Sweet Testing: Dark Chocolate Tart with Gingersnap Crust

I make a lot of desserts that are incredibly time consuming. It is, most of the time, worth the extra time and effort, but, there are times, when I don’t really want to spend five hours in the kitchen. That is where this tart comes in. It is not only incredibly delicious, but also fast and easy to make. Delicious and easy. You can’t really beat that! It’s only downfall is that it may be too rich for some people. Personally, I don’t know the meaning of the words “too rich,” but, you know, some people just can’t handle it. I call those people “wimps.” As far as the recipe itself is concerned, I think the addition of the candied ginger on the top is a must. If you eat a little bit of the candied ginger with each bite, it’ll bring a whole new level of flavor to the cake. If you hate candied ginger, have no fear, the tart will still be super good. I also increased the pepper from ¼ to an 1/8 and added a bit of cinnamon to the base, which I think helps to balance out the chocolaty goodness. You can find the complete recipe after the jump.

Sweet Testing: Red Hot Velvet Cake with Cinnamon Buttercream

Yes, it's true. It's another Baked cake. I know. You're shocked, right? Actually, I've been wanting to make this cake ever since I first got Baked: New Frontiers in Baking. Every time a birthday or a holiday or some other cake-required celebration comes around, I put it on a list of suggestions and it always gets overlooked! So, when I was asked what kind of cake I wanted for my bday, I immediately picked this one! And I was so glad that I did! So, so yummy! One cake eater/red velvet fan said that it was the best red velvet cake that she have ever had! I have to admit, though, that I liked it a whole lot better the next day. The cinnamon seemed much stronger. I don't know if that's because the flavors needed time to percolate or if I had just eaten too much food prior to cake time. Then again, I often tend to like baked goods more the next day, but that's just me and my weirdness.

You can find the complete recipe for Red Hot Velvet Cake with Cinnamon Buttercream after the jump.

The Mixing Bowl: Rhubarb and Fruit Pie by Eleanor Grosch

I first came across the work of designer and illustrator Eleanor Grosch many, many years ago when she was simply PushMePullYou Design and had a little Web site where she sold her geometric animal prints and indie rock posters. Back then, Eleanor was one of my desktop favorites! I loved the strong lines and simplicity of her work and her illustrations were always in high rotation on my computer screen! One of my all-time faves! It was therefore only natural that I’d invite her to share a recipe with us here on The Mixing Bowl. I can't adequately express how excited I was when she actually agreed to the assignment and then sent along this amazingly simple recipe for Rhubarb and Fruit Pie! The cinnamon and rhubarb combination sounds delicious! I hope you'll give it a try!



Eleanor Grosch of PushMePullYou Design has worked for companies like Keds, Giro, and Urban Outfitters, as well as for musical acts like Wilco, Feist, and Death Cab for Cutie, among others. In addition, she also works as an interior design consultant and has a notecard series titled Flock that was released by Chronicle Books in 2008 (Yay, Chronicle).




If you love illustration like I do, be sure to check out Eleanor's Web site, right here. Thanks, Eleanor! You can find the complete recipe and more pics after the jump.

Chocolate Chips

Generally speaking, I'm not much of a chip eater. Chips have gotten more appetizing over the years, but I don't really like greasy foods, so classic potato chips just really aren't my thing. Don't get me wrong; I'll eat them, but they're not on my list of food obsessions. I'll have to admit, though, that when I saw these Food Should Taste Good chips at Whole Foods I was intrigued enough to stop and browse the flavors. Sweet potato, lime, olive, potato and chive, chocolate…chocolate?? Chocolate tortilla chips?? Oh, my gosh!! Once again, the possibility of discovering a sweet and salty masterpiece took hold of me.

Did the chips live up to my taste buds' expectations? Yes and no. The chocolate flavor is subtle. The chips are infused with chocolate and the flavor sort of creeps up on you after you've masticated the chip. The general response was hmmmm…interesting, but then you can't stop eating them! They're really tasty chips, but if you're expecting a tortilla chip covered in chocolate, that's not what you're going to get. So, no, these chips are not going to the top of my sweet and salty list, but I liked them so much that I bought some of there other chips (sweet potato, lime, multigrain) and I am now officially hooked! Next on my list? The cinnamon flavor! Oh, did I mention that they're gluten free and vegan?? Click here for more info and to shop online.

The Mixing Bowl: Oat Crumble Apple Pie by Laura Ljungkvist

This week illustrator Laura Ljungkvist is sharing with us her recipe for oat crumble apple pie (see the bottom of this post on how to access a larger version of the recipe). I was super excited when Laura sent it over because not only is it a great image, but I love love love apple crumble! Especially with ice cream! Actually, if isn't served warm, with ice cream, I may throw a hissy fit! Not that it isn't yummy just on it's own but the heat and the ice cream transform it from yummy to heavenly.

Laura Ljungkvist is a Swedish artist based in New York whose work incorporates colorful images, geometric shapes, and minimalist design. Known for her incredible drawings that are built around one continuous line, Laura has illustrated numerous children's books, including the popular Follow the Line series.

In addition, Laura has also created designs for clients such as Harper’s Bazaar, House and Garden, The London Sunday Times, Mademoiselle, The New York Times, and MTV, among others. In fact, the illustration for apple crisp that Laura sent over first appeared in the awesome British children's magazine, Anorak. Below is the cover of the issue in which Laura's recipe appears. It also happens to be the chocolate issue! So there's sure to be lots of great drawings of chocolate by really talented illustrators. Check out their Web site, right here.


Click here to visit Laura's Web site. Thanks, Laura!


A larger version of the recipe appears after the jump, at the bottom of the post.

Click picture below to see larger image.

Mixing Bowl: Zucchini Cake with Coconut Cream Cheese Frosting by Oh So Good

Today’s Mixing Bowl recipe comes from graphic designer and Etsy seller Sarah Roberto of Oh So Good. Her delicious recipe for whole wheat zucchini cake with coconut cream cheese frosting would be make a tasty weekend treat and would also be a great way start the fall baking season! Personally, I love zucchini bread, even though zucchini is one of my least favorite veggies. I'll eat the green squash, but it's not my first choice, but zucchini bread . . . yum! The fact that it doesn't have an overwhelming zucchini flavor makes it a great, healthier, dessert option for the kiddies, too. Just don't tell them that there's zucchini in it!


Sarah is a Toronto-based graphic designer who creates environmentally-friendly notebooks, greeting cards, and gift tags using salvaged paper. For example, when you buy one of Sarah's notebooks, the inside will be filled with found pages (grid, lined, colored) and the cover print may have been rescued from a discarded book or a scrap of vintage wallpaper. Such a great idea! I don't often buy stationary products because I inevitably feel guilty about the environmental impact. As a result, I have TONS of unbound paper scraps floating around my house with various notes scribbled on them. Sarah's notebooks are a great way to stay organized, without hurting the environment! The faux wood notebooks have my name written all over them, but there are a lot of other great designs to choose from. You can view Sarah's collection online right here.




Thanks so much to Sarah for sharing her recipe with us! Happy Baking!

You can find the full recipe and more photos after the jump.

Chai Cupcakes with Cinnamon-Honey Frosting

OMG! These are the best cupcakes ever! (Sorry, I had to write that for BH.) Seriously, though. I loved these cupcakes and I don't always love things that I make. I'm a huge fan of warm flavors like pumpkin, ginger, cinnamon, so it's not really surprising that I liked these. Most people would categorize chai and cinnamon as autumn/winter flavors, but I like eating them all year round! If you do to, definitely put these cupcakes on your baking list!

For recipe,

Chai Cupcakes with Cinnamon-Honey Swiss Meringue Buttercream:

Yields: an 8-inch triple-layer cake (serves 12 - 16) OR use cupcake pans instead

Original recipe from Sky High: Irresistible Triple-Layer Cakes via Une-Deux-Senses


For the cupcakes:

1 1/3 cup milk
6 chai tea bags (I used Good Earth Tea, Sweet & Spicy - Erin)
4 whole eggs
2 egg yolk
2 tsp. vanilla extract
2 3/4 cup cake flour
2 cup sugar
4 1/2 tsp. baking powder
3/4 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. cardamom
1/2 tsp. salt
8 oz. (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature



For the frosting:

2 egg whites
1/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 sticks of butter (12 tbsn.), room temperature
6 tbsn. honey
1/4 tsp. cinnamon


1. Preheat to 350 F. Line with cupcake liners, set aside.

2. In saucepan, bring the milk to a simmer over medium heat. Add the tea bags. Remove from the heat and allow to steep for 5 minutes. Remove the bags and squeeze out the remaining milk. Let the milk cool completely.

3. In a medium bowl, combine the eggs, yolks, vanilla and 1/3 cup of the chai milk.

4. In the bowl of a mixer sift together the flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, cardamom, and salt. Beat on low for about 30 seconds, then add the butter and remaining chai milk.

5. Mix on medium low speed until light and fluffy.

6. Next, add the egg mixture in three additions, making sure to scrape the bowl well after each.

7. Divide the batter among the cupcake tins, about 2/3 full, and bake for 15 - 20 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. Allow the cupcakes to cool completely.

8. For the frosting, add the egg whites and sugar into the bowl of a stand mixer. Place over a pot of simmering water and whisk until egg whites are warm and sugar is melted.

9. Place the bowl back into the machine and beat until soft peaks form.

10. Add the butter, one tablespoon at a time until well incorporated. Let mix on medium-high for another 6 - 8 minutes until smooth and creamy.

11. Add the honey and cinnamon until well combined. Frost and enjoy!

The Dessert Truck

I wrote this post ages ago and kept forgetting to post it. Then, last week, I saw this article on the Wall Street Journal online, and decided that I better post this before the truck trend completely fizzles out. So, without further ado, here is the post. Better late then never.

Yes, it's true. I'm obsessed with the Dessert Truck. I know several other versions of these sugar carrying vehicles have popped up in NYC and other large cities lately, but I think the appropriately named Dessert Truck is my favorite. Maybe it's because one of the people behind the Dessert Truck is a former pastry sous chef at Le Cirque, and that sounds fancy or maybe it's because the desserts they offer aren't typical truck fare (i.e. slow-baked apples and cinnamon [see pic above] and goat cheese cake). But, really, when you get right down to it, I think it has a lot to do with my childhood love of ice cream trucks. How could I resist?

If you too would like to relive your latent childhood fantasies involving magic trucks jam packed with yumminess, click here to find out where and when the Dessert Truck will make it's next stop. Or, if simpler snacks are more your thing, check out the Treats Truck, right here. (Food pics by Eugenio Garcia-Palacios)

Chocolate Goldfish?

Goldfish always remind me of my sister. When she was little, she was addicted to them, much like a crack addict it addicted to, well, crack. So, I immediately thought of her when I saw that Pepperidge Farm has recently introduced three new Goldfish flavors: chocolate, honey, and cinnamon! As far as I know this is the first time that goldfish have swum into the sweet pond (sorry, I couldn't resist!), but I guess now that they've conquered the savory, they've moved on to the sweet! I'm really interested to see how chocolate translates when moved to the hollow, crackerlike fish. Has anyone tried these?? Click here to see all the Goldfish flavors.

Beatty's Chocolate Cake

photo by Esme McClear

Last week my sister sent me an e-mail that said this:

I just ate an amazing cake my friend Jenny made.

Honestly, I'm always skeptical when people tell me about a cake that they really liked. People get excited about cake. I get excited about cake (mmmm…cake). Cakes have so much potential, but, really, most of the time I just end-up being disappointed by them. More often than not, for me, cake does not live up to its hype. So, when I finally got my hands on a piece of this so-called amazing cake, I wasn’t expecting much. I took a bite before I ate dinner, just to try it, and then I took another taste, and another, and then proceeded to eat the whole thing! It was really good. It's a very tasty chocolate cake and, like I said, I'm a bit of a cake snob! It does have a very slight coffee taste, but you don't notice it after the first bite. I hate the taste of coffee and I was pretty much licking the plate!

The recipe originally came from the Ina Garten's book Barefoot Contessa at Home, but Jenny found it on pete bakes. You can view the complete recipe on Pete's Web site by clicking here. Pete's version is a bit different, so it's fun to view his pics as well!

Jenny made some slight changes to the recipe, which you can find below. Thanks to Esme for taking the beautiful picture!

• For the cocoa powder, I used half hot chocolate and cocoa powder.
  
• I added hazelnuts, toasted them, crushed them, mixed them with sugar and cinnamon, and then pressed the mess to the sides.
  
• I used canola oil instead of veg oil, but I don't think that would make a difference.

Ice Cream Sandwich Makers Ride Their Bikes, Too

I know that the holiday season is now upon us and the last thing you're probably thinking about in the dead of winter, while you're freezing your bum off, is ice cream, but I'm so excited about Ruby Jewel's ice cream sandwiches that I couldn't wait until spring to write about them! Not only am I impressed by their mouth-watering flavors like cinnamon chocolate with espresso, lemon with honey lavender, and, the seasonal treat, ginger cookie with pumpkin, but also with company's environmental philosophy. Lisa Herlinger, Ruby Jewel's founder, started selling her sandwiches at the Portland Farmer's Market, and has continued to support her community as the company has grown. The sandwiches are made from fresh, local, and natural ingredients, even when it's not cost effective, and, if you don't believe them, they even list their vendors on their Web site. In addition, they make every effort to limit waste, and actually reward their employees for riding their bikes to work!

If you live on the west side of the country, you can click here to find a store near you. The rest of the country can order online via their Web site. If you're torn between which flavor to order, Ruby Jewel has a variety-pack option, so you can sample each and every one!

LARABAR: Yummy and good for you!

Larabar, creators of what have to be the world's healthiest fruit and nut bars, have recently introduced two new flavors, both of which are, like their previous snack bars, inspired by classic desserts. The two new additions, Peanut Butter Cookie and Coconut Cream Pie, fit in nicely amongst the older bars like Banana Bread and Cinnamon Roll.

For those of you who don't know, Larabars are made of all natural ingredients. There are only a handful of ingredients on the wrapper and you'll be able to pronounce and recognize each one! That's because there are no added sweeteners or chemicals in Larabars AND, for those of you shun dairy products, they're vegan! I tried the Coconut Cream Pie bar last night and I have to say, it may be my new favorite flavor! It was pretty tasty. Don't get me wrong; It's not a candy bar, if that's what you're craving, but it is a pleasant and healthier alternative. For more information, click here.

Chocolate with Bacon?

Being a vegetarian, I won't be sampling any chocolate bar with the word bacon on its packaging, but I had to post it because it's just so odd! I will admit, that after I thought about it for a minute, I decided that it probably does have a really great flavor, but maybe that's because I'm a sucker for all things sweet and salty. At the very least, it would be interesting! If you prefer a little less meat with your chocolate, Vosges offers a slew of interesting bars. There is chocolate with mushrooms, chocolate with wasabi, and chocolate with curry, among others.

For truffle lovers, the Aztec Collection offers up chilies and cinnamon, while the Zion Collection includes allspice, pumpkin seed, and ginger. Don't even get me started on the ice cream and brownies, both of which include equally unusual items in their ingredient lists. If you're tired of boring old chocolate, then definitely check out Vosges Haut-Chocolat. You can find their stores in Chicago, New York, and Las Vegas or you can click here to order items online.

Election Fever

Just in time for the election in November, Moonstruck Chocolate Company, creators of the world's cutest truffles, has put together yet another adorable treat. Their new Election Collection is the perfect solution for all you frustrated voters out there who can't stand another minute of you know who! Imagine the pleasure you'll get from biting off the head of that elephant . . . uhhh or donkey . . . whichever the case may be. Actually, after reading the ingredients, I'd much rather eat the cinnamon and almond-flavored donkey (mmmm) than that boring old dark chocolate elephant (yawn) any day.

Now, this whole truffle discussion could easily transition into a full-fledged political rant, but I think I'll take a tip from my edible friends and keep my mouth shut! Let this be a lesson to all of you. The next you feel like engaging in a little partisan bickering, just act like a little animal-shaped truffle instead. If these two inanimate objects can live together in peace and harmony, so can the rest of us.

You can order yourself a little election night diversion online or, to find a store near you, click here.