MangiaMore: all-in-ONE chocolate cake

RER 5.11.15

Another day, another cake. Well, not just any day, it was Mother’s Day. Early last week, I got a brief and to the point email with a link and “How about this for Mother's Day?” Perfect.

RER 5.11.15

Mommie wanted a chocolate cake, so Mommie was going to get a chocolate cake. And the Nigella Lawson no-nonsense recipe she found would do the trick for a Mother’s Day cake.

RER 5.9.15

RER 5.9.15

RER 5.9.15

RER 5.9.15

RER 5.9.15

The All-In-One Chocolate Cake could not have been easier. Some quick measuring, pulse, pulse, pulse, and the batter is done. The frosting was just as easy, albeit it multi-stage, but it ended up being a little runny because of the loose sour cream (I ended up lightening up the frosting with more powdered sugar and sour cream for the outside of the cake, leaving the middle dark as prescribed by the recipe). The name of the recipe explains it all. Nice and easy.

RER 5.9.15

RER 5.9.15

RER 5.9.15

RER 5.9.15

This chocolate cake is very different from the chocolate cake I usually make. My classic cake is chocolaty and moist, tall and kind of fudgy; it reeks of children birthday parties and hot fudge sundaes—delicious but not the most sophisticated.

RER 5.9.15

RER 5.9.15

RER 5.9.15

RER 5.9.15

Lawson’s cake puts a different spin on chocolate cake for a very adult twist. The cake has a fine crumb to it, springy, but it is also dense with chocolate notes, not relying on texture. Sour cream in the frosting, made glossy with corn syrup, added a tang and another distinctive level of maturity. It is sweet, tart but also light and rich, lacking the heaviness of a cream cheese frosting. The two elements combine for subtle sweetness and layered flavors, a very grown-up and refined experience.

RER 5.9.15

RER 5.9.15

RER 5.11.15

Make mum anything special for the holiday? Breakfast in bed? Spring savories or seasonal sweets? Would love to hear how you celebrated and follow foodie ventures on instagram, twitter, and facebook!

RER

5.10.15

RER 5.11.15

MangiaMore: THREE ingredient cookies

RER 4.29.15

They may not look pretty, but they sure are easy. These three ingredient cookies (yup, you read that right—3 ingredients!!) have that chewy satisfaction that any great chocolate chip cookie has, but has half the hassle. There’s none of that meticulous measuring, none of that creaming butter and sugar, none of that refrigerating for hours and hours; there’s just three ingredients: chocolate chips, graham crackers and sweetened condensed milk.

RER 4.29.15

RER 4.29.15

RER 4.29.15

RER 4.29.15

RER 4.29.15

The culmination of these three delicious things is pure perfection, not pretty, but pretty delicious. Crunch up 16 graham crackers (use a food processor for extreme ease), mix a can of sweetened condensed milk with your bag of chocolate chips till chips are covered, and finally stir in those graham crumbs. It can’t get much easier.

RER 4.29.15

RER 4.29.15

RER 4.29.15

RER 4.29.15

I mixed semi-sweet, milk and white chocolate chips, since I am not always wild on straight up chocolate. And since I was doing a double batch (because little effort was involved), I added dried cranberries to half of my second batch. They are a different kind of sweet and a tartness that emphasized the chocolate and the sticky condensed milk. These cookies are super-soft and pliable, but the outside has a little crunch. They remind me of all the best parts of cookies—gooey cookie dough and that candied texture.

RER 4.29.15

RER 4.29.15

RER 4.29.15

RER 4.29.15

What’s your favorite minimal-effort cookie recipe? Care to share? Follow the food on instagram, twitter, and facebook!

RER

4.29.15

RER 4.29.15