This one's a winner

People have informed me that this has a high chance of winning the international dessert cook-off competition with this one. Unfortunately, I am lazy and won't be entering the competition.

Leftover Halloween candy? Still? It's almost Thanksgiving... time for sweet potatoes, not pumpkin and toothache. Well, here's a suggestion as to what to do with it: More specifically, use up those Butterfingers!

Butterfinger Pie (Adapted from here - essentially, I cut the filling in half, and tweaked it a bit, and it works perfectly! It's INTENSE.) Oh and this is not for the faint-hearted...

Ingredients:

Crust:
14 cream-filled chocolate sandwich cookies (Oreos)
4 Tbs butter, melted

Filling:
7.5 ounces fun-size butterfinger candy bars (or 15 ounces of butterfingers), divided
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 Tbs flour
1 cup milk
1 large egg yolks
1/4 cup creamy peanut butter
1/4 cup milk chocolate chips, or other chocolate (I used a little bit of white chocolate chips because that's all I had)
3/4 cups whipping cream

Topping:
1 cup heavy whipping cream

Directions:

1. Prepare crust: Preheat oven to 375° F. In a food processor, process the cookies into fine crumbs. Add melted butter to crumbs and continue to process until well blended. Transfer mixture to a 9-inch pie pan and press evenly over the bottom and up the sides of the pan. Bake for 8 minutes. The crust will puff up and shrink slightly. Use the flat bottom of a drinking glass to gently press down on the crust. Cool completely.
2. Prepare filling: In a food processor, process all but 3 of the butterfinger bars into fine crumbs. Divide the crumbs into two 1/4 cup portions and one 1/2 cup portion; set aside.
3. In a medium saucepan, combine sugar, flour and milk. Slowly bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Beat egg yolk in a small bowl. Whisk in hot milk mixture 1 Tablespoon at a time until egg is tempered (slowly warmed up). Then add the egg to remaining milk in the pan, bring to a boil, stirring constantly until mixture is thick. Remove from heat and whisk in peanut butter. Scoop out 1/2 cup of the peanut butter mixture and put it in a medium bowl; cover and set aside. Add chocolate chips and 1/4 cup of the butterfinger crumbs to the remaining peanut butter mixture in the saucepan. Stir until chips are melted. Pour this mixture into the cooled crust. Refrigerate while you’re preparing the next layer.
4. Prepare peanut butter layer: Whip 3/4 cups of whipping cream until stiff peaks form. Scoop into the bowl with the reserved peanut butter filling and fold together with 1/4 cup of butterfinger crumbs too. Remove pie from refrigerator and mound peanut butter mixture evenly over chocolate layer and spread to the edges.
5. Prepare the topping: Whip the 1 cup of heavy whipping cream until stiff peaks form. Fold in remaining 1/2 cup of butterfinger crumbs. Spoon over the top of the pie, mounding slightly in the center. Chop the remaining 3 fun-sized candy bars and sprinkle over the top of the pie.
6. Cover loosely and refrigerate until ready to serve.
7. YOU DID IT! Good job. This was pretty crazy.
   

Submitted by vefehrm

Chocolate Babies + 1

I just found this recipe, and altered it a little bit to fit the stuff I had at home. You can hardly taste the walnuts, if that's your concern.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup walnuts
• ½ cup sugar
• 1 tbsp honey
• a little bit of water
• raisins
• 3-4tbsp cocoa

Directions:

1. Put all things in a blender and chop/grind until a consistency that will easily be rolled into balls (if it's too dry/crumbly, add a little water and chop/grind again)
2. Roll into balls

These remind me of these chocolate balls my friends and I used to make all the time:

"Neger/Chokladbollar"

Ingredients:

• 3/8 cup butter
• 2/3 cup sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 2/3 cups oats
• 2 tbsp cocoa
• 3 tbsp strong cold coffee
• coconut flakes
  

Directions:

• Mix everything together but the coconut flakes
• Roll into small balls
• Pour the coconut flakes on a plate and roll the balls in the flakes
• Refrigerate for a while

Sometimes we just mess up. And then we correct it.

the other day I wanted to make a chocolate-y, delicious, fudge chocolate cake. There was a recipe on the back of the Stop and Shop All Purpose Flour for a "Quick and easy fudge cake". Unfortunately, we had almost none of the ingredients. Especially no sugar, milk, nor butter to use.
I frantically found different kinds of sugary things:

• imitation maple syrup
• Swiss Miss, honey
• tonic water (don't ask...)

...and proceeded to add these things into the mixture. And for milk and butter, I kind of just substituted a little bit of oil, some peanut butter, cream, greek yogurt... etc. At last minute I added some roasted peanuts (salty ones - MISTAKE AGAIN), and sweetened coconut flakes.

What happened? It came out as chocolate bread. Not only had I added a billion different things, but it was not nearly sweet enough. Luckily I had some whipped cream to sweeten the deal. It was really disappointing.

Now, yesterday I was kind of upset by this and so I decided that I needed to make something out of this untouched chocolate bread cake thing. Oh, I guess I should add that I went and got some sugar yesterday. *Drum Roll*

Chocolate bread pudding:

1. Grease a pan, put the oven on 350.
   
2. Put some of the bread in the pan
3. Mix a mixture of cream, butter, SUGAR, vanilla, eggs, cinnamon, coconut and whatnot.
   
4. Pour mixture over the bread.
5. Put some more bread on top.
   
6. Mix eggs, coconut, some cream, and sugar together.
   
7. Pour over the top layer. Sprinkle with a mixture of water and sugar to get a nice sugary crust.
8. Put in the oven until golden brown on top.
   

It worked! Yes! Sweetness accomplished.

Red Velvet Cupcakes

A while back I made a batch of Paula Deen's Red Velvet Cupcakes (without knowing the extent of her fame and her love for butter). With suggestions from reviewers, I altered the recipe a little bit and they turned out... great! Make sure you have an electric mixer for the frosting though... it took me 2 hours to make it non-lumpy by hand.

Ingredients:

• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 tbsp cocoa powder
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1/2 cup applesauce (unsweetened)
• 1/2 cup butter (melted)
  
• 1 cup buttermilk (or 1 tbsp white vinegar mixed with enough milk to make 1 cup)
  
• 2 large eggs, room temperature
• 2 tablespoons red food coloring
• 1 teaspoon white distilled vinegar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the Cream Cheese Frosting: (this makes a LOT of frosting)

• 1 pound cream cheese, softened
• 2 sticks butter, softened
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3 cups sifted confectioners' sugar (the recipe called for 4 cups, but 3's enough)

Directions:

1. "Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line 2 (12-cup) muffin pans with cupcake papers.
2. In a medium mixing bowl, sift together the flour, sugar, baking soda, salt, and cocoa powder.
   
3. In a large bowl gently beat together the oil, applesauce, butter, buttermilk, eggs, food coloring, vinegar, and vanilla with a handheld electric mixer.
   
4. Add the sifted dry ingredients to the wet and mix until smooth and thoroughly combined.
5. Divide the batter evenly among the cupcake tins about 2/3 filled. Bake in oven for about 20 to 22 minutes, turning the pans once, half way through. Test the cupcakes with a toothpick for doneness.
   
6. Remove from oven and cool completely before frosting.

For the cream cheese frosting:

1. In a large mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese, butter and vanilla together until smooth. Add the sugar and on low speed, beat until incorporated. Increase the speed to high and mix until very light and fluffy.
2. Garnish with chopped pecans and a fresh raspberry or strawberry."

Submitted by vefehrm

Chocolate Chip Cinnamon Muffins

Adapted from a recipe of "Country Wisdom Almanac"

Makes: 18 muffins.
Time: 15-20 prep, 20-25 min baking

Ingredients:

• 2 eggs
• 2 tbsp apple sauce, 1 tbsp vegetable oil (alternatively: 3 tbsp veg. oil)
• 1/2 cup sugar (where 1-2 tbsp of that is brown sugar)
• 1½ cups plain yogurt
• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 1½ cups all purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 3/4 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

1. Preheat to 400 Fahrenheit.
   
2. Crease the muffin pan with PAM, or use muffin paper cups to line the muffin pan.
3. Beat eggs, applesauce, veg. oil, and sugar in a bowl.
   
4. Stir in the yogurt.
   
5. Pour in both flours, baking powder, baking soda, and cinnamon into the bowl with the eggs, applesauce, veg. oil and sugar.
   
6. Mix together until a moist batter develops.
   
7. Stir in the chocolate chips.
   
8. Distribute the batter into the muffin pans.
9. Bake for 20-25 minutes (TA oven: 23 minutes)
10. YUM!

Submitted by vefehrm