Chocolate ganache buttercream frosting is whipped until fluffy and then topped with a dark chocolate drip glaze in this 1960’s Bakers Chocolate recipe.  Using chocolate squares instead of cocoa powder, this frosting has an unparalleled deep rich chocolate flavor.  

A while back I came across this magazine clipping that my mother had saved many years ago.  I had acquired it along with numerous other recipes and kitchen items after my mothers passing.  I remember as a young boy watching my mom make this cake and just how elaborate I thought it was.

Lately I have found myself interested in retro recipes from the 50’s and 60’s.  People enjoyed hosting cocktail parties offering their company extravagantly decorated plates of finger foods and garnished drinks.  Invitations were sent, furniture was arranged, beautiful appetizers were strategically placed, and highballs were served.  With a stack of lp’s on the hifi changer, the well dressed guests tossed back a few cocktails, enjoyed a nibble or two, and had some laughs.  And of course no gathering would be complete without a dessert that looked as though it came right out of a magazine.

I will admit the cake turned out quite well but I did rush the glaze just a bit.  I was concerned that the chocolate was setting up too much in the pan.  While it seemed cool enough, a bit more ran off the cake than I would have liked.  I will certainly make this again, just allowing the glaze a bit more time to cool before pouring.

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Chocolate-on-Chocolate Frosting

Cocoa could never make a frosting like this because cocoa has most of its chocolate richness removed. Only Baker’s Unsweetened Chocolate will do!

Course Cakes

Cuisine American

Prep Time 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes minutes

Temper chocolate 20 minutes minutes

Total Time 50 minutes minutes

Author Christoph

Ingredients

Creamy Chocolate Under-frosting

• ½ cup butter, 1 stick
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 pound un-sifted confectioners’ sugar, 4 ½ cups
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 4 squares Baker’s Unsweetened Chocolate, melted over hot water
• ¼ cup milk

Deep Chocolate Over-Glaze

• ½ cup sugar
• ¼ cup water
• 2 squares Baker’s Unsweetened Chocolate, melted over hot water
• 1 teaspoon butter
• 1 Tablespoon milk

Instructions

Under-frosting

• Cream butter until soft. Beat in the salt and about 1 ½ cups of the sugar.
• Then add egg, vanilla, and melted chocolate; blend well. Beat in remaining sugar alternately with the milk, beat after each addition until smooth.
• Use to fill and frost three 8-inch cake layers, spreading ½ cup between each layer and on top and the remaining frosting around the sides of the cake. Then top with chocolate glaze.

Over-Glaze

• In a small saucepan, combine sugar and water. Bring to a boil and boil ½ minute, stirring constantly. Slowly stir in chocolate, then stir in butter. Slowly beat in milk. Beat until of spreading consistency. While glaze is still warm, pour onto top of frosted cake. Spread to edges and drizzle over sides at intervals. Let stand until glaze is set before cutting.

Notes

Making this icing is a bit involved but well worth the time.  The over-glaze is a bit tricky. 

I was concerned that it was getting to stiff to pour however I should have let it cool just a bit more to get a better dripping effect.

Because of the time involved making the frosting I used a box cake.  If you are going to make a cake from scratch I would bake it the day before in the interest of time.

Moist and dense, incredibly rich and fudgy, a chocoholics dream come true. Much like its author, this recipe is a no-fuss classic and uses only a 1/4 cup of flour making chocolate the real star of this treat.  So delicious and easy to make, these brownies might just become a weekly ritual.

Recently I have found myself tuning in to watch movies on TCM.  They are celebrating 30 days of Oscars by featuring movies that have won Academy awards.  The other day I happened upon a movie with the fabulous Katharine Hepburn.  I have always enjoyed and appreciated her style and humor.  Watching her got me to thinking about a phone conversation I recently had with my sister, who was in the process of making Katharine’s brownies to take to her office for a pot luck.  She told me she uses these brownies as a go-to for just such gatherings, partly for the ease, but mostly because everyone always enjoys them.  I realized I had never tried these wonders so I decided to give the Academy’s Best Actress award winners recipe a go.

Well the outcome was really quite delicious!  I am not sure they are the best brownie I have ever tasted, but they certainly are right up there.  Since using only a small amount of flour, the recipe produces a very rich, very chocolaty brownie that I will say was certainly easy to make.  I did decide to dress them up just a little with a drizzle of dark chocolate.  I know the original recipe doesn’t call for it, but I didn’t think a chocoholic like Katharine would mind.

”And don’t over-bake them! They should be moist, not cakey!” 

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Katharine Hepburn’s ‘Home-Wrecking’ Brownies

Moist and dense, a chocolate lovers dream brownie. This is the famous family recipe known as Katharine Hepburn's Brownies, which were originally printed in a New York Times letter to the editor.

Course Dessert

Cuisine American, Retro

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time 35 minutes minutes

Total Time 50 minutes minutes

Servings 16

Author Christoph

Ingredients

• 2 ounces unsweetened baker's chocolate (2 squares), or ½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, 1 stick
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1/4 cup flour
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• Pinch of salt
• 1 cup roughly chopped walnuts or pecans, lightly toasted

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 325F degrees.
• Butter the sides and bottom of an 8-inch square baking pan and line the bottom with parchment to prevent sticking.
• In a dry skillet over medium high heat, lightly toast the nuts. Set aside to cool.
• Melt the chocolate with the butter in a stainless bowl over a pan of boiling water.  Use a bowl large enough to mix all the ingredients. 
• Remove from heat and stir in sugar.  Allow to cool slightly.
• Stir in the eggs one at a time, add vanilla and mix until smooth.
• Add the flour and salt, stir until smooth. Fold in the nuts.
• Pour into prepared pan and bake until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, about 30-35 minutes.
• ''And don't over-bake them! They should be moist, not cakey!''
• Cool brownies in the pan on a wire rack. Allow to cool completely before cutting.

Notes

For best results, cover the pan of cooled brownies with cling wrap and place in the fridge overnight before cutting. This allows time for the flavors to develop and produces the most ultimate moist brownie.

Drizzle with dark chocolate if desired.

Rich chocolate and cool mint mingle to create an explosion of flavor in these grasshopper brownies.  This recipe utilizes brownie mix and canned frosting to make an easy and delicious quick treat.  The combination of mint and chocolate is by no means new to the scene.   York has been making their famous peppermint patty, children have been dunking peppermint sticks in to cocoa, and the Girl Scouts have been peddling Thin Mints for years.

I am not really sure why this minty dessert was ever named the grasshopper other than for its color, I mean there are no actual insects in any recipe I have ever found.  There is a famous cocktail named the grasshopper made with creme de menthe and white cream de cacao which has been around since the early 1950’s, about the same time that grasshopper pie started showing up.  There is no way to know which came first, but luckily someone had the mind to throw these flavors together.

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Grasshopper Brownies

Rich chocolate and cool mint mingle to create an explosion of flavor in these grasshopper brownies. This recipe utilizes brownie mix and canned frosting to make an easy and delicious quick treat.

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Prep Time 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time 45 minutes minutes

Total Time 1 hour hour 5 minutes minutes

Servings 16 2 x 2 Brownies

Ingredients

• 1 box brownie mix prepare as directed on box
• ½ cup Andes mint baking chips
• 1 can cream cheese frosting
• ½ cup powdered sugar
• 2 tablespoons Creme de Menthe or 1 teaspoon mint extract
• 2 - 3 drops drops green soft gel food coloring
• ¾ cup dark chocolate baking chips
• ½ cup heavy cream
• 1 tablespoon Kahlua optional

Instructions

• Add mint chips to brownie mix and bake in an 8″ x 8″ pan following the instructions on the box. Allow to completely cool.
• Place frosting in a medium-sized mixing bowl.
• Add powdered sugar, creme de menthe (or extract), and color. Mix until thoroughly combined.
• Spread frosting evenly over cooled brownies. Place in fridge to set frosting.
• Place chocolate chips is a small mixing bowl.
• Heat cream in the microwave until hot (not boiling).
• Pour hot cream over chips and allow to stand for about three minutes. Stir to combine.
• Chocolate will thicken as it cools.  Add Kahlua to ganache if desired.
• When chocolate reaches room temperature pour over the top of mint layer.
• Level with a spatula if necessary.
• Place brownies in the fridge for about thirty minutes to set ganache.

Notes

I used a box mix and canned frosting for this quick and easy treat, if you prefer to make everything from scratch, knock yourself out.

This year I find myself looking at the calendar in amazement wondering where all the time I thought I had before the holidays went. Actually the whole summer and fall have pretty much zip-pity do da-ed right out of my arse. Spring storms this year brought hail and water damage to our home. So in addition to playing general contractor for the already scheduled brick work, I found my self managing a new roof and gutters (thank-you State Farm), as well as the painting of all the exterior trim. The unplanned remodeling of the lower level of our house did offer us new options for finally completing the “man cave” of our dreams (with a giant HD television, amazing sound system, and sexy lighting) however I guess between doing much of the work myself and organizing the rest, I somehow lost a month or two.

Suddenly it was Thanksgiving (didn’t even see that one coming) and now it was time to decorate the house and make holiday treats for family and friends, neighbors, and the caregivers at the home where my mother resides. So I got busy and busted out a dozen of my trusted holiday family favorites and got to work. As I completed the last treat, I felt that I had sifted, creamed, chopped, dusted, and rolled about as much butter, flour, and sugar as I could possible tolerate. Seems to come a point each year where I am just over it, and with company arriving this coming Wednesday (hopefully a bit later in the day than the new furniture and bed are to be delivered, nothing like running a tight schedule) I felt like I had everything taken care of.  Then came the question. “You are going to make Peanut butter balls aren’t you? I don’t see any peanut butter balls. They are my favorite and you always make them. It just wouldn’t be Christmas without them”.

So overnight as I lay awake dreading the idea of rolling and dipping yet another item, the thought came to me to simply make them as a bar. The recipe itself is quite simple, so why not just let simple be and make my life the same. Well the experiment worked quite well I must say. I prepared the filling as I normally would for the balls, but instead pressed it into an 8″ x 8″ pan that I had lined with foil and buttered. Then I tempered some chocolate and flooded it over the top of the filling. I allowed the pan to set up overnight, cut the bar into pieces and….. ta da! I did go the extra and melt some peanut butter chips to decorate the tops but that certainly would have not been necessary. I must say they turned out really quite good. I still think I might prefer the rolled ones, but for this holiday, simple is certainly……. simply delicious.

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Peanut Butter Ball Bars

Everyone's favorite chocolate and peanut butter balls made in an easy bar form.

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes minutes

Total Time 25 minutes minutes

Servings 48 Candies

Ingredients

• 1   cup butter softened
• 1   cup peanut butter smooth or crunchy
• 2   cups graham cracker crumbs
• 3   cups powdered sugar
• 1  12 oz. bag semi-sweet baking chips

Instructions

• Line an 8" x 8" baking pan with aluminum foil and lightly grease with butter
• Mix together butter and peanut butter until smooth. Add graham crackers and mix well. Add powdered sugar and mix until a soft dough forms.
• Press evenly into the bottom of the prepared pan.
• Melt chocolate by tempering either in a double boiler or in the microwave. Pour melted chocolate over the top of the peanut butter mixture and spread evenly.
• Allow for chocolate to set up before cutting. You can speed up this process by placing pan in the fridge.
• Using the foil lift the bars out of the pan and place on a cutting board. Cut into 1" - 1 1/2" squares. Store in an airtight container.

Notes

You can use any recipe for Peanut Butter Balls with this method.

More recipes you might enjoy:

Better Homes and Gardens

Joy of Baking

Sweet Anna’s

Taste of Home

The Girl Who Ate Everything

Luckily I do have a few outlets to move some of the products that I make to write about other than eating them all myself. I usually deliver some treats to my parents (Dad has a powerful sweet tooth) and the caregivers at the Colorado State Veterans Nursing Home where they live. I share with the neighbors next door, or my partner Kelly takes some to the office. It’s kind of humorous that often when we are looking for a bite of something after dinner there is nothing, because I have sent it all out of the house to avoid having more than either of us need.

But anyway yesterday I wanted to make something, but something easy that would not require all day or hours of clean up.  While I love baking from scratch, I also am realistic enough to know that there is not always time or energy for that, and there are some very good mixes on the market. I have taken to picking up a mix or two when I see a good sale, just to have around for times like these. As I was reading the back of the box I notice a “recipe idea” panel near the bottom for Cappuccino Cheesecake Brownies.  Now this looked like something I had better try, and I am glad I did. I made a few modifications (of course), and baked them in a smaller pan than the recipe called for so they would be a bit taller. After cutting into them and sampling, I distributed the majority of them immediately to avoid the otherwise inevitable. We will still have a few bites for ourselves, and I managed to bring a few smiles to others along the way ….. that is dessert enough for me.

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Cappuccino Cheesecake Brownies

Incredibly moist brownies with a delicious layer of cappuccino cheesecake.

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Prep Time 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time 55 minutes minutes

Total Time 1 hour hour 15 minutes minutes

Servings 25

Ingredients

Brownies

• 1 package Pillsbury Mocha Fudge Brownie Mix
• ½ cup oil
• ¼ cup water
• 2 large eggs

Cheesecake layer

• 1 8 ounce package cream cheese
• 2 Tablespoons butter softened
• 1 Tablespoon cornstarch
• ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
• ¾ teaspoon cinnamon divided
• 1 14 ounce can sweetened condensed milk
• 1 large egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3 Tablespoons dark chocolate chips melted for drizzling

Instructions

Brownies

• Heat oven to 350°F.    Coat 9” x 13” pan with non-stick cooking spray.
• Prepare brownie mix according to the package directions using the oil, water, and 2 eggs.  Spread brownie batter evenly into prepared pan.

Cheesecake layer

• Beat cream cheese, butter, cornstarch, and ¼ teaspoon cinnamon in a medium bowl mix mixer on medium speed until fluffy.
• Add sweetened condensed milk, 1 egg, and vanilla.  Beat until smooth.
• Pour evenly over the brownie batter.
• Sprinkle with remaining ½ teaspoon cinnamon.
• Bake
• 45 – 55 minutes or until top is lightly browned and filling is set in the center. Cool completely in pan on a wire rack.
• Place 2 – 3 tablespoon of chocolate chips or frosting in a resealable plastic bag. Microwave on high for 10 seconds at a time until chocolate is melted.
• Cut corner off bag and drizzle chocolate over brownies.

Notes

I prepared these brownies in a 9″ x 9″ pan to get a bit more height.  This did require a longer baking time.  This recipe describes using a 9″ x 13″ pan.  If you use a smaller pan adjust your cooking time.  Test with a toothpick.

Layers of cool creamy peanut butter and chocolate create this decadent, yet surprisingly light dessert. Probably one of the easiest cakes you will ever make, this treat tastes as though you spent hours preparing it.

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No-bake Peanut Butter Chocolate Eclair Cake

Layers of cool creamy peanut butter and chocolate create this decadent, yet surprisingly light dessert. Probably one of the easiest cakes you will ever make, this treat tastes as though you spent hours preparing it.

Course Dessert

Cuisine American, Retro

Prep Time 12 hours hours 20 minutes minutes

Servings 24

Author Christoph

Ingredients

• 1 box chocolate graham crackers
• 2 3 1/4 oz. boxes vanilla instant pudding
• 1 cup creamy peanut butter
• 3 1/2 cups milk
• 8 oz. Whipped cream
• 1 can chocolate frosting

Instructions

• Lightly spray the bottom of a 9″ x 13″ pan with cooking spray. Line the bottom of the pan with whole graham crackers covering the entire dish. Cut crackers to fit with a sharp knife if needed.
• In bowl with an electric mixer combine pudding mix with milk and peanut butter. Beat at medium speed for 2 minutes. Fold in whipped topping, and combine until well mixed.
• Pour half the pudding mixture over graham crackers. Place another layer of whole graham crackers on top of pudding layer. Pour over remaining pudding mixture and cover the top with another layer of graham crackers.
• Heat the container of prepared frosting, uncovered in the microwave for 1 minute. Pour over the top of the cake.
• Refrigerate for at least 12 hours before serving.

Notes

This is a great make ahead dessert for entertaining or a pot luck. So easy to make and always a huge success!