In honor of this year's annual Meyers' Ribfest, I always bring something. Even though I've never ventured out and made ribs, partly because I enjoy trying everyone else's and also because the Meyers have given me the distinct pleasure to judge the rib competition, I always end up making something. Last year was the crab boil potato salad, and this year was a summery dessert, a chocolate peanut butter banana icebox cake.
The key to the perfect Ribfest dessert is that I didn't want it to feel heavy, and I wanted it to be refreshing. I poked around a bit on some of my favorite sites, and then found this awesome (and easy) recipe for a chocolate, peanut butter banana icebox cake, which as you guessed it, you don't have to cook.
Really well executed peanut butter mousse is the most important aspect of this dessert, serving as the cake's luscious filling. The recipe I used called for using chocolate wafer cookies, but since they didn't have any at the store, I substituted with chocolate graham crackers, which worked just fine and I actually think they were a bit sturdier. You can use any kind of bananas for the filling, but make sure you get nice (not overripe) ones for the top, to ensure that the cake looks appetizing.
I was happy to receive great reviews from the discerning Ribfesters. You must be wondering about the ribs too, which I'll go into in full scope in a future post. In the meantime, I hope you enjoy this awesome and easy recipe for the Chocolate Peanut Butter Icebox Cake, courtesy of the Cooking Channel.
Weekends are good times for cooking or baking that special treat you've been dreaming about all week. My weakness this weekend was an awesome-sounding chocolate-covered marshmallow cookie recipe from Martha Stewart's Everyday Food magazine, which is always chock-full-of fun food ideas. I was drawn to this dessert immediately because it combined a ginger-bread style cookie with melted marshmallows and bittersweet chocolate. So basically...the ingredients for a s'more, except in cookie form.
And even though the whole process was a bit time consuming and meticulous, it wasn't difficult and the result was amazing. Dan and I loved the cookies that you see above, which tasted good at room temperature but even better when refrigerated, I thought. The chocolate coating was the best part, as it provided some crunchy texture (if refrigerated), and the whole thing went down the gullet in seconds, especially if washed down with ice cold milk. Chocolate-Covered Marshmallow Cookies
Store these cookies in an airtight container, in a cool place up to 5 days. The dough can be frozen, up to 3 months; thaw overnight in the refrigerator.
Ingredients:
1/4 cup plus 2 tbs all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled), plus more for working
1/4 cup plus 2 tbs whole-wheat flour (spooned and leveled)1/4 tsp coarse salt
1/4 tsp baking soda1/4 tsp baking powder1/4 tsp ground cinnamon3 tbs unsalted butter, room temperature3 tbs packed light-brown sugar1 large egg9 large marshmallows, halved9 oz semi-sweet chocolate, coarsely chopped (or chocolate chips)
Directions:
1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees with racks in upper and lower thirds. In a medium bowl, whisk together flours, salt, baking soda, baking powder and cinnamon. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat butter and brown sugar on high, scraping down bowl as needed until light, 4 minutes. Add egg and beat to combine, scraping down bowl as needed. With mixer on low, gradually add flour mixture and beat until combined.
2. Drop dough by tbsp, 3 inches apart, onto two parchment-lined baking sheets. With the bottom of a measuring cup dipped in flour, flatten cookies to 2 inches in diameter. Bake until dry and set, about 7 minutes, rotating sheets halfway through. Remove from oven and top each cookie with a marshmallow half. Bake until marshmallows are soft, 2 minutes.
3. Remove from oven and, with a metal spatula, gently flatten each marshmallow. Let cookies cool completely on sheets on wire racks.
4. Place chocolate in a medium heat-proof bowl set over (not in) a saucepan of simmering water. Stir until melted, 2 minutes. Remove bowl from pan. Place one cookie at a time on tines of a fork, submerge in chocolate, then tap fork on edge of bowl to remove excess. Place on wire rack set over a baking sheet. Let cookies set in refrigerator, about 10 minutes.
