Sweets for my Sweet

I asked J what he wanted for dessert for Valentine’s Day – his response, brownies, with peanut butter and coconut.  I thought yum, peanut butter brownies.  I can do this.  Coconut, seriously?  I’m not the world’s biggest coconut fan.  The taste and smell I love!  It’s a texture thing - sprinkling the coconut shreds into batter, no thank you, but add a dash to a cocktail, sold!  But what he wants, I’m delighted to make as long as he leaves with a smile!  So I did a bit of compromising.  I scoured the Internet for a beloved recipe that would fit the bill for our very special dinner.  Where better to go than one of my favorite blogs Brown Eyed Baker.

She modified her brownie recipe from Baked: New Frontiers in Baking; and the peanut butter swirl adapted from Martha Stewart.  I just added a dash of coconut! 

I made the batter according to the recipe and poured it in a 9x 13 pan.  I then followed the directions for the peanut butter swirl.  Wow.  I couldn’t help but sneak a taste, this is really going to up the ante on these brownies.  After swirling in the peanut butter, I added shredded coconut to ¼ of the pan – I sprinkled a handful of shreds onto the batter and mixed it in with a knife. 

The brownies were fudgy with a peanut butter finish – so delicious.  J’s reaction was precisely what I hoped for.  He said they were perfect and exactly what he wanted.  Happy thoughts.

Peanut Butter Brownies with or without Coconut

Yield: 24 brownies

Prep Time: 35 minutes  Bake Time: 30 minutes

Brownies:

1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons dark, unsweetened cocoa powder

11 ounces dark chocolate, coarsely chopped

1 cup (8 ounces) Unsalted Kerrygold Butter, cut into 1-inch pieces

1 ½ cups granulated sugar

½ cup packed light brown sugar

5 eggs, at room temperature

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Peanut Butter Swirl:

½ cup Kerrygold Unsalted Butter, melted

1 cup powdered sugar

1 ½ cups creamy peanut butter

½ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.  Butter the sides and bottom of a 9x13 inch glass dish. 
2.  In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, salt and cocoa powder together.
3. Melt the chocolate and butter, stirring occasionally, until the chocolate and butter are completely melted and smooth.  Add the sugars.  Whisk until completely combined.
4. Add 3 eggs to the chocolate and whisk until combined.  Add the remaining eggs and whisk until combined.  Add the vanilla and stir until combined.  Do not overbeat the batter, or your brownies will become cakey.
5. Using a spatula, fold the flour mixture into the chocolate until just a bit of the flour is visible.
6. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top.
7.  In a medium bowl whisk together the peanut butter swirl ingredients.  Using a spoon, place dollops of the peanut butter swirl over the top of the brownie batter.  Using a butter knife, swirl the chocolate and peanut butter together.
8. Bake for 30 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through the baking time, until a cake tester (or toothpick) inserted into the center comes out with a few crumbs.  Let the brownies cool completely.

http://www.browneyedbaker.com/2011/05/24/peanut-butter-brownies/

Cookie Extravaganza

Kitchen is clean, butter is at room temperature and the Christmas music is playing.  Let the baking festivities begin!


Many people host holiday cookie exchanges to make baking for the holidays easier.  Now I know why!  I spent the weekend baking.  It was absolutely wonderful, but a true challenge.  I started with making homemade dog biscuits for my sisters puppy.  A lovely Christmas gift from the heart.  The biscuits came out wonderfully.  They were a little puffy, but they smelled of chicken and looked like the expensive dog biscuits you buy in the high-end shops, so I was happy.  Now on to the cookies for humans!


I want to give cookies away this year as a nice treat for people.  I'm making the cookie I'm known for - the classic chocolate chip.  I've made chocolate chip cookies more times than I can count.  This is the cookie that got me started on baking as a hobby!  They are wonderfully delicious, and super easy to make.  I made a double batch to ensure plenty for the family and all of my gift boxes!  

Next up - Ooey Gooey Butter Cookies.  This recipe is a family recipe.  I remember my Aunt A making these when I was a kid.  Exactly how they sound, ooey, gooey, buttery, melt in your mouth - YUM!  These still are an all time favorite at our house.  


And don't forget the sugar cookies!  I made a double batch of these so I could give plenty away and still have some left over for the family.  I made these for A and C's baby shower, and they were a huge hit.  I'm hoping these will go over just as well, if not better than the last time I made them.  I chose a variety of shapes to get into the holiday spirit, Christmas trees, stockings, candy canes, gingerbread men, stars and snowmen.  Decorating is a bit of a challenge.  I'm not sure I have the right tools to make these look as awesome as they could, but close enough!  And practice makes perfect, so I guess I'll just have to make more of these in the near future.


I am looking forward to giving these sweet treats away and sharing them with my family.  Looking forward to Christmas!


Happy holidays!