Boo! Ghost Berries

Spook up your Halloween with adorable ghost berries! 

Simply dip fresh strawberries in melted white chocolate and & add ghostly faces with dark chocolate.

What you'll need:

24 large fresh strawberries

8 ounces white chocolate chips

1/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

1 plastic baggie

1. Prepare a baking sheet by lining it with waxed paper.

2. Wash the strawberries and pat dry.

3. Melt the white chocolate in the microwave, stirring every 30 seconds until a smooth consistency. 

4. Hold strawberry by the stem & dip it into the chocolate until almost completely covered. Gently shake off excess. Place strawberry on baking sheet. Repeat until all berries are covered in white chocolate. Set aside for about 30 minutes so chocolate can set.

5. Melt semi-sweet chocolate & pour into plastic baggie. Cut off corner tip of bag and decorate the berries so they have eyes and mouths.

6. Let the chocolate completely set before serving.

Serve them at your Halloween party or as a fun after-school treat!

Happy Halloween!

Mexican Wedding Cookies

 Melt-in-your-mouth celebration cookies!

What you'll need:

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened

1 cup powdered sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

1 cup finely chopped pecans

2 cups flour

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix butter, vanilla, and 1/2 cup of the powdered sugar with electric mixture on medium speed until light and fluffy. Gradually add pecans and flour, mixing on low speed until well blended.

2. Shape dough into 1" balls. Place on ungreased cookie sheet 1-1/2" apart.

3. Bake 14 to 16 minutes. Cool 5 minutes on baking sheet. 

4. Roll warm cookies in remaining 1/2 cup powdered sugar until evenly coated. Place on wire rack to cool completely.  Add another coat of powdered sugar. Store in tightly covered container.

Chocolate Dipped Potato Chips

 Crunchy, Salty, Sweet, Chocolaty, Creamy, Savory...

What you'll need:

10-15 Lays Ruffles Potato Chips

Hershey Chocolate Bar 

Sprinkles

1. Line cookie sheet with parchment paper or wax paper.

2. Break chocolate bar into small pieces. Put in a microwave safe bowl & heat chocolate at 30 second intervals. Stir until chocolate is melted and smooth. Do not overheat.

3. Dip one half of the potato chip into the chocolate and gently shake (or tap off) the excess. Place chip on parchment paper & repeat. Add some colorful sprinkles, if desired.

4. Cool in fridge until hardened.

5. Store in an airtight container for up to one week. But be warmed, these are addictive & probably won't be around for that long!

 

Earth Day Treats: Worm and Dirt Cupcakes

What you'll need:

Chocolate box cake mix
Chocolate frosting
Oreo cookies (remove cream filling)
Gummy worms

Prepare and bake the cake mix according to the instructions.
Let cool completely.

Crush Oreo cookies in a food processor, or place cookies into a zippered bag and let your kids crunch them with a rolling pin.

Frost cupcakes with chocolate frosting and top with gummy worms.

Sprinkle the cupcakes with the Oreo crumbs and pat it down so it sticks to the frosting.

Enjoy!
Happy Earth Day!

Chocolate Birds Nest

These sweet little chocolate birds nests are a perfect decoration and dessert for Easter! 

 1 bag chow mein noodles

3 packages mini chocolate bars

1 bag Cadbury mini eggs (or jelly beans)

Mini muffin pan

Cooking spray

Wax paper  (optional)

1. Break up chocolate and place in a microwave-safe container. Heat the chocolate in 30 second intervals until thoroughly melted. Be careful to not burn the chocolate. It took me two 30 second intervals. 

2. Carefully add the chow mein noodles, stirring until completely coated in the chocolate. 
 

3. Lightly spray mini muffin pan with cooking spray.

4. Spoon mixture into mini muffin pan. (note: if you don't have a mini pan, you can also spoon it into little nests onto the wax paper)

5. Refrigerate until firm, about one hour or so.

 6. One chilled, gently remove the nests from muffin pan. I used a paring knife to pop them out.

7. Place three Cadbury mini eggs (or jelly beans) inside each nest.

 Hope you have a fabulous Easter!

Graham Cracker S'mores Bars

Irresistible rich and gooey marshmallows, milk chocolate and graham crackers are baked into a delicious cookie bar!

Ingredients:
1 bag mini marshmallows
1 tub cookie mix
1 bag Hershey bars (broken into squares)
1 box graham crackers

Directions:
1. Preheat ovem to 375 degrees
2. Line baking sheet (standard size, with sides) with parchment paper
3. Take graham crackers and lay them out onto baking sheet until it is completely full.

4. Scoop cookie dough & place one ball of dough onto each cracker. Use remaining dough to fill in gaps. It may look like a lot, but it needs to melt together to cover the entire sheet.

5. Sprinkle marshmallows all over sheet.

6. Place into oven for 6 minutes. Remove and press in Hershey pieces all over. Add more marshmallows to fill in any gaps.

 7. Return to oven and bake for 5-7 minutes or until dough and marshmallows begin to turn golden brown.
8. Remove from oven and let cool for 20 minutes. Place in refrigerator to solidify. Remove after 20 minutes and cut into squares.

 Sure to satisfy any sweet tooth!

Hot Chocolate Dippers

Stir up something special on a cold winter day with 

Hot Chocolate Dippers!

What you'll need:
Marshmallows
Peppermint sticks
Chocolate candy melts
Assortment of sprinkles

Take peppermint sticks and insert into marshmallows.

Using a double boiler, melt the chocolates and dip each marshmallow stick in to the chocolate. Be sure to coat entire marshmallow. Tap off excess chocolate and add sprinkles. Place on wax paper to cool.

My adorable assistant!

Add one dipper to a cup of hot chocolate.
Minty ~ Chocolatey ~ Goodness!

S'more Pops

Create a yummy version of the classic campfire treat!

Normally we make s'mores the old fashioned way, but this year I wanted to try something a little different!  What's great about these pops are that you can make them ahead of time so you can bring them to picnics, parties and more! And no worrying about kids going near an open flame!

What you'll need:

Chocolate bars

Large marshmallows

Crushed graham crackers

Lollipop sticks

I decided to kick ours up a notch and sprinkled the pops with sea salt and Trader Joe's sugar, chocolate and coffee bean mix!

In a small microwaveable bowl, microwave chocolate on high for 30 seconds, stirring once, until chocolate can be stirred smooth.

Dip each marshmallow halfway into melted chocolate. Sprinkle with graham crackers and sea salt. Insert lollipop stick into chocolate side of marshmallow and place on plate. Let stand at room temperature until chocolate hardens.

Using a kitchen torch, or stove top roast top of each marshmallow until golden perfection.

Enjoy (without all the hot, gooey mess)!

Apple Spice Fruit Leather

My resolution for 2012 is cook more at home!

I decided to try some homemade fruit leather treats! Perfect for snacking, lunches or hostess gifts!

What you'll need:

1 25-ounce jar of applesauce

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ginger

1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/8 teaspoon cloves

Note: If you prefer a sweeter version, add a couple teaspoons of vanilla, brown sugar, honey or maple syrup.

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 170°F

2. Puree ingredients in a food processor until nice & smooth

3. Line an 11"x17" lipped cookie sheet with greased parchment paper or silicone baking mat

4. Spread the puree until it's about 1/4" thick. Tilt the pan back & forth until it's evenly distributed.

5. Bake in in the oven for 5-8 hours. Rotate the pan halfway during baking to ensure even drying. It's ready when it's smooth & non-tacky.

6. Let it cool, then cut in strips with a pizza cutter or scissors.

7. Store in an airtight container or zipper storage bag.

{photo credits}

Thanksgiving Black-Bottom Pumpkin Tart

Ready for a dressed up version of a Thanksgiving classic? The chocolate cookie crust is the perfect compliment to the pumpkin filling. YUM!

Black-Bottom Pumpkin Tart

Ingredients:

• CRUST:
• 1 1/2 cups crushed chocolate wafers (about 30)
• 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
• FILLING:
• 1 15-oz. can 100 percent pumpkin puree
• 1/4 cup heavy cream
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
• pinch of salt

Preparation:

1. Preheat oven to 375°F; line a baking sheet with foil. Make crust: Combine wafers, cocoa powder and sugar in a food processor. Process until finely ground, about 20 seconds. Add butter and pulse until mixture just clumps together. Transfer to a 9-inch tart pan with a removable bottom and press firmly onto bottom and sides to form a crust. Place on lined baking sheet and bake until slightly firm to the touch and fragrant, 7 to 10 minutes. Remove baking sheet to a wire rack; reduce oven temperature to 350°F.

2. Make filling: Combine all ingredients in a medium bowl; whisk until blended. Place baking sheet with crust on oven rack and ladle just enough filling into crust to come up to the rim. (Do not overfill.) Bake until a knife inserted into center of tart comes out clean, about 45 minutes. Cool slightly, then chill for at least 2 hours before serving.

Berry Tempting French Toast Skewers

Want to make an impression at your next brunch? Try serving these French Toast Skewers from YumSugar. This is a perfect dish for kids & adults, because no one can resist bite-size blocks of breakfast goodness! Get the recipe here

Savoury Bites

Tiny Scones with Bleu Cheese Cream Frosting

Scone Ingredients:

2 cups flour

1/4 cup sugar

1 T baking powder

1 tsp salt

5 T cold butter, cut in pieces

1 cup heavy cream

Mix together flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Mix in butter with fingers until well integrated; mixture should be like coarse sand. Add cream, and lightly mix with your fingers until the mixture holds together. Put on floured board, push out to a thickness of about 3/4 inch, and cut into small circles. Bake at 375 for about 15 minutes, or until golden brown.

Frosting:

2/3 cup blue cheese

1 cup heavy cream

Crumble blue cheese into small pieces. In a bowl, beat blue cheese and heavy cream with an electric mixer until well-mixed and fluffy. Top scones with a dollop of jam and a dollop of frosting.

Cornbread Cupcakes with Goat Cheese Frosting and Bacon

Cupcake Ingredients:

1/2 cup coarse cornmeal

1 cup buttermilk

4 slices bacon

1 cup flour

1 T baking powder

1/4 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 cup brown sugar

2 eggs

1 T melted butter

The night before, soak cornmeal in buttermilk in a covered bowl at room temperature. Bake bacon on foil-covered pan at 350 until crisp and brown. Meanwhile, mix together flour, baking powder, soda, salt, and sugar in a bowl. In a separate bowl, beat eggs and add melted butter. Add egg mixture to buttermilk. Pour wet mixture into dry ingredients and mix with a spoon until combined. Drop by spoonful onto greased small muffin pan. Bake at 350 for 17 minutes or until lightly brown.

Frosting:

4 oz. goat cheese

4 oz. cream cheese

1/4 cup milk or cream

Crumbled bacon

Parsley

Beat goat cheese, cream cheese and milk until smooth. Spread or pipe on top of cooled cupcakes. Top with crumbled bacon and minced parsley.

Recipe & photo credits: Ming Makes Cupcakes

Flame Grilled Goodness!

I have to share my latest food obsession... grilled artichokes!

I dunno where they have been all my life but OMG! I can't get enough of them. Sprinkle some coarse sea salt & some fresh squeezed lemon. You'll love it ~ Pinky swear!

Flame Grilled Artichokes with Lemon Garlic Dipping Sauce

Ingredients:

* 2 large artichokes

* 3 teaspoons crushed garlic

* 1 lemon, halved

* ½ teaspoon sea salt

* ½ cup extra virgin olive oil

* ½ teaspoon ground black pepper

Directions:

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil.

2. Add the artichokes to the boiling water for 20-25 minutes or until the leaves pull off easily. Remove the artichokes & allow to cool.

3. In a medium bowl, squeeze the juice from the half of one lemon. Stir in olive oil, garlic, sea salt, & pepper.

4. Once artichokes are cool enough to handle, cut them in half. Brush them with the lemon garlic mixture to fully coat.

5. Place the artichokes flat side down & grill for 5 minutes until slightly charred. Flip the artichokes & grill for another 3 minutes until the opposite side is also slightly charred.

6. Remove from grill, squeeze the second half of the lemon & sprinkle with sea salt. Serve with the remaining lemon garlic sauce to dip in.

Enjoy!