Double Chocolate Cookies

17 Tuesday May 2016

Posted by BakedNorthwest in Baking, Cookies, Desserts, Easy

Tags

Brownie, chocolate, chocolate chips, cocoa, cookies, white chocolate

This is the cookie recipe I have been waiting for. I knew it was out there, but I hadn’t had a double chocolate chip cookie since the days of the middle school snack bar. It’s a dangerously easy recipe that you can throw together before any party, picnic, or potluck. I am currently wondering if I will ever make another cookie or brownie recipe again, since these little babies are the best of both worlds.

Recipe
Double Chocolate Cookies
Adapted from Trisha Yearwood
Makes about 3 dozen cookies

Ingredients

2 sticks (1 cup) butter, at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup cocoa powder
6 ounces chocolate chips (milk, semi-sweet, or dark are all good choices)
6 ounces white chocolate chips
1 cup chopped nuts, such as pecans or walnuts (optional)

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix the butter, granulated sugar and brown sugar until fully combined, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, and mix to combine. Add the vanilla and mix. Add the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt and mix. Add the white and chocolate chips; mix until just combined. Fold in the nuts, if using.

Drop heaping tablespoons of dough onto the baking sheets. Bake, rotating the sheets once halfway through, until the cookies are set, about 12 minutes. Transfer to a rack to cool. Repeat with the remaining dough.

Chocolate Crisps, 2 Ways

02 Tuesday Feb 2016

Posted by BakedNorthwest in Cookies, Desserts, Easy

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

chocolate, Cornflakes, cranberries, cranberry, Crisps, orange, peanut butter, peanuts

Plan on every post on this blog starting with “When I was pregnant…” for awhile. Now that Quinn is out in the world and I’m feeling better, I want to try to post all the things I wanted to when I was too tired to do anything. You would think I would be saying that AFTER baby, but man, I’m convinced being pregnant was like having mono. No matter how little sleep I get I still feel better than the days I got home from work and could only manage eating a PB&J or cornflakes.

Speaking of cornflakes, I had a craving for a bowl of them when I was pregnant. That craving lasted for exactly one bowl. Of course, I bought the HUGE box of cornflakes. I don’t think any other cereal comes in a box so big. So…I’ve had some cornflakes I’ve been needing to do something with for way too long.

What’s the best thing to do with cereal? Make it into something even more unhealthy, of course! I had so many cornflakes I was able to make 2 batches of chocolate crisps inspired by Ina’s “English Chocolate Crisps.” For the first batch, chocolate, orange, and cranberry were perfect together. But then I realized that Chocolate and Peanut butter was kind of a no-brainer too. The process can get a little messy and each batch turns out slightly different. Above are the peanut crisps and below are the chocolate-orange crisps. I was able to get the orange ones into balls better and the peanut butter ones were a little harder to mold. Regardless of the messiness, these no-bake snacks are still super easy and worth it. It’s a great way to get a nice little hit of chocolate goodness without having too feel too guilty.

Recipe
Chocolate Crisps, 2 Ways
Makes 2 dozen medium-sized crisps
Adapted from Ina Garten’s Make It Ahead

Chocolate-Orange Crisps

Ingredients

6 ounces dark chocolate
6 ounces bittersweet chocolate chips
zest of 1 orange (about 1 tbsp zest)
1 tbsp orange juice (optional)
1/3 cup dried cranberries
3 cups cornflakes

Directions

Chop the dark chocolate (if you aren’t using dark chocolate chips) and place into a double boiler. Add the bittersweet chocolate chips, the orange zest, and orange juice and stir until smooth. Alternately, you can place the chocolate in a heatproof bowl and microwave in 30 second intervals, stopping to stir until chocolate is melted.

Place the cornflakes and dried cranberries in a medium bowl and stir to incorporate the cranberries. Immediately fold in the melted chocolate with a rubber spatula, working quickly so the chocolate doesn’t harden.

Line a sheet pan with parchment paper. Working with 2 large spoons or soup spoons, spoon mounds of chocolate onto the paper. This gets a little tricky since everything doesn’t quite stick together, but try to get the mounds clumped together. It’s messy, but the chocolate will harden in the fridge! Make about 2 dozen, 2-inch round crisps.

Refrigerate crisps until hardened, at least 1 hour.

Chocolate-Peanut Butter Crisps

Ingredients

1 (12 oz) bag semi-sweet chocolate chips
3/4 cup creamy peanut butter
1/3 cup dried cranberries
1/2 cup salted peanuts
3 cups cornflakes

Directions

Place chocolate chips into a double boiler. Add the peanut butter and stir until smooth. Alternately, you can place the chocolate and peanut butter in a heatproof bowl and microwave in 30 second intervals, stopping to stir until chocolate is melted.

Place the cornflakes, dried cranberries, and peanuts in a medium bowl and stir to incorporate everything. Immediately fold in the melted chocolate and peanut butter mixture with a rubber spatula, working quickly so the chocolate doesn’t harden.

Refrigerate crisps until hardened, at least 1 hour.

Chocolate Zucchini Muffins

10 Thursday Sep 2015

Posted by BakedNorthwest in Baking, Breads, Breakfast

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Tags

bread, chocolate, chocolate chips, loaf, muffins, zucchini

As if Chocolate Chip Zucchini Bread wasn’t enough…I had to go ahead and make some extra chocolately zucchini muffins. These muffins can also be made as chocolate zucchini bread, but I have a special place in my heart for chocolate muffins. We all know a certain wholesale store sells some of the biggest and best chocolate muffins ever…but it’s hard not to feel guilty when indulging in a giant 1 pound muffin that’s 90% butter. Continue reading →

Chocolate Sugar Cookies with Cream Cheese Frosting

08 Friday May 2015

Posted by BakedNorthwest in Baking, Cookies, Desserts

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

Brownie, chocolate, Cream Cheese Frosting, Roll Out Cookies, sugar cookies

We are on month five of my year of Sugar Cookies! This month I was ready to change things up a bit. I have been waiting to share this recipe for Chocolate Sugar Cookies for quite some time – it’s a classic that you’ll make again and again. The chocolate sugar cookies are a great vehicle for so many different kinds of frosting. This month I was feeling some cream cheese frosting for the top. In the future, I would consider orange frosting, peppermint, chocolate, raspberry, the list goes on! You can easily change these up to be appropriate for almost any holiday. Continue reading →

Chocolate Strawberry Icebox Cake

11 Wednesday Feb 2015

Posted by BakedNorthwest in Desserts, Entertaining, Holidays, LuLu's Classics

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

chocolate, Chocolate Wafer Cookies, Icebox Cake, strawberries, strawberry, valentines day

My obsession with icebox cakes continues. I may one day just become known as the “icebox cake lady.” I’m not quite sure if this is a good or bad thing, but I don’t think anyone can argue with the fact that they are easy to make and delicious. My in-laws came to town last weekend, and I wanted to do something festive and make-ahead. Continue reading →

Christmas Eve Yule Log (Buche de Noel)

30 Tuesday Dec 2014

Posted by BakedNorthwest in Desserts, Entertaining, Holidays, LuLu's Classics

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

buche de noel, cherries, chocolate, christmas dessert, christmas eve dessert, kirsch, meringue, mushroom meringue, yule log

Here is what I know about Yule Logs: I don’t remember a Christmas Eve dinner where we ate something else for dessert. It’s our tradition to make one every year, pure and simple. The one thing we switch up every year is the filling. It’s almost always a chocolate cake with some sort of festive cream rolled in. Here is a list of what we have done in the past, hopefully I’ll be able to post all of the recipes down the line!

Peppermint Crunch Filling
White Mint Filling
Orange filling
Raspberry Filling
Coconut Almond Filling

This year we opted for a cherry chocolate crème filling. It’s so hard to decide what to do every year, because they are all so good!

Continue reading →

Trail Mix Cookies

27 Tuesday May 2014

Posted by BakedNorthwest in Baking, Bloggerific, Desserts, Easy, Travel

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Tags

brown sugar, butter, chocolate, cinnamon, cookie, cookies, eggs, flour, M&Ms, peanuts, raisins, trail mix

I’m one of those people who can shamelessly polish off about a pound of trail mix in under five minutes. And I’m not picky either…Yes, I like to make sure I’m getting a balanced handful, and I never pick out all of the chocolate before everything else. You’ve gotta plan ahead for the last perfect bite!These cookies make trail mix less complicated. All the goodness of trail mix in one cookie. Totally portable, and perfect for a road trip or camping weekend. And if you are a germ-o-phobe (I’m def not) these are good because a bunch of people aren’t sticking their hands into one bag…

This recipe can be adapted. I almost added butterscotch chips, but wanted to keep it as classic as possible. Peanut butter chips, other nuts, golden raisins, tons of other stuff would work, make your own favorite trail mix into a cookie!

Recipe
Trail Mix Cookies
adapted from the Joy the Baker Cookbook
makes about 3 dozen cookies

Ingredients

2 cups old-fashioned oats
1 cup flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup packed brown sugar
2 large eggs
2 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 cups M&M chocolate candies
1 cup coarsely chopped roasted and salted peanuts
3/4 cup raisins

Directions

Preheat oven to 350F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper, or spray with nonstick cooking spray. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together oats, flours, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon. Set aside.

In the bowl of an electric stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat together butt and sugars until light and fluffy, 3 to 5 minutes. Add eggs one at a time, beating on medium speed for 1 minute between each addition. Stop the mixer and scrape down the bowl as necessary. Beat in the vanilla until thoroughly incorporated.

Stop the mixer and add the flour mixture all at once. Beat on low speed until just cinforporated. Add the M&M’s, peanuts, and raisins. Remove the bowl from the mixer, and finish incorporating the cookie batter with a spatula.

Roll generous tablespoonfuls into balls and place on prepared baking sheet. Bake for 10-13 minutes or until lightly browned around the edges. Remove from oven and allow to cool on the cookie sheet for 10 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool.

Cookies will last at room temperature in an airtight container for about 5 days.

Nanaimo Bars

29 Tuesday Apr 2014

Posted by BakedNorthwest in Cookies, Desserts, Easy

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Tags

almond, Canada, chocolate, cocoa, coconut, custard, dessert, Nanaimo, nanaimo bars, vanilla

When you are representing Canada at your own birthday party, you have to keep it real. First, you make semi-homemade poutine. Then, you make Nanaimo Bars for dessert. These things, combined with copious amounts of Kokanee, Crown, and Canadian Tuxedos…pretty much make for an unforgettable night.

I have been wanting to make Nanaimo bars ever since we took a weekend trip to Vancouver BC…with our cell phones out of range, we were constantly getting lost on the Canadian roads. On the way home, trying to follow road signs and still managing to get hopelessly lost, we went under a sign that read “Nanaimo” and I tried saying it…”Na-naimo? naaaa…naymo?” I am famous for pronouncing things wrong, particularly unknown towns and cities (Fife, Kittitas, and Tenino are just a few of the classics). At this point in our trip we pretty much lost it over Nanaimo and couldn’t stop laughing.

Continue reading →

Chocolate Peanut Butter Balls

10 Tuesday Dec 2013

Posted by BakedNorthwest in Desserts, Easy, Holidays, LuLu's Classics, Uncategorized

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

balls, butter, chocolate, crisp rice cereal, peanut butter, powdered sugar, puffed rice cereal, rice krispies

I am so very thrilled to be bringing you some famous family balls! When I was a kid, my mom would always make various types of balls around the holidays. It has been YEARS since we have revisited the tradition, and I needed to get these recipes on lockdown! I’m kicking off our famous balls recipes with Chocolate Peanut Butter Balls. These are super easy, decadent, and delish! Better than any store bought peanut butter treat I have ever had, I love the little crunch you get from the crispy rice cereal.

Off we go into how easy these are!

All you have to do is mix the crisp rice cereal with powdered sugar, then add the butter and peanut butter alternatively in a few batches until everything is combined. Throw the mixture in the fridge until it has firmed up…

Then line a rimmed baking sheet with waxed paper and form the mixture into balls. You can make whatever size you like, each of my balls are about 2 bites each, just a little over a tablespoonful!

Then you get ready to dip your balls into chocolate! Paraffin was in the original recipe, but I didn’t use it. I think it’s pretty unnecessary unless you are going for a super glossy and smooth look, plus you lose some of the pure chocolate flavor. (If you haven’t already noticed, my balls definitely aren’t perfect. But in my opinion, taste always trumps looks when it comes to balls).

These totally brought me back. I can tell you, anyone who loves a good peanut butter treat will love these balls. They are awesome straight out of the freezer. The best part is you can make these in advance, freeze them, and then gift them when you are ready. Stay tuned for more famous family balls recipes!

Recipe
Chocolate Peanut Butter Balls
from Lulu
makes about 3 dozen balls

Ingredients

3 cups crisp rice cereal
2 cups powdered sugar
2 cups creamy peanut butter
1/2 cup (1 stick) melted butter
12 oz semi-sweet or dark chocolate chips or chunks
1/8 lb paraffin (optional)

Directions

In a large bowl, mix together the crisp rice cereal and the powdered sugar. Add the butter and peanut butter alternatively in thirds until the entire mixture is well blended. Refrigerate mixture until cold and firmed up, for at least an hour.

Remove mixture from refrigerator and place waxed paper on a rimmed baking sheet. Form peanut butter mixture into balls, I make mine about 2-bite sized, maybe a little bigger than a tablespoonful each. Place the balls on the waxed paper.

Gently simmer 2 inches of water in a medium saucepan or double boiler. If not using a double boiler, place chocolate and parrafin (if using) in a medium-sized heatproof bowl and place the bowl over, not touching the simmering water (this creates your homemade double boiler). Melt the chocolate until smooth. Remove from the simmering water and get ready to dip your balls into the chocolate. You can use a fork to dip, or a wooden skewer, whatever works! Let balls dry on the waxed paper and chill in the fridge for about an hour before removing.

Balls will keep for at least a week in the fridge, even longer in the freezer.

Cadbury Mini Egg Blondies

25 Monday Mar 2013

Posted by BakedNorthwest in Baking, Bloggerific, Cookies, Desserts, Easy, Holidays

≈ 3 Comments

Tags

blondies, cadbury mini eggs, chocolate, Easter, eggs

I have Pinterest to thank for these beautiful blondies. Seriously, I didn’t think I could love Easter or Cadbury mini eggs more than I already do…but these came along and changed my world.

the beauty of fresh cadbury’s going into blondie batter. Gently fold them in, don’t you dare think of turning that mixer back on!

First of all, super easy to make. I have never made blondies before, but this seems like a really good base recipe. I would definitely revisit this with white chocolate, M&Ms, dried fruit, the possibilities are endless…But the mini eggs are definitely a win in this situation. I really thought mini eggs were perfect in their original form, but the blondie batter changed everything! Continue reading →