Chocolate Chunk Cookies

When I think back to the cookies of my childhood, there are several cookies that come to mind, but there is one cookie that I had the most fun eating while making them: chocolate chip cookies. I haven’t had chocolate chip cookies or chocolate in a decade, so when I found Dark Chocolate Dream 100% dairy free chocolate at a local grocery store I was very excited to give it a try. Now, it’s not top-notch gourmet chocolate (though when I took my first bite in 10 years it might as well have been gourmet), but it’s good dark chocolate and it works great in brownies and chocolate chunk cookies.  That’s all I’ve made so far, but I look forward to having fun with chocolate again. Just so you know, this chocolate is completely dairy free and is made on equipment that is clean of all dairy. YEA!!!

Making these cookies brought me back to my childhood. Memories of making chocolate chip cookies with my mom and the gooey chocolaty goodness of the warm, fresh from the oven chocolate chip cookies. These cookies take a bit more work because you have to cut up the chocolate, but they are soooo worth it!

Ingredients

2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

1 cup Fleischmann’s Unsalted Margarine sticks

1 cup dark brown sugar, packed

½ cup granulated sugar

2 tsp vanilla extract

2 large eggs

12 oz. (4 3 oz. bars) Dark Chocolate Dream

·      Preheat oven to 375 F

·      Break up the chocolate bars into their scored pieces and then cut each triangle into 3-4 pieces depending on the size you want.

·      Combine the flour, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl and whisk to thoroughly mix.

·      In a large bowl, beat margarine, brown sugar, and granulated sugar until creamy.

·      Add the eggs one at a time and add the vanilla extract.

·      Gradually add in the flour mixture. Scrape the sides as needed.

·      Stir in the chocolate pieces.

·      Bake for 9-11 minutes. They should be golden brown.

·      Cool on a wire rack. (If you can wait that long)

Salted Caramel Cake

When I tell a person that I’m allergic to milk/dairy, I can almost always guarantee the reaction. They usually get this blank look of,  “Oooookaaayyy” and they are having not very nice thoughts of dairy free food on the inside.  It is automatically assumed that if you can’t have milk, butter, cheese, etc. that you your diet is bland and boring. Whatever you make will not be very tasty. I love proving them wrong. Most people can NOT believe that what I cook or bake is diary free. Most of this is topic for another post, but this is leading up to the recipe that I’m posting today.

I was playing around with making macarons and reading about the various flavors and flavor combinations when I stumbled across a recipe for Triple Salted Caramel Cupcakes. “But caramel has milk or cream in it,” you say. Well, I say, “Ha! I’ll prove you wrong!”  I first made this recipe in the form of a cupcake and it works and it’s awesome.  For my brother’s and his wife’s birthdays, I decided to convert this to a cake. It translates well to cake form.

This is not a cake for the faint of heart.  It’s rich, luscious, and decadent. It’s almost overwhelming. The flavor lingers on your palate like a first kiss. A word to the wise, cut very small slices.

            (This recipe has been adapted and altered from the Triple Salted Caramel Cupcake recipe by SprinkleBakes. Her treats are real pieces of art.)   

Cake

3 cups all-purpose flour

2 tsp baking powder

½  tsp sea salt

2 sticks Fleischmann’s Unsalted Margarine sticks

2 cup dark brown sugar, packed

4 large eggs + 2 egg yolks, at room temperature

4 tsp vanilla extract

1 ¼ cups rice milk (soured*)

·      Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease and flour two 9 inch round cake pans.

·      In a medium size bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, and salt., whisk to incorporate.

·      Cream margarine and brown sugar until light and fluffy.

·      Add eggs and yolks one at a time. (If more than one slips by you, don’t worry it happens).

·      Add vanilla

·      Add the flour mixture alternating with the soured rice milk, beginning and ending with the flour.

·      Don’t forget to occasionally scrape down the sides of the bowl.

·      Pour half of the batter into each cake pan.

·      Bake for 30 minutes.

·      Remove from the oven and cool for ten minutes on a wire rack.

·      Remove the cakes from the pans and completely cool them on the wire racks.

*Soured Rice Milk: Place 1 tbsp of lemon juice in a measuring cup and then add rice milk to the 1 cup mark. This works as a replacement for buttermilk.

For this recipe: Place 1 tbsp + ¾ tsp lemon juice in the measuring cup and then add the rice milk to the 1 ¼ cup mark.

Frosting

½ cup granulated sugar

¼ cup water

¼ cup rice milk

3 tsp vanilla extract

4 sticks Fleischmann’s Unsalted Margarine sticks

1 tsp  flaked Kosher salt or sea salt (optional)

6-6 ½  cups of powdered sugar

·      Combine  and stir together the sugar and water in a small saucepan.

·      Bring to a boil over medium-high heat.

·      Without stirring, cook until it reaches a dark amber color.

·      Remove from heat.

·      Slowly stir in the rice milk and vanilla until smooth.

·      Cool for 20 minutes.

·      It should still be warm and pourable.

·      Place the margarine in a medium mixing bowl.

·      Add salt.

·      Slowing add the powdered sugar. Start at low speed or you’ll have powdered sugar everywhere.

·      Add vanilla.

·      Slowly add the caramel to the frosting.

·      Scrap down sides as needed.

·      Beat at high speed until combined.

Caramel Sauce

½ cup sugar

3 tbsp Fleischmann’s Unsalted Margarine sticks

3 tbsp rice milk

1 tsp vanilla extract

⅛ tsp kosher salt

·      In a pot, over medium-high heat, whisk the sugar until it melts and turns a dark amber color.

·      Add the margarine and stir until it’s completely incorporated into the sugar.

·      Slowly stir in the rice milk until smooth.

·      Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla extract.

·      Let cool until it’s barely warm, but you’re still able to drizzle the sauce.

Assembling the Cake

·      Place one layer on large plate or cake platter

·      Slip three 4 inch pieces of parchment paper under the cake to make cleaning up after frosting and applying the pecans easier.

·      Frost the top of the first cake.

·      Place the 2^nd layer on top of the frosted first layer.

·      Frost the top and sides of the cake.

·      Before the frosting sets, gently press pecans into the side of the cake.

·      Drizzle the top with the caramel sauce. (You may have to slightly warm up the sauce in the microwave 5-10 seconds at a time. Just until it drizzles, but is not too runny).

·      Sprinkle with the flaked Kosher salt, if desired.

·      Carefully, pull out the parchment papers and toss.

·      Enjoy!

You will have sauce left over. You can serve it on the side for anyone who would like more drizzled on top of each individual piece or you can drizzle it over non-dairy ice cream or freeze it and save it for the next time you make the cake.

 

Gluten Free

Substitute rice flour for the all-purpose flour.

Add 3 tsp xanthan gum.

Egg Free – Adapted from the Crazy Cake recipe on Allrecipes.com

3 cups of all-purpose flour

2 cups dark brown sugar, packed

1 tsp salt

2 tsp baking soda

¾ cup vegetable oil (I use regular olive oil, not extra virgin)

2 tbsp distilled white vinegar

3 tsp vanilla extract

2 cups cold water

·      Sift flour, sugar, salt, soda, and cocoa together into a large mixing bowl. Make three wells. Pour oil into one well, vinegar into second, and vanilla into third well. Pour cold water over all, and stir well with fork.

·      Pour batter into two greased and floured 9 inch round cake pans.

·      Bake at 350°F for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

 

                       

           

Crab Cakes with Avocado and Mango Salsa

 

If you do a search for crab cake recipes, you will end up with a surplus of choices. It can be difficult to make up your mind on which one to make.  So, when indecision hits…make up your own recipe. The road to this particular recipe began a few years ago on a trip to Napa Valley. Mike and I stayed at this nice little B&B in downtown Napa that was very accommodating when it came to my dairy allergy. One morning their chef made me crab cakes with spicy aioli on an heirloom tomato. Never had a crab cake that way before. Love it!!! So, I started doing that at home. After a while I started to play with what I served the crab cakes with: tomatoes, cucumbers, avocados. Recently I had some thoughts rolling about in my head on what I could do take my crab cakes to the next level. I bought The Flavor Bible about a month ago and after perusing it’s pages those thoughts rolling around in my head started to form a cohesive idea: Crab Cakes with Avocado and Mango Salsa. It was a huge hit!

I typically like to keep my crab cake recipes relatively simple and allow the crab to sing through. Crabmeat is luscious, rich, and yet quite delicate. You have to be careful with what you prepare as an accompaniment. You want something that has enough acidity to cut through the richness, but not overpower the delicacy of the crab. I love how the salsa does this beautifully. The mango gives a light sweetness that when mixed with the other ingredients isn’t too cloying, the tomatoes and lemon juice furnish the acid, the cucumber provides you with a cool contrast to the heat and bite of the Serrano chili and shallot, and the avocado presents a creamy texture that balances the crunch of the vegetables.

Avocado and Mango Salsa

1 mango, diced

1 tomato, diced

1 small cucumber, diced

1 avocado, diced

¼ - ½ shallot, minced

½ - 1 Serrano chili, minced (optional)

½ tsp salt

1 ½  tsp lemon juice

·      Combine in all the ingredients in a medium sized bowl.

Crab Cakes

½ cup mayonnaise

1 tbsp lemon juice

¼ tsp salt

1 tsp dried parsley (2 tsp chopped fresh parsley)

½ tsp dried thyme (1 tsp chopped fresh thyme)

1 tsp minced garlic

½ cup dried cornflake crumbs (or panko)

1 egg

3 cans lump crabmeat, drained

1 can fancy crabmeat, drained

½ cup cornflake crumbs/panko

·      Preheat the oven to 350 F.

·      Spray a 12 cup muffin pan with non-stick cooking spray.

·      In a bowl, combine and whisk the first 8 ingredients.

·      Gently fold the crabmeat into the mayonnaise mixture.

·      Fill muffin cups ¾ full with the crab mixture.

·      Gently press the crab mixture down.

·      Sprinkle the remaining cornflake crumbs over the crab cakes.

·      Bake for 15 minutes.

·      Crack open the oven door and broil for a few minutes, until lightly browned and crispy on top.

·      Let the crab cakes cool for 5 minutes.

·      Remove the cakes from the muffin pan and top with the Avocado and Mango Salsa.

Dairy Free Pizza

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Pizza has become a staple meal in the American home, but that isn’t possibly when you are allergic to milk products. Even if you can get the restaurant to leave off the cheese, there is always the problem of cross contamination.  For the longest time, I did without. It was frustrating. No matter what recipe I tried, the crust would come out soggy and it just wasn’t right. I even tried using hummus in place of cheese…didn’t like it. So, for those of us who can't have cheese, we get to stare longingly at our friends and family as they this savory pie. Last year for my birthday, my brother, Alex, and his then girlfriend (now wife), Bridget, made me pizza for my birthday. To be honest, I was skeptical, but I was more than surprised. It was AWESOME!!! I didn’t even miss the cheese at all. I make it quite often and I like to make a double batch and put half of the dough and leftover sauce in the freezer for a rainy day. I usually keep mine simple with mushrooms and pepperoni, though this last time I used crushed fired roasted tomatoes and really like the added bits of tomato.

 Sauce:

14.5 oz can of tomato sauce

1 tbsp dried parsley

½ tsp Mediterranean oregano (you can use regular)

½ tsp Mediterranean basil (you can use regular)

½ tsp salt

½ tsp pepper

½ tsp onion powder

1 tsp minced garlic (approximately 2 cloves)

pinch crushed red pepper (optional)

·      Combine all the ingredients in a sauce pan.

·      Over medium-high heat bring to a boil.

·      Reduce heat and simmer for 5-10 minutes.

·      Remove from stove and set aside.

Dough:

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp kosher salt

1 tbsp parsley

1 tsp Mediterranean oregano

1 tsp Mediterranean basil

¼ tsp garlic powder

¼ tsp onion powder

3-4 turns of freshly ground black pepper (I like it finely ground)

1 cup water (approximately 110°F)

2 tbsp olive oil

1 tsp dry yeast

·      In a medium sized mixing bowl combine the flour and the next 7 ingredients.

·      Whisk to evenly incorporate the herbs into the flour.

·      In a separate medium* sized bowl (or into the bowl of your stand mixer), combine the warm water, yeast, olive oil and herb studded flour.

·      Mix until the dough forms a ball.**

·      Turn the dough onto a floured surface and knead it for a minute or two.

·      Return the dough to the bowl and cover with a damp towel.

·      Place it somewhere warm.

·      After about an hour, the dough should have doubled in size.

·      Preheat oven to 450°F

·      Sprinkle your baking sheet (or pizza stone) with cornmeal

·      Spread the dough over the pan to the edge

·      Take a fork and lightly stab all over the dough. This will help keep the crust from bubbling up too much.

·      Bake for 6-8 minutes

·      Remove from oven

Assembling the pizza

·      Turn the oven down to 400°F

·      Spread ¾ cup of the sauce on the pizza crust

·      Top the pizza with your desired toppings

·      Return the pizza to the oven

·      Bake for 16-18 minutes (or longer depending on the amount of toppings)

·      Remove the pizza from the oven and enjoy.

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*Use a large bowl if you plan to double the recipe

**If the dough is too sticky, add just a tablespoon or two of flour. Be careful not to add too much because your crust will end up too heavy and dry.

Note: If you want to double the recipe to save 1/2 for later, wrap 1/2 of the dough in the plastic wrap and seal in a zip lock bag (make sure to squeeze all the air out of the bag). Place in the freezer, as well as any left over sauce. When you're ready to make pizza again, thaw out the dough and then set it to rise as you normally would.