Mocha Coconut Ugly Sweater Brownie Cake

For the past few years I have been taking photos of different weekly challenges for Gastropost.  Gastropost is part of Postmedia who own the National Post.  Every week a few photos are chosen to appear in the Gastropost section of the Saturday edition of the National Post in Toronto and versions across Canada as well.

Recently the team at Gastropost chose 8 of us Gastropost Bloggers to complete a sponsor Challenge for the Holidays.

THE MISSION:  HOLIDAY TREATS

We were given a couple of different items from a couple of different sponsors.

I was given a Brownie Mix and Wine gums from Walmart Canada.


After scratching my head to come up with an idea of what to do with these items I decided to tie them into the Holiday Party Theme I am doing for a party with friends this weekend.

THE THEME:  UGLY SWEATER PARTY

What I did to transform and turn the products into a Holiday Treat?

I decided to make a Mocha Coconut Brownie Cake.
I knew I wanted to frost it with Coconut so it made sense to compliment the flavours of a chocolate brownie mix with Espresso flavour and coconut.

I tried to turn the wine gums into stained glass ornaments but that didn't work out as well as I would have hoped so I just used the Wine gums as decoration for the Brownie Cake.

I decided to make it round instead of the traditional square brownies to make it look more like a snowy cake and also so that I can cover it on a cake stand.  A practical reason for sure.

Directions for the Brownie:

I added about a tablespoon of Espresso powder to the mix because it enhances the chocolate flavour.
I also added about 3 tablespoons of shredded coconut to the mix.
I added the required water and 2 eggs but had to substitute the vegetable oil for Olive Oil but I wouldn't suggest this.  I didn't have any vegetable oil and didn't have time to run out to get some.  I probably would have substituted in Coconut oil if I had some and I know that would have further enhanced the flavour.

I mixed it up and then baked it.   There are directions on the box to tell you how long to cook it.   I tried to do the toothpick test to see if it comes out clean and cooked it longer but I think because I used Olive oil and added the coconut it was a bit too long and the edges burnt but these things happen sometimes.  I just cut off the brown edges when i frosted the brownie.  It takes a bit of time to bake and you have to cool it completely before you frost it.

For the Frosting:

I whipped up some white buttercream using just a couple of sticks of softened butter and a couple of cups of icing sugar and added coconut extract to it to boost the coconut flavour.

Because I only had the one box I couldn't make another one so I had to try and get it right the first time around.

I frosted the cooled brownie with the white buttercream and then added shredded coconut to make it look like snow.   I added red food coloring to the little bit of leftover buttercream and piped the outline of a sweater on the cake.

I added colored sprinkles to the inside of the sweater outline and then added a few whole and cut wine gums for the buttons on the sweater.   I also added wine gums to the border of the brownie around the edges to tie it all together.

And Voila,  and Ugly Christmas Brownie Cake.

I wanted to cut it and show a slice of it but then I would ruin the surprise for my friends  at my Holiday Party on the weekend.   So you will have to trust me that it looks good on the inside and is very chocolatey.

I will post a photo of a cut piece on my Instagram account @lindamatarasso once I cut it this sunday.

Thank you to Walmart Canada for the goodies and thank you to Gastropost for organizing a few of us crafty Bloggers.  You can follow along on Twitter and Instagram to see what the others have done by using the hashtag #GastropostHoliday.

I hope to have more photos with the Brownie cake after the weekend so look out for more soon.

Great Canada Day BBQ tips

HAPPY CANADA DAY

You don't have to spend a fortune to have a great Canada Day BBQ with friends and family.

Here are my tips for a great BBQ.

I headed over to Walmart and picked up a few of Walmart's Our Finest BBQ staples and had a low cost BBQ with friends and their new baby.  Baby Kenzie was really excited to celebrate her first Canada Day BBQ and she was literally drooling over all of the food.

               

The MENU

From Walmart:

Our Finest Cheddar Cheese and Applewood Smoked Bacon Beef Burger    $10.99

Our Finest Chipotle BBQ sauce                                                                               $1.78

Our Finest Strawberry Lemonade                                                                          $2,00

Our Finest Thick Cut Grilled Onion and Balsalmic vinegar chips                      $2.00

Our Finest Tzatziki Yoghurt Dressing                                                                     $2.00

Our Finest Lemon Herb Shrimp                                                                             $10.00

Coleslaw                                                                                                                     $1.47

Fresh Corn                                                                                                              5 @ .57each

Also on the Menu:

Roasted Beets with goat cheese

Taco layered dip with red and white nacho chips

Jerusalem artichoke salad

Fingerling potato salad

Cucumber and Cherry Tomato salad with the Tzatziki dressing

Dessert:

My friend made Chocolate Chip Banana Bread

I picked up a Walmart brand Smore's kit

I also got a fresh pineapple from Walmart that I cut into slices and we grilled it with sugar cinnamon and topped it with vanilla ice cream and dulce de leche caramel sauce

I also got a little round watermelon that we cut up into slices and then cut out maple leafs with a cookie cutter.

My friend also picked up a Red Velvet Canadian Flag Cake.

To DRINK:

I brought over some Walter Caesar mix that I had and topped it off with celery and of course a Canadian Flag and a celery salt rim and ice.

And of course there was lot's of wine, perrier and water too along with the strawberry lemonade which tasted very refreshing.

I think we had as much dessert as we did dinner.

I spent just under $100 at Walmart and that fed 5 people and enough for 6.

We decked out the table family style so it wasn't fancy but very fun and festive.

Everything tasted fantastic and the weather was beautiful after 2 solid days of gloomy rain.  

We were really surprised on how much we enjoyed the Applewood Smoked Bacon and cheese Stuffed Burgers.  Because of the cheese inside they were moist and flavourful.  I would recommend them anytime.   I bought sliced cheese but skipped it because you could see the cheese oozing out so it really didn't need it.

We kind of had a Pot Luck style BBQ with some things I had made at home,  some things BBQ essentials that I picked up at Walmart and a few other things we either purchased or made.

You can really have a great BBQ on a Budget if you pick up a few great things like some great Burgers like the Our Finest ones we tried and get some great hamburger buns and some condiments.  We really liked the Our Finest Chipotle BBQ sauce.  Add some fresh coleslaw and some fresh corn on the cob and some cherry tomato and cucumber salad or you can even skewer them.  We also skewered some of the cherry tomatoes with some boconcini cheese that my friend had but we forgot about them until after we had everything.

Since you already have the BBQ going the grilled pineapple is also a great easy idea or just toast up some marshmallow after you finish grilling your meal.

We grilled the corn but you can also grill peppers, zucchini or even potatoes and asparagus.  These are some of my favourite things that grilling really enhances.

Get creative and find some great food and friends and spark up that grill whether you do it at home or on a campsite or at a local park.  It's always fun and the food is always better this way.

Don't forget the Canadian Flags, hats, and festive decorations.

Enjoy a safe and Happy Canada Day!

Disclaimer:  This post is sponsored by Walmart Canada, as part of the Our Finest program. In exchange this review, I have received special perks in the form of products and/or compensation. All opinions on this blog are my own.

Masterchef's Graham Elliot's fresh tastes

Masterchef US judge Chef GRAHAM ELLIOT was in Toronto for a special media event at Nella Cucina on Bathurst St. to promote Walmart's new changes to promote Fresh Tastes and some new changes that will be happening in Walmart stores.   The media were invited to cook up recipes from Chef Elliot's new cookbook "Cook like a Master Chef".
In teams of 4-5 people we cooked up some creamed spinach and grilled 100% Canadian Beef.   Chef Elliot's team also cooked up some grilled Salmon with a mustard vinaigrette and a fresh coleslaw.

Walmart's representative spoke about the changes Walmart are making in their produce sections and their meat departments to better suppliers and in the case of Walmart Canada that means a lot of Canadian product as a response to what consumers were requesting.   Chef Elliot and Walmart Canada want to provide fresh grocery food at an affordable price that more families can choose for their daily meals.  The chicken and pork will be supplied by Maple Leaf and the beef will be from Alberta farmers and the produce from some of the top producers.

Chef Elliot has gone through a major transformation in his life by losing 150 pounds over the course of a year after having gastric sleeve surgery to reduce the size of his stomach.  As a chef he still needed the ability to taste foods all day but a way to get his health in line for himself and mostly for the benefit of his family.  He didn't want to have his weight be an issue for his sons lives so he made the change which included changing his diet to more protein based meals and fresh vegetables and he also ran a marathon a year after his surgery.

With his new cookbook COOK LIKE A MASTERCHEF he wants to inspire people to eat better foods everyday.  He has partnered with Walmart to inspire people in this mission.

It was a pleasure attending the media event where not all the media were comfortable in the kitchen.  I didn't have that problem and enjoyed making his recipes.  I have made the creamed spinach recipe myself a few times so it was simple for me but for people without experience in the kitchen it's an easy recipe to learn and a good way to get kids and adults to eat spinach.

Graham Elliot is considered the nice Chef on Masterchef US in between Gordon Ramsey and previously Joe Bastianich who has now been replaced with Dessert queen Christina Tosi.   The new season aired on Wednesday night and I can say that Christina is a tough judge but I would say critical but precise.

I love watching Masterchef to see all the different recipes the contestants come up with and how they try to push the boundaries of what is expected.

I would suggest watching Masterchef on Wednesday nights at 8pm and you will pick up a few cooking tips and then get a copy of Graham Elliot's cookbook or even one of Chef Gordon Ramsey's many cookbooks and try your hand at a recipe you didn't think you could make.   Impress yourself and the people you dine with with your new found skills and don't forget that Walmart is now trying to provide more fresh foods that you can afford.

*disclaimer: the media event was complimentary but the opinions in this post are my own.