Deep Dark Chocolate Cake Recipe

We had a lunch meeting today at work, and ordered delivery food from Jason's Deli. On their website, they list all the allergens in their various menu items. I decided to choose a nutty salad with no chicken (it's marinated) and no dressing (don't like dressing much anyway). The delivery guy showed up at noon and we were able to continue with our meeting.

I didn't remember when I ordered it, but the salad is covered with feta cheese (oh, I miss feta.) Mostly, I don't really miss the dairy that I stopped eating 10 months ago. It was about the first three months that were the worst, when all I could think about was cheese. Some thick slices of Jarlsberg, creamy cream cheese frosting, some sour cream on my tacos. But it's not so bad now.

I picked around the edges of the salad, looking for pieces without cheese on them. I got a few big savory walnuts that really hit the spot, and a few big red grapes. I was poking around in the salad with my fork when I discovered a big piece of marinated chicken. Um, no thanks. I put the lid back on my salad, and moved swiftly to Plan B. The food I brought with me for lunch.

I find that bringing enough food with me, even if we're ordering for lunch, is always a good idea. Maybe just a few Kind bars in my work bag will do the trick. Today I had an Udi's Whole Grain bagel, a little container of ready-to-serve tuna in water, my mini pepper grinder (the tuna was a little bland last time), an orange, a giant English cucumber all sliced up, and some chocolate cake. I had already been planning to share the chocolate cake with my co-worker, a new Celiac.

I busted out the bagel and tuna and moved on with life. Breaking my emotional attachment to free food has been an adjustment for me. In college, I was the one who would go to campus just to get free pizza from a campus club, or go to the homecoming parade for the free donuts. Free food isn't really in my future much anymore, but it's worth the trade not to have a foggy head and achy stomach all afternoon in my meeting.

My friend didn't fare quite as well with her lunch order. After about 30 minutes, she had a pinched, pained look on her face. I tossed her a bag of pain killer, and slid her a piece of chocolate cake. I think this stuff might mend the soul a bit.

It's moist, even after a few days, and plenty chocolatey. I didn't even make frosting for it, which makes it more transportable too. I topped it with just a sprinkle of powdered sugar, just to make it pretty.

Tomorrow is Chocolate Cake Day, and in honor of the special occasion, we've had this cake several times already in the last few days. This month's Go Ahead Honey, It's Gluten Free, hosted by the lovely Lauren of Celiac Teen, is all about January's food holidays. I already passed up Hot & Spicy Food Day (January 16) and National Shortbread Day (January 6) just so I could share this cake with you.

Last Year: Teriyaki Bacon-Chicken-Pineapple Skewers
Two Years Ago: Simple Chicken Noodle Soup




Deep dark chocolate cake, sprinkled with powdered sugar and tossed together with some fresh blackberries.


Deep Dark Chocolate Cake
developed by Amy Perry, Twin Valley Mills Sorghum Flour recipes
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1 cup sugar
1/2 cup sorghum flour from Twin Valley Mills
1/4 cup corn starch
3 tablespoons buckwheat flour
1/3 cup cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum
1 egg
1/2 cup hemp milk
1/4 cup oil
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup boiling water

In a large mixing bowl, stir together sugar, sorghum flour, corn starch, buckwheat flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, salt and xanthan gum. Add eggs, milk, oil and vanilla. Beat on medium speed of electric mixer two minutes. Remove from mixer, stir in boiling water. Pour batter into prepared pans.
Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes for a 9 inch pan.

This recipe easily doubles to make two 9 inch pans, which could then be frosted as a layer cake. I made it smaller, and it was the perfect size.

Twin Valley Mills sorghum flour

Have you Salt Lakers noticed how hard it is to find sorghum flour lately? Every once in a while you can find a bag of Bob's Red Mill at Whole Foods, but not every time. I kept running out of it, and missing it in my favorite recipes. (Totally essential for great almond poppyseed muffins.) I decided to look around the internet and find a larger supply that could be shipped.

And I found Twin Valley Mills sorghum flour. I was able to get a 25 pound bucket shipped for about $2 a pound. What a great deal! I felt pretty good about supporting the folks who run Twin Valley Mills as well, and I'm glad to know that I have plenty on hand now.

Full disclosure: I purchased this flour myself. I just really liked it, and wanted to share it with you. They didn't compensate me in any way.

Roasted Delicata Squash with Garlic

It's not often that I don't wish for a cool breeze on my face. January is not one of those times. I live in a tremendously cool, older neighborhood, with many of the houses approaching a century in age. The house that contains my apartment is not quite that old - it was probably built in the late 1950s. It's definitely had its updates over the years, including the new front door my landlord installed several years ago, complete with a new screen door to go on the outside. I like that my new door was no longer a hollow-core door, and had a nice deadbolt on it for my use. This door business was all going well until the screen door went kaput. So it got taken off the hinges.

That leaves my front door that isn't hung quite right. There are cracks of chilly light around the edges, and I can see my natural gas dollars seeping out the edges into the cold outside. So, with a rolled up blanket in front of the door, packed as tightly as possible, it's called for some warming and flavorful squash. A bowl of this, plus a pair of fuzzy socks, is really helping me stay warm. How are you staying warm right now?

Last Year: Coconut Kumquat Tea Cake
Two Years Ago: Review of Lloyd's BBQ

Roasted Delicata Squash with Garlic
adapted from this recipe
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1 delicata squash
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 clove garlic, minced
3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Oil a small baking dish.

Peel delicata squash, slice in half lengthwise, and remove seeds. Cut into 1/2 inch thick slices. Place in baking dish, and toss with olive oil, garlic, and parsley.

Bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes, or until tender.

Chili Colorado Recipe

This is another throwback from the boy's childhood, like the cheese brogies. He remembers going to a restaurant with his parents, probably in Nampa, Idaho, and having Chili Colorado. He thought it was delicious, and would order it at other restaurants and never found on that compared.

It can be eaten as a traditional chili, the kind in a bowl eaten with a spoon, or there's a bunch of other ways to serve it. He chose to have it with garlic mashed potatoes and corn chips - maybe not the most traditional preparation. I opted for mine in warmed corn tortillas with a sprinkling of rice.

Tex-Mex can be so hearty and filling, and if you remove the gobs of cheese you get at a restaurant, it's pretty healthy too. (I skip the cheese because I don't eat dairy, and you don't want to miss the flavors going on in the meat and sauce anyway). If you're afraid this will be too spicy for you, the flavors mellow as they simmer in the stock pot, or in the slowcooker (whatever your preference). I've included slowcooker instructions with this recipe as well, because it would be perfect to welcome yourself home with some flavorful chili after a cold day outside.

When I asked him after dinner if this compared to his childhood Chili Colorado, he had to admit he wasn't sure anymore what it tasted like. What we made for dinner, though, was a slam dunk, and has already made its way to our dinner rotation.

Last Year: Southwestern Chicken Soup

Chili Colorado
built from this recipe
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2 tablespoons millet flour
1 tablespoon corn starch
1 1/2 pounds beef stew meat, cut into 1 inch cubes
1 tablespoon bacon drippings, or vegetable oil
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 tablespoon millet flour
1/4 cup chopped onion
1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce
1 teaspoon adobo sauce (the extra juice from a can of chipotle peppers)
2 tablespoons chili powder
1 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
salt and black pepper to taste
3 cups water

Place the millet flour and corn starch (total 3 tablespoons) in a plastic bag. Add beef and shake to lightly coat with flour. Set aside.

Heat bacon drippings and vegetable oil in a Dutch oven or stockpot over medium high heat. Add beef and cook until meat is evenly browned, about 5 to 8 minutes. Stir in 1 tablespoon millet flour, and cook 3 minutes. Stir in the onion, tomato sauce, adobo, chile powder, cumin, garlic powder, salt, pepper, and water. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium low and simmer until beef is just falling apart, about 1-1/2 to 2 hours.

Crockpot/Slowcooker Directions. Brown meat with flour, and then add all remaining ingredients into the crockpot. Cook on low for 8 hours, and then serve.

*Note: No matter how many times I make this, there always ends up being stuff stuck to the bottom of the pan. It doesn't matter if I made it in enameled cast iron, a copper-bottomed aluminum pot, or just cast iron, the millet flour tends to stick to the bottom of the pot. When the mix has been cooking for about 1 hour, make sure you are stirring well to get the bits off the bottom and keep them from sticking more permanently. It rarely burns, as long as you are paying attention, but you can end up scraping the bottom with a wooden spoon to get beef bits incorporated back into the mixture. And unfortunately, this is the kind of cooking escapade that will lead to soaking a pot for quite a while to clean it up! I still think it's totally worth it, though.

Gluten Free Easy Apple Coffee Cake Recipe

I wanted to start the year off with a much healthier recipe for you. I was digging through an old recipe book that the pages are falling out of (compliments of my time in college). I loved that book. I found it at the thrift store, and it's got the coolest selection of breakfast baked goods I've found anywhere. From pancakes and coffee cake, to sweetened quick breads and cinnamon rolls, there are tons of recipes to try in there.

I did notice, too, that all of the recipes are loaded with sugar. They include way more sugar than I'm used to having in my baked goods. So, I took the opportunity to cut out about a cup of sugar from this recipe, and it was still appopriately sweet. The whole grain flours make it hearty and filling (love that amaranth!) Keep in mind that amaranth has a bit of a strong flavor, but the sugary topping helps to compliment that flavor. I think you'll like this, even if you've never had amaranth before. I bought mine at Kitchen Kneads, and grind it myself.

I've decided (so far) there are three kinds of coffee cake toppings, and I'm trying to figure out which one is the best. There is the crisp approach, meaning the topping includes oats. This was my original approach, the one my mom uses (and that my camp friends liked too). The second type is the take-out-part-of-the-dry-ingredients and use it for the topping, like on the Mango Crumb Cake. I really like this approach too, especially if it includes a juicy fruit like the mango. I've also had it without fruit, just the topping. This is the third type - just brown sugar and fat, melted over the top in the oven (with the addition of walnuts here). This might be my favorite. It's sweet enough, and it's simple enough without the oats that it serves more as a topping than an entirely different note in the finished product. Quite good. Especially when the brown sugar caramelizes on the walnuts.

In honor of trimming the sweet, I'm linking to Slightly Indulgent Tuesdays, because I've actually health-ied something up lately!

Last Year: Orange Muffins with Fresh Cranberries
Two Years Ago: Peanut Butter Cup Cookies




Easy Apple Coffee Cake
adapted from Sunset Breads, 1994
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1/2 cup potato starch

1/2 cup brown rice flour

1/2 cup amaranth flour

1/2 cup buckwheat flour

1/2 cup sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon xanthan gum

1 large egg, lightly beaten

1 cup dairy free milk (I used hemp)

2 tablespoons oil

1 extra large Granny Smith apple, peeled and thinly sliced

1/3 cup brown sugar (still too much?)

1 teaspoon cinnamon

2 tablespoons Spectrum Organic (palm) shortening)

1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Mix flours, sugar, baking powder, xanthan gum and salt in a large bowl. Add egg, dairy free milk and oil; stir until well moistened. Spoon batter into grease square pan, evenly smoothing the top. Arrange apple slices in rows over the batter. In a small bowl, mix brown sugar, cinnamon, and shortening, crumble over the apples. Sprinkle with nuts.

Bake in a 350 degree oven unil the cake begins to pull away from the sides of the pan (about 45 minutes). The topping should be melty and bubbly, the walnuts toasted, and the edges of the cake puffing up around the sides. Let it cool in the pan on a rack for 10 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature. Makes 10 servings.