Gooey bittersweet brownies

January 7, 2016 at 9:14 pm (Alice Medrich, Brownies and bars, B_minus (2.5 stars), Uncategorized)

I already have an Alice Medrich cocoa-only brownie recipe I like a lot, but this one was featured on the Food52 Genius Recipes page, and has been getting rave reviews for its ultra gooey, ultra chocolatey qualities.  Read the rest of this entry »

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What I’ve been cooking: Spring 2013

May 12, 2013 at 2:17 pm (Alice Medrich, Beans, Cruciferous rich, Dark leafy greens, Indian, Italian, Menus, Quick weeknight recipe, soup, Website / blog)

I can’t believe it, but I haven’t posted a proper recipe to this blog since Spring 2013.  At this point my list of recipes to blog about has grown so long that I have despaired of ever posting them all.  So instead I decided to just do one quick smorgasbord post. Read the rest of this entry »

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Adult chocolate cookies

November 6, 2012 at 8:28 pm (A (4 stars, love, favorite), Alice Medrich, Cookies, Derek's faves, Necessarily nonvegan)

This recipe from Alice Medrich’s Cookies and Brownies is actually titled “Robert’s Chocolate Cookies,” but I call them adult chocolate cookies because they’re supposed to be  chocolate cookies for the “sophisticated palate.”   Medrich describes these cookies as “only slightly sweet, but rich and gooey, and laced with the chunks of the finest unsweetened chocolate in the world.”  Robert Steinberg created the recipe for his company, Scharffenberger, and thus they call for Scharffenberger unsweetened chocolate.  Medrich says if you can’t find it then use bittersweet chocolate of another brand, as most brands of unsweetened chocolate are too harsh and bitter to enjoy as chunks.   I first made these cookies in 2006, when I checked Cookies and Brownies out from the Pittsburgh library.  I adored them, but didn’t make them again until now.  Right before I moved to Germany, I toured the Scharffenberger factory in Berkeley, and bought a number of bars of their chocolate.  The Berkeley factory is now sadly defunct.  Hershey bought out the company, and closed down the factory, and consolidated Scharffen Berger production in Illinois with some of their other “gourmet” chocolate brands.  I haven’t tried the chocolate since the buy-out.  But I still had an (expired) bar of Berkeley-produced Scharffenberger  unsweetened chocolate in the pantry, and I decided it was finally time to try these cookies again.

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Decadent brownies

June 20, 2010 at 10:32 pm (A (4 stars, love, favorite), Alice Medrich, Alma's faves, Brownies and bars, Cook's Illustrated, Derek's faves, Dessert, Necessarily nonvegan, Yearly menu plan)

This recipe happens to come from Alice Medrich’s low fat cookbook (Chocolate and the Art of Lowfat Desserts).  But to my taste it makes the perfect brownie: intense chocolate flavor and a little gooey in the middle but with a perfectly textured brownie top. Read the rest of this entry »

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Cornmeal cookies

December 27, 2009 at 10:53 pm (Alice Medrich, C (2 stars, okay, edible), Cookies, Dessert, Necessarily nonvegan)

Derek wanted to make almond crescent cookies, but we didn’t have enough almonds, or his mom’s recipe.  We decided to try these delicate cornmeal cookies instead.  The recipe is from Chocolate and the Art of Low-Fat Desserts by Alice Medrich.

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Chocolate Souffles

April 28, 2006 at 3:02 pm (Alice Medrich, Dessert, F (0 stars, inedible), Necessarily nonvegan, Other)

I love decadent chocolate desserts, so was very interested in trying this lower calorie version of chocolate souffles from Alice Medrich’s cookbook Chocolate and the Art of Low-Fat Desserts. Medrich says these souffles are dark and very rich in chocolate flavor, not at all light or ethereal. She also says they’re a good dessert when you need to make it ahead of time. Read the rest of this entry »

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Frozen Mint Hot Chocolate

April 28, 2006 at 2:59 pm (Alice Medrich, B plus (3.5 stars, like a lot), Dessert, Ice cream & toppings, Quick weeknight recipe)

I love mint hot chocolate, but who wants to drink a hot beverage in the heat of the summer? That’s why this recipe from Alice Medrich’s cookbook “Chocolate and the Art of Low-Fat Desserts” is so nice. It makes a thick slushy chocolate-y rich-tasting dessert, without much work or too many calories. Medrich suggests a number of variations: malt, mocha, orange, lemon, and mint.  Being a chocolate mint freak I naturally chose the mint option.

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Peanut Butter Cookies

April 10, 2006 at 8:33 pm (Alice Medrich, B plus (3.5 stars, like a lot), Cookies, Dessert)

This is another recipe from Alice Medrich’s cookbook Cookies and Brownies. She says her ideal peanut butter cookie is crunchy, very peanuty, and not too sweet, and that’s a pretty good description of these cookies. Read the rest of this entry »

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Ginger Snaps

March 28, 2006 at 10:32 am (A (4 stars, love, favorite), Alice Medrich, Cookies, Derek's faves, Dessert)

Last night I made gingersnaps from Alice Medrich’s cookbook Cookie and Brownies. Derek said they were the best cookies he ever had. Though I enjoyed them, I suspected hyperbole, and when challenged he said they were at least the best cookies I ever made. A compliment? An insult? I’m not sure. Read the rest of this entry »

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