Ode to my Kitchenaid mixer; a love poem ♥

Dear Kitchenaid mixer;
I am so sad that your motor conked out. You have been such a loyal steed in your bright blue jacket. We’ve made so many delicious foods together. Truckloads of cookies, crates of cakes, boatloads of fruit cobblers and crisps, wheelbarrows full of truffles, pies and muffins. Yes, I have grown so attached to your sound and hopeful presence on my counter. You patiently stayed with me as I transitioned over to a grain free lifestyle and helped me learn how to make delectable delights with coconut and almond flour.

Flourless chocolate cake for you hearts desire

You have been the instigator of many a fine meal and dessert. My paint brush to make works of art that has fed my family and community and now you lay in a box, silent forever. My husband, feeling my deep pain, ran right out and bought a new bright red Kitchen Aide mixer to take your place. And even though I am impressed by her shining bright promise of many more delights to come, I will never forget you. You were my first true love. And with all your wondrous attachments, you have ground more venison than any Kitchenaid mixer will ever dream of doing. Your faithful engine ground through my sausage period. (Which I’m still happily in) In fact that was your undoing, you ground just too many pounds of meat.

In honor of your passing into mixer heaven, where your motor will never feel pain, you won’t have to work and will have coconut cookies served to you by Julia Child. I will be using the bright red mixer, (now named Betty Boop) to make a dessert devoted to love. After all, this is that time of year, when you and I would plot and plan an alluring dessert to serve to the hubby for Valentine’s Day. We would figure out something irresistible that fills the house with a warm and inviting scent.

I think it needs to be cinnamon this year. Yes, cinnamon has been known throughout history to spark the appetite…. in so many ways. Its spicy aroma and stimulating effects are incredibly arousing yet relaxing all at the same time. If I was to be a spice, I would want to be cinnamon because not only is it delicious but healing too. It has been used throughout history to guard against colds, fight off the winter chill and aide in digestion and circulation. This is THE spice of life.

Cinnamon is it, but I think chocolate and cinnamon is even better. How can anyone resist that combination? After all the Aztec Emperor, Montezuma loved to drink a cocoa drink from a golden goblet to give him va va voom for his nights with 100 virgins. Yes, I think the prefect combo for Valentine’s Day shall be created to christen the new mixer and in loving memory to you, my dear old mixer. May you rest in peace and tranquility knowing you fed a whole community (and my husband)with love♥.

This cake is rich and deep in flavor and chocolate

Flourless chocolate cinnamon cake
Gluten free and crazy delicious, don’t reserve this cake just for Valentine’s day but beware! It is addictive!

18 ounces Bittersweet Chocolate, 85% or more, in chunks
1 cup Coconut Oil or butter (if you dare!)
2 teaspoons of cinnamon
1 teaspoon of vanilla
3/4 cup Maple Syrup
2 Tablespoons Water
1/4 teaspoon Salt
6 Eggs

Melt the chocolate and coconut oil in a double boiler. (You can also do this in the microwave. I know, but it works really well! Just microwave the chocolate and butter in a glass bowl 20 seconds at a time, stirring well between each 20 seconds, till well blended and smooth) Let melt slowly and stir constantly to avoid burning the chocolate. Remove from heat when the chocolate is just fully melted and get out your mixer. Beat in the maple syrup, water and salt. Beat in the eggs, one by one, until completely incorporated into the mixture. (You can do this by hand if you are feeling primitive.)

Grease a 9″ springform pan and dust it with cocoa powder. Surround the base of the pan (on the outside) with foil. Pour the cake batter into the pan. Cook in a water bath reaching halfway up the side of the cake. Bake at 275 for 50 minutes. Cake should be set, but still look a little shiny and wet in the middle when done.

Let cool at room temperature for about an hour, then refrigerate 5 hours before removing pan siding and serving. Dust with unsweetened cocoa powder then cut with a clean, warm knife (run the knife under hot water and dry between slices).

Get creative- add walnut pieces or an almond butter squirl before baking. Serve with fresh raspberries and cinnamon whipped cream (if you do dairy).

Cinnamon Whipped Cream
2 cups of heavy cream
¼ cup of maple syrup
1 1/2 teaspoons of cinnamon
A teaspoon of vanilla

Whip the cream on high in your mixer till it just starts to get peaks. Then sprinkle the cinnamon over the whipped cream and whip a bit more then drizzle in the vanilla and maple syrup. Whip a bit more till the prefect consistency you desire. Don’t over mix or you get whipped butter!