Quinoa Chocolate Cake

As you can probably tell from my pictures, I'm not a professional photographer. I'm also not one to make something pretty looking, including food. I just kinda do whatever, and it tastes good, so why make it look pretty? It's just gonna get eaten right? Well, I have a sister who can make anything look pretty. Anything! So, every once in a while I decide to make something look pretty, and it's USUALLY when I don't have the camera handy to take a picture, so bear with me while I explain this delectable dessert to you and and how, if you desire, to make it look gorgeous. 

Quinoa Chocolate Cake

1 c quinoa, rinsed well

2 c water

2/3 c almond milk

6 organic free-range eggs

1 1/2 t vanilla

1 c coconut oil, melted

2 1/4 c coconut sugar or sucanut

1 1/2 c unsweetened raw cocoa powder or carob powder

2 1/4 t baking powder, aluminum free

3/4 t baking soda

3/4 t sea salt

strawberries for garnish

Combine the water and quinoa in small saucepan. Bring to boil and reduce heat, cover and simmer for 10ish minutes. Fluff with fork and cool.

Preheat oven to 350. Lightly grease a 9x13 pan or 2 round pans and line bottom with parchment paper. Combine milk, eggs and vanilla in blender and pulse until combine. Add quinoa and coconut oil and blend until smooth.

Whisk together sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and sea salt in large bowl. Add blender contents and mix well, adding milk if it's too thick. Pour into pan(s) and bake for 40-45 minutes, or until a knife inserted comes out clean. Remove cake from oven and cool in pans.

At this point, you can serve as is or frost. It's super moist and rich, but we had a birthday in our family when I made it last time, so I did the following:

8 oz good-quality dairy free dark chocolate, coarsely chopped

1 can coconut milk

1/3 c powdered coconut sugar (just run through your blender until powdery)

1 1/2 t vanilla

Put chocolate in bowl and set aside. In small saucepan over medium-high heat, heat the milk and sugar until bubbles appear at the edges and steam rises from surface. Pour mixture over chocolate and let it stand for 5 minutes. Then stir gently until glossy and smooth-this will take a few minutes. Add the vanilla and stir gently. Pour over cake and let it cool & set up a little bit. Cut a piece and add one of these to each serving:

 All you do is take a strawberry and  cut small slices down to just before the stem. Fan out a bit. Pretty, huh?

Red & Green Pasta

Let's talk mushrooms for a sec. I am not a huge fan of them....or so I thought. Turns out, I'm not a fan of white button mushrooms. However, I had no idea the huge variety of mushrooms there are! Lately, I've been reading about shitake (shi-TOK-ee) mushrooms. They are high in vitamin D. As I said in an earlier blog entry, vitamin D is usually absorbed from sunlight through our largest organ: the skin. During colder months, we tend to stay indoors more and don't get this important vitamin which can lead to depressed mood, seasonal depression or full-on major depressive disorder.

So, back to shitake mushrooms. Turns out, they are sometimes used medicinally! So, I went on a shitake hunt...yes, I do try things that previously I haven't liked. You should do it sometime. ;)

I found them at Whole Foods, and I immediately knew I needed to be open. The texture was totally different from button mushrooms! I actually got kind of excited! See recipe below for how I prepared it.

Red & Green Pasta

1 lb pasta (I used brown rice spaghetti, broken into quarters)

2 c diced shitake mushrooms

chopped onions

1/2 c raw sunflower seeds

4 garlic cloves, minced

whole wheat flour

2 c finely chopped broccoli

1 28 oz can crushed tomatoes, or blend 28 oz fresh tomatoes

2 T extra virgin olive oil

sea salt, to taste

black pepper, to taste

fresh or dried basil

a sprinkle of fennel

1/4 c shredded parmesan cheese

Cook pasta. While it is cooking, saute mushrooms, sunflower seeds, onions and garlic in oil. Add some flour to thicken. Add broccoli and tomatoes, then season with salt and pepper, basil and fennel. Drain pasta and toss into saute pan. Mix together and sprinkle with cheese.

The result? Shitake mushrooms are on the chewy side...but chewy in a good way! I really liked them and will buy them again. Don't be put off by the price. They were $10/lb at Whole Foods, but I got about 2 cups worth and only paid a few dollars.

Raw Apple Pie

 So, I've tried my hand at raw desserts before, and I have been pretty unsuccessful. However, my last 2 raw desserts have been completely wonderful! This particular pie is soooo easy, and so much faster then traditional apple pie. Give it a go, and let me know how you like it! I highly recommend making it the night before because the apples soften and it's more like traditional pie texture, but you certainly don't have to do that. It's still quite flavorful. 

Raw Apple Pie
2 c raw almonds
1 t sea salt
1 c pitted dates
With a food processor or a high-powered blender pulse the almonds and sea salt together until almonds are about the size of Grape-Nuts. Add dates and pulse until it forms a dough. I had to add some water until the "dough" would fit together when I squeezed a handful of it. But even if it's a little crumbly, that's fine, it still tastes fun with the crumbles. :) Press dough on bottom and sides of a deep dish pie pan to form the crust.

5 organic apples (We used Fuji, which was fine, but I bet honeycrisp would be delightful! If using honeycrisp, only do 2)
1 c dried fruit (I used 1/4 c goji berries and 3/4 c raisins, but do whatever strikes your fancy...or whatever you have on hand, in my case!)
2 T cinnamon
1 orange, peeled
1/2 c dates
water, as needed
Slice the apple very thin (or run through a food processor-I hate to use mine often cause it takes up so much space in the dishwasher). Toss apples, dried fruit and cinnamon in a large bowl until everything is coated well.
Add the orange and dates in high-powered blender, adding water if needed to make it the consistency of a smooth syrup. Pour over the fruit and mix well. Spoon filling into crust and serve immediately or cover and place in fridge until ready to serve. Stores well for a few days, and just gets softer and tastier. :)