Tag Archives: chocolate

Chocolate-Cherry-Almond Smoothie

Every once in a while I become obsessed with certain foods and eat them constantly. I’ve been through brownie batter fits, black bean burger rages and trail mix binges. Recently, I’ve been on an almond milk kick. I’m not really the biggest milk drinker in general and only have it in the house if a specific recipe calls for it or if I have a box of cereal. But lately, I’ve been drinking almond milk, both plain and chocolate, like it’s going out of style. I decided the chocolate almond milk was begging to be mixed with the bag of frozen cherries I’ve had in my freezer for a while now and despite the fact that I’m always cold and am still dealing with 11 inches of snow from the other day, I wanted to make a smoothie. This Chocolate-Cherry-Almond Smoothie completely knocked my winter socks and slippers off.

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Cherry Greek yogurt, chocolate almond milk, frozen cherries, and a dash of almond extract are blended together until smooth making for a rich, sweet and satisfying smoothie. Regular milk and regular yogurt could be substituted here but I really love the thickness of the Greek yogurt and the added hint of flavor the almond milk provides. The chocolate almond milk adds just the right amount of chocolate which pairs so perfectly with the bright cherries. With 1 gram of fat and 14 grams of protein, this smoothie is perfect for breakfast, an after workout drink or satisfying enough for dessert.

Chocolate-Cherry-Almond Smoothie (makes 1 smoothie)

  • 1/2 cup non-fat cherry Greek yogurt
  • 1/2 cup dark chocolate almond milk (I used Silk)
  • 1 cup frozen dark sweet cherries (fresh pitted cherries may be used instead, just add ice)
  • 1/2 teaspoon pure almond extract

Combine all the ingredients into a blender and blend on high for 30 seconds. Add ice if necessary to reach your desired thickness. Top with a cherry and chocolate shavings (if desired).

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Almond Hot Chocolate

What the what is going on with the weather?  I’m tired of thinking about it, hearing about it, and worrying about it.  It was almost 60 degrees in Philadelphia on Sunday after weeks of lows hitting single digits and wind chills hitting negative degrees. So finally when we thought we might actually be getting a break…we get five more inches of snow.  I mean, seriously? We are tough and can handle it but we like to complain so we are sick of it. After thawing out, I’m cold again and I’m not happy about it. I’m tired of drinking hot tea so I expected this Almond Hot Chocolate to do the trick.

Almond milk, cocoa, and honey are heated together which results in a unique and creamy hot chocolate. Almond milk is creamy and pleasantly fragrant with a subtle sweetness that works perfectly in a recipe like this. Don’t be scared of almond milk if you haven’t tried it. I love it tons more than soy milk and it’s lower in calories and sugar than regular milk.  If you want to tiptoe your way into trying almond milk, this recipe is good start. I’m cozy and warm right now after drinking this but I’m sure I’ll be freezing again tomorrow.

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In a medium saucepan, cook the almond milk, cocoa and honey over medium heat, whisking constantly, until piping-hot, about 5 minutes. Stir in the vanilla, if using.

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Pour the hot chocolate into mugs. Top with marshmallows.

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Additions:  None

Omissions:  None

Substitutions:  None

Overall Rating:  Like It

Source: Everyday with Rachael Ray magazine

Double Chocolate-Chip Cookies with Bourbon Ganache

This is a cookie that will whip all your other cookies’ asses.  There are cookies…and there are COOKIES.  This, my friends, is a bad-ass COOKIE.  As in it’s almost a meal and if you can eat more than one, then you are my hero.  I took these Double Chocolate-Chip Cookies with Bourbon Ganache to work and got a lot of rave reviews.  One co-worker even commented that he wanted to make a grown-up cookie for a party and could I send him the recipe?  That is a successful cookie in my book.

Semi-sweet chocolate and heavy cream are mixed together and chilled before being knocked out by a hit of some good old bourbon and chilled again until thickened.  The creamy mixture is then spread between two basic chocolate-chip cookies (i.e. if you really wanted to use store-bought cookie dough here, you could) where you now have the chocolateyest (not a word) and most decadent sandwich cookie.  Because of it’s richness, I would consider either using milk chocolate in the ganache (since semi-sweet chips are in the cookie dough) or making the cookies smaller.  I used a small ice cream scoop for my cookies and think they could have been half the size.  These cookies aren’t joking around, I’m just going to tell you.  They have an attitude and aren’t afraid to show you.  I nearly didn’t finish one and I swear I heard it laughing at me.  I dare you to take them on.

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The ingredients:

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Preheat oven to 350°F. Beat butter and sugars at medium speed with a heavy-duty electric stand mixer until creamy. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating just until blended after each addition. Add vanilla, beating until blended.

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Combine flour and next 2 ingredients in a small bowl; gradually add to butter mixture, beating at low speed just until blended. Stir in morsels just until combined. Drop dough by level spoonfuls onto parchment paper-lined baking sheets, using a small cookie scoop (about 1 1/8 inches).

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Bake at 350°F for 12 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from baking sheets to wire racks, and cool completely (about 30 minutes).  To make ganache, microwave semisweet chocolate morsels and whipping cream in a 2-qt. microwave-safe bowl at MEDIUM (50% power) 2 1/2 minutes or until chocolate begins to melt, stirring at 30-second intervals.

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Whisk in bourbon, softened butter, and vanilla. Cover and chill, stirring occasionally, 1 hour and 30 minutes or until thickened to a spreadable consistency.

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Spread Bourbon Ganache on flat side of half of cookies (about 1 Tbsp. per cookie); top with remaining cookies.

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Cover and chill cookies 2 hours or until ganache is firm.

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Additions:  None

Omissions:  None

Substitutions:  None

Overall Rating:  Love It

Source:  Southern Living magazine

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