 26, 2010

nocciola/hazelnut

Laying low in recent weeks has been great and the winter break that I am on at the moment has been like a cherry on top of a Sunday. Cooking, baking, cleaning and getting the house in organized order. It’s kind of freeing, really.

Part of the plan for cleaning includes posting all the dishes and desserts that I have been toting from folder to folder on my external drive. Posting the foods that I have enjoyed over the past month will only leave room for more reasons to get in the kitchen! Sounds like a good plan to me, don’t you think?

To begin that cleanse…Chocolate Hazelnut Cupcakes seem like a great place to start. One of my Christmas memories I spoke about in my last post included sitting around the dinner table with my family, chatting about whatever, cracking roasted nuts, getting excited when someone manages to crack the shell while keeping the nut intact. Upon further thought, I really believe hazelnuts are my favorite nut. In case I waiver on that believe, I just need to look at a sampling of hazelnut/nutella recipes on here!

Truffles
Nutella Flakey Swirls
Apple Pancakes with Nutella Sauce

Filbert Gateau with Praline Buttercream

Hazelnut Cookies I & Hazelnut Cookies II
Yule Log with Nutella filling
The Danish Bread with Nutella filling
Hazelnut Mousse

Crazy, right? Maybe….but that doesn’t mean I am not going to add even more to the list. These cupcakes are quite pleasing, and will be made again, for sure. One note: They are flat toppers. I need to play around some more to get a dome. Nonetheless, they still taste good.

Chocolate Hazelnut Cupcakes

1 cup flour
1 tsp. baking powder
¼ tsp. salt
½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder*
½ cup butter, room temperature
1 cup sugar
½ cup hazelnut spread
2 eggs, room temperature
½ cup whole milk
1 tsp. vanilla
hazelnuts for garnish (optional)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees, then turn it down to 350 just prior to baking

In a bowl, whisk the dry ingredients to combine; set aside. Beat the butter with an electric mixer until it is soft, then add sugar. Add hazelnut spread and mix until smooth. Add the eggs, one at a time beating until they are well combined. Combine vanilla and milk. Add dry ingredients alternately with the milk, beginning and ending with dry. Beat just to combine. Divide batter among the muffin tins, filling each no more and 2/3. Bake 20-22 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow to cool completely before frosting. Makes 14-16 cupcakes

The future is chocolate

and The future is chocolate...


IF YOU LOVE CHOCOLATE, listen up: according to Alasdair Wilkins' article in io9, "Newly sequenced chocolate genome reveals the secrets of better candy", the boffins have cracked the cocoa code, and they're starting to tinker . . . it actually might be a good thing, take a minute and check it out.

The chocolate tree genome has just been sequenced, revealing which genes are responsible for turning ordinary cacao crops into the finest chocolate. Now a little careful genetic tweaking could produce tastier, healthier, and more environmentally and economically beneficial chocolate.

The Chocolate Story

The Chocolate Story


Chocolates are one of my few weaknesses I can’t resist. Give me any kind of chocolate I would happily consume it and if you don’t. I will manage to have it anyway and this is exactly what I did lately.

On my birthday night (26th December) while on bed when I was reliving some good old memories my eyes scanned a Cadbury Pouch and a can of Pringle chips on the table with a balloon tied on it, being an optimist I assumed that this surprise-gift must be presented to me by my ‘loving siblings’ that I wondered how went unnoticed by me, to confirm this pleasant surprise while carrying the stuff I proudly walked into his room, to thank him.

Me: Sameer, who has given it to me, Adeel or you?

Sameer: What? Bhai keep it from where you have picked it. Faiza has brought it for me; this is my over due birthday’s gift she couldn’t present it on 23rd (Dec)

Me: Ohkay!

Sameer: You thought it was for you?

Me: Obviously, it’s my birthday what else would I assume, anyway open it. Let’s eat it.

Sameer: No, I will eat whenever I feel like, just drop it.

Me: Okay but do share it with me because I also gave you lots of chocolates when you were too young, you don’t remember.

Sameer: I don’t know you. Just drop the packet or I will hide them and you will get nothing.

Me: Hmm Okay! (walked into my room with heavy heart)

Later when he slept and nobody was around my mind started working, I did all arrangement to accomplish what I call a “Tasty Crime” project. All what I needed was a scissor and a masking tape.

I took the

1- Cadbury pouch in my hand

2- Turned it upside down

3- Subtly holed up the pouch’s base with scissor

4- Took out at least 5-8 chocolates from its bottom

5- Covered the base with the tape so that the chocolates remain in the packet and don’t drop down.

Now the pouch’s looking shiny and untouched but a bit lighter in weight — but who cares as the mission was successfully accomplished.

Right now I am indulging the chocolate experience and penning down my achievement — on the other hand my innocent bro, as expected — has already hidden the pouch and eating his few chocolates assuming that the pouch is safe from ‘Big Boss’

It’s widely perceived that with the passage of time we start getting mature avoid doing things that count “silly” but in my view how much older we grow such tiny but adventurous moments keep providing us a sense of joy. I love being what I am…

Chocolate dan Your Health

Chocolate and Your Health










Have you ever experienced one of those midnight cravings -- you know, the ooey-gooey, sweet and chocolatey, decadent kind of craving which can never be truly satisfied without a sense of guilt? Well, here's something that just might have you feeling differently about that bar of unopened chocolate on your kitchen table.

In an article published on allchocolate.com, dark chocolate alone may have bountiful benefits to your health, so long as it is eaten in moderation: "Two tablespoons of natural cocoa have more antioxidant capacity than four cups of green tea, 1 cup of blueberries, and one and a half glasses of red wine." Really good news for cardiovascular health.According to the American Academy of Neurology (AAN), chocolate is rich in flavonoids, an antioxidant which may help protect against strokes. In one study done at St. Michael's Hospital and the University of Toronto, 44,489 individuals who consumed one serving of chocolate each week were 22 percent less likely to have a stroke than those who did not consume any chocolate. In another study, 1,169 individuals who consumed 50 grams (2 ounces) of chocolate per week were 46 percent less likely to die from stroke than those who did not consume any chocolate.

Another study examined the benefits of chocolate when consumed by middle aged men and women over a duration of eight years. The study compared those who ate the most chocolate with those who ate the least, with the difference between the two groups being only six grams, or an equivalent of one small square of chocolate per day. The study found those who consumed more chocolate lowered their risk for heart attack by roughly a quarter, and cut the risk of stroke in half (BBC News). So what exactly is the secret ingredient that makes chocolate heart-healthy?

Cocoa contains an antioxidant called flavanols, a type of flavonoid that helps reduce blood pressure, cholesterol, and prevents vascular disease. The role of antioxidants prevents and repairs oxidative destruction in our bodies, the same kind of damage which results in not only vascular disease, but diabetes, cancer, macular degeneration, and other chronic diseases as well (HealthCastle.com).

Milk Chocolate vs. Dark Chocolate

You will most likely reap more benefits from consuming dark chocolate than milk. Why? Unlike milk chocolate, dark chocolate doesn't contain as much added junk -- fats and sugars -- and is less likely to have undergone severe processing, which can lead to a loss of flavanols found in the cocoa. But chocolate lovers should also beware: since chocolate is high in calories and fat, it is best to consume this sweet treat in moderation.


Friday, December 24, 2010

NORAD Santa Tracker and His Favorite Hot Chocolate : Peppermint

peppermint chocolate 200x300 NORAD Santa Tracker and His Favorite Hot Chocolate: PeppermintNORAD is tracking Santa as he makes his way around the world to every boy’s and girl’s house tonight. Santa is expected to arrive at each house somewhere between 9 and midnight, so have your little ones in bed early tonight! If your little ones aren’t asleep when Santa arrives, don’t worry, he’ll come back when they fall asleep. There’s not much time left to make some goodies for Santa tonight. But after you make the cookies, don’t forget to add a delicious cup of hot chocolate to go along with his cookies. It’s forecast to be a cold night all over the world, and Santa will need some hot chocolate to go along with his delicious cookies to help keep him warm. But what is Santa’s favorite hot chocolate? While peppermint of course! I’ve got Santa’s favorite hot chocolate recipe right here, straight from Mrs’ Claus herself. She kindly shared her secret peppermint hot chocolate recipe early this morning so I could share it with all of you today!

Peppermint Hot Chocolate Recipe

For Hot Chocolate:

  • 4 oz milk chocolate chips
  • 4 tablespoons sugar
  • a small pinch of salt
  • 4 cups milk
  • 4 candy canes

For topping:

  • 1 cup whipping cream
  • 1 teaspoon sugar
  • 1/4 teaspoon peppermint extract

Method

1. In a small saucepan add milk and heat until steaming but not boiling. Add chocolate, sugar and salt. Simmer for 4 – 5 minutes, whisking constantly until chocolate is melted. Do not bring to a boil.

2. In a large glass or metal bowl, add whipping cream, peppermint extract and sugar. Whip until light and fluffy.

3. Serve hot chocolate topped with cream and add the candy cane. The candy cane will melt in hot chocolate and contribute more to peppermint flavor.

Makes 4 servings

Easy Chocolate Banana Bread

Easy Chocolate Chip Banana Bread


banana bread

Last Monday night, in the midst of finishing my final holiday canning projects (I made a big batch of this cranberry apple jam to give to our collective co-workers and supervisors), doing laundry so that I could pack for my trip to Oregon and giving the apartment a good once-over so that I didn’t leave it in ruins, I also managed to make a batch of chocolate chip banana bread.

I had four blackened bananas in the fruit bowl and couldn’t bear to let them go to waste. I nearly tossed them in the freezer, but quarters tight in there at the moment and I’ve already got approximately 12 halved frozen bananas occupying valuable space. It was either use ‘em up or let ‘em go. Besides, there’s nothing so calming as a bit of unnecessary baking in the midst of holiday frenzy. It’s akin to cleaning the house from top to bottom when you’re writing a book. Of course, I wouldn’t know anything about that kind of procrastination. Nope, not me.

bitten banana bread

But anyway, back to the banana bread. This is a recipe I first discovered on Orangette, who adapted it from Jeannette at Everybody Likes Sandwiches, who herself altered it from a recipe entitled Willie Nelson’s Famous Banana Bread. Quite a pedigree, wouldn’t you say?

I made it three years ago, around the time Molly first published the recipe. I took it to a writing retreat and left it in the kitchen, my offering to the communal snack table. A few hours later the pan was half empty and by the next day the banana bread was present in memory only. I made it once or twice more and then promptly forgot about it. My maple banana bread became my default and I thought all was right in the my quick bread world.

But on Monday night, I wanted something easy and fast. One bowl, preferably. As I stood in the kitchen pondering my options (and wondering whether it was insane to make banana bread at all), the memory of this recipe popped into my head. It satisfied all my demands (minimal dishes, used things I had, delicious) and so I set to work.

Less than an hour later, I had a pan of lovely banana bread. The remnants are now in Oregon with me (Scott is not a banana lover, so leaving it in Philly would have defeated my “Save the Bananas” mission). My sister has been nabbing nibbles from the container since I arrived (I found a piece this morning with a perfect half-moon bite missing) and I discovered this morning that it is amazing crumbled on top of warm oatmeal.

I’m not suggesting you make this now. I know that oven space is precious in the hours leading up to Christmas (I still need to make an apple pie, a pumpkin cheesecake and a batch of gingerbread cookies). However, if you have a bit of time off in the next week and a few withered bananas, this could be just the thing.

Chocolate Chip Banana Bread

I streamlined the recipe a bit from the one that Molly, Jeannette and Willie Nelson used. Most noticeably, I skipped the cinnamon sugar topping. I had an inkling that this bread would need to travel and I was afraid it would be too messy with a sugary topping. Truly, I didn’t miss it. However, I imagine it gilds the lily nicely, so if you want to see what topping is all about, check out Jeannette’s original posting.

3-4 very black bananas
2 large eggs
1 ½ cups whole wheat pastry flour
3/4 cup cane sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Butter a baking pan (the original recipes call for an 8 inch square pan. For some reason, I chose to use an 11 by 7 inch pan. They hold the same capacity, so use whatever one you’d like).

In a large bowl, mash the bananas. Break in the eggs and stir to combine. Add flour, sugar, baking soda, cinnamon and vanilla extract and mix. When the batter has formed, add the chocolate chips and stir to incorporate.

Scrap the batter into your baking dish and bake for 30-40 minutes. Mine was done at the 32 minute mark, but I used a dark metal baking pan, which tends to make things brown faster than glass. It is done when the top is burnished and a toothpick comes out clean (save streaks of chocolate chip).

It is wonderful eaten warm, but remains amazingly tasty eaten out of a gladware container, four days later.

Triple Chocolate Gingerbread Biscotti

Triple Chocolate Gingerbread Biscotti


A few years ago I made biscotti for the first time. For whatever reason, it wasn’t something I thought about making myself before. In fact, it wasn’t even a favorite treat of mine. The versions in various bakeries and stores were so ho-hum, dry, flavorless and generally just a disappointment that it wasn’t really even on my radar.

Then, thanks to one of my baking clubs, we made an almond biscotti recipe that has since been one of my all time favorite treats. I fiddled with that recipe as well, because while I do like a good crunch biscotti, I like it slightly softer with a little chew, not rock hard.
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Since then, I’ve made several versions of homemade biscotti’s, but possibly my favorite unique version is this recipe for a holiday worthy gift—a rich, deep chocolate flavored biscotti with a good crunch, but not too hard. Lots of bittersweet chocolate chips and white chocolate chips for contrast and a good gingerbread flavor underneath for that added oomph and holiday spice. This Triple Chocolate Gingerbread Biscotti is a real winner, especially when dipped in a cup of hot chocolate like the Salted Caramel Hot Chocolate recipe.

While technically, because of the cocoa powder in the biscotti, I guess these could be called a quadruple chocolate. The triple in the title refers to the amounts of actual chocolate in the cookie. The cookie dough itself has, not only cocoa for depth, but melted chocolate for extra richness and chocolatey flavor. Add in the two kinds of chocolate chips and you are well on your way to some of the best chocolate biscotti you’ve ever had. If you really want to go over the top, you could drizzle more melted chocolate or dip these in chocolate after they are cooled, but honestly, they don’t need it. And that’s saying a lot from a chocoholic like me!

So, if you have last minute gift giving to put together, mix up a batch of chocolate mix, bake off a pan of biscotti and enjoy as the oohs and ahhs roll in. Happy Holidays!

Triple Chocolate Gingerbread Biscotti

Recipe by Holly Hanks at PheMOMenon

Ingredients

  • 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
  • ¾ cup good quality Dutch cocoa powder
  • 1 ½ teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 2 ½ teaspoons ground ginger
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • ¼ teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
  • 1/8 teaspoon ground allspice
  • pinch of ground cloves
  • 1 stick (8 tablespoons) unsalted butter, softened
  • 2 large eggs
  • 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
  • 1/3 cup unsulphered molasses
  • ½ cup packed light brown sugar
  • ½ cup sugar
  • 3 ½ ounces good quality semi-sweet chocolate, melted and cooled
  • ¾ cup white chocolate chips
  • ¾ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
  • 1 tablespoon confectioners’ sugar

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment, set aside.
  2. In a bowl whisk together the flour, cocoa, baking soda, salt, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice and cloves. Set aside.
  3. In the bowl of a stand mixer with paddle attachment, beat together the softened butter, brown sugar and sugar, on medium speed until fluffy—about 2 minutes. Turn the machine off, scrape down the sides and add the eggs, vanilla and molasses. Turn the machine on to low to incorporate, about 1 minute, then turn up to medium speed and beat until smooth and a little fluffy. Add the melted, cooled chocolate and beat 1 minute more to mix well.
  4. Turn the mixer off and add all the dry ingredient mixture. Turn the machine on low speed and incorporate the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until well combined. Add the chocolate chips (and candied ginger if using) and combine well to make a very stiff dough.
  5. Use a spatula or bowl scraper to divide the dough in the bowl in half and place half the dough onto the prepared baking sheet, down one side (you’ll be making two logs, lengthwise, on the same sheet). Use floured hands to shape the dough into a 14-inch by 2-inch log (about 2 inches high). Repeat down the other side of the baking sheet so you have two logs. You’ll end up with each log being about 2-inches from the sides of the pan, with about 4-inches in between down the center of the sheet.
  6. Sift the confectioners’ sugar onto the two logs. Place the baking sheet on a rack centered in the oven and bake the logs 35 minutes. Remove the sheet from the oven and let the logs cool for 10 minutes. Carefully pull the parchment lined sheet off the baking sheet and onto a cutting surface. Use a sharp knife to cut the logs on a slight diagonal angle into about 17 pieces each. Place the cut pieces back onto the baking sheet and bake them for the second time for 12 minutes. Remove them from the oven and let them cool on the baking sheet.
  7. Store in an airtight container for 1 week. In the freezer they keep for up to a month.

Chocolate Lollipops


  • Prep Time 5 Minutes
  • Cook Time 5 Minutes
  • Difficulty Easy
Inngredients
  • 6 ounces, weight Quality Chocolate (either White, Milk, Dark, Or Mixed–your Preference)
  • 24 pieces Lollipop Sticks
  • ½ cups Dried Fruits Or Chopped Nuts (completely Your Preference)

Preparation Instructions

Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper.

Using the double boiler method, melt the chocolate, stirring slowly until smooth. Remove from heat. Spoon one tablespoon of the melted chocolate onto the parchment paper. Try to do this evenly to form a round circle. Lay the lollipop stick 1/3-1/2 inch into the chocolate circle. Sprinkle with your choice of chopped nuts and/or dried fruit. Repeat process until all your chocolate is used. Set aside the cookie sheets in a cool area and allow 2-3 hours to harden. Once firm, carefully peel the lollipops from the parchment paper. The pops can be packaged with cellophane and tied with a decorative bow.

Note: the photo shown above features both white chocolate and 60% chocolate with dried cranberries and crushed pistachio nuts.

Enjoy!