Tag Archives: chocolate

May 3, 2012

1800 Cake

By Anna Dagarin

Oh, it’s good to be back! Seems like it’s been forever since the last time I shared a recipe. Feels like ages since I’ve cooked anything! I can’t even express how wonderful it was to spend some time in the kitchen today.

It was dreary outside. Watching raindrops meander down the window panes made me want to curl up in a cozy chair with a book and a cup of coffee. The patter of droplets on the roof somehow talked me into baking. Pulling warm cookies or a soft loaf of bread out of the oven on a raw and rainy day somehow comforts the heart as well as the stomach.

We had some soft, old apples in the fridge, so I figured a cake would be perfect. 1800 cake is usually my go-to recipe for all occasions. (Now, don’t go asking why it’s called 1800 cake, because, well…I have no idea.) We have used and loved this recipe for so long, I can’t remember where it originated. The cake is a family favorite, and it acquires new fans every time we bring it to a party or share it with friends. Everyone goes crazy for it. Literally. 1800 cake is a great dessert. It goes perfectly with a cup of tea or coffee. I personally like eating it for breakfast.

Filled with apples, nuts, and chocolate, super moist, and not overly sweet, 1800 cake is so delicious. It’s also surprisingly easy to make. You simply can’t go wrong with it!

 

1800 Cake

Ingredients 

  • 2 C. flour
  • pinch of salt
  • 1 tsp. cinnamon
  • 1 tsp. baking soda
  • 1 tsp. baking powder
  • 3/4 C. oil
  • 1 1/2 C. sugar (I usually cut back on the sugar by half a cup, and it’s still just as yummy)
  • 2 eggs
  • 2 tsp. vanilla
  • 1/2 C. chopped walnuts (if preferred, you can leave out the nut’s and just use extra chocolate chips)
  • 1/2 C. chocolate chips
  • 3 C. apple slices

Directions

  1. In a large bowl, sift together flour, salt, cinnamon, baking soda, and baking powder.
  2. Add oil, sugar, and eggs, and mix with a wooden spoon.
  3. Then add and mix the vanilla, nuts, and chocolate.
  4. Fold in the apples.

Note: The batter is super thick and can be tough to stir! Not to worry, it turns out amazing

5.  Pour the batter into a greased tube pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes to 1 hour.

Leave a comment   |  tags: , , , , , | posted in Breakfast, Cakes, Chocolate, Desserts, Fruit, Uncategorized

March 18, 2012

Double Chocolate Cookies (with a secret ingredient)

By Elizabeth Kilpatrick

::I was having much trouble trying to write a blog post today, so my sister Hannah offered to do it this week. She wrote a guest post over at From Scratch Club this summer, and therefore is highly qualified. ::

A couple weeks ago, I entered the Saratoga Farmers Market Cookie Contest. I was super excited because my favorite thing to bake is cookies. The rules were that you had to use at least two market ingredients but could get more points for the more you used. I found a way to incorporate beets into one of my families favorite cookie recipes, used Battenkill Valley  Creamery cream to make my butter, used our eggs, and tada! I found a new favorite. I didn’t win the contest of around twenty entries, but it was still a fun experience.

I’ll give you the recipe with the beets and include the original beside any changes.

Double Chocolate Cookies (with a secret ingredient)

-Original recipe taken from No-Guesswork Cooking: Recipes You Can Trust, by Kim Cahill.

-1 1/4 cup butter softened

-1 1/3 cup white sugar

-1 1/4 cup brown sugar

Lightly cream in mixer with flat paddle.

-3 eggs

-2 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

-2/3 to 3/4 cup finely shredded beet (exclude to make original recipe)

Add. Mix till smooth

-3 3/4 cups flour

-1 cup cocoa powder (3/4 plus 2 tablespoons) if making without beets.

-3/4 teaspoon salt

-1 1/4 teaspoon baking soda

Combine in separate bowl.

-1 1/4 cups chocolate chips

-1 1/4 cups white chocolate chips

Add dry ingredients alternately with chocolate chips and white chocolate chips to butter/sugar mixture. Mix evenly until combined. Pinch off 1″ balls, round, and place on lightly greased cookie sheets. Flatten to 1/2″ thickness. Bake at 375 degrees for 9 minutes or until slightly firm. DON’T OVERBAKE!

ENJOY!!!

3 comments   |  tags: , , | posted in Chocolate, Desserts, Food

December 21, 2011

Buckeye Balls

By Anna Dagarin

Just three days away, Christmas is is almost here! Are you counting down the hours yet? Christmas is my favorite holiday! I love it. The sparkling lights that make my heart melt inside; feasts of delicious food; the excuse to spend extra time with family and friends; wrapping frozen fingers around a hot coffee cup; the in-expressable joy I feel for all of it!

The first thing that comes to mind when I think about Christmas is presents! I know, I know, it sounds a little superficial. But giving and getting presents was always my favorite part of Christmas. And well… it still is. Growing up I remember there being so many presents shoved under the tree that the bottom branches began to fold up, and the entire tree seemed to hover in the air. And after all the gifts were opened, there were mountains, and mountains – mountain ranges of wrapping paper.

Gifts are things you can hold in your hand that say “I was thinking about you. This is especially for you. I wanted you to have this. I love you.” Gifts are universal. There is not a country in the world where giving a gift is not an expression of love.

The Greek word “dorea” which is translated into the English word “gift,” means “grace,” or an underserved gift. We don’t give gifts to amend some wrong we’ve done. Or to pay for services rendered. We don’t use them to barter with. A gift is given freely. It is a token we give to someone as an indication of the priceless treasure they are to us. It is a tangible expression that speaks of our love for them.

Gifts need not be expensive. And they need not be saved for a holiday! Give without reservation an encouraging word wrapped in a smile, a little of your time stuffed with thoughtfulness, or a tiny act of kindness rolled up in generosity. And food – giving food is always a good option….

One of my family’s traditions at Christmas time is making buckeye balls. They are soooooo so so good, which I guess kinda goes without saying…. I mean, they’re made with butter, peanut butter, and chocolate. Now, I don’t really need to tell you that they are amazing, am I right? Super easy to make, dangerously addicting, and fun to give as gifts, buckeye balls are one of the best things about Christmas.

I hope you have the most magical, merry, wonderful, warm, joyful, blessed Christmas! May the LORD Immanuel be with you.:)

Buckeye Balls

Yields 5 dozen. 

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 cups creamy peanut butter
  • 1/2 cup butter, softened
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 3 cups sifted confectioners’ sugar
  • 6 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions

  1. Line a baking sheet with waxed paper; set aside.
  2. In a medium bowl, mix peanut butter, butter, vanilla, and confectioners’ sugar with hands to form a smooth stiff dough. Shape into balls using 2 teaspoons of dough for each ball. Place on prepared pan, insert a wooden toothpick into each ball and refrigerate.
  3. Melt chocolate in a metal bowl over a pan of lightly simmering water. Stir occasionally until smooth, and remove from heat.
  4. Remove balls from refrigerator and dip into melted chocolate. Return to wax paper, chocolate side down, and remove toothpick. Repeat with remaining balls. Refrigerate for 30 minutes to set.

2 comments   |  tags: , , , , , | posted in Chocolate, Desserts, Food

May 21, 2011

Life.

By Elizabeth Kilpatrick

I feel like I have been sadly neglecting you all that so kindly visit Cooking From the Ground Up. It’s called Life. Preparing for my student’s recital (tonight!), milking my cow, working, cleaning up after my family(it never ends), caring for the rest of my animals, and cooking a little. There is more, but it would take up the rest of this post you would probably get bored pretty quickly. But there is a bright side to that (even though there isn’t anything bright outside now and I think we are going to float away pretty soon). Teaching is done until September and I think now I might be able to find time to breathe………..wow, that feels better.

We are actually making this to serve on ice-cream tonight. We’ve made it for years and it is much healthier than store-bought chocolate sauce.

Hot Fudge Sauce

Combine the following in a double boiler:

1/2 cup cocoa

1 cup sour cream

1 1/2 cups sugar

1/2 tsp. vanilla

Cook over boiling water for about 1 hour. Stir occasionally. This sauce will be thick. It keeps well for a month in a jar in the refrigerator. Great as ice cream topping.

6 comments   |  tags: , , , , | posted in Chocolate, Desserts, Vegetarian

April 23, 2011

“Wholesome” Muffins

By Elizabeth Kilpatrick

That really is our nick-name for these muffins. We had them for breakfast for the first time this week. Our first thought was that they were pretty amazing. But, if we told mom that, she wouldn’t let us have to many, because they really aren’t that good for you. So we just told her that they were “too wholesome, and that she probably shouldn’t make them again.” She didn’t believe us though, unfortunately; she froze the rest after breakfast. But, they’re still the “wholesome – (not)” muffins to us. We even called them “soil” muffins on Earth Day. :)

Chocolate Ricotta Muffins ~ Taken from Sunlight Cafe by Mollie Katzen

Nonstick spray

2 1/3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

3/4 tsp. salt

2 tsp. baking powder

6-8 tbsp. unsweetened cocoa

1 cup sugar

1 cup semi-sweetened chocolate chips

1 cup ricotta cheese (? I don’t know what you would substitute here to make it vegan!)

2 large eggs (or egg substitute)

1 1/3 cups milk (or rice milk)

1 tbsp. vanilla extract

4 tbsp. (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted (or equal amount of Earth Balance)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly spray 12 standard (2 1/2 inch diameter) muffin cups non-stick spray. Combine the flour, salt, baking powder, cocoa, sugar, and chocolate chips. Place the ricotta in a second medium-sized bowl, and add the eggs one at a time, bating well with a medium-sized whisk after each addition. Add the milk and vanilla, and whisk until thoroughly blended. Pour ricotta mixture, along with the melted butter, into the dry ingredients. Using a spoon or a rubber spatula, stir from the bottom of the bowl until the dry ingredients are all moistened. Don’t over-mix; a few lumps are okay. Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin cups. For smaller muffins, fill the cups about four-fifths full. For larger muffins, fill them up to the top. If you have extra batter, spray one or two additional muffin cups with non-stick spray and fill with remaining batter. Bake in the middle of the oven for 20-25 minutes, or until lightly browned on top and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Remove the pan from the oven , then remove the muffins from the pan and place them on a rack to cool. Wait at least 30 minutes before serving.

3 comments   |  tags: , , , | posted in Breakfast, Chocolate, Food, Vegetarian

April 12, 2011

Hulley’s Chocolate Cake

By Anna Dagarin

Ahh… it feels good to be blogging again. It feels like ages since I’ve sat in front of a keyboard and written anything! It’s been so long – maybe I should introduce myself again. (It’s Anna, by the way…)

After going on vacation with my family in Florida for three weeks, I can’t help wishing summer would get here already! I miss the sunshine! When I was in Florida I soaked up every bit of sinshine I could. But I want MORE!

My mom’s cousin and his family live in Florida. During our time down south we were able to go to a baseball game with him and his wife, after which they came over to our condo for dinner, and we spent the evening catching up.

My mom’s cousin was an executive chef for Darden restaurants. I don’t know about you, but I’ve never before had the opportunity to make dinner for a culinary professional! I desperately wanted to cook something yummy for our guests. I decided to make stuffed shells, and what goes better with stuffed shells than a garden salad and garlic bread. All of it turned out as I hoped it would, it was delicious! I recieved a compliment with each helping that was devoured. With each word of praise, I felt a little more elated. There’s nothing like watching someone truly enjoy a meal that you’ve created! I was so happy, it made my week! And month for that matter! 

If you want a recipe that will rack up the compliments, I have one for you. Everybody loves chocolate, that’s pretty much a no – brainer. So who could resist a scrumptious, rich, moist, chocolate cake? Not I!

This is my favorite cake recipe of all time. I think you’ll love this, esspecially if you prefer dark chocolate. Serve it, and get ready for loads of compliments. And possibly some worshipers… maybe a few stalkers, or a street named after you….

Hulley’s Chocolate Cake

Ingredients

  • 2 1/2 cups flour
  • 2 cups sugar
  • 1 tsp. baking soda
  • 1 tsp. salt
  • 3/4 cups cocoa
  • 2 tsp. vanilla
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 cup oil
  • 1 1/2 cups water
  • chocolate chips

Directions

  1. Mix together flour, sugar, soda, salt, and cocoa in 9×13 pan.
  2. Make a well in the center, and place in vanilla, eggs, oil, and water. Stir until smooth.
  3. Sprinkle chocolate chips on top and press them in a bit.
  4. Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes.
  5. Don’t overcook, serve warm.

     Note: In place of cocoa, you can use 4oz. of melted unsweetened chocolate. Add with wet ingredients.

4 comments   |  tags: , , | posted in Chocolate, Desserts

March 15, 2011

Fudge Nut Brownies

By Elizabeth Kilpatrick

We’ve been making these brownies for five years now and they never get old. If Mom doesn’t put the extra’s in the freezer, there won’t be any left by 9 o’clock the next morning! I’ll admit that it isn’t just the boys that eat it. :) I snitch some too! We’ll often make them for company or for various functions. Every one loves them and always asks for the recipe!

Taken from the No Guesswork Cookbook

Yield: 16-18 servings

10″x15″ pan

Oven: 350 degrees

Base:

2 cups flour

1 cup sugar

3/4 tsp. salt

3/4 tsp. baking powder

1/4 cup pecans, chopped

3/4 cup butter, cold

2 tsp. vanilla extract

2 Tbsp. water

Combine dry ingredients in 2 quart bowls. Cut butter into 1/2 Tbsp-size pieces. Add to dry ingredients. Cut in with pastry blender until mixture resembles fine crumbs. Add vanilla and water and mix until moistened. (Mixture should look crumbly, like streusel.) Set aside 3/4 cup of crumbs for topping. Press remaining crumbs into baking pan to form base of brownies.

Filling:

2/3 cup flour

3/4 cup cocoa powder

1 3/4 cups sugar

1/4 tsp. salt

1/16 tsp. baking soda

3/4 cup melted butter

3 eggs, beaten

1 Tbsp. + 2 tsp. vanilla extract

1 Tbsp. corn syrup or brown rice syrup

Combine dry ingredients in 2 quart bowl. Add butter and mix until moistened. Add eggs, vanilla,  and corn syrup to filling mixture. Mix until evenly blended and smooth. Pour over base mixture and spread evenly. Crumble reserved base mixture over top. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until barely firm. DO NOT OVER-BAKE! Cool completely before cutting.

Don’t forget that the apron giveaway ends tonight! If you haven’t entered, hurry and do so!

6 comments   |  tags: , , , | posted in Chocolate, Desserts, Giveaways, Uncategorized

February 23, 2011

Chocolate Cake recipe Correction

By Elizabeth Kilpatrick

For all of you who may have copied the chocolate cake recipe from 2/24/2011, you’ll have to make a slight correction!

It should be 2 tsp. baking soda and 1tsp salt. Not 1 tsp. baking soda!

Sorry! I fixed it on the blog post, but wanted to make you all aware of that!

Leave a comment   |  tags: , , , | posted in Chocolate, corrections, Desserts

February 15, 2011

My Mom’s secret recipe…from the hills of Africa

By Elizabeth Kilpatrick

1986. Swaziland, Africa. Mom and Dad were spending three months in Africa so that Dad could gain experience by working in a hospital there. During that time, they went with some missionaries for a church service out in the “bush” country.  The land was mountainous and as my mom just said “absolutely beautiful.” The missionaries provided dinner for the natives and this was the dessert they served. It is the most amazing chocolate cake that you will ever eat. With a crunchy outside and a moist center, this cake makes the perfect dessert for a special someone’s birthday or just as a special mid-week treat! We like to dress it up by sprinkling it with powdered sugar, topping each slice with whipped cream, or frosting with our special peanut butter frosting! It’s great warm. However you decide to serve this cake, you will be sure to make it again! and again – and again!

Just so you know, we’ve been making this for 25 years now…that says a lot.

Chocolate Cake ~Marsha McCoy

3 cups all-purpose flour

2/3 cup cocoa powder (this cake is phenomenal with black cocoa)

2 cups sugar

2 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. salt

Sift and blend into mixing bowl.

In a one up measure, put 2 tbsp. white-distilled vinegar and 2 tsp. vanilla. Fill remainder of cup with oil. Add to dry ingredients. Add two cups water.

Stir or mix until smooth. Pour into 9×13 in. pan, two 9 in. layer pans, or cupcakes. Bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes. If you desire to do cupcakes, bake for 30 minutes. May use 8×8 and cut recipe in half.

Enjoy!

8 comments   |  tags: , , , | posted in Desserts

January 26, 2011

Cookies You Dream About

By Anna Dagarin

For the past week there have been 16 people living in my house- give or take a few! My older sister and brother along with their families were visiting. So the whole family crowded under one roof. It was awesome! All week there wasn’t a clean dish in site, or an inch of counter space. There were however plenty of snowstorms, laughing kids, Shrek reruns, late night card games, early morning chats, and pots, and pots of coffee!

A few of my sibling want to open a coffee shop in town. It’s sort of become a dream of ours.  A little fantastic and probably unlikely…. Still, its lots of fun to think about! Of course it would be the best coffee shop around! My younger brother Andrew could fill  the shop with his amazing pastries.

I’ll admit, my brother Andrew is a far better baker than I am. Baking is his specialty! His chocolate chip cookies are becoming famous! They are better than any cookie you could find at any coffee shop. They’re a delicious crowd-pleaser. At least the crowd at my house loves them! So until we get that coffee shop up and running, try them out yourself.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients

  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 3/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
  • 1 cup packed brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup white sugar
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
  • 1 egg
  • 1 egg yolk
  • 2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

Directions

  1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Grease cookie sheets or line with parchment paper.
  2. Sift together the flour, baking soda and salt; set aside.
  3. In a medium bowl, cream together the melted butter, brown sugar and white sugar until well blended. Beat in the vanilla, egg, and egg yolk until light and creamy. Mix in the sifted ingredients until just blended. Stir in the chocolate chips by hand using a wooden spoon. Drop cookie dough 1/4 cup at a time onto the prepared cookie sheets. Cookies should be about 3 inches apart.
  4. Bake for 15 to 17 minutes in the preheated oven, or until the edges are lightly toasted. Cool on baking sheets for a few minutes before transferring to wire racks to cool completely.

Tip: If you have a little extra time, try refrigerating the cookie dough before baking the cookies. It just makes them that much better!

Chocolate Chip Cookies

11 comments   |  tags: , , | posted in Chocolate, Desserts, Food

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