The Oreo Stuffed Brownie

"USA won 0-1"! Yeah we lost against Germany, but we are in the second round! Maybe I'll get some time to make soccer theme cupcakes before the world cup is over? In the meanwhile try out this Oreo Stuffed Brownie, or is it Brownie Stuffed Oreo, who really care. Its tasty, that's what matters! As you have probably figured out by now is that my husband is a HUGE chocolate fan, cause I keep pointing it out (here and here and here). I on the other hand LOVE Oreo's I pretty much try anything that has Oreo's in it.

And that being said how could I not try this recipe! Chocolate and Oreo's! Together, yes please :) and sprinkles to top it off, can't get more perfect than that!

The brownie is a little different from my usual recipe, but it tastes just as good. I used birthday Oreos, but you can go ahead and change to your favorite Oreo. FYI this is a really dense and sweet dessert, so make sure that you have people that you can share with before baking, cause you really don't want to eat it all yourself!

The Oreo Stuffed Brownie

Adapted from Bake at 350

Ingredients

1 cup cocoa
1/2 tsp baking powder
3/4 cup unsalted butter
2 cups sugar
1 Tbsp vanilla
3 eggs, lightly beaten with a fork
1 cup all-purpose flour, shifted
20 Birthday Cake Oreos (or regular Oreos)

Optional, if you like sprinkles like me :)
1 tsp corn syrup
1 tsp water
sprinkles

Method

1. Preheat oven to 325*F with the rack in the middle of the oven.  Line a 9x13" baking pan with Al foil.
2. Sift together the cocoa powder, salt, and baking powder.  Set aside.
3. In a medium saucepan, melt the butter. Add sugar and whisk together. Stirring constantly, allow the sugar to melt.
4. Remove the pan from heat and add the sifted cocoa mixture, whisk together until combined. Add the eggs and vanilla and continue whisking until combined.
5. Add sifted flour, continue whisking.
6. Spread half of the batter into the prepared pan. Top with 20 Oreos.  Cover with the remaining batter; spread gently using a spatula.
7. Bake for about 30-40 minutes, until the brownies are done, but the center still looks soft.
8. Set the pan on a wire cooling rack and let cool 10 minutes.
[OPTIONAL: if you love sprinkles like me
9. Stir together the corn syrup and water. Once the brownie is cool to the touch, lightly brush the corn syrup mixture onto the cooled brownies and spread the sprinkles over the brownies.
***the corns syrup allows the sprinkles to stick to the brownies and adding the sprinkles after baking means they don't melt and become discolored***]
10. Let the brownies cool completely before cutting and serving. 

Enjoy!

Farhana

#craftingnotcoding: The Graduation Cap Card

Dead week just ended for those of us in school, a rush to get those papers submitted and HW completed, so excuse me for being a little late to post  this blog. Today I’m going to show you how to make a graduation card to go along with the banner from a few weeks ago. The graduation cap is a die cut from Ben Franklin and I learnt to make the tassel at their crafty card class. If you are a local and have a love for making cards, you should make time to take this class.

I used a blue and white color theme, but you can easily change it out to match a school of your choice.
What you need:

1.       Graduation cap die cut

2.       Embroidery floss in two colors

3.       Blank card and piece of card stock to match the embroidery floss

4.       A piece of chipboard (a x b inch) to use as a template

5.       Silver gel pen

6.       Marker matching one of the floss colors

7.       Large rhinestone

8.       Small pair of scissors

9.       Paper trimmer (not pictured)

10.   Ruler

11.   Double sided tape

12.   (fray check)

13.   1/8^th inch double sided tape

14.   3D foam dots

What to do:

1. Trim down the card stock to be a little bit smaller than the card, so that the card color shows as a border.

2. Attach the card stock to the card using double sided tape.

3.       Wrap one color of the embroidery floss around the longer side of the template, min 15 times but not more than 20 times.

4.       Cut about 2 feet of the second color and fold 4 times. Take the wrapped floss of the template and fold it in half.

5. Tied the second color around. Knot it twice.

6. Cut another strand in the second color, about a foot. Tie it around ¼ inch away from the knot in step (5).

7. Wrap it around about 5 times and seal with fray check. Let it dry for a few minutes to set.

8. Cut the loops at the end of the tassel.

9. To add a bit of dimension, highlight the edges of the graduation cap using the silver gel pen

10. Run a piece of the 1/8^th inch double-sided tape from the edge of the cap (the side where the tassel is cut out) to the center.

11. Attach the tassel and cut off the extra string. Add a rhinestone for some extra bling.

12. Connect the cap to the card using 3D foam pieces, write in “congratulations” and your card is ready!

Happy Crafting!

Farhana

Meal Time: Blackened Salmon Tacos with Corn Salsa

Its copper river salmon season in the PNW, which means that we have been having salmon for every other meal over the past week. Yesterday I made taco's and got a few requests to share the recipe, so i thought that I would just blog it, even though I only have the one picture (somehow I just never have the patience to take pictures when I'm done cooking). I also made Salmon Pulao from my favorite Desi Blogger, With a Spin. She does such a good job at explaining recipes, blogging her recipes would be like reinventing the wheel.

It seems like a while since I've posted a dinner recipe here on the blog, been a bit too busy crafting, fear not if you follow this blog for crafts, I have a craft blog coming up, as soon as my pictures are edited. Enough chit chat, here's how to make dinner in less than hour :)

Blackened Salmon Tacos with Corn Salsa
Adapted from Cooking Classy
(make 4 tacos/2 servings)
Ingredients
2 8 oz salmon fillets
few Tbsp olive oil, for frying

Salmon Marinade
3 Tbsp olive oil
2 Tbsp all-purpose flour
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp packed brown sugar
1 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper

Corn Salsa
2/3 cup frozen corn, warmed
2 medium Roma tomatoes, diced
1 small avocado, diced
2 Tbsp finely chopped yellow onions
2 tsp lime juice
a pinch on garlic powder
salt and black pepper to taste

For serving
4 small corn tortillas
1 cup finely chopped romaine lettuce
1/4 cup sour cream, whipped with 1 Tbsp taco seasoning
lime wedges

Method
1. Wash and pat dry the salmon fillets using paper towel.
2. Mix all the ingredients for the marinade except the oil, set aside.
3. Brush the salmon fillets with the olive oil, then rub in the sprinkle mixture from step 2. Set aside for about 15 mins.
4. While the fillets marinate, mix all the salsa ingredients and set aside.
5. Warm a skillet with a bit of oil on medium high. Fry the fillets until well done, the sides of the fillets will burn (hence the name, blackened). If using fillets with skin still on, you will need less oil.
6. Once the fish is done, remove from heat and break into small pieces using a fork.
7. To serve, warm the tortillas and top with salmon, then salsa and dollops of seasoned sour cream. Add chopped romaine and lime wedges on the side.

(For my local readers, Trader Joe's has lots of Mexican ingredients in stock :) )

Enjoy!

Farhana

The Birthday Bundt

As much as I enjoy making and decorating individual desserts like cupcakes and cookies, sometimes I just don't have the time. That's when the bundt pan becomes my best friend and decorating becomes a breeze!

I made this a few weeks ago for a friend's birthday, but it can easily be served at afternoon tea, taken to a potluck or made and eaten just cause!

I added the banner for an extra bit of bling! It was her birthday after all :) (please leave a comment if you'd like to see a tutorial for the banner and I'll post one), and the words on the banner can also be changed out to fit the occasion.

Back to the cake, its a good old simple vanilla cake topped with chocolate ganache and sprinkles. I love to change the sprinkles with the season or theme of the cake, just as a finishing touch.

For best results when making the cake batter, beat the eggs and sugar mixture until it's both pale yellow in color and its about double in quantity. Sifting the flour through a sieve always adds extra air, a step which I add even when it doesn't say so in the recipe.

The Birthday Bundt
Adapted from a old family recipe

Ingredients
Cake:
4 large eggs
2 cups granulated sugar
1 cup milk (any fat content)
1 cup canola oil
2 cups all purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp vanilla essence
1 tsp butter emulsion

Chocolate Ganache Frosting
1/2 cup whipping cream
3.5 oz semi-sweet baking chocolate
1 Tbsp butter
Few tsp milk

extra tools:
bundt pan
cooking spray
sprinkles

Method
1. Preheat oven to 350*F, with the rack set in the middle of the oven and grease a bundt pan with a baking spray (or you can use melted butter). Sift flour and baking powder, set aside.
2. Add all the eggs and sugar to a bowl and beat with an electric beater until it is pale yellow and doubles in quantity.
3. Pour in canola oil and continue beating.
4. Pour in milk and beat well until completely mixed
5. Gradually beat in flour mixture (adding at once will create a mess). Beat for 2-3 mins then add vanilla essence and butter emulsion and continue to beat for another minute or so until completely incorporated.
6. Bake at 180*C for 55-60 mins, once the cake starts coming off the edges and/or a toothpick comes out clean.
7. Allow the cake to cool in the pan on a wire rack.
8. Heat up the whipping cream in a small saucepan on medium heat and soften the baking chocolate in the microwave.
9. Whisk together the whipping cream, melted chocolate and butter. Once well mixed, removed from stove, if too thick then add a few drops of milk.
10. Now turn the cake onto a serving dish (hold your breathe so it comes out in one piece, just kidding!) and then pour the ganache over immediately. Add sprinkles and let it stand for minimum of 30 minutes before serving.

Enjoy!

Farhana