Cartoon of the Day: Valentine's Day Chocolates for Cats

CHOCOLATE CHERRY TRUFFLES: 2 Easy Recipes for Valentine's Day!

Valentine's Day is all about Chocolate and for me anything red, and that includes cherries. Remember your first Valentine's Day card? I bet it had a red heart on it. I used to love Chocolate Covered Cherries on Valentine's Day.

Here are two recipes for Chocolate Cherry Truffles. One has alcohol (Kirsch - cherry liqueur) and one is non-alcoholic. They're both easy to make which is what this blog is all about. These are my go-to Valentine's Day gifts!

Chocolate Kirsch Truffles
adapted from Martha Stewart

Ingredients
1 pound DARK chocolate (65-75% cacao),  chopped
3/4 cup heavy cream
1 cup unsalted butter, cut into small pieces, room temperature
4 Tbsp KIRSCH (cherry liqueur)
3 cups unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder

Directions
Melt chocolate with cream in heatproof bowl or saucepan set over another saucepan of simmering water, stirring until smooth. Remove from heat. Add butter and Kirsch; stir until smooth.
Transfer to 8-inch square baking dish. Cover with plastic wrap; refrigerate until firm but still maleable (about 2 hours)
Using melon baller, drop balls of chocolate mixture onto rimmed baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Refrigerate 10 minutes.
Put cocoa powder into large bowl.
Using cocoa-dusted hands and working one at a time, roll balls between your palms until smooth.
Roll in cocoa to coat. Refrigerate until firm, about 30 minutes.

Easy Chocolate Cherry Truffles

Ingredients
13 ounces dark chocolate, chopped
3/4 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup dried cherries, chopped
2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
Dash of salt
1/2 cup DARK cocoa powder

Directions
In saucepan over another saucepan with simmering water, combine chocolate and cream. Stir until chocolate is melted and smooth.
Stir in chopped dried cherries, balsamic vinegar and salt.
Pour into small baking pan (8 x 8) and refrigerate until set (about 2 hours).
Put cocoa in bowl.
Using melon baller, scoop out about a small ball of chocolate mixture.
Place each ganache ball on parchment lined cookie sheet until all chocolate is used up. Refrigerate for 10 minutes.
Take out of refrigerator and roll into balls with your hands.
Roll balls in cocoa powder until coated.
Refrigerate until ready to serve.

RED VELVET CHEESECAKE BROWNIES: Valentine's Day!

Here's a great recipe for Red Velvet Cheesecake Brownies. Perfect for Valentine's Day! Anything red and chocolate works for me! Who doesn't need another brownie recipe? This recipe is an adaptation of Sunny Anderson's from the Foodnetwork, and it's delicious. The recipe contains red food coloring, but there are some nice Wilton natural red colorings you can use. It's an easy recipe -- and oh so yummy! I use chopped chocolate rather than cocoa, but either will work in this recipe.

RED VELVET CHEESECAKE BROWNIES

Ingredients
1 tablespoon sweet butter, for pan
Parchment paper

Red Velvet Brownie Layer
8 Tbsp (1/2 cup) unsalted butter
1 cup sugar
1 tsp Madagascar vanilla extract
1/4 cup high grade cocoa powder  (or 2 ounces dark chocolate, melted)
Dash of salt
1 Tbsp red food coloring (or Wilton natural red)
1 tsp vinegar
2 eggs
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup chopped toasted walnuts

Cream Cheese Layer
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup sugar
1 egg
1/8 tsp Madagascar vanilla extract

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Butter 8 by 8 inch baking pan.
Put long piece of parchment paper in bottom of pan, extending up two side--overhanging slightly on both ends (easy to remove brownies after baked)

Brownie layer: 
In saucepan, melt butter on medium heat. Put butter in large bowl and add sugar, vanilla, cocoa powder (or melted chocolate), salt, food coloring, and vinegar, in that order, mixing between additions.
Whisk eggs in small bowl and stir into cocoa mix. Fold in flour until lightly combined. Stir in walnuts and pour batter into prepared baking pan, saving 1/4 cup of batter for the top.

Cream cheese layer: 
Blend together cream cheese, sugar, egg, and vanilla in medium bowl. Gently spread cream cheese layer on top of brownie batter in pan. Drop remaining brownie batter over cream cheese layer. Using skewer or tip of knife, drag tip through cream cheese mixture to create swirl pattern.
Bake brownies for 30 minutes.
Remove to cooling rack and cool completely before cutting.

Cartoon of the Day: The Dessert Menu