Tag Archives: chocolate recipes

Double Chocolate and Toffee Cookies

Sometimes, it’s my pantry that inspires an adaption of a recipe or a new combination of tastes. This cookie was inspired while exploring my pantry. I was looking at what candy and chocolate was still lingering from Christmas. Every Christmas we receive a gift of toffee with almonds and there was still quite a bit still left over , as well as various chocolate bars received as gifts in food baskets or left from the holiday cookie baking. I decided to bake cookies using the leftover sweets. The cookie dough recipe is a favorite of mine from Ina Garten, which results in a cookie that is soft inside but crispy on the edges. I tossed the toffee into a resealable plastic bag and smashed it with a meat tenderizer, a rolling pin would have worked just as well. I created essentially toffee rubble. Along with the toffee, I chopped up the chocolate into pieces the size of large chocolate chips. I like using bittersweet chocolate but any chocolate would work and the proportions could shift and change based on what sweet left overs you have around as long as you have 1 1/2 cups in total to add to the cookie batter. You can get creative with what you want to add, it could be dried fruit and chocolate or chopped nuts and chocolate instead of the toffee. Make this cookie your own, based on what you like to eat! Happy Baking!

From by the bay wishing you , sweet baking food memories!

Maryann

Double Chocolate and Toffee Cookies

Adapted from Ina Garten, “Barefoot Contessa Parties!” published in 2001

Makes 20 to 24 Cookies

Ingredients

8 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened ( 1 stick)

1/2 cup light brown sugar

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 egg

1/3 cup good unsweetened cocoa powder

1 cup all purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt or kosher salt

3/4 cup bittersweet chocolate, chopped

3/4 cup toffee, chopped

Directions

Preheat over to 350 degrees F. In a large bowl add the butter and sugars. Use an electric mixer and beat ingredients until light and fluffy. Add the vanilla and the then egg and beat in well. Add cocoa and mix well. In another bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda and salt. Add to the butter mixture slowly and mix at a low speed. Next add in the chopped chocolate and toffee and combine. Drop dough in rounded teaspoons of dough onto parchment lined baking sheets. Bake for 15 minutes and remove from oven. The cookie will appear soft, let cool on the pan a few minutes and it will then take shape. Remove and cool on wire racks. Store in air tight containers.

New York City Wine and Food Festival with Train

The New York City Wine and Food Festival just wrapped up. I attended the Trucks and Train event on Sunday night. It was sponsored by the New York Times and Save Me, San Francisco Wine Co. and hosted by Andrew Zimmern. There were 24 terrific food trucks. Some of the highlights from the food trucks were succulent hand rolled and pan- seared Tibetan dumplings in broth from Chinese Mirch, warm charcoal grilled pork wrapped in pita with tzatziki from Souvlaki GR, who won the honors as best truck ,a delicious take on a cuban sandwich from the Bongo Brothers which was made with slow roasted pork, smoked honey ham, swiss cheese and homemade pickles on medianoche bread and for dessert the Big Gay Ice Cream Truck went with an awesomesauce sundae and awesome it was with a vanilla soft serve ice cream, spicy chocolate sauce, crunchy candied pepitas topped with fresh whipped cream. There was also plenty of fine wine provided by the San Francisco Wine Co. – Calling All Angels Chardonnay, California 37 Cabernet and Drops of Jupiter Red. As if all this good food and wine was not enough there was a special performance by the grammy- award winning group Train. They gave a powerhouse performance which rocked Pier 36 where the event took place. It was a fantastic event and a beautiful evening in one of the best cities in the world.

http://www.savemesanfranciscowineco.com/

Participating Trucks

The Big Gay Ice Cream – awesomesauce sundae, inspired me to make a spicy chocolate sauce and candied pepitas to make my own sundae. Here are my recipes for those two ingredients!

Spicy Chocolate Sauce

Ingredients
6 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
1/2 cup heavy cream, room temperature
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, room temperature
1 teaspoon chili powder
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon

Directions
Place all the ingredients in a small saucepan and place over low heat. Stir together until chocolate and butter have melted and the ingredients come together. Let cool before serving on top of ice cream.

Candied Pepitas

Ingredients
1 cup pepitas, crumbled
5 tablespoons sugar
1 large egg white beaten
1/8 teaspoon fine sea salt
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Place all ingredients into a bowl and mix together. Spread them on a parchment lined baking sheet in a single layer. Bake until the pepitas are golden brown, approximately 10 minutes. Let cool before using.

http://voices.yahoo.com/worth-holding-food-musings-singer-songwriter-11812335.html?cat=22

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Chocolate, Cherry and Almond Biscotti

With Thanksgiving over, the shift to Christmas happens immediately! We all know that it also mean’s that Santa Claus is coming to town! Santa loves himself some cookies and this one is a perfect match – big on taste and flavor. These chocolate biscotti cookies are made with almonds and dried cherries and then dipped in dark chocolate to make a delicious cookie perfect for dipping into your coffee or hot chocolate. So get your cookie trays ready because remember the the big fat man is coming……….real soon !

From by the bay, waiting to make food memories for the big fat man!
Maryann

Chocolate, Cherry and Almond Biscotti

24 cookies

1 cup dried cherries

½ cup almond slivers

½ cup unsalted butter

1 tablespoon shortening (Crisco)

3 eggs

1 cup fine sugar

2 teaspoon vanilla

3 cups all purpose flour

½ cup cocoa powder

1 teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

6 oz good quality bittersweet dark chocolate

Directions

Preheat oven to 350F. In a bowl add dry ingredients, flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt. Mix and keep to the side. Using an electric mixer, beat together butter and shortening until fluffy. Add sugar and beat well. Add eggs one at a time until well combined. Add vanilla until blended. Add dry ingredients: flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt. Mix well until the dough is smooth. Using a spoon and mix in the dried cherries and almonds. Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface and divide into two. Shape each half of the dough into a log approximately 2 inch high x 12 inches long. Place the logs on to an ungreased baking sheet. Bake for 30 minutes until golden brown. Remove from oven and let cool for 10 minutes on a baking rack. Place on a cutting board and using a serrated knife slice each log on the diagonal into 12 pieces approximately 1 inch thick. Place the pieces back on to the baking sheet and bake 8-10 minutes, turn the slices to the other side and bake another 8-10 minutes. Remove from oven and cool on a wire rack. Fill medium pot 1/3 with water and simmer. Add to the top of the pot a glass bowl that sits on the top of the pot to create a bain du marie. Add the chocolate and melt over the simmering water. Don’t let the water touch the glass bowl. Once the chocolate is melted use an offset spatula to cover the end of each cookie. Place chocolate on approximately 1/3 of the cookie on all sides. Allow to set at room temperature on a wire rack . You may also set in the refrigerator for a ½ hour to hasten the process. Store cookies in an air tight container.

Mini Chocolate Cheesecakes

I love making bite size portions of food, especially dessert. It’s a great way to indulge in dessert without the guilt. Try making these little chocolate cheesecakes, they are rich and moist, drizzled with a little swirl of chocolate and then covered with a dusting of cocoa powder “snow”, they look as delicious as they taste. These are easy to whip up and look like a lot more effort then they take to prepare. Indulge in these tasty little bites today.

From by the bay wishing you sweet mini food memories!

Maryann

Mini Chocolate Cheesecakes

Makes 24 pieces

Crust:
9 ounces chocolate wafer cookies
½ cup melted unsalted butter

Filling
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
2 tablespoons sugar
1 egg
2 tablespoons sour cream

4 tablespoons chocolate syrup
½ teaspoon vanilla

Topping
2 ounces bittersweet chocolate

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degree F. To make crust use food processor to finely grind the wafers, then add the melted butter and process until moist. Take out and divide between two 12 cup mini muffin tins. Press the mixture down and push up along the sides using your fingertips. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

To make the filling : Use the food processor to combine the cream cheese and sugar until fluffy. Make sure to scrape down the mixture with a spatula from the sides of the bowl. Add the egg and continue to beat. Next add the sour cream, vanilla and chocolate syrup until all is well blended and smooth.

Pour the cheese mixture into a cup and pour into the cups – filling each almost to the top. Place the muffin tins onto a baking sheet and place in the oven in the center rack. Bake for 15 minutes until set. Remove from oven and cool on a wire rack. Refrigerate for at least 3 hours. To top, place chocolate into microwave for 30 seconds. Mix and place into microwave another 30 seconds. Remove and stir until all the chocolate is melted. Using a spoon, dip into the chocolate and shake over the cheesecakes , creating thin lines of chocolate, place back into the refrigerator to harden another 1 hour. Remove from the refrigerator and gently lift each cup out of the tins using a knife or small spatula and serve immediately of place covered back into the refrigerator until ready to serve.

Spicy Chocolate Truffles

What would Valentine’s Day be without chocolate? It’s a example of a perfect union. For this Valentine’s Day I wanted to experiment with making my own truffles. There are a lot of truffle recipes around so I wanted to make mine a little unique in taste. I opened my spice rack and experimented with mixing cocoa powder with a variety of different spices and landed on my favorite pairing which I’m sharing with you here today.

From by the bay wishing you the sweetest Valentine’s Day and food memories!

Maryann

Spicy Chocolate Truffles

Makes approximately 32 pieces

Ingredients

2/3 cup heavy cream

12 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped

zest of 1 orange

1 cinnamon stick

4 tablespoons honey

4 tablespoons unsalted butter

1/3 cup cocoa powder

1 teaspoon chili powder or chinese five spice or cinnamon – optional

Directions

On medium heat place in a sauce pan the cream, rind, cinnamon, honey and butter. Melt the butter and bring to a simmer. Strain the mixture and pour over the chopped chocolate. Let stand a minute and then whisk until chocolate is melted and smooth, with no air bubbles. Cover with cling wrap directly on top of the chocolate. Let set on the counter for at least 4 hours. Shape using a teaspoon the chocolate into small balls. Place on a baking sheet and put into the freezer for 15 minutes. Sift cocoa powder and 1 teaspoon of the spice of your choice onto a plate. Roll the chocolate truffle in the cocoa powder until completely covered. Set on a plate and serve.

Orange Cranberry and Dark Chocolate Chip Cookies

I love to walk into my pantry and come out with an idea for cooking based on the ingredients sitting on my shelves. Some of my favorite ingredients are never out of stock – along with my staples, so it wasn’t too hard to walk into that pantry one afternoon and come out with the ingredients to make this twist on the chocolate chip cookie. I love dark chocolate so grabbed a bar off the shelf to cut up into small shards of richness. The dried cranberries will add a little sweet with a slightly tart flavor. I still have a few oranges left from the holidays and love mixing chocolate with orange rind. These were a big hit – you’ll love them! Try them this weekend.

From by the bay wishing you the darkest chocolate chip cookies!

Maryann

Orange Cranberry and Dark Chocolate Chip Cookies

Makes 2 1/2 Dozen cookies

Ingredients

1 cup all purpose flour, plus two tablespoons

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

8 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened

1/2 cup dark brown sugar

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 egg

6 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped

1 teaspoon orange zest

1 teaspoon orange juice

1/2 cup dried cranberries

Directions

Preheat over to 375 degrees F. In a large bowl add the butter, sugars and vanilla. Use an electric mixer and beat ingredients until light and fluffy. Add the egg , orange rind and juice and beat in well. In another bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda and salt. Add to the butter mixture slowly and mix at a low speed. Next add the chopped chocolate and dried cranberries and combine. Drop in rounded teaspoons of dough onto ungreased baking sheets. Bake for 9 to 10 minutes, until slightly brown on bottom. Remove and cool on wire racks. Store in air tight containers.

Very Cherry Chocolate Cake

When Neil Diamond released his Cherry Cherry Christmas song, I embraced that message with my cooking. I enhanced a recipe I had kept over the years from Bon Appetit Magazine. The recipe is for a dense Chocolate cake topped with a rich chocolate ganache, which I often included during my holiday entertaining. This cake, though really became special for that Cherry Cherry Christmas, by amping up the cherry flavors by using dried cherries and kirsch along with a little excessive decorating over the chocolate ganache. I think the desserts served at the end of your Christmas meal , should look spectacular and feel like magic. I have an arsenal of edible decorations I collect during the year to give that magic factor to my desserts. One of my favorites is edible glitter in multi colors. It’s so much fun to sprinkle this on top of your desserts. Why not try this terrific cake and create your own dessert magic this Christmas!
From by the bay …………..
Just a very merry, cherry cherry Christmas.And if all of those who love you gather near,you’ll have a very merry, cherry cherry, holly holy,rock and rolly Christmas this year
Read more: NEIL DIAMOND – CHERRY CHERRY CHRISTMAS LYRICS http://www.metrolyrics.com/cherry-cherry-christmas-lyrics-neil-diamond.html#ixzz1guZA1SYr
Copied from MetroLyrics.com

This recipe is adapted from a recipe by Rich Rodgers , originally printed in Bon Appetit Magazine Dec 2003.

Very Cherry Chocolate Cake

Serves 8-10

Cake

1 cup dried cherries

1/3 cup Kirsch ( cherry liquor)

1 cup ( sticks) unsalted butter, cut into pieces

12 oz. semisweet chocolate, chopped

1 ½ cup sugar

6 eggs, room temperature

2/3 cup flour

½ teaspoon salt

Glaze

1 cup heavy cream

10 oz semisweet chocolate, chopped

¼ cup Kirsch

Decoration

Edible glitter

Edible sugar flowers

Silver dragees

Directions for cake

Preheat oven to 350F. Butter and flour a 9 inch spring form pan. Line the bottom of the pan with a piece of parchment paper. In a small sauce pan add the dried cherries and kirsch. Bring to a low simmer for about 1 minute. Remove from heat and cool. Drain the cherries and keep the liquor and cherries both in bowls separate to be used later. In another sauce pan melt the butter and then remove from heat. Add the chocolate pieces and let sit one minute. Whisk the chocolate until melted and smooth. Whisk in the sugar and then the eggs one at a time. Whisk in the reserved liquor. Add the flour and salt and whisk again until blended. Stir in the dried cherries and then pour into the spring form pan. Place in the oven onto the center rack and bake for 1 hour. Use tester to make sure the center of the cake is done. Tester should come out moist but with no batter attached. Remove from oven and cool completely on a wire rack. ( Can be made one day ahead and kept covered at room temperature.)

Directions for glaze

Place cream in medium saucepan and bring to a simmer. Remove from heat and add chocolate. Whisk until chocolate is melted and smooth. Add Kirsch and whisk again until smooth. Allow glaze to cool and thicken for about two hours in saucepan stirring occasionally. At this point the glaze should be thick yet pourable. While glaze is thickening, turn cake out onto the wire rack and remove the bottom of the spring form pan as well as the parchment paper. Place cake with rack into a baking sheet lined with aluminum foil. When glaze is ready, pour half of the glaze onto the cake and use a spatula to smooth over the top and the sides of the cake. Place into the freezer to set for about ten minutes. Remove from freezer and pour the remaining glaze over the cake and smooth evenly again with the spatula. Place again in the freezer for another 15 minutes . Remove from freezer and decorate with edible sugar and sugar flowers. Keep in the refrigerator until 1 hour before serving. Cut into wedges and serve.

Butter Cookie Recipe

It’s Christmas time and who doesn’t love to have a platter of cookies at the ready? Whether you are preparing for guests or just trimming the tree alone – it’s nice to have cookies around the house. This is really the only time of year that I would have containers of different types of cookies around the house. It’s one of my favorite excesses at Christmas. A great cookie to try is this french butter cookie. It’s easy to make and I like having a recipe that doesn’t require a lot of work to add to my cookie assortment. This is my version of a cookie I ate in Paris that was topped with a little pillow of chocolate ganache. It was bliss. I also, make some of these topped with jam, since my sister Nancy is not a big chocolate lover. I suggest doing half of the recipe with jam and the other half with the ganache. Even if you don’t consider yourself a baker, this is an easy recipe to try. Enjoy!

From by the bay wishing you the sweetest memories of cookies and Christmas!

Maryann

Butter Cookie Recipe

Makes 4 dozen cookies

Ingredients:

1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened

3/4 cup light brown sugar, packed

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 large egg

2 cups all – purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

extra granulated sugar to roll dough

jam to fill cookies

Directions:

In a large bowl add the butter, sugar and vanilla. Use an electric mixer and beat ingredients until light and fluffy. Add the egg and beat in well. In another bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder and salt. Add to the butter mixture slowly and mix at a low speed. Once blended turn out into a sheet of plastic wrap , flatten and wrap. Place in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes. Preheat over to 350 degrees F. Place extra granulated sugar onto a plate. Roll dough into acorn size balls and then roll in the sugar. Place each ball onto an ungreased cookie sheets. Use your finger to flatten each ball. Take your thumb and make a small well in the center of the flatten dough. If you are making jam filled cookies, take a small spoon and fill well with about 1/2 teaspoon of your favorite jam. I like to use apricot, raspberry or red currant jam. If you plan to fill with chocolate ganache ( recipe below) bake as is. Bake cookies for about 10 minutes, until lightly browned. Cool on wire racks. Store in air tight containers.

Chocolate Ganache

Makes 1 cup

Ingredients:

1/3 cup honey

1/3 cup heavy cream

2 teaspoons vanilla

4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped

2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened

Directions:

Combine all ingredients into a saucepan and place on medium heat, stirring until the chocolate melts and everything is well combined. Pour into a bowl, cover and place in the refrigerator until you can spoon and shape into small pillow of chocolate to place on top of plain french butter cookies and serve. Don’t stack this cookie on your tray.

Recipe for Dreamy Limoncello Ice Cream and More

My early years were spent growing up in Glendale, Queens. The streets were all two story brownstones. These homes were filled with families many with young children. Each day in the summer as it turned to dusk you would hear the bells of the ice cream truck and see kids pouring out on to the street, waiting impatiently in line to order their daily ice cream. It was the perfect end to a day filled with playing games outside or splashing around those small kiddie pools, At that young age ice cream never tasted better. Well, kids grow up and tastes become more selective. I never had the desire to make ice cream, thinking it was a lot of work , until I discovered Nigella Lawson’s recipe for no churn ice cream in her book “Forever Summer”. It tasted terrific and was just too easy. It’s a cross between having dessert and a cocktail. I created my own version, reminding me of how meals ended while visiting Capri, Italy. At the end of each meal , you would be served an ice cold shot of Limoncello. Limoncello is a digestive make from the peel of Sorrento lemons. It is both sweet and tart without being bitter. It became the perfect base for this adapted no churn ice cream. You’ll love eating this dreamy, pillowy dessert! From by the bay wishing you dreamy food memories! Maryann

Maryann Kraker

Recipe for Dreamy Limoncello Ice Cream Serves Six:

1/2 cup fresh lemon juice

1 teaspoon lemon zest

5 tablespoons Limoncello liquor

1 1/4 cup powdered confectioner’s sugar

2 cups heavy cream

Directions:

Pour lemon juice and Limoncello into sugar and dissolve. Add cream and whip until thick but not too stiff. Spoon whipped cream into and airtight container. Place in the freezer for at least 6 hours or overnight. Serve as is or with a little Limoncello poured over the ice cream.Here are some dreamy variations from the recipe above:

Dreamy Apricot Crunch Replace 1/2 cup lemon juice with apricot juice and skip the lemon zest. Replace limoncello with 3 tablespoons Amaretto Liquor and 3 tablespoons crushed amaretti cookies.

Dreamy Chocolate Replace 1/2 cup lemon juice with 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder, replace the lemon zest with one teaspoon vanilla and replace the limoncello with 5 tablespoons chocolate liquor. Add some chocolate shavings to the top when serving.

Eating this ice cream brings back the happy memories of those wonderful “Ice Cream Nights”!

Halloween Devil Food Cup Cakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

I love holidays! I love cooking for holidays, decorating for holidays and entertaining for holidays. I like to make every holiday possible, a little special event, especially with my cooking! My niece tells me, I should make my house by the bay like the house in ” Holiday Inn”. This is a classic movie with Bing Crosby and Fred Astaire. Bing Crosby’s character in the film , moves to Connecticut and buys a country inn. Bing turns the inn into a super club open only on the holidays and is off the rest of the year. If I could make that work, believe me, I would do it. With my love of holidays out in the open, you can be sure that I will be blogging recipes before each holiday in order for you to celebrate. With Halloween arriving in few days here are two treats to make. Start the morning right with pumpkin muffins. With anticipation of the day ahead, get the holiday going with this tasty treat, the aroma in your home will be intoxicating. The next recipe is a devil foods cupcake with cream cheese icing the kids and adults will love it. Trick or treat!

From by the bay, wishing you treats and fond food memories!
Maryann

Pumpkin Muffins

Makes 12 muffins

Muffin batter

1 ¾ cup flour

¾ cup fine granulated sugar

½ cup dark brown sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

½ teaspoon ground allspice

¼ teaspoon ground ginger

2/3 cup sour cream

½ cup vegetable oil

1 tablespoon honey

2 eggs

½ cup pumpkin puree

Topping

1 tablespoon fine granulated sugar

½ teaspoons ground cinnamon

Directions

In a small bowl mix topping by combining sugar and cinnamon and set aside. In another bowl mix together dry ingredient s of sugar, flour, baking powder, cinnamon, allspice and ginger. Using another bowl combine sour cream, oil, honey, eggs and pumpkin puree. Whisk together. Add ingredients to the dry ingredients in the other bowl. Mix until incorporated, batter will be lumpy don’t over mix. Take a lined 12 muffin tin and fill each muffin tin to 2/3 with batter. Top the batter with cinnamon and sugar mixture. Bake in a preheated 400 degrees F oven for 20-22 minutes or until tester comes out clean. Remove from oven and cool on rack.

Halloween Devil Food Cup Cakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

12 cupcakes

Chocolate Cupcakes

1/3 cup butter, softened

1 cup sugar

1 egg

2/3 cup buttermilk

1 teaspoon vanilla

2/3 teaspoon baking soda

2 cups flour

2 squares melted chocolate

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Use an electric mixer, cream butter and sugar together until fluffy. Add egg and mix well. Add the dry ingredients alternating with buttermilk and vanilla and beat well. Melt chocolate squares in microwave, heat 30 seconds remove and stir with a spoon until melted. If chocolate is not completely melted repeat process. Cool for 5 minutes and add into the batter combining well. Place paper liners into a 12 muffin tin. Place batter into each cup until about 2/3 filled. Bake in oven for 25 minutes. Cool on wire rack. Keep in airtight container until ready to frost and eat.

Tip: If you don’t have buttermilk substitute 2/3 cup milk with one tablespoon of white vinegar and let sit for 5 minutes.

Cream Cheese Frosting

1 cup confectionery sugar

4 ounces cream cheese, softened

1 teaspoon vanilla

Directions

Mix the above ingredients until smooth. Keep in air tight container in the refrigerator until ready to frost and eat the cupcakes. After you frost the cupcakes decorate with sprinkles, crush candy or chocolate cookies.

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Tag Archives: chocolate recipes

Mini Chocolate Cheesecakes

Spicy Chocolate Truffles

Very Cherry Chocolate Cake

Butter Cookie Recipe

Halloween Devil Food Cup Cakes with Cream Cheese Frosting