S'mores and Oreo, marshmallow pops...

I'm sure somewhere, someone is trying to decide which they love most. Two of the most loved cookie snacks, the famous S'mores or the all American Oreos and milk? I myself am caught between the two which is why I made these two very easy to make "Marshmallow Pops"... They can be made in no time, yet very impressive in "Cuteness" and taste, of course.

Ingredients
1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate morsels or chocolate candy melts
30 large marshmallows
Oreo cookie crumbs (I used ready made oreo sprinkles)
Crushes graham crackers or digestive biscuits
30 cake pop sticks

Directions
Place a stick in the center of each marshmallow, sticking it in at least halfway through the marshmallow (you can dip the stick in the chocolate first but the marshmallow is sticky enough to hold the stick). Place the marshmallow pops on a tray lined with parchment paper into the refrigerator for approximately 20 minutes. Meanwhile melt the chocolate over a double broiler and allow it to cool down to room temperature. Dip each marshmallow 1/3 into the chocolate and dip into the crushed cookies. Place them cookie crumbs side down back onto the tray and refrigerate until the chocolate is firm.  

  Of course if you "hate" cookies you can always use sprinkles! 

 

Cake pops!

I'm crazy about cake pops and so are my kids, cute little sweetness on a stick. What more can one ask for? This weekend I'm planning on making a variaty of pops for a kids gathering, I just pray I don't eat most of them before they make it to the party. I don't think I'll be taking my time to make owl pops this time, seeing the kids just bite their heads off makes me want to scream "do you know how long it took me to decorate those?". I'm kepping it simple yet cute with some semi homemade and others made from scratch. The day is cloudy and windy making it hard for me to photograph the first batch of pops, but let me tell you. Chocolate chip cookies on a stick? Wow!

Cake pops!

Cake pops and cake balls are so up my alley I can't believe I had never made them before. You can almost make cute cake pops out of any cake and bind the mixture with a frosting of your choice. I found that 4 to 5 heaping tablespoons of frosting was enough to bind the crumbs of one large cake made from a "Super moist" store bought cake mix. If you've made anything that requires rolling such as meatballs then you already know how to make cake balls/pops. I chose to dip the pops in semisweet chocolate since boxed cake mix and store bought frosting are already on the sweet side for me. After looking at pictures online I couldn't make up my mind as to how to decorate my pops, so I made sheep, owls, cat's, and regular sprinkled pops. Please come back and see me and I will show you how to make "Owl" cake pops on a seperate post.

Ingredients
1 box cake mix
1 can frosting (I used chocolate)
1 bag semisweet chocolate chips
Assorment sprinkles to decorate

Step 1. Bake the cake per box directions.

Step 2. In a large bowl crumble the cake into fine crumbs.

Step 3. Add enough frosting to hold the crumbs together, I used approximately 1/2 cup frosting.

Step 4. Measure the crumbs into a small icecream scooper and roll into smooth balls. Place each rolled cake ball onto a large cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.

Step 5. Refrigerate the cake balls for approximately 1 hour before inserting the sticks.

Step 6. In a double broiler melt the semisweet chocolate. Dip the icecream stick about half inch into the melted chocolate and insert into the cake ball half way through. Place each ready made pop back on the baking sheet and refrigerate for an additional hour.

Step 7. Return the chocolate onto the double broiler and heat until melted.
Dip each cake pop into the chocolate, shake on any excess chocolate my lightly tapping the popcicle stick against the rim of the chocolate pan.

Step 8. Once dipped insert each pop into a styrofoam block until all pops have been dipped.

Step 9. Decorate each pop with sprinkles and cool for a few hours before eating.

Here's a beautiful way to display the pops or a neat gift to give to friends. Simply place a styrofoam block in a gift bag and insert the pops. I decorated the popcicle sticks because I'm simply cool like that. :P

Color splash my Pops please!

Abuelita chocolate cake

This cake is made using "Abuelita chocolate", hence the name. Abuelita is a brand of chocolate tablets, or powder mix in individual packets, made by Nestle and used to make Mexican-style hot chocolate. The name is an affectionate Spanish word for "grandma" (literally translated as "little grandmother" or "granny"). Growing up in the Western part of the United States this hot chocolate could be found just about anywhere, from the local grocery store to gastations (usually ready made). After many talks about this chocolate with friends I made sure to add it to my US haul list, since the weather here in Saudi Arabia is anywhere from 110* PLUS, I decided to skip out on the hot chocolate and incorporate it to some of my very own recipes. This is my take on a Mexican chocolate cake. I must say I've made this cake twice in the past few weeks, the original recipe uses 1/2 almond meal and 1/2 flour, I've made the cake using 100% flour and the results were just as good. The cake itself doesn't rise as much as a regular cake but it's extremely moist and perfect for a layered cake.

Ingredients
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 cups almond meal
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1 cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
140 grams "Abuelita chocolate" chopped
3 large eggs (US extra large)
2 cups milk
1 cup oil
1 teaspoon vanilla
40 grams "Abuelita chocolate, finely grated
pinch of salt
Chocolate ganache recipe follows

Preheat your oven to 350* F. Butter two round cake pans and dust with flour. Set aside.
Heat the milk to an low boiling point, blend the milk in your blender with the chopped chocolate and set aside to cool. In a large bowl sift the flour, baking agents, cocoa powder, grated chocolate, and salt. Set aside. In a seperate bowl whisk the the eggs and sugar until light and creamy, slowly stream in the oil and whisk to combine. Bring 1 cup of the abuelita hot chocolate back to a low boil and set aside. Gently mix the dry ingredients alternately with the cooled hot chocolate into the egg and sugar mixture, starting and ending with the flour. Stir in the hot "hot chocolate" and pour the thin batter into your prepared pans. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool for approximately 10 minutes; remove from pans to wire rack and cool completely before frosting.


Chocolate ganache

1 cup semisweet chocolate morsels
1 cup heavy cream
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon powder (optional)

Directions
Place your chocolate chips in a medium size glass or stainless steel bowl. Set aside. Heat the cream over medium heat just until it comes to the boil. Add to your chocolate and allow it to sit for 5 minutes. Stir with a whisk until smooth.