hot chocolate

It seems like just yesterday I was wearing shorts. Now, they're being packed away, along with all my other summer clothes. I'm going through my boxes of tea at an alarming rate. And it's harder and harder to leave the warmth of my duvet in the morning.

The perfect cure for the chills: hot chocolate. I love it with whole milk, but you can use low-fat, soy or almond. Also in the picture? Almond cake my friend made, from the cookbook Canning for a New Generation. A most satisfying combination. I couldn't find the exact recipe online, but here's a similar one from Jamie Oliver. I just can't get enough of him lately, which is why I'm seeing him in person (!) next week at Massey Hall.

hot chocolate
makes 2 large mugs

60 g dark chocolate (about 1/2 bar)
3 cups milk
2 tbsp cocoa powder
2 tbsp sugar (or other sweetener - honey, maple syrup)
pinch of salt

Melt chocolate in a heavy bottomed pot on very low heat. Add milk, cocoa, sugar and salt, and bring to a simmer, whisking to combine ingredients. Enjoy with delicious baked goods, or throw it in a thermos for consumption after fall hikes or winter sports.

the sweet life in Paris

Later this summer, I'm going to Paris for the first time. I feel as though I've been preparing for this visit my whole life. It began with Madeline, Eloise in Paris, and The Red Ballon, and it's only gotten worse since then. If an amazing book or movie doesn't take place in New York City or London, then it's got to be Paris: Funny Face (and a whole other pile of Audrey Hepburn movies), The Elegance of the Hedgehog, Ratatouille, Amelie, Moulin Rouge, La Vie en Rose, Eugene Atget's photography, the lithographies of Alphonse Mucha, Midnight in Paris, Aristocats, water lilies by Monet, cafes painted by Van Gogh, Hunchback of Notre Dame, Before Sunset and Before Sunrise. 

Here's what Paris looks like in my brain:

Not very realistic? Oh well, I know I'm going to fall in love. It seems everyone likes to stare pensively at the skyline, whether you're Audrey Hepburn, Duchess and O'Malley or Remy, and I look forward to joining them in the pensive staring.

On a culinary level, here's my two most recent Paris reads: My life in France by Julia Child and The Sweet Life in Paris by David Lebovitz. Both are from the viewpoint of an American, moving to (and falling in love with) Paris.

Here's a recipe from The Sweet Life in Paris. These are tiny, little chocolate cakes - naturally gluten-free because of the almonds. Great with afternoon coffee, they keep at room temperature in a sealed container for about a week.

Chocolate Financiers
from David Lebovitz's Sweet Life in Paris, via gluten-free girl

6 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 cup almonds
4 tablespoons Dutch-process unsweetened cocoa powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup powdered sugar
1/3 cup egg whites

Preheat the oven to 425°. Lightly butter a mini-muffin tin. Melt the butter in a small saucepan and set it aside until room temperature. In a food processor or blender, grind the almond with the cocoa, salt, and powdered sugar. Transfer the mixture to a medium bowl. Stir the egg whites in the ground almond mixture, then gradually stir in the melted butter until incorporated and smooth.

Spoon the batter into the molds, filling them 3/4 full. Bake for ten to fifteen minutes, until slightly puffed and springy to the touch. Remove from oven and cool completely before removing from molds.

Makes about 15, one-inch financiers.

(Nope, not a picture of the financiers. Instead, KITTENS! This is Dill and Pickle, my friend's new kittens. How can I write blog posts with these guys around?)

Finally, this will be my last post for a while. Right now, I'm in Prince Edward County at my lovely friend's farm, hanging out with kittens, cooking delicious food, and swimming at Sandbanks. Next, I'll be heading to camp, where I'll live in a castle with a bunch of girls, in the style of an Enid Blyton novel. Then I'm off to Paris and London for a vacation with my boyfriend, and finally back to the County for a very exciting wedding!

Sometimes it's great to step back from technology for a while, cook recipes without writing them down and photographing them, and just take time off. That said, I can't completely leave the technology behind, so if you want to see some photos of my adventures, check out my instagram feed. I'll be back in September with photos, travel stories, and recipes galore. Bon Appetit!

a vegan cookie and a not so vegan cookie

Surprise! They're the same cookie. Here's a recipe for my vegan friends and my non-vegan friends. A chocolatley cookie, somewhere half between the land of crispy and soft, perfect for a summer potluck or picnic when you need something that vegans and carnivores will appreciate equally. Or, if you're like me, make them into a drippy, delicious ice cream sandwich. Feeling virtuous? Use whole wheat pastry flour, flax eggs and Earth Balance (vegan margarine). Feeling decadent? Use white flour, eggs and butter. Either way, its a forgivable recipe, and its gonna taste good no matter what (it's a chocolate chip cookie, right?).

(trying out a sketching program for mac, surprise, it's not markers! and I wish I had a touchscreen.)

Chocolate chocolate chip cookies
adapted from this recipe on Epicurious, makes 16 large cookies

3/4 cup softened, unsalted butter (OR Earth Balance margarine)
1 cup white sugar
1 large egg (OR 1 tbsp ground flax seeds, whisked with 3 tbsp water)
1 tsp vanilla paste or extract

1 1/4 cup whole wheat pastry flour (or all purpose flour)
1/3 cup cocoa powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt

1 cup chocolate chips
(make sure they're dairy free if you're making the vegan cookies, most semi-sweet varieties are vegan.)

Preheat oven to 350. In a large bowl, cream together butter/margarine and sugar with a wooden spoon. Add egg/flax egg and vanilla, and beat until well combined.

In another bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa, soda, baking powder and salt. Add these dry ingredients to the wet mixture, and stir until well combined. If the mixture is too dry, add a few splashes of soy milk or water (I had to add 2 or 3 tablespoons). Finally, stir in the chocolate chips.

Scoop tablespoon-size balls of dough onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Flatten slightly with your hand. Leave an inch or two between each cookie, they will spread out a bit. Bake for 10-12 minutes, until the centre of the cookies no longer looks doughy and jiggly. The cookies will not be crispy. Let them rest on the cookie sheet for a few minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool.

Now, you're ready to make...

Chocolate chocolate chip ice cream sandwiches
You'll need two cookies for each sandwich. Hopefully you haven't eaten them all yet.

chocolate chocolate chip cookies
softened vanilla ice cream (leave it on the counter for 10 minutes)

Scoop spoonfuls of ice cream onto an upside-down cookie. Put another cookie on top. Wrap the whole thing in parchment paper or plastic wrap (you could reuse the paper you baked the cookies on), and put them in the freezer for at least a half hour. Resist! Let them get nice and cold and frozen, before devouring them, like cookie monster. COOKIE!

the best chocolate pudding

The smoothest, most decadent chocolate pudding I've ever had - it's more like a thick mousse - and of course it's from Bon Appetit magazine (here's the original recipe). This is going into heavy recipe rotation at my house - a dessert with 20 minutes prep time that will impress guests and satisfy a serious chocolate craving.

chocolate pudding with orange whipped cream
Makes 6-8 servings. You can definitely make this sans whip cream, it's that rich. I used my own homemade orange liquor for the whip cream, but you can use Grand Marnier or Cointreu, or just leave it out altogether.

1/2 cup plus 2 tbsp white sugar
2 tbsp cornstarch
1/4 tsp salt
2 1/2 cups whole milk or regular soy milk
2 large egg yolks
1 1/2 cups bittersweet chocolate chips
2 tbsp unsalted butter
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
3/4 cup cold whipping cream
1 tbsp white sugar
1 tbsp orange liquor
1/4 tsp orange zest

Whisk together sugar, cornstarch and salt in a saucepan. Add 1/2 cup milk and egg yolks. Whisk until smooth. Whisk in remaining milk. Bring mixture to a slow boil over medium-high heat, whisking constantly. Continue to boil for 1 minute, whisking all the while. Remove pan from heat and stir in chocolate chips and butter. Stir until everything is melted and smooth. Finally, stir in vanilla. Spoon mixture into small bowls, and chill in the fridge for at least 3 hours.

If you like skin on your pudding, don't cover the puddings. If you don't like skin, put plastic wrap directly on the surface of the puddings.

Beat together whipping cream, 1 tbsp sugar, orange liquor and orange zest, until peaks form. Cover and chill.

Serve pudding with a spoonful of whip cream, and some extra orange zest for garnish.

candied orange slices

candied orange slices
4 cups sugar plus another 1/2 cup
4 cups water
1 cinnamon sticks
4 or 5 star anise pieces
10 cloves
2 oranges, cold from the fridge

Combine 4 cups sugar, water and spices in a large pot. Bring to a boil, and simmer until the sugar dissolves. Slice the oranges as thin as possible - about an 1/8th of a inch. Using one orange at a time - around 15 slices - put the oranges in the pot. Simmer for about 30 minutes, then flip the oranges over, and simmer for another 30 minutes. Remove the oranges, and dry them in the oven for an hour at 200 degrees, on a wire rack. Finally, sprinkle another 1/2 cup sugar on the orange slices before they cool. This will absorb any moisture that's left. One last step that will make these even more delicious: dip them in melted chocolate! They'll keep for a few weeks in a container at room temperature.

(Don't throw out the simple syrup that's left over from cooking the oranges - check out this recipe for a way to use it up - spiced apple gin fizz).

chocolate banana brownies

These are the best brownies ever. Period. And they only have 6 ingredients. In the realm of brownies, they're soft, cake-like, and you can add any flavouring you like. My favourite is banana, which makes these brownies even more moist and delicious. They're originally from the Moosewood cookbook, and here's Heidi's version, over on 101 Cookbooks. I used her suggestion of swirling in the melted chocolate at the last minute, creating a marbled effect - the chocolate swirls are both visually appealing and tasty.

Best Brownies Ever
1 cup butter, softened
1 3/4 cup brown sugar
5 eggs
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
1 cup flour
5 oz. semi-sweet chocolate

Optional: 1 cup mashed bananas, 2 tsp espresso, 2 tsp orange zest, 1/2 cup chopped nuts, 1/2 cup cocoa nibs, cinnamon and all spice, 1/2 cup peanut butter.

Preheat oven to 350. Cream softened butter and sugar. Add eggs, one at a time, beating until combined. Add vanilla, then the flour, stirring until just combined. Add optional flavouring. Spread into a 9x13 pan, lined with parchment paper. Finally, melt chocolate in the microwave, and pour on top of batter. Swirl the chocolate into the batter with your spoon. Bake for 30-35 minutes, until set.

PS - you can use plain old all purpose flour, or you can use whole wheat pastry flour, you won't taste the difference because of all the chocolate and butter.

shortbread + caramel + chocolate

Millionaire bars: think twix bar, but with a shortbread twist on the cookie layer. Apparently these are big in England. Instead of posting a recipe, I'm going to send you to these delicious links. Every recipe is similar, just with different twists on each layer: shortbread bottom, followed by a caramel layer, finished off with chocolate. Enjoy, and give them away, because not only are they super rich (hence the name), they're super addictive.

Blue Eyed Baker's Millionaire's Shortbread
(classic, simple, delicious. the recipe I used for the picture.)
Millionaire Shortbread from Food52
(a fancy version with creme fraise and smoked salt.)
Vegan Millionaire Shortbread
(because everything should have a vegan version. scroll down a bit for the recipe.)
Millionaire Bars from the Food Network
(minimal ingredients. try using a jar of dulche de leche for the caramel.)
Not Without Salt's Twix Bars
(slightly different, same idea. complicated yet impressive.)

Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies

I finally borrowed Veganomicon from the library! It's an awesome vegan cookbook; beautifully designed, clear and conversational. And, the whole thing is available on Google Books! Anyway, here's the first recipe (of many) that I tried out, with a few minor changes. It's wheat free, and obviously, vegan. Don't let this turn you off - I brought them to school and fed them to a bunch of non-vegans with no complaints. Actually no complaints AND enjoyment and delight! (Although dancers are pretty much always eating, you can feed them anything sweet and free and they will be happy.)

Oatmeal Chocolate Chunk Cookies (wheat-free chocolate chip cookies in Veganomicon)

1 1/2 cups oat flour (just throw some rolled oats in a blender or food processor)
1/4 cup oatmeal (I added this for some extra texture)
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 tbsp ground flax seeds
1/4 cup soy milk (or rice or almond or chocolate soy milk - that's what I used)
1/4 brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
1/3 cup canola oil
1 tsp vanilla
3/4 cup chopped dark chocolate (try a flavored chocolate - orange or mint)

Preheat your oven to 375 (my oven is a little over-excited, I turned it down to 350, but I don't have a thermometer to check the real temperature). Whisk together the oat flour, oats, baking soda and salt. In another bowl, whisk together the flax seeds and soy milk. Add both sugars, canola oil and vanilla and whisk until the oil in emulsified, about 1 minute. Mix the wet and dry ingredients together, then fold in the chocolate chunks. Spoon tablespoons of batter onto a slightly greased sheet - be sure to leave at least 1 1/2 inches between the cookies - they spread! Bake for 8-10 minutes, then let them cool a bit on the sheet. Don't let them completely cool on the sheet though! My first batch glued themselves to the sheet.

I used Endangered Species Dark Chocolate with Mint, but you could use any dark chocolate bar well-chopped. My next batch will be with Cocoa Camino's Dark Orange, maybe with some pecans thrown in. Can you tell I'm a big fan of dark chocolate? Sorry for the lack of picture - they were gone too fast to photograph!