Brownies – Page 2 – Bead Yarn & Spatula

5-Layer Brownie Cookie Cheesecake

A couple of things you’re going to need to make this cake… Patience, patience and more patience. You bake a layer, then you refrigerate it, you bake another layer and then you freeze it and finally you bake the last layer and then you place it back in the refrigerator so it can chill before enjoying a slice. But don’t worry, the first bite is worth the time and patience!

To make things a little easy for myself I followed the directions and used store bought chocolate chip cookie dough and boxed brownie mix.

I began by lining a 10-inch springform pan with 2 pieces of plastic wrap long enough to hang over the sides. After bringing the chocolate chip cookie dough to room temperature I pressed it into an even layer on the bottom of the pan, folded the plastic wrap over it and then placed it in the freezer.

I prepared the brownie mix per the directions on the box and then poured it into the 10-inch springform pan that I sprayed with baking spray after removing the cookie dough. I then sprayed the bottom and sides of an 8-inch round cake pan and pressed it in the center of the brownie mix until the batter reached about halfway up the springform pan. I baked this for about 45 minutes. I removed it from the oven after 35 minutes, per the directions, but felt that the brownie was a little too underdone so I placed it back in the oven for another 10 minutes. While the middle was still a bit undercooked, the outside was cooked. I think that if I make this again I will either cook it for 40 minutes, or reduce the oven temperature to 325 F and bake it for 45 minutes. While the brownie was still warm, I rotated the 8-inch pan into the brownie while carefully pressing it down to push the brownie further up the sides of the springform pan. I then refrigerated it for 30 minutes. I left the 8-inch pan in the brownie while it was in the refrigerator.

While the brownie was cooling I made the cheesecake batter by mixing together 3 8-ounce blocks of cream cheese with sugar, vanilla extract and an egg until it was smooth and no lumps remained. I set this aside. Once the brownie had cooled I removed it from the refrigerator and lined the bottom with Oreos.

And then poured the cheesecake mixture over it and baked it in the oven for 40 minutes and then placed it in the freezer, yes, the freezer, for 30 minutes.

Next, I arranged another layer of Oreos over the cheesecake…

And finally topped the whole thing with the frozen disc of chocolate chip cookie dough and placed it back in the oven for 20 minutes.

After letting it cool for a few minutes I placed it back in the refrigerator so it could chill.

Unfortunately, I don’t have a pretty picture of what the layers looked like when it was sliced (I made this for a birthday dinner and really couldn’t stop to take the all-important blog picture once we started slicing it) but I can tell you that it did get RAVE reviews. You might be thinking it would be overly sweet with all of the different layers, but, it actually wasn’t. It was more decadent than anything else and something you don’t need a huge slice of. I won’t lie, I was apprehensive to slice it because I had no clue if all of the layers had cooked properly, especially that brownie layer that seemed undercooked in the beginning, but, I needn’t worry. It probably would have been better if I had left the brownie a bit more undercooked in the beginning. I knew that I didn’t want to overcook it since it was going back in the oven 2 more times, but, I was just worried about putting a half cooked brownie in the refrigerator. I never know what can and cannot grow dangerous bacteria.

5-Layer Cookie Brownie Cheesecake

Ingredients:

16-ounce tube of refrigerated chocolate chip cookie dough, at room temperature

2 18-ounce boxed of brownie mix, prepared according to box directions

3 8-ounce cream cheese blocks, at room temperature

1/2 cup sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 large egg, at room temperature

1 package of Oreos

Whipped cream, for serving (optional)

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 F.

Line a 10-inch springform pan with 2 pieces of plastic wrap long enough to hang over the sides. Place the chocolate chip cookie dough into the pan and press it evenly into the bottom of the pan. Wrap it with the plastic wrap and place it in the freezer.

Spray the 10-inch pan with baking spray and pour in the brownie batter. Spray the sides and bottom of a deep (at least 5-inches) 8-inch round cake pan with baking spray and then press it into the brownie batter until the batter reaches halfway up the sides of the 10-inch pan. Bake for 35 – 40 minutes and then let cool for 5 minutes. While rotating the 8-inch pan press it into the brownie so the brownie can come up higher on the sides of the 10-inch pan. Place in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.

Reduce the oven to 300 F.

In a large bowl beat together the cream cheese, sugar, vanilla extract and the egg with a hand mixer on medium speed until it’s smooth. Set aside.

After the 30 minutes, remove the brownie from the refrigerator and line the bottom with a single-layer of Oreos. Pour the cheesecake mixture over the cookies and bake in the oven for 35-40 minutes, until the cheesecake is set, but slightly jiggles in the center. Let cool for a few minutes and then place in the freezer for 30 minutes.

After these 30 minutes are up, place a single-layer of Oreos on top of the cheesecake layer and then place the frozen chocolate chip cookie dough disk on top. Tucking in any edges and bake for 20 minutes.

Let it cool for a few minutes and then refrigerate for 2-3 hours before removing the ring and slicing. Serve with a dollop of whipped cream and an Oreo on top.

**A quick tip… Instead of placing the Oreos in a single-layer, crush them. It would definitely make slicing the cake easier and less likely to fall apart.

Recipe from Tasty

S’more Brownie Bites

Happy National S’mores Day! Will you be enjoying the campfire treat today? Truth be told, I had my first actual s’more last year and I must admit it was pretty good. I am not a big marshmallow fan so I think that’s why I never tried one, also, I’ve never been camping. Although you don’t have to go camping to have a s’more. Last year friends and I made them for dessert after a BBQ by roasting the marshmallows over sterno gel chafing fuel. Believe it or not, it actually worked! For today’s s’more treat I made S’more Brownie Bites.

I started by making the brownie batter. I melted a stick of butter in a small saucepan and then added in mini chocolate chips and whisked it until it was melted and smooth. I transferred this a medium bowl and stirred in sugar, eggs and vanilla extract. Using a hand mixer I then beat in all-purpose flour. And finally I stirred in mini chocolate chips. Now, the recipe called for quinoa flour along with all-purpose flour. I decided to omit the quinoa flour and just used all-purpose flour. I honestly didn’t want to spend money on quinoa flour which I probably wouldn’t use again and it didn’t seem necessary to the outcome of the recipe. I even researched making my own quinoa flour, but, it just didn’t seem worth the time and effort. Sorry if I sound so negative, but, I’ve finally learned that tweaking a recipe to the ingredients you have on hand is obviously much easier but also builds one’s confidence in the kitchen and you truly learn what works and doesn’t work. Back in the day, I would avoid a recipe if it included an ingredient not readily available or a bit on the pricier side, but, now I look for ways to make the recipe work with what I have on hand.

Once the batter was ready, using a small cookie scoop, I filled a mini cupcake pan, which I lined with liners, with the batter. Next, I pressed three mini marshmallows into each of the brownie bites and then topped them with crushed graham crackers. Here’s my simple trick for crushing graham crackers… Break them up a little and add them to a quart-size Ziploc bag. Seal the bag, removing the air, and then using a rolling pin, roll the graham crackers to crush them to your desired consistency. I opted to leave the graham crackers with little pieces to give the tops of the brownie bites a little texture to them.

After baking in a 350 F preheated oven for about 12 minutes they were ready! One downfall of baking marshmallows is that they melt considerably, so removing the brownie bites from the pan wasn’t as easy as just removing basic cupcakes. I let them cool for a few minutes before removing them so that could have been part of the problem, but, I also didn’t want to remove them right out of the oven since I wanted the brownies to settle a little before removing them. Removing them too soon could have resulted in smooshed brownie bites. Regardless, they still tasted yummy! The extra mini chocolate chips in the batter really added another level chocolate goodness to the brownie part and the marshmallows were perfectly melted into the brownies.

S’more Brownie Bites

Servings: 24 Brownie Bites
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Ingredients:

3-4 large graham crackers, finely crushed

1 stick unsalted butter

1 ¼ cups mini chocolate chips

½ cup sugar

2 large eggs, at room temperature

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

1 cup all-purpose flour*

Mini Marshmallows

*Original recipe called ½ cup all-purpose flour & ½ cup quinoa flour

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line a mini cupcake pan with papers liners and set aside.

In a small saucepan, melt the butter over low heat. Remove from the heat and add in ¾ cup of the mini chocolate chips. Whisk until the chocolate chips have melted and the mixture is smooth. Transfer to a medium bowl and whisk in the sugar, eggs and vanilla. Using a handheld mixer, gradually beat in the flour until the mixture is smooth and thick. Finally, whisk in the remaining ½ cup of mini chocolate chips.

Using a small cookie scoop, fill each paper line with the batter. Press 3 mini marshmallows into the center of the batter and then sprinkle with graham cracker crumbs. Bake in the preheated oven for 10 to 12 minutes, the marshmallows will be puffed and lightly golden. Let cool for 20 minutes and enjoy!

Recipe From Food Network

Mexican Brownies

Happy Cinco De Mayo! Do your plans include guacamole or a margarita today? Or maybe a sweet dessert? These Mexican Brownies are the perfect sweet treat for today. Unlike traditional brownies, these flavor in these brownies are enhanced by the addition of cinnamon and chili powder in the batter. Don’t worry, they aren’t spicy or anything. It actually offers a nice balance to the chocolate and they are super moist and fudgy.

If you are looking for some other desserts for today check out some of my past Cinco De Mayo treats.

Sopapilla Cheesecake and Mexican Wedding Cookies

Tres Leches Cupcakes and Churros

Coconut & Lime Cupcakes

Tres Leches Cake

Horchata Treats

Mexican Brownies

Ingredients:

2 sticks unsalted butter

2 cups granulated sugar

4 large eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon chili powder or cayenne pepper

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 F. Line a 9 x 13-inch baking pan with parchment paper, leaving an overhang on the long edges of the pan. Press the paper into the corners of the pan and spray with cooking spray or lightly grease with butter.

Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat, do not boil. Remove from the heat and let cool for a few minutes. Add the sugar, eggs and vanilla extract and stir until well combined.

Add the remaining ingredients and continue mixing until smooth. Transfer the batter to the prepared pan and bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until a tester inserted in the middle comes out fudgy. Transfer the pan to a wire rack to cool. Once cooled, use the parchment paper to lift out the brownies and then slice.

Recipe from Food Network

Pumpkin Chocolate Brownies

I came across this brownie recipe in a recent issue of People magazine. At first it sounded great, but, then I started to make them and I began to question them due to the vast amount of ingredients.

In one bowl I sifted together flour, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and salt. In another bowl I combined 9 eggs, 2 1/2 cups of pumpkin puree and 4 1/3 cups of sugar. And finally, in another bowl I melted 1 2/3 cups of unsalted butter. YIKES! I’ve made brownies from scratch before and usually they require about 4 eggs or so and definitely not that much sugar. Oh, and if you didn’t know 1 2/3 cups of butter is roughly 27 tablespoons! So, I had my doubts, but I plowed ahead.

To combine these three I continued to beat the pumpkin mixture on low while slowly adding in the melted butter and then gradually added in the flour until the mixture was completely blended.

And finally I stirred in 1 1/2 cups of semi-sweet chocolate chips.

Next, I spread the batter into a greased 12 x 18 – inch rimmed baking sheet.

And baked it for about 45 minutes, until cake tester came out clean from the center.

And after letting them cool completely I went to slice them and problems quickly arose. While they did appear to be completely cooked for some reason when I went to slice them they seemed to be undercooked in the middle. Granted, if I had left them in the oven longer the edges would have really burned. So while it appeared that I would have been able to slice these into 20 healthy-sized brownies I really only ended up with 12. While they did taste good the verdict is out as to whether or not I will make them again. I actually brought them to a friend’s house and we jokingly coined them “The $50 Brownies” because of the amount of ingredients… LOL!

Pumpkin Chocolate Brownies

Servings: 16-20
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Ingredients:

2 1/4 cups flour

1 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon ginger

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon salt

9 large eggs

2 1/2 cups pumpkin puree

4 1/3 cups sugar

1 2/3 cups unsalted butter, melted

1 1/2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 F. Grease an 18 x 12 inch rimmed baking sheet.

In a medium bowl sift together the flour, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and salt.

In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat together the eggs and the pumpkin puree on medium speed until well combined. Add the sugar and continue beating until all ingredients are well combined.

With the mixer running, slowly add the melted butter to the pumpkin mixture. Gradually add in the flour mixture until fully incorporated, scraping the sides of the bowl as necessary. Stir in the chocolate chips.

Spread the batter into the prepared baking sheet and bake for about 45 minutes, until a cake tester or toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Cool completely and then slice.

Recipe from Buddy Valastio People Magazine

S’mores Brownies

I hope you are all having a wonderful summer thus far! Today I have a treat for you that is perfect for these summer days, a spin on a favorite campfire treat… S’mores Brownies.

I began by spraying a 9 x 13 inch pan with cooking spray and lining it with graham crackers.

Next, I made my brownie batter and poured it right over the graham crackers…

And then baked it in a pre-heated 325 F oven for 40 minutes, until a cake tester inserted in the middle came out almost clean.

I then switched my oven to the broiler setting and topped the brownie with mini marshmallows, chocolate chips and crushed graham crackers and placed it back in the oven for just about a minute until the marshmallows began to brown.

I let the brownie cool on a wire rack and then transferred it to a cutting board to slice it. The key is to make sure the brownies have completely cooled before slicing into them, if you slice them too soon you will have a marshmallow mess as they will still be warm and gooey and the brownies will fall apart as they won’t have had enough time to set. I speak from experience on the latter.

These brownies were perfect! The texture was spot-on… Not cakelike or too dense. And while you may think that the addition of the marshmallows and chocolate chips on top would make them too sweet, the opposite is true, it enhanced the flavor of the chocolate in the brownies. And let’s not forget the graham crackers on the bottom, they incorporated nicely into the brownie and while you may think they would get crispier when baked they actually provided a soft base to the brownies, sort of like a built-in plate. Overall, all of these flavors and textures worked together perfectly; just like your regular S’mores does.

S’mores Brownies

Makes 12 Brownies

Ingredients:

10 graham crackers

3 cups mini marshmallows

2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips, plus an additional 1/2 cup for the topping

1 stick unsalted butter

3/4 cup granulated sugar

3/4 cup light brown sugar

4 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 325 F. Spray a 9 x 13 inch pan with cooking spray and line it with graham crackers.

In a medium saucepan melt 2 cups of the chocolate chips with the stick of butter over low heat, stirring frequently.

Once the chocolate chips and butter have melted remove from the heat and whisk in the granulate sugar and light brown sugar, cool slightly.

Whisk in the eggs, one at a time and then the vanilla extract.

Stir in the flour and salt and pour the batter over the graham crackers.

Bake for 40 – 45 minutes, until a tester inserted in the middle come out almost clean.

Remove the pan from the oven and set the oven to the broiler setting. Top the brownie with the mini marshmallows, and the remaining chocolate chips and graham crackers – crush the graham crackers. Place the pan back in the oven for 30 – 60 seconds, until the marshmallows begin to brown. Remove from the oven and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Once cooled transfer the brownie to a cutting board and slice into 12 pieces.

Cheesecake Brownies

Brownies… They are probably the one thing I don’t bake too much of. I’m not really sure why that is since I do like them, especially when they have walnuts in them. Yum! I tend to like that crunchy texture in my deserts… walnuts in brownies or loaf cakes, sprinkles on cupcakes and ice cream and so forth. As I am thinking about it I think the major turn-off I have with brownies is having to slice them once they are cooled. They always tend to fall apart on me and I never end up with the amount the recipe says I’ll have; 12 somehow becomes 8 or 9. But, with this recipe not only did I end up with some delicious brownies, but, I also was able to cut them into 16 equal brownies as the recipe called for.

In the bowl of my stand mixer I combined a box of Chocolate Fudge cake mix, oil, water and an egg and using the stir setting I mixed the ingredients until they were smooth. I then added in a 1/2 cup of chocolate chips and continued mixing until they were well incorporated.

I then spread the mixture into a 13 x 9 inch pan that I sprayed with baking spray.

Using a hand mixer – these are the times that I wish I had a second bowl for my stand mixer – I combined cream cheese, sugar, vanilla extract and an egg and beat the ingredients until they were smooth.

After spreading the cream cheese mixture over the chocolate mixture I sprinkled chocolate chips over it.

Once it was done baking – 35 minutes in a 350 F preheated oven – I let the brownies cool completely in the pan over a wire a rack.

After some careful maneuvering – flipping and sliding – I placed the brownies on a large cutting board so I could cut them.

And then it was time to enjoy them! Overall this recipe is a keeper. While the brownies are made using a cake mix they definitely tasted like they were made from scratch – i.e. flour, cocoa powder, etc. And the chocolate chips added to the brownie batter offer a nice texture and extra dose of chocolate in each bite. These brownies actually reminded me of the Mini Chocolate-Chip Cheesecakes I posted about a few years ago and continues to be a treat I make over and over again as it is a hit amongst many of my friends. And I am sure these brownies will become something I make quite a few more times.

Cheesecake Brownies

Yield: 16 servings

Ingredients:

1 box Chocolate Fudge Cake Mix (Betty Crocker SuperMoist)

3/4 cup vegetable oil

2 tablespoons water

2 eggs

1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

1 8oz. package cream cheese, softened

1/4 cup sugar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Prep a 13 x 9-inch pan by spraying the bottom with baking spray.

2. In a medium bowl, stir the cake mix, oil, water and 1 of the eggs until smooth. Stir in 1/2 cup of the chocolate chips. Spread batter into prepared pan.

3. In a medium bowl, beat the cream cheese, sugar, vanilla extract and remaining 1 egg with an electric mixer until smooth. Spread the mixture over the batter and sprinkle with the remaining 1/2 cup chocolate chips.

4. Bake 35 to 40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in brownie 1 inch from the side of the pan comes out almost clean. Cool completely in pan on a wire rack, about 1 hour 30 minutes. Cut into 4 rows by 4 rows.

Snowed-In Fudgy Walnut Brownies

So this past weekend I was held-up indoors after Nemo dropped 20 plus inches of snow in my area. While I was able to shovel the walkway & driveway and clean off my car – which was a painstaking task as I drive an SUV and cleaning the snow off the top of it is no fun (it’s one of the few times I wish I was an inch or two taller) – I couldn’t leave my block as the plows did clean the main roads in my area but didn’t get to the side streets. One of which I live on. So, what is a girl to do, well, this one decided to bake some brownies. I figured I deserved something sweet after all the hard work I did.

I remembered that I had a mini-recipe pullout from a Food Network Magazine with fifty different brownie recipes. I decided to keep it simple since I was sure I would have the ingredients for traditional brownies but not for anything too “wild.” There is a recipe for Cherry Almond Brownies that I am sure would be delicious, but, those will have to wait for another day. Hence, my Snowed-In Fudgy Walnut Brownies.

The ingredients were quite basic: Semi-sweet chocolate chips, butter, light brown sugar, granulated sugar, eggs, vanilla extract, flour and salt. And since I like some texture to my brownies I added in walnuts. The last time I made brownies I actually used cocoa powder so I was taken aback by using chocolate chips instead. Luckily I buy them whenever they’re on sale and store them in my refrigerator because you never know what may come up… like a snowstorm!

I started off by melting the chocolate chips and butter in a saucepan over low heat.

Once the chocolate chips and butter were melted I removed it from the heat and whisked in both of the sugars. As you can see the mixture got quite thick.

After letting it cool for a few minutes I whisked in four eggs one at a time and then the vanilla extract. I was actually going to do this by hand but immediately changed my mind and whipped out my hand mixer instead. My arm already had a good workout from clearing the snow.

I did swap out the mixer for a rubber spatula though when I added in the flour and salt. I didn’t want to make too much of a mess since I wasn’t working with a deep bowl.

And finally I folded in the walnuts.

In prepping my baking dish I decided to go with the easy removal method and sprayed my dish with baking spray, lined it with aluminum foil ensuring that it was a large enough piece to overhang at the ends and then sprayed the aluminum foil with the baking spray. Once the batter was ready I spread into the prepared dish.

After baking for 45 minutes in a 325 degree oven my brownies were done.

I let them cool for about two hours before I sliced them into twelve almost perfect squares.

They were quite yummy and surprisingly not as sweet as I thought they would be considering they were made with chocolate chips and a cup and a half of sugar. They were also the perfect complement to my chai tea as I watched the Grammy’s on Sunday night!

Fudgy Walnut Brownies

Ingredients

2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

1 stick unsalted butter

3/4 cup light-brown sugar

3/4 cup granulated sugar

4 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup chopped walnuts

Directions

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.

Coat a 9×13 pan with cooking spray. For easy removal, line the pan with foil leaving an overhang, then coat with more cooking spray.

Melt the chocolate chips and butter in a saucepan over low heat, stirring. Off the heat, whisk in each of the sugars; cool slightly. Whisk in the eggs one at a time and the vanilla extract. Stir in the flour and the salt. Fold in the walnuts. Spread the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 45 minutes.

Cool on a rack, then cut into squares.