Chocolate University Online Blog
I remember a certain look on my babies’ faces after they finished filling their tummies with milk. Their sleepy smiles were a mixture of deep satisfaction and complete happiness. Life was good.
 I think I had a similar look on my face one evening while enjoying a molten chocolate lava cake for dessert. After finishing our meals at a local restaurant (D Mo’s Pasta & Chop House at The Clarke Hotel), my husband suggested we try this dessert. Ah, life was good.
Chocolate lava cake, or molten chocolate cake as it is sometimes called, is a flourless cake/soufflé/hot fudge creation sent down from heaven.
Actually, the credit for who invented the chocolate lava cake is in dispute. A U.S- based chef that claims to have at least popularized it, says he pulled a chocolate sponge cake from the oven before it was done and found that although the center was still runny the texture and flavor were excellent. I love it when mistakes like that happen!
As you can see (your mouth is watering), the chocolate is dark, decadent, and flowing with warm, liquid chocolate from the middle. (Well, you can’t see the liquid chocolate in the photo, but you can imagine it.)
The chocolate cake is a perfect combination of dense and springy texture. Surrounded by whipped cream, a chocolate drizzle, strawberry on the side, and a mint leaf with a dusting of powdered sugar on top, it was simply an unforgettable experience.
I forgot to mention that my husband and I split the chocolate lava cake. That’s a choice that I vow never to do again.
Next time, the whole thing is mine!
Categories: chocolate review, fun chocolate facts
Tags: chocolate cake, chocolate dessert
Sometimes you just need to have a good home made cake, with chocolate in it, of course.
Here’s a recipe for a chocolate marble cake. After it cools spread some chocolate frosting on the top and you’ll be all set!
Chocolate Marble Cake
• 1/3 cup butter
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 eggs, well beaten
• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 ounce unsweetened chocolate
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
Cream the 1/3 cup butter and sugar together, add the well beaten eggs and mix well. Sift flour and baking powder and add alternately with the milk to the first mixture. Melt the tablespoon of butter together with the chocolate. Put 1/3 of batter into a separate bowl and add the chocolate mixture. Blend well. To the white batter, add the vanilla. Drop white batter, then chocolate, by spoonfuls into a well-greased, deep cake pan. Bake at 350° about 40 minutes. |
Enjoy!
Categories: chocolate recipes
Tags: cake, chocolate cake
This cake is neither green nor lucky, it is simply enhanced with Irish Cream Liqueur.
Irish Chocolate Cake
• 1 3/4 cups flour
• 1 cup white sugar
• 1 cup brown sugar (don’t pack it down when measuring)
• 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1 1/4 cups buttermilk
• 2 large eggs
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 2 tsp. vanilla
• 1/2 cup Irish Cream liqueur
• 1/2 cup water
Butter and flour a Bundt pan.
In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, sugars, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
In another bowl, stir together the buttermilk, eggs, oil and vanilla, and pour this into the dry ingredients. Beat with an electric mixer on a medium setting for 2 minutes.
Combine the Irish Cream liqueur and water and in a microwave safe bowl, heat on high for 50 seconds. Or, warm on the stove, but do not boil.
Using a low speed on the electric mixer, add the liqueur mixture slowly to the chocolate batter. The batter will be quite thin.
Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan, and bake at 350F for 40-50 minutes.
Check the cake after about 45 minutes. If it’s done, a toothpick inserted into the center will come out clean. If the toothpick is sticky, bake another 5 minutes, and check again.
When the cake is done, set the pan on a wire rack to cool for 10 minutes.
Place a cake plate over the top of the pan. Holding both pan and plate together (careful, it’s hot! use oven mitts) turn them over, and lift the pan off the cake. |
Enjoy!
Categories: chocolate recipes
Tags: chocolate cake, chocolate dessert
Here’s a tasty chocolate applesauce cake with chocolate chip topping…
I can even say with certainty that my kids like this cake: I caught them eating it for breakfast one morning! The applesauce makes it very moist and the chocolate, well, it’s chocolate!
This recipe can be successfully made with egg replacer as well so it’s a good option for those with egg allergies.
Chocolate Applesauce Cake
• 2 cups flour
• 2 tablespoons cocoa
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup shortening
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 2 cups unsweetened applesauce
(cinnamon applesauce is good too!)
• 6 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)
Sift the flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt together and set aside.
Cream the shortening and sugar together in a large mixing bowl until light and fluffy, using an electric mixer set on medium speed. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Blend in the vanilla.
Slowly add the dry ingredients alternating with the applesauce to the creamed mixture, beating well after each addition, using the mixer set on low speed.
Pour the batter into a greased 13x 9-inch baking pan. Sprinkle with the chocolate chips and chopped walnuts. Bake in a preheated 350° oven for 35 minutes or until the cake tests done. Cool in the pan on a wire rack. |
Enjoy!
Categories: chocolate recipes
Tags: allergies, applesauce, chocolate cake, chocolate chips, cocoa
Instead of the usual birthday cake, I made something different this year for my husband’s birthday treat. The only thing I did was change out the strawberry topping for raspberry – his preferred fruit.
Turned out to be a big hit. Maybe I started a new tradition???
Enjoy this awesome recipe!
Strawberry (or Raspberry!) Chocolate Shortcake
• 1 pint strawberries, rinsed, hulled, and sliced
or 1/2 pint raspberries, rinsed
• 1 cup sugar (reserve ¼ cup for fruit topping)
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into bits and chilled
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 cup heavy cream or whipped cream
• Fresh mint sprigs, for garnish
• Bottled hot fudge sauce (optional)
Preheat oven to 425°. Place strawberries or raspberries in medium size bowl. Gently stir in 1/4 cup sugar; toss to coat. Let stand 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Meanwhile, prepare chocolate shortcake: Combine flour, cocoa powder, remaining sugar, the baking powder and salt in large bowl. With pastry blender or 2 knives used scissor fashion, cut in butter until mixture resembles fine crumbs. Slowly add milk and vanilla, toss with fork, until mixture just come together. Add more milk one tablespoon at a time to into dough. Put dough out onto lightly floured surface. Knead lightly about 10 times. Pat or roll dough to 3/4-inch thickness. Cut out with 4-inch round fluted cookie cutter or biscuit cutter. Place on ungreased baking sheet, about 1 inch apart. Reroll the scraps and cut out more short cakes. Bake in 425° oven for 12 minutes or until wooden pick inserted into center comes out clean. Remove shortcakes to wire rack to cool completely.
Cut each shortcake in half horizontally. Place bottom halves on plates. Spoon some juice from strawberry or raspberry mixture over bottoms. Spoon strawberry or raspberry mixture on each bottom half, reserving a few berries for garnish. Spoon about 1/2 cup whipped cream over each. Cover with top half. Garnish with fruit and mint. Drizzle with fudge sauce if desired. Cut in half for two servings. |
Categories: chocolate recipes
Tags: chocolate cake, chocolate dessert, raspberries
What on earth are jimmies?
Jimmies are small confectionery candies used mainly as decorations on top of cakes, cup cakes, doughnuts, and ice cream. Some popular alternative names are sprinkles, hundreds and thousands, or ants.
I grew up understanding that “sprinkles” are a multi-colored version of the candy, while “jimmies” specifically meant chocolate sprinkles.
Chocolate sprinkles were invented by a Dutch company in 1936. Many Dutch children will put chocolate sprinkles on top of buttered bread for a tasty after school snack.
Some American households celebrate birthdays with Chocolate Jimmy Cake.
I had never heard of the Jimmy Cake before so, of course, I made one. This recipe is delicious. The jimmies add texture and a bit of color to the cake. It is quite rich, so I recommend enjoying a slice of this cake with a steaming cup of Simply Decadent (by North Star Fine Coffees).
Chocolate Jimmy Cake
• 2 cups flour
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• ½ tsp. salt
• 2 cups confectioner’s sugar (powdered sugar)
• 1 cup butter, softened
• 4 egg yolks
• 1 cup cold coffee
• 4 egg whites
• 1 cup chocolate jimmies
• ½ cup chopped pecans
Sift together flour, baking powder and salt and set aside. Beat egg whites until stiff peaks appear. Set this aside also.
Beat butter and sugar until creamy and then add egg yolks. Add flour mixture while alternating with coffee. Fold in egg whites and jimmies and pecans.
Pour into greased and floured tube pan. Bake at 325 F for one hour. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then invert on rack until completely cool. Dust with powdered sugar and serve with ice cream. |
Categories: chocolate recipes
Tags: chocolate cake, jimmies
 Can’t get enough chocolate in a single cake?
Interested in impressing your dinner guests with a scrumptious chocolate dessert?
Your family is begging for a new recipe with lots of chocolaty goodness?
This one will do it! Dig in!
Triple Chocolate Bundt Cake
• 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 3/4 cup pecans, chopped
• 1 chocolate cake mix, 18.25 oz box
• 4 eggs
• 1 instant chocolate pudding mix (4 serving size)
• 8 ounces sour cream
Toss the chocolate chips and pecans in a tablespoon of the dry cake mix. Beat the remaining ingredients together for 3 minutes then fold in the chips and pecans. Pour into greased and floured bundt or tube pan and bake 50 minutes at 350°, or until cake tests done.
Allow to cool. Cut out around the cake and invert onto plate. Sprinkle with confectioner’s sugar (powdered sugar) or cover with chocolate frosting. |
Enjoy!
Categories: chocolate recipes
Tags: chocolate cake
Chocolate and celebrations go back as early as the ancient Maya, maybe even earlier. The Maya served a frothy chocolate beverage made from crushed cacao beans. Perhaps it was used for the first toast by the best man!
Today, the tradition of serving chocolate at weddings continues. Receptions serve guests chocolate wedding cake, the bride and groom thank their guests with chocolate wedding favors and, the pièce de résistance, a chocolate fountain for dipping!
Let’s talk about the creative ways you can present chocolate at your wedding celebration.
At the head table, where the bride and groom and attendants usually sit, place a vase of chocolate roses and present them as gifts to those special people in your lives.
Instead of napkins with the name of the happy couple, make personalized chocolate candy bar wrappers. Wouldn’t you rather have your guests eat a memento of your special day and not wipe their mouth with one?
Chocolate covered strawberries, one dressed in a tuxedo and one in a wedding dress, would “wow” any crowd.
 Sometimes I imagine going back in time and adding more chocolate to my wedding day. For starters, I would switch out the overly sweet, fluffy white frosting on the wedding cake (much to the groom’s dismay) and wrap it in a rich, dark chocolate fondant. Then I would arrange for sharply dressed wait-staff to walk around with platters of chocolate hors d’oeuvres that include hand-rolled truffles and assorted chocolates.
Good thing my children like chocolate. Maybe I could help them with their chocolate wedding fantasies!
Categories: fun chocolate facts
Tags: chocolate cake, chocolate celebrations, chocolate party
I wonder who thought the pairing of chocolate and zucchini in a cake would make a good idea?
It is a rather unusual combination. (My husband claims that foods commonly served as vegetables should not be added to cake!)
I did a little looking around to find out some history behind the invention of chocolate zucchini cake and noticed there are a lot of theories but no one really knows for sure. I like the most logical one; someone had to find a way to use up the most prolific invader of the garden!
Still, why use zucchini as the secret ingredient in a chocolate cake?
From a functional point of view, zucchini has a high water content so the cake is moist. From a nutritional standpoint, zucchini is low in calories, contains anti-oxidants and is a good source of vitamins A, C, and potassium.
From a flavor perspective, well, you can’t taste the zucchini in all that chocolate cake so I’m not sure about any flavor contribution!
Chocolate Zucchini Cake
1/2 cup butter
1 3/4 cups sugar
2 1/2 cups flour
4 tablespoons cocoa
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1/2 cup sour milk or add a teaspoon of vinegar fresh milk
1/2 cup oil
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups grated zucchini
Chocolate chips
Whipped cream
Preheat oven to 325°. Grease a 9×13-inch pan. Combine butter, sugar, flour, cocoa, soda, baking powder, cinnamon, salt, eggs, milk, oil, vanilla, and zucchini. Pour into pan. Top with chocolate chips.
Bake cake until tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 50 minutes. Cool cake completely in pan.
Serve with whipped cream. |
Categories: chocolate recipes
Tags: chocolate cake
A couple weeks ago I attended an event that included a lunch buffet. I love buffets, especially the all-you-can-eat-dessert part of a buffet.
 After eating my lunch, I elbowed my way through the crowd that had swarmed around the desserts. I stared at the table. <gasp> It had an abundance of cupcakes, the most diverse assortment of beautifully decorated cupcakes I had ever laid eyes on!
The first cupcake I enjoyed was a deep, rich, red velvet with cream cheese frosting. My second cupcake was a dark chocolate with an equally dark and creamy chocolate frosting.
I better stop now. I can’t tell you how many I had (and still respect myself)!
To my surprise, I learned the cupcakes were made by a friend of mine who turned her passion for making cupcakes into a booming Milwaukee business. The Milwaukee Cupcake Company makes, correction, crafts scratch-baked cupcakes.
There are a number of classic varieties available, but it’s the unique and exotic that I can’t stop thinking about…
Here are just a few of the sensational cupcakes to choose from:
The Botanical Gardens
Delicate lavender rosewater cupcake, with orange zest, topped with fluffy vanilla buttercream, and sprinkled with crystallized sugar and lavender.
The Hog
Dark chocolate cupcake with baked-in bacon bits, dipped in luxurious ganache, and topped with bacon bits.
The Lake Park
White chocolate cake with a raspberry reduction ribbon running through it, topped with white chocolate cream cheese butter cream, a fresh raspberry and a white chocolate drizzle.
The Rishi Matcha
Green tea cake made with Rishi’s Matcha Japanese Green Tea, which is antioxidant-rich and award-winning. The light, fluffy, buttercream is made with Rishi’s Sweet Matcha powder, which produces a beautiful color and delicate taste. Then it’s garnished with crystallized ginger.
You can order all you want from the Milwaukee Cupcake Company website, but if you need instant gratification, and happen to be in the Milwaukee area, visit their new retail counter (opening in May 2010) at 316 N. Milwaukee St. in the Third Ward… in the same building as the Coquette Café and Petaluna Floral.
I can’t wait to show off these beauties at my son’s upcoming confirmation party. All I have to do is resist eating the whole darn tray before the guests arrive!
Categories: fine foods & beverages
Tags: chocolate cake, chocolate dessert, cupcakes
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