Catherine's Recipe Box

Note: This is so rich and decadent!  With the nut garnish, it also looks a lot more difficult than it is.  Make sure you incorporate the eggs into the cake mixture very well or your cake will rise in very strange ways. Ingredients Cake 1 cup butter 16 oz. semisweet chocolate, chopped 2 teaspoons vanilla 6 eggs, lightly beaten Glaze 1/4 cup whipping cream 1 tablespoon light corn syrup 1 teaspoon vanilla 3 oz. dark chocolate, chopped Garnish 2 tablespoons chopped toasted hazelnuts (filberts), walnuts or almonds Directions 1)Grease 8-inch round cake pan. 2) In medium saucepan, melt butter and 16 oz. chocolate over medium-low heat, stirring until smooth. Remove from heat. Stir in 2 teaspoons vanilla. Gently stir in eggs until well combined. 3) Pour into greased pan. Place cake pan in 13x9-inch pan; add warm water until 1 inch deep. 4) Bake at 350°F. for 35 to 40 minutes or until center is set. Remove cake pan from water bath; place on wire rack. Cool 40 m...

Note: These came out wonderfully. I have adapted the recipe a bit due to the fact that I have a need to make teeny-tiny cookies. My mom says this is something that is in my genes. I think it's because I'd rather have 5 cookies than just one. :-) Big thanks to Meredith from Like Merchant Ships for this recipe - they might just turn into a new Christmas favorite! Ingredients 2 sticks butter 1-1/2 cups sugar 1-1/2 tsp. baking powder 1/4 tsp salt 1 egg 1 tsp vanilla 2-1/2 cups flour 2 tsp finely shredded orange zest 2 oz unsweetened chocolate, melted* *Frugal substitution: 6 Tbsp. cocoa powder and 2 Tbsp. shortening, melted and combined. I used 3-ish Tbsp. of milk chocolate chips, I think. I figured out how much 2 oz was. Directions 1) Beat butter with sugar, baking powder, and salt. Add egg and vanilla. Add flour in intervals, scraping sides of bowl often. 2) Divide dough in 2. Stir orange zest in 1 half; stir melted chocolate in the other half. Wrap dough balls separ...

Notes: This recipe is from Mike's mom. I made it at least once, and it did come out a little runny but once they baked up, they were really good. Ingredients 1 1/2 cups Bisquick 1 cup sugar 1/3 cup cocoa 3/4 cup of water 2 tbsp vegetable oil 2 eggs Directions Beat all ingredients with a wire whisk or hand beater until almost smooth. Pour batter onto center of hot waffle iron. Bake for about 2 minutes (follow the directions for your waffle iron, though!). Serve this as a dessert with sliced strawberries, apple topping or ice cream on top while still warm and melt it a little. 8-ish servings.

Notes: I am surprising myself in saying this, but I modified this recipe to half the original amount of chocolate chips. It was just too rich and too dense with an entire bag of chips. Half a bag would be fine. And then just eat the other half of the bag while you are waiting for these to bake. :-) Ingredients 2 cups all-purpose flour 1/3 cup light-brown sugar 1/3 cup sugar 2 teaspoon baking powder 1/2 teaspoon salt 2/3 cup milk 1/2 cup butter -- melted and cooled 2 eggs - beaten 1 teaspoon vanilla 1/2 package (6 oz) chocolate chips 1/2 cup walnuts or pecans -- chopped (optional) Directions Preheat oven to 400 F. and grease up twelve muffin cups. In a large bowl, stir together flour, sugars, baking powder, and salt. In another bowl, stir together milk, eggs, butter, and vanilla until blended. Make a well in center of dry ingredients; add milk mixture and stir just to combine. Stir in chocolate chips and nuts. Spoon batter into muffin cups; bake 15-20 minutes, or until a knife insert...