Category: Chocolate

Chocolate · Desserts · Holiday Fare

Chocolate Peanut Butter Fudge

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A few years back, a dear friend, Debbie had a team of ladies from church to her home for lunch. We quickly filled up on this fudge before she had a change to put the main meal in front of us. We just stood at the cooking bar and kept munching on the fudge. It is a never fail, quick and peanutty. If you don’t like chocolate, just omit the cocoa and it becomes peanut butter fudge.

In a saucepan bring to a rolling boil, stirring continually.
1/2 cup water
3 tables cocoa
2 cups sugar

Before you begin to cook this chocolate mixture, in a separate bowl, put 1 cup of any kind of peanut butter you want. Smooth, crunchy, organic, Unsalted, whatever. To the peanut butter, add 1 teas vanilla.

When mixture is boiling, set timer for 1 minute and boil for exactly 1 minute. Pour boiling chocolate mixture over the peanut butter, vanilla ingredients and stir to melt peanut butter. When all is mixed, pour into a lightly greased pan and allow to cool completely before cutting.

Have mine ready and am taking to the salon where I get my nails done. Maybe they will like it so much they will paint a turkey on my pinky without charging me.
Thank you Debbie for a most easy and yummy fudge that easily becomes a great hostess gift.
Thank you Cora for reminding me about putting it on the blog.

Chocolate · Desserts

Chocolate & Peanut Butter Cheesecake Bars

Chocolate Castles1 Comment

YUM!!!!

Crust

2 cups graham cracker crumbs

1 stick (1/2 cup) melted butter

1/3 cup granulated sugar

Filling

2 packages (8 oz each) softened cream cheese

1 cup granulated sugar

1/4 cup flour

1 can (12 oz) Evaporated Milk (not sweetened condensed)

2 large eggs, room temperature

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

1 cup (6oz) Nestle Toll House Peanut Butter & Milk Chocolate Morsels

Preheat oven to 325.

Combine graham cracker crumbs, butter and sugar in medium bowl; press onto bottom of a 13×9″ baking pan. Set aside

For filling, beat cream cheese, sugar and flour in large bowl until smooth. Gradually beat in evaporated milk, eggs and vanilla. Set aside.

Microwave morsels in medium bowl on medium high power for 1 minute. Stir. Microwave in 15 second intervals until most morsels are melted. Stir to melt them completely until smooth. Stir 1 cup cream cheese mixture into the peanut butter chocolate melted chips.

Pour the remaining cream cheese mixture over crust. Pour chocolate mixture over cream cheese mixture. Swirl mixtures with knife pulling the plain cream cheese mixture in swirls with the chocolate mixture.

Bake for 40-45 minutes or until set. Cool completely on wire rack and then refrigerate at least 4 hours before serving.

Cut into bars.

Makes 15 bars

 

Cakes · Chocolate · Holiday Fare

Chocolate Praline Cake

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What a gorgeous creation, just perfect for a dessert centerpiece.  To save time and energy, bake your favorite chocolate cake mix in 2 (9″) cake pans. Let cook completely. Set aside while making Chocolate Ganache and Praline Frosting

Ganache

1 (12 oz)  package semisweet chocolate morsels

1/2 cup whipping cream

1/4 cup butter, cut into pieces

Microwave chocolate morsels and whipping cream in a glass bowl at medium power 2-3 minutes or melted. Stirring at 1 min intervals. Whisk until smooth. Gradually add butter, whisking until smooth. Cool, whisking often for 15 min or until spreading consistency.

Place one chocolate cake layer on a serving platter. Spoon half of ganache over layer. Let sit for about 10 min to allow ganache to set up on cake layer. Place 2nd cake layer on top and use remaining ganache. While this is setting up, make the praline frosting.

Praline Frosting:

1/4 cup butter

1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar

1/2 cup whipping cream

1 cup powdered sugar

1 teas vanilla

1 cup chopped pecans, toasted

Bring first 3 ingredients to a boil in a medium sized saucepan over medium heat, stirring often. Boil 1 minute. Remove from heat and whisk in  1 cup powdered sugar and vanilla until smooth. Stir in toasted pecans, stirring gently 3-5 minutes or until mixture begins to cool and thicken slightly.  When frosting is of spreading consistency, pour immediately over top of cake. If you wait to long, the frosting will harden and you will not be able to spread over cake. Decorate with whole pecans. Pr

Breads · Breakfast · Cakes · Chocolate · Desserts · Holiday Fare

Kitchen Addiction

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I don’t know what is happening, but the past few days, I cannot walk through the kitchen without baking. Is it the weather? Is it that I know I am getting older and there are so many recipes out there and so little time, or is it that I am just a sugar hoarder? Last night I found myself making the carrot cream cheese pound cake that I posted yesterday and it is absolutely amazing. Then this morning, I headed to the kitchen, still in jammies and pulled out the Pillsbury Pumpkin cake mix and proceeded to bake Pumpkin Poppers that I talked about the other day. I just followed the directions on the box except that I added 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice. Baked them in mini muffin pans (made 60) and then rolled them in cinnamon sugar while still hot out of the oven. Have eaten 5. Then our daughter sent us a picture of Kenley our grandaughter we are headed to see at Thanksgiving. They were making acorns out of miniature Nutter Butter cookies, Hershey Kisses and chocolate chips. A little melted chocolate holds the 3 items together, as you can see in the picture. So open those windows, celebrate this gorgeous autumn weather and get those baking pans out. Baking time is here.

Chocolate · Cookies · Desserts

Baking Frenzie (Chocolate Mint Chocolate Chip Cookies)

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It is getting serious, I can’t stop myself from baking the last two days. Why is it that when the temps drop below 80, I feel it is my obligation to plop myself in the kitchen and not come out until flashes of cookies, cakes, cobblers are imprinted on my eyeballs.

Yesterday I made a batch of mini smore bites. I ate so many I didn’t have enough to serve last evening for a meeting. So I made another batch of 24. Because I feared that some who were coming last night might not eat chocolate, I ended up making pumpkin-gingerbread bars. Then this morning I started in again. I have made chocolate mint chocolate chip cookies and peach cobbler from a recipe that I got off Face Book. Because I felt that surely I must be burning calories with the standing and mixing, taking cookie sheets in and out of the oven, my body must be deprived of energy, thus…finishing off the smores from yesterday. I am now on a sugar rush and trying to decide which room I rearrange. While I’m trying to decide how to work off all this sugar, I will post the cookie recipe that I just made. I saw it on Just A Pinch and it sounded intriguing. It is as good as they said. The instant pudding in it can be substituted for any flavor you want. I went with Hershey’s brand chocolate instant pudding because I had bought dark chocolate-min flavored Toll House Chips. The cookies turned out so good and chocolatey.

1 small box of any flavor instant pudding

2 eggs

1 cup butter

1  cup light brown sugar

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1 teas vanilla

1 teas baking soda

1/4 teas salt

2 1/4 cups all purpose flour

1 (12 oz) bag of chocolate chips (whatever flavor you want)

Preheat oven to 350. Cream butter and both sugars together. Add eggs, one at a time and vanilla. Blend and mix well. Add dry pudding; blend well. Add the flour, salt and baking soda that you have stirred together before adding to creamed mixture. When thoroughly mixed, stir in a 12 oz package any flavor chips you want.

Chocolate · Cookies · Desserts

Heavenly Smore Bites

Chocolate Castles5 Comments

Heavenly Smore Bites

A great dessert that you can make in 10 minutes! You will never make smores outside again! The little bit of powdered sugar in the graham cracker crumbs and melted butter make these little gems something special.
1 1/4 cup graham cracker crumbs
1/4 cup powdered sugar
6 tables melted butter
12 regular sized marshmallows
1 large (7 oz) Hershey Milk Chocolate Bar
Mix crumbs, powdered sugar and melted butter together in small bowl with fork until well blended. Place a tablespoon of mixture in each of 24 mini muffin tins. Place in preheated 350 degree oven and bake for 5 min. Remove from oven and place 1/2 of small square of Hershey bar in each cup while still hot. Cut a marshmallow in half and place over chocolate. When you have finished with all 24 cups, put back in oven and cook for about 3-4 minutes, or until marshmallow is melted and covering the cup. Let cool in tin for 10 minutes before removing. (I had one the minute they came out of the oven, as I just couldn’t wait. They are amazingly good…will probably have them all eaten by this afternoon and will have to make more for our meeting tonight. But, as they say, a girl has to do what a girl has to do.)

Cakes · Chocolate · Daily Thoughts · Desserts · Holiday Fare

Paula Deen’s Tunnel Of Love Fudge Cake

Chocolate Castles4 Comments

During the dinosaur age, known as the 70’s and 80’s, there was a cake that became so popular that you couldn’t go to any social gathering without being served a piece of Tunnel of Fudge cake. It was all the rave and people just couldn’t get enough of this gooey and yummy cake. I like to think that it was this cake’s fault that contributed to my “baby fat” look, that I still am so proud to sport even today, in my “golden years”. When Duncan Hines did away with the frosting mix that you added to one of their cake mixes, that made this cake possible, America cried. What would we do without our Tunnel of Fudge cake? What would we serve for company, holidays and birthday’s? What was happening to the world? Why would Duncan Hines do this to us when we were just getting over having to wear tie dyed shirts, clogs and bell bottom jeans?

In came Paula Deen with her version of our most beloved cake. Once again, we can get those pretty cake plates out and proudly serve America’s Cake.  Thanks to Paula, we can go back to the kitchen and whip up this miracle of a cake. Who knew that Paula would be our cake hero? Not only do we love her for her southern fried everything, her southern drawl, her recipe for bread pudding made with Krispy Kreme donuts, but now, the Tunnel of Fudge Cake. Gather your friends, family, your Bible study group, your bridge and bunco groups and present them with this wonderful treasure from days gone by….

Tunnel of Fudge Cake

Serves 16

3/4 pound (3 sticks) butter

6 eggs

1 1/2 cups sugar

1 (12 1/2 oz) can creamy double Dutch frosting

2 cups all -purpose flour

2 cups chopped pecans or walnuts (the nuts really are necessary in this recipe to give it the right texture)

Preheat oven to 350. Cream room temperature butter in a large bowl on high speed. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well. Add sugar gradually, creaming at high speed until light and fluffy (goodbye light and fluffy rear end, hello saggy and droopy butt)

Gradually add flour. By hand, stir in frosting mix and nuts until well blended. Pour batter in well-greased and floured Bundt pan. Bake for 60-65 minutes. Cool 2 hours before removing from pan. Cake will have a dry brownie-type crust and a most center with a tunnel of fudge running through it.

 

Chocolate · Desserts · Fruit

Strawberry Cream Pie

Chocolate Castles2 Comments

Taking a break from pulling all the white shorts, white capris and white shoes out of my closet until they come back out next Easter, I decided that I earned something sweet. Putting away all my linen clothes is enough to put me over the edge. So,  I sat down and began to look for something that sounded refreshing and yummy.  Since it is getting to the time that the strawberries won’t taste as sugarery and sweet, I want to make use of them before they go away for a few months. This recipe caught my eye. Just this morning pulling out my recipe for cream cheese pound cake, I ran across this same recipe in another cookbook, and lo and behold, here it is in a 2012 Southern Living also. So it must be good.

Different from a traditional strawberry pie…well, you’ll see!

3 tables cornstarch

2 tables flour

1/4 teas salt (I have always wondered, since it only calls for 1/4 teas, would we notice if I skipped it altogether?) Think I will be daring and try it without.

1 cup sugar, divided

3 cups half and half

6 egg yolks (note to self, take extra Lipitor tonight)

2 teas vanilla

1 (9oz) package chocolate wafer cookies

1/2 of a (4 oz) semisweet chocolate baking bar, chopped

1/2 cup butter, melted

1 qt fresh strawberries

1/4 red currant jelly (I have seedless raspberry, so will use that)

1 tables orange liqueur (only have raspberry liqueur so will use that)

Whisk together first 3 ingredients and 2/3 cup of the sugar in a heavy saucepan. Whisk together half and half and next 2 ingredients in a small bowl. Gradually add to cornstarch mixture, whisking constantly.

Bring to a boil over medium heat, whisking constantly for 1 minute.

Remove from heat and transfer to a bowl; cover and chill 4-24 hours.

Preheat oven to 350. Pulse wafer cookies and chopped chocolate in a food processor 8-10 times or until finely crushed. Stir together cookie crumb mixture melted butter and remaining 1/3 cup sugar; firmly press mixture on bottom and up sides of a lightly greased 9″ pie plate.

Bake at 350 for 10 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and cool about 30 minutes.

After 4 hours, spoon chilled half and half mixture into crust. Cut strawberries in half and arrange around center to the outer edge of pie. Use all strawberries to top the creamed mixture.  Using a small saucepan, heat jelly 2-3 min or until melted. Brush jelly mixture gently over strawberries. Chill, uncovered, 30 minutes or until ready to serve

Chocolate · Cookies · Desserts

Brownie Tassies

Chocolate Castles3 Comments

Just made a batch of these to take to a meeting. They are perfect to just pick up with your fingers and pop them in your mouth. They resemble the brownie bites you buy at the store but these, of course, have the buttery flavor and a soft gooey middle. You can actually change the flavor from vanilla extract to almond, or cherry or what ever tickles your fancy

3/4 cup flour, 1/4 cup cocoa

1/3 cup cold butter

2-3 tables water (it took all 3 today)

In a small bowl, stir together the flour, 1/3 cup sugar, cocoa and salt. Cut in the 1/3 cup cold butter with pastry blended or 2 forks until mixture resembles crumbs. Sprinkle water, a tables at a time and stir dough into a ball. Divide the ball into 24 balls. Place one in each of the lightly greased mini-muffin tins (unless you are using the Teflon coated, then you will not need to grease). Pressing with your finger (this is easier if you dip your finger each time in flour so dough doesn’t stick to your finger), make a well in the balls, pushing some of the dough up the sides of the tin also. Set aside when you have done all 24.

Filling: 1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

2 tables butter

1/3 cup sugar

1 egg

1 teas vanilla (or cherry or almond)

1/2 teas cinnamon

Melt chocolate chips and butter together in microwave bowl, on high for 30 second intervals.  Stir until chips are completely melted. Stir in sugar, egg and vanilla.

Divide the filling between the 24 cups.

Place tins in a 325 preheated oven for 20-25 minutes. (Mine today took 18 but I used just the thin metal pans, the dark Teflon ones will probably take longer)

Cool for 10 minutes and then loosen around edges with a knife or fork. Set on wire racks to cool. These can also be made ahead and frozen.

Chocolate · Desserts

Frozen German Sweet Chocolate Pie

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Prep for this amazing pie is only 20 minutes, plus freezing time.

1 pkg (4 oz) Bakers German Sweet Chocolate

1/3 cup milk, divided

4 oz Philadelphia Cream Cheese, softened

2 tables sugar

2 cups thawed Cool Whip or real whipped cream

1 graham cracker crust or chocolate cookie crust

Microwave chocolate and 2 tables milk *(I like to use either evaporated milk or whipping cream to give it a more creamy flavor) and cook for 2 minutes. Stop after the first minute to stir and return to microwave and cook for another min., maybe 2 more minutes. Stirring between the minutes to stir and chocolate is completely melted.

Add cream cheese, sugar and remaining milk; beat with mixer until well blended. Refrigerate for 10 min. Stir in Cool Whip or 2 cups of already whipped cream; spoon into crust.

Freeze 4 hours or until firm. Let stand at room temp 15 min before cutting to serve.