Chocolate

Chewy butterscotch chip cookies with a chocolate surprise underneath!

Black Bottom Chocolate Butterscotch Cookies Recipe

Chewy butterscotch chip cookies with a chocolate surprise underneath!

Chewy butterscotch chip cookies with a chocolate surprise underneath!

Like any college kid worth her salt, I spent the better part of my freshman year living off the food in the vending machines.

“Healthier” Chocolate Butterscotch Cookies

My “healthier” meals consisted of egg salad sandwiches and granola bars. And an occasional visit to the salad and wrap bar in the student center.

But more often than not, I ate junk all day every day. And, boy… it was good. My typical choices were usually something along the lines of chocolate milk, Twix ice cream bars, Dunford pumpkin chocolate chip cookies, Dark Chocolate Peanut M&MS, chocolate covered Sunbelt granola bars, and Black Bottom Toffee Doodles.

Chewy butterscotch chip cookies with a chocolate surprise underneath!

Oh my gosh, you guys.

Those toffee doodles were LIFE! So what exactly is a Black Bottom Toffee Doodle?! Well. I’m glad you asked! This little gem of a cookie is (not so little, first off…) a fabulous combination of a snickerdoodle and a chocolate chip toffee cookie with a thin coating of chocolate on the bottom of the cookie.

It’s everything you want out of a vending machine cookie and so much more ????. If you are ever lucky enough to stumble across one, promise me you’ll buy it!

Chewy butterscotch chip cookies with a chocolate surprise underneath!

Anyway. All this to say… adding chocolate to the bottom of a cookie is realllllllllly good. And I just knew that if I dipped the bottom of my favorite butterscotch chip cookies in chocolate, all would be well with the world.

So I did. And it was. ????????✌???? ????.

Enjoy!

It's easy to see why Epicurious ranked these as their favorite chocolate chip cookies!

Epicurious Favorite Chocolate Chip Cookies Recipe

It’s easy to see why Epicurious ranked these as their favorite chocolate chip cookies!

It's easy to see why Epicurious ranked these as their favorite chocolate chip cookies!

It’s been a little while since I posted a chocolate chip cookie recipe. A month, to be exact (but who’s counting??). So it feels like a good enough time whip out another recipe in the Chocolate Chip Cookie experiment.

Is there ever a BAD time to make chocolate chip cookies? I submit that there is not.

Speaking of a good time to make chocolate chip cookies, wanna see a picture of the house we’re building?? She’s so pretty…

DSC_5520

And if you’re wondering… that’s pretty much how all of my conversations go these days. Talk, talk, talk, talk– wanna hear about my house??? Talk, talk, talk, talk– did I tell you about the house??

We’re just so excited, and it’s moving along so quickly that it’s hard to not be obsessed. I was prepared to be super patient in the beginning, but that went out the window as soon as they got the walls up. When I saw how fast it could happen, I started toe tapping.

Anyway.

It's easy to see why Epicurious ranked these as their favorite chocolate chip cookies!

I’ll pretend to think about something else.

Like chocolate chip cookies. If anything could distract me from the house, it would be warm chocolate chip cookies. You know this about me by now.

So let’s talk about these chocolate chip cookies. In case you’re not familiar, Epicurious is an online food community full of “expert” recipes and cooking advice. Truth be told, I’ve never spent too much time on their site, but I do enjoy their social media posts. And I was pretty confident they’d have a more than decent CCC recipe.

Some of what sets this cookie apart from other recipes we’ve tried:

???? This recipe calls for baking powder in addition to baking soda. The cookies aren’t puffy, like I’d expect a cookie with baking powder to be. But they don’t spread too terribly much, despite the lack of chilling the dough. And I think I’d attribute that in part to the baking powder.

???? There is a little less fat in this recipe. 10 tbsp instead of the 1/2 cup you would normally find in proportion to the amount of flour and sugar called for. This might also contribute to the cookies not spreading as much as I expected them to. I think it also contributes to the nice, crispy edges.

???? Two eggs instead of one. More eggs = more moisture and more fat = more chew!

It's easy to see why Epicurious ranked these as their favorite chocolate chip cookies!

In regards to how I would rank this recipe agains the other cookies I’ve tested, it gets a solid two thumbs up. That being said, I don’t think that particularly stands out as anything outrageously different than most other CCC recipes. But it’s a very good, very solid, worthwhile chocolate chip cooke recipe to hang on to!

You’ll enjoy the crispy edges, the chewy centers, and most of all– LOTS of chocolate! This recipe calls for chopped high quality chocolate– which always makes for a most excellent chocolate chip cookie 🙂 .

Enjoy!

My new favorite 3-step cheesecake covered in chocolate, stuffed with salted caramel, and sprinkled with toffee.

Salted Caramel and Chocolate Covered Cheesecake Recipe

My new favorite 3-step cheesecake covered in chocolate, stuffed with salted caramel, and sprinkled with toffee.

My new favorite 3-step cheesecake covered in chocolate, stuffed with salted caramel, and sprinkled with toffee.

Calling all cheesecake lovers!

And chocolate lovers.

And caramel lovers.

And toffee lovers.

This is the recipe for YOU. And most definitely for me too. I have a serious love of chocolate dipped cheesecake. Fortunately (for my waistline), I rarely get a chance to eat it simply because it’s not a super accessible food. Basically, they serve it at the fair and maybe at the odd food truck or two. But otherwise, it’s never really in my direct path.

My new favorite 3-step cheesecake covered in chocolate, stuffed with salted caramel, and sprinkled with toffee.

Until now.

Because now I know how incredibly easy this is to make in my own kitchen.

In my home.

Where I live. Every day. ????

My new favorite 3-step cheesecake covered in chocolate, stuffed with salted caramel, and sprinkled with toffee.

And, you guys, it turns out that chocolate dipped cheesecake is dangerously easy to make.

It all began when I bought the wrong kind of cream cheese from Sam’s. I accidentally bought a 3 pound BRICK of cream cheese instead of the 3 pounds of cream cheese in six 8-ounce boxes that I was trying to buy. And I thought, what on earth am I going to do with this??

Because, clearly, I wasn’t going to cut it up into six 8-ounce portions myself. ????

So I looked up the simplest cheesecake recipe I could find, tripled it, and stuck three cheesecakes in my freezer to use for cheesecake layer cakes throughout the holiday seasons.

My new favorite 3-step cheesecake covered in chocolate, stuffed with salted caramel, and sprinkled with toffee.

But as one’s frozen cheesecake tends to do, it called to me from the freezer.

And eventually I gave in and dipped it in caramel and chocolate and topped it with toffee and a chocolate drizzle and fancy flaked sea salt.

No, you have no self control!

My new favorite 3-step cheesecake covered in chocolate, stuffed with salted caramel, and sprinkled with toffee.

I think you’re going to be very happy with this recipe. Maybe not your pants. But you will be. ????

PS- don’t let the length of the instructions scare you! I just wanted to be detailed about the process to make it easier on you. I swear, I did all of the dipping in less than 30 minutes before I ran out the door for carpool! It’s totally NBD ????.

Perfectly baked pumpkin donuts coated with cinnamon sugar and topped with Nutella.

Baked Pumpkin Nutella Donuts Recipe

Perfectly baked pumpkin donuts coated with cinnamon sugar and topped with Nutella.

Perfectly baked pumpkin donuts coated with cinnamon sugar and topped with Nutella.

My daughter knows no seasonal boundaries when it comes to her love of pumpkin.

Regardless of the time of year, when we let her choose the dessert for family night– it’s always pumpkin pie. Always. Which is so funny to me, because she is an incredibly picky eater especially in regards to texture. And it took me until adulthood (and years of acquiring more adventurous palate)  to appreciate a good pumpkin pie, because I always felt like it was kind of slimy.

It is, after all, a cold pie made of squash. I feel like kids have a right to be a little leery when it comes to pumpkin pie. But not my girl!

Perfectly baked pumpkin donuts coated with cinnamon sugar and topped with Nutella.

As much as I love a good pumpkin pie (now), I just feel like there is so much more fun to be had when it comes to pumpkin season.

Pumpkin Monkey Bread. Enough said.

Pumpkin Cornnread with Maple Cinnamon Butter. ohemgee.

Pumpkin S’mores Cupcakes. Just yes.

Pumpkin Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting. Swoon.

Pumpkin Oreo Cheesecake Bars. Need I continue??

Perfectly baked pumpkin donuts coated with cinnamon sugar and topped with Nutella.

I’d have to say, at the top of my pumpkin favorite recipes list is most definitely this one for pumpkin donuts with Nutella on top.

Pumpkin + Nutella is the kind of flavor combination that dreams are made of. Initially, I thought I might make some sort of Nutella “glaze” or Nutella “frosting.” But then I realized… why mess with perfection? So I warmed up a bowl of straight-up Nutella and dunked my cinnamon sugar coated pumpkin donuts right in.

And I didn’t regret it. No siree.

Perfectly baked pumpkin donuts coated with cinnamon sugar and topped with Nutella.

If you’re ready to begin your fall baking (and really, who’s not??), may I suggest that you start right here. Dig out that pumpkin, ya’ll! It’s Fall!

Almost ????.

If you like to lick the brownie batter bowl, you'll love this healthful alternative!

Single Serve Brownie Batter Dip Recipe

If you like to lick the brownie batter bowl, you’ll love this single serve brownie batter dip made just for one!

If you like to lick the brownie batter bowl, you'll love this healthful alternative!

This brownie batter dip is INSANE you guys. It’s thick and rich, right on the money for texture and flavor. If you’re a bowl-licker, you’ve come to the right place my friend.

Not only does this single serve brownie batter dip taste just like brownie batter, and not only is it a perfectly scaled down recipe meant just for one, guess what else? It’s actually kinda, sorta healthy!

WHAT?!

If you like to lick the brownie batter bowl, you'll love this healthful alternative!

This recipe’s key to success and star ingredient is ALMOND BUTTER. And everybody knows we need those healthy fats! Plus, this is what makes the brownie batter thick and so much like the real stuff. I was worried that the almond butter taste would be overpowering, but not so. The other ingredients balance out perfectly.

The sweetener? Honey. Also a major player in the texture game.

If you like to lick the brownie batter bowl, you'll love this healthful alternative!

And, of course, we’ve got flour, cocoa powder, salt, and vanilla. All major components to real brownie batter. I also added mini chocolate chips and walnuts, because I need a little crunchy ????.

PS- If you’re concerned about eating raw flour, you can heat treat it in the oven before using it.

If you like to lick the brownie batter bowl, you'll love this healthful alternative!

Eat it as a dip with apples, pretzels, graham crackers, and strawberries. Or just grab a spoon and dig in. I won’t judge ????.

Love brownies? So do we! Here’s a roundup of all of our Swanky Brownies, Bars and Blondies — in one place!

If you liked Hostess Cupcakes in your lunchbox as a kid, you'll love this cake version that's all grown up!

Hostess Cupcake Cake Recipe

If you liked Hostess Cupcakes in your lunchbox as a kid, you’ll love this cake version that’s all grown up!

If you liked Hostess Cupcakes in your lunchbox as a kid, you'll love this cake version that's all grown up!

OH my gosh. This cake. YOU GUYS! Where to even begin?!? Because, honestly, this cake was all kinds of ridiculous. In the very best way…

I remember back when my mom would pack my lunches and would on a very rare occasion send me to school with a Hostess Cupcake in my lunchbox. I tried to not let my friends see me geek out over a cupcake in (but seriously, how come none of the other 5th graders ever seemed as fall-over-yourself excited about cupcakes as I did?? Was I truly alone in that feeling?!). So I’d carefully set it aside until I had finished my lunch. I wanted it to be the very last thing that I tasted before going back to class.

And there was no just shoveling the whole thing in my mouth. Oh no. I took my time and savored each component separately. First, I peeled (yes, peeled, you know what I’m talking about!) off the chocolate icing and ate that first. Next I scooped out the cream filling. And finally, I’d eat the remaining cake. If I was lucky enough to get a Hostess Cupcake in my lunchbox, you can darn well believe I made it a full-blown experience when it came time to eat it!

If you liked Hostess Cupcakes in your lunchbox as a kid, you'll love this cake version that's all grown up!

Being the mature adult that I am today, it’s been long, long time since I’ve sampled fine packaged delicacies such as a Hostess Cupcake. But that doesn’t mean I hold it in any less regard. In fact, I made this cake as an ode to my favorite lunchbox treat!

Basically, if a Hostess cupcake grew up to be a full-blown layer cake, this is what it would be. And it’s nothing short of OMG SO GOOD. To use my most eloquent terminology there.

If you liked Hostess Cupcakes in your lunchbox as a kid, you'll love this cake version that's all grown up!

If you liked Hostess Cupcakes in your lunchbox as a kid, you'll love this cake version that's all grown up!

Today’s cake recipe combines layers of my all-time favorite chocolate cake with a copycat Little Debbie cream filling (that I also used in these Oatmeal Cream Pies), and it’s topped with a sinfully indulgent chocolate ganache.

It’s literally a larger-than-life Hostess Cupcake with better chocolate frosting, a better cream filling, and much better chocolate cake.

So, what I’m say is pretty much this: if you were that child geeking out in the cafeteria over a Hostess Cupcake… this one’s for you ????.

I took my favorite homemade yellow cake and made it better.

Another Yellow Birthday Cake with Chocolate Frosting Recipe

I took my favorite homemade yellow cake and made it better.

I took my favorite homemade yellow cake and made it better.

I am particularly excited about this cake, because…. IT’S MY BIRTHDAY!

And I like my birthdays. A LOT.

I took my favorite homemade yellow cake and made it better.

So, in celebration of my very favorite day of the year, I’m sharing my very favorite birthday cake: yellow cake with chocolate frosting and lots of sprinkles!

I’ve actually shared this cake before. Here.

But I’ve made some upgrades to the cake recipe, so that it’s moister, softer, and fluffier! And I couldn’t use the same chocolate frosting as before. That particular frosting was made to be EXTRA creamy. Which is amazing. But it doesn’t work quite as well on a stand-alone layer cake. I needed to make a chocolate buttercream that could hold it’s own for this cake.

I took my favorite homemade yellow cake and made it better.

I took my favorite homemade yellow cake and made it better.

Let’s talk about this cake.

Hopefully, you guys know by now that I put the SIMPLICITY of a recipe at the top of my priority list before I post something new. It’s important to me that all of my recipes are completely do-able in a REAL LIFE chaotic, busy, never-enough-time, at-home setting.

In 99% of my recipes you will NOT find much chilling, softening, sifting, or anything else that is time consuming. With that being said, I hope you’ll trust me when I tell you something like this…

The ingredients that go into the batter of this cake must be brought to room temperature. I wish I was joking. But after umpteen hard and dry yellow cakes, I’ve finally conceded the fact that I have to let all the cold ingredients come to room temp before whisking up the batter.

If you plan it right, it’s really not a big deal. Set the stuff on the counter early morning or even the night before and you’re ready to go a few hours later. And great news– you can actually just melt the butter! So that’s one less cold ingredient you have to worry about.

I took my favorite homemade yellow cake and made it better.

I took my favorite homemade yellow cake and made it better.

Just promise me you’ll wait for the ingredients to come to room temp. If you’re desperate for a quick cake, use a mix. I won’t judge you. But don’t rush this recipe!

I could not believe the difference it made to simply let the ingredients come to room temperature before mixing. The cake was moister, fluffier, and downright yummier than any other from-scratch yellow cake I’ve ever made before!

I took my favorite homemade yellow cake and made it better.

I took my favorite homemade yellow cake and made it better.

I took my favorite homemade yellow cake and made it better.

And that chocolate frosting is everything. I don’t know what it is about yellow cake and chocolate frosting, but I just don’t think it gets any better than that. The only thing I would dream of adding is a gigantic scoop of vanilla bean ice cream!

Enjoy 🙂 And Happy Birthday to all the rest of you July birthdays out there!!

Rich and moist chocolate zucchini cake with chocolate chips and a decadent chocolate ganache on top!

Death By Chocolate Zucchini Cake Recipe

Rich and moist chocolate zucchini cake with chocolate chips and a decadent chocolate ganache on top!
Rich and moist chocolate zucchini cake with chocolate chips and a decadent chocolate ganache on top!
Today, we’re revisiting one of my oldest recipes. And one of my very favorites. Because (aside from my favorite chocolate cake) I’ve yet to meet another chocolate cake that rivals this chocolate zucchini cake in terms of flavor, texture, and moistness. Plus, we’re talking about FOUR layers of chocolate goodness here:

???? chocolate cake.

???? chocolate chips inside the cake.

???? chocolate ganache.

???? more chocolate chips on top of the ganache.

This is a MAJOR chocolate experience you guys.

Rich and moist chocolate zucchini cake with chocolate chips and a decadent chocolate ganache on top!

And the best part is: you’re totally getting in your veggies! Not that you’ll even notice.

You won’t believe there are TWO WHOLE zucchinis in there! And you know what they say– you need 5 servings of fruits and vegetables a day. So, basically, that means you need 2 and a half cakes per day. Which seems reasonable. Amiright? ????

Rich and moist chocolate zucchini cake with chocolate chips and a decadent chocolate ganache on top!

Rich and moist chocolate zucchini cake with chocolate chips and a decadent chocolate ganache on top!

That ganache is practically a superfood on it’s own.

I mean, just look at that! Does anyone else get all ???? ???? ???? watching ganache drip down the side of a cake? Be still my heart!

Ganache is so simple to make. I actually wrote a whole post about it here (which I plan to update soon, in fact. But it’ll do for now). It just takes two simple ingredients: chocolate and heavy cream. I usually nuke it in the microwave in 30 second increments until everything is warm and melty and stirs smooth. But it’s probably a little safer to make it over medium heat on the stove top if you don’t work with chocolate much, just to avoid burning or seizing it.

Rich and moist chocolate zucchini cake with chocolate chips and a decadent chocolate ganache on top!

Rich and moist chocolate zucchini cake with chocolate chips and a decadent chocolate ganache on top!

This cake is seriously a dream come true. You are going to be obsessed with it!!

Moist chocolate donuts that are baked instead of fried, topped with a sweet glaze and Oreo crumbles.

Cookies & Cream Baked Chocolate Donuts Recipe

Moist chocolate donuts that are baked instead of fried, topped with a sweet glaze and Oreo crumbles.

Moist chocolate donuts that are baked instead of fried, topped with a sweet glaze and Oreo crumbles.

Happy Thursday! It’s almost the weekend, which I think calls for donuts!!

I’m obsessed with donuts. Cream filled, chocolate frosted, sprinkled, glazed, baked, fried, whatever. If it’s a donut, I want it. These baked chocolate donuts with a glaze have an especially soft spot in my heart. I love the texture– they’re a little bit crispy around the edges, just like a fried donut, but soft and airy on the inside. So much perfection in one little breakfast food!

Moist chocolate donuts that are baked instead of fried, topped with a sweet glaze and Oreo crumbles.

Today, I’m taking my favorite chocolate donut recipe, and cranking it up a notch by coating the glaze in Oreo cookie crumbles and adding a drizzle of cream cheese frosting to top it all off.

These donuts are incredibly simple to make. The ingredients are simple and straightforward, stuff you have on hand. And the mixing and baking process is a breeze as well. Basically, what I’m saying is that you can have homemade chocolate donuts in about 20 minutes.

Which I think we can agree is something we allllllllll need. ????

Moist chocolate donuts that are baked instead of fried, topped with a sweet glaze and Oreo crumbles.

Moist chocolate donuts that are baked instead of fried, topped with a sweet glaze and Oreo crumbles.

I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we do!

Baskin Robbins Mint Chocolate Chip Copycat Recipe | www.somethingswanky.com

Baskin Robbins Mint Chocolate Chip Copycat Recipe

It’s Ice Cream Week on Something Swanky and Crazy for Crust!*

Click the links above to see all of our fun ice cream recipes from this week.

***Originally posted in July 2014

Baskin Robbins Mint Chocolate Chip Copycat Recipe | somethingswanky.com

I’ve mentioned before that my husband isn’t a big fan of mix-in type ice cream places (like Coldstone). He’ll eat there if I make him go (I mean, it is ice cream, after all). But then, as we’re driving past the Baskin Robbins on our way home, he’ll heave a not-so-subtle sigh and gaze longingly at the rear-view mirror.

I determined that our difference in opinion over ice cream shops is really the difference between liking hard or soft ice cream. He prefers hard scooped, I’d rather have something more along the lines of ice cream soup. I dunno… he’s probably in the majority there. But I can’t help it– I love soft, mushy ice cream full of big candy chunks and hot fudge.

Baskin Robbins Mint Chocolate Chip Copycat Recipe | somethingswanky.com

However, he has totally turned me on to Baskin Robbins’ Chocolate Chip and Mint Chocolate Chip ice creams.

Because….. ohemgee.

I am so in love with the way their “chocolate chips” aren’t really chocolate chips at all. Instead, it’s full of a thin pieces of brittle chocolate that ribbon throughout the ice cream. And it takes chocolate chip ice cream to an amazing new level.

Just like the Stracciatella I mentioned last week, Baskin Robbins-style chocolate chip ice cream is achieved in the same way– by pouring chocolate (or in this case, Homemade Magic Shell) into the ice cream during the last 5 minutes of churning.

Baskin Robbins Mint Chocolate Chip Copycat Recipe | somethingswanky.com

This Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream is SO easy and so yummy. Mint is one of my husband’s favorite ice cream flavors, but you could easily make this regular old chocolate chip ice cream by simply omitting the peppermint extract!

I use a Cuisinart ICE-21 Ice Cream Maker to make churned ice cream, and far I’ve loved it. It’s pretty inexpensive (only $49!), easy to use, and makes delicious ice cream in about 20-30 minutes. I would highly recommend it if you’re looking for a simple, day-to-day use ice cream machine.

Enjoy!

Fudgy chocolate cake layered with rich peanut butter frosting and peanut butter cups make this an excellent cake to share with a crowd.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Cup Cake Recipe

Fudgy chocolate cake layered with rich peanut butter frosting, peanut butter cups, and a rich peanut butter chocolate ganache make this an excellent cake to share with a crowd.

Fudgy chocolate cake layered with rich peanut butter frosting and peanut butter cups make this an excellent cake to share with a crowd.

Happy Thursday!

I’ve been saving a good one for my peanut butter and chocolate trifecta finale. Things may have started out a little more conservatively with this Super Skinny Peanut Butter Cup Smoothie, but we are definitely finishing on a wild note! Because there is nothing mild or tame about this two-layer chocolate fudge peanut butter cup beauty!

Fudgy chocolate cake layered with rich peanut butter frosting and peanut butter cups make this an excellent cake to share with a crowd.

This may look like a simple 2-layer cake at first glance. But what you’re really seeing here are actually nine layers of peanut butter chocolate-y goodness. Count them with me:

???????? my all-time favorite chocolate cake.

???????? homemade peanut butter frosting.

???????? Reese’s peanut butter cups.

???????? more chocolate cake.

???????? more peanut butter frosting.

???????? peanut butter chocolate ganache.

???????? more peanut butter frosting.

???????? more peanut butter chocolate ganache.

???????? MORE Reese’s cups!

Fudgy chocolate cake layered with rich peanut butter frosting and peanut butter cups make this an excellent cake to share with a crowd.

See those Reese’s cups in the middle?

That’s my favorite part. You know I’m all about the texture, and those little bits of Reese’s give the middle of this cake a perfect little something extra to bite into.

Fudgy chocolate cake layered with rich peanut butter frosting and peanut butter cups make this an excellent cake to share with a crowd.

Fudgy chocolate cake layered with rich peanut butter frosting and peanut butter cups make this an excellent cake to share with a crowd.

What are you waiting for?! It’s practically the weekend– dig in!

Easy no-bake chocolate peanut butter pretzel bars made with only 5 simple ingredients!

Peanut Butter and Chocolate Pretzel Bites Recipe

Easy no-bake chocolate peanut butter pretzel bars made with only 5 simple ingredients!

Easy no-bake chocolate peanut butter pretzel bars made with only 5 simple ingredients!

I’ve been on a real chocolate and peanut butter kick lately, with three back-to-back Chocolate PB recipes coming your way! Be excited ????.

I like chocolate and peanut butter in all sorts of ways. From the super indulgent recipes like Tagalong Pound Cake, No Bake Peanut Butter Cup Bars, and Peanut Butter Brownie Trifles to healthier recipes like this Super Skinny PB Cup Smoothie or my favorite Peanut Butter Granola.

My favorite way to eat PB will always be in the form of a cookie. Preferably my  Grandma’s Monster Cookies or my mom’s Chocolate Dipped Peanut Butter Cookies!

Or in any of these 75+ Ways to Eat a Reese’s. Obviously.

Easy no-bake chocolate peanut butter pretzel bars made with only 5 simple ingredients!

Today’s recipe combines three of my great loves: PB + chocolate, pretzels, and no bake.

Side note: the way to my heart is to make something EASY. And these no-bake bars have do that in spades! 

Easy no-bake chocolate peanut butter pretzel bars made with only 5 simple ingredients!

We’re basically mashing these Peanut Butter Cup No Bake Bars (have you made them yet??) with two cups of pretzel crumbs.

Speaking of mashing…

You could put your pretzels in a food processor for a rough chop if you want when you’re making this recipe. But I just dumped mine in a gallon-sized zipper bag and beat them with a rolling pin. It worked out just fine (and one less thing I have to clean).

You can see in the photo above that you don’t need to aim for super fine crumbs. The PB mixture will hold the pretzels together perfectly even if there are some bigger chunks. In fact, you may find that you like having big chunks of pretzel bites in there!

Easy no-bake chocolate peanut butter pretzel bars made with only 5 simple ingredients!

You only need 5 simple ingredients for this recipe, and you probably have them all on hand already!

  • creamy peanut butter
  • pretzels (2 cups of CRUSHED pretzels)
  • chocolate chips
  • powdered sugar
  • butter

See? Easy peasy.

Easy no-bake chocolate peanut butter pretzel bars made with only 5 simple ingredients!

I added some honey roasted peanuts to the top of mine for some additional crunch (and I like the look of it), but that’s totally up to you.

I also think M&MS would be pretty on point if you’re considering additional toppings ????????.

Easy no-bake chocolate peanut butter pretzel bars made with only 5 simple ingredients!

Easy no-bake chocolate peanut butter pretzel bars made with only 5 simple ingredients!

Easy no-bake chocolate peanut butter pretzel bars made with only 5 simple ingredients!

Enjoy!

35 whopping grams of protein in this smoothie (with no powders), and it tastes like a milkshake!

Super Skinny Peanut Butter Cup Smoothie Recipe

35 whopping grams of protein in this skinny peanut butter cup smoothie (with no powders), and it tastes like a milkshake!

35 whopping grams of protein in this smoothie (with no powders), and it tastes like a milkshake!

I’m going to be really honest with you… the weight loss thing isn’t really my strong suit in life. I haven’t quite cracked the code on that one.

Do I love Weight Watchers? You betcha.

I love to exercise too, believe it or not.

And I can whip up healthier versions of dessert recipes all day long (like Skinny Chocolate Donuts, Skinny Brownie Batter Dip, and Banana Pancakes). Or Cottage Cheese Breakfast Ideas.

But when it comes to actually dropping the pounds… not so much.

35 whopping grams of protein in this smoothie (with no powders), and it tastes like a milkshake!

However, I fully anticipate that I will one day eat my way through enough Halo Top Ice Cream to discover that it’s finally made me skinny.

At least that’s what I tell my husband every time I spend 5.99 on a pint ????.

Good man that he is, I never actually see him roll his eyes.

35 whopping grams of protein in this smoothie (with no powders), and it tastes like a milkshake!

Anyway. The point that I’m trying to make here is… I may not be very good at the actual losing of the weight. But I’m very, very good at breakfast on day one of a new diet. Ahem, er, “lifestyle change.” ????

Side note: how irritating is it that no one is allowed to “diet” anymore. The PC way to say diet these days is, “lifestyle change.” But… what if I just want to lose 30 pounds? Do I really have to change my mindset and my pantry for the rest of forever. Is that really totally necessary?? Is it???? *hysterics*

But back to breakfast on day one…

How about a ridiculously decadent skinny peanut butter cup smoothie WITH 35 FREAKING GRAMS OF PROTEIN that tastes like peanut butter cups? Works for me.

Enjoy!

This old fashioned chocolate cake was one of the first from-scratch cakes I ever made. It's super moist and has a rich chocolate flavor. Top it with chocolate ganache or this yummy 1-minute frosting!

Old Fashioned Chocolate Cake Recipe

This old fashioned chocolate cake was one of the first from-scratch cakes I ever made. It’s super moist and has a rich chocolate flavor. Top it with chocolate ganache or this yummy 1-minute frosting!

This old fashioned chocolate cake was one of the first from-scratch cakes I ever made. It's super moist and has a rich chocolate flavor. Top it with chocolate ganache or this yummy 1-minute frosting!

You guys want to hear something CRAZY?

I first published this recipe 6 years ago to the day! As you know, I’ve been updating recipes and photos for quite some time (I’ve been moving like a turtle on this project). I actually baked and shot this cake last week, and when I sat down at the computer tonight to write the post, I totally geeked out when I saw “Published: April 21, 2011.”

I’m sure I’m the only one getting excited over this, but it felt serendipitous and I just had to share ????.

This old fashioned chocolate cake was one of the first from-scratch cakes I ever made. It's super moist and has a rich chocolate flavor. Top it with chocolate ganache or this yummy 1-minute frosting!

SIX YEARS! I still can’t believe it’s been that long since I posted this recipe– or since I started blogging, for that matter. I’m not really one of those bloggers that has an exact date for my first post and celebrates a blog birthday or anything. I mean, I totally would if I could! But I think I deleted and re-published my first post about 14 million times, so I had totally lost any concept of my “start date” by the time I realized celebrating your “blogiversary” was a thing.

So basically, I just have a vague recollection of some of my very first posts, and I know for sure this was one of them! Which makes it extra special to me.

This old fashioned chocolate cake was one of the first from-scratch cakes I ever made. It's super moist and has a rich chocolate flavor. Top it with chocolate ganache or this yummy 1-minute frosting!

This batter is THICK. And all kinds of amazing.

Thanks to two large eggs and 2/3 cup of sour cream, it’s an incredibly rich and moist cake as long as you don’t overbake it. What’s overbaking it look like? A totally clean toothpick is overbaked. That’s not to say you want a ton of batter sticking to the toothpick when you test it, but if a little bit of moist cake is still sticking to it– you know it’s perfect.

This old fashioned chocolate cake was one of the first from-scratch cakes I ever made. It's super moist and has a rich chocolate flavor. Top it with chocolate ganache or this yummy 1-minute frosting!

You could go a couple of different routes with the frosting. Chocolate ganache is a solid option, obviously. And my all-time favorite Chocolate Frosting is another great way to go. And this glaze is quick and easy and would look stunning!

The day that I made this cake for photographing, my brain was stuck on a one-minute fudge frosting I had seen on Pinterest. So that’s what I did and that’s the recipe I’m including for you today. But seriously, the sky is the limit with the frosting, so don’t feel limited to what I did here!

Not that I want to scare you away from this one-minute frosting. It was pretty awesome, and I’m glad I tried it! It turns into an almost fudge-like state when it cools and firms up quite a bit. Yum!

This old fashioned chocolate cake was one of the first from-scratch cakes I ever made. It's super moist and has a rich chocolate flavor. Top it with chocolate ganache or this yummy 1-minute frosting!

???? And trust me, you’ll definitely want a glass of milk to go with this recipe. Enjoy!