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Desserts/ Gifts & Gadgets

Harvey’s Brownie Mix in a Jar

Open in case of emergency! Or when hungry…

We all know the holidays can be stressful for many reasons. You’ve got present shopping, holiday cards to write and mail, office or neighborhood holiday parties to attend, laundry and luggage to ready for holiday travel, putting newspaper and mail deliveries on hold, and much, much more on your To Do List this week.  That’s why your pantry needs (at least one, if not a half-dozen) Brownie Mix in a Jar on hand — much in the same way you have an emergency kit in your car or a fire extinguisher in your kitchen. You just never know when you’re going to need the kind of help that only a fresh, homemade brownie can deliver!

This Brownie Mix in a Jar can help you survive the holidays – and every day – in a number of ways, including as a:

  • Perfect last-minute hostess gift
  • Welcome to the neighborhood gift
  • Grab bag gift for the office party
  • Holiday gift for the letter carrier
  • A great way to personalize a holiday bonus for the dog walker
  • Gift any time of the year for that homesick college student (especially during midterms or finals)

In about 10 minutes of time and about $3 for ingredients (not including cost of airtight container or wrapping), you can have a great gift that reflects your personality and that everyone will appreciate. I started this tradition several years ago with family and friends, and quickly learned that it also inspired them to do more baking from scratch. When the ingredients are already on hand and ready to go, it’s so easy – and often more delicious – to bake from scratch. That’s what this Brownie Mix in a Jar gift can do for the recipient: inspire them to be more creative in the kitchen.

I suggest buying a case of one-quart canning jars (about $24 for 12) and making a batch of 12 to have on hand for easier gifting. Buying the canning jars and dry ingredients in bulk will also lower your overall costs. It will also ensure that you have one on hand for your own personal brownie emergencies!

brownie mix in a jar ingredients

 

Holiday Survival Kit: Harvey

10 minutes

Holiday Survival Kit: Harvey

Ingredients

1 quart- or 3/4-liter-sized airtight container
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup chocolate chips or chunks
1/2 cup dark brown sugar

Instructions

Organize all of your dry ingredients, including measuring cups and spoons.

In a clean, airtight container (such as a jar), layer the dry ingredients in the order listed starting with flour and ending with M&M's®. As you add each layer, tap the sides of container to level ingredients. Seal the container and set aside.

Personalize and print out the preparation and baking instructions (below) to accompany the brownie mix jar.

DIRECTIONS FOR HARVEY'S BROWNIE MIX:

Add to dry mix:

- 1/2 cup butter

- 2 eggs

- 2 ounces milk or water

Preheat oven to 350 F degrees. Grease the bottom of an 8x8-inch or 9x9-inch baking pan.

Melt 1/2 cup butter. Mix melted butter, 2 eggs and 2 ounces of milk in medium bowl with spoon until blended. Stir in dry contents of the brownie mix, until moistened. Batter will appear slightly lumpy. Spread batter into prepared pan.

Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until dry around edges and toothpick inserted comes out almost clean. Cool completely, for about an hour. Cut into 4 rows by 4 rows to make 16 brownies.

Notes

Personalize as you wish to create a gift that reflects your personality. For example, you could swap the chocolate chips for peanut butter chips OR swap the peanut M&M's® for chopped walnuts. One of my favorite versions of this brownie mix swaps out the milk for raspberry liqueur and the peanut M&M's® for fresh raspberries.

http://bakedchicago.com/brownie-mix-in-a-jar-recipe/

 

Desserts

Salted Caramel-Macadamia Nut Gingerbread Brownies

Recently, the folks at Mauna Loa Macadamia Nuts invited me to participate in a recipe contest to create an original recipe using Mauna Loa’s new Dry Roasted Chopped Macadamia Nuts. The only rule was that macadamia nuts should be the hero ingredient, so I adapted one of my most popular brownie recipes to create a new version infused with gooey salted caramel and crunchy macadamia nut flavors.

Let me know what you think!

Salted Caramel-Macadamia Nut Gingerbread Brownies

Rating: 51

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Yield: 24 brownie bars

Salted Caramel-Macadamia Nut Gingerbread Brownies

Ingredients

1/4 cup butter
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup dark chocolate chunks
1/2 cup caramel baking chips
1 1/2 cups Mauna Loa dry roasted chopped macadamia nuts
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/3 cup molasses
1 1/2 teaspoons flaky sea salt

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease bottom of a 13x9-inch baking pan with butter.

In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, sugar, cocoa powder, ginger, cinnamon, cloves and baking soda. Set aside.

Melt butter in a microwave-safe bowl. Add molasses and eggs to the melted butter. Add wet ingredients to the flour mixture and stir just until blended. Fold in the dark chocolate chunks, caramel baking chips and chopped macadamia nuts.

Spread the batter in the prepared baking pan. Lightly sprinkle the sea salt evenly over the batter. Bake for 20 minutes. The center should be slightly firm to the touch. Cool completely for about 1 hour before cutting into bars.

Notes

Holiday breakfast muffin idea: Spoon the batter into paper-lined muffin cups until about 2/3 full. Then bake at 325 degrees F for 20 minutes.

http://bakedchicago.com/salted-caramel-macadamia-nut-gingerbread-brownies/

Desserts/ Events & Entertaining

Celebrate International Stout Day with these Scrumptious Stout-glazed Brownies

stout glazed brownies

Happy International Stout Day! You don’t have to be Irish to appreciate these stout-glazed brownies. Many people aren’t familiar with stout, which is simply a strong, dark beer brewed with roasted malt or barley. If a beer is a stout, it’s considered to have a strong or the strongest flavor.

Irish stout

There are several kinds of stout beers: dry (Irish), imperial (Russian), porter, milk, oatmeal, coffee, oyster and even chocolate! Chocolate and beer often makes for a great combination in recipes. These stout-glazed brownies will have you dancing an Irish jig with each bite.

Want to share these stout-glazed brownies with the kids? Here are some things to consider when baking or cooking with alcohol:

  • alcohol boils at 172° F, so almost any kind of baking or cooking with alcohol won’t leave any in the food once it’s done. It evaporates quickly. 
  • there’s not much alcohol in beer to begin with. It’s mostly water.
  • there’s not enough alcohol in beer for it to burn.

Bob’s your uncle!

Stout-glazed Brownies

Cook Time: 35 minutes

Yield: 16 servings

Ingredients

1 cup stout
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons butter, divided
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
12 ounces plus 4 ounces dark chocolate, chopped, divided
1 1/4 teaspoons and 1/4 teaspoon salt, divided

Instructions

Preheat your oven to 350° F.  Lightly grease the bottom of a 9x9-inch baking pan with butter or shortening. In a medium saucepan, bring the stout to a boil and cook until reduced to 1/2 cup (about 10 minutes). Let cool and set aside.

In a medium heatproof bowl set on a small saucepan of simmering water, melt 12 ounces of dark chocolate and 1 cup butter. Stir constantly, until smooth. Remove from heat and cool slightly.

Whisk the sugar, eggs and vanilla in a large bowl. Gradually whisk in the chocolate mixture and 1/4 cup stout, reserving the remaining stout. Fold in the flour and 1 1/4 teaspoons salt.

Spread the batter in the prepared baking pan. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until the brownies surface begins to crack. Toothpick inserted in the center should come out with moist crumbs. Cool for 20 minutes.

Stir the remaining 4 ounces of dark chocolate in a medium heatproof bowl, set on top of small saucepan of simmering water, until melted and smooth. Add the reserved 1/4 cup stout, remaining 2 tablespoons butter and remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt. Whisk until well blended.

Pour the warm glaze over the brownies. Let stand until glaze is set (about 40 minutes). Cut into 4 rows by 4 rows to make 16 stout-glazed brownies.

http://bakedchicago.com/international-stout-day/

 

Desserts

Baked Honeycrisp Apples with Peanut Butter & Pretzel Topping

This fall it’s been difficult to find Honeycrisp apples at my local grocery. For some reason, there’s been a shortage of quality product. So when I do find them I try to stock up a bit; thankfully Honeycrisp apples store well in the refrigerator for weeks.

Bite for bite, Honeycrisp apples are so naturally sweet and juicy that I crave eating them all year round. I even share my beloved Honeycrisp apples with my four pugs as a special daytime treat. I slice an apple up and they line up (very well behaved, of course, because they love them so) to take turns chomping down on a juicy slice of heaven. It’s such a joy to watch their faces light up.

For an easy any-night-of-the-week dessert, I adapted this recipe from Martha Stewart’s Pretzel Crumbles recipe from 2011. I added peanut butter to the pretzel crumble topping, and I think Martha would agree that was genius of me. Thanks, Martha!

Baked Honeycrisp Apples with Peanut Butter & Pretzel Topping

Cook Time: 35 minutes

Yield: 2 servings

Baked Honeycrisp Apples with Peanut Butter & Pretzel Topping

Ingredients

4 T butter, cold
1 T ground cinnamon
4 T all-purpose flour
4 T dark brown sugar
4 T crushed pretzels
4 T crunchy peanut butter
2 Honeycrisp apples, halved and cored

Instructions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line a 9-inch square baking pan with parchment paper.

In a medium bowl, blend butter with the cinnamon, flour, and brown sugar. Stir in crushed pretzels and set aside.

Place the apple halves in the prepared baking pan. Scoop 1 tablespoon of peanut butter inside the well of each apple half. Scatter the pretzel mixture over the apple halves.

Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until apples are soft and the topping is crisp. Remove from oven and let cool a few minutes before serving warm.

Notes

This recipe is lightly adapted from Martha Stewart's Pretzel Crumbles recipe http://www.marthastewart.com/355997/pretzel-crumbles

http://bakedchicago.com/baked-honeycrisp-apples-peanut-butter-pretzel-topping-2/

Desserts

Summer Needs S’mores Marshmallow Pop’ms

Summer’s end is always bittersweet. While I love fall, I know it means we’re one step closer to winter’s bitter cold. So it’s important to savor the flavors of summer as long as possible.

For me, a classic summertime flavor is the s’more. This no-bonfire-required recipe was inspired by the new stackable, flat marshmallows I found at my local grocery.

s'mores marshmallow pop'ms

All you need is three ingredients (chocolate chips, graham crackers and marshmallows) and 90 seconds in the microwave to feed that childhood craving for a sweet treat.

Start by melting a cup of Hershey’s milk chocolate chips in a microwavable ramekin. After 90 seconds, stir the chocolate chips to facilitate the melting. If needed, heat in additional 30-second increments and stir until melted and smooth.

s'mores marshmallow pop'ms

You could use your fingers, but I’ve found that to be really messy. So I recommend taking a small fork and piercing a marshmallow, then dipping it in the chocolate until the bottom is coated.

s'mores marshmallow pop'ms

Then dip the marshmallow, chocolate side down, in the graham cracker crumbs.

s'mores marshmallow pop'ms

Shake off the excess crumbs, and set the s’mores marshmallow pop’ms on a plate with the chocolate side facing up. Repeat the process with remaining marshmallows.

s'mores marshmallow pop'ms

Before you know it, you’ve got 2 dozen bite-sized portions of s’mores goodness to share with your family. Or not. That’s totally your call.

S’mores Marshmallow Pop’ms

Rating: 51

2 minutes

Cook Time: 2 minutes

Yield: 8 servings

3 s'mores marshmallow pop'ms

Ingredients

Instructions

Pour the graham cracker crumbs in a ramekin or small plate for dredging. Set aside.

Pour the chocolate chips in a microwavable ramekin. Cook on HIGH for 90 seconds in the microwave. Stir the chocolate chips to facilitate the melting process.

If needed, cook in additional 30-second increments, followed by stirring, until chocolate is melted and smooth.

Using a fork, pierce a marshmallow on one side. Then dip the other side of the marshmallow in the chocolate, followed by dredging in graham cracker crumbs. Shake off loose crumbs, and put on a plate.

Repeat with remaining marshmallows to make 24 s'mores marshmallow pop'ms.

http://bakedchicago.com/summer-needs-smores-marshmallow-popms/

Desserts

Summer Fun with Marshmallow Cookie Crunch Brownies

Animal crackers were a childhood favorite of mine, so when I came across some at the grocery store they became the inspiration for my next brownies creation that I call Marshmallow Cookie Crunch Brownies. You can use whatever cookies you have in your pantry.

marshmallow cookie crunch brownies

Marshmallow Cookie Crunch Brownies

Prep Time: 15 minutes; Total Time: 45 minutes

Ingredients:

  • 10 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 1 3/4 cups granulated sugar
  • 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 2 cups animal crackers cookies (or substitute your favorite sandwich cookie, chopped)
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 4 eggs
  • pinch of sea salt
  • 1 1/2 cups miniature marshmallows
  • 2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 375 F degrees. Lightly grease the bottom of a 13×9-inch baking pan with butter or non-stick cooking spray. Set aside.

Whisk together dry ingredients (cocoa powder, flour, baking powder and salt) in a medium bowl; set aside.

In a large sauce pan, melt butter over low heat. Add granulated sugar, stirring until completely blended with butter. Stir in the flour mixture. When combined, remove from heat and set aside. The mixture will be very dry at this point.

In a large bowl, whisk together eggs and vanilla. Incorporate the egg mixture into the brownie batter in the sauce pan. Stir until well blended. Fold in the animal cracker cookies, marshmallows and chocolate chips.

marshmallow cookie crunch brownies

Pour into the prepared baking pan. Spread the batter evenly to promote even baking. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until set.

Let brownies cool completely, about 1 hour. Cut into 6 rows by 4 rows to make 24 brownies.

marshmallow cookie crunch brownies

Desserts

Nuttin’s Better Than Peanut Butter-Banana Nut Pound Cake

peanut butter banana nut pound cake

Pound cakes are not hard to make. Like any recipe, it’s always easier to execute by getting all of your ingredients organized first.

pb-banana-bread-mise-en-place-12

Then measure out each ingredient and sort by the order you’re going to use the ingredient in executing the recipe. This process, called ‘mise en place’ – which means everything in its place, will save you so much time and possible heartache. It’s like the law of gravity. It just works, so you gotta do it! Let’s get started.

You’re going to preheat your oven and preparing your baking pan. You can go traditional and grease-flour your pan but I’ve found that non-stick cooking spray, when applied correctly, works just as well and is much easier.

Sift together your dry ingredients: flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder and cinnamon. Next you’ll cream the butter with the brown sugar and peanut butter. Be sure to incorporate lots of air into this mixture; it will help the pound cakes rise properly.

artisan-mixer1

Add your eggs, as instructed, followed by the mashed banana and vanilla.Then add the flour mixture and sour cream, alternately. Then you’ll fold in the pistachios by hand with a spatula. Pour the batter into your prepared baking pan and smooth out the top with the spatula.

pb-banana-bread-two-loaves1

Bake for 50 to 65 minutes. I recommend checking at the 45-minute mark, because the baking process accelerates toward the end. It is very easy to over bake a pound cake, unless you are monitoring closely. The top should be golden brown and an inserted toothpick should come out clean.

pb banana bread 2

After cooling in the pan for about 10 minutes, remove and let cool complete on a wire rack. You can freeze a whole loaf for up to 2 months in an airtight container. But I recommend enjoying it warm fresh out of the oven!

Peanut Butter-Banana Nut Pound Cake

Rating: 51

Cook Time: 50 minutes

Yield: 1 loaf

Peanut Butter-Banana Nut Pound Cake

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
1/2 cup peanut butter (crunchy or smooth)
3 eggs
1/2 cup ripe banana, mashed (about 2 small or 1 large banana)
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup sour cream
1/4 cup pistachios, chopped (optional)

Instructions

Preheat your oven to 350 F degrees. Generously coat a 9x5-inch loaf pan with non-stick cooking spray. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder and cinnamon. Set aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream together the butter, brown sugar and peanut butter until light and fluffy (at least 5 minutes).

Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, as needed, between additions. Add the mashed banana and vanilla.

Continuing on low speed, add the sifted flour mixture and sour cream, alternately; begin and end with the flour mixture. Beat just until combined. Fold in the pistachios with a spatula by hand.

Pour the batter into the prepared baking pan. Smooth out the top with your spatula.

Bake for about 50 to 65 minutes. The top should be gold brown and a toothpick inserted in the center should come out clean. If the top is browning too quickly, cover loosely with aluminum foil. I recommend checking your pound cake at the 45-minute mark. The baking process accelerates toward the end and it can be easy to over bake your cake.

Cool for at least 10 minutes in the pan before removing. The sides should start to come away from the pan to make removal easier. Then remove the loaf and cool completely on a wire rack.

Slice while still warm and enjoy with butter on top. Store any remaining slices in the refrigerator. The whole loaf may be frozen for up to 2 months.

http://bakedchicago.com/nuttin-better-than-peanut-butter-banana-nut-pound-cake/

Desserts

An All-Time Fall Favorite Dessert: Baked Honeycrisp Apples with Peanut Butter & Pretzel Topping

I know Fall is near when the Honeycrisp Apples make a dramatic appearance at the grocery store. Right now, they are in peak season. So run and grab a bushel of the best Honeycrisp apples you can find. Hoard them like the golden bites of juicy deliciousness they are. I’ve learned over the years that they last for weeks when chilled in the refrigerator.

Why do I encourage you to hoard these beauties? Because, bite for bite, there is nothing more naturally sweet and juicy you can eat. It’s the best that nature has to offer, for sure!

I even share my treasure of Honeycrisp apples with my four pugs as a special daytime treat. I slice an apple up and they line up (very well behaved, of course, because they love them so) to take turns chomping down on a juicy slice of heaven.

Bing the apricot fawn pug

This is Bing. Could you turn down giving an apple slice to a face like that? He’s an apricot fawn-colored pug, and he’s a Honeycrisp apple-loving pug.

For an easy any-night-of-the-week dessert, I adapted this recipe from Martha Stewart’s Pretzel Crumbles recipe from 2011. I added peanut butter to the pretzel crumble topping, and I think Martha would agree that was genius of me. Thanks, Martha!

Baked Honeycrisp Apples with Peanut Butter & Pretzel Topping

Cook Time: 35 minutes

Yield: 2 servings

Baked Honeycrisp Apples with Peanut Butter & Pretzel Topping

Ingredients

4 T butter, cold
1 T ground cinnamon
4 T all-purpose flour
4 T dark brown sugar
4 T crushed pretzels
4 T crunchy peanut butter
2 Honeycrisp apples, halved and cored

Instructions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line a 9-inch square baking pan with parchment paper.

In a medium bowl, blend butter with the cinnamon, flour, and brown sugar. Stir in crushed pretzels and set aside.

Place the apple halves in the prepared baking pan. Scoop 1 tablespoon of peanut butter inside the well of each apple half. Scatter the pretzel mixture over the apple halves.

Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until apples are soft and the topping is crisp. Remove from oven and let cool a few minutes before serving warm.

Notes

This recipe is lightly adapted from Martha Stewart's Pretzel Crumbles recipe http://www.marthastewart.com/355997/pretzel-crumbles

http://bakedchicago.com/time-fall-favorite-dessert-baked-honeycrisp-apples-peanut-butter-pretzel-topping/

Desserts

7 Must-Have Recipes for National Peanut Butter Lover’s Day

peanut butter banana bread with roasted cacao nibs

It’s National Peanut Butter Lover’s Day and which recipe will you choose to celebrate with? We say turn the day into National Peanut Butter Lover’s Week and make one recipe a day for a true decadence-filled week of peanut butter flavor!

Sunday: Peanut Butter Granola-Pumpkin Bread

peanut-butter-granola-pumpkin-bread

 Monday: Peanut Butter-Banana Nut Pound Cake

pb-banana-bread-3

Tuesday: Peanut Butter Brownie Biscotti

peanut-butter-brownie-biscotti

 Wednesday: Peanut Butter Whirled Brownies

peanut-butter-whirled-brownies

 Thursday: Peanut Butter Lava Mug Cake

peanut-butter-lava-mug-cake-hero

 Friday: Baked Honeycrisp Apples with Peanut Butter & Pretzel Topping

IMG_0291

 Saturday: Peanut Butter Pound Cake

Pound cake

Peanut butter by the numbers*:

  • It takes about 540 peanuts to make a 12-ounce jar of peanut butter.
  • Americans spend about $800 million a year on peanut butter.

*For more fun facts about peanuts, visit the National Peanut Board’s website.

Desserts

Marshmallow Cookie Crunch Brownies

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Dollar General. All opinions are 100% mine.

When I walked into my local Dollar General store, I was amazed at the variety of grocery items available, including milk, eggs and butter. I love to bake and every pantry staple I could think of was on the shelves. And at lower prices than most stores.

marshmallow cookie crunch brownies

So I decided to make a variation on one of my favorite brownie recipes, inspired by the Clover ValleyTM animal crackers and mini marshmallows I found.

marshmallow cookie crunch brownies

The animal crackers were so adorable that I couldn’t resist eating a few while preparing the brownies. Delish by themselves. But even better inside these Marshmallow Cookie Crunch Brownies!

marshmallow cookie crunch brownies

Marshmallow Cookie Crunch Brownies

Prep Time: 15 minutes; Total Time: 45 minutes

Ingredients:

  • 10 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 1 3/4 cups Clover ValleyTM granulated sugar
  • 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 1 cup Clover ValleyTM all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon Clover ValleyTM baking powder
  • 2 cups Clover ValleyTM animal crackers cookies (or substitute your favorite sandwich cookie, chopped)
  • 1 teaspoon Clover ValleyTM vanilla extract
  • 4 eggs
  • pinch of Clover ValleyTM sea salt
  • 1 1/2 cups Clover ValleyTM miniature marshmallows
  • 2 cups Clover ValleyTM semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 375 F degrees. Lightly grease the bottom of a 13×9-inch baking pan with butter or Clover ValleyTM non-stick cooking spray. Set aside.

Whisk together dry ingredients (cocoa powder, flour, baking powder and salt) in a medium bowl; set aside.

In a large sauce pan, melt butter over low heat. Add granulated sugar, stirring until completely blended with butter. Stir in the flour mixture. When combined, remove from heat and set aside. The mixture will be very dry at this point.

In a large bowl, whisk together eggs and vanilla. Incorporate the egg mixture into the brownie batter in the sauce pan. Stir until well blended. Fold in the animal cracker cookies, marshmallows and chocolate chips.

marshmallow cookie crunch brownies

Pour into the prepared baking pan. Spread the batter evenly to promote even baking. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until set.

Let brownies cool completely, about 1 hour. Cut into 6 rows by 4 rows to make 24 brownies.

marshmallow cookie crunch brownies

Save on your baking needs with Dollar General. For other recipe ideas featuring everyday Clover ValleyTM pantry items that cost less, check out Dollar General on FacebookInstagram and Pinterest.

Visit Sponsors Site

Desserts

Celebrate National Cake Pop Day with Brownie Pops

brownie pops

It’s National Cake Pop Day and one of my favorite “cake on a stick” treats is a dressed up in sprinkles brownie pop!

Brownie pops are perfect for any casual party or celebration, especially with guests who are kids or adults who want something sweet in portion-controlled bites. The brownie pop makes it easy to enjoy a bite of a great dessert that satisfies the sweet tooth.

Dipped in chocolate and decorated with sprinkles, they are irresistible for kids and adults!

Cake pops

Brownie Pops

Cook Time: 22 minutes

Yield: 20 servings

Ingredients

1/2 cup and 1/4 cup butter, divided
2 ounces and 1 ounce unsweetened baking chocolate, divided
1 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
16 ounces almond bark (vanilla or chocolate-flavored)
40 lollipop sticks
nonpareils, jimmies and candies for decoration

Instructions

Preheat your oven to 350° F. Lightly grease an 8-inch square baking pan and set aside.

In a saucepan, combine 1/2 cup butter and 2 ounces of baking chocolate. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until melted. Remove from heat and set aside to cool slightly.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the granulated sugar, flour and salt. Pour in the almond bark mixture, and add the eggs and vanilla. Mix well.

Spread the batter evenly in the prepared baking pan. Bake for 22 minutes, or until the brownies begin to pull away from the sides of the pan. Cool pan completely, preferably on a wire rack.

Melt the remaining butter and baking chocolate in another saucepan over medium heat. Stir constantly until melted, and set aside.

Crumble the cooled brownies into a large bowl. Add the chocolate-butter mixture and confectioners' sugar and mix well.

Shape 1-inch balls with the crumbled brownie mixture. Place them on a parchment paper-lined rimmed baking sheet. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm (at least 2 hours, but you may also refrigerate overnight).

Melt the almond bark according to package directions and keep warm. Remove one-third of the brownie balls from the refrigerator and insert the lollipop sticks. Dip the brownie balls into the melted almond bark coating. Swirl or tap off any excess. Press the coated brownie balls into your preferred decorations. I recommend using ramekins to hold each of the different decorations. At this point, you could also enlist the help of your birthday boy or girl to help with the decorating [yes, it's that easy].

Place the coated brownie pops onto parchment paper and let stand until the coating is set. Repeat with the remaining brownie pops until done. You can make these brownie pops up to one day before your event, but refrigerate any items in an airtight container.

http://bakedchicago.com/national-cake-pop-day/

Desserts/ Entrees

Baked Chicago’s Top 5 Most Popular Recipes of 2014

As 2014 comes to a close, it’s fun to look back to see what’s been cooking in the kitchen. I have my favorite recipes from the past year. Two of which made the Top 5 most popular recipes. If you need a hint, it’s the two savory recipes. Go figure!

But this look back is focused on the recipes that you liked best, so here’s a recap of the five most viewed recipes on Baked Chicago in 2014. Which one is your favorite?

#1 – Jazzy Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

jazzy-oatmeal-chocolate-chip-cookies_hero

#2 – Heavenly HALO Olive Oil

Pompeian-Varietals-Olive-Oil-Cake_9

#3 – YOLO Bolognese Sauce for the Slow Cooker

YOLO-BOLO-hero1

#4 – Ranch Patty Melt

ranch-patty-melt_6

 #5 – Rum-infused Bing Cherry & Chocolate Chip Olive Oil Cake

Rum-infused-Bing-Cherry-Chocolate-Chip-Olive-Oil-Cake_ziplist

I can’t wait to find out what’s on the menu for the coming year. Best wishes for a healthy and prosperous 2015!