The Kitchen is My Playground turned 2 this week! I can hardly believe it. Last year on the 1st bloggiversary, I shared the story of how The Kitchen is My Playground came to be. This year, in addition to bringing you these totally decadent dark chocolate Raspberry Truffle Brownies ... 'cause a celebration calls for total decadence, right? ... I decided to share some of the changes that have gone on with The Kitchen is My Playground this year. 'Cause, whew!! ... what a year of learning it has been.
1. First up, the big change we're most excited about -- we are now offering sponsorship/advertising opportunities with The Kitchen is My Playground! See that 'Advertise' link in the navigation bar? It holds all kinds of information about why The Kitchen is My Playground is a great partner for your online advertising needs. We'd love to talk with you to see if our site and your business, website, or Etsy shop are a mutual fit for partnering together. Click on over to our Advertise page to sign up, or contact us via e-mail at info{at}thekitchenismyplayground{dot}com. We'd love to hear from you!
2. Next up, and most visible to all of you, is The Kitchen is My Playground got a little facelift back in July'ish. Thanks to the wonderful blog design tutorials by Ashton of Something Swanky, I was able to pull off a redesign of the site. All by myself. I was shocked ... in a good way ... that I was able to get it done without completely pulling my hair out. 'Cause techie stuff is definitely not my strong point.
Now, I don't claim to be, in any way-shape-or-form, a graphic designer ... but I think I did okay with the design for a novice.
The Kitchen is My Playground went from standard ol' text header ...
To something with a tad more pizazz ...
Better, don't you think?
Just don't ask me how many attempts and how many hours it took to get these polka dots between the posts right ... I'd truly be embarrassed to tell you.
3. Finally - The Kitchen is my Playground began partnering with Ziplist to bring you their handy-dandy Recipe Box feature right here on this site. See the 'Recipe Box' link in the navigation bar? That's it!
Now with one simple click on the blue 'Save Recipe' button by the title of each posted recipe ...
... you can save your favorites straight into your personal Recipe Box and easily find them later. Within Ziplist, you can also search for other recipes suited to your liking, create meal plans, and even keep up with your grocery list. So cool.There have been about umpteen-bazillion other behind-the-scenes goings-on here this year, but I'll spare you all the details. And I know there is still a lot in store for the upcoming year, too. I can't wait to see where The Kitchen is My Playground's third year takes us!
So how 'bout we get back to celebrating Year 2 with these scrumptious Raspberry Truffle Brownies? Yes, I didn't think you'd mind.
These truffle brownies are decadently rich, with a layer of from-scratch dark chocolate brownies topped with a layer of creamy raspberry truffle filling ...
... embellished with a pretty little chocolate drizzle.
Just perfect for a special occasion! Like a bloggiversary.
Or Valentine's party ... which is what I made them for. Or a dinner party. Or a Tuesday. (sure ... a Tuesday counts as a special occasion, right?)
I'd definitely make them for a Tuesday.
Thank you for reading The Kitchen is My Playground and for celebrating our 2nd bloggiversary with us! We look forward to having you with us throughout year 3 and beyond.
I invite you to follow The Kitchen is My Playground with Google+, Pinterest, Facebook, Google Friend Connect, bloglovin', or Feedburner. Buttons are in the right sidebar. I'd love to have you back soon!Raspberry Truffle BrowniesSource: My Sister-in-Law, Cheryl (and I have no idea where she got her inspiration)
Ingredients
For the Brownies:
- 1/2 c. butter
- 1 1/4 c. semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 2 eggs
- 3/4 c. packed light brown sugar
- 1 tsp. instant coffee crystals
- 2 T. water
- 3/4 c. all-purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp. baking powder
- 1 c. semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 1 (8 oz.) package cream cheese, softened
- 1/4 c. confectioners' sugar
- 1/3 c. seedless red raspberry jam
- 1/8 c. semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 1/2 tsp. shortening
Prepare the Brownies:
- In a heavy saucepan, melt the butter and 1 1/4 cups chocolate chips over low heat. Cool slightly, about 15 minutes.
- In a large bowl, beat eggs and brown sugar. Dissolve coffee crystals in the water. Add the coffee mixture and melted chocolate to the egg mixture. Mix well.
- Combine the baking powder and flour; stir into the chocolate mixture until incorporated.
- Spread batter into a greased 9x9-inch or 8x8-inch baking pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 to 35 minutes until brownies are set.
- Cool completely.
- In a heavy saucepan over low heat, melt the 1 cup of chocolate chips. Cool for about 30 minutes.
- In a mixing bowl, beat the softened cream cheese until fluffy, about 1 to 2 minutes. Add the confectioners' sugar and raspberry jam; beat until just combined. Stir in the melted chocolate until well combined. Spread the filling evenly over the cooled brownies.
- Place the 1/8 cup chocolate chips and shortening in a small zip-top plastic bag. Set bag in a bowl of warm water to soften. Gently knead the chocolate with your fingers until melted and smooth, placing back in the warm water for a minute or two as needed.
- Snip a very small hole in the corner of the plastic bag. Drizzle chocolate over the truffle filling.
- Chill brownies before cutting. Cut into small 1-inch squares to serve (these are rich ... a small square goes a long way). Store brownies in the refrigerator.
This post is linked with Make the Scene Monday, Marvelous Mondays, On the Menu Monday, Sunday Showcase Party, Mangia Mondays, Cowgirl Up!, Tutorials & Tips Link Party, Two Cup Tuesday.
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