Rustic Fudge Brawnies

Ok, I'm definitely not the biggest fan of brownies. Usually brownies are the equivalent of a dry chocolate cake that skips the best part (the frosting.)

But when researching optional recipes to make for my visiting parents (in 4 days :0) from today!!), I happened upon a few brownie recipes that sounded interesting...

Not your typical brownie recipes of packaged-chocolate-flour mix + eggs + water = brownies. Instead, these recipes omitted all flours, eggs, and sugar. The no-bake concept intrigued me and seemed simple enough as one recipe had just 5 ingredients.


So, for my version of no-bake brownies, aka Double Dekker's Rustic Fudge bRAWnies: I used walnuts, dates, pecans, cacao (cocoa) powder, salt, honey, and as one recipe recommends I pressed raw cacao nibs on top. These are extremely healthy!
During the brownie making process, my "test" tasting along the way created a deficit of brownie batter so there wasn't enough to cover the bottom of my 9X3 pan. (The original recipes called for a 8x8 pan but I decided to go for extra thick brownies... which didn't happen even after I made another half batch of brownie mix to compensate for the batter in my tummy.)

I must say I don't really remember what a regular brownie is supposed to taste like in flavor or texture as I haven't had one in ages. But these are pretty tasty. Here are some photos of my bRAWnies.






After scarfing down two large brownies, Jeff said, "If this is what it is like to eat raw, I could go raw everyday!" :0)

Wintery Cinnamon

It seems as if we skipped over autumn entirely. I've heard this could be due to Global Warming but it could just be me and my lack of observation as I slept while other people may have witnessed the vibrant leaves turn and blow away. I must say I missed fall this year. I want Winter to grow on me... so I try and convince myself- "Winter is growing on me," but I'm never sure if it is.

We've decided not to decorate for the holidays this year so I'm going to have to get in the Christmas spirit some other way. Although this year our apartment is sans decoration, our apartment is beginning to feel and smell wintery.

The air is frigid- we try not to turn on our heater too often (to save both money and electricity) so instead we bundle up in long sleeve shirts with hoodies and cozy pajama pants and snuggle together under our fluffy covers when Jeff gets home from work. Often times I fall asleep until late in the evening. This afternoon nap ritual is a favorite of mine.

The scent of the gingerbread coffee I brewed yesterday lingers with hints of freshly baked apple crisp radiating from our oven.
Baking so lifts my spirits. I felt overwhelmed with sadness earlier about not being able to see my family this holiday season and so I decided bake. And now, I have a smile in my soul and on my face... It also helps that the apple crisp will be done right as Jeff gets home from work... I'm surprising him with this treat. If it turns out horribly, at least the apartment smells cinnamony and delicious.



Apple Crisp Recipe

Makes six servings

6 apples cored and sliced
3/4 cup white sugar
2 tablespoons whole wheat pastry flour
5 tablespoons ground cinnamon
1/4 cup water

3/4 cup quick-cooking oats
3/4 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/3 cup butter, melted

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
Place the sliced apples in a glass pan.
Mix the white sugar, 2 tablespoons flour and ground cinnamon together, and sprinkle over apples. Pour water evenly over all.
Combine the oats, 3/4 cups flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda and melted butter together.
Crumble evenly over the apple mixture.
Bake at 325 degrees F for about 45 minutes.

Recipe of the Week: Cookies

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies:
I used to dislike Oatmeal cookies until I came upon this recipe.
Makes 42 cookies



1 cup butter, softened (or 1/2 cup coconut oil and 1/2 cup butter softened)
1 cup brown sugar (OR 1/2 cup honey, 1/2 cup brown sugar (but it can be any combination or just honey)
1/2 cup white sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon rum extract (optional)
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour (OR whole wheat flour or a mixture of both)
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt (I usually omit the salt completely especially if using salted butter)
3 cups old fashioned oats (the original recipe calls for quick oats)
1 cup combined: chopped walnuts, pecans, sliced almonds, pumpkin seeds, flax seeds, sesame seeds etc.
1 cup chocolate chips (I like the mini semi-sweets but have used dark chocolate too!)

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 325
In a large bowl, cream together the butter/coconut oil, brown sugar (and/or honey), and white sugar until smooth.
Beat in eggs one at a time.
Stir in vanilla and rum extracts.
Fold the flour, baking soda, and salt (optional) with the creamed mixture until just blended.
Mix in oats, nut/seed mix, and chocolate chips.
Drop medium spoonfuls onto ungreased baking sheets.
Bake for 10 minutes in the preheated oven.
Allow cookies to cool completely on baking sheet for 5-10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack. This will minimize falling apart.

Baker's Notes:
The original recipe suggests baking at 325 F for 12 minutes. Depending on your oven's reliability and the desired level of chewiness or crunchiness you're trying to achieve, you can decide how long and how hot to bake them.
I usually set them to bake at a little lower than 325 degrees F and because our oven is unreliable I'll check them at 10 minutes and leave them in slightly longer if they're completely moist. However, I often take them out when still gooey and bubbling to get the maximum soft chewiness possible.
We also seem to add more chocolate chips than it calls for :0)

Happy Cookie baking!

Recipe of the week: Potato Leek Soup

I realize that I've already mentioned this recipe
but I can't get over how easy it is with just 5 ingredients!
Yields 2 servings.

Ingredients:
1 and 1/3 cup Organic Chicken Broth
3 Potatoes
1/3 cup Heavy Cream
5 ounces Bacon
1 Leek

Preparation:
Set aside 1 & 1/3rd cup chicken broth
Cube potatoes
Chop leeks into thin slices
Set aside 1/3 cup of heavy cream (in fridge)

Directions:
In a large saucepan, bring chicken Broth and cubed potatoes to a boil.
Reduce heat and cook over medium heat for approximately 35-40 minutes.
Meanwhile, brown Bacon in a large skillet over medium high heat.
Blot bacon and set aside to cool
Reserve the bacon grease in the pan.
Saute the leeks in bacon grease for 8 to 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, slice or crumble bacon into small pieces.
Stir in the leeks, heavy cream and bacon in with the tender potatoes.
Remove from heat.
Serve hot and enjoy!
(Is also excellent served cold the next morning!)

I found the recipe on allrecipes.com one of my favorite sites for cooking tips and ideas. It is such a great website because you can change the serving sizes to suit your family or number of guests.

Unfortunately we gobbled it all up before I could take out my camera... Next time we make it though, I will be sure to capture the deliciousness in a snapshot and post it here for you all to see.

Themes!

As I always seem to have trouble coming up with ideas of things to share here on Double Dekker, I figured I could start themes for each day of the week. Here are my themes:

Week in Review Sunday
Healthful Homemaking Monday
Poetically Tuesday
Book Review Wednesday
Thankfully Thursday
Recipe of the Week Friday
Simply Saturday

Week in Review Sunday: Because every week is special.

Healthful Homemaking Monday: I'm not quite sure what will become of Monday's postings but there are a lot of topics that I have become quite passionate about recently that have to do with the choices that we make on a daily basis that effect our family's well-being.

Poetically Tuesday: As an adult its all too easy to get caught up in the seriousness of life. My ritual of writing poems will be an attempt rekindle my long abandoned creative side. I'd like to attempt to repossess the skill of creativity and this seems just the way to do it!

Wednesday Reader: Reading and life experiences are great ways to accomplish cultural and world exploration. Because my life feels limited in its breadth of experiences lately, reading is a way I can choose to gain knowledge and examine the world without leaving the comforts of my living room! I don't think I'll attempt to read one book a week but when I do finish a book or a chapter I like, I'll write a blurb about it here.

Thankfully Thursday: When I was growing up Thursdays were my least favorite day of the week. It always seemed to rain on Thursdays. It was not yet Friday but it was far enough along in the week that I began to grow weary. Now that it rains everyday here in Portland, I've decided to change my tune about Thursdays and dwell on gratitude instead. Not just because Thanksgiving is around the corner but because its always good to be mindful and abundant in the expression of thankfulness!

Recipe of the Week Friday: Recipe of the week is more for me to share a meal idea from the week so I can keep myself in check. This will help me remember that I need to be creative in the kitchen instead of just serving mac 'n cheese and ramen which have been staples in our home for the past few weeks. It will help me be motivated to make something fun and try something new if I have to share a new recipe on my blog. Also In the Kitchen is already a prominent 'label' on this blog so it should be pretty easy.

Simply Saturday: Simple living is a big idea that weighs on both Jeff's and my hearts. Saturdays will be an ode to minimalism.

Obviously it is important to keep in mind that I am in no way an expert on any of these topics but I am just passionate about them and would like to share snippets from Jeff's and my life together.