Though my familly and I aren’t vegan (or vegetarian) we do like to experiment with different types and styles of food and have come across a few recipes that we’ve permanently added to our recipe collection.

This video and recipe for Vegan Chocolate Peanut Butter Torte are from Hippie Chick Bakery. They recommend using organic, unrefined ingredients if you can find them.

Brownie Shell

3/4 C flour
1/4 C cocoa powder
3/4 C sugar
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/3 tsp baking powder
3/4 C soy milk
2 1/2 TBSP apple sauce

~ Preheat oven 325. lightly grease 9″ spring form or cake pan, or just line bottom with parchment for ease.

~ Mix flour, cocoa, sugar, salt, baking soda & powder then add soymilk & applesauce. Combine.

~ Pour in pan and bake for 40 min. Don’t worry if edges seem dry, they will moisten when covered with ganache.

Peanut Butter Filling

5 Tb vegan margarine, softened
1 1/2 C confectioners sugar
1 C smooth peanut butter
1 tsp vanilla extract
2-5 Tb soymilk

~ Cream together butter & peanut butter. Add vanilla. Add sugar in 1/2 C increments adding soymilk a little at a time until desired consistency.

~ Spread peanut butter filling on cooled cake and spread to edges. If a thicker consistency is desired, flatten to desired shape on wax paper then transfer to cake.

Ganache

3/4 C soymilk [minus a couple tablespoons if using a 10 oz bag of chips]
1/4 C vegan margarine
1 10-12 oz bag chocolate chips

~ Microwave soymilk & margarine for two minutes. Pour in chips, stir until completely blended. Pour over top of peanut butter on cake and spread. Let cool or refrigerate and serve.

Chocolate by itself isn’t always easy to dress-up for holidays, but by combining white chocolate chips with dried fruit you can get a yummy, creative treat for a festive red, white and blue cookie!

Patriotic Red, White and Blue Cookies
adapted from allrecipes.com

2/3 cup butter, softened
2/3 cup packed brown sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups rolled oats
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 cups dried cranberries
3/4 cup dried blueberries
2/3 cup white chocolate chips

~ Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).

~ In a medium bowl, cream together the butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time. Combine oats, flour, salt, and baking soda; stir into butter mixture one cup at a time, mixing well after each addition. Stir in dried cranberries and white chocolate. Drop by rounded teaspoons onto ungreased cookie sheets.

~ Bake for 10 to 12 minutes in preheated oven, or until golden brown. Cool on wire racks.

[image: flickr]

I mentioned a few weeks ago that I had been searching for my grandpa’s homemade chocolate fudge recipe, and word got to one of my aunts, who said she had a copy of it.

The fudge was delicious but I’m still not convinced that it was the same one Grandpa made. For one, I don’t remember him adding in the frozen marshmallows at the end to make it a rocky road fudge, and secondly there’s something missing form the taste, not to mention they’re a little gooier than Grandpa’s were. I wish I could sit and watch him make it again like I did when I was a kid, but oh well. Here’s the recipe my aunt sent me:

Grandpa’s Rocky Road Fudge

4 c sugar
1 can evaporated milk (1 2/3 c.)
2 1/2 c miniature marshmallows
2 1/2 8 oz Hershey chocolate bars (20 oz) these are now sold in 7 oz bars, so you need three
1/2 pkg (6 oz) semi-sweet chocolate chips
2 sticks (1 cup) butter (no substitutes)
1 1/2 c miniature marshmallows, frozen
1 lb chopped walnuts
2 tsp vanilla

Break chocolate bars into pieces in a large mixing bowl. Add chocolate chips and sliced cubes of butter. Set a side.

In a large, heavy saucepan combine sugar, evaporated milk, and marshmallows. Cook over medium heat stirring constantly with a wooden spoon. When the mixture comes to a soft boil, cook for seven minutes and immediately pour over chocolate mixture. Stir until candy loses some of its shine; mix in nuts, frozen marshmallows, and vanilla. Pour into a 9×13″ and 8×8″ pans and chill for 1 1/2 hours before serving.
Can be stored for a time in the freezer. Makes about 5 lbs. of candy.

I lined both of my pans with parchment paper first, and then coated the inside of the parchment with butter, which worked well in keeping the fudge from sticking. After adding the milk, butter and sugar mixture to the chocolate in the bowl, stirring can take upwards of 20 minutes or more, so have help standing by! Despite what the recipe says, I think Grandpa may have added more chocolate than what’s called for. I might have to try that next time!

I mentioned over at Food & Nutrition that today is National Peanut Butter cookie day, and one of my favorite variations on popular treat is, of course, adding chocolate!

Personally, I think peanut butter baking morsels are one the best baking creations ever. Instead of trying to add regular peanut butter to kick up a recipe, you can just add some chips for a perfectly balanced taste. And really, mixing them up with some regular chocolate chips make for a quick satisfying snack, too! (I’m not the only one who’s done that, right?)

Chewy Chocolate Peanut Butter Chip Cookies
from allrecipes.com

1 1/2 cups butter, melted
2 cups white sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups peanut butter chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

In a large bowl, mix together butter and sugar. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Combine flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt; gradually stir into the butter mixture. Mix in peanut butter chips. Drop by rounded teaspoons onto ungreased cookie sheets.

Bake 8 to 10 minutes in preheated oven. Cool for 1 minute before placing on wire racks to cool completely.

[image: flickr]

I decided to make the kids and my husband a treat yesterday and after checking that we had some Rice Krispies in the cupboard (the kids don’t always remember to tell me when we’re out of something), I decided on these Peanut Butter Crispy Bars.

What I didn’t have on hand, though, was any milk chocolate! I was fresh out of milk chocolate chips, had nothing I could use in my chocolate drawer, and didn’t feel like running to the store for it when I had so much dark and semi-sweet around anyway.

So, for the peanut butter/chocolate layer I just used my 60% Ghirardelli chocolate chips (which I also used for the top layer), which is why mine are a bit darker than the ones from the link above. It made for an even richer chocolate flavor, of course, and if I go this route again I’d cut back on the chocolate in that layer just a little bit, as it overpowers the peanut butter a little too much for me.

Peanut Butter Crispy Bars
originally from Baked: New Frontiers in Baking by Matt Lewis and Renato Poliafito

Crust
1 3/4 cups crisped rice cereal
1/4 cup sugar
3 tablespoons light corn syrup
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

Milk Chocolate-Peanut Butter Layer
5 ounces milk chocolate, coarsely chopped
1 cup creamy peanut butter

Chocolate Icing
3 ounces dark chocolate (60 to 72% cacao), coarsely chopped
1/2 teaspoon light corn syrup
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter

To make the crust: Lightly spray a paper towel with nonstick cooking spray and use it to rub the bottom and sides of an 8-inch square baking pan. [I also lined my pan with aluminum foil, which I sprayed with the cooking spray, so the bars could simply be lifted out once they set.]

Put the cereal in a large bowl and set aside. Put 1/4 cup water into a saucepan. Add the sugar and corn syrup to the pan and use a small wooden spoon to stir the mixture just until combined. Cook over medium-high heat and bring to a boil; cook until the mixture reaches 235 F on a candy thermometer.

Remove from the heat, stir in the butter and pour the mixture over the cereal. Working quickly, stir until the cereal is thoroughly coated, then pour into the prepared pan. Using your hands or a rubber spatula, press the cereal mixture into the bottom of the pan only. Let cool to room temperature while you make the next layer.

To make the milk chocolate-peanut butter layer: In a large nonreactive metal bowl stir together the chocolate and peanut butter. Set the bowl over a saucepan of simmering water and cook until the mixture is smooth, stirring occasionally with a rubber spatula. Remove the bowl from the pan and stir for about 30 seconds to cool slightly. Pour the mixture over the cooled crust. Put the pan in the refrigerator for 1 hour, or until the top layer hardens.

To make the chocolate icing: In a large nonreactive metal bowl, combine the chocolate, corn syrup and butter. Set the bowl over a saucepan of simmering water and cook until the mixture is completely smooth, stirring occasionally with a rubber spatula. Remove the bowl from the pan and stir for about 30 seconds to cool slightly. Pour the mixture over the cooled milk chocolate-peanut butter layer and spread into an even layer. I recommend simply tilting the pan to spread the chocolate around as opposed to using a rubber spatula which is more likely to disturb the layer below. Put the pan in the refrigerator for 1 hour or until the topping hardens.

Cut into 16 (or 9) squares and serve. The bars can be stored tightly covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.

After a long afternoon of spring cleaning, the kids wanted to do something fun in the kitchen, so we dug up the recipe below for chocolate caramels. It makes about ten good-sized squares, perfect for some hard working helpers!

Chocolate Caramels
CD Kitchen

1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup brown sugar — packed
1/2 cup corn syrup
1/2 cup half-and-half
2 ounces unsweetened chocolate
2 tablespoons butter — cut in pieces
1 teaspoon vanilla

Place sugars, corn syrup, half-and-half and chocolate in large heavy saucepan. Bring to boil, stirring to melt chocolate and dissolve sugar. Reduce heat to moderate and continue cooking, stirring occasionally, until syrup reaches 248 F on candy thermometer (firm-ball stage).

Remove from heat. Quickly stir in butter and vanilla just until blended and butter melts. Pour into well-greased 8×8x2″ pan. Cool; cut in small squares. If desired, top each square with pecan half or almond slivers. Wrap individually in plastic wrap or foil. Store in cool, dry place.

[image: flickr]

There’s never not a good time for chocolate sauce! It can be drizzled on ice cream, over brownies, used for dipping or mixed into milk.

Deluxe Chocolate Sauce

2 c of semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 c of butter/margarine
1 tb of instant coffee powder
1/8 ts salt
1 tb of vanilla extract
2 c of powdered sugar
1 c of light corn syrup
1 c of hot water

Measure first five ingredients into a saucepan. Heat and stir over medium heat until smooth, remove from heat. Beat in icing sugar, syrup and water until smooth. Pour into jar, store in refrigerator. Makes 4 cups.

[image: flickr]

I don’t know that we’d ever have enough Cadbury Mini Eggs leftover from Easter to make these cookies, but if I hid some away from the husband and kids specifically so I could try them out, I might get away with it!

This recipe is from Dawn of Dawn’s Recipes, who has an amazing collection of recipes. These cookies used chopped Cadbury Mini Eggs (the dark chocolate variety would be yummy in these too!) and macadamia nuts:

Cadbury Mini Egg Cookies with Macadamia Nuts
from Dawn’s Recipes

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1 1/2 cups light brown sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
10 ounces (about 1 1/2 cups) Cadbury mini eggs, broken into large chunks
1/2 cup chopped macadamia nuts

Directions:
Sift together the flour, salt, and baking soda. Set aside. In a separate bowl, combine mini egg pieces and macadamia nuts. Set aside.

Cream butter until fluffy. Add the sugar and continue to beat until light and fluffy (a couple minutes). Beat in eggs one at a time, and vanilla.

Alternatively mix in the mini egg mixture and the flour mixture, a third at a time, until well blended. Chill cookie dough for about an hour.

Preheat oven to 350°F. On cookie sheets lined with parchment paper, spoon out the cookie dough in small 1-inch diameter balls. Place dough balls 3 inches away from each other on the cookie sheets.

Bake for 10-12 minutes, until the edges are just starting to brown. Remove from oven and let cool for a few minutes. Then transfer the cookies to a wire rack to cool completely.

Makes about 4 dozen cookies.

[image: flickr]

I’m sure I’ve probably written before that I’ve found the best chocolate chip cookie recipe ever, but this time it’s really true! Actually, I’m sure that makes me sound like one of my kids, saying I know I’ve never wanted this or that more than anything else ever. But this time it’s really, really true

My favorite kind of chocolate chip cookies are thick and chewy, the ones keep their shape when they come out of the oven. I’m not crazy about cookies that flatten out, thin as pancakes.

Thick and Chew Chocolate Chip Cookies

2 cups + 2 Tb all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt

1-1/2 sticks butter (3/4 cup)
1 cup brown sugar, packed
1/2 cup sugar
1 large egg
1 egg yolk
2 tsp vanilla extract
1-1/2 cups chocolate chips
1 cup chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Mix flour, baking soda and salt together, set aside. Mix butter and sugars in mixer until well combined. Beat in egg, egg yolk and vanilla. Add dry ingredients and beat at low speed until just combined. Stir in chocolate chips and walnuts. Using a cookie scoop, place cookies two inches apart on greased or parchment-lined cookie sheets.

Bake 10-12 minutes or until cookies are golden brown.

I actually made these White Chocolate Chip Cranberry Cookies for my kids to give to their teachers for Valentine’s Day last month but forgot to write about it! Better late than never on these, though, trust me!

I found the recipe at Sweet Sista’s blog. All the ingredients are easy enough to find, and though I did use the suggested chopped pecans I think these would taste amazing with macadamia nuts as well! Read more