Light(er) Chocolate Cake with Strawberry Sauce

January begins the birthday and celebration season in our house.  It begins with my husband's birthday...and a few days later, it's Teenaged Son #1's birthday.  We have a brief break until February, when we celebrate our anniversary ... and then a few days after that, it's Teenaged Son #2's birthday.  That's a lot of cake!

Tim, my husband, always requests something chocolatey.  This year, his birthday falls in the  middle of the week on a day when I have meetings until dark.  And, like everyone else at this time of the year, we've resolved to eat a bit healthier.  Make ahead + chocolate + light ... that's quite a list of requirements.

Many years ago, I saved a recipe from Cooking Light magazine that  fits the bill.  Chocolate ... check.  Freezes well ... check.  Light ... check.  Delicious ... check, check, check.  I like to bake this cake in a 9x13 pan so that I can cut it into squares, split them in half, and spread the halves with fat-free whipped topping and a homemade strawberry sauce.  Cutting the cake and freezing the pieces means I can thaw only as many as I need ... which definitely cuts down on the calories.

LIGHT(er) CHOCOLATE CAKE with STRAWBERRY SAUCE
Printable version of this recipe

INGREDIENTS for CAKE
1 cup boiling water
1-1/2 t. instant espresso or 1 T instant coffee granules
1-3/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups sugar
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa
2 t baking soda
1 t baking powder
1 t salt
1 cup low-fat buttermilk
1/2 egg substitute
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 t vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS for Cake:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Combine water and espresso in a bowl.  (Note:  I have also substituted a cup of very strong, hot coffee.  And, I will admit, there have been times when I've used part coffee and part Kahlua.)  Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups and level with a knife.  Combine flour, sugar, cocoa, soda, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl.  Combine espresso  mixture, buttermilk, egg substitute, oil and vanilla; add to sugar mixture.  Beat at medium speed with a mixer until well-blended.  Batter will be thin.

Pour batter into a 9x13-inch pan or 2 (9-inch) round cake pans coated with baking spray and flour.  Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in the center comes out clean.  Keep a watchful eye on the oven; sometimes the 9x13 pan can take up to 55 minutes.  Cool cake in pan for at least 10 minutes.  I have the best luck when I let it cool almost completely and then turn the cake out onto a large cutting board to finish cooling.

When cool, I trim the edges of the cake so that pieces will have a completely square appearance.   (Tip:  crumble the cuttings into a freezer bag and store in the freezer near ice cream.  They'll make a delicious topping for sundaes!)  To freeze, I wrap a piece of waxed paper, top and bottom, around a single layer of about six squares.  These are placed in one gallon-sized freezer bag and I then use a straw to remove as much air as possible.  Repeat with the remaining squares in a separate bag.  The cake is quite moist, so the waxed paper helps the cake to not stick to the bag.

Cake can be made ahead and frozen until you give in to temptation.  To serve, remove squares from freezer and thaw at room temperature.  I like to slice each square in half horizontally and spread a layer of whipped topping between the two.  Top with another dollop of whipped topping and drizzle strawberry sauce over the whole thing.

The original recipe divided this cake into 16 servings at 250 calories, 7.4 g fat, and 0.8 g fiber.  I cut my cake into 12 pieces, which is closer to 335 calories and somewhere around 10 g fat.

EASY HOMEMADE STRAWBERRY SAUCE

INGREDIENTS
1 pint strawberries (fresh or whole, frozen, but not in syrup)
1/3 cup sugar
1 t vanilla extract



DIRECTIONS
Thaw strawberries if frozen and slice.  Place in a small saucepan and stir in sugar.  Cook over medium heat until sugar dissolves and juice begins to thicken.  Stir in vanilla.  Use a potato masher to mash up strawberries into smaller pieces if desired.  Allow sauce to cool, and serve.

Sauce can be kept in refrigerator up to a week and can also be frozen.  Also delicious on pancakes or cheesecake.

Original recipe for strawberry sauce from Allrecipes

Baked Peaches and Oatmeal

Today will be our last day of freedom ... the last day of vacation before we all head back to work and school.  Seems like breakfast should be something special, shouldn't it?

Speaking of special ... my great-aunt Marguerite was quite the cook and entertainer.  Many years ago, she self-published a cookbook of her recipes called Bon Appetit by Marguerite...long before Amazon made self-publishing so easy :-).    One of my favorites from that volume is a recipe for baked peaches.

Peaches + nutmeg + brown sugar ... how can you go wrong?  Using Marguerite's recipe for inspiration, I decided to make a baked peach oatmeal.  Follow your favorite method for making oatmeal and top with one baked peach half.  When combined, the baked peach will drip its sugary goodness all over the oatmeal ... resulting in one spicy, warm, delicious combination.

BAKED PEACH OATMEAL 
Printable version of this recipe

INGREDIENTS
1 large can of peach halves, drained
1/2 c. brown sugar
1/2 t. ground nutmeg
1/2 c. oatmeal (Quick-cooking works best, but you can get a similar effect from regular oats if you give 'em a whirl in the food processor)
1/2 t. cinnamon
1/4 c. melted butter

Oatmeal, prepared according to directions on the box and your preferences. 

DIRECTIONS
Drain peaches on paper towels.  Blend remaining ingredients and heap into the cavity where the pit would be on the peach.  Place in a baking dish.  Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes.

While the peaches are baking, prepare the oatmeal.  Directions for this can be found on the oatmeal box and either quick-cooking or regular oats will do.  I like to add raisins and a dollop of vanilla but let the remaining flavor come from the peach.

To prepare the dish, remove the peaches from the oven.  The brown sugar-oatmeal topping should be warm and runny.  Scoop oatmeal into a bowl and top with a peach.  Best eaten if you slice the peach into small pieces to allow the spicy, buttery brown sugar to flow all over the oatmeal.  Delicious!

Chunky Black Bean and Avocado Dip with Homemade Tortilla Chips

Happy New Year!  A few days ago,  I heard a commentator on the radio discuss New Year's Resolutions.  His opinion was that we shouldn't call them "resolutions," as this automatically implies the correction of a bad habit.  Instead, we should think of them as "goals" (so much more positive-sounding, isn't it?) and rather than focusing on correcting our flaws, we should think about advancing what we already do that is good and right.  Love this!  I think with this approach, a person stands a much better chance of actually sticking to the plan.

One of my goals for the New Year involves better use of my food dollar.  I'm not talking about coupons and such (although I use them when I can).  I've noticed that my family throws a lot of stuff out.  Leftovers, lettuce, celery, and other vegetables often don't get used before going bad.  I also have a habit of not checking my pantry before shopping, which often results in my purchasing something I already had.  The other day, I cleaned out a set of cabinets that held my baking supplies and was shocked to discover four boxes of unsweetened baker's chocolate in various locations.  This takes chocolate hoarding to an entirely new and pitiful level. 

For 2012, my goal is to get maximum use out of as many items as I can.  Not only will this save my family money, but it should save some time and produce some tasty meals.  It will mean a need to think more carefully about meal planning and how I can get not one, but two meals out of a combination of items.  Confession:  I'm not a fan of leftovers.  This means that to get two meals out of something, I'll need a "leftover makeover" for the second use. 

Last night, I made a fresh-tasting black bean and avocado salad that had just the right amount of crunch and tartness, thanks to a generous dose of lime juice.  Today, my plan is to repurpose that salad into a smooth-tasting dip that can be served during the afternoon's football games. Turns out that my refrigerator also holds a couple packages of tortillas that need to get used up, so homemade tortilla chips will be a nice addition.

CHUNKY BLACK BEAN AND AVOCADO DIP
Printable version of this recipe


INGREDIENTS
3 cups of last night's Black Bean and Avocado Salad with Lime (click here for original post)
1 t cumin
1 t garlic powder
Optional:  pinch of cayenne pepper

DIRECTIONS
Much of this depends upon your preferences.   I found that the salad on its own was a little too chunky to make a truly dippable dip, so into the food processor it went.  I pulsed the leftover salad until it had a chunky guacamole consistency.   Because the taste was still heavy on lime, I added cumin and garlic to make it seem more like guacamole.  If you like a little spark, a pinch (or more!) of cayenne pepper is a nice touch.

The dip tastes best if it has an hour in the refrigerator to meld the flavors.

Additional idea: wouldn't this make a delicious top to a refried bean~sour cream~layered dip? 

HOMEMADE BAKED TORTILLA CHIPS 

INGREDIENTS
Flour or corn tortillas (I prefer to use flour)
Nonstick cooking spray
Kosher salt
Optional:  seasoned salt, taco seasoning, or other combinations (equal amounts of chili powder + cumin + garlic salt = delicious!)

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Place one tortilla on a firm surface; spray both sides with nonstick cooking spray.  Dust one side lightly with kosher salt or other seasonings.  Use pizza cutter or sharp knife to cut tortillas into 8 wedges.  Arrange in a single layer on baking trays.  Bake at 350 degrees for 6 minutes, monitoring carefully.  I like to flip my tortilla chips at the 6-minute point so the other side can get crispy.  Bake an additional 4-6 minutes.  Serve with dip.