A Super Bday

Yesterday was a dear friend's birthday. By dear friend, I mean, she's practically the Lemonade of Lemonade Stand. You see, Lemonade Stand was her idea. She's kind of the mastermind of insane ideas. And I used the idea to write up a business plan in order to show my understanding of the business world in order to score a scholarship. And when we lived together, we'd spend a lot of weekend time baking, not to mention, she actually worked around delicious foods as a job (delicious except for that rose chocolate...which I ate to be nice, but I wish I didn't). Eventually, she moved on to her next great idea, but I stayed in the kitchen and managed to keep the idea alive.

So, when we lived together, she kindly shared a secret brownie recipe. I've only shared it with my brother, who, as I've previous mentioned, isn't much for the kitchen anyway. It's a secret that I can't share with the public, but I can tell you, it's delicious. It's insanely sweet and borders between being a fudge and a traditional brownie. People who don't even like sweets really enjoy these brownies. Especially with ice cream. After having made these, no other brownie seems to compare b/c they all just seem too...dry!

Inspired by Bakerella's Betty Crocker post, I used the Chicago Metallic Sweetheart Pan and poured a little bit of brownie batter at the bottom of each pan. Then I rolled up a ball of chocolate chip cookie dough (use your favorite recipe) and dropped it in the center. I popped it in the oven for about 30 minutes and I honestly couldn't help but eat one right away. It was good...more than good...and I told myself that it really couldn't handle extra chocolate ganache, but I figured it couldn't hurt anyone but my weight, and I did it. I've been making a lot of ganaches without butter, but I think the butter in Bakerella's recipe did the trick for this one. I'm glad I went with it instead of something else.


Here's the ganache from Bakerella:
Chocolate Ganache
12 oz. semi-sweet chocolate morsels
3/4 c heavy whipping cream
6 Tbsp butter

1)In a small saucepan, heat cream and butter until just before the boiling stage.
2) Pour over the chocolate morsels.
3) Let stand about 20 seconds and stir until smooth.
4) Pour over brownies and let set before cutting.

I got impatient and stuck them in the fridge to cool down, so all of the ganache cracked.
Note: Try not to use a chocolate chip cookie dough recipe that bakes flat. My concern is that it'll flatten out and leave holes in your brownie! That's not what you want at all.

And when I was done, I boxed them up all pretty and rather than giving it to Lemonade, I took it to my gym. Lemonade had a bbq bday feast. It's probably counter productive to eat brownies while at the gym, but they were well received by everyone not prepping for the Golden Gloves. The chocolate chip heart brownies were such a hit with the owner, that he offered me a pair of free tickets to the next boxing match in exchange for a box! That's a $60 value for these brownies!

Whimsy & Spice

Last summer, I was blessed enough to get a table next to Mark, founder and baker behind Whimsy & Spice, when I was selling at the Brooklyn Flea. I also got the chance to see his two daughters and wife, Jenna. Although we didn't interact that much, I gave his youngest daughter a few treats and when I left, he gave me a brownie. I was on Etsy the other day and much to my surprise, I found them again!

I was so excited when I found Whimsy & Spice online that I went a little crazy and ordered practically one of everything. One thing I didn't order, which I think is probably their first shop staple, is the marshmallow. For some reason, I just get grossed out by chewing on marshmallows. What I did order was the brown sugar gingerspice shortbread cookies, the rose & black pepper thumbprints, the lucious brownies (espresso with dulce de leche), hazelnut whisky sandwich cookies, and the chocolate & butterscotch layered bar cookies. After waiting a whole week, (for some reason the commute from Brooklyn to New Jersey took priority mail like 4 days) I finally got them!

Gingerspice shortbread cookies: Really yummy. The ginger leaves a nice aftertaste that almost makes my tongue tingle.

Rose & Black pepper thumbprints: To be honest, I already knew I don't like the flavor of rose, but I was curious about the combination and I thought they were so pretty. The rose flavor wasn't as strong as it was for many of the other rose desserts I've had before, but it's still there. The aftertaste is strongly of black pepper.

Lucious Brownies: First thought - espresso! The dulce de leche takes a backseat to the espresso flavor.

Hazelnut Whisky Sandwich Cookies: This was a big winner for my mom. She doesn't like really sweet things in the first place (she claims it hurts her teeth). It tastes like the whisky is in the chocolate center so it's both strong and subtle. Not really sure how to describe it...it definitely tastes of liquor, but not of whisky. Hm.. The cookie is really tasty. Anyway, my mom was heading up to bed and she grabbed out off the table and ran like I wouldn't even notice.

Chocolate & Butterscotch layered bar cookies: The sweetest of the bunch! A very strong butterscotch taste. I can't taste the chocolate at all. The graham cracker is a nice touch though...b/c it gives some texture. However, since I never ate butterscotch as a kid, the butterscotch flavor is really intimidating.

So, my final review: My favorite overall was the gingerspice shortbread cookies and Lemon-zest agrees.. The hazelnut whisky sandwich cookie was a hit with one old lady. Lemon-zest scarfed down a thumbprint before even noticing that it had rose or pepper (really weird). Least favorite: chocolate & butterscotch cookies. I think the cookies are really delightful though. I think they're really cute to give away as gifts. The packaging is really professional, even though I know they're done at home b/c I read their blog. If you're into really sweet or really soft cookies/brownies, then this probably isn't for you, but if you're up for a little bit of adventure...you should give them a try. Or at least check out their blog.

xoxo,

lemonie