PEANUT BUTTER FUDGE DAY: Extra Nutty Peanut Butter Fudge Brownies!

Today is National Peanut Butter Fudge Day! Here's recipe for Extra Nutty Peanut Butter Fudge Brownies adapted from Pillsbury. I don't usually use boxed mixes, but this is a good recipe. Of course you can make your own brownies and just add the layer of peanut butter fudge and the layer of 1/2 cup chopped peanuts. I really like the clean salty taste of plain roasted peanuts, rather than the recommended honey-roasted peanuts in the original recipe. I also add chocolate chips to the recipe and cut down on the peanut butter chips. You can never have too much chocolate!

Have a great Peanut Butter Fudge Day!

EXTRA NUTTY PEANUT BUTTER FUDGE BROWNIES!

Ingredients
2 (15.8 oz) pkg. fudge brownie mix with chocolate syrup
1/2 cup oil
1/2 cup water
 2 eggs
1 (14 oz) can sweetened condensed milk (not evaporated)
7 ounces peanut butter chips
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup chocolate chips
1/2 cup roasted salted peanuts, coarsely chopped

Directions
Heat oven to 350°F. Spray with nonstick cooking spray or grease bottom only of 13x9-inch pan.
In large bowl, combine brownie mixes, chocolate pouches from mixes, oil, water and eggs; beat 50 strokes with spoon. Fold in chocolate chips. Pour about half of batter into sprayed pan.
In large saucepan, combine condensed milk, peanut butter chips and peanut butter; cook over low heat for 5 minutes or until chips and peanut butter are melted, stirring constantly.
Spoon and spread peanut butter mixture over batter. Drop remaining half of batter over peanut butter layer.
Sprinkle with chopped peanuts.
Bake at 350°F. for 35 to 40 minutes or until edges begin to pull away from sides of pan.
DO NOT OVERBAKE. 
Cool 2 hours.
Refrigerate 1-1/2 hours or until completely cooled before serving.
Cut into bars.

PUMPKIN PATCH CAKE ROLL: Buche de Thanksgiving!

Here's a great Retro 1970s Thanksgiving dessert recipe from Libby's for Pumpkin Patch Cake Roll. It's a pumpkin spice cake roll with cream cheese filling and frosted with chocolate! This would look  great on your Thanksgiving table. I like to think of it as a Buche de Thanksgiving!

PUMPKIN PATCH CAKE ROLL: Buche de Thanksgiving! 

Ingredients
3 eggs, separated
3/4 cup firmly-packed brown sugar
1/2 cup Libby's canned pumpkin (or another canned pumpkin--but not with any pumpkin spice)
3/4 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1 package (8 oz.) cream cheese, softened
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
1 cup powdered sugar, sifted
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups chocolate buttercream frosting
Candied leaves or candied pumpkins for decoration

Directions

FOR THE CAKE
Preheat oven to 350 F. In small mixing bowl, beat egg yolks until thick, about 5 minutes. Gradually add sugar; beat well. Stir in pumpkin.
Sift together dry ingredients; fold into egg mixture. Beat egg whites until stiff peaks form. Fold into batter.
Spread evenly into greased and floured waxed paper-lined 15-1/2 x 10-1/2 x 1-inch jelly roll pan. Bake 14 to 18 minutes.
Immediately loosen sides of cake. Invert onto towel lightly dusted with powdered sugar. Remove waxed paper.
Starting from narrow end, roll cake in towel. Cool on wire rack.
Unroll cake; spread with cream cheese filling.

FOR THE CAKE ROLL FILLING & FROSTING
Combine cream cheese and butter. Cream until fluffy.
Gradually add sugar and vanilla; beat until well-blended. Spread over cool, unrolled cake.
Roll; frost with your favorite chocolate frosting.
Decorate cake roll with large or small orange gumdrops or leaf candies. Use your imagination. 

Treat this like a Thanksgiving Buche!

***

You can always save this recipe for your Buche de Noel...just decorated with holly, berries, and mushrooms.

MICKEY MOUSE DAY: Cookies & Cream Mickey Mouse Cupcakes

Happy Birthday, Mickey! Mickey Mouse's birthday is celebrated on November 18 because he made his first appearance in the Walt Disney classic 'Steamboat Willie' on November 18, 1928. FYI, Minnie was in this cartoon, too, running along the banks of the river, so it's officially Mickey & Minnie Mouse Day. 

From the National Day Archives (a great resource):

From a whistling boat captain in black and white to the full color Sorcerer’s Apprentice in Fantasia, Mickey has captivated the world with his charm and his antics. Mickey Mouse Day celebrates this classic cartoon character’s birthday.

Mickey Mouse took to the screen on November 18, 1928 with slapstick, plot twists, and a full lineup of comedy gold. Walt Disney left Universal Studios with a cartoon rabbit named Oswald, who became a mouse named Mortimer, who eventually became the Mickey we know and love.

Who could have guessed a rodent would become the most well-known character in the world? Mickey may be more globally recognizable than Santa. The first Mickey Mouse Club appeared in 1929, and now kids attend these clubs across the nation. 

Mickey inhabits a world with Minnie, Pluto, Goofy, his nemesis, Pete, and many other memorable characters. It’s a world we can go back to time and time again for a good laugh.

So to celebrate National Mickey Mouse Day, here's a great recipe for Mickey Mouse Cupcakes from The Unofficial Disney Parks Cookbook. This Cookbook will bring a bit of the Walt Disney magic into your own kitchen. The cookbook features 100 Disney-inspired recipes ranging from the classic Dole Whip and Mickey Pretzels to new favorites like blue milk from Star Wars land and Jack Jack’s Cookie Num Nums from Pixar Pier. 

The cookbook is organized by park — from Disneyland to Epcot, Hollywood Studios to Disney’s Animal Kingdom — and showcases recipes for some of the amazing foods you can find from Main Street USA to Galaxy’s Edge. With The Unofficial Disney Parks Cookbook, you can explore every delicious nook and cranny the parks have to offer, all without leaving the comfort of your own home. 

And, since this is a Chocolate blog, here's one of my favorites from the cookbook:

Cookies & Cream Mickey Mouse Cupcakes

Main Street, U.S.A., Disneyland

Candy Palace on Main Street, U.S.A., was renovated in 2012 and given a very sweet interior. Many of the features are meant to look edible, such as the chandelier that seems to be dripping ice cream, and the exit sign shaped as a wrapped candy. And among its actually edible creations are delectable, supersweet Cookies and Cream Mickey Cupcakes. Topped with the iconic mouse ears, these popular treats are easy to whip up and sure to please.

 

YIELDS 24 CUPCAKES

For Cupcakes

3 tablespoons salted butter, softened
1 1⁄2 cups granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1⁄3 cups all-purpose flour
1⁄4 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
3⁄4 cup cocoa powder

1⁄4 teaspoon salt

1 cup whole milk

To make Cupcakes: Preheat oven to 350°F. Line two standard muffin tins with cupcake liners and set aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, add butter and sugar. Using the flat beater attachment, cream together well. Add eggs and vanilla. While mixer is running, add flour, baking soda, baking powder, cocoa powder, and salt; continue mixing until well combined. Add milk slowly.

‌Scoop batter into prepared muffin tins, filling cups just above halfway.

Bake 15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Remove from oven and allow to cool completely, about 1 hour, before frosting.

For Frosting

1⁄2 cup salted butter, softened
4 cups confectioners’ sugar
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
2 tablespoons heavy cream
10 chocolate sandwich cookies, crushed
48 mini chocolate sandwich cookies, whole

 

To make Frosting: 

In the bowl of a stand mixer, add butter, confectioners’ sugar, cream cheese, and heavy cream. Using the flat beater attachment, whip until light and fluffy. Add crushed cookies and mix until combined.

Scoop frosting into a piping bag fitted with a large star tip. Swirl a generous amount of frosting on each cupcake, creating a pointed mound. Stand a mini sandwich cookie upright on either side of pointed mount to create Mickey Mouse ears.

MIX IT UP

Frosting swirls are adorable, but if you prefer less frosting on your cupcakes, you can just use a knife to spread a thinner layer of frosting on top of the cupcakes—enough to push in the mouse ears.

***

Excerpted from The Unofficial Disney Parks Cookbook by Ashley Craft. Copyright @2020 by Simon & Schuster, Inc. Photography by Harper Point Photography. Used with permission of the publisher, Adams Media, an imprint of Simon & Schuster. All rights reserved.

DARK CHOCOLATE TART CHERRY LEVAIN: National Homemade Bread Day!

Everyone loves homemade bread. The aroma fills the house with heavenly smells--a treat in itself. To celebrate National Homemade Bread Day, here's an updated post that includes a great recipe for Dark Chocolate Tart Cherry Levain.
 
One bread that I used to bake that is especially appropriate to this blog is Chocolate Cherry Sourdough. I still haven't been able to locate my recipe, but I have found several recipes on The Fresh Loaf, a great site for "News & Information for Amateur Bakers and Artisan Bread Enthusiasts."

JMonkey's Blog February 11, 2007 had a great recipe for Chocolate Cherry Sourdough Bread. Terrific photos and instructions. This recipe seems very close to the one I used to use. There are a few comments I'm unclear on, so my recommendation is to do what you usually do. I bake in a gas oven. I have three ovens: convection, gas, and electric, but for baking, I like the gas oven. I have an old O'Keefe & Merritt that I've refurbished, and it's pretty accurate on temperature. Nevertheless, I hang an old oven thermometer inside.

The recipe for Chocolate Cherry Sourdough Bread elicited a lot of discussion on The Fresh Loaf, and I found another recipe, this time for a Dark Chocolate Tart Cherry Levain posted by unbreadman, December 2, 2007. These recipes complement each other, so have a look at both before you decide to try one.

Dark Chocolate Tart Cherry Levain

Ingredients 
1 1/2 lbs Bread Flour
1 lb 2 ounces water
1/2 ounce salt
Small amount of refreshed sourdough culture (adjust depending on taste/rising time preference)
8 ounces dark chocolate, broken into small bits
12 ounces dried tart cherries (I've used both Chukars and Trader Joe's)

Directions
Soak cherries for at least 30 minutes to remove any added sugar and prevent burning
Mix flour, salt, and water until fully hydrated, let sit for 30 minutes (can do while cherries soak)
Cut up levain, add to dough with cherries, mix until fully distributed, knead to develop gluten, but be gentle so as not to destroy cherry integrity.
Bulk ferment until approx 1.5x volume increase, folding once* halfway through.
*During fold, add chocolate bits in between each fold over. JMonkey's blog illustrates this well.
Very gently shape loaf, trying not to puncture future crust. While it's not tragic if it does happen, if there's a leak, chocolate can leak out and burn, and it might make you a little sad. But you'll be fine! It's okay!
Bake on preheated stone with steam at 400-425F.
LET COOL BEFORE CUTTING. Molten Chocolate is very hot! It will burn, so it is imperative that you resist the nearly irresistible urge to eat this bread. 

What Chocolate Bread have you made lately? Make a comment below.