Decadent Chocolate Cake with Whipped Chocolate Frosting {Shockingly Gluten-Free!}

Before I start talking about how awesome this cake is, I want to say thank you. I just realized through this post, this little ole blog of mine will hit 20,000 pageviews. I know that's not a whole lot compared to big name blogs out there who get at least that many hits per post, but to me it's pretty rad. So thank you to anyone who took 2 seconds out of their day to take a peak at my little recipe journal. You rock!

Anyhoo, my birthday was August 15th. I ended up celebrating on the 17th and had a great time with friends...and margaritas! However, the original plan was to celebrate with my friend, Katelyn. See, her birthday is August 16th, and we were born the same year! Our original plan of having a double birthday bash didn't really work out (though I think we may still need to get a piñata girl!), so I thought it would be fun to have a mini celebration when she came back. Enter: this awesome cake.

Katelyn can't have gluten, and Chris has been gluten free for the past month, so coming up with a gluten-free birthday dessert, especially a birthday cake, seemed daunting at first. As if she read my mind, Mel from Mel's Kitchen Cafe wrote about a chocolate cake that didn't require any special flours (which are usually so expensive I can't justify buying them), and is gluten-free! The only special ingredient is quinoa, and I just bought some after being out for months. Trippy, right?

So Sunday I baked the cake for us. Katelyn came over, and we were both blown away. This cake isn't good considering it's a gluten free cake, it's just good...period...and don't even get me starting on the frosting. Chris and I were licking the bowl clean, and I want to put it on every cake, gluten free or not, for the rest of my life. The cake as a whole is rich, decadent, and super chocolatey. It would probably be outstanding with some raspberries on top, or raspberry jam/puree in the middle. I'm sure you could also make several adjustments to fit your dietary needs. Make it dairy free by swapping out the milk for soy or almond milk, the butter for oil (mmm..coconut oil!), and for the whipped frosting, did you know you can make whipped cream from coconut milk??

I am so happy I found this recipe, and that I was able to share it with one of my best friends. Happy belated birthday to us, girl!! xoxo

Decadent Chocolate Cake with Whipped Chocolate Frosting

Ingredients

Frosting

2 1/4 cups heavy whipping cream

1 1/4 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

Cake 

2 cups cooked and cooled quinoa (From about 1/2 cup raw quinoa. Be sure to cook in water, not broth!)

1/3 cup milk

4 large eggs

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

3/4 cup butter, melted and cooled

1 1/2 cups granulated sugar

1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

Directions

First, prep the frosting. Place the chocolate chips in a medium bowl. Heat the whipping cream in a saucepan until it gently simmers. Pour the hot cream over the chocolate chips and let the mixture sit for five minutes. Whisk to combine until it is glossy and smooth. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate until completely chilled and cold (2-3 hours). You can speed up this process by placing the bottom of the bowl in an ice water bath and stirring until cool. 

Next, preheat your oven to 350F. Lightly grease two 8-inch round cake pans. Line the bottoms of the pans with parchment paper.

Combine the milk, eggs and vanilla in a blender or food processor. Process just until combined. Add the cooked quinoa and the butter. Blend well until smooth. In a large bowl, whisk together the sugar, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Add the contents from the blender and mix with a wooden spoon or whisk until combined.

Divide the batter evenly between the two pans and bake on a rack in the middle position for 28-30 minutes or until a knife or toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove the cake from the oven and cool for 10 minutes. Invert the cakes onto cooling racks (remove the parchment paper stuck to the bottom of the cakes). Cool completely.

To finish the frosting, remove cooled cream mixture, and use an electric mixer (stand mixer or handheld) to whip the mixture to soft peaks.

Place one cake layer upside down on a serving platter or plate. Top with a generous portion (about half) of the whipped frosting, spreading to within 1/2-inch of the edge of the cake (it will press to the edge when the top cake layer is put on).  Gently put the other cake layer upside down on top of the frosted layer. Spread the remaining frosting over the top of the cake. Chill the frosted cake in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours before serving to let the frosting set up a bit.

Stick your entire face in the cake, and dig in!

Recipe Source: adapted from Mel's Kitchen Cafe

Homemade Naan

Ah, naan. So scrumptious, and perfect for sopping up creamy Indian food goodness. It also makes a pretty good personal pizza if I do say so myself! I've made this recipe a number of times, and it's way easier then you would think! There's very little kneading, so no need for a stand mixture, and only one rise at 45 minutes!

There are a few things I've learned over time with this recipe:

-I've found that the naan cooks better when using a cast iron skillet. I used non-stick when I made this in China, and far prefer the cast iron. If you don't have one...get one. Not only do they cook food beautifully, they're good for your health too! I use cast iron about 90% of the time in my cooking.

-When rolling out the dough, roll it thinner than you would think! The thinner it is the more bubbly it gets, and trust me, that's a very good thing (fun to watch too)!

-Make sure your pan is hot before putting the first one on, otherwise it won't bubble as well as it should. When this happens, the first one turns out okay, but the second is perfect. The pan should sizzle and crack when you splash a little water on it.

-Keep your towel over the individual balls of dough while cooking one. This will keep in the moisture, and they'll be easier to shape into balls when the time comes.

So there you have it. Not too bad, right? Trust me, once you make naan yourself, you'll never want to buy the stuff in the store again! Next time, I'm going to give garlic naan a try. If I'm successful, it could be dangerous!

Homemade Naan

Ingredients

2 teaspoons instant yeast 

1 teaspoon sugar

1/2 cup water

2 1/2-3 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup olive oil 

1/3 cup plain Greek yogurt

1 large egg

Directions

In a small bowl, combine the yeast, sugar and water. Stir to dissolve then let sit for a few minutes or until it is frothy on top. At that point, stir in the oil, yogurt and egg until evenly combined.

In a medium sized bowl, combine 1 cup of the flour with the salt. Next, add the bowl of wet ingredients to the flour/salt mixture and stir until well combined. Continue adding flour a half cup at a time until you can no longer stir it with a spoon (about 1 to 1.5 cups later).

At that point, turn the ball of dough out onto a well floured counter top. Knead the ball of dough for about 3 minutes, adding flour as necessary to keep the dough from sticking. I ended up using a little less then 3 cups of flour total. The dough should be smooth and very soft but not sticky.

Loosely cover the dough with a tea towel in a warm (cozy!) spot and let it rise until double in size (about 45 minutes). After it rises, gently flatten the dough and cut it into 8 equal pieces. Shape each piece into a small ball by stretching the dough back under itself until the top is smooth and round. Leave the towel over the dough until ready to use.

Heat a large, heavy bottomed skillet (cast iron baby!) over medium heat and spray lightly with non-stick spray. Working with one ball at a time, roll it out until it is about 1/8-1/4 inch thick or approximately 7 inches in diameter. Place the rolled out dough onto the hot skillet and cook until the under side is golden brown and large bubbles have formed on the surface. The bigger the bubbles, the better. Flip the dough and cook the other side until golden brown as well. Brush with melted butter, and serve.

Recipe Source: adapted from Budget Bytes

Chana Saag

I can't believe summer vacation will soon be coming to a close. It's been a pretty busy summer, and I'm sure the school year will be even more crazy! Chris and I will be traveling to Louisville quite a bit in the coming months, so I decided I was going to start cooking meals now and freezing them, so when we feel too tired to make dinner we won't have to eat out. I'm calling it "The Freezer Project". *Cough*...I may or may not have a word doc on google drive with a list of things I'm planning on making. Yes...totally dorking out over here. What you see here are two things I can now check off my list. That's right, accompanying the saag is homemade naan (recipe coming soon!).

I've made this recipe before, but felt it was lacking in flavor. I loved the idea of using evaporated milk instead of cream and how simple and easy this dish is to pull off, so I gave it a second chance, changing the spices a bit. I'm so glad I did, because it makes for a wonderful meal, and I imagine it will taste even better tomorrow! It makes a fair amount, about six servings, which is perfect for us. We each had it for lunch today, lunch is taken care of tomorrow, and two servings are waiting for us in the freezer. That's what I call perfection! Stay tuned for my favorite naan recipe!

Chana Saag

Ingredients

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 medium onion, finely chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 inches fresh grated ginger

1 teaspoon coriander

1/2 teaspoon tumeric

1/4-1/2 teaspoon ground red pepper (I did a 1/4 tsp. and it wasn't too spicy)

1/2 teaspoon garam masala

3/4 teaspoon salt

1 large tomato, chopped

1 lb. bag frozen chopped spinach*

1 (15 ounce) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed

1 (12 ounce) can evaporated milk

Directions

In a very large skillet, heat oil over medium-low heat. Add onion, garlic, and grated ginger (it's easiest to just grate it right over the pan). Saute for about 5 minutes, or until onion is soft and transparent. 

Add coriander, tumeric, red pepper, and garam masala. Stir and cook for about 1 minute. Add the tomato and salt, and continue to cook for another five minutes, or until the tomato starts to lose it's shape.

Add the chickpeas, spinach, and 1/2 cup of water to the skillet, giving it a good stir as to break up the spinach. Bring it to a simmer over medium heat, then continue to let it simmer until the mixture is heated through, about five minutes.

At this point, most of the water should have simmered away. Turn the heat down to medium low, and add the evaporated milk. Depending on how thick you want the sauce, you can just heat it through, or let it simmer until thickened. 

Once cooked, take a cup or so of the mixture and add it to a blender, blending until smooth. Add mixture back to the skillet, give it a stir, and serve with rice, naan or both!**

*Be sure the spinach you purchase is chopped, or you'll be stuck with long pieces of stringy spinach.

**This last step is completely optional, but I like the color and added thickness. Leave it as is if you wish!

Recipe Source: adapted from Budget Bytes

Tahini-Dressed Zucchini and Green Bean Salad

Apparently yesterday was National Zucchini Day. I don't usually celebrate food holidays, though I should really find out when national cookie day is (mmm...cookies). I made this yesterday for lunch, so apparently I just knew to celebrate one of my favorite summer veggies!

I found this recipe in one of my new favorite cookbooks River Cottage Veg. Guys, I adore this book, and am totally bummed it's nearly overdue at the library. It celebrates vegetables in such a fresh and beautiful way it makes me want to be vegetarian. Chris is going through an elimination diet right now, meaning he is essentially gluten free and vegetarian (also limiting his dairy...talk about tough) This was his pick from the book. 

There's a bit more prep then I usually care for in a salad, but the veggies become superstars by the end, making it well worth the effort. Full of delicious seasonal veggies, it's filling and satisfying!

I am submitting this salad to No Croutons Required, which is hosted by Jacqueline over at Tinned Tomatoes. This month's challenge is to come up with a soup or salad featuring seasonal ingredients. It's the perfect time to buy zucchini and tomatoes right now, so go ahead and make this beautiful salad!

I will also be submitting this recipe to Souper Sunday's over at Kahakai Kitchen! Enjoy!

Tahini-Dressed Zucchini and Green Bean Salad

Ingredients 

For the tahini dressing

1 small garlic clove, crushed with a little coarse sea salt

2 tablespoons light tahini (stir jar well first)

Finely grated zest and juice from 1/2 lemon

Juice of 1/2 orange

1/2 teaspoon honey

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

2 tablespoons olive oil

For the salad

About 1/2 pint grape or cherry tomatoes, halved

2 tablespoons olive oil

3 medium zucchini (about 14 ounces), sliced into 1/8-inch rounds

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Juice of 1/2 lemon

1 fresh red chile, seeded and finely chopped

About 4 ounces green beans, trimmed

4 good handfuls of salad greens

Handful of mint, finely shredded (optional)

Directions

First, make the tahini dressing. In a small bowl, stir together tahini, lemon zest and juice, orange juice, honey, and grind or two of black pepper. The dressing may thicken and go grainy or pasty, but don't worry. Just thin it down by whisking in a little water, 1 tablespoon at a time, until you get a creamy, trickling consistency. Finally, gently stir in the olive oil. Taste and add a little more salt and pepper if needed. The dressing is now ready to use.

Now prep the veggies for the salad. Place tomatoes flesh side up on a lined baking sheet. Broil until the tomatoes start to shrivel and are bursting with juice, 5-10 minutes. Keep an eye on them!

Next, heat the olive oil in a large cast iron skillet over fairly high heat, and cook the zucchini slices in batches, tossing them occasionally, for a few minutes until tender and browned on both sides, transferring them to a bowl once cooked. Season generously with salt and pepper, add the lemon juice and chile, and toss together well.

Bring a saucepan of salted water to a boil. Tip in the green beans, return to a boil and blanch for 1 minute. Drain, then dunk in cold water to refresh. Drain again, pat dry with a clean kitchen towl, and toss the beans with the zucchini.

To assemble the salad, spread the salad greens in a large, shallow serving bowl and scatter over the dressed zucchini and beans, tomatoes, and shredded mint, if using. Drizzle tahini dressing and serve.

Recipe Source: adapted from River Cottage Veg