Well, here we go. Should I start with the least favorite or the most favorite? I will go in order of what I think was most popular at the party... (from least to most. Best for last, right?)
Rocky Road Bars
While these bars were far from disgusting, they were kind of disappointing. Maybe I had a lot of expectations for them, and they just didn't live up to them. They were the most work, and the least tasty.
In their defense, however, the rest was pretty dang tasty. They had a lot to live up to.
It was also the first time I had tried the recipe... so you never really know what you are going to get.
Anyway, I will still post the recipe, because I think they were still delicious. Just not life-changing.
Recipe: (by the way, this recipe comes from the recipe book Chocolate Never Faileth. It was a birthday gift, and I intend to wear it out).
CHOCOLATE COOKIE BASE:
1 stick butter
1/2 c. sugar
1/2 c. brown sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
1 egg
1 1/2 c. flour
2/3 c. cocoa
1/2 tsp. baking soda
TOPPING:
1 8-oz. package cream cheese (softened)
1/2 c. sugar
1/4 c. butter
2 tbsp. flour
1 tsp. vanilla
1 egg
1/4 c. nuts, chopped (Your choice! I used walnuts because that's what I had, but I think almonds or pecans would be delicious)
1 c. semisweet chocolate chips
2 c. miniature marshmallows (If I did this again, I would use more marshmallows. Probably at least another 1/2 cup.)
Preheat oven to 350. Spray a 9x13 pan with nonstick cooking spray; line with foil, then spray again - even better, grease the foil with butter (DO NOT skip this step. If you don't use foil and grease the foil, the cookie layer will stick like glue to the pan, and you won't be able to cut the bars out. For the cookie base, cream the butter, sugar, and brown sugar. Add the vanilla and egg; mix well. Add the flour, cocoa, and baking soda; mix well. Dump the dough into the foil lined baking pan and press into a smooth layer with your fingers, covering the entire pan.
Make the topping by combining the cream cheese, sugar, butter, flour, vanilla, and egg with an electric mixer until smooth. Add nuts. Spread over the cookie dough base. Sprinkle the chocolate chips evenly over the topping. Bake or 26-29 minutes, until the topping is set. Remove from the oven for about 2 more minutes to toast the marshmallows. Remove and cool on a wire rack. When fully cooled, drizzle with Mom's Nutty Chocolate Icing.
Mom's Nutty Chocolate Icing
1/4 c. butter
2 tbsp. cocoa
2 1/2 tbsp. milk
1 tsp. vanilla
1 1/2 c. powdered sugar
1/2 c. nuts, chopped
In a medium saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat (do NOT let it cook too long. I think this was part of my problem. I was doing too many things at once and the butter cooked too long, and then the cocoa/milk/vanilla thickened way too fast). Stir in the cocoa, milk, and vanilla. Heat, stirring occasionally, until the mixture begins to thicken. Remove from heat. With a whisk, gradually add the powdered sugar until it's well blended. Stir in the nuts. Immediately drizzle over bars.
Unfortunately, I don't really have pictures of the rest of the recipes individually. I didn't have a memory card and saved them to the internal memory of my camera, which I don't know how to retrieve now. Haha. Anyway, I have a NEW camera which I will be playing with shortly, and am super excited about. So, I guess you will just have to imagine what the rest of these look like until I can figure out the camera. Or just look at this picture of ALL of the delicious chocolate concoctions together:
TOP left=Rocky Road Bars
BOTTOM left/middle= 5-minute fudge
TOP right=German Chocolate Pie
Bottom right=Skor Cake (aka Chocolate Trifle)
German Chocolate Pie
Now, this pie is an old-time favorite. I got the recipe from an older lady back home who used to make pies for a living (let's just say, you don't get much more expert than she does.) This pie was popular at the party, but it wasn't quite done when everyone got there, so I don't think it got the attention it deserves. Believe me, this pie will NOT disappoint, and is surprisingly simple (dang it, my secret's out...)
3 c. sugar
6-7 tbsp. cocoa
1 13-oz can evaporated milk
4 eggs, beaten
1/2 c. melted margarine
1 tbsp. vanilla
3 c. shredded coconut
1 c. chopped nuts (once again, your choice)
2 pie crusts (8" or 9"... YES, this recipe makes two delicious pies!)
Combine sugar & cocoa. Add evaporated milk, eggs, margarine, and vanilla. Mix well. Stir in the coconut and nuts. Pour in shell. Bake at 350 for 50 minutes, or until well set.
My recipe card after this blog party. It was already kind of worn out from so much use, but now it has a big chocolate glob on it. I think it just gives it character.
5-minute Fudge
This recipe is an old family recipe... and also surprisingly easy. AND light. I got a LOT of compliments on this fudge. This is one of those traditional Christmas recipes that we put on the plate of baked goods and take to all our friends (not after devouring at least one batch ourselves...)
1 1/3 c. evaporated milk
3 1/3 c. sugar
3 c. miniature marshmallows
2 cubes butter
1 tsp. vanilla
3 c. chocolate chips (semisweet or milk chocolate, depending on what kind of fudge you want. Get the GOOD chocolate chips though, not the cheap ones.)
Spray a cake pan (9x13) with nonstick cooking spray. Combine evaporated milk & sugar in large saucepan. Bring to a boil, and cook 5 minutes stirring continuously. Remove form heat & add remaining ingredients until marshmallows are melted. Pour into a pan and refrigerate until set.
Skor Cake (or Chocolate Trifle)
This was probably the favorite at the party. Some said because it was the least decadent, and was easier to eat a lot of than the rest of these recipes. While that is true, I think this one stands on its own pretty well too. I can never get enough of it.
1 box Devil's food cake mix (bake as directed on box, shaving off about 5 minutes so the cake is just a little underdone)
1 large tub Cool Whip
1 large box instant chocolate pudding mix (make pudding according to directions on box)
5-7 Skor bars (OR more... you really can never have too much. I used 7, and still could have used more.)
All that's left to do now is layer! Find a cool clear bowl that you can layer it in, so you can get the aesthetic effect. Layer each portion (1/3 at a time) in this order:
-cake, crumbled
-Cool Whip mixed with chocolate pudding
-crumbled up Skor bar
Continue until all ingredients are gone, or your bowl is full! I had some left over, so I made a mini trifle with a smaller bowl, and ate it later. Nothin' wrong with that.
Well, that's it! Enjoy, and stay tuned for the next party... I think I'm going to do some kind of party where other people bring samples and recipes of a traditional Christmas baked good. It should be amazing.
Gene & I... we LOVE chocolate!
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