Monday, March 07, 2011

brownie-gianduja cake with
chocolate-gravitas frosting :: recipe

A Jackson-Pollack-esque drizzle of dark chocolate takes the hedonism quotient over the top.

When it comes to eating – and most things in life, really, I believe in the 80/20 rule. I eat uber-healthily about 80% of the time. Eight to ten servings of fresh fruits and vegetables daily. Whole grains.  Healthy oils, in moderation. I eschew animal products. Plus, after some recent health issues, I even macheted caffeine from my diet, and now only enjoy wine on weekends rather than nightly. All this said, when it's time to sin [20%], I want to do it right, hence the creation of this recipe. I made the pictured cake for F-stop's birthday. 

The dictionary defines decadence as "unrestrained or excessive self-indulgence," and that's also a good description for this cake: two dense, brownie-inspired layers sandwiched together with vegan Nutella (aka "gianduja"), then iced liberally with a chocolate-espresso frosting, finished with a drizzle of best-quality melted dark chocolate. You might actually experience a sugar low just from looking at the picture. The full recipe will appear in the new cookbook, but I've included the Chocolate-Gravitas Frosting recipe below.


Beater-licking good.

Chocolate-Gravitas Frosting

• 1 stick plus 2 T Earth Balance

• 4 cups powdered sugar, sifted

• Up to ½ cup espresso (You can just use coffee or soy milk, but you’ll miss out on the gravitas that comes with espresso)

• ¾ cup cocoa
• Pinch salt

Makes enough for one layer cake or about 18 cupcakes

1. Cream together Earth Balance and cocoa

2. Alternate adding powdered sugar and liquid, about ½ cup at a time. Mix well until spreadable and no lumps remain.



15 comments:

Bianca said...

You had me at vegan nutella. And I stand by your 80/20 philosophy....except I'm more 60/40 (60% healthy, 40% junk food).

MeloMeals said...

Oh yeah! That looks amazing!

Sarah Creighton said...

Um...yum. That's all I can say!

Sarah
htpp://veggie-kids.blogspot.com/

Millie said...

I don't know what it is about sweets but they always make my mouth watery...YUMMY!

Missy said...

DAMNNNN Look how good that looks! YUM!


Missy
http://throughanindielens.blogspot.com/

Abby Bean said...

I've been trying to decide if I need to break down & buy a kitchen mixer...that pic of yours oozing chocolate may have sealed the dea.

T said...

Oh man, that looks decadent indeed.

Get Skinny, Go Vegan. said...

Craving. Constant Craving. Coffee.
Yum.

urban vegan said...

Abby Bean: You'll never look back. Love mine and use it a lot. The attachments are also fabu.

vko said...

loving the Pollack drizzle...& vegan nutella, that would be too dangerous for me- could probably eat it in one sitting...

Norine said...

That looks awesome! This one will go on my "need to eat before I die" list.

Anonymous said...

This is a brand new Vegan book I think you'd really enjoy. Love your blog!

http://www.amazon.com/118-Degrees-Delicious-Vegan-Recipes/dp/145651069X/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1300758105&sr=8-2

xxMsVeganxx said...

Hi from San Diego.
I wondered around blogs tonight and found yours. I like your style of writing. Keep it up ;-)

Kate Cunningham said...

Oh wow, this looks amazing! I have more of a 60/40 balance at the moment, so decided to make fat-free brownies this week, and they still turned out decadent, ultra rich and delicious.

Ooey-Gooey Coffee Chocolate Brownies - check out the recipe on my blog:

http://ohlalavegan.blogspot.co.uk/2013/05/ooey-gooey-fat-free-coffee-chocolate.html

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