Desserts for Dudes: Dark Chocolate Espresso Trail Mix Brownies

Don't *EVEN* get me started on these brownies.  OK.  Not really.  Get me started.  

I came up with these brownies for my big dude (the one I'm married to) because he's a huge fan of Target's trail mixes.  His favorites are the Black and White and the Dark Chocolate Espresso.


For this recipe, I used Dark Chocolate Espresso Trail Mix.  What's inside?  Chocolate-covered almonds, praline almonds, mocha pecans, chocolate chips, hazelnuts, and chocolate-covered coffee beans.  What I love about adding it to brownies is that you get a lot of different "crunches," not just your typical pecans or walnuts.


My advice to you is this: make these brownies when you have people to share them with.  I'm sitting here, totally full from lunch, one huge brownie down.  I start editing the pictures and ohmygosh....how could I resist going back for another?!?  I mean, look at them...

{Of course, I cut one in half, went back to editing pictures, then promptly got up and ate the other half.  Who are these people who can eat 1/2 of a brownie?}

Side note:  I was telling one the sweet (super fit) instructors at Pure Barre that I struggle with seeing big results from working out.  You see, I explained, blogging and recipe development involve lots of taste testing, and her advice was to test "just one bite."  And that, my friends, is why she looks the way she does, and I look the way I do. ;) 

Alright, back to the brownies.  Here's what you can expect: deep, dark chocolate...a hint of espresso...fudgey texture...melty chocolate...and assorted crunchiness throughout.



To get that deep, dark color and rich chocolate flavor, I swear by Hershey's Special Dark Cocoa...

 

Dark Chocolate Espresso Trail Mix Brownies

1 cup (2 sticks) salted butter
2 & 1/4 cups granulated sugar
1 & 1/2 cups Dutch process cocoa
1 teaspoon espresso powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
4 eggs
1 & 1/4 cups unbleached, all-purpose flour
1 cup Target Archer Farms Dark Chocolate Espresso Trail Mix

Preheat oven to 350.  Grease a 9x13" pan.


Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over low heat.  Once melted, stir in the sugar.  Stir the sugar and butter while gently heating until the mixture is warm to the touch (but not boiling).  Remove the pan from the heat.

Stir in the cocoa, espresso powder, salt, baking powder and vanilla.  Whisk in the eggs until incorporated.


Stir in the flour...


...then fold in the trail mix.

Pour into the prepared pan, and smooth.  Bake for 28 minutes, or until done.  Cool in the pan on a wire cooling rack.


*adapted from King Arthur Flour Cookie Companion*

Y'all...forget the dudes.  I think I'm going back for another. 

Chocolate Baguette Sandwiches with Orange and Sea Salt

For a long time, France was not near the top of my “must see” list.  Weird, I know.  Every girl wants to see the Eiffel Tower in person, right?  Not that I didn’t want to see it, but it wasn’t a burning desire. 

As I got older, though, I started thinking less about the Eiffel Tower and more about the FOOD.  I mean, macarons, croissants, and crepes…oh my.  Then, I heard a rumor that in France, mothers make chocolate sandwiches for their children for lunch or after-school snacks.  I have no idea if this is true or not, but NOW I have a burning desire to find out.

In the meantime, these.  Grilled chocolate sandwiches (or paninis) are a cinch to pull off at home and will definitely add a little “ooo-la-la” to your lunchtime.


Simple ingredients: a baguette, an orange, a little sea salt, a good chocolate bar and
Land O Lakes® Butter with Canola Oil…perfect. I love the delicious, simple goodness of this sandwich.


The orange zest adds a little freshness…and hey, go ahead a slice up that orange after zesting to serve as a side.  I like the long strings of orange zest, but feel free to use a smaller zester.

Sea salt and chocolate is a combination made in heaven.  Feel free to substitute any sea salt, but if you splurge for the fleur de sel, know that it will last you for ages!  I consider it a good investment. ;)

Here’s why I love Land O Lakes® Spreadable Butter with Canola Oil: It’s made with three ingredients. THREE!  Cream, canola oil, salt.  The end.  Grab it from the fridge and it’s perfectly spreadable, and soft enough to stir in other ingredients, like the orange zest.


In a small bowl, stir together 2 tablespoons of Land O Lakes® Butter with Canola Oil and orange zest until well combined.


Cut each section of baguette in half lengthwise.  Spread 1/4 of the butter/orange mixture on the top cut half of each baguette (on the cut side, not the crust.)  Break the chocolate bars into large pieces to cover the bottom half of each baguette section.  Do not let the chocolate overhang.  Sprinkle a pinch of sea salt onto the chocolate.

Press the top and bottom halves together.


Divide the remaining tablespoon of butter with canola oil between the 4 sandwiches, spreading on both sides.

Heat a Panini press.  Cook the sandwich for 1 to 1 and 1/2 minutes, until the chocolate is soft and just beginning to melt around the edges, but is not completely melted.  (Alternatively, heat a pan over medium heat, place the sandwich on the pan, and press down with another pan weighted with a can or cookbook.  Cook for 1 and 1/2 minutes per side.)

You’ll want the chocolate to still have some “bite,” and not be melted all the way through.  Melting along the edges is just fine…and just delicious.


Ooo-la-la, y’all. 

I’m so happy to be working with Land O’Lakes this year as a part of their Kitchen Conversations team. Be on the lookout for more posts and fun events throughout the year.  Team Butter!!!

Be sure to check out the buttery delicious recipes from the rest of the group: Ree, Sommer, Julie, Maria, Jenny, Jessica, Joanne, and Brenda. 

I just returned home from a trip out to the ranch with this group.  I've had the pleasure of meeting each of these ladies before.  When you read someone's blog and then actually meet them in person, they really do feel like old friends almost immediately.


There was a cooking contest, ranch tour, a tour of (the!) building, power outage, Charlie sighting...and, oh yeah, eating butter with a spoon.  Yep.  It was a GOOD TIME.


We also got to sample each other's recipes.  Those links up there?  Make them all.  These girls know their way around food...and butter.  Each and every recipe is a winner.  Each and every one will make an appearance in my kitchen!

*some of these images are courtesy of Sommer, Julie, and Land O'Lakes*

Chocolate Baguette Sandwiches with Orange and Sea Salt

Yield: 4 Servings
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 5 minutes

Ingredients:
•    3 tablespoons Land O Lakes® Butter with Canola Oil, divided
•    Zest of one large orange
•    French baguette, cut into 4 equal portions
•    8 ounces bittersweet or semi-sweet chocolate bars (not chips)
•    Pinch sea salt, such as fleur de sel

Directions:
In a small bowl, stir together 2 tablespoons of Land O Lakes® Butter with Canola Oil and orange zest until well combined.

Cut each section of baguette in half lengthwise. Spread 1/4 of the butter/orange mixture on the top cut half of each baguette.  Break the chocolate bars into large pieces to cover the bottom half of each baguette section. Sprinkle a pinch of sea salt onto the chocolate.

Press the top and bottom halves together. Heat a Panini press.

Cook the sandwich for 1 to 1 and 1/2 minutes, until the chocolate is soft and just beginning to melt around the edges, but is not completely melted. If you do not have a Panini press, heat a pan over medium heat, place the sandwich on the pan, and press down with another pan weighted with a can or cookbook.  Cook for 1 and 1/2 minutes per side.

{sunrise on the ranch}

Disclosure: Bake at 350 has partnered with Land O'Lakes for an exclusive endorsement of
Land O Lakes® Butter for their Kitchen Conversations blogger program. This blog post is sponsored by Land O'Lakes.

Small Batch Cocoa Rouge Macaroons

Let's say this up front.  "Small batch" baking means that the person who did the baking gets to eat it all, right?  

I think after making these cookies, I'm officially instituting that rule in our house.  This small batch cocoa rouge macaroon recipe makes 6 cookies.  Of course, immediately after taking these pictures, I promptly ate two of them.

Here was my mistake...I ate two of the six, and the boys were not home.  It took EVERY OUNCE of my willpower not to eat the other 4 while they were gone.  Eating just one more would leave an odd number, and if I ate two more, they would never believe that the recipe only made 3 cookies.


Somehow, I managed to leave the other 4 alone.  Wonder Woman has her invisible jet.  That day, I had willpower of steel.  (And, by resisting those cookies, probably abs of steel, too.  I'm so glad you can't actually SEE my abs right now.)

Anyway.  The cookies.  These are dark, rich, chewy, soft, chocolatey, coconut macaroons.  (Not to be confused with macarons.)  Think: fudgy brownies loaded with sweetened coconut.


They're made with this Cocoa Rouge cocoa powder from Guittard...I found it right in my grocery store...but any Dutch-process cocoa will do.

Cocoa Rouge Macaroons

{makes 6}

1/2 cup Cocoa Rouge cocoa powder (or any Dutch-process cocoa)
1 cup powdered sugar
pinch kosher salt
2 egg whites
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup flaked, sweetened coconut

Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.  Preheat oven to 350.

In a bowl of an electric mixer, combine the cocoa powder, sugar and salt.  Add in the egg whites and vanilla, mixing on low until combined.  (The mixture will appear dry at first, just keep beating.)

Stir in the coconut until coated.

Use a 2-tablespoon cookie scoop to scoop mounds of dough onto the prepared cookie sheet.

Bake for 15 minutes, or until the cookie surface is dry and glossy.  Cool on the pan for 20 minutes, then use a cookie spatula to transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely.

{Recipe adapted from Guittard.}

Oh hello, you cute little thing. 

Small batch baking?  Serving size: one.  Are you in?

Chocolate Almond Cherry Biscotti...don't try to resist them.

This picture pretty much sums up my loves in life: red + white, hearts, valentines, polka dots, cherries, almonds and chocolate.




{Raise your hand if you'd like to see heart-shaped everything year-round.}


I love biscotti. If you've never made them before, they bake twice.  For the first bake, the dough is shaped into a log.  Then, the baked dough is cooled a bit, sliced, and baked again.  This ensures cookies with a great crunch.


{Anyone else see that heart-shaped almond?  While we're on the subject...has anybody seen Drew Barrymore's new book, Find It In Everything?  I think I must buy it.}


The cookies are crunchy and chocolatey.  Chock-full of chopped almonds and sweet dried cherries, they're dipped in melted semisweet chocolate to make them extra special.

Perfect for dessert, perfect with a cappuccino, perfect for breakfast, perfect for packaging and giving this Valentine's Day.

Chocolate Almond Cherry Biscotti...you'll love them.

Click over to Imperial Sugar for the recipe.

Speculoos & Chocolate Button Cookies for Santa

I have a Christmastime confession for you. Are you ready?

Many years ago when I was selling cookies, I was so exhausted from making Christmas cookies for other people that we set out a store-bought cookie assortment for Santa at our house.  How terrible is that?  A cookie maker feeding store-bought cookies to Santa?

I remember it clearly because as kiddo took each cookie from the package to place on Santa's plate, he took a bite out of each one. ;)  (He is his mother's child.)

This year Santa is getting these: Speculoos & Chocolate Button Cookies.  
(That is if I don't eat them all first.)

They feature my all-time favorite bittersweet chocolate for eating straight: Lindt Dark Swiss Bittersweet Chocolate Bar.  I keep it in my "chocolate basket" in the pantry at all times.  The size of the pieces just happen to be perfect for the cookies.

Speculoos:  I know it sounds funny, but I bet you've eaten it before.  You know those crunchy cinnamon cookies they serve on Delta Airlines?  Those are Speculoos cookies; the brand is Biscoff.  You can also buy Speculoos spread....which is like peanut butter MADE FROM COOKIES.  Look for Biscoff brand or Trader Joe's Cookie Butter.

The cookies are a little crispy around the edges, chewy in the center, covered in cinnamon-sugar, and topped off with the perfect piece of Lindt chocolate.  It's the chocolate that just catapults them from really yummy to ohmygoodness so delicious.

Let's make them.

Speculoos & Chocolate Button Cookies

{yield: 40 cookies}

1 & 1/2 cups unbleached, all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup (1 stick) salted butter, cut into chunks
3/4 cup Speculoos spread
1 teaspoon cinnamon sugar, plus more for rolling
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup light brown sugar
1 egg
2 TBSP milk
2 Lindt Bittersweet Chocolate Bars, divided into pieces (you'll have leftover chocolate)

Cinnamon-Sugar (if you don't have it on hand)
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 TBSP cinnamon (or to taste)

Preheat oven to 375.  Line cookies sheets with parchment paper.

Combine the flour, salt and baking soda in a bowl and set aside.

Cream the butter and Speculoos spread together until smooth.  Beat in the sugars.  Add in the egg and milk and beat until combined.

Add in the flour mixture on low, in three additions.

Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Roll into 1 to 1.5 inch balls, then roll through the extra cinnamon-sugar.

Bake for 9-10 minutes or until done.  Remove from the oven and let sit on the cookie sheet for 1 minute.  (The cookies will be slightly poufy when they come out of the oven, then deflate.)

Press a piece of chocolate onto the top of each cookie.

Remove the cookies to a cooling rack to cool completely.

Serve to Santa.

PS...I have it on good authority that if you put a few Lindt LINDOR truffles out with the cookies, Santa leaves extra goodies.

{This post was sponsored by Lindt Chocolate.  Thank you, Lindt.}

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!! 
Eat lots of cookies!

Peanut Butter Chocolate Fudge aaaaaaand....a KitchenAid Mixer Giveaway for Christmas!

Every year at Christmastime, my dad makes fudge.  I love watching him stand over the stove, stirring, stirring, stirring.  When it's finished, he divides it in half and spreads it onto two dinner plates to set.  No baking pan, no fancy molds....dinner plates.

When the fudge is set and ready, it's cut into uneven pieces with a table knife.  Don't even think about getting out a bench scraper for this job.

The most important part, though?  Dad has the first piece...with a beer.  It's mandatory.  No one makes it like he does.  I've tried.

This year, I'm making a different fudge...a chocolate peanut butter fudge.  Maybe I'll serve it alongside his.  And, just maybe, I'll eat the first piece with a beer.

The recipe follows, but I wanted to let you know the Eagle Brand, the essential ingredient to this fudge and so many other holiday treats, has a treat for you.  It's a giveaway of a 4.5 quart, silver KitchenAid stand mixer, plus a supply of Eagle Brand sweetened condensed milk.

Also, now through December 14th, pin recipes from Eagle Brand, tag your pins with #sweetentheseason and you could win one of over 100 prizes! 

To enter: leave a comment on this post sharing one of your favorite holiday traditions.

For an extra entry: leave a separate comment telling me your favorite Christmas song!

***Update: winner is Koko!!!***

Peanut Butter Chocolate Fudge

{adapted from Eagle Brand}

• 1 (14 oz.) can Eagle Brand® Sweetened Condensed Milk, divided
• 1/3 cup Jif® Creamy Peanut Butter
• 1/2 cup white baking chips
• 1/2 cup peanut butter chips
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, divided
• 1/4 teaspoon almond extract
• 1/3 cup chopped salted peanuts
• 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• chopped peanuts for topping

Line an 8x8" pan with foil, leaving some overhang.

In a small saucepan, combine 1/2 cup sweetened condensed milk with the peanut butter.  Heat over medium-low heat until the peanut butter is melted and hot.  Remove from heat and stir in the white chocolate and peanut butter chips until they melt.

Stir in 1/2 teaspoon vanilla and the almond extract.  Stir in the peanuts.  Set aside.

In a microwave-safe bowl, combine the remaining sweetened condensed milk, chocolate chips, and salt on high heat for 1 minute.  Stir until smooth and melted.  Heat at 15-second intervals, if not completely smooth after 1 minute.  Stir in the remaining vanilla.

Spoon both mixture into the pan, alternating as you go.   Swirl lightly with a table knife.  Sprinkle with the extra chopped peanuts. To smooth the top press lightly with a piece of waxed paper.

Refrigerate for at least 1 hour, until set.  Cut and serve.

Entries for the giveaway will be accepted through 11:59pm, December 13th.  Good luck!

{This post and giveaway are being sponsored by Eagle Brand! Thank you, EB!}