Delicious Chocolate Buttermilk Cake

One of the things I have enjoyed most since switching my blog to all recipes, is during the process of deciding which recipes to include, I often run across old, old ones and think, "Now how could I have forgotten about THIS one???"  That is the case with this one.  I haven't made it in years but I still remember how delicious it is.  Serve this one to guests to make a big impression!  Although I have two tube pans, I like to use my Lodge cast iron tube pan when the recipe calls for one.  The cake just falls out easily with no crumbling and it is easy to clean.

3/4 cup butter (1 1/2 sticks)
1 3/4 cup sugar
3 eggs
1 cup buttermilk
2 teaspoons vanilla

2 cups flour
6 tablespoons cocoa
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
3/4 cup chopped walnuts

Beat together the first five ingredients until blended.  Combine and add the remaining ingredients and beat until nicely blended.  Don't overbeat.  Spread batter into a greased 10 inch tube pan and bake in a 350 degree oven for about 45 minutes, or until a toothpick, inserted in the center, comes out clean.  Allow to cool in pan.

When cool, remove from pan and frost top and sides with Chocolate Sour Cream Frosting (below).

Chocolate Sour Cream Frosting:

1/3 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips, melted
1/4 cup butter, melted
2 tablespoons sour cream
1 cup sifted powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla

Beat together chocolate and butter until blended.  Bear in sour cream and powdered sugar until blended.  Beat in vanilla.

A different kind of snack

I admit it.  I'm a chocoholic.  When I come home, hungry and sometimes stressed out, I grab something sweet. . . chocolate or whatever sweet I can find.  Yes, I know better.  That's when I looked for something different.  Something that would satisfy my hunger and also be nutritious.

I don't recall where I heard about this idea or maybe I dreamed it up.

Combining several varieties of dried beans, soaked and cooked, with my "old stand by" sauce that I use for stir frying, I came up with a pleasing quick snack.

Here's how to prepare it:

Choose 3 or more types of dried beans.  Go for variety in color and size, such as kidney beans, garbanzo beans, and maybe cannellini or other white bean.  Use equal amounts of each.  After soaking, cook until tender, but not mushy.

While they are cooking, combine olive oil, lemon juice, and salt.  Now you are thinking, 'okay, but what amounts?'  That is a matter of taste!  Start with half cup olive oil, a little less lemon juice, and salt.  From there, adjust to your own taste.

Combine beans and the sauce, just enough to coat the beans but not so that they are drowning in the sauce!

This keeps in the refrigerator for 2 or 3 days.  I call it my guilt-free snack!

I always have a large supply of a variety of dried beans on hand.  I should own stock in Bob's Red Mill!  I use them in soups, salads, and other recipes.  My Adzuki Bean casserole is a real winner!

A new smoothie recipe

I make a lot of smoothies.  I do it to get more nutrition.  After all, you probably wouldn't sit down to eat a large bunch of spinach or kale, an apple, a banana, a couple of kiwi fruits, an orange. . . But put them in a Vitamix and blend and you have a tasty, highly nutritious drink.  For the most part, I don't follow smoothie recipes.  I just throw in whatever fruits and vegetables I have laying around.  I've never been disappointed in taste or nutritional value.

But I ran across this recipe recently and it caught my attention.  It's great!  It has a mild, sweet taste and is packed with vitamins.  Try it!

1/2 cup chopped carrot
1 mango, peeled and chopped
1/2 cup Greek yogurt
1/2 cup water.