Pretzel M&M Brownies

I 'm not done with brownies yet. No ma'am. No sir.

After I baked the Classic Cocoa Walnut Brownies, I had to bake more.

But I wanted to spice up the recipe using my new favorite irresistible snack: Pretzel M&M's. I hope these are here to stay.

Milk chocolate combined with salty pretzels is a killer combination for me. Pretzels and chocolate milk is my favorite snack! Was my favorite snack.
Under the milk chocolate shell of the candy is a delicious pretzel ball.


The pretzel M&M's are addicting, so watch out. Now they need to create a pretzel M&M with a peanut butter center. Yeah? I that's a pretty good idea. These brownies are a good idea, too.


There's not much explaining to this recipe. I created a brownie recipe with a chocolate glaze on top, and stirred pretzel M&M's into the batter and sprinkled more on top. These are delicious but very rich.

They make a good snack while watching the season premiere of Jersey Shore.

*FISTPUMP!*

Pretzel M&M Brownies (By Me)
Printable Recipe

2/3 cup all purpose flour
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 large egg yolks
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup chocolate chips
2/3 cup coarsely chopped pretzel M&M's, divided

Glaze
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
2/3 cup confectioners' sugar
2 1/2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tablespoon milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line an 8x11-inch baking dish foil; coat foil with cooking spray or butter.

To make the brownies, in a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt. In a large bowl, using a mixer on high speed, beat egg yolks and sugar for 3 minutes, until light yellow and fluffy. Beat in melted butter and vanilla for 1 additional minute. Reduce mixer speed to low and beat in flour mixture until well combined - about 1 minute. Stir in chocolate chips and 1/3 cup chopped pretzels M&M's until combined. Spread batter evenly into prepared dish.

Bake 15-16 minutes or until well risen and set. Remove dish from oven and cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, prepare the glaze. In a medium mixing bowl using a mixer on medium speed, beat butter until creamy; beat in confectioners' sugar cocoa powder, milk and vanilla, until well incorporated - about 2 minutes. Spread glaze evenly over warm brownies. Sprinkle remaining 1/3 cup M&M's on top. Cool completely in refrigerator before lifting out foil and slicing into bars.

Makes 18 brownies

Classic Cocoa Walnut Brownies

Y essss! It's brownie Monday!

Eating a brownie cures the Monday blues. That's what I always say.

Eric and I went floating this weekend and it was a lot of fun. I don't have any pictures though, because I didn't want to risk my camera getting wet. This was my third floating trip ever and it was much better than the previous two. I went with a bunch of girls on the other ones, and they were all drunk the whole time and getting into fights. One girl even got hit in the face with a paddle. Not fun.

We also saw Inception. Go see it! I'm a tough movie critic and I loved it.

One more thing - I bought a new vegetable I haven't tried before at an Asian market. A kabocha squash! A kabocha is a Japanese winter squash, commonly called Japanese pumpkin. It does taste more like a pumpkin than acorn or butternut squash. I roasted it in the oven and put butter, cinnamon and sugar on top. It was quite delicious. I will be buying some more kabocha very soon. I see a kabocha pie recipe in your future... maybe in the fall. :)

Lordy, I almost forgot about the giveaway winner. The winner of the Organic Chocolate Indulgence Giveaway Package, selected by Random.org, is....

#5 Lorie! Congratulations, Lorie! I will be contacting you shortly.

Thank you to everyone who entered and thank you to Oikos! I loved everyone's dessert ideas.

Do you guys like giveaways! Do you think they get annoying or do you like them?

Moving on. Recently I was craving some brownies. Like, classic chocolate brownies with walnuts in them; plain and simple. I didn't have a lot of chocolate on hand (just 1/2 cup chocolate chips), so I created a recipe using cocoa powder instead.

I toasted walnuts and added them to the brownie batter.
I just typed brownie butter. I'm tired. But yes, there's butter in the recipe too.


Then I threw the rest of the chocolate chips in there also. Would you look at these brownies? They're so pretty, they make me want to cry.


Oh beautiful brownies, how I love you. I think you all will like this recipe. It's simple and there's nothing nutty going on with it, except for the nuts. That's an Eiffel Tower plate they're sitting on, by the way. I really don't like how that looks.

Classic Cocoa Walnut Brownies (By Me)
Printable Recipe

1/2 cup unsalted butter
2/3 cup all purpose flour
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
1 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup finely chopped walnuts, toasted
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line an 8x8-inch baking dish with foil; coat foil with cooking spray.

Melt butter in a small saucepan over medium heat; continue to cook, stirring frequently, for 2-3 minutes or until butter browns and starts to foam. Remove pan from heat.

In a medium bowl, sift together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt. In a large mixing bowl, using a mixer on high speed, beat eggs and sugar for 3 minutes. Beat in browned butter and vanilla for an additional 1 minute. Reduce mixer speed to low and beat in dry ingredients until combined - about 1 minute. Stir in walnuts until combined. Scrape and press batter evenly into baking dish. Evenly sprinkle with chocolate chips.

Bake for 16-18 minutes or until set and edges look crusty. Cool completely on a wire rack.

Makes 9 brownies

Indulgence

I t's Friday! You've survived another long, hard week. It's time to start to relax, enjoy your weekend, and indulge a little.

You know... sleep in, eat a fancy meal, or drink that extra glass of wine. :)

I'm planning on laying out by the pool and reading, maybe watching a movie, and possibly doing some extravagant hat shopping.

Do you like??

This weekend, I'm also going to be indulging in this new Caramel Oikos Greek Yogurt I purchased.


I love Greek yogurt, and Oikos is my absolute favorite. Oikos is a little $$$ but it's worth every penny. It's organic and the quality is better than other Greek yogurts. I've been wanting to try their new caramel and chocolate flavors for a while now.

I have been looking for the flavors all over Springfield and haven't been able to find them. Until yesterday. I found the caramel flavor and it made my day!

I sampled it today and it's SO good. It's thick, creamy, and tangy, and the caramel tastes like dulce de leche. It's not that fake corn syrup caramel - it's real caramel!
Real caramel, I tell you!

I'm still looking for the chocolate flavor, and when I find it I'll tell you if it's good.
But it will be good. I have a good feeling about the chocolate.


Today, to all you fabulous Sugar Plum readers, I'm giving away an organic chocolate indulgence giveaway package sponsored by Oikos and I want you to enter! Wellll, only US residents can enter, unfortunately.

Included in the package:
- 1 coupon for a free Green & Black Organic Chocolate Bar
- 1 sample of Numi Organic Chocolate tea
- 1 Dagoba/Eco Lips Organic Chocolate chapstick
- 1 Skinnyskinny real cocoa organic soap bar
- 2 free coupons for Chocolate and Caramel Oikos multipacks
- Recipe card set featuring Chocolate Cheesecake, as well Oikos spatula

To win, leave me a comment on this post telling me about a dessert you could make with Chocolate or Caramel Oikos. The giveaway will end on Sunday, July 25th at 11:59 PM. I will select a winner using a random number generator and announce the winner on Monday's blog.

You can only enter once, and be sure to leave a way for me to contact you (email address, blog, etc.) I can't wait to read about your desserts!

Good luck and enjoy your weekend!

Peanut Butter-Banana Stuffed Peanut Butter Cookies

I'm not quite finished with that chocolate-peanut butter combination. I should be posting recipes with seasonal blueberries, peaches and plums, but all I want is chocolate and peanut butter!

Recently Eric and I visited a new self serve frozen yogurt place that just opened up in Springfield, called Orange Leaf.

Self serve yogurt is all the rage right now, and I've been reading about it on blogs for the past few months. Finally, finally, Springfield, Missouri has one. I spotted the place when we drove by, shrieked, and told Eric we had to try it.


It was packed because there's not much going on in Springfield, unless you want to go to Bass Pro.




Eric's admiring all of the flavors. The options were endless.


We decided to split one of the larger tubs. Eric went with the white chocolate. He doesn't know this, but that's my most favorite frozen yogurt flavor ever.


I selected cookies 'n cream. Mmm I love cookies.


The third flavor we chose was chocolate. Because we needed some chocolate to go with our white chocolate and cookies.


The next step in the self serve frozen yogurt process is choosing your toppings.


Nuts, candy, cereal, gummies, fruit... there were so many toppings; I panicked and went for the Butterfinger and peanut butter cups.


This glass sneeze guard made things awkward. I had to duck down to get the toppings.


We paid for the frozen yogurt (they charge you by weight - this was a little over $3), sat in these weird bucket chairs, and feasted.

Look! Square spoons. This is our fro-yo creation. It was very tasty and refreshing. I did have some regrets, though.


Frozen yogurt is supposed to be, like, a healthier alternative to ice cream. I wished I had chosen some fruit flavors, or at least topped the frozen yogurt with fresh fruit. But what did I do? I loaded up on the Butterfingers and peanut butter cups. I just can't resist candy!

So tell me this, what is YOUR favorite frozen yogurt and topping combination? I'm a newbie to this fro-yo business.



The same thing has been happening with me and my baking lately. I should be making light, fruity, summery desserts, but instead I'm baking heavy chocolate peanut butter cookies and cheesecakes. Sigh. When will I learn?



However, I have to say, these cookies were pretty scrumptious, and a good idea I think. I created a simple peanut butter cookie dough batter, and wrapped it around balls of melted peanut butter chips and mashed banana that I had chilled in the freezer. The balls are pressed down with a fork, then topped with chocolate chips and baked. So what you have is a peanut butter cookie stuffed with banana and peanut butter chips.

And that's that.

Peanut Butter-Banana Stuffed Peanut Butter Cookies (By Me)
Printable Recipe

2/3 cup peanut butter chips
1 small ripe banana, mashed
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1 1/2 cups unbleached all purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup peanut butter
2/3 cup packed brown sugar
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/3 cup chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Coat cookie sheets with cooking spray.

In a small bowl, microwave peanut butter chips until melted - about 1-1 1/2 minutes, stirring every 30 seconds. Stir in mashed banana until combined, and place bowl in freezer to cool.

Melt butter in a small saucepan over medium heat; cook for 2-3 minutes, whisking frequently, until butter browns and starts to foam. Remove pan from heat to cool.

In a medium bowl, sift together flour, baking soda and salt. In a large bowl, using a mixer on medium speed, beat together browned butter, peanut butter, brown sugar and sugar until creamy - about 1-2 minutes. Beat in egg and vanilla until combined. Reduce mixer speed to low and gradually beat in flour until combined.

Roll dough into 12 big balls. Flatten the balls to 1/4-inch thickness in the palm of your hand. Divide spoonfuls of peanut butter-banana mixture and place into centers of dough; wrap dough around pb-banana mixture. Place balls onto cookie sheets and make a criss cross pattern onto each ball, using a fork. Evenly sprinkle chocolate chips on top.

Bake 10 minutes or until light golden around edges, but still soft. Cool 2 minutes before transferring to wire racks to cool.

Makes 1 dozen big cookies

Chocolate Peanut Butter Cheesecake

A hhh remember the good old days when we didn't talk about trips to New York, France and Iowa and just talked about desserts to one another?

Those were the good old days.

I've missed them a lot.

Welcome back, dessert. I really like you.

...you look different. Um, how have you been?

Sorry I haven't spent a lot of time with you lately. You know... work stuff.

I probably should have called. But hey, you look good. Real good.

I think we should start hanging out again.

Now, I don't know if my cheesecake can top Cheesecake Factory's, but it's pretty darn close.

Let's break this cheesecake recipe down a bit. This is an easy, easy recipe. If I can do it, you can do it.



The crust is melted butter and chocolate cookie crumbs. Hint: Use generic Oreos - they work just as well and they're cheaper. The cheesecake filling consists of cream cheese, sugar, eggs, melted chocolate and peanut butter. The best part of this dessert, in my opinion, comes next. Chopped up peanut butter cups are sprinkled on top.

Ohhh my.

That is one attractive dessert. I'm getting all hot and bothered just thinking about it.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Cheesecake (By Me)
Printable Recipe

2 cups finely ground chocolate cookie crumbs
1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
3 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
6 ounces semisweet chocolate, melted
3 large eggs
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter, warmed
8 large peanut butter cups, coarsely chopped

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Coat bottom and sides of a springform pan with cooking spray.

In a medium bowl, stir together cookie crumbs and melted butter until well combined; evenly press into bottom of pan. Bake 8 minutes or until crisp.

In a large mixing bowl, using a mixer on medium speed, beat cream cheese until creamy - about 2 minutes. Beat in granulated sugar and vanilla until incorporated. Beat in melted chocolate until incorporated, scraping down sides of bowl. Beat in eggs, one at a time, until just combined. Pour batter over crust, and swirl peanut butter into the mixture. Bake 55-60 minutes or until well risen, set, and only slightly jiggly. In the last five minutes of baking, sprinkle peanut butter cups over the top.

Cool on a wire rack for 1 hour. Lightly cover and refrigerate until cold - about 4 hours - or until ready to serve.

Makes 12 servings

The Great Steak Challenge Part Two

S aturday afternoon, at 1:00 PM, it was time for the cook-off.

Eric and I drove to the mall from the hotel and found the tent where the steak cook-off would be held at. The Beringer folks were handing out wine and steak samples to the public. I spotted a sign that said I would be in the second heat; ten people would cook in two heats of five.

These were my competitors. All of them were very nice and friendly, and quite a few were newbies to competitive cooking.

It was HOT outside that day - sunny and almost ninety degrees. Waiting around for my heat was hard because I just got more and more nervous, and more and more sweaty. First we had to wait for the grills and cooking stations to be set up, then we had to sit through the first heat, the judging, and for them to set up everything all over again. Everything seemed to be running smoothly, though. The Beringer people organized this event really well.

Finally it was time for my heat to begin. I checked over all my ingredients and utensils to make sure I had everything I needed. Egads! I noticed they gave me paprika - not the smoked paprika I asked for. I panicked and told the Beringer people. They said they couldn't find smoked paprika in Des Moines.

Luckily, a very nice woman named Deb let me borrow some that she had purchased and brought to the cook-off; I felt relieved. I felt even more relieved when I found out we only had to cook one steak - not six, like I had practiced. The competition started and I was a little shaky at first, but then grew more confident.


I felt good with Eric on the sidelines, rooting me on.


I think I was whipping up my marinade in this picture.


I'm slicing up some bread in this one.


They had an MC walking around, who entertained the crowd and interviewed the finalists and judges.


I'm rubbing spices on my steak in this picture... So.. many.. jokes I could make right now. Must resist.


I waited until the last few minutes to grill my steak. My steak would be the last one served, and I knew it would be sitting for a little while.


Can you tell this is only my third time grilling a steak? I pretended like I had been doing this for years. :)


I didn't mess with the heat at all. The gas grill was on medium-high heat, I believe. I just went with it and threw that steak on there and hoped for the best.


Grilled to perfection!


There was about a minute left to plate my dish, so I really had to hurry. I plated the steak and the salad that went along with it.


And then a scoop of herbed butter went on top of the steak.


I took my plate up to the judges, and then left the tent to find Eric. He took a picture when the Beringer staff sliced my steak and plated it for the judges.
I didn't overcook it! That looks medium rare to me. Does it to you?


The judges were newscasters from the local television station, and a chef/owner of a local steakhouse.


I was happy about how my dish came together well, and pleased that I didn't have any trouble grilling, so I wasn't upset at all when I lost and they announced the winner. This was her first cook-off and she won it with her filet mignon. It had some sort of sauce that went a long with it and a potato pancake.


She won a trip for two to compete in the final cook-off in Napa. The winner of that cook-off wins $15,000.

I had a great time at the event and I'm thankful I had the opportunity to compete. Thank you, Beringer! I hope they host the contest next year. I have a feeling they will.
Thank you to Eric for being there to support me!

To celebrate a successful cook-off, Eric and I went to the fanciest restaurant in town...

Cheesecake Factory again! Whoop whoop. I ordered this "Strawberry Creamsicle" drink, and it had crushed strawberries, vanilla ice cream and amaretto in it. It was divine.


We split an appetizer of corn fritters and they were amaaazing. Corn fritters are my new favorite food. Can you live on corn fritters alone?


Eric had the orange chicken with rice and veg. Mmm it was delicious. So saucy.


I ordered the white pizza; it had ricotta, some cheeses and roasted garlic on it. It was very tasty. I liked the lettuce wraps better, though. Or the chicken tacos I had in Vegas. Or the caramel chicken I had in Vegas.


We then went back to the hotel and drank a bottle of Beringer Cabernet Sauvignon and went to bed.

The End.