Orange Chocolate Chip Bread with Dark Chocolate Glaze

First things first, yes, it's been a while since I've blogged... *insert sheepish grin here*
Moving right along!
Inspired by a yummy lemon berry bread (recipe to be posted at a later date) I made last week, this week I set out to make an orange bread, but not just any orange bread.  Nope.  An orange bread with chocolate.  Mmmmhmmm.  It turned out as delicious as I imagined, if I do say so myself.  


It's semi-healthy in that I use whole grains, organic fruit, limited fat and less sugar.  I divided the batter between three small loaf pans - one to eat, one to give away, and one to freeze.  I love quick breads like this for an afternoon pick-me-up with a cup of coffee or tea.  They can also make a good breakfast with the addition of a nut butter or yogurt for a boost of protein.

Orange Chocolate Chip Bread with Chocolate Glaze

Bread

1/4 cup rolled oats

1/4 cup almond meal

Juice of 1 organic orange (about 1/3 cup), divided

Zest of 1 organic orange (about 2 tablespoons), divided

2 tablespoons oil (olive, canola, walnut, coconut – whatever you prefer – I used olive)

6 oz Chobani 0% Blood Orange Greek yogurt

2 large eggs

1 flax “egg” (1 tablespoon flax meal mixed with 3 tablespoons water)

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1/4 cup milk (almond, coconut, soy, dairy – whatever you prefer – I used almond)

1 1/2 cups whole spelt flour (I used Arrowhead Mills – you could use whole wheat flour)

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup SweetLeaf brand SugarLeaf raw cane sugar-stevia blend for baking (compared to 3/4 cup if using all sugar)

1/2 cup chocolate chips (I used Ghirardelli 60% Cacao Bittersweet Chips), chopped/broken up

Glaze

1/4 cup chocolate chips

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

1 tsp honey

Preparation

I place the 1/2 cup of chocolate chips for the bread in the freezer for a bit so they’re easier to chop up in the food processor.  Just pulse a few times to get pieces that distribute through the batter more evenly.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Zest and juice the orange.  I included some of the pulp with my juice.

In a medium bowl, combine rolled oats, almond meal, and all wet ingredients:  2 tablespoons orange juice, 1 tablespoon orange zest, olive oil, yogurt, eggs, flax, vanilla, and milk.  Mix and let sit for 5 minutes or so to allow the oats to moisten thoroughly.

In a large bowl, sift together spelt flour, baking soda, salt, and SugarLeaf.  Make a well in the dry ingredients.  Add wet ingredients to dry, stirring until just moist.  Fold in chocolate chips.  

Spray loaf pan(s) with non-stick cooking spray and fill pan(s) about 2/3 full.  For a large loaf pan, bake for 45-55 minutes.  For two or three smaller loaf pans, bake 25-35 minutes.  The loaves are done when they have puffed, are lightly browned on top, and are pulling away from the sides of the pan a bit.  A toothpick inserted into the center of the loaf should come out clean.

While still hot and in the pans, poke holes with a skewer and drizzle with the remaining 3 tablespoons of orange juice, about 1-2 tablespoons per loaf.  Let loaves sit in the pans for about 10 minutes, then remove and place on waxed paper on a cooling rack.

At this point, go ahead and make the chocolate glaze.  Melt 1/4 cup chocolate chips, 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, and 1 teaspoon honey in a glass bowl in the microwave.  Heat in 10 second intervals so as not to scorch the chocolate (YUCK), stirring well after each heating, until smooth.  Drizzle over each loaf, and then sprinkle with remaining 1 tablespoon of orange zest, about 1 teaspoon per loaf.  Let cool completely & enjoy!  

Because the bread is so moist, I store my leftovers (hahaha) in the refrigerator.  It tastes best at room temperature, so if you can, let it sit out for a few minutes before serving.

Accomplishing Something

I'm not working right now, so technically I have all the time in the world, but I seem to have a heck of a time getting things done anyway!  It's mid-afternoon and I still need to shower and change out of my pajamas!  Oh well.  The dogs don't care. ;)

I did manage to get a load of laundry done, wash dishes, make lunch, and get a piece of brisket in to marinate overnight.  I can't wait to see how it comes out!  If you're anything like me and enjoy cooking and watch (more than enough) Food Network, you start wanting to try just about everything anybody cooks.  Brisket almost always looks good on TV, but in the grocery brisket usually seems:

1. Too BIG! - It's just me and my mom.  The dogs and the cat don't get people food.
2. Too FATTY! - I understand the "fat cap" is there to help keep the meat moist and flavorful, but it just doesn't look appetizing.
3. Too EXPENSIVE! - I really can't afford to pay a lot for something that may not come out edible when I'm done with it!

This week I happened to find a smaller piece, just over a pound, that had already been trimmed of fat and was on sale.  Bingo!  All of that helped to cement my decision to purchase it, but I've still been looking for ideas on the best way to cook it.  I probably still would have been looking next week, but meat will only keep for so long, so I had to make up my mind! 

Finally today after lunch I mixed together some red wine, soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, honey, minced garlic and onion, and black pepper.  Mmm, savory and sweet.  Poured the marinade into a heavy duty zip lock bag, added the brisket, zipped it up, tossed it around, and placed in glass pie plate in the bottom of the fridge.  My plan is to transfer the brisket and marinade into the slow cooker tomorrow and cook it low and slow for around 4 hours.  Fingers crossed!

Jumping Back In

It's been a while since I've regularly kept up with a blog, but I'm jumping back in because of a too-long list of reasons that keeps growing ever longer in my head.

As you've may have noticed, my blog title is a take off of a line from one of my favorite movies, which is a favorite for oh so many reasons:  the story, the characters, the Sepia Tone to Technicolor and back again sequences, and so on.  At different points in my life, I think I've been able to relate to different characters, but none more so than Dorothy.  Although I do believe it's possible for our heart's desires to be found further than our own backyards!  The important part, I think, is figuring out those desires so we don't end up getting too far off track in our journey.  Unfortunately it's not as easy as following a yellow brick road, but there are friends and foes to meet along the way, both of which can teach us something about ourselves.  I'm still learning.