Brigaderio cookie? Confectionary?

OMG why has no one shown me this glorious secret before?!!?!?!? !

Also, you will need a WHOLE little jar of chocolate sprinkles if you're going that route. Next time, wholesale amazon chocolate sprinkles here we come!

Seriously, glorious. 

Ingredients:

1 Can sweetened condensed milk

1 tbsp butter 

3 tbsp cocoa

whole jar of chocolate sprinkles

Directions:

1. Combine condensed milk, butter, and cocoa in a small/medium saucepan. 

2. Heat on Low/Medium while constantly stirring until thickened 5-10 minutes. The mixture will reduce in quantity and be thick and sticky. 

3. Transfer to a bowl where it can cool

4. Once slightly cooled, form balls - I used a silicone spatula/spoon. 

5. Roll the balls in sprinkles - best if you first pour them in a little bowl. 

Enjoy warm or chill until ready to serve! OMG. 

What we liked:

Definitely satisfies that chocolate desire

What we didn't like:

It's kinda sticky and gooey but so so good

What Kaspian thought about it:

He dreams of them. 

Next time:

MAKE MORE. SOON. 

Ptich'e Moloko (Birds Milk) Cake!

This cake does take a little bit to make...definitely make it the day before, because first of all, it needs to sit overnight, and second of all, it might not work the first time as needed so you might need to make it a few times to get the egg whites to where they need to be, so have extra egg whites for sure :) 

We used agar agar powder we got from our local International market - Talin. We got the telephone brand and that worked splendidly. 

Everyone loved the cake and the presentation is quite impressive. 

The original recipe can be found here: https://finecooking.ru/recipe/tort-ptiche-moloko-po-gostu

We tried to have a sugar sculpture for topping, but after spending about 4 cups of sugar and a good couple of hours, we were not successful in creating a good sculpture... it may just be because it seems like they do not use straight sugar a lot of times but a sugar derivative to make the (not as good tasting) but more stable sculpture. If anyone has any ideas, we will gladly take em :) 

Final Cake!

Slice of Delicious Cake!

It was a Birthday, after all!

Ready to have toppings!

Ganach-ed!

Ready to rest!

mmm the cake layers to be baked

Ingredients:

For the Cake Layers

140 Grams flour

2 eggs

100 grams butter

100 grams sugar

1 tsp vanilla

Soufle:

460 Grams sugar

200 grams butter

100 grams sweetened condensed milk

160 ml water

2 egg whites

4 grams agar agar

1 tbs lemon juice

1 tsp vanilla

Chocolate Glaze: 

90 grams chocolate, dark or bitter preferred

50 grams butter

For decorations - fruits or berries, whatever you have! Or, you could also attempt the sugar sculpture that we had a vision but no talent for! :) 

Directions:

1. Set 160 ml of water and add in 4 grams of agar agar. Leave to soak for approximately an hour.

Cake Layers: 

1. On two pieces of parchment paper, make a circle with a pencil of the size of your cake layers, we used about 9". Make sure to mark with pencil on the opposite side that you will be putting your batter onto. 

2. Preheat oven to 425 F

3. In a stand mixer, combine 100 grams of softened butter with 100 grams sugar and vanilla. 

4. Whis on high speed for a few minutes until combined. 

5. One at a time, add in the eggs, continue mixing. 

6. When combined, add in 140 grams of sifted flour. 

7. This will look like a cake mix now and should hold it's form. 

8. Divide the mixture into two, and spread into the shape of two circles on your parchment paper. Remember to keep the pencil markings on the under side. 

9. Bake each (or both at the same time) cake for about 8 to 9 minutes each until done.

10. If your cake has oozed out past the circle, you can now cut it to the shape you want. We used 9 inch rounds in a bigger springform so that the soufle would ooze around it. You can see that in the pictures, and if you are doing the same, then you don't need to cut it to a perfect circle. 

11. Cool completely. They will be thin, so this will not take long. 

Soufle *we had two people doing this step, one person doing the agar agar boiling and the other doing the egg whites): 

1. In the stand mixer bowl, combine 200g of softened butter wtih the 100g of sweetened condensed milk. 

2. Mix until creme consistnecy, it will be shiny and voluminous. 

3. Set aside for now. 

4. Bring the agar agar mixture we made earlier to a boil and mix until it reaches boiling. 

5. Add in the 460 g of sugar when all of agar agar is dissolved. 

6. Keep boiling until sugar is dissolved constantly stirring.

7. Boil until it reaches 230 degrees F or 110 Degrees C. This should take about 8 to 9 minutes. The mixture will foam and increase in volume. 

8. Place 70 grams of egg whites (about 2 to 3 eggs) into the stand mixer bowl.

9. Whip on high speed until they are slightly foamy. Add a tsp of cream of tartar. Keep mixing unitil stiff peaks. Add in the lemon juice tsp. Keep mixing. 

10. SLOWLY, on the side of the metal mixer bowl, pour in the agar agar mixture - should take about 30 seconds to fully pour it all in. 

11. You will see the whole mixture become denser, thicker, and increase in volume. It will also look very shiny. 

12. Add in the butter/sweetened condensed milk mixture we made earlier on LOW speed. 

13. When combined, stop mixing. 

COMBINE - DO THIS RIGHT AFTER MAKING THE SOUFFLE!!!!

1. Now, we need to work fast because this mixture will start to stiffen up due to the agar agar cooling down. So, work quickly and don't take a break! This is critical!

2. Get your springform pan, and line it with parchment paper, you can use your earlier parchment paper sheets that you baked on. 

3. Place one cake layer on the bottom. 

4. Pour in half of the Souffle mixture. 

5. Place the second cake layer on top.

6. Pour the rest of the souffle mixture on top. 

7. Spin the form around to settle the suffle while keeping the pan on the table, this will level out and settle the souffle. 

8. Place in the fridge and let it cool for a couple of hours. 

After it is cooled - add in the chocolate glaze

Chocolate glaze 

1. On a double broiler bring to a boil, and add in the 90 g chocolate and 50 g butter until well melted and combined. 

Pour the chocolate glaze over the souffle after the cake has cooled. 

Set in the fridge overnight. 

Decorate the next day with berries, sugar sculptures or fruit as desired. 

ENJOY!

What we liked:

THE CAKE IS DELICIOUS

What we didn't like:

It is a lot of hard work - BUT WELL WORTH IT!!! It is important to time the egg whites stiffening and agar agar mixture boiling properly or you will lose one or the other or both. We had to try it several times to get it right, but so so so worth it, once again. 

What Kaspian thought about it:

YUM! All the kiddoes and adults loved the cake. 

Next time:

Next time - make it again! Yum!

Bailey's Chocolate Poke Cake

We have been in some weird chocolate deficit state. This was an attempt to alleviate that. Overall it was good. Better than most cakes you buy, even a Whole Foods cake. We got a chocolate mousse whole foods cake shortly after making this and we must say, that this is way better. It is relatively easy to make and tastes way better than any store bought one! We didn't have mini chocolate chips so we just used a Trader Joe's dark chocolate bar we had and used the shavings off of it instead. It might have even turned out better than with chocolate chips! :) 

Here's the original recipe:  https://www.lifeloveandsugar.com/2018/02/26/baileys-chocolate-poke-cake/

Ingredients:

Cake:
2 cups flour
2 cups sugar
3/4 cup cocoa powder
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
2 large eggs
3/4 cup milk
1 cup vegetable oil
1 cup Baileys Irish Cream, divided
1 tsp vanilla
3/4 cup boiling water
1 cup sweetened condensed milk
3/4 cup chocolate chips

Frosting:
2 cups heavy whipping cream, cold
3/4 cup powdered sugar
1/4 cup cocoa powder
2 tbsp Baileys Irish Cream
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 300°F. Spray a 9×13 inch cake pan with cooking spray.
2. Combine all dry ingredients in a Kitchanaid mixer bowl.
3. Add eggs, milk, vegetable oil, 1/2 cup of Irish cream and vanilla to the dry ingredients and mix well.
4. Slowly pour the water into the batter, mixing well.
5. Pour the batter into the cake pan and bake for about 40-45 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out with a few crumbs.
6. Remove the cake from the oven and poke holes all over.
7. While the cake is still warm, add the chocolate chips to a medium sized bowl. Set aside.
8. Add the sweetened condensed milk and remaining 1/2 cup of Irish cream to a microwave safe measuring cup. Heat heat the milk and cream until they begin to boil, then pour over the chocolate chips.
9. Whisk the chocolate until smooth, then immediately pour over the cake, spreading it into the holes. Don’t let the mixture sit before pouring it over the cake or it’ll start to thicken and not soak in the holes as well.
10. Set the cake in the fridge to cool and soak.
11. When the cake has cooled, add the ingredients for the whipped cream topping to a large mixer bowl. Whip on high speed until stiff peaks form.
12. Spread the whipped cream evenly over the cake. Top the cake with mini chocolate chips and a drizzle of chocolate sauce, if desired. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

What we liked:

It was really fun to make and try!

What we didn't like:

It is better on day 2, after it's had time to soak and cool rather than right after making it. 

What Kaspian thought about it:

He was a little suspicious.

Next time:

Make in advance. 

Chocolate Tipsy Bundt Cake

This was a very dense chocolatey cake. It turned out very yummy.
The original recipe was from The Costco Connection Magazine October 2017.
It was not too tedious to make and definitely satisfying.

Ingredients:

1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder, plus more for dusting the pan
1 cup freshly brewed coffee
1/2 cup rum
1 cup unsalted butter, cut in pieces
2 cups sugar
2 cups flour
1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Icing:
2/3 cup semisweet chocolate chips
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons milk or heavy cream
2 tablespoons rum

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 325 F
2. Spray the bundt pan with oil and dust with cocoa powder
3. Place coffee, rum, butter and cocoa powder in a saucepan over medium heat and whisk until butter is melted.
4. Remove from heat and add sugar until dissolved. Set aside to cool.
5. Combine flour, baking soda and salt in a large bowl.
6. In the bowl of a stand mixer, mix together eggs, buttermilk and vanilla. When the chocolate mixture has cooled, add it in to the stand mixer. Add in the flour mixture until well incorporated. 
7. Pour the  batter into the bundt pan and bake for 40- 50 minutes until toothpick comes out clean.
8. Place on wire rack to cool.

Icing:
1. Melt chocolate in a double broiler. Add butter, milk and rum and simmer for 5 minutes constantly stirring. Add more milk or cream if needed to reach proper consistency.


When the cake has cooled, invert it onto a wire rack over parchment or wax paper. Dust with powder sugar (optional) and drizzle with chocolate rum icing. 

What we liked:

It was great and chocolatey!

What we didn't like:

Nothing, it was great. 

What Kaspian thought about it:

He wasn't into it. 

Next time:

No changes. 

Raspberry Chocolate Mousse Cups

To continue our dessert making saga, we came into the possession of 6! Raspberry boxes last week. So, we had to make delicious desserts. What goes better than chocolate and raspberry!?
We also had that giant (1 lb) Trader Joe's 72% Cacao Chocolate bar that we bought for covering the Black Forest Torte we made...so we had chocolate around the house, and raspberries, and cream. So, this is what happened.
We did not make the chocolate cups, as we also had those around the house since we picked them up to make something extra yummy. They served well.

Here is the original recipe: http://www.homecookingadventure.com/recipes/raspberry-chocolate-cups

Ingredients:

1 box (6 oz) fresh raspberries
1/4 cup  sugar
7 oz  dark chocolate (55-70% cocoa)
1 1/4 cup heavy cream, cold
whole raspberries for decoration (optional)

Directions:

1. Place the raspberries and sugar in a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer until the mixture thickens. Sieve the mixture to separate and discard the seeds.
2. Melt chocolate in a double broiler. Add in the raspberry sauce from step 1.
3. Whip the cream and add in the chocolate mixture in slow stream.
4. Place into chocolate cups or glass cups. Decorate with raspberries if desired.
5. Refrigerate for at least an hour 

What we liked:

This mousse is sooo good. 

What we didn't like:

After refrigeration some of the chocolate re-solidified as chocolate chunks and the mousse lost some of it's smoothness

What Kaspian thought about it:

He loves the chocolate. 

Next time:

Try combining the 1/3 whipping cream into chocolate first and then the rest into the whipping cream. We meant to do that, but got carried away because we were also making the chocolate raspberry cake at the same time. 

Chocolate Raspberry and Raspberry Lemonade Cupcakes

We had a party on Saturday and these are the cupcakes we made for it. They were delicious. The frosting was perfect. We are still learning to pipe frosting and do decorative stuff, but we tried.
We made a batch of chocolate cupcakes and a batch of the lemon ones. Then, we doubled the recipe for the raspberry frosting to cover both batches. We ended up with 35 cupcakes total.
The strange thing was that the chocolate ones "fell" (had dimples in the middle) after cooking. But the lemon ones did great. We upped the temperature by 5 degrees for the lemon ones (they cooked second), just in case the oven temp was off.
These not only taste good, but also look wonderful... even with our ahem, "creative" frosting job.

Here are the original two recipes:
http://www.cookingclassy.com/2016/01/dark-chocolate-cupcakes-with-raspberry-buttercream-frosting/
http://www.cookingclassy.com/2015/01/raspberry-lemonade-cupcakes/

Raspberry Lemonade Cupcakes

Cupcake Tiers

Chocolate cupcakes close up

Exciting decorations 

Stored in a covered tall cookie tray

these are the tips we used

Some have hidden raspberries!  

Cupcakes

Frosting

Ingredients:

Chcolate Cupcakes:

2 oz semi-sweet chocolate chips
3/4 cup + 2 Tbsp (124g) all-purpose flour
1/4 cup + 2 Tbsp (38g) unsweetened cocoa powder
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup (220g) granulated sugar
1/4 cup (56g) unsalted butter, softened
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup (124g) sour cream
1/2 cup boiling water

Lemonade Cupcakes:

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/8 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 Tbsp lemon zest (zest of 2 medium lemons)
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 large egg
2 large egg whites
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 cup + 3 Tbsp buttermilk
1 1/2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
Simple Syrup (top the cupcakes with after cooking)
2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 Tbsp sugar

Raspberry Buttercream Frosting:
2 (heaping) cup fresh raspberries
1 cup unsalted butter, nearly at room temperature
1/2 cup salted butter, nearly at room temperature
5 1/2 to 6 cups powdered sugar (until right consistency is reached)
1 tsp vanilla extract
~30 fresh raspberries, for topping (depending on how many cupcakes are made and if you want a raspberry in the middle, under the frosting)

Directions: 

Chocolate Cupcakes:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 24-cup cupcake pan with cupcake liners.
2. Melt chocolate in a microwave safe bowl on 50% power in 20 second intervals, stirring between intervals until melted and smooth, set aside to cool slightly. We needed almost 2 minutes for the chocolate to melt.
3. In a mixing bowl whisk together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt for 20 seconds, set aside.
4. In the stand mixer, with the paddle attachment, mix together sugar and butter until combined. Mix in egg, egg yolk and vanilla extract. Mix in melted chocolate then mix in sour cream. Add half of the flour mixture and mix on low speed until combined then add remaining half and mix until combined. Add about 1/5 of the boiling water at a time, mixing until combined after each addition. Once water has all been mixed in mix batter on medium-low speed for 1 minute.
5. Divide batter among prepared muffin cups, filling each about 2/3 full (it's about 1/4 cup of batter). We got 16 cupcakes out of this batter.
6. Bake in preheated oven until set and toothpick inserted into center comes out clean, about 17 - 20 minutes. Remove from oven, transfer to a wire rack and cool. Once cool frost with Raspberry Buttercream Frosting and top with raspberries. Store in an airtight container in refrigerator.

Lemonade Cupcakes:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Whisk together all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt and whisk 20 seconds.
3. In a food processor, pulse together 3/4 cup granulated sugar with lemon zest until finely ground, about 1 minute.
4. In the bowl of an electric stand mixer, with the paddle attachment, whip together butter with lemon sugar mixture until pale and fluffy. Add in egg, egg whites, and vanilla.
5. Whisk together buttermilk and lemon juice.
6. Working in three separate batches, beginning and ending with flour mixture, add 1/3 of the flour mixture alternating with 1/2 of the buttermilk mixture and mixing just until combined after each addition.
7. Divide batter among lined cupcake cups. We got 17 out of this batter.
8. Bake in preheated oven until toothpick inserted into center of cupcake comes out clean, about 18 - 20 minutes. While the cupcakes are coking - prepare the simple syrup by mixing the 1 tablespoon of sugar with 2 tablespoons of lemon juice.
9. Remove from oven and allow to cool several minutes in muffin tin, then transfer to a wire rack to cool slightly. Brush the simple syrup on the warm cupcakes and allow to cook completely. After cooled, frost with Raspberry Frosting.

For the frosting:
1. Puree raspberries in a food processor until well pureed then force through a fine mesh strainer into a bowl to remove seeds.
2. Heat mixture in a saucepan set over medium-low heat until reduced by half. Cool completely.
3. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, whip butter until very pale and fluffy. Mix in 1 cup powdered sugar then mix in reduced raspberry puree and vanilla. Add remaining powdered sugar and mix until light and fluffy.
4. Add one raspberry to top of each cupcake if desired, then pipe frosting over raspberry and top with another raspberry. Store in an airtight container.

What we liked:

These were SOOO good. The chocolate ones were exceptionally good. 

What we didn't like:

Took a really long time to make. The frosting got too "soft" and we had to put it in the fridge for a little bit to harden. Although, it seems like if the frosting hardened too much then it wouldn't stick to the cupcake. We are still figuring out frosting. 

What Kaspian thought about it:

He LOVED the chocolate cupcakes. He did not like the raspberries. He helped to line the cupcake pan with the cupcake liners. All the green cupcake liners were cupcakes with no raspberry topping and no raspberry under the frosting. He actually ate all of the cupcakes given to him. (a lot of the times, he will just start a cupcake but never finish, these he loved enough to finish). 

Next time:

Work on figuring out frosting. Maybe only make the chocolate ones - everyone seemed to love those more. 

Nutella Brownies

Last night we really wanted some chocolate. These brownies are SUPER easy to make and really hit the chocolate spot. They are gooey, chocolate, and absolutely delicious. They would be fantastic with some whipped cream or ice cream and maybe some raspberry sauce.

Ingredients:

400 g (about 1 1/4 cups) Nutella
1/2 cup flour
2 eggs
1 teaspoons baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 handfuls chocolate chips
2 handfuls chopped nuts 

Directions:

1. Mix nutella, flour, eggs, baking soda and salt together. Add in the nuts and chocolate chips.
2. Pour into a greased pan and spread out.
3. Bake at 350 F for 25 minutes.

What we liked:

Quick and easy and so chocolatey!

What we didn't like:

Nothing, it was great!

What Kaspian thought about it:

He didn't notice it actually. We have some real chocolate cookies at the house, and those are more appealing apparently.  

Next time:

No Changes needed. 

Decadent Chocolate Ganache Cake

We made the most rich and chocolaty cake we have every had today. This cake is covered in ridiculous amounts of chocolate ganache! It was delicious but maybe a little too chocolaty (we didn't think that was possible).  The original recipe is here: http://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/triple-layer-sour-cream-chocolate-cake. As you can see, ours did not quite turn out like their picture. We suspect this is because we used real chocolate instead of the Hershey/Tollhouse/Nestle baking chips that have an oil/wax to stabilize them.

Completed Cake - DRENCHED in chocolate

Inside of the cake

Cake slice

   

Ingredients:

CAKE
Unsalted butter, for greasing
3 cups cake flour, plus more for dusting
9 ounces unsweetened chocolate, finely chopped
2 cups hot brewed coffee
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
4 large eggs, at room temperature
1 cup canola oil
1 cup sour cream, at room temperature
3 cups sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon fine sea salt

GANACHE
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, cut into 1-inch pieces
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
1 1/2 pounds semisweet chocolate, finely chopped
1/3 cup hot brewed coffee
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Directions:

MAKE THE CAKE
1) Preheat the oven to 350° and position the racks in the center and lower thirds. Butter three 9-by-2-inch round cake pans and line with parchment paper. Butter the paper and dust the pans with flour, tapping out the excess.
2) In a medium bowl, combine the chocolate with the coffee and vanilla and let stand for 2 minutes, then stir until the chocolate is melted. In another medium bowl, whisk the eggs with the oil until pale yellow, then whisk in the sour cream. Gradually whisk in the melted chocolate mixture until smooth.
3) In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle, combine the 3 cups of flour with the sugar, baking soda, cinnamon and salt and mix well. At medium speed, beat in the wet ingredients in 3 batches until just incorporated. Scrape down the bowl and beat until the batter is smooth.
4) Pour the batter evenly into the prepared cake pans. Gently tap the pans on the counter to release any air bubbles. Bake for about 35 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center of each cake comes out clean; shift the pans halfway through baking. Let the cakes cool completely, then carefully invert onto a rack and peel off the parchment.

MEANWHILE, MAKE THE GANACHE
1) In a medium saucepan, bring the cream, butter, sugar and salt just to a simmer over moderate heat, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Remove from the heat and add the chocolate. Let stand for 2 minutes, then stir until smooth. Stir in the coffee and vanilla. Let cool completely, stirring occasionally.

2) Transfer 1 cake to a plate. Spoon one-fourth of the ganache on top and spread in an even layer. Top with another cake and one-fourth of the ganache. Cover with the third cake and spread the remaining ganache over the top and side 
of the cake; decoratively swirl the ganache on top. 

What we liked:

It was oh so good! It was so rich and satisfied everyone's chocolate need!

What we didn't like:

The cake was too tall! We couldn't cut it and serve in one go. 

What Kaspian thought about it:

We thought he would love this cake as he love all things chocolate, but we bought a jar of jelly beans for the first time in his life today and he only had eyes for the green, blue and orange jelly beans! Did you know that jelly beans can be transported in matchbox cars - this makes them extra awesome (both the cars and the jelly beans).

Next time:

Make it two layers instead of 3 and maybe try to use the waxy baking chocolate chips (ugh! Not sure if we can make that sacrifice). Another option might be to use a little bit less of heavy cream to see if that will thicken up the ganache.

Soft and Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

We make a lot of chocolate chip cookies. It seems like each time we make a new recipe, always looking for the perfect one. Today's chocolate chip cookies were made from this recipe: http://www.marthastewart.com/344840/soft-and-chewy-chocolate-chip-cookies. These are Nick's favorite cookies so far. They came out perfectly soft and moist. They also have a good chocolate chip to cookie ratio (most recipes skimp on the chocolate chips! These are also quick. We forgot to let the butter sit out, so we wrapped it up in plastic food wrap and mushed it up so it was softened enough to blend with the sugar.

Completed Cookies!

Closer look

the parchment paper really helped to cook them evenly

ready for the oven - dark cookie sheet

Ready for the oven - light cookie sheet

Ingredients:

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 cup packed light-brown sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
2 large eggs
2 cups (about 12 ounces) semisweet and/or milk chocolate chips

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a small bowl, whisk together the flour and baking soda; set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the butter with both sugars; beat on medium speed until light and fluffy. Reduce speed to low; add the salt, vanilla, and eggs. Beat until well mixed, about 1 minute. Add flour mixture; mix until just combined. Stir in the chocolate chips.
3. Drop heaping tablespoon-size balls of dough about 2 inches apart on baking sheets lined with parchment paper.
4. Bake until cookies are golden around the edges, but still soft in the center, 8 to 10 minutes. Remove from oven, and let cool on baking sheet 1 to 2 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack, and let cool completely. Store cookies in an airtight container at room temperature up to 1 week.

What we liked:

Great chocolate chip to cookie ratio. Very soft and moist. Cooking on the parchment paper allowed us to use our light and dark cookie sheets and the cookies cooked the same on both. Usually, the dark cookie sheets produce crispier, more cooked (sometimes burned) cookies. But not these! We cooked them for 10 minutes and they came out great!

What we didn't like:

Nothing, they are great. 

What Kaspian thought about it:

HE LOVES COOKIES. He's a little cookie monster. He also loves chocolate chips by themselves too. 

Next time:

No changes needed!

Rum Balls

There is a local bakery - Swiss Alps Bakery that has the most delicious rum balls that Alona got slightly addicted to... so we decided to try to make some ourselves!
We used this recipe here: http://www.marthastewart.com/351250/rum-balls
These turned out really great! They are not quite the same as the ones that Swiss Alps makes, but it's close. There is definitely more rum in these.

the chocolate sprinkled ones turned out the best

Completed rum balls!

just out of the oven

foamy egg/chocolate mixture prior to flour addition

Ingredients:

3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into pieces
6 ounces semisweet chocolate, finely chopped
3 large eggs
1/2 cup packed light-brown sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons dark rum
Coarse sanding sugar, for rolling
Vegetable oil, cooking spray

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Coat a 12-by-17-inch rimmed baking sheet with cooking spray; set aside. Melt butter and chocolate in a small heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water, stirring occasionally. Set aside.
2. Whisk together eggs, brown sugar, vanilla, and salt in a large bowl. Stir in chocolate mixture, then fold in flour. Pour batter into prepared baking sheet. Spread evenly with a rubber spatula. Bake until top is shiny and a cake tester inserted into center comes out with some crumbs attached, about 10 minutes. Let cool completely.
3. Break up brownie into small pieces; transfer to the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. With machine on low speed, pour in rum, and mix until crumbs start to come together to form a ball.
4. Shape into 1-inch balls, and roll in sanding sugar to coat. Transfer to a baking sheet; refrigerate, uncovered, until cold, about 2 hours. Serve chilled or at room temperature.

What we liked:

The rum balls turned out really good! Relatively quick and easy to make and they can be adjusted for any holiday by just varying the sprinkle/sugar color. Although, the chocolate sprinkles definitely taste the best (we just ran out of them, so used the different colored sugars we had). This definitely satisfies the chocolate craving!

What we didn't like:

A little strong on the rum, might want to try to substitute something else if serving to children or bringing to work.

What Kaspian thought about it:

He tried a chocolate covered sprinkle one and a green sugar one and he decided to eat the chocolate sprinkled one! And that meant choosing one that wasn't green. Kaspian LOVES the color green. Him choosing the chocolate sprinkle one tells you how much better those taste!

Next time:

Try less rum or a substitute. Maybe a lighter alcohol like Kahlua would work? Also, dipping them in chocolate to create a chocolate coat might be something interesting to try. 

Extreme lemon and chocolate roulade

Yesterday, Alona made an extreme lemon and chocolate roulade using this recipe: http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/extreme-lemon-chocolate-roulade

End result... not very roulad-y

Falling apart

Roulade collapse!

Chocolate cake when unrolled

The lemon custard prior to addition of whipped topping

Rolled up chocolate cake part

Ready to bake!

After freezing

The recipe was followed closely and everything was done as instructed. However, the roulade did not come together as expected. The lemon filling came out perfect. The chocolate cake tasted great. However, together the two flavors did not seem to work very well. The lemon filling would have been better on an almond cake and the chocolate cake would have been better with a raspberry filling. Individually, both parts of this cake tasted great. The putting together part did not work out so well though. Not sure what happened, but the cake did not withstand the rolling unrolling and re-rolling. It kind of ended up being a chocolate lemon creme mound. Even with that though, it still tastes pretty good!

Update: Because the cake was having trouble holding it's shape, we decided to stick it in the freezer. (Hey, it worked with the failed pudding - aka best fudgesicles ever!) And it is SOOO much better now. It actually sort of kind of looks like a roulade and tastes even better. Frozen, the lemon flavor is not as strong and goes better with the chocolate. So, I guess the lesson here is that if a dessert fails - all you have to do is freeze it. 

Ingredients:

CAKE:
Baking spray with flour
3 ounces cake flour (about 3/4 cup)
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa, sifted
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
5 large eggs, separated
3/4 cup granulated sugar, divided
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
2 tablespoons powdered sugar
FILLING:
2/3 cup granulated sugar, divided
1 tablespoon grated lemon rind
6 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon cornstarch
3 large egg yolks
2 large eggs
1 1/2 cups frozen reduced-calorie whipped topping, thawed
1 tablespoon powdered sugar

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°. Lightly coat a jelly-roll pan with baking spray. Line bottom of pan with wax paper. Coat paper with baking spray. Set aside.
2. To prepare cake, weigh or lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour, cocoa, baking powder, and salt in a bowl; stir with a whisk. Place egg yolks, 1/4 cup granulated sugar, and vanilla in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at medium speed until light and fluffy (about 4 minutes). Place egg whites and cream of tartar in a medium bowl; beat at medium speed until foamy using clean, dry beaters. Beat mixture at high speed until soft peaks form. Gradually add 1/2 cup granulated sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, beating until stiff peaks form (do not overbeat). Stir one-fourth of egg white mixture into egg yolk mixture; gently fold in remaining egg white mixture. Sift half of flour mixture over top of egg mixture; gently fold in. Sift remaining flour mixture over top of egg mixture; gently fold in. Spread mixture evenly into prepared pan.
3. Bake at 350° for 9 minutes or until cake springs back when lightly touched in the center. Loosen cake from sides of pan; turn out onto a dish towel dusted with 2 tablespoons powdered sugar. Carefully peel off wax paper; cool 1 minute. Starting at short side, roll up the cake and towel together. Place, seam side down, on a wire rack; cool completely (about 1 hour).
4. To prepare filling, place 1/3 cup granulated sugar, rind, juice, 2 tablespoons butter, and salt in a small saucepan over medium heat. Cook until butter melts and sugar dissolves, stirring frequently (about 4 minutes). Place remaining 1/3 cup granulated sugar, cornstarch, egg yolks, and eggs in a bowl; stir well with a whisk until smooth. Drizzle hot juice mixture into egg mixture, stirring constantly with a whisk. Return mixture to pan. Cook over medium heat until mixture thickens and reaches 180° on a candy thermometer (do not boil). Pour mixture through a sieve into a small bowl, pressing on solids. Discard solids. Add remaining 1 tablespoon butter, stirring until butter melts and is combined. Cover surface of mixture with plastic wrap. Chill completely.
5. To assemble roulade, gently stir whipped topping into chilled lemon filling. Unroll cake carefully; remove towel. Spread lemon filling over cake, leaving a 1-inch border around outside edges. Reroll cake; place, seam side down, on a platter. Cover and chill 1 hour. 

What we liked:

The idea was great. The chocolate cake tasted great. The filling was great. The whole thing can be put together in about an hour, minus the chilling/standing parts. Just an hour of active work in the kitchen. 

What we didn't like:

It did not come together at all. The lemon filling would be better in an almond or white cake. With chocolate, we would make a raspberry filling.

What Kaspian thought about it:

It did not grab his attention at all. 

Next time:

Make a raspberry filling for chocolate or white cake for lemon filling.