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Archive for the ‘Chocolate’ Category

Whoopie Pumpkin Pies

Posted in Autumn, Chocolate, Cookies, Dessert, tagged , , , , , , , , on October 10, 2011| 11 Comments »

Whoopie Pumpkien Pies

Whoopie Pumpkien Pies

Fall is quickly approaching and I am starting to see pumpkins and Halloween decorations all over the place. If you follow my blog then you know that I am a huge pumpkin fan. I love everything pumpkin…pumpkin pie, pumpkin bread, pumpkin cookies and now…Whoopie Pumpkin Pies. I found these little babies in Food Network Magazine and the recipe moved straight to the top of my very long “to do” list. (Do you notice how these “to do” lists never get any shorter) Anyway, these Whoopie pies are wonderful!

When I was making the cookie batter I got a little worried because, after I added the buttermilk, it looked like the batter was starting to separate. But once I started adding the dry ingredients everything came together beautifully, so no need to worry. Also, the flavor of the filling slowly intensifies so these can easily be made a day in advance. I wrapped each cookie in plastic wrap to keep them fresh and to prevent them from sticking together, then in a large Tupperware container and into the refrigerator. I also took half of the finished cookies and stuck them in the freezer. It turns out that they freeze really well, just let them thaw in the refrigerator. I hope you enjoy these babies as much as we have.

Whoopie Pumpkin Pies

Whoopie Pumpkin Pies

Ingredients:

For the cookies:

1 stick unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 1/4 cups granulated sugar

1 large egg

1 cup buttermilk, at room temperature

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1 1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp baking powder

Pinch of kosher salt

For the filling:

4 oz cream cheese, at room temperature

4 tbsp unsalted butter, at room temperature

2/3 cup confectioners sugar

1/4 cup canned pure pumpkin

1/4 tsp ground cinnamon

Pinch of kosher salt

Directions:

Line three baking sheets with parchment paper. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

To make the cookies: In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder and salt, set aside. Using a stand mixer, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the egg, then the buttermilk and vanilla. Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, mixing just until combined.

Drop 2 tablespoons of batter for each cookies to be made, onto prepared baking sheet, spacing batter 3 inches apart. Bake until edges are set but the cookies are still soft, about 8 minutes. Remove from oven and let cookies cool on baking sheet for 2 minutes, then transfer cookies to a baking rack and cool completely.

To make the filling: Beat cream cheese and butter with a mixer until smooth. Slowly beat in the confectioners sugar. Add the pumpkin, cinnamon and salt and beat until smooth.

To assemble the cookies, spread a heaping tablespoon filling onto the flat side of one cookie and sandwich with another cookie. Repeat with remaining cookies. Enjoy.

Source: Food Network Magazine, The Neelys’

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Milky Way Midnight Brownies

Posted in Cake, Chocolate, tagged , , , , , on July 18, 2011| 10 Comments »

I’ve been having a brownie craving lately, a seriously deep chocolate craving. It had to be satisfied! I started looking at different brownie recipes and I saw one that had Milky Way Midnight candy bars in it. What a brilliant idea. Off I went to hunt for Midnight candy bars but the only ones I could find was the mini bars in the multi packs which has a mixture of other mini chocolate bars in it. There was only a couple of the Midnight bars in each bag so I had to buy two whole bags to have enough. Of course, I could have just used the regular Milky Ways but my heart was really set on having the rich, deep dark Midnight kind 🙂 And so I bought two whole bags of candy, just so I could have my craving satisfied. But that’s ok, because Halloween will be here soon and I can give the candy to the kids….yeah right, like that’s gonna last alllll the waaaay to Halloween 😉

Since then, I have made these brownies twice and my craving has simmered down for the moment. The candy bars almost melt into the brownie itself but every now and then you find a small piece of the white stuff. The brownies are very rich, fudgy, dense and has a deep chocolate flavor…completely immoral!

Ingredients:

5 oz (140 g) semisweet chocolate, chopped

2 oz (56 g) unsweetened chocolate, chopped

8 tbsp (113 g) unsalted butter

3 tablespoons cocoa powder

3 large eggs

1 1/4 cup (260 g) sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup (145 g) flour

1 1/2 oz (42 g) (5 mini bars) Milky Way Midnight candy bars

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line an 8 inch square pan with foil, letting the foil extend over the edges for easy removal of brownie once baked. Spray foil with cooking spray and set aside.

Cut Milky Way bars into 1/2 inch pieces and let cool in the refrigerator.

Melt the chopped chocolate and butter in a bowl set over barely simmering water (a water-bath), stir until smooth. Add cocoa powder and stir until well incorporated. Set aside to cool.

In a medium bowl, combine eggs, sugar, vanilla extract and salt, whisk for 20 seconds. Stir in melted chocolate. Add flour to wet ingredients and fold in just until combined. Add the Milky Way candy pieces, careful not to over-mix. Pour mixture into pan and bake 35-40 minutes. Check for doneness by inserting a toothpick into center of cake, toothpick should have just a few crumbs attached to it. Move pan to a wire rack and allow to cool completely. Cut into small pieces and serve. Enjoy!

Source: inspired by The Good Cookie book

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Cookie Shop Chocolate Chip Cookies

Posted in Chocolate, Cookies, tagged , , , , , , on March 21, 2011| 5 Comments »

Cookie Shop Chocolate Chip Cookies

One of my favorite baking books is The Good Cookie book which was given to me a long time ago. This is my “go to” cookie book and I have used it time and time again. I particularly love this Cookie Shop Chocolate Chip Cookie because it has rolled oats in the dough. What’s not to like about wonderful oats:)  Helpful hint: when shaping the dough try to handle as little as possible. If the dough becomes warm, it is more likely to spread and the cookies will loose their shape.

Oats and chocolate chip

Ground oats and chips

Ingredients:

2 cups plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup old-fashioned rolled oats

2 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate morsels, divided

1 cup (2 sticks) plus 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature

3/4 cup granulated sugar

3/4 cup firmly packed light brown sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 large eggs, room temperature 

Directions:

Place two racks near the center of the oven and preheat to 375 degrees F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.

Sift together flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. In the bowl of a food processor, combine oats and 1/2 cup chocolate morsels and process until finely ground, about 45 seconds. Stir the oat mixture into the flour mixture and set aside.

In the bowl of an electrical mixer, using the paddle attachment, beat the butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar and vanilla extract at medium speed until creamy, about 2 minutes. Beat in the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Scrape down sides as needed. At low speed, add the dry ingredients, mixing just until combined. Using a wooden spoon, stir in the remaining 2 cups chocolate morsels.

Measure out rounded tablespoonfuls of dough and, using wet hands, roll each portion into a ball. Arrange balls 2 inches apart on the baking sheets. Flatten the balls into 1 3/4 inch disks.

Bake the cookies, two sheets at a time, for 9 to 13 minutes, just until golden brown. Switch positions of the baking sheets halfway through baking time. Transfer cookies to a wire rack and cool completely.

Cookie Shop Chocolate Chip Cookies

Source: slightly adapted from The Good Cookie

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Red Velvet Cake Balls

Posted in Chocolate, Cookies, Dessert, tagged , , , , , , , on February 7, 2011| 40 Comments »

Red Velvet Cake Balls

Valentine’s Day is upon us once again. A day for celebrating your affection for your loved ones and for buying massive amounts of chocolate, flowers and Hallmark Cards. The truth of the matter is that I do not celebrate Valentine’s Day. I think it is much more sincere and natural to show your affection in a spontaneous manner….besides I don’t like an overly crowded restaurant. However, I did think it would be fun to make something in a Valentine’s theme and I have been itching to make these Red Velvet cake balls.

The balls turned out very delicious and they were easy to make but a bit time-consuming. If you make cake balls make sure they are thoroughly chilled for easier handling. I worked with 3 or 4 balls at the time so they wouldn’t warm up before i could get them dipped in the chocolate. A tip which worked out really well (courtesy HubPages) was to take a plastic fork and break off the middle two digits which allowed for quicker and better draining off the excess chocolate. So first I rolled the ball in the melted chocolate, then scooped it onto the fork and spooned chocolate over the remaining cake ball and placed it onto a baking sheet to set. I also melted the chocolate in small increments because the cake crumbs make the chocolate thicken pretty quickly.

The best part of making these wonderful Red Velvet Cake Balls was to hear my sons reaction over the phone when he recieved them at his college 🙂

Red Velvet Cake Balls

Ingredients:

1 box Red Velvet  cake mix (follow baking instructions on box)

16 oz can Cream Cheese Frosting

2 – 12 oz bags chocolate/white chocolate

1/2 lb colored candy wafers (optional – for decorating)

Directions:

Bake red velvet cake according to directions on box. Allow cake to cool completely.

Break up cake into large chucks, place in food processor and process until fine crumbs. Place cake crumbs in a large bowl.  If you don’t have a food processor you can certainly crumble it by hand. Add cream cheese frosting to cake crumbs and mix together. It may be easier to use your hands for the mixing, but a bit messy. Roll cake mass into quarter size balls and place on a baking sheet. Refrigerate cake balls for several hours or place in freezer to speed up the cooling process. You want them very cold for easier handling before dipping in chocolate.

Melt chocolate over a warm water bath or in microwave according to package directions. Using a spoon and fork, gently roll each ball in the melted chocolate to cover, spooning more chocolate over the ball as needed. Place ball on baking sheet or parchment paper until chocolate has hardened.

If decorating, melt colored candy wafers over a water bath or in microwave. Load into a small zip lock bag, cut off the corner tip of zip lock bag making a tiny hole. Drizzle over chocolate covered balls and let set. Enjoy.

Baked Red Velvet Cake

Break up cake

Crumbs with frosting

Source: Bakerella

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Marshmallow Fudge

Posted in Chocolate, Dessert, tagged , , on December 25, 2010| 13 Comments »

Marshmallow Fudge

I have been going a little crazy with the Fudge recipe that I got from Stacie’s blog Eating in Denmark. In this version I used Marshmallows and added a little raspberry schnapps, just enough to give it a hint of raspberries. I can’t believe how easy this recipe is and how quickly the Fudge disappears. Note: it is best when served cold.

Marshmallow Fudge

Ingredients:

12 oz semisweet chocolate

14 oz sweetened condensed milk

2 tablespoon butter

a pinch of salt

4 tablespoon raspberry schnapps

1 cup mini marshmallows

Directions:

Line a 9 x 9 inch pan with foil, letting the foil extend out over the two edges.

Melt the chocolate, sweetened condensed milk, butter and salt over very low heat.

Add the marshmallows to the melted chocolate mixture and stir to cover all the marshmallows. Pour mixture into prepared pan and place in refrigerator to cool completely. You can place it in the freezer to help speed up the cooling process.

Once the fudge is completely cooled and set, lift the fudge out of pan using the extra foil extending over edges. Cut into 1 inch pieces. I recommend to keep fudge cooled in refrigerator until serving. Enjoy.

Marshmallow Fudge

Source: adapted from Eating in Denmark

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Chocolate Pistachio Fudge

Posted in Chocolate, Dessert, tagged , , , on December 13, 2010| 9 Comments »

Pistachio Fudge

I first saw this recipe on my friend Stacie’s blog Eating in Denmark and I knew that I had to make this immediately, and so this recipe shoot right up to the top of my mile long to-do-list. It is super delicious, easy and quick to make, and it looks so festive with the green pistachios. I have also made it with coconut, which was equally delicious, and I suppose you could make this fudge with just about any of your favorite filling. Thank you Stacie for this fabulous Fudge recipe 🙂

Pistachios

Mixing in the Pistachios

Ingredients:

12 ounce semisweet chocolate, chopped

12 ounce can sweetened condensed milk

2 tablespoon unsalted butter

a pinch of salt

1 cup shelled unsalted pistachios

Directions:

Line a 9 x 9 inch pan with foil, letting the foil extend out over the two edges.

Melt the chocolate, sweetened condensed milk, butter and salt over very low heat.

While the chocolate mixture is melting, place pistachios in a zip lock bag and break them up into small and bigger pieces by pounding them with a rolling-pin.

Add the pistachios to the melted chocolate mixture and stir to mix well. Pour mixture into prepared pan, smooth out the top and place in refrigerator to cool completely. You can place it in the freezer to help speed up the cooling process.

Once the fudge is completely cooled and set, lift the fudge out of pan using the extra foil extending over edges. Cut into 1 inch pieces. I recommend to keep fudge cooled in refrigerator until serving. Enjoy.

Chocolate Pistachio Fudge

Source: Eating in Denmark Blog (originally from Nigella Express)

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Chocolate Cupcakes with Nutella Icing

Posted in Chocolate, Cupcakes, Dessert, Frosting, tagged , , , , , , on September 19, 2010| 13 Comments »

Chocolate Cupcakes With Nutella Icing

Chocolate Cupcakes With Nutella Icing

So my husband Joe, you know the Blacksmith, had his Blacksmithing buddies over for their monthly meeting. This time I decided to also make them a sweet treat and when Joe saw these cupcakes on Barefoot Contessa’s TV show (yeah, I force him to watch the FoodNetwork…evil laugh) he decided that’s what he wanted. Except the original cupcakes had a Peanut Butter frosting and there is no way, no how, I am making anything Peanut Butter. Sorry, just can’t stand it. So we decided on a brilliant solution, Nutella of course. So here it is, please enjoy Chocolate Cupcakes with Nutella Icing.

Artist Blacksmith Group of Tidewater

Chocolate Cupcakes With Nutella Icing

Ingredients for cupcakes:

12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature

2/3 cup granulated sugar

2/3 cup dark brown sugar, packed

2 extra-large eggs, at room temperature

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

1 cup buttermilk, at room temperature

1/2 cup sour cream, at room temperature

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup good cocoa powder

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

Ingredients for Icing:

1 cup confectioner’s sugar

1 cup Nutella

5 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature

3/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1/3 cup heavy whipping cream

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line cupcake pans with paper liners.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter and the 2 sugars on high-speed until light and fluffy (approx 5 minutes). Lower speed to medium and add the eggs one at a time, then add vanilla and mix well.

In a separate bowl, mix together buttermilk and sour cream. In another bowl, sift together flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt.

On low-speed, add the buttermilk mixture and the flour mixture alternately in thirds to the mixer bowl. Mix only until blended. Fold batter with a spatula to be sure it’s completely blended.

Divide batter among the cupcake pans, using an ice cream scoop per cup. Bake in the middle of oven for 20 to 25 minutes. Using a toothpick test to make sure cupcakes are done. Toothpick should come out clean. Cool for 10 minutes, then remove from pan and allow to cool completely before frosting.

To make the frosting: place confectioner’s sugar, nutella, butter, vanilla and salt in the bowl of an electrical mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix on medium-low speed until creamy, scraping down the sides of bowl as you work. Add the cream and beat on high-speed until the mixture is light and smooth.

Once cupcakes are completely cooled, frost with Nutella Icing. Enjoy!

Chocolate Cupcake With Nutella Icing

Chocolate Cupcake With Nutella Icing

Source: adapted from Barefoot Contessa

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