Because there is nothing like a good chocolate cake!

If any of you have an affinity towards chocolate, this recipe will knock your socks off! I really dislike baking, and generally only use a mix. But this recipe is easy peasy and certifiably delicious! (Adapted from allrecipes.com)


Mini Chocolate Torte

Ingredients
1/2 cup water or coffee for a richer taste
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup white sugar
18 (1 ounce) squares dark chocolate
1 cup unsalted butter
6 eggs
4-6 oz. additional chocolate

Preheat oven to 300 degrees F (150 degrees C).
Line approximately 60 mini-cupcake holders with paper.
In a small saucepan over medium heat combine the water, salt and sugar. Stir until completely dissolved and set aside.
Either in the top half of a double boiler or in a microwave oven melt the bittersweet chocolate. Pour the chocolate into the bowl of an electric mixer.
Cut the butter into pieces and beat the butter into the chocolate, 1 piece at a time. Beat in the hot sugar-water. Slowly beat in the eggs, one at a time.
Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Bake cake in the water bath at 300 degrees F (150 degrees C) for 20 minutes. The center will still look wet. Chill cake overnight to set. Melt remaining chocolate and drizzle over cupcakes. Let chocolate set in refrigerator for about an hour.

Petting a pig and finding new recipes!

Layla and I had a blast visiting with friends in San Antonio this weekend! We even had some gluten free pizza at Fralo's outside the city. Yum!!
We stopped by the Natural Bridge Wildlife Ranch on the way home and Layla fell in love with a pig she named Wilbur. Even though Wilbur was quite catatonic, Layla took it upon herself to bring him treats of hay and rocks. Wilbur even got a good thirty minutes of grooming during his hibernation. While hanging out in the shade of the petting barn, I was thinking about summertime salads. Weird, I know... but I was hungry and couldn't look at Wilbur and contemplate eating a meat-based dinner. So while searching online, I came across this one on the Poor Girl Eats Well blog and can't wait to make it!

Garbanzo and Avocado Salad

1 can garbanzo beans, drained
1 small Roma tomato, diced
1/2 yellow bell pepper, diced
1/2 small red onion, diced
1 large avocado, chopped
2 scallions, chopped
Small handful of cilantro, finely chopped

Dressing:
Juice of 2 medium oranges
1 T rice vinegar
1 t olive oil
1 T honey
1/8 t salt
Couple pinches of cayenne pepper
A very generous amount of ground black pepper

Prepare the dressing by whisking all dressing ingredients together until completely combined. Combine the beans and all the veggies in a medium bowl and toss together with the dressing. Garnish with extra black pepper if you like, serve over plenty of fresh greens or by itself, and enjoy!

* I plan to throw in some thinly sliced leeks we got from the farmer's market last week. Hel-lo bad breath!

Flexibility is the main ingredient...

While driving home from work today, I decided to make enchiladas with our ground beef from Rocking B Ranch http://www.rocking-b.com/ and some leftover onions from Johnson's Backyard Garden http://johnsonsbackyardgarden.com/

However, my plans were spoiled when I realized that SOMEONE had eaten all but four of our corn tortillas. Sigh...

So in the name of flexibility, I used similar ingredients and came up with something pretty tasty - Enchilada Pie!

My su chef was a master at the layering aspect of this dish and licked the spoon clean after each dip into the dice tomatoes. Germs die in the cooking process, right?

Enchilada Pie

1lb ground beef
2-3 green onions
1 clove garlic
Seasonings to taste - red pepper flakes, cumin, salt, pepper, oregano
4-5 corn tortillas
1 can diced tomatoes
1/2 cup black beans
1/2 cup cheese (cow, rice, soy, whatever)

Cook up the first four ingredients until beef is browned. Set aside. Heat oven to 375 degrees. Rip tortillas to fit along the bottom and up the side of a casserole dish. Layer on the meat mixture, beans, and tomatoes. Top it off with some shredded cheese and tortilla strips. Cover and cook for 30 minutes. Uncover and cook for 15 more minutes. Let cool for a bit and serve in slices - or spoonfuls.

FYI Gluten Free Deals!

For those of you adverse to gluten, you may rejoice! Sprouts is having a sale on all of their gluten free goodies - 25%. Munching on my KToos right now. Yum!

Lookin' for a way to hide those greens?

Our kale and carrots from Saturday's farmers market http://www.bartoncreekfarmersmarket.org/ were getting ready to be eaten, so I came up with a new twist on an old standby. We'll call it Kale & Karrot Kornbread! The creation earned high marks from Layla, the ultimate taste tester! I hope you enjoy!

Kale and Karrot Kornbread

1 cup cornmeal
1 cup flour (corn, rice, wheat)
1/3 cup canola oil
1 cup milk (rice, almond, hemp, cow)
2 tbsp sugar (white or turbinado)
2 tsp baking powder
1 bunch kale
1 lg carrot
1/4 sweet onion
1 clove garlic

Heat the oven to 400 degrees. Throw the veggies into your food processor and blend well. Mix all ingredients together and pour into muffin tins. Cook for 25-30 minutes. Yields about 15 muffins.

* Feel free to sub chard or spinach for the kale!