Triple Chocolate Bread – Chocolate Glazed

Bread
½  cup Butter, softened
2/3 cup Brown sugar, light, firmly packed
1 cup Semi-sweet, mini chocolate chips, melted
2 Eggs, large
1 tsp Baking soda
2 ½  cups Flour, all purpose
1 tsp Baking powder
1 ½  cups Applesauce
2 tsp Vanilla, pure, extract
½  cup Semi-sweet mini chocolate chips

Glaze
1 Tbl Butter
5 tsp Water
½  cup Semi-sweet mini chocolate chips
½  cup Powdered sugar, sifted
1/4 tsp Vanilla, pure, extract
Dash Salt

Preheat oven to 350

Bread
Combine softened butter and brown sugar in a large mixing bowl. With a stand mixer, beat until creamy, on medium speed, scraping the bowl often, for about 1 or 2 minutes. Add the melted mini chocolate chips and large eggs; continue beating this mixture on medium speed, until all is well mixed, for about 2 more minutes.

Add the baking soda, flour, baking powder, applesauce, and vanilla extract. Reduce the speed of the stand mixer to low; continue scraping the bowl often, and beat until creamy, about 1 to 2 more minutes. Then by hand, fold or stir in the remaining ½ cup of mini chocolate chips.

In five, greased, mini loaf pans, (5 ½ “ x 3"), evenly spoon in the bread batter, to each pan. Bake for 35 to 42 minutes, in 350 oven, until the center crack in the loaf of bread, is dry to the touch.

Cool on a rack for 10 minutes. Remove the loafs from the pans. Place wax paper under the racks, so  the glaze when drizzled over the warm bread will be caught. If mini loafs are frozen for later use, completely cool, and freeze unglazed, and tightly wrapped. When ready to use, remove bread from the freezer and bring to room temperature, before glazing.

Glaze
In saucepan (2-quart), mix together butter, water and chocolate chips. Cook slowly, stirring continually, over low heat, until all is melted and very smooth.

Remove the pan from the heat. Stir in the powdered sugar, vanilla extract and salt until the mixture is smooth and creamy. Drizzle each warm mini loaf of bread with glaze. Cool completely.


Chocolate Pecan Biscotti

½  cup Cocoa, unsweetened, powder
2 cups Flour, all purpose, white
1 tsp Salt
1 tsp Baking soda
1 cup Sugar, white, granulated
6 Tbl Butter, unsalted, softened (3/4 stick)
2 Eggs, large
1 cup Pecans, coarse chopped
3/4 cup Chocolate chips, semi-sweet
1 Tbl Powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 350   For later use, coat a large baking sheet with butter and then flour.

In a bowl, whisk together cocoa powder, flour, salt and baking soda.

With an large stand electric mixer, and in another large bowl, beat together white sugar and softened butter until light and fluffy. Add in the eggs, one at a time, and beat until well combined with the sugar and butter mixture.

With the mixer set on low, stir in the cocoa and flour mixture until it forms a stiff dough. Then stir in the chocolate chips and chopped pecans, until well combined.

With floured hands, on the prepared baking sheet, form the dough into two logs, slightly flattened. Each log should be about 2" wide and 12" long. When placed and shaped properly, sprinkle the logs with powdered sugar.

Place baking sheet in a preheated oven to bake the biscotti logs for about 35 minutes, or until they feel slightly firm to the touch. Remove the pan from the oven. Cool the biscotti, on the baking sheet, placed on a wire rack, for a least 5 minutes.

Cut biscotti diagonally, on a cutting board, into about 3/4" slices. On the baking sheet arrange the biscotti, placing the cut sides down, and bake in the oven at 350 until crisp. This will take about 10 minutes.

Remove baking sheet from oven. Place biscotti on a wire rack to cool.  Biscotti will keep in air tight container for up to one week and, if frozen it will keep up to one month.


Chocolate Bread by the Numbers

1/4 cup Water, warm
1 Tbl Sugar, white, granulated
1 pkg Yeast, rapid rise

1 cup Milk, whole
2 Tbl Butter, cut in pieces

4 cup Bread flour
2/3 cup Cocoa powder, unsweetened
2 tsp Coffee powder, instant
1 tsp Salt
½  cup Sugar, white, granulated

2 Eggs, large
1 tsp Vanilla, pure extract
1 cup Walnuts, black, chopped
½  cup Raisins, seedless

1. Mix together the warm water and 1 Tbl sugar in a 1 cup measuring cup. Add the yeast and stir ever so slightly. Set this mixture aside for 10 minutes until it is foamy.

2. Warm the milk and pieces of butter in a small saucepan to about 110 degrees (butter will not melt completely). Reserve for use later.

3. With a electric stand mixer, in a large mixing bowl, mix together 3 and 3/4 cups flour, the cocoa, the coffee powder, salt and the ½  cup sugar. Blend these dry ingredients well.

4. In a medium size bowl, beat eggs somewhat and add the reserved warm milk and butter mixture and the vanilla extract; blend well. Add this mixture along with the yeast mixture to the flour,(the dry ingredients) in the large mixing bowl. Stir in the black walnuts and raisins. Place the dough hook on electric mixer and mix all ingredients until well combine and balling up in the bowl. Also this mixture can be combined by hand with a wooden spoon.

5. Continue mixing the dough in the mixer and kneading it only 2 minutes or so. Add more flour if necessary, to make a smooth dough. Or the dough may be turned out onto a lightly floured surface and kneaded for 5 to 6 minutes until smooth and elastic. Form the dough into a ball shape.

6. Grease a large bowl, and place the dough into it, making sure to turn to grease all sides of the dough ball. Cover and let rise in a warm place (free from drafts) until the dough has doubled in size, this will take about 2 hours.

7. On a lightly floured surface, knead the dough a few times, then cover with plastic wrap and let it  rest for few minutes. Roll the dough, with a rolling pin, out into a large oval shape and then roll it up like a jelly roll, placing the seam side down. When rolling the dough, roll from the narrow end to make it fit into your pan size. Use a round casserole type pan or a loaf pan. Place a piece of butter plastic wrap loosely over the dough. Let the loaf rise again, in a warm place (free from drafts), until doubled in size; about 1 and ½  hours.

8. Preheat oven to 350.  In the preheated oven place the loaf of bread near the center of the oven, not too high. Bake for 25 minutes, at the end of that time, cover the pan loosely with foil and continue baking 30 to 40 minutes longer.

9. Remove the pan from the oven, and let it cool for 10 minutes. Then remove the loaf from the pan and  cool it on a wire rack.

10. For a special treat, serve a slice of loaf with butter and honey. Mix ½ cup butter with ½ cup honey, blend well.


Flaky Chocolate PB Delights

8 ounce Crescent rolls, refrigerated
2 ½ Tbl Peanut butter, chunky
4 tsp Sugar, white, granulated
8 tsp Chocolate chips, milk

Preheat oven to 375

Open the package of crescent rolls. Pull apart the crescents, one at a time, into separate triangles. Carefully spread 1 tsp peanut butter on each (making sure to not tear the dough). Then sprinkle each crescent, on top of the peanut butter, with ½  tsp of white sugar. That being done scatter onto each crescent 1 tsp chocolate chips.

Carefully roll up the crescent and place the point side down on ungreased cookie sheet.

Bake in a preheated oven for about 10 minutes, or until golden brown.

 

 

1 cup Pumpkin, solid pack, canned

2 cups Sugar, white

4 Eggs, large

1 ½ cups Oil, vegetable

 

3 cups Flour, white

1 ½ tsp Cinnamon, ground

1 tsp Salt

2 tsp Baking Soda

2 tsp Baking Powder