Chocolate Cake Day

Our calendars deem today – January 27- Chocolate Cake Day! Hurray! So we couldn’t resist a post on this delicious topic… with a Moveable Feast twist.  As nutrition is front and center in the fulfillment of our mission, we thought the chocoholics out there and those still struggling to abide by their healthy eating resolutions might enjoy what one of our Dietitians dubbed a “healthier” chocolate cake recipe.

We hope you give this one a try. Don’t let the beans scare you!

Healthy Flourless Chocolate Cake

Recipe and photo credit goes to Healthy Indulgences

 

 

Makes a 9” one layer cake

Ingredients:
1-15 ounce can of unseasoned black beans OR  1 1/2 cup cooked beans, any color
5 large eggs
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
6 tablespoons unsalted organic butter OR unrefined coconut oil
3/4 cup erythritol + 1/2 teaspoon pure stevia extract OR 1/2 cup honey + 1 teaspoon pure stevia extract
6 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon aluminum-free baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon water (omit if using honey)

Mint Chocolate variation:
2 teaspoons mint extract (in place of 2 teaspoons vanilla)

Preparation:
Preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit. Spray a 9" cake pan with extra virgin olive oil cooking spray, or just grease it with a thin layer of butter. Dust cocoa all over the inside of the pan, tapping to evenly distribute. Cut a round of parchment paper and line the bottom of the pan, then spray the parchment lightly.

Drain and rinse beans in a strainer or colander. Shake off excess water. Place beans, 3 of the eggs, vanilla, stevia (if using) and salt into blender. Blend on high until beans are completely liquefied. No lumps! Whisk together cocoa powder, baking soda, and baking powder. Beat butter with sweetener (erythritol or honey) until light and fluffy. Add remaining two eggs, beating for a minute after each addition. Pour bean batter into egg mixture and mix. Finally, stir in cocoa powder and water (if using), and beat the batter on high for one minute, until smooth. Scrape batter into pan and smooth the top. Grip pan firmly by the edges and rap it on the counter a few times to pop any air bubbles.

Bake for 40-45 minutes. Cake is done when the top is rounded and firm to the touch. After 10 minutes, turn out cake from pan, and flip over again onto a cooling rack. Let cool until cake reaches room temperature, then cover in plastic wrap or with cake dome (overturned plastic chip bowls work). For BEST flavor, let cake sit over night. This cake will not have a hint of beaniness after letting it sit for eight hours! If you are stacking this cake, level the top with a long serrated knife, shaving off layers until it is flat and even. Frost immediately before serving. 

Let us know how it turns out!

How Much Is A Cup of Fruits & Vegetables?

Here at Moveable Feast, we have wonderful full-time Dietitians overseeing the menu and portions of our client meals. The rest of us, however, still wonder if we are getting it right sometimes. To help us all, here is a great go-to visual aid showing us 1/2 cup and 1 cup serving sizes of fruits and veggies.

How much is a cup? Here are some examples…

This image and more information can be found at: http://www.fruitsandveggiesmorematters.org/?page_id=63  (©2008-2012 Produce for Better Health Foundation. All rights reserved.)

World AIDS Day

Today- Thursday, Dec. 1 - is World AIDS Day. 

It will be a busy day for Moveable Feast. Twenty-seven volunteers from MAC Cosmetics will be here to work in the kitchen, while other staff and volunteers will join in the festivities of BMORE AWARE: The Living Red Ribbon at Coppin State.  

This is the 30^th anniversary of the identification of HIV in the US.

Some of you may recall that early on in this epidemic, HIV was a death sentence for those infected. Having AIDS often meant not only sickness but also isolation and rejection.  Friends were getting sick and dying. Fortunately, friends were also helping each other. In fact, the founder of Moveable Feast, Bob Mehl, an employee of the Baltimore City Health Department, was a staunch advocate for his friends and the community around him whom he saw dying from AIDS. That’s how Moveable Feast got started.  Bob insisted that the City do something to help people living with AIDS.  Bob fought tirelessly to secure funding from Mayor Kurt Schmoke and was asked by Mayor Schmoke to head a group to address this issue.  The core idea of Moveable Feast was born:  provide nutritious meals to people living with HIV/AIDS free-of-charge and, just as importantly, deliver those meals with care and compassion. Unfortunately, Bob himself succumbed to AIDS before Moveable Feast ever served its first meals, but the seeds of compassion were sown for decades to come.

For more than 22 years, Moveable Feast has focused its mission on serving people who have been ostracized from their families, ridiculed by their communities, demoralized by poverty, and feared by the ignorance, prejudice and self-righteousness that often plagues even the most well-intentioned people. Ours has been a mission that nourishes the body, soul and spirit, without regard for color, race, creed, origin or sexual identification. 

Indeed, we are an example of a “feast to which all are welcome.”

World AIDS Day is a day to remember those who have died from AIDS and to remember the nearly 1 million people in the US who live courageously with HIV. We also celebrate those heroes, past and present, who have contributed to the health and wellness of people with HIV. It’s a day to educate and “b’more aware” of our focus to reduce the number of new HIV infections and to ensure treatment for those who are infected. Consequently, it’s also a day to remember that many people with HIV continue to live in some form of isolation:  fearful of the rejection, ridicule and prejudice that surround this disease.

Thank you for the difference you make each day to advance the mission of Moveable Feast. I take tremendous pride in our staff, board, donors and volunteers who demonstrate a deep and genuine concern for the health and welfare of all our clients, but especially in those who live with HIV/AIDS. In whatever capacity you contribute to Moveable Feast, it is only by working together that we impact the health and wellness of those who are sick and poor, thus strengthening our entire community.

Together let us be diligent in our efforts to FEED people, FIGHT disease and FOSTER hope!

Thomas Bonderenko

Executive Director