Cadbury Mini Egg Brownies

There are so many chocolate brands available in the United States. Hershey (my favorite), Cadbury, Ghirardelli, Nestle, Lindt…the list goes on. Pittsburgh has its own chocolate maker, Sarris, whose shop is a Willy Wonka-style paradise complete with an ice cream parlor.

Cadbury’s mini eggs are solid chocolate, covered in a crunchy candy shell, and they’re an Easter delicacy. I found this recipe at Savor the Spoonful, and added more vanilla, as I do to nearly every recipe I bake. The end result is an ultra-chocolate treat; my mom, who is retired but still substitute teaches and sometimes works at the aftercare program at The Ellis School (my alma mater and where she taught and served as director of athletics for many years), told me that she “didn’t even get past the library” with these last week. High praise, indeed.

Ingredients

  • 1 cup butter, melted
  • 3 eggs, at room temperature
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 3/4 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 cup light brown sugar, packed
  • 1 cup flour
  • 3/4 cup cocoa powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 9-ounce bag Cadbury Mini Eggs, divided (1 cup crushed, remainder whole)

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line an 8 x 8 or 9 x 9 pan with parchment paper, allowing the paper to hang over the sides, and spray with nonstick spray.

Divide your eggs; take 1 cup and crush them using a meat mallet or rolling pin; leave the rest whole. You don’t have to crush the eggs completely; you want a mixture of small bits and larger chunks.

In a large bowl, whisk together melted butter, eggs, and vanilla extract. Add sugars and stir until combined, then stir in flour, cocoa powder, and salt until just combined. Stir in crushed Cadbury eggs.

Pour batter into pan and smooth to make an even surface; top with remaining whole Cadbury eggs. Bake for 40-50 minutes, until a cake tester comes out with a few moist crumbs. Remove from oven and cool completely in the pan before serving. Makes 16.

Speckled Egg Cookies

It’s finally spring – though in Pittsburgh, spring can mean 70 degrees or 30 degrees from day to day. Despite this, birds are chirping and trees and flowers are blooming, so even the colder days are more bearable. And the days are getting longer, so I’ll take it.

These speckled egg cookies are a cute springtime treat, and there are a few different options for speckling material. They’re a basic sugar cookie, frosted and dusted with chopped up chocolate chips, but you could easily use Oreo crumbs (and I will the next time I make anything speckled).

Ingredients

For the cookies

  • 8 tablespoons butter, softened
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 2 cups flour
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla

For the frosting and decoration

  • 3 tablespoons shortening
  • dash of salt
  • 1 egg white
  • 2 cups powdered sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 teaspoon almond extract, optional (you can make this frosting with just vanilla)
  • 1 – 2 teaspoons water, if necessary
  • Blue liquid food coloring*
  • Semi-sweet chocolate chips, very finely chopped so they are almost like dust

*Gel food coloring, even when used in only one drop, yields a very intense color. Liquid food coloring will give you better pastel shades. 

Preparation

Stir together flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl; set aside.

Cream together butter and sugar until fluffy. Add egg and beat well. Add vanilla and about half the flour mixture, beating until combined; beat in remaining flour.

Note: if your dough is too crumbly, you can add just a bit of water or another 1/4 teaspoon of vanilla.

Divide dough in half and knead each just slightly.  Form each half into a disc and place on plastic wrap; cover with another piece of plastic wrap and roll out to flatten into about 1/4 inch thickness. This helps later on, so you don’t have to work your dough as much when rolling and re-rolling after cutting, making your cookies more tender. Refrigerate until just barely firm, about 20-30 minutes. If you refrigerate overnight, let your dough stand at room temperature for about 15 minutes before you roll it out.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line several baking sheets with parchment paper. Remove dough from fridge and roll to about 1/8 inch thickness. Cut into egg shapes and place on baking sheets about 2 inches apart.

Bake for 8-10 minutes, until just golden at the edges.  Cool on a wire rack completely before frosting.

To make the frosting, combine shortening, egg white, salt, and one cup powdered sugar in a mixing bowl.  Beat on low speed until combined, then increase speed to medium, then high, and beat for 1 minute. Add remaining powdered sugar, beating for about 1 minute. Add extracts and beat; if your frosting is too thick, add 1-2 teaspoons of water. You want a smooth consistency that’s easy to spread.

Tint your frosting light blue (go easy and use liquid food coloring, as noted above) and frost each cookie. Sprinkle with chocolate chip dust; allow frosting to set before storing between layers of waxed paper in an airtight container. Makes about 3 dozen, depending on the size of your cookie cutter.

Chocolate Mint Cupcakes

Controversial statement: Of all the ice creams in the world, mint chocolate chip is an occasional choice of mine, not a go-to. And if I’m having it, it’s the Breyer’s version that isn’t tinted green, buy rather just white ice cream with flecks of dark chocolate throughout.

I know, I know, some people are mint chocolate chip loyalists, eating nothing but it whenever they go near a scoop and preferring the green kind. It’s tasty, sure, but I’m more of a vanilla ice cream with a caramel swirl or peanut butter cups in it kind of woman (or both), or just a vanilla ice cream over a brownie kind of woman. In any case, these treats have a very subtle flavor, more like an Andes candy than the classic parlor treat. Mint extract is pretty strong, so use it sparingly and add a smaller amount at first, then taste as you go to make sure it’s not overpowering.

Ingredients

For the cupcakes

  • 1 1/2 cups flour
  • 3 tablespoons cocoa powder
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 tablespoon vinegar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1/4 teaspoon mint extract
  • 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 1 cup water

For the frosting

  • 12 tablespoons butter, at room temperature
  • 3 cups powdered sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • About 1/8 to 1/4 mint extract, to taste
  • 1 teaspoon milk
  • Miniature chocolate chips, for garnish

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line cupcake pans with paper liners; this recipe makes 14-15 cupcakes depending on how full the wells are.

In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, cocoa powder, sugar, baking soda, and salt. Mix until well-blended, then make three wells for the wet ingredients.

Place vinegar, vanilla, mint extract, and vegetable oil into the wells; add water and mix until the batter is smooth. The mixture will bubble up slightly when you add the water, so just keep mixing until you get a smooth consistency in the batter, which will be fairly thin.

Using a 1/4 cup measure, fill cupcake wells about half full. Bake for 18-22 minutes, until a cake tester comes out clean. Cool in pan for a few minutes, then remove from pan and cool completely on wire racks. Cool completely before frosting.

To make the frosting, place butter and powdered sugar in a mixing bowl with the paddle attachment and beat on low until all the sugar is incorporated into the butter. Add vanilla extract, 1/8 teaspoon mint extract, and milk and beat to combine. Taste and add more mint extract if you like – I added a few more drops to mine, but not a full 1/8 teaspoon more because I wanted to keep it subtle. Fit a piping bag with a large star tip (I use the Wilton 1M) and pipe frosting onto cupcakes; sprinkle mini chocolate chips on the top. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for 2-3 days.

Caramel Cupcakes with Chocolate Buttercream

This cupcake recipe is actually one of my favorites, and I think I need to start making it more often and experimenting with different flavors of frosting. It’s an easy combo requiring basic ingredients, two bowls, and a whisk, so it takes very little time to prepare – another thing I really like.

I originally made these as butterscotch cupcakes, and they were delicious, but they pair well with chocolate buttercream too. I feel like you could embellish them with a Rolo or other caramel-filled chocolate candy if you wanted to, but they’re great just as they are. These were a huge hit in my office last week.

Ingredients

Caramel Cupcakes

  • 1 2/3 cups flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 8 tablespoons butter, melted
  • 1 cup light brown sugar
  • 1 egg, at room temperature
  • 1/4 cup sour cream
  • 3/4 cup milk
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract

Chocolate Buttercream

  • 12 tablespoons butter, at room temperature
  • 3 cups powdered sugar
  • 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons cocoa powder
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1-2 tablespoons milk

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line two cupcake tins with paper liners; this recipe made 21 cupcakes for me.

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt; set aside.

In a large bowl, combine brown sugar and melted butter, whisking until no lumps remain. Whisk in egg, sour cream, milk, and vanilla until smooth. Slowly whisk in flour mixture until batter is completely smooth; it will be fairly thick.

Using a two-inch cookie scoop, drop scoops of batter into prepared cupcake pans. Bake for 15-20 minutes, until a cake tester comes out clean. Remove from oven and remove from pans immediately; cool completely before frosting.

To make chocolate buttercream, place butter in a mixing bowl and beat for a few minutes using the paddle attachment. Add powdered sugar and cocoa powder and beat on low speed until the sugar and cocoa are fully incorporated into the butter. Add vanilla extract and beat; add milk 1 tablespoon at a time; you may not need both tablespoons.

Fit a large piping bag with a large open star tip (I use the Wilton 1M) pipe swirls of frosting onto cupcakes; you’ll have some frosting left over that you can use for other treats.

Dark Chocolate Mint Brownies

Peppermint patties are one of my favorite things, though I hardly ever have them. I feel like I used to see the full-sized version in the candy displays at supermarket checkouts, but it’s been a long time since I’ve found one there.

This recipe, which is actually inspired by the Girl Scouts Thin Mint cookie, uses miniature ones – though you could chop up some full-sized ones if you can find them. Alternatively, you could use actual Thin Mints in these, but I feel like the peppermint patty is a better option, not just for how they look when they’re cut but also because you get a bit more peppermint this way.

Ingredients

  • 12 tablespoons butter
  • 2 cups sugar
  • 1 cup Dutch process cocoa powder
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
  • 3 eggs
  • 1 cup flour
  • 16 Miniature Peppermint Patties

Preparation

Preheat oven to 325. Lightly grease a 9 x 13 tin with baking spray.

In a large pot, melt butter over medium-low heat. Stir in sugar, allowing the mixture to become just hot, but not bubbly – this yields the shiny, crackly top. Remove from heat and stir in cocoa powder, salt, baking powder, and vanilla. Whisk in eggs, then stir in flour.

Pour about half the batter into the pan and top with peppermint patties, spacing evenly in rows. Pour the remaining batter over top and smooth with a spatula. Bake for 29-32 minutes, until a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean or with just a few moist crumbs. Remove from oven and allow to cool completely in the pan before cutting. Makes 24.

Pineapple Sugar Cut-Outs

Here we are, in the dead of winter. By many accounts Pittsburgh has had it easy winter-wise these last few years, but Mother Nature seems to be making up for lost time. This winter reminds me of those from my childhood, snowy and very cold. And while I’m not a winter hater, I’m definitely ready for some warm weather.

Pineapples grow in tropical climates, of course, and I would love to be in one of those right now. These treats would be fun for a summer party, especially because pineapples are a symbol of hospitality. I’ll definitely make these again, maybe along with some watermelon cut-outs for a bright, fun cookie tray.

Ingredients

For the cookies

  • 8 tablespoons butter, softened
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 2 cups flour
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla

For the frosting

  • 6 tablespoons shortening
  • dash of salt
  • 2 egg whites
  • 4 cups powdered sugar
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 2 teaspoons almond extract
  • 1 – 2 teaspoons water, if necessary
  • Yellow and green food coloring

Preparation

Stir together flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl; set aside.

Cream together butter and sugar until fluffy. Add egg and beat well. Add vanilla and about half the flour mixture, beating until combined; beat in remaining flour.

Note: if your dough is too crumbly, you can add just a bit of water or another 1/4 teaspoon of vanilla.

Divide dough in half and knead each just slightly.  Form each half into a disc and place on plastic wrap; cover with another piece of plastic wrap and roll out to flatten into about 1/4 inch thickness. This helps later on, so you don’t have to work your dough as much when rolling and re-rolling after cutting, making your cookies more tender. Refrigerate until just barely firm, about 20-30 minutes. If you refrigerate overnight, let your dough stand at room temperature for about 15 minutes before you roll it out.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line several baking sheets with parchment paper. Remove dough from fridge and roll to about 1/8 inch thickness. Cut into shapes and place on baking sheets about 2 inches apart; I baked 6 pineapples per sheet, and my cutter is 4 inches tall.

Bake for 8-10 minutes, until just golden at the edges.  Cool on a wire rack completely before frosting.

To make the frosting, combine shortening, egg whites, salt, and one cup powdered sugar in a mixing bowl.  Beat on low speed until combined, then increase speed to medium, then high, and beat for 1 minute. Add remaining powdered sugar, one cup at a time, beating for about 1 minute each time. Add extracts and beat; if your frosting is too thick, add 1-2 teaspoons of water. You want a smooth consistency that’s easy to pipe.

Take about 1/4 of your frosting and place it in a small bowl. Tint green for pineapple leaves. Tint remaining frosting yellow.

Fit a piping bag with a small star tip (or a leaf tip, if you prefer) and fill with green frosting; fit another bag with a medium star tip and fill with yellow frosting. Pipe the yellow stars in even lines across each pineapple, then pipe on leaves. Allow frosting to harden before storing; store between sheets of parchment or waxed paper so the cookies don’t stick together. Makes about 22 cookies.

Oreo Brownies

Oreos and brownies are delicious enough on their own, no? And yet when combined, they are even more amazing, albeit laden with calories. Everything in moderation, I suppose.

This recipe is adapted from Sugar Spun Run, and I admit that I over-baked mine by at least a few minutes. The middle pieces are fudgy, just like I intended, but the edges are crispier than I’d like. My recipe adaptation was to just use Oreos in the brownies themselves and not sprinkle extra crushed-up ones over the top, but you could certainly do that if you like. I also used regular chocolate chips, rather than mini chips, in the batter and I feel like minis would have been better. Live and learn. 

Ingredients

  • 10 tablespoons butter
  • 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips, divided
  • 1/2 cup Dutch process cocoa
  • 1 1/2 cups sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 2/3 cup flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 16 Oreo cookies (I used Double Stuf)

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a 9 x 9 baking tin.

In a medium saucepan, melt butter and 1/2 cup chocolate chips; stir in cocoa powder and set aside. In a large bowl, whisk together sugar and eggs, then pour in chocolate mixture and whisk to combine. Stir in vanilla, then add flour and salt and mix to combine completely. Add remaining 1/2 cup chocolate chips.

Pour half the batter into the tin and top with Oreos, arranging evenly in four lines of four. Top with remaining batter and spread to cover the Oreos as best you can. Bake for 25-30 minutes, until a cake tester comes out with a few fudgy crumbs, not wet batter. Cool completely before cutting. Makes 16.

Chocolate Chip Orange Shortbread

The orange Milano cookie is one of my favorite store-bought treats, not that I eat many store-bought cookies these days. I remember when the Milano came in regular chocolate, mint, or orange; now there are raspberry, banana, and all kinds of varieties. While these cookies aren’t a copycat Milano, they’re very similar taste-wise.

Over Christmas, I had an idea to combine orange zest with miniature chocolate chips in a shortbread, and the result was very Milano-esque. These treats have been a very big hit, and are on their way to my dear friend Carrie’s son, Sam, at college. He’s a baker, too.

Ingredients

  • 1 cup butter, at room temperature
  • 3/4 cup sugar
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • zest of 1 orange
  • 2 1/3 cups flour
  • 1/2 cup miniature semisweet chocolate chips

Preparation

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Lightly grease two 8-inch round cake pans.

In a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together butter, sugar, salt, vanilla, and orange zest. Add flour and beat to combine completely, then stir in chocolate chips.

Divide dough in half and press into the bottoms of the cake pans, using the palm of your hand to create an even surface. Prick all over with a fork.

Bake for 30-32 minutes, until the edges are golden brown. Remove from oven and gently loosen the sides, then allow to cool in the pans for 5 minutes. Gently flip onto a cutting board and slice each round into 12 wedges, then place wedges on a wire rack to cool completely. Makes 24.

Pumpkin Gingerbread Loaf Cake

pumpkingingerbreadloafPumpkin bread and gingerbread are two of my favorite fall and holiday treats…so a combination? Sign me up. I found this recipe on Pinterest from The Live-In Kitchen, and I tweaked it to add a drizzle icing on top instead of sprinkling it with sugar. 

Simply put, this loaf is delicious. It’s the right blend of pumpkin and gingerbread flavors, and it was still tender two days after baking when I finally got around to having a slice myself. I’ll definitely make it again, likely around the holidays for a twist on the classic. One thing to note: I blotted my pumpkin with paper towels to soak out some of the liquid before I mixed it with the other wet ingredients. This wasn’t recommended in the original recipe, but I’ve found it to be helpful in getting a better bake with other pumpkin treats lately. 

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 cups flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 2 teaspoons ginger
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
  • 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
  • 1 cup pumpkin puree
  • 8 tablespoons butter, melted
  • 1/2 cup dark brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup molasses
  • 2 eggs, beaten
  • 3 tablespoons milk
  • 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
  • 2 tablespoons water
  • Dash of pumpkin spiceDas of pumpkin ▢

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a 9 x 5 loaf tin.

In a large bowl, whisk together flour, salt, baking soda, ginger, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Place pumpkin in another large bowl and blot with paper towels to remove a bit of the liquid; stir in melted butter, dark brown sugar, molasses, eggs, and milk. Add to flour mixture and stir until just incorporated.

Pour into the loaf tin and bake for 40 minutes; cover the top loosely with foil to prevent over-browning, then continue baking another 10-20 minutes until a cake tester comes out clean. Cool in the loaf tin for about 20 minutes, then remove from the tin and cool completely on a wire rack.

To make the drizzle icing, combine powdered sugar, water, and pumpkin spice and stir until smooth. Drizzle over loaf and allow to set before serving. Makes about 10 slices.

Spiced Pecan Blondies

spciedpecanblondiesAre dark and light brown sugar interchangeable? It probably depends on who you ask, but I’d say yes, for the most part. Dark brown sugar contains more molasses, giving it a richer color and flavor than the light variety. And in my kitchen, dark brown sugar turns to a rock in a matter of days after it’s opened, so I try to use up the whole bag quickly when I do bake with it.

These spiced pecan blondies are an adaptation of a recipe I’ve made many times before, and they’re a great way to use up dark brown sugar. I used apple pie spice for my spice in this recipe, and it was very subtle; next time, I’d probably add a full teaspoon. This recipe would also be good with just cinnamon, too.

Ingredients

  • 10 2/3 tablespoons butter
  • 2 cups packed dark brown sugar
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla
  • 2 eggs
  • 2 cups flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 cup chopped pecans, toasted and cooled
  • 1/2 teaspoon apple pie spice

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9 x 13 baking pan with baking spray.

In a large saucepan, combine butter and brown sugar. Stir constantly over medium heat until mixture melts and becomes smooth. Pour mixture into a large mixing bowl and allow to cool about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Once cool, add eggs and vanilla and mix well.

Stir in flour, baking powder, baking soda, and apple pie spice; batter will become fairly thick. Stir in pecans, then spread into an even layer in the pan.

Bake for 25-30 minutes, until top is a very light golden brown and a cake tester comes out clean.

Cut into bars while still warm; when completely cool, remove from pan and store in an airtight container. Makes 24.