Heaven & Hell Cake

People.  I am so far behind I feel like giving up.  The fact that today is the first 90-degree day of the year, and my air conditioning has broken, might also have something to do with it.  But I've got some cold raspberry-lime seltzer here, and the first couple of quiet hours to myself in over a month, so let's just keep on keeping on.

Heaven & Hell Cake - another one of my favs from Lit Night.  Apparently each component was a beast to master, and this cake's maker, one of Dessert Club's most skilled artisans, had to try several times to get it right.  So if you want to make it, good luck.

Heaven & Hell Cake (print recipe)
Serves 10 to 12

For the ganache:
2 lbs. milk chocolate, such as Valrhona, chopped
1 1/2 cups heavy cream

For the angel food cake:
1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar
1 cup cake flour
1 1/2 cups egg whites
1 tsp. cream of tartar
1/8 tsp. kosher salt
1 cup sugar
2 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. almond extract

For the devil's food cake:
1/2 cup vegetable shortening, plus more for pan
1 1/2 cups cake flour, plus more for pan
1 tsp. baking soda
3/4 tsp. kosher salt
1/4 tsp. baking powder
1 cup coffee
1/2 cup cocoa powder, sifted
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
2 eggs

For the peanut butter mousse:
1 1/2 lbs. cream cheese, at room temperature
4 cups smooth peanut butter, at room temperature
3 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted
1 1/2 cups heavy cream

1. Make the ganache: Place the chocolate in a medium-size bowl. Bring cream to a boil in a 2-qt. saucepan; pour cream over the chocolate and let sit to melt for 5 minutes. Using a rubber spatula, combine the chocolate and cream. Cover with plastic wrap and set aside to let rest for 4 hours.

2. Make the angel food cake: Heat oven to 325°. Line bottom of a 10" round cake pan with ungreased parchment paper. In a medium bowl, sift together confectioners' sugar and flour; set flour mixture aside. In a large bowl, beat egg whites, cream of tartar, and salt with a handheld mixer on low speed until frothy. Increase mixer speed to medium, sprinkle in sugar, vanilla, and almond extract, and beat until stiff peaks form. Sprinkle half of the confectioners' sugar–flour mixture over egg whites; using a rubber spatula, fold until just combined. Repeat with remaining flour mixture. Pour batter into prepared cake pan and bake until top of cake springs back when touched, 45–50 minutes. Transfer cake to a rack and let cool.

3. Make the devil's food cake: Heat oven to 350°. Grease a 10" round cake pan with shortening and dust with flour to coat; shake out excess flour and set pan aside. In a medium bowl, whisk together cake flour, baking soda, salt, and baking powder; set flour mixture aside. In another medium bowl, whisk the coffee and cocoa powder until smooth; set coffee mixture aside. In a large bowl, beat the shortening, sugar, vanilla, and eggs with a handheld mixer on medium speed until pale and fluffy, 2 minutes. Alternately add the flour mixture and the coffee mixture to the bowl in 3 stages, beating to combine after each addition. Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan and bake until a toothpick inserted into cake comes out clean, 30–35 minutes; transfer to a rack and let cool completely.

4. Make the peanut butter mousse: In a large bowl, beat cream cheese, peanut butter, and confectioners' sugar with a handheld mixer on medium speed until smooth and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Put cream into a large bowl and beat on high speed until stiff peaks form. Using a rubber spatula, fold the whipped cream into the peanut butter mixture; set mousse aside in the refrigerator.

5. Assemble the cake: Using a serrated-blade knife, slice each cake horizontally into 2 layers. Place 1 layer of the devil's food cake on a cake stand and spread 1/3 of the peanut butter mousse over the top with a butter knife. Top mousse with a layer of the angel food cake and spread with half of the remaining mousse. Repeat with the remaining devil's food cake, mousse, and angel food cake. Wrap cake in plastic wrap and freeze for 2 hours. Stir ganache until smooth and spread evenly over the top and sides of the cake with a butter knife. Refrigerate the cake for 2 hours before slicing.

Recipe from Saveur.com and DC member J.B.

Double Chocolate Cookies

I made these a long time ago - early last year, I think.  One of those recipes that just never got typed up but is totally worth repeating, and therefore keeping.  Crispy-chewy and surprisingly complex.  Buttery and chocolatey.  Dress them up, dress them down.  It's hard to beat a cookie like this.

Double Chocolate Cookies (print recipe)
Makes about 3 dozen

2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
12 ounces milk chocolate
3/4 cup unsalted butter
3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
2 tsp vanilla extract

1.  Heat oven to 375 degrees.  Whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium-size bowl.

2.  Coarsely chop 6 ounces of the chocolate, and finely chop the remaining 6 ounces.  Microwave coarsely chopped chocolate with butter for 1 minute, stirring halfway through.  Microwave an additional 15 seconds if necessary; stir until smooth.

3.  Transfer chocolate mixture to bowl of an electric mixer and add sugars, eggs and vanilla; beat until well combined.  Reduce speed to low and gradually beat in flour mixture.  Stir in remaining finely chopped chocolate pieces.

4.  Drop heaping tablespoonfuls of dough onto ungreased baking sheets, about 2 inches apart.

5.  Bake at 375 for 9 to 11 minutes or until set.  Let the cookies cool on baking sheet on a wire rack for 2 minutes.  Transfer the cookies to rack; let cool completely.

Recipe from Family Circle, February 2011

1 year ago:  Dessert Club - "Gadgets"
2 years ago:  Pistachio-Raspberry Tea Cakes
3 years ago:  Peanut Butter Melts

La Diva Chocolate Cake

Just in case you have never made a really divine chocolate cake, or at least not in awhile, I give you La Diva!

She is sweet, deep, and greater than the sum of her parts. She keeps nothing a secret, layering milk, and then dark, chocolate ganache on the outside, in an undeniable, and irresistable, attempt to bring you hither.

A word about grating chocolate. It goes seriously static! It flies everywhere and there is no containing it, I don't care how many tricks you know. The best way I've found is to lay my grater on a very shallow paper towel-lined rimmed plate or tray. The fly-aways go to the paper towel, which you can then fold up and use for pouring. Sheesh, what a mess! But as always, it is worth it. I never lead you astray.La Diva Chocolate Cake (print recipe)
Cake:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/8 tsp salt
1 cup chopped semisweet chocolate
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1 cup boiling water
2 cups sugar
3 large eggs
2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup grated semisweet chocolate

Milk Chocolate Ganache:
2/3 cup whipping cream
6 ounces milk chocolate, coarsely chopped

Dark Chocolate Ganache:
3/4 cup whipping cream
1 1/4 cups semisweet chocolate, chopped
2 T unsalted butter, cut into bits

Finishing Touches:
Confectioners' sugar
Chocolate curls

1. Preheat oven to 350. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Generously spray a 10-inch springform pan with nonstick cooking spray and place pan on baking sheet.

2. For cake, in a large bowl, hand-whisk flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt together. In a medium bowl, place chopped chocolate and butter and cover with boiling water, whisking to blend and melt chocolate. In a mixer bowl, on low speed, blend sugar, eggs, and vanilla very well until light, about 3 minutes. Fold in sour cream and then dry ingredients, melted chocolate, and grated chocolate. Blend well, scraping bowl often to ensure evenly blended batter, about 2 to 4 minutes. Spoon batter into prepared pan. Bake until cake springs back when lightly pressed with fingertips, about 55 to 65 minutes. Cool in pan 15 minutes before unmolding. Wrap and freeze 1 hour before garnishing cake.

3. To make milk chocolate ganache, in a small saucepan, bring cream to just simmering. Quickly stir in chopped milk chocolate and continue stirring until it melts, turning off heat as you do so. Mix well and chill until very firm. Then whip in a mixer on high speed to fluff.

4. For dark chocolate ganache, in a small saucepan, bring cream to just simmering. Quickly stir in chopped chocolate and continue stirring until it melts, turning off heat as you do so. Mix well. When it is thick, stir in butter to blend in. Let cool to room temperature. Chill until it can be poured over cake as a thick glaze.

5. To assemble and garnish cake, invert cake onto a serving platter. Spread milk chocolate ganache on top of cake. Chill cake 20 to 30 minutes. Then pour dark chocolate ganache over top of cake. Chill briefly and then garnish with confectioners' sugar, chocolate curls, or a pesticide-free red rose.Recipe from A Passion for Baking by Marcy Goldman

Peanut Butter Cashew Brownies

Can any of us be surprised that these won Dessert Club this month? Their creator found this recipe on How Sweet It Is via foodgawker. In fact, several DC members find their stuff through foodgawker - do you know it? I admit, I spend what little free time I can scrounge up either baking or writing - I almost never surf or browse, though I know just how much I am missing. But after these brownies, I am bookmarking it. Maybe for stuff like this I can come up with a few minutes to gawk once in awhile.

Peanut Butter Cashew Brownies (print recipe)

1 batch brownies (boxed mix or homemade)
1/2 cup salted cashews
1 cup chopped Reese’s peanut butter cups
1 1/2 cup milk chocolate chips
1 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
1/2 tablespoon butter
1 1/2 cups Rice Krispies Cereal

Mix brownies according to directions, and bake for 20-25 minutes in a 9 x 13 baking dish. Remove and top with peanuts and peanut butter cups, and bake for 4-6 minutes more.

While they are finishing baking, melt chocolate chips, peanut butter and butter. Stir in cereal. Remove brownies from oven and evenly pour chocolate mixture over top.

Refrigerate for 2 hours before serving. Top each brownie with a dollop of Peanut Butter Frosting and a bittersweet chocolate chip.

Peanut Butter Frosting
1 cup powdered sugar
1 cup creamy peanut butter
5 tablespoons butter, at room temperature
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup heavy cream

Put sugar, peanut butter, butter, vanilla and salt in mixer. Mix on medium low until creamy, scraping with spatula as you work.Add the cream and beat on high until the mixture is light and smooth.

1 year ago: Dark Fudge Bundt Cake
2 years ago: Chocolate Chip Crunch Cake

Red Hot Red Velvet Whoopie Pies

Phew, made it in time for looove day. I've been hanging onto this one, waiting for Valentine's Day but with all the birthdays around here, plus Bread Week, it kind of snuck up on me!

Last year I posted Red Velvet Cookies which were sooo good because, hello, they had chocolate chips in them and cream cheese frosting on top! And this year, well, I've got a thing for whoopie pies and one cannot ignore the association they must have with Valentine's Day. Plus these ones are red and chocolate and sweet and spicy.

Speaking of, are you having a red hot shortage where you live or is it just here? I went to three different stores, NO red hots! I finally went to World Market, where I got the manager to sell me their last bag out of a pre-packaged gift basket. Pretty sure I got the last bag in the DC metro area.

Just for you - XOXOXO!
Red Hot Red Velvet Whoopie Pies (print recipe)
Cookies:
1 oz. semisweet chocolate, chopped
1/2 oz. milk chocolate, chopped
12 T unsalted butter, melted
1/2 cup sour cream
2 large eggs
1 1/2 tsp apple cider vinegar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 T red food coloring*
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt

Red Hot Filling:
8 oz. cream cheese, room temperature
3 T unsalted butter, room temperature
2 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted
1/4 cup red hot cinnamon candies, crushed**

*1 T is for regular grocery store food coloring. If you use intense-colored paste coloring, about 1/2 tsp is sufficient.

**Crush candies by sealing in a plastic bag, placing on a cutting board, and carefully smashing with a hammer. Good fun! If you prefer vanilla filling instead of red hot, substitute the seeds scraped from one halved vanilla bean for the cinnamon candies

1. Make the cookies: Preheat to the oven to 375. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment. Combine the semisweet and milk chocolates in a microwave-safe bowl and microwave until melted, 30 seconds at a time, stirring in between. Whisk until smooth.

2. Whisk the melted butter, sour cream, eggs, vinegar and food coloring in a bowl until combined. In another bowl, whisk the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture in four equal batches, whisking each batch completely before adding the next. Stir in the melted chocolate.

3. Scoop heaping tablespoonfuls of batter onto the prepared baking sheets and smooth the tops with a damp finger. Bake until the cookies spring back when lightly pressed, 8 to 10 minutes. Let cool 10 minutes on the baking sheets, then transfer to racks to cool completely.

4. Meanwhile, make the filling: Beat the cream cheese and butter with a mixer until smooth. Beat in the confectioners' sugar and crushed candies. Sandwich a heaping tablespoonful of filling between 2 cookies; repeat with the remaining cookies and filling. Refrigerate 30 minutes before serving. Makes 18 pies

Recipe adapted from Food Network Magazine

Deep Dark Pistachio Brownies

These little devils are the antithesis of yesterday's marshmallow brownies. They are very dark. They are barely sweet. Rather than pumping you with sugary delight, these sophisticated squares will fix your deepest, darkest chocolate need. Pistachios are a sweet nut; it makes sense to pair them with this brownie because it is not overly sweet on its own. But it is intense - be sure to have a glass of something to help you handle the punch. I would definitely call these "adults only" brownies. But there's nothing wrong with that.

Deep Dark Pistachio Brownies
1/2 cup unsalted butter, cut into pieces
8 oz. bittersweet chocolate, chopped
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
3/4 tsp espresso powder
3 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup mini Hershey's Kisses or milk chocolate chips
1/2 cup shelled pistachios
2 T unsweetened cocoa
Chopped pistachios for garnish

1. Heat oven to 350. Line an 8x8 baking pan with nonstick foil.

2. In a large microwave-safe bowl, combine butter and chocolate. Microwave for 1 minute. Stir and microwave for an additional 30 seconds. Stir until smooth.

3. Add sugar and espresso powder and mix until combined. Add eggs and vanilla. Stir until eggs are incorporated. Beat in flour and salt until just combined. Fold in mini Kisses and nuts.

4. Pour into prepared pan. Bake at 350 for 30 to 35 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 15 minutes. Use foil to lift brownies from pan; cool on a wire rack.

5. Cut into squares. Dust with cocoa and sprinkle with chopped nuts. Makes 16 brownies.

Recipe from Family Circle, September 2010

Printable version

Mississippi Mud Cookies

You just never know where the next recipe is going to come from. My mom gave this to me - it was on a Southern Living subscription tear-out card in one of her magazines. And I can see why they chose it to sell their magazine. Soft double chocolate pecan cookie with gooey toasty marshmallows on top? As long as these cookies were sitting around on our counter, which wasn't long, I ate a lot of these. I guess the baby was craving them.

It kinda makes me want to think of what else I can put marshmallows on before baking. Gingersnaps? Cinnamon rolls? Chocolate biscotti? Mmm... Ideas?

Mississippi Mud Cookies
1 cup semisweet chocolate morsels

1/2 cup butter, softened

1 cups sugar

2 large eggs

1 tsp vanilla

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 cup chopped pecans

1/2 cup milk chocolate morsels

1 cup plus 2 T mini marshmallows

1. Preheat oven to 350. Microwave semisweet chocolate morsels in a small microwave-safe glass dish at HIGH 1 minute or so until smooth, stirring every 30 seconds.

2. Beat butter and sugar at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy; add eggs, 1 at a time, beating until blended after each addition. Beat in vanilla and melted chocolate.

3. Combine flour, baking powder, and salt; gradually add to chocolate mixture, beating until well blended. Stir in chopped pecans and 1/2 cup milk chocolate chips.

4. Drop by heaping tablespoonfuls onto parchment (or silicone) lined baking sheets. Press 3 marshmallows into each portion of dough. Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until set. Remove to wire racks to cool. Makes about 3 dozen.

Recipe from a tear-out Southern Living subscription card

Chocolate Citrus Freeze

I thought this would be a good one for the last post in August. A bit of a farewell to summer. It's been crazy hectic and humidly hot but packed full of field trips, unpacking boxes, and what feels like a zillion recipes (some of them were even good!)

We had the Sister Missionaries over for lunch last week and served this for dessert - I thought it would be cool and refreshing before they headed back out for a hot afternoon on the beat. They mildly complained that it's things like this that have made them gain so much weight on their missions. They also finished every last lick, as did I. I apologize to no one for making delicious treats.
So as you can see, what we've got here is a cookie crumb crust (I couldn't find chocolate wafer cookies so I used chocolate graham crackers), a chocolate mousse layer, orange sherbet, more chocolate mousse, and a layer of fudgy ganache with a few more chocolate graham crumbs.

The only hard parts are lining the darn loaf pan with plastic wrap, which in those kinds of close quarters acts more like double-sided sticky tape, and waiting between each layer for it to freeze. Pretty much you have to start the morning before you will serve it, add and freeze the layers all day, freeze overnight, then have it the next day so it's nice and firm. Other than that, it's super easy...and soooo good!

1 3/4 cups milk chocolate chips, divided
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup finely crushed chocolate wafer cookies (or chocolate graham crackers)
2 T butter, melted
1 3/4 cups heavy whipping cream, divided
4 T powdered sugar
1 1/2 cups lowfat orange sherbet, slightly softened (can also use other flavors, like raspberry)

1. Microwave 1 1/4 cups chocolate chips and 3/4 cup cream in medium, uncovered, microwave-safe bowl on medium-high (70%) for 1 minute; stir well until smooth. If necessary, microwave at additional 10 to 15 second intervals, stirring just until smooth. Stir in vanilla extract. Cool to room temperature.

2. Line a 9x5 inch loaf pan with 2 overlapping sheets of plastic wrap, allowing 4-inch overhang on all sides. GOOD LUCK with this step!

3. Combine crushed cookies and butter in medium bowl. Press onto bottom of prepared loaf pan. Save a few crumbs to sprinkle on top at the end, optional.

4. Beat 3/4 cup cream and powdered sugar in small chilled mixer bowl until stiff peaks form. Carefully fold whipped cream into chocolate mixture until blended. Spoon half of chocolate mousse (about 1 1/2 cups) over cookie layer; smooth top. Freeze for 2 hours or until very firm. Cover and refrigerate remaining chocolate mousse.

5. Spoon slightly soft sherbet over frozen chocolate layer; smooth top. Freeze for 2 hours or until very firm. (*I put sherbet and second layer of mousse - step 6 - on at the same time, without freezing sherbet layer for 2 hours. The non-frozen mousse was softer than the sherbet so there wasn't danger of them mixing, and it worked out fine.)

6. Spoon remaining chocolate mousse over sherbet layer; smooth top. Freeze for 2 hours or until very firm.

7. Microwave remaining 1/2 cup chocolate chips and remaining 1/4 cup cream in small uncovered microwave-safe bowl on medium-high (70%) for 1 minute; stir until smooth. Cool for 10 minutes. Spread evenly over mousse layer. Sprinkle with extra crumbs if desired. Freeze for up to 4 hours or overnight.

*For gluten-free option, use gluten-free cookies for crust or omit crust altogether.




Recipe from VeryBestBaking.com

Photos taken by Maren Mecham with my camera

Deep Dark Double Chocolate Bread

It is downright shocking that I have gone six whole posts - that's two and a half weeks! - without posting something chocolatey. But this recipe mooore than makes up for the lapse.This recipe takes two days to make. Seriously. But if you can be patient, it's not really otherwise difficult. No more difficult than cinnamon bread, and actually easier than rolls. I actually have no idea why it takes so long. I don't know the point of a long cold rise verses a traditional 85-degree rise, and I'm too lazy and forgetful to research it.

All I know is this stuff is the devil's manna, a chocolate-and-bread lover's nirvana, for serious chocoholics only. It's this kind of culinary ecstasy that makes me dream of running a bakery someday. If you make it, just remember, you have been warned. This is very serious stuff.Deep Dark Double Chocolate Bread (print recipe)
Chocolate Bread Dough:
1 3/4 cups warm water (100-110 degrees F)
5 tsp rapid rise yeast
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp salt
2/3 cup bitter European-style cocoa (Valrhona is suggested; I used Penzey's Dutch process)
4 to 5 cups bread flour

Chocolate Fudge Filling:
1/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/3 cup white sugar
1/2 cup cocoa powder
3/4 cup coarsely chopped bittersweet chocolate (I used Trader Joe's 72%)
1/4 cup coarsely chopped milk or white chocolate (I used Ghiradelli white)

Finishing Touches:
Sugar
Cocoa powder
Ground cinnamon

Day One
1. Spray inside of a large zip-top plastic bag with nonstick cooking spray.

2. For bread dough, in a mixer bowl hand-whisk water and yeast and a pinch of sugar together and let stand 2 to 3 minutes to dissolve and proof yeast. Briskly whisk in sugar, salt, cocoa, and 3 cups flour to make a batter. Knead with dough hook on lowest speed 5 to 8 minutes, adding more flour as necessary to make a soft but sticky dough.

3. Turn out dough onto a lightly floured work surface and gently deflate. Shape dough into a round, put in the prepared zip-top plastic bag, and refrigerate overnight or at least 8 hours. Periodically check bread, and if you see it rising, open bag, gently deflate dough, and then reseal bag.

4. For chocolate fudge filling, place butter, both sugars and cocoa in a food processor and process a few minutes to make a pastry mixture. Place in a zip-top bag and seal almost all the way. Roll out, while in bag, to flatten. Seal completely. Refrigerate filling.

Day Two
5. Remove dough from bag and turn out onto a lightly floured work surface. Roll or press dough out to a 16- to 18-inch x 10-inch rectangle. Break filling into pieces and spread pieces over surface of dough. Sprinkle chopped chocolates over filling.

6. Spray two 8 x 4 1/2 inch loafpans with nonstick spray.

7. Roll up dough snugly as a jellyroll, starting at the short side. Once it is a log, cut it in half and place each half in one of prepared loafpans, pressing in slightly. Insert each loafpan into a large plastic bag; seal and refrigerate overnight.

Day Three
8. Take loafpans out and place on a large baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Spray tops with nonstick cooking spray. Sprinkle each loaf with sugar and a touch of cocoa and cinnamon. Cover them loosely with plastic wrap and allow loaves to thaw and rise until puffy and much larger, 2 to 4 hours. They will reach or be slightly above tops of loafpans.

9. Preheat oven to 350. Place breads on lower rack of oven and bake until done and breads sound hollow when tapped, about 35 to 45 minutes.10. Cool 20 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.*When I took mine out of the pans after cooling there was a nice amount of warm fudgy filling left in the pans. Don't want it to go to waste! I just took a spoon to it and enjoyed every mouthful.Recipe from A Passion for Baking by Marcy Goldman

Rocky Ledge Bars

It was a Sunday afternoon and I was looking for something to pull together quickly for a dessert potluck. I didn't have all the ingredients for these, but saw the potential for exercising artistic license, so I went for it. They were awesome, if slightly undercooked because of time constraints. But what's wrong with being extra gooey? I even caught some potluckers going back for seconds.

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 1/4 tsp baking powder
1 tsp coarse salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature, plus more for pan
1 1/2 cups packed dark brown sugar
3 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup miniature marshmallows
1 cup semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
1 cup white chocolate, coarsely chopped
1 cup butterscotch chips
18 soft caramel-candy cubes, coarsely chopped

1. Preheat oven to 350. Lightly butter 9x13 pan. Line with parchment, allowing a 2-inch overhang on the longer sides. Brush parchment with butter (not overhang.)

2. Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl. Using a wooden spoon, mix butter and brown sugar in a medium bowl until fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add eggs and vanilla; mix until well combined. Mix in flour mixture until combined. Fold in half of each of the marshmallows, chocolates, butterscotch chips and caramels.

3. Spread batter in prepared pan. Scatter remaining marshmallows, chocolates, butterscotch chips and caramels on top. Bake until top is golden brown and a cake tester inserted into center comes out clean, 35 to 50 minutes. Let cool on wire rack. Lift out of pan, and transfer to a baking sheet. Refrigerate until set, at least 30 minutes.

4. Remove parchment, and cut into about 16 triangles. Bars can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature up to 1 week.

So above is the actual recipe from Martha Stewart's Cookies (chunky and nutty chapter.) And here's what I did instead:

• Omitted chopped white chocolate and butterscotch chips.
• Added salted peanuts and chopped milk chocolate.
• Omitted chopped semisweet chocolate and instead used chopped bittersweet chocolate with almonds (bought "on accident" at Trader Joe's when I meant to buy regular bittersweet, but easily found a use for it.)
• Kept the marshmallows, caramels and other ingredients the same.

VGP #23 Magi's Turbans

Here's a new take on two classics:
the gingersnap meets the peanut butter blossom.

And gets a really cool name in the process.

It's really just a molasses gingersnap cookie with a Hershey's Hug plopped in the middle. The recipe here is pretty good but your favorite gingersnap recipe will do just as well. They smell awesome, they look striking, and the flavors of cinnamon, ginger, cloves, milk and white chocolate are a pleasure to partake of.

Remember to let them cool all the way before touching or storing. When you press the candy into the hot cookie, the heat travels all the way up the chocolate and melts it pretty good. But it will hold its shape if you let it sit for an hour or two to cool off.

1 1/2 sticks (3/4 cup) butter, softened
1 cup packed brown sugar
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp each ground cinnamon and ginger
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1/4 cup light molasses
1 large egg
2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup granulated sugar
56 Hershey's Hugs (from a 13 oz. bag), unwrapped

1. Beat butter, brown sugar, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger and cloves in a large bowl with mixer on medium speed until well blended and paler in color. Beat in molasses and egg. Reduce speed to low and gradually add in flour just until blended. Cover and refrigerate 1 hour or until firm enough to handle.

2. Heat oven to 350. Have baking sheets ready. Put granulated sugar in a small bowl. Roll tablespoons of dough into 1-1/4 inch balls; roll in sugar to coat. Place 1 1/2 inches apart on ungreased baking sheets.

3. Bake 10 to 12 minutes until tops crack but cookies are still soft to touch. Place baking sheet on wire rack. Immediately press a Hugs in center of each cookie. Transfer cookies from baking sheet to rack to cool completely. Store in airtight container at cool room temperature up to 2 weeks or freeze up to 3 months.

Recipe from Woman's Day Holiday Cookies magazine

VGP #17 Chocolate-Filled Snowballs

This recipe was kind of an experiment in that it's made with store-bought dough. My Woman's Day Holiday Cookie issue had a "1 Dough, 20 Ways" piece, in which you start with store-bought sugar cookie dough and doctor it up to make 20 different cookies, including Pistachio Swirls, Chocolate-Sesame-Orange Thins, Pineapple-Pecan-Coconut Drops, Toffee Stripes and these Chocolate-Filled Snowballs. So I bought the dough to give it a try, and while there's nothing bad to say about an almond cinnamon cookie with a dark chocolate Hershey's kiss in the middle (!!!), I still think it would have been better with dough from scratch. After I'd made the cookies, and looked closer at the magazine to type up the recipe, I see that they thought of that, too, and included a sugar cookie dough recipe in case you want to make your own.

Either way, it's an oh-so-pleasant...
SURPRISE!

3/4 cup finely ground almonds
2 T all purpose flour (omit if using Basic Sugar Cookie Dough from scratch)
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/2 pkg (18 oz.) refrigerated sugar cookie dough (or half of Basic Sugar Cookie Dough, recipe below)
16 to 18 chocolate kisses (I used dark chocolate; hugs would probably be good too)
Confectioners' sugar for dusting

1. Heat oven to 350. In medium bowl combine almonds, four, cinnamon and cookie dough. I gave up using a wooden spoon and just kneaded it all together with my hands.

2. Form dough into about 16 to 18 balls. Push one chocolate kiss into center of each ball, pressing dough around kiss to keep ball shape. Place 2 inches apart on ungreased baking sheets.

3. Bake 12 to 15 minutes or until golden brown. Transfer to wire racks. While still warm, dust generously with powdered sugar. Cool completely. Store in airtight container up to 1 week or freeze up to 6 months.

Basic Sugar Cookie Dough Recipe:

3/4 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 egg
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour

1. Cream butter 1 minute until pale and fluffy. Add sugars and beat well.

2. Add egg and vanilla; beat until smooth. Add flour; beat until incorporated. Form dough into a ball.

VGP #15 Peanut Butter Bites

Here's your second SURPRISE! cookie.

I think we all know from the Blow-Outs that I looove peanut butter & chocolate. And we also know I had a half a bag of Reese's peanut butter cups left after making them (that's right folks - I didn't eat them!) So imagine my thrill at finding these little treats in yet another Better Homes and Gardens cookie magazine. It's like a more refined (and self-controlled) version of the Blow-Outs. Lovely cocoa-dusted peanut butter bites...

with a super SURPRISE! inside.Honestly, I don't know why anyone would ever make plain peanut butter cookies again.

3/4 cup butter, softened

1/2 cup creamy or crunchy peanut butter

1 cup sugar

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/8 tsp salt

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla

2 cups all-purpose flour

About 17 to 20 miniature chocolate-covered peanut butter cups, halved

Unsweetened cocoa powder, optional

1. Preheat oven to 375. In large bowl combine butter and peanut butter - beat with electric mixer for about 30 seconds. Add sugar, baking powder and salt. Beat until combined, scraping bowl occasionally. Beat in egg and vanilla until combined. Beat in flour. If necessary, cover and chill about 30 minutes or until dough is easy to handle.

2. Shape dough into 1 1/2 inch balls. Press a peanut butter cup half into each ball and shape dough around peanut butter cup to enclose. Place cookies 2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet.

3. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes or until edges are firm and bottoms very lightly browned. Transfer to a wire rack to cool. If desired, sprinkle with cocoa powder. Makes about 3 dozen cookies.

VGP #8 Turtle Candies

And speaking of turtles, if you're more of a purest, try these. They couldn't be easier, they look amazing, and taste even better. I'd love to take credit, but these come from my clever and amazing friend Shanna Stratton.

Ingredients:one pretzel + one chocolate caramel (or Rolo) + one pecan half

1. Preheat oven to 350. Lightly grease a cookie sheet with spray or butter. Lay out pretzels on sheet. Place a Rolo candy on each (I use Trader Joe's dark chocolate covered caramels, cut in half.) Heat in oven for 3 to 5 minutes until candy is soft.

2. Press a pecan half into each candy. Allow to cool completely on wax paper (I lightly butter this too.) Impress all your friends and neighbors, or eat them all yourself!

VGP #5 Chocolate Peanut Blow-Out Cookies

I have died and gone to chocolate peanut heaven. And you can, too. You know anything with this going on is gonna be special:
I've done pretty well with my diet amongst all this baking - a few tastes of dough, one or two cookies, then freeze or give the rest away. Yeah, but I really struggled with these. I had to call Ed at work and have him talk me through it while they cooked. Honestly! I just wanted to eat all the dough! And then all the cookies!

These are soooo yummy and comforting. They are Christmas Eve cookies, feel-better-on-a-bad-day cookies, impress-the-church-potluck-or-school-bake-sale cookies, make-your-kids-seriously-smile cookies, and definitely must-put-on-holiday-goody-plate cookies. Anyone you share these with will beg - BEG! - for the recipe (between stuffing their mouths with them!) And they're never better than ooey gooey hot right out of the oven.

Come to Momma.

1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 egg
1/4 cup milk
1 tsp vanilla
2 cups flour
3/4 cup semisweet chocolate pieces
3/4 cup honey-roasted peanuts
3/4 cup coarsely chopped bite-size chocolate-covered peanut butter cups (about 15)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large mixing bowl beat the butter and peanut butter with electric mixer on medium for 30 seconds. Add the sugars, baking soda, and salt. Beat until combined, scraping sides.

2. Beat in egg, milk and vanilla until combined. Beat in flour a little at a time. With wooden spoon, stir in chocolate pieces, peanuts, and chopped peanut butter cups.

3. Drop dough by generously rounded teaspoons (or cookie scoop) 2 inches apart onto an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake about 10 minutes or until lightly browned. Transfer to wire racks to cool. Makes about 3 dozen.

Recipe from Better Homes & Gardens 100 Best Cookies