Tag Archives: chocolate

Browned Butter Chocolate Chip Caramel Pie With Salted Caramel Sauce

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Browned Butter Chocolate Chip Cookie Pie With Salted Caramel Sauce-001

I am one of those weirdos who owns enough cookbooks to fill a room. It would be a small room yes, but a room nonetheless. Adding in cooking magazines like those Holiday ones that come out yearly and old issues of Gourmet and Food And Wine, etc etc, as well as paper cookbooks like the ones Pillsbury used to put out monthly (do they even still do that?) I have over a thousand cookbooks. It’s a sickness. Honest. And in our modern era, it’s a sickness that has gotten worse. How? Because now, I can get a cookbook out of the library and if it’s one that I find I’ve put about 10 or more sticky tabs in to save the pages, that means it a keeper. That used to mean that I would have a bazillion overdue books lol. But now it means that I can find the same cookbook on Amazon and buy it, sometimes for as little as 4 bucks with shipping, and tab the hell out of that bad boy.

But a lot of my favorite cookbooks are older ones that have proved to be tried and true. My Fanny Farmer Baking Book is one that I use often as are, surprisingly enough, a handful of the old Pillsbury paper cookbooks. Probably because, back when I was still learning to cook for a family, I found many recipes that went into our traditional holiday routine from them.

Another that I use is an old spiral bound Nestle Toll House cookbook. I was looking through it for inspiration the other day when I saw a recipe for Toll House Pie. It’s one that many home cooks have made… a chocolate chip cookie dough set into a pie shell. Sounded like something I could play with. The first time I made it, I undercooked it. Plus, the recipe had NO vanilla in it at all and far too much butter, to the point where I had to clean my oven because it lefts puddles of scorched butter on the bottom of it.

This time, I did it MY way. I added in some vanilla extract, used less butter, browned the butter for a nutty flavor (on a side note, with the browned butter, this batter was good enough to just eat out of the bowl! OMG, it was yummy!), added some caramel bits and topped the slices with some salted caramel sauce and chocolate sauce. All in all, made that way, it can be either a special dessert for the family or something worthy of guests.

Don’t be tempted to add extra chocolate chips or caramel to this. You know you’ll want to (we ALL do it 😛 ) but I think that was part of the reason my first pie didn’t cook correctly. There was just too much in it for it to cook through even though it seemed done. Stick to the measurements here.

You know the drill. 🙂

Browned Butter Chocolate Chip Caramel Pie With Salted Caramel Sauce

  • 2 eggs
  • 1/2 cup flour
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1/2 cup dark brown sugar
  • 3/4 cup unsalted butter, browned to a golden brown, then cooled to room temp
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1 cup semi sweet chocolate chips
  • 1/2 cup Kraft caramel bits (you can also use whole caramels; just cut into quarters to get the 1/2 cup measure)
  • 1 9 inch pie shell, unbaked (you can use store bought or homemade. I went the lazy route this time and used a frozen shell)
  • A half batch of this caramel sauce or you can use pre-jarred (I used Trader Joes Salted Caramel sauce because it’s amazing and almost as good as homemade) for drizzling…pouring…eating plain…bathing in…whatever
  • Chocolate sauce for drizzling
  1. Preheat your oven to 325 degrees.
  2. In a large bowl, beat the eggs until foamy.
  3. Add in the flour, sugar, dark brown sugar and vanilla extract.
  4. Blend in the browned butter, then fold in the chocolate chips and the caramel bits.
  5. Spoon into the pie shell and smooth top with a rubber/silicone spatula. Eat what’s left on the spatula. Make sure it’s a lot. You can thank me later.
  6. Bake at 325 for 60 to 70 minutes. The top should be golden brown and dry looking. Let cool to room temp before slicing then use a hot sharp (preferably serrated) knife to get clean cuts. Cut this into VERY thin slices as it’s quite sweet and rich. You should be able to get ten slices from this pie easily.
  7. Top each slice with a (large) dollop of salted caramel and drizzle with chocolate sauce. Sprinkle each slice with a little sea salt if you’re so inclined. If you’re really into overkill and diabetic comas, spoon on some whipped cream too. I won’t judge.

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Browned Butter German Chocolate Chip Cookies

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Browned Butter German Chocolate Chip Cookies

Browned Butter German Chocolate Chip Cookies

I have a major personality flaw. Well, I have more than one but we won’t get into the others today. The one I’m talking about right now is my inability to let things alone. I am that person who when being sarcastic, always has to say that one last sentence that gets people wanting to look for cement shoes for me. I’m that person that when a joke goes flat, will be standing there saying “no, no, let me explain it to you! It’s funny! Really, it is!”. I’m also that person who, once I’ve made a recipe, then has to make it about 463 times more in different variations just because I love to play around with recipes and put my own stamp on it. I guess that’s one reason I’m a food blogger, huh?. Sometimes it works, but sometimes it’s a case of I should have left well enough alone.

Today it was a definite case of “it works”. Oh…my…gosh…did it work. Now, contrary to what one would think, I’m not a huge cookie person. I prefer my sweets to be floating in a puddle of cream and maybe even have fruit in them. I know, I know, I just shocked a bunch of you. I LOVE sweets, don’t get me wrong but creaminess (aka fat lol) and fruit put together tend to do it for me more than cookies. But there are times I like something a little homey, a little old fashioned, a little…well…cookieish.  So yesterday, on my Facebook Page, I mentioned that I was making These cookies. Well, I never got to them yesterday and this is a good thing because overnight, I got the inspiration to try to make them a bit different. My husband, who is my favorite person ever, was my inspiration. He LOVES German Chocolate Cake and I make it (or buy it) for him every year on his birthday. So I decided to make these Browned Butter cookies in a way that mimics the flavors in his favorite cake. And since I love the chocolate/coconut flavor combo myself, I am kind of in love with these cookies myself. The dough alone was fantastic lol. I kept snagging bits of it from the bowl. The nutty taste of the browned butter, the chocolate, the crispy toasted coconut, the caramel… oh my *drools*

You know the drill…

Browned Butter German Chocolate Chip Cookies

    • 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, browned to a golden brown color & cooled
    • 1 cup packed dark brown sugar
    • 1/3 cup sugar
    • 1 egg
    • 1 egg yolk
    • 2 tablespoons cream
    • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
    • 1 teaspoon coconut flavoring
    • 2 1/4 cups all purpose flour
    • 1 teaspoon baking soda
    • 1/2 teaspoon salt
    • 1 12 ounce bag semi sweet chocolate chips or chunks (I actually used more like 3 cups because I had a partial bag opened that I wanted to use up so extra wouldn’t go amiss 🙂 )
    • 1 1/4 cup sweetened coconut, toasted, 1/4 cup set aside
    • 25 Kraft Caramels,
    • 1/4 cup heavy cream or half & half
  1. To brown the butter, in a medium saucepan, over medium heat melt the butter. Let cook,stirring frequently, until it turns a golden brown color. This can take anywhere from five to ten minutes. It will sputter and spit a lot at first then that will stop. Do NOT walk away from this as it can go from yellowish butter to burnt garbage very quickly.
  2. Pour the browned butter into a large bowl and let cool.
  3. When cool, pour both kinds of sugar into the bowl with the butter. Beat until well mixed.
  4. Add in the egg and egg yolk, then pour in the vanilla, coconut flavoring and the cream. Beat on low speed until well mixed.
  5. In a small bowl, combine the flour, baking soda and salt.
  6. Pour the dry ingredients into the wet and at slow speed (unless you want to be covered in flying flour), mix until you have a cohesive cookie dough.
  7. Fold in the chocolate chips and one cup of the toasted coconut.
  8. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper or a silicone mat.. Spray the cookie sheet with baking spray before lining it if using the parchment paper.
  9. Scoop the cookies up and place about 2 inches apart on the lined cookie sheet.
  10. Bake at 350 until golden brown on the edges, about 10 to 12 minutes.
  11. Let cool for a minute on the sheet then transfer over to a wire rack to finish cooling.
  12. When the cookies are cool, make the caramel drizzle.  Unwrap your caramels and put them into a bowl. A cereal sized bowl is sufficient. Pour the cream over the top. Then microwave at 70% power for 30 second intervals until the caramel is melted and bubbly. Stir well to mix. Be careful… there is nothing as fun as scraping out a bowl of hardened burnt caramel because you didn’t watch carefully. Please don’t ask how I know this.
  13. Drizzle each cookie with some of the caramel and while it’s still gooey, sprinkle some of the reserved toasted coconut over each one.

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Salted Caramel & Dark Chocolate S’mores

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Sea Salt Caramel & Dark Chocolate S'mores

Sea Salt Caramel & Dark Chocolate S’mores

I don’t like s’mores much. There. I said it. I have no problem with the marshmallows and the chocolate. I mean c’mon, this is me.  I love those parts. But I really don’t care for graham crackers. We were fairly poor growing up and as graham crackers were cheap, they were one of those things that my mom bought a lot as a treat. I ate them then… I was a kid… give me a shoe sole with sugar and I’d have eaten it. but even then they weren’t a favorite. Still aren’t. but you know what? When I made this S’more, the first thing I tried was the cracker that was all coated with caramel, chocolate and sea salt. And know what? It was amazing! I now have a way I will eat graham crackers lol. Of course, it takes a somewhat benign food and makes it a heart attack on a plate, but I’m cool with that 😀

If you like s’mores the old fashioned way, you’ll like these even better. If you like salted caramel and fancy schmancy chocolate this will be heaven on a plate for you. A layer of graham cracker covered in a square of good quality chocolate ( I used Lindt Caramel Sea Salt bar just to layer that sea salt caramel flavor , covered in a toasted marshmallow and sea salt caramel sauce, then coated with more chocolate, another graham cracker THEN slathered in more caramel, good chocolate sauce and more sea salt. Yep… Heaven. On. A. Plate.

Salted Caramel And Dark Chocolate S’mores

  •  1 3.5 ounce bar Lindt Caramel Sea Salt Bar (or any flavor you prefer… but use GOOD chocolate)
  • 5 graham crackers, broken in half
  • 5 large marshmallows. (I used the extra large ones from Campfire brand)
  • A half batch of my homemade caramel sauce (you’ll end up with some left over but I promise that you won’t mind. It has many uses 😀
  • 1 teaspoon sea salt
  • 1/4 cup good quality chocolate sauce
  1. After you make the caramel, stir the teaspoon of sea salt into. If you want to hold on to some of the sauce plain, just use what you want and cut the salt accordingly. Set aside.
  2. Set the graham cracker halves on plates (one cracker to each of five plates) and put a square of chocolate on each piece.
  3. Toast your marshmallow by whatever method you prefer. I just used the stove but go for it and be authentic and use a campfire, a grill, whatever… use a Bic lighter if it makes you happy 😛
  4. Put the marshmallow on a graham cracker half, cover with some of the caramel sauce, then put the other cracker half on top.
  5.  Drizzle with chocolate sauce, more caramel sauce then sprinkle with some sea salt.
  6. Inhale. Thank me later.

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Double Chocolate Berry Meringue Trifle

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Double Chocolate Berry Meringue Trifle-001

You know that saying, when life gives you lemons, make lemonade.”? Well, life was spitting lemon juice at me every time I tried to make this dessert lol. My original idea was to make mini meringue shells and fill them with the cheesecake mixture and berries. But after three tries to make mini meringue shells and failing each time (meringue too runny, cooked meringues not cooked enough yada yada yada) I then went to just two large meringue shells, figuring I could make something like This amazing dessert. But then I undercooked THOSE a touch and when I went to get them off of the baking sheet, they crumbled. Very tasty crumbles, but crumbles nonetheless. So there went the idea of a two layered pavlova sort of dessert. So what did I do? I made lemonade. No, no, not really. Chocolate meringue lemonade? EWWW. I know I can be a bit out there at times, but not THAT much. Proverbial lemonade, people.

So what is the proverbial lemonade? A trifle. As I stood there ready to either cry or beat on a wall because this would be the third mess up (and I have made meringues many many times before. I have NO idea what my issue was this time.) for this idea. But as I stood trying not to sob, the thought popped into my head… make it into a trifle. So…ummmm… I did. Every once in a while I listen to that voice. Usually it gets me in trouble, like that whole incident with Wal Mart and wearing the underwear on my head or the time I…well, never mind.

I have to admit; the trifle idea is a pretty good one. Is it as pretty as having all of this as elegant little meringue shells would have been? No. Do I care? No. I’m more of a rustic type of a gal anyway. More importantly though- will YOU or those you’re feeding care? Oh, hell no. This is creamy from the cheesecake filling, chewy/crisp form the meringue, tart/sweet form the berries and then creamy again from the whipped cream. All in all, while I hate the eggs I wasted getting to this point, I’m quite pleased with the end result. This makes a lot so is perfect for that Summer cookout while berries are in season or great for a large family dinner.

As usual… you know the drill. Get to cookin’.

Double Chocolate Berry Meringue Trifle

  • Meringue-
  • 8 egg whites
  • 1 teaspoon cream of tartar
  • 1 1/3 cups sugar
  • 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder, sifted to remove lumps
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • Cheesecake filling-
  • 8 ounce container mascarpone cheese, room temp
  • 8 ounce package cream cheese, room temp
  • 2 egg yolks (optional- they add richness but aren’t necessary if the idea of raw eggs skeeves you out)
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder, sifted to remove lumps
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1/4 cup heavy cream
  • Berries-
  • 5 cups mixed berries or berries of choice (I used a mix of blackberries, raspberries and blueberries) rinsed and patted dry
  • 1/4 cup apricot preserves, melted and cooled slightly (I like using preserves in many desserts instead os sugar because you get some sweetness but it’s not overpowering plus the berries tend to release less juice using jam or preserves so no liquidy mess)
  • Whipped Cream-
  • 1 1/2 cups heavy cream, cold
  • 3/4 cup sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  1. Make your meringue- Preheat oven to 225 degrees and line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper or a silicone liner.
  2. In the bowl of a stand mixer with the whisk attachment on it, add your egg whites, vanilla and cream of tarter. Beat on medium speed until foamy. Turn speed up to high, gradually add your sugar and beat until stiff peaks form. Don’t panic if it seems to be taking forever. Some days when I make meringue, it gets to peak quickly. Other times, it may take like 5 minutes. It all depends on the temp of the kitchen, the humidity, the temp of the eggs, etc.
  3. When you have stiff peaks, take the bowl off of the stand and gently fold in your cocoa powder. Don’t mix vigorously or you’ll deflate your whites. When mixed, spread half of the mixture into a circle on each prepared pan.
  4. Cook at 225 for about one hour or until the meringue is cooked throughout (don’t be afraid to stick a knife in there and check; you’ll just be crumbling these up anyway so pretty isn’t imperative. ) and lightly browned. Turn oven off and let meringues sit in the oven for about another hour or until completely cool.
  5. Meanwhile, make your filling- In a large bowl, combine the mascarpone and cream cheese. Beat at medium speed until light and creamy. Add in the sugar (and egg yolks if using) and beat well. Add in the cream and vanilla extract and beat well, until mixture is smooth and creamy. On low speed, beat in the cocoa powder.  If you did NOT use the egg yolks, you may need to add a tablespoon or two more of cream to get this to a more spoonable consistency. Cover and put in the fridge until ready to put together the dessert.
  6. Make your berries-  in a medium bowl (shush… bowls aren’t that hard to wash 😛 ), combine the berries and the preserves. Gently fold together trying not to mush up the berries. Take about a cup of berries and set aside for the top of the dessert.
  7. Make your whipped cream- In a large bowl, combine the cream, sugar and vanilla. Beat until stiff peaks form. Set aside or refrigerate if not using right away.
  8. To put together- Crumble up one of the cooled meringues at the bottom of a large serving or trifle bowl. On top of that, layer half of the chilled chocolate mixture. On top of that, spread half of the berries. Repeat layering, then top with the whipped cream. Top the cream with the reserves berries. Cover and chill if not serving this immediately and store leftovers in the fridge.

Berries & Cream Chocolate Eclairs

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Berries & Cream Chocolate Eclairs

Berries & Cream Chocolate Eclairs


I like to lie to myself sometimes. I lie and tell myself that yes, I really Do look good with a muffin top in my jeans and I am the only one around who can totally rock that style. Then I sob hysterically and smack myself around for lying.

I lie and tell myself that I will be just fine with only 3 hours of sleep because I stayed up late watching reruns of Cold Case (gosh, I love that show). Then I look in the mirror the next morning and wonder who had to have rubbed purplish black makeup all under my eyes while I slept and why my wrinkles suddenly look deeper. Then I sob hysterically and smack myself around for lying.

I lie and tell myself that rereading The Proud Breed by Celeste DeBlasis for the 15th time counts as deep reading because she has well researched information on the history of the state of California in it amidst all the love scenes and dramatic romance. Then I get sad when I realize how few functioning brain cells I have left because I continue to read books like that. Then I sob hysterically and smack myself around for lying.

I lie and say that eating Brachs Fruity Gummis for dinner is perfectly all right because I am 48 years old and am allowed to make decisions like that. Then I wake up the next morning and try to stuff myself into a pair of jeans that has magically grown too small. Then I sob hysterically and smack myself around for lying. And the cycle begins all over again.

I also lie when I eat desserts like this and tell myself that because it tastes so light, it MUST be low calorie and quite possibly as good for me as say, a lean chicken breast and a green salad. I lie and ignore the eggs, the cream, the chocolate, the more cream etc etc etc. Then I sob hysterically…and well, you get the point.

I lie a lot. But only to myself. Well, maybe also to my kids when I say that I ate all the chocolate when I know it’s just well hidden.

But sometimes lies are totally worth it. And if lying lets me eat one or eight of these eclairs, I’m all for a life lived lying. The pastry cream alone is worth a lie or two…or three…or fifty. Add in the puffy pasty outside and the thick sour cream chocolate icing and you’ll be willing to lie too. But I take no responsibility for your morals when it comes to chocolate. It’s all on you.

You will probably end up with leftover pastry cream and frosting. I promise… you won’t mind. Take it and layer it in parfait glasses and make somebody happy. It’s an easy way to let little kids enjoy this dessert without the mess of them trying to eat an eclair.

You know the drill. Get to cookin’.

Berries & Cream Chocolate Eclairs

  • Choux pastry-
  • 1/2 cup unsalted butter
  • 1 cup water
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup flour
  • 4 eggs
  • Pastry Cream-
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1/4 cup flour
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 1/2 cups milk
  • 6 egg yolks, lightly beaten
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1 1/2 cups heavy cream
  • 2 cups mixed berries (I used blueberries and blackberries. Use your favorite)
  • Chocolate Sour Cream Icing-
  • 1 cup milk chocolate chips
  • 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
  • 3/4 cup sour cream
  1. Make your pastry cream-
  2. In a medium (preferably non-stick) saucepan, combine the flour, salt and sugar. Stir in the milk until you have a smooth mixture. Cook over medium heat until it comes to a boil and thickens. Boil for one minute, stirring constantly.
  3. Beat a small amount of the hot milk mixture into the egg yolks to temper them, stirring it constantly. Then slowly pour the hot yolk mixture into the pot of the hot milk, stirring constantly.
  4. Cook over medium low heat until mixture again thickens up and coats the back of the spoon. Don’t let it come to a boil; it could separate.
  5. Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla extract. Put into a bowl and cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until well chilled. Meanwhile, make your eclairs.
  6. For the eclairs-
  7. Preheat oven to 375 degrees and grease a large baking sheet.
  8. In the same medium saucepan from earlier (washed of course) heat the butter, salt and water over medium high heat until it comes to a boil. Pour in the flour all at once. Stir vigorously until mixture comes together and leaves the side of the pan in a ball.
  9. Add in the eggs, one by one, stirring well after each one, until smooth.
  10. Let the mixture cool slightly, then drop large spoonsful of it into the prepared pan, shaping into a roughly rounded rectangular shape.
  11. Bake at 375 for about 25 minutes or until the eclairs look lightly browned and dry. Take them out and cut a small slit in the side of each, then put them back into the oven and cook until golden brown, about 10 minutes. The cut helps the inside dry out.
  12. Take out and cool on the pan for about 15 minutes. Then cut them in half and carefully pull out the doughy insides of each one.
  13. Get your pastry cream out to finish preparing it. In a medium bowl, whip the heavy cream until it forms fairly stiff peaks. Stir about a quarter cup of it into the pastry cream to lighten it up, then fold in the rest of the cream until no white streaks remain.
  14. For the icing, melt your chocolate chips in the microwave in a microwave safe bowl in 30 second increments at 60% power until you can stir it freely and it is totally melted. Stir in the sour cream. If it thickens up too much to spread after the cold sour cream hits it, microwave it again, 15 seconds at a time, at 60% power, until it is smooth and glossy.
  15. To put the eclairs together-
  16. Fold the berries into the prepared pastry cream. Spoon about 1/3 of a cup of the pastry cream (more or less as desired but know if you use more, you will NOT be able to pick these bad boys up without a mess lol)  into the bottom half of each eclair then put the top half on top of that. Then spread each eclair with a good dollop of frosting.
  17. If not serving immediately, these need to be refrigerated but I strongly suggest NOT doing final prep on them until just about ready to serve as the eclairs will get soggy otherwise.

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Mounds Bars Brownies With A Creamy Coconut Buttercream

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Mounds Bar Brownies With Coconut Buttercream

Mounds Bar Brownies With Coconut Buttercream


Respiratory illnesses suck. Just sayin’. I am one of those people who doesn’t get a mere cold. Oh nooooooo… my body is as ornery as my personality. I get the sniffles and we know to have 911 on standby for when I start coughing up bits and pieces of a lung or twelve. Thus why I have been gone almost 2 weeks. It takes time to piece back together a lung. And I’ve never been good at puzzles. I tried yesterday and I am pretty sure that my lung is NOT supposed to be on the bottom of my foot. But that’s ok. It tickled. I kinda liked it.

It’s been a LONGGGGGG 2 weeks. This may have effected more than lungs and sinuses. Oh hell, who am I kidding. I’m acting no weirder than normal.

Seriously though, sorry I was gone so long. I’m more or less on the mend now. Still coughing like crazy and still need meds to breathe at night but good otherwise. Definitely ready to get back to work.

And I started out way over the line on the decadence side. Gee. imagine that huh? Me? Making naughty foods instead of quinoa salads?

These brownies are yummy. Yummy may be an understatement. They kind of cross the line over into “OMG, I am gonna need to work out for 3 hours if I eat one of these!” territory. The brownie part of these is barely adapted from Ina Gartens Outrageous brownie recipe. I simply more or less cut it in half (changed it a touch but like I said, barely). Then I shoved some fun size Mounds bars and semisweet chocolate chips into the batter before baking. THEN to add insult to injury, I topped it off with a creamy coconut buttercream. But wait! Order right now and pay just ONE shipping and handling!

Sorry. I was having an infomercial moment. As I was saying… then, I covered it all with a rich thick chocolate ganache. Then (how many times can I say then for one recipe?) I coated THAT with some crunchy toasted coconut. So what do we have here? Thick, chewy, chocolatey, mounds bars, buttercream, ganache, more coconut. I think I may have broken some laws somewhere with this one.

You know the drill. Get to cookin’.

                                      Mounds Bar Brownies With A Creamy Coconut Buttercream

  • Brownies-
  • 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temp
  • 3 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
  • 8 ounces semisweet chocolate
  • 12 ounce bag semisweet chocolate chips
  • 4 large eggs
  • 1 egg yolk
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
  • 1/2 teaspoon coconut extract
  • 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
  • 2/3 cup flour
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 12 fun size Mounds Bars
  • Buttercream-
  • 4 cups powdered sugar
  • 1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temp
  • 1/2 cup cream of coconut (found with the mixers in the drink aisle)
  • 2 teaspoons coconut extract
  • 2 to 5 tablespoons heavy cream (more or less as needed to get desired thickness of buttercream)
  • Ganache-
  • 1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
  • 1cup heavy cream
  • 1/2 to 3/4 cup toasted coconut for garnish
  1. Preheat oven to 350. Butter a 13 x 9 inch baking pan. Line with parchment paper then butter the paper.
  2. In a large glass (or other microwave safe) bowl, place the unsweetened chocolate, the butter and the 8 ounces semisweet chocolate. Microwave on 70% power for 2 minutes. Stir well, then microwave on 70% power for 30 second increments, stirring after each one, until all the chocolate is melted. Stir for about two minutes to help cool then set aside.
  3. In a large bowl,  stir together the eggs and egg yolk, the vanilla and the sugar. Stir the warm chocolate mixture into the egg mixture then allow it to cool to room temp.
  4. In a medium bowl, mix together the flour, the baking powder and the salt. Add to the chocolate mixture and stir well (no beating, just stirring). Stir in the 12 ounces of chocolate chips.
  5. Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Lay the 12 Mounds bars in 4 rows of 3 down the length of the pan, pressing them down slightly into the batter.
  6. Bake at 350 for about 35 to 45 minutes or until a wooden skewer inserted in the middle (make sure to not hit a Mounds bar) comes out barely clean, with just a few moist crumbs on it. Don’t overbake! Nothing worse than a dry crumbly brownie.
  7. Let cool thoroughly in pan on a wire rack before frosting. Also nothing worse than watching your frosting melt into a puddle on a too warm baked good.
  8. Meanwhile, make your buttercream.
  9. In a a large bowl (you’re welcome btw for all the dirty dishes. Don’t mention it.) combine the butter, cream of coconut and coconut extract. Beat well until mixture is smooth. Stir in the 4 cups of powdered sugar. I’d advise actually stirring at first to incorporate some of it before turning on the beater unless you are aiming to powder the kitchen. When you have it mixed in well, turn the beater on high and beat well for about 5 minutes. You’re trying to get a nice thick creamy mixture. Add the heavy cream in, one tablespoon at a time, until you get a good spreading consistency.
  10. When the brownies are completely cool, spoon on the buttercream and spread to the edges of the brownies. Chill while you make and cool the ganache.
  11. Ganache-
  12. Put the 1 1/2 cups chocolate chips in a small glass bowl.
  13. Microwave the 1 cup cream just to the simmering point. Don’t boil. Pour all of the cream over the chocolate. Let sit for 3 minutes or so. Stir well. The heat from the cream should have been enough to totally melt the chocolate. Stir until thoroughly combined then let sit until the ganache has cooled completely and thickened up. Pour in a steady stream down the middle of the buttercream. Spread to the edges of the brownies. Sprinkle with toasted coconut.
  14. Chill brownies in fridge for at least 3 hours to give the buttercream and ganache time to set.
  15. Using a sharp knife dipped in hot water and wiped dry, cut the brownies into desired size squares. These are extremely rich. I suggest small squares. Also, they are best if you let them sit for a while after cutting. They get fairly hard when cold. Though I know some people who like that, if you want them softer, let them sit.


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Chocolate Bundt Cake With A Creamy Coconut Filling

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Chocolate Bundt Cake With A Creamy Coconut Filling

Chocolate Bundt Cake With A Creamy Coconut Filling


Ya know, for a woman who once claimed to not like coconut, I have noticed that my tune has changed and I have quite a few coconut recipes in here now. I’ve always thought that that aspect of human physiology was interesting. We can hate or love something for years and then all of a sudden, we do a 360 on how we feel about it. Other than Mounds Bars or Almond Joy bars, just 2 years ago you’d be hard pressed to find me saying anything nice about coconut. Coconut flavor I was fine on as well as coconut milk (I could happily drink it with a straw 😛 ) but actual coconut? No way.

What about you? Anything that you have changed your mind on in either direction as you’ve aged? Food wise that is.

All that said, obviously the recipe for today contains coconut. What? You were expecting goose liver perchance? Some Morels? Not sure either of them would have gone as well with this cake. And believe me, coconut goes well in this. the first two “taste testers” I served this to took a bite and then their faces went into that “omg, this is good” look that all food bloggers love to see 😀

This is a very moist cake, which makes it a good keeper if you make sure it stays covered. The coconut filling is very reminiscent of a Mounds bar but with a bit of an almond flavor to it (if you’re not a fan of almond extract, feel free to omit it.)  Then there is the chocolate ganache glaze. Really? Do I need to describe it? Chocolate ganache. Enough said. Go… shoo… bake. Thank me later.

Chocolate Bundt Cake With A Creamy Coconut Filling

  • Filling-
  • 2 cups (one small bag) shredded sweetened coconut flakes
  • 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons sweetened condensed milk
  • 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1/8 teaspoon almond extract
  • Cake-
  • 3 cups flour
  • 3/4 cup sifted (yes, sifted; cocoa always has those little lumps it leaves behind otherwise) unsweetened cocoa powder (not hot chocolate mix)
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 2 cups unsalted butter, room temp
  • 1 1/4 cups sugar
  • 1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
  • 1/2 teaspoon coconut flavoring
  • 5 eggs, room temp
  • 2 cups sour cream (NOT low fat)
  • Glaze-
  • 5 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped
  • 1/2 cup heavy cream
  • Garnish-
  • 1/2 cup toasted coconut
  1. Combine all your filling ingredients in a small bowl and set aside.
  2. For the cake- Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease and flour a 12 cup bundt pan. If, like me, you only have a 10 cup pan, also grease 5 king sized muffin cups because if you try to fit all this batter into a 10 cup pan, you WILL have it overflow all over your oven. Been there, done that, learned my lesson.
  3. Whisk together your dry ingredients in a medium bowl.
  4. In a large bowl, beat the butter at high speed until creamy. Add the sugars and continue to beat until light and fluffy, about three minutes. Beat in the vanilla extract and coconut flavoring. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
  5. Beginning and ending with the flour mixture, add it in three batches, alternating with the sour cream.
  6. Spoon a little less than half of the batter into the prepared bundt pan. (If using a ten cup pan, FIRST fill the 5 prepared muffin pans about 2/3 full THEN go to the bundt pan, using about half of the remaining batter. Don’t use the coconut filling in the cupcakes; just think of them as extras to hoard for yourself :-p )
  7. Carefully spoon the coconut filling over the batter in the pan. Make sure it is in the middle of the pan, not touching either side or it will stick and make the cake difficult to remove.
  8. Spoon the rest of the batter carefully over the top of the filling, smoothing it down where needed.
  9. Bake at 350 for about an hour and ten minutes for the 12 cup pan, about 50 minutes for a ten cup (about 20 minutes for the cupcakes) or until a wooden skewer inserted in the cake (make sure to get the cake not the filling) comes out with just a few moist crumbs on it.
  10. Set on a wire rack and allow to cool until just barely warm then turn the cake out onto the rack to finish cooling completely before glazing.
  11. For the glaze- heat your cream just to boiling in the microwave. Pour over the chopped chocolate in a bowl and let sit for about 3 minutes, Stir to combine. Let it sit for a bit to thicken up somewhat. Spoon over the cooled cake. Garnish with the toasted coconut.
  12. If you have any glaze and/or coconut left (which you will) just dump the coconut into the ganache, stir well then put it into the fridge until it firms up. You can then scoop it out and form it into small truffles. Or just spoon it out and eat it in front of the TV watching bad reality show reruns. I won’t tell.

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Chocolate Chip Double Berry Scones

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Chocolate Chip Double Berry Scones 2-001

I can hear the outcry now… “MORE scones, lady!!!??? What the heck?? Can you do anything but scones or citrus pies or risotto!?”

Yes. yes, I can. But I wasn’t thinking the other day when I, on my Facebook page asked everyone which they would prefer- these scones or a quick bread I am trying. They chose the scones. Sooooo, being a woman of my word, I made them. Because honesty is just how I roll. Well, when I trip on our land, downhill quickly is also how I roll but I won’t blog about that. Though photos would probably be hilarious.

Moving on- been interesting in our household lately. My (very pregnant) daughter and her boys are with us through mid August while her husband goes through Basic Training and AIT (the on the job training for whatever you will be doing part of the military) so having 2 extra little ones (they are 3 and 6) has been chaotic to say the least. But I love knowing that when they move, they will, for a time at least, until it fades, have some memories of living with gramma and grampa. My daughter is due in a few weeks so I’ll have time with the baby (girl) for a while too 🙂

Plus, I’ve been having some health issues again. Not gonna go into detail here yet but I’ll cue you all in when things are more settled as to treatment. Until then, I’m just gonna continue to bake fattening things for all of you. Why? Cause I lurves you of course!!! Seriously. You have no idea what it means to me to know that people actually come here to my tiny blog, read my inane words and sometimes actually even make the foods I post.

These scones turned out delicious. I got the base recipe from The Pastry Queen Cookbook (you should have noticed by now that I love this cookbook) but changed it around. I just KNOW you’re surprised at that news. The only problem I had (which is my fault not the books) was shape. After I added the berries, I didn’t want to knead the dough, thus mushing the berries and toughening the dough, so I just reshaped it. BUT… I wasn’t able to get it back into a decent circle. so I tried making it more rectangular and cutting the scones from that. It turned out rather laughable 😛 These taste absolutely amazing… light, tender, flaky with a perfect mix of berries and chocolate and an orange glaze that just complements it all. But the way they look? Kinda wonky lol. But I promise you; you won’t care once you make some and taste them how they look. Also, you may have better luck shaping the dough than I did ANYWAY thus negating the issue. So don’t let looks fool you. Just look at the nicely glazed surface… see the pieces of berry peeking out alongside some chocolate. Then go bake. And I promise… no more scones…. for a few days anyway 😛

Chocolate Chip Double Berry Scones

  • 3 cups flour
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 tablespoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 10 tablespoons unsalted butter, COLD
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
  • 1 1/2 cups heavy cream
  • zest from one large orange (about 1 to 2 tablespoons)
  • 1 cup semi sweet or bittersweet chocolate chips
  • 1/2 cup fresh raspberries
  • 1/2 cup fresh blackberries
  • Glaze-
  • 1 cup powdered sugar
  • 2 teaspoons orange zest
  • 1/3 cup orange juice
  1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line a buttered baking sheet with parchment paper then butter the paper.
  2. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (as always, you can use these directions with a hand mixer), combine the dry ingredients on low speed, including the orange zest.
  3. Cut the butter into small pieces, then add to the flour. Beat on low speed until the butter is in small pea sized pieces. Then add in 1 cup of the cream and the vanilla and continue beating on low speed. You want the dough to come away from the sides of the bowl in a clean ball of dough, no floury remnants left behind. If it still looks dry, add more cream, about a tablespoon at a time until it forms the dough ball.
  4. Turn out onto a lightly floured board and gently knead the chocolate chips into it. You’re not trying to work the gluten up like in bread dough. That will make the scones tough.
  5. When the chocolate is incorporated, gently pan the dough out into a fairly thin circle or rectangle. Lay the berries down on one side of the dough, then fold the other side down over them. Press gently to seal.
  6. Reshape the dough (circle if you want wedges, rectangle if you want squares or diamonds) and cut into either 10 wedges or if making squares or diamonds (for the diamonds, cut into squares then cut them in half diagonally), cut into 12 pieces. Brush each with some of the leftover cream and sprinkle with sugar.
  7. Bake at 375 for about 15 minutes for wedges or 10 to 12 minutes for squares or diamonds. You want them a nice golden brown on top.
  8. For the glaze- in a small bowl, mix together the glaze ingredients. Whisk well to get rid of lumps.
  9. Pour the glaze out onto a shallow lipped plate.
  10. Dip the top of each scone into the glaze. Let dry for about ten minutes then dip each one again. Let dry a bit before serving though when they are warm and sticky they are awfully hard to resist 😀

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Chocolate, Cherry & Pistachio Scones

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Chocolate, Cherry & Pistachio Scones

Chocolate, Cherry & Pistachio Scones


I’ve mentioned a couple of hundred times by now that I’m not one of those people who does things by the seasons. Nope, I’m that weirdo at the grocery store with no coat and flip flops when it’s 20 degrees out. I’m the reason you’re smelling bbq and woodsmoke in January and suddenly craving grilled chicken. I’m the one making heart cookies in August. While at the same time making a nice comforting warming beef stew or chili. I’m that person posting Pumpkin bread in May and having everyone who comes here (all two of you hehe) wonder what the heck I’m on and why I’m so bass ackward.

Yes. I’m weird. This however is why you like me, right?

*crickets*

From what I’ve seen, most people tend to seem to bake scones during the Winter, many times even around the holidays. This may have something to do with everyone being far wiser than I and not turning on their ovens in the middle of a heat wave. I have never claimed wiseness though so it’s all good. I claim only insanity, a warped sense of humor and an unhealthy love for Cheetos and almost any sort of Gummy candy (right now my current addiction is These Brachs Juicy Berries Gummies. Oh my gosh, I love them and talk about lack of wisdom… it’s unwise for a bag of them to be near me or I’ll eat every.single.one.

But… today wasn’t about gummy candy (tonight when I watch Glee however, all bets are off). Today was about scones. This recipe was originally an Ina Garten one but I found it long ago on the now defunct blog “Gingerbread Bagels”. I don’t know the blog closed of where Lindsey, the owner, disappeared to, but I still think of her and hope she’s ok. Originally, this was just dark chocolate and dried cranberries but we all know I’m genetically incapable of doing a recipe the way it was written. So now I have left my mark on this one and love how I changed it 🙂

These scones are probably my favorite scones ever. They are flaky and tender… a little bit crispy on the outside and tender on the inside. The chocolate and cherries go so well together and the orange zest and almond extract add a lovely flavor to these. Add in the yummy pistachios and the bit of crunch they add and it’s scone Heaven.

You know the drill. Get to baking!

Chocolate, Cherry & Pistachio Scones

  • 1 1/2 cups mini chocolate chips
  • 1 5 ounce bag dried cherries
  • 1/2 cup chopped salted pistachios
  • 2 cups flour
  • 1/3 cup sugar
  • 1 tablespoon baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 2 teaspoons orange zest
  • 1 1/2 sticks COLD unsalted butter, diced
  • 1/2 cup COLD heavy cream
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
  • 1 teaspoon almond extract
  • Glaze-
  • 1/2 cup powdered sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 2 to 3 tablespoons heavy cream (may need more or less to make glaze drizzling consistency)
  1. Preheat oven to 375. Line a buttered baking sheet with parchment paper and then butter the paper.
  2. Combine the flour, baking powder, salt and orange zest in the bowl of a stand mixer. Add in the cold butter and mix on low speed with the paddle attachment until the flour has only small lumps the size of peas left in it. (Alternately, do the same with a hand mixer or pastry blender)
  3. Whisk together the 2 eggs, 1/2 cup cream, vanilla extract and almond extract. Pour slowly into the flour mixture and continue mixing at low speed until dough comes together in a sticky ball from the side of the bowl.
  4.  Dump onto a lightly floured board. Pat down into a circle of about 3/4 of an inch thick. Cut into 8 wedges with a lightly floured knife or pizza cutter.
  5. Lay close together but not touching on the baking sheet. They will rise and touch as they bake and you’ll have nice soft sides where they do, crispy ones where they didn’t.
  6. Bake at 375 for about 17 minutes or until they are nicely browned and firm on top. Don’t over bake or you’ll lose that great texture!
  7. When done, let cool for about minute in the pan, then carefully transfer over to a wire rack to finish cooling.
  8. For glaze, simply whisk together all the glaze ingredients in a small bowl. Drizzle over the cooled scones.

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Chocolate Chip Butterscotch Cookie Cake (With An Adult Twist)

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Chocolate Chip Butterscotch Cookie Cake

Chocolate Chip Butterscotch Cookie Cake

I’ve mentioned before that I’m not much of a drinker. I like my wine a time or two a week and I like some sweet liquors every once in a while; things like Baileys, Amaretto (it’s wonderful in hot tea) and Butterscotch Schnapps. Yep… they actually make a schnapps with that flavor.  And add Pinnacle Vodka in there sometimes too. I’m not normally a vodka drinker but the ones they make are actually creamy tasting and if you’ve read my blog for more than five minutes, you know creamy tasting and I are BFF’s from way back. 😀

When I was a kid, I loved those hard yellow butterscotch discs. Still do actually, though my teeth (or lack thereof hehe) can’t handle them anymore. So, years back, when I saw the schnapps with that flavor, I had to try it. And lo and behold, it tastes exactly like one of those candies. The problem is that I DON’T drink enough (laughs cause I’m whining that I don’t drink heavily. Go figure.) so a bottle lasts me approximately as long as it takes to go from birth to puberty. So I like to think of ways to use the stuff up that doesn’t involve me and a headache from syrupy booze.

Today, I was looking through my copy of Dam Good Sweets and I noticed a page I tagged. It was for Chocolate Chip Cookie cake. That alone sounded good and I was going to make it but then boozy inspiration entered my head (that sounds like I was sloshed when I thought of it lol. Y’all know what I meant right?) so I played around with the recipe. Not much… just enough to make it say “Janet Made Me!!” How, you ask? Simple. I added butterscotch chips as well as the chocolate and I added a slug of butterscotch schnapps to the batter. I also omitted the almond extract they called for and used dark brown sugar instead of light.

This worked out nicely. You can definitely taste the butterscotch flavor in the dough. Combined with the two different flavors of chips that are all melty and ooey gooey and the soft chewy cookie with crispity (yes, that too is now a word) edges, this all becomes one decadent treat. I had originally thought about sending it in to my husbands work with him, but no way is that happening now that I’ve tasted it hehe.

Now go bake a cookie!

Chocolate Chip Butterscotch Cookie Cake

  • 2 cups semi sweet chocolate chips
  • 1 1/2 cups butterscotch chips
  • 1/2 cup heavy cream
  • 9 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temp
  • 1 cup flour
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup brown sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 2 tablespoons butterscotch schnapps (you could sub 1/4 teaspoon of butterscotch candy flavoring if you wanted to)
  • 1 egg
  1. Make your ganache- this will be the glaze later. Put 2/3 of a cup of the chocolate chips in a bowl. Microwave the cream until boiling, then pour over the chocolate chips in the bowl. Let sit for about a minute then stir well to melt the chocolate and make a smooth mixture. Cover and set aside. You can make this hours before hand if you want. Just leave out because it will harden in the fridge.
  2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a buttered 9 inch cake pan with a round of parchment paper (easiest way is to trace the outline of the with pencil on parchment then cut it out) then butter or spray the paper.
  3. Whisk the flour, salt and baking powder in a small bowl. Set aside
  4. In a large bowl, combine the butter, brown sugar, vanilla and schnapps. Mix with a hand mixer until well combined and fluffy. Scrape down the bowl, then add the egg.
  5. After the egg is well combined, stir in the flour mixture.. Stir just until well combined, then add the rest of the chocolate chips and the butterscotch chips
  6. Bake at 350 for about 25 minutes or until the top is golden brown and puffy and the edges look set. The middle will still look and feel somewhat soft..
  7. Let cool in the pan on a wire rack for about an hour. Run a butter knife around the edges of the pan. Carefully lay a plate over the top of the pan and invert the cookie, then do that again onto another plate to get it back right side up.
  8. Spoon your cooled ganache into a sandwich bag. Snip off the corner and pipe the ganache onto the top of the cookie. Eat the leftover ganache hehe.
  9. Serve this to hungry kids who will love you (the alcohol has cooked off). Or just do the usual… hide in the closet with it and don’t share. I’m cool with that too.

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