DB's Challenge - Nanaimo Bars

The January 2010 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Lauren of Celiac Teen. Lauren chose Gluten-Free Graham Wafers and Nanaimo Bars as the challenge for the month. The sources she based her recipe on are 101 Cookbooks and www.nanaimo.ca.

I did not have very much luck with this recipe. Well, the recipe was fine. I just lost my ability to read or something and had to make the recipe twice. One recipe that was waaaay off and strange (although everyone at work ate it up and said it was sinful) and one recipe where I followed the recipe (whoa! what an idea!).

When I followed the recipe the bars turned out perfectly and were delicious.

The mistake bars were good too, but they were really messy to eat.

Let me explain about my mistake. Like I said, I didn't read the recipe. I skimmed the recipe and read something about pudding. So when I was at work, it was 2 days to the post deadline and a huge blizzard blew into town, shutting down all the roads, I panicked!
I needed to make the bars and I couldn't get to the store to buy a package of pudding mix.

What to do?

Go to my Mom and ask her.

How do you make pudding at home?

She whipped up a batch of vanilla pudding for me.

Fast forward to me making the bars.

The recipe called for 2 Tablespoons of dry pudding powder.
I put in 2 cups of pudding!

It wasn't even close to the recipe.

(insert me rolling eyes at myself)

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Alls well that ends well though.

I made the bars again....2 days past the deadline.

Sorry Daring Baker's!

And the bars are very yummy - rich,but tasty.

I ate one for breakfast.

Part of the challenge was to make our own graham crackers to use in the nanaimo bars crust.

Like I said before - biggest blizzard ever- and I couldn't get to the store to buy the gluten free ingredients.

True, I could have planned better and bought the ingredients ahead of time, but I was distracted with my planning for the Potato Dinner Party.

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So, I didn't have any whole wheat flour.

I ground up some oatmeal and made oatmeal flour.

Oatmeal flour.



The rest of the ingredients.
I decided to make chocolate graham crackers.

Graham cracker dough mixed up.

Graham crackers rolled out.

It is a very soft and tender dough.

Oh yeah, maybe that's because I used pastry flour and oatmeal flour.

Again - big storm and empty cupboards.

Graham crackers baking.

I cut the crackers after they came out of the oven.

And then I let them sit out to dry.

They broke apart (fell apart) very easily.

Nanaimo bar crust ready to mix up.

Now stop reading: 'Cause I'm about to show you my mistake recipe.

This is all the lovely pudding my Mom made for me with lots of powdered sugar.

Pudding filling poured on top of the crust.

Lots of layers.

Chocolate on top.

And this is what it should look like!

Chocolate Bird's Nests

Chocolate Bird's Nests

1 can shoestring potatoes

14 oz. chocolate

(I used Wilton's Candy Melts - 7 oz mint and 7 oz. dark chocolate)

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Melt chocolate in the microwave.

Combine with shoestring potatoes.

Press into muffin cups and refrigerate overnight.

They can be made ahead - just keep them in the fridge until you serve them.

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To serve: Fill with mint ice cream and decorate with Chocolate Snowflakes

Banana Chocolate Coffee Cake

This is the best banana bread/cake/anything ever!

This is the cake you want to make to sway a jury or win friends and favor.

The Best Ever.

It's heavy on the cake, light on the banana.

Perfect.

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Banana Chocolate Coffee Cake

Cake: 3/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips (I use dark chocolate)

1 large or 2 small ripe bananas (1/2 cup banana puree)

3 large eggs

(I used 2 med tan, 1 med cream, 1 small blue- *hugs* to the chickens!)

1 1/2 cups sugar

3 cups flour

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1 cup veg. oil

1 cup buttermilk

2 tsp vanilla extract

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Glaze: 3/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips

3 Tbs butter

1/4 cup cream

1 Tbs light corn syrup

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Preheat oven to 350F. Grease a 10 inch bundt-style pan.

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Place chocolate chips in a med bowl and melt them in the microwave. Set aside. In another bowl, mash bananas and set aside.

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Place eggs in a large bowl and beat them on high until they are light and foamy. Gradually add the sugar and beat until the mixture is thick - about 5 mins on high speed.

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Gradually add the veg. oil to the egg mixture, scraping down the sides of the bowl. Continue to beat for another minute. Stir in buttermilk and vanilla.

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Fold in the dry ingredients. Pour 1 1/2 cups of the batter into the melted chocolate and gently mix until the chocolate and batter are well blended. Fold in mashed bananas.

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Pour half white batter into the prepared pan. Pour chocolate batter over this, top with remaining white batter. Swirl 2 batters together.

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Bake for 60 -70 mins. Until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow cake to cool for at least 15 mins before removing from the pan. Glaze when completely cool.

Making glaze: Mix all ingredients in a microwave safe bowl. Melt. Stir together until the mixture is smooth. Allow to cool to slightly warm. Pour over cake.

White batters and chocolate batter.


Swirling batters together.

Baked and turned out on a pan to cool.

Partially sliced - to allow the chocolate glaze to run down inside and coat each slice.

Glazed.

Look at that!

Mmmm chocolate.

Best ever.... I'm just saying....why aren't you cooking this yet?

Mmmmm, I think I'll have another slice.......

Mexican Brownies

Fail, fail, fail! I do not like these brownies!

They are too soft and fudgey. They have a crisp crust.

Yuck! I like cakey brownies.

Mexican Brownies

6 oz chocolate (squares or chips)

12 Tbs butter (1 1/2 sticks)

5 large eggs

2 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp chile powder

2 1/2 cups sugar

1/3 cup light corn syrup

1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour

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Melt the chocolate and butter together over low heat. Set aside to cool slightly.

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Beat the eggs, vanilla, salt, sugar, spices and corn syrup together until light and fluffy.

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Preheat oven to 375F. Lightly grease a 9x13 inch pan.

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Stir flour into the chocolate and butter mixture. Fold in the chocolate batter into the egg mixture, stir to combine.

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Spread the batter in the pan. Bake brownies for 35 mins. The top with be crisp, but a toothpick inserted in the center will come out coated with chocolate. Remove from oven and let cool for several hours before cutting into squares.

Top with whipped cream.


Hold onto your pancreas - 'cause these are sweet!

Chocolate Snowflakes or Russian Lace

This is a very old recipe.

As old as chocolate and snow.

There are 2 ingredients: fresh snow and chocolate.

It's perfect for snowy days when everyone is bored, because it's edible art.

Everyone likes to eat art!

I live in Minnesota where winter is at least 9 months long.

Winter always includes tons of snow.

However, we don't always get beautiful fluffy snow. You want dry, fluffy snow for this recipe.

Be a snow connoisseur! Hold out for the good stuff.

Anyway.

Melt some chocolate in the microwave (or over a candle/woodstove/something hot).

Put the chocolate into a plastic ziploc bag.

Snip one corner - to make a mini pastry bag.

Doodle in the snow. Make a snowflake shape or a word or a heart.

I did one layer of milk chocolate (chips) and one layer of white chocolate.

I liked the mini ones the best.




The chocolate will freeze very quickly.

I found this recipe when I was snowed in for a week.

We had a drift over the front of our house that covered the entire first story.

The power went on and off, but we had a woodstove and candles to keep us warm.

It was a lot of fun!

We built a doll house and ate Russian Lace.

Once the chocolate is firm (a couple minutes) pick up the snowflakes and take them inside.

Eat them right away or freeze them.

They really dress up a cup of cocoa.

They would also look nice on a cake.

They prevent cabin fever!

Every snowflake falling outside is unique and every chocolate snowflake is unique too.

Mashed Potato Candy Bars

These are soooo good!

And weird.

I blind taste tested them on 30 people.

No one could guess the "secret" ingredient - mashed potatoes.

The bars did disappear really fast though. They were popular!

Some of my testers' comments, "Tastes like an Almond Joy." "Mmmm, that's good." "Do you have anymore?"

Mashed Potato Coconut Chocolate Candy Bars

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4 cups powdered sugar

4 cups coconut

3/4 cup mashed potato (no butter/milk/salt added - just plain)

1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 tsp salt

1 Tbs. lime juice

1/4 tsp. ginger

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Boil 2 med. peeled potatoes until tender. Reserve potato cooking liquid for stock*. Return drained potatoes to burner;mash potatoes and add lime juice and ginger. Measure out 3/4 cup mashed potatoes**.

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In a mixer combine 3/4 cup mashed potatoes and other remaining ingredients.

Mix until completely combined.

Line a 10 in square baking pan with tin foil; grease tin foil.

Press coconut/potato mixture into the bottom of the baking pan.

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Freeze for 20 mins. or refrigerate overnight.

Top with chocolate layer - recipe below.

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*Potato water makes a wonderful addition to soups and stocks. I will be posting a soup recipe tomorrow that uses this reserved potato water.

**After taking out the 3/4 cup mashed potato, do you have extra leftover mashed potatoes?

Yum! You now have lime-ginger mashed potatoes. Add a pat of butter and eat!

Chocolate Layer

1 12 oz bag of milk chocolate chips

2 Tbs cream

2 Tbs corn syrup

Using the microwave, melt chocolate chips, cream and corn syrup in a glass bowl. Stir every 15 seconds. Remove from microwave when smooth.

Spread over coconut layer and refrigerate for 1 hour.

Remove and cut.

Eat!

One of my testers asked what the potato's purpose is in this recipe.

The potatoes are a starch and they bind with the coconut and sugar without making the bars floury, heavy, gummy or overwhelming the coconut flavor.

Instead they are light, not-too-sweet and coconutty.