Once upon a time, long long ago, on New Years Eve in the small town of Calabasas, California, one of us Husbands had a liiittle too much to drink. And by “too much,” we mean polishing off a half a bottle of whiskey in just a few seconds. Adam was fifteen years old, and it was one of his first times drinking alcohol. After ringing in the New Year and watching Dick Clark’s annual celebration in Times Square on TV, his parents went to bed, while he and a friend began to raid their liquor cabinet. They started by pouring an entire bottle of whiskey into two large glasses filled with ice, plugging their noses, and chugging the contents as quickly as possible. While his friend disappeared to the restroom, he continued to consume more alcohol, gulping Kahlua straight from the bottle. As you can imagine, this unfortunate combination of liquids obviously didn’t agree with his skinny teenage body. Things got a little foggy after that, and the next thing he remembers is a man from the fire department asking him, “What did you drink, son?” “Whi-key,” he weakly mumbled, lacking the strength to pronounce the S. Apparently, he had been calling out to his mother, helplessly and hopelessly intoxicated, and she found him lying on the floor in the den—the details of which we will spare you since this is a cooking blog after all. Long story short, the paramedics determined that he would be okay and there was no need to take him to the hospital. Ever since that delightful day, “Whi-key” has not been a part of Adam’s life… until last December when he tried a double chocolate bourbon milkshake which changed everything.
Tag: chocolate
crispy banana waffles with nutella syrup
We have a treat for you today! How many of you loved the chocolate chip pancakes at IHOP when you were a kid? You know who you are so please don’t pretend that you can’t remember that radiant whipped cream smiley face with those bright cherry eyes. You would look forward to it every time, and since it was a special treat for the weekend, your parents allowed you to order it. And as you enjoyed the fluffy pancakes dotted with melted chocolate, you would tell yourself, “When I’m a grownup, I’m going to have chocolate for breakfast every day!” Well today is a beautiful morning, the sun is shining, the birds are singing, and we are feeling nostalgic. We decided to celebrate this gorgeous Spring day with something sweet. Something that would make our younger selves quite proud: crispy banana waffles drizzled with hot nutella syrup.
hot nutella with toasted marshmallows
What has four ingredients, takes five minutes to make, is rich, warm, chocolatey, and even better than a cup of hot cocoa? Allow us to introduce you to this glorious and comforting drink: hot Nutella with toasted marshmallows. Our original plan was to post a fancy layered holiday cake today, but as we learned this weekend, it still needs work before we can share it. We spent all of Sunday baking, then ended up throwing the entire failcake in the trash after taking just a few bites, so it will have to wait till next year! When deciding what to make instead, the thought of something quick and easy sounded most appealing after this long and disappointing cake fiasco. We were in the kitchen discussing ideas, and in a moment of inspiration, Adam suggested, “What if instead of hot chocolate… it was hot Nutella?” We knew immediately that this was the ideal treat to share with you this week: simple to make, sweet, indulgent, and perfect for the holidays. With quick and easy toasted marshmallows—it takes literally 30 seconds in the broiler—and an option to spike these hot drinks with a splash of liquor, they satisfy adults and kids alike!
thick and chewy chocolate chunk cookies with toasted walnuts
There are two types of people in the world: those who like nuts in their chocolate chip cookies, and those who do not. For our entire lives we have always preferred them without, until one momentous night a few months ago when our good friend Gabe brought us this exceptional batch that changed our minds forever. And we are not the only ones! Last night we took a platter of these cookies to a holiday singalong party, and witnessed the miraculous conversion of several friends who had never liked nuts in their cookies before. So what is it about them that is changing people’s hearts and minds, especially on such a serious and potentially divisive issue? It could be that they are loaded with big chunks of dark chocolate. Maybe it’s the extra splash of vanilla, or the higher amount of dark brown sugar. Or perhaps the perfect texture: chewy and moist with golden crispy edges and a rugged crunchy top. Whatever the reason, these rich and chocolatey jumbo-sized cookies have made converts out of us, and we have embraced the delicious power of walnuts in baked goods. One bite, and you just might become a believer too…
chocolate peanut butter brownie cups
Sometimes recipes don’t turn out the way you expect. Our original plan was to have a red velvet cake ready to post today, but it turned out to be somewhat of a disaster. We tried replacing the artificial red food dye with puréed beets, but the result was a soggy, tasteless mess. While we continue searching for other natural alternatives, we have decided to instead share one of our all-time favorite desserts: a rich, gooey, chocolatey treat that is decadently delicious, with no beets in sight. Allow us to introduce you to chocolate peanut butter brownie cups.