Brownies with a Coffee Cheescake Swirl

This is a marriage made in heaven. Dark sticky brownies all gooey and chocolaty with a swirl of coffee cheesecake for added yummieness.
Two recipes have been pulled together here, the first (brownies) I have made at least once a week since Heather gave me the recipe over on the forum I belong to Violet's Pantry.
http://pinkbytes.blogspot.com/2009/04/dark-chocolate-brownies.html The second part is from another member from V.P. our dear Granny, who writes a smashing blog called Tea and Wheaten Bread. http://teandwheatenbread.blogspot.com/2009/09/chocolate-cheesecake-brownies.html
Now for what I did.The Ingredients..
8 oz Butter
4 oz Cocoa Powder (good quality)
4 Eggs.
8 oz Dark brown Sugar.
2 teaspoons Vanilla Extract.
4 oz S.R. Flour.
4 0z White Chocolate Chunks.
2 teaspoons Instant Coffee.

Cheesecake Swirl..
8 oz Soft Cream Cheese (I used Philadelphia full fat)
4 oz Castor Sugar.
2 teaspoons Instant coffee (melted in a touch of boiling water)

Method..
Preheat oven to 180c. Line the bottom of a shallow baking tin with greaseproof paper (very important to do this)
Melt the butter, then add the cocoa powder and coffee, stirring well to remove any lumps.
Beat the eggs in a large bowl, add the sugar and mix until smooth.
Stir in the cocoa mixture, white chocolate chunks and vanilla extract and mix well.
Add the sifted flour and mix gently with a spoon. Pour this mixture in to your tin and spread it around.
Now make the cheesecake swirl by mixing all ingredients together in a bowl, when soft and well combined, spoon on to brownie mix already in your tin. Then with a skewer just swirl it around until you have the desired affect.
Place the tin in to the oven for around 25 minutes. When done the brownies should be crisp on top and soft in the middle. Leave to cool before turning out and cutting, then dust with a little icing sugar.

If you wished, you could leave out the coffee element to this recipe, but I think it was HEAVEN. Hope you enjoy.

Yummy, Gooey, Fudgey Slice.

This is so easy, and can be made up, chilled and sliced in well under an hour. Very sweet, and fudgey, and very moreish.

The recipe..
8 oz of Butter.
8 oz of Sugar. (I used half brown and half white)
8 oz of Digestive Biscuits (crushed)
1 tin Condensed Milk (395 gms)
8 oz melted Milk Chocolate (I had more 'cos wanted a thick layer on top)

How to make..
Line a Swiss roll tin with foil and crush the biscuits, set a side.
Melt the butter, milk and sugar in a saucepan. Bring to the boil and continue boiling for 3 - 5 minutes. Add in the crushed biscuits and stir. Melt the chocolate over simmering water in another saucepan. Pour the milk/biscuit mixture in to the prepared tin and level out with a spatula. Then pour the melted chocolate over the mix in tin and again, level out. Decorate with sprinkles or coarsely grated chocolate. Chill in the fridge. When chilled, remove from pan and slice to your desired size. Stores well in the fridge for a few days in a covered container. I bet you don't just make this the once.
Next time I shall try different biscuits, like ginger snaps maybe, and change the chocolate from milk to dark.

Dark Chocolate Brownies.

Hevz's Chocolate Brownies again. Sorry. But I did make these ten months ago and blogged them then. Yes, I have made them lots of times in between then and now, but these are the very best. I used dark chocolate and white chocolate chips, then dusted with a cocoa/icing sugar mix.
For those of you that would like the recipe (there can't be too many people out in blog land that haven't made these. LOL) Here it is again.

Ingredients..
100g/4oz Butter.
50g/2oz Cocoa Powder (I use Green and Blacks)
2 Eggs.
225g/8oz Caster Sugar.
1 tsp Vanilla Extract.
50g/2oz self-raising Flour.
50g/2oz white chocolate chips (I usually use choc chunks, they're bigger)

Method...
1-Preheat oven to 180c/350f/gas 4
2-Take a shallow baking tin, approx 23cm/9inch square, and line the bottom with non-stick liner or baking parchment (very important you do this).
3-Melt the butter, then add the cocoa powder, stirring well to remove any lumps (I use my mini whisk)
4-Beat the eggs in a large bowl, add the sugar and mix until smooth.
5-Stir in the cocoa mixture, white choc chunks and the vanilla extract and mix well.
6-Add the flour and mix gently with a spoon, be careful not to over mix.
7-Pour mixture into the lined baking tin and place in the middle of the oven for about 25 mins.
When done the brownies should be crisp on top and soft in the middle. Leave to cool for 10 mins in the tin before turning out onto a board and then cutting into squares.

This time I doubled the recipe, used 100gs Dark Chocolate 86% chopped and the white chocolate. Instead of the caster sugar, I used dark soft brown sugar. And dusted with the cocoa/icing sugar mix.
So why have I blogged them again? Well, I just love using my light box, learning new things with it all the time. See my labels to find out more about it.

Mocha Fudge Brownies

If you like Brownies, then why not try these. Mocha Fudge Brownies.
Ingredients..
Brownies.
1/2 cup Shortening (Copha)
1/2 cup Butter.
1 cup Cocoa.
2 cups Caster Sugar.
1 tablespoon hot Water.
4 teaspoons Instant Coffee.
4 Eggs.
2 teaspoons Vanilla Extract.
1 cup S.R. Flour.
1/2 teaspoon Salt.
Icing..
1/2 cup Butter.
1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract.
2 cups Icing Sugar.
1 and 1/2 tablespoons Milk.
2 teaspoons Instant Coffee.

Method..

Preheat the oven to 180c. Line a 9 x 13 inch baking tray with tin foil and grease it lightly with some butter. Melt butter and shortening in the microwave. (Please note, if you can't get shortening, just use butter, 1 cup in all)

Pour melted butter in to a large mixing bowl, add cocoa and blend in well. Add sugar and mix well again. Dissolve coffee in hot water and mix in to the cocoa mixture.

Add eggs one at a time and beat in well by hand. Stir in vanilla, sifted flour and salt.

Pour mixture in to prepared baking tray and smooth out evenly.

Bake for 25- 30 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to get cold.

While the brownies are cooling, make the icing.

In a bowl, cream the butter and vanilla. Add the icing sugar and beat on medium speed. Dissolve the coffee in the milk and add to the mixture, beat until light and fluffy. Spread over the cake. (Make sure it is cold) Cut in to slices and then lift out from the baking tray. Or lift out and cut in to slices, which ever you find easier.

I dressed mine with Chocolate coated Coffee Beans which gave another taste and texture to this delicious Brownie.

The Chocolate coated Coffee Beans were got from http://www.byronbaycoffeeco.com.au/

I dare you to stop at one slice. (Mine's all gone, in two days)

Fruit and Nut Chocolate Brownies.

A very simple chocolate brownie recipe with the additions of Sultanas and chopped Walnuts.

INGREDIENTS

200 gms. Milk Cooking Chocolate.
125 gms. Butter.
1 cup Brown Sugar.
2 teaspoons Vanilla Essence.
2 Eggs. (lightly beaten)
1 cup Self Raising Flour.
1/2 cup Chopped Walnuts.
1 cup Sultanas.

METHOD

Preheat oven to 160c.
Melt the chocolate and butter in a large bowl over
simmering water.
Stir in the sugar, vanilla essence and the eggs.
Mix well.
Add the flour, sultanas and walnuts and stir well.
Pour the mixture into a lined 28 x 18 cm slab tin.
Bake for 45-50 minutes.
Leave in the tin to cool.
Dust with icing sugar, if you wish.

These are really delicious when served still slightly warm from the oven and, just before going to bed with a big dollop of cream and a cuppa.

Spicy Orange Slice.

This is just perfect with a cup of tea in the afternoon, when you have to think of making dinner. Munch on this spicy, fruity cake and sip on your tea, and think of far away places. Then, when it's finished, you might be inspired to do some thing special. ( I shall be making a vegetable curry. The veggies are good for you and my day dreaming took me to the spice markets in India)

Enough of that, on with this slice.

You will need....

1/2 cup softened BUTTER.

3/4 cup RAW SUGAR.

2 EGGS.

Grated peel of 1 ORANGE.

1 tablesp. ORANGE Juice.

1 1/2 cup of PLAIN FLOUR.

1 1/2 teasp. BAKING POWDER.

1 teasp MIXED SPICE.

1 teasp GROUND CLOVES.

3/4 cup SULTANAS.

3/4 cup chopped WALNUTS.

Method.

Cream butter until smooth and gradually add the sugar until it is light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs and orange rind and juice. Sift in the dry ingredients and blend in to the mixture. Fold in the sultanas and walnuts.

Spread in to a greased tray (about 29cm x 19cm) And sprinkle some more raw sugar over the top before baking in the oven (180c) for approximately 30 minutes. Cool slightly after removing from the oven, and cut in to fingers or squares.

You could, if you wanted to, put some orange icing on this slice, just remember not to put the raw sugar on top before baking.

Do hope you enjoy.

Dark Choc Slice and White Choc Cherry slice

I actually found a variation of this on another blog. The Oh
so clever Violet from http://violets-homecooking.blogspot.com/

Vi used two sorts of chocolate in one slice. I used one chocolate for each of the two slices.
Putting smashed biscuits, sultanas and dark choc together for one, and white choc, glazed red cherries, smashed shortbread biscuits and flaked coconut for the other.


For these you will need...


1 bar dark cooking chocolate (melted)
1 pack of sweet tea biscuits (smashed up)
1 cup of sultanas.

Combine the biscuits and sultanas in a bowl, add the melted chocolate and stir well until all is covered. Place mixture into a tray and press down firmly. Put in the fridge for half an hour to set.
Then cut into slices.







For the white slices, you will need...
1 bar white cooking chocolate (melted)
1 pack glazed cherries. (roughly chopped)
1/2 cup flaked coconut (most for mixture and some for the top)
1 pack shortbread biscuits (smashed)

Same directions as before and adding the coconut to the top and squashing down a little just
before you put them in the fridge.

Bestest Chocolate Brownies in the WORLD

Have had this recipe hanging around for nearly a year now and today I made them for the first time. Boy, are they good. I can not recommend them enough.

The recipe says to use Castor sugar, but I had none, so used dark brown sugar instead. I also just used dark choc pieces instead of white. But hey, you have a fiddle too and see what you can come up with. I shall be making them again this week and trying a different combo.

Here's the original recipe given to me by Heather (Hevz) of Violets Pantry.

100g/4oz butter 50g/2oz cocoa powder (I use Green and Blacks) 2 eggs 225g/8oz caster sugar 1 tsp vanilla extract 50g/2oz self-raising flour 50g/2oz white chocolate chips (I usually use choc chunks, they're bigger)

1-Preheat oven to 180c/350f/gas 4

2-Take a shallow baking tin, approx 23cm/9inch square, and line the bottom with non-stick liner or baking parchment (very important you do this).

3-Melt the butter, then add the cocoa powder, stirring well to remove any lumps (I use my mini whisk)

4-Beat the eggs in a large bowl, add the sugar and mix until smooth.

5-Stir in the cocoa mixture, white choc chunks and the vanilla extract and mix well.

6-Add the flour and mix gently with a spoon, be careful not to over mix.

7-Pour mixture into the lined baking tin and place in the middle of the oven for about 25 mins.

When done the brownies should be crisp on top and soft in the middle. Leave to cool for 10 mins in the tin before turning out onto a board and then cutting into squares.

Now, here's a piccie of mine before dusting of icing sugar and one after.