Chocolate Fudge Pudding Cake

Sometimes a girl needs the warmth of a deep, dark chocolate, coffee spiked on a cold night.... if you are there, or have been there and need a 'Healthy Alternative' let me introduce you to a recipe I found on the eatingwell.com website that is sure to fulfill your warm chocolate dreams.

This reminds me of the warm caramel puddings I had growing up. But instead... it's darker, richer and a bit healthier- made with whole wheat flower, dark chocolate, walnuts- it includes some healthy alternatives that boost the nutrition.

Chocolate-Fudge Pudding Cake

(adapted from http://www.eatingwell.com/recipes/chocolate_fudge_pudding_cake.html)

Ingredients

    1/2 cup whole-wheat pastry flour, (see Ingredient notes)

    1/2 cup all-purpose flour

    1/3 cup sugar or 3 tablespoons Splenda Sugar Blend for Baking (see Ingredient notes)

    1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder, sifted

    1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

    1/2 teaspoon salt

    1 large egg

    1/2 cup 1% milk

    2 tablespoons canola oil

    2 teaspoons vanilla extract

    3/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips, (optional)

    1 1/3 cups hot brewed coffee

    2/3 cup packed light brown sugar, or Splenda Granular

    1/4 cup chopped walnuts, or pecans, toasted

    Confectioners' sugar, for dusting

Preparation

 Preheat oven to 350°F. Coat a 1 1/2- to 2-quart baking dish with cooking spray. Whisk whole-wheat flour, all-purpose flour, sugar (or Splenda Sugar Blend), cocoa, baking powder and salt in a large bowl. Whisk egg, milk, oil and vanilla in a glass measuring cup. Add to the flour mixture; stir with a rubber spatula until just combined. Fold in chocolate chips, if using. Scrape the batter into the prepared baking dish. Mix hot coffee and brown sugar (or Splenda Granular) in the measuring cup and pour over the batter. Sprinkle with nuts. (It may look strange at this point, but don't worry. During baking, cake forms on top with sauce underneath.)

 Bake the pudding cake until the top springs back when touched lightly, 30 to 35 minutes. Let cool for at least 10 minutes. Dust with confectioners' sugar and serve hot or warm

Makes 8 servings

Nutrition per serving

Per serving: 220 calories; 7 g fat ( 1 g sat , 3 g mono ); 27 mg cholesterol; 38 g carbohydrates; 4 g protein; 2 g fiber; 237 mg sodium; 105 mg potassium.

Christmas Baking Time- Cranberry Walnut Oatmeal Cookies

I love Christmas Baking time. It brings me joy, knowing I will be sharing these goodies with family and friends. This year, as in previous years, I will be focusing on healthier ingredients. This recipe fulfills my goals, it contains: oatmeal, walnuts and cranberries. I brought them to a pot luck Christmas party and they were a hit! 

 

 

Cranberry Walnut Oatmeal Cookies

(adapted from http://happyhourprojects.com/holiday-baking-cranberry-walnut-oatmeal-cookies/)

Ingredients

•2 sticks (1 cup) softened

•1 c. sugar ( I used 1/2 cup)

•1 c. brown sugar

•2 eggs

•1 tsp. vanilla

•2 c. flour

•3 c. quick cook oats

•1 tsp. baking soda

•1 tsp. salt

•½ tsp. cinnamon

•1 c. dried cranberries

•1 c. chopped walnuts

Instructions

1.Preheat oven to 375F.

2.Cream together butter, sugars, eggs, and vanilla.

3.In a separate bowl, sift together flour, salt, cinnamon, baking soda and oats.

4.Stir your oat mixture into your wet ingredients a little at a time until well-blended.

5.Stir in cranberries and walnuts.

6.Drop by tablespoons onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. (About the size of a walnut.)

7.Bake for 8-10 minutes. Baking times will always vary with your altitude and weather pressure, so keep a close eye on new recipes to find the ideal baking time for your oven! Less cooking time will yield a softer and chewier cookie – if you prefer your cookies more crunchy, try baking them on the longer side.

 

To make them nice, round even shapes, I used a small ice cream scooper to portion them out.

This recipe yields 4 dozen cookies.

 

What to do with your Farmers Market Loot- Baking a Banana Blueberry Bread

Here's the last installment of ' What to do with the Loot from the Farmer's Market'. A spiked up version of my favourite banana bread...

 

Just add farm fresh blueberries and some crunchy walnuts!

Here's the 'well tested' recipe I have used for years from Allrecipes.com

Et voila! the most delicious banana blueberry walnut bread this side of the Universe!

Banana Maple Pecan Waffles

Here's a little something I whipped up one morning. I felt like celebrating... so I used my whole wheat pancake recipe as the batter- and REALLY jazzed it up.

Here's the link to my batter recipes, a very healthy beginning... http://simmerandglimmer.blogspot.ca/2011/11/whole-wheat-pancakes-and-turkey-bacon.html

... chopped up bananas- a healthy contribution too.

...brown sugar, walnuts... ok bordering on some little indulgence.

...ok definite indulgence, add some butter, some maple syrup and then.... you get the picture?

Finished product, just put a little bit of this little indulgent mixture on your waflles, pancakes, frozen yogurt or a shoe and you have been just transported to an amazing banana, walnut, maple trip!

And you know... I couldn't resist showing some residual Mickey Mouse wear! Happy Baking to you all!