Chocolate Dipped Easter Treats

I love these chocolate dipped peanut butter eggs and they are made even more delicious with the addition of some rice crispy cereal. The crunchy outer chocolate shell, the inner soft chewy comforting flavor of the peanut butter, made a lot better with the crispy cereal.

 

Without further ado.... The recipe for these bad boys is coming right up.

{{Crispy Peanut Butter Balls}}

(Printer friendly version click here)

1 stick butter, melted

1 lb. powdered sugar (2 ½ cups)

1 (18 oz.) jar peanut butter

3 1/2 c. Rice Krispies

Mix together all the ingredients using a paddle attachment of a kitchen aid stand mixer. Using a cookie scoop, measure out the peanut butter fondant and then roll into balls the size of walnuts. Chill 2 hours on a cookie sheet.

In a double boiler, melt

2 bags chocolate chips

Optional: Add to chocolate chips a small piece of paraffin wax (This will make the chocolate shinier and easier to dip balls.)

Drop a peanut butter ball into the chocolate, and using a fork, cover the ball. Tap off excess chocolate and then set on wax paper/parchment paper covered cookie sheet. Chill until set. Remove and layer in container with wax paper. Store in refrigerator. 


After I dipped all the peanut butter balls I had chocolate left over. I grabbed a package of bunny peeps and dipped them as well. Start by pushing a stick inside the marshmallow, then dip into the chocolate. After they are laid down on a piece of parchment paper, add a mini marshmallow tail on the butt of the bunny. 

Let them set up and then serve. The kids thought these were adorable and they FLEW off the plate. Even the kids that don't really like Peeps, liked these chocolate dipped ones. That's what chocolate can do for things. It just makes everything better.

Peanut Butter balls... done. Package of Peeps... done. Still more chocolate left. What to do now with that chocolate??? I saw the mini marshmallows sitting there and remembered something my mom would do when I was little. I raided the pantry and found some Roasted and Salted peanuts.... perfect!

Now it was time to make some Rocky Road Candy! Mmmmmm... Yummy!

The leftover chocolate in the bottom of the pan will always vary so there isn't a set recipe, but basically. Toss in some mini marshmallows, add some peanuts and stir. You can drop tablespoons of the mixture onto some waxed paper or put it into lightly greased pan (if you have that much) and cut it into squares after to serve.

Either way... it is a yummy way to keep yourself from wasting any of this delectable chocolate. The salty peanuts... the soft and sweet marshmallows, and the rich chocolate... Everything you need in a quick treat.

Rice Crispie Easter Eggs & Chocolate Nests

Classic treat! Rice Crispie Treats! We love these at our house. And it's always a great way to celebrate any holiday. This was a great way for the kids to get involved as well.

Make some rice crispies....

After you've made them, drop the hot mixture by the spoonful onto a greased cookie sheet. Let the rice crispie treats cool down a bit so that you can handle them in your hands. Spray some cooking spray onto your hands and then pick up a spoonful and mold it into the shape of an egg. Lay it back down on the cookies sheet.

Melt some chocolate in a double boiler pan.

Collect some Easter/spring colored sprinkles and put them into a bowl.

After the Easter Egg rice crispies have cooled, you can have the kids dip them into the melted chocolate and then roll them in the colored sprinkles or sugars. Place them on a piece of parchment paper and let them set, then ENJOY!

When you have left over melted chocolate... you can't just throw it away! Here's a fun idea on what you can use with the leftover chocolate. Take the chocolate and mix in chow mein noodles. Drop the mixture in spoonfuls onto a waxed paper or parchment paper covered cookie sheet. After you've dropped the mixture down, you can mold the noodles into a nest shape. Let the chocolate set in a cool place (you can put in refrigerator to speed up the process). When they are hard, you can fill them with whatever goodies you choose. Here is large nest with a rice crispie egg....

Or you can make a smaller little nest and then put in the delightfully delicious Cadbury chocolate eggs (or jelly beans or whatever your candy of choice is).

Healthy-ish Halloween After School Snacks!

In our house.... We love Halloween! And it is even more fun when you can make fun food to help celebrate. 

These "Apple Smiles" or "Monster Mouths" have been a tradition for our family since I was a kid.  They bring back so many memories and my kids love them as much as I did when I was their age. Delish! That little bit of marshmallow sweetness paired up with an already great duo- apples & peanut butter. Slice up your apples, slather on some peanut butter, line up your mini marshmallow teeth and slap the top lip on top of the teeth and then take a great big bite in. They are yummy!

These next two were new additions this year.... but both of them are definitely keepers! First we have some Witch's Brooms! I took a String Cheese stick and cut it up into thirds. I started to pull apart one end of the cheese stick to make it look like the bristles of a broom. Use a small sharp knife to help separate the ends. Then take a pretzel stick and push it in the other end of the cheese that isn't separated. Sometimes the cheese would split a bit at the top so it helped to take a small piece of chive and tie it in a knot (plus it makes them look more realistic!). Done! You can make a bunch of these in only a few more minutes.

Here's the second keeper! Used Band-Aids! Ahhhhhh! Don't you love them!? I LOOOOOVE them! And they're soooooo very simple. These obviously aren't as healthy as some of previous ones, but who cares when they are this cute. Break apart the graham crackers into four pieces and lay them out on your serving dish. Use some white frosting and spread it onto the middle third section of the cracker. (I used a small ziploc bag, put the frosting in, and cut the snip off the end of the bag so you can start squeezing the frosting out onto the cracker). The add some blood by adding some red frosting. You can dye some of the white frosting red or just buy a pre-made red gel frosting and put that on. (Plus the gel would look a bit more realistic.)

Ta dah! Kids ate these after school and they were so happy! A great and easy after school snack. 

Peanut Butter Marshmallow Bites

Ready for a quick and easy, sweet and salty treat? Peanut Butter Marshmallow Bites... These can be made in like 10 minutes and you can make a lot of them too. They look fabulous and much, much, MUCH more complicated than they actually are. Recipe is at the bottom with a link to a printer friendly version as well...not that you really need a recipe for these little beauties.

All you need are three main ingredients... four if you include the drizzled chocolate.

Ritz Cracker, Creamy Peanut Butter, and Large Marshmallows.
Place the crackers on a rimmed baking sheet.

Add a dollop of peanut butter on top of each cracker and spread it around. You can add as much or as little as you would like. Totally a preference here. The peanut butter will melt during the marshmallow roasting, but will set back up after they have cooled.

(This is a great recipe to get the kids in the kitchen to cook. They can do almost every step. Just need a little help with the broiling, and melting of chocolate, but otherwise, they can do it almost entirely by themselves.)

Cut your large marshmallows in half and place one half on each cracker. If you don't want to cut the marshmallows in half... you can place an entire large marshmallow on top, but they aren't as bite sized if you do this... you know not as easy to just pop the whole thing in your mouth type of thing. But with the extra marshmallow yummi-ness, they are equally as fantastic.
After the marshmallows are in place, put them into the oven set to broil. Place the rack in the middle of the oven so that the marshmallows don't roast TOOO quickly. Keep an eye on them... it doesn't take long for the marshmallows to turn golden brown.

Quickly the go from looking white, to nicely golden brown to a lot golden brown....

After they come out of the oven, drizzle them with melted white chocolate and if you'd like some semisweet chocolate, put that on as well. TIP: Put the melted chocolate into a ziploc bag and cut the tip of the corner off and then use it like a pastry bag to drizzle the chocolate onto the cookie. Note: They kind of taste like a peanut butter s'more cookie when you add the semisweet chocolate. Super YUMMY!

Just keep on drizzlin' until they are all adequately covered. My philosophy: The more chocolate the better! And don't worry about being neat and clean in your drizzlin' technique.... just cover them in the chocolate. Also... Do you see some of the ones in the top right corner of the picture here are full size marshmallows... the kids reached for these ones first because they enjoy the extra marshmallow. I liked the smaller, more bite sized snack.
Beautiful treats! Looks much more exquisite and complicated than they actually are. While the chocolate is still wet you can garnish them with more deliciousness. Such as some toasted coconut. If you make some Samoa Cookie Bars you can make some extra toasted coconut to use on these. Or add a sprinkle of sea salt to accentuate the flavor of the chocolate. Colorful sprinkles are fun for some colorful party flair. Use your imagination and add almost anything.

They also can be made with mini marshmallows as well so if you don't have large marshmallows... you can still enjoy them. You definitely need more peanut butter when you use the smaller marshmallows to help keep them on the cracker when you toast them.

Ta dah! Ready to serve!
{{Peanut Butter Marshmallow Bites}}

(printer friendly version)

Ritz Crackers
Creamy Peanut Butter
Large Marshmallows, cut in half with kitchen shears
White and/or semisweet chocolate, melted to drizzle on top

Turn your oven on to broil. Place Ritz Crackers on a baking sheet. Slather on a dollop of creamy peanut butter. Place half of a large marshmallow on top of the peanut butter that is on each cracker. Place the baking sheet in the oven on the middle rack and allow the marshmallow to turn a beautiful golden brown.

Remove from oven. While they are cooling, melt the white and semisweet chocolate (separate bowls, not together). Pour each individual chocolate into a tapered bottle or use a ziploc bag with a tiny hole cut into the corner to help you drizzle the chocolate over the cookies evenly and easily.

Variations: While the chocolate is still wet, sprinkle some toasted coconut on top, or some sea salt to accentuate the chocolate flavor, or even use some sprinkles to give them a bit of colorful party flair.

Allow the cookies to cool on the counter or stick them in the refrigerator until set.
Serve up the cookies and enjoy! And I dare you to only eat one! Great for a quick and yummy snack that is sure to please.


Found them here...

S'more Cups

Another yummy S'more treat. These are my new favorite treat. I thought they were FABULOUS! They had the crunchy yummy crust and then the chewy marshmallow topped with chocolate. I {heart} these very much! (I found them on the Pampered Chef website.)

Start by crushing your graham crackers in a ziplock bag with a rolling pin or a can of food. Mix the crushed crackers with the powdered sugar and melted butter.
Spoon about a tablespoon full of graham cracker mixture into a mini cupcake or tart pan. Using a tart shaper tool press the crumbs into a shallow cup. Bake them in the 350 degree oven for about 4-5 minutes, until the crust is bubbly. (I did 4 minutes and it was a bit too long, try like 3 1/2 minutes and go from there.)

While the crust is baking you need to cut the marshmallows in half. I didn't have to dip my kitchen shears in cold water, the marshmallows cut just fine, but if your marshmallow prevents your shears from opening and closing because they get tooooo sticky, then you will need the cold water.
Pull the bubbly crust cups out of the oven and put either one section of chocolate bar (as stated in the recipe) or 2-3 large Ghiradelli chocolate chips (if using smaller chocolate chips, then use more... my rule is you can never get enough chocolate so go for it!). The warmth from the crust will melt the chocolate and then you can top it with half of a marshmallow. When they are all covered, you put them back into the oven for 1-2 minutes until the marshmallow starts to puff and soften a bit. (I had them in there for about 2 minutes, but you have to watch them because it can go too far quickly.)

Here they are all puffed up! Let them sit in the pan and cool for about 15 minutes. Then carefully pull them out of the pan and onto a cooling rack to cool completely.
Melt the rest of your chocolate and dip the top of the S'more cup in the chocolate and set back down to cool completely.
You may need to put them in a refrigerator to help the chocolate completely solidify.
Ta dah! S'more cups are ready to go! Eat 'em up! This recipe ONLY makes 24 cups. While that might sound like a lot... it isn't really. You will want to eat at least 2 of them.
And maybe more...
So you might want to double this recipe! Have fun and Happy National S'more Day!

{{S'more Cups}}

(printer friendly version)

7 whole graham crackers (1 cup finely crushed)

1/4 cup powdered sugar

6 tablespoons butter, melted

4 bars (1.55 oz each) milk chocolate candy, divided

12 large marshmallows

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Place graham crackers into a large resealable plastic bag. Finely crush into crumbs. Combine graham cracker crumbs, powdered sugar, and butter in a small bowl.

Place 1 tablespoon of crumb mixture in each cup of a mini muffin pan. Press crumbs to form shallow cups. Bake 4-5 minutes or until edges are bubbling. Meanwhile, break two of the candy bars into rectangles. Remove pan from oven; place one rectangle into each cup.

Cut marshmallows in half crosswise using shears dipped in cold water. Place one marshmallow half, cut-side down, into each cup. Return to oven 1-2 minutes or until marshmallows are slightly softened. Remove pans from oven to cooling rack; cool 15 minutes. Carefully remove cups from pan. Cool completely.

Break remaining candy bars and place in small microwavable bowl. Microwave on high 1 to 1 1/2 minutes or until melted and smooth, stirring every 20 seconds. Dip the top of each marshmallow in melted chocolate. Turn top-side up and let stand 40 to 60 minutes or until set. Makes 24 cups.

Note: Store the cups in a single layer in an airtight container for up to 1 week. Freezing is not recommended.

S'more pops

These are a fun and easy way to eat a s'more without the fire... S'more Pops!

{{S'more Pops}}

(printer friendly version)

What you need....

Large Marshmallows

Chocolate, melted

Golden Grahams Cereal, crushed

Sucker Sticks

Cookie sheet

Parchment Paper or waxed paper

Kitchen torch

Pick up a marshmallow and roll the bottom half of the marshmallow in the melted chocolate and the roll in the crushed cereal. Push a stick into the bottom of the chocolate covered side of the marshmallow and set down on the parchment covered cookie sheet. Allow the chocolate to harden. Using a kitchen torch (or flame on the stove) to toast the other side of the marshmallow!

Or you can just enjoy them like this... no torching needed.

Happy National S'more day!

S'more Cookies

Oh my goodness! Who doesn't love S'mores?! I know that I do and my kids do and they are definitely the epitome of summer time cook outs and camp outs. I've been looking around and EVERYWHERE on the internet and I am running into about a million different variations of this summertime treat. I think everyone is trying to find a way to keep this delicious treat and the warm, happy feeling that it brings all year round. Let me tell you about some of the things I've seen. I've seen S'more cookies, S'more pops, S'more bars, S'more pie, S'more cake, really S'more EVERYTHING!

These cookies were super simple to make. I found them here on this website. Basically after lining a cookie tray with graham crackers, you drop chunks of cookie dough on top.... Bake them for a few minutes and then...

Add more chocolate! Let them cook a little bit longer and you end up with s'more goodness... in a cookie!

They are delightful! Chewy and rich. There is a slight cinnamony flavor that enhanced and complimented the chocolate and marshmallow combination. You gotta try these cookies!

{{S'mores Cookie}}

11 Tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
1 cup brown sugar, packed
½ cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2 ½ cups flour
1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 cup mini marshmallows
3 regular sized Hershey’s bars, broken into pieces
1-2 packages graham crackers, broken into squares

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Line baking pans with parchment paper. I used one 11x17 pan and one 9x13 pan but you can really use any sized pans you want.

Lay out graham crackers side by side on the pans as close as possible (they should be touching). I used 16 graham cracker squares on one pan and 10 squares on another. You may have to add or remove graham crackers according to how much dough you have. If you want your cookies thicker you will use more dough and less graham crackers.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, sea salt and cinnamon to combine. Set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream butter with white and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs and vanilla and mix until combined.

Add the flour mixture to the butter mixer and combine on low speed.

Fold in the chocolate chips and marshmallows. Chill dough in refrigerator for 1 hour to overnight (I did one batch right away and another after chilling overnight and found there was no difference.)

Place tablespoons of dough on graham crackers about 1 – 1 ½ inches apart. I averaged about 1 1/2 tablespoons of dough per graham cracker square as seen in the picture above. Press down slightly with fingertips.

Bake for 5 minutes then remove from oven to press Hershey’s bar pieces on to the top. You can place as many pieces or as little as you want depending how much chocolate flavor you want.

Bake for 5 – 7 more minutes or until dough is beginning to turn golden brown at the edges. Remove to a wire rack to cool. For clean cutting make sure cookies are completely cool and cut with a sharp knife.

Okay... one last yummy picture to look at! The kids absolutely loved these. They exclaimed... "Mommy you have to make these again!" Sounds like they are a winner!

Can I have s'more please?

Pirate Cake

Here is the bottom layer of the cake. I didn't pull out my camera soon enough to capture every step of the cake making process. The bottom while plate is a rotating turn table. then the pink and black layers are from IKEA. They are just think plastic sheets that I added under the cake for some color and decoration. The cake is a Chocolate Crazy Cake. Here is the recipe:

{{Crazy Cake}}

3 cups flour

6 tablespoons Cocoa

2 teaspoons baking soda

2 cups sugar

1 teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 9x13 pan. Whisk and combine the dry ingredients in a bowl. Then make three holes in the flour for the liquid ingredients.

2/3 cup oil

2 teaspoons vanilla

2 teaspoons vinegar

2 cups water

Pour oil, vanilla and vinegar each into a separate hole. Then pour the water over and beat together until almost smooth. Pour batter into a prepared pan and bake in oven for 30 minutes or until tested done.

Then I made a Basic Buttercream frosting (below) to coat the cakes and tinted it pink using Wilton Pink Icing...

and then covered the frosted cakes with a homemade Marshmallow Fondant (below).

Basic Buttercream Icing

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter or margarine softened

1/2 cup solid vegetable shortening

1 teaspoon clear vanilla extract

4 cups sifted confectioners’ sugar (approximately 1 lb.)

2 tablespoons milk Makes: About 3 cups of icing.

(Medium Consistency): In large bowl, cream shortening and butter with electric mixer. Add vanilla. Gradually add sugar, one cup at a time, beating well on medium speed. Scrape sides and bottom of bowl often. When all sugar has been mixed in, icing will appear dry. Add milk and beat at medium speed until light and fluffy. Keep bowl covered with a damp cloth until ready to use.

For best results, keep icing bowl in refrigerator when not in use. Refrigerated in an airtight container, this icing can be stored 2 weeks. Rewhip before using.

For thin (spreading) consistency icing, add 2 tablespoons light corn syrup, water or milk.

Marshmallow Fondant

16 ounces mini marshmallows (buy the best quality and brand you can find if fondant will be eaten, if used just for decorating, a cheaper marshmallow can be used)

2 pounds powdered sugar, sifted (important to sift because it will remove the lumps that won’t go away during mixing)

4 tablespoons water (if making the fondant to be eaten, replace 1-2 tablespoons of the water with vanilla)

shortening for greasing everything, bowl, spatula, mixing bowl, dough hook, countertop, etc.

1.Put the marshmallows and water in a large microwave-safe bowl that has been greased with shortening. Microwave on high for about 1 minute, until the marshmallows are all melted. The mixture will expand. Stir to incorporate. (After mixing the marshmallows smooth, this is a good time to add coloring if you want to have colored fondant.)

2.Grease the dough hook and bowl of your mixer really well with shortening.

3.Put about 3/4 of the powdered sugar to the mixer bowl and add all of the melted marshmallows.

4.Mix on low speed for a few minutes then check the consistency of the fondant. It will probably still be a little sticky at this point. If it is, add some of the remaining powdered sugar and mix again for a minute or so. Repeat this step until the fondant is firm and neither dry or sticky.

5.Turn out on to a clean, firm work surface that has been slightly greased by shortening and knead by hand just for a minute until there are no flecks of dry powdered sugar remaining. Wrap in cling wrap and let the fondant rest for at least an hour before using.

We rolled fondant balls in both pink and black to add to the base of the cakes. I had made a full batch of white marshmallow fondant and then dyed a small portion pink and an even smaller amount black. The balls are all supposed to be shaped irregularly, and then left the rest of the fondant white.

We rolled out and cut the fondant. Here is the pink fondant that we are cutting into strips using a pizza cutter.

First we cut 3/4 to 1 inch strips...

Then smaller 1/4 inch strips in between.

Here's the second layer, frosted with pink buttercream and then covered with white fondant. Then we used pre-made black frosting from a tube to write the number 9 and the trails for the "treasure map" portion of the cake. Pink fondant are the "X" marks the spot.

Finally we cut a circle of black fondant for the cake topper. I was going to make a skull out of fondant and then I had a new idea. I had a Stampin' Up rubber stamp set (Just Jawing) that I had been using for her invitations, party favors and other such things, I pressed the stamp image into the top of the cake and it left an impression. Stamps aren't just for making cards anymore!

I followed the impression with frosting and essentially drew the skull on top with cute heart eyes. Now it matched everything else at the party! YAY!

To finish it off we added one simple rose to the top of the skull. It is of course a girl skull for a GIRLS pirate party! I thought it was perfect. I wrote her name at the top and Happy Birthday on the bottom.

TA DAH! I think it LOOKS MARVELOUS!!