Chocolate Pudding served in a martini glass!

My MIL made chocolate pudding a few weeks back.  I love how creative she was serving them – In a martini glass with some whipped cream on top and white chocolate chips!  Doesn’t it look awesome and so fancy?

Hershey’s “Perfectly Chocolate” Chocolate Cake

This cake was made for my husbands birthday a few weeks ago. It was one of the best cakes we have ever had!

I should start by saying that I did “attempt” to make this cake last year, also for his birthday, but the cake batter and I had a falling out! I can only assume that I filled the cake pans with too much batter because when I checked on the progress of the cake, the batter had literally exploded and was all over our oven! The grates had dried up batter and the sides and wall of the oven for a mess. Needless to say, it wasn’t pleasant!

This year, I was especially careful at filling up the batter only halfway in each pan. If you have someone in your house who likes to eat batter, the extra batter will disappear and be used right up! Joking aside, there wasn’t much batter left over anyway…so a spoonful here and there is no big deal!

Ingredients

• 2 cups sugar
• 1-3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup HERSHEY’S Cocoa
• 1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1-1/2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup milk
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 cup boiling water
• “PERFECTLY CHOCOLATE” CHOCOLATE FROSTING (recipe follows)

Directions

1. 1 Heat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour two 9-inch round baking pans.
2. 2 Stir together sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt in large bowl. Add eggs, milk, oil and vanilla; beat on medium speed of mixer 2 minutes. Stir in boiling water (batter will be thin). Pour batter into prepared pans.
3. 3 Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes; remove from pans to wire racks. Cool completely. Frost with “PERFECTLY CHOCOLATE” CHOCOLATE FROSTING. 10 to 12 servings. VARIATIONS: ONE-PAN CAKE: Grease and flour 13x9x2-inch baking pan. Heat oven to 350° F. Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake 35 to 40 minutes. Cool completely. Frost. THREE LAYER CAKE: Grease and flour three 8-inch round baking pans. Heat oven to 350°F. Pour batter into prepared pans. Bake 30 to 35 minutes. Cool 10 minutes; remove from pans to wire racks. Cool completely. Frost. BUNDT CAKE: Grease and flour 12-cup Bundt pan. Heat oven to 350°F. Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake 50 to 55 minutes. Cool 15 minutes; remove from pan to wire rack. Cool completely. Frost. CUPCAKES: Line muffin cups (2-1/2 inches in diameter) with paper bake cups. Heat oven to 350°F. Fill cups 2/3 full with batter. Bake 22 to 25 minutes. Cool completely. Frost. About 30 cupcakes. “PERFECTLY CHOCOLATE” CHOCOLATE FROSTING 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter or margarine 2/3 cup HERSHEY’S Cocoa 3 cups powdered sugar 1/3 cup milk 1 teaspoon vanilla extract Melt butter. Stir in cocoa. Alternately add powdered sugar and milk, beating to spreading consistency. Add small amount additional milk, if needed. Stir in vanilla. About 2 cups frosting.

Recipe from: Hershey’s “Perfectly Chocolate” Chocolate Cake
http://www.hersheys.com/pure-recipes/details.aspx?id=184&name=HERSHEY’S

Peanut Butter Cup Brownies

Oh boy! Get ready for a taste of Heaven! These brownie bites are the real deal. You won’t be disappointed after your first bite…I promise! They were a tad bit to rich for me, but still awesome! The guys ate these brownies right up, so I know they were good!
I also brought some to work and everyone raved about them. They may not compare to Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Truffles, but they are pretty close! And with Valentine’s Day just a few days away, these are the perfect dessert to make for that special someone in your life.
Enjoy!!

Ingredients:

1 box of your favorite brownie mix
1/2 cup peanut butter chips
1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
3/4 cup creamy peanut butter

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray or grease 40 mini-muffin cups.

Prepare boxed brownie mix as directed. Spoon batter evenly into muffin cups (about 1 heaping teaspoon). Bake for 13-15 minutes or until top is set and a toothpick inserted into center comes out slightly wet. After brownies are out of the oven, wait for centers to fall. This will happen upon cooling. If not then tap the centers with the back of a teaspoon to make a hole for the peanut butter.

Place peanut butter in a small microwave-safe bowl. Microwave on high for 45 seconds then stir. While brownies are still warm spoon about half a teaspoon of peanut butter into the center of each brownie. Top with semi-sweet chocolate chips and peanut butter chips. Cool completely in pan.Yields about 40.

Recipe from – http://
www.bakedperfection.com/2009/07/peanut-butter-cup-brownies.html

Chocolate Molten Lava Cakes

Chocolate lava cakes…would you like one?  I would!!  What could be better than a chocolate type of cake with a gooey flow of melted chocolate?  NOTHING!!  These are perfect for a special day, but really who am I kidding… these are perfect any day!  I made these on New Years Eve and they were the perfect way to ring in the New Year!  I like white chocolate, so I melted a few pieces with a 1/3 cup of heavy cream to pour over these cakes.

Ingredients:

• 4 squares BAKER’S Semi-Sweet Chocolate
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 2 whole eggs
• 2  egg yolks
• 6 Tbsp. flour
• 1/2 cup  thawed COOL WHIP Whipped Topping

• BUTTER 4 small custard cups; place on baking sheet.
• MICROWAVE chocolate and butter in large microwaveable bowl on HIGH 1 min. or until butter is melted; whisk until chocolate is completely melted. Stir in sugar. Add whole eggs and egg yolks; mix well. Stir in flour. Spoon into prepared cups.
• BAKE 13 to 14 min. or until sides of desserts are firm but centers are still soft. Let stand 1 min. Carefully run small spatula or knife around cakes to loosen; invert into dessert plates. Serve warm with COOL WHIP.

 Recipe from:  http://www.kraftrecipes.com/cooking-tips/cooking-videos/molten-chocolate-cakes-603.aspx

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Truffles – A Crowd Pleaser

As a kid, I loved eating cookie dough!  Amy and I would each grab a spoon and dig into the log of Nestle Tollhouse Cookie Dough in our refrigerator.  Granted we were warned that eating too much could make us sick, but this never seemed to stop us.  I don’t think we ever got sick either!  As an adult, I still love eating cookie dough!  I haven’t bought the pre-made cookie dough in a long time; I’ll make my own now.  This way I can add as much vanilla or brown sugar as I want!

When I came across this recipe years ago, I was immediately intrigued and knew I had to try them.  I actually created my own recipe out of the base for these truffles and entered them into the Pillsbury Bake Off a few years ago.  Unfortunately, my recipe didn’t get selected; I will have to share this recipe another time.  But for now, enjoy these truffles!  They are a bit rich, so you can’t have too many of them, but they melt in your mouth!  They are great for your cookie swap item or even for your Thanksgiving or Christmas Dessert Tray.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
• 1/2 cup semisweet mini chocolate morsels (I added in extra chocolate chips; since the original recipe calls for walnuts or pecans and I omitted them.)
• 1 1/2 pounds chocolate bark candy coating, melted

Directions:

In a large bowl cream butter and brown sugar with an electric mixer at medium speed until creamy. Add vanilla. Gradually beat in flour and add milk. Add chocolate morsels, mixing well. Shape into 1-inch balls. Place on waxed paper; chill 2 hours.

*Cook’s Note: Since the dough is sticky, roll your fingers into flour. This will make it easier to roll.

Melt chocolate bark candy coating in a double boiler. Using 2 forks, dip cookie balls into candy coating to cover. Place on waxed paper and chill to set. Store in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour.

Recipe from:  http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/paulas-best-dishes/cookie-dough-truffles-recipe/index.html