Pages, Pucks and Pantry

Russian Chocolate Candy Bar

There were several candy bars located on the counter at the Russian Cafe and Deli. I picked this particular one because it had a cute little kid on the cover. And I can tell you that it tasted just like a regular chocolate bar. But I can't tell you much more than that because someone (not me) took the half of the candy bar that we were saving for later (not me), ate it (not me) and then threw the wrapper away thus destroying any evidence that the candy bar existed (not me).

That someone (not me) has offered to go back to the Russian Cafe and Deli and pick up another candy bar to make up for the error (not mine). Of course when that person (not me) does go to the Deli to get another candy bar, I'm going to assume that more dumplings will be purchased and since I am now addicted to Russian Dumplings (yes me) I have forgiven the chocolate snatcher.

Yes, would buy again.

Yorkie Chocolate Bar

It's fun trying all these foods without really paying attention to the wrappers and what we are about to eat. So when I first bit into this Yorkie chocolate bar, I expected there to be some sort of filling or addition to the chocolate. But there wasn't. It turned out to just be a nice chunk of milk chocolate.

Originally the Yorkie Candy Bar was geared towards men and even had the slogan of "It's not for girls" which I guess caused some controversy. Luckily they've changed the tag line because I would have eaten it even if it wasn't for girls. At 302 calories, it pretty much uses up an entire meals worth of calories but since Mr. L and I split the bar, we didn't feel so guilty.

It seems to come in different flavors (dark chocolate, raisin and biscuit) but we liked the milk chocolate version just fine. In fact, there was just something so comforting about biting into that chunk of milk chocolate that days later, it's the one candy that we've tried that I keep thinking about (yes, even more so than the caramel Kit Kat...who knew!).

 

 

Kit Kat Chunky Caramel Bar

Kit Kat Caramel Bars? OH. EM. GEE....candy bar heaven. Now admittedly I already like regular Kit Kat bars so this was a real no-brainer. But I prefer Twix bars over Kit Kats. Why? The addition of caramel to the milk chocolate cookie like candy bar that is a Twix.

And these? Kit Kats with caramel. Perfection. Just adding a bit of caramel to the standard Kit Kat bar elevates it to another level. Instead of the rectangle "fingers" of Kit Kats you normally get, this is one solid bar divided into squares (that's why they call it "chunky"). And from Mr. L, these were not dry! A bonus in our book. They were "lighter" than a the Twix bar in comparison by the way. More of a wafer type cookie.

Can't tell you how many calories or how much they cost...I think we were so enamored of the Kit Kat bar that we threw the wrapper out without paying attention!

I read that you can get Chunky Caramel Kit Kats in the United States but because I don't eat candy bars much, I've never hunted them down. The recipe and texture of the Caramel Kit Kats are supposed to vary between the countries so until I have one from the US and one from the UK I have no idea of the similarities or differences.

Would we buy these again? In a heartbeat. I'm just bummed that I didn't know about these when I was younger and could eat candy bars without it showing on my hips.

 

Red, White & Blue M&M Topped Brownies

Sometimes it's the simplest recipes that make an impression. This brownie treat is basically a brownie mix and some M&M's. Originally found on Pinterest, the recipe comes from a Betty Crocker boxed brownie mix here.

Now, there is no reason you couldn't just do this to your favorite 'from scratch' brownie recipe. But if you're like me, there are times when you just might not be Betty Baker, and using a mix is the only thing that's going to get that batch of brownies on the table for the pot luck that you completely forgot about until two in the morning the day of said pot luck. Or you forgot that the husband had invited neighbors over after dinner and they expectantly look at you with those "aren't you Betty Baker?" eyes thinking some treat will be coming out of the oven any minute to tickle their tummies. All I know is that I usually have a bag of M&M's for whatever current holiday is upcoming  (I think I even have a "fall" bag still in my stash) and with a premade brownie mix I will always have a holiday dessert I can put on the table. Besides, when I served this to someone at work, they made a comment that they could tell I'd made this from scratch since brownie mixes have an off taste. Score one for the lazy bakers.

RED, WHITE & BLUE M&M TOPPED BROWNIES
(Betty Crocker)

Boxed Brownie Mix (or your favorite brownie mix recipe).
1 Bag of appropriately colored M&M's

Follow the brownie mix recipe. During the last 10-15 minutes of baking, sprinkle the M&M's over the brownie batter.

NOTE: I used the Patriotic Red, White, and Blue M&M's. I only found them at one store in my area (CVS) and they sold out pretty quickly. I'll remember if I want to make this next year, to pick up a couple of bags earlier in the season.

NOTE: I used my favorite boxed brownie mix which is Ghirardelli. They have many different flavors and I like the fact that little Ghirardelli chips are included in the mix.

NOTE: I waited until the last ten minutes of cooking time to put the M&M's on top of the mix and it was almost too late as a crust had already started to form on the top of the brownies. The M&M's don't tend to melt into the brownie mix and when you picked up a cooled piece of brownie, a couple of the candies would fall off. I think if you lightly pressed the M&M's into the top when you put them on the brownie mix it would help them "adhere" better.

NOTE: The Ghirardelli mix I used made an 8x8 pan of brownies. I used about 1/2 to 3/4 of a bag of M&M's to get the look on the top of the finished brownies in the photo. I just kind of dumped the candies on top of the mixture. I've seen where others have arranged the M&M's into a much nicer formation (where the colors are more evenly distributed), where they have placed the M&M's upside down so the logo doesn't show or where every single candie is flat and not on it's side...but I am not Betty Baker and I just didn't want to spend the time.

NOTE: The M&M's crack so don't worry about that.

I now have an excuse to buy bags of holiday M&M's. Now I can tell Mr. L "It's for the brownies Dear. Of course I won't eat them right out of the bag."

Sweet and Saltines

Sometimes you just need something that is sweet, salty and quick to make. It helps if you already have all the ingredients in your pantry. This is one of those little treats.

It comes from the Home Cooking With Trisha Yearwood cookbook. And if you are like me, you probably have the required ingredients on hand right now...saltine crackers or graham crackers, butter, brown sugar and chocolate chips.

I've made these with both saltines and graham crackers. This photo was made with graham crackers.

SWEET AND SALTINES
(Home Cooking with Trisha Yearwood)

40 saltine crackers
1 cup (2 sticks) butter
1 cup light brown sugar
8 ounces semisweet chocolate chips (about 1 1/3 cups)

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Line a large jellyroll pan with aluminum foil and the saltine crackers.

In a medium saucepan, melt the butter and brown sugar together and bring to a boil. Boil for 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and pour over the crackers, covering them evenly. Put the jellyroll pan into the oven and watch closely. Bake for 4 to 5 minutes, or until just bubbly. Remove from the oven and pour the chocolate chips over the crackers. When the chips melt a bit, spread them over the crackers with a knife. Transfer the pan to the freezer for 15 to 20 minutes, or until completely cold. They will form one big sheet. Break up into pieces. Store in an airtight container.

Serves 20 (uh yeah, not even close)

Note: Instructions for the recipe state you can substitute graham crackers for the saltines like I did. It will make a sweeter snack. Use 1 stick of butter instead of 2 for a crunchier, saltier snack. I used 1 1/2 sticks. Because of the lesser amount of butter, be prepared for things to get a bit crumbly.

Note: Use anywhere from 35 to 45 saltine crackers, depending on the size of your pan. When I used graham crackers, I just made sure the bottom of the pan was covered, I don't bother to count how many I used.

Note: The recipe calls for semisweet chocolate chips but you can use milk chocolate. I figure I might try this with butterscotch chips.

A nice quick snack when you don't feel like really baking or going to the store for more ingredients.

A Strawberry A Day - June 9 - Strawberry Brownies

I know I sound like a broken record with these A Strawberry A Day posts, but this again, was super easy to do  and didn't take much time. It was simply spreading some strawberry preserves over some brownie batter before baking.

And if you think that's too simple and really won't make a difference, think again. Out of all the strawberry things I've made so far, this got the best response. Okay, it may have had something to do with the fact that it was chocolate and brownies but still, anyone who I gave a brownie to, wanted another one. Even the one person who said they didn't like strawberries asked if there was more.

FOOD NETWORK INSTRUCTIONS:

Thursday June 9, 2011

Make a snack to share with coworkers: Spread brownie batter in a pan, swirl in warmed strawberry preserves and bake.

I used a package of Duncan Hines Double Fudge brownie mix and Bonne Maman Strawberry Preserves (http://bonnemaman.us/).

Just in case you're paying attention, this is actually the June 8th post that got switched.

Double Chocolate Gooey Butter Cake

Stop whatever you are doing and make this. I've said that about a few other recipes before (See Chocolate Candy Crack) but this, you must make. No, I'm really serious. Get in the car, go to the store, buy the ingredients, make this, and then serve it to your husband, wife, lover, mistress, kids, world leaders...pretty much anyone you want eating out of the palm of your hand. Because after they taste this, they're going to be yours. I'm not kidding. This is seriously my Fairy Fat Mother at her best.

And by Fairy Fat Mother I'm talking about the Holy Queen of butter, Ms. Paula Deen herself. I've made many versions of her Gooey Butter Cakes (Gooey Toffee and Gooey Pineapple) and I've raved about every single one. But this one? OH. EM. GEE. The best ever.  And soooo simple to make. I swear when I gave a piece to one of The Men Behind the Wheels, he swooned. This is a cross between a brownie, a cake and some fudge.  A piece of this with a glass of milk is what I call heaven.

Yes. This is made with a boxed cake mix. I'm sure some enterprising baker out there can find a way to make this from scratch, but while I have 14 episodes of Fringe to get through and a season and a half of Glee to catch up on, boxed cake mixes are my friend. This recipe came out of the January/February 2011 issue of Food Network Magazine. This one recipe was worth the cost of the entire years subscription to the magazine. I think I'll keep renewing!

 

DOUBLE CHOCOLATE GOOEY BUTTER CAKE
(Food Network Magazine Jan/Feb 2011)

1 18.25-ounce package chocolate cake mix
3 large eggs
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted, plus butter for the pan
1 8-ounce package cream cheese, at room temperature
3 to 4 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder, to taste
1 16-ounce box confectioners sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup chopped unsalted nuts
Whipped Cream, for topping (optional)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly butter a 9-by-13-inch baking pan.

In a large bowl, combine the cake mix, 1 egg and 1/2 cup of the melted butter. Stir until well blended. Pat the mixture into the pan and set it aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or using a hand mixer, beat the cream cheese until smooth. Add the remaining 2 eggs and the cocoa powder and beat until well mixed. Reduce the speed to low and add the confectioners sugar. Beat until well mixed. Slowly add the remaining 1/2 cup melted butter and the vanilla. Beat until smooth. Using a rubber spatula, stir in the nuts. Spread the filling over the batter in the pan.

Bake the cake for 40 to 50 minutes. Be careful not to overcook it: The center should still be a little gooey. Let partially cool on a wire rack before slicing. Serve with whipped cream if desired.

Serves 20 to 24

Note: I used Duncan Hines Devil's Food Cake Mix. I used Hershey's Cocoa.

Note: I used all  four tablespoons of the cocoa powder. I tried this with the whipped cream, but honestly, preferred it without. I thought the whipped cream cut into the wonderful chocolate flavor too much.

Note: I used a metal pan.

Note: Serves 20 to 24? Yeah right. Serves one, ME!

Note: You can see the kind of glass like top layer? It's really thin and will pretty much break up when you cut these in squares and handle them at all. Because these are gooey they are not the easiest to cut up.

These were so good right out of the oven. You definitely need to try a piece while the cake is still warm. Do remember, this is the Fairy Fat Mother we are talking about so don't even ask about the calories in this, you just don't want to know.

Banana Chocolate Chunk Ice Cream

Yes, we own an ice cream maker so yes we can make our own ice cream. (If you got to this post thinking you were going to make this ice cream from scratch you won't find it here.)

And I'm sure if I looked I could find some gourmet business out there that packs and sells Banana Chocolate Ice Cream with some coconut.

But sometimes you just want to try a recipe out and that's what I did with this. Didn't feel like getting the ice cream maker out from it's winter storage place in the garage. And since I really like the Haagen Dazs Five Vanilla Ice Cream I thought adding my own fresh bananas and my favorite bittersweet chocolate would be a good idea.

I liked this. I liked the crunchy bite of the chocolate pieces. I liked the subtle taste of the toasted coconut. Next time I would make sure my banana was just a bit more ripe.

Super easy to make. I liked that I could take just regular vanilla ice cream (albeit a higher end version) and gussy it up a bit to make something special. Perfect idea if you don't own an ice cream maker (or yours is buried somewhere in the garage).

The recipe came from an October 2004 issue of Martha Stewart Living. It was one of those recipe cards that she includes in every issue.

BANANA CHOCOLATE CHUNK ICE CREAM
(Martha Stewart Living October 2004)

1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons shredded sweetened coconut
2 pints vanilla ice cream, slightly softened
5 ounces best-quality bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
2 small bananas, cut into 1/2 inch chunks

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spread coconut evenly on a rimmed baking sheet; toast in oven, tossing about halfway through, until pale golden brown, 3 to 5 minutes. Let cool completely.

Remove ice cream from the freezer to soften at room temperature about five minutes.

Mix ice cream, chocolate, banana, and 1/2 cup toasted coconut in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment until combined, about 1 minute. Press mixture into a 1-quart airtight container; freeze until firm, about 50 minutes. Serve scoops of ice cream sprinkled with remaining 2 tablespoons coconut.

Makes 1 quart.

Note: I used Angel Flake Coconut, I used Haagen Dazs Five Vanilla Ice Cream (any good quality vanilla ice cream would work), I used Ghirardelli  Bittersweet Chocolate.

Note: Though it doesn't say ripe bananas, I'd definitely use bananas more on the ripe side to give this more of a banana flavor.

Note: I wasn't really paying attention to the "chocolate chunk' part. I had much finer pieces of chocolate with just a "few" chunks thrown in.

Note: I just threw the mixture in a large tupperware container to put in the freezer. The original recipe shows it being stored in a nice glass container which you could actually serve the ice cream from.

Note: It took more than the 50 minutes for the ice cream to firm up.

Note: Mr. L doesn't really like coconut, so I didn't put any on top for serving (he didn't mind it actually in this ice cream because the coconut is very subtle in this dish). In hindsight I would have toasted less coconut and maybe shaved some chocolate on top when serving.

Basically, as the recipe states, you can mix pretty much any combination of ingredients into store bought ice cream: chopped nuts, chocolate chips, M&M's or different candies. And you don't have to start with vanilla, you could add stuff to chocolate chip ice cream or another flavor. I'm thinking some fresh strawberries, a few bananas, and some granola into strawberry ice cream?? The possibilities are endless.

 

Chocolate Truffle Loaf

Let me first say, this is not the best picture of this dish. Really hard to take a good photo of a big brown blob. I also took a good 20 photos and didn't realize I hadn't set it in close up mode so everything was blurry.  Luckily this Chocolate Truffle Loaf tasted really good so it's worth it to make even if it looks like a brown blob.

I was trying to find something to make for Valentines Day that wasn't the standard, cookies, cakes etc. I found this recipe in the Bakers Chocolate Classic Recipes cookbook.

Be vary wary of the batter for this dessert. Do NOT stick your finger a spoon in the chocolate mixture to see if it's room temperature and then lick your finger the spoon. Do not lick the spatula or bowl once you've poured it into the pan. Because seriously, if you do, you will never get to the point of having it set in the fridge until firm. You will devour the entire chocolate goodness right there and then. Don't say I didn't warn you.

Because this is good. I really wasn't expecting something that was like a chocolate mouse that just melted in your mouth. And this is super easy to make. You just melt the chocolate and stuff on the stove, mix the cream and stuff until soft peaks form, combine and...chocolate goodness.

I had more batter than fit in the loaf pan. probably at least a cup more. Hmmm. I just put it in a bowl. I'm not telling you what happened to the extra in the bowl...or if it even made it ten minutes past the time I poured it in...

CHOCOLATE TRUFFLE LOAF

2 packages (8 squares each) Bakers Semi-Sweet Baking Chocolate
1/2 cup corn syrup
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter or margarine
2 cups whipping (heavy) cream, divided
3 egg yolks, lightly beaten
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla

Line 8x4-inch loaf pan with plastic wrap. Heat chocolate, corn syrup and butter in 2-quart saucepan on medium heat until chocolate is melted, stirring constantly. Beat 1/2 cup of the cream and egg yolks until well blended. Gradually stir into chocolate mixture. Cook 3 minutes, stirring constantly. Cool to room temperature.

Beat remaining 1 1/2 cups cream, sugar and vanilla in medium bowl with electric mixer on medium-high speed until soft peaks form. Fold into chocolate mixture until no streaks remain. Pour into prepared pan.

Refrigerate overnight or freeze 3 hours. Un-mold onto serving plate; remove plastic wrap.

Makes 12 servings.

Note: I used butter.

Note: I had leftover batter, about a cups worth, that I just put in another container.

Note: I was afraid I was going to mix this too much. It says to mix until white goes away, but there were still dark streaks of the chocolate showing through so I mixed until it was all one chocolate color. It didn't seem as smooth as I would have liked but it still tasted good.

Note: There is a recipe for Raspberry Sauce included with this Chocolate Truffle Loaf recipe that is to be poured over the chocolate. I decided not to make it since I was going to be giving most of the Truffle Loaf away.

I really liked this and everyone that I gave it to seemed to enjoy it too. I'll definitely make this again.