It was negative 1 degrees when I woke up in Boston this morning. Negative 1! Oh, and the “feels like” with wind chill was negative 19 degrees. Sounds toasty right? With cold temperatures across most of the country and countless reminders from your Facebook friends about how cold it is I figured we could all use a pick-me-up.

And what could bring a smile to your face better than a picture of decadent, gooey, chocolately brownies? Well, probably the actual brownies, but now you have the recipe for them!

These brownies are nearly identical to the peanut butter crunch brownies I posted last month, but peanut butter is replaced with marshmallow. I had just finished baking the peanut butter crunch brownies when I spotted the big tub of marshmallow fluff in my baking cabinet and got inspired.

I love the way the Special K cereal gives the brownies a nice crunchy topping.

Also, just to make sure we are keeping count, this is part four of the Lemon & Mocha brownie series. Expect the fifth, final and most outrageous installment next month just in time for Valentine’s Day. In the meantime, treat yourself to some marshmallow crunch chocolate brownies!

Marshmallow Crunch Chocolate Brownies

 

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Yield: 32 brownies

Ingredients

• 1 batch brownie batter, enough for a 9 x 13 pan
• 1 ½ cup marshmallow fluff
• ¼ cup corn syrup
• 4 cups Special K, or similar cornflake cereal
• 1¾ cup chocolate chips, semisweet or milk, divided
• 2 teaspoons vegetable oil

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9x13” pan and set aside.
2. Prepare the brownie batter according to package directions. Pour half the brownie batter into the prepared pan.
3. Put the Special K in a large bowl and set aside.
4. Combine the marshmallow fluff and corn syrup in a small bowl. Heat in the microwave for 30 seconds. Stir and continue to heat in 30 second increments until the marshmallow mixture is smooth. Pour the marshmallow mixture over the Special K and carefully toss to fully coat.
5. Evenly distribute ¾ of the marshmallow crunch mixture onto the brownie batter in the pan by dropping small clumps of the marshmallow crunch mixture right onto the batter. Pour on the other half of the brownie batter being sure to cover as much of the marshmallow crunch mixture as possible. It is okay if it doesn’t all get covered.
6. Bake according to package directions. Be sure not to overbake as brownies will continue to cook once you remove them from the oven. I usually pull mine out 3-5 minutes before the package’s minimum baking time.
7. As soon as the brownies are out of the oven, run a knife around the edges then evenly sprinkle 1 cup of the chocolate chips on top before covering the pan with tin foil so the chocolate can melt.
8. Meanwhile, place the remaining chocolate chips and vegetable oil in a small bowl. Microwave for 30 seconds on half power then stir. Heat for 15 seconds on half power then stir. Continue until the chocolate is smooth.
9. Remove the tin foil from the brownies and carefully spread the melty chocolate chips with a spatula in an even layer on top of the brownies. Top with the remaining marshmallow crunch mixture then drizzle with the melted chocolate. Refrigerate until the chocolate has hardened. Cut and serve.

Notes

I highly recommend using 2 packages of Ghiradelli Triple Chocolate Brownie Mix to make these.

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Lauren Uncategorized 0 Comments

Today is part three of Lemon & Mocha’s holiday brownie extravaganza series! After this we are going to take a minor break from the brownies, but they will be back soon, I promise!

When I was looking over my brownies that I had dipped, drizzled, dunked and doused in chocolate I realized the brownies were missing their tasty counterpart: the blondie. A blondie is basically a chocolate-less brownie and I love them equally. Ok, maybe the chocolate lover in me likes brownies more, but blondies are also extremely tasty. Especially when they have chocolate chips.

But I am excited to say that these 100% chocolate-free blondies were one of my favorites from my brownie baking bonanza. Maple walnut blondies. They are chewy, with a bit of crunch from the walnuts, and have a very subtle maple flavor.

The recipe I used mentioned that using real maple syrup would have a more mild maple taste, while using maple flavored syrup would produce a pronounced maple blondie. I only had the real stuff in my fridge so that’s what I went with and a lot of people told me that they were pleasantly surprised by the subtly of the maple. So step away from the chocolate and make these delicious maple walnut blondies!

Maple Walnut Blondies

 

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Yield: 16 blondies

Ingredients

• 11 tablespoons unsalted butter, half melted
• 1 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• ½ cup plus 2 tablespoons maple syrup, divided
• 1 large egg
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• ¼ teaspoon baking soda
• 1 ¾ cups walnuts, chopped and divided

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Grease a 9x9” baking pan and set aside.
2. In a large bowl combine the butter, brown sugar and salt.
3. Add ½ cup of the maple syrup and the egg, then stir to combine.
4. Add the flour and baking soda, then stir to combine. Once completely combined, stir in 1 ½ cups of the walnuts.
5. Spread the batter into the prepared pan and use a spatula to smooth the top. Drizzle the remaining 2 tablespoons of maple syrup over the batter then swirl into the batter with the spatula. Evenly sprinkle the remaining ¼ cup of walnuts onto the top.
6. Bake about 30 minutes, or until the blondies are golden and just set in the center. Be sure not to overbake. Let blondies cool in the pan completely on a wire rack. Cut and serve.

Notes

For a subtle maple flavor, use real maple syrup. For a pronounced maple flavor, use maple flavored syrup.

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Lauren Uncategorized 0 Comments

Ever since I experimented with chocolate peppermint fudge last year, dark chocolate and peppermint has been added to my list of favorite dessert flavor combinations. Of course there is a list.

The decadent chocolate paired with the refreshing peppermint aftertaste is a nice break from all the rich desserts of the holiday season. Packing a triple peppermint punch, these fudgy brownies are for true peppermint lovers.

First, peppermint extract is baked into the brownies. Second, when the hot and gooey brownies come out of the oven, peppermint bark is layered on top to melt in a thin layer. Third, crushed candy canes are sprinkled on the top to add a nice crunch, to make them look festive and of course to add extra peppermint flavor.

Thankfully Matt is all pepperminted out this season so I have our batch of these all to myself, lucky me!

The best part of these brownies, other than their deliciousness, is how fancy they look, but how simple they actually are to bake. So bake some up this holiday season, and remember to keep some for yourself!

Dark Chocolate Peppermint Brownies

 

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Yield: 16 brownies

Ingredients

• 1 batch brownie batter
• 1 teaspoon peppermint extract
• 6-8 squares peppermint bark, broken into chunks
• 3 candy canes, crushed

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease an 8x8” brownie pan and set aside. If you want thin brownies like mine then use a 9x13” pan instead with the same amount of brownie batter. This will give you 32 brownies instead of 16.
2. Add the peppermint extract to the prepared brownie batter then pour into the prepared pan. Bake according to the package instructions, being sure not to overbake as brownies will continue to cook once you remove them from the oven. I usually pull mine out 3-5 minutes before the package’s minimum baking time.
3. As soon as the brownies are out of the oven, run a knife around the edges then evenly top with the chunks of peppermint bark before covering the pan with tin foil so the chocolate can melt.
4. After a few minutes, remove the tin foil then carefully spread the melty peppermint bark with a spatula in an even layer on top of the brownies. Sprinkle the crushed candy canes over the top then refrigerate until the chocolate has hardened. Cut and serve.

Notes

I highly recommend using 1 package of Ghiradelli Triple Chocolate Brownie Mix to make these.

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Lauren Uncategorized 0 Comments

There is something about the holiday season that makes me want to stuff my face with any baked good or candy I can get my hands on. And boy, oh boy have I been indulging. The holiday season only comes around once a year and the wedding diet can wait until the New Year, right? RIGHT? I’m going to assume you all responded with a resounding yes so I can get right back to stuffing my face and not bother feeling guilty about it.

Last Christmas I experimented with several fudge variations and I enjoyed it so much, as did my family, friends, and of course my stomach, that I decided a redux was in order this year. While this delicious thought was floating around in my head I kept coming across mouthwatering brownie recipes on the internet.

So fate and my desire to consume baked goods prompted this year’s holiday brownie extravaganza! I baked FIVE brownie varieties and they were all amazing so of course I will be sharing them all with you. This first one I’m sharing is so outrageous you may have to pause right now and take a deep breath. Ready?

Chocolate drizzled peanut butter crunch chocolate brownies. What happens when you coat crispy crunchy Special K with melted peanut butter syrup? Peanut butter crunch is born.

And what happens when you put the peanut butter crunch in and on top of gooey fudgy brownies then drizzle the whole thing with melted chocolate? A call to the doctor because your friend, coworker or roommate is concerned as to why you just fainted in your chair reading this post. Yes, this is real folks, and you should make them today. Your holiday season indulgent self will thank you, along with any brownie receivers if you’re nice enough to share.

Chocolate Drizzled Peanut Butter Crunch Chocolate Brownies

 

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Yield: 24 brownies

Ingredients

• 1 batch brownie batter, enough for a 9 x 13 pan
• 1 cup peanut butter
• ½ cup corn syrup
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 4 cups Special K, or similar cornflake cereal
• 1¾ cup chocolate chips, semisweet or milk, divided
• 2 teaspoons vegetable oil

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9x13” pan and set aside.
2. Prepare the brownie batter according to package directions. Pour half the brownie batter into the prepared pan.
3. Put the Special K in a large bowl and set aside.
4. Combine the peanut butter and corn syrup in a small bowl. Heat in the microwave for 30 seconds. Stir and continue to heat in 30 second increments until the peanut butter mixture is smooth. Stir in the vanilla then pour the peanut butter mixture over the Special K and carefully toss to fully coat.
5. Evenly distribute ¾ of the peanut butter crunch mixture onto the brownie batter in the pan by dropping small clumps of the peanut butter crunch mixture right onto the batter. Pour on the other half of the brownie batter being sure to cover as much of the peanut butter crunch mixture as possible. It is okay if it doesn’t all get covered.
6. Bake according to package directions. Be sure not to overbake as brownies will continue to cook once you remove them from the oven. I usually pull mine out 3-5 minutes before the package’s minimum baking time.
7. As soon as the brownies are out of the oven, run a knife around the edges then evenly sprinkle 1 cup of the chocolate chips on top before covering the pan with tin foil so the chocolate can melt.
8. Meanwhile, place the remaining chocolate chips and vegetable oil in a small bowl. Microwave for 30 seconds on half power then stir. Heat for 15 seconds on half power then stir. Continue until the chocolate is smooth.
9. Remove the tin foil from the brownies and carefully spread the melty chocolate chips with a spatula in an even layer on top of the brownies. Top with the remaining peanut butter crunch mixture then drizzle with the melted chocolate. Refrigerate until the chocolate has hardened. Cut and serve.

Notes

I highly recommend using 2 packages of Ghiradelli Triple Chocolate Brownie Mix to make these.

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Lauren Uncategorized 0 Comments

The lemon cheesecake that serves as the base of this recipe is the first cheesecake I ever baked from scratch. Matt had gotten me my stand mixer for my birthday (lucky girl!) and I wanted to christen my new kitchen toy with an epic recipe. After days of sifting through cookbooks and blog posts to pick the perfect recipe we decided on a lemon cheesecake with lemon curd.

My, oh my, was it outrageous. I have since made the lemon curd many times over for all sorts of recipes and occasions, but had yet to revisit the fluffy and tart lemon cheesecake. Four years later I decided it was finally time to make it again. I told you it takes me a long time to remake recipes! I thought the lemon would pair perfectly with cranberry for the holiday season because of the flavors and beautiful color.

This cranberry raspberry compote is simply made with cranberries, raspberries, orange juice and sugar. It is sweet, tart, fruity and a great cheesecake topping.

If you have never made a cheesecake before I urge you to give it a shot. You will feel so impressed with yourself when you’re done and your tastebuds will thank you. Although it may seem intimidating, homemade cheesecake is rather simple.

The key to an extra light and fluffy texture is to keep beating the cream cheese past when you normally think you should stop. If the cream cheese is extra airy before you pour it into the crust you will have an unbelievable texture once it is baked.

Lemon Cheesecake with Cranberry Raspberry Compote

 

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Yield: 12 servings

Ingredients

for the crust

• 16 graham cracker squares
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

for the filling

• 3 8-ounce packages cream cheese, room temperature
• 3 eggs
• 1 cup sugar
• ¼ cup lemon juice
• Zest of 1 lemon

for the compote

• ½ cup orange juice
• ½ cup sugar
• 6 ounces fresh cranberries
• 1 cup fresh raspberries

Directions

for the crust

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 9" springform pan with parchment paper and set aside.
2. Pulse the graham crackers in a food processor to create crumbs. Add the melted butter and pulse until the graham cracker crumbs are coated. Evenly press into the bottom and ½" up the sides of the prepared pan. Bake the crust for 10 minutes. Remove and let cool.

for the filling

1. Beat the cream cheese until very fluffy. It should almost have a satiny quality to it. Add the sugar then beat until smooth. Add 1 egg then beat for 30 seconds. Repeat with the remaining 2 eggs. Stir in the lemon juice and zest.
2. Pour the filling into the prepared crust. Bake for 45 minutes or until the top is set, except for the center which should look almost just set and glossy. Let cool to room temperature on a cooling rack then cover the pan and chill in the fridge overnight.

for the compote

1. Combine the orange juice and sugar in a medium saucepan over medium heat, stirring occasionally. After 5 minutes, add the cranberries and bring to a boil, stirring occasionally.
2. Once the mixture comes to a boil and most of the cranberries have started to burst, add the raspberries then reduce the heat to low. Simmer for 10-15 minutes. Let cool in the fridge. Pour over the top of the cheesecake.

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Lauren Uncategorized 1 Comment