Happy Halloween!

*Disclaimer - This blog post has way too many pictures! But it's Halloween!! And I couldn't resist showing some of Autumn's glory...

So, today is my favorite holiday! I love dressing up, being silly, eating candy, and most of all, I love fall flavors! Halloween is a time to indulge in your inner-child, which is great, because it's the one day of the year that my usual behaviors are acceptable. That's right. I consult my inner-child daily and regret nothing. Nothing!

But onto the fun! I bought two tubs of candy corn - original and those tiny pumpkin 'mallow bites that are more addicting than Fritos. Just saying. And after a weekend of uncontrollably snacking on candy corn and crack pumpkins, I decided to use will power. Just kidding, I had to throw them away. Just kidding, I baked with them.

Okay - let's get down to business. You want to see the goods! I know it! Let's celebrate the sweet nectar of the gods by pouring them over espresso brownies. Yeah? Okay, glad we're all on board there!

The following night, I indulged my senses and drank a delicious beer. I'm a tried and true Shipyard Pumpkinhead fiend, but Shlafly's Pumpkin Ale is a VERY close second. I paired this with my chewy, pumpkin chocolate chip cookies. Oh my!

And of course, there was pumpkin carving! Like I could resist this... I drained the meat of the pumpkin, used the liquid in a sauce pan with some brown sugar, and made pumpkin syrup for my coffee. I'm giving you a run for your money, Starbucks!

Now, onto what I think might be my favorite. Speaking of inner-child, I bought a new (not-for-kids) toy! I bought myself a kitchen torch, and I am addicted. Addicted. It looks kind of like a laser beam!

This bad boy was first used to create my pumpkin cupcakes with toasted marshmallow frosting. And yes, they were a HUGE hit!

Last, but certainly not least, I whipped up a quick classic. I couldn't resist making these Rice Krispie Treats with candy corn sprinkled in. They were just too cute! Who else is hopped up on sugar right now!!?!?

And of course, what's Halloween without a good, solid costume? Naturally, we had a few. Here I am on Saturday night watching My So-Called Band with Justin (Where's Waldo?). I'm Carmen Sandiego. And together, we were the Elusive Couple.

 And for our Bo Dog. He was a t-rex. He looks unhappy in the first photo, but he really got to liking the costume after a while!! We dressed up with him today and handed out candy at Justin's office,  cj Advertising!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!! 

Makin' Moves & Salted Caramel Brownies

Why yes, fellow food-lovers, I am in fact making several things lately. Moves. That's one of them - lots and lots of moves. Salted caramel brownies is among the more delicious of what I've been making. But both will be discussed today as promised.

All jokes aside, I never joke about food. So, we'll start with that. I have been dying to make a chewy, chocolatey, omnom-screaming brownie. My brownies last week were good, but they were more intense due to the added coffee. I have thus added a few little tricks of my own in the form of beer and salted caramel. And while I hate to brag, this brownie kicked some serious taste buds! I was nervous that the caramel was going to harden and cause dentists all over Nashville to curse Littlest Love. But fortunately for me, I made a quick, super soft caramel that was to die for. And thus it was both ooey and gooey inside those brownies. We all know those are the basic brownie requirements.

Ohh, look at those soft squares of buttery caramel goodness...

I went to the store in search for Guinness (brilliant!), but I happened upon this Vanilla Java Porter by Atwater Brewery (support Detroit!) in the beer aisle, and well, Guinness took the back burner. This stuff is delicious! I couldn't let the rest of 6-pack go to waste, so it's cooling in my fridge for a post-work beverage.

It poured a beautiful, brown caramel color, and was a great addition to the dark cocoa powder.

And there you have it. Thick, chewy, caramel-y brownies!

Ohhh... Ahhh...

Oh, now you want to hear about all the moves I've been making? As if it doesn't get better than salted caramel and chocolate, I have some totally SWEET news! As of now, Littlest Love has become a real-live business.  I have formed an LLC and handled 99% of the business side of things, and am just working on creating contacts and new friends in the form of suppliers and wholesalers who want to buy my goods!

If you think that's not exciting enough, I am working on a survey that I plan to send out very soon that will request your honest opinions. The survey results will likely be the decision-maker in whether or not I offer an online-only Cookie of the Month Club! How many of you want fresh cookies from Littlest Love over-nighted to your doorstep?! Survey Monkey will tell all!

In the meantime, I'll be baking more cookies and brownies this week!  And next weekend, I'll be baking cupcakes for a friend's birthday party. I'm still trying to conjure up a final peanut butter cupcake combination, so if you have any ideas, please share here in my comments, or find me on Facebook!

Southern Charm + FUN news!

It's been a while since my last post, but that's because I've been a very busy bee.  More on that to come. That's right, you must read the entire blog to hear the wonderful news! But it's worth it, because I present to you <drum roll please!> last weekend's Steeplechase sweetness! Steeplechase is a lot like the Kentucky Derby, in that people wear big hats while "over-serving" themselves and I think it also involves horses.  I can't be sure, because the stories I've heard mostly involve alcohol, mud and rain, but I'll take people's word for it.  In any case, Steeplechase has no known traditions that I could deconstruct into delicious treats - after all, nobody wants to eat mud.  So instead, I stole Kentucky Derby traditions.  If you said mint juleps and red roses, you'd be correct!

Let's start with my personal favorite - the mint julep brownie.

Yes, you heard me! Gooey, chocolatey, minty, and boozy, this brownie was infused with a heaping dose of Tennessee charm. And by that, I mean the ever glorious Jack Daniel's whiskey.  And I suppose it doesn't hurt that I decided to swirl in a heavy dose of creamy, minty cheesecake into the batter.

Yes, I've combined two favorites:

And made the brownies super thick by putting them in a 9x9 pan! Talk about deep dish desserts!

Next on the list of derby delights is the ever-glorious red velvet cupcake.  I went for a deep red color, and swirled a rich, tangy cream cheese frosting on top.

 It was pretty glorious...

But enough about the sweets! You want to hear the gossip! The news!  The FUN news!  You got it.  After a long, hard day at work, I toured a beautiful commercial kitchen space. And it was the real deal, with a very bright and helpful staff that plans to help me every step of the way. This could be it folks!  This could be the start of a beautiful working friendship!  Littlest Love could be in business as early as June, so be on the lookout for a real deal website and a possible Littlest Love siting somewhere in Nashville, TN!