Tuesday, May 27, 2014

Breakfast Strawberry Coffee Cake

Don't you hate it when your berries mold over before you get the chance to eat them? I ended up with a large quantity of strawberries that needed to be used, and I needed something to feed the fam-bam who all came in town for my graduation. Strawberry coffee cake came out as the winner for what to make.

*Note: I used melted coconut oil instead of vegetable oil. It provided for a beautiful combination with the cinnamon, nutmeg and strawberries. The spices added warmth, the strawberries freshness and the coconut oil richness but in a subtle exotic way. If you haven't cooked with coconut oil, I highly suggest it. Your local grocery store probably has it, but don't by it at your regular supermarket. Most likely it will be cheaper at a place like Whole Foods or Trader Joe's


Ingredients:
3 cups of Flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp of freshly grated nutmeg
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups of sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 1/4 cup of vegetable oil
4 eggs
4 cups of strawberries, roughly chopped 

Directions: 
In a medium bowl mix together the flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt and baking powder. In the bowl of a stand mixer, mix the oil, eggs and sugar until well mixed. Add the flour and stir. Add the strawberries and stir into the batter. The batter will be very thick. Pour into two greased loaf pans, or in this case I used a bundt pan. Bake at 350 for about 45 minutes-1 hour or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Monday, May 26, 2014

Fudgesicles

(I used 5 oz Dixie cups and filled them up a little less than half way. This made around 35 fudgesicles.)

Ingredients: 
4 ounce semisweet chocolate
1 2/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup +1 tablespoon cornstarch
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
6 1/4 cups whole milk
Heavy pinch of salt
2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoon unsalted butter
Directions:  
       In a large saucepan over very low heat, gently melt the chocolate. Stirring until smooth. Pour in sugar, cornstarch, cocoa powder, milk and salt, stir and raise heat to medium. A whisk may be needed to fully incorporate the sugar, chocolate and cocoa into the milk. Cook mixture, stirring frequently until it thickens, coating the back of a spoon*, anywhere between 10-15 minutes. Remove from heat, add vanilla and butter and stir until combined.
      Set aside to cool. slightly then pour into popsicle molds. (I used 5 oz Dixie Cups. The waxy interior provides for easy removal. Just cut or rip away the cup from the popsicle) The colder the mixture is when it goes into the freezer the quicker it will freeze. The shorter the freezer time, the smaller the ice crystals will be, which means it will have a more smooth creamy texture.
      I filled the Dixie cups up about half way. Freeze for 30 minutes, or until slightly set, and then insert popsicle sticks. Freeze the rest of the way before serving. They do melt fairly quickly, so once as they are removed from the freezer, be ready to enjoy!

*Note: What does "Coating the back of a spoon" really mean? It's a way to test the thickness of a sauce. If it is thick enough to "coat the back of the spoon" when a spoon is dipped in the sauce and a streak is wiped away, the rest of the sauce will hold to the spoon. See picture below.