Avocado Replaces Butter in Banana Avocado Coffee Cake

  

 Avocado Banana Choco-Chip Coffee Cake

As if Avocados didn't have enough incredible things about them, they can also replace the fat in some of our favorite baked goods.

Recently, I was invited to visit an Avocado Grove, enjoy some inventive brunch items using Avocados and even experience picking my own early green Hass right off the tree.

 

Jan DeLyser of the California Avocado Commission was our tour guide and the Farm we visited was Dan and Sue Pinkerton's.

Dan is a scientist, a farmer, a story teller and claims that Sue is the one who keeps it all together.  The trees were heavy with beautiful green orbs and buds (Avocado trees bear fruit for one season and buds for the next year.)

        

After touring the farm, we visited Mission Packing Plant in Oxnard. There the Avocados (900lbs per bin) are cooled, washed, sorted, labeled, temperature ripened and sent out to the stores and distribution centers.  

 

It's important to remember we have choices with all foods and we don't have to just take the first thing placed on a bin in front of us.  California Avocados are worth the extra moment it takes to read the label.  The season is long (March thru October), the fruit is consistent (buttery texture and smooth greens) and the standards are high (to match our own.)

At any point in any day, I am more than happy to eat a California Avocado straight out of the shell with a sprinkle of salt and pepper. Being inspired by the tour and the education, I wanted to develop a recipe that used California Avocados in baked goods.

This Avocado Banana Choco-Chip Coffee cake became the recipe that was made 2 times in one week.  After my teen son and friends devoured the one I left out to cool, I made another one for my post.

 

Since then, I've made a couple more and found they freeze well, too.  That makes a rushed morning even easier; I just pull out a slice and heat in the toaster oven.  Enjoy and look for California Avocados when you shop.

Recipe:  Avocado Banana Choco-Chip Coffee Cake

1/3 cup Walnuts (chopped)

1/3 cup Brown Sugar

1/2 tsp. Cinnamon

1/3 cup Choco Chips

1/2 cup (mashed) California Avocado

1/2 cup Honey

1 Egg

1 cup (mashed) ripe Banana

1 tsp. Vanilla

1/3 cup nonfat Yogurt

1 1/2 cup AP Flour

1 tsp. Baking Powder

1/2 tsp. Baking Soda

1/2 tsp. Salt

1)  Combine nuts, sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl and hold for later.

2)  Cream together the Avocado, Honey, Egg, Banana, Vanilla and Yogurt.

3)  In another bowl, whisk together all dry ingredients (Flour, Baking Powder and Soda, salt), then stir this into the creamed ingredients until blended well.

4)  Oil and dust with flour an 8x8 inch baking pan.  Sprinkle half of the nut mixture into the bottom of the prepared pan, then spoon half of the batter on top of that.

5)  Sprinkle the remainder of the nut mixture over the batter and then spoon the remainder of the batter over that.

6)  Bake in a preheated 350F oven 40-45 minutes or until cake tests done.  Cool in the pan for a few minutes.  

 

This can be served in the pan, or inverted onto a plate for cutting, serving or freezing. 

Click here to see more Avocado information and recipes from the California Avocado Commission

Nutella Stracciatella Scones

Celebrating World Nutella Day

with

Nutella Stracciatella Scones

 

I thought I didn't like scones.  I thought they were dry hockey pucks that required a lot of tea or coffee to get down without coughing. 

As it turns out, there are just a lot of bad scones out there. It doesn't have to be that way.  They can be flaky without being dry.  Tender without falling apart. It just takes the right ratio of dry and wet ingredients with a balance of butter or oil and some care to not over work the dough.

 

Now, I love scones.  I'm kinda obsessed with them.  I probably make various kinds of scones a couple times a week, just to experiment with the flavors and add-ins.

You may be wondering what I do with all those scones every week?  Well, first - I created a recipe that makes a reasonable amount.  I cut them into small scones that make perfect little breakfast, tea, or snack bites. 

And second, I freeze them, then bag them and cook them as needed.

 

That part has become a life saver in my family.  I label how to cook them and anyone in the house, even visiting friends, know they can just take one out and pop it into the toaster oven and have a hot, fresh, tasty scone within 12 minutes.

 It has made breakfast time for my teenage son.... well, he eats breakfast now.  That's amazing enough, right?

Now, the Nutella part -  Yes, there are other Nutella scone recipes out there, but it's the technique in this that makes it special and preserves a deep Nutella flavor.  The Nutella is not just mixed in, and soaked up which often leaves the dough heavy.  The Nutella is rubbed into the dry ingredients, like you would do butter. 

 

This creates little pellets of chocolate hazelnut goodness and gives it stracciatelle (little shreds in Italian) appearance.

 

This also allows the Nutella to stay moist and hold on to its own flavor.

 There's nothing difficult here, no equipment needed, not even a mixer.  You quickly rub the Nutella in with your finger-tips, right after you rub the butter cubes in with your finger-tips.

These have become a hit at many catered brunches and teas, but nobody loves them more than my husband (who likes to claim he'll  "make the fresh scones for us this morning" as he takes them out of the freezer.) 

RECIPE: Nutella Stracciatella Scones-
2 cups AP Flour
1/2 cup Yellow Corn Meal
1/3 cup Brown Sugar
1/4 tsp. Baking Soda
1 Tbls. Baking Powder
1/2 tsp. Salt
6 ounces Unsalted Butter (cold, cut in small cubes)
1/2 cup Nutella
1 egg
1/2 cup Ricotta Cheese
1/3 cup Heavy Cream

1)  In a bowl, whisk dry ingredients (flour through salt) together.
2)  Run butter cubes into the flour mixture with your finger-tips until the butter is generally the size of peas.
3)  Add the Nutella and also rub into the dry ingredients with finger tips, working quickly until fairly evenly distributed.  Do not over-work.
4)  In another bowl, whisk together the egg, ricotta and cream.
5)  Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour in the wet ingredients.  Toss with a fork to combine.

6)  Empty the dough onto a parchment covered work board and gather into a large ball that holds together.
7)  Don't over-work the dough, but knead just a couple times to make sure it's holding evenly.  Divide the dough into 4 even parts (less if you want bigger scones.)
8)  Press each part into a circle that is about 3/4 inch thick.
9)  Cut the circle in half across, then cut each half into 3 even triangles.

10)  Place the mini-scones on a lined baking sheet about an inch apart.  These can be frozen for later and bagged, or baked now.  Bake in a preheated 400F oven for 10-15 minutes depending on size of number of scones.
**optional - before baking, sprinkle with seasoned sugar and/or milk glaze.

World Nutella Day was started by 

 Ms Adventures in Italy,and 

Bleeding Espresso. 

Check out the site for hundreds of Nutella recipes :D

Chocolate Chip Scones and Campblogaway

I am not a morning person, but I love breakfast.  What's a gal to do?  Make these flaky Chocolate Chip Scones, (freeze them before baking) and just pop one in the oven for 15 minutes while making my morning coffee.  

Of course, no one is going to blame me for having one with an afternoon tea, or a midnight snack while watching a taped segment of Shark Tank, either.  

The key to these flaky scones is in the ingredients.  Using good chocolate makes a huge difference.  Using a great quality butter is an absolute.  Many of the European butters are wonderful, and for mine I used Kerrygold butter.

I'm not kidding when I tell you, Kerrygold is luscious and it will make you butter a scone.  I know my friends from "ye ol'London-town" are gasping out loud at the idea of using butter on a scone, but I couldn't help it.  I was taking the pictures for this post, the scones were fresh, hot out of the oven, the Kerrygold package was sitting there and then I opened it. 

A moment later I had smeared it on the inside of my scone and eaten half of it while moaning in a butter induced dream. 

I learned a lot about Kerrygold butter and cheeses while I was at sleep-away camp.  It wasn't when I was a kid, I went to camp last week.  Crazy, right?  It's called CampBlogAway and it's a blast.  This was my second year (see last year's post here for Avocado Bacon Margarita.)

I slept in a cabin with a FoodBlogging buddy:

Cheryl from BlackGirlChefsWhites.com

I took walks in the beautiful San Bernardino enclave known as de Benneville Pines-

We toasted S'mores over the fireplace at night.

Patti (WorthTheWhisk & Creator of CampBlogAway), Priscilla (She'sCookin), Dara (CookinCanuck) with Rachel (LaFujiMama)

CampBlogAway is a chance for Foodbloggers to hangout with other peeps who like to talk/write/photograph/eat and marvel over food.

There were many wonderful sponsors:

Wente Wines

Roland Food

National Honey Board, National Mango Board, Kerrygold Butter and Cheese

Paperchef Products

 We had beautiful salads made by Nancy of Melissa's Produce.

Nancy, Stacy, Dorothy (Shockingly Delicious)

We had breakout sessions where other bloggers lead discussions on topics of interest (like Sarah from AverageBetty.com lead a session on Video.)

Throughout the day we also had speakers (people with experience in journalism, internet matters and techniques) telling their personal stories of growth and gladly answering our questions.  

It's not a stuffy conference where everyone is straining to hear or see the screen.  It's casual.  It's friendly.  It's camp!  

If you have "camp envy", go to CampBlogAway.com and get ready for next year's camp on Memorial Weekend, 2013.

If you have "Scones made with butter so good it will make you butter a scone-envy", make these:

Recipe:  Chocolate Chip Scones

1 1/4 cup Flour (plus more for board)

1 Tablespoon Sugar

1 Teaspoon Baking Powder

1/2 Teaspoon Salt

2 oz. (4 Tablespoons Butter, preferably Kerrygold) cold, cut into small cubes

1 Egg

2 Tablespoon Sour Cream

2 Tablespoon Milk

1/3 Cup Chocolate Chips

1)  In a bowl, whisk together Flour, Sugar, Baking Powder and salt.

2)  Toss in the Kerrygold Butter cubes and using your fingertips, rub the cubes into the flour just to break them up a bit.

3)  Add the Chocolate Chips into dry ingredients and toss to coat.

4)  In a separate bowl, whisk the Egg, then whisk in Sour Cream and Milk.

5)  Using a fork, stir the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients just until combined.

6)  Pull the dough together with your hands and place on a well floured board.  Roll over once to coat with flour, pat into a disk (approx. 8 inches round).

7)  Cut into fourths, then cut each fourth in half to make 8 small triangle shaped scones in total.

8)  Place on a parchment covered baking sheet and bake in a preheated 375-400F oven for 18-20 minutes.

***These can also be frozen on the tray before baking, then bagged and kept in the freezer for several weeks.  Take out as needed, place on a baking sheet or toaster oven tray and bake for 20 minutes in a preheated 375-400F oven.***

Wheat Berry Cinnamon Porridge – Superfood Breakfast

Wheat Berry Cinnamon Porridge – Superfood Breakfast

When I wake up in the morning, I’m hungry. Maybe, like my dog, I phantom-chase teasing squirrels while I’m sleeping, working up a giant appetite. My morning hunger is calmed with a flavorful healthy green smoothie, or a light whipped yogurt splash, but honestly what I really want is a big fat muffin.

My compromise is grain. I’ve been experimenting with whole grains for breakfast and learning about a few I’ve never cooked. I’ve loved Quinoa for a while, Oatmeal since childhood, but this week I’ve fallen in love with Wheat Berries. Ever hear of them? They look a bit like Barley, but darker and harder. Most of us have eaten them only after they’ve been ground up, hulls removed and turned into flour.

Wheat Berries are the actual seed from which the wheat plant grows. It has three parts: the endosperm, the bran, and the germ. Each part has it’s own super nutrients, vitamins and fiber. A lot of those qualities get pounded out by the time we use the flour for bread.

The kernels are so easy to cook: Pour them into a pot, add two and half times the water, stock, soup or milk, bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat and simmer for about 45 minutes and fluff with a fork. For this recipe I used a package of Wheat Berries that had been par-boiled and it only took 15 minutes to prepare.

While they were cooking, I already knew I had found a new favorite. The whole kitchen became cozy and the fragrance was like roasting nuts. When they were done, I scooped some out into a container to save for a savory dinner or salad (cooked Wheat Berries can last in the refrigerator for several days.)

Then, I filled a bowl with the rest of the warm Wheat Berries, poured in the milk I had infused with a cinnamon stick, vanilla and honey, and topped it with toasted pecans and chopped dried apricots. I ate my breakfast by the window, watching my dog being taunted by those pesky squirrels and dreamed of all the ways I was going to use Wheat Berries in the future.

Recipe: Wheat Berry Cinnamon Porridge

1 cup Wheat Berries

2 ½ cups water or Vegetable Stock

salt

1 cup Non-fat Milk

1 Cinnamon stick

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 Tablespoons Honey

¼ cup Chopped Pecans (toasted)

¼ cup Dried Apricots (chopped)

1) In a deep sauce pan, add the Wheat Berries, water or stock and season with salt.

2) Bring to a boil, cover and reduce to a simmer.

3) Cook for about 45 minutes, remove from heat and fluff with a fork. Allow to sit for a few minutes to soak up the remaining liquid. (*If using par-boiled Wheat Berries cooking time is reduced to 15 minutes.)

4) While the Wheat Berries are cooking, pour the milk into a small saucepan with the Vanilla and a Cinnamon stick. Bring to almost a simmer, remove, stir in the honey and cover to allow the milk to infuse.

5) To serve: spoon the Wheat Berries into a bowl, discard the cinnamon stick and pour in a desired amount of spiced milk, top with pecans and apricots.