Chocolate Surprise Cookies
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Remember Mallomars? These cookies remind me a little of them, 
except instead of a graham cracker base, they have a chocolate cookie base which is crunchy on the outside and chewy on the inside. The marshmallow in the middle is a nice gooey surprise, and the chocolate frosting adds to their richness.
Just some notes: The dough is very thick and fudge-like. I used non-fat milk because that’s what I had in the house and it worked just fine. I originally used a 1 3/4″ cookie scoop but decided on a smaller scoop midway through because my cookies didn’t spread much, they just puffed up. Also, I had a ton of frosting leftover!
Photos of the process here.
Cookie Ingredients
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (not Dutch-process)
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
1/2 cup whole milk
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
About 15 large marshmallows, halved crosswise (cut in half horizontally)
Frosting Ingredients
3 cups confectioners’ sugar
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
1/4 cup plus 1 1/2 teaspoons unsweetened cocoa powder (not Dutch-process)
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons whole milk
3/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Preparation
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Make cookies: Sift together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt into a bowl.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add egg, milk, and vanilla, and beat until well combined. Add reserved flour mixture; mix on low speed until combined.
- Using a tablespoon or 1 3/4-inch ice cream scoop, drop dough onto baking sheets lined with parchment paper, about 2 inches apart. Bake until cookies begin to spread and become firm, 8 to 10 minutes.
- Remove baking sheets from oven, and place a marshmallow, cut-side down, in the center of each cookie, pressing down slightly. Return to oven, and continue baking until marshmallows begins to melt, 2 to 2 1/2 minutes. Transfer cookies to a wire rack to cool completely before frosting.
- Make frosting: Put confectioners’ sugar in a medium bowl. Melt butter with the cocoa powder in a saucepan over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally. Add butter mixture to the confectioners’ sugar. Whisk in the milk and vanilla.
- Spread about 1 tablespoon of frosting over each marshmallow, starting in the center and continuing outward until marshmallow is covered. Let stand until set, about 10 minutes, Cookies can be stored in single layers in airtight containers at room temperature up to 2 days.
Recipe from The Cookbook Junkie.
Brownie Peanut Butter Cups
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When I first saw this recipe, I decided these brownies had to be made now. Unfortunately, it was close to 100 degrees in LA this past week, and there was no way in hell I was 
about to turn my oven on. So, I had to wait for the temps to cool down.
Fortunately for me (and my coworkers), the weather this week has been much more bearable, thus allowing me to turn on my oven to make these brownies. Which by the way, are good. Very good. Looking at them one might think SUGAR RUSH!!!, but they’re not terribly sweet, and the saltiness from the peanut butter center (oh yes, they have peanut butter inside) is a really nice contrast. I love sweet and salty together.
I think next time I make these, I will use mini muffin tins and make them bite size. Other than that, I wouldn’t change a thing. Except perhaps eat them while they’re still hot with a nice scoop of ice cream. Mmmm.
Photos of the process here.
Ingredients
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 tablespoon water
3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 large egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup peanut butter chips plus about 1/3 cup more for garnishing
1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips plus about 1/3 cup more for garnishing
3/4 cup creamy peanut butter
Preparation
- Preheat oven to 350°. Spray or grease 12 muffin cups.
- In a large microwave-safe bowl, combine sugar, butter, and water. Microwave on high for 1 minute or until butter is melted. Stir in 3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips until melted. Stir in egg and vanilla extract. Add flour and baking soda, stirring until blended. Allow to cool to room temperature. Then, stir in 1/2 cup each peanut butter chips and semi-sweet chocolate chips. Spoon batter by heaping tablespoonfuls into muffin cups.
- Bake for 13-15 minutes or until top is set and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out slightly wet. Place pan on wire rack. Centers of brownies will fall upon cooling. If not, tap centers with the back of a teaspoon to make a hole.
- Place peanut butter in a small microwave-safe bowl. Microwave on high for 45 seconds, then stir. While brownies are still hot, spoon about a tablespoon of peanut butter into the center of each brownie. Top with semi-sweet chocolate chips and peanut butter chips. Cool completely in pan.
Recipe from Bake or Break.
Low Fat Chocolate Chunk Muffins
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Usually when you hear the words low fat you think of bland, dry, or flavorless baked goods. I’m happy to report that is not the case with these muffins. These are moist, chocolately, and flavorful! And as an added bonus, they are easy to make and don’t even require a mixer.
Photos of the process here.
Since it’s Mother’s Day weekend and I’m down in San Diego at my parents’ house, I wanted to make these for my mom. After going through her cupboards, I realized she doesn’t have a mini muffin tin so I decided to double the recipe and make a dozen regular size muffins rather than 18 mini muffins. (From my experience, three minis usually equal one regular size muffin.) I also used whole wheat baking flour instead of all-purpose flour and Splenda instead of sugar. You can’t even tell I made any substitutions.
Ingredients
1 cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup sugar or 1/2 cup sugar if you like your muffins sweeter
2 Tablespoons cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup light sour cream
scant 1/2 cup 2% milk
1 Tablespoon canola oil
1 egg white
3.5 ounces chopped dark chocolate
Preparation
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and position a rack in the center of the oven. Measure all of the dry ingredients in a medium sized bowl, and whisk together. In a separate bowl, combine all of the wet ingredients and whisk to combine, trying to get as many lumps as possible out of the sour cream. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients all at once and stir to incorporate. Once mixture in combined, fold in the chocolate chunks.
Grease a mini muffin pan. Scoop the muffin batter into a tin with a tablespoon measuring spoon, using one tablespoon of batter per muffin cup. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cool in the muffin tins for 5 minutes then transfer to a wire rack to cool.
Recipe from Joy The Baker.
Peanut Butter Torte
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This was my first torte, and according to my coworkers, it was delicious! In fact, one of the executives even called it wicked. As for me? Well, I don’t even like mousse-y type stuff and even I thought it was pretty good. Yes, I have a thing with textures and food. I’m weird like that.
Anyway, while this was easy to make, I found it quite time consuming. Lots of chopping and cleaning up Oreo cookie crumbs–oh wait, that was just me? The end result however, was magnificant. Everyone kept walking by asking if I really made it and said it was almost too pretty to eat.
I made a few modifications to the original recipe by omitting the coffee and nutmeg (hate hate hate nutmeg), and I used at least 30 Oreos for the crust. Other than that, I followed everything else. Photos of the process here.
Ingredients
1 ¼ c. finely chopped salted peanuts (for the filling, crunch and topping)
2 teaspoons sugar
½ teaspoon instant espresso powder (or finely ground instant coffee)
¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
Pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
½ c. mini chocolate chips (or finely chopped semi sweet chocolate)
24 Oreo cookies, finely crumbed or ground in a food processor or blender
½ stick (4 tablespoons) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
Small pinch of salt
2 ½ c. heavy cream
1 ¼ c confectioners’ sugar, sifted
12 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
1 ½ c salted peanut butter – crunchy or smooth (not natural; I use Skippy)
2 tablespoons whole milk
4 ounces bittersweet chocolate finely chopped
Preparation
Getting ready: Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350°F. Butter a 9-inch Springform pan and place it on a baking sheet lined with parchment or a silicone mat.
Toss ½ cup of the chopped peanuts, the sugar, espresso powder, cinnamon, nutmeg and chocolate chops together in a small bowl. Set aside.
Put the Oreo crumbs, melted butter and salt in another small bowl and stir with a fork just until crumbs are moistened. Press the crumbs evenly over the bottom and up the sides of the spring form pan (they should go up about 2 inches on the sides). Freeze the crust for 10 minutes.
Bake the crust for 10 minutes, then transfer it to a rack and let it cool completely before filling.
Working with a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, whip 2 cups of the cream until it holds medium peaks. Beat in ¼ cup of the confectioners’ sugar and whip until the cream holds medium-firm peaks. Crape the cream into a bowl and refrigerate until needed.
Wipe out (do not wash) the bowl, fit the stand mixer with the paddle attachment if you have one, or continue with the hand mixer, and beat the cream cheese with the remaining 1 cup confectioners’ sugar on medium speed until the cream cheese is satiny smooth. Beat in the peanut butter, ¼ cup of the chopped peanuts and the milk.
Using a large rubber spatula, gently stir in about one quarter of the whipped cream, just to lighten the mousse. Still working with the spatula, stir in the crunchy peanut mixture, then gingerly fold in the remaining whipped cream.
Scrape the mouse into the crust, mounding and smoothing the top. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours, or overnight; cover with plastic wrap as soon as the mousse firms.
To Finish The Torte: put the chopped chocolate in a heatproof bowl and set the bowl over a saucepan of simmering water. Leave the bowl over the water just until the chocolate softens and starts to melt, about 3 minutes; remove the bowl from the saucepan.
Bring the remaining ½ cup cream to a full boil. Pour the cream over the chocolate and, working with a rubber spatula, very gently stir together until the ganache is completely blended and glossy.
Pour the ganache over the torte, smoothing it with a metal icing spatula. Scatter the remaining ½ cup peanuts over the top and chill to set the topping, about 20 minutes.
When the ganache is firm, remove the sides of the Springform pan; it’s easiest to warm the pan with a hairdryer, and then remove the sides, but you can also wrap a kitchen towel dampened with hot water around the pan and leave it there for 10 seconds. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
Recipe from Baking: From My Home To Yours by Dorie Greenspan.
