Outrageous Brownies (And I'm Not Kidding!)

The title pretty well sums up these brownies.  Some of you may think as I used to - brownies are delicious, but outrageous? - is that possible?  I now believe that yes, it is possible.  

As you scroll down, you might start to understand how it all works.  One pound of butter, 6 eggs (yes - 6) and loads of chocolate.  Are your pants feeling tight yet?  Holy Moly. 

In one pot you create this wonderful chocolate mixture, later mixing it with the eggs (yes 6), coffee and sugar.  Stir in more chocolate and nuts - or toffee...

And hello.  You have this mondo pan of brownies that not only look and smell amazing, but they actually taste even better.  After they cooled off I had to quickly cut them up and ship them off to friends and family so I wouldn't eat them all!

For a team building night a few weeks ago, my fun-loving boss and friend, treated our team to a cooking class at a local shop/cafe.  It was so much fun and I learned a bunch of little cooking tips throughout the whole night.  The woman who taught our class used recipes from her own personal collection.  She told us a friend of hers had shared this brownie recipe with her a few years ago.  What a friend!!! 

Outrageous Brownies

(Recipe shared by Sandy Knapp)

1 lb unsalted butter

1 lb, plus 2 c. semisweet chocolate chips, divided

6 oz. unsweetened chocolate

6 extra-large eggs

3 T. instant coffee powder

2 T. real vanilla extract

2 c. plus 1/4 c. flour, divided

1 T. baking powder

1 tsp. salt (Sandy recommended sea salt)

3 c. walnuts (I used toffee chips)

Preheat oven to 350.  Grease and flour 13x18x1 1/2 inch sheet pan. 

Melt the butter, 1 lb chocolate chips and unsweetened chocolate on top of a double boiler.  Cool slightly.  In a large bowl, mix together the eggs, coffee, sugar and vanilla.  Stir in the warm chocolate mixture and let cool slightly.

In a smaller bowl, combine 1 c. flour, baking powder and salt.  Add to cooled chocolate mixture.  Toss the walnuts and remaining chips with 1/4 c. flour.  Stir into batter.

Bake 30 minutes.  Halfway through baking, rap the pan against the oven shelf to allow air to escape from between pan and dough.  Do not over bake.  Cool thoroughly.  Refrigerate well and cut into squares.

The brownies got a thumbs up from my Little Kitchen Helper and his cousin.  They waited so patiently to be served as I took pictures.  Sweet kiddos!

Holiday Treats

Well, I won't say that I have officially started my holiday baking, but I'm definitely looking into what I want to try this year.  And this world of food blogs has opened my eyes to so many new recipes.  I love it!  I visited Picky Palate this week and found this great recipe for Candy Cane Kiss Centered Brownies.  I have to admit I bombed my first round of these.  I know you're wondering how someone can mess up brownies from a box.  Well, I didn't let them finish baking all the way and I had a big, half-baked brownie mess on my hands.

I didn't want all the brownie pieces to go to waste so I decided to try something with them.  I melted Hersheys chocolate bars, mixed in the brownie pieces and a bag of mint M&Ms.  (If you haven't tried these M&Ms yet, you should.  They are sooo good!)

I rolled the batter in a mixture of powdered sugar and crushed candy canes and rolled it up in wax paper.  I let this cool in the refridgerator.

The result?  It turned out very delicious, but hard to cut.  I think I'll try it again - with a few changes.  Maybe I'll spread it into a thinner layer-and not let them cool all the way before I cut into them. 

So, in the end I crunched it up into smaller pieces and my husband loves it. 

Not such a bad mistake after all.

Peanut Butter Cup Brownie Cheesecake

I had the privilege this week to make birthday treats for one of my co-workers. She told me she loves anything pumpkin or chocolate and she really likes cheesecake. I went in search of a brownie-type cheesecake and I came across one on http://www.allrecipes.com/ The recipe is called Chocolate Chip Brownie Cheesecake. I switched the chocolate chips for peanut butter cups and added peanut butter frosting to top it off. It was yummy!!!

Peanut Butter Cup Brownie Cheesecake

1 - (19.5 oz) package fudge brownie mix

3 - 8oz packages cream cheese, softened

1 can sweetened condensed milk

3 large eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1/2 cup chocolate chips (I used chopped peanut butter cups)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease bottom only of 9-inch springform pan. Prepare brownie mix as directed. Spread evenly in prepared pan. Bake 35 minutes or until set.

In large mixing bowl, beat cream cheese until fluffy. Gradually add in sweetened condensed milk. Add eggs and vanilla; mix well. Stir in chocolate. Pour over brownie in pan.

Reduce oven temperature to 300 degrees F. Bake 50 minutes or until set. Cool. Chill thoroughly. Remove side of springform pan. Garnish as desired.

Peanut Butter Frosting

1/2 cup butter, softened

1 cup creamy peanut butter

3 Tablespoons Milk

2 cups powdered sugar

Beat together the butter and peanut butter until smooth. Mix in sugar. Mixture will be thick. Add milk one tablespoon at a time. Beat at least 3 minutes until fluffy.