Passover Chocolate Cherry Cake

Don't forget to check out http://www.koshereye.com/ to see my recipe,  Chewy Almond Chocolate Sandwiches.  These are elegant yet simple Passover cookies that can also be made and enjoyed all year round.

I wanted to make a non-dairy Black Forest-type cake, but the only non-dairy whipping liquid I could find, locally, was Ungers.  Because I don't think it's the tastiest product, I thought it would be different and flavorful to use a chocolate whipped cream-type frosting instead of the Unger's alone.  In addition, I wanted something easier to make.  I was able to find 778 (fabulous) preserves in my kosher market, and voila!  A new recipe was born!

Pareve or Dairy
SERVES 8 - 10

Chocolate Nut Cake
1 cup chopped pecans (plus more if you want to pat them around the outside of the cake -order from http://www.ohnuts.com/ )

1/4 cup matzo cake meal
8 ounces non-dairy Passover semisweet chocolate, chopped (see below for websites)
1/2 cup boiling water

8 large eggs, room temperature
1 cup sugar

Cherry Chocolate Filling
3 cups kosher for Passover non-dairy chocolate, chopped (local or mailorder: http://www.choclat.com/ or http://www.ohnuts.com/.)
3/4 cup warm water
2 cartons (1 quart total) kosher for Passover Non-dairy Topping liquid, thawed (such as Haddar or Unger')
4 -5 tablespoons kosher for Passover powdered sugar* see note
2 jars of Cherry Preserves (I love 778 brand)

For the cake
1. PREHEAT the OVEN TO 350-degrees F. with a shelf in the middle of the oven. Grease two 9-inch round metal cake pans, and place parchment paper in the bottom of each.

TipL Cutting the parchment is easy.  Put your hand in the pan to hold it steady and then with the other hand, cut around the pan with a kitchen-only box cutter, or a knife. 




Place the pecans and the matzo cake meal in the bowl of a processor. Pulse on and off until the nuts are finely ground, about 10 five-second pulses.

Place the chocolate in a small bowl. Pour the boiling water over the chocolate and let it sit for 30 seconds. Stir, or whisk the chocolate until it is melted. The mixture does not have to be smooth.

In a large mixing bowl beat the eggs just to blend. Gradually beat in the sugar. Increase the speed to high and beat until the eggs are thick, pale, and tripled in volume , about 5 minutes.

Sprinkle half of the matzo-nut mixture over the eggs and gently fold into the eggs. Repeat with the remaining matzo nut mix.

Stir 1/4 of the egg mixture into the chocolate, and then gently fold this into the remainder of the egg mixture.


 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Pour the batter into the prepared pans. BAKE FOR 18-25 MINUTES or until a tester comes out with no crumbs attached. Place the pans on a cooling rack

 

Loosen the sides of the cakes with a small metal spatula and then let them cool in the pans. Place a piece of waxed paper on a cake, and then a rack or board, and invert the two together.

 Remove the parchment paper, and reinvert so that the cakes are right side up.  The cakes will have sunk just slightly in the center.  Do not try to level the cakes, as they are very tender and will fall apart if you try to level them.  Freeze the top cake for 1 hour to make it easier to handle.

For the Filling
Place the chocolate and warm water in a large microwave-safe bowl.  Microwave on power 4 for 1 minute.  Stir and allow to stand until the chocolate and water are well mixed.  Reheat if necessary, but don't let the chocolate get too hot or it will burn (no higher than 120-degrees F.).  Let the chocolate cool while you whip the creamer.  The chocolate must still be liquidy and slightly warm when you add it to the whipped topping. (If you have a thermometer, 100 degrees F. is a good temperature for blending chocolate).

Pour the whipped topping into a large mixer bowl and add the powdered sugar.  Whip the topping until it forms stiff peaks.  Spoon a large dollup (1-2 cups) of the whipped topping into the chocolate, and stir rapidly to combine (the object is to add just enough so that the chocolate doesn't cool enough to cause the chocolate to harden, but not so little that the chocolate melts the cream).

Stir this mixture into the remaining whipped topping.

Assembly 
Onto the bottom layer of your cake spread the preserves.  I like to use a very thin layer of the jelly and then spread the cherries around.  If you are using the 778 preserves there will be a lot of cherries.  Although the recipe calls for 2 jars, this is so that you have enough cherries.  You will have almost a whole jar of the jellied part left.

So that the cherries and filling do not get mixed up together, spoon on big globs of the filling before spreading it.  The amount to use is personal - we like about 1/2-1-inch of chocolate filling.

Set the frozen layer on top of the spread frosting.

For a rustic looking cake, just add the cherries and filling on top, or for a more polished look, finish the cake by frosting the sides and adding borders.

The cake can be made several days ahead, or can be frozen for up to 1 month.  Defrost in the refrigerator overnight. 

Serve the cake directly from the refrigerator, if possible.

*Note:  If  you cannot find Kosher for Passover powdered sugar, grind granulated sugar in a food processor to get it a little finer.  Add it to the whipped topping liquid, and refrigerate the mixture at least 15 minutes so that the sugar can dissolve.

http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/sBff/~3/jfd1QGDaEQ4/slow-cooker-tips-for-dummies.html

I'm going to be posting a recipe for slow cooker beef pot roast tomorrow, and in anticipation I was checking out a few related videos on YouTube. I've always assumed the people who write those 'For Dummies' books must be really smart, but based on this, I may have to reconsider.

It's been a long while since I posted a video just to poke fun at it, but I couldn't resist. Just for fun, see how many strange, disturbing, wrong, and/or crazy things you see and hear in this offering from Dummies.com (btw, the glass cutting board doesn't count). Enjoy!

Brussels Sprouts and Miso Dressing Recipe

Add to my list of New Year's resolutions, use more condiments and ingredients lurking in the fridge. My refrigerator is packed with Chinese sauces, jams and jellies, and various sauces and mustards. Sometimes I barely have room for anything else! So I am trying to use the things I probably used once and then forgot about.

First up, miso. I love the salty savory rich flavor of miso, which is a fermented soy bean paste that is like pure umami. You've probably had miso in soup at a Japanese restaurant. I especially like white or shiro miso which also has some sweet buttery notes. I've used it in soup and salad dressings and found that it complements many vegetables. In David Chang's cookbook Momofuku Cooking at Home is a recipe for miso butter sauce which is more like paste, that he was inspired to make after eating miso butter ramen in Japan. He adds a touch of sherry vinegar. In my recipe I make an olive oil based dressing with a touch of buttery white miso. The finished dish tastes much richer than it is.

If you are looking for more ways to use miso, this dressing is a good start. Try using it on other vegetables; I think it would be particularly good on spinach, kale, carrots or cauliflower. You could also use it on salad. Let me know if you have any other tips for using miso!

Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Creamy Miso Dressing

Serves 4

1 pound brussels sprouts
1 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

2 Tablespoons white miso
2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 Tablespoon water
3/4 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon lemon juice

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Make dressing by whisking together the miso, olive oil, water, mustard and lemon juice. Taste for seasonings and adjust as you like. The dressing can be kept in the refrigerator for several days, just bring to room temperature and whisk again before serving.

Trim the stem ends of the Brussels sprouts, cut each in half lengthwise, then toss them in a bowl with the olive oil and salt until they are well coated. Transfer sprouts to a roasting pan or rimmed sheet pan (line with tin foil for easier cleaning) and roast for 30 minutes, stirring once or twice so they cook evenly. Brussels sprouts should be beginning to brown on the outside and tender on the inside. Place the sprouts in a serving bowl or platter and drizzle with the dressing.

Enjoy!

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STUFFED VEGETABLE IDLY

I am making this stuffed idly for the third time. Whenever i get bored of usual idly sambhar , i make this.This is one of the best ways to incorporate vegetables into idly.My daughter never eats the vegetables i add in sambhar. But she likes this idly a lot…U can just play around with different combinations of stuffing in it.I've given my method of making the filling. Do try this and leave ur feedback.

INGREDIENTS

IDLY batter – 1 bowl Water – little to dilute For stuffing Carrot – 2 nos Beans – 6 nos Potato – 1 no Green peas – 1/4 cup Big onion – 1 no Cooking oil – 1tbsp Turmeric powder – a pinch Salt – As needed Red chilly powder – 1/2 tsp Garam masala – 1/4 tsp To grind Cinnamon – 1 inch piecee Cloves – 1 no Fennel seeds – little Grated coconut – 1 tbsp Dalia / Fried gram dal – 1tsp Ginger – small piece & garlic – 6 cloves or GG paste – 1 / 4 tsp To garnish Coriander leaves – a few Lime juice -  As needed.

METHOD

• Heat a kadai with a tbsp of oil and add the onion pieces.
• Saute till it turns transparent. Now add the ground masala paste.
• Saute till the raw smell disappears.Then add the cooked vegetables and the powders.Mix well for few mins.
• Add the required water and boil well till the  stuffing thickens.
• Finally  add the lime juice and garnish with coriander leaves.
• In an idly pot, pour a tbsp of batter and keep a tsp of filling in the center.
• Then pour another tbsp of batter to cover the filling.Steam for 15 mins.
• Insert a fork, if it comes out clean, the idly is done.

Serve hot with sambhar ,coconut chutney  or tomato chutney !!

 

Here is a picture of stuffed idiyappam which i made the next day with the left over stuffing

 

Note:

• U can make the above version in chinese style by adding cabbage , little soya sauce , ajinomotto and white pepper powder.But avoid using garam masala pwd, red chilly powder and ground masala paste..Hope u all know this. Sometimes i make like this too.
• If u dont want to stuff the idly, just mix the above stuffing in the batter directly and make idlies.It tastes good in that way too..
• While making for kids , add a tsp of ghee over the stuffing in each idly .that gives an additional flavor..

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