Best Chocolate Cake

So moist! So chocolatey! So simple to make!

Preheat oven to 320F (160C)

1/2 C cocoa powder
1/2 C coconut flour (flour not flake)
2 1/2 t baking powder
1/2 t cinnamon (I use Ceylon Cinnamon from Penzeys. Worth. It.)
pinch of sea salt

6 eggs
1/2 C honey or maple syrup
1/2 light cooking oil (I like rice bran oil)
1/2 C milk or coconut milk
1 t vanilla

In a mixing bowl add cocoa powder, flour, baking powder, cinnamon, & salt and combine.

Add eggs, honey, vanilla, milk, & oil, whisk until smooth and combined.

Oil a 8" or 9" round cake pan. Cut a circle of parchment paper or paper bag and place in the bottom of the pan, oil that too.
Bake 45 minutes or until wooden skewer comes out clean. Let cool.

Recipe adapted from The Healthy Chef

Doesn't need frosting or even a fork, but if you want to dress it up, try Rich Chocolate Frosting

Salad Dressings

Almost all commercial salad dressings have added sugar. Luckily, it's quick and easy to make your own! Here are my 3 favorites. Not so much a recipe as guidelines. Play with amounts and ingredients and make what you like best.

Creamy Parmesan & Balsamic Vinaigrette

Vinaigrette
Delicious in 2 minutes

1/3 C vinegar that you like the taste of. My favs are balsamic or pomegranate
2/3 C olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1-2 t fresh or dried herb that you like - I like basil or tarragon. Mince or shred fresh herbs.
salt and pepper to taste

Put ingredients in a mason jar with a lid and shake. Taste and adjust seasonings.

I leave this on the counter (up to a week) because the oil will solidify in the fridge. Shake before use!


Creamy Parmesan
Delicious in 5 minutes

1/3 C mayonnaise
2/3 C plain yoghurt (if using Greek yoghurt, add 1/4 C milk or dressing is too thick)
1 T lemon or lime juice (juice of 1/2 lemon or 1 lime)
1 C parmesan cheese, finely grated (can substitute other hard cheeses)
2 t white wine or rice vinegar
2 t dijon mustard
1 t soy sauce or Worcestershire sauce (has added sugar so I used GF soy sauce)
3 t freshly ground peppercorn
salt to taste (cheese is salty so you don't need much)

optional - red pepper flakes or sauce if you like a little hot with your zing

Put ingredients in a mason jar and stir. Store in refrigerator.
Adapted from A Fork's Tale

Blue Cheese
Delicious in 7 minutes

1/3 C mayonnaise
2/3 C plain yoghurt (if using Greek yoghurt)
1 T lemon or lime juice (juice of 1/2 lemon or 1 lime)
2/3 - 1 C blue cheese, crumbled (bleu, gorgonzola)
2 t white wine or rice vinegar
2 cloves garlic, minced
salt and pepper to taste

Put ingredients in a mason jar and stir. Store in refrigerator.

Almond Flour Biscotti

I just made this recipe from Elana's Pantry and want to capture it here. After tasting the dough on the first batch I made a second variety on the spot.

In a food processor, pulse until combined:
1 1/4 C almond flour
1 T arrowroot powder
1/4 t baking powder
1/4 t sea salt (I used Kosher)

Add
1/4 C agave syrup or honey
1 T lemon zest

Pulse until a ball forms

Chop 1/4 C nuts (I used pumpkin seeds, Elena used almonds)

The dough is sticky. Lay done a square of cling wrap and spread the nuts in the center. Scrape out the dough, touching it little, and put it on the nuts. Fold over the cling wrap and gently fold the nuts and dough together, then roll the dough into a log about 1 1/4 - 1 1/2 in diameter. Slice into 2 logs and place on a baking sheet lined with oiled parchment paper. (I use brown paper bag with the dye side down. These first 2 batches stuck to the paper like crazy, so I'm going to try oiling the paper next time.)

Bake at 350F for 15 minutes. Let cool for 1 hour. Carefully slice on the diagonal with a sharp knife. Lay each piece cut side down on a baking tray and back at 325F for 15 minutes.

VARIATION
For the second batch I used 1 T mixed chopped fresh cranberries and orange zest for the fruit, and cashews for the nuts.

Mushroom Pie

This recipe is inspired by/adapted from Finnish Mushroom Pie from the great Sundays at Moosewood Cookbook. My brilliant husband adapted it for our gluten-free diet, and I think the walnut crust is even better than the traditional flour crust.

Crust:
4 C ground walnuts (or your choice of unsalted nuts)*
3 T rice flour
1/2 C softened butter


Filling:
1/2 an onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
8 C chopped mushrooms
1 T soy sauce (gluten-free tamari. If you're not sugar-free, substitute Worcestershire sauce)
salt & pepper to taste (heavy on the pepper)
2 slices prosciutto, chopped (optional)
8 oz cream cheese
2 eggs

Crust is simple: 4 cups ground walnut (your choice of I salted nuts) stir in 3 T rice flour, then mix in 1/2 cup butter. Shape this into the bottom and sides of a pie pan. 

Filling: Sauté onion and garlic. When they've softened, add mushrooms. When mushrooms are cooked and releasing their juice, stir in soy, salt, pepper, and prosciutto. Add cream cheese and remove from heat, stirring until melted. Let it cool a bit (just enough so it won't cook the eggs when you add them.) Fill the pie crust with 4/5 of the filling. Mix the remaining 1/5 with two eggs, really well and top the filling with this. 

Bake at 450 until brown on top.

Next time, we'll try a dusting of freshly grated parmesan cheese on top.

*we grind them ourselves in a food processor, a cup at a time, until they're crumbles but not starting to soften into nut butter