Pumpkin Brownies

Fall is my favorite time of year, I just wish that Florida HAD a fall! So instead of bundling up in sweaters and breaking out the boots, we are still wearing flip flops and shorts. The one thing I can do is start cooking with pumpkin and that always helps me get into the spirit of my favorite season. I came up with this recipe this morning and couldn't wait to taste these yummy treats. They are the perfect blend of spicy pumpkin alongside sweet rich chocolate, a perfect combo!

Ingredients
1 pkg Betty Crocker Pumpkin Spice Cookie Mix,
prepared according to directions
1 box brownie mix (9x13 size),
prepared according to directions
1/2 c milk chocolate chips


Preheat oven to 350. Spray 9x13 pan with Pam. Mix up cookie dough and press into bottom of pan, sprinkle with chocolate chips. Next pour brownie batter over top of cookie dough. Bake for 25-30 minutes until set. Let cool, cut and enjoy!

Ingredients

Press cookie dough into pan

Sprinkle with chocolate chips

Pour brownie batter over top

Spread it out and bake

Enjoy!

S'more Brownies

We recently spent a glorious week in a cabin in North Carolina, while there I made some awesomely chocolaty brownies. They are super simple to make and were perfect for a mountain vacation. I forgot to take pictures in the beginning, so you're on your own for a bit :)

Ingredients
1 box Family Sized Brownie Mix
1 Sleeve Graham Crackers
1/2 c Melted Butter
1 c Chocolate Chips
1 Pkg Flat Marshmallows

Preheat oven to 350 and grease a 9x13 pan. Crush graham crackers into crumbs and add in melted butter. Add this to the bottom of the 9x13 pan, spread it out to make the crust. Prepare brownie mix according to package directions and then pour over graham crust, this can be a little tricky but be patient. Bake for 10 minutes and remove from oven. Place flat marshmallows on top of semi baked brownies making sure to cover the entire surface, next sprinkle chocolate chips on top of marshmallows and then return to oven. Continue baking for another 20 minutes. If you want marshmallows to have a darker look to them place them under the broiler of your oven for a few minutes.
 Take out of oven and let cool. We dug into these before they cooled down and while they were delicious they were pretty messy. I personally thought they tasted great for breakfast the next morning.

Going into the oven

After baking for 10 minutes remove from oven 

Place marshmallows on top of partially baked brownies

Sprinkle chocolate chips over top

Ready to go back into the oven

Enjoy!

Red Velvet Brownies

My daughter is on vacation in Panama City and sent me a text message photo of a red velvet brownie. A what??? I immediately jumped online looking for recipes and this one caught my eye. Plus earlier in the day my husband called and informed me he'd volunteered me to bring a dessert to a baby shower, so I gathered up the ingredients and got baking. What an amazing combination of two of my favorite flavors!

Ingredients
1 box Brownie Mix ( 9x13 version) and ingredients to make it, Duncan Hines is my favorite
1 box Red Velvet Cake Mix and ingredients to make it, Duncan Hines is my favorite

Preheat oven to 350 and prepare a 9x13 pan. Make brownies and spread into pan, next make the red velvet cake mix and pour on top of brownies. Place in oven and bake for 35-40 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. (this could take more than 40 minutes so don't panic)  Let cool and frost. I cut  my brownies into squares, placing them in cupcake liners then piping a dollop of frosting on top.

Ingredients for Frosting
1 Stick Butter, softened
8 oz Cream Cheese, softened
1 lb Powdered Sugar
1/2 tsp Vanilla
Milk, optional for thinner frosting

First the brownie layer

Then the red velvet batter on top

This is what a cross section looks like, yum on top of yum

Decorated for the baby shower

Enjoy!

Welcome Home Brownies

My favorite daughter (only daughter) has been vacationing in the Keys for almost 2 weeks and she is finally coming home tomorrow!!! I am making her favorite meal, Calzones; and since the main course is  fairly labor intensive I thought I'd make the dessert the day before. These brownies are rich, chocolaty and moist, you'll love the lightness of the frosting, the flavor melts on your tongue.  These make the perfect treat for any special occasion.

Ingredients for Brownies
1 1/2 c Flour
2 c Sugar
10 TBSP Cocoa Powder
1 c Shortening
1 tsp Vanilla
4 Eggs, beaten

Preheat oven to 350 and prepare a 9x13 pan. Mix eggs, shortening and sugar together, add vanilla. Add cocoa and the flour and mix together. Batter with be thick. Bake for 30 minutes.

 Ingredients for Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
1 Box Powdered Sugar
4 TBSP Cocoa
1 Stick Butter
3-4 TBSP Milk
1 tsp Vanilla

Using a mixer, beat all ingredients together on medium speed until creamy, frost cooled brownies.

Right out of the oven, the smell was divine!

Enjoy!

Brownie Covered Oreos

I will freely admit that I think brownies are one of the best desserts out there, I love the moist chocolaty flavor. I also love Oreo cookies, I think that whoever invented these should be given a Nobel Peace Prize. Can you imagine how yummy it would taste if you combined these ingredients? I'm not talking about crumbling Oreo's on top of baked brownies, this is MUCH more!

Ingredients
1 Box Brownie mix
prepared according to directions
18 Double Stuffed Oreo Cookies
White Melting Chocolate
Jimmies/Sprinkles

Preheat oven to 350. Mix brownie mix according to directions, heavily grease cupcake pans. Dip Oreos into brownie batter and place into greased pan, then scoop an additional teaspoon of brownie batter on top of cookie. Once all cookies are covered bang the cupcake pan on the countertop to ensure even coverage of batter.
Bake for 13-16 minutes. Once out of the oven quickly slide a knife around the edges of each brownie to ensure their removal from the pan. Let cool and pop out of pan. Melt white chocolate, following package directions, and drizzle on top of brownies. Sprinkle with jimmies if desired. Makes 18 brownies.

Ingredients

Prepare the pans

Dip the Oreo

Place into pan

Scoop more batter on top

Out of the oven

Run a knife around the edge to release

Let cool

Melt white chocolate and drizzle over top and

sprinkle with jimmies

Enjoy!

Best Brownies....ever!

A good brownie recipe is a precious thing, and I promise you this is the best one I've found. I originally found the recipe here, but have tweaked it just a bit. I like to use store bought frosting and add my own ingredients to it to make it even better, but you can make your own chocolate frosting. I dare you to try a better brownie than these!!!

Preheat oven to 325°. Spray large cookie sheet (jelly roll pan) with Pam.

Ingredients

1/2 cup cocoa
4 squares (1 oz. each) unsweetened baking chocolate
4 sticks butter
4 cups sugar
8 large eggs
1 T. vanilla
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
2 ½ cups cake flour

1 bag Nestle chocolate chunks (or chocolate chips)

Melt butter, baking chocolate and cocoa together in a large heavy saucepan over medium heat and stir until smooth. Remove from heat. Gradually whisk in sugar. Add eggs, two at a time and stir until well blended after each addition. Whisk in vanilla. Combine flour, salt and baking powder in a separate bowl and stir. Fold flour mixture into chocolate mixture in three additions. Do not over mix. I like to let it sit just a bit to cool down, so that when adding the chocolate chunks they don't immediately melt.

Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake about 35 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out with a few moist crumbs attached. Cool.

Frosting

2 cans store bought chocolate frosting

Reeces Peanut Butter Cups

Andes baking bits

Peanut butter

I like to cut the large brownie in half and make two different types of frostings. 

mmmmmmm

Mix one large tablespoon of Peanut butter into canned frosting. 

Rough cut 10 -15 small peanut butter cups 

Spread frosting on one side of brownie 

Top with peanut butter cups

For the mint frosting take one can frosting and 3/4 bag of Andes baking bits, if you can't find these you can use Junior Mints or York Peppermint patties.  

Stir chopped mints into frosting and then spread over brownie  

Top with remaining chunks  

One giant pan of goodness!

One pan makes 35 brownies.






                                                                          Enjoy!