BROWN BUTTER CUPCAKE BROWNIES

These are not necessarily the direction I see this site going but there is a time and place for everything and sometimes that's an excellent brownie. I was paging through cookbooks for inspiration and Hugh couldn't get past these in the Food52 Baking Cookbook. I have a people pleasing problem and I also like rich, chocolate things so here we are in deep, chocolate deliciousness. I started a Chocolate tab in the recipes section because sometimes you just need a treat that isn't made of oats or date paste. But you also sometimes do, so those will be in there too when applicable, but maybe not today. I've been trying to host more lately and have found it causes me far less stress when I make things I am familiar with versus trying new recipes. Go figure. I like trying something new but freshly baked cookies or brownies a la mode are crowd favorites. I have three go-to brownie recipes: these (if you like thinner, truffle-like ones), the peanut butter frosted ones from Ashley's book Date Night In (recipe) and the ones I tested for Sarah Kieffer's The Vanilla Bean Baking Book that comes out in November. And now I am adding these with their tender, chocolate chip center. So, if you are in the mood for the serious stuff, or you just want to finish a meal with friends with a bang, these little babes are SO good. 

BROWN BUTTER CUPCAKE BROWNIES
Makes 6 large brownies
Adapted from Food 52 Baking

I halved the recipe as I don't often need 12 brownie-lava-cake things. Double it if you do, which closer to how their recipe is originally written. They suggest putting a few tablespoons of water in the empty spots but I found these gave the brownies a steamed texture and I prefer crunchy topped brownies. I would just leave them empty next time. 

1/2 cup/ 1 stick unsalted butter
1 cup natural cane sugar
3/4 cup cocoa powder (natural or dutch processed)
1/2 Tbsp. water
1 tsp. vanilla extract
scant 1/2 tsp. sea salt
2 eggs
1/3 cup unbleached all-purpose flour (or 1/3 cup superfine rice flour + 1 Tbsp. cornstarch for GF option)
2 tsp. finely ground coffee
3/4 cup finely chopped walnuts, plus more for garnish
1/2 cup chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 325' and generously butter and flour (6) spots in a nonstick muffin tin or line with large cupcake liners.
Melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium-low heat, swirling it until it starts to brown and smell nutty. About 8 minutes. Remove from the heat and immediately stir in the granulated sugar, cocoa, water, vanilla and sat. Let it cool for 5 minutes.
Add the eggs one at a time, whisking well after each addition. Add the flour and ground coffee and mix vigorously for a minute. Stir in the walnuts.
Spoon the batter into the prepared tins. You can fill them most of the way as they do not rise much. Press some of the chocolate chips into the center of each cupcake to create a chocolate center and sprinkle a few walnut pieces on top. 
Bake for about 15 minutes, until the edges are set but the middle is still gooey. Let them cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then remove carefully. 
Serve warm with a scoop or ice cream or whipping cream if you're feeling decadent. 
Store leftovers in a resealable bag at room temperature for up to 3 days or freeze for a few months. 
 

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CANTALOUPE AND MINT YOGURT POPS

It may be beach season but our past few weekends have been spent working on the yard. I am hosting one of my best friends' baby shower here next month and while I can't completely overhaul it how I'd like, it has been in need of some sprucing. Curran runs around naked with the hose, Cleo rolls around on a blanket under a striped umbrella, yelling when she's on her tummy for too long but refusing to flip over. Hugh is sore and his back is completely sunburnt from weeding and planting ground cover but the "American dream" or something right? I trim the few plants that I haven't killed yet and water judiciously given the drought situation. Everything looks on the brink of being completely parched - which I am not sure whether to blame on my water conservation or lack of interest in gardening all together. Probably both. Naps. Food. Work. Crying. Laundry. The days are spent so quickly and I go to bed regretting that we didn't do anything "special" today. Maybe it's the news lately or my sensitive spirit but I know that our days are finite. I've been teary over the recent tragedies in Istanbul and Orlando. It could be any of us, really. And while I can't guarantee my people are safe at all times, I want our days to feel rich in love. At the end of each one, I want to feel like that day was marked by something and it's tough to keep in perspective that sometimes those marks are delicate and small and don't necessarily have to take much effort. I want some sort of miraculous balance between fun and new and intimate and social and productive but I know we don't get to have all that in the scope of the day. It is only when I can sit alone and quiet, that I see that even these days in the backyard with the baby buns and sunburns ARE a beautiful part of our finite days. Our memories and photos of these first few years with young kids may largely be at home and I am only recently starting to come to terms with that. I do need a vacation, but watching my boy giggle through the sprinklers and request that his sticky popsicle be cut in pieces because it hurts his teeth is it's own brand of wonderful. 

As a major fan of fruit in desserts, I was so excited to flip through Yossy's new cookbook. It's divided by season and then ingredient but still has adaptations for other fruits within the recipes. It's admittedly on the richer side of my normal fare but I find desserts to be more crowd-pleasing that way anyhow. And sometimes Hugh and Curran are my crowd. She has this pistachio pound cake in there that looks amazing and a super simple looking strawberry tart. It'll be perfect for summer meals outside. Curran chose these popsicles and while I'm sure he would have eaten anything from the book, they were perfect for these warm summer days.  

CANTALOUPE AND MINT YOGURT POPS // Makes 6-12 depending on molds
Recipe from Sweeter off the Vine by Yossy Arefi

Yossy asks for a teaspoon of orange-flower water which I do not stock. I went for the zest and juice of one lime which I thought was a perfect substitute with the melon and mint though I am sure the original is wonderful. We have a small, flimsy $1 popsicle mold from Walmart as our freezer is configured in such a way that makes it hard to fit in a full size mold. If you don't have molds, you could churn it in an ice cream maker for frozen yogurt or even just drink it as a smoothie. The sweetness dulls once frozen so keep the mix a little sweeter than you'd like your finished product.

12-ounces seeded and chopped cantaloupe
1 cup full fat greek yogurt
1/3 cup mild honey, to taste
1 Tbsp. fresh mint leaves, packed
zest and juice of one lime or 1 tsp. orange-flower water

Combine all ingredients in a blender or food processor and blend until smooth. Taste the mixture and adjust the level of sweetness if necessary by adding more honey, one teaspoon at a time (I did not find it needed any more). Pour into frozen pop molds and freeze the pops until completely firm, at least 6 hours or overnight. 

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CHOCOLATE HAZELNUT CHEWIES

I came across this quote on my friend Stacey's blog this week and I just love it.

In How to Be Here, Rob Bell writes this:

You and I were raised in a modern world that taught us how to work hard and be productive and show up on time and give it our best…

We learned lots of very valuable skills, but we weren’t taught how to be here, how to be fully present in this moment, how to not be distracted or stressed or worried or anxious, but just be here, and nowhere else—wide awake to the infinite depth and dimension of this exact moment.

I have my head down these days trying to keep everyone fed, rested, clean and happy. But I do feel that these days, in our times, stopping and seeing is so encouraged. It doesn't mean I do it, but it may be quote on Pinterest or line from a self help book or a loved one with a terminal illness that puts things back in perspective. It's advice I'm choosing to, or trying to, listen to because I am happier when I do.  The exhaustion, the 3am rocking, the mess and the tantrums, the baby smiles and the toddler phrases that make us laugh. It all feels like too much for my tender heart - both the hard and the really good of it. These are the days. 

I saw those virtuous candy bars on My New Roots a few weeks ago and while they look perfect, I used her general idea to come up with something a little quicker. That cookie layer would be perfect, but these still feel like such a treat drenched in dark chocolate. They remind me of these truffles but without the cocoa and a little nuttier inside. They are soft, so I keep them in the fridge and actually prefer them cold but I am not one to turn down a treat at any temperature. 

CHOCOLATE HAZELNUT CHEWIES //Makes about 16

You'll have to use your judgement based on the juiciness of your dates. Notes are in the recipe to compensate for dry or super juicy ones. We are going for the texture of a Lara bar inside - chewy and a wee bit crunchy. You can use all hazelnuts, but I wanted to pair them with a fattier nut for creaminess. 

1 cup toasted and skinner hazelnuts
1 cup cashews or macadamia nuts
8-9 pitted Medjool dates
1/4 cup real maple syrup
1/2 tsp. sea salt
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 cup rolled oats
2 Tbsp. coconut flour

6 ounces dark chocolate

toasted hazelnuts, flaky sea salt and cocoa nibs, for topping

In a food processor, pulse the nuts until just sandy. Add the dates, maple, salt, vanilla, oats and coconut flour and pulse a few more times to combine. The mixture should start to come together in a fall. If it is still too wet, add a few more tablespoons oats or flaxmeal. If it seems dry and crumbly, add a splash more maple or warm water. Chill in the fridge for 10 minutes.
Line a baking tray with parchment and spread a thin coat of coconut oil. Dump the nut mixture and form a rectangle about 3/4" thick. Pop it back in the fridge to chill another 15-20 minutes. 
Meanwhile, melt the chocolate in a large mixing bowl in the microwave or double boiler. Put a baking rack (rubbed with a bit of coconut oil) over a piece of parchment to collect drips. Cut the chewies into 2" squares. Bathe them one at a time in the chocolate bath, coating both sides, and set them on the rack. Sprinkle the tops with a bit of chopped hazelnuts, cocoa nibs and flaky sea salt. Pop them in the fridge to firm up and enjoy. Keep them in a covered container in the fridge.

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