Brownie Cookie Sandwich with Peanut Butter Frosting

Prep: 30 Mins Cook: 15 Mins

Ingredients

Brownie Cookie
1 stick / ½ cup / 115g unsalted butter, cut into chunks
10oz / 300g dark chocolate chips (or buttons, melts or block chocolate cut into chunks)
1 cup + 2 tbsp caster sugar
3 eggs
2 tbsp cocoa powder
1 tsp vanilla extract
½ tsp salt
½ tsp baking powder
¾ cup plain flour
½ cup dark chocolate chips

Peanut Butter Frosting
1 cup smooth peanut butter
1 cup confectioners' sugar (icing sugar)
2.5 oz / 5 tbsp / 70g / ⅔ stick unsalted butter, softened
¾ tsp vanilla extract
¼ tsp salt
⅓ cup heavy cream (unwhipped pouring cream)



Instructions

Brownie Cookie
1.Preheat oven to 180C/350F.
2.Line two baking trays with parchment / baking paper.
3.Pour 1" / 2.5cm of water into a large saucepan or small pot and bring to a simmer over medium low heat.
4.Place a bowl over the simmer water and melt the butter and 10oz/300g chocolate chips. Stir until smooth.
5.While the chocolate is melting, place the eggs, cocoa powder and sugar in a bowl and beat for 3 minutes on high (using an electric beater or stand mixer with the whisk attachment).
6.Pour ⅓ of the melted chocolate into the egg mixture and mix well, then pour the remaining melted chocolate in and mix again.
7.Add the vanilla, salt and baking powder and mix until combined.
8.Add the flour and mix until just combined - do not over mix.
9.Fold in ½ cup dark chocolate chips. See image below for batter consistency.
10.To make large ones like I did, drop 2 tbsp of mixture onto the baking tray, leaving 2"/5cm between each cookie. To make normal sized ones, use 1 tbsp of mixture per cookie. (Note 1)
11.Bake large cookies for 15 minutes for very soft or 17 to 20 minutes for firmer cookies. Bake small ones for 10 to 12 minutes for very soft, or 15 minutes for firmer. (Either way it is still moist!)
12.Allow to rest on the baking tray for 5 to 10 minutes before carefully transferring to a cooling rack.

Peanut Butter Frosting
1.Place all ingredients except the cream in a stand mixer bowl with the paddle attachment. Beat for 5 minutes on high, or until creamy. Scrape down the sides as you go. Add the cream then beat for a further 2 minutes, or until the frosting is fluffy.
2.This can also be done using a hand held beater but it will take a few minutes longer.

Assemble
1.Spread Peanut Butter frosting on a cookie, then sandwich with another cookie. Repeat with remaining cookies.







Notes

1. I find the easiest way to drop the batter onto the baking tray is to use an ice cream scoop. It requires some estimation, but it's convenient because when you press the lever, all the batter is "scooped" out of the scooper onto the tray.

2. The Brownie Cookie recipe is from a blog called Jen's Favorite Cookies. This is one of those fantastic recipes that work even if you use non US measures (I am in Australia and this came out brilliantly using Australian cups and tablespoons). It's a pretty "safe" recipe because it is for a moist, fudgey cookie.

3. The Peanut Butter Frosting cookie is from Barefoot Contessa's cookbook "At Home: Everyday Recipes You'll Make Over and Over Again".

4. These cookies can be stored in an airtight container for up to 3 days but they are best served on the day because the frosting is at its fluffiest. If the weather is quite warm (27C/80F+), I recommend refrigerating them (because of the butter and cream in the frosting) but bring them to room temperature before serving (the frosting goes hard when cold).

Chocolate Ganache Truffles

Prep: 15 Mins Cook: 15 Mins

Ingredients
10oz / 285g dark chocolate melts (chocolate chips, or chocolate block coarsely chopped)
2 tbsp unsalted butter
½ cup cream (full fat, not whipped)
½ cup desiccated coconut

Instructions
1.Place chocolate in a microwave proof bowl. (Note 1)
2.Place butter and cream in a small saucepan over low heat.
3.Let it come just to a boil (butter should be melted), then remove from heat and pour over the chocolate.
4.Allow to sit for 2 minutes, then stir gently until combined and smooth. The cream should have melted the chocolate. If there are lumps, then microwave it on high for 15 seconds, then stir until smooth.
5.Place the bowl in the refrigerator for 5 hours. Do not be tempted to shortcut it by freezing it!
6.Put a dinner plate or tray that you will use to place the rolled truffles on in the fridge as well. (Note 2)

Rolling the Truffle Balls
1.Place coconut in a small bowl or plate.
2.Remove bowl and dinner plate (or tray) from the fridge. The chocolate mixture should be firm - softer than cold butter but harder than peanut butter.
3.Use a teaspoon to scoop up around 2 tsp of chocolate. Use a 2nd teaspoon to scrape the chocolate onto the chilled plate. (Don't worry about them not being round, you'll fix that in the next steps). Repeat with remaining chocolate mixture.
4.Get an ice pack or bag of frozen peas from the freezer and place on the bench. Cover with a couple of paper towels. (I'll refer to this as the Freezer Pack).
5.Place hands on the Freezer Pack for a few seconds. Then pick up a dollop of chocolate and roll into an even ball shape, then put it back on the plate.
6.Repeat with remaining balls, stopping to place your hands on the Freezer Pack for a few seconds between every 2nd or 3rd truffle to keep your hands cold.
7.After you have rolled all the truffles into balls, wash your hands. Then place your hands on the Freezer Pack again for a few seconds to cool them down again.
8.Roll the balls in coconut. The coconut will stick easily because the chocolate is sticky.

Storing and Serving
1.Store the truffles in the fridge in an airtight container for 2 weeks (or up to the expiry date of the cream you used).
2.Serve at room temperature so the truffles are lovely and creamy.




Notes

1. Always use a microwave proof bowl because though pouring the hot cream over the chocolate should melt it, if it doesn't you will need to microwave it for a tiny bit to help the chocolate finish melting.

2. Having a cold plate or tray helps make the rolling of the truffles less messy because the truffles stay colder, making them easy to work with.

3. If you have very cold hands and/or you live in a cold place, you might not need to Freezer Pack. I live in Australia and find that I need to use the Freezer Pack no matter what time of the year or time of day that I make these because after rolling a few truffles, my hands warm up and starts melting them. In winter I might only need to use the Freezer Pack every 6 or so truffles.

4. Other coating suggestions: cocoa powder (this is the classic coating), icing (confectioners) sugar, caster sugar, crushed nuts, sprinkles or other decorating bits, crushed candy cane, chocolate shavings.

5. Flavouring suggestions: any liquor, orange, peppermint, coffee, coconut, almond essence.

6. ** UPDATE ** A fabulous reader - Avery (see comment thread below) - was kind enough to share that she substitute the butter with coconut oil and coconut milk for the cream and it turned out fabulous!! Hurrah! Thank you for sharing Avery!!

Greek Ribs

Prep:  20 Mins Cook: 1 Hr 15 Mins

Ingredients
3 lbs. baby back ribs (side ribs will work as well)
4 tbsp. fresh oregano chopped (or 2 tbsp dried)
½ cup onion finely chopped
5 garlic cloves finely chopped
¼ cup olive oil
3 tsp liquid honey
¼ cup fresh lemon juice
2 tsp finely grated lemon rind
1 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp fresh ground pepper

Instructions
1.Remove skin membrane from ribs (this can make your ribs chewy and tough if left on). Using a sharp knife slice under the skin and pull skin off meat. Cut meat into single ribs.
2.Combine all other ingredients in bowl and mix well.
3.Place ribs and marinade in large ziplock bag, shake and refrigerate 4-8 hours turning occasionally to ensure all sides of ribs get seasoned.
4.Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line old cookie sheet with foil, spray with oil, place ribs with space between each.
5.Bake 400 degrees 5-10 minutes until ribs have a nice sear.
6.Reduce heat to 300 degrees and roast for 1 hour.

Creamy Garlic Mushrooms

Prep: 5 Min Cook: 20 Min

Ingredients:

8 oz or 225 g whole white mushrooms
2 cloves of garlic, minced
2 tablespoons of Cream Cheese. (you can also use low fat variety)
1 teaspoon of fresh or dry herbs, such as tarragon, basil, parsley
salt & pepper
1 teaspoon of Olive Oil

Instructions:

1. Heat a pan with a teaspoon of oil and add the mushrooms and garlic on medium heat. Stir and toss until soft and a little liquid is released from the mushrooms. If the mushrooms do not release any liquid, add a couple of tablespoons of milk or broth. (Sometimes, depending on the season, mushrooms can vary in juiciness!)

2. Then add the cream cheese and combine. Add the herbs and taste, season to your taste with salt and pepper.

TIP: To avoid the cream cheese from splitting, you should make sure the heat is not too hot, if you are not sure, remove the pan from the heat whilst you add the cream cheese, combine well, then return to a gentle heat until the sauce is bubbling gently and heated through completely. As you will know, any cream products have a tendency to split or curdle if you add them to any high temperatures, so do not turn the heat up!!




3. Serve straight from the pan, or you can transfer to an oven dish and place in the oven (covered) to keep warm until you are ready to serve.

TOP TIP! Some other ways to change this recipe up :

Add some chopped bacon
Sprinkle some grated cheese and or breadcrumbs over the top and place under the grill / broiler until golden and melted
Add some onion with the mushrooms
Serve on a slice of toast for brunch, then place under the broiler / grill with some grated cheese. Delicious!



Serve hot with anything you like! I often make this recipe to serve with a nice piece of steak, chicken or pork, and use the sauce in the pan to pour over. it is also nice to serve alongside pasta, and for this, I would remove the mushrooms from the pan once cooked, and toss the cooked pasta in the cream sauce, then serve with a sprinkling of Parmesan over the top.

The possibilities are endless and you can really use your imagination and experiment with the foods your family enjoy eating. Happy cooking!