I admit to hiding the odd vegetable in my cooking.
My BigJ is not a fan of the humble veggie, sticking to a few firm favourites and surreptitiously slipping me his veggies under the table when we eat out. I don't mind, I love veggies, but I do draw the line when he tries to snaffle all the meat when we eat Asian, leaving me just the half cooked onion wedges and capsicum at the bottom of the dish.
I feel a perverse style of pleasure therefore, in feeding him as many vegetables as I can without him knowing. My excuse is that it's for his own good, but really, it's just so I win.
Don't judge me.
Recently on holiday, my wonderful mother bought out a fantastic chocolate cake she had made, wisely allowing us to enjoy it's light, moist texture and washing it down with cups of tea, before informing us that it was made with Beans. Kidney Beans to be exact.
I was very happy.
Even BigJ had admitted how much he had enjoyed his morning tea, so he couldn't take it back. But he examined every bite carefully for the rest of our holiday :)
This recipe comes from a Cooking Club my mother belongs to in Queensland. Despite the hidden beans, this is certainly not a health food, containing more than it's own fair share of fat and sugar- of course this means plenty of flavour too.
1 tin of Kidney Beans- rinsed well and drained
5 Eggs
180g Brown Sugar
125g Butter
70g Cocoa Powder
1 Tablespoon Vanilla Extract
2 Tablespoons Coffee Powder dissolved in 1 tablespoon hot water
2 teaspoons Baking Powder
1/2 teaspoon Bicarb Soda
Puree the beans with the coffee, vanilla, and 2 of the eggs
Cream the butter and sugar
Add in the eggs and beat well
Put into the mix the bean puree, cocoa, baking powder and soda
Mix until smooth and well combined
Put into a prepared cake tin- a loaf tin would be the best, as you will see mine turned out a bit flat- and bake in a moderate oven for about 40 minutes.
Cool in the pan to keep moist
This was my solution to the flat big cake- making cute smaller cakes that are more in proportion.
Looky looky what I found at the supermarket:
Yes it's gluten free and appears to dairy free as well! I know it's cheating, but sometimes we're in a hurry, aren't we? I decided to give it a go.
To be perfectly honest, the cake doesn't need frosting at all. It's just s moist and perfect the way it is- almost mud cake moist, but still light enough to eat a whole slice (or two) at once.
I snuck this cake in as a dessert for my last dinner party, never letting on the secret ingredient until after it was eaten. It was a complete success, with the secret ingredient a real talking point as well. Just what you want for mingling!
So Dear Reader, do you hide vegetables in your cooking, or do your family love them enough on their own merits?
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