Tag Archives: Chocolate

Toffee Hot Chocolate Snowman Shooters

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Toffee Hot Chocolate Snowman Shooters I’ve chugged sipped about ten shooters. Give or take a few. Truthfully, I’ve lost count. And, I just reached for another.

What? Don’t look at me like that. Hot chocolate overdose can happen to anyone. Especially when it’s cold outside. And when the hot chocolate has hints of toffee. And is smothered in whipped cream. And sprinkled with toffee bits. And served in mini glasses that are ridiculously festive.

Can we just talk about the Snowman Shooters for a minute? Are these glasses not the cutest things you have ever seen?
Toffee Hot Chocolate Snowman Shooters Okay, maybe not the cutest thing ever, but they definitely rival for first, or at least come in second. Come on, you know I’m right. I, for one, just can’t get over how stinkin adorable they are. In fact, I stared at these little guys for a good ten minutes without taking a sip…I didn’t want to ruin their cuteness by drinking it. Hopefully you understand that feeling, and aren’t thinking that I’m a complete loon right about now. I’ve already started thinking of other things I can turn into glass form…spoiler alert…baby chick glasses for Easter filled with some sort of trifle. I’m already smiling in anticipation.

Did I mention how easy and inexpensive they were to make? All you need is a little fabric, a few beads, and some hot glue. Simple, right? If you want specific directions or some tips or just want to talk about how adorable they are, just leave a comment or message for me, I’d be more than happy to talk about any of the above :)
Toffee Hot Chocolate Snowman Shooters I did eventually get around to taking a sip. And then, another. And another. And then, I poured a few shooters for my family, who happily sipped its contents and then asked for seconds.

I haven’t even told you about the toffee hot chocolate.

TOFFEE HOT CHOCOLATE.

It. Is. Delicious.
Toffee Hot Chocolate Snowman Shooters This toffee hot chocolate has everything you could possible want from a cup of hot chocolate. It is velvety and not overly rich, chocolately and nutty, and has a creamy toffee aftertaste that leaves you wanting another sip immediately. The whipped cream and toffee bits on top, though optional, really do kick these shooters up a notch on the yummy meter—in other words, splurge a little on the toppings, you won’t regret it!

Mr. Snowman himself even liked it. He quickly sipped his shooter.
Toffee Hot Chocolate Snowman Shooters

Toffee Hot Chocolate Snowman Shooters
Yields: about 20 shooter servings

Utensils:
10 shooter glasses decorated as snowman*
10 green & white stripped straws
*If you want specifics on how to make the snowman shooters, just let me know!

Ingredients:
3 cups milk
1 1/2 cups half and half
1/3 cup + 4 tablespoons ground toffee bits
2 tablespoons sugar
pinch of salt
1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips, roughly chopped
1 teaspoon vanilla
whipped cream & toffee bits for topping (optional, but highly recommended)
*I used Bits’O Brickle Toffee Bits, and grounded them in a food processor until they were the consistency of tiny crumbs.

Directions:
In a medium-sized bowl, combine ground toffee bits, sugar, and salt. Set aside.
Heat a medium saucepan over medium heat, and add milk and half and half. Bring mixture to a simmer, stirring frequently.
Add three tablespoons of the milk mixture to the toffee-sugar-salt bowl, mixing thoroughly until combined.
Turn the heat down to low and using a spatula gradually add the toffee mixture to the saucepan, whisking until incorporated (don’t let the mixture boil).
Whisk in the vanilla and chocolate chips until melted and smooth.
Remove from heat and pour into glasses. Put straw in the cup and then top with whipped cream and toffee bits before serving.

 

Toffee Hot Chocolate Snowman Shooters

Spider Chocolate Chip Cookies

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Spider Chocolate Chip CookiesHappy {Early} Halloween!

Have I mentioned that Halloween is actually my third favorite holiday? (If you’re wondering, first and second is a toss-up between Thanksgiving and Christmas.) I like the fact that Halloween kicks off the fall, that I get to dress up in a costume (I was a cavewoman this year…check my Instagram for pictures!), and that I get the chance to go trick-or-treating. Come on…walking around, knocking on doors, and getting bags full of candy…who wouldn’t like that? And more importantly, how can we make that happen every day of the year? I also like that people decorate their houses like crazy, that desserts become themed for a month, and that spiders, are for once, considered adorable.

I do not, in any way, like spiders. If I see one, I run. And, scream. And, then ask the closest person to kindly dispense of the creature. I just don’t want anything to do with them. Ever. And then I saw this idea for spider cookies on Pinterest. My first thought was “Ewww. Gross. Throw those cookies away and run in the opposite direction”. My second thought was ‘Wait a minute, how stinking cute would it be if I made these for Halloween?” Pretty cute, huh? That’s why I decided I had to make them.

Spider Chocolate Chip Cookies

Just look at them. The perfect scary Halloween cookie. It was totally worth putting aside my dislike for spiders.

Spider Chocolate Chip Cookies

For these Spider Chocolate Chip Cookies all you need is your favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe, Halloween semi-sweet chocolate and orange colored morsels (I’m sure using just regular chocolate chips would look cute too!), and extra chocolate chips to draw your creepy crawly spiders! These cookies do take a little time to make, but I promise the end result is totalllly worth the effort :)

Spider Chocolate Chip Cookies
This isn’t really an exact recipe, just some general guidelines for how to make the cookies.

Ingredients:
24 large chocolate chip cookies (made using Halloween semi-sweet chocolate and orange colored morsels—I used Ghirardelli’s Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe)
¼ cup + a handful semi-sweet chocolate chips
Piping bag (with a small tip) or a Ziploc bag

Directions:
Guidelines for Baking Cookies
When making the dough for the cookies, keep a heaping ¼ cup of the orange and black chocolate chips out of the mixture.
I didn’t chill my dough (I was too excited!), which made it harder to handle when scooping out my cookies, so you might want to chill your dough for at least 30 minutes before baking.
Scoop a tablespoon and half of the dough onto an ungreased cookie sheet (I baked six cookies at a time).
Using the ¼ cup of colored morsels you took out, arrange a few morsels on top of the unbaked cookies. About halfway through the cookies being baked, look to make sure you have enough ‘spider bodies’ showing, if not add a few more colored morsels.
Let the cookies cool completely (about three hours) before you start decorating.

Guidelines for Decorating
To create the spiders, melt a ¼ cup + a handful of semi-sweet chocolate chips in a microwave safe bowl (microwave in 15 minute intervals, stirring after each interval, until smooth).
Spoon melted chocolate chips into a piping bag (or Ziploc bag).
First pipe the spider’s face, this means piping a circle at the top of one of the chips. Then, carefully pipe the spider’s legs.
If the chocolate becomes too thick (and the piping becomes harder), heat up the chocolate again until smooth.

 
Spider Chocolate Chip Cookies

Double Chocolate Snickers Bundt Cake

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Double Chocolate Snickers Bundt Cake Sometimes you just need something over-the-top.

By need, I really mean deserve. As in we’re celebrating my Dad’s birthday and he needs a slice of Double Chocolate Snickers Bundt Cake. Or, I spent the week studying for the GRE and am stressing like crazy, so I need a slice (or, three) of Double Chocolate Snickers Bundt Cake. Or, insert any type of accomplishment, event, or mood (regardless if it’s good or bad) and you need a slice of Double Chocolate Snickers Bundt Cake.

And by that other part, the ‘over-the-top’ part, I really mean something so decadent, so chocolately, so delicious that you won’t even feel guilty eating a slice because it instantly makes everything (and, I mean everything) much better.

Do you see what I’m saying?

Sometimes we deserve to treat ourselves, or need a pick me up, or need to celebrate. Sometimes we need something to make our day a little better, our stomachs a little fuller, and our smiles a little wider. For these days, I usually turn to dessert, and if you’re like me, then I just found us the perfect go to dessert.

Hello Double Chocolate Snickers Bundt Cake. Where have you been all our lives?
Double Chocolate Snickers Bundt Cake

In one word I would describe this cake as rich.  As in, you’re going to need a large glass of milk or a heaping scoop of vanilla ice cream to eat with any slice. The cake itself is extremely moist and chocolately both from the semi-sweet chocolate and the chocolate chips (which, melt slightly while the cake is cooking). The ganache is very rich and velvety, adding yet another chocolately texture to the cake. The caramel and Snickers toppings, which I highly recommend, give the palate a break from all the chocolate and really add the perfect final touches to this decadent dessert.

Double Chocolate Snickers Bundt Cake
Recipe adapted from Williams-Sonoma
Yields: about 16 slices of cake

Ingredients:
Cake
7 ½ ounces semi-sweet chocolate, finely chopped
1 cup cocoa powder + more for dusting pan
1 cup boiling water
2 ½ sticks (20 tablespoons) unsalted butter, cut into cubes
2 ½ cups light brown sugar
5 eggs, lightly beaten
4 teaspoons vanilla
2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
1 ½ cups of sour cream 

Ganache
6 ounces semi-sweet chocolate, finely chopped
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
½ cup heavy cream

Toppings
About 12 fun-size Snickers, cut into baby cubes
Caramel for drizzling

Directions:
Cake
Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Grease and dust Bundt Cake pan with cocoa powder.
In a medium bowl, combine semi-sweet chocolate and cocoa powder as much as possible.
Add boiling water and whisk until chocolate melts and mixture is smooth and blended. Set aside.
In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the butter on medium speed until smooth and creamy.
Reduce speed to low and add brown sugar. Beat until just blended.
Increase speed to medium and continue beating the mixture until light and fluffy.
Add the eggs, a little at a time, until well combined.
Add the vanilla. Mix until combined.
In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking soda, and salt.
Reduce speed to low and alternate between adding the flour mixture and sour cream, starting and ending with the flour mixture. Mix until well combined.
Slowly mix in the chocolate-cocoa mixture. Beat until no white streaks are visible.
Using a rubber spatula, fold in chocolate chips.
Pour batter into prepared pan (mine was full to the very top) and bake 65 to 75 minutes or until a toothpick comes out of the center with only a few moist crumbs.
Let cake cool for about 15 minutes upright before inverting the pan and lifting it off the cake.
Let cake cool completely, at least 1 hour (I let mine sit over night).

Ganache & Toppings
In a glass bowl, combine semi-sweet chocolate and butter.
In a small saucepan, over medium-high heat, bring heavy cream just to a boil.
Immediately pour heavy cream over chocolate and butter. Whisk until mixture is smooth.
Pour ganache over top of cake, allowing for some to drip down the sides.
Once the top of the cake is covered with ganache, gently place cubed Snickers pieces all around the top.
Let cake sit until the ganache is set, at least 15 minutes.
Drizzle the top of the cake generously with caramel.

 

Double Chocolate Snickers Bundt Cake