Rumchatta Hot Chocolate

I think I've mentioned my favorite FestFoods guy before, right?  Well, this week he had this not-for-the-kiddies hot chocolate recipe for me that he said was amazingly rich and wonderful. Looking at the recipe, I think I might have to have some folks over just to have an excuse to make it!

1 bottle Rumchatta
2 bags Andes baking chips
4 c. milk
1 pint heavy whipping cream
1 can condensed milk


Combine all ingredients in crockpot and heat on high for 1 1/2 hours.  Stir it very well to combine the ingredients after that hour and a half.  He didn't say if you should turn it down after that, but I'd expect you might want to.  If anybody makes this, let us know how it turns out!

(Yes, I did buy the booze for this, but it was on sale this week! *grin*)

Easy Chocolate Truffle Cake

You will love me for this recipe.  Or hate me, I guess, if your New Year's resolutions including losing weight.  This cake is the richest, most compact chocolate delivery system I think I've ever had.  Cut yourself a small piece... and a strong coffee with it is divine.  This recipe is originally from some chocolate cookbook I checked out of the Blarney library... and then had Mr. Kluges photocopy the recipe. The cake should be made at least one day before glazing.


Easy Chocolate Truffle Cake

250g/9 oz. plain chocolate, chopped [Use GOOD quality chocolate from a real chocolate shop, not just some semi-sweet chips.  Seriously.]
225g/8 oz. unsalted butter, cut into pieces
75g/ 3 oz. sugar
120ml/4 fl oz. whipping (heavy) cream
15ml/1 Tbl vanilla essence (vanilla)
6 eggs
[a bunch of boiling water for step 4]

Chocolate glaze:
175g/6oz plain chocolate, chopped [see previous note]
50g/2 oz. butter, cut into pieces
whipped cream for decoration
rose petals for decoration [optional]

1. Preheat oven to 180C/350F/Gas Mark 4.  Generously grease a 9" by 2" deep round or scalloped spring-form pan (23cmx5cm deep).  Line bottom with waxed paper and grease waxed paper.  Wrap bottom of pan in foil.
2.  In a saucepan over low heat, melt chocolate, butter and sugar with cream, stirring frequently until smooth; cool slightly.  Stir in vanilla.
3. With electric mixer, beat eggs lightly, about 1 minute.  Slowly beat chocolate into eggs until blended.  Pour into spring-form pan and tap gently on work surface to break any large air bubbles.
4. Place spring-form pan into larger roasting pan and pour boiling water into roasting pan, about 2 cm/ 3/4" up the sides of the spring-form pan.  Bake 25-30 minutes, until the edge of the cake is set, but the center is still soft.  Remove spring-form pan from water-bath, and remove foil.  Cool on wire rack competely; cake will sink in center and may be cracked.
5. Remove side of spring-form pan, and turn cake onto wire-rack placed over baking sheet to catch any drips.  Remove pan bottom and waxed paper.
6. Cake should be made at least one day before glazing.  Prepare glaze.  In a saucepan over low heat, melt chocolate and butter, stirring until smooth.  Pour over cake, tilting rack slightly to spread glaze.  If necessary use palette knife [or spatula] to smooth side.  Leave to set.
7. With palette knife, carefully slide cake onto serving dish.  If you like, pipe whipped cream border around edge. [Or sprinkle designs with powdered sugar or whatever.] 
8. Note - we've never attempted the sugared rose petals, but here are the directions if you're feeling especially fancy & brave!  Dip the rose petals in lightly-beaten egg white, then in caster [super-fine].  Allow to stand on greaseproof [waxed should work or parchment] paper in a cool place for about 2 hours.  Place iin center of cake.  Serve with softly whipped cream on the side.

Mmmm....Chocolate Crinkles!

Huh. Here I was all set to post a lovely recipe for cookies I only remember ever making near the holidays - Chocolate Crinkles. They're the ones Penguin & I were making here. I even took some photos of them all lined up pretty, cooling on their wire racks.

But hey...
I guess I didn't need to...

Oh well, at least I can add the note that we like them much better when they're made with baking chocolate, rather than the substitution of butter & cocoa - they hold their shape better & stand up taller. Still yummy either way though!

7 Layer Bars

Made these for a party last night and I was shocked at how much folks loved them. Despite being one of Wog's favorites and tasty, they are so simple, everyone back home has this recipe type of recipe. But, if you don't here you go. Super easy.

1 - 1 1/2 c crushed graham crackers (about one package of crackers out of a box)
1/2 c melted butter.

Pat this onto bottom of 9x13 pan. Will be a very thin layer, don't worry.

On top of crust put ingredients in this order
1 c. chocolate chips
1 c. butterscotch chips
1 c. flaked coconut
1 c. chopped nuts (I use walnuts, but nuts altogether are optional)
1 can (14 oz) sweetened condensed milk poured/spooned over the top. You do NOT have to evenly spread it, but try to avoid putting a lot right at the edge or the edges will be hard to get out of the pan.

Bake at 350 for 30 min.

The first bar you take out will probably crumble a bit, but after that you should be able to take them out no problem.

Molten Lava Cakes

Ok, this is actually from All-Knowing Jen, but I pulled it out of a comment so that it'd show up on searches with labels and such. Yay for chocolate!

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I made Chocolate Lava cakes last year -sooo yummy!

Molten Lava Cakes- Recipe courtesy Paula Deen/Food Network

Ingredients:
6 (1-ounce) squares bittersweet chocolate
2 (1-ounce) squares semisweet chocolate
10 tablespoons (1 1/4 stick) butter
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar
3 large eggs
3 egg yolks
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons orange liqueur (I left this out, didn't have any, they were still good!)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
Grease 6 (6-ounce) custard cups. Melt the chocolates and butter in the microwave, or in a double boiler. Add the flour and sugar to chocolate mixture. Stir in the eggs and yolks until smooth. Stir in the vanilla and orange liqueur. Divide the batter evenly among the custard cups. Place in the oven and bake for 14 minutes. The edges should be firm but the center will be runny. Run a knife around the edges to loosen and invert onto dessert plates.

February's Theme - Chocolate!

Oh yeah, whoops! It's a new month, which means a new theme. For February, we'd LOVE to have you share your chocolate recipes! Yay!

Now "Chocolate" is its own label, so it's easy to search by it, but here are the ones that we've already got in Recipeeps...

• Nectarine posted some Turkey Cookies in November.
• The Sexy Blonde's Chocolate-Mint Bars come via Cooking Light, so that makes them totally justifiable!
• Chocolate Crinkles are one of my favorite kinds of cookies!
• Syl's Pretzels and Hugs are a big favorite around here - and a fun Valentine's Day treat with red and pink M&Ms on the top!
• Diplowhat mentions that this Chocolate Frosting is all-purpose. Need I say more?
  
• ...and this Chocolate Joy Icing is particularly suited to angel food cake, she says.
• Mmmmm...we like to make All-Knowing Jen's Oreo Balls!
• Diplowhat says these Peanut Butter Bon Bons are a favorite at the Wog household.
• I think her Chocolate Carmel Bars just made it on my "I don't care if I'm watching my weight; I've totally got to make these anyway" list.
• But if you're trying to be a teeny bit healthier, Diplowhat also shared her Chocolate Zucchini Cake. Yay, veg!

Ok, I don't know about you all, but now I want to go raid my cupboards for chocolate - even if it's just chocolate chips! NOM NOM NOM, CHOCOLATE! :)

Turkey Cookies

Turkey Cookies -

I made these 3 years ago and thought you all might like to try. They are made with striped cookies (bought). The round chocolate ball is a peanut butter ball but you can use chocolate covered cherries (store bought). I made the peanut butter balls as I do not like chocolate covered cherries. Candy corn head. Use melted chocolate to get everything to stick together. Enjoy!!

Have also made Marshmallo Pilgrim Hats but could not find a picture.

We have also had something like Sugar-Cone Cornucopia.

Chocolate-Mint Bars

Another recipe from Cooking Light. This one was on the cover of the March 2008 issue. Quite tasty. Here's the link. Recipe copied below for archival purposes.

http://find.myrecipes.com/recipes/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=1714574

"The dense base layer is like a rich, fudgy brownie, so don't overcook it or the dessert bars will be dry. Refrigerating the mint bars allows the chocolaty top layer to set properly. You can make the dessert up to one day ahead. For a more grown-up taste, you can also use dark chocolate chips for some or all of the semisweet chocolate chips in the glaze."

Bottom layer:
1 cup all-purpose flour (about 4 1/2 ounces)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup egg substitute
1/4 cup butter, melted
2 tablespoons water
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs, beaten
1 (16-ounce) can chocolate syrup
Cooking spray

Mint layer:
2 cups powdered sugar
1/4 cup butter, melted
2 tablespoons fat-free milk
1/2 teaspoon peppermint extract
2 drops green food coloring

Glaze:
3/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips
3 tablespoons butter

Preparation
1. Preheat oven to 350°.

2. To prepare bottom layer, lightly spoon flour into a dry measuring cup; level with a knife. Combine flour and salt; stir with a whisk. Combine granulated sugar, egg substitute, 1/4 cup melted butter, 2 tablespoons water, vanilla, eggs, and chocolate syrup in a medium bowl; stir until smooth. Add flour mixture to chocolate mixture, stirring until blended. Pour batter into a 13 x 9–inch baking pan coated with cooking spray. Bake at 350° for 23 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out almost clean. Cool completely in pan on a wire rack.

3. To prepare mint layer, combine powdered sugar, 1/4 cup melted butter, and next 3 ingredients (through food coloring) in a medium bowl; beat with a mixer until smooth. Spread mint mixture over cooled cake.

4. To prepare the glaze, combine the chocolate chips and 3 tablespoons butter in a medium microwave-safe bowl. Microwave at HIGH 1 minute or until melted, stirring after 30 seconds. Let stand 2 minutes. Spread chocolate mixture evenly over top. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve. Cut into 20 pieces.

Yield
20 servings (serving size: 1 piece)

Nutritional Information
CALORIES 264(30% from fat); FAT 8.7g (sat 5.2g,mono 2.5g,poly 0.4g); PROTEIN 2.8g; CHOLESTEROL 38mg; CALCIUM 12mg; SODIUM 139mg; FIBER 0.5g; IRON 0.9mg; CARBOHYDRATE 45g

Megan Patterson ,Cooking Light, MARCH 2008

Wednesday Fun #19 - Chocolate, chocolate, chocolate

Valentine's Day is on its way, and what better way to celebrate love... or soothe some loneliness... than chocolate?!?!? Here's what I want to know - what's your favorite form/kind/flavor of chocolate? Are you all about the dark chocolate no matter what? Love Twix bars, but only eat them by nibbling off the chocolate, then eating off the caramel, THEN crunching those cookies? (Um, not that it's my favorite way to eat them or anything...) Once had the most wonderful lavender chocolate truffle? Adore your mom's homemade chocolate caramels? Swoon over chocolate covered espresso beans?

So tell us,

What chocolate floats your boat?

Chocolate Crinkles

This is another childhood recipe. I always loved how the powdered sugar makes a crazy quilt sort of pattern over the chocolate once they're baked. Note: These have to chill for a while before baking, so allow time for that (or take advantage of it and mix them up ahead of time).

1/2 c. oil
4 oz. unsweetened bakers' chocolate (or you can sub in 3/4 c. cocoa + 1/4 c. butter)
2 c. sugar
4 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla
2 c. flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
Powdered sugar for coating - around 1/2 c. or so

Mix together the oil, chocolate (or cocoa and butter) and sugar. Add the 4 eggs, one at a time, stirring well between each. Stir in the 2 tsp. vanilla.

In a separate bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder and salt, then add to the sugar mixture and stir well.

Chill several hours. Shape into balls and roll in a bowl of powdered sugar to coat.

Place on Pam-sprayed cookie sheet and bake 10-12 minutes in a preheated 350F oven. Be careful not to overbake them - they're better a little underbaked and squishy than overbaked and hard.

Pretzels and Hugs

This is my favorite simple snack item -

Buy a bag of Hershey's Hugs and a bag of small pretzels - but not the stick kind. Put a layer of wax paper on a cookie sheet, lay out the pretzels, and place a hug on each one. Put them in the oven on some ridiculously low temperature (I use 300?) and just watch them for a few minutes until the Hugs are starting to melt into the pretzel.

Remove from oven and throw in the fridge. Remove from paper after about 30 minutes in the fridge.

I've experimented with other Kisses, but these were the original recipe and have turned out the best. I'm not the biggest fan of white chocolate, but it seems to work out on these.

Chocolate Frosting

This is a WONDERFUL all purpose chocolate frosting that is very easy to make. But, it does cool quickly, so it isn't the best choice for cupcakes. If making a 9x13, you can't go wrong. Put this on top of box mix cake, and everyone will think you did the entire thing from scratch.

In saucepan combine:
4 Tbs butter or marg
1 c. sugar
4 1/2 Tbs milk or half and half

Get to a strong boil over medium heat for one minute, not more.

Beat in 1/2 c. chocolate chips until fluffy - about double in size.
(I see no reason you couldn't substitute white chocolate or butterscotch chips)

Spread quickly.

Chocolate Joy Icing

This is a great frosting for angel food cake. It's very light and doesn't dry out.

2 2/3 c powdered sugar
1/3 c soft butter/marg/shortening
4 Tbs cocoa
1/3 tsp salt
1 egg yolk
@ 5 Tbs hot water

Mix until fluffy. Adjust water amount until proper consistency.

Oreo Balls

I made these for christmas one year and it was demanded that I make them again. I currently have to take holiday orders for my Dad and my MIL. It's not hard at all, you don't even have to bake them.

1 pkg Oreo cookies (regular old school style)
1 pkg (8oz.) Cream Cheese, softened
1 pkg Semi-sweet chocolate chips (12oz) *

This recipe works best if you have a stand mixer, but you could probably do alright with a hand mixer or a food processor.

Break the Oreos up in to chunks and throw them in a bowl. (If you are using a food processor, go ahead and chop them up to fine pieces.) Add in the cream cheese. Mix on med. speed until everything is well mixed together and doughy. Refrigerate cookie mixture for 30 min or so, just to make it easier to work with. Scoop dough out into small rounded balls onto a wax-paper lined cookie sheet.

Melt chocolate chips in a small saucepan over low heat. Dip the balls into the chocolate, place back on the cookie sheet. (this gets a little futzy and messy). Once the chocolate has cooled and hardened you can stack them together. Store in the fridge. I think they are best cold, but they hold up well out on the table all day too.

* You can get fancier with the chocolate if you want to- Some people prefer white chocolate. Some do half and half. I've colored white chocolate to be festive. I've dipped in regular chocolate and then come back later and drizzled the white across the top (or vice versa). You could add crushed candy cane or toffee bits on the top. The possibilities are endless.

Peanut Butter Bon Bons

This one is a X-mas favorite at the Wog home.

2 1/2 c peanut butter
1/2 c. butter or margarine
16oz (4 1/2 c) sifted powdered sugar
3 c rice cereal
12 oz package of chocolate chips OR 6 oz choc chips and 6 oz butterscotch chips OR almond bark

Melt peanut butter and butter in a sauce pan. In a large bowl combine powdered sugar and cereal. Pour peanut butter mixture over the cereal mixture. Blend together by hand. It will seem a bit crumbly but will hold together when you form it into balls. Don't worry. Form into 1/2 inch balls. Chill until firm.

Melt chocolate (or chocolate and butterscotch). Dip balls into chocolate. Place on waxed paper and chill. Enjoy!

Chocolate Carmel Bars

Any time there was a family event, I would force my mom to make and bring these bars. Eating the Sexy Blonde's brownies made me remember them.

Beat:
1 c. margarine
2 c. brown sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla
2 1/2 c. flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
3 c. oatmeal

Pat 3/4 of this mixture on bottom of 9x13 pan.

In a double boiler (or microwave), melt:
14 oz Kraft caramels
2 Tbsp. water
15 oz. sweetened condensed milk

Pour this over the batter in the pan. Sprinkle 3/4 cup chocolate chips on top. Then sprinkle remaining batter on top. Bake 20-25 minutes at 325.

Chocolate Zucchini Cake

Grew up with this one - it's yummy. I think of it as eating my veggies but getting cake at the same time. A good one to pull on the kids since you can't taste the zucchini but it makes the cake very moist.
Note - on this one you put the topping on BEFORE you bake. But, I have made this without the topping and it was just fine.

1/2 c. margarine
1/4 c. oil
1 3/4c. white sugar
2 eggs
2 1/2 c flour
4 Tb. cocoa
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 c. sour milk (which would be just short of 1/2 milk plus 1 1/2 tsp lemon juice)
2 c. zucchini, peeled and grated
1 tsp vanilla

Preheat oven to 325. Cream marg, oil and sugar. Add eggs. Add dry ingredients alternately with sour milk (or, be like me and just dump everything in together). Add zucchini and vanilla. Beat well. Pour into greased 9x13 pan.

Topping:
1 c chopped walnuts (optional)
1/2 c. brown sugar
1 c. chocolate chips

Mix ingredients and spread evenly on cake before baking. Bake cake at 325 for 40-45 min or until done.