Chocolate Espresso Bars

Mmmmmm…..nothing better than coffee and chocolate, especially when topped with a deep dark chocolate glaze. These fabulous bars from Williams-Sonoma were a perfect dessert to bring to our friend’s Super Bowl Party.  I used espresso powder from Starbucks and Starbuck chocolate covered beans and they had just the coffee kick this needed.

ENJOY!

Ingredients:
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup unsweetened Dutch process  cocoa powder
3 Tbs. instant espresso powder
1/4 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
8 Tbs. (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into pieces
2 oz. semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
2 eggs
1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract

For the glaze:
1/4 cup heavy cream
1 tsp. instant espresso powder
4 oz. semisweet chocolate, chopped
Pinch of salt
16 chocolate-covered espresso beans (optional)

Directions:
Preheat an oven to 350°F. Generously grease an 8-inch square baking pan.
Sift together the flour, cocoa powder, espresso powder, baking powder and salt into a bowl; set aside.
In a small, heavy saucepan over low heat, combine the butter and chocolate and heat, stirring occasionally, until melted, about 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and let cool slightly.
In a bowl, whisk together the eggs and brown sugar until blended. Gradually stir in the chocolate mixture until blended. Stir in the vanilla, then add the flour mixture and stir until blended.
Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Bake until the edges pull away from the sides of the pan and the center is springy to the touch, about 25 minutes. Transfer the pan to a wire rack and let cool.
Meanwhile, make the glaze: In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine the cream and espresso powder and heat, stirring, just until the powder is dissolved and bubbles start to appear around the pan edges. Add the chocolate and salt, remove from the heat and stir just until the chocolate is melted. Let cool to room temperature.
Using a small offset spatula, spread the cooled glaze over the cookie in a thin layer. Refrigerate until the glaze is set, about 30 minutes. Cut into 1 1/2-by-2 1/2-inch bars or 2-inch squares. Top each bar with a chocolate-covered espresso bean. Makes 16 bars.

Spicy Sausage Dip

WOW oh WOW is the fantastic and addicting! This dip from Annie’s Eats was soooooo over the top perfect for the Super Bowl party we went to. The perfect amount of spiciness and creamy goodness. I made this before we went and reheated it there, was perfect either way!

ENJOY!

Ingredients:
1 (16 oz.) package spicy/zesty sausage
1 (15 oz.) can diced tomatoes with green chiles, undrained
2 (8 oz.) packages cream cheese
Hot sauce, to taste
Favorite crackers or scoops to enjoy

Directions:
In a large skillet over medium-high heat, cook the crumbled sausage until browned.  Drain off any excess fat.  Reduce the heat to medium and mix in the tomatoes, cream cheese, and hot sauce.  Continue to cook, stirring frequently, until the mixture is warmed through and the ingredients are well blended.  Taste and adjust seasonings as necessary.  Serve warm.

Baked Ziti Casserole

Another fabulous recipe from Cooking Light. A lighter tastier version that is very quick to make!

ENJOY!

Ingredients:
6  ounces  uncooked ziti (short tube-shaped pasta)
2  cups  Basic Marinara
1  cup  (4 ounces) shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese, divided
1/4  cup  (1 ounce) shredded Asiago cheese, divided
1/8  teaspoon  salt
1/8  teaspoon  hot pepper sauce (such as Tabasco)
6  ounces  ground turkey breast
Cooking spray

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350°.
Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt and fat. Drain.
Combine pasta, Basic Marinara, 1/2 cup mozzarella, 2 tablespoons Asiago, salt, pepper sauce, and turkey in a large bowl. Spoon into an 8-inch square baking dish coated with cooking spray; sprinkle with remaining 1/2 cup mozzarella and remaining 2 tablespoons Asiago. Bake at 350° for 30 minutes or until cheese is lightly browned. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

Apple crumb top pie

While my in-laws were visting a couple of their friends came up to visit us. We had a great day grilling steaks, chit-chatting and catching up. With a great visit I wanted not only great apps, dinner but a great dessert! I wanted to make an apple pie but change it up a bit. I used my normal apple pie recipe but instead used a crumb top as the top layer. Here is my apple pie recipe and crumb top below. I baked it as I would my normal pie recipe dictates!

ENJOY!

Ingredients for crumb top:
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup chopped pecans or walnuts

Directions:
Combine topping ingredients until crumbly; sprinkle over top of pie. Bake as directed. Let cool a bit before serving if serving warm.

Chocolate Chip Cupcakes

To thank a good car buddy, H wanted me to make some cupcakes for him. Being that this came up last minute I needed a recipe that didnt have too many specialty ingredients but was still fun and showed how thankful we were for his help. So I went through my LONGGGGGG list of recipes to try and found these on Erin’s Food File. I did double the recipe to get 12 regular sized cupcakes, she didnt and got 16 mini cupcakes or 6 reg cupcakes. These were very very very easy to whip up and tasted great (I tasted part of one on the bottom..shhh! )

ENJOY!

Ingredients: BELOW Yields 6 reg or 16 mini
1 cup all purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup sugar
1/2 cup mini chocolate chips
1 egg
1/2 cup milk
3 Tablespoons butter, melted
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare muffin tins with liners.
In a medium bowl whisk together flour, baking powder, salt and sugar; then add chocolate chips. In a small mixing bowl, lightly beat the egg, then add milk, melted butter, and vanilla. Add to flour mixture and stir until just moistened. Divide among the prepared cups.
Bake until the tops spring back when lightly tapped, 12-15 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool.

Milk chocolate frosting:
adapted from All Recipes
2 confectioners’ sugar
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 cup butter
3 tablespoons evaporated milk
3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:
In a small bowl, sift together the confectioners’ sugar and cocoa, and set aside.
In a medium bowl, cream butter until smooth, then gradually beat in sugar mixture alternately with evaporated milk. Blend in vanilla. Beat until light and fluffy. If necessary, adjust consistency with more milk or sugar.

Lemon Yogurt Cake

H folks were coming to visit and I wanted to have several sweets on had for them. I made a pie, some cookies but needed a more breakfast-y type sweet too. Many people on the WC cooking board have raved about this recipe, so I decided to make it. Others have used a variety of citrus flavors and all worked well–grapefruit, orange, lemon, clementine, etc…Try your favorite. This is a fabulous Ina recipe.
*** I made the cake ahead of time, tightly wrapped it when cool and then glazed it after it thawed out and came to room temp the day we wanted to enjoy it.***

ENJOY!

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1 cup plain whole-milk  yogurt
1 1/3 cups sugar, divided
3 large eggs
zest of one lemon
1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

For the glaze:
1 cup confectioners’ sugar
2 Tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease and flour an 8 1/2 by 4 1/4 by 2 1/2-inch loaf pan.
Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt into 1 bowl. In another bowl, whisk together the yogurt, 1 cup sugar, the eggs, lemon zest, and vanilla. Slowly whisk the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. With a rubber spatula, fold the vegetable oil into the batter, making sure it’s all incorporated. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for about 50-60 minutes, or until a cake tester placed in the center of the loaf comes out clean.
Meanwhile, cook the 1/3 cup lemon juice and remaining 1/3 cup sugar in a small pan until the sugar dissolves and the mixture is clear. Set aside.
When the cake is done, allow it to cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Carefully place on a baking rack over a sheet pan. While the cake is still warm, pour the lemon-sugar mixture over the cake and allow it to soak in. Cool.
For the glaze, combine the confectioners’ sugar and lemon juice and pour over the cake.

Source: Barefoot Contessa at Home, 2005

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Yogurt Walnut Coffee Cake

I had some plain yogurt to use up and was also looking for a great coffee cake to make while my in-laws were visiting. I came up on this recipe that filled those requirements…found on Recipe Link, it was easy to make and very moist! I did top ours with a almond glaze of butter, powdered sugar, a bit of milk and a bit of almond extract. Use amts desired to how thick you like your glaze and pour over when cooled.

ENJOY!

Ingredients:
Cake:
1/2 cup butter, at room temperature
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 cup vanilla yogurt-I used plain
1 teaspoon vanilla-I used 2 tsp since I used plain yogurt
2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
Streusel
1/2 cup light brown sugar
2 tablespoons unbleached all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons cinnamon
2 tablespoons butter; melted
1/2 cup chopped pecans–I used walnuts

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour a 10-inch Bundt pan or tube cake pan. in a large mixing bowl, cream the butter and sugar. Add the eggs and mix well. Add the yogurt and vanilla; stir to combine. in a separate bow, sift together the flour, soda, baking powder, and slat. Add to the butter mixture and mix well.
To make the streusel, mix the brown sugar, flour, cinnamon, and butter until all the ingredients are combined and damp. Stir in the pecans.
Put half the cake batter in the Bundt pan. Spread this with half the streusel mixture. Add the rest of the cake batter, then sprinkle the remaining streusel on top. Bake the coffee cake for 40 minutes. Let it cool in the pan for 10 minutes before turning it out onto a rack to cool further.

Nutrition facts per serving: One slice
Calories: 260; Calories from Fat: 120 (46%); Total Fat: 14 g; Saturated Fat: 6 g; Cholesterol: 55 mg; Sodium: 310 mg; Total Carbohydrate: 32 g; Dietary Fiber: 1 g; Sugars: 28 g; Proteins: 3 g; Calcium: 8% RDA

GREAT GREAT BLOG AND GIVEAWAY

Check out Pennies on a Platter for great tips, recipes, and of course a great giveaway!

http://penniesonaplatter.com/2010/01/27/starbucks-coffee-giveaway/

Oatmeal Scotchies Biscotti

I was craving biscottis again and wanted something a bit different and thought of my favorite cookie, oatmeal scotchies. After a bit of searching I found this recipe and adapted to make my scotchies!! Mine came out a bit flatter than normal but still tasted great!

ENJOY!

Ingredients:
1 cup butter
1 cup light brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 large eggs
2 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 cups quick oatmeal
2 cups butterscotch chips

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix together butter, sugars, vanilla and eggs. Fold mixture in with flour and baking powder. Mix in oats and chips.
Onto a parchment lined baking sheet, spoon out mixture to form 2 logs the length of the sheet. Leave enough space in between each log, since they will spread while cooking. For smaller cookies use 2 baking sheets and form 4 logs. (I found 4 logs works best. I did 2 large and they were just too big, so before the second back I cut into strips and cut those in half)
Bake for about 2o minutes or so, so that when you touch the tops they are firm and lightly brown. Remove from the oven and cool 10 minutes.
Slice logs diagonally and place on sides on the baking sheet. Put biscotti back in the oven and bake for another 5 to 10 minutes depending on how crisp you like your biscotti. (I left them in for 10 mins as we like them crispy). Cool and store in an airtight container.

Fresh orange and yogurt tart

Very nice and refreshing especially with the great oranges of the season. Easy to make and great light dessert! Found in the latest edition of Martha Stewart Every Day food. This crust can be made with any nut—almonds, pecans, walnuts, etc…I used walnuts, but the original recipe with almonds is below.

ENJOY!

Ingredients:
1/2 cup raw almonds
1/4 cup granulated sugar
Coarse salt
1 cup all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled)
6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter
2 teaspoons powdered gelatin (from a 1/4-ounce packet)
1/2 cup half-and-half
1 1/2 cups plain Greek yogurt (2 percent)
1/4 cup packed light-brown sugar
3 medium navel oranges

Directions:
In a food processor, pulse almonds, granulated sugar, and 1/2 teaspoon salt until finely ground. Add flour; pulse to combine. Add butter and pulse until mixture is crumbly and holds together when squeezed. Press crumbs in bottom and up side of an 8-inch fluted tart pan with a removable bottom. Freeze 15 minutes. (To store, cover and freeze, up to 1 month.)
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place tart pan on a rimmed baking sheet and bake until crust is golden brown and set, 30 to 35 minutes. Let cool on a wire rack 10 minutes, then remove tart ring and let cool completely.
In a small bowl, sprinkle gelatin over 2 tablespoons cold water and let stand 5 minutes. In a small saucepan, warm half-and-half over medium. When it begins to steam, add gelatin mixture and stir until dissolved, about 1 minute. In a medium bowl, whisk together yogurt, brown sugar, and pinch of salt. Stir warm half-and-half mixture into yogurt mixture. Pour filling into cooled tart shell and refrigerate until set, 2 hours (or up to 1 day).
With a sharp paring knife, slice off ends of oranges. Following curve of fruit, cut away peel, removing as much white pith as possible. Slice oranges into 1/4-inch-thick rounds and remove any seeds. Just before serving, arrange orange slices on top of tart.