Dessert

Raspberry Mango Popsicles

June 16, 2016 by Asharae 6 Comments

Summer has arrived in full-force here in North Carolina and we’re in desperate need of a little something to cool off with! Enter these raspberry mango popsicles. I finally got my hands on a popsicle mold at World Market recently and can’t stop making all. the. popsicles. It’s really not a bad problem to have. I actually recommend it.

I’ve got hopes of trying peach green tea popsicles, yogurt and granola ones, balsamic and fresh strawberry, mojito popsicles, and on and on! I’m currently working on perfecting a butterfinger popsicle recipe to share with you soon, but for now enjoy this one with its fresh summer fruit and gorgeous colors!

I’d love to hear if you have a favorite summer time popsicle recipe you love to make! Links are welcome in the comments below!

Raspberry Mango Popsicles

Asharae Kroll

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Ingredients

2 c frozen mango chunks slightly thawed
3/4 c light coconut milk
Honey to taste
1/4 tsp vanilla
3/4 c raspberries

Instructions

Use an immersion blender (or traditional blender) to blend mango, coconut milk, honey, and vanilla.
Pour mixture into approximately 8 popsicle molds, filling 3/4 of the way full. Save some of the mixture so you'll be able to top them off.
Add raspberries and use a chopstick or skewer to press them down into the mold and swirl them around a bit.
Finish filling the popsicle molds, add popsicle sticks, freeze for several hours till set.

Double Chocolate Heath Brownies

May 13, 2016 by Asharae 8 Comments

I learned something new recently. Brownies are just about as easy to make from scratch as they are from a box. I had no idea. I feel like this is a life lesson I’ve somehow been missing out on. So now, I pass along this lesson to you – make brownies from scratch and you’ll be happier for it.

The great thing about starting from scratch is you can customize your brownies to include anything you want. Like peanut butter with your brownies? Add peanut butter chips instead of the Heath and chocolate chips I included below! Want to add a caramel drizzle sauce to the top? Go for it. Dreaming up some other delicious brownie creation? Try it out and see what happens!

Lately I’ve been sort of obsessed with including Heath chips in my baking (remember these salted brown butter Heath and chocolate chip cookies? Mmmm. Yep. Me too.) But if you don’t have any Heath chips on-hand and are dying for some brownies, just replace them with some extra chocolate chips! I’m sure they’ll still be fabulous.

Double Chocolate Heath Brownies

Inspired by Broma Bakery

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Prep Time 10 mins

Cook Time 40 mins

Total Time 50 mins

Servings 9 -16 servings

Ingredients

12 Tbs unsalted butter
1 1/2 c sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 c cocoa powder
1/2 c all purpose flour
1/2 c chocolate chips
1/2 c Heath chips

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 F. Line an 8x8 pan with parchment paper.
In a large microwave safe bowl melt the butter.
Stir sugar, eggs, vanilla, and salt in with the melted butter.
Fold in cocoa powder and flour until just combined and large lumps are gone. Try not to over-mix.
Fold in chocolate chips and heath chips, pour into 8x8 pan, bake for 40 minutes or until a knife inserted into the center comes out clean. Remove from oven and let cool completely (if you can manage to wait that long!)

Salted Brown Butter Heath Chip Cookies

March 10, 2016 by Asharae 5 Comments

Over the past couple years I have decided that cooking and baking for other people is one of my love languages. There’s something so rewarding about seeing the people you love enjoy something you created for them. It’s worth it just knowing that I can bring a little dose of joy to someone else’s day through what I make in the kitchen.

Our small group friends are some of my favorites to cook and bake for. We’re a random assortment of seven very different couples that have somehow found ourselves gathering once a week to share life, open up about our struggles, and walk with one another through the good and the hard parts of our stories. Some of us have been together as a group for nearly three years, and a few of us go all the way back to our freshman year of college. It’s been pretty extraordinary to see one another through so many seasons of life, and I feel like we’re really just getting started.

One of my favorite recipes to make for our small group is one for chocolate chip cookies that I shared a couple years ago. Everyone loves a good chocolate chip cookie. Tim and I were recently at the grocery store though when he came across these Hershey’s Heath Baking Bits in the baking aisle. One thing was certain – something needed to be done with them. That’s where this recipe comes into play. This is a slight (and debatably more delicious) variation on my go-to recipe for salted brown butter chocolate chip cookies. Both recipes are worth a try! You won’t regret it.

Salted Brown Butter Heath Chip Cookies

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Ingredients

1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon baking soda
14 tablespoons unsalted butter 1 ¾ sticks
½ cup granulated sugar
¾ cups packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon kosher salt
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
3/4 cup Heath chips
Kosher salt for garnish

Instructions

Melt butter in a medium sauce pan over medium-high heat. Continue to heat as butter starts to bubble - the bubbling sounds will get louder as the butter heats up. Stir constantly, scraping the bottom and sides of the pan with a spatula as you go. Keep a close eye on it as it will change color quickly. Once the butter turns a nice dark golden brown and has a nutty aroma, remove it from the heat. Transfer butter to a heat-proof bowl and let cool. You may place it in the fridge for 15-20 minutes to speed up the process.
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
Combine flour and baking soda in a medium bowl and set aside.
Once butter is cooled, but not hardened, place in the bowl of a stand mixer, along with both sugars, salt, and vanilla. Using the paddle attachment, mix until light and fluffy, about 3-5 minutes.
Add egg and egg yolk and mix until combined.
Mix in flour mixture until just combined.
Stir in chocolate chips and Heath chips with a spoon or spatula.
Scoop 2 Tbs of dough at a time onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. You'll need to do at least two separate batches in the oven. Should make about 24 cookies.
Bake for 9-12 minutes, till the edges just start to brown. Remove from oven, sprinkle with additional salt, and let cool a few minutes before removing from the pan.

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Banana Chocolate Chip Bread

May 28, 2015 by Asharae Leave a Comment

We have these friends, Brandon and Christy, who are extraordinary question-askers. They are the kind of people who ask questions that make those around them feel known. It’s such a gift. I’m not even sure they’re aware that they’re doing anything different – they’re genuinely curious and they truly care about their friends and family – but it really shows through the questions they choose to ask. Again and again we have felt so cared for by them because they ask good questions and they listen well.

I aspire to ask questions like these friends of ours. I want to learn how to ask the questions that dig a little deeper, rather than taking the easy way out and simply asking “how’s it going?” I always hesitate when asked that question – how much do you really want to know? What sort of answer are you looking for? Do I spill my guts and tell you how utterly overwhelmed I am? You probably weren’t looking for that, so do I just say that I’m fine? Is there some better way to answer that question?

I’ve been having all these thoughts rolling around my head lately and I happened upon this article over on Donald Miller’s Storyline blog. I love this quote from Melton’s article:

We learned that if we really want to know our people, if we really care to know them – we need to ask them better questions and then really listen to their answers.

We need to ask questions that carry along with them this message: “I’m not just checking the box here. I really care what you have to say and how you feel. I really want to know you.”

Isn’t that what we all crave? To be known? Not just to have people that know our favorite foods and our birthday, but to have people that know our dreams and our fears. It’s such a treasure if you have people that ask you those questions. But why not also be the person that asks those questions?

Instead of simply waiting for someone to enter into our world and ask us those questions – why don’t we put ourselves out there and ask someone else the difficult, potentially awkward questions. It’s in that space that growth happens. The process of knowing one another and truly being known can feel so extraordinarily uncomfortable. But the reward of deeper relationships far outweighs any potential awkwardness along the way.

Confession time – I’ve been holding out on you guys. This is one of my absolute favorite recipes. One fateful day in college my roommate Anna returned from a quick trip home and brought with her the most incredible loaf of chocolate chip banana bread. We sat on our little futon in our room, hunched over the foil wrapper of heavenly crumbs. I’d never had banana bread with chocolate chips in it before and I’m pretty sure I ate half the loaf with no shame at all. I vowed then to learn how to make banana bread that was at least half as delicious – I like to think this one has turned out pretty great.

This banana bread doesn’t look like much, but don’t let that fool you. It’s so so good. I’ve been making it since college and it always gets good reviews. You can always add walnuts or pecans as well – I recommend 1/2 c nuts and reducing your chocolate chips to 1/2 c as well if you go that route! And if you find you’ve always got bananas on-hand, you can put the extra brown ones in the freezer to use in this recipe later. Peel the bananas and place them in a freezer-safe bag before putting them in the freezer. Thaw them before using and then use the same way you would use fresh bananas. Fair warning – they’ll look totally gross once thawed, but they’ll taste just as good once you bake them into the bread!

This bread is best eaten while it’s still warm from the oven or the next day. Be sure to wrap the loaf of banana bread tightly with plastic wrap – this keeps the bread moist and delicious. I like to think it also locks the flavor in as it gets better a day or two after you bake it. This is a great breakfast treat, dessert, or any-time kind of snack. It’s especially good for those late-night-I’m-avoiding-studying-baking-sessions in college. I speak from experience. Enjoy.

Banana Chocolate Chip Bread

Adapted from Food Network

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Prep Time 15 mins

Cook Time 50 mins

Total Time 1 hr 5 mins

Ingredients

1 1/4 c all purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp fine salt
2 large eggs
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 c unsalted butter at room temperature
1 c sugar
2 very ripe bananas peeled and mashed
1 c chocolate chips

Instructions

Mix flour, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl and set aside.
In a small measuring cup with a spout, whisk eggs and vanilla together.
Grease and flour a 9x5x3 inch bread loaf pan and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Using an electric hand mixer (or a stand mixer with a paddle attachment) cream butter and sugar together till light and fluffy. Slowly add the egg and vanilla mixture, mixing till combined. To save on dishes, use the same measuring cup to mash the two bananas with a fork. Add the bananas to your mixture, combine well. At this point the mixture will look a bit lumpy and curdled - that's okay!
Remove the bowl from the mixer and use a rubber spatula to add the flour mixture and stir until just combined. Fold in the chocolate chips and pour batter into floured pan.
Bake for 50-55 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool the bread for 5-10 minutes before removing it from the pan. Let cool completely (if you can resist) and then wrap bread tightly in plastic wrap to store (this is VERY important to keep the banana bread moist and delicious.)