Slow Cooker Chocolate Cake

I have to apologize right off the bat for this recipe. You definitely should not make it...because it will ruin chocolate cake for you forever! IT'S THAT GOOD. Beyond good, insanely awesome, ridiculously delicious. Chocolate cake made any other way will seem plain, unexciting, tasteless, and cold. This recipe is very easy to make and the result is out of this world. You don't even have to turn on your oven--a big bonus for those of us who have had to turn on our air conditioning already this year. And you eat it while it's still hot so it's also perfect for people, like my Montana family, who need something to warm them up since their Spring weather has not started yet.

You will need:

slow cooker
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
6T butter
2 oz (1/4c) semi-sweet chocolate chips
2/3 cup white sugar
3T Dutch-processed cocoa
1T vanilla
1/4 tsp salt
1/3 cup milk
1 egg yolk
***************
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup white sugar
1/3 cup Dutch-processed cocoa
1 1/2 cups hot water
****************
2 paper towels



A word on the cocoa--in this recipe you really need to use the Dutch-processed. In my grocery store it's sold right alongside the unsweetened cocoa. Hershey's Special Dark is what I use and it's perfect. Dutch-processed cocoa has been treated to neutralize the acids in cocoa and is used in baked goods that call for baking powder, like this one. If you use regular unsweetened cocoa you will end up with a slightly bitter tasting cake. It's the same price as regular cocoa.


Mix together the flour and baking powder and set aside. In a medium-sized pot melt the butter and then add the chocolate chips. Stir until melted and combined and then remove from heat. (I melt the butter first because adding cold butter to chocolate can cause it to seize. That's happened to me many, many times.)



Whisk in the 2/3 cup sugar and 3T Dutch cocoa.



Now whisk in the vanilla, salt, milk, and egg yolk. Combine thoroughly.



Whisk in the flour/baking powder mix.



Pour the batter into a greased slow cooker. I used 2T of butter and rubbed it on the bottom and halfway up the sides of my Crock Pot. You can use pan spray if you like--just make sure it is greased well.



In a medium-sized bowl whisk together the brown sugar, sugar, and cocoa.



Slowly pour in the hot water (I nuked the water in the microwave for one minute) and whisk until smooth.



Pour into the slow cooker on top of the cake batter. DO NOT STIR.



Place two paper towels (do not rip apart) across the top of the slow cooker and put on the top. The towels will keep the condensation from dripping onto your cake.



Turn the slow cooker on HIGH and leave it alone for 1 hour and 15 minutes. The cake is done when it is set and pulls away slightly from the sides of the slow cooker. Turn off the cooker, take off the top, and lift out the removable bowl. Set it aside on a hot pad and leave the cake alone for 25 minutes. It will hard not to sample, but resist!



Heaven. On. Earth. You'll never see chocolate cake the same way again. The top of the cake is moist, chocolaty, and amazing, but the bottom is fudge sauce. Fudge sauce! (My pictures came out a bit unfocused. Maybe my hands were shaking in anticipation!)



There really aren't adequate words to describe how divine this cake tastes. There were no leftovers. I asked Bubba and the girls how it tasted and I got a bunch of grunts and "mmmmmmmm's." :) No need for ice cream with this cake!!





After she finished eating Goose said, "Wow. That's the most awesome cake ever."



Enjoy!!

Split Pea and Ham Soup

So, you bought a big ham for Easter and have exhausted your recipes but still have a bunch of ham stuck to the bone. What to do? Throw it in the Crock Pot!



You'll need to rinse a bag of split peas, but because they will cook overnight in the pot, there is no need to soak them.



Just dump them right onto the ham...



Add 2 quarts of water, put on the top of the Crock Pot, set on Low, and go to bed. (Don't, however, do like I did and start the soup at 1am because you were waiting for some overnight cinnamon rolls to rise and they were being difficult. That leads to mistakes because you are tired, such as turning the Crock Pot to Warm instead of Low. Not a good thing.) In the morning you can either keep the soup in the Crock Pot or transfer it to a pot on the stove. If you put it on the stove: after adding all ingredients, bring to a boil, turn down heat to low, cover, stir often, and cook all day or at least 3 hours. If you keep it in the Crock Pot: after adding all ingredients, turn pot to high for one hour, then turn down to low, and cook for at least two more hours or all day.

I put it on the stove, but it really doesn't matter. You'll need an onion, carrots, celery, and a small potato. I put my carrots in my tiny food processor and chop them until they cry uncle.





Do the same thing with the onion and celery. OR you can just chop and add. I mutilate the poor veggies in order to fool my oldest daughter, a veggie-phobe, into thinking they aren't there. Chop the potato into tiny pieces and add. It will break down in the soup and help to thicken it. Now toss in a couple of bay leaves. I was going to take a picture of them, but I'm embarrassed by how old and desiccated my leaves look. :) Now here's my secret ingredient...don't tell anyone.



Cavender's. It's a greek seasoning, but I use it in everything, especially on turkey at Thanksgiving. In fact, since I grew up using it, I don't like to eat turkey without it! But, if you don't have access to Cavender's, it is basically a blend of salt, pepper, garlic, oregano, onion powder, and parsley. I would suggest using salt and pepper to taste, a couple of shakes of garlic powder, onion powder, and celery salt, and maybe a few parsley flakes. Then taste and see what you think. Here's the finished soup:



Split Pea and Ham Soup

ham
1 16oz bag of split peas
2 qts water
1 medium onion
1 medium potato
1 cup celery
2 cups carrots
2 bay leaves
Cavender's (to taste)


I usually make buttermilk biscuits to go with this soup. But cornbread is great, too.

Enjoy!!

my recipe card:

Slow Cooker Pot Roast

We're supposed to call them slow cookers now, but I own an actual Crock Pot and can't seem to call it anything else. But Crock Pot Pot Roast sounded ridiculous. :) I have a real love affair with my pot and try to use it at least once a week. It is all the more special to me because after 14 years my old pot died and when I complained about how much I missed it, a very dear friend got tired of my whining and sent me a new one. ;) Such a surprise and so very, very sweet!! I think about her every time I use it. (Thank you again!!)
This recipe is easy, as low fat as you're going to get with pot roast, and can be adapted to your tastes.
(First an apology...I forgot to take pictures of the meat in the Crock Pot.)
For this recipe you will need:
a bottom rump roast (any big loaf of meat will work--I just find that this cut, when trimmed, is leaner than an actual pot roast cut)
2 envelopes of Lipton onion soup
2 envelopes of brown gravy mix
water
carrots
potatoes
This first step is the easiest. Plug in your crock pot, trim off the fat from your rump roast, and toss it in the pot. Sprinkle both envelopes of Lipton on top and add 6-10 cups of water. You want the meat covered, but not swimming. Cover, turn on low, and leave overnight. In the morning, remove the roast and place it on a plate to cool (until you can touch it without burning your fingers). Pour the "soup" into a large pot. I use a 6 quart. When the meat is cool enough, shred it and toss it into the pot. It should just fall apart in your hands.




Chop up as many carrots as you would like. I use about three big handfuls of baby carrots. My youngest daughter loves carrots, so I always add extra. (Once I added too many and the post roast turned out orange.)




Now toss those babies into the pot with your meat.





Potatoes turn now. I use golden potatoes, but you could use Russet or even reds and leave on the skin. I have found that white potatoes, while cheap, turn to glue when cooked for a long time. Making mashed potatoes out of them is a nightmare.




You are going to have to salt the masses now. I know, salt. I blame the potatoes, but it has to be done. I use a teaspoon of Kosher salt. Table salt has an annoying habit of not tasting salty until it is oversalted. Feel free to add more, but you risk a bland pot roast if you try to add much less.




Time for the gravy. I pour two envelopes of gravy mix into a mixing cup and add just enough water to make a soupy paste. Don't follow the envelope directions, although do take a peek at the label and make sure you bought a brand with little or no fat. I buy generic and it has .5 grams of fat in each 1/4 serving. But we are diluting it massively, so you won't get that much in your serving.





Pour the gravy into the pot with everything else, mix well, and then turn your burner on high enough to get a boil. After it boils, turn it down and simmer until the potatoes are tender. I usually do all this in the morning and then simmer until dinner. I put the top on the pot, but not sealed--leaving one side open to prevent it from boiling all day.




You think that this looks more like beef stew, don't you? Not so! Notice we didn't add any oregano, basil, rosemary, garlic, or any of the other beef stews hangers-on. This recipe is pot roast on the stove...and Crock Pot. Best part, your house doesn't heat up from having the oven on for hours! Except for the 15 minutes it tastes to bake the buttermilk biscuits that go so well with this dish.