Name: Banana-Pumpkin-Chocolate Chip Muffins
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 23 min
Yield: 24 muffins
Ingredients: 1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar (light or dark); 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) butter, softened; 3 eggs, beaten; 1 cup pumpkin (NOT pumpkin pie mix!); 2 very ripe bananas; 3 cups flour (I use white whole wheat); 2 tsp baking soda; 1 1/2 tsp Chinese 5-spice powder OR pumpkin pie spice OR 3/4 tsp cinnamon + 1/2 tsp ginger + 1/4 tsp nutmeg; 1/2 tsp baking powder; 1/2 tsp salt; 1 cup chocolate chips (whatever kind you like….I use semi-sweet or bittersweet)

Banana-Pumpkin-Chocolate Chip Muffins

October 10, 2016

Banana-pumpkin-chocolate chip muffins are a sweet and delicious way to get your favorite flavors of the season onto your plate!

Where are you with pumpkin spice? I’ll be honest with you…I’ve never had a pumpkin spice latte. When I found out that pumpkin spice lattes, at least the Starbucks variety, don’t contain any actual pumpkin (just the spices that go into pumpkin pies) I lost interest in even trying one. However, I do love just about anything that actually contains pumpkin, and I do have a pumpkin spice recipe or two up my sleeve for this season (they just happen to contain pumpkin along with the spices).

Pumpkin is great for cooking (like this pumpkin Alfredo from Pinch of Yum that I made last week…SO.GOOD.) or for baking. No need to be limited to pumpkin pie, either. I know a lot of people who say that they don’t like pumpkin, when in reality, it’s the texture of pumpkin pie that they don’t like. While I do like it, I get it. Those are the same people (like my husband) who don’t like pudding (though his favorite dessert is creme brûlée…um, okay). He used to think that he didn’t like pumpkin, but then I exposed him to non-pie pumpkin and guess what? He likes pumpkin now.

These banana-pumpkin-chocolate chip muffins first came about a few Thanksgivings ago when I had a ton of pumpkin (from a pumpkin that I roasted myself) left over from pumpkin pie and a couple of black bananas languishing on my counter. You can use canned pumpkin, though…that’s what I usually do! I threw in some chocolate chips and declared it good. These banana pumpkin- chocolate chip muffins are some of the most flavorful and moist muffins that I’ve ever eaten. They’re pretty addictive.

If you need a delicious breakfast treat, banana-pumpkin-chocolate chip muffins fit the bill perfectly!

Shared on Weekend Potluck on The Country Cook!

Mary

Yield: 24 muffins

Banana-Pumpkin-Chocolate Chip Muffins

15 minPrep Time:

23 minCook Time:

38 minTotal Time:

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Ingredients

1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar (light or dark)
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) butter, softened
3 eggs, beaten
1 cup pumpkin (NOT pumpkin pie mix!)
2 very ripe bananas
3 cups flour (I use white whole wheat)
2 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 tsp Chinese 5-spice powder OR pumpkin pie spice OR 3/4 tsp cinnamon + 1/2 tsp ginger + 1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup chocolate chips (whatever kind you like….I use semi-sweet or bittersweet)

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line two muffin pans with paper liners or spray the cups with non-stick spray.
Combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and spices in a bowl and set aside.
Cream together the brown sugar and butter until fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time and beat each until incorporated.
Add the bananas and pumpkin and beat until well-blended. The original recipe says to mash the bananas prior to adding to the bowl, but I find that if the bananas are ripe enough you can skip this step.
Turn off the mixer and add 1/3 of the flour mixture. Beat on low until combined. Add the rest of the flour mixture in thirds, beating after each addition.
Add the chocolate chips and stir (or, if using a stand mixer, beat on low) until they are evenly distributed.
Evenly distribute the mixture among the muffin pans. Bake for approximately 23 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool slightly before serving.

Notes

I keep my muffins in the freezer and pull them out the night before we want to eat them. They will be thawed and room temperature in the morning.

https://chattavore.com/banana-pumpkin-chocolate-chip-muffins-thats-a-mouthful/

Banana-pumpkin-chocolate chip muffins are a sweet and delicious way to get your favorite flavors of the season onto your plate! | recipe from Chattavore.com

Toblerone Fondue with Amaretto

February 8, 2016

Amaretto & Toblerone fondue is pretty much chocolate heaven in a fondue pot..rich creamy, and full of almond flavor. It’s perfect for date night!

I am a true child of the seventies in every sense of the word. Never mind that I was only alive for a year and a half of the seventies. Or that I am without a doubt a child of the eighties in every sense of the word, right down to the fact that I can recite John Hughes movies line for line, have a huge eighties playlist, and, well, my earliest memories are from the eighties.

So forget that child of the seventies thing. I may have been born then, but other than that my only connection to the seventies is fondue.

I really don’t remember why I became interested in fondue, but I got my first fondue pot (yes, you read that correctly. I have owned multiple fondue pots in my time.) eleven or twelve years ago. That first one was a Sterno pot, which I eventually decided was a little much to handle, so eventually I graduated to an electric model (mainly because Alton told me to), but I’ll tell you one thing I haven’t graduated from: Toblerone fondue.

This was the first chocolate fondue recipe that I ever made (I’d never even tried a Toblerone bar before making this fondue…and I can tell you that a Toblerone bar (<–affiliate link) is not even half as delicious as this fondue) AND I have never made any other type of chocolate fondue. The honest to God truth is that as many times as I’ve made chocolate fondue and looked for other chocolate fondue recipes, nothing ever sounds as delicious to me as classic Toblerone fondue. Until, that is, I splashed in a bunch of amaretto. Wow. Just wow.

In seventeen years together, Philip and I have never celebrated Valentine’s Day (we started dating the week before, and after that it just never caught on). However, if you and YOUR significant other do celebrate Valentine’s Day, this Amaretto & Toblerone fondue is pretty much a perfect way to celebrate. If you don’t have an electric fondue pot like this Rival fondue set that I have (<–affiliate link), make your fondue on the stovetop then pour it into your fondue pot. If you don’t have a fondue pot? A small slow cooker, like this Crock-Pot Little Dipper (<–affiliate link) will work too. Or just make it and eat it really fast. Whatever you do….MAKE IT!

This post contains affiliate links. This means that if you click the link and make a purchase, I will make a small commission. The cost to you will not be affected. For more information, please see my disclosures. Thank you for supporting my blog!

Mary Haymaker

Yield: 4-6 servings

Amaretto & Toblerone Fondue

2 minPrep Time:

5 minCook Time:

7 minTotal Time:

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Ingredients

3 milk chocolate Toblerone bars, broken into pieces
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon espresso powder or instant coffee granules
2-4 tablespoons Amaretto liqueur (to taste)
dippers - strawberries, pineapple, cubes of pound cake, pretzel rods, marshmallows, etc.

Instructions

In a saucepan or fondue pot, combine the Toblerone bars, cream, and coffee. Set over medium heat (or turn the fondue pot to a medium setting).
Heat, stirring constantly, until the chocolate has completely melted. Add the Amaretto and stir until completely combined If you are making the fondue in a saucepan, pour it into a fondue pot set to low heat (or low flame) or a small slow cooker; If using a fondue pot to make the fondue turn the heat or flame to low.
Serve immediately with desired items for dipping.

https://chattavore.com/amaretto-toblerone-fondue/

Amaretto & Toblerone fondue is pretty much chocolate heaven in a fondue pot..rich creamy, and full of almond flavor! | recipe from chattavore.com

Vegan Chocolate on Chocolate Cake

September 18, 2015

Everyone welcome guest blogger Brandon, who is the baker at Loveletter Cake Shop in NYC. Brandon is bringing us a vegan chocolate on chocolate cake (chocolate cake with chocolate ganache) today. Enjoy, and don’t forget to check out the amazing menu on his website!

What’s better than chocolate cake? Vegan chocolate cake. OK, maybe it’s not better than classic butter and eggs chocolate cake, but it’s just as good. And anything vegan that’s just as good as its non-vegan counterpart is a monumental achievement indeed.

The key to this chocolate cake recipe—and really, any chocolate cake recipe—is the quality chocolate you use. You can always use your standard Hershey’s cocoa powder, but to achieve a decadent, premium quality chocolate cake that your guests will demand the recipe for, it’s hard to replace a premium Dutch Process cocoa powder like Bensdorp or Valrhona (and no, Hershey’s Special Dark doesn’t count!). Here at Loveletter, we’ve done all the taste tests, and yes, quality does matter. Our testers have chosen chocolate cakes made with imported, Dutch process cocoa time and time again.

You’ll notice in the recipe below that the sugar is added last. I admit this is a bit strange, and I’m not even sure of the chemistry going on behind the scenes here. But I do know this: when I add the sugar the normal way—at the beginning of the recipe along with the other dry ingredients—the cake inevitably sinks in the middle. When I add the sugar at the very end and lightly mix until just combined, the cake rises beautifully straight. The taste and texture of both methods are identical. It is simply a structural improvement when adding the sugar last.

I suspect this has something to do with the sugar dissolving and adding too much weight to the batter when mixed in early. A conventional chocolate cake made with the binding power of eggs will not require this additional step; it will rise just fine regardless of when the sugar is added due to the strength of the egg whites. But vegan cakes need a little more help, and this trick works for us every time.

If you ever notice that your cakes are sinking in the middle, give this nifty technique a try. It isn’t guaranteed to fix your particular issue (there are plenty of reasons why a cake might sink), but if your recipe is lacking structural ingredients or calls for a good deal of sugar, try adding your sugar last.

Chocolate on Chocolate Cake (Vegan)
This recipe comes from Loveletter Cake Shop
30 minPrep Time:
30 minCook Time:

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Ingredients
For the cake
1 3/4 C Flour
1 1/4 C Sugar
3/4 C Dutch Process Cocoa Powder
1 Tsp Baking soda
2 Tsp Baking powder
3/4 Tsp Salt
1/2 C Vegetable/Canola/Coconut Oil
4 Tsp Pure vanilla extract
1 1/8 C Room temperature water
For the ganache
7 Ounces Dark chocolate, chopped
8 Ounces Unsweetened soy/almond milk
2 Tsp Vanilla extract
Instructions
Cake Preparation
Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease two 6” round cake pans.
Sift all dry ingredients into a bowl except sugar
Sift sugar in a separate bowl and set aside
Combine wet ingredients and dry ingredients (except the sugar)
Mix on low speed until incorporated
Add the sugar slowly and continue mixing on low until batter is rid of lumps and perfectly smooth
Pour half of batter into each pan and bake for approximately 30 minutes or until toothpick inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean.
Frosting Preparation
Place your chocolate into a bowl and place the bowl over very hot water. Wait until chocolate is completely melted.
Combine milk and vanilla and heat over the stove until nearly boiling
Very slowly add chocolate to milk and stir until combined (overstirring will cause your ganache to break)
Let sit for 1-2 hours (add more melted chocolate or hot milk to adjust the consistency of your ganache)
7.8.1.2
125
https://chattavore.com/vegan-chocolate-on-chocolate-cake/

Chocolate and Cranberry Trail Mix

December 12, 2012

Trail mix and I have a love-hate relationship, for sure. The idea of it sounds wonderful….little nibblies tossed together into a jumble? Salty and sweet? Something that you can throw in your lunchbox, handbag, or, heck, even your pocket to be eaten at your leisure (I totally pronounced that word “lehzure” in my head just now)? The problem is, trail mixes-snack mixes altogether, really-tend to be incredibly disappointing. Too many raisins, not enough M&Ms. Too many pretzels, not enough rye crisps (yes, I am referring to Gardetto’s. I could eat an entire full-sized bag. I should have included them in my guilty pleasures post). My point is, there’s never enough of the good stuff, there’s always too much of the “blah” stuff. Who’s with me?

So the solution? Make your own. Simple as that. This recipe, which really can hardly be called a recipe, is from my aunt Susan. She brought it with her when visiting from Texas this summer, and she made me laugh when she said she can make a batch and it lasts her for a month. It lasted me and Philip approximately three days, and I did most of the eating. Sigh. Her original recipe, by the way, did not include pretzels, but I had an individual bag languishing on my kitchen table when I made this, so I just crushed them up and threw them in. It’s good with or without. Here’s how you do it:

Measure equal parts dark chocolate chips, dried cranberries, coarsely chopped pecans, and broken pretzels (optional). Heat a pan over medium heat and toast the pecans until they start to brown and smell “toast”. Allow to cool to room temperature (or you’ll melt your chocolate chips!). Toss cooled pecans with the other ingredients. Store in an airtight container or storage bag.

Peanut Butter Freezer Fudge

July 24, 2012

My naughty eating habits this summer have been catching up with me, and I’ve recently made a resolution to myself to pay more attention to my “real food” eating habits. I haven’t exactly been eating a lot of processed food, but I definitely haven’t been paying attention to my diet like I should. Add the fact that I haven’t been working (my job keeps me in perpetual motion) and my waistbands are definitely feeling a little tighter.

As I’ve considered what the problems are that have caused a little bit of a weight gain (I’m baring my soul here, guys!), it’s not the bacon, or the butter, or the half-and-half. It’s the white flour that I’ve let creep back into my baking….the sugar in the cakes, the popovers. It’s the sodas that Philip and I like to buy as a treat…and I’ve allowed the “occasions” for a treat to become a little more frequent. It’s definitely the inactivity…sitting at home, not chasing kids around, not traipsing the halls of the school (at work I always feel like I walk the hall a million times a day), and not getting on the treadmill or pulling out a workout DVD or going for a walk after dinner.

I’ve re-immersed myself in 100 Days of Real Food. I’ve discovered a new blog to love, Food Babe. And I’m considering making an effort to add some raw foods to my diet (I mean, besides fruit and salad) with the book Ani’s Raw Food Kitchen by Ani Phyo. I am in no way interested in fake meat, but I’m happy to sub veggies or nuts for meat.

The truth is, you just have to have something sweet from time to time. For me, from “time to time” means that I need a little something sweet every day. I don’t need a huge treat, and it doesn’t need to be tooth-achingly sweet. It does have to taste good, though….and when I saw Food Babe’s recipe for almond chocolate freezer fudge, I knew I had to make it. Except that when I went to the grocery store, almond butter ranged in price from $8.99 to $13.69….way more than even the most expensive peanut butter (by the way, that was at Publix. I’ve checked it out at Earth Fare since writing this post and it was considerably more economical!).

Soooo, peanut butter freezer fudge it is. This stuff is delicious. The tiny amount of maple syrup may not seem like nearly enough sweetener, but I promise that it is. The pinch of salt makes it just slightly savory, and the coconut oil adds an amazing coconutty flavor. This is a perfect tiny treat for after dinner. I’m sold.

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Ingredients

https://chattavore.com/peanut-butter-freezer-fudge/

Peanut Butter Freezer Fudge

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Serves	15-20
Prep time	10 minutes
Cook time	10 minutes
Total time	20 minutes
Allergy	Peanuts
Meal type	Dessert
Website	Adapted slightly from Food Babe

Ingredients

1 cup peanut butter
4 tablespoons coconut oil
1 1/2 tablespoon maple syrup
4oz chocolate chips
1/2 teaspoon sea salt

Note

When you cut the fudge, it may break-mine did! Just warning you.

Directions

Step 1
Line a small pan with parchment paper (I used an 8" square pan) and set aside.
Step 2
Combine the peanut butter, coconut oil, maple syrup, and sea salt with a mixer until smooth (I used my stand mixer but a hand mixer would work fine).
Step 3
Spread the peanut butter mixture into the pan. I spread mine very thin. Sprinkle the chocolate chips over the top and carefully press in slightly (the peanut butter mixture will be pretty thin, so be careful not to get it on your hands!).
Step 4
Freeze the fudge for at least two hours. Cut into squares; Food Babe says this makes 20 servings but I cut mine into 15 squares. Store in the freezer.