Chocolate Melt®

For the entire month of March, I gave up dairy, wheat, and sugar. It wasn't as difficult as I expected, but I did have to make some substitutions for things. Since I couldn't have butter, I relied more heavily on olive and coconut oil. Neither quite satisfied my "butter tooth," though.

A few months later, I was approached by a rep for Melt® Organic, asking if I would be interested in trying their products and/or visiting their booth at the Fancy Food Show. I can never guarantee if I'll make a visit to a booth at the show, because there is so much to see, but I was curious about Melt®. In a few days I received a package of buttery sticks, Melt® Organic Probiotic Spread, and their new Chocolate Melt®.

Chocolate butter! Well, not really butter. But chocolate!

Melt® contains what the company calls a "Perfect Blend" of beneficial oils - primarily virgin coconut oil blended with flaxseed, hi-oleic sunflower, palm fruit, and canola oils. It's got a mildly coconutty flavor that is great if you like coconut. The stuff that comes in tubs is spreadable right out of the fridge, like whipped butter, and is perfect for toast, bagels, and the like.

The Chocolate Melt® is Perfect Blend + organic cocoa and wildflower honey (but not really enough to make it obviously sweet). I thought it tasted pretty good on toast, especially with a sprinkling of unsweetened coconut flakes. No, it will not ever be a substitute for your favorite chocolate hazelnut spread because it doesn't have a ton of sugar (only 1 gram per serving), but it does feel a bit indulgent.

One of the true tests of any butter substitute is in how it bakes. I whipped up a batch of brownies using a recipe from the Fat Witch cookbook, with Chocolate Melt® in place of butter. I honestly couldn't tell the difference. The coconut flavor disappeared in all the chocolate goodness, and the brownies had the same fudgelike texture that just about all Fat Witch brownies have (as opposed to being gooey or cakey). You'd better believe that they got scarfed up pretty quickly in our house!

Double Chocolate Melt Brownies (adapted from Fat Witch)

1/2 cup Chocolate Melt®
1/2 cup bittersweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup milk chocolate chips
1 cup granulated sugar
½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Large pinch salt
3 large eggs
¾ cup flour

Grease a 9-inch square pan and preheat oven to 350°F.

Place the Chocolate Melt® and all but 1/4 cup of the chocolate chips in a microwave-safe bowl. Cover with plastic and place in microwave. Cook in 30-second bursts, stirring between each, until chocolate is melted, 1 - 1 1/2 minutes. Remove bowl and stir in the sugar, vanilla, and salt. Allow to cool for a few minutes, then beat in the eggs. Stir in the flour until no traces of it remain, then stir in the reserved chocolate chips.

Pour batter into prepared pan and bake for 25-30 minutes, until a toothpick inserted comes out with a few crumbs on it. Allow to cool before cutting into 12 pieces.

* Any products in this post that are mentioned by name may have been provided to Minxeats by the manufacturer. However, all opinions belong to Minxeats. Amazon links earn me $! Please buy!

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Crispy Glazed Tofu Bibimbap

Yes, yes, another recipe using that yummy Makrut lime leaf-infused maple syrup from Runamok. I can't help it - it's good stuff, and it gives a balancing sweetness to foods without adding any processed sugar. We've been trying to cut back on the white stuff this month, and maple syrup has really come in handy to curb our sugar cravings.

And it's also another crispy tofu recipe. It's getting so I don't even want to eat soft tofu anymore, because the crispy stuff is just so. damn. good. Seriously. (I know you don't believe me. Just try it.)

Crispy Glazed Tofu Bibimbap

1 14-oz box firm or extra firm tofu
Corn starch
Salt
Vegetable oil for frying
1 teaspoon gochujang
2 teaspoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons Runamok Maple Makrut Lime leaf-infused maple syrup
Steamed rice
Slivered carrots
Cucumbers, peeled, seeded, and cut into half moons
Sugar snap peas or snow peas, steamed
Soft-boiled eggs (optional, see recipe below)
Sesame oil
Chopped scallions

Remove the tofu from its carton and pat dry. Wrap in a double thickness of paper towels and place on a plate. Put another plate upside-down on top, then weight with a jar or can. Refrigerate for at least 3 hours, changing the towels once or twice.

After the tofu has been pressed for several hours, remove the last application of wet towels and pat the tofu dry. Cut the block in thirds widthwise to make three approximately 5" square x 1/2" high slices. Cut each square in half to make 6 rectangles, then cut each rectangle diagonally to form 12 triangles.

Put several tablespoons of corn starch in a plastic zip top bag and add a big pinch of salt. Shake to combine. Add tofu pieces, one at a time, and coat with cornstarch. Pat off excess cornstarch and place each triangle on a dry plate.

Pour two tablespoons of oil in a large skillet and heat until a drop of water hisses and spits. Add the tofu in one layer. Cook until lightly browned on bottom, 3-4 minutes. Using tongs, turn the pieces (some will want to stick together - turn them together if that's the case, you can separate them later). Cook another 3-4 minutes. Flip again to get bottoms browner, then repeat. At the end of 15 or so minutes, your tofu should be nicely browned on both sides. Remove pieces to a paper towel-liked plate to drain.

In a small bowl, combine the gochujang, soy, and maple syrup. Using a pastry brush, brush the glaze over one side of the tofu pieces, making sure to coat them thoroughly.

To serve: Place some steamed rice in a bowl. Top with pieces of tofu, carrots, cucumbers, peas, and halved eggs (if using). Drizzle with a bit of sesame oil, garnish with chopped scallion, and serve.

Soft-Boiled Eggs

2 large eggs

Put enough water in a saucepot to cover eggs plus a little more. (But don't add the eggs yet!) Bring the water to a rolling boil, then gently add the eggs using a slotted spoon or spider. Set your timer for 7 minutes.

While eggs are cooking, put cold water and some ice cubes in a bowl. When time is up, immediately remove the eggs from the pot of boiling water to the ice bath. Leave the eggs in the ice bath for several minutes, until well chilled.

Gently peel eggs. Cut in half and use as garnish. The whites should be solid, and the yolks runny.

* Any products in this post that are mentioned by name may have been provided to Minxeats by the manufacturer. However, all opinions belong to Minxeats. Amazon links earn me $! Please buy!



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Key Lime Pie Ice Cream

Back in the day, we had an ice cream maker, one of those Donvier things, and once in a while I'd whip up some simple, no-cook, dull flavor of ice cream. But turning the crank was a bore, and we had to wait to eat the stuff because it was always too soft to consume immediately. Now we have a fancier electric Cuisinart ice cream maker that requires no effort on my part except to plug it in and push a button, so I want to make ice cream all the time. And I find myself creating more interesting and intricate flavors to go with the less-basic equipment.

I get a regular email from an outfit called Book Bub that offers cheap e-books. Really cheap, like $1.99. Recently, Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams at Home was on offer, and I couldn't pass up adding it to my growing library of ice cream cookbooks. Jeni's is a pricey super-duper-premium brand one can find in specialty supermarkets; it owes its creamy texture not to the usual eggs, but to a cornstarch and cream cheese combo. I flipped through and decided that I didn't want to use any of the flavors presented therein (at least not right now), but would make one of my own, using Jeni's technique: key lime pie.

Key lime pie is crazy simple. Basically, it's sweetened condensed milk, lime juice, and eggs in a crust. Seemed like an ice cream would be equally easy. I borrowed the base from Jeni's lemon ice cream and substituted sweetened condensed milk for half the regular milk and lime for lemon. I also toasted some graham cracker crumbs (crushed Teddy Grahams) to mimic the crust.

The original lemon ice cream required a lemon syrup that was added to the cooled base while it was in the machine, I assume to prevent any curdling. So I made a separate lime syrup as well, but found that the sweetened condensed milk had thickened the base considerably. Rather than trickle the syrup into the base as it churned, I dumped it all in and gave it a good stir. That seemed to work fine. The end result was amazing - the texture was perfect, creamy and rich, with a nice lime flavor and crispy bits of crust. It tasted exactly like key lime pie. Do try it for yourself and let me know what you think!

Key Lime Pie Ice Cream

2-4 limes
2 tablespoons sugar
1 cup whole milk
1 cup sweetened condensed milk
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon cornstarch
3 tablespoons softened cream cheese
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cups heavy cream
1/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons light corn syrup
Zest from 3 limes
4 ounces graham crackers, crushed
3 tablespoons melted butter

With a microplane, zest three of the limes and reserve. Halve the limes and squeeze enough juice to make 1/2 cup. (We had enormous limes and only needed two.) Combine juice and sugar in a saucepan and bring to a simmer. Stir until sugar dissolves. Remove from heat and refrigerate until cold.

Mix 2 tablespoons of the whole milk with the cornstarch to make a slurry. Whisk the cream cheese and salt together until smooth. Prepare a shallow ice bath: in a large bowl or baking pan, place an inch or two of cold water and several ice cubes. Set aside.

Cook the remaining milk, cream, sugar, corn syrup, and zest in a large saucepan until it comes to a rolling boil, Bring for 4 minutes, watching carefully so it doesn't boil over (stir when it starts to expand), remove from heat, and slowly whisk in the slurry. Bring back to a boil over medium-high heat and cook until slightly thickened, about 1 minute. Blend a few tablespoons of hot milk mixture into the cream cheese to loosen it, then pour the cream cheese mixture into the pan of milk. Whisk well until smooth. Pour into a container with a tight-fitting lid and place the container into the ice bath until cool, ensuring that the water level doesn't come up as far as the lid. When the mixture seems somewhat cool, refrigerate until completely cold.

Preheat oven to 350°F. Combine the crushed graham crackers and melted butter so all the crumbs are coated. It will seem a little dry. Pour onto a foil-lined baking sheet and pat out into one thin layer. Bake for 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned and toasty-smelling. Remove from oven and set aside to cool.

Stir lime syrup into chilled ice cream base - base will be very thick. Freeze ice cream according to manufacturers instructions. Once ice cream is done, scoop some into a lidded storage container. Layer on some of the crust crumbs. Continue to add ice cream and crumbs to container until both are used up. Press a piece of wax paper onto the surface of the ice cream. Seal container and freeze until firm, at least 4 hours.



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Flashback Friday - Fumetto #7 - Paula's Beast Dishes

Another fumetto for your enjoyment. Or not. :)

--Kathy

This post was originally published on October 12, 2010.
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Fumetto #7 - Paula's Beast Dishes

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