Double Chocolate Biscotti

The other night I decided to make double chocolate biscotti. I found the recipe in my beloved Better Homes and Garden cookbook. I found this variation of the recipe on bhg.com. The difference: I used chips instead of chunks of chocolate and no drizzle.

Anyways, these turned out pretty good! Ryan loves it when I make biscotti. So does he grandparents who I made it for. In fact, they were such a hit I made these same ones for some friends. Only I took out the white chocolate and added peanut butter chips, even better in my opinion!

Below is the recipe. I will def. make these ones again. A side note, they may need more than 7-8 minutes baking to crisp up, I did it about 10 minutes and they were not quite crispy enough.

Double Chocolate Biscotti

Ingredients

* 1/3 cup butter
* 2/3 cup sugar
* 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
* 2 teaspoons baking powder
* 2 eggs
* 1-3/4 cups all-purpose flour
* 4 ounces white baking bar, coarsely chopped
* 3 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped
* 2 tablespoons shortening (optional)
* 2 ounces semisweet chocolate or white baking bar, coarsely chopped (optional)

Directions

1. Grease a large cookie sheet; set aside. In a large mixing bowl beat butter with an electric mixer on medium speed for 30 seconds. Add sugar, cocoa powder, and baking powder; beat until combined. Beat in eggs. Beat in as much flour as you can. Stir in any remaining flour. Stir in the 4 ounces white baking bar and the 3 ounces semisweet chocolate.

2. Divide dough in half. Shape each half into a 9-inch-long roll. Place rolls 4 inches apart on prepared cookie sheet; flatten rolls slightly to 2 inches wide.

3. Bake in a 375 degree F oven for 20 to 25 minutes or until a wooden toothpick inserted near the centers comes out clean. Cool on cookie sheet on a wire rack for 1 hour. Using a serrated knife, cut each roll diagonally into 1/2-inch-thick slices. Lay slice, one cut side down, on an ungreased cookie sheet.

4. Bake slices in a 325 degree F oven for 8 minutes. Turn slices over and bake 7 to 9 minutes more or until slices are dry and crisp. (Do not overbake.) Transfer to a wire rack; cool.

5. If desired, in a heavy small saucepan combine the shortening and the 2 ounces semisweet chocolate or white baking bar. Cook and stir over low heat until melted and smooth. Drizzle over tops of biscotti. Let stand until set. Store in an airtight container up to 1 week. Makes 32 biscotti.

Gluten Free Cupcakes

A little over a year ago my Mom was diagnosed with Celiacs. She is allergic to wheat, barley, and gluten. This was only two months before her 50th birthday. Two months before her big surprise party, with chocolate cake, her favorite.

My mind began to race. My mom HAD to have chocolate cake on her birthday. So I made her chocolate cupcakes, Gluten Free of course. I used the Bob's Red Mill Chocolate Cake mix, and added applesauce to help moisten it. I don't remember the exact recipe I used...but they turned out alright. I must say, I wasn't a fan of the applesauce, or the aroma it left in my mixer (weird huh?).

Anyways, I wanted to share these with you, even though they are from a year ago! :)

S'mores Cupcakes!

I have been craving a S'mores Cupcake for a long time now. I had one on Friday night that well, just wasn't what I was wanting.

So I made my own. I improvised, and so far...they seem to be a hit.

I lined the bottom of the muffin cups with crushed graham crackers that were combined with melted butter. Topped that with Chocolate cake mix. I stuffed some marshmallows in the mix, which all came to the top during baking, weird. Then I made Marshmallow Frosting and toasted it under the broiler.

Now, I had hoped to have a pretty swirl of marshmallow goodness on top, with a piece of graham cracker and chocolate drizzle. That didn't happen.

The recipe I had for the Marshmallow Frosting, well, didn't work. Or I messed up. But it said after 7 minutes of mixing in a double broiler (or a pan and glass bowl) that stiff peaks would form, well 20 minutes later, no peaks. And one sore hand and wrist. So I said, oh well. I globed the non-stiff frosting on top of the cupcakes and toasted away. I must say, now they look like messy S'mores not the perfect cupcake I had in my head.

But who says that the look effects the taste? Because here at work, they are flying off the plate. I love making people happy.