Cake Batter Funfetti Cookie Cups with Nutella Ganache

May 15, 2013 By 44 Comments

chocolatemooseyToday is a very special day. It just so happens to be Carla’s birthday today. You know Carla; the very talented baker over at Chocolate Moosey. She’s the gal that brings you amazing desserts like Award-Winning Chocolate Coconut Cupcakes, Lemon Coconut Cinnamon Rolls, Cadbury Creme Egg Milkshakes, and Funfetti Cheesecake. Um, yes please, I’ll take one of each. She’s even got your back when it comes to savory dishes with these Honey Butter Dinner Rolls, Roasted Jalapeño Soup, and Buffalo Chicken Dip Quesadillas.

I can’t take it anymore, I’m heading over to Carla’s for dinner and dessert. Do you think she’ll mind cooking on her birthday?

Carla is one of the nicest bloggers ever. She’s super sweet and would do anything for a friend. I’ve been lucky enough to get to know Carla over the past year and half since I’ve been blogging. She’s a fellow #SundaySupper contributor and a friend.

Guess what? I’m finally going to meet her in July at The Big Summer Potluck. I can’t wait! I foresee us becoming real pals, cupcake buddies, and maybe even BFF’s.

I knew I had to bake something really special for Carla’s birthday. Something fun and vibrant, just like Carla’s personality. I got funky with it and made cake batter funfetti cookie cups with dark chocolate nutella ganache.

Cake Batter Funfetti Cookie Cups with Nutella Ganache

Any time I get to throw a bunch of rainbow sprinkles into a bowl of batter is a good day. The flecks of brightly colored sweetness exude happiness–perfect for a birthday celebration. No matter how your day went, a bowl full of rainbow-studded cookie batter is sure to make it better.

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There has been a bunch of hype recently about cake batter cookies using boxed cake mix as the base. Recipes spread like wildfire on blogs, Pinterest, and food porn sites. I have nothing against boxed cake mix. It’s great to use in a pinch and a guaranteed success, but I wanted a cookie that had that classic cake batter flavor, but also tasted homemade. To acheive this, I added a combination of vanilla and almond extracts to the sugar cookie base.

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This recipe has taken me a few (eight to be exact) tries to perfect, but it was worth it. Look how festive and colorful they are.

They lure you in with all those bright sprinkles. They’re soft and chewy on the inside and crispy, crunchy on the outside.

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Cake Batter Funfetti Cookie Cups with Nutella Ganache | www.themessybakerblog.com -7170

Add a dollop of creamy dark chocolate nutella ganache and these cookies become instantly special–special enough for a birthday party. I think Carla is really going to enjoy these cookies. Whatdoya think?

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Cake Batter Funfetti Cookie Cups with Nutella Ganache | www.themessybakerblog.com -7167

If you’re not in the mood for chocolate, don’t add it. They’re just as good without the chocolate as they are with it.

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Cake Batter Funfetti Cookie Cups with Nutella Ganache | www.themessybakerblog.com -7172

Happy Birthday, Carla! Enjoy your special day, and make sure you eat a piece of cake for me.

5.0 from 2 reviews

Cake Batter Funfetti Cookie Cups with Dark Chocolate Nutella Ganache
 
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Author:
Recipe type: Cookies

Ingredients
Cookie Cups
  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 tbs. cornstarch
  • 1 tsp. baking soda
  • ½ tsp. kosher salt
  • 1½ sticks unsalted butter
  • ½ cup granulated sugar
  • ½ cup brown sugar
  • 1 egg, at room-temperature
  • 2 tsp. vanilla extract
  • ½ tsp. almond extract
  • ⅓ cup rainbow jimmies
  • ¼ cup rainbow nonpareils
Nutella Ganache
  • ½ cup dark chocolate chips
  • ¼ cup nutella
  • ⅓ cup heavy cream

Instructions
  1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Position the rack so it’s in the center of your oven. Grease two muffin tins.
  2. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, cornstarch, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
  3. In the bowl of a stand mixer attached with the paddle, cream together the butter and both sugars until pale and fluffy; about 3 minutes. Scrap down the sides of the bowl.
  4. Add the egg and beat until incorporated. Whisk in vanilla and almond extract.
  5. Slowly add in the flour mixture. Beat until the batter comes together and the dough is smooth, about 1 minutes.
  6. Beat in the jimmies and nonpareils. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and give the dough one last stir to make sure the jimmies and nonpareils are evenly distributed.
  7. Using a 1-inch cookie scoop, drop a rounded scoop of dough into each muffin tin. Press down slightly with your fingers. For best results, bake one tray at a time for 14 minutes and the tops are just slightly golden. Do not bake longer than 16 minutes. Remove and allow to cool in the tins for 3 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
  8. Add a teaspoon of ganache to each cookie cup if desired. Sprinkle with jimmies.
Nutella Ganache
  1. Add the dark chocolate chips to a bowl. Set aside.
  2. Heat the heavy cream over medium-low heat just until it boils. Pour the cream over the chocolate and allow to set for 1 minutes. Using a rubber spatula, stir until smooth. Stir in the nutella until thoroughly incorporated.

 

Filed Under: Cookies/Brownies Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Swirl Banana Muffins ~ #MuffinMonday

February 25, 2013 By 19 Comments

It can’t always be cookies and buttercream, right? Maybe in a fairytale land far, far away where high cholesterol and weight gain don’t exist, but this isn’t a fairytale. Don’t get me wrong, I love me some cookies, but even I have limitations. Well, that is, my hips have limitations. If they’d let me, I’d probably snack on cookies all day; however, that’s not the case.

Sometimes I want to snack on something without feeling guilty about it later, so I’ve been experimenting with guilt-free quick breads in the kitchen lately. Breads full of whole grains, yogurt, fruit, and healthy proteins. Breads that will fill me up without leaving me full of eater’s remorse later. I love baking quick breads for the very fact that they involve little to no planning. They don’t require  kneading, rising, or waiting, and can usually be whipped up in one bowl.

An challenged us to make a muffin using bananas this week, and I instantly knew that I wanted to make a muffin that combined chocolate, banana, and peanut butter. The epitome of all flavor combos. Last week I came across this recipe for Skinny Chocolate Peanut Butter Swirl Cupcakes by Sally’s Baking Addiction. I instantly fell in love with them and knew I had to make them for #MuffinMonday this week.

Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Swirl Banana Muffins {www.themessybakerblog.com}-6500-2

I made a few minor changes to make the recipe more muffin-like. I added some dark chocolate cocoa powder, white whole wheat flour, and brown sugar. They’re healthy and delicious all at the same time.

Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Swirl Banana Muffins {www.themessybakerblog.com}-6502

The muffin is dark and moist and, my favorite part, swirled with melted peanut butter.

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Guilt-free muffins… Now, that’s my kind of breakfast. Enjoy!

5.0 from 1 reviews

Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Swirl Banana Muffins
 
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Recipe type: Muffin, Quick Bread
Cuisine: Adapted from Sally’s Baking Addiction
Serves: 16

Ingredients
  • 2 ripe bananas, mashed
  • ½ cup brown sugar
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 egg white
  • ¾ cup greek yogurt, vanilla or plain
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1 cup white whole wheat flour
  • ½ cup unsweetened dark cocoa powder
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • ½ cup dark or bittersweet chocolate chips
  • ½ cup creamy peanut butter, melted
  • ⅓ cup peanut butter chips

Instructions
  1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line 16 muffin cups with papers.
  2. In a small bowl, whisk together whole wheat flour, cocoa powder, salt, baking soda, and baking powder. Set aside.
  3. In a large bowl, mash the bananas. Whisk in the brown sugar, egg, egg white, greek yogurt, and vanilla extract. Mixture will be slightly lumpy.
  4. Using a rubber spatula, gently stir the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. Fold in the chocolate chips.
  5. Fill the muffin cups ⅔ of the way full with batter. Spoon ½ tablespoon of the melted butter on top of the batter. Using a knife or a toothpick, swirl the peanut butter into the batter. Sprinkle with peanut butter chips.
  6. Bake for 15-18 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Allow the muffins to cool for 3 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely. Store in an airtight container at room-temperature for up to 3 days.

 

Filed Under: Bread, Breakfast Tagged With: , , , , ,

Dark Chocolate Bailey’s Irish Cream Cupcakes

February 14, 2013 By 22 Comments

Shame on me! If I were you, I’d be pointing your finger at me in shame with a look of utter disapproval. Why? Because it has been far too long since I’ve baked and posted a cupcake recipe. Me! The girl who owns cupcake t-shirts, a cupcake Tiffany necklace, cupcake dessert plates, and the list goes on. Well, the dry spell ends here. Today I plead for forgiveness with this dark chocolate Bailey’s Irish cream cupcake recipe. A gift for you, from me, on Valentine’s Day.

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I stumbled upon this recipe on Tutti Dolci as I was perusing the long list of food blogs that I love. Laura, the baking mastermind behind Tutti Dolci, is a girl that I could seriously see myself becoming friends with. She believes that dessert should come first. I mean, that right there is my life’s motto. Eat dessert first! Laura clearly knows what she’s talking about.

I decided to make Laura’s Bailey’s Irish Cream Cupcakes for the Super Bowl party that I co-hosted with my girlfriend. Being the queen of adaptation, I made a few minor changes.

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I made these cupcakes with Hershey’s special dark cocoa powder. The result was a rich, chocolatey cupcake the color of dark espresso.

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The cake was moist and mildly sweet, creating the perfect base for the sweet Bailey’s buttercream to rest its swirled, fluffy peaks.

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The buttercream is light and fluffy with hints of roasted cinnamon and toasted caramel. It’s silky on your palette and melts in your mouth.

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Together, the rich chocolate and creamy buttercream are the perfect Valentine’s Day marriage. Add a few festive sprinkles or grated chocolate to the top and you’re sure to put a smile on that special someone’s face.

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Now, go smooch that special someone. Happy Valentine’s Day!

5.0 from 4 reviews

Dark Chocolate Bailey’s Irish Cream Cupcakes
 
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Author:
Recipe type: cupcakes, cake
Cuisine: Adapted from Tutti Dolci
Serves: 20-24

Ingredients
Cupcakes
  • 1 cup boiling water
  • ¾ cup Hershey’s Special Dark cocoa powder
  • ½ cup Bailey’s Irish Cream w/ a hint of caramel
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 6 tbs. unsalted butter, at room-temperature
  • 2 tsp. vanilla extract
  • 2 eggs
  • 1⅔ cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 tsp. baking soda
  • ¾ tsp. baking powder
  • ¼ tsp. kosher salt
Bailey’s Buttercream
  • 3 sticks unsalted butter, at room-temperature
  • 3 cups powdered sugar
  • small pinch cinnamon
  • 2 tbs. Bailey’s Irish Cream w/ a hint of caramel

Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line two muffin tins with baking papers.
  2. Whisk together boiling water and cocoa powder, cool completely. Whisk Bailey’s Irish Cream into the cooled cocoa mixture.
  3. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat sugar, butter, and vanilla extract until pale in color and fluffy. Add eggs and beat well.
  4. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Add half the flour mixture to the sugar mixture and beat until just combined. Add cocoa mixture, then finish with remaining flour mixture.
  5. Fill each baking cup ⅔ of the way full with batter. Bake for 12-15 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool the cupcakes in the pans for 2 minutes on a wire rack. Carefully remove the cupcakes from the pans and cool completely before frosting.
Bailey’s Buttercream
  1. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat butter until light and fluffy. Reduce speed to low and add powdered sugar 1 cup at a time until smooth. Add Bailey’s and cinnamon; beat on medium speed until light and fluffy.
  2. Fit a pastry bag with a large round tip and pipe a fluffy cloud onto each cupcake. Sprinkle with grated chocolate or colored jimmies. Store leftover cupcakes in an airtight container at room temperature up to 2 days.

 

Filed Under: Cake Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Peanut Butter & Banana Chip Granola

December 14, 2012 By 21 Comments

Baking season is in full swing, and I’m pumping out sweet treats like they’re going out of style. I’ve been baking so much that my skin is imparted with the smell of butter and sugar. Mmm, I smell delicious!

You want cookies? I got ‘em by the dozens. Mini loaves of bread? Uh huh. Fudge? You betcha. Rice krispie treats? Heck yes! You name it, I have it. I’m knee deep in all things sweet and I don’t want to be dug out. I’m living the high life, eating cookies for just about every meal. Hey, it’s the holidays. My motto is eat now and worry later.

To help break up the monotony of cookie recipes, I made a peanut butter and banana chip granola. This is on my list of food gifts this year, and it’s a winner.

The oats and almonds get coated in a creamy peanut butter and brown sugar base and toasted in the oven until brown and nutty. Once the mixture cools, I toss in handfuls of dark chocolate chips, peanut butter chips, and banana chips.

It’s addictive!

I sit in front of the TV and snack on handfuls of this granola while watching my favorite shows. It’s healthy, yet it will satisfy your sweet tooth.

Add the granola to a pretty glass jar and wrap a big old red bow around it to give to that special someone for the holidays. Don’t be surprised if you get a bunch of emails asking for the recipe. It’s that good!

Happy Holidays!

Here’s what I’ve been cooking/baking over the past few weeks:

Orange Sugar Cookies by Movita Beaucoup- These are the softest cookies you will ever eat, and they’re so easy to make.

Spicy Chicken Rigatoni by Juanita’s Cocina- This makes for a great weeknight meal. So good, yet so easy.

Parsnip and Carrot Latkes by The Girl in the Little Red Kitchen- This was my very first attempt at latkes. Let’s just say that I’m now a huge fan. These are amazing!

Salted Chocolate Hazelnut Cookies by A Periodic Table- Whoa, are these cookies huge, but they’re one of the best cookies I’ve ever shoved into my cookie hole. The toasted hazelnuts. The chocolate. The salty bite. This is one great cookie and a must try.

There’s also a winner in the house. Congratulations to #35, Donna Currie, for winning the Hodgson Mill giveaway. Happy baking!

5.0 from 1 reviews

Peanut Butter & Banana Chip Granola
 
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Author:
Recipe type: Granola

Ingredients
  • 4 cups old-fashioned oats
  • 1½ cups whole almonds
  • ½ cup brown sugar
  • ¼ cup canola oil
  • ¼ cup peanut butter
  • 1 tsp. vanilla extract
  • pinch of salt
  • 1½ cups banana chips
  • ½ cup peanut butter chips
  • ¾ cup dark chocolate chips

Instructions
  1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
  2. In a large bowl, combine oats and almonds.
  3. In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine brown sugar, peanut butter, canola oil, and a pinch of salt. Cook until the peanut butter is smooth and the brown sugar dissolves, about 2 minutes. Take the mixture off of the heat and whisk in the vanilla extract.
  4. Pour the mixture over the oats and fold until all of the oats are coated with peanut butter mixture.
  5. Pour the oat mixture evenly onto the prepared sheet pan. Bake for 15-20 minutes until the oats are golden brown.
  6. Cool the mixture completely on a wire rack before tossing with the banana chips, peanut butter chips, and dark chocolate chips. Store in an airtight container.

 

 

 

 

 

Filed Under: Miscellaneous Tagged With: , , , ,

Sponsor Spotlight~ Renee from Magnolia Days

November 26, 2012 By 8 Comments

Hi, all!

Today I’d like to introduce you to Renee from Magnolia Days. Renee isn’t just any blogger. Nope. She’s THE blogger, and she just so happens to be the author of one of my very favorite blogs and a fellow member of the #SundaySupper and #BundtAMonth group.

Renee’s the sweetest person you’ll ever meet, and she’s always willing to lend a helping hand. Not only is Renee a wonderful person, but she’s a wonderful cook, baker, and gardener. I’m constantly stalking Renee’s site for new recipes. Some of my favorite recipes include her black cobbler cocktail (cobbler in liquid form? I’m in), pumpkin pecan cake (you know how I feel about pumpkin), and her family recipe for minestrone soup (I can see myself taking down the entire pot).

I had a hard time deciding on a recipe to feature. I kept going back and forth between her spinach salad with warm bacon dressing and her rocky road fudge. Hmm, bacon or chocolate? Decisions, decisions!

Chocolate won!

 

Renee made this fudge for our “Gifts from the Kitchen” themed #SundaySupper a few weeks ago, and I instantly fell in love with it the moment I saw those rich chocolate squares studded with fluffy marshmallows and salty peanuts. Yum!

I loved this recipe so much that I decided to make a few batches to give as Christmas gifts this year.

I purchased some white candy boxes from my local cake/candy store to package them in and wrapped the box in a red bow. They’re the perfect gift of friends, family, teachers, and co-workers.

I’m labeling the boxes “Renee’s Rocky Road Fudge.” I have a feeling there will be a line at my door for more fudge.

Want the recipe? Visit Renee here to get it.

You can also follow Renee on Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest.

Filed Under: Candy, Sponsor Spotlight Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Sponsor Spotlight: Kayle from The Cooking Actress

October 16, 2012 By 25 Comments

Do y’all know Kayle? Well, you’re about to. She’s the creative genius behind The Cooking Actress, and she happens to be one of my favorite foodie friends. I’ve known Kayle since I started this blog last December, and she welcomed me with open arms. Not only is she a food blogger, but she’s an actress. That’s right, I know a celebrity! How cool is that?

This girl sure knows how to rock a whisk, and she loves her some cookies. I counted 25 recipes with the word “cookie” in it. Twenty five! In honor of Kayle’s love of cookies, I decided to make and feature her Browned Butter Dark Chocolate & Marshmallow cookies. Can you say yum balls!

Kayle resides in New York, where she lives with her boyfriend (lucky guy), running a very delicious cooking blog and pursuing her acting career. I plan on visiting New York after graduation, and you bet I’ll be meeting up with Kayle to gallivant around New York and eat everything in sight.

I had a very difficult time trying to decide what recipe of Kayle’s I wanted to feature. Everything the girl makes had me drooling. How could a girl choose between whole wheat cinnamon swirl bread, brown butter macaroni and cheese (this one is on my to-make list), chocolate chip cookie dough balls (drool), and s’mores creme brûlée (OMG)!

It was hard!

The dough for these cookies is indescribably delicious, and I almost didn’t have any left in order to bake these cookies. The brown butter is the star of this delicious dough, and it’s what makes it irresistible. I sat there with a spoon and shoveled it into my mouth. Heck with the threat of salmonella poisoning; I didn’t care, because this dough was too good to resist, and at that point, contracting salmonella poisoning didn’t scare me.

The baked cookie was just as good as the dough. They were soft on the inside and crunchy on the outside (a perfect cookie, in my opinion) and studded with dark chocolate chips and mini marshmallows. The best part about these cookies, besides the fact that they’re made with brown butter, is the way the mallows caramelize and toast up in the oven, creating a gooey cookie center. Yum!

Kayle knew what she was doing when she created this irresistible cookie.

Want the recipe? You know you do. Visit Kayle over at The Cooking Actress to get this recipe, along with all her other delicious and creative recipes.

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