Deconstructed S'mores

So not going to lie but I did not have a lot of faith in this recipe until it was complete. Meaning along the way I was not sure if I was doing it right but then in the end it was delicious. 

My cousin Kate sent me this recipe months ago and before I went back to school (which is where I am now) I decided to make it! My friend Chelsea helped me make it and eat it too! Love you Chels! 

I am stealing my cousins title for it which is "Deconstructed S'mores."  Basically there are 4 layers, all essential, and together equal perfection.  The bottom layer is made of Biscoff cookies (among other things), the second layer is a butterscotch layer, the third is a marshmallow layer, and the final fourth layer is dark chocolate. 

Just make these.  Take my word for it.  Specific warning on the butterscotch layer though.  I used Nestle butterscotch chips which melt in a very peculiar way.  I tried melting them in a pan and continued trying to melt them in the microwave.  It turns into this kind of chunky consistency but don't worry.  Just try to spread it out as much as you can and it will somehow all come together in the end.  It just doesn't look very appetizing in the moment of melting. 

I'm not even the biggest S'mores fan but these I could eat these all day long.  Thank you Kate so much for this recipe! I will definitely be doing it again- maybe an entire pan just for Jake. Side story: I saved my boyfriend a hefty chunk of this dessert and brought it to him on the airplane and everything and he devoured it very quickly- which is a good sign. 

Ingredients:

Cookie Layer:
- 1 package Biscoff cookies
- 2 tbsp. brown sugar
- 1 stick butter

Butterscotch Layer:
- 3/4 package butterscotch chips
- 2 tbsp. heavy cream
- 1/2 tsp. sea salt
- 1/2 tsp. cinnamon

Marshmallow Layer:
- 1.5 cups marshmallow fluff (a little more than one container)
- 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
- 1 tbsp. butter

Chocolate Layer:
- 3 cups chocolate chips (semi sweet)
- 1 tbsp. shortening
- 1/2 tsp. sea salt

*Flake salt to sprinkle on top.                                  

                                                                                                

Directions: 

1. Preheat the oven to 350.  Place the whole package of Biscoff cookies in a food processor and grind thoroughly.  Add in the brown sugar and melted butter.  Press crust ingredients into a greased 9x13 inch baking pan.  Bake for 17 minutes and cool completely.

2.  Melt the butterscotch chips with heavy cream in a saucepan.  Stir constantly.  Mix in cinnamon and salt.  Spread as evenly as possible over cooled cookie layer.  Chill in the fridge for 15-30 minutes. 

3.  For the marshmallow layer, microwave marshmallow fluff with cinnamon and butter for about 30 seconds or until liquified.  Mix with a spoon to incorporate all the ingredients together.  Pour over chilled butterscotch for 15-30 minutes.

4.  Melt the chocolate chips and butter either in a double boiler or in the microwave.  Spread the chocolate over the chilled marshmallow.  Sprinkle flaked sea salt over the chocolate.  Chill for 45 minutes to an hour.  If you don't have much time you can place in the freezer as well. 

5.  Cut up and enjoy, but always keep in the fridge when not serving or consuming! Enjoy!

Rocky Road Brownies

First of all I am SO sorry that I have not posted in about 3 weeks, I have just gotten back into the rhythm of school and readjusting to college life- my apologies.  But this is worth the wait! They are Rocky Road brownies.  A light cakey brownie with marshmallows, chopped pecans or walnuts, and chocolate chips. 

I spontaneously made these two nights before I left home, I knew I needed one last hoorah before my baking days would soon be limited.  They take basically no time at all if you have the ingredients handy.

Another note: The brownies will probably take longer or shorter than indicated depending on your oven and they will still seem a little of gooey when you take them out.  Keep in mind that this is due to the marshmallows that you have added.  Once it is removed from the oven let it cool and it should solidify nicely. 

I am happy to see that I am continuing to gain more and more views and interest via Pinterest, Google, and Facebook so thank you so much to all of my supporters who have helped me along the way and continue to check in with "Ever So Sweet" on a regular basis.  You guys are so awesome!

I never actually was much of a fan of Rocky Road ice cream... shoot me now, I know.  I was more of a cookie dough or mint chocolate chip kind of gal but nevertheless I will not argue with these brownies.  Especially with a scoop of vanilla ice cream on the side they are quite marvelous.

Ingredients:

This recipe makes one 9x9 square of brownies. 

4 ounces unsweetened chocolate
1 stick unsalted butter
1/2 cup + 2 tbsp. all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp. baking powder
3 eggs
1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
1/4 tsp. salt
35-50 mini marshmallows
1/2 cup chocolate chips
1/2 cup chopped walnuts or pecans

Directions: 

Start off my preheating the oven to 350 and lining your 9x9 square pan with aluminum foil.
Melt 4 oz. of chocolate and butter in the microwave in 30 seconds intervals, stirring in between.
Whisk the flour and baking powder together in a separate bowl small bowl.
In an electric mixer combine eggs, sugar, and salt.  Beat on high speed until it turns thick, pale yellow, and has increased a decent amount in volume (about 2-3 minutes). 
Pour in the butter/chocolate mixture and fold in with a spatula. 
Sift the flour mixture in, while folding again with the spatula and being careful not to overmix.
Pour the batter into the foil lined pan.

Distribute the chopped walnuts (or pecans), chocolate chips, and mini marshmallows over the surface.  

Poke the mini marshmallows into the batter with a fork or finger so that just the top is visible. 
Bake 25-35 minutes (make sure to keep an eye on this before you reach the time limit, a toothpick inserted should come out cooked but not necessarily clean).
Once it is done cooking, allow to cool completely before cutting and consuming!

This recipe was developed from a cookies, bars, and brownies cookbook that my Aunt gave me for the holidays- very sweet of her!

Enjoy your weekend and Happy almost Valentines Day! 
P.S. Happy Baking!

Puppy Dog Cupcakes!

My little sister turned 10!  Becca, along with my entire family, are huge dog fans! We love all dogs of all ages, shapes, and sizes.  So I was inspired by my Hello Cupcake book to make an army of Westie dog cupcakes.  Here is one of the adorable little buggers:

This recipe made 12 big cupcakes and 24 mini cupcakes but you can make more big ones and less little if you like.  It's all up to you!  The cupcakes definitely have some personality and looked so hilarious all lined up on the platter. 

As you can see I used the extra frosting and mini cupcakes to make decorations around the edge of the platter including paw prints and dog bones.

This recipe is going to be for vanilla cupcakes and a cream cheese frosting that you can pipe quite easily.  I also cheated and bought one can of chocolate frosting in order to save time and used it on some of the cupcakes (both alone and tie dyed with the cream cheese frosting).

I am finally home from college for a long month so be expecting lots of posts in the next few weeks! I am so happy to finally have a break from the craziness and be able to spend valuable time with my family and friends. 

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and that Santa Claus was good to you.

Once again, I would like to acknowledge "Hello Cupcake" and Glorious Treats blog for this recipe!

Ingredients:

This recipe makes 12 normal cupcakes and 24 mini cupcakes.

For the vanilla cupcakes: 

2½ cups all purpose flour

2 tsp. baking powder

2 tps. baking soda

½ tsp. salt

½ cup milk

½ cup vegetable oil

1 tsp. vanilla

1 stick of unsalted butter, softened

1 cup sugar

3 eggs

For cream cheese frosting: 

1 stick of butter (at room temp, but still cool)

8 oz. cream cheese (chilled)

1 tsp. vanilla 

4 cups powdered sugar

1-2 tbsp. heavy whipping cream

Other items needed:

A bag of mini marshmallows

Mini chocolate chips

Red jelly beans 

Small pink sprinkles 

Food coloring

Ziploc bags, tape, and scissors for piping bags

Directions:

For the vanilla cupcakes:

Preheat the oven to 350. Line one normal sized cupcake pan and two mini cupcake pans with cupcake liners.

Combine the dry ingredients: flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

Also in a separate bowl combine wet ingredients: milk, oil, and vanilla.

In an electric mixer beat butter and sugar for a few minutes until smooth and creamy. 

Add eggs one at a time on medium speed.

Turn down to low speed and alternate additions of dry and wet mixtures (beginning and ending with the dry ingredients).

Beat well until fully combined. 

Fill each cupcake liner about 2/3 full with batter.

The mini cupcakes will take 8-10 minutes to cook while the normal sized cupcakes will take about 15-18 minutes (or until toothpick inserted comes out clean).

Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely before proceeding.

For the cream cheese frosting:

Cream butter in an electric mixer slightly for about a minute and then add in the cream cheese and mix together until combined. 

Add in the vanilla and powdered sugar until it gets fluffy (don't worry it will be a bit clumpy for a few minutes but just continue to mix on medium speed). 

Start by adding one tablespoon of heavy whipping cream and beating for 1 minute (add more if it is not the consistency you are looking for). 

Make sure to keep it refrigerated once you're done!

I also died about half of it a light orange color by using orange and brown food coloring. 

Assembly of the dogs:

To create the "fur" effect with the frosting you will need to use Ziploc bags and reinforce one of the corners on each bag with a few layers of scotch tape.  Then you will need to cut a small M-shape into that corner.  Fill various bags with your frostings.  In my case I had some plain white, orange, chocolate/brown, and mixtures of the three.  To create a 2-tone frosting place the 2 different colors of your choosing side by side in the piping bag and it will give you this effect.

For the ears you will need to cut 12 mini marshmallows diagonally.  The inside of them will be sticky so you will dip the sticky part into a bowl of small pink sprinkles and set them aside. 

Beginning with the face of the dog, secure the 2 ears on the rim of the cupcake with frosting.  Using another mini marshmallow (that has 1/3 of it removed) for the snout/nose of the dog secure it somewhere around the middle of the mini cupcake. Using the piping bag cover the entire mini cupcake with frosting.  Start on the surface of the cake while applying pressure and pull away quickly while releasing pressure.  For the eyes and nose, use mini chocolate chips, and for the tongue cut a red jelly bean in half and place directly below the snout. 

For the body of the dog, use a large cupcake and create fur like lines using the piping bags. Start in the center of the cupcake and move towards the edges with the frosting.  You may need to experiment a bit in trying to figure out if you want long or short fur and how to make the frosting look how you want. 

Place the mini cupcake on its side on top of the bigger cupcake.

These cupcakes definitely take some patience but they are fun and adorable!

I really hope you all decide to try these out! What is cuter than a little doggie cupcake! Let me know if you have an questions, concerns, or comments, as always. 

Merry Christmas and Happy Baking!