Brownies a la bean

I really like using surprising ingredients that add a healthy twist to a recipe without compromising taste or enjoyment. After a couple of trials of a brownie recipe that included canned beans (original recipe from My darling lemon thyme) as its main ingredient, the below came out as my best version and voted as amazing by 100% of people. It's fudgy, sweet and delicious.

Brownie a la bean

1 tin of beans - white beans, black beans or kidney

3 eggs 

4 tablespoons oil - coconut or macadamia
1/4 c sugar

1/2 c Xylitol (starch based natural sugar)
1/2 c cocoa powder
1/2 c LSA (like almond meal but more cost effective)

3 heaped dessert spoons flaxseed meal (works to bind in the absence of flour)
1 t vanilla essence
1 t baking powder

1/2 t salt

Optional

2T espresso and 1T coconut flour. Coconut flour is like a sponge - so if your mixture is too wet this will bring it back (use sparingly)

Chopped chocolate

Nuts 

Whatever other tasty additions you like. You could also ice with the avocado icing from here

Preheat oven to 180 and grease a loaf pan or small square tin. Line with paper if you like.

Mix your dry ingredients together in a small bowl.
Tip beans into the bowl of a food processor and blend to form a smooth paste. Add all the wet ingredients to the beans and pulse to combine. Add sugar to bean mixture and combine.  

Pour bean mixture into a mixing bowl and slowly mix in the dry. Stir through whatever delicious additions you have.

Pour into your tin and bake for 30-35 mins - it should be a fairly wet mix. the top should spring back when done.
Cool in the tin

This is seriously good and you will want to eat it all.

Rocky road (um delicious)

 

This is so easy to make and so easy to eat. I wanted to make a bit of a gourmet style rocky road, so it's a bit special and different for Xmas. Lovely for a wee present. Plus I'd like to think it's the tiniest bit healthier than the usual sort - if you squinted a bit.

To make this I used: 

2 Large blocks of 75% dark chocolate

1 x 400gm pack of mixed nuts, seeds and dried fruits

1 bag of vanilla marshmallows - quartered if they're the large kind

Peel of one small orange chopped small and stirred in a hot pan till dried.

1/2 t salt

I really wanted to try the orange peel - but forgot, as I did the salt into the chocolate (damn!)

Oil some pans - I used olive oil on a round and a loaf tin. I found the mixture quite thick so you can use whatever pan you like really as it holds it shape and doesn't run.

Melt the broken up chocolate slowly in the microwave. 30secs till it starts going then 10 secs intervals, stirring each time.

Stir in your other ingredients.  Mix really well. I reckon I could have gone another 100gms or so of the mixed nuts / fruits. To further eek out the choc mixture and make more servings.

Spoon into your vessel, spread in a single layer.

Refrigerate for a couple of hours till set.  Cut into wedges with a large knife dipped in boiling water.

Makes about 20 good sized bits - depending how big you make them. Total cost about $15

Enjoy.

Pumpkin and chocolate tartlets with meringue

I made a recipe everyone! I had some inspiration a while back - beetroot meringues. Well I made them they were really good, but perhaps a wee bit too beetrooty and earthy for me. With a few tweaks they could turn up here later. However I was really keen to see this idea working so decided to try with pumpkin, since we all know that pumpkin works well in desserts like pumpkin pie.
 

Here's my recipe. I quite like how they are pretty healthy - especially if you use filo pastry on the bases. Enjoy good home made food made of real ingredients everybody.



Pumpkin and chocolate tarlets

Makes six tartlets

Home made pastry - 2c flour, 125gms cold butter, 2 T icey water (or try filo, sandwich three layers together with a light brush of butter)

1 butternut squash or small pumpkin

4 T honey

½ t ginger

¼ t cinnamon

¼ small orange – juiced

½ t salt

3 eggs separated

2 T castor sugar

½ t vanilla

6 squares chocolate – milk or dark

12 walnuts

Method
Blitz the cold butter and flour in a food processor till the mixture is powdery. Add icey cold water till the mixture sticks together when you press it lightly with your fingers. Pour on to the bench and mould into a ball, wrap in glad wrap and place in the fridge for an hour.

Quarter and de-seed your squash. Steam with a small amount of water in a pot till just soft. Let cool then scoop the flesh from the skins. Let the flesh drain in a sieve over a bowl.

Get a six-cup muffin pan greased and heat your oven to 200c. Once the oven is hot roll your pastry out to 1mm thick and line the muffin pans leaving a 1 cm sticking up to account for shrinkage. Prick all over with a fork, drop the oven to 180c and pre cook till the pastry just starts colouring.

Meanwhile push the pumpkin through the sieve into a clean bowl and mix in the spices, orange juice, salt and egg yolks.

Take the pastry cases from the oven and fill with the pumpkin mixture. Pop back in the oven for aprox 10 mins – the mixture should puff and just start colouring.

Remove from oven and place a square of chocolate on top of each tartlet, so it begins to soften and add some chopped walnuts. Leave the oven on.

Whip the egg whites till thick and add the sugar gradually till it’s mixed in and not grainy. Add the vanilla. The meringue should hold its shape. Using a teaspoon pile the meringue on top of the tartlets. Place them back in the oven and cook till meringue is browned – this is pretty quick so keep your eye on it.

Make your chocolate treat - and eat it

Chocolate treat which contains no sugar and no butter? Impossible you may think, or if possible must certainly taste like cardboard.
Well I've found a recipe which not only contains no naughty ingredients but also tastes the exact opposite of woody pulp.
Plus it's also vegan and has a surprise ingredient in the icing.This slice is so many things.
I found it through fellow blogger Laura at Hungry and Frozen, and she found on another blog here.

Literal goodness.

1 cup walnuts (or any nuts or mixture of nuts you have)
1 cup dates, pitted
2/3 cup cocoa powder 
1 avocado
40ml honey, maple syrup or whatever syrupy deliciousness you have
2 tsp vanilla extract
dash salt
dash cinnamon

In a food processor grind up the nuts, dates and 1/2 the quantity of cocoa powder.  Will look a bit like soil, quite crumbly.  Press into a tin, and pack down tightly.


Clean the food processor. Pop in your avocado, rest of cocoa powder, salt, syrup, vanilla, cinnamon (I actually left this out - but could be delicious so do it). Mix it all up and spread over your base.


Freeze for at least an hour. Slice up, and leave to defrost for maybe 10mins before eating.

This is really good, and I will use this icing on other treats as well.  The base does crumble more as it thaws, so I may research what I can use here to better hold together, perhaps more dates.

Yet another chocolate cake posting

You can never have too many chocolate cake recipes. Like shoes, you need them for every occasion.  This chocolate cake is rather like my pair of Nike sneakers - fast and popular.

This recipe makes one layer. Either make two separate layers and sandwich together, or make a double mixture like I did this time and cut in half to sandwich with cream.

50gms butter
1T golden syrup (do not leave this out - gives the cake a super delish factor)
1 egg
100gms sugar
1c flour
1t baking soda
1t baking powder
3/4 c milk
1 T cocoa

Preheat oven to 180c, grease an 18cm round pan.

Melt butter and golden syrup in a large pan, as this will be your mixing bowl.

Take off heat and measure out other ingredients while cooling. Then stir beaten egg and sugar into the butter mixture. Beat well. Sift in flour, baking powder and cocoa. Add warm milk with baking soda stirred in.

Batter should be quite runny. Bake aprox 30 mins.

I'll let the picture speak for itself.

Another chocolate cake

Since I'm being transient at the moment - the rental housing market in Auckland is ridiculous with up to 200 people turning up to viewings - everything is in storage and I am sans cook book. So when a dear friend asked for a chocolate cake recipe I did not have my usual to hand. And didn't till after the fact remember that the recipe is right here on this blog. Anyway this ended up as a happy discovery of a new and delicious way to make chocolate cake. The secret ingredient is sour cream - no butter required just sour cream. This means no beating of butter and sugar and less time till cake eating can commence.


I recently made this as a treat for my lovely hosts Mark and Sam, who are kindly looking after me in my backpacking phase. I think of this cake as American style, must be the sour cream and the giant size of the cake.


Sour cream chocolate cake


3 eggs
2 cups sugar
2 cups sour cream
3 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking soda

2 teaspoons of baking powder
1/2 cup cocoa

1 tablespoon of instant coffee
1/3 cup water (or espresso if not using the instant above)


Beat eggs and sugar together until light; add sour cream and dry ingredients. Dissolve cocoa and coffee in warm water and add to batter.

Pour into a large baking tin. This recipe makes a big, very moist cake.

Bake at 180°F until the cake springs back about 40mins or so?  I didn't ice this puppy. 

Since my camera is in storage here's a pic taken on my computer's camera.

Next time - this cake would make a great layer cake, big enough for three layers sandwiched together with cream and topped with Choc icing and whole strawbs.  Also I might try using melted chocolate in place of the cocoa to get some more flavour in there.

Another post on chocolate

Today I happened by Kokako cafe in Parnell.  Jacquie and I were off to the museum for the Kai to pie exhibition and we stopped by the cafe for coffee beforehand.


While I was waiting for my coffee I noticed their boxes of hot chocolate - which I had only heard good things about. So I picked up a box for Jacquie and I at the modest price of $7.50 each.


This evening, after dinner, I whipped William and I up a batch.


In a large mug combine 1 T of Kokako hot chocolate, 1/2 T of sugar and a little hot water to combine.  Fill with milk and microwave (sorry I know evil - I was feeling very lazy though)  once hot throw a layer of marshmallows on top.


It was definitely enough sweetness for dessert.  However perhaps I'll try a less sweet version next time - to try and get some more of that deep chocolate flavour I was hoping for.

Best chocolate cake

This is the very best chocolate cake recipe ever.  Fullstop. Can't believe I'm sharing this little beauty.  I've had it for over 10 years and it never fails to impress.
Enjoy.


Best chocolate cake


125 gms butter
1c sugar
2 eggs
2 T golden syrup
1t baking soda
2c flour
1/4c cocoa
1t baking powder
1c milk
1t salt


Cream butter and sugar, make that butter white.  Add golden syrup and eggs, try and keep all the ingredients at room temp - to avoid curdling the batter.  In a separate bowl sieve the flour, cocoa and salt.  Warm the milk and add the baking soda.  In batches add the flour mix and milk mixing gently in between.  Finally stir through the baking powder.


Don't over mix. Pour into a greased pan and bake at 180 for 45mins.  Or until the cake springs bake lightly.
Don't forget the cake will continue to cook with its latent heat once it's out of the oven, so don't overcook.


Favourite butter icing


I also made proper butter style icing for the first time.  Totally worth it.  Get your beater out again and get 50gms of butter all creamy.  Add a cup of icing sugar and 1/4 cup of cocoa, large pinch of salt and some vanilla.  Keep beating as it will combine to a creamy texture after awhile, it will look like it's not going to happen but keep beating. You can then add milk a teaspoon at a time til you get the required consitancy.  This mixture is forgiving, add more cocoa or icing suar or milk to get the consistency you want.  Do not leave out the salt, the juxtaposition of it and the chocolate and sugar is mouthwatering.


Wrap that icing around the cake in a delicious chocolatey hug.


Slice up and delight your friends and family.


xx

Ice Cream again - and getting there

 My very first blog post was about making ice-cream. As part of my on-going quest to make my own food, preservative free - as natural as possible. And that way I can eat more of the naughty things - right?

So I tried two recipes - one the traditional custard way.  It turned out like a flavoured iceberg.  possibly due to a churning schedule I couldn't keep to.  The next recipe was basically a frozen chocolate ganache, recipe here. Very delicious, but not a real ice cream and thigh bulgingly full of fat. So I tasked myself to buying an ice cream machine. Off to trusty Trademe I went and after a good amount of researching and umming and ahhing bought myself a machine.

I've used it twice so far, the first recipe from the premium ice cream section of the recipe book that came with the machine.  This was a custard based version, with silver top milk and cream.  It was good, very rich and chocolatey.  I've just made my second lot, this time banana and chocolate - and can I say it is phenomenal.  Made using a lighter recipe, this one doesn't leave a layer of fat in the mouth and tastes so fresh with the fruit.

Chocolate and Banana ice cream

1.5 cups milk (I used trim)

1.25 cups cream

1 banana

1/4 cup cocoa powder

1/2 cup sugar (castor is best)

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

1 egg

pinch salt

Warm 1/2 cup of milk and add the sugar to dissolve a bit - don't make the milk too hot, or you will have to wait for it to cool before adding to the mixture.

In a food processor, blender, hand mixer or whatever, blast all the ingredients. Pour into a jug and chill.

Churn in your ice cream maker to the manufacturers directions. Mine always comes out super soft, so needs extra freezing after.

Now thats gotta be a health tonic in comparison to the store bought stuff.