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Flourless Chocolate Torte

This torte is a true showstopper, making it a perfect treat to serve during holiday festivities. Inspired by one of my favorite bakeries, this torte is deliciously decadent and is easily the best chocolate dessert I’ve ever made. Inspired by the French dessert, la bête noire, it’s an instant favorite for chocolate lovers and those who enjoy rich flavors. I hope you enjoy this festive treat.

This recipe is naturally gluten-free, but it cannot be made vegan. I have not attempted to make this recipe dairy-free, but it could be done using vegan butter and coconut cream.

Ingredients:

For the torte:

1 Cup water
¾ Cup sugar
10 T butter (a stick and two tablespoons extra)
18 ounces 60% dark chocolate
6 large eggs

 

For the chocolate ganache:

1 cup heavy whipping cream
8 ounces milk chocolate (or dark if you prefer)

 

Instructions:

Preheat your oven to 350°.

Prepare a 10-inch springform pan or an 8×8 square pan by greasing it on all sides and on the bottom. Wrap the outside of the pan in 2 layers of aluminum foil. Locate a large baking pan with tall sides that you can fill with water during the baking process. Set these items aside.

In a small pot, bring your water to a boil. Add your sugar and simmer it over medium heat, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Allow it to simmer for 5 minutes. Remove it from heat and set aside.

In a large saucepan, melt your butter over medium heat. Add your 18 ounces of dark chocolate and whisk the mixture until it is smooth. Whisk in your sugar syrup and remove it from heat.

Allow the chocolate mixture to cool, until you could touch the chocolate without hurting your finger. It may take 10 to 20 minutes. This step is important, as it will ensure that you don’t scramble your eggs in the next step.

After your chocolate mixture has cooled, whisk in your eggs. I recommend adding 2 eggs at a time. Whisk the batter until it is smooth.

Pour the batter into your prepared pan. Place the torte pan into the large baking pan and fill it with water. Fill it until the water reaches halfway up the sides of the torte pan.

Bake the torte for 45 to 50 minutes. The torte is ready when it does not wiggle when gently shaken.

Allow the torte to cool in the fridge for 30 minutes to an hour before adding your ganache topping.

While your torte is cooling, you can make the ganache.

Add your heavy whipping cream to a small saucepan. Heat it over medium-high heat until it is very hot, but not boiling. Add your 8 ounces of chocolate and whisk to combine.

Pour the ganache on top of the torte and tap it gently on the table to make the coating even.

Allow the torte to cool in the refrigerator for another 2 hours before serving. Enjoy!

 

Southwestern Sweet Potato Salad (Vegan and Gluten Free)

Sweet potatoes are a well-loved staple in fall, particularly at Thanksgiving dinners. We’ve reimagined the classic side dish into a sweet-and-savory salad that is the perfect side dish for any autumn occasion. This dish is also vegan and gluten free, so everyone at the dinner table can enjoy it together.

 

Ingredients:

2 medium sweet potatoes
1 lime
1 (14 ounce) can of black beans
3 T cilantro
3 T sunflower oil (or neutral oil of your choice)
1 T salt
½ tsp cumin
½ tsp paprika

 

Instructions:

Bring a large pot of water to a boil.

Wash and peel your sweet potatoes.

Put your sweet potatoes in the boiling water and allow them to cook until tender, about 30 to 40 minutes depending on the size of your potatoes.

While your sweet potatoes are boiling, you can prepare the other ingredients.

Separate your cilantro leaves from the stems. Roughly chop the cilantro leaves and set them in a large mixing bowl.

Drain the liquid from your canned black beans and rinse them in water. Allow the water to drain before you add the black beans into your mixing bowl.

Cut your lime in half and squeeze the juice into the bowl.

Add your oil, cumin, salt and paprika into the bowl and mix.

When your sweet potatoes are cooked, allow them to cool slightly before chopping them into about 1 to 2 inch squares. Add them into your bowl and mix to combine.

Allow the dish to chill in the fridge overnight, or for at least 8 hours before serving. Enjoy!

Autumn Lettuce Wraps

These lettuce wraps pack loads of fall flavor into one small package. The savory sausage, sweet butternut squash, and fragrant thyme and sage make for a wonderful autumnal flavored meal. This dish is sure to make you, your family, and your belly, very happy.

 

Ingredients

  • 1 head lettuce (green, bib, or butter work best)
  • 1 lb sausage (I used loose sage sausage, but any will work)
  • 1 small butternut squash (diced)
  • 1/3 yellow onion (diced)
  • 1 granny smith apple (cut into thin matchsticks)
  • 1/8 tsp minced garlic
  • 25 oz diced canned tomatoes (I used fire roasted with garlic, but your favorite will work perfectly)
  • 4 sprigs of thyme
  • 2 leaves of sage
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 6 oz cotija cheese grated
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Directions

  1. Wash the lettuce leaves and lay them out to dry during the cooking process.
  2. Coat a large skillet with olive oil and sauté the onions on medium to high heat until just beginning to soften. About 2-3 minutes.
  3. To the skillet add the diced butternut squash and the minced garlic. Cook stirring often for 7 minutes or until butternut squash softens slightly. Season with salt and pepper.
  4. Add the sausage to the skillet with the onions, squash, and garlic. Using a fork or spatula, break up the sausage to form small pieces. Cook for five minutes.
  5. While the meat mixture cooks, remove the leaves of the thyme from the stem and cut the sage leaves into ribbons.
  6. After five minutes, add the canned tomatoes and the herbs. Cook for five minutes on medium heat.
  7. Remove mixture from the heat. Assemble the wraps by placing a spoonful of the mixture into the lettuce cup, top with apple slices and cotija cheese. Enjoy!!!

 

Guest Blogger: James Madison Dietetics
Emily Salvaggio

 

No Tricks, Just Treats!

We love Halloween here at the Co-op. The changing leaves, beautiful fall weather, costumes, and plenty of candy. What we don’t love? Artificial sweeteners and coloring, high-fructose corn syrup, hydrogenated oils . . . all common ingredients in popular Halloween candies. Now that’s spooky. But it wouldn’t be Halloween without candy, so stop by and check out the endcap stocked with these all-natural gummies, candy corn, chocolates and more (including plenty of vegan and gluten free options). 

 

 

Enjoy Life Variety Pack
These mini chocolate bars are made with ricemilk, making them vegan-friendly, and they contain no soy lecithin. This pack comes with a regular and dark chocolates, as well as a crunchy bar made with crispy rice.

YumEarth Organic Gummy Fruits
These creepy crawly-shaped treats include three flavors and are vegan, gluten free, and nut free. They get their colors from organic fruit & vegetable concentrates.

YumEarth Organic Candy Corn
No Halloween candy list would be complete without candy corn. Some love it, some can’t stand it, but there’s no denying it’s a staple. And any staple should be made from the best stuff around, right? These contain no corn syrup, artificial dyes, dairy, gluten, or nuts.

Wholesome Organic Lollipops
These ghost and skull shaped lollipops are fair trade certified and made with only five all natural ingredients. Sometimes, less is more.

Wholesome Surf Sweets Organic Spooky Shapes
When it comes to gummies, we like options. There are four fruit flavors, all vegan and free from the top ten allergens.

Made Good Chocolate Chip Granola Mini Bars
If you want to go a healthier route this Halloween (without giving your household a bad reputation among local trick-or-treaters), this is a great option. These bars are certified organic, are made with gluten-free oats, and don’t contain nuts.

OCHO Organic Minis Variety Pack
This variety pack includes three chocolate covered, bite size candies: caramel in milk chocolate, peanut butter in milk chocolate, and coconut in vegan dark chocolate. Can’t beat the classics, right?