My Favorite Chocolate Cake

Normally I’m not a cake person—I have no problem turning it down and I rarely ever make it because most of my kids feel the same way.   Most cakes seem dry and flavorless to me.  Until this one.   A good friend made chocolate cake for a girls’ luncheon.  Knowing she ate a gluten-free diet, I had to ask, “Maren, how come you made a cake you can’t even eat?”  She assured me it was gluten free, so I wondered what kind of flour she used.  “Oh, there’s no flour in the recipe—and no butter or oil, either.  The secret ingredient is garbanzo beans.”  I was intrigued.  I had to taste it.  And then I devoured the whole piece.  It’s moist and fudgy, rich and delicious.  So much for my take-it-or-leave-it attitude about cake.  When I make this cake, it takes all my will-power to stop at one piece.   At least I’m getting some protein and fiber along with my chocolate fix!

Chocolate Garbanzo Cake

1 1/2 c. chocolate chips (I use 60% cacao)
2 cans garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
6 eggs
1 1/2 c. sugar
2 T. cocoa powder
1 T. lemon juice
1 1/2 t. baking powder
3/4 t. baking soda
1 t. vanilla

In a small bowl, melt the chocolate in the microwave for about 2 minutes on 50% power, stirring frequently until smooth.  In a blender, blend the beans and  eggs until creamy.  Add remaining ingredients, including the melted chocolate and blend well.  If your blender is not big enough, pour into a bowl to mix.  Put batter into a greased and floured 13x9 pan and bake at 350 for about 40-45 minutes, until a toothpick in center comes out with moist crumbs—don’t overbake.  Frost with your favorite frosting when cool.
Chocolate Frosting:

1/4 c. butter
4 c. powdered sugar
1/4 c. cocoa powder
1/4 c. milk
1 1/2 t. vanilla

Beat until creamy and spreadable.

Giardino Burgers

This recipe was a hit with the whole family—do you know how rare that is in a family of 8? Yes, you probably do. I can’t be the only one who has given up trying to please everyone at every meal. Well, these burgers got compliments from all, especially my two toughest critics: Corinne (5) said, “Mom, I like this even better than pizza!” and Evan (14), my meat-loving son who wishes his mom would buy red meat, said, “These are actually really good—definitely make them again!” Need I say more?

I was happy about how quick these were to make, and how well the patties held together after baking. I "once and a halved" this recipe to make 9 burgers and they disappeared. Next time I'll double it. I served the burgers with these homemade potato/sweet potato chips and they were great!
Giardino Burgers
1-15 oz. can garbonzo beans, drained (I used 1-3/4 cup cooked dry beans)
3 eggs
1 cup bread crumbs (I put a couple of slices of homemade wheat bread in the blender)
1 cup shredded carrots (the recipe says to add your favorite vegetable)
salt, pepper, and garlic powder to taste
ketchup, mustard, pickles, lettuce, tomatoes, red onion, cheese, avocado, etc.
Rolls or buns
Preheat oven to 350. Put the garbanzos and eggs into a bowl and mash them together with a potato masher. (Corinne loved doing this for me). You want the mixture to be well combined, but a little chunky. Add the bread crumbs, carrots (or any other vegetables you’d like), and seasonings.
Form the mixture into 6 patties. I divided the mixture into mounds on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper and then formed them into round patties, about 3/4 inch thick.
Bake for about 25 minutes until lightly browned. Serve on buns with your favorite toppings.

A Night in Bethlehem

Here are the recipes from our Relief Society Christmas Dinner. That was such a beautiful evening. It was one of the highlights of the Christmas season for me this year. I’ve delayed posting because I’ve been waiting for the pictures, but it looks like I don’t have those after all, so here are the recipes you’ve been requesting. We wanted to serve the type of food that could have been eaten in a Bethlehem inn. This would be a fun dinner to serve your family before Christmas.
Middle-Eastern Lentil Soup

• 1 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 large diced carrot
• 2 stalks finely diced celery
• 6 cups water
• 1 1/2 cups red or brown lentils
• 1 (15 ounce) can garbanzo beans, undrained
• 1 (19 ounce) can cannellini beans, undrained
• 1 (14.5 ounce) can petite diced tomatoes
• 1 T. chicken bouillon powder
• 1/2 tablespoon curry powder
• 3/4 teaspoons salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ginger
• 1 teaspoon lemon pepper
• 1/2 tablespoon ground cumin
• cayenne pepper to taste (I didn’t use any because I used a hot curry powder)

Directions
1. In large pot saute the onions, garlic, carrots, and celery in a little olive oil for about 5 minutes.
2. Add the water, lentils, garbonzos, cannellini beans, diced tomatoes, and seasonings. Bring to a boil for a few minutes then simmer for 1 to 1 1/2 hours or longer, until the lentils are soft.
3. Puree half the soup in a food processor or blender (this step is important to achieve the right texture). Return the pureed soup to the pot, stir and enjoy!
*This can also be made in the crockpot. Skip the sauté step and put everything into the crockpot at once. Cook for 5-6 hours on high or 10-12 on low, and then puree half the soup as directed.

Flatbread (makes 6 rounds)

• 2 cups of All Purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon active dry yeast
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 tablespoons of oil
• 2 tablespoons yogurt
• 3/4 cup warm water

1. Mix all ingredients into a soft dough. Don’t add too much flour—just enough to keep the dough from being too sticky.
2. Knead until the dough is smooth. Cover the dough and keep in a warm place for 3-4 hours. The dough should almost be double in volume.
3. Heat the oven to 500 degrees with pizza stone for at least thirty minutes so stone is hot.
4. Knead the dough for about two to three minutes and divide the dough into six equal parts.
5. Take each piece of dough, one at a time, and roll into 8-inch circle shape. Dust lightly with dry flour to help with the rolling.
6. You can place about 2 breads on the baking/pizza stone at a time. Bake about 2 to 3 minutes, depending upon your oven. Bread should be golden brown.
7. Take bread out of the oven and brush lightly with butter and sprinkle with garlic powder or garlic salt on one side.

NOTE: Some of the bread was baked in the oven, as explained above. The rest was cooked on my pancake griddle, about 2 minutes per side, and then brushed with butter and sprinkled with garlic salt. I thought the pancake griddle was easier than the oven and I didn’t notice a difference in taste.
NOTE 2: The bread can be made ahead and warmed in the oven before serving.

Salad

• Romaine lettuce
• Baby Spinach
• Feta cheese
• grape tomatoes
• red onions
• olives
• sliced cucumbers
• Bernstein’s Light Fantastic Cheese Fantastico dressing