Chocolate Toffee Cookies

This cookie can be summed up as a chocolate brownie filled with toffee which has melted inside to give a chewy center. I purchased the pre-chopped toffee bits which can normally be found in the baking isle of your grocery store. Next time I think I will go for the actual toffee bar and do the chopping myself. The bits of toffee should be a little coarser than the bagged toffee bits. Some of my favorite cookies have a crunchy outside and a soft, chewy center and this cookie definitely fits into this category. After serving them to the fam, they didn’t stick around for long!

Chocolate Toffee Cookies

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1/2 cup all purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

16 oz semi-sweet chocolate chips

1/4 cup unsalted butter, room temperature

1 3/4 cups light brown sugar

4 large eggs, room temperature

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

8 oz coarsely chopped toffee bars

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line baking sheets with parchment paper.

Sift together flour, baking powder, and salt in a small bowl. Combine chocolate and butter in a heatproof bowl. Melt the chocolate and butter in the microwave using 20-second intervals, stirring in between each period. Continue until the mixture is melted and smooth. (Be careful not to scorch the chocolate). Cool mixture to lukewarm.

With a stand mixer, beat sugar and eggs in bowl until thick, about 5 minutes. Beat in chocolate mixture and vanilla. Stir in flour mixture and then toffee. Chill batter until firm but not hard, about 30 minutes.

Using a cookie scoop, place dough onto prepared baking sheets, spacing the cookies 2 1/2 inches apart. Bake just until tops are dry and cracked but cookies are still soft to the touch, about 15 minutes.

Cool on wire rack.

Source slightly adapted from: The Culinary Chronicles

Almond Joy Brownies

When I think of Almond Joys, I usually break out in song, “Sometimes you feel like a nut….!” Sorry, I couldn’t help myself on that one! I have a beloved co-worker that LOVES almond joys. The past few years on her birthday I have brought her a package of mini almond joys, but this year I decided to do something a little different… introducing Almond Joy’s in brownie form! Think of coconut soaked in sweetened condensed milk, sandwiched in between layers of rich, dark chocolate brownie, and a thin layer of chopped almonds….wow! One ingredient that helped make this brownie so decadent is Hershey's special dark cocoa powder; it really makes a big difference in flavor and I recommend using it in this recipe. If you don't have it on hand or can't find it, you can always use regular cocoa powder, which will give the brownie a more semi-sweet chocolate flavor. If you have a lover of Almond Joy's in your family, make this for them over the weekend, they will be in coconut-brownie bliss!!

Almond Joy Brownies

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3/4 cup cocoa powder (recommended: Hershey’s Special Dark)

1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter

3 large eggs, room temperature

1 1/2 cups sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 teaspoon almond extract

1/2 teaspoon salt

3/8 cup all purpose flour

2 cups shredded, sweetened coconut

2/3 cup sweetened condensed milk

2/3 cup toasted almonds, chopped

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line a 8 x 8 inch square pan with foil and spray lightly with non-stick spray.

Melt butter in medium saucepan over medium heat. Remove from heat and whisk in cocoa powder. Let stand 3 minutes. Whisk in eggs, one at a time, then add sugar, vanilla, and almond extract. Fold in salt and flour and stir until blended. Spread half the batter evenly in pan.

Combine coconut and sweetened condensed milk in a bowl. Spread dollops of coconut mixture oven the brownie batter. Sprinkle chopped almonds over coconut mixture. Spread remaining brownie batter over coconut mixture. Smooth carefully with a knife.

Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out with a few moist crumbs attached. Let cool on a wire rack until it reaches room temperature. Cut into squares.

Source adapted from: Dinner & Dessert, originally from Baking and Boys

Banana Split Brownie Pizza

This is a different dessert that I probably would have never made, but after seeing Mrs. Paula Deen make it on her show I had to give it a try! Actually, my M-I-L was the first to make this dessert a year or so ago. I remember the whole family had enjoyed it, so I knew it would be a good dessert to serve to the Women’s Basketball team. I chose to make two small pizzas due to the fact that I don’t own a round rimmed baking dish and didn’t want a mess on my hands should the brownie decide to run off the side of the pan! When I first saw this recipe I thought that the flavors of brownie didn’t really mix with cream cheese and pineapple, but I was wrong! The flavors of a banana split are present in each bite. Subtle hints of pineapple mixed in the cream cheese, lots of strawberries and bananas, and of course chocolate. It was hard to resist this pizza!

Banana Split Brownie Pizza

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1 (20 oz) box fudge brownie mix

8 oz package cream cheese, softened

8 oz crushed pineapple, drained, juice reserved

2 tablespoons sugar

2 bananas, sliced and tossed in lemon juice to prevent browning

1 cup fresh strawberries, sliced

1 cup chopped nuts, optional

Chocolate syrup, for drizzling

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Grease a 15 inch pizza pan, or two 8 inch pie pans. Prepare the brownie mix according to box directions. Pour into prepared pan. Bake for 20 minutes, or until done. Remove from oven and cool. Beat the cream cheese, pineapple, and sugar together in a bowl. Use any reserved pineapple juice at this time, if needed, to soften the mixture to a good spreading consistency. Otherwise, dispose of or save the juice for another use. Spread the mixture over the cooled brownie crust. Arrange the banana and strawberry slices over the cream cheese mixture. Sprinkle with the chopped nuts, if desired, and drizzle with chocolate syrup. Refrigerate until ready to serve. To serve, make into pizza slices.

Source: www.foodnetwork.com/paula-deen

Bailey’s Irish Cream Swirl Brownies

Happy St. Patrick’s day everyone!

Bailey’s Irish Cream brownies are  my ode to this holiday. We aren’t one to really celebrate St. Patrick’s day… no corned beef and cabbage for us, but I did want to make something somewhat related to celebrate the occasion. The brownies were out of this world. Super chocolaty, super rich and very decadent. I easily could have made myself sick between eating the actual brownies and licking the bowl of Bailey’s glaze!!  I hope everyone has a Happy St. Patrick’s day!

Bailey’s Irish Cream Swirl Brownies

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For the Swirl:

3 oz cream cheese, room temperature

2 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature

1/4 cup sugar

1 large egg

1 tablespoon all purpose flour

2 tablespoons Bailey’s Irish Cream

For the Brownies:

6 oz semisweet chocolate, chopped

3 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature

1/2 cup sugar

2 large eggs

1/2 cup all purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

For the Glaze:

1/2 cup powdered sugar

1 tablespoon Bailey’s Irish Cream

milk, if needed to thin out the mixture

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly butter an 8 inch nonstick baking pan. (I also placed foil inside the pan, making sure the foil lays over the sides of the pan.) In a medium bowl, beat cream cheese and butter until light and fluffy. Gradually add sugar and beat until well blended. Beat in egg. Mix in flour, Bailey’s, and vanilla. Set mixture aside.

Stir baking chocolate and butter in a heavy saucepan over low heat until smooth. Cool slightly. Using a mixer, beat sugar and eggs in a large bowl until slightly thickened, about 2 minutes. Mix in flour, baking powder, and salt. Mix in chocolate and vanilla extract. Stir in chocolate chips.

Spread a little more than half the chocolate batter in prepared pan. Using a rubber spatula, spread cream cheese mixture over chocolate batter. Spoon remaining chocolate batter over top of cream cheese mixture. Using the tip of a knife, gently swirl through batter, forming a marble design. Bake brownies for 30 minutes or until tester inserted into center comes out with only a few moist crumbs attached.

While baking, make glaze by combining powdered sugar and Bailey’s. If too thick, use milk to thin mixture out. While brownies are still warm, use a pastry brush to distribute the glaze over the brownies.

Let brownies sit for 15 minutes. Cut into squares for serving.

Source adapted from: Culinary Concoctions by Peabody