So I was craving some chocolate post-dinner tonight and decided to give a Lava Cake a try. Not only did this end up being one of the best chocolate desserts I have ever had...but it's also gluten free!

8 small ramekins
Butter to grease ramekins
8 parchment circles to fit in the bottom of the ramekin
2 tbsp cocoa powder
1/2 tsp cup butter
10 oz semisweet chocolate (finely chopped)
1.5 cups sugar
3 tbsp arrowroot power
3 whole eggs @ room temp.
4 egg yolks @ room temp.
2 tsp vanilla (or any other flavouring you want)
1/4 cup icing sugar, sifted

Preheat over to 400F. Grease up and place a parchment paper circle in the bottom of each ramekins then dust with cocoa powder. In a double boiler (or I just used a saucepan over low heat and was very careful) melt chocolate and butter. In another bowl, mix together sugar and arrowroot powder. Pour chocolate and butter mix into sugar mixture and stir. In (yet another) bowl, whip together eggs and any flavourings you are using for about 5 minutes or until they are light and fluffy. Stir into chocolate mix. Pour 1/2 cup of batter into each ramekin and bake for 15 minutes or until the top is cracked.
Pull out of oven and let them sit for 3 minutes. Run a knife around the edge of each ramekin and tip over onto a plate. Dust with icing sugar, garnish with fruit or any other yumminess. Or do like I did...don't even both to tip it out and just eat it out of the ramekin.

Adapted from "Whitewater Cooks with Friends" by Shelley Adams...pretty much the best series of cookbooks on the planet. If you don't have one of her 3 cookbooks, do your belly a favour and go by one, stat.

_My lovely business partner Lou comes up with the most amazing recipes and they are vegan at that! This is one of her breakfast creations that got her in as this week's guest chef!

Waffle Batter
1 1/3 cups of all purpose flour
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup of almond milk
3/4 cup of porter or other dark beer - i used the choc porter
1/4 canola
1 tsp pure vanilla extract


Preheat the waffle iron. in a large mixing bowl, sift together flour, cocoa, baking powder, salt and sugar. Make a well in the centre and add milk, beer, oil and vanilla. Mix together until combined. Spray waffle iron with cooking spray and cook waffles according to manufacturers directions. Serve with choc drizzle and cashew nut cream (can purchase at Whole Foods).

Chocolate Drizzle:
1 cup almond milk or your non dairy preffered milk
1 cup of vegan choc chips
1 tsp vanilla extract

in a saucepan with rounded sides bring milk to boil. bring the heat to low and add choc chips stirring constantly until chips are dissolved. Add the vanilla, remove from the heat, and let cool.

Makes 6 six inch round waffles or 8 x 4 inch square waffles

This cake was great!  A nice mix of flavours, a moist but not dense cake, and a fantastic icing that topped it off perfectly.  I put it on the table outside of my office and less than 10 minutes later this was all that was left.  My friend Susanne snapped this picture right before the last of it was taken!

Cake:
1/2 cup butter (I was out, so used half a cup of vegetable oil, no problem)
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp maple extract
1 1/2 cups flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 350.  Grease 8" pan.  Cream butter, add sugar and keep creaming until fluffy.  Beat in eggs one at a time.  Add maple flavouring.  In another bowl, combine flour, baking powder, and salt.  Add mixture in 3 parts alternately with milk to the butter mixture, beginning and ending with the flour.  Stir in walnuts and pour into pan.  Bake at 350 for 40-45 minutes until done.  Cool, then frost.

Cream Cheese Icing
2 8-oz packages of cream cheese
1/2 cup butter
2 cups icing sugar
1 tsp vanilla

Cream together butter and cream cheese.  Add vanilla, and then gradually mix in the icing sugar.

Both recipes from Allrecipes.com
Theresa

Crust:
3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs
1/8 cup sugar
1/4 cup butter, melted
Filling:
2 packages cream cheese (softened)
3/4 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 tbsp lemon juice
2 tsp grated lemon peel
1 tsp vanilla extract
Topping:
1 cup sour cream
1/4 cup sugar
1 tsp grated lemon peel
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Set your oven to 350F. In a bowl combine the crust ingredients and press into a 8" springform pan. In another bowl, beat cream cheese and sugar until smooth. Add the eggs and beat on low until just combined. Add the lemon juice, peel and vanilla and mix just a little. Pour into the crust and bake for 55 min or until the centre looks almost set. Remove from oven and let it sit for 5 minutes.

Mix topping ingredients together and spread over the top of the cheesecake. Return to the oven for another 5 minutes, remove from oven and let it cool. Best if you can refrigerate it overnight and then let it warm up to room temperature again before serving.

I topped off the cheesecake with some blueberries and icing sugar to give it a wintery look but it's amazing as is or with any other berry toppings too!

Perogies...now cookies. Leave it to little babuska's to come up this amazing recipe. Everyone proclaims these to be the best ginger snaps they have ever had.
1 cup white sugars
3/4 cup butter
1/4 cup molasses
1 egg
2 cups flour
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp cloves
1 tsp ginger
pinch of salt

Cream butter and sugar. Add egg and molasses and beat until blended. Add dry ingredients and mix well. Form into balls and then dip them in white sugar. Bake for 10 minutes...don't overbake!!!. The tops will crack but they will be soft, chewy and delicious!!

One of my good friends endlessly teases me about being a redhead and a hippy (a claim that I deny and get teased on that too). For Christmas, I figured I would give him the most hippy thing possible. So here is the recipe for my hippy homemade granola...minus the hula hoops
5 cups rolled oats
1 cup chopped walnuts
1 cup sesame seeds
2 cups shredded coconut
1 cup blanched slivered almonds
1 cup chopped pecans
1 cup wheat germ
1 cup unsalted sunflower seeds
1 cup canola oil
1.5 cups honey or syrup (or combo it up)
1 cups raisins and 1 cups of cranberries
Heat oven to 325F. Melt oil and honey together over low heat and mix with other ingredients. Spread out evenly over 2 cookie sheets. Bake for 20 minutes or until golden brown, stirring a few times while baking. Remove granola from oven and stir in raisins and cranberries. Cool and store in an airtight container.

That's a pretty big claim, eh? These cookies deserve it! You can mix it up with chocolate chips, raisins, cranberries, nuts, coconut...be creative! When it came time to add one of these to the recipe, I discovered Theresa has Skor pieces in the cupboard and dumped a bunch into the batter. I am pretty sure it made for the best batch of these cookies I have made so far!
3/4 cup butter
1 cup brown sugar plus 1/2 cup white sugar
1 egg
1/4 cup water
1 tsp. vanilla
1 cup flower
1.5 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp baking soda
3 cups quick oats
1.5 cups chocolate chips
Cream butter and sugar well. Add in egg, water and vanilla. Mix in the dry ingrediants, oats and chocolate chips. Drop by the spoonful on a baking sheet and bake at 350F for 12-14 minutes.

I am a pretty big sucker for most things made with chai (I think it's the hippy/yogi in me). This is a super simple recipe that will definitely impress the masses. I made a half recipe but you can make the full one below to serve 12-16 p
What you need for the cake:
1 and 1/3 cups milk
6 chai tea bags, without added sweetner
4 whole eggs
2 egg yolks
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 and 3/4 cups flour
2 cups while sugar
4.5 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground cardamom
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup unsalted butter at room temp.

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Grease the bottom and sides of the pans and line with parchment paper. Grease the paper as well. In a small saucepan bring the milk to a simmer over low med-low heat. Add the tea bags. Remove from heat and allow the tea to steep for 5 minutes. Remove the teabags and squeeze out the milk. Let the chai milk cool completely.

In a medium bowl mix the eggs, egg yolks, vanilla, and 1/3 cup of the chai milk. Whisk together and set aside. In another bowl mix the flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, cardamom, and salt. Beat on low for 30 seconds. Add the butter and the remaining chai milk, on med-low speed. Raise the speed to medium and beat until light and fluffy. Add the egg mixture in three additions scraping the between additions. Divide the batter evenly among the pans.

Bake the cakes for 26-28 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted in the middle comes out clean. Allow the cakes to cool in the pans for 10 minutes. Remove cakes from pans and peel off parchment paper. Cool completely.

To assemble the cake place one layer flat side down a serving plate and top with 2/3 cup of icing. Spread to the edge and repeat with second layer. Place third layer on top and spread the remaining ginger cream on top allowing it to drizzle down the sides of the cake like icicles or ice the whole thing like I did.

Honey-Ginger Cream:
2.5 cups icing sugar
9 oz cream cheese at room temp.
6 tbsp unsalted butter at room temp.
1/2 cup honey (any kind as long as liquid)
1/2 tsp freshly grated ginger


From Sky High:Irresistible Triple Layer Cakes by Alisa Huntsman and Peter Wynne
Makes an 8-inch triple layer cake; serves 12-16

This is my "go-to" chocolate cake recipe - so easy!  It turns out a smooth, moist, even cake with a great chocolate-y flavour every time.

For the Christmas season and an event at work, I dressed it up with a peppermint glaze and crushed candy canes. 

Cake
2 cups white sugar
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 cup milk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup boiling water

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour your baking pan(s) - you can use two nine inch round pans, one bundt pan, or a tall 9" pan.
2. In a large bowl, stir together the sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Add the eggs, milk, oil and vanilla, mix for 2 minutes on medium speed of mixer. Stir in the boiling water last. Batter will be thin. Pour evenly into the prepared pan(s).
3. Bake 30 to 35 minutes in the preheated oven, until the cake tests done with a toothpick. Cool in the pans for 10 minutes, then remove to a wire rack to cool completely.

Glaze:
Icing Sugar
Hot Water
Peppermint Extract

Portions are up to you depending on how much of the glaze you want,  but you could start with 1 cup of icing sugar.  Put the icing sugar into a cup, and gradually add a couple drops of hot water, stirring each time, until you reach your desired consistency.  Hint: the thicker it is, the more it will show up as white on your cake.  Once you're happy with the glaze, add a couple drops of peppermint extract to your taste. 

Topping: I took three candy canes and crushed them, then sprinkled them onto the cake *while the glaze was still fresh - so they would stay in place.

Chocolate Cake recipe originally from All Recipes.com
Theresa