quick eats: puppy chow!

This stuff is dangerous. Really. 

If you love peanut butter and chocolate (who doesn't?!) then you'll love this perfect combo of sweet, salty and crunchy. Put it in a small bowl or you will eat the whole bag. 

Here's what you'll need:

INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup peanut butter
• 9 cups crispy rice cereal squares
• 1/2 cup confectioners' sugar 

METHOD

ONE.

In a saucepan over low heat, melt the chocolate chips. 

TWO.

Add peanut butter. Mix until smooth.

THREE.

Remove from heat. Add cereal and stir until squares are well coated, being careful not to crush the cereal too much.

FOUR.

Pour confectioners' sugar in a large Ziplock bag and add coated cereal squares. Seal the bag and shake until sugar covers all squares. 

She didn't want to be recognized in the photos... but check out that shaking!

So so good. But you will want to eat it all. Immediately. Consider yourself warned. 

Enjoy!

xo Emily

something sweet: chocolate truffles 3 ways.

This holiday season, my go-to recipe for parties and gatherings was chocolate truffles. Making them is super simple, and with a little attention to detail it's easy to make them look oh-so pretty! You can get creative with flavors and toppings, making them the perfect dessert addition to any table, any time of year. The following is my recipe (adapted from SimpleRecipes).

Here's what you'll need:

INGREDIENTS

Basic Chocolate Truffle Ingredients

• 8 oz semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate (62% cacao or higher), well chopped
• 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream

Base Flavors

• Original - 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• Raspberry - 1 tsp raspberry extract
• Almond - 1 tsp almond extract

Additional Base Flavors (that I haven't tackled yet!)

• Cinnamon - 1 stick
• Amaretto - 1-2 tsp
• Mint - 1 cup chopped fresh mint leaves

Truffle Coatings

• Chopped nuts (walnuts, almonds, pecans), finely chopped
• Shredded coconut (unsweetened) 
• Cocoa powder (I added a couple pinches of confectionery sugar to mine to take away some of the bitterness)

METHOD 

ONE.

In a small, heavy saucepan bring the heavy whipping cream to a simmer. This may take some time. Be sure to scrape down the sides with a rubber spatula every few minutes. If you are using a liquid flavor, stir it in with the cream.

If using mint or other solids for flavor, add after the cream simmers and remove from heat. Let seep for 1 hour. Then strain away solids and return cream to simmer and proceed with recipe.

TWO.

Place chocolate in mixing bowl. Pour heated, flavored cream over chocolate and let stand for 3 minutes, then stir until smooth. 

The more finely the chocolate is chopped, the easier it will be to get a really smooth consistency. 

THREE.

Allow to come to room temperature, then refrigerate for at least 2 hours (it can even sit overnight). Remove from fridge and use a teaspoon to roll out balls of ganache about 1" in diameter. 

It's important to roll fairly quickly as the heat of your hands will melt the ganache almost immediately. And yes, this can be messy!

Place ganache balls on parchment paper-lined baking sheet. You can refrigerate these until ready to decorate.

FOUR.

Roll in selected toppings. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

And you're done! Prepare to have everyone be dazzled by your delicious creations.

What are your favorite party recipes? Do you have any fun truffle flavors you've made?

xo Emily

P.S. Special thank you to Kate for being my demo subject/hand model.