Apple Brownies

Is it Fall yet?  I ask this question every year around this time.  Southern California always seems to have some crazy heat waves in October....just when you think it should be getting a lovely and Fall-y (I'm sorry, I'm just sick of 90 degree+ weather).  I'm more than ready to put away shorts and t-shirts and bust out some pants and sweaters.  

To make myself feel better about the weather, I tend to start baking Fall inspired desserts a lot.  Sorry summer-y desserts.....we'll see you next year........

I decided I was ready for something apple-y, and found this recipe for Apple Brownies in the latest issue of Martha Stewart.  Brownies isn't really the right word for these......they don't have a brownie denseness.....but they do have an amazing texture and flavor, and were a hit all around!

Give these a try and get a taste of Fall.  Check out Martha Stewart for the recipe.....and Enjoy!

Knock You Naked Brownies

Hee hee.......you gotta love a name like that right?

The Pioneer Woman has done it again!  Another fantastic recipe, that couldn't be easier to throw together.  German Chocolate cake mix to make a brownie??  Who would have thunk??

This recipe only has a handful of ingredients.....but you will make your friends super duper happy if you make this, I promise!!  We ended up serving it on 4th of July topped with some homemade vanilla bean ice cream and whipped cream.  Totally over the top, and totally delicious!  Calories consumed on a holiday don't count, right?

RIGHT??

Check out The Pioneer Woman for the recipe.....and Enjoy!

Irish Car Bomb Brownies

So it's almost St. Paddy's Day.  I had a long list of recipes that I wanted to try this week, most of them featuring some kind of boozy combination.  Well.....things didn't really work out this week.  First our oldest came down with the flu, then our youngest caught a cold.......and now I've got a little combination of the two.  Awesome.  Oh, and did I mention my parents were here visiting?  Not the best time for a visit.......and now they're probably taking all our germies with them to Texas.

All of that to say that I didn't get around to pretty much anything in the kitchen this week.  The only thing I did make are these Irish Car Bomb Brownies from Bakers Royale (via Endless Simmer), that were such a hit, I had to make them twice!

A chocolate brownie layer spiked with Guinness......topped with a Bailey's cheesecake layer......topped with a Jameson whisky spiked brownie layer.  Oh yeah......you gotta try this!  It's amazing how well these flavors all go together, and the hubby's only complaint was that I could have actually added even more booze! I think it's fine as is.......you definitely can taste it all.

So if you're looking for a yummy grown-ups only dessert for St. Paddy's Day, give this one a try!

Check out the recipe by Bakers Royale (on Endless Simmer)......and Enjoy!

This post is linked to:
Mrs. Fox's Sweet Party - Link It Up Wednesday - Bake with Bizzy - Sweet Treats Thursday - Show Off Your Stuff - Show Me What You Got Linky Party - Kitchen Fun and Crafty Friday - Friday Favorites - Anything Goes Linky - Fusion Friday - Feature Friday Free-for-All - Fun Stuff Friday - I'm Lovin' It - Sweets for a Saturday - Sweet Indulgences Sunday - Scrumptious Sunday Link Party - Mix It Up Monday - What Makes You Say Mmmmmm? - Tea Party Tuesday - Creative Corner Hop - Show Me What You Got - Tasty Tuesday - Tuesday Talent Show - Crazy Sweet Tuesday

Oatmeal Milky Way Brownie Bars

Brownies are one of my favorite treats ever.......I rarely meet a brownie I don't like.....so I'm always open to trying a new twist on them.  So here is the Oatmeal Milky Way Brownie Bar, from I Am Baker.  Since everything she makes is pretty awesome, I was pretty certain this one would come out great.....so certain, in fact, that I brought this to our Thanksgiving celebration.

An oatmeal/brownie bar with a thick layer of melted caramels and Milky Way bars in the middle....how can you go wrong?  The only problem with making them for a holiday party?  These are one of those desserts that might not necessarily stand out, look-wise, on a dessert table.....so I dressed them up with the cupcake wrappers (which also helps them to not stick together).  Maybe you could also add a little dusting a powdered sugar for a little extra something.  But once you pick up one of these bad boys and take a taste....yum......so good!

Check out I Am Baker for the recipe.....and Enjoy!

This post is linked to:
Tasty Tuesday - Crazy Sweet Tuesday - Tuesday Talent Show - T'Time - These Chicks Cooked - Link it up Wednesday - Bake with Bizzy - Turning the Table Thursday - Full Plate Thursday - Sweet Treats Thursday - Show Off Your Stuff - Sweet Tooth Friday - Friday Favorites - Anything Goes Linky - I'm Lovin' It - Fusion Fridays - Fun Stuff Fridays - Sweets for a Saturday - Friday Food - Sweet Indulgences Sunday - Monday, Mmmm....Dessert

Brownie Stuffed Chocolate Chip Cookies

After making the Oreo stuffed Chocolate Chip Cookies a couple of times (and loving them!), I was curious how some of the other stuffed cookie recipes would come out.  Next up......Brownie stuffed Chocolate Chip Cookies!

For this one, you're going to make a pan of brownies, and let them cool completely before moving on to the chocolate chip cookies.  The process is the same as with the Oreo Chocolate Chip Cookies......take a brownie, a scoop of cookie dough on top, and one beneath.....then start pressing the edges of the dough together to completely encase the brownie.  Just a word of warning.....these things are monsters.....you're not going to be fitting a ton of them onto a cookie sheet! 

I think if given the choice, the hubby and I would choose the Oreo stuffed Chocolate Chip Cookies over these......mainly because of the contrast in textures the Oreos provide.  These taste delicious......with a lovely center of fudgy chocolate.....but I missed the crunch of the Oreo cookie.  

Check out Picky Palate for the recipe.....and Enjoy!!

This post is linked to:

Friday Food

Sweets for a Saturday

Sweet Indulgences Sunday

Monday, Mmmm......Dessert

These Chicks Cooked

Cast Party Wednesday

Full Plate Thursday

Turning the Table Thursday

Sweet Treats Thursday

Show Off Your Stuff

Fresh Food Friday

Fat Camp Friday

Oreo Cheesecake Brownies

Continuing with our household's love affair of all things Oreo (did I mention I bought a giant pack at Costco the last time I was there?)....may I introduce to you, the Oreo Cheesecake Brownie!

A fudgy brownie packed with Oreo cookies chunks, and then topped off with a delicious cheescake-y swirl.......yes please!!

This is my kind of dessert.  I'm pretty much a sucker for most brownies....but my oh my......adding in brownies and the cheesecake topping.......get in my belly!

It's a pretty rich dessert, so like my post from yesterday, you're probably not going to eat the whole pan in one sitting.....but if you need a choco-fix (I'm not the only one right?), this will definitely hit the spot!

Check out the blog Brandy's Baking for the recipe......Enjoy!!

This post is linked to:
Everyday Sisters Sharing Sundays

Congo Bars

After slaving over a batch of Star Wars cookies for the last few days (post is still coming), I needed to make something that was simple and satisfying.  Enter the Congo Bars, or Blondies, or another version of the Brookie......whatever you want to call these, they fit the bill for what I needed and couldn't be simpler to whip up!

There are a million recipes out there for things like this, but I had one bookmarked a while back from Bakerella (who I'm sure everyone has checked out by now!)....and thanks to my friend Lisa's boards on Pinterest (she had pinned a picture of them), I decided these absolutely had to be made today!

These are another of those recipes that you want to make sure that you don't overbake.....you want them to keep their brownie-like texture (which I guess means they should be called Blondies).  I used some Guittard milk chocolate chips in these......that's why the pieces of chocolate look so big.....their chips are huge!

Do yourself a favor and make a batch of these today! Check out Bakerella for the recipe......Enjoy!!

P.S. - A word of caution if you've never checked out Bakerella (aka the Queen of Cakepops)....you will get sucked into her world of yummy treats and find tons of things that you will have to make yourself!  Then you will find yourself browsing the plethora (yes, I said plethora) of photos of adorable cakepops, and wonder why yours don't ever come out as cute as hers do (or at least I do).  Consider yourself warned!!

The Brookie

The Brookie, or Brookster

So the boys from Baked are at it again.....this time they're introduced a new baking mix at Williams-Sonoma, the Brookster.  What is it, you ask?  It's a chocolate chip cookie and a brownie in one!  Two of my favorite things in the whole world.....I had to try it!

Of course you could probably just use your favorite brownie and chocolate chip cookie recipes and do the same type of thing.....but the Baked boys haven't done me wrong yet....and they kept that streak going with the Brookster (or as I call it, the Brookie).

Take a little brownie mixture and place it in the bottoms of a cupcake pan.  After it chills for a little while add a disk of chocolate chip cookie dough on top of the brownie mix and bake until done.  Sooooo yummy!!

The Baked mix at Williams-Sonoma is only available in stores so far, and it has enough for two batches that make 9 brookies each.  I've still got that second batch waiting for me......lucky me!!

Ode to a Brownie....and My Secret Boyfriends

Do you love chocolate? If you ask me, the answer is emphatically "YES!!!" Well, if you love chocolate, then you have to try these brownies......they are from my secret boyfriends at Baked NYC (more on them later).

Now, I admit I am kind of a brownie snob....but I will gladly help to devour a pan of box mix brownies! However, I absolutely adore homemade brownies that use lots of good quality chocolate! For this recipe I used some Valrhona dark chocolate bars as well as dark cocoa powder.....so much chocolate goodness!!

The number one rule with these brownies is not to overbake!! You want to take these out of the oven when a toothpick inserted into the center of the pan has a few moist crumbs attached to it.

To find the recipe for the Baked brownie, check out their book Baked: New Frontiers in Baking.....or you can also just go to Williams-Sonoma and pick up their brownie mix!

Ok......so now that I've introduced you to Baked NYC (in case you'd never heard of them before).....let me now introduce you to my secret boyfriends, Renato Poliafito and Matt Lewis, the owners of Baked. They are my secret boyfriends, in that they know nothing about my obsession with them. However, they are not so secret in my house, because the hubby knows all about them!! Pardon the picture......I am a tired Mommy today, but I had to pose with the guys :)

I have probably done at 15 or so recipes from their two cookbooks that are out: Baked: New Frontiers in Baking and Baked Explorations. Every single recipe has gotten an amazing response from family, friends, and me!! These guys really know what they're doing, and reading through the recipes, it feels like they're standing there next to you talking you through it.

We are heading to Charleston in June after going to a family wedding, and imagine my surprise when I discovered that the only place there is a Baked bakery, aside from Brooklyn, is in Charleston!! And quickly looking on Google Maps......it's only 2 blocks from our hotel! Who-hoo! I've already informed my family that they will be heading there multiple times a day each day that we are in Charleston! I am bound and determined to try as many things as I possibly can....diet be damned!

And that's that......I can be fickle in my baking/cooking obsessions.....but for the last few months, these are the guys who have stole my baking heart!