United Cakedom: oat milk

It’s the end of the National Chocolate Week and there have been a lot of chocolate stuff going on in London.

I wish I could tell you about all the fun I was having in there in London, but I wasn't there!

So, from the comfort of my couch and laptop I thought I’d share with you some of my favorite chocolaty things for my Five on Friday.

1. Brownies

In the early days of my blog I was going to have a whole thing about my quest to find the best brownie recipe ever! Then I sorta stopped. However I have found my favorite brownie recipe and I haven’t used another one since. I wrote about them in the post Bribe Worthy Brownies (I still haven't taken my driver's test O_o ) and a look here for more brownie recipes!

2. Paul A. Young

He could secretly be made of chocolate. When I got to meet him briefly at last years Cake & Bake Show, he was super friendly and happy to answer any questions. I love his book and I love his shop(s). His book is full of amazing chocolate things and his store is filled with amazing chocolate treats! (His brownies are freakin’ amazing! If you want to know about my visit to his shop I wrote about here and if you want to know more about his book I wrote about it here and more about when I meet him look here!

3. Hotel Chocolat

They have great chocolate and the range of flavors and products is astounding! It is a bit pricey, but it’s part of why I think of it as such a treat! One time when I was pregnant I bought one of the Caramel Slabs and I hid it in the back of a cupboard so my husband didn't know about it because I didn't want to share and in 3 days I had finished the whole thing. So, unless he reads this he'll never know about it.

4. Blackout Cake

I don’t ever think I ate anything so chocolaty and so rich as this cake. It is the cake that I found myself sneaking to the fridge with a fork to steal bites of it. Then when the cake looked a bit funny, due to the fork marks in it, I had to have a few more bites to even it out. Why I didn't just cut myself a slice is beyond me. More about the blackout cake here!

5. Galaxy Ripples

I know I like high-end chocolate from places like Paul A. Young and mid-end chocolate from places like Hotel Chocolate, but there is something to be said about a Galaxy Ripple. I mean sometimes you just want a creamy chocolaty treat! These are my go to chocolate in times of need.

A couple other things that almost made my list where:

Eric Lanlard’s book Chocolat:

Oatly Chocolate Oat Drink

notes: Pictures are my own, except the Hotel Chocolate logo, it is from their website. All opinions are my own, no compensation was given for this post. Please see my contact/policy page for further information.

Today I know at least 3 people who can’t have any dairy of any kind. It seems more and more people need to seek out alternatives to milk.

Oatly have been producing their oat drink since the1990’s at a time that people thought they were a bit ambitious and perhaps a bit crazy.

It’s a good thing they didn't listen to the naysayers because today there is a need for milk alternatives.

Baking is something that can be a bit tricky when trying to accommodate for people who have different food needs.

Oatly not only tastes good, it has a very nice subtle oaty taste, but it also works great in baked goods!

I have already had success making cupcakes with Oatly’s Original Oat drink, so I thought I would try the Chocolate version. I thought of cupcakes again, but wasn't feeling it. Then I thought of cookies because of cookies and milk and all that. I dismissed that pretty quick as I have never baked cookies with milk in them.

Then I thought of donuts and it just felt right. I have started this new thing where I go with my gut instincts, because usually they are right. It’s actually pretty creepy how often I am right about something.

For instance these donuts.

I was totally right about these donuts! They have a nice rich chocolaty flavor and just one feels pretty guilt free! Not that it is, its just mini so you know….

One thing before I get to the recipe: I used sour cream, but I think you could substitute a soya yogurt or similar to make it completely dairy free. However I had sour cream in my fridge and I wanted to use it up. Waste not and all that stuff.

Anyway here’s how I made them in case you want to make them too!

Oatly Chocolate Mini Donuts:

160g plain flour

40g cocoa powder

2 tsp baking powder

¼ tsp salt

1 medium egg

120g sugar

150ml The Original Oatly Oat Drink Chocolate

2 tbsp sunflower oil

2 tbsp sour cream or soya yogurt

½ tsp vanilla extract

Heat the oven to 180C/350F and grease the mini donut pan. I use silicone pastry brush and sunflower oil. If it’s not greased properly they will stick.

In a small bowl whisk all the dry ingredients together. Then in a bigger bowl whisk the egg and sugar together before adding the milk, oil, sour cream, and vanilla.
Then by hand gently beat the dry ingredients into the wet until just combined and smooth.

It can be spooned into the donut pan or piped. Piping is somewhat easier, but the batter is very smooth and can run out so it just depends on what’s easiest for you. I like piping because it’s a bit quicker. Fill the indents no more then ¾ full.

Bake for 7-9 minutes. Leave to cool slightly before carefully turning them out to cool completely. I suggest cleaning out each indentation and re-greasing between bakes.

Oatly Chocolate Glaze

150g icing sugar

1 tsp cocoa powder

2-3 tbsp The Original Oatly Oat Drink Chocolate

Mix all the ingredients together. Start with two tablespoons of Oat Drink to see if it’s the right consistency before adding another one in. If you put your finger in the icing it should stick to your finger and leave a bit of a stiff trail. Once the donuts are cool, fill a baggie or piping bag and make a very small hole in the tip to pipe on the donuts or dunk them in to cover the tops completely. Then eat! Enjoy!

notes: In association with Oatly: visit their website here if you’d like to learn more. All opinions are my own – for more information please see my contact/policy. Check out my Oatly Espresso Cupcakes! This is being entered in Cakeyboi and The Baked Explorer’s monthly Treat Petite baking challenge.