Smoky Jalapeño Baked Beans

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One of the down sides to being a creative home cook is, well, the pressure to be creative all the time. It’s a self-imposed expectation, I know. But more than a few times in the recent couple of months, I’ve hit a brick wall on getting new ideas on the table. We have eaten well, but I have mostly pulled out familiar, favorite recipes because we’ve had too much going on. And a good many of our meals have been takeout, which is far more exception than rule at our house. This is not easy for me.

Last month, I had an epiphany—OK, it was more a reluctant acceptance of something my husband has been trying to tell me, and I finally gave in—and what a relief: I don’t have to make a rock star meal every night, and I don’t have to make everything from scratch. Sometimes it’s OK to take it easy. And that’s what I did with this baked bean recipe, which is begging to be part of someone’s July 4th table.

The bacon is already salty, but a little added salt helps to soften the onions.
If you want to make this spicy, keep some of the seeds in the jalapenos you slice for the top. Dice the rest to be added to the bean mixture.
The charred oak barrels used to age this whiskey seal the deal on the smoky flavor. This can be omitted if you avoid alcohol.

Sure, it’s special, with the salty bacon, slices of fiery jalapeno and a shot of charred oak barrel-rested whiskey, but here’s a secret I’m eager to share— I cheated! I dressed up a can of store-bought baked beans. And they were awesome.

Whew. It feels good to let that go, and I’m not going to pretend that I discovered the can of beans in the back of the cabinet and just whipped up a fun spin on them. Nope, I had every intention of taking a shortcut when I made my grocery list, and let me tell ya, it was just as much fun jazzing up a pre-made can of baked beans as it would have been if I’d made them from scratch. I chose the most basic variety of beans I could find, without too much embellishment. They only had a touch of brown sugar, and this made it easy to spin the beans in the savory direction my palate was craving.

Elevating a store-bought product can be just as rewarding as making a dish from scratch!

Dressing up the store-bought beans was easy, and they got a big flavor boost from two very thick slices of savory bacon, cooked up to just-shy-of-crispy with half of a sweet onion (I reserved the other half for the top). I didn’t want the beans to dry out in the oven, so I enhanced the sauce with a few tablespoons of ketchup, a splash of vinegar, some smoked paprika and a few shakes of cumin. Then, just for fun, I stirred in a shot of whiskey, the same one I used in the Kickass Whiskey-Braised Collards that we enjoyed a few months ago.

I was at the end of my bottle of ketchup, so I used the vinegar to shake out the last of it.
A full teaspoon of smoked paprika shifts the flavor of these beans from sweet to smoky.
A few shakes of cumin lends depth and additional smoke.

After dumping the beans into the same skillet, I stirred in the smoky sauce and topped the baked beans with the remaining onion slivers and jalapeno slices and slid it into the oven. Baking the smoky beans in the same skillet meant that I also saved time and energy on cleanup, which was a welcome relief. And, there’s just something cool about taking the skillet right to the table.

If your bacon has rendered a high volume of fat, drain some off before adding the canned baked beans.
Add the diced jalapenos and the smoked-up sauce, and give it a good stir to blend evenly.
Arrange the jalapeno slices and onion slivers and season the whole thing with black pepper. Transfer to the preheated 350° F oven.
After 40 minutes in the oven, the sauce will darken and thicken to a deliciously sticky state. Serve warm.

This dinner was easy all around, as we served the smoky jalapeno baked beans with an All-American favorite—grilled, all-beef hot dogs with (gasp!) store-bought buns. Don’t worry, there is no danger of me permanently trading in my “do-it-yourself” personality in the kitchen, but occasionally, I could get used to this.

By the way, are you already doing this with your hot dogs? It only takes a few seconds, and you end up with so many crispy crevices to support your favorite toppings. 🙂

Smoky Jalapeño Baked Beans

  • Servings: 6 to 8
  • Difficulty: easy
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This recipe builds on the flavors of store-bought canned baked beans (or pork and beans). For best flavor results, purchase a simple flavor, such as Bush’s “original” baked beans with bacon and brown sugar, or Bush’s vegetarian baked beans. You can kick up this recipe in multiple ways—for big, bold flavor, keep some of the jalapeno seeds and use the whiskey. For milder flavor, substitute green bell pepper and skip the whiskey.

Ingredients

  • 2 slices thick smoked bacon, cut into 1-inch pieces (omit for a vegetarian version)
  • 1 medium sweet or yellow onion, half chopped, and half slivered into crescents
  • 1 medium fresh jalapeno, half diced, and half sliced into thin rings
  • 3 Tbsp. tomato ketchup
  • 1 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar
  • 1 tsp. smoked sweet paprika
  • 1/2 tsp. ground cumin
  • 1 oz. smoky whiskey (optional, but heck yeah!)
  • 28 oz. can Bush’s “original” or “vegetarian” baked beans, or equivalent substitute
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Directions

  1. Preheat the oven to 350° F, with rack in center position.
  2. Place a 10-inch cast iron skillet over medium flame. Add bacon and onion, and season it a bit with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, to soften onions and render some of the fat off the bacon. If a great deal of fat results, drain off as much as you wish.
  3. Combine the ketchup, vinegar, paprika and cumin in a small bowl. Stir in the whiskey (if using) and set the mixture aside.
  4. When bacon is slightly crisp, add the canned beans to the skillet, including all the sauce. Stir in the diced jalapenos and the sauce mixture. Adjust salt and pepper to taste.
  5. Top the baked beans with the remaining onion slivers and slices of jalapeno. Twist some freshly ground black pepper all over the top. Bake for 40 minutes, until sauce is bubbly all around.

Mexican Chocolate Skillet Brownies

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Before we talk about these amazing chocolate-and-spice brownies, let’s clear this up: Cinco de Mayo is not Mexico’s Independence Day. This has long been the belief of many Americans who assume that all the revelry and celebration associated with the 5th of May must be hugely significant to Mexico’s overall history, but it is not correct—Independence Day in Mexico happens in September. Cinco de Mayo is observed in commemoration of what happened half a century later, in 1862, in one Mexican state.

But the story of Cinco de Mayo is a great tale of triumph by a people whose love for their land outweighed the military might of a wealthy bully, and my brownies pay tribute to their passion. It is a tale so inspiring, it cannot be properly told without an incredible, dramatic anthem, like this one by Ennio Morricone (take a listen as you read). Yes, he is Italian, but Morricone’s composition is perfect for this story of a proud and dedicated people. You may also recognize this stunning piece from the ads for Modelo Mexican beer.

Mexico’s newly elected president, Benito Juárez—who was also the first indigenous political leader of the country—had inherited some economic troubles and overdue loans by European governments, and they were demanding payment. Juárez was able to cut a deal with the leaders of the U.K. and Spain, but the French president at that time wanted to call their loans by foreclosing on the region of Puebla, which was along the main road between the capital of Mexico City and the port city of Veracruz. This obviously did not sit well with Juárez. He rallied the loyal locals to stand with the Mexican Army in holding their ground (figuratively and literally) in Puebla, and when the French troops arrived the morning of May 5, outnumbering the Mexican troops and patriots by nearly 3-1, they were in for a surprise. What the Mexicans lacked in numbers, they more than tripled in might and spirit, and the French troops were forced to retreat by the end of the same day.

It was only one battle in a lengthier saga that later ended with the French taking the land for a short few years, but the story rings patriotic for anyone with a heart for civil rights, which was also playing out in the U.S. during those years. Cinco de Mayo is considered a minor holiday in most of Mexico, but here in the States, someone else’s one-day battle victory has become reason enough to throw a party. This one, not surprisingly, works out especially well for the distributors of Mexican beer. Come to think of it, the Cinco de Mayo story itself should be in one of those Modelo commercials. That would make a lot of sense.

My idea of a party, naturally, always comes back to the food. For Cinco de Mayo, I’ve skipped the obvious margaritas in favor of a sweet treat that honors the Mexican tradition of chocolate, which was so revered by the ancient Mayans and Aztecs that they used it as currency. Today, chocolate continues to play a significant role in the traditional moles of the Puebla region. Chile peppers complement chocolate exceptionally well, so I’ve added a hint of chipotle powder to these brownies, which are also kissed with extra dark cocoa, a good dose of cinnamon and real vanilla. And all the Mexican grandmothers shouted, “amén!”

Crazy as it sounds, the crunch of the sea salt is what sends it over the top.

If these brownies sound a bit too gourmet for your kitchen skills, relax, because this decadent dessert begins with a box of Ghirardelli. I’m all in favor of a shortcut that makes sense, and they are, in my opinion, the best box brownies, but use the one you like. The oh-so-easy ganache is optional, but allow me to tempt you further by mentioning that I spiked it with a splash of Patron XO Café Dark, a coffee- and cocoa-infused Mexican tequila. To keep it humble, I’ve baked it up in a cast-iron skillet, but don’t be fooled—this is a rich and decadent dessert for the ages, and it is worth fighting for. Call it “the ecstasy of chocolate,” if you wish.

Can you believe how fudgy and delicious this is?

Ingredients

1 box brownie mix* (I love Ghirardelli dark chocolate, but use your favorite), plus listed ingredients to make them

1 Tbsp. dark cocoa powder (Mine is from King Arthur Baking, but Hershey Special Dark would be OK)

1 tsp. espresso powder*, optional (deepens the chocolate, but does not add coffee flavor)

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp. pure ground chipotle* (see notes)

1 tsp. real vanilla extract

1/3 cup Ghirardelli semi-sweet chocolate chips

A few pinches of coarse sea salt or kosher salt

Butter, for greasing the skillet or brownie pan*

Ganache

1/2 cup heavy cream

4 oz. Ghirardelli semi-sweet chocolate chips*

1 Tbsp. Kahlua or Patron XO Café Dark liqueur, optional

*Notes

The brownie mix I use produces a chewy, fudge-style brownie. In addition to the mix, be sure you also have the ingredients listed on the box for making them.

Espresso powder is a specialty ingredient that I found in the baking aisle of a gourmet supermarket. You could also substitute a good quality instant coffee, such as Starbucks Via brand, or simply omit it.

I am crazy about the combination of chocolate and chiles! Chipotle, which is smoked jalapeno, is especially nice here. You could also use up to the same amount of pure cayenne powder, which is spicier, or pure ancho powder, which is milder and more fruity. Please do not use what is generically labeled as “chili powder,” as these random blends usually also include salt, garlic, oregano and other spices you wouldn’t want in brownies. Check your labels, always.

My decision to use the cast-iron skillet presented a few other adjustments, because a 10.25” skillet means a slightly different distribution of brownie batter. Also, the cast iron is heavy and retains heat differently than my usual 8 x 8 glass dish. I have adjusted the baking time accordingly in my instructions, but please consider your mix recommendations as well as your baking vessel.

According to my digital kitchen scale, 1/2 cup of chocolate chips was only three ounces, which falls short of “equal parts” with the cream. If you don’t have a scale, measure out 1/2 cup, then pile on as many more chips as you can without them spilling, and you’ll be in good shape.

Instructions

  • Even if your skillet is well-seasoned, coat it generously with butter.
  • My brownie add-ins, clockwise from the top: additional dark cocoa, espresso powder, cinnamon, pure chipotle powder.
  • I’ve added pure vanilla extract to my oil, water and egg.
  • Whisk the liquid ingredients together, then add them to the dry ingredients and fold just until blended.
  • There is no such thing as too much chocolate. Even though my Ghirardelli mix already has dark chunks, I’m adding semi-sweet chips.
  • Heat the skillet before adding the batter, to give it a head start on baking.
  • A little sea salt amplifies the richness of dark chocolate. Sprinkle it right on top just before you slide the brownies into the oven.
  • They looked good at 34 minutes, and the residual heat from the cast iron will finish up any not-quite-done areas.
  • I’m a total sucker for the chewy-crispy edges of brownies, and I can’t wait to try these from the skillet!
  • I have a second cast-iron skillet, so I nested them to ease these brownies into cooling.

As if the brownies are not decadent enough, believe that the next step makes them even better. If you have ever thought of ganache as “fancy,” you can lay that idea to rest. It is nothing more than equal parts hot cream and rich chocolate. I’ve spiked it with a Mexican liqueur, and it sends these brownies into purely heroic territory.

Make the ganache:

  • Ganache is so easy to make! For this dessert, I’m using equal parts heavy cream…
  • …and semi-sweet chocolate chips. Four ounces of each, and it measures out to a heaping half cup.
  • Somehow, I forgot entirely that I had this XO Cafe Dark in the back of our liquor cabinet. It’s similar to Kahlua, but made with Mexican tequila. In other words, perfect for the ganache on these brownies!
  • Heat the heavy cream until it is steaming, but not boiling. Pour it over the chocolate and give it five minutes to rest.
  • Use a whisk to combine these ingredients. It seems hopeless at first.
  • But within seconds, you’ll see it come together.
  • If you think it looks decadent right now, wait until I whisk in that Cafe Dark back there. I need both hands to do it, so I can’t give you a picture of that step.
  • But I’ll tempt you with the end result. Oh, look! Who wants to lick the whisk?
I have no words for this image.
Mexican Chocolate Skillet BrowniesEnjoy!

Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Pretzel Brownies

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Pardon me for a moment, as I ponder the best part of Super Bowl LV—I don’t mean the game, though I’m sure that Tampa Bay fans everywhere are still celebrating and bragging on social media about the blowout win. I’m not talking about the fun party, because as much as I love chilling at home with my husband (and making great food together), we were definitely feeling the void and missing our usual houseful of friends and neighbors. Nope, I am calling out the best part. For me, it was these brownies.

With a winning combination of all the right flavors, these brownies deserve their own trophy.

I’m not trying to ruin anyone’s diet or anything; just hear me out for a sec on these brownies. Soft and fudgy, peanut butter swirly, crunchy pretzel salty, holy moly, yum. They smelled fantastic while baking, and I don’t feel one bit ashamed for taking a major shortcut—a box brownie mix.

There, I said it. Though I love my time in the kitchen, especially creating fun, new twists on foods everybody loves (pizza, for instance), I don’t make desserts very often because I don’t have much of a sweet tooth. That’s probably what attracted me to these brownies in the first place—they are not only sweet, but also nutty and salty and crunchy. I’ve adapted these from a scratch recipe by Valerie Bertinelli, the actress who now has her own cooking show on Food Network. I considered (for about a second) making them from scratch myself for our quiet, at-home Super Bowl festivities, but the reality is that Ghirardelli does it way better than I do. It was the peanut butter swirl and salty pretzel topping that won me over, anyway.

I gleaned a few bits of wisdom from the reviews for Valerie’s scratch-made recipe, such as using a smaller pan and a lesser amount of the peanut butter swirl mixture, and then I settled in to enjoy a shortcut version of what so many fellow bakers had to say—”best brownies ever!”

Ingredients

1 box Ghirardelli brand “dark chocolate” brownies, + ingredients to make them, which included an egg, 1/2 cup oil and 1/4 cup water.

1 Tbsp. dark cocoa powder

1/3 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips or chunks

1/2 cup smooth and creamy peanut butter (not the “natural” variety)

1/3 cup confectioner’s sugar, sifted to remove lumps

3 Tbsp. salted butter, melted

A handful of salted mini pretzels, broken by hand

An extra sprinkle of coarse sea salt, if you like a bit more of this contrasting flavor

Instructions

The photos tell the story, but if you keep scrolling, you’ll find a downloadable PDF you can save and print for your recipe files. Enjoy!

  • For this recipe, I used a “smooth” style peanut butter, rather than my usual natural style. The creaminess created a wonderful marbling.
  • My handheld electric mixer brought this together in record time, but I’m sure you could also whip it together with a spoon.
  • These dark chocolate brownies are already decadent, but I cannot stop myself from adding even more depth with some extra cocoa powder.
  • The liquids are exactly what is recommended on the box brownie mix—oil, egg and water.
  • Oh, why not?? If loving extra chocolate is wrong, I don’t want to be right.
  • The peanut butter swirly mixture was like little kisses from heaven all over this ultra-dark brownie batter.
  • Based on reviews of the original recipe, I made a smaller amount of the peanut butter filling, but still had extra. Did I eat it straight from the bowl? You bet I did.
  • Swirling the peanut butter mixture was easy, and I followed no pattern.
  • This felt a little bit like art class.
  • In hindsight, I could have used more pretzels, and I will next time. Break them by hand so you have pieces, rather than crumbs.
  • I pressed lightly on the larger bits of pretzel, to be sure they got down into the brownie mixture. If you love salty with your sweet, sprinkle on additional coarse sea salt.
  • Baked as directed on the brownie box. Cool completely before cutting into serving pieces.
  1. Preheat oven to 325° F, with rack in center of oven. Butter a glass 8 x 8” baking dish.
  2. In a medium mixing bowl, combine the peanut butter, confectioner’s sugar and melted butter. I used my handheld mixer for this step, but Valerie mixed it up just fine with a spoon, so do what you like there. Set this mixture aside while you prepare the brownie base.
  3. Add dark cocoa to the brownie mix. Add the egg, oil and water, blending together until all dry ingredients are moistened. Fold in the extra chocolate pieces. Spread batter evenly into baking dish.
  4. Spoon dollops of the peanut butter mixture randomly over the top of the brownie base. You may find that you have a little bit of the peanut butter mixture left over, as I did. But if that’s the case, just follow my lead and eat it straight off the spatula, the beaters, the bowl, and that little bit that spattered on the counter. No problem (it’s delicious).
  5. Use a butter knife blade to drag the peanut butter dollops through the brownies, marbling as much or as little as you like.
  6. Use your hands to break the mini pretzels into pieces, scattering them all over the brownies. Sprinkle on a few pinches of coarse sea salt (optional).
  7. Bake brownies 45 to 50 minutes, according to package instructions. Cool completely before cutting, and try not to eat the whole batch in one evening.
The center of the brownie is soft and fudgy, the corners and edges are perfectly chewy, and that whole peanut butter swirly pretzel thing? Totally elevating my happy!

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Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Pretzel BrowniesYes, please!

Leftover Snickers Brownies with Sea Salt

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OK, who else got stuck with a bunch of candy after disappointing trick-or-treater turnout? The whole neighborhood was abuzz last week about whether (or how) to participate in Halloween this year—do we go ahead and buy candy? Will there be any kids? Is it even safe to do it this year? Without a pandemic playbook, we were all just guessing, but the consensus was “let’s give it a go.”

So Les and I scrubbed our hands, dumped our bags of candy into a wide bowl with our long-handled BBQ tongs, placed our face masks on standby and flicked on the porch light to signal our intentions. Mr. Bones did his best to draw them in with his spooky presence and vacant gaze. But when the clock showed 9:30, we gave up, having given out exactly seven pieces of candy—all to one adorable little witch princess.

See you next year, Mr. Bones!

It’s not that much of a surprise, and in some ways I’m relieved because it proves that our community has done a good job of recognizing the safety issues of COVID. Despite our preparation and “no contact” method of distributing the candy, we ended up with nearly as much as we started. In previous years, Les has taken our leftover candy to share with his co-workers, but that standard fallback doesn’t work this year, either.

I guess I had it coming, this big pile of leftover Snickers—just last week, I was re-living the childhood trauma of my father’s annual raids on my Halloween candy, under the guise of a “safety check.” Is this the universe’s clever way of paying me back after all these years?

Though it is true that Snickers has always been my favorite candy bar, there’s a limit to how many of them I can eat before I get bored. I fired up the idea machine in my brain, and these easy-to-make brownies were born. They are the best of both worlds. Rich, dark, soft chocolate-y brownies and sweet, salty, peanut-y candies. What could possibly go wrong?

Ooey gooey, chocolate chewy!

Ingredients

Ghirardelli dark chocolate brownie mix (or your favorite, plus ingredients listed on the box instructions)

10 fun-sized Snickers candy bars (not the “minis”)

Coarse sea salt

Instructions

  • You also need the ingredients for preparing the brownie mix.
  • These were fun-sized bars, and I cut them into bits about the size of sugar cubes.
  • Scatter the bits a few at a time, then fold into the batter. Repeat until all candy bits are incorporated.
  • A quick sprinkling of sea salt will echo the salty peanuts in the Snickers bars.
  • Oh my goodness! The chocolate aroma is intoxicating, and you can see the sea salt on the surface of the brownies.
  • You can see bits of candy bar oozing throughout the brownies. It’s so tough to wait for them to cool!
  1. Preheat oven as instructed on brownie mix. Prepare baking pan as directed.
  2. Cut up candy bars into small bite-sized pieces.
  3. Make brownie mix as directed by box instructions.
  4. Fold in candy bar pieces, then spread batter into the prepared baking pan.
  5. Give the batter a light sprinkle of the coarse sea salt.
  6. Bake as directed on brownie mix and cool completely before cutting.
I need a big glass of milk! 😀

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Leftover Snickers BrowniesDownload & Print

Triple Chocolate Cherry Brownie Bowls

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There’s dessert for the sake of a sweet tooth, and then there’s DESSERT, as is the case with this ultra-chocolate-y, cherry-infused brownie bowl, packed with “Cherry Garcia” vanilla ice cream, studded with sweet cherries and dark chocolate chunks. Oh, and I almost forgot, the cherry syrup. Over the top? Obviously! But this was a birthday dessert a few weeks ago for my husband, Les, who is himself a little “over the top” crazy about any and all chocolate and cherry combinations. And for such an occasion, during a year that has given us too much to worry about and not enough to celebrate, I went all in.

Well, almost. I did take one easy shortcut and I’m not ashamed to share my little secret with you—I never make brownies from scratch. I have a favorite box brownie mix that meets all my picky ingredient requirements, so why put forth the effort to make it “as good as” theirs, when they already have a product that is a winner every time? Ghirardelli dark chocolate is my go-to, and though the brownies are terrific as directed on the box, I sometimes can’t help but elevate them with my own “extras” to highlight certain aspects of the brownies’ personality. It’s easier than you might expect.

For these birthday brownie bowls, I’ve substituted cherry juice for the water called for on the package instructions, and I’ve added a tablespoon of dark cocoa powder plus a handful each of chocolate chunks and cut up dried cherries. That’s it. The simplest flavor swaps, resulting in the most decadent dessert my hubby could have ever asked for on his birthday (or any other occasion). Luckily, for our ever-expanding pandemic waistlines, it will be another year before we indulge to this degree. But it was kinda worth it. 🙂

Chocolate, cherries, more chocolate, brownie, cherry sauce. What could possibly go wrong?

These brownies are super-sized and shaped like a bowl, exactly right to hold a generous scoop of ice cream (which I did make from scratch, but don’t feel pressured to do so). The special shape is courtesy of a fancy-schmancy pan I bought from King Arthur Baking Company. At $30, it was a bit of a splurge, but in this most ridiculous year, I’ve been willing to invest a bit more in kitchen gadgets and ingredients to make our home meal experiences more memorable. Mark my word, it’ll pay for itself by the time the holidays get here, because I’m already dreaming up other ideas.

The pan has a no-fail nonstick coating. The brownie bowl holds a perfect scoop of ice cream.

If you’re not feeling the love for a special pan to make bowl-shaped brownies, don’t stress about it. Make the brownies in a regular pan according to the mix instructions. You can still swap in the special flavor ingredients and have a spectacular dessert with minimal effort. Remember, stressed spelled backward = desserts, and I’m all about flipping things around! 🙂

Ingredients & Instructions

1 box of your favorite brownie mix (make according to package instructions, but adjust as noted below)

  • Substitute cherry juice for the water to infuse an extra layer of flavor into the brownies.
  • The liquid ingredients already have a dark, rich color.
  • The extra dark cocoa adds a layer of chocolate-y depth.
  • The dried cherries are so dark and delicious! Fold gently to incorporate these final add-ins.
  • A boxed brownie mix usually yields about 16 brownies. By comparison, this pan yields only six “brownie bowls.” They’re huge!
  • If you use this special pan, reduce the oven time. These were done in about 25 minutes.

Substitute equal amount of cherry juice for the suggested amount of water

Add 1 Tbsp. dark cocoa powder to the dry mix (Hershey’s special dark will do, and it’s easy to find)

Add 1/2 cup dried dark cherries, cut into smaller pieces (fold in after mixing)

Add 1/2 cup dark chocolate chunks or semi-sweet chocolate chips (fold in after mixing)

Bake as directed on the package, but if you use the King Arthur brownie bowl pan, you’ll want to cut the time in half. My brownies were perfect after 25 minutes.

Fill ‘em up!

Cherry Garcia ice cream from Ben & Jerry’s (or whatever other ice cream rocks your world)

I made my own version of “cherry Garcia,” but we usually purchase the Ben & Jerry’s brand, which is great!

Top ‘em off!

Hot fudge topping, whipped cream, or (if you’re feeling inspired) my quick homemade cherry sauce.

Cherry on top of cherries! This sauce is easy to make and also happens to be excellent on crepes or any kind of ice cream.

Cherry Sauce*:

2 cup frozen dark sweet cherries

2 Tbsp. sugar

1 tsp. pure vanilla or almond extract (or 1 Tbsp. amaretto liqueur or chocolate liqueur)

1 Tbsp. dark chocolate balsamic vinegar* (optional)

2 Tbsp. corn starch, mixed with 2 Tbsp. ice cold water

Heat a small saucepan over medium heat. Add frozen cherries and sprinkle sugar over the top. Stir and cook until cherries are softened and mixture is reduced and bubbly (about 15 minutes). Add extract or liqueur and stir. Blend corn starch and water until smooth, and slowly drizzle into the cherry sauce, stirring constantly. Allow mixture to come back up to full simmer, and continue to stir as it thickens further. Remove from heat. Use the sauce warm over dessert or keep in refrigerator up to two weeks.

*This time around, I strained the cherries from the sauce because they went into the ice cream. Half of the sauce was drizzled through the ice cream like a ribbon, and the rest was reserved for spooning over the brownie bowls. It was a delicious labor of love!

This one’s for you, my birthday boy! ❤

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Triple Chocolate-Cherry Brownie BowlsDownload & Print