My mom always bought a big box of chocolates and made all kinds of cookies. Almost everything back then, in the 50′s and 60′s, were home made like cookies, cakes, pies and breads. Before I started working, after my youngest was in 5th grade, I used to bake all that kind of stuff all the time. Nowadays people go to bakeries or buy stuff in supermarkets. To me there is nothing better than something homemade.

How do feel about that? Are things better homemade or store bought?

Cookies
1 pouch (1 lb 1.5 oz) double chocolate chunk cookie mix
1/4 cup vegetable oil
2 tablespoons water
1 egg
2/3 cup chopped pecans
12 large marshmallows, cut in half

Frosting
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips (6 oz)
1/3 cup whipping cream
1 teaspoon butter or margarine
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup powdered sugar

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. In large bowl, stir the cookie mix, oil, water, egg and pecans until a soft dough forms.
2. Drop dough by rounded tablespoonfuls 2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet.
3. Bake for 7 minutes. Remove from oven and immediately press marshmallow half lightly, cut side down, on top of cookie. Bake for 1 to 2 minutes longer or just until marshmallows begin to soften. Cool for 2 minutes then remove from cookie sheets to cooling racks. Cool completely, about 15 minutes.
4. In 1-quart nonstick saucepan, melt chocolate chips over low heat, stirring until smooth. Remove from heat and add whipping cream, butter and vanilla; blend well. Stir in the powdered sugar until smooth.
5. Spread the frosting over each cookie, after it’s cooled, be sure to cover the marshmallow. Let stand until the frosting is set.

1 pouch sugar cookie mix
2 tablespoons unsweetened baking cocoa
1/3 cup softened butter or margarine
1 egg
1 container (1 lb) vanilla frosting
12 small jelly beans, cut in half
black decorating gel

1. Pre-heat oven to 375°F. In medium bowl, stir together cookie mix and cocoa. Add the butter and egg; stir until it forms a soft dough

2. On a floured surface, roll dough to 1/4-inch thickness. Cut with 5-inch gingerbread man shaped cookie cutter. On un-greased cookie sheet, place 1 inch apart. Gather dough scraps; re-roll until all dough is used.

3. Bake for 7 to 9 minutes or until cookies are puffy and the tops are dry. Cool 2 minutes; remove from cookie sheet to cooling rack. Cool completely, about 15 minutes.

4. Spoon frosting into re-sealable plastic bag; partly seal the bag and cut 1/4-inch hole in a bottom corner. Or you can use a decorating bag with a flat tip with 1/4-inch-wide opening (#44). Pipe frosting on cookies for bandages. Place jelly beans for eyes and use black gel to make pupils in eyes. Store cookies in airtight container.

Image from Betty Crocker

1 14 oz can sweetened condensed milk
4 eggs, beaten with a hand mixer until frothy (about 5 minutes)
1 14 oz bag shredded coconut
3 tbsp. flour
3 tbsp. butter
1.2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 6 oz premade chocolate crumb crust
1 cup semisweet chocolate chunks

1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Heat condensed milk in a medium saucepan over medium heat, stirring constantly until it comes to a low boil. Temper mixture by adding 3 tbsps. warm condensed milk to the beaten eggs. Mix gently. Repeat 3 times.

2. Return egg mixture to the saucepan. Bring to a low boil and remove from heat.

3. Add coconut and flour. Stir to combine well. Stir in melted butter and vanilla to combine.

4. Line crust with chocolate chunks and top with the egg mixture. Place pie on a baking sheet lined with foil. Bake on the center oven rack for 30 to 35 minutes until the top is browned and slightly firm in the center. Cool on wire rack at least 1 hour or preferably overnight before cutting.

Makes 8 servings.

780 calories per serving.

I’ll eat almost anything that contains chocolate.. except for maybe chocolate covered bugs (ewwwww gross). I love chocolate ice cream, chocolate covered strawberries, chocolate chip cookies… etc, etc, etc.

How about you? Are you a chocoholic too?

4 (1 ounce) squares of unsweetened chocolate
2/3 cup of sugar
1/4 cup of heavy cream
1/8 tsp. salt
2 tbsp. hot water
5 eggs – separated
1 tsp. vanilla
1 tbsp. cognac or coffee liqueur
Whipped cream (optional for topping)

Place the chocolate, sugar, cream and salt in the top of a double boiler. In the bottom of the double boiler bring water to boil and turn down until it simmers. Place the top part of the double boiler on the bottom part and heat while stirring occasionally until the chocolate is melted and the sugar is completely dissolved. This will take about 20 minutes. Add the hot water and heat, stirring until smooth and satiny. Beat in the egg yolks (1 at a time) and remove at once from the heat. Beat the egg whites to form soft peaks. Mix about 1/2 cup of the egg whites into the chocolate mixture. Lightly fold in the rest taking care not to break down the volume. Mix in the vanilla and cognac. Cover and chill for 12 hours before serving. Optional – top with dollops of whipped cream.

Makes 4 servings. About 445 calories per serving without the whipped cream.

2 cups fresh or jarred cherries, pitted
1 cup cherry flavored liqueur
4 oz high quality dark chocolate, shaved into curls
1/4 cup raspberry preserves
1 pkg dark chocolate Liebniz cookies, broken into 1 inch pieces
1 pint vanilla bean ice cream
4 fresh whole cherries with stems

1. Drain cherries and place into a medium glass bowl with liqueur. Allow to stand 1 hour to overnight.

2. Layer each of 4 parfait glasses with the cherries, chocolate shavings, preserves, cookie pieces and ice cream.

3. Top each parfait with a fresh, whole stemmed cherry and additional chocolate shavings. Serve immediately.

Makes 4 servings.

1 6 oz package of semisweet chocolate bits
1 7 1/2 oz jar marshmallow cream
1 13 oz can evaporated milk
1 tsp. vanilla
1 cup heavy cream

Melt chocolate bits in the top of a double boiler over simmering water. Add the marshmallow cream and heat, stirring occasionally, until melted. Pour in the milk, a little at a time, mixing well after each addition. Then mix in the vanilla. Remove from heat and set aside. Whip the cream until soft peaks form and fold into the chocolate mixture. Pour into a 9x5x3 inch loaf pan and freeze until mushy. Remove from the pan and beat until fluffy. (NOTE: If you use a hand mixer you can do this right in the pan) Return to pan and freeze until firm. When serving, make the portions small.

About 700 calories per serving.

3/4 cup of butter or margarine
4 (1 ounce) squares of unsweetened chocolate
2 cups of sugar
4 eggs
1 1/2 cups of unsifted flour
1/2 tsp of salt
1 1/2 tsps of vanilla
1 3/4 cups coarsely chopped pecans

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.

Melt the butter and chocolate in a large, heavy saucepan over the lowest heat.

Remove from heat and mix in the remaining ingredients in the order listed, beating well after each addition.

Pour the batter into a greased 9x9x2 inch pan and bake for 40 minutes until brownies just begin to pull away from the sides of the pan.

Cool the pan of brownies upright on a wire rack until they are room temperature then cut in 16 squares.

They are about 350 calories per brownie.

*These are nothing like Alice’s Restaurant brownies.. you won’t need to go to drug rehab after eating them!

How to Dip Candies in Chocolate

For best results pick a cool, crisp day and have the kitchen cool too.
Choose dippable candies to dip such as fondant balls, firm caramels, candied cherries, etc.
Have both the chocolate and candies to be dipped at room temperature.
Use semisweet chocolate and work with no more than 2 pounds at a time and no less than one pound.
Put into the top of a double boiler and melt very slowly over hot-not boiling-water, stirring until chocolate reaches 130 degrees. Set chocolate over cold water and cool to 85 degrees.
Use any 2 pronged fork and dip candies, one at a time, into the chocolate to coat evenly then set them on wax paper covered wire racks. Twirl the tail end of the chocolate into curlicues on top of the candies.
Let the chocolates harden 5 to 10 minutes before removing from paper. Trim off any ragged edges and store in an airtight container. Do not store in the refrigerator because that will cause the chocolate to whiten and streak.

Enjoy!