Extreme Oreo Trifle

What is Extreme Oreo you ask? 

Let's take this baby layer by layer...

First up a layer of Oreo Brownies, yes brownies baked with WHOLE Oreo's inside and don't forget the chunks of Cadbury chocolate as an add-in as well.  Why?  Because I can, that's why.

Next a layer of Oreo Pudding.  Oooooh yeh.

Next, the trifle's crown jewel...a layer of cream cheese & mascarpone filling with melted white chocolate AND yep you guessed it, more Oreo's.

A healthy squirt of Chocolate syrup in between the layers and repeat.  And by 'healthy' I don't mean low in calories, I mean healthy as in heavy. 

What would entice me create this monster-of-fatty-fun?  Friendship of course.  If you can't be skinny, then your friends shouldn't be either.  Tee-hee-hee.  Kidding!  Actually a very dear friend of mine had a birthday coming up.  I asked her what she wanted me to bake since she is one of the few people I know who actually enjoy eating desserts without complaining about the calories.  I love these kinds of people.  I like to see friends licking bowls.  That's a good sign you've done well.

She said 'something with Oreo.'  Ok how about a 'whole-lota-Oreo' instead.  Go big or go home.

Extreme Oreo Trifle
printable version

Ingredients:

For the Brownies
1 cup (8 ounces) butter, unsalted
2 1/4 cup sugar
1 1/4 cup Dutch process cocoa
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
4 large eggs
1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2 cups chocolate chips (I used three 100g bars of Cadburry chocolate cut up into chunks)

For the Cheesecake mascarpone filling
400 grams white chocolate, coarsely chopped
250 grams cream cheese
250 grams mascarpone
25 Oreo's broken up into pieces, but not pulverized (I broke each Oreo into quarters)

One box (4.2 ounce) Jello Brand Oreo Instant Pudding, prepared as directed

Oreos for garnish

Directions:

To prepare the brownies, preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Lightly grease a 9x13 pan (I used a glass pyrex dish).  A tip to easily grease your dish: use a sandwich baggie as a glove and take about 1 tablespoon of butter or shortening.  Grease the bottom, sides, and corners and then toss the bag away.

In a medium sized saucepan over low heat, melt the butter and remove from heat.  Add the sugar and stir to combine.  Return the pan to the stove and re-heat a second time until the mixture is very hot but not bubbling.  This step help ensures the brownies will have a shiny crust.

 

Transfer the mixture to a mixing bowl.  Sift in the cocoa.  Always be sure to sift your cocoa.  These are the lumps that would have been added to the mix if I hadn't sifted.

Add the salt, baking powder, and vanilla.  Mix to combine.  Add the eggs, beating with a whisk until smooth.

Add the flour, stir till just combined.  Don't over-mix.

Stir in the chocolate chunks (or chips).

 

Transfer HALF of the batter into the prepared pan.  Place a layer of Oreos on top of the batter (about 24 Oreo's). 

 

Top with the remaining batter.

Bake for 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the middle of the pan comes out clean.  Remove from the oven and let sit for 5 minutes.  Take a knife and loosen the edges from the sides.  This step will help them from sticking after they cool.

Let brownies come to room temperature before assembling the trifle.

To prepare the cream cheese & mascarpone filling first melt the white chocolate.  I microwaved the chopped chocolate in a heat safe bowl for one minute.  Give the chocolate a stir, then microwave again for 30 seconds.  If you still have lumps of chocolate, continue to microwave for 10 second intervals, stirring after.  Continue the 10 second intervals until your chocolate is smooth.  You can see here I accidentally bought while chocolate with almonds.  Whoops.  It tasted amazing anyway and gave the filling a nice crunch.  Actually I would recommend this chocolate if trying out the recipe!

Let the chocolate cool slightly before proceeding with the filling.

In the bowl of a stand-up mixer, combine the cream cheese and mascarpone.  Beat until light and fluffy.

Add the cooled chocolate to the cheese mixture.  Mix to combine.

 

Add the broken Oreo pieces and mix in by hand.

 

To prepare the trifle:

Make sure you have all your ingredients handy.  Fix yourself an assembly line.  First give your trifle dish a good squirt of chocolate syrup to coat the bottom.

Next crumble in a layer of the oreo brownies.  Big chunks are okay.  Just make sure it's even and somewhat compact.

Next add HALF of the Oreo pudding.

Add another layer of brownies and chocolate syrup.

Top with a layer of the cream cheese & mascarpone filling

Top with another layer of brownies and chocolate syrup.

Add the remaining Oreo pudding.

Finish with a last layer of the cream cheese & mascarpone filling.

Sprinkle with crushed Oreos.  Let sit for a few hours in the fridge to chill and firm up. 

 

Enjoy!

brownie recipe adapted from Cookie Madness

cream cheese & mascarpone filling recipe courtesy of Snaffles Mummy

Raspberry & Dark Chocolate Chunk Scones





 

The first scone I had ever tried in my life was one of those maple oat scones from Starbucks.  I know very traditional, right?  They are so completely laden with sugar, have the taste of a donut, and the texture of a doorstop.

 

I believe scones are a British classic that should be enjoyed as intended.  Plain, buttery, and soft in texture, loaded with clotted cream and jam, khalas (Arabic for 'and that's it' typically used about 5 times in any given sentence)  Anything else would be like the brits making a tofu version of fish and chips...it's just not something to mess with. 

 

With that said I took a classic scone recipe and added raspberries and dark chocolate chunks.  What can I say, I am a Starbucks girl at heart.

 

You can easily leave these two ingredients out and have yourself a lovely, plain scone which would be totally fine.  But in my house they'd end up getting pushed to the back of the fridge behind the cocktail olives and would camp out there for years.  I had to fussy them up, I couldn't help it.

 

For my British friends and readers, if you have a family recipe or one that you think would top this, please send and I will post.  I'd love to hear your variations and advice for making the perfect scone.  Mine turned out a bit flat and dense...maybe I rolled the dough too thin?  Or maybe it's better to use self-raising flour?  Please help this poor Yank.

 

Raspberry & Dark Chocolate Chunk Scones

makes about eight 4" scones

printable version

 

Ingredients:

 

200 grams all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

2 1/2 tablespoons white sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

60 grams cold butter, cut into cubes

140-150 ml buttermilk (I used 150 ml and the dough was extremely sticky, next time I would start with 140 ml and add additional if needed)

3/4 cup frozen raspberries

1/2 cup chopped dark chocolate (chocolate chips would be fine also)

For brushing, 1 egg yolk and 1 tablespoon milk

Serve with clotted cream (thank you Zoe) and raspberry jam

 

*this is the FIRST recipe I've ever shared in metric.  I also worked in metric when preparing the scones and WOW it really is more convenient than our US measuring system (cups, ounces) so long as you have a kitchen scale.  The accuracy far supersedes our little cup system.  By measuring by weight and not volume, you are guaranteed precise measurements every time. 

 

Directions:

 

Preheat oven to 220 degrees C (425 F) and line a baking sheet with waxed paper.

 

In the bowl of a food processor, add the flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt.  Pulse for a few seconds to combine.  Add the cubes of cold butter.

 

 

Pulse the food processor a few times to incorporate the cubes of butter.  The consistency should be grainy and the remaining lumps of butter should be smaller than a pea.

 

Transfer mixture to a medium sized bowl and add the raspberries and chocolate.

 

Mix to combine.

 

Add the milk and combine with a wooden spoon.  If you find your mixture is too wet, slowly add more flour, no more than 1 tablespoon at a time.

 

Transfer dough to a well floured surface and knead quickly, about 3 to 4 times.  Do not over work the dough or the scones will become chewy after baking.  Pat into a round disc, about 3cm high (1.25") 

 

Using a cookie cutter, cut out scones and transfer to the baking sheet.  Re-roll the remaining dough and cut out additional scones.  I didn't have a round cookie cutter so I used this metal wine glass...did the trick!

 

Lightly beat the egg yolk and milk together and brush the tops of the scones.  Bake for 13-15 minutes or until lightly golden brown.  Move baking sheet to a wire rack to cool.

 

Serve warm with the clotted cream and jam.  Also try to share, I know it's difficult.

 

Enjoy!

 

Recipe slighty adapted from Delicious Days

 

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough stuffed Brownie Cupcakes with Chocolate Ganache

Whew what a mouthful!

With this post I really have nothing new to teach you.  There are no special techniques or instructions needed here.  The only reason I'm sharing this recipe is because these cupcakes are rich and decadent....and most importantly, EASY.  Isn't that reason enough?
 
Although this is supposed to be a 'learning' blog, sometimes I miss relaxing in the kitchen making something simple, stress-free, calorie-loaded, and oh-f-that's-good.
 
The kiddos would also enjoy helping out with this one.  Plus they can eat the cookie dough as it doesn't call for any eggs, whoop-whoop!
 
My only advice here would be to use a high quality chocolate and cocoa for the brownies as well as for the ganache.  We're only working with a few ingredients so whatever brand of chocolate and cocoa you're using will really shine through.
 
With that said, I do have a confession...do you ever go to Ikea and see those milk, dark, and white chocolate bars?  We were at the cash counter last week during Ramadan and there were LOADS of them stacked high-as-hell staring at you like neener-neener you can't touch this 
 
If you're not familiar with the holy month of Ramadan, you are not allowed to eat in public during the daytime.  So here we are stuck in line, lots of mouthy, noisy children about, chocolate in your face, and no chance to eat it. 
 
So I bought 5.    
 
If that was a marketing scheme by Ikea, damn it worked.
 
We arrive back home and I'm contemplating my new stash.  What in the hell am I going to do with Ikea chocolate?  BUT, let me tell you, it's not bad!  If fact I thought it was pretty darn good.  I only bought the dark chocolate but it had a good snap to it when I broke it into pieces (a good sign that it's not full of fat or additives) and melted like a dream!  With the amount of chocolate I go through each month, I will most definitely be purchasing some again soon.  And for 8dhs a pop, I'd say that's a good deal.
 
Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough stuffed Brownie Cupcakes with Chocolate Ganache
makes approx. 16 cupcakes
printable version
 
Ingredients
 
For the Cookie Dough:
3 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cup brown sugar, packed
3/4 cup white sugar
1 cup (8oz.) butter, melted
1 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup chocolate chips
6 tablespoons whole milk

For the Cupcakes:
8 ounces semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup sugar
3/4 teaspoon salt
3 large eggs
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup unsweetened Dutch process cocoa powder
 
For the Ganache:
8 ounces semi-sweet chocolate, finely chopped (chocolate chips are ok)
1cup heavy cream
 
Directions:
 
First you'll need to prepare the cookie dough as it needs to harden up in the freezer for a few hours prior to baking the cupcakes.  In the bowl of a stand-up mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, stir together the flour, salt, brown sugar, and granulated sugar. Add butter and vanilla. Mix until a dry dough forms.
 

Add chocolate chips and mix on lowest speed.

Once the chips are thoroughly mixed into the dough, add the milk 1 tablespoon at a time with the machine on the lowest speed.

Roll the dough into balls, about 1 tablespoon each.  Continue rolling the dough until you have about 16 pieces.  Place balls onto a cookie sheet lined with aluminum foil and freeze for two hours, or until firm.

Our freezer is too narrow to fit a cookie sheet so I had to take the shelf out, line with aluminum foil and place the balls of dough directly on top.

To prepare the brownie batter, preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.  Line a muffin tin with paper liners. 

thank you Kristin I LOVE these liners, so cute!

Place chocolate and butter into a heatproof bowl and set over a pan of simmering water.  Be sure to not let the boiling water touch the bottom of the bowl.  Stir occasionally until the chocolate and butter are melted, about 4 to 5 minutes.

Remove bowl from heat.  Whisk in sugar and salt until mixture is smooth.  Add eggs and whisk to combine.  Gently whisk in flour and cocoa until smooth.  Do not over mix.

 

 

 

 

Using a tablespoon (or cookie scoop) fill lined tins about 2/3 full with the brownie batter.  Take the cookie dough balls from freezer and place one ball in the middle of each cupcake, pushing down slightly, but no need to fully submerge. 

 

Bake for about 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the brownie portion of the cupcake comes out clean.  Do not test for doneness through the cookie dough.

Transfer muffin tins to a wire rack and let cool before removing the cupcakes from the pan.

To prepare the ganache, transfer chopped chocolate to a heat safe bowl.  Place heavy cream in a small saucepan and bring to a gentle simmer.  Remove from heat and pour cream on top of the chopped chocolate.

Do not stir at this point.  Let the chocolate and cream sit for 10 minutes.  Using a whisk, combine the cream and chocolate until smooth and shiny.

Take the cupcakes and flip up-side-down and swirl in the ganache to achieve an even coating.  Turn right side up and place on a cookie sheet until the ganache hardens, about two hours.  To speed up the process cupcakes can also be transferred to the fridge.

*I find these are much better served cold as the cookie dough can become quite soft if let out too long.

Enjoy!

 Cookie dough recipe courtesy of Sprinkle Bakes

Brownie Cupcake recipe courtesy of Martha Stewart