Someone was trying to sneak a bite!

These brownies are like a simple version of my favorite dessert ever, triple chocolate mousse cake. A rich brownie layer is topped with a light and fluffy Nutella espresso mousse, making for one seriously decadent dessert. To take it completely over the top, I covered the whole thing in homemade chocolate curls. Because it’s Valentine’s Day, and I’ll take any excuse to add more chocolate to an already chocolaty dessert. Case in point – this recipe originally called for an espresso mousse, but I couldn’t resist incorporating this Nutella mousse I made last Valentine’s Day. This indulgent dessert is sure to please whoever you’re making it for, but I won’t judge you if you decide to keep it all to yourself.

I had grand ideas to make fancy, decorated sugar cookies for Valentine’s Day. However, with an only partially completed nursery and plenty of things to sew before Baby C arrives, it just wasn’t feasible. Not wanting to miss out on the fun that is holiday sugar cookies, I decided to make these simple ones instead. I saved this recipe last year, and I have seen it on countless blogs since then. It was about time that I tried this recipe for myself, and let me tell you that the wonderful reviews it’s received are all well deserved.

These cookies are a better version of the ones you see at grocery stores. You know the ones I’m talking about – they’re always decorated for each season/holiday. Now you can make them at home and customize them with whatever colors and sprinkles you want. As you can imagine, these are oodles better than the store-bought version. They lack that off, artificial taste and instead are rich and buttery. If you’ve got a sweet tooth, these will definitely satisfy it. The cookies are delicious enough on their own, and with a thick layer of frosting they’re hard to beat. Because of their simplicity, I think these would be incredibly fun to make with children. What kid doesn’t like to roll cookie dough and shake on sprinkles? The most difficult part of making these is having the willpower not to eat too many. :)

Soft Frosted Sugar Cookies
Makes about 2 dozen large cookies

Ingredients:
For the cookies:
For the cookies:
4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
4 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups (3 sticks) butter, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups sugar
3 large eggs
5 teaspoons vanilla extract

For the frosting:
5 cups confectioners’ sugar, sifted
1/3 cup (5 1/3 tablespoons) unsalted butter, melted
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
7-8 tablespoons milk (plus more, as needed)
Food coloring (optional)
Sprinkles (optional)

Directions:
Line baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats and set aside. Whisk together flour, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar together on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, 2-3 minutes. Beat in the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Blend in the vanilla and reduce mixer speed to low. Gradually add in the flour mixture until just incorporated. Cover and chill the dough for one hour.

Once the dough has been chilled, preheat oven to 350º. Scoop a scant quarter cup and roll into a ball. Flatten into a thick disk and place on the prepared baking sheet. Repeat with remaining dough, spacing the cookies at least 2 inches apart. Bake for 10-12 minutes until just set, taking care not to overbake. The edges will be barely browned, if at all. Allow to cool on the baking sheet for several minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

To make the frosting, place the confectioner’s sugar in a medium bowl. Whisk in the melted butter, vanilla and milk. Continue whisking until smooth, adding more milk as needed, a tablespoon at a time, to reach your desired consistency. Tint with food coloring, if desired. Use an offset spatula to frost the cookies, and top with sprinkles if desired. If the frosting becomes too thick to be workable, whisk in additional milk. Store in an airtight container.

As seen on Annie’s Eats, originally adapted from Hostess with the Mostess

Now that the Super Bowl is over, I’m ready to share a few Valentine’s Day goodies with all of you. I know that not everyone celebrates it, many saying it’s just a consumer driven holiday, etc. I thought the same thing until I realized that Valentine’s Day can be more than just a romantic holiday when you make it about all the people you love. If I were closer to my family, I can promise you I’d make them something special. Since I’m not, and since Eric and I are expecting a little one in less than a month (eek!), I decided to make the best of this holiday by making some seriously delicious treats that I’ll be sharing throughout the week.

This French toast is obviously meant to be a breakfast item, but it could easily double as a dessert. It’s blissfully decadent with soft challah bread, rich Nutella and sweet strawberries. Also, chocolate for breakfast is always a major win in my book. This recipe was inspired by one I saved last year for strawberry stuffed French toast. I knew I wanted to somehow incorporate chocolate since the combination of it and strawberry is one of my favorites. Using Nutella was a natural progression, and that’s how this French toast came to be. Instead of stuffing the challah with strawberries, I decided to macerate them to use as a topping. It was perfect. This French toast isn’t plagued by problems of other recipes I’ve tried. It doesn’t get soggy or overly eggy. Instead, the exterior gets golden and crisp while the interior remains soft. Whether I’m stuffing it or not, this method of making French toast will be my go-to from now on. I want to tell you to plan ahead so that you can make this for someone special on Valentine’s Day, but it’s so amazing that it would feel wrong to tell you to wait that long. If you can, I promise this breakfast will be worth it.

Nutella Stuffed French Toast with Strawberries
Serves 4

Ingredients:
1 cup sliced strawberries
2 teaspoons sugar
Juice of half a lemon
4 thick slices (1 1/2 to 2-inches) bread, such as challah or soft Italian bread
About 1/2 cup Nutella
1 large egg
3/4 cup milk
2 tablespoons melted butter
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
Unsalted butter
Powdered sugar for serving

Directions:
Combine the strawberries, sugar and lemon juice in a bowl. Toss to coat and set aside to macerate at room temperature.

Cut a pocket into each slice of bread, taking care not to cut all the way through. Fill each slice of bread with about two tablespoons of Nutella (I totally eyeballed this part, so this is just an estimate). Heat a large skillet over medium heat. In a shallow dish or pie plate, whisk together the egg and milk. Whisk in the melted butter and vanilla. Add the flour, cinnamon and salt and whisk until smooth. Working with one or two pieces at a time, place the filled slices into the egg mixture. Soak for 30 to 40 seconds per side, allow excess to drip off and transfer to a plate. Repeat with remaining slices.

Add 1 tablespoon of butter to the heated skillet and swirl to coat. Add the slices in a single layer, taking care not to crowd the skillet. Cook for 1-2 minutes, until light golden brown. Flip and continue cooking an additional 1-2 minutes. Add more butter as needed and repeat with remaining slices. Transfer to a plate, dust with powdered sugar, then top with macerated strawberries. Serve immediately.

Source: Adapted from Annie’s Eats

Fondue is, without a doubt, one of my favorite things. There’s just something satisfying about dipping bread or fruit into a pot of melted cheese or chocolate. Fondue is versatile in that it can go from being a fun party food to a romantic dessert, all depending on the setting. I couldn’t share my favorite Valentine’s Day recipes and not share one for chocolate fondue, which, to me, is the quintessential Valentine’s dessert.

Chocolate fondue is incredibly simple to make. All you have to do is melt the chocolate and cream together the same way you would to make ganache. Once the chocolate is melted, add in your choice of liqueur and you’re set. It takes more time to prep the things to dip in it than it does to make the fondue. Don’t have a fondue pot? No problem. After melting the chocolate, you can simply pour it into a dish and serve immediately. The fondue pot will keep the chocolate melted, of course, but this fondue is so delicious that I can’t imagine it thickening before you’re able to finish eating it. This fondue is intensely chocolaty, and you can add different flavors to it by using different liqueurs. Like I mentioned yesterday, I can’t resist the combination of coffee and chocolate, so it should come as no surprise that I add either Kahlua or Starbuck’s Coffee Liqueur to my fondue. I bet this would also taste amazing with Grand Marnier. It’s really up to you. Regardless of which liqueur you decide to use, this fondue will make an elegant, romantic and luscious dessert.

Chocolate Fondue for Two
Ingredients:
4 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped or broken into chunks
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
1 1/2 teaspoons liqueur
Fruit, pound cake, cheesecake, etc., for dipping

Directions:
Combine chocolate and cream in a medium bowl. Bring a small pot of water to a simmer over medium-low heat, then reduce heat to low. Set the bowl of chocolate over the pot of barely simmering water, making sure the water does not touch the bowl. Stir frequently until all the chocolate is melted. Remove from heat and stir in liqueur.

Transfer the chocolate to a fondue pot and keep warm over low heat or a low flame. Alternately, transfer to a small serving bowl. Serve immediately with fruit and other items for dipping.

Adapted from The Everything Fondue Cookbook by Rhonda Lauret Parkinson

My favorite thing about making this cake was that I got to use my new kitchen scale.  Weighing provides more accurate measurements and can really come in handy when precision is key.  In this case, it also saved me the time of converting the recipe.

Having never made or eaten sponge cake before, I wasn’t sure what to expect.  I was very happy with the results – a light, airy cake.  Sponge cakes get all this airiness from beating the eggs and sugar until the eggs have quadrupled in volume.  The rest of the ingredients are then gently folded in.  For this cake, the recipe called for sifting the dry ingredients three times, which incorporated even more air into the cake.

With such a delicate cake, the whipped cream filling was perfect.  Nothing more than heavy cream, powdered sugar and strawberries, it provided the perfect complement to this cake.  I decided to add sliced strawberries in between the top two layers, just to give a little bit of extra strawberry flavor and texture.  The cake tastes fabulous, with all the components working together harmoniously.

Chocolate Sponge Cake with Strawberry Whipped Cream Filling
Ingredients:
For the sponge cake:
75 grams sugar
3 eggs
75 grams, minus 3 tablespoons flour
1 tablespoon cornstarch
2 tablespoons cocoa powder
pinch of salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For the filling:
200 milliliters (about 6 3/4 ounces) heavy cream
1 tablespoon powdered sugar (increase if strawberries are very tart)
100 grams strawberries, chopped
For the ganache:
8 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
1 cup heavy cream

Directions:
-Preheat the oven to 350º.  (The original recipe called for 180 Celsius, so I baked mine on the equivalent, which is 356º.)
-Butter and flour (or line with parchment) two 6 inch pans.
-Sift the dry ingredients three times and set aside.
-In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat eggs and sugar on high speed until quadrupled in size and thick ribbons fall from the beater, about 10 minutes.
-Add the vanilla and stir to combine.
-Using a rubber spatula, gently fold in the flour mixture one tablespoon at a time, using figure eight movements so the air does not escape.
-Pour batter into prepared pans and bake about 17 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
-Allow the cakes to cool in the pans for 5 minutes and then cool completely on a cooling rack.
-To make the filling, add heavy cream and powdered sugar to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment.  Gradually increase speed and beat until stiff peaks form.
-Fold in the chopped strawberries.
-To make the ganache, place chocolate in a medium-sized heatproof bowl and set aside.
-Heat heavy cream in a small saucepan over medium heat just until simmering.  Immediately pour over chocolate and allow to sit for 5 minutes.  Whisk by hand until all the chocolate is melted.

Source:  Adapted from Passionate About Baking