Chocolate (Cake Mix) Pizzelle

With Easter being tomorrow, I wanted to make a dessert that everyone at my brother's house will enjoy. 

I planned to make pizzelle, and roll some up to make cannoli.  I anticipate that everyone will be surprised at how good they are.  My gluten free pizzelle/cannoli recipe was posted on January 22, 2011.

I had a box of cake mix that I wanted to use for something.  It's called "Gluten Free Dreams," and the package looks like this:

Here is how I made my cake mix pizzelle:

Cake Mix Pizzelle
(Makes ~30)

Melt 1/2 cup (1 stick) of butter in the microwave. 
(I did this for 30 seconds.  It doesn't have to be completely melted.....
you don't want to cook the eggs in the next step!)

Use a wire whisk to smooth out the melted butter. 

Add 3 eggs and whisk it up. 

Add one 16.4-oz package of Gluten Free Dreams Cake mix.
(This was about 2 1/4 cups.)

I needed to add 1-2 Tbs of water to make a soft dough.

Heat up your pizzelle baker.
Bake 33-35 seconds.  I have a digital timer that works well for this.

Sprinkle with powdered sugar before serving.


While I was at it, I made cannoli with my standard recipe. 
Here is a picture of how they look:

I made these by wrapping the newly-baked (soft) pizzelle around these cannoli forms:

As the pizzelle cool, they harden around the forms. 
It didn't take any longer than waiting for the next batch to cook. 

Tomorrow I will fill them just prior to serving.

I look forward to Easter dessert!!!

Parmesan Crisps

John is home for a short time this weekend.  I took him to Whole Foods where he picked up some GF cereal and snacks to keep in his dorm room.  He likes these crisps as a treat.  They are made by "Kitchen Table Bakers", and they are pretty tasty.  We got this package today.

A while back I purchased a silicone mat to bake on.  I had seen that these crisps can be made on them, and thought it would be fun.  I also wondered if they could be baked in a cast iron skillet.

About a month ago I gave it a try.  It was a disaster.  I used parmesan cheese that I buy in containers next to the tomato sauces in the grocery store.  They barely held together.  I added oil.  Ick.  Not for the blog!

As we wandered around Whole Foods today, I saw chunks of "Parmigiano Reggiano" cheese for sale.  We purchased a half pound chunk, and I explained to John how I tried earlier to make the parmesan crisps.  I had the impression that they may work better with a fresh parmesan. 

Well, my college boy had all the information!!  When he was in his Italian class, they had quite a discussion about cheese, and how "Parmegiano Reggiano" is different (and superior) to the "parmesan" you buy in the pasta aisle.  They use a special heirloom type of cow for it, and it's made with raw milk, and they age it differently.  It's only imported from Italy.....it's not made in the U.S.

Okay....we made plans to work on this project right after lunch.

We tried using the silicone mat, a cast iron skillet, and even some baked on parchment paper. 

The results?

The silicone mat won, hands down!  Those baked on a silicone mat were lacy, crispy, and beautiful to behold.  The others were more dense and chewy. 

Plus:  these are easy!


Parmesan Crisps
(Makes 6 crisps)

Take out a silicone mat.  Place it on a cookie sheet.
Preheat the oven to 350.

Take a chunk of solid Parmigiano Reggiano cheese. 
Shred up 1/2 cup into a small bowl.

Add about a teaspoon of Italian Herbs.  Blend.

Spoon this in six tablespoon-sized heaps onto your silicone mat,
evenly spaced.

Bake 5 to 7 minutes.
You will see it bubble!
Stop when it browns slightly.

Remove from oven.
Cool.
Carefully remove from mat,
and artfully place it on a plate.
Hold one up to the light and admire its beauty.

Enjoy!

Sorry no new posts....

Sorry I haven't been able to do much posting lately.....will get back to it soon, I promise!