Chocolate Peanut Butter Fudge

I love fudge, who doesn't?  Usually it seems like it's a huge pain to make and I don't make it very often.  Until the other day when I found this recipe.  It was all done and in the pan in under 5 minutes.  And the best part - it was really good!  Bonus points to this recipe for being a double whammy of easiness and tasty.  This was the first thing I made in a long day of baking, so I was happily surprised that it was so easy and tasty.  I know that I will be making this again and again. 

Take a saucepan, melt some butter and peanut butter together until smooth, take it off the heat, add chocolate chips, vanilla extract and confectioners sugar and stir until smooth.  Put in a foil lined 8" pan and stick it in the fridge - done.  I'm pretty sure even those who can't bake at all will master this one.  This will make a great gift to someone for the holidays or to bring to a party.  And if you want to make it festive, add whatever sprinkles or sugars to the top of the fudge before you put it in the fridge to set. 

mmmm...fudge

Chocolate Peanut Butter Fudge

makes 1 (8") pan

2 sticks butter

1 cup creamy peanut butter

1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 cups confectioners sugar

1. Melt butter and peanut butter in a saucepan until smooth.  Take off heat, stir in vanilla extract, chocolate chips and stir until smooth.  Add confectioners sugar and mix well.  
2. Spread in foil-lined 8" square pan.  Add sprinkles or colored sugars at this point if wanted.  Chill until firm and cut into squares.  

Healthy Holiday Meal by Lettuce Eat Together

My amazing friend at Arubula's Kitchen asked me to do a holiday post for her.  I happily accepted and then asked her to do the same for me.  I've been dying for her to do a post for me since I started this blog, and now was the perfect time for it.  She also just got a brand new site going (everything will be moved over to it)which is amazing, Lettuce Eat Together (love the name of this, and her brother did an amazing job with the site).  Become a fan on Facebook, you wont be disappointed.  So enjoy this amazing Healthy Holiday Meal - and don't forget to take some time out for yourself during this busy part of the year. 

When CB asked me to do a Healthy Holiday Meal I was so honored! Her baking blog is amazing and I am unbelievably proud that she is following such a wonderful talent and dream. Can’t wait till the day I get to walk through her bakery doors and see her treats smiling at me through glass cases. In the meantime I will happily enjoy her baking stories, recipes, and creations and try to recreate them in my own home (or hope a treat package arrives on my doorstep).

A Healthy Holiday Meal. I decided to share one that gives the satisfaction of a naughty one, but is actually nice. Santa would be proud. I am always one to have the awesome smells of dinner simmering through my home as guests arrive, may it be the illusion like carmelized onions that I am actually using later in the week, but smell amazing today, or fresh baked bread, or a low and slow dish that has been braising for hours while I fiddle around my home doing other things then WOWs my guests.

Fennel Salad

Red Wine Pot Roast with Carrots & Onions

Roast Pears in Butterscotch Sauce

Salad Course

Fennel Salad

This is an extremely simple and inexpensive salad to make. Make sure to use great olive oil.

1 large or 2 small bulbs fennel

¼ cup olive oil

Salt pepper

Small chunk parmigiano- reggiano

Cut the green fronds off the fennel. Cut the fennel bulb in half from top to bottom and use a small knife to cut out the core from each half. Slice fennel as thinly as you can with a vegetable slicer or sharp knife.

Just before serving toss fennel with olive oil, season with salt and pepper. Arrange on plates and use a vegetable peeler or cheese slicer to shave off several thin slices of Parmesan for each plate.

Entrée

Red Wine Pot Roast

One 4-5 pound top blade beef roast or other chuck roast

Salt pepper

3 carrots, peeled, cut into 1 inch pieces

2 bay leaves

10 sprigs fresh thyme

1 bottle full bodied red wine

1 onion, chopped

Chicken or beef broth, as needed

Preheat oven to 500 degrees.

Season the roast with salt and pepper and put in a Dutch oven with lid. Surround the roast with carrots. Roast meat, uncovered for about 30 minutes, or until well browned. Meanwhile, tie bay leaves and thyme together with a string.

Turn heat down to 300 degrees. Pour in wine, add herb bundle. Add onion, cover the pot and bring to a simmer on top of the stove. (if liquid doesn’t come halfway up sides of roast, add broth)

Slide roast into the oven and cook for 90 minutes, until meat is tender.

Strain braising liquid into a measure cup, glass so you can see fat floating on top, and skim fat with a spoon. Pick out carrots and onions, and set aside. Pour the strained braising liquid over the meat and bake uncovered at 400 degrees for about 30 more minutes, basting every 10 minutes with braising liquid, making a shiny glaze that coats the roast.

*While roasting for the last 30 minutes start pears for dessert course

Serve slices of the roast in soup plates surround with braising liquid and vegetables.

Dessert

Roast Pears with Butterscotch Sauce

4 large underripe pears

6 tablespoons sugar

½ cup butter

½ cup heavy cream

whipped cream

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

Peel pears, halve them lengthwise, and cut out the core with a small scoop. Arrange pear halves, flat side up in an ovenproof pan, just large enough to hold them in a single layer. Sprinkle over the sugar and add drops of butter.

*This next step can be done while you are enjoying the entrée course

Roast for about 40 minutes or until the pears are easily penetrated with a knife. Pour in heavy cream and bring to a boil over high heat, immediately remove from heat. Serve the pear halves with the sauce and whipped cream.

Egg Nog French Toast

This sounds so easy - and it is.  And very tasty.  For those of you who drink the Hood brand, they have a recipe on their carton for this, and that's where I got it from.  But after the first time I made it, I made changes (shocking I know).  I get excited when Egg Nog comes out because it means it's french toast time on Sunday mornings, and over the weekend I got to make it. 

Happy Breakfast!

You will be making this all the time once you try it.  The thicker the bread the better, Sourdough works great, but any bread will do.  We use normal white bread all the time, and it's always delicious.  You wont be disappointed at all with this delicious breakfast.

Egg Nog French Toast

2 cups Egg Nog

2 eggs

Cinnamon

Nutmeg

1 tsp vanilla extract

In a large bowl put Egg Nog and eggs in and mix until eggs are combined.  Add cinnamon and nutmeg to taste, add vanilla and mix well.  Preheat skillet and melt butter in pan when ready.  Dip bread in wet mixture and place in pan.  Cook 2-3 minutes each side. 

Pumpkin Cheesecake with a Gingersnap Crust

Happy Thanksgiving! Yesterday my day was full of baking for today, otherwise this post would of been up last night.  But once I got home from my parents house I was exhausted and didn't have it in me to write this up.  So now it's Thanksgiving morning and here I am in my pjs typing away.  Still need a dessert?  I've got a great one for you!  This smelled amazing while in the oven yesterday, and it was a request from a family friend who is joining us today (she's like family so I loved that she had a request for me). 

Away I went to find a good recipe for this when she couldn't find her version.  I knew it had a gingersnap crust and had maple syrup in it.  I searched and searched and finally found one that was easy and had the ingredients in it that she had told me.  This was the first dessert I made yesterday (my Dad's Pecan Pie was second), so I was so happy to see that this was so easy.  I didn't have to bake the crust and just had to bake it all off in one shot.  Awesome.  Once the crust was nicely packed in the springform pan, away I went on the filling.  Minutes later, the whole thing was going in the oven.  It does take 90 minutes in the oven, so I was happy I had a lot of other things to do while it was baking, and that my parents have 2 ovens in their kitchen.  The aromas that came from the oven while it was baking was almost intoxicating.  It quickly filled the whole house and it truly felt like fall here (it's been unseasonably warm here for this time of year).  Once it was all done - let it cool for 30 minutes and then let it chill in the fridge! How easy is that?!  I will absolutely be making this one again. 



fresh out of the oven - it does deflate
a little once cooled so don't worry



  Pumpkin Cheesecake with Gingersnap Crust

makes 1 cake

Crust:

3 1/4 cups gingersnap cookie crumbs

3 tbsp brown sugar

6 tbsp butter, melted

Filling:

24 oz cream cheese, softened

1 cup brown sugar

1 1/2 cups canned pumpkin

1/2 cup heavy cream

1/3 cup maple syrup

1 tbsp vanilla extract

3/4 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp allspice

4 eggs

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  Grease and flour a 9" springform pan.
2. Using a fork, combine gingersnaps, brown sugar and melted butter.  Press mixture onto the bottom and 2 inches up the sides of the pan to form the crust.
3. With an electric mixer, beat cream cheese and brown sugar until light and fluffy.  Stir in the pumpkin.  Mix in the cream, maple syrup, cinnamon, allspice and vanilla.  Beat in the eggs, one at a time, mixing until smooth.
4. Pour batter into prepared crust.  Bake in the preheated oven for 90 minutes, or until the center of the cheesecake is set.  Allow to cool in pan for 30 minutes, then cover and chill.

Chocolate Cookie Balls

Sometimes you find recipes in the most random places.  I found this gem in a People Extra magazine that my parents had on their coffee table.  I immediately tore it out knowing that I had to make this.  Anyone can make these - so simple and quick.  And best of all, you only need a few ingredients.  Milk, Oreos, pudding and chocolate candy coating is all you need.



cross view of delicious goodness

I made these at the end of a day of marathon baking, I was so tired and my feet were killing me from standing on them all day and running around getting things.  The only time I think I sat all day was when I was in my car or at physical therapy.  But I knew the end was in site and these wouldn't take long.  I put the milk and pudding in the bowl and mixed.  I kinda freaked out a little when it turned into thick paste.  Thoughts of 'Should I add more milk?' ran through my head.  I told myself to add the crushed Oreos and see what happens.  I didn't need more milk.  The thick pudding mixture coats the cookies nicely.  Then comes the fun part of scooping them out into balls and then freezing them.  It says to freeze them for 10 minutes, I suggest way longer, maybe close to 30.  I only did the 10 minutes and by the time you get to the end of the tray to dip them in chocolate, they start to get smooshy.  30 minutes of freezer time will work perfectly. 

look at all those naked balls of goodness

Once they are frozen, all that's left is to dip them in melted chocolate and then let that chocolate set.  And if you want to get festive you can drizzle some white chocolate on top or put candy sprinkles, go nuts with what you want to top it with.  These wont last long - my sisters and I have snacked on them all night.  Ween had a gem of a comment "these are like chocolate covered oreos, but different" I love when she comments on my baking, she always says honest, direct things.  :)  So go get the supplies you need! These will be an instant hit and will become a staple in your baking artillery. 

Chocolate Cookie Balls

makes 42 servings

1 package (3.9 oz) JELL-O Chocolate Instant Pudding

1/2 cup cold milk

36 Oreo cookies, finely crushed (about 3 cups)

2 bags Chocolate Candy Coating

1. Beat pudding mix and milk in medium bowl with whisk 2 minutes.  Add cookie crumbs; mix well.  Shape into 42 (1") balls. 
2. Freeze 10 minutes.  Dip balls in melted chocolate, place in single layer on parchment paper lined baking sheet. 
3. Refrigerate 20 minutes or until firm.  Drizzle with white chocolate (if doing sprinkles or something like that, apply while chocolate is still wet).

Caramel Macchiato Scones

My Baking Addiction had posted a link to these Caramel Macchiato Scones from Blue Bonnets and Brownies I knew I had to make them.  I'm a sucker for making anything with caramel in it.  And luckily I still had some Milk Duds just sitting in my cabinet waiting to be used.  All I needed was the creamer, which I needed to get anyways. Feel free to switch out the brand of creamer, I did.

This was an easy scone to make, and who doesn't like that?  And once again, these aren't hard, crumbly scones but nice soft and light scones.  I'm not really a fan of the crumbly ones, I like my breakfast items to be soft and delicious, not hard and tough to chew.  I've found over the many times I've made the Mocha Scones a few tips to make baking these easier.  Freeze the stick of butter over night.  Once you pat out the dough to be cut into shapes, stick it in the freezer for 15 minutes to firm up to make it easier to cut.  This is a great scone, easy to make and will please everyone.  Perfect for all those guests we have coming our way this week. 

delicious scones

Glazed Mocha Cookies

I had the best vacation.  I really needed it, and it came at the right time.  I got to see a lot of friends and family, see 2 of my friends who are meant to be together get married and have the most amazing wedding, and have so much fun in the process of all this.  I did get to bake some cookies with one of my cousin's kids (it was really adorable, and tons of fun) so I didn't go all week without baking.  But I did miss it and was happy to get back into the kitchen yesterday. 

Things were going smoothly and I was back in the groove.  I chilled the dough and cleaned everything up.  Sliced the cookies and baked them off.  My last sheet of cookies were in the oven and it came time to take them out.  As I was pulling the sheet out, the parchment paper slipped off.....and so did half of the cookies.  Swears immediately came out of my mouth and while my reflexes were quick, I couldn't save most of them.  Half of them ended up burning on the floor of the oven.  The other half were either smooshed and in strange shapes or perfectly ok.  The baking gods were mad that I took a week off and they were making me pay for it.  It was not a pretty sight to see.  After the mishap, I let the cookies cool and all that was left was to glaze them.  This I couldn't mess up (thankfully I didn't - you never know, it could of happened).  Glaze was all made and into a plastic bag it went and drizzled it on top of each cookie.  I do love this part.  You don't have to be artistic at all for it and it always comes out pretty, which is great for someone like me who can't even draw a straight line.  These were delicious.  I happily packed them up and brought them to my taste testers.  They were happy I was back and baking again.  It was a good welcome home. 

yum

Glazed Mocha Cookies

makes about 22-40 (depending on

how thick you slice the dough)

3 oz semisweet chocolate chips

1 cup all purpose flour

2 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder

1 tsp espresso coffee powder

1 tsp baking soda

2/3 cup butter, room temperature

1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar

1 large egg

1 tsp vanilla extract

Glaze:

1 1/3 cups confectioners sugar

1 tsp espresso coffee powder

2 tbsp hot water

1. Melt the chocolate in a double boiler over barely simmering water.  In a medium bowl, mix the flour, cocoa, espresso powder, baking soda and salt.
2. In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the butter and brown sugar at high speed until creamy.  Add the egg and vanilla and beat for 1 minute.  With mixer on low speed, beat in the dry ingredients and melted chocolate.
3. Divide the dough in two.  Form into two 9x2" logs, wrap in plastic wrap and chill in the fridge for at least 2 hours. 
4. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line baking sheets with parchment paper or Silpats.  Slice the dough 2/3" thick and place 1" apart on baking sheet. (If you slice thinner, time will be shorter).
5. Bake until the edges are firm and bottoms are slightly browned, 12-15 minutes.  Cool on baking sheets until the cookies firm slightly, about 5 minutes.  Transfer to wire racks to cool completely. 
6. Make glaze: Mix confectioners sugar and coffee in a small bowl.  Stir in enough hot water to obtain a drizzling consistency.  Drizzle over the cookies and let set.