Friday Recipe: Chia Seed Brownies

I took this brownie recipe from All Recipes but instead of the eggs, I substituted chia seeds. Yes, that Ch-ch-ch-chia! Apparently chia seeds are all sorts of delicious and healthy. They also make a good egg substitute for those with egg allergies.

 

I  made these for a family party and everyone loved  them except the child with the egg allergy. Apparently that had more to do with the chewy factor. (He preferred cake-like brownies to the chewy kind even though he's never had a brownie in his life!)

 

Egg substitute: for each egg mix 1 tablespoon chia seeds with 3 tablespoons of water. Let sit for 5 minutes.

 

I just baked them in as is, because I couldn't find my food processor to crush them. It was fine, but if you want to make chia meal instead of seeds, that's doable, too. I'd show you a picture but they went before I thought to take one.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup butter, melted
1 cup white sugar
2 eggs
1/2 cup self-rising flour
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour an 8x8 or 9x9 inch baking pan.
2. In a medium bowl, beat together the butter and sugar. Add eggs, and mix well. Combine the flour, cocoa and salt; stir into the sugar mixture. Mix in the vanilla and stir in walnuts if desired. Spread evenly into the prepared pan.
3. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes in the preheated oven, or until edges are firm. Cool before cutting into squares.

Friday Recipe: Chocolate-Covered Strawberry Granola

Found this on Woman's Day under 14 Delicious Ways to Have Chocolate for Breakfast, which originally appeared on Cosmopolitan.com, but the real recipe is from Oh My Veggies (it's 6 degrees of separation...or a flow chart. Same thing?)

Any way you look at it, chocolate-covered anything is yummy. Picture is theirs (Oh My Veggies). So much prettier!

Chocolate-Covered Strawberry Granola

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 40 minutes

Yield: About 8 cups

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup coconut oil (solid, not melted)
• 1/4 cup unsalted butter
• 1/4 cup honey
• 1/4 cup golden brown sugar
• 1/4 cup Dutch process cocoa powder
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3 cups rolled oats
• 2 cups sliced almonds
• 1 cup sweetened shredded coconut
• 1 1/2 cups (1.2 ounces) freeze-dried strawberries
• 1 (4-ounce) 60% cacao bittersweet chocolate bar (or substitute another chocolate bar or chips of your choosing)

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 325°F. Line a large rimmed cookie sheet with parchment paper or a silicone mat.
2. Add the coconut oil, butter, and honey to a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Heat, stirring occasionally, until the butter and coconut oil melt. In a small bowl, combine the brown sugar and cocoa powder. Pour this into the coconut oil/butter/honey mixture and stir with a whisk, stirring constantly until smooth, about 30 seconds. Remove from heat and stir in the salt and vanilla extract.
3. In a large bowl, toss together the rolled oats, almonds, and coconut. Pour the wet mixture over the top and stir well with a wooden spoon, until most of the dry ingredients are coated.
4. Spread onto the cookie sheet and bake, stirring every 10 minutes, until the granola is fragrant and beginning to turn golden brown--about 30 minutes total. Remove from the oven and let the granola cool to the touch, about 10 minutes. Break the pieces up with your fingers, then let the granola cool the rest of the way.
5. Once cool, add the strawberries, breaking them into smaller pieces with your hands as you mix them into the granola.
6. To melt the chocolate, use a double boiler or place an oven-proof bowl over a medium saucepan of barely simmering water. Break the chocolate into chunks and place them into the double boiler/bowl, stirring constantly just until melted. Drizzle the chocolate over the granola and allow to cool until hardened, 1 to 2 hours.
7. With your hands, break up the granola to distribute the chocolate and transfer to a bowl or storage container.
8. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to two weeks. Note: don't let it get too warm, or the chocolate may melt and you'll have messy granola on your hands (literally)!

Friday Recipe:Chocolate Chip Peppermint Cookies

Chocolate chip cookies are classic. Peppermint chocolate chip cookies are even better! I know you're thinking about them right now. Delicious, huh? Yup. We both know you want some!

Prep Time: 15 Minutes Cook Time: 12 Minutes

Ready In: 50 Minutes Servings: 30

Ingredients:

3/4 cup butter 1/2 cup white sugar 1/2 cup packed brown sugar 1 egg 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1 teaspoon peppermint extract

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder 1 teaspoon baking soda 1/4 teaspoon salt 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Directions:

1.	Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease cookie sheets.
2.	In a large bowl, cream together butter, white sugar, and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg, then stir in vanilla and peppermint extracts. Combine flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt; gradually stir into the creamed mixture. Mix in the chocolate chips. Drop by rounded spoonfuls onto the prepared cookie sheets.
3.	Bake for 12 to 15 minutes in the preheated oven. Allow cookies to cool on cookie sheets for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

Friday Recipe: Cherry Almond Cheesecake on a Stick

No, this isn't a quick and dirty dessert but oh, it's delicious and worth the time and mess. And it is messy. They ever tell you that--oh, you'll need this, this, and this, and it'll take this long to make, but the cleanup! Oh, the cleanup will take even longer...yeah. So this is your waring: Cleanup required!

Yes, I know it's sponsored by Ghirardelli but I shall let that go in favor of the dessert itself. Because even big businesses can have good ideas.

Prep Time: 30 Minutes Cook Time: 40 Minutes

Ready In: 4 Hours 10 Minutes Servings: 16

Ingredients:

1/3 cup chopped dried tart red cherries 2 tablespoons Kirsch (cherry-flavor brandy) or apple juice (I used apple juice) 2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened 3/4 cup granulated sugar 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour 1/2 teaspoon almond extract (I used 1/4 because I'm not a fan of the extract) 2 large eggs, slightly beaten

1/4 cup coarsely crushed graham cracker pieces 16 round paper lollipop or wooden craft sticks 2 (10 ounce) bags Ghirardelli® 60% Cacao Bittersweet Chocolate Baking Chips 1 cup coarsely chopped toasted almonds , toasted*

Directions:

1.	In a small bowl, combine dried cherries and Kirsch. Let stand while preparing cheesecake filling. Line the bottom and sides of an 8x8x2-inch square baking pan with foil, making the foil as smooth as possible.
2.	Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. For cheesecake filling, in a large bowl, combine cream cheese, sugar, flour, and almond extract; beat with an electric mixer on medium speed until combined. Using a spatula or wooden spoon, stir in eggs (do not over mix). Stir in the cherries, Kirsch, and graham cracker pieces.
3.	Pour filling into prepared pan. Bake on the middle oven rack for 35 to 40 minutes or until the center appears set when gently shaken.
4.	Cool cheesecake in the pan on a wire rack for 1 hour. Cover and freeze cheesecake for 2 hours or until firm.
5.	Line a large tray or plate with parchment paper or waxed paper; set aside. Remove cheesecake from pan. Peel away foil. Using a sharp knife dipped in warm water, cut the cheesecake into 16 small squares. Insert a stick into the side of each piece of cheesecake. Lay on the prepared tray.
6.	In a large microwave-safe bowl, place the Ghirardelli® 60% Cacao Bittersweet Chocolate Baking Chips. Microwave on medium power (50 percent) for 1 minute. Remove and stir. If chocolate is not melted, return to microwave and repeat heating step, stirring every 30 seconds to avoid scorching. Stir until smooth. Place almonds in a shallow dish.

Friday Recipe: Chocolate filled Crescent Rolls

I recently bought mini-chocolate chips for mummy cupcakes (I'll try and remember to post pictures when I make them for next week's party), but they happened to be on sale so I bought 2 bags. Really, what can I do with 2 bags of mini-chocolate chips? Very hard to make cookies, I prefer lots and lots of chips in my cookies. But then I stumbled across this delicious recipe. Because it's true: Chocolate makes everything better. (Unless it goes better with cheese in which case, cheese makes everything better!)

Chocolate Chip Crescent Rolls

Ingredients:


1 (8 ounce) can Pillsbury® refrigerated
crescent dinner rolls 1/2 cup mini chocolate chips
Powdered sugar, if desired
Directions:
1. Heat oven to 350 degrees F Separate dough into 8 triangles.
2. Place tablespoon of chocolate chips on wide end of each triangle. Roll up, starting at shortest side of triangle, rolling to opposite point. Place on ungreased cookie sheet.
3. Bake at 350 degrees F for 15 to 20 minutes or until golden brown. Sprinkle with powered sugar.

Friday Recipe:Chocolate Mousse

Made this for a (chohcolate) cake: Cake, mousse, cake, with a chocolate ganache. Yes. It was chocolate overload but it was delicious!

Prep Time:20 Min
Ready In:20 Min

Ingredients
1/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1 tablespoon water
1 egg yolk, lightly beaten
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 cup whipping cream
1 tablespoon sugar
Whipped cream

Directions
In a small heavy saucepan, melt chocolate chips with water over low heat; stir until smooth. Stir a small amount of hot chocolate mixture into egg yolk; return all to the pan, stirring constantly. Cook and stir for 2 minutes or until slightly thickened. Remove from the heat; stir in vanilla.

Cool, stirring several times.

In a mixing bowl, beat whipping cream until it begins to thicken. Add sugar; beat until soft peaks form. Fold in cooled chocolate mixture. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours. Garnish with whipped cream if desired.