Chocolate Cream Couscous Cake

Believe it or not, I used to ask my mom to make this when I was much younger. Always considered a 'good eater' and then vegetarian for about 11 years, I was exposed to some very unique foods at a very early age. This one became a favorite of mine and has since taken center stage at birthday celebrations, bridal showers and, most recently, a girls night dinner. Bon Appetit!










Chocolate Cream Couscous Cake
Adopted from 'Friendly Foods' by Ron Picarski

For the Cake:
3/4 C Pecans
2 1/2 C Water
1 1/2 C Sucanat (A brand name for a variety of  whole cane sugar, this can be found in the baking section of specialty stores)
1/4 C Cocoa
1 C Couscous
1 Tbsp Vanilla Extract

For the Chocolate Cream:
1 Pkg (10 oz) Barley Malt Chocolate Chips ( I substitute a 72% dark chocolate chip)
1 Pkg (approx 10 oz) Firm Tofu
1 Pkg (approx 10 oz) Silken Tofu
3 Tbsp Maple Syrup or Honey (I used a scant 2 Tbsp...taste testing for your personal level of sweetness during the blending process is recommended)

Cake base, filing and toasted pecans (pre grind)

1. Roast the pecan at 300 degrees for 30 minutes.
Cool and grind to the consistency of a coarse meal.

2. In a medium sauce pan stir together water, Sucanat, cocoa     and couscous. Simmer to cook until  thickened (5-10 minutes). Add vanilla to thicken further. 

Spread mixture into a 9" spring form pan.
Sprinkle 1/4C of roasted pecan meal over couscous.

This is the base layer of  your cake.

3. In a small saucepan over low heat melt chocolate chips, stirring constantly.Transfer to a blender. Add tofu and maple  syrup and blend until smooth. Pour chocolate cream over
cake base and top with remaining pecan meal.
(You'll notice in the pictures in this post we've personalized ours by topping it with toasted coconut. All the pecan meal is in the middle layer.)                                                                                          
4. Refrigerate until firm. I refrigerate over night.

Ode to BCB: Marinated Chicken... Perfect for Every Season

For those of you who know Portsmouth, New Hampshire and remember the 90's, you may recall a 'little' culinary hot spot known as BCB, thats Brewer, Cook and Baker.

No longer around, they once had 2 locations, prepared gourmet sandwiches, salads, coffee and desserts as well as offering a carefully edited array of wines, beers, hard to find fine foods, exotic spices and condiments. In short, 'little' may have defined their square footage, but they went BIG in the best ways possible, namely FLAVOR.

So I dedicate this post to Lauren Cramer and  John Seckler whose culinary presence, taste in music and potato knishes are very much missed.

In 1997 a book 'BCB, Our Favorite Recipes' was published and sold at the shop. The meal featured here has become one of my mainstays.

Marinated Chicken with Olives, Capers and Sundried Tomatoes

6 half chicken breasts
1 Tbs garlic, minced
2 Tbs dried oregano
1/2C red wine vinegar
1/2C olive oil
1/2C sundried tomatoes, sliced and soaked in hot water until tender
1/2C black olives
1/2C capers
6 bay leaves
1/2C brown sugar....I simply use a very small handfull
1/2C white wine
1/4C fresh parsley, chopped

In a container (I use a large zip lock storage bag) combine garlic, oregano, vinegar, olive oil, sundried tomatoes, olives, capers and bay leaves.

Add chicken. At this point I seal the bag and toss so that the chicken is coated with all the marinade.

Leave overnight in refrigerator.

To bake, place chicken and marinade in a greased baking dish. Add wine and sprinkle brown sugar over chicken.

Bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees.

You can serve this over egg noodles or rice. I've sidled it up along side baked sweet potato fries and last night, after harvesting my final potatoes from the yard, a pile of roasted blue potatoes, nutty and delicious.
Garnish with parsley.

Falls Little Delicacies

If you’re like me, you live for falls bounty. My personal kryptonite is pumpkin and one of my favorite, quick, easy fixes comes in the form of a moist cake-like cookie. I prefer to think of it as a little piece of heaven.

These will be on the table at ‘Girls Night Out’ tonight at 

Balance, A Women's Gym, 125 Brewery Lane, Portsmouth, NH 4-7.

Come taste for yourself. After all, we don’t just paste ANYTHING here. We like to think of ourselves as highly selective with a dash of ‘oh what the heck’.

SWEET PUMPKIN COOKIES

1 C Butter (I use Earth's Balance Soy Butter and only ¾ C)

1 C Sugar (you can reduce this slightly as well)

1 C Pumpkin puree (canned pumpkin)

1 Egg

1 tsp Pure Vanilla Extract

2 C Flour

1 tsp Baking Powder

½ tsp Baking Soda

1 tsp Cinnamon

¼ tsp Allspice (I go a little heavy here)

½ tsp salt

THE  ADD-INS: 2 Cups total, I like a nut and a treat.

chopped toasted peanuts, walnuts, pecans, dark chocolate chips, raisins, crumbled Health Bar, toasted coconut

Preheat oven to 375

In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar

Add pumpkin, egg, vanilla and blend

In a medium bowl mix together flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, allspice and salt.

Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and mix. I use a hand mixer till it appears light and fluffy.

Stir in your ‘add-ins’

Drop rounded teaspoons on an un-oiled baking sheet.

Bake 10-15 minutes. I err on the side of 10 minutes (gas stove), once cooled they retain that fluffy cloud affect.

'So...what are some good words?'

‘….what are some good words? We need a good word…something memorable…something clever…,’

This was the usual springboard for our numerous conversations, wine and irony flowing equally.

A couple 30-somethings, yet again, innocently pouring a glass, discussing our latest kitchen forays, a new culinary challenge and of course where to dine next . Somehow, the notion of a blog sauntered in so naturally, but as for a name (and there is so much in a name), we were…..oddly, without words.

Us, without words, CRIMINAL!

Sure, we shared a growing lists of options for days, weeks….even months (Zut Alors!) and finally one day, it hit us square in the face and with very little apology. As they say it’s right under your nose and for us, frequently escaping our lips. It was our cheer, our daily reminder, keeping us focused on the prize; the theme that was to be our blogs purpose! The Good Words!

And so, LeBonMots* was born.

Two chicks, each with a little French birth right, and a realization that our conversations are every woman’s conversations; we were about to share our ideas with a much wider audience.

We hope this blog inspires you to indulge your palate, challenge your abilities, push your limits and quit being so lady-like…take a BIGGER bite out of life, after all, it is yours for the taking.

   FOOD     HEALTH     TRAVEL     EXPERIENCE

*Etymology-From French bon mot (“good word”).  Pronunciation- /bɔ̃ mɔ/     Noun-bon mot (plural bons mots or bon mots)

 A clever saying, phrase or witticism; often, a witty riposte in dialogue.