Every guy has a sweet tooth. They also like the illusion of a girl slaving away in the kitchen in a pink apron and flour everywhere.
This Valentines Day being awkwardly placed on a Monday, going out for dinner on the exact day just might not fit into each other busy lives as class, homework, student groups and internships/co-ops don’t pause for the lovey-dovey holiday. Try celebrating tonight, Sunday or pushing it off until next weekend and instead, on Valentine’s Day, have your guy over for homework, coffee and freshly baked chocolaty goodies.
When it comes to baking, I have staple recipes I fall back on, however none are Valentines Day themed nor do-able in a college dormroom kitchen. I needed a new recipe – something new, cute and had the possibility to dye part of it red. I consulted epicurios.com and, as I was expecting, they had a Valentine’s Day guide complete with main courses, side dishes, drinks and, of course, dessert.
One of my favorite things about epicurious.com is their recipe slideshows. They compile a photo gallery of amazingly plated recipes where clicking on the photo takes you to the recipe.
In their ‘Recipes for Romance’ guide for this Valentines Day, four such galleries exist, including one for ‘Brownies and Bars.’ Dingdingding. We have a winner.
Cheesecake-Marbled Brownies. Chocolate. Cheesecake. 3½ fork rating (out of 4 by users, meaning they’d make it again). Active time: 15 minutes, easily accomplished during a break from sending emails and cranking out that paper due Wednesday. And, I could swirl in red food coloring for the occasion. Perfection.
Cheesecake-Marbled Brownies, epicurious.com (originally Gourmet June 2007)
For brownie batter
1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, cut into pieces
2 ounce unsweetened chocolate, chopped
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
For cheesecake batter
8 ounces cream cheese, well softened
1/3 cup sugar
1 large egg yolk
1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Preparation:
Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 350°F. Butter an 8-inch square baking pan.
Heat butter and chocolate in a 3-quart heavy saucepan over moderately low heat, whisking occasionally, just until melted. Remove from heat and whisk in sugar, eggs, vanilla, and a pinch of salt until well combined. Whisk in flour until just combined and spread in baking pan.
Whisk together cheesecake batter ingredients in a small bowl until smooth. Dollop over brownie batter, then swirl in with a knife or spatula.
Bake until edges are slightly puffed and center is just set, about 35 minutes.
Serve warm or at room temperature.
Not a bake-from-scratch-er? Make your own conversation hearts!
Grab your favorite sugar cookie mix and prepare as directed, roll out and cut into hearts. Bake, cool, decorate. Use red food coloring to dye white canned icing pink or red (takes a lot to get a deep red). Fill a freeze strength, quart size baggie with icing and just barely cut the tip off of a corner and use to write or draw on your heart shaped cookies.
More of a place-and-bake (or in the old days, slice-and-bake): Pillsbury has you covered. Grab your favorite place-and-bake or cookie dough log and a small can of red or pink sugar sprinkles. Pour sprinkles onto a plate. For place and bake cookies, roll the sides in the sprinkles and place on baking sheet. For the log, roll the entire log into the sprinkles, pressing to adhere. Slice and place cookies on baking sheet. Bake as directed. Both of these options spice up your store-bought cookie dough and add some festivity to your studying treat.