Author: Chocolate Covered Weekly

Just 5 ingredients: Check out this recipe for flourless chocolate cupcakes!

Ingredients:
4 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup butter
2/3 cup packed brown sugar
3 eggs, beaten
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 F. Butter or spray muffin tin cups with baking spray. In a microwave safe bowl, heat butter and chocolate for 30 to 45 seconds. Stir. Heat another 30 seconds or until just melted. Whisk in brown sugar. Whisk in eggs. Next, whisk in cocoa powder until combined. Fill each muffin cup about half full of batter. Bake about 10 to 14 minutes. Check them at 10 minutes. Do not over bake. They should be fudgy. Cool completely. Great served with fresh whipped cream and berries on top! Makes about a dozen.

Watch it being made, here.

Simmering chicken in chocolate milk sounds strange – turns out, it’s delicious! Tyler Kord’s description in his cookbook: “This chicken may just be one of the most interesting and weird-good things you will make from a cookbook.” As Kord noted: “Chicken and chile and chocolate have a long and beautiful history in the form of mole, from the state of Puebla, Mexico.” One caveat is to buy or make good-quality, full-fat chocolate milk for the cup used in the recipe. The better the chocolate, the better the sauce. The bone-in, skin-on thighs add richness to the sauce, as well, but you could use other pieces. Kord recommends serving the chicken with sauteed zucchini and a grain such as quinoa. Those two mild sides balance the rich, rich sauce. It could be good with boiled potatoes or with long-grain rice, as well. If you have chocolate chicken left over, Kord recommends stuffing some in a corn tortilla or using the chicken to fill out a savory pie. (Recipe adapted from “Food52 Dynamite Chicken: 60 Never-Boring Recipes for Your Favorite Bird” by Tyler Kord. Ten Speed Press, 2019.)

For the chicken:

1 cup whole chocolate milk

2 tablespoons chili powder

2 jalapenos, stemmed and split lengthwise

2 teaspoons kosher salt

4 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs (about 1 1/2 pounds)

For the zucchini:

2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil

2 zucchinis (about 1 pound total), sliced 1/2-inch thick

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

2 garlic cloves, minced

Cooked grain, such as farro, quinoa or rice, for serving

Cilantro, for garish (optional)

In a saucepan, stir together the chocolate milk, chili powder, jalapenos and 2 teaspoons of the salt until combined. Add the chicken thighs bone side down. Bring the mixture to a boil over high heat, reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer until the chicken is tender, for 35 to 40 minutes.

While the chicken is cooking, in a large saute pan over high heat, heat the oil until shimmering. Add the zucchini and the 1/2 teaspoon of salt and cook, stirring occasionally, until the zucchini begins to caramelize and soften but does not turn to mush, 5 to 7 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 more minute. Remove from the heat and keep warm until ready to serve.

Serve the chicken and zucchini warm over cooked grains, garnished with cilantro, if using.

Yield: 4 servings

This Easy Chocolate Cake Recipe Will Bring Back Childhood Memories (And It Tastes Amazing). Chuck out your Betty Crocker mix, put on your baker’s hat and make the most heavenly chocolate cake recipe from scratch. It’ll be fluffy, it’ll be moist and the icing on top will leave you wanting more. Really though, the icing is the secret to this killer double-layered chocolate cake recipe.

Ingredients for the cake

2 cups flour
1 cup oil
2 cups sugar
3/4 cup cocoa powder
2 tspn baking soda
1/2 tspn salt
2 eggs
1 cup milk + 2 tspn vinegar (mixed)
1/2 vanilla essence
1 cup hot coffee
Ingredients for the icing

1 cup cocoa powder
1 1/2 cup butter (unsalted, softened)
3/4 tspn salt
4 cups icing sugar
1/4 cup milk
3/4 cup cream
2/3 cup Ovaltine (classic) or Horlicks (classic) — this is THE SECRET ingredient
1/2 tspn vanilla

Method for making the cake

In a mixing bowl, add flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt (make sure to sift your dry ingredients).
Use an electric whisk to combine the dry mixture. Just a few pulses should do the trick.
In a separate bowl, mix eggs, milk, oil and vanilla.
Pour the liquid ingredients into the dry mix and whisk for 4-5 minutes on medium speed.
With the mixer still running, add the hot coffee to the batter and then turn it off. Do not beat a lot after adding the coffee.
Line and grease 2×9-inch pans with butter or parchment paper.
Pour the batter into the pans, smooth the surface and tap to get rid of any air bubbles. Bake in a pre-heated oven (165 degree Celsius) for 25-30mins.
Once the cake is out, let it cool in the pan until the top feels firm. Then transfer it to the cooling rack to cool fully.

Method for making the icing

In a bowl, add cocoa powder, salt, milk and butter. Whisk on medium speed for 2-3 minutes. Scrape the sides.
Gradually add the icing sugar and continue beating until fully combined.
In a bowl, add cream and Horlicks/Ovaltine and combine. Add this to the mixture above and beat on high speed for 3-4 minutes until its light and silky.

How to assemble your cake

Once your sponges have cooled, sandwich the two layers with some icing
Cover the top and sides with the remaining icing
Cut up a massive slice for yourself and enjoy

You can watch @yum_by_amna’s highlights for a step-by-step visual guide to recreating her delicious chocolate cake.

According to “The Joy of Cooking” by Irma S. Rombauer, Marion Rombauer Becker and Ethan Becker (Scribner, 1997, $30), what Irma Rombauer called “icebox cookies” in the 1931 edition, were renamed “refrigerator cookies” in the ’50s by Marion Becker. But “Joy,” along with many other cookbooks, returned to the original nomenclature. Icebox harks back to a bake-from-scratch, bygone era. Somehow it seems homier. The recipe originally called for mint chocolate chips.

Yield: About 3 1/2 dozen

INGREDIENTS

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature

Optional: 1 1/4 teaspoons peppermint extract

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup sugar

1 egg

Garnish: 6 ounces coating chocolate or semisweet chocolate, chopped, or mint chocolate chips

PROCEDURE
1. Whisk flour, cocoa powder, and salt in medium bowl to blend.

2. Using electric mixer, beat butter in large bowl until smooth. Beat in peppermint extract (if using) and vanilla extract. Beat in sugar in 3 additions. Add egg and beat until blended. Add dry ingredients and beat just until blended (dough will be sticky).

3. Divide dough between 2 sheets of plastic wrap or wax paper. Using plastic wrap or wax paper as aid, form dough on each into 2-inch-diameter log. Refrigerate dough until well chilled, at least 2 hours.

4. Position 1 rack in center and 1 rack in top third of oven; preheat to 350 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Unwrap cookie dough logs; roll briefly on work surface to form smooth round logs. Cut logs crosswise into 1/4-inch-thick rounds. Place rounds on prepared baking sheets, spacing 1 inch apart. Bake cookies until tops and edges are dry to touch, about 15 minutes. Transfer baking sheets with cookies to racks; cool completely.

5. Stir chocolate in top of double boiler set over simmering water until melted and smooth. Remove from over water. Chocolate should only be warm enough to melt, not hot. You can either dip half of each cookie in the white or dark chocolate (and allow to harden on a sheet of wax paper) or place melted white chocolate in a pastry bag fitted with a small, plain tip and pipe polka dots or zigzags on the top of each cooled cookie. Refrigerate cookies on baking sheets until chocolate is set, about 10 minutes. If you use coating chocolate (such as Candiquik ) it will harden at room temperature and no refrigeration is needed.

Source: Adapted from “Bon Appetit Desserts” by Barbara Fairchild

YUM! DoubleTree reveals its official chocolate chip cookie recipe! For the first time ever, DoubleTree by Hilton is sharing the official bake-at-home recipe for the brand’s beloved and delicious chocolate chip cookie, so at-home bakers can create the warm and comforting treat in their own kitchens. The warm chocolate chip cookie welcome is synonymous with DoubleTree hotels worldwide, and travelers look forward to receiving one, fresh from the oven, upon their arrival.

Makes 26 cookies

Ingredients:

• ½ pound butter, softened (2 sticks)
• ¾ cup + 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
• ¾ cup packed light brown sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1 ¼ teaspoons vanilla extract
• ¼ teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 2 ¼ cups flour
• ½ cup rolled oats
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• Pinch cinnamon
• 2 ⅔ cups Nestle Tollhouse semi-sweet chips chocolate chips
• 1 ¾ cups chopped walnuts

You’ll also want a large mixing bowl, standing mixer (a hand mixer will also work), parchment paper, baking sheet, baking spatula and a spoon or scoop.

Directions:

Preheat oven to 300°F.

Cream the butter, sugar and brown sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer on medium speed for about 2 minutes.

Add eggs, vanilla and lemon juice, blending with mixer on low speed for 30 seconds, then medium speed for about 2 minutes, or until light and fluffy, scraping down bowl.

With mixer on low speed, add flour, oats, baking soda, salt and cinnamon, blending for about 45 seconds. Don’t overmix.

Remove bowl from mixer and stir in chocolate chips and walnuts.

Portion dough with a scoop (about 3 tablespoons) onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper about 2 inches apart.

Bake for 20 to 23 minutes, or until edges are golden brown and center is still soft.

Remove from oven and cool on baking sheet for about 1 hour.

Cook’s note: You can freeze the unbaked cookies, and there’s no need to thaw. Preheat oven to 300°F and place frozen cookies on parchment paper-lined baking sheet about 2 inches apart. Bake until edges are golden brown and center is still soft.

You can find the full, original recipe on Hilton’s website.

Olive oil keeps this fine-crumbed cake fresh and moist even after it sits out for days. Its flavor — cocoa and orange blossom, amplified and echoed by urfa, a spice with the aroma of chocolate and citrus — is as complex as it is instantly agreeable. And anyone intimidated by baking will appreciate this no-fail batter that’s mixed by hand.

3 hours, largely unattended. Serves 10 to 12.

Ingredients:

Spice Blend

• ½ cup plus 1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon, preferably Vietnamese
• 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon urfa pepper

Cake

• Nonstick pan spray, oil or butter, for the pan
• 1¾ cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1½ teaspoons baking powder
• 1¼ teaspoons baking soda
• ½ teaspoon kosher salt
• ¾ cup extra-virgin olive oil
• ⅔ cup whole milk
• 2 large eggs
• 1 tablespoon orange blossom water
• 1 orange

Glaze

• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 3 to 6 tablespoons whole milk

Instructions:

1. To make the spice blend: Stir together the cocoa, cinnamon and urfa. Reserve one-third of the mix (¼ cup) for the glaze.
2. To make the cake: Heat the oven to 375 degrees. Grease a small (10-cup) Bundt pan. Set the pan in a roasting pan in case any batter spills over (it shouldn’t) and to prevent the cake bottom from browning too much.
3. Whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt and remaining spice blend until well mixed. In another bowl, combine the oil, milk, eggs and orange blossom water. Using a microplane grater, zest the orange directly into the bowl. Halve the orange, squeeze ¼ cup of juice (57 grams), and add to the bowl with the liquids. Whisk until smooth.
4. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry. Start whisking slowly from the center of the bowl, gradually drawing in the dry ingredients to prevent them from clumping. Once all the dry ingredients are incorporated, whisk just until smooth. The thick batter should drip off the whisk. Pour into the prepared bundt pan.
5. Bake, rotating the pan 180 degrees once halfway through, until a wooden skewer inserted into the center comes out clean, about 45 minutes.
6. Cool in the pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Unmold and cool completely on the rack.
7. To make the glaze: Mix the reserved spice blend with the powdered sugar. Add 3 tablespoons milk to make a thick glaze, adding up to 3 more tablespoons if necessary. Pour the glaze over the cooled unmolded cake and set aside until the glaze sets up, about 45 minutes.
Make ahead
The glazed cake can be kept at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

Excerpted from Mastering Spice by Lior Lev Servarz and Genevieve Ko.

Chocolate and pears combine for a yummy dessert.

Ingredients:

1 ¼ cups (190 g) unbleached all-purpose flour
¼ cup (25 g) cocoa powder
2 tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
½ tsp ground cardamom
½ cup (115 g) unsalted butter, softened
¾ cup (160 g) brown sugar
1 tsp (5 mL) vanilla
1 egg, at room temperature
¼ cup (60 mL) milk
4 oz. (115 g) 54% to 64% dark chocolate, chopped
2 pears, unpeeled, seeded and grated (1 cup (250 mL)/250 mL)
1 pear, unpeeled, halved, seeded and cut into 10 slices, ¼ inch (½ cm.) thick

Directions:

With the rack in the middle position, preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Butter a 9 x 5-inch (23 x 13 cm.), 6-cup (1.5 litre) bread tin. Line with a strip of parchment paper, letting it hang over two sides.
In a bowl, combine the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and cardamom.
In another bowl, cream the butter, brown sugar and vanilla with an electric mixer. Add the egg and whisk until smooth. Add the dry ingredients, alternating with the milk. Add the chocolate and the grated pears and mix to combine. Pour the batter into the prepared tin. Place the pear slices down the center of the cake, rounded side up, pressing them into the batter until covered almost halfway.
Bake for 1 hour or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. Let cool completely before unmolding.

Ricardo Larrivée, a Montreal-based television food writer, as published in The Star.

This is delicious! The other great thing about this is you can freeze it for later, so it’s a great recipe to have if you need to store some food for a while.
Ingredients:
• 1 cup of flour
• 1/2 cup of cocoa
• 1 tsp of baking soda
• 1/2 tsp of salt (I make it a heaping tsp, extra salt brings out the chocolate!)
• 2 bananas mashed (original recipe called for 3 but I only had 2 and it turned out just fine)
• 1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 cup of semisweet chocolate chips, divided

Instructions:
1. Heat your oven to 350 degrees and line a 9×5 loaf pan with parchment paper. Set aside.
2. Whisk together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, salt. Set aside.
3. In a large bowl mix mashed bananas, melted butter, and oil. Stir to combine.
4. Stir in brown sugar, egg, and vanilla extract until smooth.
5. Add dry ingredients into wet ingredients, mix to combine (if you over-mix, your bread will be tough). Stir in chocolate chips, leaving a a few tablespoons behind to sprinkle on the top.
6. Pour batter into prepared pan. Sprinkle remaining chocolate chips on top.
7. Bake for 50-60 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out mostly clean. Oven times may vary.
Once it’s cooked, set it to cool for about 15 minutes and then enjoy! This recipe makes a moist, chocolaty cake with just a hint of banana flavor. For some added deliciousness, you can mix a tablespoon or so of milk with some powdered sugar and drizzle it on top. But this bread it plenty sweet without that!
As reported on WREX

For those who may be stressed about the future of the coronavirus pandemic, this dish is meant to provide some comfort: “war” chocolate cake. The dessert gets its name from World Wars I and II, when strict rations forced people to cut back on their ingredients. Unlike other cake recipes, you won’t need any butter, milk or eggs.

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups of flour
3/4 cup of sugar
1/3 cup of cocoa powder
1 teaspoon of baking soda
1/2 teaspoon of salt
1/3 cup of oil
1 cup of water
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
1/2 cup of chocolate chips
1 tablespoon of apple cider vinegar.

Directions:
Set the oven to 350 degrees and start on the batter. Requiring just one mixing bowl, all the ingredients can be mixed together at once. While the recipe suggests you whisk the ingredients by hand, you can choose to use an electric mixer to save some time. At first, the batter feels as thick as dough, but adding in a bit of water will help thin it out. After placing the batter into an 8 inch-by-8 inch size pan, wait by the oven door for about 35 minutes to watch the batter rise!
The results are as simple as the recipe itself. Sprinkle the final cake with a little bit of cocoa powder and bite into a rich and satisfying dessert with crisp brownie-like edges and a fluffy interior. It also has an added benefit of being dairy free and vegan because of the lack of eggs and milk.
The cake serves about nine to 12 portions. For a more fudgy textured cake, double the suggested amount of chocolate chips. You can also add fresh blueberries or strawberries to top the cake for a fresh flavor.
You can dress it up or eat it plain, and it’ll satisfy anyone who is vegan or dairy free.

This article appeared in the April 2, 2020 issue of the Hatchet.