Chocolate Cake with Strawberry Icing

Happy Spring and Happy Birth to Virginia Jean Giopponi, we’re so excited to meet you <3<3<3 We love this chocolate cake with strawberry icing so much. If you love it, you might also really enjoy our chocolate cake with hazelnut frosting.

We have not yet tried a gluten free version of this although we love this gluten-free cake mix, and it would be great with our strawberry icing. While the box mix says cupcakes, it also works great in a cake pan. To make this recipe you would likely want to have two boxes so you could have the two tier cake with frosting in-between.

Pans needed: 2 6-inch round cake pans (if you only have one you can make this in batches it will just take twice as long).

Serves: 4-6 servings

Time: 1 hr

Ingredients

For the cake:

3/4 cup + 2 tbsp all purpose flour

3/4 cup coconut sugar

1/4 cup + 2 tbsp cocoa powder, plus extra for powering the pans

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp baking powder

2 tsp vanilla powder (option to replace with vanilla extract)

1/2 tsp salt

1 room temperature egg

1/2 cup almond milk

1/2 tsp apple cider vinegar

1/4 cup neutral oil

1/2 cup hot coffee

For the icing:

3/4 cup soaked cashews

2 dates

squeeze of lime juice

Lime zest

1 tsp vanilla powder (option to replace with vanilla extract)

3/4 cup pureed strawberries (about 8 large strawberries), plus extra strawberries for topping the cake

1/4 tsp - 1 tsp agave (depending on your sweetness preference)

1/4 tsp salt

up to 1/2 water depending on how thick you want the icing to be. Less water is more fudgy, more water is fluffier. The puree is pretty wet so you may not need any water at all

This cake can be made by hand or with a mixer. We use a mixer because we have one.

Pre-heat the oven to 350 F and make hot coffee. Brush oil into your cake pans and add 1 tbsp of cocoa powder and shake until bottom and sides are coated. Mix the dry ingredients (flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, vanilla powder, salt). In a separate bowl or in a 2 cup liquid measuring cup combine the almond milk, apple cider vinegar, neutral oil, and the egg. Break the yolk up, but no need to whisk the egg. Add this to the dry ingredients and mix until just combined, careful not to over mix. While you are stirring, add the hot coffee and watch it transform into liquid, smooth, velvety cake batter.

Divide the batter between the two cake pans as equally as possible. Bake in a pre-heated oven for about 30 minutes or until you can touch the center of the cake and it bounces back, however it should not be firm and should still have a slight wobble to it. Remove from the oven and let the cakes cool for about 5 minutes.

Wearing hot mitts, pick up the cake and tilt to about 45 degrees. Using the palm of your hand (in the hot mitt) pat the side of the cake pan and then turn the cake pan. Repeat this until you’ve tapped all the way around the pan. Next turn the pan upside-down, turning the cake onto a wire rack, clean counter top, or plate. Then lift the pan off of the cake. Flip your cake over so that the cake is right side up and let it cool completely before frosting.

Drain your cashews and add them, with the rest of the icing ingredients, to the bowl of a food processor. Blend, scraping down regularly until you have a smooth creamy icing. If you find you need to add water, add it 1 tbsp at a time until you have the consistency that you like. The less water you use the more dense it will be, the more water you add the more fluffy the icing will be.

Once your cakes have cooled, place the first cake onto a plate. Using a serrated knife, cut the rounded top of the cake off, just enough to create a flat surface. Generously spread icing onto the top of the first layer. Put the second layer on top, cutting off the top for a cleaner look or leaving it on for a rounded top. Spread icing over the top and sides. To get a smooth finish on your icing, use an icing spatula or knife to spread the icing onto the cake. In between strokes, wipe the icing off the spatula or knife and rinse in hot water. The hot knife will smooth the icing more effectively and stop the knife from creating a peak when you lift it off the icing.

Optionally top the cake with fresh cut strawberries. Cut into slices and enjoy!

Roasted hazelnut cheesecake

While perfecting this recipe we came to the conclusion that neither of us has had cheesecake with dairy. We cannot attest to how similar this confection is to said food, but it is smooth, creamy, a tad sweet, and is reminiscent of chocolate hazelnut butter. Right now the crust is slightly sweet with a less sweet filling and is perfect for our tastes, but if you enjoy a sweeter experience, feel free to increase the maple syrup in the filling. Or, if you use store bought chocolate hazelnut butter this will likely have sugar and can be another way to increase sweetness in the filling.

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Pans needed: 4” springform pan

Makes: One 4” cheesecake

Time: 30 minutes active time; 4 hrs total

Ingredients

For the crust:

⅓ c pecans

⅓ c dates

½ tsp salt

For the filling:

1 c soaked cashews

½ c almond milk plus additional for blending

⅓ c roasted hazelnut butter (optionally substitute for chocolate hazelnut butter)

2 tbsp melted cacao butter

2 tbsp raw cacao powder

2 tbsp maple syrup

½ tsp vanilla powder or extract

For the toppings (optional):

cacao nibs

hazelnuts

chocolate chips

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In a food processor, mix all the “for the crust” ingredients until they are sticky and able to form a crust. There will still be some small chunks, that is ideal. Be careful not to over-mix since if you mix too much you will end up with nut butter (which is delicious but will not form a crust). Press the crust mixture into the bottom of your springform pan and set in the refrigerator.

In a blender, blend all of the “for the filling” ingredients using the tamper as you blend. If needed, add additional almond milk one tablespoon at a time (we used 2 additional tablespoons) until the mixture is fully blended.  Blend until smooth and then pour onto the crust. Put this in the freezer for at least 3 hours.

Remove from freezer 1 hour before serving. If you plan to top with chocolate drizzles, melt the chocolate chips in the microwave or a double boiler. Optionally top with cacao nibs and chopped hazelnuts. Drizzle with melted chocolate chips and enjoy!

Note: When we are removing the cheesecake filling from the blender we inevitably cannot get everything out — there is always a thin film of chocolate hazelnut stuck to the sides and bottom. Before cleaning the blender, we like to blend these leftovers with almond milk for some chocolate milk for us to enjoy while we finish making the cake.

Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies

Sometimes I think about how much I love being an adult. Cookies are one of the things that remind me how awesome it can be to be “grown up”. When I was super little, cookies were these magical delicacies that I would scheme over. I was always wondering, how do I get more of these? As an adult I can buy them or make them whenever I want! It’s magical and I love it! For adults and children alike, if you can eat gluten we bet you will love these.

Makes: 1 dozen

Time: 1 hour (15 min active)

Ingredients

1 tbsp flax meal + 2 tbsp water

1/2 cup vegan butter (we recommend Miyokos)

3 tbsp almond butter

1/2 cup coconut sugar

1 cup + 2 tbsp flour

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp vanilla

1 cup chocolate chunks

flaky salt, optional

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Mix ground flax & water and set aside.

In a large bowl cream the butter, almond butter, and sugar together until smooth. Add the flax egg and stir until combined. Fold in the flour, baking soda, salt, and vanilla until barely combined, there will still be some patches of flouriness. Next fold in your chocolate chips until the flour just disappears. Put the dough in the fridge and pre-heat the oven to 375 F.

Line a cookie sheet with a silpat or parchment paper. Once the oven is pre-heated, remove the dough from the fridge and spoon even portions onto a cookie sheet leaving space in-between the cookies. This recipe should give you between 10-12 cookies. At this point, if you are using flaky salt, sprinkle it over the cookies. We think it tastes equally good with or without the flaky salt garnish. Bake 15-18 minutes rotating once in the middle. Remove from the oven and cool. Enjoy!

Fudgy Double Chocolate Gluten-Free Vegan Brownies

Camille and Anne used to go to church together. As children there were two things that we loved most about church: choir and coffee hour. Choir meant we got to sit in the choir loft, sing, and giggle together as we would dare each other to drop things on people below us. Coffee hour was a chance to take lots of delicious food and then hide in the trees hoping our parents wouldn’t find us and we could play together all day. Our favorite treats were lemon poppy seed cake and brownies. We would often take the brownies, ball them up in our hands and smoosh them until they turned into little fudgy morsels of joy and then eat them. This memory inspired Anne to create a gluten-free vegan version so that we could both enjoy them as adults. Camille thinks these taste like food made for angels.

Happy New Year, y’all!

Serves: 6-8

Time: 45 min (15 min active)

Ingredients

2 tbsp ground flax

1 cup almond milk

3/4 cup gluten-free oats

2/3 cup almond flour

2/3 cup raw cacao powder

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp vanilla powder or vanilla extract

1/4-1/2 tsp fine salt

1/2 cup neutral oil

2/3 cup coconut sugar

1 tsp apple cider vinegar

1/3 cup chocolate chips, we recommend Hu Gems

1/2 tsp flaky salt

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Pre-heat oven to 350 F and oil a 9 x 9 baking dish. Mix ground flax and almond milk in a small bowl and set aside.

In a blender or food processor, pulse oats until floury. Add the oat flour to a large mixing bowl with almond flour, raw cacao powder, baking powder, and fine salt. The reason the salt is a range is that different salts have different levels of saltiness. We recommend 1/2 tsp if you are using kosher salt and 1/4 tsp if you are using table salt. If you aren’t sure, start with less salt. Once the batter comes together you can taste and salt to taste. Stir to combine. If you are using vanilla powder, add it to the dry ingredients

In a smaller bowl, mix the oil, coconut sugar, vanilla (if using extract), apple cider vinegar, and the flax/almond mixture. Stir to incorporate.

Make a well in the dry ingredients and add wet mixture, stirring until fully mixed. You don’t have to worry about over mixing because there is no gluten. Fold in the chocolate chips and pour into oiled baking dish. Taste the batter and feel free to add more salt if it needs it. You will be adding flaky salt on top, so be careful not to over-salt. Top with flaky salt and bake for 30 minutes or until knife comes out clean.

Allow to fully cool (this is part of the cooking process). Slice and enjoy!

Chocolate Cake with Hazelnut Frosting

Hi, this is Anne writing the intro.

Today would have been my father’s 104th birthday so we are sharing a chocolate cake recipe with you all to celebrate. When I was a kid, probably about the age of 12, my father started putting a box of cake mix and a jar of icing at my place at the table the morning of his birthday. He loved cake, but I suppose he didn’t think that he should have to bake his own birthday cake. So from a young age it was my job to make sure he had a cake each year for his birthday, and he would remind me with the box of cake mix. My father passed away 12 years ago now, and the first year after he was gone his birthday rolled around and I was in the middle of a move and felt like I couldn’t do justice to the day. But a few days later I baked a chocolate cake in his memory. It’s now a tradition for me. I bake a cake on my father’s birthday, and over the years I have developed this recipe for a chocolate cake with chocolate hazelnut frosting. When I first started to modify the recipe so that it would feel better in my body I felt like I was betraying him. I worried that he wouldn’t approve of the changes, but over time I realized that the cake isn’t for him. It’s for me, a way to recognize my grief. Grief is a funny thing. For years, every day I wished that I could call my father, hug him, bake for him, cook for him, or just know he was still in the world. There were many times when something exciting happened in my life and I thought I should call him, before remembering that was not an option for me anymore. These days I still miss him, I still love him, but I go weeks or months without feeling the pain of his loss. I make a point of remembering him every year on his birthday with this cake, and I hope you will join me in celebrating this day.

This recipe calls for roasted hazelnuts and coconut sugar. If you can only find raw hazelnuts you can roast them at home in the oven in about 15-20 minutes. Put them on a baking sheet in a 350 F oven and give them a stir or shake every five minutes until the skins are darker brown. Coconut sugar is sold under multiple names including coconut palm sugar and brown coconut sugar. Any variation would work in this recipe including replacing with cane sugar, date sugar, or maple sugar.

Pans needed: 2 6-inch round cake pans (if you only have one you can make this in batches it will just take twice as long).

Serves: 4-6 servings

Time: 1 hr

Ingredients

For the cake:

3/4 cup + 2 tbsp all purpose flour

3/4 cup coconut sugar

1/4 cup + 2 tbsp cocoa powder

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp baking powder

2 tsp vanilla powder (option to replace with vanilla extract)

1/2 tsp salt

1 room temperature egg

1/2 cup almond milk

1/2 tsp apple cider vinegar

1/4 cup neutral oil

1/2 cup hot coffee

For the icing:

3/4 cup roasted hazelnuts

3/4 cup soaked cashews

4 dates

1/4 cup cocoa powder

1 tsp vanilla powder (option to replace with vanilla extract)

1 tbsp maple syrup

1/4 tsp salt

1/4-1/2 water depending on how thick you want the icing to be. Less water is more fudgy, more water is fluffier.

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This cake can be made by hand or with a mixer, however we use a mixer because we have one.

Pre-heat the oven to 350 F and make hot coffee. Spread oil into your cake pans and add 1 tbsp of cocoa powder and shake until bottom and sides are coated. Mix the dry ingredients (flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, vanilla powder, salt). In a separate bowl or using a liquid 2 cup measuring device combine the almond milk, apple cider vinegar, neutral oil, and the egg. Break the yolk up, but no need to whisk the egg. Add this to the dry ingredients and mix until just combined, careful not to over mix. While you are stirring add the hot coffee and watch it transform into liquid smooth velvety cake batter.

Divide the batter between the two cake pans as equally as possible. Bake in pre-heated oven for about 30 minutes or until you can touch the center of the cake and it bounces back, however it should not be firm and should still have a slight wobble to it. Remove from the oven and let the cakes cool for about 5 minutes.

Wearing hot mitts, pick up the cake and tilt to about 45 degrees. Using the palm of your hand (in the hot mitt) pat the side of the cake pan and then turn the cake pan. Repeat this until you’ve tapped all the way around the pan. Next turn the pan upside-down, turning the cake onto a wire rack, clean counter top, or plate. Then lift the pan off of the cake. Flip your cake over so that the cake is right side up and let it cool completely before frosting.

Put roasted hazelnuts in your food processor and blend, stopping to scrape down the sides regularly until you have hazelnut butter. Drain your cashews and add them, with the rest of the icing ingredients, to the food processor. Blend, scraping down regularly until you have a smooth creamy icing. For the water, start with 1/4 cup and then add the water 1 tbsp at a time until you have the consistency that you like. The less water you use the more it will be like Nutella, the more water you add the more fluffy the icing will be.

Once your cakes have cooled, place the first cake onto a plate. Using a serrated knife, cut the rounded top of the cake off, just enough to create a flat surface. Generously spread icing onto the top of the first layer. Put the second layer on top, cutting off the top for a cleaner look or leaving it on for a rounded top. Spread icing over the top and sides. To get a smooth finish on your icing, use an icing spatula or knife to spread the icing onto the cake. In between strokes on the cake, wipe the icing off the spatula or knife and rinse in hot water. The hot knife will smooth the icing more effectively and stop the knife from creating a peak when you lift it off the icing.

Cut into slices and enjoy!