Wednesday Food Blogging

Dark and White Chocolate Chunk Cookies with Hazelnuts

Gooey, rich, melt-in-your-mouth chocolate chunks embedded in batter.

I had to row for 25 minutes on the rowing machine today in order to afford one of these yummy cookies. But it was worth it. With large dark chocolate chunks, white chocolate nuggets, and flavorful hazelnuts embedded inside the batter, these cookies are like a little chunk of heaven.

I adapted the recipe from a British recipe, which used weight instead of volume measurements, and I used an egg substitute. The article recommended leaving the batter in the refrigerator overnight, or even longer, so I patiently waited a whole day to bake them. I tried really hard to forget about them, though a nibble of the batter gave me a taste of what was in store.

Letting the batter sit means the flavors—the chocolates, the hazelnuts—infuse throughout the cookies. While you could bake them after 2 hours, try to wait longer. Next time I'll wait two days, which make these a perfect make-ahead cookie.

So if you're coming to visit, give me a couple of days notice. And a few hours at the gym.

For easy directions, keep reading.

Chocolate and Banana Fritters with Pistachio Dust

Better than ice cream.

These tasted so much like a banana split that my husband suggested adding dried cherries to the batter. Not a bad idea. In fact, I’d like to try these with some fresh cherries soon.

The original recipe wasn’t vegan, but I easily veganized it. I really don’t know why anyone bothers with eggs; they’re so easy to replace. And the result is so delicious—of course, chocolate and bananas pretty much guarantees delish.

Easy instructions below. 

Peanut Butter and Chocolate Chip Cookies

If you can wait long enough, let them cool on a wire rack.

When making vegan cookies, I like to use flax seed instead of eggs. That way, I replace the cholesterol and saturated fat with healthy fat, cancer-fighting lignans, and fiber. Granted, not a whole lot—well, unless you eat the whole plate.

Fortunately, these cookies are good enough that you'll want to eat the whole plate. The texture is perfect—crisp on the outside, chewy on the inside. And enough chocolate to count. The coffee enhances the flavor.

Eat them while they're hot. Although they're not bad the next day, either.

Rhubarb and Strawberry Crumble

Rhubarb and Strawberry Crumble

I don't cook with rhubarb very often; in fact, this is only the second time I've bought it. I couldn't resist those long, red limbs.

Making a crumble seemed like a good idea, so that's exactly what I did. But I also has had* (LOL cat I am not!) strawberries. While raspberries and other fruits are more often found in crumble, there's absolutely no reason not to have strawberries. And rhubarb.

For instructions, peek below.

Update: Crumbs! I hate typos!

Chocolate Loaf Cake with (or without) Strawberries

Forget plain old pound cake with strawberries and whipped cream. Why not add chocolate, and make it a real dessert?

This loaf was easy to make, in the oven in about 10 minutes. I used soy yogurt instead of eggs, but other egg substitutes could be used as well: whizzed tofu, or banana.

By itself, the loaf was delicious, but with strawberries popping up in my green grocer's shelves, and Soyatoo whipped cream on my refrigerator shelf, I easily imagined something even more spot on.

Continue reading to see how it's done.

Jam Roly-Poly

Like a biscuit, only roly.

You know how biscuits are cookies, and scones are biscuits in England? Well, there’s this thing called a “roly-poly” which is also like an American biscuit, only in log form.

Think of it as a Swiss rolled biscuit, if you will, filled with jam instead of jelly (which is actually a gel-like candy). Saves you having to split the biscuit and spread the jam. Cracker Barrel might do well to look into this concept.

Just to further confuse the nomenclature: in England, “pudding” is actually a catchall word meaning “dessert”, and a roly-poly is a pudding, or “pud” for short, served with the requisite custard. (Alpro makes a vegan custard, available in many supermarkets.)

It you’d like to try this out, either for breakfast or dessert, click below to find instructions.

Walnut, Flax and Coconut Bars

Yummy, chewy, sweet, and some other ingredients.

I thought about calling these "Omega-3 Bars" because they contain flax, an excellent source of omega-3, and walnuts, another good source, but that sounds more healthy than appetizing. They're also similar to hermit bars, but who wants to eat something named after anti-social behaviour? I could have called them Walnut-Studded Squares with Flaked Coconut and Cinnamon Scent, but that sounds really pretentious.

I also almost named them Kitchen Sink Bars, but again, who wants to eat a kitchen feature?

So I randomly selected a few ingredients and named them accordingly. The truth is, they have a lot of yummy ingredients, none of which predominates. The spicy molasses and cinnamon, the chewy raisins and coconut, the firm, sweet chocolate chips...you get the picture.

Now get the recipe:

Mince Tarts

Hopefully, it’s not too late to make these for Christmas!

The other day at the farm shop I bought a specialty jar of mincemeat, which these days isn’t made with meat. I wanted to surprise the girls with these mince tarts, but I didn’t want to go to the trouble of making mincemeat. The mincemeat filling was delicious, but you won’t have the same luck I did finding this farm shop (the same one where I bought gorgeous poinsettias and a Christmas tree). Buy the best mincemeat you can find, or make your own.

They bake up in just 15 minutes, and only take a few minutes to prepare, especially when you use store-bought mincemeat. (A food processor makes quick work of the dough.) So maybe there's still time to make a batch for Christmas!

Buckeyes (recipe later)

Dark chocolate Buckeyes

I'm having a party tomorrow, and I don't have time to post a recipe today, but I just wanted to show you what's in my living room. These Buckeyes, made with dark chocolate and peanut butter, are worth whatever time you'll spend in hell for consuming them.

I've been baking and cooking and cleaning all week, which is why I've been rather quiet on the blog. Today I made this, and I can't wait to cut it tomorrow. My living room, where I'm storing goodies since the radiators are turned off, smells like chocolate, and every now and then I open the door and get a hit.

I'll post a recipe for these later, I promise. I basically improvised from a lot of online recipes for buckeyes, using dark chocolate and margarine instead of butter, and less powdered sugar. My husband, who, when he cooks does it very well, made the candy-that-has-no-name, made with melted chocolate, butterscotch morsels, chow mein noodles, and peanuts. He makes this every year, to our girls' delight. Don't tell them; they're coming home on Sunday and will be surprised.

If there's any left.

Mintalicious Chocolate Bars

Minty! Chocolate! Delicious!

When I saw the recipe for these lovely little green and black bars, I knew I had to veganize them, right away. Off to the kitchen I went, ideas simmering in my head, to look for ingredients.

I stirred, simmered, poured, spread, and waited. Waited an hour for the crust to set, another 30 minutes for the filling to firm up, and 10 minutes for the chocolate topping to harden. The anticipation grew. My husband kept asking where the cookies were. My dog kept gazing longingly toward the kitchen. The hour grew late.

Finally I could take it no more. I removed the chilled dish to the counter, sank a knife through the hardened bars, lifted a section to my mouth, and bit into a bar. Mintalicious!

And thus an adjective was born.

Here’s how to make some mintaliciousness yourself:

(Meanwhile, if you want more holiday cookies, check out FoodBlogga, or go here to see how to send in your own cookie recipe.)