NO-LABOR LABOR DAY CHOCOLATE PUDDING CAKE

I saw this Labor Day recipe in the Portland Monthly a few years ago. I've posted variations on Chocolate Pudding Cake before, but this is a slightly different recipe, and, as you know from reading this blog, I can never have too many chocolate recipes. 

This is a great No-Labor Labor Day Dessert. Decadent and delicious. It's also a great chemistry lesson for the kids -- dry ingredients, water, oven .. and a molten treat! You probably have all the ingredients in your pantry and frig. Serve with whipped cream, ice cream, and/or fruit and nuts.

NO-LABOR LABOR DAY CHOCOLATE PUDDING CAKE

Ingredients
1 cup flour (sifting optional)
3/4 cup sugar
2 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup milk
1 egg
2 Tbsp oil (vegetable or corn oil are fine)
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
2 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa
1 1/4 - 1 1/2 cups boiling water

Directions
Sift dry ingredients together. Mix milk, egg, and oil together in a large bowl. Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients in big bowl. Stir until smooth. Add vanilla to bowl. Pour mixture into baking dish (1 1/2 - 2 quart casserole dish). Mix together additional dry ingredients (brown and white sugars and cocoa) and pour on top of everything already in baking dish. Pour boiling water on top of whole concoction. (No stirring!) Bake at 350 degrees F. for about 45-50 minutes.

HOT CHOCOLATE TOASTED MARSHMALLOW COOKIES: Toasted Marshmallow Day!

Happy Toasted Marshmallow Day! Perfect for Labor Day Weekend! Even if you're not out camping and toasting marshmallows by the fire or making s'mores,  you can still celebrate the day with these Hot Chocolate Toasted Marshmallow Cookies! They're fabulous and easy! Recipe from Ghirardelli Chocolate.  As always, use the ingredients (chocolate!) you like best. 

HOT CHOCOLATE TOASTED MARSHMALLOW COOKIES

INGREDIENTS
3/4 cup Ghirardelli 60% Cacao Bittersweet Chocolate Baking Chips
1 cup plain flour/ all-purpose flour
1 Tablespoon Ghirardelli Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
6 Tablespoons butter, softened
1 cup soft brown sugar
2 small eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 1/4 cups Ghirardelli 60% Cacao Bittersweet Chocolate Baking Chips
16 large marshmallows

DIRECTIONS
Melt chocolate gently in microwave or over pot of simmering water. Set aside to cool.
Sift all of dry ingredients together in bowl and stir together.
Beat butter and sugar together until thick and creamy.
Beat in eggs one by one.
Add in cooled melted chocolate and vanilla extract. Continue beating until ingredients are well mixed.
Fold dry ingredients into mix and fold in chocolate chips until combined.
Scoop cookie with 1 tablespoon scoop (if mix is soft, pop into fridge to stiffen up and make it easier to scoop).
Bake at 350°F for 8 - 9 minutes. Do not overbake as these cookies should be almost brownie-like.
Once baked, pop a marshmallow on top and put it back in oven on broil for 1-2 minutes for a lovely toasted effect.  (or use a mini-torch)

About The Ghirardelli Chocolate Company
The Ghirardelli Chocolate Company is a manufacturer and marketer of premium chocolate products. Incorporated in 1852, Ghirardelli has the richest heritage of any American chocolate company. Ghirardelli continues to honor its heritage to this day. Ghirardelli is one of the few companies in America that controls the entire chocolate manufacturing process, from cocoa bean to finished product. This control over the manufacturing process, combined with Ghirardelli’s proprietary bean blend and unique methods of roasting and processing, ensures that you are rewarded with the high quality and rich products.

King Louie's Banana Boat: Banana Lovers Day

Today is National Banana Lovers Day, and who doesn't love bananas? Well, my grandmother, but that's another story. She never saw one before coming to this country, and she never ate one in her life. 

Anyway, The weather here looks like it will be warm and beautiful for Labor Day, so I thought I'd post this fun recipe for King Louie's Banana Boats from one of my 'Theme" Cookbooks: Cooking with Mickey and Friends by Pat Baird. You'll "go ape" over these. Perfect for the Barbecue -- or oven. They're fun to make with the kids.

Since we barbecue all year round, I often make these on the grill, but you can just as easily follow the directions and make them in the toaster oven.

And, as Mickey reminds us, Bananas are a good source of potassium and carbohydrates. Use a good dark chocolate (broken up) or high quality dark chocolate chips, and you're adding antioxidants. You can make your own marshmallows, too, or not :-) You'll love King Louie's Banana Boats. You'll want to make more than one!

NO BAKE KAHLUA PIE: Perfect for Labor Day Weekend

It's Labor Day so I thought I'd post this simple recipe for a No-Bake Kahlua Pie. I first saw the recipe on Serious Eats (a favorite site). The recipe is from Yvonne Ruperti, author of One Bowl Baking: Simple from Scratch Recipes for Delicious Desserts (2013). Check out the cookbook for more easy chocolate recipes.

No Bake Kahlua Pie

Ingredients
44 chocolate wafers, divided, finely ground (I use Nabisco Famous Wafers)
8 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted
2 Tbsp granulated sugar, divided
Pinch salt
8 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
3/4 tsp powdered gelatin
7 Tbsp Kahlua, divided
3 1/3 cups heavy cream, chilled, divided

Directions
Pulse 36 wafer cookies in food processor until finely ground. Place crumbs in large bowl and stir in melted butter, 1 tsp sugar, and 2 tsp water until thoroughly moistened. Firmly press into bottom and sides of 9-inch pie plate. Pulse remaining 8 cookies until finely ground and set aside.
Place chocolate in large heatproof bowl and melt over a pan of barely simmering water, stirring, until smooth. Remove from heat.
Add 1 Tbsp water to small microwave safe bowl and sprinkle gelatin over top. Let sit 5 minutes to soften. Heat in microwave on high power until just melted, 10 to 20 seconds.
Whisk 6 Tbsp Kahlua into melted chocolate. Whisk in melted gelatin.
Whip 2 1/3 cups cream with 1 Tbsp sugar to medium peaks. Fold cream into chocolate in 3 batches, until just combined. Gently fold in reserved chocolate wafer crumbs. Pour into pie shell and chill until set, about 3 hours.
Whip remaining cup cream with remaining 2 tsp sugar to soft peak. Fold in remaining Tbsp coffee liquor. Serve on side.

EASY BLACKBERRY CHOCOLATE CHIP PIE for Labor Day Weekend

Labor Day Weekend. When I was growing up that Labor Day weekend meant the last weekend before school started. We'd go down the shore or up to the mountains, or just kick back at a neighborhood barbecue. Sometimes we'd go to the country and pick blackberries for jam and pies. When I moved to California, I found blackberries everywhere at this time of year -- by the roadside, in the fields, and later in my own backyard! They were a bit of a bramble, prickly bushes, but the blackberries were, oh so, sweet and plentiful!

I used to make an awesome Blackberry Apple Pie, but since this is a Chocolate blog, and this is Labor Day Weekend, I'm recommending this easy and delicious Blackberry Chocolate Chip Pie. I adapted a recipe I found at Allrecipes. com, and there was a caveat with the original: "Adjust the ratio of berries and chocolate chips to suit your preferences." Well, that's wise, so you might have to make it several times, just to get it right.

EASY BLACKBERRY CHOCOLATE CHIP PIE

Ingredients
1 (15 ounce) package pastry for a 9 inch double crust pie (I use Trader Joe's pie crusts if I don't make my own)
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup all-purpose flour 
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
4 cups blackberries
1/2 cup dark chocolate chips or chopped chocolate
1/2 Tbsp lemon juice

Directions
Preheat oven to 425 degrees
Place one pie crust in bottom of 9 inch pie plate.
In bowl, mix sugar, flour, and cinnamon. Gently stir in blackberries and chocolate chips. Sprinkle with lemon juice. Transfer to pie crust in pie plate.
Put second pie crust on top, and secure to bottom crust by pressing with fork, or fluting with fingers. Bake 35 minutes in preheated oven, until top is golden brown. Cool slightly before slicing.

HOT CHOCOLATE TOASTED MARSHMALLOW COOKIES: National Toasted Marshmallow Day!

Happy Toasted Marshmallow Day! Perfect for Labor Day Weekend! Even if you're not out camping and toasting marshmallows by the fire, you can still celebrate the day with these Hot Chocolate Toasted Marshmallow Cookies! They're fabulous and easy! Recipe from Ghirardelli Chocolate.  

HOT CHOCOLATE TOASTED MARSHMALLOW COOKIES

INGREDIENTS
3/4 cup Ghirardelli 60% Cacao Bittersweet Chocolate Baking Chips
1 cup plain flour/ all-purpose flour
1 Tablespoon Ghirardelli Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
6 Tablespoons butter, softened
1 cup soft brown sugar
2 small eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 1/4 cups Ghirardelli 60% Cacao Bittersweet Chocolate Baking Chips
16 large marshmallows

DIRECTIONS
Melt chocolate gently in microwave or over pot of simmering water. Set aside to cool.
Sift all of dry ingredients together in bowl and stir together.
Beat butter and sugar together until thick and creamy.
Beat in eggs one by one.
Add in cooled melted chocolate and vanilla extract. Continue beating until ingredients are well mixed.
Fold dry ingredients into mix and fold in chocolate chips until combined.
Scoop cookie with 1 tablespoon scoop (if mix is soft, pop into fridge to stiffen up and make it easier to scoop).
Bake at 350°F for 8 - 9 minutes. Do not overbake as these cookies should be almost brownie-like.
Once baked, pop a marshmallow on top and put it back in oven on broil for 1-2 minutes for a lovely toasted effect.  (or use a mini-torch)

About The Ghirardelli Chocolate Company
The Ghirardelli Chocolate Company is a manufacturer and marketer of premium chocolate products. Incorporated in 1852, Ghirardelli has the richest heritage of any American chocolate company. Ghirardelli continues to honor its heritage to this day. Ghirardelli is one of the few companies in America that controls the entire chocolate manufacturing process, from cocoa bean to finished product. This control over the manufacturing process, combined with Ghirardelli’s proprietary bean blend and unique methods of roasting and processing, ensures that you are rewarded with the high quality and rich products.

LABOR DAY TRIPLE CHOCOLATE FUDGE CAKE: Labor Day!

Happy Labor Day! Instead of posting chocolate barbecue recipes today, I thought I'd post this Retro Recipe for Labor Day Triple Fudge Cake from Betty Crocker's Party Book, copyright 1960. The Party Book is all about being a good 'hostess' with fun, if somewhat dated, with recipes for most holidays: "More than 500 recipes, menus and how-to-do-it tips for festive occasions the year 'round."

So for Labor Day, make this simple Labor Day Triple Fudge Cake, virtually labor-free.

NO-LABOR LABOR DAY CHOCOLATE PUDDING CAKE

I saw this Labor Day recipe from the Portland Monthly a few years ago. I've posted variations on Chocolate Pudding Cake before, but this is a slightly different recipe, and, as you know from reading this blog, I can never have too many recipes. This is a great No-Labor Labor Day Dessert. Decadent and delicious. It's also a great chemistry lesson for the kids -- dry ingredients, water, oven .. and a molten treat! You probably have all the ingredients in your pantry and frig. Serve with whipped cream, ice cream, and/or fruit and nuts.

NO-LABOR LABOR DAY CHOCOLATE PUDDING CAKE

Ingredients
1 cup flour (sifting optional)
3/4 cup sugar
2 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup milk
1 egg
2 Tbsp oil (vegetable or corn oil are fine)
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
2 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa
1 1/4 - 1 1/2 cups boiling water

Directions
Sift dry ingredients together. Mix milk, egg, and oil together in a large bowl. Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients in big bowl. Stir until smooth. Add vanilla to bowl. Pour mixture into baking dish (1 1/2 - 2 quart casserole dish). Mix together additional dry ingredients (brown and white sugars and cocoa) and pour on top of everything already in baking dish. Pour boiling water on top of whole concoction. (No stirring!) Bake at 350 degrees F. for about 45-50 minutes.

EASY BLACKBERRY CHOCOLATE CHIP PIE: Labor Day Weekend

Labor Day Weekend. When I was growing up that meant the last weekend before school started. We'd go down the shore or up to the mountains, or just kick back at a neighborhood barbecue. Sometimes we'd go to the country and pick blackberries for jam and pies. When I moved to California, I found blackberries everywhere at this time of year -- by the roadside and later in my own backyard! They were a bit of a bramble. Prickly bushes, but the blackberries were oh so sweet and plentiful!

I used to make an awesome Blackberry Apple Pie, but since this is a Chocolate blog, and this is Labor Day Weekend, I'm recommending this easy and delicious Blackberry Chocolate Chip Pie. I adapted a recipe I found at Allrecipes. com, and there was a caveat with the original: "Adjust the ratio of berries and chocolate chips to suit your preferences." Well, that's wise, so you might have to make it several times, just to get it right.

EASY BLACKBERRY CHOCOLATE CHIP PIE

Ingredients
1 (15 ounce) package pastry for a 9 inch double crust pie (I use Trader Joe's pie crusts if I don't make my own)
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup all-purpose flour 
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
4 cups blackberries
1/2 cup dark chocolate chips or chopped chocolate
1/2 Tbsp lemon juice

Directions
Preheat oven to 425 degrees
Place one pie crust in bottom of 9 inch pie plate.
In bowl, mix sugar, flour, and cinnamon. Gently stir in blackberries and chocolate chips. Sprinkle with lemon juice. Transfer to pie crust in pie plate.
Put second pie crust on top, and secure to bottom crust by pressing with fork, or fluting with fingers. Bake 35 minutes in preheated oven, until top is golden brown. Cool slightly before slicing.

NO BAKE KAHLUA PIE: Labor Day

It's Labor Day Weekend, and the temperature in Northern California is going to hit triple digits. Not a weekend to be baking. So I thought I'd post this simple recipe for a No-Bake Kahlua Pie. I first saw the recipe on Serious Eats (a favorite site). The recipe is from Yvonne Ruperti, author of One Bowl Baking: Simple from Scratch Recipes for Delicious Desserts (2013). Check out the cookbook for more easy chocolate recipes.

No Bake Kahlua Pie

Ingredients
44 chocolate wafers, divided, finely ground (I use Nabisco Famous Wafers)
8 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted
2 Tbsp granulated sugar, divided
Pinch salt
8 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
3/4 tsp powdered gelatin
7 Tbsp Kahlua, divided
3 1/3 cups heavy cream, chilled, divided

Directions
Pulse 36 wafer cookies in food processor until finely ground. Place crumbs in large bowl and stir in melted butter, 1 tsp sugar, and 2 tsp water until thoroughly moistened. Firmly press into bottom and sides of 9-inch pie plate. Pulse remaining 8 cookies until finely ground and set aside.
Place chocolate in large heatproof bowl and melt over a pan of barely simmering water, stirring, until smooth. Remove from heat.
Add 1 Tbsp water to small microwave safe bowl and sprinkle gelatin over top. Let sit 5 minutes to soften. Heat in microwave on high power until just melted, 10 to 20 seconds.
Whisk 6 Tbsp Kahlua into melted chocolate. Whisk in melted gelatin.
Whip 2 1/3 cups cream with 1 Tbsp sugar to medium peaks. Fold cream into chocolate in 3 batches, until just combined. Gently fold in reserved chocolate wafer crumbs. Pour into pie shell and chill until set, about 3 hours.
Whip remaining cup cream with remaining 2 tsp sugar to soft peak. Fold in remaining Tbsp coffee liquor. Serve on side.

WHITE CHOCOLATE ANGEL FOOD CAKE: White After Labor Day!

White after Labor Day? Yes, when it's White Chocolate Angel Food Cake. Here's a great recipe from Godiva Chocolate. This is perfect for those warm early Fall days.

White Chocolate Angel Food Cake with Whipped Cream and Fresh Berries

Cake:
1 1/2 cups sifted confectioners’ sugar
1 cup sifted cake flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups egg whites, at room temperature (about 11 to 12 large eggs)
1 1/2 teaspoons cream of tartar
1 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 bars (1.5 ounces each) Godiva Ivory Chocolate, grated or finely chopped

Whipped Cream:
2 cups heavy cream, chilled
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Berries:
1 cup fresh red raspberries
1 cup fresh blueberries
1 cup fresh strawberries, sliced
1/2 cup fresh blackberries
White chocolate curls 

Make The Cake:
Position oven rack in lower third of oven. Heat oven to 350°F.
Sift together confectioners sugar, cake flour, and salt onto a sheet of waxed paper.
Place egg whites in clean, dry bowl of electric mixer. Beat egg whites at medium-low speed until frothy. Add cream of tartar and beat at medium speed until soft peaks form. Gradually add granulated sugar in steady stream, beating just until whites are thick and form slightly stiff peaks. (Do not over-beat)
Gently fold in 1/3 of sifted dry ingredients over whites just until dry ingredients are moistened. Fold in remaining dry ingredients with vanilla and grated white chocolate in two additional batches.
Gently pour batter into ungreased 10" angel food or tube pan, spreading evenly. Tap gently on counter to remove any air bubbles. Bake 35 minutes or until top is firm and springs back when lightly touched. Invert pan on a large bottle (such as wine bottle or olive oil bottle) and cool completely.
To remove cake from pan, run long knife or thin metal spatula around outside edge of cake and gently remove side portion of pan. Then, run knife around inside of center tube, loosen bottom of cake with long knife or thin metal spatula and remove cake from remaining portion of pan. Place on cake plate; cover with plastic wrap if not serving immediately.

Make Whipped Cream:
Combine heavy cream and granulated sugar in a medium, chilled bowl. Beat at medium speed with electric mixer until soft peaks form; whisk in vanilla.
Place sweetened whipping cream in refrigerator until ready to serve cake, up to 2 hours.
Combine berries in a medium bowl and toss lightly.

Assembly:
Cut cake with serrated knife using a sawing motion. Serve with sweetened whipped cream and berry mixture. Garnish with white chocolate curls.

NO-LABOR LABOR DAY CHOCOLATE PUDDING CAKE for Labor Day

I saw this Labor Day recipe from the Portland Monthly a few years ago. I've posted variations on Chocolate Pudding Cake before, but this is a slightly different recipe, and, as you know from reading this blog, I can never have too many recipes. This is a great No-Labor Labor Day Dessert. Decadent and delicious. It's also a great chemistry lesson for the kids -- dry ingredients, water, oven .. and a molten treat! You probably have all the ingredients in your pantry and frig. Serve with whipped cream, ice cream, and/or fruit and nuts.

NO-LABOR LABOR DAY CHOCOLATE PUDDING CAKE

Ingredients
1 cup flour (sifting optional)
3/4 cup sugar
2 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup milk
1 egg
2 Tbsp oil (vegetable or corn oil are fine)
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
2 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa
1 1/4 - 1 1/2 cups boiling water

Directions
Sift dry ingredients together. Mix milk, egg, and oil together in a large bowl. Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients in big bowl. Stir until smooth. Add vanilla to bowl. Pour mixture into baking dish (1 1/2 - 2 quart casserole dish). Mix together additional dry ingredients (brown and white sugars and cocoa) and pour on top of everything already in baking dish. Pour boiling water on top of whole concoction. (No stirring!) Bake at 350 degrees F. for about 45-50 minutes.

NO BAKE KAHLUA PIE for Labor Day

It's Labor Day Weekend, and the temperature in Northern California is going to hit triple digits. Not a weekend to be baking. So I thought I'd post this simple recipe for a No-Bake Kahlua Pie. I first saw the recipe on Serious Eats (a favorite site). The recipe is from Yvonne Ruperti, author of One Bowl Baking: Simple from Scratch Recipes for Delicious Desserts (2013). Check out the cookbook for more easy chocolate recipes.

No Bake Kahlua Pie

Ingredients
44 chocolate wafers, divided, finely ground (I use Nabisco Famous Wafers)
8 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted
2 Tbsp granulated sugar, divided
Pinch salt
8 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
3/4 tsp powdered gelatin
7 Tbsp Kahlua, divided
3 1/3 cups heavy cream, chilled, divided

Directions
Pulse 36 wafer cookies in food processor until finely ground. Place crumbs in large bowl and stir in melted butter, 1 tsp sugar, and 2 tsp water until thoroughly moistened. Firmly press into bottom and sides of 9-inch pie plate. Pulse remaining 8 cookies until finely ground and set aside.
Place chocolate in large heatproof bowl and melt over a pan of barely simmering water, stirring, until smooth. Remove from heat.
Add 1 Tbsp water to small microwave safe bowl and sprinkle gelatin over top. Let sit 5 minutes to soften. Heat in microwave on high power until just melted, 10 to 20 seconds.
Whisk 6 Tbsp Kahlua into melted chocolate. Whisk in melted gelatin.
Whip 2 1/3 cups cream with 1 Tbsp sugar to medium peaks. Fold cream into chocolate in 3 batches, until just combined. Gently fold in reserved chocolate wafer crumbs. Pour into pie shell and chill until set, about 3 hours.
Whip remaining cup cream with remaining 2 tsp sugar to soft peak. Fold in remaining Tbsp coffee liquor. Serve on side.

LABOR DAY TRIPLE FUDGE CAKE

Happy Labor Day! Instead of posting chocolate barbecue rub recipes today, I thought I'd post this Retro Recipe for Labor Day Triple Fudge Cake from Betty Crocker's Party Book, copyright 1960. The Party Book is all about being a good 'hostess' with fun, if somewhat dated, with recipes for most holidays: "More than 500 recipes, menus and how-to-do-it tips for festive occasions the year 'round."

So for Labor Day, make this simple Labor Day Triple Fudge Cake, virtually labor-free.

CHOCOLATE RICOTTA ICEBOX CAKE for Labor Day!

This Chocolate Ricotta Icebox Cake is perfect for Labor Day. Recipe adapted from Martha Stewart (2006), this Icebox Cake is great to make for a cookout. It's egg-less, so no worries about raw eggs in this dessert. Let your refrigerator do the baking! This cake is labor and egg free!

Love this Retro Refrigerator Ad from the 30s. I imagine your 'icebox' is a bit more up-to-date.

Chocolate Ricotta Icebox Cake

Ingredients
14 ounces dark chocolate (55-70% cacoa) - do not use chocolate chips
30 ounces part-skim ricotta cheese, room temperature
3/4 cup heavy cream
9 ounces chocolate wafers

Directions

Prepare pan:
Line 9″ springform pan with plastic wrap (or waxpaper) so that it completely covers bottom and sides of pan. Allow 4″ overhang over the sides of the pan (you'll fold this over the top the cake as it chills).

Make Chocolate Ricotta Mixture:
Break 12 ounces of chocolate into pieces.
Place in heatproof medium bowl set over pan of simmering water. Cook, stirring occasionally, until chocolate has melted, 8 to 10 minutes.
In food processor, blend ricotta until very smooth, about 1 minute, scraping down sides of bowl.
Add warm chocolate; blend until smooth.
In large bowl, beat cream until stiff peaks form.
With a rubber spatula, gently fold in chocolate-ricotta mixture.

Assemble cake:
Arrange half the cookies in an overlapping pattern to cover bottom of pan. Spoon half the chocolate-ricotta mixture on top of cookies; smooth top. Cover with remaining cookies; top with remaining chocolate-ricotta mixture, and smooth top.
Cover with plastic wrap; refrigerate at least 6 hours and up to 2 days.
Before serving, using a vegetable peeler, shave remaining 2 ounces chocolate over top of cake (or just eat the two ounces of chocolate)

TRIPLE FUDGE CAKE FOR LABOR DAY: Retro Party Cookbook Recipe

Happy Labor Day! Instead of posting chocolate barbecue rub recipes today, I thought I'd post this Retro Recipe for Labor Day Triple Fudge Cake from Betty Crocker's Party Book, copyright 1960. The Party Book is all about being a good 'hostess' with fun, if somewhat dated, recipes for most holidays: "More than 500 recipes, menus and how-to-do-it tips for festive occasions the year 'round."

So to celebrate Labor Day, make this simple Labor Day Triple Fudge Cake, virtually labor-free.

NO-LABOR CHOCOLATE PUDDING CAKE: LABOR DAY

I saw this Labor Day recipe from the Portland Monthly a few years ago. I've posted variations on Chocolate Pudding Cake before, but this is a slightly different recipe, and, as you know from reading this blog, I can never have too many recipes. This is a great No-Labor Labor Day Dessert. Decadent and delicious. Make this recipe with the kids. It's a great chemistry lesson -- dry ingredients, water, oven..and a molten treat! You probably have all the ingredients in your pantry and frig. Serve with whipped cream, ice cream, and/or fruit and nuts.

NO-LABOR LABOR DAY CHOCOLATE PUDDING CAKE

Ingredients
1 cup flour (sifting optional)
3/4 cup sugar
2 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup milk
1 egg
2 Tbsp oil (vegetable or corn oil are fine)
1 tsp Madagascar vanilla
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
2 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa
1 1/4 - 1 1/2 cups boiling water

Directions
Sift dry ingredients together. Mix milk, egg, and oil together in a large bowl. Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients in big bowl. Stir until smooth. Add vanilla to bowl. Pour mixture into baking dish (1 1/2 - 2 quart casserole dish). Mix together additional dry ingredients (brown and white sugars and cocoa) and pour on top of everything already in baking dish. Pour boiling water on top of whole concoction. (No stirring!) Bake at 350 degrees F. for about 45-50 minutes.

Labor Day Triple Fudge Cake: Retro Holiday Recipe

Happy Labor Day! Instead of posting chocolate barbecue rub recipes today, I thought I'd post this Retro Recipe for Labor Day Triple Fudge Cake from Betty Crocker's Party Book, copyright 1960. The Party Book is all about being a good 'hostess' with fun, if somewhat dated, recipes for most holidays: "More than 500 recipes, menus and how-to-do-it tips for festive occasions the year 'round."

So to celebrate Labor Day, make this simple Labor Day Triple Fudge Cake, virtually labor-free.

No Bake Kahlua Pie for Labor Day

It's Labor Day Weekend, and the temperature in Northern California is going to hit triple digits. Not a weekend to be baking. So I thought I'd post this simple recipe for a No-Bake Kahlua Pie. I first saw the recipe on Serious Eats (a favorite site). The recipe is from Yvonne Ruperti, author of One Bowl Baking: Simple from Scratch Recipes for Delicious Desserts (2013). Check out the cookbook for more easy chocolate recipes.

No Bake Kahlua Pie

Ingredients
44 chocolate wafers, divided, finely ground (I use Nabisco Famous Wafers)
8 Tbsp sweet butter, melted
2 Tbsp granulated sugar, divided
Pinch salt
8 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
3/4 tsp powdered gelatin
7 Tbsp Kahlua, divided
3 1/3 cups heavy cream, chilled, divided

Directions
Pulse 36 wafer cookies in food processor until finely ground. Place crumbs in large bowl and stir in melted butter, 1 tsp sugar, and 2 tsp water until thoroughly moistened. Firmly press into bottom and sides of 9-inch pie plate. Pulse remaining 8 cookies until finely ground and set aside.
Place chocolate in large heatproof bowl and melt over a pan of barely simmering water, stirring, until smooth. Remove from heat.
Add 1 Tbsp water to small microwave safe bowl and sprinkle gelatin over top. Let sit 5 minutes to soften. Heat in microwave on high power until just melted, 10 to 20 seconds.
Whisk 6 Tbsp Kahlua into melted chocolate. Whisk in melted gelatin.
Whip 2 1/3 cups cream with 1 Tbsp sugar to medium peaks. Fold cream into chocolate in 3 batches, until just combined. Gently fold in reserved chocolate wafer crumbs. Pour into pie shell and chill until set, about 3 hours.
Whip remaining cup cream with remaining 2 tsp sugar to soft peak. Fold in remaining Tbsp coffee liquor. Serve on side.

Labor Day Chocolate Ricotta Icebox Cake

Chocolate Ricotta Icebox Cake is perfect for Labor Day. Recipe adapted from Martha Stewart (2006), this Icebox Cake is great to make for a cookout. It's egg-less, so no worries about raw eggs in this dessert. Let your refrigerator do the baking! This cake is labor and egg free!

Love this Retro Refrigerator Ad from the 30s. I imagine your 'icebox' is a bit more up-to-date.

Chocolate Ricotta Icebox Cake

Ingredients
14 ounces dark chocolate (55-70% cacoa) - do not use chocolate chips
30 ounces part-skim ricotta cheese, room temperature
3/4 cup heavy cream
9 ounces chocolate wafers

Directions

Prepare pan:
Line 9″ springform pan with plastic wrap (or waxpaper) so that it completely covers bottom and sides of pan. Allow 4″ overhang over the sides of the pan (you'll fold this over the top the cake as it chills).

Make Chocolate Ricotta Mixture:
Break 12 ounces of chocolate into pieces.
Place in heatproof medium bowl set over pan of simmering water. Cook, stirring occasionally, until chocolate has melted, 8 to 10 minutes.
In food processor, blend ricotta until very smooth, about 1 minute, scraping down sides of bowl.
Add warm chocolate; blend until smooth.
In large bowl, beat cream until stiff peaks form.
With a rubber spatula, gently fold in chocolate-ricotta mixture.

Assemble cake:
Arrange half the cookies in an overlapping pattern to cover bottom of pan. Spoon half the chocolate-ricotta mixture on top of cookies; smooth top. Cover with remaining cookies; top with remaining chocolate-ricotta mixture, and smooth top.
Cover with plastic wrap; refrigerate at least 6 hours and up to 2 days.
Before serving, using a vegetable peeler, shave remaining 2 ounces chocolate over top of cake (or just eat the two ounces of chocolate)