A Couple Classics

. We're a tad bit over due, but better late than never!  This last weekend, my boyfriend and I had some friends over for the Super Bowl and of course, some baked goodies were in order.  I must say, the treats went over rather well!

I knew we needed something snacky around the house for people to munch on during the game, which brought me to Caramel Puff Corn, a recipe I snagged from my aunt.  My mom has made this on several occasions and I must warn you, it's HIGHLY addicting!

For the dessert, a request was put in by a friend to make brownies (of course, accompanied by some Vanilla Bean ice cream!).  So, this led me to try out a recipe by [my idol] Marcy Goldman, called Big Fat 'n' Fudgy Shoebox Brownies.  And oh, are they thick, FUDGY, and outrageous!  Again, I'm not a huge brownie fan but this makes THE ideal, classic brownie!

Both of these goodies are not only SO, SO good, but extremely easy.  Keep these in your back pocket, they'll come in handy! .

Caramel [Puff] Corn

Ingredients:

1 bag puff corn

1 c. packed light brown sugar

1/2 c. butter

1/4 c. light corn syrup

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. baking soda

Directions:

1.  Divide puff corn between two ungreased 13x9-inch pans.

2.  Heat oven to 200°F.  Cook brown sugar, butter, corn syrup, and salt over medium heat, stirring occasionally until bubbly around the edges.  Continue cooking 5 minutes.  Remove from heat.  Stir in baking soda until foamy.  Pour over puff corn until well coated.

This step caught me off guard a little, and once you try it, you'll understand why.  But don't worry, it's supposed to look like a foamy blob because the mixture will caramelize on the puff corn in the oven.

3.  Bake, uncovered, stirring every 15 minutes for 1 hour to evenly coat the puff corn.

Yield: 8 c. caramel puff corn

*My Notes:

• I doubled the recipe because I was a little nervous that the original recipe wouldn't be enough for the number of guests we were having over.  Everything turned out just fine, so if you need to, double away!

Big Fat 'n' Fudgy Shoebox Brownies

Ingredients:

1/2 c. unsalted butter

7 oz. semisweet chocolate, cut into chunks

2 tbsp. cocoa powder

1-1/4 c. sugar

1 tsp. vanilla extract

3 large eggs

1 c. all purpose flour

1/4 tsp. salt

1 c. walnuts, coarsely chopped (optional)

Directions:

1.  Heat oven to 350°F.  Generously spray 11x7-inch or 8-inch pan with non stick cooking spray.

2.  Melt butter and chocolate over low heat in heavy-bottomed 1-quart saucepan and stir until smooth.

3.  Add cocoa powder to melted chocolate mixture.  Remove from heat, spoon into medium-sized bowl, and let cool to room temperature.

4.  Add sugar, vanilla extract and eggs, stirring until smooth.  Fold in flour, salt and walnuts and stir to make a smooth batter.

5.  Pour batter into prepared pan.  Bake 30 to 40 minutes or until brownies seem just set.  

Yield: 9 brownies

*My Notes:

• You can easily double the ingredients in this recipe and use a 13x9-inch pan for a larger batch of brownies.
• This time around, I left out the walnuts.  But this was only because of the audience I was serving, always take them into account :)
• This is one of those perfect base recipes I've mentioned in my 'Tips & Tricks.'  Use this recipe as a starter and throw in some of your favorite mix-ins.  My personal favs?  Dried fruit (e.g., cherries, cranberries), nuts, candy bar pieces, chocolate chunks, butterscotch or peanut butter chips.  You name it, it'll be good in this brownie!