Weight Watcher brownie muffins......

I really debated about whether or not I should blog about these,because they're not gourmet or even blog worthy. I thought about it for a day and then said " why the heck not". I really wanted to blog about these, because I want this to come up on google if anyone is searching for a Weight Watcher Recipe for something sweet and simple.

As I mentioned last week, Robin and I started Weight Watchers( although I'm not being anal about every single point). I blogged last week over on Egullet with 2 other foodbloggers who were also watching their weight. One of them, has lost an impressive 200lbs already!! Anyway, I cooked a ton last week, along with packing Robin a snack container and lunch each day. All last week though, I craved something sweet with low points. I was browsing the cooking forum over on Garden Web and came across these. I think they're absolutely genius and I can't believe something can be so tasty with 2 ingredients and only 2 points( 3 if you use chocolate chips).

Now, don't hate on me because of the cake mix. I do have an organic mix in my pantry, but I was worried they wouldnt come out the same. One day I'll try them with that mix. For now, take my word that if you're dieting and in need of chocolate or your're a child, you'll probably love these. I think my neice Emily will love them and I've already instructed my sister to make them this weekend.

WW Brownie Muffins

1 box chocolate cake mix( can be devils food or dark chocolate)
1 15 ounce can of pumpkin( not pie filling).
6 ounces of choc. chips.

THATS IT!!!!!

No eggs, no oil, nothing else.

Mix the two really well( Mixture will be very thick) and scoop into sprayed muffin tins. Bake at 350 for around 13-15 min.

I topped mine with a few chips rather than adding them in.

I gave Robin one last night with about 3 tbls of organic vanilla ice cream and 1tbls of hot fudge( I made that!!) and she just about died. She couldnt believe they were 2 points each and only 2 ingredients. And no, you dont taste the pumpkin!!

Chocolate Peanut Butter Pie( Emeril)...

I really do NOT like Emeril. I think its the screaming and how he takes forever to garnish food. I especially hate The Bam!! Nevertheless, I saw this pie on someone's blog( I can't remember now) and thought it looked good enough for me to make for my Robin. Poor, Poor Robin. She ate like crap when I was in Florida so I wanted to make her a dessert using her favorite ingredient peanut butter. When I make her a peanut butter pie, I usually make the one that has a nutter butter crust(Nutter Butter's arent sold in Canada so I have to bring them back from MI) and cool whip. Like the aformentioned blogger, I used Nabisco Famous wafers because I had them. I also used bittersweet chocolate and I skipped the Sauce. I used some of the Hot Fudge sauce I made a couple months ago.

Verdict: Robin liked it but she said she likes a pure peanut butter pie better. Maybe next time I'll make the Nutter Butter pie, but use whipped cream instead of the cool whip.

Source: Emeril's Potluck: Comfort Food with a Kicked-Up Attitude, by Emeril Lagasse

1 1/2 cups finely ground graham cracker crumbs (I used 1/2 cup and would use all chocolate next time)
1 cup finely ground Oreo cookies (cream filling removed) (I used 2 cups of Nabisco's Famous Chocolate Wafers)
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted
6 tablespoons granulated sugar
4 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature (I used 1/3-less fat cream cheese)
1/4 cup confectioners' sugar
2 tablespoons milk
4 ounces melted semisweet chocolate (I used bittersweet)
2/3 cup smooth peanut butter
1 cup heavy cream

1/4 cup toasted chopped peanuts
Rich Chocolate Sauce (recipe below) (I skipped)


Preheat the oven to 375ºF.

Combine the graham cracker crumbs, Oreo cookie crumbs, butter, and 4 tablespoons of the granulated sugar in a medium bowl. Stir to throughly combine. Press the mixture firmly into a 9-inch pie pan and bake for 15 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven, let the crust cool completely, then wrap it with plastic wrap and place the pan in the freezer for at least 1 hour and for up to 2 weeks. Allow the crust to come to room temperature before filling.

Combine the cream cheese, confectioners' sugar, and milk in a large bowl. Beat with an electric mixer until well blended and smooth, about 1 minute on medium speed. Add the melted chocolate and the peanut butter and continue to blend for another minute on medium speed. Combine the cream with the remaining 2 tablespoons granulated sugar in another medium bowl. Beat with a whisk or electric mixer until stiff peaks form. Gently fold the whipped cream into the chocolate and peanut butter mixture until thoroughly incorporated and smooth. Pour the filling into the piecrust. Smooth the top of the pie with a spatula, cover, and refrigerate for at least 4 hours before serving.

To serve, use a hot wet knife to slice the pie into 8 portions. Garnish with the peanuts and drizzle with the Rich Chocolate Sauce.

Makes one 9-inch pie, 8 servings
Rich Chocolate Sauce

3/4 cup half-and-half
8 ounces semisweet chocolate chips
1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 tablespoon unsalted butter

In a small heavy saucepan, bring the half-and-half to a bare simmer over medium-low heat. Remove from the heat.

Place the chocolate in a medium heatproof bowl. Whisk the half-and-half slowly into the chocolate. Add the vanilla and butter to the sauce and whisk until the butter is completely incorporated. The sauce can be kept refrigerated in an airtight container for several days, but it must be returned to room temperature before serving.

Makes 1 1/2 cups.

Chocolate cherry cake.....

Well I'm back from Florida. I worked on Friday and I havent done much cooking since then( I made Robin coal fired wings again). While in Florida, my grandpa had his 97th birthday. My sister and I( thats her in the pic) made him a chocolate cherry cake. We also made him the jam thumbprint cookies and he loved those. This is another one of those cakes that starts with pre-measured ingredients. My sister recently aquired both Cake Mix doctor books( thanks to her generous older sister) and she was anxious to try out a recipe. I've made this cake before but in a milk chocolate version. The recipe is actually called Milk chocolate cherry pound cake, but since it calls for a Swiss Chocolate mix and thats not availble in Florida, we used a devils food mix. You add 1/4 cup of milk, 1/4 cup of water and a 1/4 cup of cherry juice( from the marashino cherries) and the eggs and oil the mix calls for. You also add chopped up cherries and choc. chips and a package of pudding mix. The frosting is supposed to be hershey choc. bars but since we went with a devils food mix, we used choc. chips. Powdered sugar, some milk and more cherry juice. Its a sweet cake, but everyone really loved it. I'm over the whole cake mix phase, but in certain instances(like me on vacation) it works.

Btw, I absolutely loved baking with my sisters insulated cake pan. She said she's had it for years and it came with a cover that she accidentally melted. I need to find one of those pans because the cake baked so evenly.

Holy Cow Cake......

I've been a bad blogger. Its not that I havent wanted to blog, its just that I really havent been cooking. I've been working a lot and my boss is really generous with leftovers. I helped her with a cooking class last Tuesday and she gave me lots of food to bring home. I fed that to Robin and I skipped dinner. I worked with the seniors on Thursday and I ate what I cooked. I ate leftovers on Friday. Truthfully, I havent felt like cooking at home much because I've done so much of it at work. I did make this cake tonight to test out the recipe. I have this planned for the Seniors for May 10th. This recipe comes from The Cake Mix Doctor. Yes, Yes, I know its a cake mix, but honestly, I dont have the time or the inclination to make from scratch cakes for the Seniors. I only get paid for 7.5hrs and I have to plan the menu, shop for and cook a salad, a main, 2 sides and a dessert for 50 ppl.

So, this is your basic chocolate cake mix( with pudding). The recipe calls for poking holes in the top and then pouring over a mixture of sweetened condensed milk and caramel topping. I skipped the milk, because I think it will just be too sweet. Then, you crush up butterfinger bars( I used butterfinger jingelers left over from xmas) and sprinkle those on top. The "frosting" is a mixture of cream cheese and coolwhip. More butterfingers go on top. Verdict: It was good, nothing spectacular but good. I'm going to bring the rest of this cake to the ladies in the agency I work for. I'll see what they say.

SHF #27 Chocolate by Brand....

I havent baked anything for 2 weeks because of Robins new lifestyle plan( aka South Beach). So, when I read about this months Sugar High Friday I knew I was going to participate. SHF was developed by Jennifer from The Domestic Goddess. David Lebovitz is hosting this months Sugar High Friday, Chocolate by Brand.
. Since I was going through some serious baking withdrawals I decided to make 2 things. Both of these recipes come from FineCooking's Chocolate magazine. The first, is No Cook Chocolate pudding. The second, are Chocolate chunk scones. My first choice was actually a chocolate peanut butter tart but there was no way for me to cut that recipe down as I did with both the pudding and scones. I cut each recipe in half. I used E.Guittard 72% bittersweet couverture wafers. I love these because I didn't have to chop them. I HATE chopping chocolate. I bought 3 boxes of this when Williams Sonoma had a big sale( 50%) off. I paid 5.99lb which is a great price.

Unfortunately, I wasn't really aware how bitter 72% chocolate is. I only used 2tbls of sugar in the pudding and 3tbls in the scones. They definitely need more sugar. I think the next time I use this chocolate, I'll have to cut it with some semi-sweet.

But, all is not lost because at least I was able to bake, I'm always happy for that.