Haystack Cookies for #Choctoberfest

By: The Food Hunter

It is near the end of the 2018 Choctoberfest with Imperial Sugar, but I still have one more recipe to share. If you are looking for a unique sweet option, Forte Chocolate offers truly beautiful bars of chocolate that are unlike any other. I used both the Forte Aztec Soul and the Gusto Lemon & Pepper in the recipe below. Both varieties had a unique hint of spice from the different peppers that paired perfectly with the chocolate they are infused in.

Our friends at Forte Chocolate have this motto I could easily live by: "Celebrate Life Through Chocolate." Master Chocolatier, Karen Neugebauer is a true Artisan, creating stunning flavor combinations by blending chocolates with the finest ingredients available.

***If you want to try a few bars, Forte is offering Choctoberfest fans a cool discount here. ***

Haystack Cookies

1 bar of Forte Aztec Soul or Gusto Lemon & Pepper, melted
1/2 cup of toasted coconut

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and spread the coconut in an even layer onto a baking sheet.
Bake for 10 minutes, stir and bake for an additional 3 minutes. Allow to cool

Melt chocolate bar in a double broiler. Mix cooled toasted coconut into the melted chocolate.
Drop by spoonfuls onto wax paper and let cool.

An InLinkz Link-up

Delicious Chocolate Almond Bars for #Choctoberfest2018

By: The Food Hunter

Welcome to Choctoberfest2018 with Imperial Sugar! Today I am sharing the recipe for Delicious Chocolate Almond Bars. These rich chocolate dessert bars are made with Divine 70% Bitter Sweet Chocolate. Divine is Fair Trade chocolate that is co-owned by an 85,000 farmer cooperative in Ghana.



When it comes to chocolate desserts one of my favorite combinations is chocolate mixed with almond. In the bars below I used almond flour, along with almond extract to give the bars more than just a hint of almond flavor.




Delicious Divine Chocolate Almond Bars

8 oz bittersweet Divine chocolate
1 cup butter
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 tsp. almond extract
1 cup sugar
3 large eggs (beaten)
1 1/2 cups almond flour

Coat a 9 inch square baking pan with butter and preheat the oven 325ºF.

Melt the chocolate and butter in a saucepan over a low heat. Remove the pan from the heat, add he vanilla, almond extract and sugar, and stir. Allow to cool slightly in pan.

Add the eggs and almond flour to the saucepan and stir to combine. Pour batter into prepared pan.

Bake for 30 minutes. Allow to cool before slicing and serving.

An InLinkz Link-up

#Choctoberfest 2018 with Imperial Sugar

This is one of my favorite weeks of the year, because #Choctoberfest is finally here! From now until the end of the week, I am joining forces with over 100 other bloggers from around the world to post delicious chocolate recipes. Every day, #Choctoberfest bloggers will be celebrating all things chocolate - milk, dark, white, bittersweet, semi-sweet, and cocoa! We are starting with a #Choctoberfest prize pack from our generous sponsors. Scroll down to learn how you can enter to win. One lucky winner will receive the following:

• A 100-Piece Cake Decorating Kit from our blog sponsors The PinterTest Kitchen. This set includes a cake turntable, piping bags, piping tips, flower nozzles, scapers, and more.
• An Instant Pot and a 40-Pound Case of Granulated Sugar from our gold sponsor Imperial Sugar. Imperial Sugar provides high-quality sugar and sweetener products and over 100 years of time-tested recipes. Sweet things happen when people come together in the kitchen, and that’s why Imperial Sugar has been at the heart of family traditions and celebrations for generations.
• Coconut Oil and Chocolate Silk Greens from our silver sponsor Barlean's, your trusted source for chocolatey goodness superfood nutrition. Barlean's has a commitment to staying ahead of the innovation curve in providing the absolute highest quality product.
• A Chocolate Gift Pack from our silver sponsor Forte Chocolates. You'll receive 12 of their most popular chocolate bars. With Forte Chocolates, you can celebrate life through chocolate. They also have a line of chocolate developed specifically to use in savory recipes.
• A Chocolate Gift Pack from our silver sponsor Divine Chocolate. You'll receive one of each of their baking bars, a white chocolate bar, and their top 5 everyday bars. Divine Chocolate is the only Fairtrade chocolate company in the world that is owned by cocoa farmers. Their baking bars are also a delicious vegan option.
• A Selection of Sprinkles from our silver sponsor Sprinkle Pop. Sprinkle Pop's bespoke sprinkle creations are one of a kind, just like you! At Sprinkle Pop, you can also order a custom sprinkle mix; there isn't a sprinkle mix that you can dream up that they can't create.

That's a prize pack worth over $400! Open worldwide, except where prohibited. Must be 18+ to enter (21+ in some locations). See terms and conditions for more details. To enter, simply follow our sponsors using the widget below. You can gain additional entries by following me and the other participating bloggers. A winner will be drawn on October 21, 2018 and contacted via email.
Good luck! a Rafflecopter giveaway


Don't forget to come back to my blog for more chocolatey goodness between now and October 20. Check out our participating bloggers: The PinterTest Kitchen ♥ 2 Cookin Mamas ♥ 27th and Olive ♥ A Day in the Life on the Farm ♥ A Kitchen Hoor's Adventures ♥ A Little Fish in the Kitchen ♥ addicted 2 recipes ♥ Amy's Cooking Adventures ♥ An Affair from the Heart ♥ April GoLightly ♥ At the Table with R and R ♥ Baking Sense ♥ Blade & Barbell ♥ Blogghetti ♥ Body Rebooted ♥ Books n' Cooks ♥ Bottom Left of the Mitten ♥ Canning and Cooking at Home ♥ Cheese Curd In Paradise ♥ Chef Sarah Elizabeth ♥ Cindy's Recipes and Writings ♥ Coconut & Lime ♥ Cook With Renu ♥ Cook's Hideout ♥ Cookaholic Wife ♥ Cookie Dough and Oven Mitt ♥ CopyKat.com ♥ Daily Dish Recipes ♥ Everyday Eileen ♥ Fairyburger ♥ Faith, Hope, Love, & Luck Survive Despite a Whiskered Accomplice ♥ Family Around the Table ♥ Fix Me a Little Lunch ♥ Frankly Entertaining ♥ Frugal & Fit ♥ Get the Good Stuff! ♥ Growing Up Gabel ♥ Hardly A Goddess ♥ Hezzi-D's Books and Cooks ♥ Home Sweet Homestead ♥ House of Nash Eats ♥ Intelligent Domestications ♥ jenniferbakes ♥ JoAnn's Food Bites ♥ Join Us, Pull up a Chair ♥ Jolene's Recipe Journal ♥ Jonesin’ For Taste ♥ Karen's Kitchen Stories ♥ Kate's Recipe Box ♥ Kelly Lynn's Sweets and Treats ♥ LeMoine Family Kitchen ♥ Life on Food ♥ Life, Love, and Good Food ♥ Lisa's Dinnertime Dish ♥ Little House Big Alaska ♥ Long Distance Baking ♥ Maria's Mixing Bowl ♥ Moore or Less Cooking ♥ Must Love Home ♥ Norine's Nest ♥ Our Good Life ♥ Our Sutton Place ♥ OVENTales ♥ Palatable Pastime ♥ Prettysweetblog ♥ Red Cottage Chronicles ♥ Restless Chipotle ♥ Reviews, Chews & How-Tos ♥ Sarah Cooks the Books ♥ Sarah's Bake Studio ♥ Savory Moments ♥ Seasonal and Holiday Recipe Exchange ♥ Seasoned Sprinkles ♥ Seduction In The Kitchen ♥ Simple Family Crazy Life ♥ Simply Inspired Meals ♥ Snacks and Sips ♥ Soulfully Made ♥ Stephie The Happy Mom ♥ Sumptuous Spoonfuls ♥ Sweet Coralice ♥ Take Two Tapas ♥ Tampa Cake Girl ♥ That Recipe ♥ The Baking Fairy ♥ The Beard and The Baker ♥ The Food Hunter's Guide to Cuisine ♥ The Gingered Whisk ♥ The Heritage Cook ♥ The Mad Scientist's Kitchen ♥ The Olive Blogger ♥ The Pajama Chef ♥ The Redhead Baker ♥ The Saucy Fig ♥ The Spiffy Cookie ♥ The Weekday Gourmet ♥ This is How I Cook ♥ Trampling Rose ♥ Turnips 2 Tangerines ♥ Walking Fruitfully ♥ Wendy Polisi ♥ Wildflour's Cottage Kitchen ♥ Zesty South Indian Kitchen

Smoked Gouda & Celery Root Pizza

By: The Food Hunter

Pizza fans everywhere, this extremely unique pizza is worthy of your time and taste buds. Warning....don't let the idea of a tomato-less pizza turn you away. The combination of smoked cheese and delicate luscious celery root is so amazing you may just abandon tomato sauced pie forever!

Smoked Gouda & Celery Root Pizza 
(adapted from epicurious.com)

1/4 bulb celery root (celeriac), peeled, very thinly sliced
2 tablespoons olive oil, divided, plus more for the baking sheet
salt & freshly ground pepper
8 ounces of your favorite pizza dough, room temperature
6 ounces your favorite smoked cheese, thinly sliced (I used smoked Gouda)
1/2 small red onion, very thinly sliced
1/2 cup grated Parmesan
1 tablespoon fresh oregano leaves
1 tablespoon rinsed & drained capers, chopped
Flaky sea salt (such as Maldon)

Place a rack in lower third of oven; preheat to 500°F. Toss celery root and 1 tablespoon oil in a medium bowl; season with salt and pepper. Set aside.

Gently stretch dough into a 16x12" oval and transfer to a lightly oiled rimmed baking sheet. (If dough springs back, cover and let rest 10 minutes, then stretch again, resting as needed.) Brush with remaining 1 tablespoon oil and bake until dry and golden, about 5 minutes (this prevents dough from getting soggy once the toppings are added). Remove from oven; top with cheese, celery root, onion, Parmesan, and 1 tablespoon oregano.

Bake pizza, rotating baking sheet halfway through, until cheese is melted, celery root is tender, and crust is golden brown, 12–15 minutes.

Top with capers and more oregano; season with sea salt and black pepper.

Baked Pasta with Spinach & Zucchini

By: The Food Hunter

This hearty baked pasta is loaded with veggies and cheese and tied together with a smidgen of tomato sauce. Though utterly delicious it's not like any baked pasta I've had in the past; most of which featured meat versus vegetables.



Baked Pasta with Spinach & Zucchini
1/2 pound rigatoni pasta
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 cup zucchini, cut into small pieces
5 ounces baby spinach, torn
1 cup ricotta cheese
1 large egg
8 ounces fresh mozzarella cheese, diced
1 ounces grated Parmesan cheese
7 oz. whole tomatoes, drained and chopped
Fresh basil leaves

Preheat oven to 375°F. Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and transfer to a large bowl and drizzle with olive oil.

Heat some olive oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high. Add chopped zucchini and cook, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned on all sides, about 4-5 minutes. Stir in the chopped spinach and cook until wilted, about 1 minute. Season with salt and pepper and add to the bowl with pasta.

Mix together, egg, ricotta cheese and a pinch of salt until incorporated. Stir cheese mixture into the pasta and veggies. Add the 1/2 of the diced mozzarella cheese and half of the grated Parmesan cheese, toss to combine. Stir in chopped tomatoes until pasta is coated.

Transfer mixture to an oiled 6-inch pan and place on a baking sheet. Bake until set, about 30 minutes. Top with remaining mozzarella and grated Parmesan cheese, and return to oven. Bake until golden brown, about 5-7 minutes. Remove and let stand 10 minutes. Scoop into bowls and serve topped with fresh basil.