Holed Up...Baking Chocolate Stuff

It's time for my COVID-19 tale of non-woe baking. I've been doing the shelter-in-place thing since last week and have a lot of time on my hands around the edges of work and basic housekeeping. So I've been baking. My baking book Leave Me Alone I Just Wanna Bake This was such a travesty of typos, I don't think I'll be doing more books for a while. So as to not waste time, here are a couple of chocolaty recipes I have come up with so far!

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Chia Seed Carob and Black Bean Vegan Hell Cubes

I wanted to make something high fiber but still quite sweet and edible. So I put more sugar in this thing than I normally do. I used simple syrup just because that's what I had on hand. I think if you don't have any (why would you?) you can substitute two tablespoons of water mixed with two tablespoons of white or brown sugar.

INGREDIENTS

Wet items
2 tablespoons chia seeds, well soaked in 1/4 cup water for about 10 minutes
3 tablespoons oil (coconut is nice, or just canola)
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/4 cup simple syrup
10 drops liquid stevia
250 grams cooked black beans
1/4 cup finely chopped dried fruit of your choice (figs, cherries, apricots, raisins)

Dry items
1/4 cup gluten free flour
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 cup carob powder
1 teaspoon decaf instant coffee

Yummy Bits
1/2 cup dark chocolate chips

Optional Pre-Bake Toppings
More chocolate chips (a handful)
Chopped nuts that you like (a handful)

Optional Post-Bake Toppings
Chocolate frosting
Powdered sugar

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and oil a 6x8 glass dish. Grind up all the wet items in your food processor. Grind in the dry items, too, if possible, or just mix the dry into the wet separately in a bowl that can accommodate both. Stir in the chips and raisins. Spoon into your oiled dish and smooth nicely and evenly. Top with nuts and chopped chocolate. Or leave naked. Bake 20 minutes. It will not seem completely done after 20 minutes, but don't worry. Let it cool well and it will become firm. If you didn't top with anything, it will be ugly, so you can frost it if you have some frosting sitting around. Or dust with powdered sugar if you're both upset and lazy about its appearance.

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Chocolate Chip Panettone Cake

You can get away with using a springform pan for this briochy-cakey dream. But you can use a four inch paper panettone mold if you have one. Or a two pound coffee can (lined at the bottom with parchment paper). It makes just one cake. Double things if you think you "need" two cakes. 

INGREDIENTS

Sponge

1 1/8 teaspoon active dry yeast

40 grams lukewarm water

35 grams all-purpose flour

Dough Part A

1 1/8 teaspoon active dry yeast

20 grams water

1 large egg

90 grams all-purpose flour

25 grams brown sugar

56 grams salted butter, at room temperature

Dough Part B

1 large egg

1 egg yolk

75 grams brown sugar

21 grams dark honey

3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

113 grams salted butter, at room temperature

180 grams all-purpose flour

50 grams white whole wheat flour (whole wheat pastry flour is OK, too)

Filling

1/2 cup chopped dried cherries or cranberries

1/2 cup dark chocolate chips

1/2 cup hemp seeds

DIRECTIONS

Breathe. This recipe takes all day and you have to let it rise FOUR times. That's right. So let's go.

First make the sponge. Just stir the water and yeast together until the yeast foams. Then add the flour. Cover and let rest until double. That takes about 20-30 minutes.

Now we work on Dough Part A. Mix the yeast and water together in your stand mixer bowl. Let the yeast dissolve and foam. Add the sponge. Paddle this mixture until all is incorporated. Add the eggs and sugar. Paddle well. 

Now cover this dough right in the mixer bowl and let rise in the oven with the oven light on, covered, for about 1 hour.

It's time for Dough Part B. Take the mixer bowl out of the oven, put back on the mixer, and paddle egg, egg yolk, brown sugar, honey, vanilla and salt into Dough Part A until all is combined. Add the butter and paddle further until smooth. Now you may paddle in the flours. Switch to the dough hook and hook a few minutes (6-10) until smooth.

Now we rise again. It will really need to rise. Let it rise on the kitchen counter, covered, about 4 hours. It is also nice to let it rise in the refrigerator overnight if you have the patience.

While you are sitting around waiting, prepare your pan, paper panettone mold, or coffee can. You want the bottom of the container slippery and the edges of the container not slippery. So if you use a coffee can or a springform pan, line the bottom of that situation with parchment paper and do nothing with the edges. If using the paper mold, it's already design to work this way, so don't sweat it, just have it ready to stick the dough in there.

After this rise, put the dough on your lightly floured kitchen counter and pat into an oval. Sprinkle with 1/4 cup chocolate chips, 1/4 cup dried cherries, and 1/4 cup hemp seeds. Press into dough. Roll up into a log, pat out into an oval again, and repeat the chips, cherries, and hemp seeds. Press in well. Roll up and tuck ends under to form a ball. Put into your waiting baking vessel.

Cover with a kitchen towel and let rise about two hours. Gracias a San Pasqual, this is the last rise.

When the two hours is close to up, preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Quickly cut an X in the loaf with a sharp razor blade if you want it to rise higher. Don't bother with the cutting if you don't mind a more squat, cakey item.

Bake in the center of the oven for 10 minutes. Reduce heat to 375 degrees and bake 10 minutes. Reduce heat again to 350 degrees and bake for 30 minutes. It will be quite brown, so if you worry about darkness, tent a piece of foil over the cake for the last 10-15 minutes. 

If you are nervous about the doneness after baking, stick a probe thermometer into the bread. If it is between 190-200 degrees F, all is well in the universe.

The cooling process will differ with different pans. If you used paper molds, you need to cool the bread on its side on a pillow (yes, it's that fussy). You will also need a pillow for coffee cans (just take the bread out of the can after 30 minutes). If you use a springform pan, however, you do not need a pillow-- just very carefully loosen from the pan after 30 minutes and cool on a wire rack.