Cats & Bats, Witches & Brooms: Chocolate Halloween Cookies

A few years ago, I found these Vintage 1960s Halloween Cookie (Cooky) Cutters at the Alameda Flea Market. I love the retro box and the shapes. These are perfect for Chocolate Halloween Cookies!

I've posted some great chocolate cookie recipes, but here's one more. This one is adapted from a Martha Stewart recipe. Just a few changes, and since Martha uses this recipe with her own bat and cat cookie cutters, these cookies are great to make with these Retro Cookie Cutters. These chocolate cookies are very crisp. I think using dark cocoa gives them an even richer taste, too.

Chocolate Cats & Bats, Witches & Brooms: 
Halloween Cookies

Makes 40 to 50

Ingredients
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, (spooned and leveled) plus more for rolling and cutting out dough
3/4 cup unsweetened DARK cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
12 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 large egg
Small candies or sprinkles, for decorating (optional)

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In medium bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa, and salt; set aside.

In large bowl, with electric mixer, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy; beat in egg. On low speed, mix in flour mixture. Divide dough in half, and form into 2 disks, each about 3/4 inch thick. Wrap disks in plastic; chill until firm, at least 45 minutes and up to 2 days.

On lightly floured sheet of waxed paper, using a floured rolling pin, roll dough 1/4 inch thick. (If dough becomes too soft to work with, refrigerate for a few minutes.)

Using 2- to 3-inch Halloween cookie cutters, cut out shapes, dipping cutters in flour as necessary to prevent sticking; place on baking sheet, spacing 1 inch apart.

Bake until surface is dry to the touch, 10 to 15 minutes (if decorating, press candies into dough halfway through baking-as in eyes on the cats, etc). 

Cool cookies 1 to 2 minutes on baking sheet; transfer to rack to cool completely.

Boston Cream Pie Poke Cake: Boston Cream Pie Day

Today is National Boston Cream Pie Day. Boston Cream Pie, isn't exactly a pie, and it's not exactly a cake. A Boston Cream Pie is a round cake that is split and filled with a custard or cream filling and frosted with chocolate. Not exactly your standard pie, but it's been around since 1855 or 1856 (two different sources with different dates).

According to Wikipedia, Boston Cream Pies were created by French Chef M. Sanzian at Boston's Parker House Hotel, opened in 1855. This pudding/cake combination comprises two layers of sponge cake filled with vanilla custard or crème pâtissière. The cake is topped with a chocolate glaze (such as ganache) and sometimes confectioner's sugar or a cherry. The cherry and sugar topping is rarely used any more.

The real question is why this is called a pie? It's a cake, after all -- two layers of yellow cake filled with custard and topped with chocolate frosting. Suggestions on why it's called pie are welcome. And here's an interesting fact: The Boston Cream Pie is the official dessert of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. 

I've posted traditional recipes for Boston Cream Pie--from scratch and from mixes--and I've posted Boston Cream Pie Cheesecake (a favorite!). So for today's holiday I thought I'd post a really easy recipe for Boston Cream Pie Poke Cake. What's a Poke Cake, you ask? A poke cake is usually made with a boxed cake mix and a pudding mix. You poke holes in the cake after it's been baked, but still warm, and you pour the pudding over it. How easy is that? And Boston Cream Pie lends itself to this easy cake. Very Retro!

Boston Cream Pie Poke Cake

Ingredients
1 (18 ounce) box yellow cake mix
2 (5.1-oz) packs of instant French vanilla pudding
4 cups cold milk
2 cups dark chocolate, chopped
1 cup heavy cream

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Butter 9-x-13” pan and sprinkle with flour.
Prepare cake mix according to box instructions. Pour into prepared baking dish and bake until toothpick inserted in middle of cake comes out clean, about 25 minutes. Cool cake.
When cake is cool-ish, poke big holes across entire surface of cake using rounded end of wooden spoon.
Combine pudding mix and milk in medium bowl and whisk until mixture just begins to thicken. Pour over cake and spread with spatula to make sure pudding pours into holes. Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours.
After cake has been refrigerated for 2 hours, make ganache. Put chopped chocolate in medium glass bowl and set aside. Meanwhile, bring heavy cream to simmer in small saucepan. When bubbles start to break surface, pour hot cream over chopped chocolate and whisk until mixture is smooth. Pour ganache over the pudding layer of the cake and serve.

DIAMOND WALNUT CLUSTERS: Retro Ad with Recipe for National Nut Day

Today is National Nut Day! Add chocolate! You know I love retro ads, and this 1950 Retro Ad & Recipe from Diamond Walnuts sure fits the bill. Love the graphics--and the recipes. I would substitute good quality very dark chocolate instead of unsweetened chocolate (you might cut down a bit on the sugar) and butter instead of margarine, but it's up to you! Celebrate National Nut Day. Sometimes you feel like a Nut!

CHOCOLATE CHIP PUMPKIN CHEESECAKE: Pumpkin Cheesecake Day

Today is National Pumpkin Cheesecake Day: Add Chocolate. I love pumpkin and chocolate... and cheesecake is my thing, so here's a repost of an easy recipe for Pumpkin Chocolate Cheesecake! Celebrate.  

Great for Pumpkin Cheesecake Day, Halloween, and Thanksgiving!

The filling for this pumpkin cheesecake is adapted from a recipe from Hershey's Kitchens. I like this recipe because it has a Chocolate Cookie Crust and Mini-Chocolate Chips in the filling! I've posted the Hershey's chocolate crust recipe, but I also posted another simple Chocolate Cookie Crust using Chocolate Wafers. The second is my favorite.

CHOCOLATE CHIP PUMPKIN CHEESECAKE BAKED IN A CHOCOLATE COOKIE CRUST

Ingredients

1 Chocolate Cookie Crust (see two possible recipes below)
3 packages (8 ounces each) cream cheese, softened
1 cup sugar
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1 cup canned pumpkin (without spice)
4 eggs
1-1/2 cups Mini Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips

Directions

Prepare Chocolate Cookie Crust. Bake at 400°F. Cool.
Beat cream cheese, sugar, flour, and pumpkin pie spice in large bowl until well blended. Add pumpkin and eggs; beat until well blended. Stir in mini-chocolate chips; pour batter into prepared crust. Bake 10 minutes.
Reduce oven temperature to 250°F; continue baking 60 minutes or until almost set. Remove from oven to wire rack. With knife, loosen cake from side of pan.
Cool completely; remove side of pan. Refrigerate about 5 hours before serving.

I. CHOCOLATE COOKIE CRUST

Stir together 1 cup vanilla wafer crumbs (about 30 wafers)
1/4 cup HERSHEY'S Cocoa
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1/4 cup melted butter.

Press mixture firmly onto bottom and 1/2-inch up side of 9-inch springform pan.
Bake  at 350 F for 8 minutes; cool slightly.

II. CHOCOLATE COOKIE CRUST

30 chocolate wafers (makes about 1 1/2 cups crumbs)
5 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
1/8 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract

Put cookies in container of food processor; process until finely ground.
Transfer crumbs to mixing bowl; combine crumbs, butter, salt, and vanilla; stir until crumbs are moistened.
Press mixture evenly across the bottom of 9-inch springform pan and all the way up sides of pan; pack tightly so crust is even and compacted.
Bake at 350° for 6-8 minutes or until crisp.
Let cool completely before filling.