Awesome Chocolate - Chocolate - Chocolate Cake

(Please read the whole recipe & directions before you start!!!)

Cake:

6 squares Baker’s semi-sweet baking chocolate

¾ cup (1 ½ sticks) butter

1 ½ cups sugar

3 eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla

2 ½ cups flour, divided

¼ cup Hershey’s unsweetened coco powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

¼ teaspoon salt

¾ cup buttermilk

¾ cup water

Microwave chocolate & butter in large bowl on high for 2-3 minutes until butter is melted.

Stir until chocolate is completely melted.

Stir in sugar until well blended.

Add eggs beating with electric mixer on low until well blended.

Stir in vanilla, add ½ of the flour, baking soda and salt, and chocolate powder &  mix well. Add remaining 2 cups flour alternately with buttermilk and water, beating until well blended.

Pour evenly into 2 - 9” pans – line the bottom of the pans with circles of  waxed paper – spray with a little olive oil and lightly flour - and your cake will come out looking professional.

Bake 350 degrees for about 35 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes, then remove from pans, leaving waxed paper on and place on cookie sheet, waxed paper up to keep from getting dry, and freeze hard. (about an hour)

Filling:

1 lb. C & H powdered sugar

½ cup Hershey’s coco powder

¼ teaspoon salt

¼ cup milk

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/3 cup butter

Combine al ingredients in mixing bowl. Beat with electric mixer  until smooth and creamy, scrape bowl often.

Cover with plastic wrap until ready to fill cake.

Frosting:

1 pkg. (8 squares) Baker’s semi-sweet baking chocolate

3 Tablespoons Hershey’s coco powder

1 pkg. (16 oz.) powdered sugar

½ cup (1 stick) butter

2 teaspoons vanilla

1/3 cup milk

Melt chocolate in microwave for 2 minutes, and stir until chocolate is melted.

Cool 5 minutes or to room temperature.

Add  cocoa powder, powdered sugar, butter and vanilla until well blended.

Gradually add milk, beating until well blended, light and fluffy.

Makes 3 cups, enough to frost the top and sides of cake well.

Directions to assemble:

Bake the cake layers first.

While cake layers are freezing, make filling, then frosting.

Make sure to cover bowls in plastic to keep them from drying while the cake is freezing.

Cut frozen cake layers with large sharp knife to make 4 layers.

Brush off any loose cake crumbs.

Place first layer on waxed or parchment paper on cake plate.

If you cut the wax paper in 4 pieces and lay them just under cake overlapping to cover the plate you will be able to gently pull them after you frost leaving the cake plate clean.

Fill the layers evenly to about 1” of the edge of the cake.

Frost quickly while the caked is still frozen to make it easier to work with the cake.

When you are done frosting, pull out waxed paper slowly.

Allow to sit just for a bit for the frosting to set.

Now – PIG OUT!!!

Susie’s Multi-grain bread

J (Manna from above) J

12 oz non-fat milk

1 T. extra virgin olive oil

¼ cup orange blossom honey

1½ tsp. sea salt

Measure milk into a 2-cup glass-measuring cup, add next 3 ingredients.

Heat in microwave until just warm.

1¼ cups unbleached bread flour

2½ cups whole wheat flour

¾ cups 9-grain cereal

2 T. course wheat bran

2 T. raw wheat germ

2 T. vital gluten

2 T. brewers yeast

1 T. dough enhancer

Blend these ingredients in a bowl.

1 T. yeast

Put warm liquids into bread machine.

Add dry ingredients.

Add yeast.

Select basic/white cycle with light or medium crust.

Remove baked bread from pan and cool on a wire rack.

This multipurpose bread is very heavy and moist – it needs no butter although it is heavenly with butter! I created this recipe about 7 yrs ago when my husband and I were beginning another one of our diets (UGH!) and trying to eat healthy whole foods but I was looking for bread with higher protein. Well, needless to say I didn’t find one that satisfied my particular search so I grabbed a pencil, sat down and prayed for inspiration and that’s’ how I created this one – we were both really pleased with the results and hope you will enjoy it as well.

G’ma Susie’s Fresh Orange French Toast with Creamy Orange Butter

(2 servings)

First, put butter and cream cheese in a small mixing bowl and set aside. Heat oven to lowest setting and place 2 plates and a cookie sheet in oven to keep warm while you’re cooking.

Ingredients for toast:

4 slices of your favorite bread (I use Double Fiber wheat, or homemade)

2 farm fresh eggs

½ cup fresh squeezed orange juice (I used little super-sweet seedless navels)

½ cup milk

1 tsp. pure vanilla extract

Pinch of sea salt

1-2 tsp. orange zest*

Directions:

Place eggs in large bowl and beat with a fork until light color.

Add juice, milk, vanilla, salt and zest and blend well.

Place some butter in a large cast iron skillet (or pan of your choice) over medium -high heat. When it start to sizzle, dip bread one slice at a time in batter and place in skillet, turn when golden brown and custard inside is set.

Transfer cooked toast to cookie sheet in oven.g

Ingredients for topping:

2 ounces butter

2 ounces cream cheese

1 tsp grated orange zest (*It’s easier to zest the orange first, then cut it in ½ to juice)

1/3 cup fresh orange juice

1/4 cup powdered sugar

g Now, combine room temp butter and cream cheese with a fork until light and creamy. Stir in zest, now add orange juice and mix well. Finally, stir in powdered sugar until mixture is creamy and fluffy.

Now you are ready to serve your toast. Place toast slices on plate, sprinkle with just a little powdered sugar. Top with a dollop of Cream Orange Butter on each slice and dress your plate with a couple of thinly cut orange slices.

            My husband and I were getting well after having a more than week long flu when I created this breakfast. We had purchased some little super-sweet Navel oranges and when I passed by them – that was it!  They called out to me and my imagination just took off!

The oranges were so wonderfully sweet, juicy and favorable that we ended up having fresh orange juice with our toast – a real blast of vitamin C!