Leftover Red Wine? Make This Chocolate Cake with Drunken Raspberries

I've always been a huge fan of Chef Chloe ever since she showed the world on Cupcake Wars that vegans do it better (oh, and cruelty and cholesterol-free). Her latest book Chloe's Vegan Italian Kitchen will have you salivating until the (vegan) cows come home. So it should come as no surprise that I was thrilled when the team at Chloe's kitchen offered to share one of my favorite recipes from the book with me for my readers. In fancy speak, it's called Torta Di Cioccolato Al Vino Rosso Con Lamponi "Umbriachi," but you can just call it "Now, please."

Didn’t quite finish that bottle of red wine last night? Use it to make chocolate cake! This rich and seductive chocolate cake is fudgy on the inside with a hint of red wine. Top it with wine-soaked “drunken” raspberries and a dollop of coconut whipped cream for the ultimate lovers’ dessert. 

Cake:
1½ cups all-purpose flour*
1 cup sugar
¹⁄3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
 ½ teaspoon salt
 ¾ cup dry red wine
 ½ cup water
 ½ cup canola oil
 2 tablespoons white or apple cider vinegar
 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

 *For a gluten-free alternative, substitute gluten-free all-purpose flour plus ¾ teaspoon xanthan gum

Topping:
½ cup dry red wine
 ½ cup sugar
 1 small container raspberries (6 ounces)
 Powdered sugar
for serving Coconut Whipped Cream, like So Delicious Dairy Free Cocowhip Coconut Whipped Topping

Make-Ahead Tip: Cake layers can be made in advance and frozen for up to 1 month. Thaw cakes before serving.

Makes one 9-inch round layer

For the cake: Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease a 9-inch round cake pan and line the bottom with parchment paper. In a large bowl, whisk flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, and salt. In a separate bowl, whisk wine, water, oil, vinegar, and vanilla. Pour the wet mixture into the dry mixture and whisk until just combined. Do not overmix.

Fill the prepared cake pan with batter. Bake for 28 to 30 min- utes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out dry with a few crumbs clinging to it. Be sure to rotate the cake halfway through baking time. Let the cake cool completely.

For the topping: In a small saucepan, combine wine and sugar and cook over medium heat until sugar dissolves and mixture begins to boil. Let boil for 1 to 2 minutes and remove from heat. Place raspberries in a bowl and pour the wine mixture over the raspberries.

Refrigerate and let soak for at least 30 minutes and up to 2 days. Slice cake and dust each serving with powdered sugar. Then, top each slice with a dollop of whipped cream and spoonful of wine-soaked raspberries.

Copyright © 2014 by Chloe Coscarelli from CHLOE’S VEGAN ITALIAN KITCHEN published by Atria Books, a division of Simon & Schuster, Inc.
 Cover Photo: Photography by Miki Duisterhof,   Recipe Photo: Photography by Teri Lyn Fisher

Food Blog Hero Q&A with Holy Cow Vegan: Vegan Indian Food You Didn't Know You Crave

The real title of this blog should be "Food Blog Hero Q&A with Holy Cow Vegan: Vegan Indian Food You Didn't Know You Crave...But Must Tackle Immediately."

Recently, I was lucky enough to pick the brain of one of my favorite food bloggers, Vaishali of Holy Cow Vegan. Her tantalizing vegan recipes (many of them Indian) run the spectrum from signature Bombay street food, Misal (If you're not familiar, heck, even if you are, run, don't walk) to banana coffee cake with chocolate streusel (both pictured below, courtesy of author). Her blog makes pulling off seemingly-complicated dishes approachable and fun, and her recipes never fail to introduce me to a brilliant flavor-pairing (zucchini for dessert, who knew?) or clever ways to spike a dish with not-your-average-spice-rack spices.







1. What's your favorite vegetable to cook with and why? Is there a secret-weapon veggie you use to slip into salads or soups or entrees that makes it super special? 

"I love cooking with most vegetables, but mushrooms are definitely one of my favorites. Although they've not been part of traditional Indian cooking, mushrooms go with virtually anything -- I've tried them in curries, dals, sabzis (Indian side dishes) and even stuffed them in a paratha. I also love how mushrooms of all kinds contribute rich textures to vegan cooking. And they're super-good for you, which is a huge bonus."

2. What are your tips for ordering vegan Indian food when out? It can get tricky sometime! Is non-vegan? Any tips for decoding a menu or how to ask a waiter to make a non-vegan dish (say a stew made with ghee or dairy) vegan-friendly? Any vegan desserts on menus when eating out?

"I am not one of those vegans who will quiz a waiter about every last ingredient, especially when I am eating out with friends. The reason is that I don't want to make a vegan lifestyle appear ridiculously unattainable to others. I usually ask the waiter if there is any ghee or cream in a vegetarian dish like a dal and if they say no, I will eat it. You might not always get dishes like dals and stews made to order because the ghee is part of the base when the dish is cooked, but with breads you have a little more leeway, since they will most often make them fresh for you and the ghee, in most cases, goes on the bread at the very end. It's a little tough to get vegan Indian desserts in restaurants since Indian sweets are almost always milk-based, but jalebis are an option, if available. They are swirly yellow sweets made of chickpea flour and dunked in sugar syrup. They are delicious."

3. What's your favorite vegan Indian dish that anyone can (and should!) add to their repertoire of dinner options?

"Most vegans are really into dals when it comes to Indian foods, but I'd encourage them to try more curries made with vegetables and often a coconut and spice base, like My Dad's Not-Mutton Mushroom Curry. While dals are wonderful for adding protein into your meal, curries like this one really perk up the taste buds and are a great introduction to the rich, varied cuisine of India."

4. What advice would you offer to aspiring food bloggers?

"I'd advise them to blog with love. There are a zillion food blogs out there today, each one better looking than the next and SEO'd to the eyeballs, but when I think of great food blogging I always hark back to the early days when bloggers wrote about foods they cooked at home for the people they loved and why they created them, rather than just cook and post the hottest thing on Google Trends. I might be old-fashioned, but I think blogs that really engage you and have a personality are the ones that pull in and retain a loyal following. And here's one more piece of advice: Check your grammar before you hit "publish." :) You don't have to be a great writer, but there's nothing as off-putting as a post with spelling and grammatical errors."

*proofreads three times*

If I had to pick, Vaishali's grain dishes are probably some of my favorites, and she's been kind enough to let me share the photo of one of my favorites, Tawa Pulao. A serious treat for your senses and time-saver on weeknights. Get the recipe here.

Vibrant Veggie Vortex + Dazzling Dijon Dressing

They say the more colors on your plate, the more likely you'll be able to curb overeating. Or maybe they don't; but it's sure pretty to look at a spectrum of vibrant fruits and veggies and definitely slows me down when it comes to digging in.

So bye bye simple crudités and dip. This simple salad is way easier to assemble than it looks. Just slice, dice and arrange everything on a plate to your heart's desire...and to emulate that way-too-perfect food blogger on instagram who always annoys you with food arrangements so pretty you don't understand how anyone's life can be so perfect (pro-tip: It probably took them 45 minutes to assemble everything, and by the time they get to eating that warm stack of vegan chocolate chip banana nut pancakes, they are cold.)

To quote Taylor Swift, This. Dressing. Is. Sick. Mix two parts olive oil, to one part balsamic vinegar, a teaspoon of nutritional yeast flakes and red chile pepper flakes and sea salt together. Transforms any blah "using up leftover veggies" salad into BOOM! Seriously.

Ingredients:
Whatever leftover veggies and fruits you have on hand

Directions:

Arrange prettily on plate and as symmetrically as possible. Try and remember to buy enough lettuce next time. Drizzle dressing on top. Pair with copious amount of crusty  French baguette.

3-Ingredient Potato-less Mashed Potatoes

Crusty French bread. Pasta. Mashed potatoes. When it comes to vices, mine aren't shoes or nightly Sex and the City marathons (okay, maybe the latter...) but carbs. Oh man. Sign me up! For me, there's no such thing as plate loaded too high with flaky, bready, potato-y, pasta-y goodness. Unfortunately, my snug jeans beg to differ. Luckily, these silky, creamy, rich "mashed no-potatoes"(or "potato-less mashed potatoes" as my body building boyfriend cleverly quipped) replicate that comfort food fix you crave, sans calories and the unhealthy fat you load in from butter, milk and cream.

So what's the secret swap for those formidable balls-o-carbs? Zucchini! Just boil the heck out of it, take your fork and mash, mash, mash away. It's texturally-perfect, nutrionally-abundant and shockingly addictive.

3-Ingredient Potato-less Mashed Potatoes
Serves 1 (adjust proportions as needed based on how much you're making)
1 zucchini
4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
flaky sea salt, to taste
Optional: freshly ground black pepper, red chile pepper flakes

1. Using a vegetable peeler, peel a few spirals from the zucchini. Meanwhile, heat a pot of water to boil.

2. Place the rest of the zucchini in the boiling in water. Boil until impossibly soft (You can check by piercing it with a fork or knife).

3.  Using a fork (or potato masher if you are feeling fancy), mash the zucchini and add the olive oil. Season to taste and top with the raw zucchini shreds. Rejoice in a guilt-free spoonful of comfort.

(flowers also courtesy of aforementioned body building boyfriend)

9 Genius Tricks for Ordering Chinese Take-out

You know those nights when you don't want to cook? Yeah, I don't really either. But on those rare nights where nothing will hit the spot quite like greasy Chinese food, here are some simple but brilliant tips for keeping it vegan.

1. Scallion pancakes. Enough said.

2. Ask what's in their brown sauce or garlic sauce. Both can have oyster sauce or other animal products.

3. If the other sauces aren't vegan friendly, here's a simple swap: Ask for the "clear sauce" instead. This simple corn-starch based sauce (sometimes studded with scallions) is vegan.

4. A great entree option (that's super healthy too) is mixed steamed veggies with brown rice and clear sauce (on the side, if you like). Extra hungry? Have tofu added (some menus already have this included) for some filling protein.

5. Sharing with multiple folks? If they're getting tasty vegan options like baby eggplant, veggie trios, stir-fried crispy tofu with chile and cumin, braised assorted fresh mushrooms, mixed veggies and tofu, etc. (hungry yet?) ask for the sauce on the side, you can avoid those that aren't vegan. And things like cold sesame peanut noodles, veggie dumplings, etc. you don't have to worry about asking the sauce issue because it either comes on the side or is vegan.

6. Ask if they have any vegan soups. (or vegetarian, I've never heard of a Chinese restaurant that adds dairy to soups, or uses any kind of dairy for that matter. When was the last time you heard of chicken Teriyaki with melted cheese?)

7. Ask if they can omit egg from your veggie fried rice.

8. Don't stress too much. If you accidentally ingest an ounce of brown sauce with animal products in it or inadvertently have a bite of something glazed with fish sauce, don't sweat it. You want to show people how simple and delicious it is to be vegan, so don't get too caught up in "rules" and worrying if your tofu was grilled on the same hot top as salmon was. You'll drive yourself crazy, and your missing the bigger picture of kind and conscious eating.

9. Get your takeout out of those sad looking containers and into pretty bowls. Not only does this make for a happier looking meal, but it'll help with portion control (ever notice how massive those Tupperwares are filled?) Nothing spells sad and pathetic pig out fest list eating your way through 2/3rds of your main course and that dinky white paper rice box and then figuring "Screw it, I'm almost done, I might as well finish it all." And then your significant other being mad at you because they find you passed out in the bed five minutes later.