Tag Archives: cocoa powder

Mar 14 2013
75 Comments
Breakfast, Brunch, cheez, Waffles

Red Velvet Waffles with Cream Cheese Sauce

Waffle on PlateThis recipe comes thanks to my friend, Angela, at Canned Time.  Angela puts me to shame when it comes to Pinterest so I often poach ideas straight from her – like this recipe.  She’d pinned a photo of fluffy, thick red velvet pancakes on her Valentine’s Day board.  I immediately printed the recipe and the following Sunday I veganized it and went with waffles.  I just like all of them nooks and crannies. I came up with the cream cheese sauce all on my lonesome.

By the way, Angela will be guest-posting here on the 19th – and I know she will be sharing something really good.

One year ago today: Inspired-by-Trader-Joe’s Trail Mix Cookies
One year and one day ago today: You and I and Nature in the Garden

Red Velvet Waffles with Cream Cheese Sauce
Makes ~4

Waffles:
2 to 2 1/4 cups whole wheat pastry flour
3 tbsp. cocoa powder
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
2 cups nut milk
2 tbsp. white vinegar
1 /4 cup maple syrup
1 tbsp. red food coloring, optional (I use King Arthur Flour’s Red Velvet Bakery Emulsion)
1/3 cup virgin coconut oil

fresh berries, optional

Cream Cheese Sauce:
1/2 cup cashew pieces, soaked for several hours, drained and rinsed
1 6 oz. container plain, unsweetened soy yogurt
jot of vanilla extract
squeeze of lemon juice
1/4 cup nut milk

Make the waffles:
In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and cocoa powder.  Set aside.  In a big measuring cup, combine the milk, vinegar, maple syrup, food coloring and vanilla extract.

Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and stir well to combine.  Let sit for about 15 minutes during which time you should warm up your waffle iron and get your plates warming up in the oven.

When the batter is ready, spoon batter onto a lightly oiled waffle iron and cook for 4-5 minutes (or according to the whims of your waffle iron) or until steam has nearly stopped rising.  Gently remove waffle and place directly onto a rack in the oven.  Prepare the remaining waffles.

Make the sauce:
In a blender or food processor, combine all of the ingredients and process until very smooth.  Transfer to a small pitcher or bowl.

Serve the piping hot, crispy waffles with plenty of cream cheese sauce and top with fresh berries.

Waffle from Above

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Feb 15 2013
45 Comments
Breakfast, Chocolate, Hot Cereals

Mocha Steel-Cut Oats

Bowl of OatsI’ve unashamedly pilfered a recipe for Creamy Cocoa Oatmeal from an issue of Runner’s World magazine and I’m also going to nick what they had to say about the recipe:

Stick-to-your-ribs steel-cut oats are packed with betaglucan.  According to a 2011 Nutrition Journal study, this soluble fiber can help slash LDL (or so-called “bad” cholesterol) levels.  Research shows cocoa anti-oxidants help relax blood vessels, ease blood pressure, and improve circulation.  Ground flaxseed is rich in omega-3s, which reduce inflammation in arteries.

Of course I made some modifications: I soaked the oats overnight to reduce the cooking time; subbed almond milk for dairy milk; added Dandy Blend for coffee flavor; used applesauce instead of a mashed banana (I didn’t have a decently ripe specimen) and ignored the addition of nutmeg (which I’ve never liked). I call mine:

Mocha Steel-Cut Oats
Serves 4

1 1/2 cups steel cut oats
2 cups water
1 cup nut milk
4 oz. unsweetened applesauce
1 1/2 tbsp. cacao powder (or cocoa powder)
1 tbsp. Dandy Blend, optional (or use some fresh-brewed coffee for some of the water or milk)
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tbsp. maple syrup (or your favorite sweetener, to taste)
dried tart cherries
sliced bananas
chopped walnuts
cacao nibs, optional

Place the steel cut oats in a medium-sized bowl and cover with water.  Let sit overnight.

In the morning, drain the oats then place in a medium-sized saucepan and add 2 cups water and 1 cup nut milk.  Bring to a boil then simmer gently for 10-15 minutes.  Stir in the cacao powder, Dandy Blend, cinnamon, applesauce and maple syrup.  Continue to cook until the oats are soft and creamy, adding more liquid as necessary.

To serve, top with cherries, bananas, walnuts and cacao nibs.

One year ago today: My Sally Field Moment
One year and one day ago today: The Sugar Cookie Challenge

Spoonful of Oats

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Dec 20 2012
19 Comments
Cakes and Cupcakes, Chocolate, Desserts, Muffins, Biscuits and Scones

Chocolate Mint Cream Cheese Muffins

muffinscupChristmas and mint.  How did they become an item?  The red-and-white-swirled candy canes dangling from stuffed stockings?  The tiny pastel-colored, melt-away candies piled in bowls that appear only in December?  The Santa- and snowman-shaped chocolate candies filled with a gooey mint center?  Or maybe the cool of mint recalls drifts of snow and icy winds.  It can’t be helped.  Mint reminds me of Christmas.

This is the classic chocolate cream cheese muffin but without the dairy and a little bit less of the guilt.  I’ll take one of these over a candy cane any day.

A quick but important aside to thank one of my very favorite bloggers – Nicole, of Cauldrons and Cupcakes – for naming An Unrefined Vegan as one of her Blogs of the Year.  If you haven’t met Nicole, do yourself and your psyche a favor and go visit.  Nicole is a gentle, wise and sensitive soul who shares of herself without reservation; her readers reap the benefits.

One year ago today: Onion & Walnut-Stuffed Beer Bread

Chocolate Mint Cream Cheese Muffins
Makes ~22

Mint Cream Cheese:
1/2 cup vegan cream cheese
1/2 cup silken tofu
1/2 tsp. white miso
2 tbsp. maple syrup
1 1/2 tsp. peppermint extract
1 tbsp. egg replacer
3 tbsp. nut milk
1 tsp. apple cider vinegar
~1/4 cup cacao nibs

Muffin batter:
1/2 cup brown rice flour
2 1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
1 tsp. powdered stevia
2/3 cup cocoa powder
2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 cup pure maple syrup
1 1/2 cups nut milk
1 tbsp. flaxseed meal
4 oz. unsweetened applesauce
2 tbsp. brown rice vinegar
2 tsp. vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350F and line ~22 muffin tins with paper or silicon muffin cups.

Make the cream cheese filling:
In a food processor, add all of the filling ingredients, except for the cacao nibs, and process until very smooth.  Taste and adjust for sweetness and mintiness.  Stir in the cacao nibs.  Set aside.

Make the batter:
In a large bowl, whisk together the flours, cocoa powder, baking soda and powdered stevia (no, I did not forget to add salt).  In a medium-sized bowl, combine the nut milk, flaxseed meal, applesauce, vinegar and vanilla extract.

Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and stir until thoroughly combined.

Fill muffin tins about 2/3 full with batter and then top each muffin with a heaping tablespoonful of filling.  Bake for about 20 minutes – do not overbake – and remove from the oven.  Allow to cool for 10 minutes or so on cooling racks, then remove from the tins.

aerialplatemuffins

aerialmuffins

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Nov 19 2012
32 Comments
Cakes and Cupcakes, Chocolate, Desserts, Giveaway

Deep Dark Chocolate Chai Truffle Cakes & The Giveaway Winner

Cake on PlateI once worked briefly for an Army Colonel.  He could’ve stepped off of the movie set of Apocalypse Now: tall and wiry with a stiff and graying crew cut, a brisk manner and a lopsided, slightly maniacal grin that revealed a mouthful of misaligned teeth.  Plus the requisite rich southern accent and an endless supply of (to keep things G-Rated here) “earthy” sayings.  I kept a mental catalogue of his favorite expressions, one of which was “it’s an ugly baby.”  Well, back on October 27, 2011, I published a post of several ugly babies.  The post was titled A Delicious Failure: Sunken Chocolate Cakes and the recipe was based on one by Marcel Desaulniers called Heart of Darkness Cakes.  After my failure, tasty though it was, I vowed to try again.  It’s taken me over a year to do it.  They’re still ugly babies, but my, they are delicious.  (If chai isn’t your thing, just leave out the spices and you’ll have a delicious chocolate truffle.)  Coming up soon: Black and White Cakes – a vanilla version of the above – which cleverly and thriftily uses the leftover truffle filling made for these cupcakes.

Now for the really important stuff: the winner of a copy of Kathy Hester’s book, The Vegan Slow Cooker!  Congratulations to – - - Paula!!  You are going to love this cookbook!  Please check your email, Paula :-) .  Thanks to everyone who entered  - – and remember that there will be a lot of giveaways happening on the Virtual Vegan Potluck website over the next few weeks – - so don’t despair, you still have a chance to win something!  (P.S. Tomorrow I reveal the winner of the $50 forAnima gift certificate…)

And…One year ago today: Acorn Squash Stuffed with Wild Rice & Cranberries

Deep Dark Chocolate Chai Truffle Cakes
Makes 10

Truffle Filling:
(filling makes enough for two batches)
1/2 cup dates, roughly chopped, soaked for a few hours
1/2 cup pecans, soaked for a few hours
1 tbsp. crystallized ginger, chopped
1/4 tsp. anise seed, ground
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. cardamom
1/8 tsp. ground cloves
1 tbsp. cocoa powder
pinch salt
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
3 tbsp. coconut oil
1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup almond milk

Cupcakes:
1/2 cup coconut oil
2.5 oz. prune puree (baby food)
1 cup vegan, semi-sweet chocolate chips
2/3 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
3 tbsp. flaxseed meal + 9 tbsp. water (whisk together then let sit for a few minutes to thicken)
1/2 cup maple sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 tsp. all-natural coffee flavoring, optional

Make the truffle filling:
Drain and rinse the dates, pecans and crystallized ginger and put them in the bowl of a food processor.  Process until finely ground.

Meanwhile, carefully melt the chocolate chips and the coconut oil in a small saucepan over low heat.  Whisk in the cocoa powder.  When melted and combined, remove from the heat and set aside.

Spoon the mixture date/pecan mixture into a blender and add the almond milk, all of the spices and the chocolate/coconut oil mixture.  Process until silky smooth.  Pour into an air-tight container and refrigerate for a few hours to firm.  I rolled mine into sloppy balls (~20) and placed them in the freezer to firm up – making them easier to handle when putting them into the cupcakes.

Truffles on Plate

Make the cupcakes:
Preheat the oven to 350F and lightly oil 10 muffin tins (fill the empty tins half-ful with water).  In a small saucepan, slowly heat the coconut oil and the chocolate chips until melted.  Remove from the heat and set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour and cocoa powder.  In a smaller bowl, combine the prune puree, flaxseed meal mixture, vanilla extract and coffee flavoring, if using.  Whisk the chocolate mixture in with the other wet ingredients and then stir this into the dry ingredients.  Batter will be very thick and gooey.

Divide the batter evenly between the muffin tins and bake for 5 minutes.  Carefully remove the muffin tins from the oven and drop truffle filling by the teaspoonful+ on top of each muffin – gently pressing the filling down into the cupcakes.  Return the muffin tins to the oven and bake for an additional 15-20 minutes or until the cupcake is firm and a toothpick comes out clean (from the cake, not the truffle).  Let cool for a few minutes before removing cupcakes from the pan.  Serve warm.

These reheat beautifully in the microwave.  And the freeze well.

Cake and Fork

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Apr 17 2012
43 Comments
Building Block Recipe, Chocolate, Dips and Spreads, General, Miscellaneous

Cocoa-Coconut Butter

Rounds of Cocoa-Coconut Butter

This post demonstrates the part of my personality which can become obsessive.  When I find something I’m interested in, I beat it to death.  Then inevitably I lose interest and move on to the next thing.  Right now, I’m obsessed with making vegan butters.  Since I really try to limit my intake of “added” fats, this is not a good obsession.  However, so far Kel and I have been able to restrain ourselves to slivers of this amazing stuff, so I don’t feel too badly about straying.  Let’s hope something comes along that takes my mind off of butter.  Something that is a whole lot healthier.  Something like seven days of celery sticks.

The basic recipe for this comes from the site mentioned in an earlier post.  All I did was blend in a little cocoa and a little sweetener.  Chocolate coconut butter is available commercially (I have a jar of it in my pantry called Cocoa Bliss by Artisana), but what fun is that?

Using a silicone ice cube tray or silicone mini muffin pan makes freezing and removing the butter very easy.  I got the ice cube trays from Amazon.com, then remembered that my mom had given me a mini muffin tray many years ago so I dug that out of the cupboard as well and gave it a go.  Obviously this butter can be used directly on toast or pancakes or waffles (upcoming post…) – but I think it could also work deliciously when making chocolate-based cookies, muffins or breads – instead of regular vegan butter.

Before I share the recipe, I want to thank Dudette Here!!! (the Dudette abides…) and Gabby at The Veggie Nook for giving my blog Versatile Blogger Awards.  Just…awesome!  Thank you, thank you!

Cocoa-Coconut Butter

1/4 cup + 2 tsp. soy milk
1 tsp. apple cider vinegar
1/8-1/4 tsp. salt
2 1/4 tsp. soy lecithin granules
1/4 tsp. xanthan gum
1/2 tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder
3 tsp. agave nectar
1/4 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 cup + 2 tbsp. + 1 tsp. refined coconut oil
1 tbsp. canola or vegetable oil

In a small measuring cup, whisk together the soy milk and cocoa powder until thoroughly combined.  Whisk in the salt and apple cider vinegar and let sit for 10 minutes.

Melt the coconut oil in a small measuring cup.  It’s not necessary to completely melt it down – some small solid bits are okay.  In the bowl of a food processor, add the melted coconut oil, canola oil, soy milk mixture, soy lecithin granules, xanthan gum, agave nectar and vanilla extract.

Process for 1 minute, then scrap down the sides and bottom – sometimes the soy lecithin granules get stuck near the blade.  Process for an additional minute, then carefully pour the mixture into the molds.

Chill in the freezer for at least one hour before removing from molds.  Store in the refrigerator or freezer.

Butter in Mold

Green Ice Cube Trays

Cubes of Butter

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Mar 09 2012
18 Comments
Cakes and Cupcakes

One From The Archives: Double Chocolate Snack Cake

Piece of Cake with ForkIt all started when Rachel at Rachel in Veganland suggested I celebrate my one year vegan-versary by baking (and I’m assuming she also meant eating) a chocolate cake.  What a great idea!  Not long afterwards (mere minutes afterwards), I went digging through my recipe files and pulled out the folder marked Cakes, and leafed through the pile.  Wow.  I have a LOT of cake recipes.  Anyway, I kept pulling out “possibles” and soon I had a rather large drift of paper next to me.  I weeded through this batch and came up with three finalists.  I think I will have to make them all, but I decided to start with a very simple one.  One that harkens back to my early 20s – when I was in the kitchen – alone – for the first time.  I baked these up often because they were simple, quick and hey, they’re called snack cakes and there was no one in their 20s who loved a chocolate snack more than I.  Interestingly, the original recipe is vegan.  Oh, by the way, Rachel shares an easy, Made From Scratch, chocolate cake recipe on her blog.  I’m going to try it and so should you!

Double Chocolate Snack Cake
9 hefty squares

Cake in Pan with Spatula1 2/3 cups whole wheat pastry flour
1/4 cup maple sugar
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1 1/2 tsp. powdered stevia
1 cup freshly brewed coffee
4 oz. prune puree
1 tsp. apple cider vinegar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup vegan semi-sweet chocolate chips, divided
1 cup toasted walnuts, chopped, divided

Lightly spray a 9″ x 9″ pan with cooking oil, line with parchment and spray again.  I use a paper towel to spread the oil and to pick up the excess.  Heat the oven to 350F.

In a large bowl, combine the flour, maple sugar, cocoa, baking soda, salt and powdered stevia.  In a small bowl, whisk together the coffee, prune puree, apple cider vinegar and vanilla extract.  Stir this mixture into the flour mixture until just combined.  Stir in a half cup of the chocolate chips and a half cup of the walnuts.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 30-35 minutes, or until the cake has pulled away from the sides of the pan and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  While the cake is still hot, sprinkle the remaining half cup of chocolate chips over the top and let them sit for a few minutes to melt.  Using an offset spatula or a knife, spread the melted chocolate over the top of the cake, then sprinkle with the half cup of walnuts.

Allow to cool completely in the pan before cutting into pieces.

This recipe comes from a “freebie” recipe booklet from Hershey’s.  I don’t know what happened to the other recipes – guess this one was the only one that met my high (ahem) 20-something standards.  In case you’re interested in the original recipe, here it is:

1 2/3 cups AP flour
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1/4 cup HERSHEY’S Cocoa
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1 cup water
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 tsp. vinegar
3/4 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 cup HERSHEY’S Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips

Heat oven to 350F.  Grease and flour a square pan.  In a small mixing bowl, combine flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda and salt.  Add water, oil, vinegar and vanilla.  Beat until smooth.  Pour into prepared pan.  Sprinkle chocolate chips over top.  Bake 35-40 minutes or until wooden toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.  Cool in pan on wire rack.  Cut into squares.

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Feb 18 2012
9 Comments
Salads, Vegetables

Stealing From Friends: Double Chocolate Chip Cookies w/ Blueberries

Plate of Cookies

I know a good cookie recipe when I see one so I stole this one immediately.  It comes from Lisa Isaac’s blog, Handmade in Israel.  Apparently Lisa also knows a good cookie recipe when she sees one because she stole it from Lorraine Pascale, of Baking Made Easy (airing on BBC Two).  I did make what seems to be a lot of changes to the recipe in order to squeeze it into my vegan, low-fat, low-sugar eating style.  But the essence stays the same: rich, dark and chocolatey.  This is the first time I’ve used my scale in baking, because in Lisa’s recipe, the ingredients are in ounces.  I’ve “converted” them to cups here.  My changes: swapping the AP flour for whole wheat pastry flour; reducing the fat (butter) by half and making up for the remainder by including a mashed, ripe banana; halving the amount of sugar and using maple sugar and stevia powder instead – and of course, omitting the egg and using flaxseed meal.  The original calls for both dark and milk chocolate chips and since milk chocolate has…milk in it, I decided to use the same quantity of dried fruit in its place.  Blueberries sounded like something interesting to use here and they work quite well with the chocolate.  Finally, I added a little bit of cinnamon and cardamom for a hint of spiciness.  The cookies bake up thick and cake-like.  They’re absolutely stellar.  Lisa (and Lorraine), thanks for the inspiration.

Lorraine’s-via-Lisa’s Veganized Double Chocolate Chip Cookies (with Blueberries)
Makes ~12 big, thick cookies

1/4 cup vegan “butter”
1/2 cup maple sugar
1 tbsp. flaxseed meal + 3 tbsp. water (whisk together until frothy, then let rest for a minute)
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 medium very ripe banana, mashed
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1/4 tsp. salt
1 tsp. powdered stevia
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
dash cardamom
1/2 cup cocoa powder
3/4 cup vegan semi-sweet chocolate chips
3/4 cup dried blueberries

Preheat the oven to 375F and line 2 baking pans with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, cream together the “butter” and maple sugar.  Add the flaxseed meal mixture, vanilla extract and banana and whisk to combine.

In a small bowl, stir together the whole wheat pastry flour, salt, stevia, baking powder and soda, cinnamon, cardamom and the cocoa powder.  Pour into the butter mixture and stir well – dough is stiff, but keep at it until you don’t have any dry, floury bits.  Add the chocolate chips and the dried blueberries.

With a large spoon and using wet hands, form large (your preference as to size) balls and place on the baking pans.  Wet the bottom of a drinking glass and press each cookie (you’ll want to dip the glass bottom in water for each cookie) flat – to about 1/2″ or so.  A twisting motion should easily release the glass from the cookie dough.

Bake for 10-12 minutes, switching pans halfway through for even baking.  Remove pans and place on wire racks to cool for a couple of minutes, then transfer cookies directly to racks to cool completely.

Stack of Cookies

Next, I’m stealing a raw Brussel sprout salad from my friend, Nancy…

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