Friday, March 15, 2013

The Flying Purple Cake

  
      The inspiration for this cake came from the Japanese concept of using beans to create sweet treats. There are added health benefits to this desert. It's well known that black beans contain C3G (cyanidin 3-glucoside) which enhances the body's metabolism to help burn fat. In general, beans are also been known to reduce blood sugar.The blueberries and strawberries help with thyroid and contain omega-3's. Teff Flour is a protein power-house. The best part is this cake is delicious. So, go head have your cake and eat it too ^.^


Ingredients:
2 - 16 oz cans of (no-salt) black beans
1/2 cup of strawberries
1/4 cup of blueberries
1/3 cup of teff flour
1/4 cup of arrowroot starch
2 tsp of guar gum
3 TBSP of agave syrup
1/2 cup of Enjoy Life chocolate chips
1/2 tsp of baking soda
1/2 tsp cream of tartar
optional: 2 TSBP of unsweetened coco powder

Directions:

1) In a food processor blend the strawberries and blueberries



2) Open the 2 cans of black beans, place in a colander and rise well; then add to food processor and blend.


 3) Pour in a bowl, and then mix in the dry ingredients. Add the chocolate chips, agave syrup, and mix again. [If the batter is still watery add extra 1 tsp of guar gum]


4) Line baking pan or spring form pan with parchment paper (this will prevent the batter from sticking). Now, pour in batter and smooth out the top.

5) Preheat Oven to 350, and bake cake for 35 mins

6) Feel free to decorate with fruit, melted chocolate or whatever your heart desires.

source: http://www.doctoroz.com

[Baking Tip from our friends at Sweet Freedom Bakery: baking soda and cream of tartar is a great replacement for baking powder]

Thursday, March 14, 2013

3.14 Anko (Red Bean) Pie



Pi Day is annual celebration of the mathematical constant π (pi). It is officially observed on March 14, since 3.14 are the first three digits of the numerical value pi. Pi Day was first officially celebrated on a large scale in 1988 at the San Francisco Exploratorium. Since then, Pi Day has been celebrated by millions of students and math-lovers. The easiest way to celebrate is to eat pi-themed foods, of course, being Pie! This year we've made a special pie to commemorate this mathematical constant.

Ingredients:

Giberts Gourmet Goodies Sensational Cookie Dough

Anko(Red Bean) Paste
   - Red Beans
   - 1/2 cup of sugar
   - 1/2 cup of orange juice

Olive Oil- to coat the pie pan

Directions:


1) Prepare the Anko(Red Bean) Paste and set aside

[Refer to our Easy & Traditional Anko (Red Bean) Paste Recipe]

To reduce the sugar for Traditional Anko Paste, use 1/2 cup of sugar and add 1/2 cup of orange juice

2) Defrost Gilberts Gourmet Goodies Sensational Cookie Dough

3) Coat the pie pan with olive oil

4) Now, cut the dough and form a ball

5) Using rolling-pin flatten the dough ball, then place and conform to pan.


6) Poke the crust with holes, this will help with pre-heating

7) Pre-heat the oven to 350 degree F, and place the pie-crust in the oven for 15 mins.

8) When the pie-crust is semi-cooked remove from the oven

9) Place on a hard surface, cool for 1-2 mins, and then add Anko(Red Bean) filling.


10) Feel free to create your own crust, and place the Pie back in the oven and cook for around 15-20 mins.

Happy Pi-Day!

To learn more about Pi-Day click here: http://www.piday.org/