Holiday Black Balls

Yummy in the Tummy....A tradition in our home every year our Holiday Balls here is the recipe you will never taste a better ball.








Ingredients

4 squares of unsweetened chocolate
2 cups of flour
2 teaspoons of baking powder
1 1/2 cups of sugar
1/2 cup of cooking oil
2 teaspoons of vanilla
3 large eggs
Shredded coconut
Powdered Sugar

Melt the chocolate on the stove it makes it easier and you can keep a better eye on it.
Set the chocolate aside.







Combine the flour and baking powder together in a mixing bowl.
 
Now in your mixer put the oil, vanilla, sugar, and add the chocolate last mix it up.

Add the eggs one at a time to make sure they get mixed in good.

Now add the dry ingredients make sure they are all well mixed you want your balls to be perfect.

Cover your mixture and put it in the refrigerator for at least an hour.





Ok now to make your balls.
Get your area ready for your balls
Put coconut in a bowl
Put your powered sugar in another bowl


 Alrighty now go get your mixture.




 
Have a plate for your balls you want to get your balls done a batch at a time after all we want good Holiday Balls have your cookie sheets ready and grease the cookie sheet , your balls will stick if it isn't.



Take a tablespoon and scoop some of your mixture on to your palm make a mark in your ball with your thumb to put the coconut in you want the coconut to be the surprise in your holiday balls.










So put just a pinch of coconut into the middle of your ball and roll the ball in the palm of your hand make it so you do not see the coconut.

Now place your ball on the plate and make more balls............ sweet .







Once you have a plate of balls pop them into the powered sugar and on to the cookie sheet











Cook them for 10 minutes or so in a 375 oven cool for a few minutes on the sheet then place on a rack to cool completely.....








There you are you have your delicious Holiday Balls ready to pop in you mouth
and wa...la.... Holiday Ballz oh oh oh . Just for a laugh here is a video on The Holiday Balls

Devils Food Cupcakes with Marshmallow Filling

Devils Food Cupcakes are a staple in our home but then so are any cupcakes. I took this to the next level by adding a delightful filling inside. Inside we filled them with Marshmallow Fluff.

The tender insides just burst open with the extra puff of fluff!

Hope you will get the time to try these they are a sure party hit. Cupcakes, chocolate, marshmallow,  who does not love all of these ingredients!

Enjoy

Ingredients

3/4 cup butter, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 large eggs
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup Dutch-process unsweetened cocoa
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup milk
1 jar (7 oz.) marshmallow cream (Fluff)




In a bowl, with a mixer on medium speed, beat butter and sugar until smooth.
Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition and scraping down sides of bowl as needed.



In another bowl sift together all the dry ingredients. Flour, cocoa, baking powder, and salt.

 

I always sift together my dry ingredients so that they get a little air and the little things that tend to be in flour do not get mixed in.

Stir in half the flour mixture into butter mixture.
Stir in milk just until blended.
Add remaining flour mixture and stir just until all mixed up



Spoon batter equally into cupcake tray  (cups should be almost full) lined with paper baking cup

Bake in a 350 degree oven till the tops pop up and you can stick a toothpick in that comes out clean . It usually take 15 to 20 minutes per batch. Now take the cupcakes out and cool on a rack then after 10 minutes remove from the pan and cool completely.

To get the hole on the top so you can pipe in your marshmallow fluff take a paring knife and cut a triangle out about 1”deep






.







Now take the center out about a ½ inch from the bottom of the cupcake.

 Keep the discards you can make some cake pops with the left over or eat it.









Ok get your Fluffy Marshmallow and put in into a pastry bag or use a zip lock bag with a small tip cut out of one of the corners.

Go down to the frosting recipe I have a few pictures of how to use a bag. Now pipe it into the cupcakes.





You put the tip of the bag into the hole and pipe it into the top of the cupcakes. Try not go over the top of the cupcake so it does not mix with the frosting. You want the marshmallow to be a surprise bite.


 
Now you can frost the cupcakes I use a pastry bag but it does not matter how you frost it is so delicious.

Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting

8 oz cream cheese, room temperature
1/4 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
4 cup sifted powdered sugar (You can decrease this amount if you don't care about it being as stiff for piping)
1/2 cup cocoa powder










Mix cream cheese and butter until smooth and creamy.
Mix in powdered sugar, one cup at a time.
Mix in cocoa powder

You can use a regular plastic bag to pipe the frosting on 

Yummy enjoy I put them back into the cupcake holder when I frost keeps them little guys all in a row and easier to transport for me. Use a thin knife to lift them out of the tray.




Place the bag into a bowl open the bag  and carefully put your frosting. Now cut a small tip off and frost your little heart away! 








  Enjoy these are great!

Pretzel Brownies

Ok I have yet to tweak a Brownie recipe and this one is good if you like a dense, good,  lick your finger dessert a little time consuming but good.








Here is a tip I find useful. When I mix the dry goods in any recipe,
I sift the dry ingredients together. This way I know they are mixed and there are no lumps or stuff in the dry mix.

I sift the dry mix into a separate bowl.

Yes it is old sifter (Grandma) but it works ! I am very Old School 



This recipe takes about 20 minutes to prep and 30 minutes or so to bake at 350 deezgree.

Ingredients

2 cups of all purpose flour
1/ 1/2 tsp of baking power
1/4 tsp of salt
** Theses are the items you sift together in the separate bowl
1 1/2 stick of butter melted or room temperature
1 1/2 cups of brown sugar I like dark gives it a rich flavor
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract use pure it is the best
1 cup or so of chocolate chips and another cup for the glaze
1 cup of crushed pretzels. I use whole wheat honey pretzels
1/2 cup crunchy peanut butter (Optional)

Line a 9 x 13 baking pan with parchment paper -  it makes it easy to life out and cut when they are done and your pan is so easy to clean'

Ahh so smooth

• Sift your flour, salt and baking powder together in a bowl
• In a separate bowl mix your butter and sugar till they are smooth
• Beat in your eggs and add the vanilla
• Add dry mixture stir in 1 cup of the chocolate chips add the pretzels

• Now the batter is thick and not so easy to spread so blop it into the pan and then nice and easy spread the mixture.
• Cook for 30 minutes or till a toothpick comes out clean as a whistle. (how clean is a whistle?)

Now in a double boiler or small pot of water with a bowl on top warm up the chocolate and mix in the peanut butter till it is cooked together nice and smooth. Do not try to do this in the microwave this is one time you will want to take the time to put a bowl over a pan of boiling water and melt the old school way.



I got this double boil set up at a garage sale for 25 cent's. HALLA! 






Drip the warm chocolate and peanut butter mixture onto the brownies and sprinkle with some more pretzels pieces. Now put them in the oven set at 350 degrees for approximately 30 minutes. Check them after 20 minutes.


Shhhh I just had a browniegazem

Oh my gosh if you are not stuffed from licking your fingers this last hour get a cup of milk or coffee and enjoy.