Tag Archives: Enjoy Life mini-chocolate chips

MOLTEN LAVA CAKE – Vegan & GF

On the way to a great recipe, there are often a lot of disasters.  I don’t usually highlight my recipe failures, however I decided to share my Vegan Molten Lava Cake recipe creation process with you.  A lot of work goes into coming-up with one of my new recipes.  It is rare that a recipe comes together on the first try, but it does happen from time to time; My PB Chocolate Chip Dessert Hummus was one of the rare exceptions in that I really liked the results of my first recipe version.

I sometimes feel like I am in a chemistry lab when I attempt to bake vegan and gluten-free.  Gluten-free flours work so differently than standard wheat flour and when you throw in the monkey-wrench of not using eggs, everything changes yet again.

The photo collage above tells the story of my first and second recipe attempts.  Version one used flax eggs and almond flour as the base.  I thought I would try to see if I could make this molten lava cake in the microwave and… let’s just say I got the “lava” part spot-on.  I had some more batter left, so I tried baking  it in the oven and it completely puffed-up only to deflate all the way back to the bottom of the ramekin.  So, for version two I switched to using baking soda and vinegar eggs (I got the tip from Chef Chloe’s website) and added some more blanched almond flour.  It looked so promising while baking, like a beautiful soufflé, and then TOTALLY deflated when I took it out of the oven.

When I am in the middle of the recipe writing process I get a bit obsessive and tend to think about it constantly.  After stewing about this for yet another day it came to me; everything started to make sense.  I needed to take out some of the blanched almond flour, add in some gluten-free flour mix, a little xanthan gum, and some baking powder.  Voilà, vegan and gluten-free Molten Lava Cake.

That being said, isn’t it so true that those missteps make the successes all that more sweet?  I set-out to create a molten lava cake that was vegan and gluten-free while also being easy on the waistline.   I am really proud of this recipe.

My honey LOVES molten lava cake and now I have a much healthier version to serve to him.  Some people buy their men electronics or cologne for Valentines, I made mine a cake.

 INGREDIENTS
Serves 2
 
Wet
1/4 cup Enjoy Life mini chocolate chips
3 Tbs. So Delicious original creamer
2 Tbs. applesauce
1 tsp instant decaf coffee crystals
1 1/2 tsp apple cider vinegar
1/2 tsp vanilla
 
Dry
2 Tbs. blanched almond flour
2 1/2 Tbs Bob’s Red Mill gluten free flour mix
1 Tbs. cocoa
3 stevia packets
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/8 tsp. xanthan gum
Pinch salt
Powdered sugar for dusting

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees (I used a toaster oven).

Whisk together all of the dry ingredients.

Melt the chocolate chips over a double boiler or in the microwave.  If melting in the microwave, do it in 30 second intervals and stir in between (this will prevent the chocolate from burning).  It usually takes about 90 seconds to melt the chips completely.

Once the chocolate is melted, whisk it together with the rest of the wet ingredients.  The coffee crystals are included in the wet ingredients so you can make sure they melt into the mixture properly and are completely disbursed.

Whisk the wet and dry ingredients together.  The batter will be very thick like brownie batter.

Lightly oil and flour a small (approx. 4 1/4 inch) springform pan.  When flouring the pan use a mixture of flour and cocoa in order to preserve the gorgeous brown color of the cake.  I used a heart springform pan by Wilton that I found at Homegoods.  I also saw that the pans are available at Target (Click HERE to see them on Target online).

Pour the batter into the pan making sure to only fill the pan 2-3 full.  Bake for 10-12 minutes.  The top and edges of the cake should be set while the middle will be slightly loose.  After the cake has baked for 10-12 minutes,  remove it from the oven and allow it to cool on the counter for 5 minutes.

Serve the cake immediately after it has cooled for 5 minutes.  This cake is best HOT from the oven and would be awesome with some Vanilla So Delicious coconut milk ice cream and strawberries.

For a printable version of this recipe click here.

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Filed under Cake, Dessert, Gluten Free, Holidays, Recipes, Vegan, Vegetarian

DESSERT HUMMUS – PB Chocolate Chip

About a week ago my daughter’s teacher and I were chatting when she mentioned that another teacher at the school just made a sweet hummus that she said was really good.  She found the recipe on Chocolate Covered Katie whose blog I adore.

I decided to give the sweet hummus thing a whirl and came-up with a recipe that I am a bit obsessed with.  I have seriously made 5 batches in the last 5 days (some of which was given away, but not much)!

This hummus is free of added salt, oil (just natural peanut butter), and refined sugar.  The dates add such a nice sweetness to the hummus without leaving you with the crash and burn that follows a traditional sugar rush.  Thanks to the fiber and nutrients in the dates your body will be happy.

While this may taste like cookie dough, you won’t be able to eat the whole bowl because the chickpeas will fill you up so quickly.  My favorite ways to eat the hummus are with either a banana, some sliced apples, or celery spears.

This recipe is dedicated to you Nicole!  Thanks for the inspiration.

INGREDIENTS

8 Medjool Dates, soaked (I buy mine at Costco)
Soaking water
15 oz. can Eden Organics Salt-Free Garbanzo Beans (aka chickpeas)
1/3 cup organic peanut butter
1 1/2 tsp. alcohol-free vanilla
2-3 Tbs. Enjoy Life mini-chocolate chips (optional)
 

Pit the dates and put them into a bowl.  Press the dates down into the bowl and cover them with filtered water until they are JUST covered (it is ok if a tiny bit of the dates peak out through the water).  Soak the dates in the water for at least 30 minutes.

Once the dates have soaked, place all of the ingredients (except the chocolate chips) in the food processor and process for 1-2 minutes.  Stop and scrape down the sides with a rubber spatula.  Repeat this process a total of three times until the hummus is very smooth.  I usually use this time to catch-up on dishes or mail… multi-tasking rules!  Note that the hummus will be thinner than you are used to since it is warm from the processing.  Rest assured the hummus will firm-up a bit once refrigerated.

Pour the hummus into a bowl and mix in the chocolate chips if so desired.  That’s it.  You are done.  Place the completed hummus in the fridge to firm-up.  Personally I always have a little serving of the hummus at this point with some apple or banana since I don’t have the patience to wait for it to set.

I also prefer to make the hummus without the chocolate chips and keep the plain version in the fridge since I don’t like to have chocolate chips in my dessert hummus if I will be eating it with sliced apples.  In general I prefer the hummus without the chocolate chips, so I just mix the chocolate chips in for the kids at serving time.

For a printable version of this recipe click here.

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Filed under Appetizers, Beans/Legumes, Dessert, Dip, Gluten Free, Kid Friendly, Quick, Recipes, Snacks, Vegan, Vegetarian