Listening is to communication as breathing is to air.
Reading the poetry of Langston Hughes encouraged my own writing. Hughes died on this day in 1967 at the age of 65 (Feb 1, 1902 – May 22, 1967).
Happy Thursday! Let’s celebrate the extended weekend starting now!!
Kool & the Gang are an American jazz, R&B, soul, funk and disco group, originally formed in 1964 as the Jazziacs based in Jersey City, New Jersey.
The brownies will be a huge success! Although they are made with a box brownie mix, you could use your own recipe to top the crunchy base.
Makes: 24 brownies
Ingredients
1 box (12.8 oz) Cinnamon Toast Crunch cereal (about 8 cups)
½ cup butter, melted
1 box Fudge Brownie mix
½ cup vegetable oil
¼ cup water
2 eggs
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
1⅓ cups semisweet chocolate chips
3 tablespoons tablespoons sugar
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
Preparation
1. Heat oven to 350℉.
2. Spray 13×9-inch pan with cooking spray.
3. In a small bowl mix together the sugar and cinnamon, and set aside until needed.
4. Place cereal in food processor bowl with metal blade (do in 2 batches if necessary). Cover; process until finely crushed (or place cereal in large resealable food-storage plastic bag and crush with rolling pin).
5. Add butter to food processor and pulse until well blended. Press evenly in pan.
6. In large bowl, make brownie mix as directed on box, using oil, water and eggs and adding cinnamon. Stir in 2/3 cup of the chocolate chips. Pour brownie batter over cereal mixture.
7. Sprinkle remaining 2/3 cup chocolate chips evenly over batter.
8. Bake 20 minutes, then sprinkle the cinnamon-sugar evenly over brownies.
9.Bake 14 to 18 minutes longer or until brownies are set when lightly touched in center.
10. Cool 10 minutes; loosen edges but do not cut.
11. Cool completely, about 2 hours.
A Must Share…
After I am dead,
Do think of me,
When the wind plays with your hair
and tugs at your skirt,
When raindrops glide down your nose tip
and trickle under your dress,
When snowflakes melt on your lips,
And sunrays redden your cheeks,
For it’s not only the wind,
Or mere rain,
Or just some mindless snowflakes and sunrays,
But my longing for you lingering in nature,
outlasting death.
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Sharing Chocolate!
So I am packed and ready to begin my epic USA vegan adventure, in just a few hours. I will be posting on facebook, twitter and instagram so that you can follow my adventures with some incredible vegan bloggers, recipe testers, facebookers, instagrammers and so on. If you don’t already, get following at the links above or at the end of this post or on the right hand side of the page to keep up with all the fun! What a way to celebrate the end of another Uni year!
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Proverbs 18:2
Espresso Cake with Hot Kahlua Syrup. Doesn’t just reading the title of the cake sound amazing? I knew that chocolate and coffee were a good match, but never realized this about lemon. It is that little hint of lemon that really makes this cake special.
The method for creaming the butter and sugar for this cake is a little time consuming, but the end result of a beautiful light crumb will be worth it. Other than that, the cake is very straightforward to put together and the syrup is a breeze – and it is kind of fun to poke the small holes and pour the syrup over the top, knowing that the cake is going to be moist.
Ingredients
Cake ~
3 tablespoons instant espresso
¼ cup boiling water
¼ cup cold water
2¼ cups sifted cake flour
1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
½ cup (1 stick) butter
½ teaspoon freshly grated
lemon zest
1½ cups superfine or strained sugar
3 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
½ cup sour cream
Kahlua syrup ~
⅔ cup Kahlua or Tia Maria liqueur
⅓ cup water
3 tablespoons honey
Preparation
Cake ~
1. Position rack in lower third of the oven and preheat to 350℉.
2. Spray a 10-cup bundt pan with baking spray.
3. In a small bowl, dissolve the espresso in boiling water. Stir in the cold water and set aside to cool.
4. Using a triple sifter, sift together the flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt. [If you do not have a triple sifter, sift the dry ingredients together three times.] Set aside.
5. Cut the butter into 1-inch pieces and put them and the lemon rind [zest] in the large bowl of an electric mixer fitted with beaters of paddle attachment. Soften on low speed, then increase speed to medium-high and cream until smooth and light in color, about 1½ to 2 minutes.
6. Add the sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, taking about 6 to 8 minutes to blend it in well. Scrape the sides of the bowl occasionally.
7. Add the eggs, 1 at a time a 1-minute intervals. Blend in the vanilla and sour cream. The mixture will look somewhat curdled at this point. This is okay.
8. Reduce mixer speed to medium-low. Add the dry ingredients alternating with the espresso, dividing the dry ingredients into three parts and the espresso into two parts, starting and ending with the flour. Mix just until incorporated after each addition. Scrape the sides of the bowl and mix for 10 seconds longer.
9. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the surface with the back of a tablespoon. Center the pan on the rack and bake in the preheated oven for 55 to 65 minutes, or until the cake begins to come away from the sides of the pan and a twig of straw or a toothpick inserted into the center comes out dry.
10. Remove from the oven. Set the pan on a cake rack for 10 to 15 minutes to cool slightly.
Kahlua syrup ~
1. In a small saucepan blend the Kahlua, water, and honey. Bring to a slow boil and simmer 2 to 3 minutes.
2. Remove from heat.
3. Pierce the top of the cake with a wooden skewer and slowly spoon the hot syrup over the top of the hot cake.
4. Let stand in the pan for at least 1 hour to allow cake to absorb all the liqueur, then invert onto a rack and remove pan.
5. Store at room temperature under a glass dome or in an airtight container for up to 7 days.
Sound familiar? It’s all good, so Dream On!!
Scookie – a cross between a scone and a cookie – so that is what they are called. They are delicious on their own, but become decadent when you dip them in ganache.
Makes about 36 cookies
Ingredients
½ cup plus 3 tablespoons butter, softened
⅔ cup granulated sugar
⅔ cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 eggs
2 bananas, cut into chunks
3 cups all purpose flour
1 cup 5-grain cereal
2 teaspoons baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
1 cup white chocolate chips
1 cup macadamia nuts, roughly chopped
1 cup desiccated coconut
1½ tablespoons golden flax seeds
Preparation
1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
2. Line sheet pans with parchment paper or Silpats.
3. Using a stand or hand-held mixer, cream together the butter and sugars until light and fluffy.
4. Add the vanilla and eggs and mix an additional 2 to 3 minutes until well combined.
5. Add banana and mix until roughly broken up.
6. In a separate bowl combine the flour, 5-grain cereal, baking soda, salt, white chocolate, macadamias, coconut, and flax seed.
7. On low speed, slowly add the flour mixture to the butter mixture and mix until the dry ingredients are completely incorporated and the dough is evenly mixed.
8. Place the dough in the refrigerator overnight, or at least 3 to 4 hours before baking.
9. Using an medium cookie scoop drop rounded tablespoons of dough onto the prepared sheets, spacing them about 2 inches apart.
10. Slightly flatten each cookie with the palm of your hand.
11. Bake 20-25 minutes or until golden around the edges and slightly soft in the center.
12. Cool the cookies on the baking sheet for about 20 minutes, before transferring them to a wire wrack to cool completely.
13. Once cooled dip half of each cookie in ganache, if desired.
Egos & Buffaloes 