Pure evil

Very Chocolate Brownies
Taste of Home Baking Classics Copyright 2008

2/3 cup salted butter
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1/4 cup water
4 cups (24 ounces) semisweet chocolate chips, divided
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
4 eggs
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt

In a heavy saucepan, bring butter, sugar and water to a boil, stirring constantly.
Remove from heat, stir in two cups of chocolate chips until melted; cool slightly.
Beat in vanilla extract.
In a large bowl, beat eggs.
Gradually add chocolate mixture to eggs; mix well.
Combine the flour, baking soda, and salt; gradually add to chocolate mixture.
Stir in remaining chocolate chips.
Spread into a greased 13x9x2-inch baking pan.
Bake at 325 degrees F. for 35-40 minutes or until toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean.
Cool completely before cutting into bars.

Makes about 36 bars.
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You know I can usually control myself around sweets. Yes, I indulge, but moderately. If the guys at home won't make something disappear fast enough, I'll take it to work. If it's not all that enthralling, I really have no qualms about tossing sweets away. I guess that's wasteful but better to add to a landfill than my ass. A good portion of sweets that don't get taken to work end up in the trash here - we're only two adults, a preschooler and an 8-month old who's a long way from helping us eat this stuff so of course we can't polish off entire cakes, entire batches of bars, dozens of cookies, etc. I'd rather get rid of it and move on to the next recipe.

But these brownies, these evil, evil, brownies completely ruined my diet. I should have taken them to work but, hmm, somehow I never got around to it. The boys weren't eating them fast enough at home and I could NOT throw them away. I just couldn't. I admit it, I'm not that strong.

I tried freezing them at one point but they were pretty good straight out of the freezer too. Funny thing is that I didn't think they were all that great when I first made them but there is something about recipes that use lots of chocolate and eggs and little flour that seem to get better a day or so later.

So I warn you, make these at your own risk. They are extremely fudgy, with a crackly top and they're studded with chocolate chips. There is no 'best ever' brownie but this certainly was one of my favorites.

Question of the Day: What food did you last lose control over? I wish I could say it was these brownies but I've moved on to avocados.

Just okay apple bread

Apple-Cinnamon Oatmeal Bread
Blue Ribbon USA Copyright 2007

1/4 cup butter, softened
1 cup white sugar
1 cup chunky applesauce
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
2 packets instant apple cinnamon oatmeal (single serving size)
2 eggs
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease and flour a 9x5 inch loaf pan.

In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Mix in applesauce, cinnamon and one packet oatmeal. Stir in the eggs one at a time, beating well with each addition. Mix in the baking soda and flour. Pour batter into prepared pan and sprinkle with remaining packet of oatmeal.

Bake in preheated oven for 60 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into center of the loaf comes out clean.
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I had some packets of instant apple-cinnamon oatmeal that no one was every going to eat and I also had a cup of chunky applesauce leftover from something so this recipe seemed perfect.

It was good, in that lower-fat sort of way. The oatmeal on top got way too dark, burned actually. I suspect my oven may be on it's last legs but I'm not sure if that was the problem. Little bits of apple and oats are bound to darken at 350 degrees for an hour. No problem, I just brushed most of the topping right off.

This wasn't anything that special that I would go out of my way to make it again. There are too many other apple bread recipes out there. This recipe supposedly won a blue ribbon at a fair in Rhode Island (that is the theme of this cookbook).

I registered my son for kindergarten yesterday. I'm sad but looking forward to having one less child in daycare, especially after paying my grocery bill last night. Yikes! I bought 2 packages of diapers, a package of Underjams, a large bag of baby wipes and our first can of formula (bought just in case since my milk supply is dwindling). That stuff adds up! They aren't exactly groceries (besides the formula) but it still bothers me when I spend so much.

Question of the Day: Do you remember registering for kindergarten? I have the vaguest recollection (it was a LONG time ago) but it was very similar to my son's experience yesterday.

More from the Biggest Loser

Contemporary Peppered Chopped Steak
Biggest Loser Family Cookbook Copyright 2008

1 pound 96% lean ground beef
1/4 c cooked brown rice
6 tbsp minced fresh parsley
1/2 tsp salt
4 tsp ground black pepper
Olive oil spray
2 c thinly sliced sweet onion rings
1 1/3 c 100% grape juice (or one 10 oz bottle)
1/4 c balsamic vinegar

In a large bowl, mix the beef, rice, 5 tbsp of the parsley, and the salt until well combined. Divide the mixture into 4 equal portions and form into 1"-thick oval patties. Season evenly with the pepper, pressing it into the patties on all sides.
Place a large nonstick skillet over high heat. When hot, lightly mist with the olive oil spray. Add the patties and cook for 2 to 4 minutes per side, or until the outsides brown and the insides are very slightly less done than desired. Transfer the steaks to a platter and cover to keep warm.
Respray the pan off the heat, then place over medium heat. Add the onions and cook, stirring, for about 5 minutes, or until tender. Add the grape juice and vinegar and return the heat to high. Boil for 9 to 11 minutes, or until the liquid is reduced to about 1/2 cup. Place the steaks on each of 4 serving places and top with the onions and sauce. Sprinkle with the remaining 1 tbsp parsley and serve.

Serves 4.

Per SERVING: Calories: 271, Protein: 24g, Total fat: 5g, Saturated fat: 2g, Carbs: 32g, Cholestorol: 60mg, Sodium: 372mg, Fiber: 3g
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I was intrigued by the idea of using grape juice in this recipe. I'm not sure I would make it again since it didn't go over that big with the guys. My husband ate it on a bun. We had our usual exchange:

Husband - "Can I put this on a bun?"

Me - "Well, you can put just about anything on a bun. Doesn't mean it will taste good."

And on a bun it went.

My son wasn't too crazy about it due to the parsley, I believe. I really liked the meat portion of the recipe but I wasn't sure how I felt about the onions and the sauce which were quite fruity. It sort of reminded me of sweet pickled onions. I mean, I liked them but there was something distracting about them. I was trying to figure out which taste was more predominant - the grape juice or the balsamic vinegar. They were good mixed with my mashed potatoes!

Question of the Day: Do you cook with wine very often?

More meat loaf

BBQ-Bacon Meat Loaf
Biggest Loser Family Cookbook Copyright 2008

Olive-oil spray
1 cup chopped red onion
4 slices extra-lean turkey bacon, chopped I used pork bacon, low-sodium
2/3 cup old-fashioned oats
1/2 cup fat-free milk
1 pound extra-lean ground chicken breast
2 large egg whites, lightly beaten
1 clove fresh garlic, minced
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1/8 teaspoon salt
2 Tablespoons barbecue sauce (choose one made with 7 grams carbohydrates or less per 2 tablespoons) I just used what I had which had more carbs

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly mist a 9-inch by 5-inch by 3-inch nonstick loaf pan with the olive oil spray.

Place a medium nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Lightly mist the pan and spray and add the onion and bacon. Cook, stirring, for 6 to 8 minutes, or until the onion is tender and just barely starting to brown and the bacon is crisp. Remove the pan from the heat and allow the mixture to cool.

Combine the oats and milk in a medium mixing bowl and stir to mix. Let the mixture stand for 3 minutes or until the oats begin to soften. Add the cooled onion and bacon mixture, the chicken, egg whites, garlic, Worcestershire sauce and salt. With a fork or clean hands, mix the ingredients until well combined.

Transfer the mixture to the prepared pan and spread so the top is flat. Spread the barbecue sauce evenly over the top. Bake for 35-40 minutes or until the chicken is completely cooked through and no longer pink. Let the loaf sit for 10 minutes before cutting into 8 slices to serve. I made it ahead of time and then I sliced it and grilled it.

Makes 4 servings

Serving Size: 1/4 loaf Per serving: Calories 258, Total Fat 3g, Saturated Fat 0g, Cholesterol 76mg, Sodium 529mg, Total Carbohydrate 20g, Dietary Fiber 2g, Protein 35g 70%
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I was excited when I saw another Biggest Loser cookbook. I enjoyed the first one and I enjoyed the author's other cookbook, The Most Decadent Diet Ever!

This was a nice meat loaf. I really liked the texture. When I see oatmeal in a meat loaf recipe, I tend to think it will stand out and be lumpy or something but it works really well as a filler. The plumped up oatmeal blends in with the rest of the mixture and keeps the meat loaf very moist.

The flavor was great too although the bacon didn't actually scream out at you. I probably only used about 3 strips so maybe that 1 extra strip will make the difference. I went with pork bacon. I don't do turkey bacon. Turkey sausage? Yes. Turkey bacon? No way.

The one thing that bothers me about this cookbook is that they have all the contestants from last season in the cookbook but the cookbook hit printing before they lost the weight. Those people worked so hard and looked so great yet no one reading this book gets to see that.

Question of the Day: Do you watch Biggest Loser? That is one of my few 'must watch' shows.

More baked wings

Pattie's Baked Chicken Wings
The Ugly Binder, from the internet

Breading Ingredients:
1/3 c salt
1/3 c paprika
1/3 c cayenne pepper
2 c flour

Chicken Wings

Mix breading ingredients together in a ziplock bag. (This makes a lot. I only made half and still had plenty left over. Just use a little at a time so you don't contaminate the entire batch and that way you can save the leftovers.)
Pat wings dry. Shake in mixture.
Spray cookie sheet w/Pam, put chicken on, spray top of chicken w/Pam
Bake 375 - 40 mins flipping over half way thru.
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I saw this recipe when I was lurking on a cooking message board. You know I'm always on the lookout for wing recipes I don't have to fry. I thought these were very good. Very flavorful and surprisingly not too hot. That sounds like a lot of cayenne but it worked. I halved the recipe and had plenty leftover. I think I made about 4 pounds of wings but I'm not sure.

I had leftover wings so I froze them. I baked those straight from frozen and then tossed them with some hot sauce and melted butter and they were even better. I didn't get a picture of those.

Once again I am spent from cooking most of the day yesterday yet thrilled that I have all of my cooking done for the week. One of the disadvantages to this method of preparation is that it's hard to decide what to eat first. I have all of this good food fully prepared but we can only eat it one day at a time. That's torture!

I think I found trouble this weekend. It's hard to find fun things for my son to do in the cold months. I decided to check out this place that has old arcade games that you can actually play. It's also an antique market. I wasn't thinking much about that part of it but it turns out they have lots and lots of old cookbooks in there. Yay! A place to get my fix when I need it. They're only about 15 minutes away and the books that aren't incredibly old are reasonable. I picked up a 1983 Southern Living Annual for $3.

Question of the Day: What do you do for fun during the cold months?