Happy Halloween and what to do with leftover chocolate: milk-chocolate cornflake brownies

 

 

 

The other day I tackled one of my kitchen cupboards because it was a mess. The kind of mess I have to sort while the kids are not around: to me it is the corner of horrors but they think of it more like a piece of heaven. It is an out-of-reach shelf where I dump store all the candy and chocolate we seem to accumulate over time.

Now, as you know, I am not shy of giving my kids a treat now and then. Their life is by no means devoid of sugar. I do however try keep their sugar intake somewhat under control. I never buy candy but my kids get more than enough at birthday parties and as gifts from well-meaning friends and family. On Fridays we usually get a gelato when I pick them up from school: it is a way to celebrate the beginning of the week end and a compromise to get them to eat their fruit or crackers or raisin snack the rest of the week when most kids around them is nibbling on chips, pizza or candy. Of course the argument ensues whether to get gelato as opposed to the horrendously colorful creations on sticks marketing experts have the guts to call ice cream. I give in fifty percent of the time. I limit Nutella to week end breakfasts and the cereal they eat during the week (an easy solution for F who is in charge of getting them to school while I sit at my desk at the office) is something halfway healthy, with some whole grains and rice to balance out the sugar and salt per gram.

 

And I bake. I bake my children cookies, cakes, brownies, tarts, pies. I make them hot chocolate in the winter and pop corn before movies sometimes. The salt, fat and sugar content may not be ideal, but at least I know what they are eating, what ingredients go in and that they are not eating highly-processed snacks.

Anyway, back to my clean up. After yet another party a few weeks ago we came home with a bag full of candy. As I tried to put said candy away I was buried under an avalanche of sugar, food coloring and high-fructose corn syrup. I realized it was time to get rid of some while the kids were not watching, especially in view of Halloween and the all the holidays that will follow. I dumped at least a pound or two of lollipops melted out of shape, rock hard gummy bears, leaking chocolate coins and gelées with all sorts of unidientified fuzz and crumbs stuck to them. Not to mention the traditional sugared almonds in all hues (red for graduations, baby blues and pastel pinks for christenings and births) that might have become real estate for some unwanted wiggly creatures for all I knew.

Peanut-studded peanut butter brownies

Dear daughter,

six years ago, on a Wednesday morning exactly like today, you came into this world, the best Christmas present a girl could ever dream of. A lot of things have changed since then: all that black peach fuzz on your head has turned into little blond wisps of elf-like hair, your eyes have turned from grey into the most beautiful shade of aqua green and from a quiet little baby you have become a real chatterbox, words tumbling from your lips from the moment you awake till the moment you fall asleep.

You have now started reading words everywhere you find them and in your drawings fairies and letters are intertwined. You sing loud and clear as if you were on stage, whether you are playing in your room or walking down the street, peppering each verse with a hop or a twirl. You are one of the most stubborn little creatures I have ever met, yet you are a truly sensitive soul and will drop anything you are doing for a cuddle or a kiss. I hope you keep both these traits as you grow into a woman, because tenacity will get you far but kindness and compassion will take you even farther.

When your brother was born, you constantly asked me which of you I loved more. I told you then and I tell you now that I love you both the same, I couldn’t love one of you more because my love for you is boundless, it cannot be quantified. But you will always be my first: you made me a mother and I have loved you longer, so you will always have that three-and-a-half-year headstart.

Even if you are growing faster than I can keep track of, you will always be my little girl, even when a tooth finally fills that big gap in your smile and you will be old enough to have children of your own.

This year for your birthday you expressly asked for a chocolate princess cake and we secretly went and ordered it on the week end. In the meantime, though, I made you those brownies that you have been asking me to bake you for ages. I know you don’t like walnuts or pecans in your brownies so I used peanuts and peanut butter in them instead. They are just like you, sweet and soft with a touch of saltiness and an unexpected crunch.

Happy birthday my love.

Mommy

Ingredients

For the basic recipe, click here.

4 tbsp unsweetened peanut butter

1 cup chopped unsalted peanuts

Substitute walnuts with the same amount of chopped peanuts and add 4 tablespoons of unsweetened peanut butter into the batter.

Last but definitely not least I wanted to thank Manu (a little late, sorry, but I was travelling) and Paolo for their awards: it is always a real honor to receive any form of acknowledgement from other bloggers, especially the ones you admire.

I pass these on to some of my newer blogging friends and reads:

The Little Loaf
The Nervous Cook
A Full Measure of Happiness
The Twinky Cake

Easter egg brownies for grown ups

If you are anything like me, this post may be a tad late because this is a recipe to use up some of that left over chocolate from Easter. If you have any left over, that is.

Now I am the perfect mom, only allowing my kids a few pieces of their chocolate Easter eggs here and there. To then sit in front of the TV while they are in bed chomping on their goodies. I know, I know... but what goes better with gilded uniforms, diamond tiaras, white gloves and lace sealed with a kiss in front of a cheering crowd then that sugary goodness?

Ok, I actually watched the royal wedding of the decade in the office with a bunch of colleagues, some (men) feigning disinterest but nonetheless peaking at Kate, Will, Pippa & Co. (especially Pippa). After all, we do work in an investment bank and it was a bank holiday across the Channel so our phones and emails on Friday were pretty dead as a result.  

I did however stuff my face nibble on my childrens' Rapunzel and Barbapapa chocolate eggs during a few episodes of Glee.

 

So now you understand why it was essential for me to get rid of that stash immediately. Problem being, I do not bake with milk chocolate. I started searching the Internet thinking I would just come up with tooth-achingly sweet recipes only suitable for kids. Not so. With a little research and some tweaking here and there, I actually made something much more grown up and healthy than I expected (with an added bonus: the kids liked it too).

There is no butter in this recipe, the moistness coming from the Greek yogurt, but it is rich and dense, the sweetness mainly coming from the nuggets of creamy milk chocolate these brownies are studded with. If it weren't for the children, a dash of coffee would have been perfect in the batter. If you try it, let me know.

Nutella brownie muffins and e-mail

Ok, I know, I am SOOOO last week.

Truth is, I had no idea it was World Nutella Day on Saturday. I was wrapped up in my little crazy world of reading, checking, double checking, revising, mumbling, pulling at my hair, rocking back and forth, nervously chewing on my nails the editing of my files and not reading my usual blogs. So it was totally random that I decided to bake something on Friday night involving Nutella (for the first time ever by the way). I could pretend that the blogging world and I share a certain vibe, convince you that I am particularly empathic, that when it comes to all things foodie I have a sixth sense...but no, the truth is I wanted something satisfying but simple and fast to make so that I could crawl quickly back into my corner to work. A total coincidence.

This recipe had caught my eye a while back on Life's a Feast for several reasons.

First of all, what is there not to like about Nutella, the luscious, creamy, chocolatey, nutty spread sold all over the world? When I was a child living in New York my mother used to buy it for me in a specialty store in Germantown, thus my belief growing up that it was of German origin. Imagine my surprise when we moved to Italy and I found out I was living in the country that produced this marvellous treat! You can actually smell Nutella when you drive by the factory in Alba, giving you a kind of Charlie-and-the-chocolate-factory experience.

And I still can only buy it once in a while, such is the danger of me eating it up in spoonfuls in a matter of days.

But let's stay focused, back to my reasons.

Secondly, I was intrigued by the fact that this recipe only had four ingredients. Just four? Three actually, if you leave out the chopped hazelnuts for decoration. The end result won't be quite as pretty, but your muffins will turn out pretty good all the same. 

These muffins are such a cinch, it really is worth it to whip them up as a last minute dessert or treat for your family and friends. They are nutty and chocolatey with a soft and chewy heart. However, if I have to be 100% honest with you, I still think the best way to eat Nutella is thickly spread on a crusty piece of farmer's bread.

Before you read the recipe: many of you (especially non bloggers) have asked me to get update notices via e-mail. If you look at the top right corner of the page, I have added a subscription form. Just write in your email address and you will get a notice in your mailbox every time I post a new recipe. Ciao!

Nigella Lawson's irresistible brownies

I already had my new post all worked out in my mind last night, when I awoke to a grey and rainy morning with a distinct autumn chill and thought nothing could be more comforting than rich, chewy, chocolatey brownies on a day like this. Too bad the stash I made on the week end just finished!

I got this recipe from Nigella's How to Be a Domestic Goddess and have never turned back. I know, it is so chock choc-a-block full of butter, chocolate, sugar, eggs and nuts there is no way it could be less than delicious. But if you are going to have it, you might as well go the whole way, right? So I prefer to make these morsels of chocolatey heaven a little less often than I am tempted to but to enjoy every buttery crumb, each nutty bite to the end.