Wednesday, April 30, 2014

Fabulously Easy Hot Fudge


I bet you can guess that I love chocolate. 
 I have pondered this.

Why do I love it so much?

 I know it isn't just the taste.

A lot of it has to do with texture
and
texture has definitely improved over the years.

Chocolate should literally melt in your mouth
and
there should be no grainy feel.
Yes, I think it is as much texture as
it is taste, and of course, the smell -
I love the smell of chocolate too.



My son Marcus  made me this
wonderful sign which I have in my kitchen.

I love it!



This is so easy and you probably have
everything on hand for it.

Fabulous Hot Fudge Recipe

1 C. semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/2 C. butter
1 can sweetened condensed milk

Place the three ingredients in a microwave
safe bowl.  Melt for one minute, then stir and
melt again for 30 seconds, stirring again.  Repeat
for an additional 30 seconds if you need to.

This is super thick.  You can thin it down 
with a tablespoon or two of milk or use
it thick and rich like it is.

We love to use it for a
Chocolate Fondue.

Monday, April 28, 2014

Chocolate Bread Pudding with Caramel Cream Sauce


My first introduction to 
Chocolate Bread Pudding
was in a restaurant in
New Orleans where 
the Chocolate Bread Pudding
came out warm and two waiters
attended it with two forks to open
it up and the other waiter had
a small pitcher of chocolate sauce
and a small pitcher of caramel sauce
and he poured the sauces into the
center of the warm pudding.

Flavor and presentation!
I was wowed and won over.   



Chocolate Bread Pudding
12 C. European style bread cut into 1 inch chunks
1 qt. cream or 2 C. cream and 2 C. half and half
2 C. brown sugar
1 C. white sugar
1 egg
1 T. vanilla
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1 1/2 C. semi-sweet chocolate chips
3/8 C. orange juice
1/4 C. brown sugar
1/2 C. semi-sweet chocolate chips

In a larger bowl place the bread cubes.  Set aside.
In another bowl mix the cream, sugars, egg,
vanilla and cinnamon.

In a microwave safe bowl place the 
chocolate chips and orange juice.  Microwave
the chocolate in 30 second intervals, stirring
between each one until the chocolate is melted.
Stir until smooth.  

Whisk the chocolate mixture into the sugar mixture,
then pour over the bread cubes.  Let the
bread soak for about 30 minutes, then place
in a 9x13 inch cake pan that has been
sprayed with Pam.

Sprinkle the 1/4 C. brown sugar and the
chocolate chips on the top.

Bake at 375 for 40-50 minutes
or until bubbling around the edge
and set.  

Let cool.  You may serve it warm or
at room temperature.
Top with Caramel Cream Sauce
and Cinnamon Chocolate Sauce.

Caramel Cream Sauce

In a medium saucepan melt 2/3 C. butter
and then stir in 2 1/2 T. flour.  Cook until
bubbly and slightly browned and nutty
smelling.  Stir in 2 C. cream, 1 C. brown sugar
 and 1/4 tsp. salt, whisking until smooth
and cook over medium heat until thickened.
Remove from heat and stir in 1 tsp. vanilla.

Cinnamon Chocolate Sauce

Place 1 C. semi sweet chocolate chips in
a microwave safe bowl along with 1 C. sugar, 
1 C. cream and 1/4 tsp cinnamon.  Microwave
at 30 second intervals, stirring between each 
interval until smooth and the chocolate is all
melted.  

Garnish with whipped cream.

Click here for a printable recipe.



Talk about the perfect comfort food!
This hits all of my buttons.

Thanks for stopping by and visiting
Purple Chocolat Home.

I will be posting this with

Wednesday, April 23, 2014

Easter Dinner Table


The Mama Bunny at Purple Chocolat Home
was busy baking and chocolate making so
for our family Easter Dinner
she cheated a little and kept the theme
she had used for the Easter Birthday Lunch
and modified it as she was setting the
table for 12.

(I don't blame her one bit as she was
hopping just as fast as she could to get
everything done!)


She didn't have 12 of either of the 
purple dinner plates, so she alternated
a textured square one with a round ruffled one.

Mama Bunny also switched out the goblets to these
lighter amethyst ones, alternating the bubble
goblets with the Amethyst King's Crown.


The purple plates were topped with a
stack of textured white, deep purple glass
and a mercury glass salad plate.


These beautiful Amethyst King's Crown glasses
were a gift from her sister Jean.  
The Ruby King's Crown
that her aunt owned were always the star of
Christmas dinner and when
 none of this side of the family
inherited the ruby goblets, 
she found some online and
gifted Jean and Joni with some. 
(Yes, all three girls start
with J's - you can imagine the fun
 their parents had
confusing their names!)

Later Jean found these amethyst goblets at an
antique store and gave them to her.  
Mama Bunny had
never seen amethyst ones 
before and just loves them.


She kept most of the centerpiece 
which consisted of bunnies and eggs, but
added  fresh flowers in purple and white.




She switched out
new grass in a smaller container


and chocolate Easter eggs took over the
darling bunny pedestals.
The pedestals moved from the plate stack
to surrounding the centerpiece.


Keeping the same purple tablecloth 
and purple theme, the table was a
very easy switchover for a larger crowd
of little bunnies hopping everywhere!



She was pretty busy baking and creating
as you saw if you read the post on
new Easter Dinner Recipes
so having a quick switchover for
the table really helped.









Everyone loved having
Easter so late this year
making the lawn beautiful
for the annual
Easter Egg Hunt.

The flowers were just perfect.




The daffodils were just starting to
brown around the edges and now
just a few days later they are done.





A few eggs got tucked into the
flowers but not too many so
the little (and big) bunnies
 wouldn't trample them.



All the bunnies are attempting to squint into the
sun before the hunt begins.  Papa Bunny is
taking the photo.

Little bunnies are separated from the
big ones, as everyone wants in on the fun
and so no bunnies get trampled!

The little ones go first and then cheer on their
parents after.


Just a little playful horsing around
before Mama Bunny says "GO!"








Such adorable little bunnies!  
Those faces just cry out "KISS ME!"


Afterwards, they all returned into 
the house to open their eggs. 

This is little Jacquelyn bunny.
After we were all done and the empty 
eggs were left in the middle of the coffee table,
she kept opening them and finding them
empty, she would say, "No" and trying
one after another, she kept saying, "No", "No", "No",
with each empty egg.  It was darling!


One final surprise were these fun
confetti filled eggs that a niece convinced 
Mama Bunny to buy in Texas.
You crack them on someone's
head. The bunnies were very surprised.

 Messy but fun!

I will be posting this with





Cream Cheese Pound Cake


I promised you the incredible
Cream Cheese Pound Cake
baked in these fun cupcake pans.

This is so buttery and delicious that 
you can get away with little or no frosting.
I just piped some almond flavored frosting
around each tier to make them pretty.

Cream Cheese Pound Cake Recipe
3 C. cake flour
3 C. sugar
1 1/2 C. softened butter (no substitute)
8 oz. cream cheese (don't go low fat on this one)
6 large eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla

In a large mixer bowl cream the butter, cream 
cheese, sugar and vanilla until fluffy.  Add the
eggs two at a time, alternating with the flour
(1 C. at a time).  Mix well and scrape the
bowl down after each addition.

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.
Use the Pam with flour made for baking
and generously spray the pans.  
Let the pans sit for a minute to let the
bubbles settle down.  Spoon in the 
batter to about 3/4 full.  Bake at 325 for
about 20 minutes.  Check to see if they
are baked by using a toothpick inserted
in the center.  If it comes out clean they
are baked.  Let cool in pan for 10 minutes
then gently remove.

I had no problem with removing them.  I love
the baking spray with flour for these kinds of pans.

This recipe made 15 of these
tiered cake cupcakes.

You can also bake it in a bundt pan for 
about 40 minutes.  

Store in an airtight container if you aren't
going to use them that day.



This is how I presented them for the birthday
lunch with a little frosting and some raspberries
garnished with fresh flowers.


This is how hubby used up some of 
the extras, on a bed of whipped cream
with fresh strawberries and strawberry
sauce for a darling Strawberry Shortcake.

I received this recipe about 30
years ago from my parent's 
neighbor, Barb and have been
making it ever since.

I can just imagine these
darling cakes for a wedding
shower or little girl's parties
(that was how I first saw them,
my daughter in law had them for
one of my granddaughter's birthday
parties and each little girl got to
decorate her own - how fun!) or
a lot of other fun celebrations.

Posting with 



Monday, April 21, 2014

Trying Out New Fun Recipes for Easter Dinner - Easter Bunny Bread with Dip, Easter Bunny Rolls and White Chocolate Mousse Egg Cups


I hope you had a wonderful
Easter Sunday.

We had 17 for dinner and I decided
to try out some fun new recipes.
We spotted this adorable bunny
on Pinterest (from Taste of Home)
and decided to give it
a try.  The kids loved the veggies and
thought the bunny was almost too cute
to pull apart.

I made it with my favorite easy roll
dough, making two batches.  After the dough
had risen, I shaped a round ball about 7 inches
across for the belly and placed it on a 15x10 inch
pan lined with parchment paper.  Then I shaped
a ball about 5 inches and 
shaped it into a triangular shape.
 I "glued" the two together with a lightly 
beaten egg mixed with 1 tsp. water.  

For the ears, I rolled out snakes about 8 inches
long and attached them with the egg wash, bending
the one down.  I then slashed the dough so it
would spread when baking.

I formed the upper paws and the
lower ones into elongated shapes and cut
three toes on the lower ones.  Everything gets
brushed with the egg wash and baked at 350 
for about 25 minutes or until golden.





I noticed that on many of the ones I
saw on Pinterest the cheeks and noses had
migrated while rising and baking so I decided
to bake my cheeks separately.  Sure enough, 
my nose was out of position, 
so the last 10 minutes of
baking, I pulled the nose off and repositioned it 
with a little eggwash for glue and then I picked up
the partially baked cheeks and glued them on and
finished baking.

When I make this again, I will bake
the nose separately too.
(The reason I chose to make it
with homemade dough is that it is
cheaper, quicker and it is a firmer
dough so that it keeps its shape well.)
Click here for the recipe.



Here he is all golden brown but faceless.


I took two slivered almonds and cut one
end off so they looked flat and "glued" those
on with a dab of light corn syrup on a
toothpick.  One of the cheeks got bumped
and fell off so I attached that back on with a
toothpick.  Everyone used raisins for the eyes
but I didn't have any so I looked around and
these beautiful blue jelly beans turned
out even cuter.  I cut off a toothpick and used
it to attach the eyes to the head.


After the bunny cools, cut out a round in his belly 
and remove the bread, then line the opening with
lettuce and tuck lettuce around the body.  I used
baby butterleaf so that the lettuce around the
body could help hold the veggies like cups.


Then fill in with lots of yummy veggies.


Too stinkin' cute!


I had a little extra dough left over and so
I decided to make these Rosemary and Parmesan
Bunny Rolls. 
(Adaptation of Sister's Cafe Bunny Buns.)


Just roll your dough out and cut about 3/4 inch
strips.  Roll into a snake.


Twist it twice, leaving a hole at the
bottom for the body and position the
ears out and pinch their ends to a point.
Roll a small ball and place it in the body
for the tail.  Brush with melted butter,
crushed rosemary and parmesan cheeese.

I baked these at 350 for about 15 minutes.



These disappeared first!


 I also had seen these adorable
on my sister Joni's blog
Red Couch Recipes and my
girlfriend and I decided we had to make
them for Easter dinner.


Barb and I got together and made 27 of
them.  Seventeen for my family and ten for
hers.  They really went pretty quickly.


I added 1 tsp. almonds flavoring to my
mousse filling and I think I whipped my
cream a little stiffer than Joni did.  These 
were so stunning and everyone loved
them.  I nestled some in grass as they
have a round bottom.
Thanks for the idea Joni, we loved them!

So that was some of the new, fun
Easter delights 
at
Purple Chocolat Home 
this year.
It was so fun to try out so many
new recipes and have everyone
love them.





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