Happiness Project Recipe #16.5: Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Granola Bars!

August 17, 2012 Leave a Comment

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Have you ever walked through a grocery store & come face to face with a certain food item that put your knickers in a twist? A few nights ago, after unsuccessfully attempting to fend off a ruthless craving for granola bars, I was faced with a rather odd food dilemma. I could have very easily just cheated by buying a package of pre-made granola bars but nooooooo, the invisible pastry chef sitting so snugly next to my ear (much like the devil on one shoulder & the angel on the other) refused to let me succumb to such unusual laziness. “Why buy when you can make your own?” she asked. So with a tiny bit of grumbling, I did. Hence this now perfect opportunity to share my favorite granola bar recipe with you!

½ cup creamy peanut butter

1/3 cup honey

1 egg

2 tablespoons canola oil

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

3-1/2 cup old-fashioned oats

½ cup brown sugar

¾ teaspoon kosher salt

1/3 cup peanut butter chips

1/3 cup semisweet chocolate chips

In a large bowl (either in a stand mixer or by a hand held mixer), beat the peanut butter, honey, egg, oil and vanilla until blended. In another mixing bowl, combine the oats, brown sugar & salt and mix together with a spoon (or by hand, if you want to add a little extra fun to your day). Now pour the dry mixture into the wet (peanut butter) mixture and mix well. Make sure your entire batch is nicely, evenly coated. Gently stir in your peanut butter chips & chocolate chips. Your batter will now be very, very sticky (and will smell quite divine!).

Transfer to a 9×13 inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Since the batter is quite sticky, with your fingers, gently & tightly press the mixture into the edges of the pan until evenly spread throughout. Bake at 350F for 20 minutes until the edges are lightly browned. Remove from the oven & let cool on a wire rack for about 30 to 45 minutes to let the granola harden properly. Once the granola is cooled & set, take a serrated knife & gently cut up into however many bars you would would like (I like to cut up longer bars so I usually end up with around 12). I also tend to like a crisper granola bar versus a chewier one, so after initially cutting up each bar, I drop my oven temperature down to 300F, spread out my 12 bars onto a second sprayed cookie sheet & pop them back into the oven for another 5 minutes. So whether you want to go crispier or chewier, it’s all a matter of preference. You’ll be happy with the end result, either way.

Fun, right? Now every time you too come across your own grocery store dilemma, you won’t be haunted in the least by that ruthlessly nagging little pastry chef on your shoulder. Granola bars from scratch? Why yes! Yes, indeed!

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Happiness Project Recipe #16: Honey-Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies!

July 20, 2012 Leave a Comment

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The funny thing about near constant nausea & ones inability to get any real sleep at night because of it, is how it makes you yearn for things you don’t usually have cravings for. Point in case, I’ve never been a big fan of oatmeal. Be it bars, cereal or cookies, oatmeal is just NOT my thing. I like my classic peanut butter. Or chunky chocolate chip. Case closed. Until now. Thanks to Martha Stewart, the cookie monster (within me) has awoken! And is hungry. Very, very hungry. Fortunately, for a few short hours, my roller coaster of a body decided to slow down enough for me to take a well earned breather. So, as usual, where was the first place I headed to? The kitchen. I wanted my cookies & I wanted them now! Got it? Good!

3 cups old-fashioned rolled oats

1 cup plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1/2 cup honey crunch wheat germ (I found a glass jar of this at Target)

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon coarse sea salt

1 cup unsalted butter, softened at room temperature

1 cup granulated sugar

1 cup packed brown sugar

2 large eggs

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips or 1 cup raisins (for oatmeal raisin cookies)

Preheat your oven to 350F. Stir together the oats, honey wheat germ, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon and salt in a large bowl.

Mix your butter and sugars (granulated & brown) in a bowl on your electric mixer until pale & fluffy (about 4-5 minutes).  Mix in the eggs and vanilla until fully incorporated. After reducing your mixing speed to low, gradually add in the oat mixture until just combined. Stir in your chocolate chips or raisins by hand.

Using either a small ice cream scoop or gently rolling by hand, drop dough balls onto a parchment or Silpat lined baking sheet, placing them a good 2 inches apart (for expansion).

Bake for 12 to 13 minutes, until lightly golden & just set. Let cool on cookie sheets for 5 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack. You can store your cookies in an airtight container for up to 4 days (so eat them now!)

Moral of the story? If I can get my cookies this easily, then you can too! Happy baking, my friends!

* Recipe adapted from “Martha Stewart’s Cookies.”

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Happiness Project Recipe #12: Chocolate PB Pretzel Niblets!

July 4, 2012 Leave a Comment

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Oh Chocolate! Glorious, glorious chocolate! In addition to random, early morning cravings for oyster crackers & sour patch kids, the thought of chocolate alone sometimes gets me through the worst of pain. Unless, of course that thought becomes a horrible, uncontrollable longing at 1am that MUST be fed (imagine dragging yourself out of bed in the middle of the night to spend some quality time with your kitchen)! So in the interest of self preservation, I made that terrible longing for chocolaty, crunchy sweetness a long awaited reality! Hence the birth of my FAVORITE Happiness Project recipe thus far: the Chocolate PB Pretzel Niblet! Yes, this unassuming bite-size morsel has now become one of my all time FAVORITE dessert recipes (and that’s saying something considering the uncountable number of recipes I’ve been tinkering with these past few months)! I quite literally inhaled THREE of them, back to back yesterday, without batting an eye! That’s madness, my friends! Madness! So with no further adieu, here’s the recipe…

1 1/8 cups creamy peanut butter

10 tablespoons confections sugar

2 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature

2 cups finely crushed Pretzels

10 ounces milk or dark chocolate candy melts

Break out that apron again! You’re going to need it for this one!

In a medium sized mixing bowl (with a paddle attachment if on a stand mixer), stir together the peanut butter, confections sugar, butter & crushed pretzels until well combined. You can easily do this by hand with a wooden spoon if you don’t have a stand mixer.

Quick tip: Place your pretzels in a closed ziplock bag while crushing them up. Clean up is easier this way. Plus, your kitchen will thank you.

Roll or firmly pinch your mixture into 1 inch balls & arrange them on a parchment or Silpat lined baking sheet. This should make you about 24 pretzel balls. Freeze them for 30-40 minutes until firm.

Before you take your semi-frozen pretzel balls out of the freezer, melt your chocolate candy in a microwave safe bowl on high for about 1 minute, stirring at each 30 second interval. Using a large fork or spoon, dip each ball into your bowl of melted chocolate, gently tapping the fork or spoon on the bowls rim to remove excess chocolate. Deposit your covered balls onto your lined baking sheet & chill in the fridge until the candy coating is set before serving. If not serving immediately, keep them in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

Easy, right? Right!

Happy 4th of July, my friends! And happy nibbling!

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Happiness Project Recipe #10: White & Dark Chocolate Cake Brownies!

June 29, 2012 Leave a Comment

Oh. My. Word. You don’t know the meaning of true decadence unless you’ve tried this oozing concoction of cake brownie heaven! Considering how much of a chocolate connoisseur I am, I’ve rarely come across a dessert that is simply TOO much for me to handle. Until now.

This recipe nearly sugar-shocked me into complete chocolate withdrawal. That’s how good it is! Plus, once the flavors have settled in a bit, it tastes even BETTER the day after (I think so, at least). So here it is, in all of it’s sticky, gooey greatness!

1 box devil’s food chocolate cake mix

½ cup butter, softened at room temperature

1 large egg

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 to 3 tablespoons cold brewed coffee

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

1 cup white chocolate chips

1 can (14-ounces) sweetened condensed milk

½ cup (4 ounces) cream cheese, softened

½ teaspoon clear vanilla extract

Preheat your oven to 350F and prepare a 9×9 pan by lining it with aluminum foil and then spraying it with cooking spray. In a large mixing bowl, combine the cake mix, butter, egg & vanilla and mix with electric beaters. The batter will be very thick & difficult to combine at first, so adding the coffee will help create a softer consistency. Start pressing the dough into the prepared pan & prepare yourself for incredibly messy fingers. Even though it will be a bit sticky, keep pressing & spreading it until it’s evenly laid out.  Once you’re happy with the cake layer, sprinkle the white and dark chocolate chips over the top (fun, fun!).

In another mixing bowl, combine the sweetened condensed milk, cream cheese & ½ teaspoon of vanilla extract, stir until well combined and pour milky mixture evenly over the cake dough. Bake for roughly 24 to 26 minutes, or until the edges begin to brown and pull away from the sides of the pan. Remember, you can always use a small pairing or serrated knife to cut off the browned edges. The middle will still be quite soft & jiggly upon removing from the oven but never fear, this will continue to set up more after they are cooled. Cool completely on a rack for about 30 to 45 minutes before carefully slicing them up into bars. If not serving immediately, store refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 5 days.

So what say you? Think you’ll be able to handle the craziness of this glorious lip smacking concoction? You might want to have a tall glass of milk handy when you do! *hint hint* Good luck!

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Happiness Project Recipe #7: Sprinkle Cake Batter Truffles!

June 29, 2012 Leave a Comment

Mmmm. Cake. Who doesn’t like some really good cake? Especially when it’s bite-size! Before finding this recipe, I had never worked with truffles before so the very thought of creating an actual truffle seemed rather intimidating to me. Was I sadly naive? Yes. You want simple? You get simple! You want messy? You get messy! Best of all, you get a ridiculously fun, yummy dessert that’s a sure fire way to please just about every sweet tooth in the family! Guaranteed! Here it is, my friends!

½ cup unsalted butter, softened at room temperature

½ cup sugar

1 ½ cup all purpose flour

1 cup dry, cake mix of any flavor (I used vanilla cake mix for these)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/8 teaspoon kosher salt

3 tablespoons of whole milk

2-4 tablespoons jumbo sized sprinkles

10 oz white dipping chocolate (I buy this at my local Micheal’s Arts & Craft store)

Once you’ve gathered all your ingredients, here’s a handy tip! Wear an apron. You’re going to get very, very messy. Case in point: I did NOT wear my apron & paid the price. My kitchen had splattered dipping chocolate dripping all over the place. My hair included.

Beat together the butter and sugar with an electric mixer until combined. Add the flour, cake mix, salt & vanilla into the mixing bowl and mix thoroughly until well combined (you can easily mix this by hand if you don’t have a stand mixer). Add 3 Tablespoons of milk to create a dough-like consistency. Now the fun part! Mix in those jumbo rainbow sprinkles by hand. Once your sprinkles are generously incorporated, roll dough pieces into 1 inch balls and place on a parchment or wax lined cookie sheet (I swear by my Silpat, which you can buy at any Sur La Table location). Chill the dough balls in the refrigerator for 15-20 minutes to help firm them up.

Remember how I just recommended wearing an apron? You’ll need to use it for this next step.

While your dough balls are chilling, melt the white dipping chocolate in the microwave in 30-second intervals until melted. Stir between each 30-second interval. Using a large fork or spoon (whichever is easier to handle), dip dough balls in the melted dipping chocolate and shake off the excess chocolate by gently tapping the fork or spoon on the side of the bowl. Place the coated truffle back onto the cookie sheet and top with sprinkles. Quick tip: the melted dipping chocolate will solidify fairly quickly, so you’ll want to distribute the sprinkles with haste. Repeat this technique with the remaining balls, one at a time.

Chill your cake batter truffles in the refrigerator until serving or the coated cake batter will start becoming a bit gooey. Unless, of course, you like gooey.

Overall, this is one of the messiest but easiest dessert recipe I’ve had the pleasure of re-creating thus far. You will LOVE it! Trust me.

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Happiness Project Recipe #2: Chocolate Chip Blondies!

June 28, 2012 Leave a Comment

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Since finishing Pastry School, I’ve recently become a wee bit obsessed with finding the BEST dessert recipes to tweak & re-invent to my own super snobbish version of perfection. One of these said recipes is creating a bar a bit more adventurous than a traditional chocolate brownie (though what’s NOT to love about a chocolate brownie??). Enter the classic Blondie. The wondrous thing about the Blondie is that you can add just about anything to it & it comes out tasting just the way you want it! Nuts, fruits, frosting, even a cup or so of your favorite whiskey! It’s that easy to create your own slice of personalized bliss! Drooling now, aren’t you? Here’s the recipe!

8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, completely melted

1 cup brown sugar

1 large egg

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Pinch of kosher salt

1 cup all purpose flour (I prefer King Arthurs Flour, which you can find at any Whole Foods Market location)

One of the most important things I learned in school, was that with baking, you MUST follow recipe directions in a timely & exact manner. With any good recipe base, there’s not usually much wiggle room for change (though tweaking bits of it can be fun once you’ve figured out what your individual preferences are). So when preparing this lovely bar, remember to take heed to any specific directions. Ready?

Lightly butter an 8×8 pan. Lightly, because otherwise, the bottom of your Blondies will end up being a bit greasy.

Mix your melted butter with brown sugar & beat until smooth (on medium speed in a stand mixer for a few minutes). Beat in the egg and then the vanilla extract.

Add the salt & stir in the flour until fully combined. If you are using any additions, such as chocolate chips, nuts, fruits etc, mix this in now. I’ll list a few of my favorite additions below.

Additions can be as follows: 1 cup chopped nuts, 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips, 1/2 cup dried fruit (stirred into batter), 1/3 cup bourbon or other whiskey (most of this will burn off while baking & will only add a very subtle bit of extra flavoring); increase the flour by 1 tablespoon

Pour your mixture into the prepared pan. Bake at 350F for 20-25 minutes, or until set in the middle. With most bar & brownie recipes, the sides will begin to brown & peel away from the edges when done. Cool completely on a rack for 20-30 minutes before cutting them. Since I’m not a big fan of flaky edges, I usually cut the browned edges off in the pan (with a small serrated knife) before I slice up the actual bar pieces. It’s just prettier (and we all know how much I like pretty things!).

Now, serve & enjoy!

Yum? Oh yes!

*Recipe adapted from “How To Cook Everything”

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