Skip to main content

Earl Grey Brownies and Lavender Ganache v.3


It is a rare day that I make anything the same way twice; today is no exception. There is always some tweaking and twisting to improve...something. For those of you who follow along, Earl Grey Chocolate Cake + Lavender Ganache v.1 was a birthday celebration cake for a friend that my husband deemed "too dry and too hard." I never told him, but I had tried to make the cake a wee bit healthier by using yogurt in it instead of sour cream. It was a kitchen flop.

Take two - used sour cream - made its way into mini cupcakes for our friends who were in a play. Just the right texture, but not exactly the ingredients I wanted, though, everything in moderation is really okay, right?!

Tonight the second graders are hosting their families for a Poetry Cafe. They have been studying poetry, reading poetry, writing poetry, and learning about the different forms. So, they have invited us all to come and listen to their creations - oh, and bring snacks. Snacks are very important to seven and eight-year-olds. Dylan signed us up to bring brownies and my parents to bring taquitos. I thought it the perfect opportunity to try out a third version of this cake, cutting them into small squares to make "brownies."

I went back to yogurt, but added a splash of olive oil. These are dense, moist, and have just a hint of exotic.

2 C chipped unsweetened dark chocolate
1/2 C (1 stick) butter
2/3 C organic buttermilk
1-1/2 C organic brown sugar, packed
2 t date liqueur
2 eggs, separated
1 C organic whole milk yogurt
2 T olive oil
2 C white whole wheat flour
1 t baking powder
3 earl grey tea bags, opened
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Butter your baking dish. I used a 9" x 13".

Place chocolate, butter, and buttermilk in a saucepan. Stir over low heat until smooth. Remove from heat and stir in loose earl grey tea, sugar, and date liqueur.

Beat in the egg yolks, yogurt, and olive oil in a large mixing bowl. Stir in the chocolate mixture. Beat with a hand mixer to aerate.

Sift in the flour and baking powder, folding in until just moistened.

Whisk the egg whites until stiff peaks form. Fold the egg whites into the chocolate batter.

Scrape the batter into pan and bake for 45 minutes or until firm to the touch. Cool in the pan for 15 minutes, then cool completely on a wire rack. Pour a layer of lavender ganache over the top and cool to set. Cut into serving-size squares. This is rich, so make them small.

Photobucket

Comments

  1. You are persistent! They sound so delicious, though. :D

    ReplyDelete
  2. Mmm...V3 sounds fantastic. Baking with tea can be tricky, but it sounds like with patience and talent, you nailed it. The Poetry Cafe sounds wonderful!

    Looking forward to hearing more about that Lego event too!

    Jenn

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Quick Pickled Red Onions and Radishes

If you've been reading my blog for even a short amount of time, you probably know how much I love to pickle things. I was just telling a friend you can pickle - with vinegar - or you can ferment - with salt - for similar delicious effect. The latter has digestive benefits and I love to do that, but when I need that pop of sour flavor quickly, I whip up quick pickles that are ready in as little as a day or two. I've Pickled Blueberries , Pickled Asparagus , Pickled Cranberries , Pickled Pumpkin , and even Pickled Chard Stems ! This I did last night for an upcoming recipe challenge that requires I include radishes. Ummmm...of course I'm pickling them! Ingredients  makes 1 quart jar radishes, trimmed and sliced organic red onions, peeled and thinly sliced (I used a mandolin slicer) 3/4 C vinegar (I used white distilled vinegar) 3/4 C water 3 T organic granulated sugar 1 T salt (I used some grey sea salt) 6 to 8 grinds of black pepper Proce

Aloo Tiki {Pakistan}

To start off our Pakistani culinary adventure, I started us off with aloo tiki - potato cutlets. I'm always game for tasty street food. I found a couple of different recipes and incorporated those together for this version. Ingredients 6-8 small red potatoes, scrubbed 1 T cumin seeds 1 T fresh chopped parsley 1/2 t ground coriander 1 t minced garlic Procedure Boil the potatoes until they are tender. Drain and let cool. Mash the potatoes. Traditionally they are mashed without their skins. I left the skins on. In a small pan, toast the cumin seeds on high heat until the begin to give off an aroma and begin to darken. Remove from heat and transfer to a plate to keep them from cooking any more. Blend all of the spices into the mashed potatoes, then shape into small patties. If you wet your hands, the potato mixture won't stick to them. Heat a splash of oil in a large, flat-bottom pan. Dip each patty into beaten egg and carefully place in the oil. P

Hot Chocolate Agasajo-Style {Spice It Up!}

photo by D For my Spice It Up! kiddos this week, I was looking for an exotic drink to serve while we learned about saffron. I found a recipe from food historian Maricel Presilla that mimicked traditional Spanish hot chocolate from the 17th century where it was served at lavish receptions called agasajos . When I teach, I don't always get to shoot photos. Thankfully, D grabbed my camera and snapped a few. Ingredients serves 14-16 1 gallon organic whole milk 3 T dried rosebuds - or 2 t rosewater 2 t saffron threads, lightly crushed 3 T ground cinnamon 3 whole tepin chiles, crushed 2 vanilla beans, split lengthwise 1 C organic granulated sugar 1 lb. bittersweet chocolate Procedure In a large soup pot that can hold a gallon plus, combine milk, dried rosebuds (or rosewater, if you are using that), saffron threads, ground cinnamon, chiles, vanilla beans, and sugar and warm over medium heat till it steams. Whisk to dissolve sugar, then lower heat an