Chocolate Cake for Sara

I developed this recipe a few years ago for a good friend. At the time her daughter (Sara) was having a lot of food allergy issues and was on a very restricted diet. This is hard for anyone but for a teenage girl whose friends go out for pizza and ice cream is is doubly hard. Her mom asked me if I knew of any kind of dessert recipe that she could make for Sara. Among the long list of other items not allowed were wheat, dairy, soy, and corn (I won't bore you with the entire list) Luckily she could have chocolate as long as the other ingredients were okay. Well, my first thought was a flour-less chocolate cake. The problem was all the ones I could find had at least on ingredient from the list of forbidden foods. I put on my thinking cap and did some experimenting. I came up with this particular chocolate cake that has only 4 ingredients, all on the approved list and it was a hit. Sara and her mom loved it as well as my kids. (Good thing my kids liked it, we ate several versions to get to this one)

This is a very dense, moist chocolate cake with a slightly bitter taste (like that of dark chocolate) so good. It is best the first day or so after it is baked but it seldom lasts very long at my house.

Obviously, if you are making this for someone with allergies be sure to read all the labels on the ingredients you are using. And I can say from personal experience read them every time you purchase. Manufacturers do change formulas sometimes and just because the last one you purchased was fine there is no guarantee that the one on the shelf today will be. When you are trying to work with food allergies you have to read those labels every time not just sometimes.

I based this recipe on unsweetened baking cocoa for a simple reason that is all that is in it. There are no other ingredients (at least my brand) added to it. Many of the unsweetened chocolates have other ingredients and they were not allowed for Sara at that time.

Chocolate Cake for Sara

1 1/4 cups cocoa powder
1/2 cup + 2 Tablespoons vegetable oil
1 cup sugar
3 large eggs

Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit and move the rack to the middle of the oven.
Oil an 8" cake pan
In a mixing bowl combine the cocoa powder and the oil and beat with a mixer until smooth.
Slowly beat in sugar until well combined .
Add eggs and beat well after each.
Pour/ spread in prepared pan
Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until  the top of the cake forms a thin skin.
Cool in baking pan for 5 minutes and then invert onto a serving plate.

Serves 8

Coconut Cupcakes with Coconut Frosting

I came up with this recipe a year or so ago when I needed to find a dairy free cupcake. I served them at a family party and not only did no one guess they were dairy free, I got a request for the recipe. I think that means they were a huge success!

When you get to the part of the recipe that tells you how many cupcakes you are going to get it is a large range. There are a few factors in this one being the size of the muffin/cupcake pan you use. Also I have found that the brand of coconut milk I use has some effect too. If the coconut milk is runny (almost watery) in consistency you will get fewer cupcakes, if the coconut milk is thick the batter will end up with more volume (more air) and you will get a few more. If you stick to one brand of coconut milk you will have consistent results. Either way they are fabulous!

Coconut Cupcakes

1 ½ cups all purpose flour

1 cup sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

½ cup vegetable shortening

2/3 cup coconut milk

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 eggs

Prepare muffin pan with cupcake liners and set aside.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit

In large bowl of mixer combine flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Add shortening and coconut milk and beat for 2 minutes. Add vanilla and eggs and beat 2 more minutes.

Fill prepared muffin cups with batter, filling about ½ full. (I use an ice cream scoop to do this step)

Bake at 400 degrees for 18 to 20 minutes. Cool in pan about 10 minutes and then move to a rack to cool completely.

Coconut Frosting

2 cups sifted confectioner’s sugar

¼ vegetable shortening

2-3  Tablespoons coconut milk

1 teaspoon vanilla

Shredded coconut, as desired

Blend the sugar and shortening together completely and add the coconut milk and vanilla to make a smooth spreadable frosting.  If your coconut milk was really thick you may need to add a Tablespoon of water to the mixture.

Spread cupcakes with frosting and sprinkle with (or dip into) coconut as desired.

12-18 cupcakes

Note this can also be baked in a 9” square cake pan- in that case bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 40 to 45 minutes

Peanut Butter Pasta

This is probably the dinner that my kids love the most of everything I have ever made. Not only is this a super easy and quick meal it is made of ingredients that are almost always on hand and nothing in it is expensive so it is great for those days when the wallet is a little lacking.  It is truly a satisfying meatless dinner too and depending on your pasta choice a vegan one too.I hope you will enjoy this as much as we and it will find its way to your dinner table on a regular basis too.
 

Peanut Butter Pasta

2/3 cup apple juice
1/2 cup peanut butter
2 Tablespoons soy sauce
1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
dash of Tabasco sauce

1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
chopped peanuts if desired

1 lb of your favorite pasta, cooked 

In a small saucepan, combine all the ingredients except the cilantro, 

chopped peanut and pasta; mix well. ( a wire whisk really works best here)

Cook over medium-low heat for 3 to 4 minutes or until mixture is 
melted and smooth, stirring frequently. Stir in cilantro just 
before serving. 

Serve over cooked pasta. 
Top with chopped peanuts

I wanted to mention here also that recipe is very forgiving. If for instance you don't 

have apple juice on hand, I have made this with: chicken broth, water and even white 

wine in place of the apple juice. If need be you can use powdered ginger in place of 

the fresh but in this case you notice a difference. If you like spicy add more hot sauce. 

Use your favorite pasta just about any shape works great. I have also added veggies 

and cooked chicken to this a few times too.

You really can't miss with this recipe.

Enjoy 

Pumpkin soup

I first made this vegan friendly soup a couple of years ago for Christmas Dinner as a first course. I had decided to try it simply because the mix of ingredients were all ones we loved and I felt it would be a wonderful beginning to the big meal. It was so good I shared the recipe to with some friends who also loved it. Some of the people I shared it with have family members that can't do milk and this filled that craving for a creamy rich soup that tasted (and has the mouth feel) of cream but without the dairy products.

I know you will love this as soon as you try it.

Pumpkin-Bean Soup

1 (15 oz) can pumpkin
1 (15 oz) can white beans (canellini, white kidney, navy, etc), rinsed and drained
1 (14 oz) can vegetable broth
1 (14 oz) can unsweetened coconut milk
1 teaspoon dried leaf sage, crushed
1/2 Tablespoon soy sauce
dash of hot sauce
salt (to taste)
fresh ground pepper (to taste)
lime wedges (one per person)

combine everything except the lime wedges in a medium sauce pan, Heat through over medium heat.

Serve with a wedge of lime to squeeze into the soup at the table.