Strawberry Angel Food Cookies with Vanilla Balsamic Vinegar

These are really sweet, light, airy, and tart pleasing cookies.  I pick up fun vinegars and oils at TJMaxx or Ross all the time.  I picked up a Vanilla Balsamic Vinegar and it's this really thick and aged syrup, it's wonderful!  Strawberries go great with balsamic vinegar so I had to try this.  Add some cocoa powder for a truly decadent cookie.  These cookies are crisp on the outside and chewy on the inside.  I used home made strawberry freezer jam, but it was too sweet.  Reduced sugar or sugar-free jam works best.

1 box angel food cake mix(do NOT add water)

3/4 cup low-sugar or sugar free jam

1 Tbl. Vanilla Balsamic Vinegar(optional)

1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder(optional)

Preheat oven to 350'.  Line cookie sheet with parchment paper or non-stick foil and spray with non-stick spray(MUST!).  Prepare all of the ingredients in a mixer bowl for 1 minute on slow.  Scrape sides well and mix another minute.  Use a cookie scoop and place 12 cookies per large cookie sheet.  Bake 10-12 minutes, until they start to turn golden.  Remove from oven and slide parchment onto counter.  Wait 1-2 minutes before removing cookies to cooling rack.

I prepared most of the batch pictured below without the cocoa and decided to add that after I had baked most.  This recipe makes 4 dozen cookies.

Peanut Butter Mousse Brownies

I combined two delicious recipes to make this.  I will give credit to both sources at the top of this post because they really deserve all the credit!

The Original Recipes:
    Baker's Scrumptious Brownies
    Sweet Pea's Peanut Butter Truffle Brownies

Brownies

1 pkg. (8 squares) BAKER'S Unsweetened Chocolate

1 cup (2 sticks) butter or margarine

5 eggs

3 cups sugar

1 Tbsp. vanilla

1-1/2 cups flour

Preheat oven to 375°F. Melt butter in a large glass bowl.  Add chocolate squares and microwave on high 30 seconds.  Stir until chocolate is completely melted.  This takes patience and it's nice to have a second set of hands for this. Cool slightly.

 

Beat eggs, sugar and vanilla in large bowl with electric mixer and whisk attachment on high speed 10 min. Add slightly cooled chocolate mixture; beat on low speed until well blended. Gradually add flour, mixing until well blended after each addition. Spread into 13x9-inch baking pan, bottom greased only.

Bake 35 min. or until toothpick inserted in center comes out with fudgy crumbs. (Do not overbake.) Cool on counter for 30 minutes, and then refrigerate until cool to the touch. 

Spread brownies with Peanut Butter Mousse and chill 30 minutes.

 

Peanut Butter Mousse

 

1 cup creamy peanut butter

1/2 cup butter softened(1 stick)

4 cups powdered sugar

2 tsp. vanilla

1/4 cup milk

Combine all ingredients in large mixer bowl of electric mixer and mix on medium, and then high until whipped.  Pause to scrape down sides often.  Allow to rest 30 minutes covered.  Mix again on high for 1 minute.  (This is a process I learned in decorating class so you can avoid sifting powdered sugar and get a really smooth frosting.  

 

Spread on brownies and chill 30 minutes.  Top with "Ganache" Topping and chill another 30 minutes.  Cut into 24 pieces.

Chocolate "Ganache" Topping

1 Pkg. Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips

1/2 cup Smooth Peanut Butter

1/2 cup butter(1 stick) +2 Tbl. cold butter pieces, separated

In a microwavable glass bowl, melt 1 stick of butter and peanut butter on high 30 seconds.  Stir, and heat on high another 30 seconds.  Add chocolate chips and stir until chips are melted and chocolate is smooth.  Add 2 pats(Tbls.) of cold butter and stir until melted.  This gives the "ganache" a shiny and smooth finish.  Spread evenly over Peanut Butter Mousse Filling and chill 30 minutes before slicing into 24 pieces.

Triple Chocolate Fluffernutter Cookie Sandwiches

It's a mouthful, huh?  Yeah, you will be stuffing your mouth full of these. 

Cookies:
1 Package Devils Food Cake Mix
1 cube(1/2 cup) softened butter
2 squares(2 oz.) unsweetened chocolate squares
2 Tbl. Canola Oil
1 Egg, slightly beaten
1 cup mini semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350' degrees.  In a large bowl, add butter and chocolate squares and microwave on high 30 seconds.  Stir until squares are melted and incorporated into butter.  If you need to, microwave again in 15 second increments.  You don't want the butter to be hot, just enough to melt the chocolate.  When incorporated and cooled to luke warm, add oil and egg(you don't want the egg to scramble).  Stir in cake mix and then stir in chocolate chips.  Using a Tbl. size cookie scoop place 2" apart on parchment lined cookie sheets .  Take a flat glass or small bowl and spray bottom with non-stick spray and slightly flatten.  Bake 8-10 minutes and remove to cookies to cooling rack.  Allow to cool completely.  Makes approx. 36 cookies.

Frosting:
This is easy, and SO delicious.  Use the 7-Minute Brown Sugar Frosting.  Add about 1 cup Natural Peanut Butter to 1/2 of the frosting recipe.   Add to large tipped frosting piping bag.  Generously pipe the bottom of one cooled cookie and sandwich with the bottom of another one close in size.  Allow to set up in refrigerator or freezer for a few hours.  The chocolate cookie gets softer and easier to eat in a few hours.

7-Minute Brown Sugar Frosting

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups brown sugar
• 2 large egg whites(1/2 cup "Just Whites" pasteurized from carton works great)
• 6 tablespoons water
• dash salt
• 2 teaspoons vanilla or vanilla bean paste

Preparation:

Add brown sugar, egg whites, water, and salt in bowl of standing mixer. Put on top of double boiler over boiling water.  Hold bowl steady using an oven mitt(no burns!).  Beat sugar and egg mixture with whisk constantly until mixture is hot to the touch and starts to thicken.  Remove from heat and position bowl in stand mixer with whisk attachment.  Whip on high until mixture forms strong peaks and is dramatically lighter in color.  Add vanilla.  Continue beating until frosting is thick enough to spread.  Makes enough to frost a 2 layer cake.

 

 

Nutella Cake Pops

Sorry, no pictures!

1 Box of Triple Fudge Chocolate Cake, prepared as package directions.
1 small jar Nutella(13 oz.)
2 containers Chocolate Hazelnut Round Wafer Cookies(hint: $ store)
2 packages Milk Chocolate Chips or Chocolate Melting Wafers

Crumble baked, cool cake into bread crumb like consistency in a large bowl.  In a food processor, pulse cookies until finely ground.  Add to crumbled cake.  Add about 3/4ths jar of Nutella and mix with fork.  You want the dough to resemble the texture of Playdough.  Add more Nutella if needed.  This is where I put on food grade disposable gloves sprayed with a little non-stick spray and rubbed in.  Get your hands in there and "play" with it until it is all combined.  Scoop out a ball with a large cookie scoop and roll into a slightly pressed round ball.  Place on a cookie sheet lined with wax paper or non-stick foil  This recipe makes 4 dozen and I needed 2 large cookie sheets.  Melt 1/4 cup of chocolate chips in 30 second increments in microwave.  Dip one end of a lollipop stick in melted chocolate and push about 3/4 way through the cake balls.  Freeze for 20-30 minutes.  In the meantime melt the remaining chocolate, again in 30 second increments in microwave.  Dip each cake pop into the chocolate and place back on cookie sheet.  Allow to set on counter or in refrigerator.  Yum!

Pumpkin Spice Kiss Chocolate Brownies

Hershey's Pumpkin Spice Kisses! Yes, just the saying that is evil! But, Hershey's ACTUALLY did it! They are of the debil!

I picked up several bags today, with the thought of letting Mr. D take some to work, but he may not get them! He can have the Candy Corn Kisses(bleck), but the Pumpkin Spice are MINE! He keeps Kisses on his desk at work. If he makes a kid cry, he makes it up to them with a "Kiss". Chocolate makes everything better, especially the girls.

Now, the really devilish part: Pumpkin Spice Kiss Brownies Can you believe that?!!!! I'll be lazy and just add some vanilla and the pumpkin spice to a box mix, I'm pretty sure it won't be awful.

Pumpkin Spice Kiss Chocolate Brownies

(adapted from Baking From My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan, pages 92-93)

1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
6 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
1 1/2 sticks (12 tablespoons) unsalted butter, cut into 12 pieces, at room temperature
3 large eggs
1 cup sugar
45 Hershey’s Pumpkin Pie Spice Kisses, unwrapped

Getting ready: Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 300 degrees F. Line an 8-inch square baking pan with foil, butter the foil and place the pan on a baking sheet.

Whisk the flour, salt, pumpkin pie spice, and cinnamon together.

Put the chocolate in a heatproof bowl and set the bowl over a saucepan of simmering water. Stir occasionally until the chocolate melts. Remove the bowl from the saucepan and add the butter, stirring until it melts. It’s important that the chocolate and butter not get very hot. However, if the butter is not melting, you can put the bowl back over the still-hot water for a minute. If you’ve got a couple of little bits of unmelted butter, leave them-it’s better to have a few bits than to overheat the whole.

Working with a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat the eggs and sugar until thick and pale, about 2 minutes. Reduce the mixer speed and pour in the chocolate-butter mixture, mixing only until it is incorporated-you’ll have a thick, creamy batter. Add the dry ingredients and mix at low speed for about 30 seconds-the dry ingredients won’t be completely incorporated. Then finish folding in the dry ingredients by hand with a rubber spatula. Fold in the raisins, along with any liquid remaining in the pan. Scrape the batter into the pan.

Place the unwrapped kisses in a microwave-safe bowl and microwave on HIGH for 1 minute. Stir until smooth, and then drop by spoonfuls into the brownie batter. Using a knife, swirl the batter to create a marbled effect.
Bake for 50 to 60 minutes, or until the top is dry and crackled and a thin knife inserted into the center comes out clean. Transfer the pan to a rack and cool to warm or room temperature.

Carefully lift the brownies out of the pan, using the foil edges as handles, and transfer to a cutting board. Cut into 16 squares, each roughly 2 inches on a side, taking care not to cut through the foil.

Yummy Healthier Brownies, mmmmmmm

1 box family size low fat brownie mix
1 can pumpkin
1 egg white
2 Tbl. mini semi-sweet choc. chips

This is THICK, so it's just fine to use a mixer. Add the choc. chips after the first three ingredients are mixed well. Bake in a greased(bottom only) 9x13 pan at 350' for 26 minutes.

UPDATE: The brownies are GONE! lol I had 1 1/2, and the rest have been devoured by the late night snackers. They don't usually go for my diet stuff, but even dh who doesn't like sweets said he LOVES these brownies. I thought they were good, I've had better, but these really are yummy and taste totally sinful(that's the most important part, right?) ;)