There is nothing to make you feel more uncoordinated than playing video games with kids. I had an 8 year old desperately wanting to play Halo with me. I informed him that I was no good at playing Halo. That was putting it mildly. Being 8 an optimistic he didn’t seem to take me all that serious and assured me that he could do what others had not been able to before, he would teach me Halo.

I was already down and out staring at my little pink Xbox controller (yes, mine is pink) while he quickly went over what each button did and then listed the exceptions, which there seemed to be many of. I think at this point I was mostly blinking when I was informed just follow my guy and I’ll tell you what to do.

You think that would have been easy? Just follow his guy. Sure. Yeah, not so much. I couldn’t get my up and down right. I would move when I was supposed to be looking. And then the next thing you know I was somehow on fire. To which he was in awe that I was on fire since we hadn’t even gone against any enemy yet. Yes, my inadequate video game skills were shining through and through. Once I was brought back to life again and once I stopped laughing I attempted to follow him again. Which usually ended up with a whole lot of “no, up, you are looking down” and “where did you go?”

I never did end up getting to the point of actually going against an enemy. After 15 minutes of being completely lost and somehow setting myself on fire the oven timer went off and a 13 year came to my rescue and actually played the game how you are supposed to play it. I’m not giving up yet. I don’t think the 8 year old is going to let me. Next time I am just hoping to not catch on fire.

After a long day of being reminded you are old there is nothing better than chocolate. A few years ago I joined a group called Tuesdays with Dorie that my friend Laurie started. They finally reached the end of the book (it’s a big book and one you should own if you are a baker) and that got me thinking about some of the things I have made from that book. One was a chocolate chip topped brownie. Thought I would throw in left over Nutter Butters and add a few peanut butter chips and some peanut butter to the mix. Almost made me forget I suck at Halo. Almost.

Ghetto Chocolate Chip Topped Nutter Butter Brownie Bars

For the brownie layer:

9 ounces semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
8 ounces unsalted butter, cut into pieces (melt quicker that way)
1 1/3 cups granulated sugar
4 eggs
½ tsp. salt
½ tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup all-purpose flour
30 Nutter Butter Cookies

For the cookie layer:

1 ¼ cups flour
½ tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. salt
10 TBSP unsalted butter, at room temperature
4 TBSP peanut butter, I used Jif
¾ cup packed light brown sugar
2/3 cup sugar
1 egg
1 egg yolk
1 tsp. vanilla extract
¾ cup milk chocolate chips
¾ cup peanut butter chips

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter a 9-x-13-inch baking pan, line it with wax or parchment paper and butter the paper. Put the pan on a baking sheet.

For the Brownie Batter: Put chocolate and the butter in a bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water. Heat just until the ingredients are melted, stirring occasionally. Remove the bowl from the heat.

Working with a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the sugar and eggs on medium-high speed for about 2 minutes, until pale.

Beat in the salt and vanilla extract. Reduce the speed to low, and mix in the melted chocolate and butter, mixing only until incorporated. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula, then, still on low speed, add the flour, mixing only until it disappears into the batter.

Pour brownie batter into prepared pan. Place Nutter Butter Cookies close to each other but not overlapping (cut some in half if need be to make fit) until the brownie batter is covered in Nutter Butters.

Clean the mixer bowl to use again for the cookie dough.

For the Cookie Dough: In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt.

Working with a stand mixer, beat the butter, peanut butter, and both sugars together on medium-high speed until smooth and creamy, about 3 minutes.

One at a time, add the egg and the yolk, beating for 1 minute after each addition. Beat in the vanilla. Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the dry ingredients, mixing only until they disappear into the dough. Mix in the chocolate and peanut butter chips.

Drop the cookie dough by spoonfuls over the brownie batter with Nutter Butters and, using a spatula and a light touch, spread it evenly over the batter.

Bake for 50 to 55 minutes, or until the cookie top is deep golden brown and firm and a thin knife inserted into the brownie layer comes out with only faint streaks of moist chocolate. Transfer the pan to a rack and cool to room temperature.

When the bars are completely cool, carefully run a knife between the sides of the pan and the brownies, then invert them onto another rack, remove the paper and turn right side up onto a cutting board. Cut into bars about 2 inches by 1 inch.

Adapted from Baking From My Home To Yours by Dorie Greenspan

This is where I say a goodbye to many of you. Oh it’s not a permanent goodbye for most of you, as you tend to all come back around Valentine’s Day, but many of you flee this time of year. Many people write or comment that you won’t be coming to my site for a while, that it’s too much temptation while you make your “lifestyle change”.

Let me be the first to assure you that if you can’t look at photos of food without setting off some sort of trigger, than you are not on a lifestyle change, you are on a diet. If you can’t figure out how to fit in a brownie once in a while then you aren’t going to last. If you have always had a sweet tooth, which if you come to this site you probably do; it is quite unrealistic I hate to tell you to give up sugar for the rest of your life. I should know, on a dare I once did Sugar Busters for a year. Did I lose weight? No, in fact I gained 12 pounds. Why, because I never lost my sugar craving. I lost my craving for bread, but never sugar. I got horrible migraines and was pretty much a miserable b!tch to anyone and everyone that came my way. My doctor told me to go back on sugar (how many do that?) and sure enough it cleared up my migraine problem.

If you want to change your diet, the more power to you. But all I ask is that you think about not doing anything extreme. You will lose weight at first, probably quickly. Every one of my friends to go low carb has always lost weight…and always found it again. You don’t even need to spend money on books or going to meetings or eat prepackaged foods. It’s always been a simple formula…take in less calories than what you put out. There is a website (that has an app as well) called My Fitness Pal.com (no they aren’t compensating me in any way) that is not only free but will scare the crap out of you if you are honest with it. If you plug in all your food and click done with the day it will tell you how much you will weigh in 5 weeks if you ate like that every day. It works both ways, have a crazy eating day it will probably scare you into not eating that much. Eat within reasonable calorie range for your weight and height and you will probably like the number that will show up in 5 weeks. Either way it’s up to you. It doesn’t matter if you don’t put it down that you ate it…your body knows you did and will make your jeans tight all the same.

You will not see diet recipes on here. I won’t be doing any low fat desserts (the least selling cookbooks ever FYI are low fat desserts). Which means some of you will leave sadly. But I believe in staying true to myself and that means not putting up sugar free, fat free pudding as a dessert. Because it’s not. In fact I’m pretty afraid to even know what is in half that stuff. Yikes.

For those who have learned to indulge once in a while I offer up my Brownie Tart and Hot Chocolate Ice Cream. This is a rich tart and a little slice will go a long way. Perfect for those in a lifestyle change.

Brownie Tart with Hot Chocolate Ice Cream

6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter
3 cups semisweet chocolate chips
3 large eggs
1 egg yolk
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt

Grease and flour a 9-inch tart pan with removable sides. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Melt the butter in a bowl set over simmering water. Add 2 cups of the chocolate chips, remove from the heat, and stir until the chocolate melts. Set aside to cool completely.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the eggs, yolk, sugar, and vanilla on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.

Stir in the cooled chocolate. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, salt, and the remaining 1 cup of chocolate chips.

Fold the flour mixture into the batter until just combined. Pour into the pan and bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until the center is puffed (the top may crack). The inside will still be very soft. Cool to room temperature before removing the sides of the tart pan.
Adapted from Ina Garten Foodnetwork.com

Hot Chocolate Ice Cream

1 cup milk
4 tsp. cornstarch
2 cups heavy cream
2/3 cup hot chocolate mix
¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 cup granulated sugar
¼ tsp. salt
3 tbsp. cream cheese, softened
1 ½ cups mini marshmallows

In a bowl, stir together 1/4 cup milk and the cornstarch; set slurry aside.

In a 4-qt. saucepan, whisk together remaining milk and the cream, sugar, hot chocolate mix, cocoa powder, and salt; bring to a boil over medium-high heat.

Cook for 4 minutes; stir in slurry. Return to a boil and cook, stirring, until thickened, about 2 minutes. Place cream cheese in a bowl and pour in 1/4 cup hot milk mixture; whisk until smooth. Then whisk in remaining milk mixture.

Place into a container and place into the fridge for at least 6 hours, even better if you do over night. Make sure that you ice cream bowl for your machine has sat in the freezer for at least 24 hours.

Pour mixture into an ice cream maker; process according to manufacturer’s instructions. Add marshmallows just as ice cream is finishing. Transfer ice cream to a storage container and freeze until set.

Adapted from Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams

Christmas:
*Good. Santa was super-duper kind to me and got me a Kitchen Aid 13 cup Food Processor. My old one is 16 years old and while the motor was fine all the plastic parts were not.
*Had this yummy cinnamon coffee cake that is easy and an overnight cake (see the recipe below). Went non-traditional for dinner and had steak and a seafood gratin. Followed with a brownie tart with hot chocolate and marshmallow ice cream (recipe later this week).
*As usual Crazy Cocker Spaniel made out the best. Which is why we are mean and play Deck the Dog with her.

In good news though you can all see that I picked up a date for New Year’s Eve.
What did you end up getting? Was Santa kind to you as well?

Cinnamon Coffee Cake

2/3 cup unsalted butter
½ cup packed brown sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs, beaten
2 cups flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 cup buttermilk
Topping:
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Cream together butter, brown sugar and, granulated sugar.

Add the beaten eggs and mix well.

Sift together all dry ingredients.

Add to creamed mixture alternately with the buttermilk.

Pour into greased and floured 9 x 13-inch pan.

Sprinkle topping over the batter.

Cover with foil and refrigerate overnight.

Remove foil and bake at 350° for 35 minutes or until cake tests done.

Adapted from Food.com

“Unless life hands you water and sugar your lemonade is going to suck”
I saw this today on Pinterest (btw several people asked to follow me…it’s just my name so feel free to look it up, it’s a public site) and it made me laugh. Because if you are already a cranky pain in the butt and someone hands you lemons, you aren’t going to make lemonade…you will probably just chuck the lemons at people…which sometimes, let’s be honest sounds better than making lemonade.

I didn’t get lemons but I got a large box of Satusumas and needed to do something with them. I love orange and chocolate together. I also love Ina Garten’s lemon yogurt cake. I thought why not change it to orange and add some chocolate. Changed the recipe a little but it’s all good. No really, it’s good. Like hide it so others don’t get to have any good. Give them lemons instead.

Orange Chocolate Chip Yogurt Cake

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1 cup plain whole-milk yogurt (I used Greek)
1 1/3 cups sugar, divided
3 large eggs
1 egg yolk
2 tsp. Grated orange zest (about two Satsuma’s)
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2/3 cup freshly squeezed orange juice, divided
1 ½ cups mini chocolate chips

For the glaze:
1 cup powdered sugar
2 TBSP freshly squeezed orange juice

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Grease and 8 1/2 by 4 1/4 by 2 1/2-inch loaf pan. Line the bottom with parchment paper. Grease and flour the pan.

Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt into 1 bowl.

In another bowl, whisk together the yogurt, 1 cup sugar, the eggs, yolk, 1/3 cup orange juice, orange zest, and vanilla.

Slowly whisk the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. With a rubber spatula, fold the vegetable oil into the batter, making sure it’s all incorporated. Fold in the chocolate chips.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for about 50 minutes, or until a cake tester placed in the center of the loaf comes out clean.

Meanwhile, cook the remaining 1/3 cup orange juice and remaining 1/3 cup sugar in a small pan until the sugar dissolves and the mixture is clear. Set aside.

When the cake is done, allow it to cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Carefully place on a baking rack over a sheet pan. While the cake is still warm, pour the lemon-sugar mixture over the cake and allow it to soak in. Cool.

For the glaze, combine the powdered sugar and orange juice and pour over the cake.
Adapted from Ina Garten