Zucchini Chocolate Chip Cookies

Today is National Zucchini Day. Zucchini is such an abundant summer crop. Plant a single plant, and you'll be picking zucchini all summer long.

So what to do with it? Add Chocolate!

Double Chocolate Zucchini Bread with Pistachios
Geeky Double Chocolate Zucchini Bread
Chocolate Chip Zucchini Bread
White Chocolate Walnut Zucchini Bread
Chocolate Chunk Zucchini Bread
Chocolate Zucchini Cake

The other day was National Chocolate Chip Day. I did a Round-up of Chocolate Chip recipes last year, but alas, no Zucchini Chocolate Chip recipe! What an oversight. So here in honor of the Zucchini Day holiday, is my go-to recipe for Zucchini Chocolate Chip Cookies!

This recipe is from Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of Food Life (2007) by Barbara Kingsolver with Steven L. Hopp and Camille Kingsolver. I've added walnuts, because I like a little crunch.  This book should be a staple on your shelf. It's part memoir, part journalistic investigation. It tells the story of how the family was changed by one year of deliberately eating food produced in the place where they live. Barbara Kingsolver wrote the central narrative; Steven Hopp's sidebars explore various aspects of food-production science and industry; Camille Kingsolver's brief essays offer a nineteen-year-old's perspective on the local-food project, plus nutritional information, meal plans and most importantly for this blog, the recipes. Being that it's mid-summer: there's a Zucchini Season Meal Plan in the book. The recipes are all fabulous, and here is the recipe for Zucchini Chocolate Chip Cookies. As I mentioned, I added walnuts for extra crunch.

Zucchini Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients:
1 egg, beaten
1/2 cup sweet butter, softened
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup honey
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
Combine in large bowl.

1 cup white flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
Combine in a separate, small bowl and blend into liquid mixture.

1 cup finely shredded zucchini
12 oz chocolate chips
3/4 cup chopped walnuts
Stir these into other ingredients, mix well. Drop by spoonful onto greased baking
sheet, and flatten with the back of a spoon. Bake at 350F degrees, 10 to 15 minutes.

How easy is this? And delicious...

Tuesday Tips: Natural vs Dutch Process Cocoa

How often have you wondered if you should use Natural or Dutch cocoa in a recipe? And what exactly is the difference? Will it affect your baking?

Cocoa powder is made when chocolate liquor is pressed to remove 3/4 of its cocoa butter. The remaining cocoa solids are processed to make fine unsweetened cocoa powder. There are two types of unsweetened cocoa powder: Natural and Dutch-processed.

Actually, there's nothing very Dutch about Dutch Processed Cocoa. It's only called a Dutching process because the person who invented it, Coenraad J. van Houten, was a 19th century Dutchman who pioneered the use of the hydraulic press to defat chocolate liquor. Van Houten's solution lay in simple chemistry. Cocoa in its natural state is slightly acidic, as indicated by its pH value of around 5.4. By soaking the cocoa nibs in a basic (or alkaline) solution, he found he could raise the pH to 7 (neutral) or even higher. The higher the pH, the darker the color. And, the acids present in natural cocoa were neutralized, reducing its harshness.

To learn more about the differences between Dutch-processed cocoa and natural cocoa, read this article in Cook's Illustrated.

Planning to bake with cocoa? Here's advice from David Lebowitz, the King of Chocolate.

Because natural cocoa powder hasn’t had its acidity tempered, it’s generally paired with baking soda (which is alkali) in recipes. Dutch-process cocoa is frequently used in recipes with baking powder, as it doesn’t react to baking soda like natural cocoa does.

Many classic American recipes, like Devil’s Food Cake, use natural cocoa powder. There is also a reaction between natural cocoa powder and baking soda that occurs in recipes, which creates a reddish crumb, like Devil’s Food Cake.

There are exceptions to each, of course. And according to Fine Cooking magazine, “You can substitute natural cocoa powder for Dutch-process in most recipes (though not vice versa). Flavor and texture can be affected, but generally only in recipes calling for 3/4 cup or more.” However when a batter-based recipe calls for natural cocoa powder, do not use Dutch-process cocoa powder. But I always advise folks to follow what the recipe says. For sauces and ice creams, they can be swapped out. For cakes and cookies, I don’t recommend it, as your results may not be the same if you make substitutions.

If a recipe calls for either, the main different is that Dutch-process cocoa will give a darker color and a more complex flavor whereas natural cocoa powder tends to be fruitier tasting and lighter in color.

Here are a few cocoas I like that are great in brownies, devil's food cake and other chocolate baked goods: King Arthur Flour Double-Dutch Dark Cocoa,  Callebaut, Guittard, Valrhona, Ghirardelli, and Trader Joe's.

When used alone in cakes, cocoa powder gives a full rich chocolate flavor and dark color. Cocoa powder can also be used in recipes with other chocolate (unsweetened or dark) and this combination produces a cake with a more intense chocolate flavor than if the cocoa wasn't present.

Most recipes call for sifting the cocoa powder with the flour but to bring out its full flavor, combine the cocoa powder with a small amount of boiling water. (If you want to try this in a recipe, substitute some of the liquid in the recipe for the boiling water.)

As I mentioned above there are two types of unsweetened cocoa powder: Natural and Dutch-processed. When in doubt, use the type specified in the recipe. Some prefer using Dutch-processed cocoa as a slight bitterness may be tasted in cakes using natural cocoa and baking soda.

Another Tip: Don't confuse unsweetened natural and Dutch-processed cocoa powder with sweetened cocoa drink mixes. They are not the same thing. 

O.K. all the above is basic baking cocoa information. For me, though, the reality is that natural and Dutch processed cocoa powder are pretty much interchangeable. There are very few recipes that are thrown off by the presence or absence of the acidity of cocoa powder. In fact, many of the ingredients you regularly use in baking are slightly acidic, so even recipes that seem to rely on the acidity of cocoa powder to produce leavening are getting their acidity from milk, butter, egg yolks, honey (sugar is neutral), etc, and the recipe should turn out just fine whichever cocoa you use-- Dutch process or natural cocoa powder.

Judy Greber's Chocolate Sour Cream Fudge Cake

A reasonable facsmile of Bob's Birthday Cake! It was devoured!

Today I welcome author Judy Greber aka Gillian Roberts. Besides being the author of two mystery series, mainstream fiction and non-fiction, Judy is a fabulous cook with a wonderfully appointed kitchen with a spectacular view. Who couldn't create a great chocolate cake in that kitchen? This recipe for Bob's Birthday cake aka Chocolate Sour Cream Fudge Cake is a keeper.

JUDY GREBER/Gillian Roberts:

In our family, when it’s your birthday, you get to choose the menu, and the rest of us prepare it for you. Whatever you like. Whatever you love. For dessert, we’ve got butterscotch pudding lovers, ice-cream cake lovers, chocolate mousse lovers, lemon anything lovers, but for “the patriarch”, a.k.a. my husband, it’s this chocolate cake.

He is a chocoholic, and I confess that I’m an enabler, keeping him hooked, so for many years on birthdays and off (how could you wait 364 days for another stab at an ultimate chocolate dessert?) I tried out recipes. This one evolved from a time, long ago, when I was researching a (non-mystery) novel titled Mendocino, which happily took me to that charming town in Northern California, I ate at a delightful restaurant called Cafe Beaujolais. It still exists, but it has a new owner/chef. Back then, it was owned by Margaret Fox. I didn’t have the chocolate cake, but I loved her cooking so much, I bought her Cafe Beaujolais cookbook and in thumbing through it, found this cake.

Over time, I’ve tweaked the recipe and I use a different icing than she suggested, but here’s what ultimately became known hereabouts as “Bob’s Birthday Cake.” The search is over...

Chocolate Sour Cream Fudge Cake 

Ingredients: 
2 cups flour
2 Tablespoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
2 1/4 cups light or dark brown sugar
4 ounces bitter chocolate, melted and cooled
3 eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
1 cup sour cream
1 cup strong hot coffee

Directions: 
Sift together flour, baking soda and salt.
Beat butter, sugar and eggs for 5 minutes in the bowl of an electric mixer, until very light and fluffy.
Beat in chocolate and vanilla.
Stir in about 1/3 of the dry ingredients, half the sour cream, another 1/3 of the dry ingredients, the rest of the sour cream, and finally, the remainder of the dry ingredients. Stir just until mixed.
Stir in hot coffee
Pour into 2 9" square pans ( 8" rounds work, too) greased and lined with waxed paper.
Strike each pan on the edge of the counter to release air bubbles.
Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes.
Cool pans on a wire rack for 15 minutes. Run a knife around the edge, turn out, and cool completely. Frost with:

Fudge Frosting 

Yield: 4 cups

Ingredients:
3/4 cup unsalted butter, 1 1/2 sticks
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup half and half
4 teaspoons instant coffee powder
6 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
4 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups powdered sugar

Directions:
Combine butter, 3/4 cup sugar, half and half and coffee powder in large saucepan.
Stir over medium heat until sugar and coffee powder dissolves and mixture simmers. Remove from heat.
Add both chocolates; whisk until smooth.
Whisk in vanilla.
Pour chocolate mixture into large bowl.
Sift in powdered sugar; whisk to blend.
Press plastic wrap onto surface of frosting.
Chill just until firm enough to spread, stirring occasionally, about 1 1/2 hours.

--there is no need to wait for a birthday to enjoy this!

Cartoon of the Day: Chocolate Cake

10 Ways to Dress up a Plain Cupcake!

Photo:Au Pair

Sophie Leake at AuPairCare.net sent me a link to a post she did on the blog for 10 Ways to Dress up a a Plain Cupcake for Your Child. She gave me permission to reprint her post here on DyingforChocolate.com. I think her ideas are great, and they go beyond cupcakes for children. Let's face it, adults like cupcakes, too, and there are some really cool ideas here in her post. Maybe these should be on Tuesday Tips?

Thanks, Sophie.

SOPHIE LEAKE: 10 Ways to Dress up a Plain Cupcake

While gourmet cupcake bakeries are on the rise, there’s no need to pay top dollar at a bakery for super cute and tasty birthday cupcakes when you can make them for much cheaper on your own.  Check out these 10 ways to dress up a plain cupcake for your child’s next birthday.

1. Flavored frosting with fruit makes an elegant cupcake decoration.  Bake up your favorite vanilla or yellow cupcake and then add a few tablespoons of a fruit puree to the mix.  Take the same fruit puree and add a tablespoon full to your favorite buttercream recipe.  Now take some fresh fruit and top your frosted cupcake with it.  This method works well with raspberries, strawberries, blackberries, or blueberries.
2. Plain frosting with sprinkles let you know it’s a party.  Instead of adding vanilla to your buttercream frosting add 1 to 2 teaspoons of cotton candy flavoring.  Frost your cupcakes like normal and sprinkle with jimmies.  Sprinkles are always a fun and festive treat.
3. Frost the cupcakes and then dip them in melted chocolate for a special treat. These special treats are called hi-hats.  Instead of making a normal buttercream frosting, make a meringue type frosting.  In a metal bowl beat 1 ¾ C sugar, ¼ C water, 3 large egg whites, and ¼ t of cream of tartar on high until it becomes frothy.  Now place it over a pan of simmering water and continue to beat on high speed until you get stiff peaks. (They will hold their shape when you lift the beater.)  This step takes 10 to 12 minutes.  Stir in 1 t of vanilla extract and then put the meringue into a pastry bag and pipe the tops of the cupcakes.  Now melt a bag of semi-sweet chocolate chips and 3 T. of shortening in the microwave.  Put the melted chocolate in a tall narrow container for dipping.  Next, dip the cupcakes into the chocolate as if they were chocolate dipped ice cream cones and then allow them to cool.
4. Use a cookie as a cupcake topper.  If your child likes the combination of chocolate and peanut butter there’s a fun way to make a cupcake for him that combines both of his loves.  Make your favorite chocolate cupcakes and allow them to cool.  In the meantime, make some buttercream frosting and add in ¼ C. of peanut butter.  Frost the cupcakes with the peanut butter frosting and top with a peanut butter sandwich cookie.
5. Create small decorations out of fondant.  Fondant is made of shortening and sugar.  It rolls out like dough and you can buy it at most craft or baking stores.  Using gel colors you can color your fondant any color you’d like.  Dust the counter with powdered sugar and roll out the fondant so that it’s about ¼” thick.  Using tiny cookie cutters cut out shapes that will coordinate with the theme of your party.  You can lay the fondant on top of the frosted cupcake or let the fondant dry and then stand the shape up in the frosting.
6. Give your cupcakes the airbrushed look.  No need to buy an expensive airbrush to get the airbrushed look.  The same coloring comes in an aerosol can now and can be used on cupcakes.  Frost your cupcakes like normal and allow the frosting to crust (dry to the touch).  Place the cupcakes on a newspaper covered surface.  Using long strokes spray the top of the frosted cupcake.  Make sure to start and stop off of the cupcake.  If you’d like you can make them half and half by blocking half of the cupcake with a piece of cardboard while you are spraying.
7. Make S’mores cupcakes using a kitchen torch.  Instead of using frosting to frost your cupcake, use marshmallow cream.  Have some mini chocolate bars or broken pieces of chocolate ready to stick into the marshmallow cream.  Crush some graham crackers and keep them beside you in a bowl.  Take a kitchen torch and toast the marshmallow cream, sprinkle with graham cracker crumbs, and stick a piece of chocolate into the marshmallow. 
8. Dress up cookie dough cupcakes with mini chips and mini cookies.  To make cookie dough cupcakes, take some store bought chocolate chip cookie dough and roll it into 1 inch balls.  Make your chocolate or vanilla cupcake batter as usual, but before baking add the cold cookie dough to the center of the cupcake.  Make the cookie dough chunks big enough so they are not fully submerged in batter.  Bake the cupcakes until a toothpick comes out clean.  Frost with vanilla buttercream, sprinkle with mini chocolate chips, and top with a mini chocolate chip cookie.
9. Edible sugared flowers will add a touch of whimsy to your cupcakes.  Edible flowers are available at specialty grocery stores.  Buy a mixture of edible flowers and lay them out on some waxed paper.  Beat up an egg white and pour it into a shallow bowl.  Pour some superfine sugar into another shallow bowl.  Take your flowers, one at a time, and dip them first into the egg white and then into the sugar.  Place the coated flowers back on the waxed paper to dry.  Frost your cupcakes like normal and top right away with a sugared flower.
10. Add chocolate cut-out flowers for a springtime birthday.  Melt a cup of candy melts with 1 T of shortening.  Spread it onto a piece of waxed paper about 1/8” thick.  Place onto the bottom side of a cookie sheet and place in the refrigerator for about 5 minutes.  Once the chocolate is set remove from the refrigerator.  Take a small metal cookie cutter in the shape of a flower and dip it into a small bowl of hot water.  Dry it off and quickly use the warm cookie cutter to cut out flowers from the chocolate.  Frost the cupcakes with green frosting and apply the chocolate flowers to the cupcakes.  Using a little frosting you can apply M&M’s to the centers of the flowers.  Do one flower or a whole bouquet on each cupcake.