TWD: Honey-Nut Brownies

Things You Should Know About Honey-Nut Brownies

1. They sound like a delicious breakfast cereal
2. They look and taste more like a honey cake than a chocolate brownie
3. They are much improved by a thick layer of fudgy chocolate-sour cream frosting
4. There is nothing in the world that is not much improved by a thick layer of fudgy chocolate-sour cream frosting



I think the big problem with these "brownies" was a branding issue. Calling something brownies leads to the expectation of chocolatey delight, whereas these were more of a honey explosion with faint chocolate undertones. Which is not bad, if you enjoy honey cake. Which I...sort of do.



In an effort to boost the chocolate flavor, I used only unsweetened chocolate and increased it by 2 oz (50%!). It was only semi-successful, though, and the cake still had a very strong honey flavor. So I brought out the big guns: a thick, fudgy chocolate sour cream frosting, which helped increase the chocolate taste and counteract the overwhelming sweetness. Top it with a pinch of flaky sea salt, and you have a lovely, complex cake that's none too sweet and perfectly moist and rich!



In the end I'd say it was a fairly successful chocolateish cake, but probably not one I'd repeat on a regular basis, unless it was for a honey lover of the exceptional variety. If you are such a person, the original recipe can be found on the Suzy Homemaker blog.

If you are only here for the chocolate sour cream frosting (and who could blame you?) here goes:

10 oz semi- or bitter-sweet chocolate (chocolate chips will do in a pinch, use better chocolate if you have it)
1 cup full-fat sour cream, at room temperature
1 tsp vanilla extract

Melt the chocolate in the microwave or over a double boiler, and stir until smooth.

Whisk in the sour cream and the vanilla until you have a thick frosting.

Pour immediately over cake in pan and smooth into an even layer. Let set at room temperature or refrigerate to speed up the process-frosting gets very thick in the refrigerator.

Makes enough to frost the top of a 9x13 sheet cake.

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Marzipan Brownie Tart

Happy St. Patrick's Day! To celebrate, we had this festive dessert:


Okay, so it doesn't look very festive from the outside. Actually, it looks downright plain. Homely. FRUMPY. There, I said it. But it has a surprise inside...

A bright green layer of homemade pistachio marzipan!

...Wait, come back.

What scared you? Was it the green color, or the word "marzipan"? Because I promise, this has no relation to the poisonously powerful almond flavor and uber-sweetness of some aggressive marzipans. No, this is just a simple nut paste made from ground pistachios, powdered sugar, and a little egg. Really. It's amazingly tasty, like eating fresh pistachios with a spoon. Deep breaths. Okay.

So paired with this marzi pistachio stuff is a chocolate dough that's half brownie, half chocolate tart dough. It's weird, and I was sure I was doing it wrong the whole time I was making it. But it turned out to be perfect--soft enough to meld with the pistachio stuff, but firm enough to hold its shape when removed from the tart pan.

To finish off our green treat, I made my favorite pistachio ice cream and a simple chocolate sauce. Although the tart is moist, it needs something--ice cream, or whipped cream, or maybe creme anglaise--to perk it up. Many, many thanks to Mary Mary Culinary for the tart recipe & inspiration! Find the recipe for the tart, the "pistachio stuff," and the ice cream after the jump.





Marzipan Brownie Tart
Adapted from Mary Mary Culinary

9 oz/1⅓ cups all-purpose flour*
⅓ cup Dutch-process cocoa
½ teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
7 oz/1 cup brown sugar
6 oz/¾ cup unsalted butter, chilled and cubed
1 egg, well beaten

Filling
10½ oz pistachio marzipan (see below)
about ½-¾ of a beaten egg (reserve the rest for glazing)

1. Combine flour, cocoa, baking powder, salt and sugar in a food processor and pulse to combine. Add the butter and pulse until it resembles breadcrumbs. Add the beaten egg and run the food processor until the dough comes together. Try not to eat all the dough. Divide the dough into ⅓ and ⅔ portions, shape in discs, wrap separately in plastic and refrigerate. Chill for one hour. It can be made the day before, but will need to warm up before rolling to prevent it from breaking up.
2. Preheat oven to 340℉/170℃ and grease a 9" cake pan, or a 13"x4" tart pan.
3. Mix the pistachio paste with enough beaten egg to make a fairly soft, spreadable filling. Set aside. Roll out the larger portion of dough between 2 pieces of plastic wrap until it is about 1" larger than your pan on all sides. Make sure there are no creases in the plastic wrap. Use this piece of dough to line the pan, pressing it to the sides of the pan so it doesn't fall inward. Spread the pistachio paste evenly over the dough and fold in the dough edges so they rest on it. Reuse the plastic wrap to roll the smaller piece of dough into an 8½" circle. It should be slightly smaller than the cake pan. Trim it so the edges are neat. Moisten the edges of the dough in the pan and lay the smaller circle on top. Press the edges gently together to seal. Brush with the leftover beaten egg and prick with a fork in several places.
4. Bake for 30-35 minutes. Leave to cool in the pan, then transfer carefully to a serving plate. If you can stand it, wrap this and let it sit for a day or two before serving for best flavor.

*a note about the flour: something is off in these measurements. It calls for 1-1/3 cup/ 9 oz, but 9 oz is much closer to 2 cups. I went with the volume measurement and had a dough that was pretty stick and a bit of a beast to roll out. It worked out fine in the end, and tasted great, but I might add more flour next time to make it easier to work with. If you have a scale, I'd just use 9 oz, and if you don't, I'd try 1-3/4 cup flour instead.

Pistachio marzipan
10 ounces/283 grams shelled pistachios
7 ounces/200 grams granulated sugar
2 egg whites

1. If you want naturally bright green marzipan, first blanch the pistachios: bring a large pot of water to a boil, add pistachios and blanch for 30 seconds to one minute. Test one by running it under cold water and seeing if the reddish skin comes off easily. If so, drain and rinse with cold water. Now, one by one, squeeze the pistachios to remove the skin. This is what keeps the marzipan bright green. Once they are all skinned, place on a towel-lined baking tray and allow to dry for at least 3 hours. Do not dry in the oven, as the color may fade.
2. Combine pistachios and sugar in a food processor and grind as finely as desired.
3. Add egg whites and process until well blended. If you didn't blanch the pistachios and the marzipan is a little brown, you can add a drop or two of green food coloring. Scrape into a container and refrigerate or freeze. This keeps well, and is best made in advance.

Pistachio Ice Cream
yield: About 3 cups

1 cup unsalted shelled pistachios
3/4 cup sugar
2 cups milk (do not use low-fat or nonfat)
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
4 large egg yolks
1 cup whipping cream
3/4 cup unsalted shelled pistachios, toasted, coarsely chopped

Finely grind 1 cup pistachios and 1/4 cup sugar in processor. Bring milk and ground pistachio mixture to boil in heavy large saucepan. Remove from heat. Mix in almond extract.
Whisk egg yolks and remaining 1/2 cup sugar in medium bowl. Gradually whisk in hot milk mixture. Return custard to saucepan. Cook over low heat until custard thickens and leaves path on back of spoon when finger is drawn across, stirring constantly, about 10 minutes (do not boil). Strain into large bowl. Chill until cold, about 2 hours.
Stir 1 cup whipping cream and chopped pistachios into custard. Process mixture in ice cream maker according to manufacturer's instructions.

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Salted Fudge Brownies: Happy Valentine's Day to YOU

Fresh on the heels of the salted caramel bars, I'm back with another dessert guaranteed to raise your blood pressure and lower your life expectancy.

I promise, they're worth it.




Salted Fudge Brownies are my Valentine to those of you who, like me, can never get a brownie fudgy enough. It could be half-raw and oozing in the middle, and I'll think, "It's pretty good…but can't it get more fudgy?!"



These babies finally answer that question: NO. They cannot possibly be more fudgy. They're decadent and dense and loaded with chocolate flavor. The only thing that saves them from being chocolate overkill is the generous portion of salt in the batter, which cuts through the richness of the chocolate. But the real star is the flaked sea salt on top, that add the occasional crunch and pop of pure salty bliss.



I gifted these to a few friends as an early Valentine's present, and I do believe it's the best idea I've ever had. Everyone loved them. Of course, you don’t have to cut them into heart shapes, but if you do, I have it on good authority that the resulting brownie scraps make a delightful mid-morning snack. If you're in to that kind of thing.

Happy early Valentine's Day, Fudge-o-holics!


Salted Fudge Brownies

6 oz (1.5 sticks) Butter
2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, finely chopped
1/4 cups plus 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
2 cups sugar
3 whole eggs, room temperature
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp fine sea salt
1/2 tsp large-flaked sea salt

1. Preheat the oven to 350°. Press a piece of foil inside a 9x9 pan, and spray the foil with cooking spray.

2. Melt the butter with the unsweetened chocolate in the microwave, stirring occasionally, until the butter and chocolate are entirely melted. Whisk to combine.

3. Add the sugar and cocoa powder and whisk until they're incorporated. At this point the mixture will look grainy and not very appetizing. Add the eggs one at a time, being sure to whisk well after each addition. With each egg added, the mixture will get smoother and shinier, and after all 3 have been added and the batter has been well-mixed, the graininess should be gone.

4. Add the vanilla extract, then stir in the flour and fine sea salt until any dry streaks disappear.

5. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the surface with a rubber spatula. Sprinkle the remaining large-flaked sea salt over the top of the brownies.

6. Bake for about 35 minutes, until the edge is set but the center is still a bit soft and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out coated with a little of the batter. Cool at room temperature in the pan for about an hour, then refrigerate just until they are firm. Lift the brownies from the pan and remove foil. Cut the brownies into 12 or 16 squares, or use a cookie cutter to make shapes.

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TWD: Brrrrrownies

Oh, it has been a day. A day mostly consisting of me making like a Tasmanian devil in my kitchen, trying to get ahead on work for the candy site and a few other side projects because--dum dum DUM--we're moving in less than 2 weeks! Aaaaaah! (Spoiler alert: the new kitchen is SO much bigger than my current one, and I'm super psyched to cook in a space larger than a postage stamp. I've never tried it, but I imagine being able to fully extend both arms in your kitchen might be nice.)


Anyhow, today was a big blur of baking, cooking, throwing away THREE batches of one particular candy recipe because I have the Bad Touch and kept messing it up, eating way more sugar than is healthy for one person, and photographing all the results.

All of which is to say, these peppermint patty brownies were sadly just another face in the crowd. I know I tasted them, but I think I burnt my sugar receptors off with my all-candy diet, because they didn't make a huge impression.


The thing is, they're everything I usually love. Super dense and fudgy in the middle! Darkly chocolatey! And full of minty pockets! All of my favorite things!


I cut up the pan and, after photographing them and giving one an exploratory nibble, I froze the rest to enjoy later. I'm sure they're amazing, and I'm looking forward to tasting them after, say, a bowl of vegetables, or a nice healthy sandwich.

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THE MOUNDS BROWNIE. YES, IN ALL CAPS.

It's April, so Coconut Month may technically be over, but that doesn't mean I have to quit the white stuff cold turkey, does it?


This past week I made a recipe I've been dreaming up in my head for awhile now: the Mounds Brownie. (Similar recipes may exist, but I couldn't find one that sounded good to me, so this is my own beautiful Frankenbrownie.) The Mounds brownie consists of two layers of moist, fudgy, supremely chocolatey brownies sandwiching a gooey coconut filling. If you're more of an Almond Joy person, you could easily top it with a layer of chocolate frosting and a generous sprinkle of toasted slivered almonds.
This is my very favorite kind of brownie: it's so fudgy it seems almost underdone in the center, but it has a beautiful crackly top from the cocoa. On its own it may be almost too rich and chocolately, but in this context, with the coconut filling, I think its intense flavor and texture add to the candy bar-like appeal.

The coconut layer in the center is simply shredded coconut mixed with condensed milk and a generous pinch of salt (to keep it from being too sweet...riiiiiight...). It stays moist and a bit gooey, especially when it mixes with the fudgy brownie. Because the decadent texture is so important to these brownies, please, please don't overbake them. Only YOU can prevent dry pastries.


And just in case these don't seem deadly enough on their own, I have it on good authority (ie, my stomach's) that they are insanely good when topped with a spoonful of warm, oozing dulce de leche. I think I know a few bakers who might have some leftover dulce de leche that should be put to good use...


Mounds Brownies

For the brownies:
5 ounces semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, chopped
2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
8 tablespoons unsalted butter (1 stick) cut into quarters
3 tablespoons good-quality cocoa powder
3 large eggs, room temperature
1 1/4 cups sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup (5 oz) all-purpose flour

For the coconut filling:
2 cups shredded coconut, sweetened or unsweetened
2/3 cup sweetened condensed milk
Hefty pinch of salt

1. Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Line an 8x8 pan with aluminum foil, and spray the foil with nonstick cooking spray. In a small bowl, stir together the coconut and the condensed milk until the coconut is evenly moistened, and set aside for now.

2. Melt the chocolates with the butter in the microwave, stirring after every 45 seconds to prevent overheating. (You could also use a double boiler if you're old-school.) Once melted, whisk in cocoa until smooth. Set aside to cool slightly.

3. In a large bowl, whisk together eggs, sugar, vanilla, and salt until combined, about 15 seconds. Whisk warm chocolate mixture into egg mixture; then stir in flour with wooden spoon until just combined.

4. Pour approximately half of the brownie mixture into prepared pan, spread it into the corners and spread it into an even layer. Spread the coconut layer on top--I've found that this is easiest to do by spooning portions of it over the entire pan, and then smoothing the spoonfuls together. Don't apply too much pressure, or it will sink into the brownie layer. Once the coconut is fairly evenly spread, pour the rest of the brownie batter over it, and spread it into an even layer on top.

5. Bake the brownies until they are slightly puffed and a toothpick inserted in center comes out with a small amount of sticky crumbs clinging to it, about 35 minutes. If in doubt, err on the side of underbaking them.

These are bonkers when served warm, with caramel sauce or vanilla ice cream.

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Valentine's Day Candies

If the garlands of red roses and stacks of heart-shaped chocolate boxes and giant inflatable Cupids in stores haven't tipped you off already, allow me to warn you: Valentine's Day is nearly here. If you're looking for fun V-day sweets, here are some cute things I've recently been featuring on the candy website:

Homemade Conversation Hearts (link is to a photo tutorial)

Now you'll never be stuck passing out lame messages like "Tweet Me" and "UR A 10." With a set of food-safe markers, you can make the sassiest, funniest, in-jokiest candies to put Necco to shame.

Tuxedo Strawberries (link is to a photo tutorial)

Love, love, LOVE the look of these. The only downside is that it made me talk to my food more often and made me slightly more reluctant to eat them. I would pick one up and say, "Aren't you a handsome devil today?!" and then feel guilty about biting his head (or would that be feet?) off.

Love Pops

Aka, brownie pops with a Valentine's twist. These can also be made with regular cake, banana bread, pound cake, etc. I used a cutter for the hearts, but cut the tulips and lips out freehand, and the recipe includes tips for how to do this.

Happy Valentine's Day! What are YOU making to celebrate?

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Me + Rick Katz's Brownies = True Love

It is fitting that we made these brownies the week of Valentine's day, because I am in love with them.
Yes, I said it.
And I'll say it again: LOVE.
Inanimate objects, you say? Psh. Details.

Now I know my husband reads this blog, so it might get a little awkward around the house, but that's a small price to pay for a brownie this good.


In the eternal debate of cakey vs fudgy brownies, I have always fallen on the side of the fudgy folks. The gooier, the better. And you can't get much gooier than this:

These were really, truly, outrageously good if you're a fudgy brownie fanatic like myself. I don't know how they held their shape so well when cut, because they seemed to melt into pure chocolate bliss as soon as I bit into them.

I added some hazelnut paste and chopped hazelnuts, which turned out to be a good call. I think the brownies needed some kind of crunch to break up the gooey texture a bit. I couldn't really taste the hazelnut paste in the brownie part, though, so next time I'll double it so it has a chance against all of that chocolate. (Really, though, I can't believe it's only 6 ounces. Tastes like 60!)

My husband has taking to having a nightly bowl of vanilla ice cream, topped with a warm hazelnut brownie, and I have taken to stealing bites of it every night. People, I swear to you, this is the closest thing to heaven on earth you will find.

In fact, this might be more than plain love. This might be Princess Bride-style twu wuv, which as we all know, will fowow you foweveh. So tweasure your wuv! I know I'm treasuring mine several times a day.

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Brownie Cookies, the Best of Both Worlds

First off, a bit of business. My Oh Nuts! giveaway ended last night, and the winner, as chosen by the random number generator, was lucky number 17: Caroline of Sweet Caroline. So Caroline, email me your contact information and I'll get the gift certificate sent your way!

Speaking of nuts and dried fruit and yumminess, I have a great cookie-brownie-mutant recipe to recommend. I found the recipe for these Orange Cranberry Brownie Cookies on Baking Bites, and they had me at hello. It's basically all of my favorite ingredients smooshed into a fudgy chocolate cookie.


Dried cranberries, toasted pecans (my little recipe tweak), lots of orange zest, and big chocolate chunks commingle in the rich belly of this brownie-cookie beast. If you've had enough of holiday sugar cookies and gingerbread men (or just want another chocolate addition to the holiday gift plate) I give these cookies two chocolate-smeared thumbs up.
My one caution is that I didn't think they kept very well; after about 2 days they tasted stale. However, if your family is anything like mine around the holidays, they won't last longer than 2 days anyhow, so it's a moot point.



Orange Cranberry Brownie Cookies
from Baking Bites

2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 cup butter, melted and cooled
1 cup sugar
2/3 cup brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tbsp orange zest
3/4 cup dried cranberries
3/4 cup chocolate chips (pref. dark chocolate chips)

Preheat oven to 350F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
In a medium mixing bowl, sift together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt.
In a large mixing bowl, stir together melted butter and sugars. Mix in the eggs, stirring them in one at a time, then add the vanilla and orange zest.
With the mixer on low or working by hand, stir in the flour mixture, mixing until no streaks of flour remain. Stir in dried cranberries.
Drop dough by rounded tablespoons onto the prepared baking sheet (dough balls were a bit larger than 1 inch in diameter). Leave about 2 to 3-inches between cookies to allow for spread.
Bake for 9-11 minutes, until cookies are set at the edges and tops are slightly cracked looking. Cool on baking sheet for 5-10 minutes, until firm enough to transfer to a cooling rack.
Cool completely before storing in an airtight container.

Makes about 3 1/2 - 4 dozen.

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Deep Chocolate Brownies

Recently I received some samples of TCHO baking chocolate to try. If you're not familiar with TCHO, they're an artisan, bean-to-bar chocolate company based in San Francisco. I'd tried their chocolate bars in the past, and found them very good, but far too pricey to do any baking with...it's the kind of chocolate you savor square by teensy tiny square.



So I was excited to hear that they now have a baking line of 66% and 68% baking "drops," designed with cooking and candy making in mind. I am here to tell you, though, that the chocolate is also pretty amazing eaten straight from the bag. (All in the name of research, you understand.) The 68% conventional blend was my favorite--smooth, rich, with a deep chocolate taste. The 66% organic blend was very fruity and bright, and I can't wait to try it in truffles this Christmas. I think it'll be delicious with citrus flavors, or maybe paired with my new BFF, pistachios. But back to the chocolate!


I took it for a test spin using a brownie recipe provided with the chocolate. These TCHO Deep Chocolate Brownies are my favorite kind of brownie--dense, fudgy, with a crackly top and slightly crisp edges. These brownies were pretty outrageously good, with a great chocolate flavor. Here's my little brownie quirk: after cutting the batch into squares, I always cut my piece into small cubes to eat one at a time, just like a piece of chocolate. It's a good way to feel like you're indulging yourself...and also a good way to mask how many tiny brownie bites you actually eat!

What about you? Any brownie quirks? Favorite type of brownie? Any blondie lovers in the house? (The baked good, not the tired comic strip character.) Read on for the brownie recipe...

TCHO Deep Chocolate Brownies

Recipe by Emily Luchetti, courtesy of TCHO

8 ounces TCHO 68% Cacao Baking Drops, finely chopped
5 ounces (10 tablespoons) unsalted butter
1 1/4 cups sugar
3 large eggs
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease the bottom of a 9-by-13-inch baking pan and line it with parchment paper. Melt the chocolates and butter in a double boiler over hot water. In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs and sugar. Whisk in the melted chocolate mixture. Sift together and then stir in the flour, salt, baking powder, and cocoa powder. Spread the batter in the prepared pan.

Bake until a skewer inserted in the center, comes out fudgy and not dry, about 20 minutes. Let cool to room temperature. Run a knife around the inside edge of the pan. Place a cutting board on top of the pan. Invert the pan and board. Remove the pan and carefully peel off the parchment paper.

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TWD Brownie-Cherry Torte and DB's Macarons, oh my

It has finally happened...the perfect storm of blog posting. Two of the baking groups I belong to, Tuesdays with Dorie and The Daring Bakers, have challenges that have to be posted today. As George Costanza would say, "worlds are colliding!" So rather than make 2 separate posts, today's blog will be a super-duper-mega-big post about two delicious things I've made recently: a brownie-cherry torte and (pumpkin spice and nutella) macarons.

It's kind of a shame these guys have to share the limelight, because I thought they were both worthy of their own entry. First up, TWD's brownie-cherry torte.

As you can imagine, my husband, being married to a pastry chef and candy writer/recipe developer, eats a lot of sweets. A LOT. I wouldn't say his enthusiasm for sugar has waned, but it takes more to really impress him these days. And friends, he was blown away by this torte. We're talking head rolled back, tongue sticking out of the mouth, making guttural moaning sounds. I think it's true love.

For the most part, I loved it too. I made a half batch in a 6" pan and it was still super deep-dish and dense. The brownie part was rich and fudgy, and the mascarpone mousse was a surprisingly nice topping. I wasn't sure about the combo as I was making it, but the mousse was so light and creamy, it was the perfect foil to the dark, fudgy brownie. I also loved the cherry flavor, but I wasn't sold on the texture of chewy dried fruit in my brownie. Next time I'd either use fresh cherries or morello cherries instead of dried.But there will be a next time, because this? Was amazing!


Now on to the DB's macarons. I know this is blasphemy, but I don't really like macarons. Shhhh, don't say it so loudly! I've had some that I've thought are pretty good, but for the most part, I think they're just not my ideal cookie. They're often too sweet, and I don't usually love the texture. I guess I'll always be a warm chocolate chip cookie girl at heart. And also, I think they're annoying to make, but that may just be because we have to make jumbo 3" ones at work and let me tell you, the good lord did not intend for macarons to be made so large. They're constantly causing problems and I think I have developed a big macaron-shaped chip on my shoulder because of it.

Aaaaanyways, I sucked it up and made two variations of macarons this time around: pumpkin spice, with a spiced cookie and pumpkin-flavored buttercream, and nutella, with a cocoa-hazelnut cookie and homemade nutella in the middle.

Did y'all know it's possible to make homemade Nutella? And if you did, why didn't you send me any?? This stuff is awesome! It's just ground hazelnuts, with some cocoa, sugar, and a bit of hazelnut oil and vanilla. The texture is closer to natural peanut butter than Nutella, but the hazelnut taste is much more intense, plus it doesn't have any nasty trans fats. Yes please! Subbing hazelnuts for the almonds in the cookie also worked like a dream and gave them a nice subtle hazelnut flavor.

The nutella cookies might have been my favorite because they were less sweet, but the pumpkin spice were a surprising dark horse contender! I added big pinches of cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and cloves to the cookie batter, and then used some pumpkin flavoring oil (used to make candies, like Lor-Ann brand) to make a pumpkin buttercream. It was like a delicious mouthful of autumn. I would also consider using pumpkin butter as a filling, to give it a pumpkin flavor and maybe cut down on the sweetness.

Making the decorations on top is the simplest thing in the world. Just mix a little liquid orange food coloring with water, and use a (clean) paintbrush or pastry brush to lightly stroke it across the top. You might need to experiment with several brushes to get the effect you want. Allow it to dry for about 10 minutes, and you're all set.

The 2009 October Daring Bakers’ challenge was brought to us by Ami S. She chose macarons from Claudia Fleming’s The Last Course: The Desserts of Gramercy Tavern as the challenge recipe. It can be found on just about any blog by googling, so I'll skip that for now, but I have put the homemade nutella recipe after the cut...



Homemade Nutella
from the Los Angeles Times


Servings: Makes about 1 1/2 cups
Note: Use good-quality cocoa powder, such as Scharffen Berger.

2 cups raw hazelnuts
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 cup powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/8 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons hazelnut oil, more as needed

1. Heat the oven to 400 degrees. Spread the hazelnuts evenly over a cookie sheet and roast until they darken and become aromatic, about 10 minutes. Transfer the hazelnuts to a damp towel and rub to remove the skins.

2. In a food processor, grind the hazelnuts to a smooth butter, scraping the sides as needed so they process evenly, about 5 minutes.

It was awesome to watch the hazelnuts go from this...

...to this!

3. Add the cocoa, sugar, vanilla, salt and oil to the food processor and continue to process until well blended, about 1 minute. The finished spread should have the consistency of creamy peanut butter; if it is too dry, process in a little extra hazelnut oil until the desired consistency is achieved. Remove to a container, cover and refrigerate until needed. Allow the spread to come to room temperature before using, as it thickens considerably when refrigerated. It will keep for at least a week.

Each tablespoon: 109 calories; 2 grams protein; 8 grams carbohydrates; 2 grams fiber; 9 grams fat; 1 gram saturated fat; 0 cholesterol; 13 mg. sodium.

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Pumpkin-Swirl BrownieCakeThingamajig

Sorry, TWD'ers. I can't think of many things that sound less tasty than sweet potato biscuits. Biscuits should be of the buttermilk variety, and sweet potatoes should be of the not-in-my-house variety, so it's a pass for me this week.

However, I have been baking up a storm lately, and one of my recent favorites were these Pumpkin-Swirl "Brownies." The recipe calls them brownies, but as you can see, the slices are approximately as tall as your average toddler, so I would place them firmly in the "cake" category. And what a lovely slice of cake they yield!
I had my doubts about these browniecakes (brakes? brokes? crownies?). Of course, the 9x9 pan filled to the brim with batter was a bit suspicious, but there wasn't a graceful way to remove the artfully swirled batter to a large pan without catastrophe, so I let it be. And then they seemed to take ages to bake--waaaaay longer than the recommended 40-45 minutes--and I was sure I was going to end up with burnt toast ends on the outside and gooey pumpkin baby food on the inside after all was said and done. It also didn't help that the top turned kind of a uniform muddy brown color. (Alas, beautiful swirling, I hardly knew ye).

However, my utter lack of faith was rewarded with deeeelicious pumpkin-chocolate brownie-cake extravaganza! The pumpkin kept it nice and moist, and the spices (the usual fall suspects, plus cayenne) made it interesting and flavorful. The chocolate flavor wasn't too pronounced, which is another reason I think this falls closer to a pumpkin-chocolate cake than an actual brownie.

My only regret was that I didn't have any ice cream to serve with it. Because this cake, plus vanilla ice cream? Sounds obscenely good. If you've been looking for a recipe to jump-start your fall baking, and if you don't mind that said recipe is tragically misnamed, give these browkes (cawnies?) a go. Recipe after the jump...



Pumpkin-Swirl Brownies
From the Queen of Baking herself

* 8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, plus more for pan
* 6 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
* 2 cups all-purpose flour
* 1 teaspoon baking powder
* 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1 3/4 cups sugar
* 4 large eggs
* 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
* 1 1/4 cups solid-pack pumpkin
* 1/4 cup vegetable oil
* 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
* 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
* 1/2 cup chopped hazelnuts or other nuts

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 9-inch square baking pan or dish. Line bottom of pan with parchment paper; butter lining. [I recommend a 9x13 pan if you want more of a "brownie" sized bar.]
2. Melt chocolate and butter in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water, stirring occasionally until smooth. [...or not. This is why microwaves were invented!]
3. Whisk together flour, baking powder, cayenne, and salt in a large bowl; set aside. Put sugar, eggs, and vanilla in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment; beat until fluffy and well combined, 3 to 5 minutes. Beat in flour mixture.
4. Divide batter between two medium bowls (about 2 cups per bowl). [Or just stir half into the chocolate bowl, and add the pumpkin to the remaining half in the mixing bowl. Save yourself some washing up.] Stir chocolate mixture into one bowl. In other bowl, stir in pumpkin, oil, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Transfer half of chocolate batter to prepared pan smoothing top with a rubber spatula. Top with half of pumpkin batter. Repeat to make one more chocolate layer and one more pumpkin layer. Work quickly so batters don't set.
5. With a small spatula or a table knife, gently swirl the two batters to create a marbled effect. Sprinkle with nuts.
6. Bake until set, 40 to 45 minutes. [If using a 9x9 pan it might take longer, mine was closer to 55 minutes. Use a toothpick in the center to test for doneness.] Let cool in pan on a wire rack. Cut into 16 squares.

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Dulce de Leche Brownies (and more!)

This week's TWD recipe was an espresso-cheesecake brownie, which sounds fabulous...if you like espresso. Or cheesecake. Unfortunately, neither of those elements are too popular around my house. BROWNIES, on the other hand, will earn you fawning compliments, a kiss, and a folded twenty slipped into your palm, easy. So instead of the given recipe, I decided to make a recipe I've been dying to try: David Lebovitz's Dulce de Leche Brownies.

My husband loves dulce de leche. Looooves it. Busts out a spoon and hovers protectively over the dulce de leche and snaps like a chihuahua at anyone trying to get near it-style love. So knowing this, you'd think I would make it a point to work dulce de leche into our dessert rotation on a regular basis, but no. It just doesn't usually occur to me to make a batch and then use it for baking. However, now that we've had these brownies, we may start seeing a lot more of it around these parts.

I made the dulce de leche the old-fashioned way: boiling a can on the stovetop for about 5 hours. Some folks have a problem with this, to which I say, feh! If you let a little thing like exploding cans and grievous bodily harm worry you, you have no place in my kitchen. NO FEAR, SUCKAS. Buuuut I suppose if you're really going to wuss out, you can make it using other methods, like in a pressure cooker, crock-pot, or out of the can and baked in a water bath in the oven. (Weenies.) At any rate, once you have the gorgeously thick dulce de leche, you'll want to eat a bunch of it on its own, until you start to vibrate from all of the sugar in your system. At that point, you're ready to use the rest to make these brownies!

The brownies turn out rich and somewhat fudgy, although the 3 eggs in the recipe prevent them from being too dense or gluey. The dulce de leche is swirled throughout the batter but I tried to leave some in pockets so the flavor wouldn't be lost, and it worked well--most bites had at least a little dulce de leche, and some had big gobs of the caramelized goodness. DELICIOUS. These were pretty intense, so they can be cut into fairly small squares, and I found a pan stretched pretty far.

I also made these wonderful candies with some of the dulce de leche. They're super-simple but incredibly addicting! I took two jumbo pecan halves and sandwiched them with a small spoonful of dulce de leche. Then the whole package was dipped in dark chocolate. It was such a great combo--crunchy toasted nuts, rich chocolate, and creamy, caramelized dulce de leche. They're a perfect one or two-bite candy, almost too easy to munch, if you know what I mean. You don't really need a recipe but if you'd like one it can be found here: Dulce de Leche Pecan Bites.



The recipe for the brownies can be found after the cut...


Dulce de Leche Brownies from the ever-fabulous David Lebovitz
Yield: 12 brownies

8 tablespoons (115g) salted or unsalted butter, cut into pieces
6 ounces (170g) bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, finely chopped
1/4 cup (25g) unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
3 large eggs
1 cup (200g) sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup (140g) flour
optional: 1 cup (100 g) toasted pecans or walnuts, coarsely chopped
1 cup Dulce de Leche (or Cajeta)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees (175 C).

Line a 8-inch (20 cm) square pan with a long sheet of aluminum foil that covers the bottom and reaches up the sides. If it doesn't reach all the way up and over all four sides, cross another sheet of foil over it, making a large cross with edges that overhang the sides. Grease the bottom and sides of the foil with a bit of butter or non-stick spray.

Melt the butter in a medium saucepan. Add the chocolate pieces and stir constantly over very low heat until the chocolate is melted. Remove from heat and whisk in the cocoa powder until smooth. Add in the eggs one at a time, then stir in the sugar, vanilla, then the flour. Mix in the nuts, if using.

Scrape half of the batter into the prepared pan. Here comes the fun part.
Drop one-third of the Dulce de Leche, evenly spaced, over the brownie batter, then drag a knife through to swirl it slightly. Spread the remaining brownie batter over, then drop spoonfuls of the remaining Dulce de Leche in dollops over the top of the brownie batter. Use a knife to swirl the Dulce de Leche slightly.

Bake for 35 to 45 minutes. The brownies are done when the center feels just-slightly firm. Remove from the oven and cool completely.

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TWD: Brownie Buttons

I loved everything about these wee cute-as-a-you-know-what brownie buttons.
Adorable size? Check.
Easy to make? Yes.
Good crunchy-crust-to-fudgy interior ration? Uh-huh.
Twee name? Absolutely.
Great taste? Certainly!After a morning of airplane travel and hours spent at the Sprint store and grocery store, it was a relief to be able to come home, make these, photograph them, and still have daylight left in which to put up my feet! Super fast, super tasty, super cute.

Instead of orange zest I used a little orange oil (but I think mint would also be fab) and the tops were dipped in a bowl of swirled white and dark chocolate.

Some folks have complained about the yield and baking time both being inaccurate. I would say that's about right--I got 12, not 16, little buttons, and the bake time was closer to 13 minutes. With the shortened time and the increased amount of batter per cup, these were the perfect afternoon pick-me-up: indulgent, but not so guilt-inducing that I couldn't enjoy a few more after dinner!

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TWD: Tribute to Katharine Hepburn Brownies

Hrmmm. I have serious doubts about these "Tribute to Katharine Hepburn" brownies being an actual tribute to Katharine Hepburn.
I mean, they don't look a thing like her! How can you compare those dull chocolate squares to this dame? Check out her killer cheekbones. They just don't make 'em like they used to.Now HERE'S an example of a brownie that is an actual tribute to Katharine Hepburn:
Okay, so maybe this one doesn't look a thing like her either. But it's the thought that counts, right?

And let me tell you, this lady deserves all the tributes she can get, because this is a fabulous brownie recipe. Almost too fabulous! After half a brownie, my stomach was waving a white flag. These are some deep, rich, chocolatey, fudgy beasts.
I omitted the coffee, but made the rest of the recipe as written. I used Valrhona cocoa and added the optional cinnamon--love the combination of chocolate and cinnamon! In addition to the chopped bittersweet chocolate folded in, the hubs requested walnuts in his brownies, so these had a good amount of crunch that tried--and partially succeeded--in cutting the richness of the gooey brownies.

This recipe is a keeper (sans awkwardly piped Katharine portrait). I imagine these would be amazing as part of a brownie sundae, with some mint chip ice cream on top. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm off to sculpt a Beethoven bust out of lemon bars.

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