Warm deep-dish chocolate cookie: recipe from Yummy Books

A new way to enjoy chocolate chip cookie... the only thing missing from this picture is a scoop of vanilla ice cream:) Thanks to my copy of Yummy Books So-Easy Sweets for the recipe. The kids had a blast partaking of slices of this deep dish cookie - thick and made more yummy with the addition of heavenly chocolate chips & chocolate syrup!

Here's the recipe:

1. As always when you bake cookies like these, preheat oven to 325F. Afterwards, proceed to prepare the materials and make the recipe.

2. In a bowl, combine 3 cups all purpose flour, 1 cup quick-cooking oats, 2 teaspoons baking soda and 1 teaspoon salt. Set aside.

3. In another bowl, cream 1/2 cup unsalted butter (softened) and one cup sugar till light and fluffy.

4. Add two eggs, one at a time and beat until smooth. Stir in 4 tsps. vanilla extract.

5. Add flour mixture to the creamed butter-eggs mix and beat till well combined. Fold in 3 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips and one cup chopped walnuts.

6. Transfer dough to a baking pan or ovenproof casserole (preferably 10-inch). Spread the dough evenly.

7. Bake for 40-45 minutes until edges are done and top is lightly browned.

8. (optional) Before serving, drizzle top with chocolate syrup or top with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

Asparagus with scallops

Asparagus with scallops ( or scallops with asparagus) was one dish I encountered somewhere. I just didn't have the time to look up the recipe online because when I was about to cook this, we had no internet for close to 40 hours due to a typhoon! So what I did was just cook this with a blind eye (read: no recipe). I was pretty confident in the outcome because with seafood + veggies, you just let the natural flavors come out. And it did!

How to cook (blindly):

I cut two bunches of asparagus stems and set aside. Pound xx cloves of garlic and set aside too. Heat a pan and put oil and butter then fry your scallops (not too long or it will become tough). Put aside in one section of your pan. At this point, add garlic. When it browns a little, add your sliced asparagus and cook for five minutes - taking care not to overcook. If you want a little sauce, add a small amount of water, a little Japanese soy sauce and a dollop of sake (or white wine). Season with salt, pepper and/or Magic Sarap. This dish will taste edible in due time :D Serve hot.

Belgian chocolate cupcakes

These cupcakes are totally heavenly. I adopted these from Yummy Books So-Easy Sweets and they turned out to be finger-lickin' good. I followed the recipe to the letter but found the chocolate ganache to be runny. Still, it was good! I wouldn't hesitate to do this again, especially as my children couldn't resist yummy chocolate in any form:)

Here's the recipe:

Ingredients -

1/2 cup butter
100 grams bittersweet Belgian chocolate, chopped
1/4 cup butter
1 1/4 cups sugar
2 eggs
2 tablespoons cocoa powder
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup milk

For the chocolate ganache -

2 cups cream
400 grams bittersweet Belgian chocolate, chopped

How to do:

1. In a small pan, melt butter. Add chopped chocolate and stir until melted. Set aside.

2. Preheat oven to 350F. Line a muffin pan with paper cups.

3. In a mixer bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Stir in cocoa powder and vanilla. Add melted chocolate and beat until smooth.

4. Combine flour, baking soda and salt. Add to the creamed mixture alternately with the milk. Beat until smooth.

5. Pour into the prepared pan. Bake for 15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted at the center comes out clean.Cool before frosting.

6. Prepare the ganache. Put the cream in a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Remove from heat and add the chocolate. Stir until melted and smooth. Cook until thick and use to frost the cupcakes.