Tag Archives: #chocolatefriendsoftenaciousm

Dec3

Better Than Robert Redford Dessert… And There’s Chocolate

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This make-ahead dessert consists of five delicious layers not counting the nut and chocolate garnish. When cut into squares, note the walnut crust, the cream cheese layer, the vanilla pudding, the chocolate pudding, and the creamy whipped topping.

Better Than Robert Redford Chocolate

Servings: 16
Prep Time: 20 mins

Ingredients

1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup coarsely chopped walnuts
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
1 8 ounce package cream cheese, softened
1 cup confectioners’ sugar
1 8 ounce container frozen whipped topping, thawed
4 cups milk
2 3.4 ounce boxes instant vanilla pudding
2 3.9 ounce boxes instant chocolate pudding
Chopped nuts
Chocolate curls

Directions

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Coat 13 x 9 x 2-inch baking dish with nonstick cooking spray.

2. In a medium-size bowl, mix flour, walnuts and butter. Pat into prepared dish. Bake at 350 degrees F. for 15 minutes. Cool.

3. In a bowl, beat cream cheese and sugar until smooth. Fold in half of the whipped topping. Spread over cooled crust.

4. Prepare vanilla pudding using 2 cups of the milk. Spread over cream cheese layer. Prepare chocolate pudding with remaining 2 cups milk. Spread over the vanilla pudding layer. Spread remaining whipped topping over pudding. Refrigerate at least 2 hours or overnight. Sprinkle with nuts and chocolate curls. Cut into squares.

Nov29

Double Chocolate Soufflés with Warm Fudge Sauce

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I’m elevating this dessert to “Dream Treat”. You can prepare the ingredients ahead, spoon the batter into soufflé dishes, cover, and freeze until you’re ready to cook them. They can go straight from the freezer to the oven.

These chocolate soufflés are a super-decadent dessert and the perfect finishing touch to dinner parties or a quiet dinner for two.

Double Chocolate Soufflés with Warm Fudge Sauce

Yield: 6 servings (serving size: 1 soufflé and about 2 tablespoons sauce)

Ingredients

SOUFFLE:
Cooking spray
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar, divided
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cups fat-free milk
3 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 large egg yolk
6 large egg whites

SAUCE:
1 tablespoon butter
1/3 cup sugar
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1/2 cup fat-free milk
1/2 ounce bittersweet chocolate, chopped

Preparation

1. Position oven rack to the lowest setting, and remove middle rack. Preheat oven to 425°.

2.To prepare the soufflés, lightly coat 6 (8-ounce) soufflé dishes with cooking spray. Sprinkle evenly with 2 tablespoons sugar. Set aside.

3. Combine remaining 1/2 cup sugar, 3 tablespoons flour, 3 tablespoons cocoa, and salt in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, stirring with a whisk. Gradually add 1 1/4 cups milk, stirring constantly with a whisk; bring to a boil. Cook 2 minutes or until slightly thick, stirring constantly with a whisk; remove from heat. Add 3 ounces chocolate; stir until smooth. Transfer mixture to a large bowl; cool to room temperature. Stir in vanilla and egg yolk.

4. Place egg whites in a large mixing bowl; beat at high speed with a mixer until stiff peaks form (do not overbeat). Gently fold one-fourth of egg whites into chocolate mixture; gently fold in remaining egg white mixture. Gently spoon mixture into prepared dishes. Sharply tap dishes 2 or 3 times on counter to level. Place dishes on a baking sheet; place baking sheet on the bottom rack of 425° oven. Immediately reduce oven temperature to 350° (do not remove soufflés from oven). Bake 40 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in the side of soufflé comes out clean.

5. To prepare sauce, melt butter in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Add 1/3 cup sugar, 2 tablespoons cocoa, and 1 tablespoon flour; stir well with a whisk. Gradually add 1/2 cup milk, stirring well with a whisk; bring to a boil. Cook 1 minute or until slightly thick, stirring constantly with a whisk. Remove from heat; add 1/2 ounce chocolate, stirring until smooth. Serve warm with soufflés.

Note: You can prepare the ingredients ahead, spoon the batter into soufflé dishes, cover, and freeze until you’re ready to cook them. They can go straight from the freezer to the oven. Make the sauce ahead, too, and simply warm it before serving.

Nov24

Chocolate Turtle Cake

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In time for Thanksgiving… Chocolate, caramel, and pecans are made to be together, and their flavors harmonize perfectly in this stunning chocolate layer cake. Devil’s food cake mix with pudding plus chocolate morsels result in brownie-like layers filled and frosted with a jazzed up ready-to-spread fudge frosting. The finishing touches are turtle candies and a drizzling of dulce de leche ice cream topping.

Chocolate Turtle Cake

Ingredients

Unsweetened cocoa
1 (18.25-oz.) package devil’s food cake mix
1 (3.9-oz.) package chocolate instant pudding mix
3 large eggs
1 1/4 cups milk
1 cup canola oil
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 teaspoon chocolate extract
1 teaspoon instant coffee granules
1 (6-oz.) package semisweet chocolate morsels
1 cup chopped pecans
1 (16-oz.) container ready-to-spread cream cheese frosting
1/2 cup canned dulce de leche
2 (7-oz.) packages turtle candies
1 (16-oz.) can ready-to-spread chocolate fudge frosting
1 (12-oz.) jar dulce de leche ice cream topping
1/4 cup pecan halves, toasted

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 350°. Grease 2 (9-inch) round cake pans, and dust with cocoa. Set aside.

2. Beat cake mix and next 7 ingredients at low speed with an electric mixer 1 minute; beat at medium speed 2 minutes. Fold in chocolate morsels and chopped pecans. Pour batter into prepared pans.

3. Bake at 350° for 30 to 32 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pans on wire racks 10 minutes. Remove from pans to wire racks, and cool completely. Wrap and chill cake layers at least 1 hour.

4. Whisk together cream cheese frosting and canned dulce de leche in a small bowl until well blended. Set aside. Cut 6 turtle candies in half, and set aside for garnish. Dice remaining turtle candies.

5. Using a serrated knife, slice cake layers in half horizontally to make 4 layers. Place 1 layer, cut side up, on cake plate. Spread with 1/2 cup cream cheese frosting mixture; sprinkle with one-third diced turtle candies. Repeat procedure twice. Place final cake layer on top of cake, cut side down. Spread chocolate fudge frosting on top and sides of cake. Cover and chill in refrigerator until ready to serve. Just before serving, drizzle dulce de leche ice cream topping over top of cake. Garnish with remaining halved turtle candies and pecan halves. Store in refrigerator.

Nov22

Chocolate Sheet Cake

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First off, to my followers, I am SO sorry I have not posted in forever. But good news, I am back! So without further ado, a new recipe! 🙂

This has been one of my favorite chocolate recipes since forever. Enjoy!

Chocolate Sheet Cake

Ingredients

2 cups flour
2 cups sugar
½ cup butter
1 cup water
4 Tablespoons cocoa
½ cup shortening
½ cup buttermilk
½ teaspoon baking soda
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla

FROSTING
½ cup butter
6 Tablespoons milk
3 Tablespoon cocoa
16 oz. powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
(nuts if desired, I never add them)

Directions

1. In a large mixing bowl, measure flour and sugar. Set aside.

2. In a medium sauce pan, combine butter, water, cocoa and shortening. Bring to a boil. After mixture reaches a boil, add it to the flour mixture and stir to combine.

3. Add buttermilk, then baking soda, then eggs, then vanilla in that order, mixing in-between each addition.

4. Pour into a greased cookie sheet and bake at 400 degrees F for 20 minutes

FROSTING

1. Bring combine butter milk and cocoa and bring to a boil, stir in powdered sugar and vanilla until smooth.

2. After cake has cooked, remove from oven and poke holes in hot cake with a fork. Pour frosting evenly over top.

Nov4

German Chocolate Coconut-Pecan Pie

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This pie combines the ingredients everyone loves in its classic cake cousin. It’s so silky and smooth, you won’t be able to put your fork down.

Coconut-Pecan German Chocolate Pie

Total Time: Prep: 50 min. + chilling Bake: 35 min. + chilling
Yield: 8 servings

Ingredients

1-1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons cold lard
3 to 4 tablespoons ice water

FILLING:
4 ounces German sweet chocolate, chopped
2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
1 can (14 ounces) sweetened condensed milk
4 egg yolks
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup chopped pecans

TOPPING:
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
1/4 cup butter, cubed
2 egg yolks
1 cup flaked coconut
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/4 cup chopped pecans

Directions

1. In a small bowl, mix flour and salt; cut in lard until crumbly. Gradually add ice water, tossing with a fork until dough holds together when pressed. Shape into a disk; wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate 30 minutes or overnight.

2. Preheat oven to 400°. On a lightly floured surface, roll dough to a 1/8-in.-thick circle; transfer to a 9-in. pie plate. Trim pastry to 1/2 in. beyond rim of plate; flute edge. Line unpricked pastry with a double thickness of foil. Fill with pie weights, dried beans or uncooked rice.

3. Bake 11-13 minutes or until bottom is lightly browned. Remove foil and weights; bake 6-8 minutes longer or until light brown. Cool on a wire rack. Reduce oven setting to 350°.

4. In a microwave, melt chocolates in a large bowl; stir until smooth. Cool slightly. Whisk in milk, egg yolks and vanilla; stir in pecans. Pour into crust. Bake 16-19 minutes or until set. Cool 1 hour on a wire rack.

5. Meanwhile, in a small heavy saucepan, combine brown sugar, cream and butter. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring to dissolve sugar. Remove from heat.

6. In a small bowl, whisk a small amount of hot mixture into egg yolks; return all to pan, whisking constantly. Cook 2-3 minutes or until mixture thickens and a thermometer reads 160°, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Stir in coconut and vanilla; cool 10 minutes.

7. Pour over filling; sprinkle with pecans. Refrigerate 4 hours or until cold.

Nov3

Chocolate Peanut Freeze

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This layered ice cream dessert tastes a lot like a popular candy bar. It is so easy to assemble. Enjoy!

Chocolate Peanut Freeze

Total Time: Prep: 25 + freezing
Yield: 15-18 servings

Ingredients

2 cups confectioners’ sugar
1 can (12 ounces) evaporated milk
1 cup butter, divided
2/3 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1 package (15-1/2 ounces) Oreo cookies
1/2 gallon vanilla ice cream, softened
1-1/2 cups salted peanuts, coarsely chopped

Directions

1. In a large saucepan, combine the confectioners’ sugar, milk, 1/2 cup butter and chocolate chips. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Cook and stir for 8 minutes or until slightly thickened. Refrigerate until cool.

2. Meanwhile, in a food processor or blender, cover and process cookies until finely crushed. In a large bowl, melt remaining butter; stir in crushed cookies. Press into a 13-in. x 9-in. dish. Refrigerate until firm.

3. Spread ice cream over crust; freeze. Stir peanuts into chilled chocolate mixture. Spread over ice cream. Cover and freeze for 3-4 hours or until firm. remove from the freezer 5 minutes before serving.

Oct29

Peanut Butter and Chocolate Two Ways

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Sharing recipes from a fellow blogger. I can’t wait to try them for myself!

Oct28

Happy National Chocolate Day!

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national-chocolate-day-2

National Chocolate Day is celebrated annually on October 28th. While there are many chocolate related holidays throughout the year, National Chocolate Day is a day to celebrate all things chocolate. As America’s favorite flavor, chocolate is well deserving of it’s own day of honor and celebration. So, #chocolatefriendsofTenciousM, it’s all about us!!

Happy Chocolate Day 2

HOW IS CHOCOLATE MADE?

Chocolate comes from the seed of the tropical Theobroma cacao tree. Cacao, which has been cultivated for at least three millennia, is grown in Mexico, Central America and Northern South America. The earliest known documentation of use, of cacao seeds, is around 1100 BC. The cacao tree seed have a very intense bitter taste that must be fermented to develop the flavor.

Once the seeds have been fermented, the beans are then dried, cleaned and roasted. After roasting, the shell is removed to produce cacao nibs. The cacao nibs are then ground into cocoa mass which is pure chocolate in rough form. The cocoa mass is usually liquefied then molded with or without other ingredients, it is called chocolate liquor. The chocolate liquor may then be processed into two components: cocoa solids and cocoa butter.

Unsweetened baking chocolate – cocoa solids and cocoa butter in varying proportions.
Sweet chocolate – cocoa solids, cocoa butter or other fat and sugar.
Milk chocolate – sweet chocolate with milk powder or condensed milk.
White chocolate – cocoa butter, sugar and milk but no cocoa solids.

Oct25

Mint Chocolate Cake

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Happy Saturday #chocolatefriendsofTenaciousM!! Here is an easy recipe that blends two of my favorite flavors… chocolate and mint!

Mint Chocolate Cake

Total Time: Prep: 15 min. + chilling Bake: 25 min. + cooling
Yield: 20-24 servings

Ingredients

1 package chocolate cake mix (regular size)

FROSTING:
1/2 cup butter, softened
2 cups confectioners’ sugar
1 tablespoon water
1/2 teaspoon peppermint extract
3 drops green food coloring

TOPPING:
1-1/2 cups milk chocolate chips
6 tablespoons butter, softened
1/4 teaspoon peppermint extract

Directions

1. Prepare cake batter according to package directions, using a greased 15-in. x 10-in. x 1-in. baking pan.

2. Bake at 350° for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack.

3. In a large bowl, combine the frosting ingredients until smooth. Spread over cooled cake.

4. For topping, in a microwave, melt chocolate chips and butter; stir until smooth. Stir in extract. Spread over frosting. Refrigerate until set.

Oct22

Fudge-Nut Oatmeal Bars

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Great chocolate idea to add with lunch, snacks, life!

Fudge-Nut Oatmeal Bars

Total Time: Prep: 20 min. Bake: 20 min.
Yield: 30

Ingredients

1 cup butter, softened
2 cups packed brown sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons Pure Vanilla Extract
3 cups quick-cooking oats
2-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt

FUDGE FILLING
1 can (14 ounces) sweetened condensed milk
2 cups (12 ounces) semisweet chocolate chips
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup chopped walnuts
2 teaspoons Pure Vanilla Extract

Directions

1. In a bowl, cream butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs and vanilla; mix well. Combine oats, flour, baking soda and salt; add to the creamed mixture. Spread two-thirds into an ungreased 15-in. x 10-in. x 1-in. baking pan; set aside.

2. For filling, heat the milk, chocolate chips, butter and salt in a microwave-safe bowl until chips are melted. Remove from the heat; stir in walnuts and vanilla. Spread over top. Drop remaining oat mixture by tablespoonfuls over chocolate.

3. Bake at 350° for 20 to 25 minutes. Cool on a wire rack.