2 (1 oz) squares of unsweetened chocolate
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs (room temp)
1/2 cup flour
1 teas vanilla
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup chopped pecans
2 (8 oz) packages of softened cream cheese
1/4 cup sugar
4 large eggs
1 teas vanilla
Chocolate Glaze
Microwave chocolate sq in glass bowl on high for 1 min and 15 sec, stirring once after about 45 sec. Stir until melted and smooth.
Beat butter and 1 cup of sugar at medium speed with mixer until light and fluffy. Add 2 eggs, 1 at a time, beating just until blended after each addition. Add melted chocolate, beating just until blended.
Add flour, beating at low speed just until blended. Stir in the 1 teas vanilla and chocolate morsels.
Sprinkle toasted pecans evenly over bottom of a greased and floured 9″ greased and floured spring form pan. Spoon batter over pecans. (You can skip the pecans if you desire and just pour the batter into the pan.)
Beat cream cheese at medium with mixer until smooth, add 3/4 cup sugar, beating just until blended. Add 4 eggs, 1 at a time, beating after each addition. Stir in 1 teas vanilla. Pour cream cheese over brownie batter.
Bake at 325 1 hour or until set. Remove from oven immediately running a knife around edge of pan, releasing sides. Let cool on wire rack. Spread warm Chocolate Glaze over top of cooled cheesecake; cover and chill at least 8 hours. Remove sides of pan before serving.
Garnish with Fresh Strawberries, mint springs or chocolate curls.
(*Taken from Southern Living Desserts)
Mocha Brownie Cake
Chocolate, Chocolate, Chocolate! What a great month to try all new chocolate desserts Finding the Southern Living Chocolate Dessert cookbook, well,what better place to look for all new recipes. 
1 (21 oz) box chewy fudge brownie mix (Duncan Hines is recommended)
1/4 cup water
1/2 cup oil
3 large eggs, lightly beaten
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream
1 tables instant coffee granules
1/4 cup powdered sugar
Garnish: chocolate shavings
Coat 2 ( 8″) round cake pans with cooking spray. Line pans with wax paper and coat with the cooking spray.
Combine brownie mix and next 3 ingredients in a large bowl. Stir in pecans (Hum…I might be tempted to add about 1/2 cup chocolate chips). Spread batter evenly into prepared pans; bake for almost 23-25 min or until they test done.
Remove from oven and place on wire racks to cool completely.
Combine whipping cream and coffee granules. Beat at medium speed with mixer until starting to hold shape. Gradually add the powdered sugar and continue to beat until stiff peaks form. Spread whipped cream mixture on top of one brownie layer that you have placed on a serving platter. Top with remaining brownie layer and spread the rest of the whipped cream mixture over the top and sides of the brownie cakes. Store in fridge and garnish as desired.
Triple-Chocolate Coffee Cake
This recipe is from Southern Living Incredible Chocolate Recipe Cookbook that I had not looked through in quite a while. I was chocolate hungry so I knew that I would be making something chocolate today. This is a great one to freeze one of the layers for a later use or give one to a friend.
1 (18.25 oz) package devils food cake mix (I like Duncan Hines)
1 (3.9 oz) package chocolate instant pudding mix
2 cups sour cream
1 cup butter, softened
5 large eggs
1 teas vanilla extract
3 cups semisweet chocolate chips, divided
1 cup white chocolate chips
1 cup chopped pecans, toasted
Beat first 6 ingredients at low speed with an electric mixer 30 seconds or just until moistened. Beat at medium speed 2 more mins. Stir in 2 cups semisweet chocolate chips; pour batter evenly into 2 greased and floured 9″ square cake pans.
Bake at 350 for 25-28 minutes or until cake tests done. Cool completely in pans on wire racks.
Microwave white chocolate morsels in a glass bowl at High for 30-60 intervals, until chips are almost melted. Stir to melt all the chips. Drizzle evenly over cakes; repeat procedure with remaining cup of semisweet chips. Sprinkle cakes evenly with pecans while chips are warm.
A Senior Diet
Today Randy and I went grocery shopping. On the way to the store I had told him that we really needed to start eating more veggie meals and that we needed to try to eat a little more healthy so I can get into the pants this spring that I bought the last couple of years. I did NOT want to have to buy all new pants just to sit in our lazy boy chairs while watching the Food Network. He agreed and said he would help by adjusting his snack foods and told me to just buy veggies that would help us lower our cholesterol. We both figure that if we eat enough of these great green veggies, we can still have melted butter poured over them. Surely there are enough vitamins in the giant leafy greens to offset any (if any) bad fats in the butter. So we head over to the fresh veggie aisle. He tells me to go ahead and pick out some great healthy rich-in-vitamin foods, while he was going over to pick out a few healthy snacks for himself. We met at the check out counter where he handed me his “healthy” snacks. He got pretty defensive when I gave him the evil eye. He quickly alerted me to the fact that at least he got the $1 package of little donuts instead of the sack he usually gets…so what was the problem?
We checked out and headed to the car as we talked about our new way of eating. Because I knew that we would be cooking all of our new healthy foods when we got home, I thought it best to go ahead and eat the chocolate that Randy had picked out for me as a special treat. Like they say, why drag a bad thing out. So the chocolate is gone and the pot of turnip greens are on. Randy has the coffee brewing to drink along with the mini package of his favorite “little white donuts.”
Maybe next trip to the grocery store we will stay off the donut aisle and just head directly to the butter aisle; just to put on our healthy veggies, of course.
Valentines Strawberry Pie
When I saw the picture of this recipe I knew that I would be making it today.
Besides February signaling thoughts of love, it also brings strawberries to mind. Strawberries dipped in chocolate, strawberry pie, strawberry cakes and scones. But this pie sounded so different, yet so simple.
Crust:
1 1/2 cups flour
1 teas salt
1 1/2 teas sugar
1/2 cup oil
2 table milk
Set oven to 425. Put ingredients for the crust into a bowl and mix ingredients with your fingers or a pastry blended until crumbly. Pat the mixture firmly into a 9 or 10″ pie plate. Bake the crust for 10 minutes. Let it cool on a rack for 5 min. Then place in freezer while you prepare the filling.
Filling
10 oz frozen strawberries
1 cup sugar
1 tables lemon juice
2 egg whites
1 cup whipping cream
1/2 teas almond extract
Thaw the strawberries. In a bowl, combine the strawberries, sugar, egg whites, lemon juice and salt. Beat ingredients for 15 min or until stiff. Whip the cream with the almond extract. Fold into the berry mixture. Mound the filling into the pie shell. Freeze until pie is firm.
Actually we are going to eat Mexican food tomorrow night with friends, so this will be perfect for us to come home to for a cool dessert after all the hot sauce I know we will be having.
Listening
I have just returned from attending a Women’s Retreat at a local church where one of my favorite people, Debbie Stuart, led the sessions. Not only is she one of my favorite people, but probably my favorite speakers. She is real. She speaks Truth from God’s Word. The topic this weekend was on Listening. In todays world, we don’t have too many opportunities to truly experience quiet. We have sounds all around us. There is even a free app that we can download on our phones that gives us NOISE, as if we don’t have enough around us as it is. We find ourselves turning on either the radio or the TV the minute we wake up or as soon as we walk in the house. We don’t turn either of them off until we climb into bed. In fact, some of us listen to music as we sleep or have the TV on as background noise while we sleep. We complain that we don’t ever hear God speak to us. How could He and when He did, how could we expect to hear Him?
There are 143 Million people that spend at least 15 minutes a day on Face Book; 13 million spend 15 min have a quiet time with God. We wonder why our lives are hectic, confused and troubled. We spend more time in our closets picking out the outfits we are going to wear for the day than with God. Why is this? Is it because we feel that we don’t need Him? Is it because we feel that He doesn’t care about the everyday details or our lives? Or is it simply that we justify our actions by declaring that we just don’t have time.
She gave us some pointers to learn how to listen if we simply just take a few minutes and ask the Lord to pour out His wisdom to us.
Lean In Psa 119:32 “If you will help me, I will run to follow your commands”. We must invite Him into our lives.
Implement A System. Gather your Bible, writing journal & pen and have them together. Sit Still, Read & Write.
Show Up…meet God when you are at your best, whether it be in the morning or in the evening. Give HIm the best of your day.
Teachable Spirit-Do you come to Him with a harden heart or with a humbled heart?
Eliminate Distractions Hosea 4:6 “my people are being destroyed because they do not know me.” We wonder why our lives are a mess and we think God has deserted us. He has promised never to leave us or forsake us. We are the ones who have pushed Him away.
Nnow It..He talks to those who talk to Him. Which voice do we listen to? Who are we trying to please; the world or God?
We wonder where to begin? There is no wrong place to begin. Open your Bible. Your Father would like a Word with you!
“See to it that you do not refuse Him who speaks.” Hebrews 12:25
Could your life use some guidance? Are we willing to turn aside and LISTEN?
“We need to realize that unless we leave some time for God, we can’t live the lives that He created us to live…the lives that bring Him glory and become lights that shine in the darkness.” (Debbie Stuart)
“We have two choices:
1. We can whine and forfeit my usefulness or
2. We can pray and worship and fulfill our destiny.
The only thing worse than waiting on God is wishing you had. In order to know God’s will for our lives, we need to learn to listen and obey. Don’t get ahead of Him.
Though you cannot go back and make a brand new start my friend, you can start right now and make a brand new end.
What are you doing with your time that keeps you from listening?
Talking, searching the web, reading, shopping, gardening, baking, crafting, regretting, blaming, wishing?
Given Him 10 minutes today,
But my life is worth nothing unless I use it for doing the work assigned me by the Lord. Acts 20: 24.
*(These points and quotations are taken from our worksheet this weekend from Debbie Stuart, Hope For the Heart)
Super Bowl Whoopie Pies
Since Whoopie Pies are one of the best inventions EVER, I decided that they would make a great dessert for the Super Bowl Party. So I just made chocolate whoopee pies and made the frosting in the navy blue and green of the Seahawks for between the cookies. I just ate 3 of them. Hopefully there will be some left for Sunday. They are easy to wrap individually in Saran and then in a baggie to stay fresh for Sunday. Very easy make-ahead dessert.
1/2 cup softened butter
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 teas vanilla
2 cups flour
1/2 cup baking cocoa
1 1/2 teas baking soda
1/2 teas baking powder
1/2 teas salt
1 cup milk
Filling
1 jar (7 oz) marshmallow creme
1/2 cup shortening
1 teas vanilla
2 cups powdered sugar
Preheat oven to 400. In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla. In another bowl, whisk flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder and salt; add to creamed mixture alternately with milk, beating well after each addition.
Drop dough by tablespoonful (I used a medium size cookie scoop) 2″ apart onto greased baking sheet. (again, I use a coated sheet, so if you use them, do not grease the sheet) Bake 6-8 min or until set and tests done.
Remove from pans onto paper towels or wire racks to cool completely.
For Filling
In a large bowl, beat marshmallow cream and shortening until blended. Beat in vanilla and powdered sugar until smooth. I add food coloring to a little milk and beat into mixture. Spread on the bottom of half of the cookies and then top with the other half. Wrap in plastic and keep in sealed container for up to 3 days.
Makes about 2 1/2 dz.
Mushroom Bread
Looking for a filling meatless appetizer for Super Bowl? This is taken from Taste of Home and sounds like a great one.
1 tube (8 oz) refrigerated crescent rolls
2 cups thinly sliced fresh mushrooms
1 tables butter, melted with garlic powder tailored to your liking
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 teas Italian seasoning
Fresh ground pepper to taste
Preheat oven to 350. On an ungreased baking sheet, unroll crescent dough into one long rectangle; press perforations to seal. Prick dough several times with a fork. Bake 5 minutes.
Meanwhile, in a bowl, toss mushrooms with melted butter (with added garlic powder); arrange on crust. Sprinkle with cheese and seasonings. Bake 12-14 min longer until crust is golden brown and cheese is melted. Cut into 12 pieces.
Chocolate-Peanut Butter Sheet Cake
SUPER BOWL DESSERT!!! Perfect for the dessert table Sunday. I was needing one more recipe other than the pecan pie bars and oatmeal cookies and Chocolate Cream Cheese Brownies and here it is. Love love love the flavor of peanut butter and chocolate.
2 cups flour
2 cups sugar
1 teas baking soda
1/2 teas salt
1 cup water
1/2 cup butter, cubed
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/4 cup cocoa
3 eggs
1/2 cup sour cream
2 teas vanilla
Frosting
3 cups powdered sugar
1/4 cup softened butter
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
1/2 cup milk (add gradually as it might not require the whole 1/2 cup)
1 teas vanilla
1/2 cup chopped peanuts
Preheat oven to 350. Grease a 13×9″ baking pan. In large bowl, whisk flour, sugar, baking soda and salt.
In a small saucepan, combine water, butter, peanut butter and cocoa; bring just to a boil, stirring occasionally. Add to flour mixture, stirring just until moistened.
In a small bowl, whisk eggs, sour cream and vanilla until blended. Add to flour mixture, whisking constantly. Transfer to prepared baking pan. Bake 25-30 min or until cake tests done.
Prepare frosting while cake is baking. In a large bowl, beat the powdered sugar, butter, peanut butter, milk and vanilla until smooth. Remove cake from oven when done and place on wire rack. Immediately spread with frosting; sprinkle peanuts over top if desired. Cool completely and cut into squares.
Scratch Super Bowl Recipes!
I have found my new favorite lunch place. Went for the first time today to Bread Zeppelin on Park in Plano and I have to say that I am ready to just throw away all the recipes that I wanted to make for Super Bowl Sunday (which now will be written SBS, which could also be used for Southern Belle Society, but this week I think we all know what it stands for) and just go buy their wonderful sandwiches. My friend and I go to lunch every Wednesday after our art class and today she told me that she wanted us to go to a new place that she and her hubby have fallen in love with. (That is probably a bit too much, but us Southerners do love our foods, don’t we?). Anyhow, as we stood in line to order, I noticed that they were carving out the middle of each loaf of bread and stuffing something in them. OMGosh, that space is made to stuff the salad of your choice. The bread was just amazing. It is crusty on the outside and so soft on the inside. I can’t wait to go back to try more of the salads. I came home and told Randy that this is going to be our new “go to” place when we aren’t craving greasy hamburgers or Mexican food, or pizza, or the nights when we have Hot Fudge Sundaes or Banana Splits for our dinner. But…the other nights that we eat out, you will probably find us at Bread Zeppelin.
Before I close, I just want to tell you something that happened to me yesterday that will make all of you feel very smart.(and young) Having noticed that I am tending to do a “few” things that might cause anyone under the age of 50 to say that “the ole girl just needs to be put away before somebody gets hurt.”… made me realize that I should go and be sure my cabinets are in alphabetical order and I have each piece of furniture tagged as to who gets what in a few years, before I totally loose it. Jodi, our daughter who lives in Phoenix calls each morning to catch up on the exciting events that might happen in our lives each day. I have told her that when I start to tell her how many dr visits we have scheduled that day or what kind of bowel movements we have had, to just shoot me. But I’m sure we are YEARS away from that. Each day she calls and we talk about grandkids and her exercise class and she tells me that if I would start eating a little more healthy and work out, that maybe, just maybe, I might have a few good years ahead of me before I am sitting in a wheel chair with my hair colored blue (which would at least match my car right now, and no, it is not a Buick, yet) and the highlight of my day would be go to the dining room at the nursing home an hour early to wait for my mashed peas. So we are talking and after a little while, she ask me what I am doing, as I sound out of breath. I told her to just keep talking with I continued to look for my phone, that I was pulling the cushions out of the chair and on my hands and knees looking under the chair in case it had fallen through to the floor. She begins to laugh and I tell her it’s not funny, I have GOT to find my phone, my whole life revolves around my phone. How would I know which dr visits I had this week without my phone? Through her laughter she proceeds to tell me that I might want to add another dr appt to my calendar. Why? What does she think is wrong with me that I need to go to another dr? She then tells me to just stop and think about what I am talking to her with? Can I just tell you that we laughed until our sides hurt. But I got off the “lost” phone and reassured myself that it had just been a crazy week and I’m sure that if I double up on my Gingko, I would be fine, if I could just remember where I last put it. I had better get Randy to Bread Zeppelin before I forget where it is!
Chocolate Castles 