Crossing Over

I think you've crossed over into obsession once you start creating recipes for the frosting you want to use. Though, this isn't exactly frosting as much as it's an amazing concoction disguised as an overload of sugar. 

All types of sneaky fingers will find their way into this mixture. 

Originally, this idea gave birth to a simple cookie pizza: Chocolate chip cookie crust, peanut butter chocolate frosting and the grand poohbah of them all... - candy bar crumbles. 

That morphed into cupcakes: Chocolate chip vanilla batter, peanut butter chocolate frosting and the grand poohbah of them all... - candy bar crumbles. 

Now, we have:

Candy Bar Brownies

Chocolate chocolate chip brownie batter, peanut butter chocolate frosting and the grand poohbah of them all... - candy bar crumbles. 

A pretty simple idea that has given birth to total decadent domination over the world's 3 basic desserts - cookies, cupcakes and brownies. Check. 

I found a fab scratch brownie recipe because I was making these for Gabriel's producer at work and couldn't go with a box mix. My changes are listed here.  

1 ½ cups flour

3 cups sugar

½ cup cocoa powder

¼ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking powder

1-2 cups chocolate chips 

Sift together and whisk until well combined

Make a well in the center and add:

4 eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla

1 ¼ cups melted butter

Stir just until batter comes together

Pour into a greased 9 x 13 casserole pan

Bake at F325° for 45 minutes, reduce temperature to F275° and cook an additional 30 minutes or until done

While still warm, frost with peanut butter chocolate sauce and chopped candy bars. Allow to cool completely before cutting and serving. 

1 year ago: Little Mother, Apple Spice Cake

2 years ago: Free Soda & Snacks, Mt. Dew Cupcakes

3 years ago: Failed Fusion, Chocolate Carrot Cake

4 years ago: Happy Birthday Alex!, Comatose Cake

Black Tie Chocolate Affair

I truly, madly, deeply love Red Velvet Cake. It's not quite my favorite - that award stays with my chock full of yumminess Carrot Cake, but it's up there. I love the look of it, the flavor of it, and of course, the uniqueness of it.

Lately though, I just can't bring myself to pour two bottles of red dye into a cake - not since becoming much more conscious of what makes up most of the shelf foods we eat. I did find a beautiful rendition of this cake using beets I had planned to try, but didn't want to experiment on Valentine's Day. Since, truthfully, the only purpose in the dye is for coloring, it can easily be omitted. 

Chocolate Velvet Cheesecake Cake

This five layer cake is heaven sent. It is a great holiday dessert, (Valentine's day ♥) a wow someone you love dessert, copy cat Cheesecake factory dessert, or indulge yourself dessert. 

You have many excuses to eat this cake! 

Cheesecake:

16 oz cream cheese

½ cup sugar
Mix together until light and fluffy

Add

Pinch of salt

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

½ cup sour cream
Beat until thoroughly mixed

Pour batter into two 9" round springform pans lined with parchment paper
Bake at 325° F, 20 minutes, or just until cake is set
Allow to cool completely then remove outer rim of springform pan
Place cakes inside freezer 

Cake:

3 sticks of butter (1 ½ cups)

1 ½ cups sugar

Beat until incorporated and fluffy

Add

4 eggs
Beat until batter changes to lighter color

Add

1 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons baking soda

½ cup cocoa powder

1 cup flour

Mix just until ingredients are mixed in

Add
1 cup buttermilk

1 tablespoons vinegar

Mix just until ingredients are mixed in

Add
1 ½ cups flour
Mix just until ingredients are mixed in

Evenly divide batter between three 9" round pans lined with parchment paper
Bake at F350° for 25 minutes, or until cake springs back to the touch

Allow to rest for 5 minutes, then invert on cake rack to cool completely

Frosting:  

3+/- cups powdered sugar 

8 oz cream cheese
1 cup butter
1 teaspoon vanilla
Beat until soft, creamy and spreadable

Finalè:

Remove cheesecake from freezer and peel off bottom of pan and parchment paper
Assemble cake beginning and ending with chocolate layers, and alternate with cheesecake layers
Apply a thin layer of frosting between each layer
Apply crumb coating to outside and top of cake, then frost cake with remaining frosting

Cover with chocolate shavings

2 years ago: Free Soda and Snacks, Lemon Lime Mt. Dew Gamer Cupcakes

3 years ago: Veto Week, Chocolate Chocolate Mint Cookies

4 years ago:  Words of a Prophet Day Two, Blackberry Pie

You Put the Lime with the Coconut

I have all these recipes I want to share with you sitting in my drafts folder, most are both made and photographed, some are just ideas, but they're all waiting for me to have time to type them out for you with a little anecdote. I will admit that with twin toddlers running around, naptime is as much for me, as it is for them. 

A friend of mine recently had an adorable little baby join their family, so I was eager to help their family with dinner to help them through the transition. I know that for me, dinner was the most welcome  gesture in those first few weeks. In fact, that's all I remember - it was mostly a blur. 

For this sweet family, I treated them to a dessert I'd been thinking about for over a year. I'd just never executed it. Fortunately, I made enough extra to whip up an additional tiny cheesecake to sample myself. 

Coconut Lime Cheesecake with Blueberry Sauce

Sounds decadent, doesn't it? It was! It was extremely tart, but balanced out beautifully with fresh blueberry sauce and whipped cream.

Crust:
½ cup minced coconut flakes (use blender)
½ cup graham cracker crumbs
2 tablespoons butter
Melt butter and mix into crumbs
Line bottom of 9" springform pan and bake for 7 minutes at F350º

Cheesecake:
16 oz cream cheese
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon lime zest
Whip until smooth and creamy

Add
3 eggs
Beat until well mixed

Add
1 cup whipping cream
1 cup lime juice
1/2 cup minced coconut flakes
Pour over crust and bake at F300° for 25-30 minutes or until set around outer edges
Remove from oven and allow to cool completely before removing outer rim

Blueberry Sauce
Pour over cake before serving

1 year ago: Lunch Lady Bars, High School Lunch Peanut Butter Bars
2 years ago: 3.14 Pi(e), Peanut Butter Ice Cream Pie
3 years ago: Where We Jet, Rice Krispy JetBlue Route Map
4 years ago: Happy Birthday Gabriel, Sushi Cake