Chocolate Puddles Food

FUDGE PUDDLES

Steps:

• In a large bowl, cream butter, peanut butter and sugars until blended. Beat in egg and vanilla. In a small bowl, whisk flour, baking soda and salt; gradually beat into creamed mixture. Refrigerate, covered, 1 hour or until easy to handle., Preheat oven to 325°. Shape into forty-eight 1-in. balls. Place in greased mini-muffin cups. Bake 14-16 minutes or until light brown. Immediately press a 1/2-in.-deep indentation in center of each cookie with the end of a wooden spoon handle. Cool in pans 5 minutes. Remove to wire racks to cool completely., For filling, in a microwave, melt chocolate chips; stir until smooth. Whisk in milk and vanilla until smooth. Fill each cookie with filling; sprinkle with peanuts. (If desired, refrigerate remaining filling; serve warm with ice cream.)

EASY CHOCOLATE PUDDING

Steps:

• Combine 1/2 cup milk and cornstarch in a small bowl. Whisk or stir with a fork until smooth and all lumps have been incorporated.
• Combine remaining milk with sugar in a medium saucepan over low heat. Slowly whisk in the cornstarch mixture. Cook, whisking as needed to prevent lumps from forming, until mixture begins to thicken, 8 to 10 minutes. Add chocolate chips and salt. Continue stirring until chips are completely melted and pudding is smooth and thickened, about 7 minutes more.
• Pour pudding into 1 large bowl or 6 individual bowls. Place plastic wrap directly on top of the pudding to prevent a skin from forming; smooth it gently against the surface. Refrigerate for at least 3 to 4 hours before serving.

CHOCOLATE PUDDLE CUPCAKES

Steps:

• Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Put 12 cases in a 12-hole cupcake tin. Whisk the eggs and sugar together until light and fluffy - this will take about 5-8 mins with a stand mixer or 10 mins using an electric hand whisk. The mixture will have increased in volume and should be thick enough to leave a trail when the whisk blades are lifted.
• Gently fold in the melted butter. Sift the flour, cocoa and baking powder over the surface and fold in using a large metal spoon, trying not to knock out too much air. Divide the mixture between the cases, then bake for 15-20 mins until well risen and the sponge springs back when gently pressed. Leave to cool in the tins for 5 mins, then lift out onto a rack.
• To decorate, microwave the chocolate on medium for 20-30 secs, stirring every 5 secs, until melted. Gently stir until smooth. Spoon 12 'puddles' of chocolate onto a piece of foil. Divide the chocolate eggs and bunnies between the puddles, to decorate. Leave to set in the fridge or in a cool place.
• Beat the butter, icing sugar, vanilla and and 2 tsp boiling water together using an electric whisk for 4-5 mins until light, pale, fluffy and nearly doubled in size. Spoon into a piping bag with a star nozzle. Pipe onto the cupcakes, then stick the chocolate puddles on top.

GLUTEN FREE CHOCOLATE PUDDLE COOKIES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 320F / 160C degrees and position racks in the top and bottom third. Line three (preferably rimmed) cookie sheets with parchment paper. You could also bake in batches with fewer pans.
• Make sure your nuts are cooled a bit, then coarsely chop and set aside. Sift together the confectioners sugar, cocoa powder, and salt. Stir in the walnuts, then add the egg whites and vanilla. Stir until well blended.
• Use a cookies scoop for about 60 smaller uniform cookies (or spoon the batter onto the prepared cookie sheets in mounds of about 2 tablesoons each to create 18 larger cookies.) These cookies are like reverse Shrinky Dinks - they expand. For the smaller cookies, don't place more than 4 across the short side of your cookie sheet, and for the larger cookies, no more than 6 cookies per sheet. Also remember not to place the batter too close to the edge of the pan.
• Bake until they puff up. The tops should get glossy, and then crack a bit. Bite size cookies will take 7-9 minutes and the large cookies 12-15 minutes depending on your oven. You may want to rotate the cookies top/bottom/front/back.
• Slide the cookies still on parchment onto a cooling rack, and let them cool completely. They will keep in an airtight container for a couple of days.
• Note: I noticed while making the cookies smaller, the batter dried out a bit while waiting for the batches to cook so the tops where not as glossy. Try covering the batter with a damp cloth between batches. It didn't change texture of flavor, just a bit of the appearance.