Afsoon’s Posties


Mini Chocolate Peanut Butter Mousse Cake
August 14, 2009, 12:17 am
Filed under: Food, Vegan, pictures | Tags: , , , , , ,

Because of many requests for this (and the Chocolate Mint Ice Cream Cake) recipe, I decided to post it up for you guys (I never post up recipes because I’m selfish like that. Hehe. No, it’s because I don’t really consider my blog to be solely a food blog, but all of the above).

I made this dessert for my friend, Rachel, who gave me the mini cake pans. So I owed her a cake. Luckily she obsesses over peanut butter as much as I do and owns a sweet tooth as well. And thus I gave birth to the Mini Double Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Mousse Cake with Chocolate Ganache (yes, it’s a mouthful. Suck it up) and it didn’t hurt. This recipe was inspired by my hugemungus 1950’s cookbook that I treasure.

The Magical Items (Remember this is for a mini cake. The dimension of the pan should be 5”. You’ll be needing 2 mini cake pans) :

  • 1/2 cup Soy Milk (or any other non-dairy milk)
  • 1/2 tsp Apple Cider Vinegar
  • 3 tbsp Sugar & 3 tbsp Light Brown Sugar
  • 2 tbsp Canola Oil
  • 1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract
  • 1/4 tsp Almond Extract
  • 1/2 cup Flour
  • 2 tbsp Cocoa Powder
  • 1/8 tsp Cinnamon
  • 1/4 + 1/8 tsp Baking Soda
  • 1/4 tsp Baking Powder
  • 1/2 tsp Salt
  • 1/4 cup Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips (or more if you luuuurve chocolate. My favorite are Enjoy Life Chocolate Chips, they’re perfectly small enough for this cake and incredibly cute)
  • 1/2 pack Mori-Nu Extra Firm Silken Tofu
  • 1/4 cup All Natural Smooth Peanut Butter (I use dry roasted peanut butter. I find it a lot creamier and distinct in flavor)
  • 2 tbsp Soy Milk
  • 1/4 tsp Vanilla Extract
  • 1 tbsp + 2 tsp Agave Syrup
  • 1/4 cup Soy Milk
  • 1/2 cup Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips
  • 1 tbsp Agave Syrup
  • set aside – 1/4 cup All Natural Smooth Peanut Butter

Create The Magic:

    Preheat oven to 350° F, lightly coat cake pans with non-stick cooking spray.

     Whisk (using a fork) together the soy milk and vinegar in a measuring cup until foamy, set aside for it to curdle. In a medium bowl sift together flour, cocoa powder, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Mix thoroughly with a spatula. In a large bowl whisk together soy milk/vinegar mixture, both sugars, canola oil, and both extracts until foamy. Fold in the dry ingredients into the wet in two batches until it is just mixed. Fold in the chocolate chips. Pour batter into both cake pans and bake for 22-24 minutes or until toothpick inserted in the middle of the cake comes out clean. Place on cooling rack and let them cool in the pans. Remove when fully cooled down.

    While the cake is baking, make the mousse filling. In a blender put in the tofu, peanut butter, soy milk, vanilla extract, and agave. Puree until smooth. Transfer to an air tight container and refigerate for about an hour.

    Make the ganache by heating the soy milk until it just boils. Take it off the heat and stir in the chocolate chips and agave until no lumps remain and everything has melted. Set aside to cool in room temperature.

The Magic:

      If the cakes baked into a little dome on the top, then thinly cut off the tops of them. Take one of the cakes and spread a layer of peanut butter (from the extra 1/4 cup that was set aside). Then put the mousse filling on top. The remaining cake, spread another layer of peanut butter and put that side down on top of the mousse. On top of the cake, spread yet another layer of peanut butter. Take the ganache and pour all over the cake until every inch is covered with it. Take a fork and dip it in the rest of the peanut butter and drizzle it over the chocolate ganache. And voilà! You’ve got yourself a mini cake.

 *As far as the chocolate mint version of this recipe goes. Take out the cinnamon and add in a drop of peppermint oil. Replace the mousse with mint chocolate ice cream (I love So Delicious’ Mint Marble Fudge). Top the ganache with a pretty mint leaf. Place in freezer for an ice cream cake.

 

Image ™ J. Afsoon A.



The Coffee Table Bistro
August 8, 2009, 9:59 am
Filed under: Food, Vegan, pictures | Tags: , ,

Every year my mum, her friend, and I have our annual summer lunch out to catch up with life and all that jazz. This year we decided to go to Fatty’s which I was so excited to go to because I’ve never been. Their dessert menu intrigues me (when am I not thinking about sweets?!). When we arrived, all the windows were covered and the whole place was locked up. There was no note explaining why it was closed just a sign saying when they’re open. And they should have been open. I thought that 2012 had come way too soon. Oh, the agony of being forced to drive away and not being able to experience my first bite of peanut butter soy cream cup with dark chocolate syrup from Fatty’s! Just when I thought all hope was lost, my mum’s friend drives us a couple blocks and stops. My ears perked, but only just slightly. We were in front of a place called The Coffee Table Bistro. Eh? I’ve never even heard of this place. And then I got scared…what if they’re not vegan friendly? I don’t want another limp salad with one olive tossed in.

We walked in and I heard The Beatles being played (I immediately thought of my friend Rachel, whose love for The Beatles is incomparable to those who claim to be Beatles fans), I was no longer scared. The menu is a good size and is splattered with V’s (meaning “vegetarian” but the majority of them are vegan). My eye went directly to the tofu scramble, but it’s not just any tofu scramble. It’s made with basmati rice and served with homemade salsa and homestyle potatoes.  Mmmm!

The place is huge and very laid back. The walls are covered with abstract art and all the tables are mosaics. Love it!

And then, the dessert display caught my eye.

Vegan? Brownies? PEANUT BUTTER?! Gimme! (I got both, of course)

Everything else isn’t vegan, although I did hear the cookies are (I have to go back and check & try).

How awesome is the table?

I usually don’t order any beverage other than water, but our friend ordered a lemonade tea. The thing was gigantic! So we asked to have it divided into three glasses. It was good, I have to admit.

Our orders came (man, was I starving!). It smelled lovely and didn’t look greasy.

The scramble by itself had no taste, it needed salt desperately and that is why it is served with the homemade salsa. Perfect! I was in love. The rice was cooked just right and the tofu was diced into bite size pieces (I’m so used to being served massive cubes. It was a nice change). The potatoes were good too, but I don’t eat many starchy things unless it’s Christmas.

Aaaaand now the dessert! First up: brownie. The good points: it wasn’t sturdy like a rock and didn’t crumble when you touched it. Not too cakey and not too fudgey, just the way I like it. The issues: TOO FLOURY! Ugh. Just give me a bag of flour and let me eat it. Yekh. There was no chocolate flavor either. None whatsoever. One funky brownie and me no likey. NOT recommended.

Next up: peanut butter bar. The aroma of peanut butter envelopes your nostrils when you cut it. I got weirded out with the amount of sunflower seeds, chocolate chips, and raisins. I was beginning to think that I got an energy bar instead. But I was wrong. Oh. My. Gosh. Holy crap! This thing was absolutely delectable! It tasted like eating peanut brittle with chunks of chocolate goodness. The crispy/crunchiness was due to the sunflower seeds and made it ten times better. Ten thumbs way way way up. A bit strange, but in a good way. Highly recommended.

I was so glad I discovered this place. The people were friendly and ready to serve. The food was amazing (aside from the brownie) and the atmosphere is inviting. I’ll be going back to this place for sure.

All Images ™ J. Afsoon A.



One Year Blog-a-versary!
August 4, 2009, 6:54 pm
Filed under: Art, Food, Vegan, pictures | Tags: , , , , , ,

Where has the time flown?! It’s already been one year that I’ve been functioning on Afsoon’s Posties since moving over from Happiness is Vegan Muffins and Chocolate Soy Milk(worked on that one for two years). I feel old. Do you see them wrinklies on my face? What shall I do to celebrate? Cake I say! Cake! Rachel, being the sweetheart that she is, gave me 4 mini cake pans, one of which is a springform (how cute is that?). I decided to bake a Mini Chocolate Chip Ice Cream Mint Sandwich Cake.

Many art pieces have been flowing out of my mind and on to canvas and watercolor paper. I have a few new pieces that I’m working on at the same time.

I’ve been enjoying the time off, but not the heat in LA. It’s been incredibly hot, which has made me sluggish and behind on the chocolate testings. Booooo. I’m hoping it can cool down soon so I can catch up with all the time I lost. Chocolates filled with soynog, pumpkin cranberry, and peppermint mousse for the holidays will be in the works…have any requests? Contact me!

I finally got inked! I went with my good friend, Rachel, who helped me go through the turmoil of waiting on the bench while my tattoo was being sketched out. I got part of an illustration by (one of my favorite artists) James Jean titled HAAZ on my upper arm, shoulder and part of my back. We went to Yoni Tattooin Tarzana (they use vegan ink and have amazing artists that work there), Reid worked on mine (his line work is incredible and accurate). A thank you to Rachel for taking the pictures while I was getting ink pushed into me.

Fall session starts in three weeks! I signed up for a baking class and also a jewelry making class (and of course, life drawing lab and business). I’m so psyched for the baking class, I just hope the instructor isn’t a bitch about me being a vegan. I’ll show him vegans can bake!

In the mean time I’ll be “relaxing” on my last weeks before classes start up again. Can’t wait until the fall season rolls around…Halloween!!!

All Images ™ J. Afsoon A.