S'mores at Home!

My husband was coming home from a long business trip on Friday, so I thought I'd whip up something quick and tasty we could enjoy, both as desserts and snacks! We both love s'mores, but we don't camp very often anymore, so I thought I'd try these at home, and see how they came out.

First, line a sheet pan with aluminum foil, and layer the bottom with graham crackers (approximately 18,) just like my sister's Peanut Butter Chocolate Bark. Then, melt 8oz of milk chocolate and spread over the graham crackers, taking care to cover them as evenly as possible.

Next, cut a whole bag's worth of marshmallows in half, either length or width-wise. (This is just so there's not super too much marshmallow in each bite, your tastes may vary!) Place the marshmallows evenly across the top of the chocolate, covering the whole surface. (You may need an extra bag, just sayin'!)

Broil the whole pan in the oven, on high for about 3 minutes. Alternatively, you could use a butane torch to toast the 'mallows. Place top halves of graham crackers on top, and break the bottoms as evenly as possible. Go ahead and try and stop yourself from eating one during the process. I dare you. Grin.

That's it! I didn't even think I needed pics to show the whole process, but if you'd like - I can go back and make another batch to add them! :)

Recipe - Chocolate Peanut Butter Bark

My sister was recently kind enough to bring over a bit of her (now famous!) chocolate peanut butter bark. Let me tell you folks, this snack might be the best sweet treat ever - but I'll let you try it out, and then tell me I'm right! LOL Anyhow, it may be one of the easiest food crafts I've ever tried, plus it has the added benefit of being both beautiful and super tasty! It's almost too pretty to eat. Almost...

Ingredients -

• Graham crackers (appx. 14, depending on baking sheet size)
  
• 6 oz semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup peanut butter (I like chips, as they're easier to measure and melt)
  
• 3 oz white chocolate
• 1/2 tsp real vanilla extract* (I added this myself, as I add vanilla to all desserts!)

Tools - 9x13 baking sheet, foil, microwaveable bowl, offset spatula, mini squeeze bottle

(Prepare tools & ingredients before assembling! As it finishes faster than a freight train, and you'll want everything right at hand.)

Line a  9x13 baking sheet with foil, making sure to cover handles. Layer grahams onto sheet, covering as much space as possible. I found that they fit really well this way, but your container may be a different size. (Yes, I cheesed and was one graham cracker short for my photos, please don't hold it against me!!! They taste just as good, I promise!)

Melt semi-sweet chocolate and peanut butter, and stir til smooth (and spreadable.) Add vanilla, stir in and spread over grahams with an offset spatula, making sure to cover as evenly as possible.



Meanwhile, melt white chocolate into a small squeeze bottle (usually in the candy melt section of the craft stores,) but be sure to keep it quite warm! Chocolate can "set" in these bottles, making it impossible to squeeze; melt with the lid off, and take care to keep the spout open (I like a toothpick for this task!) You can really decorate the tops any way you like, but I prefer toothpick marbling - and here's how I do it.

With the squeeze bottle, make vertical lines on the chocolate bark. They don't have to be perfect, but I like them better slightly closer together, for the marbling effect.

Squeeze as much out of the bottle as you can, trust me it makes clean up easier! Be careful not to fart too much air out onto the bark though, as it makes terrible little pits in the semi-sweet! LOL

Once you've got the squeeze bottle mostly empty, take a toothpick, and run it horizontally against the vertical lines; alternating first down, and then up - to create this pretty marbled effect.

It's so easy to do, and yet it looks so complex! Love it!

Chill in the fridge for at least 30 minutes. Cut into pieces either before or after chilling, your preference. My sister likes to keep hers in the fridge, I leave mine out on the counter. It only lasts a few days, but with chocolate and peanut butter, I dare my husband (or anyone else's, for that matter!!!) to resist... Muahahaha!

Alternatively, you could use the squeeze bottle to decorate your bark any way you like! Write your family's names onto it, draw flowers, a checkerboard - or anything you can come up with! Crafts like these really lend themselves to people's unique creativity, I think; and I hope you'd agree!

I can has cake pops!

I tried Bakerella's cake pop recipe this week, as a test for my sister's upcoming baby shower. They turned out quite lovely, although were much more labor & time intensive than I'd originally thought. Not that they are that hard, but doing anything 50+ times is bound to be frustrating, if it's your first time! So, I decided they weren't right for the shower, but I had to post about them anyway!



If you want to try these for yourself, I have a few tips. The candy melts need a few minutes to set up, so after you've melted them - don't start dipping right away. Also, you'll need to keep these in the fridge or freezer, and only take out a few at a time to dip & dry. Once they warm up, they'll fall right through the lollipop sticks! Use a piece of styrofoam to stick the pops in to let them dry, although you'll need to keep them turning for a minute or so; otherwise you could end up with candy melting down your sticks! Any other questions? I'd be happy to answer them, this was a fun test!

Happy (early) Valentine's Day!

Well, normally I'm not one for such commercial holidays, but I've seen so many awesome cupcakes around Blogland lately, and I had cake mix & frosting sitting around… So, I thought I'd throw my hat in, and whip up some V-day treats. These are made with a butter white cake mix and cream cheese frosting. I tried to make heart templates from paper to dust the red sugars on in a fun pattern, but only 2 came out heart shaped! LOL Can you tell which 2? Bwahahaha!

My husband keeps reminding me that they still taste just as good; but I still wish they'd come out a little better. Oh well! The cake mix made 2 dozen cupcakes, but I only have a dozen left! I knew I should have taken the pictures when I made them, but it was dark, and I was hoping for some sun to photograph them. (I should have done it Saturday, it was sooo blue and sunny; Sunday rolled around and it went back to grey! So, sorry for the crappy lighting!) I hope everyone has a nice Valentine's Day!

White Chocolate Mousse with Raspberry Chambord sauce

Oh yes, it's as good as it looks and sounds! The only secret, is that it's SUPER easy to make! Seriously, this is the easiest dessert I've ever found for family get-togethers, or when you just want to spoil yourself with a restaurant style confection. The hardest part is pushing the raspberry sauce through a strainer, and I suppose I could've settled for less than every drop of liquid on this step. I'm a little weird, what can I say? LOL

Just another quickie note - normally I'd pour the just-mixed mousse to set up in whatever fancy container I was planning on serving it in (usually individual servings.) This time I let it set up in a different container (ie a bowl,) and tried to make it look smooth after adding it to my glass. As you can see, it doesn't look smooth on the surface, but if you make it right, this is the smoothest, lightest dessert ever!

Since berries are out of season here in Chicago, I'd also recommend serving more hardy fruit with the chocolate mousse, like sliced oranges in a sugar sauce (or Grand Marnier!)

For the mousse, you'll need:

1 2/3 cups chilled heavy whipping cream
8 oz fine white chocolate (Lindt is best!)

For quicker results, chill large bowl & beaters in freezer for 30 minutes prior to start. Melt chocolate and 2/3 cup cream in double boiler or microwave. (For microwave, start with 1 minute on high, and add 30 seconds as necessary. Chopping the chocolate will help it melt quicker, as well.) Don't worry about a few tiny lumps, the heat from the rest of the chocolate will smooth everything out. Set aside for 30 minutes. This step is crucial, you may want to rush it, but be patient!

After a half an hour, take bowl & beaters out of freezer & whip remaining 1 cup cream til stiff peaks form. My original recipe calls for beating to soft peaks, but I think the whole thing sets up a little better when you beat just a little more than soft. If you've chilled the metal parts, it should take 3-4 minutes, if you haven't it can take more than 5. When you've achieved slightly stiff peaks, you can add the whipped cream to the cooled chocolate mixture, in 2 additions. The first will seem lumpy, but fold the cream as gently as possible, and the second addition should even things out a bit. Try not to over-mix these two, it'll be a much lighter mousse if it's done properly. Cover & chill, at least 2 hours. Serves 4-6

This recipe will also work with other chocolates, if you're not a fan of white. I've used both milk & dark chocolates with very good results!

For the sauce, you'll need:

2 cups fresh raspberries, washed
1 cup confectioner's sugar
1/4 cup Chambord (raspberry flavored liquor)
3 Tbs fresh lemon juice

Puree all ingredients in food processor or blender. Pour through strainer, and discard seeds. Cover & keep in refrigerator. Makes 2 cups

On another, and on a much more horrible note, our heater broke sometime between last night and this morning. Yes, I live in Chicago... and yes it's the middle of winter. Oy. Cross your fingers it's not too long/expensive to fix! It's frickin' freezing at my house today!

New Year's Sweets - Rice Krispy Treats!

Happy New Year! I still can't believe it's 2007 already! Anyhoo, I've been wanting to add recipes to my blog for a while; and these are my favorite treats! Be careful though, I can never eat only one, so they go super fast! LOL

You'll need:

6 cups Rice Krispy Cereal
1 pkg Marshmallows (16oz)
3 Tbs Butter
1/4 cup Peanut Butter
1/2 tsp Vanilla extract

Divide cereal in half, put one in large bowl (the other can be any size.) Grease pan (either 13x9 or 9x9.) Melt butter, peanut butter & marshmallows in microwave (or stovetop,) til just melted. Add vanilla & stir thoroughly. Pour onto cereal in large bowl, then add remaining cereal. Stir until cereal is evenly coated, this takes some muscle! When it's all mixed, pour into pan and flatten. You can use a roller or the back of a spoon, but be sure to grease it too, or it'll stick! Wait until they cool to cut, and enjoy!