Chocolate Goat Milk Pudding

I somehow ended up with two quarts of goat milk this week. Funny how these things happen. While goat milk is great to drink on its own – the initial taste is similar to cow’s milk, with the tart finish of chèvre – it occurred to me that its salty-sweet, piquant flavor might work nicely mixed into a dark chocolate pudding.

A good amount of dark chocolate (85% cocoa) and a good amount of cocoa powder create a dark rich flavor. Egg yolks and cornstarch thicken the pudding as it simmers, resulting in a wonderfully dense pudding that’s as comforting served warm as it is refreshing served chilled.

Goat milk is said to be easier to digest than cow’s milk and is a good alternative for those with lactose intolerance. It is also a good source of calcium, vitamin B2 and tryptophan – an amino acid that is said to regulate appetite and decrease anxiety. Combine that with dark chocolate’s antioxidants and its blood pressure lowering cocoa phenols, and the benefits of this Chocolate Goat Milk Pudding almost make up for the calories. Almost.

While goat milk may sound exotic, it’s not so difficult to come by at most natural grocery stores and even some supermarkets.

Chocolate Goat Milk Pudding – makes 4 – 6 servings

3.5 ounces dark chocolate (85% cacao)

3/4 C sugar
2 T cornstarch
1/3 C unsweetened cocoa powder
3 1/2 C goat milk
3 egg yolks, lightly beaten

Break the dark chocolate into pieces and place in a metal bowl or top section of a double boiler. Bring about a cup of water to a simmer in a small saucepan or the bottom section of a double boiler. Place the vessel holding the chocolate over the simmering water and turn off the heat. Allow the chocolate to melt gradually.

Meanwhile, blend the sugar, cornstarch and cocoa powder together in a large bowl.

Over medium heat, bring the milk to a low simmer in a medium saucepan. Add the cornstarch mixture and stir continuously with a whisk to break up any lumps. Continue stirring and allow the mixture to simmer for one minute.

Remove from heat. Stir in the melted chocolate. Add the egg yolks, stirring quickly with a whisk to incorporate. Return to low heat and, stirring constantly, bring to a very low simmer until the mixture thickens.

Pour into dessert bowls or ramekins and serve warm or chilled.

Cream Cheese Marble Brownies

It’s good to have a chocolate recipe on hand for emergencies and rainy days. The past few days have been awfully rainy and cold here on the coast of New England, and these fit the bill nicely. Sometimes – not often, but sometimes – it’s nice to have a rich dessert-type snack.

The brownie swirl is rich and dense and complements the fluffy sweetness of the cream cheese swirls. People seem to like them anyway…

Cream Cheese Marble Brownies - makes 16 brownies

1/2 C butter, softened
3/4 C sugar
1/2 C unsweetened Dutch processed cocoa powder
1/2 C milk
3 eggs
1 C flour
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
1 C confectionery sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large bowl using a electric beater or stand mixer, cream the butter and sugar. Add the cocoa, eggs and milk one by one, until well combined. Gradually add the flour.

Using an electric beater or stand mixer, cream the cream cheese until soft. Add the egg and beat on medium until combined and lemon yellow. Gradually beat in the powdered sugar one quarter cup at a time, on low at first (to avoid a sugar sandstorm), and then increase the speed as the sugar is absorbed, scraping the bowl occasionally.

Pour half of the brownie batter into an lightly greased 8 x 8 inch brownie tin (you could use a glass or ceramic brownie dish, but I like to use a tin, because it’s more responsive to heat and it cools down faster when removed from the oven. But hey, it’s your kitchen).

Spoon the cream cheese mixture into the pan in three evenly spaced columns. Spoon the rest of the brownie batter around the cream cheese columns to fill in the spaces. Shake the pan slightly to make even out the surface.

Take a sharp knife and run lines across the surface in one direction. Do the same in a different direction, being careful not to mix the two components too much. We want swirlage people. Not mixage.

Bake 50 -60 minutes until the edges are pulling away from the pan slightly and a toothpick comes out almost clean from the center. Place on a cooling rack and allow to cool for at least 1 hour before cutting.

Ingredient origins: butter – Maine; Sugar – Florida; Equal Exchange cocoa powder – Dominican Republic (by way of the Netherlands); Milk – Massachusetts; Eggs – New Hampshire; Flour – Vermont; Organic cream cheese – Unknown; Confectionery sugar – Unknown

Lemon Tarragon Teacake

Teacakes. Is it not the most adorable word? It conjures images of flowery tablecloths, delicate china and smiling aunties.

Tarragon is a social chameleon. The Gatsby of herbs. It gets along just as well in sweet dishes as it does with its more common savory partners. This recipe demonstrates the former. Lemony, sweet and dense, Lemon Tarragon Teacake is the perfect showcase for tarragon’s delicate, mellow flavor. Confectionery sugar creates a nice crisp top.

For the full herb garden effect, try it with lavender, chamomile, jasmine or a similar floral tea.

Lemon Tarragon Teacake – serves 10

2 T lemon juice
2 eggs
1/4 C canola oil
1 C sour cream
3 C confectionery sugar
2 C flour
2 t baking powder
1/4 t salt
3 T chopped fresh tarragon

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a medium size bowl, combine lemon juice, eggs, canola oil and sour cream. Mix in confectionery sugar 1/2 cup at a time.

Sift flour, baking powder and salt into a large bowl. Mix the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. Fold in the fresh tarragon

Pour into a metal loaf pan and bake for 55 -65 minutes until a wooden tooth pick comes out clean.

Chocolate Chip Raisin Walnut Cookies

These are somewhat lower in fat (sour cream replaces some of the butter), higher in protein (walnuts) and higher in fiber (raisins) than your average chocolate chip cookie.

The recipe also calls for slightly less sugar than most, but the addition of raisins makes up for the sweetness. Corn syrup and sour cream lend a delicate fluff to the texture which, in combination with the walnut’s crunch make for an addictive cookie.

Chocolate Chip Raisin Walnut Cookies – makes 3 dozen

1 egg
1 t vanilla extract
1/2 C brown sugar
2 T corn syrup
1/2 C butter, melted and cooled slightly
1/4 C sour cream
1/2 t salt
1 t baking soda
2 C flour
3/4 C walnuts
3/4 C raisins
1 C chocolate chips

Mix wet ingredients and brown sugar in a small bowl. In a medium bowl mix flour, salt and baking soda. Combine the wet ingredients with the dry ingredients. Stir in chocolate chips, walnuts and raisins.

Refrigerate dough for about15 minutes to chill. This will make it easier to scoop and also make it less likely for the cookies to spread out on the cookie sheet as they bake. While the dough chills, preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Scoop by tablespoon onto a slightly greased cookie sheet – these have less fat than most cookies, so they’re not as self-greasing. (Frugal tip: I like to save the wrappers from sticks of butter for the purpose of lightly greasing pans.) Place dough mounds about an inch and a half apart on the cookie sheet.

Bake for 10 minutes. Remove from oven. Remove cookies from cookie sheet and allow them to cool on a cooling rack.

Serve with an ice cold glass of milk on a “pretty, pretty dish”, as my mother says. Recognize the plate Mom?

Ingredient origins: Egg – New Hampshire, Vanilla – Madagascar, Brown Sugar – Florida, Corn Syrup – UK, Butter – Maine, Sour Cream – Texas, Baking soda – Who knows?, Walnuts – California, Raisins – California, Chocolate chips – California.

Coconut Curry Brownies (that happen to be Lactose Free)

This idea came to mind the other day when I was trying to think of what to do with some leftover Thai curry paste. We’d had our fill of savory-spicy applications, so I thought using it in something sweet might be interesting. Chocolate takes on spice very well and coconut goes nicely with curry and chocolate, so I decided to develop a brownie recipe using all three.

I also decided to cocofy it, thereby unendairying it. I just made up those words, but what I mean is that in this recipe, typical dairy based baking ingredients are replaced with coconut milk and coconut oil. I chose to do this in order to achieve the rich coconut flavor that complements chocolate so well. The fact that it’s lactose free is a happy and delicious accident.

These turned out to be dense and moist, with a decadent coconut flavor and a mild finish of curry spice. If you’re not into spice in your brownies, you may omit the curry paste. I suppose.

Lactose-Free Coconut Curry Brownies – yields 2-3 dozen, depending on the size of the brownies and the brownie pan.

1 C unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 C coconut oil
1 can (14 ounces) coconut milk, full fat recommended
1 t Thai red curry paste
2 eggs
1 1/2 C sugar
1 C flour
1 C unsweetened, shredded coconut

In a large bowl, combine the coconut oil, cocoa and coconut milk, wetting the cocoa powder (this will prevent a cocoa powder sandstorm when you use the electric beater in the next step).

With an electric beater set to medium beat until smooth. Add the sugar, eggs, curry paste and flour, beating on medium until combined. Stir in shredded coconut.

Pour into a greased, 10 x 13 inch rectangular brownie pan or 9 x 9 inch square brownie pan for higher brownies Bake at 350 degrees for 18-25 minutes for the rectangular pan, or 25-30 minutes for the square pan, until a wooden toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Remove from oven and allow to cool on a rack for at least one hour before cutting into squares.

Ingredient Origins (this time they’re not so local, but at least they’re still keeping with the minimally processed, less than five ingredients, requirement): Equal Exchange cocoa powder – Dominican Republic, by way of the Netherlands, Organic coconut oil – Colombia, Coconut Milk – Thailand, Cage-free organic eggs – New Hampshire, Sugar – unknown, Flour – Vermont, Shredded coconut – Oregon.