Salted Peanut Butter Brownies

 I first posted this in 2012(!). The recipe came from a 2011 Rachael Ray magazine. 

Boxed brownie mix is always, always better than homemade. It doesn't always work this way with cakes or cookies, but for brownies, boxed is better. Something about the texture, I think. 

But if I have boxed brownie mix, it just kind of sits in the cupboard and "calls to me" to make them, so I don't buy it very often. 

This is a VERY easy recipe you can memorize. You will likely have all the ingredients already. You can dress them up any way you want. 

I made a buttercream and added peanut butter (like 3/4 a cup, maybe? I barely measure things) and then sprinkled sea salt on the finished product. Don't skip the sea salt. You could always chop up some frozen Reeses' eggs or whatever and add those or add some sort of chocolate Easter eggs to the top for decoration, if you want it as an Easter dessert. (We are having a peanut butter frosted bunny cake this year.)

One-Bowl-Brownies 
makes an 8x8 pan
adapted from Rachael Ray magazine

4 T. butter
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 t. vanilla
4 T. cocoa powder
1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup chocolate chips (if you're feeling crazy)

In a medium saucepan, melt the butter and cocoa powder together.  Take off of the heat.  Whisk in the eggs, vanilla, and sugar.  Stir in the flour.   Fold in the chocolate chips, if using.  Pour into a greased 8x8 pan (a pie pan would work too) and bake at 350 degrees for 15-18 minutes until the middle springs back when touched.

For a 9x13 pan, double the recipe exactly. 

Here's my recipe for Chocolate Peanut Butter Buttercream. 

I like to store them in the freezer but I would absolutely stick one in the microwave for 30 seconds and then top with ice cream too. 

Peanut Butter Frosting

Recipe challenge, week forty-one

A couple of weeks ago, Scott mentioned that there was an army thing we should *probably* go to. Some guy was having a cookout and there would be football games to watch and army wives would be present and all.  I asked if we should take something.  He said yes.  I, because I'm incredibly unmotivated and lacking creativity these days, said I could make brownies.  Boxed brownies.
I wandered the aisles of SuperTarget for 20 minutes and that's all I could come up with. The last thing I felt like doing was spending my Sunday making an elaborate dessert. And though this is my go-to appetizer, I didn't feel like transporting a hot dip.

Even though I took the easy way out of with boxed brownies, I did have the plan to make homemade frosting.  This would kick the brownies up a notch and not make them taste quite so boxed.  Though boxed brownies, slightly undercooked, are the best kind of brownies. I always add half a cup or so of chocolate chips to the batter to up the gooeyness factor.

Peanut Butter Frosting

1/4 cup butter, softened (half a stick)
1 t. vanilla
3/4 cup creamy peanut butter
2 cups powdered sugar
2 T. milk, as needed

Cream everything together with an electric mixer or stand mixer.  You may need more or less sugar and milk depending on the consistency you want.  

Pumpkin Spice Brownies

Yesterday, I whined about how I never bake anymore and then I blamed Pinterest and the general food-blogging population.

However, over the the weekend, I started baking.  First, pumpkin cookies.  Then, I came up with a brand new recipe.  I used a basic brownie recipe that I've adapted from Rachael Ray magazine and I changed it up for this pumpkin-loving season.  

I have 3 giant cans of pumpkin to use.  I always buy a lot when given the opportunity because you never know when the mood for pumpkin desserts will strike.  I was thinking about what I could make and I thought of brownies.  I didn't want to rip off a recipe that had already been done over and over again, so I searched Pinterest and Google to see if there was already a recipe out there.  There were a couple and they fit directly into the two categories I mentioned yesterday.  There was something vegan, with xylitol and almond meal or something and then there was 1 can of pumpkin + one box of brownie mix.
Mmmmm, right?

Here's a real pumpkin brownie recipe that is quick to whip up and is fudgy and decadent enough to impress.

Pumpkin Spice Brownies with Cream Cheese Frosting

makes an 8x8 pan

2 T. butter, softened
4 T. cocoa powder
1/2 cup pumpkin
1 t. vanilla
2 eggs
3/4 cup sugar
1 cup flour
1/2 T. pumpkin pie spice
1/2 cup chocolate chips

With a mixer, combine the butter, cocoa powder, pumpkin, vanilla, eggs, and sugar.  Mix on low until combined.  Hand mixer or stand mixer will work best, but you can use a big wooden spoon too, if the butter is soft enough. Stir in the flour and pumpkin pie spice until everything is well-combined.  Fold in the chocolate chips.

Pour into a greased 8x8 pan and bake at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes.  Check the center with a toothpick after 25 minutes.

Allow to cool and then frost with Cream Cheese Frosting, or a frosting of your choice.  If you use cream cheese in the frosting, be sure to store the brownies in the fridge.

1 tub of whipped cream cheese (8 oz.)
1/2 cup butter, softened (1 stick)
1 t. vanilla
about 3 cups powdered sugar (I don't like giving exact numbers on the sugar.  You know the consistency you want.)
1 T. meringue powder (Optional, but will help the frosting harden.  Found in the wedding aisle at Wal-Mart)

Cream the butter and cream cheese together, using a hand mixer or the whisk on a stand mixer.  Add the vanilla.  Then, add the sugar until you reach the consistency you want.  Add the meringue powder last.

(Gluten-Free) PB Brownie Ice Cream

#1 I always must have the news on in the morning.  Local news, then the Today Show.  Sundays throw me off because Today is only, like, an hour.  That's why Sunday mornings are for Mad Men reruns.

#2 I've worn glasses since I was 9 and contacts since I was 12. What did people do before such things were invented?  One of my biggest concerns has always been 'What would I do if I were trapped on a desert island? How would I see?' Cue irrational (but not really) fears.

#3  I will procrastinate some things forever.  I graded a stack of 300 papers in March.  This weekend, since school is almost over and all, I decided it was do or die:  it was time to sort hundreds of tests into assessment binders.  The kids might want them, now that 2nd grade is over and all.  I certainly don't want them.

#4  I last got my hair cut in February.  The other day, someone said, "Oh, you got a haircut!"  No.

#5 One of my biggest pet peeves is when people don't have to eat gluten-free, but they choose to because they mistakenly believe it's healthier.  I made this ice cream for a friend who does have to eat gluten-free.

#6  I will make delicious ice cream, we will devour it in two days, and then I will stare at the picture on my computer desktop for two months before I get around to sharing it.

(Gluten-Free) Peanut Butter Brownie Ice Cream

2 cups chocolate milk (I used 2%)

1 T. + 1 t. cornstarch

1/8 t. salt

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup smooth peanut butter

2 t. vanilla

1 1/4 cups heavy cream

Frozen brownies, frosted and cut into chunks

-I used this brownie recipe, made with gluten-free flour from Trader Joe's and it came out really well.

-I used the Peanut Butter Cream Cheese Frosting too and that, obviously, was perfect.

In a large saucepan, combine the chocolate milk (all but 1 tablespoon), the salt, and the sugar.  Allow it to come to a boil and then let it boil (a rolling boil) for 4 minutes, stirring constantly. 

In a small bowl, whisk together that extra tablespoon (or so) of milk with the cornstarch.  Remove the milk mixture from the heat and whisk in the cornstarch/milk.  Return the pot to medium heat and let it come back to a boil, stirring constantly, for another minute (or until it's thick enough to coat the back of a wooden spoon). 

Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla and peanut butter.  After the peanut butter melts, add in the heavy cream.  Whisk well.  Pour through a mesh sieve to catch any undissolved lumps.  Refrigerate the mixture for a few hours until cooled. 

Following the manufacturer's instructions, pour your cooled mixture into an ice cream maker.  Once its consistency is nearing that of soft ice cream, stir in the chunks of frozen brownie and let it stir to combine.  Once it's all mixed up, pour into a freezer safe container and store in the freezer for up to 2 weeks.

Brownie Batter Rice Krispy Treats

Let it be duly noted that I made these almost 2 weeks ago.  They are long, long gone.

I have a serious issue with rice krispy treats these days.  I can't stop eating them.  I don't know what my problem is.  I don't even feel like eating ice cream!  I just want gooey stuff.  So strange.

Since I've been doing a pretty intense cardio workout each weekday, I've noticed that my hunger has really kicked in.  Before 2 weeks ago, I was doing cardio once, or maybe twice, a week.  That is kind of sad for me, because I'm capable of doing cardio each day.  That's what I was thinking while I ran that 5K our first week here...Scott told me I looked like a runner before the race.  I just laughed.  But then, as I trudged those few miles through the woods (yeah), I thought, "You know, there's nothing stopping me from doing this..no injuries, no physical limitations. My legs don't really hurt.  My lungs are okay...I just don't want to do this everyday."

I need to work on my willpower, I guess.

So anyway, the point is, I've been eating a rice krispy treat in some form or another, like, everyday.  That cannot be a good thing.

When I asked Scott what flavor he thought these were, he said, "Cocoa".  No.  They're much more inventive than that because I can't get off the brownie train.

Brownie Batter Rice Krispy Treats

makes a 9x13 pan

3/4 cup dry boxed brownie mix

1/2 cup chocolate frosting, plus extra for drizzling (I used Pillsbury.)

1 10-oz bag mini marshmallows

4 T. butter

1 t. vanilla

6 cups Rice Krispy cereal

In a large saucepan, melt the butter.  Stir in the brownie mix, frosting, vanilla, and mini marshmallows. Mix well until the marshmallows have melted. 

Fold in the cereal until it's all covered with the marshmallow mixture.

Spread into an 8x8 pan for thick bars or a 9x13 pan for thinner ones.

Brownie Batter Fudge

A few weeks ago, a fellow army wife started talking about brownies and how good they were.  Her husband mentioned that brownies don't last long in their house and I thought, "Hmmm, sounds familiar."

We were out at a dinner, and while they discussed favorite desserts, I sat there mourning the fact that my baking sheets, pans, mixer, ingredients, etc, had all been packed up and were currently on a barge somewhere.  I wanted a brownie. Not just one, but a whole pan.

Years ago, I stopped buying brownie mix, because there was no point in me making brownies twice a week.  Well, there was a point in it, but it wasn't a good or a healthy one.  Especially if I also had a can of frosting somewhere in the kitchen.

So, in reflecting on some of the brownie recipes I've made in the last few years, I started missing my kitchen.  Well, not THAT kind-of-hideous kitchen in Alaska, but having my own kitchen in general.
Alaska was good for my desire to bake...I'll give it that.

Hot Fudge Brownie Milkshakes
Peanut Butter Cake Shakes
Caramel Brownie Pie
Peppermint Brownies
Kahlua Brownie Sundaes
One-Bowl Brownies
Salted Hot Fudge Caramel Brownies

So now, we have Brownie Batter Fudge.  It's chocolatey and chewy (as usual), but with the flavor of boxed brownie mix.  I don't care how many brownie recipes you have: Boxed brownie mix definitely has its place, right?? :)

Brownie Batter Fudge
makes an 8x8 pan

1 1/2 cups sugar
2/3 cup evaporated milk
2 T. butter
1/4 t. salt
2 cups mini marshmallows (plus extra for the top if you'd like)
1 1/2 cups chocolate chips (I use about half a bag)
1 t. vanilla
1/4 cup dry boxed brownie mix
1 cup chopped nuts (optional)

Combine sugar, milk, butter, and salt in a medium saucepan.  Bring to a full rolling boil over medium heat and stir constantly for 4-5 minutes.  Remove from heat and stir in the marshmallows, chips, brownie mix, and vanilla.  Stir vigorously until all is incorporated.  Add the nuts.

Spread into a foil-lined and greased 8x8 inch pan, and top with extra marshmallows.  Refrigerate for at least 2 hours before cutting.  I left mine in the fridge for about 6 hours and it was perfect.  Remove the foil from the pan and cut the fudge into squares.

Caramel Brownie Pie

Sometimes I'm forced to socialize.

And I'm really, really bad at it.

Often, I feel like one of those people who have been left to their own devices for so long that they've forgotten how to interact.

In fact, were it not for that thing I do where I public-speak to 25+ children daily, I would've spent most of the last year talking to myself.

Now, if you take me out and expect me to hit it off with new people?  Like, people my own age?  I won't.  I just won't.  I don't know what to say.  I clam up.  And I usually say something stupid.

When I meet another person, they ask stuff like:

"So what do you do?" (uhhh...teach)...to which they respond with "Awwww...".  (There is nothing 'awwww' about it.)

...or "How long have you been in Alaska?" (too long)

...or "What'd you do over the weekend?" (watched t.v.)

...."What are your plans for tonight?" (watch t.v.).

And you can't say "I blog" to people in real life.  They think you're some crazy internet gamer who never leaves his/her computer.  Which is only half true.  I don't play games on the internet..

Anyway, Scott asked me go to a friend's house with him the other night.  It kinda reminded me of a college party (the kind I was never invited to).  You know, with old people 26 year olds.  I'm too domestic for that stuff.  We were home by 11:30. Exciting, right?

What is exciting is that it gave me a chance to make a brownie pie.

It was a combination of ideas between Hayley's capookie and Dorothy's pie.  Thanks for the insipration ladies!

Caramel Brownie Pie
makes one 9x9 pie pan

-1 box brownie mix (I used Turtle Brownie mix because it came with walnuts and caramel sauce.)
plus ingredients called for on the box
-1/2 cup caramel bits (The Kraft kind.  The kind I then proceeded to eat by the freakin' handful *shamed*) OR 1/2 cup caramel for extra drizzling
-1/2 cup chocolate chips, if desired
-1 pie crust (I used refrigerated pie crust.)

Lay out the crust in your pie pan.  Pre-heat the oven to 350*.

In a bowl with a wooden spoon, mix your brownie mix, egg, oil, water/applesauce...whatever you use together.

Fold in your caramel bits and chocolate chips, if using.

Pour into your prepared pie crust.

Drizzle caramel sauce over the top and, using a knife, weave it/spread it through the batter.

Bake for 30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out of the center clean.

Good luck not eating it all by yourself.  
For reasons like this pie, I MUST attempt to socialize more often.

Sharing at YOLO Monday and Mingle Monday, oh, plus Crazy Sweet Tuesday, Back for Seconds Social...

Salted Hot Fudge Caramel Brownies

It's been, like, more than a week since I've shared something sweet.  While I'm trying my darnedest not to overdose on sugar at the moment, I'm glad I had this post set aside.  Scott and I annihilated these brownies back in July.  As in, I made them and ate some.  The next morning, the empty dish was sitting on the counter and I didn't need to worry about making breakfast for Scott.

There's a reason why I'm a fan of boxed brownie mixes, cake mixes, store-bought ice cream, etc.

I don't like recipes with too many steps.

When you have brownies with 4 layers, each one requiring 6 ingredients, plus stove time, plus cooling time, plus baking time....I'm probably not going to make it.  I might drool over it, sure.  But, it's doubtful that I'll go to the store, buy 4 different kinds of chocolate, and spend all afternoon making brownies.  I WANT to.  Or maybe..maybe I don't want to.  Maybe I want to get that fudgy chocolate-ness in my mouth as soon as possible.  (I know that I spelled "fudgy" correctly, because I double-checked it with the word "pudgy".)
Yes.  THAT is what I want.

This is a simple brownie recipe.  It actually doesn't get simpler than this.

Salted Hot Fudge Caramel Brownies
makes an 8x8 pan
adapted from Rachael Ray magazine

4 T. butter
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 t. vanilla
4 T. cocoa powder
1/2 cup flour
1 t. sea salt
1/2 cup chocolate chips (if you're feeling crazy) 
1/4 cup hot fudge sauce (I used Salted Caramel Hot Fudge from Archer Farms), easiest to pour/measure when warmed

Topping:
1/4 cup hot fudge sauce
1/4 cup caramel sauce



In a medium saucepan, melt the butter and cocoa powder together.  Take off of the heat.  Whisk in the eggs, vanilla, and sugar.  Stir in the flour.   Fold in the chocolate chips, if using, and *warmed* hot fudge sauce.  Pour into a greased 8x8 pan (a pie pan would work too) and bake at 350 degrees for 15-18 minutes until the middle springs back when touched.

Heat the other 1/4 cup of hot fudge sauce and 1/4 cup caramel sauce in the microwave.  You can mix them together or pour them separately, but drizzle them over warm brownies and let it set.  They will stay deliciously gooey this way.

Sharing at:
Crazy Sweet Tuesday
Back For Seconds Social

Peanut Butter Brownie Cake Shake

Fireworks are illegal in most of Alaska.  They still sell them everywhere.  You're just...not allowed to buy them?  Or set them off?  It's weird.  Well, you already know this place is weird....I tend to emphasize that.

This was originally a guest post that I did for the lovely Dorothy at Crazy for Crust.  In case you didn't get a chance to MAKE IT see it a couple weeks ago, check it out now! 

My relationship with ice cream is complicated.  I love it.  That's the most important thing you need to know.  The second most important thing is to know that I like stuff in my ice cream.  As many toppings, sauces, and flavors as I can cram into it.  I create sundaes based off of whatever I have around.  Peanut butter, candy bars, Oreos, marshmallows, hot fudge, caramel...all the good stuff.

While it may seem like I'm adventurous... I'm not.  I do not eat fruit in, on, or around my ice cream.  I do not eat anything "fruity" in, on, or around my ice cream.  This means no gummi bears, fruit pies, or, God forbid, raisins.  But worse than fruit in ice cream, is plain ice cream.

In fact, I get sad when I see people eating that soft-serve stuff.  And the one time, at Marble Slab, when my husband ordered the Red, White, and Blue mix, with the strawberries and blueberries?  I think I looked at him in disgust.  He was understandably puzzled at my reaction.  No, darling, I do not want to try it.

So this is the Cake Shake.  It's a shake.  With cake in it.  You can experiment with any flavors you want.  I happen to have these chocolate brownies with peanut butter cream cheese icing in the freezer.  But I have a feeling that even a Little Debbie Brownie would be just as tasty.  (Chewy, classy, and delicious.  What more could you want?)

Peanut Butter Brownie Cake Shake
makes 1 large shake (or 2 small if you feel like sharing; pictured above is 1 small shake)

2 cups of ice cream (PB, chocolate, vanilla, one of those flavors with lots of goodies stuffed inside.  It doesn't matter!)
3 T. chocolate syrup (or hot fudge)
3 T. peanut butter
1 T. vanilla
Milk
1 brownie, broken into pieces (Use your own judgment on the size.  I require lotsa brownie.)
Whipped cream, optional

In a blender, combine the ice cream, chocolate syrup, PB, and vanilla with just enough milk to get it to a milkshake consistency.  Toss in half of that brownie and pulse a couple of times.

Pour into a glass (or two) and topped with whipped cream and additional brownie pieces.  Yum.

One-Bowl-Brownies with PB Cream Cheese Frosting

You know it's good when the frosting is as thick as the brownie, right?


That was the first clue that I needed to get these stupidly delicious things out of the house as soon as possible.

Let me tell you a story of embarrassment.  This was, upon moving to the 49th state, one of my first clues that I wasn't in Pennsylvania anymore.

That's right.  It's "make fun of Alaska" time again.

These brownies with the peanut butter frosting remind me very much of my family's recipe for Texas Sheet Cake.

Texas Sheet Cake is ah-maz-ING.  I used to request it for my birthday and my aunt would be kind enough to make it.  She'd make it for many family gatherings.  I could eat slices of that cake all day long.

So when I was invited to a recipe swap in Alaska, with people from all over the country, I was very excited to show it off.  I made an 11x17 inch pan of chocolatey goodness.  My husband was deployed at the time (shocker) so it was just me and I was happy to have a reason to bake a cake.

At the end of the night, I was actually pretty horrified (and embarrassed, if we're being honest) to realize that over THREE-FOURTHS of my cake remained.  I don't think anyone even copied down the recipe.  I was seriously insulted.  These people had no idea how silly they were or what an opportunity they'd just passed up!

So I had to go home with an enormous pan of Texas Sheet Cake.  I cried, guys.  I already felt like I was at the end of my rope:  deployed husband, trapped in Seward's Icebox, and all.  And now no one even wanted my cake??

It was a rough weekend.

So then.  Came. The. REAL. Problem.  I was facing down the most delicious cake in the world.  I stuck it in the freezer.  I nibbled at it over the next couple of days.  And then I knew that it was the jeans or the cake.  So I threw it away.  

I haven't made it since.  I was scarred by this incident, as silly as it may seem.  It was one more thing that seemed to separate me from these "I LOVE ALASKA" people.  They didn't know good cake when they saw it.  For shame, Alaska, for shame.

Soooo anyway, I made these brownies as a way to use up this delectably-finger-lickin'-good frosting.  As soon as I took a bite, all those repressed Texas Sheet Cake feelings came flooding back.

Come visit me.  I'll bake you a cake.  You just have to promise to eat it.

One-Bowl-Brownies with PB Cream Cheese Frosting
makes an 8x8 pan
adapted from Rachael Ray magazine

4 T. butter
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 t. vanilla
4 T. cocoa powder
1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup chocolate chips (if you're feeling crazy)

In a medium saucepan, melt the butter and cocoa powder together.  Take off of the heat.  Whisk in the eggs, vanilla, and sugar.  Stir in the flour.   Fold in the chocolate chips, if using.  Pour into a greased 8x8 pan (a pie pan would work too) and bake at 350 degrees for 15-18 minutes until the middle springs back when touched.

Top with Peanut Butter Cream Cheese Frosting.  You don't have to let it cool first.  I was on my way out the door so I just spread out the frosting evenly while the brownies were still warm and then stuck the whole thing in the fridge.  Keep refrigerated because of the cream cheese in the frosting.  (Frozen would be delicious too!)

Sharing at:
Mingle Monday 
Mix-it-Up Monday
Melt In Your Mouth Monday 
Crazy Sweet Tuesday 
Piece O'Cake Linky Party

Peppermint Brownies

My love affair with peppermint is no secret.  It's a new-found love, manifesting itself only within the last year or so.  It started at an Army Christmas party in 2010.  The food, the party, and the company all left much to be desired.  As a last ditch effort to make it a worthwhile evening, I ate a peppermint brownie.

Since then, I've been putting peppermint extract in my brownie mix and topping my brownies with peppermint-flavored frosting and crushed candy canes. 

This version has some Candy Cane Hershey's Kisses in it also.  Oh perfection:  Your name is peppermint brownie.


(I know.  Christmas has been over for awhile now, but I've been wanting to re-do this one, so you're getting it in March.  Happy St. Patrick's Day.)


Peppermint Brownies
makes an 8x8 pan

1 8.5 oz package brownie mix
1/3 cup oil or applesauce
1/2 t. peppermint extract
1 egg
2 T. water

10-15 Hershey's Kisses (I used the candy cane variety.  Regular will do the trick.  You can even use chocolate chips.)
3-5 crushed up candy canes (or you can use regular peppermint candies)

1 container of vanilla or cream cheese frosting (heck, you can even use chocolate)
1/2 t. peppermint extract

Pre-heat the oven according to your brownie mix directions.

In a bowl, combine the brownie mix, oil/applesauce, water, 1/2 t. extract, and egg.  Mix well with a wooden spoon.  Pour into a greased 8x8 pan.

Bake for half the time that is recommended on the package directions.   Take the pan out and press the (unwrapped) Kisses, or chocolate chips, into the batter.  Put it back in the oven until a toothpick comes out clean.

Meanwhile, soften up the frosting in the microwave (30 seconds on high) and stir the 1/2 t. of extract into the frosting.  Pour it over the brownies once they are done baking but are still warm.  Sprinkle the crushed candy canes or peppermints over the top.  Allow to cool a bit before cutting.
==============================================================
Want more peppermint??? Sure you do.
Peppermint Patties
Peppermint Fudge (my personal favorite)
Chocolate Peppermint Cake Balls
Oreo Peppermint Creams
Thin Mint Oreo Ice Cream Cake

Being shared at:
Sweet Treats Thursday
Friday Food

Hot Fudge Brownie Milkshakes and A New Look!

..not to be confused with Hot Fudge MOCHA Milkshakes.  Which are also really good by the way and, coincidentally, they are the most viewed recipe on my site.  They are amazing, but I don't remember linking to many "parties" or making a big deal out of them, so the name in the Recipe Index must draw in the viewers!  I hope you all made them after you checked out the recipe!

I very much enjoy putting cookies in my milkshakes as you can tell with Vanilla Oreo Milkshakes and Peanut Butter Cookie Milkshakes.
Which leads me to...
...how could you not love brownies in your milkshake??  Chewy, chocolatey chunks, covered in melted ice cream and hot fudge?  I really hope you don't try to argue my point here.  I'm too busy slurping sipping my milkshake to argue with you anyway. Also, I don't argue with crazy people or children.


Well, sometimes I argue with children.

Hot Fudge Brownie Milkshakes
makes 1 large or 2 small shakes

2 cups vanilla ice cream (or chocolate or chocolate brownie or whatever looks good)
up to 1 cup of milk
1 t. vanilla (I love the extra flavor this adds.)
2 brownies (each roughly the size of a muffin), divided
3 T. (at least) of hot fudge, warmed
whipped cream

In a blender, mix together the ice cream, milk, and vanilla until it's at a consistency you like.  Add in 2 T. of hot fudge and one of the brownies.  Pulse until combined and the brownie is broken up.
Pour into a glass (or two) and top with the other brownie (crumbled), more hot fudge, and whipped cream.

Shared at:
Melt in Your Mouth Monday
Mix It Up Monday 
Tuesday Talent Show
Crazy Sweet Tuesday
Tasty Tuesday
Mingle Monday
Jam Hands Recipe-Sharing Monday

Groundhog Day Brownies

A rodent.

A silly little rodent who has, apparently, drank an elixir that causes him to live forever.


This is what Groundhog Day is all about.  If you don't believe me, go to groundhog.org (yes, that's the real address) and look around.

Oh, that^ and lawn chairs, Pittsburgh Steelers' jackets, beer, cold weather, and lots of drunk college students.  Who sleep in tents for days at a time in an effort to catch a glimpse of previously-mentioned rodent.

Actually, that's what Groundhog Day is about.  Sometimes the attendees riot.

But the children don't need to know anything about that aspect of it.

They just need to know that Pennsylvanians tend to regard a rodent when it comes to the weather, so we're going to have a little party.  Parents, you can thank me later for topping off your child's education with this information. 

This is what I came up with for my 1st Annual Groundhog Day party (nope, again, not kidding).

These adorable push-pops were written about by Trish at Sweetology.  I didn't go as far as she did because 30 is an awful lot of push pops to make.  Instead, I did brownies.

Groundhog Day Brownies
makes 30 brownies


For the groundhogs:
30 mini-Snickers bars
rolled white fondant
1 pink Starburst, softened, broken apart, rolled into tiny balls
Mini M&Ms (brown), approximately 120 (4 per groundhog; I bought a bag of the mini packs for Valentine's Day and had plenty of browns.)
Chocolate sauce/tooth pick

I used the case from a meat thermometer to cut my fondant.  I'm pretty professional.

For each Snickers, push 2 mini M&Ms into the flat side of the bar for the cheeks and 2 for the ears.  Press in a tiny piece of Starburst for the nose.  Cut the fondant into tiny circles, press into the candy bar, and, using the toothpick, dot the centers with a bit of chocolate sauce. 

For the brownies:
2 boxes family-size brownie mix
Ingredients called for on brownie mix box
Chocolate frosting, in a piping bag (I made my own, but I recommend the canned route.  It's easier and cheaper.)

Spoon the batter into muffin cups, filling them about halfway.  Bake in a muffin tin for 13-16 minutes.  The brownie box didn't give specifications for cupcakes, so I started checking for done-ness at 12 minutes.  Let the brownies cool completely.

To assemble:
Spoon out the very center of each brownie muffin and save those scraps/crumbs.  Push a Snickers groundhog into the opening you've cleared out.  Pipe a bit of chocolate frosting around the groundhog and then press some crumbs into the frosting.  Now you have "dirt".  More specifically, a groundhog popping out of the dirt to check his shadow!

Their eyes look crrrrazy!  They must be disoriented, just having poked through the ground and all.
Shared at:  Melt In Your Mouth Monday, Sweet Indulgences Sunday,
Mingle Monday
Crazy Sweet Tuesday, Tasty Tuesday, Tuesday Talent Show
Cast Party Wednesday, These Chicks Cooked 
Stuff for Success 
Mrs. Fox's Sweets Party 
Sweet Treats Thursday 
Coffee and Conversation Thursday 

Peanut Butter Marble Blondies

Hello 2012..let's hope you move yourself along rather quickly...

I don't have any real resolutions. My GOALS for the next year are to be the most productive person I can based on the fact that my husband is deployed.  You military wives know what I'm talking about.  Real clothes, make-up, socializing, a clean house, real food for dinner..sometimes it's all you can do.  I just resolve to stay above water and not fall into a pajama-and-candy-coma each evening and weekend. Best of luck to me!

Waaaaaayyy back in 2011, I made a version of a blondie.  It came out much like marble cake.  I used a mini-muffin pan to make them.  I adapted that version of blondies to come up with this recipe.  I like it much better.  So much so that I'm going to get rid of that other recipe and its revolting photo*.  If you want it, you better get it now...

Anyway, this peanut butter version is much better, and the reasons are two-fold:
1.  The peanut butter acts as a fat and replaces some of the whole stick of the butter that went into these 20 little mini muffins.  Oh, and old habits die hard...I added unsweetened applesauce in place of some more of that whole stick of butter.
2.  Peanut butter and chocolate are combined and can then go into your mouth.  Period.

Peanut Butter Marble Blondies
makes 20 mini-muffin size blondies

2 T. butter, melted
3 T. peanut butter
1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
3/4 cup to 1 cup brown sugar (depending on your tastes, it won't alter the consistency)
1 egg
2 t. vanilla
1 cup flour
1 t. baking soda
1/4 t. salt
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

In a medium-sized saucepan, melt the butter.  stir in the peanut butter and applesauce until combined.  Turn the heat OFF.  Add the sugar, vanilla, and egg.  Mix WELL with a wooden spoon.  Fold in the chocolate chips.  They'll start to melt a little, but that's okay.

Spoon into a greased mini-muffin pan.  Bake at 375* for 7 minutes.  If a toothpick doesn't come out clean, bake for another 2 minutes, but watch them closely.

*I realize that these photos aren't exactly prize-worthy either.  Since these make a healthy treat, I'll re-create them one of these Saturdays, when I am given the gift of 4 hours of daylight.  Daylight situation explained here.

Shared at:
Melt in Your Mouth Monday
Sweet Indulgences Sunday
Savory Sunday 
Tuesday Talent Show
Creative Monday
Crazy Sweet Tuesday
Tasty Tuesday
Cast Party Wednesday
The Stuff of Success
These Chicks Cooked

Kahlua Brownie Sundaes

*This is the recipe that was featured at Momtrends Friday Food a few weeks ago.  In case you missed it, it's highly addictive and you won't be able to get enough of it!

Let's talk freezer food.  What's in your freezer?  We recently had to invest in a deep-freeze.  We have too much salmon, too much rhubarb, too much snowshoe hare, and too many razor clams.  Oh yeah.  Be jealous.  I bet that you, too, wish you had a freezer full of "Alaskan" food you won't eat because you don't like any of it.

Oh, there's also cookie dough and apple streudel that I bought from a school fundraiser.  Last February. 

What's in the freezer that I like?  Well, I freeze butter.  And I like frozen biscuits.  And frozen pizza.  And...ice cream.  Lately, I've taken to eating coffee ice cream right out of the carton.  I love the Dreyer's Half-the-fat Coffee Ice Cream.  But in this case, I wanted to dress it up. 

One of the few pleasures in life that is better than ice cream straight out of the carton?

Warm brownies straight out of the oven. 


You will not be disappointed if you try this hot/cold delectable dessert combination.

Well, you'll probably regret it the next day.  After all, who stops at one brownie?

Kahlua Brownie Sundaes

Coffee ice cream (you could, of course, make your own, but I love "Dreyer's Half-the-Fat Coffee Ice Cream")
Brownies, preferably still warm (see brownie recipe below)
Hot fudge sauce
Caramel Sauce


Whipped cream, nuts, sprinkles, cherries, etc., if desired


Brownies
from Hershey
makes a 9x13 pan


3/4 cup of cocoa powder
1/2 t. baking soda
2/3 cup butter, melted and divided
1/2 cup boiling water
2 cups sugar
2 eggs
1 1/3 cups flour
1 t. vanilla
1/4 t. salt
4 T. Kahlua coffee-flavored liqueur
1 cup chocolate chips


In a large bowl, whisk together the baking soda and cocoa powder.  Stir in 1/3 a cup of the melted butter.  Mix well.  Add the boiling water and mix until it thickens.  Then, add the egg, sugar, and the rest of the butter and stir until well blended.  Mix in the flour, salt, Kahlua, and vanilla.  Then add in the chocolate chips.


Bake at 350 degrees in a greased 9x13 pan for 30-35 minutes.  I like mine slightly underdone, but feel free to cook them until a toothpick comes out of the center clean.   


While the brownies are still warm, scoop them out of the pan and put in serving dishes.  Top with a scoop of Coffee Ice Cream  (and, oohhh will it start to melt!) then add syrups and toppings as desired.  

Shared at:
What's Cooking Wednesday?
This Chick Cooks
Cast Party Wednesday
Sweet Treats Thursday
Tuesday Talent Show
Tasty Tuesday at Naptime Creations
Crazy Sweet Tuesday

Peppermint Brownies

I was never a fan of anything peppermint.  Peppermint gum, candy canes, etc.  However, I was at an Army party in December and the catering company was serving peppermint brownies.  While the meal itself wasn't very good (I can voice my opinion, right? Everyone is entitled to one.), the peppermint brownie was AMAZING.  I was still thinking about it days later.

I found this rather involved recipe for layered peppermint brownies on Our Best Bites, but I didn't feel like going that in-depth with it.  It took me an entire month to track down peppermint extract.  I'm serious.  No one had it (When I say "no one", I mean the commissary and Wal-Mart.  I try my best to stay out of Carr's and Fred Meyer.  They're in the business of ripping people off.)

So this is what I came up with.

Peppermint Brownies

1 10.25 oz package of brownie mix
1 egg
1/3 cup canola oil
2 T. water
1/3 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 drop of peppermint extract

Mix together and pour into a greased 8" cake pan.  This is what I do for us.  Of course, use a 9x13 pan and regular sized mix if more than 4 people are going to be sharing these brownies.

Bake for about 20 minutes.

Glaze

1 cup chocolate chips
3 T. butter
1 drop peppermint extract

To make it pretty:  3 crushed candy canes

Melt the chocolate chips and butter together in the microwave.  Stir until smooth and then stir in the extract.  Pour over the brownies while still warm and top with candy canes.

Give it a few hours to set up.  They actually taste better the next day.

If I was planning on making these again soon, I would substitute the homemade glaze with this:

It's so much better than you would think.