Baked Chocolate Glazed Donuts

My first hunch that I was pregnant was the fact that the sight and smell of any sort of meat had me running to stick my head in the toilet. The second hunch was that I wanted chocolate. Lots and lots of chocolate. If you've been reading my blog for a while you know that I used to eat completely Paleo, so meat was pretty much the staple in my diet and chocolate was, well, almost nonexistent (unless it was dairy free, of course).

Well, mother baby gets what mother baby wants, and these past few days all I could think about was chocolate donuts! Strange? Yes. Delicious? ABSOLUTELY! 

To bake homemade donuts you'll need a donut pan. I have this one. Recipe adapted from Food, Family, Friends.

Donut Ingredients:

1 cup all purpose flour

1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons granulated sugar

1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup + 3 tablespoons milk

1 egg

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract 

1 tablespoon butter, melted

Glaze Ingredients:

2 tablespoons milk

2 tablespoons cocoa powder

1 cup powdered sugar

 Directions:
1| Preheat over to 325 degrees and spray your donut pan with non-stick cooking spray (I used grape seed oil)
2| For donuts, mix dry ingredients in a mixing bowl.
3| Add milk, egg, vanilla, and butter. Whisk until smooth.
4| Fill each donut cavity 1/2 full with the batter.
5| Bake 12-14 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean.
6| For the glaze, whisk together all ingredients until smooth.
7| Dip the top of each baked donut into the glaze.

I was hoping to get a dozen donuts, but I only came up with 11. Either I ate too much raw batter (oops) or I filled my donut pans too high. (I probably ate too much batter...)

These donuts are delicious and super rich! My strange pregnancy craving was satisfied and baby (and my husband) were happy. And if baking donuts seems intimidating, don't let it be! These were super quick and easy to throw together.

Enjoy!

Saw It. Pinned It. Did It. // Chocolate Molten Lave Cake

In my book, Chocolate Molten Lava Cake is right up there with fluffy puppies and Bora Bora --PERFECTION. The only thing better than any of those things would be to have all three of them together.

Yes, sitting on the sand in Bora Bora with a puppy on my lap and a heaping spoonful of chocolate molten lava cake in my mouth. Life couldn't possible get any better than that.

Are you feeling a little depressed since the above scenario will likely never happen? Me too. 

But what if I told you that you can make chocolate molten lava cake...in a crockpot. Feeling a bit better?

Here's the original pin.

Ingredients

FOR THE CAKE:

2 cups brown sugar

2 cups all purpose flour

6 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder

4 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup milk

4 tablespoons butter, melter

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

FOR THE FUDGE TOPPING:

1 1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

3 cups boiling water

Directions

Mix together sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Stir in milt, melted butter, and vanilla. Spread batter over bottom of a large crockpot (this will rise so don't use the mini crocks). Batter will be stiff. **I sprayed the bottom of my crockpot with some Pam before adding the mixture.

Combine brown sugar and cocoa powder. Sprinkle over cake batter. Pour boiling water over the top of it all and resist the temptation to stir! 

Cover and cook on high for 2 1/2 hours. Let rest for 30 minutes before serving so it isn't too hot! Serve with Vanilla Ice Cream. YUMMM!

It was sooo good! But don't forget to eat it with some vanilla ice cream! The combination of hot and cold with that extra sweetness added from the ice cream really makes a difference!! Enjoy!

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Truffles

For some reason, everyone on my Facebook apparently thinks I'm lying about making these. But I made them even though there are none left for evidence and let me tell you...THEY WERE AWESOME! They're like Christmas time rolled into a ball and dipped in chocolate.  I'm not kidding. They will make you cry tears of joy. They are that good. 

You can find the original recipe I pinned here. 

ingredients:

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1 tsp salt

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, room temperature

3/4 cup granulated sugar

3/4 cup packed brown sugar

1 tsp vanilla

1/3 cup milk or cream (soy or almond milk works too)

1 cup mini semi- sweet chocolate chips

14 oz semi-sweet chocolate baking bars

directions:

Beat butter and sugars in a large bowl with electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy. Add cream and vanilla. Stir in flour and salt and mix on low speed (or by hand) until incorporated. Stir in chocolate chips.

Cover and chill dough for 1 hour.

When dough is firm enough to handle, form dough into 1" balls and arrange on baking sheet lined with waxed paper. Refrigerate dough for another hour.

Melt chocolate bars in a double boiler or in microwave according to package directions. Using forks or a dipping tool, dip cookie balls into chocolate coating to cover. Chill until set. Store, chilled, in an airtight container for up to 1 week.

The original pin says this makes up to 3-4 dozen truffles. I was able to get just under 3 dozen. So either I made the cookie dough balls much larger than directed or I ate too much dough in the process. I'm going to go with the first scenario. 

Want to see more Saw it. Pinned it. Did it. successes? Click on the links below! Homemade Cinnamon Christmas Ornaments DIY Framed Cork Board Homemade Stromboli DIY Office Desk

mini Chocolate Cheesecakes

Remember when I told you I made 36 mini cheesecakes because I'm clinically insane? Well, they turned out really, really good. They are a little time consuming to make, but worth it if you love cheesecake! Here's what you'll need.

- 9 Oreo Cookies
- 2 packages (8 ounces each) and 1 package (3 ounces) cream cheese, softened
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup unsweetened baking cocoa
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
- 3 eggs
- whipped cread for topping

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Line 18 medium muffin cups with paper baking liners. Split Oreos in half. Place one cookie half, middle side up, in each cup.

In large bowl, beat cream cheese with an electric mixer until smooth. Gradually beat in granulated sugar and the cocoa until fluffy. Beat in vanilla. Beat in eggs, one at a time, until well blended. Evenly divide among cups (cups will be almost full).

Bake cheesecakes 25-30 minutes or until centers are firm. Cool for 15 minutes and then refrigerate for one hour.

Smaller than a post-it note :)

Chewy Chocolate Coconut Cookies

I know I've mentioned my sweet tooth issues before, which ultimately leads to recipes like this one and this one. The problem is, Steven isn't much of a sweets guy. So every time I find a sweet treat to bake I'm left with the task of eating every. single. bite. all by myself! I know, I know, the HORROR.

Okay, so I definitely don't mind that...but I'm thinking my waistline might in a few years. So while I'm pinning away I try to find healthier dessert options (preferably loaded with massive quantities of chocolate), and ladies, find one I did! If you're a fan of chocolate and/or coconut this recipe is a must try! It is a completely dairy-free, gluten-free, refined sugar-free snack! There is even an egg-free and vegan recipe option.

And it's soooo simple! See this little cookie? It only requires 5 ingredients and packs a lot of flavor!

 Here's what you''ll need. (Makes about 18 cookies)

- 4 cups finely shredded coconut

- 1 cup cocoa powder

- 1 cup unpasteurized honey

- 4 eggs

- 4 tsp pure vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 350. Combine all the ingredients in one large bowl and mix together until well combined. Scoop about 1/4 cup of the mixture and flattening it out on the baking sheet like a mud pie. Bake for 15-18 minutes.

I honestly think these cookies are my new favorites! They have a no bake, moist texture and a rich chocolate flavor with a delicious coconut kick! Perfection, I tell ya, perfection. 

Click here to view the original recipe and get the egg free and vegan version of these cookies! 

Hope you enjoy!