Recipe: Chocolate Cake Pops

What's with this whole cake pop craze? I'm not sure. What I am sure of, however, is how delicious these chocolate cake pops are. Crunchy chocolate shell on the outside, moist, sweet, rich, melt-in-your-mouth chocolate cake on the inside- actually I think I get the cake pop craze now! 

Not only are they irresistibly delicious, they're super easy to make!

(Scroll to bottom for video tutorial.)

Ingredients

-Recipe for 9x13 chocolate cake
-16 oz chocolate frosting
-2 cups chocolate chips
-Cake-pop or Popsicle sticks

Directions

-Prepare your 9x13 chocolate cake according to its recipe. Allow to cool completely then break apart into crumbs. Once you've broken the cake apart, mix in the chocolate frosting until you're left with one mushy ball of heavenly chocolate dough (try not to eat too much of it!).

-From the dough, the chocolate cake and frosting mix, roll tablespoon sized balls of the dough onto a cookie sheet. Place them in the freezer for about an hour.

-Melt 2 cups of chocolate chips and set aside.

-Once the balls are firm, remove them from the freezer and place them on a stick to be dipped into the melted chocolate. If the ball falls apart when you do so, you can use a knife to spread the melted chocolate onto the dough ball. If you want to add some color to your cake pops, this is the time to sprinkle on any decorations.

-Allow the chocolate to harden.

-Enjoy!


Video Tutorial

Recipe: Pumpkin Bread with Chocolate Chips and Walnuts Recipe

This is one of my favorite fall recipes! Perfectly moist, sweet, spiced, crunchy, and chewy. Everyone raves about this pumpkin bread at the gatherings I bring it to. It's delicious on its own or accompanied by hot coffee or tea.

(Scroll to bottom for video tutorial.)

Ingredients

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened

1 cup white sugar

1 cup packed brown sugar

2 large eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup canned pumpkin puree

3 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

2 cups (12-ounce bag) milk chocolate chips

1 cup chopped walnuts

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9 x 13″ baking pan or line with parchment paper

In a large bowl, cream butter until smooth. Add in the white and brown sugars until the mixture is light and fluffy. Beat the eggs in 1 at a time, then mix in the vanilla and pumpkin puree. 

In another bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg. Slowly mix the flour mixture into the egg/butter mixture in thirds. Stir in the chocolate chips then the walnuts. 

Spoon the dough into the 9 x 13″ pan, spreading evenly in pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool completely before cutting into bars. Makes  about 20-24 bars, depending on how you cut them. Enjoy!

Video Tutorial

Recipe: Grilled Tomato Pesto Panini

Crispy on the outside and soft, warm, and chewy inside. Made with only a few simple ingredients, it's amazing how much these paninis burst with flavor. These make a great lunch, snack, or side dish, and they're super easy to make.

Grilled Tomato Pesto Panini

Ingredients

-1/4 Loaf of your Preferred Bread (I used Trader Joe's herbal focaccia)

-2 Tbsp Grated Parmesan Cheese

-2 Tsp Basil Pesto

-3 Thin Tomato Slices

-2 Thin Slices of Mozzarella Cheese

-Butter for Cooking 

Directions

1. Cut the 1/4 loaf in half lengthwise so you're left with two thin slices of bread.

2. Spread a tablespoon of basil pesto on each slice.

3. Sprinkle the grated parmesan onto one slice of bread.

4. Place the tomato slices over the parmesan.

5. Place the mozzarella slices over the tomato slices.

6. Place the other slice of bread over the mozzarella.

7. Butter the both sides of the panini. Bake in an oven preheated to 350 F for 8-15 minutes or until the cheese starts to melt. (This step is optional) If you'd like the grilled panini look, grill the panini for 3 minutes on each side or until you can see dark grill lines.

8. (This step is not optional) ENJOY!!!