Engaging stories of love, joy, comfort and friendship with proven scrumptious, healthy recipes, we celebrate LOVE as the secret ingredient for wonderful food!

Delectable Chocolate Cake with Loacker Rose of the Dolomites

December 23, 2015 by Mary 10 Comments

A Rose is a rose is a rose? Not so with these decadent chocolates from Italy. The Loacker family makes these beautiful chocolates to mimic the rose of the Dolomites – which grows wild right by their factory at the foot of the Alps. Oh my, they are totally yummy in dark chocolate and winter white.

And these are not just chocolate. In staying true to their wafer roots, (they make the number one wafer cookie in the world) there is a small wafer and a hazelnut cream center in every pretty rose. I think that’s so clever and also great for reinforcing their brand.

So how can I possibly improve on them with some sort of recipe?

Let them melt on cake!!

Here’s the thing. When you make a cake, to me, it’s always a big deal because not only do you have to make and then bake the cake, but then you have to make a frosting and ice the darn thing. My suggestion here is to use the Rose of the Dolomites as a decoration and the frosting!

Brilliant, right?

You need to put these babies on gently, as soon as your cake comes out of the oven so they melt a little and adhere. Position evenly and nicely and voila! You’re done!!

Here is the most delicious, decadent chocolate cake recipe. Sour cream makes it moist and the fresh brewed coffee adds depth to the chocolate. This is not too time consuming and well worth the effort.

I think you will enjoy adding this to your repertoire of holiday treats as this one’s easy peasy.

DELECTABLE CHOCOLATE CAKE WITH LOACKER ROSE OF THE DOLOMITES – serves 16

Unsalted butter, for greasing
Flour for dusting cake pan
1.5 cups of cake flour
4.5 oz. bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
1 cup hot brewed coffee
2 tsp. vanilla extract
2 large eggs at room temperature
½ cup canola oil
½ cup sour cream at room temperature
1 ¼ cups of sugar
¾ tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. ground cinnamon
½ tsp. fine sea salt
8 Loacker White Chocolate Rose of the Dolomites
8 Loacker Dark Chocolate Rose of the Dolomites

Preheat the oven to 350° and position the rack in the center. Butter a 9”-by- 9” square cake pan and dust the pan with flour, tapping out the excess.

In a medium bowl, combine the finely chopped chocolate with the hot coffee and vanilla and let stand for 2 minutes, then stir until the chocolate is melted. In another medium bowl, whisk the eggs with the oil until pale yellow, then whisk in the sour cream. Gradually whisk in the melted chocolate mixture until smooth.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle, combine the 1.5 cups of flour with the sugar, baking soda, cinnamon and salt and mix well. At medium speed, beat in the wet ingredients in 3 batches until just incorporated. Scrape down the bowl and beat until the batter is smooth.

Pour the batter evenly into the prepared cake pan. Gently tap the pans on the counter to release any air bubbles. Bake for about 35 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

When cake is out of the oven, wait 1 minute, then gently place the Loacker Rose of the Dolemites evenly on the top of the cake as shown in the photo.

Let cake cool completely. The bottom of the chocolates should melt a little and adhere to the cake. Cut into 16 pieces and serve with LOVE.

Discover other unique, gourmet products in our upcoming spring box – mails March 25th! Our box subscriptions make a great last minute holiday gift. You can download a gift card at check-out to put under the tree.

MARY’s secret ingredients Food Subscription Box Revealed – Winter 2015

December 17, 2015 by Mary 6 Comments

Our sell-out, MARY’s secret ingredients food subscription box for winter, 2015 was a real treat. Filled with all things sweet and spicy, it’s sure to add to your holiday festivities.

All of these products are unusual, wholesome and do not contain any processed ingredients. Nothing is unpronounceable. Some products have only 3 or 5 ingredients! With these items you can snack or give yourself a little treat while knowing that everything is still good for you and your body.

If you missed out on this box, take a look at this video and all the descriptions below. As we gain momentum and our MSI community continues to grow, our boxes are selling more quickly and we only have a limited supply each season. So get your order in now and help us in our fight against worldwide hunger with our partnership with Feed The Children.

Did you know that nearly 15 million children in the US alone go to bed hungry at night or experience food scarcity every day? This is a crime. We aim to help eliminate this while we show you how you can eat well with products that are non-processed and good for you. All recipes using each of these products will be coming up in the next two weeks.

HERBED COFFEE RUB from JUST COOK FOODS

Their products are all natural, locally created in San Francisco, and deliver unique flavors to the home chef. Their packaging is sophisticated, sleek and looks like no other product line.

This herb rub has the richness of coffee along with oregano, cumin and chipotle to add a new dimension to the flavors of pork, beef and lamb.

LAIKI RED RICE & BLACK RICE CRACKERS

Laiki believes food should be simple and nutritious. It should satisfy from the time you read the label to the last crunch. They created Laiki Crackers because they wanted to offer the world the option to not have to read a label or feel guilty about treating yourself.

Laiki is a unique rice cracker with a satisfying crunch and only three ingredients: rice, oil, salt. Nothing else! No labels to read, no ingredients to worry about, 100% wholegrain, vegan, gluten-free, and non-GMO. The 100 calorie snack packs have about 16 satisfying crackers, packed with flavor and nutrients from red or black rice. Perfect for an afternoon snack, a school lunch, or a refuel after the gym.

LOACKER ROSE of the DOLOMITES in white and dark chocolate

There’s a place in the heart of the Alps, where the air and water are fresh and pure. At an altitude of 3,000 feet, surrounded by the Dolomite Mountains, the Loacker family selects only the best and finest ingredients from around the world: the best Italian hazelnuts, Bourbon vanilla pods, pure chocolate, the highest quality milk and fresh mountain water. This pure goodness goes into creating all of their delicious flavored-wafer and chocolate specialties, as it has since 1925. No matter which you choose from their family of snacks, you have the quality made famous by the Loacker family in every bite.

A rose by any other name would not taste as sweet. The shape of their premium praline is inspired by the beautiful Alpine Rose of the Dolomites, but the taste of this exquisite chocolate with the cream center is why you’ll pick it. They offer the perfect arrangement: genuine high-quality ingredients and a sublime blend of exquisite cream, crunchy hazelnut pieces, and smooth petals made out of dark or white chocolate. A rose is a rose is a rose. Until you’ve tasted one of theirs.

MICHEL et AUGUSTIN COOKIE SQUARES in MILK CHOCOLATE, CARAMEL & DARK CHOCOLATE with a pinch of sea salt

Their dream at the Banana Farm is to make the world smile, by whipping up delicious yet healthy products made from simple, quality ingredients found in your very own kitchen…and by sharing their true-to-the-last-drop adventure with you. In the very VERY beginning – before becoming butter-cookie big shots – they started out testing (and tasting) more than 400 recipes in Augustin’s little kitchen and Michel’s mother’s slightly larger kitchen. They did everything themselves, from choosing and buying the ingredients, to creating the recipes, to baking and delivering the cookies.

Half a chocolate bar. Half a delicious shortbread. Made with fresh butter, a pinch of sea salt, and an intense chocolate.

NUTRAW SNACKS PISTACHIO RAWBAR

They set out to create naturally healthy snacks without compromising taste, nutrition and quality. Their products are the representation of this purpose to create real foods, from real ingredients, for real people. They do this by harnessing the natural antioxidants, phytonutrients, protein, and omega-3’s that are found abundantly in raw fruits, nuts and seeds. Nutraw® Snacks are ALWAYS made with 5 or less organic ingredients without any artificial additives or preservatives.

They’re able to maintain their commitment by establishing and maintaining strategic partnerships with USDA Certified Organic California farmers who practice innovative farming methods. In addition to being held to higher farming standards, this also ensures that the produce grown on these farms has not been treated with persistent pesticides and synthetic fertilizers, which are harmful for us and our environment.

They are the purveyors of specialty pistachio and nut products and have created the first and only 100% raw pistachio bar. Their delicious pistachio bar is made with just 5 organic raw ingredients. Pistachios, dates, almonds, coconut oil and cardamom. That’s it!

RawSpiceBar WINTER HERB BLEND

RawSpiceBar creates freshly ground, global spice blends each month for creating dishes from around the world. Direct to your door for $6 a month.

RawSpiceBar’s Winter Herb Blend is a delicious mix of white peppercorns, thyme, oregano, savory, tarragon, sage and a few other spices. Use on chicken as well as on veggies.

It is the season to splurge a bit so we have some decadence with chocolate in the form of candies and cookies that I know you’ll adore. Winter white and dark chocolate Rose of the Dolemites that are to die for from Loacker, the Italian cookie and chocolate giant that only makes things from wholesome ingredients. Then, heralding from France, we have the most amazing shortbread cookies that each have a little pool of either dark chocolate or milk chocolate with caramel, both kissed with a little sea salt. The raw nut pistachio bar is good-for-you protein disguised as a wholesome snack that I have put to other uses in my upcoming recipes. Snack away on the three ingredients rice crackers packed with crunch and just the right amount of salt and rub to your hearts content with the herbed coffee rub and winter herb blend.

Have fun!!

And if you missed this box, you can order a subscription for next year and place a beautiful gift certificate under the tree, that you can download at checkout. Next box mails on March 25th!

And remember, always cook with LOVE and your food will taste scrumptious!

MARY’s secret ingredients revealed!

May 5, 2014 by Mary 14 Comments

Everyone should have their box of surprise secret ingredients by now. It was chock full of goodies from all over the world. So let me present it to you with music in the video below! This is our lovely Marie Anello, our project manager and soon to be famous opera singer belting it out to the tune of “I Can Cook Too” from On the Town.

Or you can watch the video on YouTube here: http://youtu.be/bneUwn7zMWk

Here’s what Marie is pulling out of the box, in order:

Sweetwater Spice Company Brine Bath bottles SWEETWATER SPICE COMPANY
Created in Austin TX, their brine concentrates produce the most tender and juicy meat, no matter how it’s cooked! Now this is a brine concentrate, NOT a BBQ sauce. You need to follow the directions and dilute this with water to create a quick time brine solution to marinate, tenderize and flavor your chicken, meat or seafood. Either one of the two flavors below were included in our box.

Pineapple Habanero Jerk BBQ Bath Brine: This brine is a classic, island inspired recipe with the traditional flavors of pineapple, thyme, allspice, garlic, onion, and of course, habanero chilies. In all, there are 16 herbs and spices and each hits the tongue together with an extra kick from the habaneros. It’s great on pork, poultry, and seafood!
OR:
Tres Chilies Fajita Bath: This brine uses natural smoked salt and smoked chilies (chipotle, ancho, and cayenne) to bring the taste of the grill indoors. The medium degree of spice of this flavor is balanced with the sweet final note of the apple juice base.

Harmonian Greek oregano
HARMONIAN
Harmonian is a Greek brand just established in June, 2013. The company’s aim is to bring a new understanding of “healthy” and “taste conscious” food to the market.

Oregano From Wildcrafted Plants: The ultimate Mediterranean spice – with rich aroma, full flavor and antioxidant properties – is inextricably linked to red sauces, Greek cuisine, and pizza in any form. Following the tradition of Harmonian spice collection, the oregano is collected by hand from wildcrafted plants in Pindos’ cliffs, contributing a unique, strong aroma in contrast to conventionally cultivated oregano. You can smell this through the packaging – it is heavenly!

Flathaus Fine Foods chipotle cheddar cheese straws
FLATHAU’S FINE FOODS
Flathau’s Fine Foods was formed by a husband and wife duo back in 1995. They set out to systematically perfect gourmet snacks, one at a time, and I do believe they succeeded with these cheese straws. And the packaging is so darn cute!!

Chipotle Cheese Straws: These are all natural cheese straws made with aged sharp cheddar. Based on the owner’s great grandmother’s family recipe, this version has been released in an updated cheddar chipotle variety, using the right blend of high quality ingredients to create these perfect gourmet snacks. Bite into this traditional Southern favorite blended with a tiny kiss of chipotle that will keep your taste buds coming back for more. “I could eat a LOT of these” my husband, Steve, said.

NUESKE’S
Nueske's Applewood smoked sausages Nueske’s was founded in 1933 by R.C. Nueske who couldn’t find an Applewood smoking flavor as good as his family recipe anywhere. So, he decided to market his smoked bacon, sausage, turkeys and hams in rural Wisconsin.

Applewood Smoked Landjaeger Sausages: Super lean cuts of pork and beef are coarsely ground and blended with just the right amount of fresh cracked black pepper to give this slightly chewy, traditional German snack its fabulous Old World flavor. Then they let their smokehouses work their magic, bringing the essence of sweet applewood to each and every bite. A standby for generations of outdoorsmen, these sausages are the perfect tag-along for your next trek through the woods, tailgate event, or any time you crave a deliciously different kind of snack.

Calmer Sutra peppermyntle tea and ginger infused honey CALMER SUTRA TEA
Calmer Sutra Tea is an Australian family-owned business specializing in crafting deliciously calming tea, herbal tisane and honey blends. They started their tea journey over 10 years ago.

Peppermyntle Tea: A calmer twist on a calming drink: Peppermint leaves with a hint of sweet lemon myrtle. This blend is fresh and minty with subtle citrus notes. It’s perfect for refreshing your body, settling an upset stomach, and helping to restore a sense of calm at the end of a long day.

Ginger Infused Honey: Smooth textured and sweet, our double blended honey dances with its freshest partner, ginger root, in this palate pleasing blend. It’s sweetness with a calmer KICK!

LOACKER
Loacker is an Italian company based in South Tyrol, at the base of the Alps, specifically the Dolomite Mountains, producing wafer and chocolate products. Alfons Loacker founded it in 1926 as a family company.

Loacker Quadratini wafer cookies
Quadratinis, Hazelnut or Dark Chocolate Flavors: A mouth-watering snack supply for a break
wherever you are: at home, at work, on a trip, or when exercising. Loacker applies craftsmanship to the best raw ingredients to make wafer and chocolate specialties that are appreciated for their fresh, crisp taste, their delicate creams, and their fine chocolate. A delight that never fails to please, combining a love of nature with a passion for the art of baking results in a delicious creation. And they’re not too bad in calories – only about 17 per cube!

Starting on Wednesday of this week, on every other day, I will post a recipe and/or serving suggestion using each one of these ingredients, starting with Nueske’s Applewood Smoked Sausages and Flathaus Fine Foods Chipotle Cheese Straws. You can also find our partners highlighted on the Partners page of our MARY’s secret ingredients website www.maryssecretingredients.com

A big thank you to all of you who ordered a box! Your purchase will help to eradicate childhood hunger as 10% of our annual profits will be donated to Feed The Children.

So see you on Wednesday – to put some LOVE in your cooking!

Engaging stories of love, joy, comfort and friendship with proven scrumptious, healthy recipes, we celebrate LOVE as the secret ingredient for wonderful food!

Delectable Chocolate Cake with Loacker Rose of the Dolomites

MARY’s secret ingredients Food Subscription Box Revealed – Winter 2015

MARY’s secret ingredients revealed!

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