Triple Chocolate Peanut Butter Bars

Boredom doesn't bode well with me. I don't have cable (weird, I know), and my (stolen) internet connection tends to be spotty. So, instead of binging on Hulu, I dig through my pantry, mix random ingredients, and pray the resulting creation doesn't explode in my oven. I've had a few failures: collapsed butter cake, delicious dough that turned into disgusting cookies, a pie that overflowed into a goopy mess. But my latest experiment was a sweet success: I constructed a three-layer bar from a tongue-teasing, sweet-and-salty combination of peanut butter, white, dark, and milk chocolates, graham cracker crumbs, and nuts. In other words, ingredients that guarantee eat-the-entire-pan results. 

 Triple Chocolate Peanut Butter Bars

What you need

Bottom layer
1 cup butter, melted
2 cups graham cracker crumbs
2 cups powdered sugar
1 cup Peanut Butter & Co. Dark Chocolate Dreams 

Middle layer
5 oz. white chocolate
¼ cup salted peanut halves
¼ cup Peanut Butter & Co. White Chocolate Wonderful

Top layer
1 ½ cups milk chocolate chips
¼ cup creamy peanut butter 

Put it all together

1. Make the bottom layer: In a large bowl, combine the melted butter, graham cracker crumbs, powdered sugar, and dark chocolate peanut butter. Press into an ungreased 9x13 baking pan.
2. Make the middle layer: Place the white chocolate and white chocolate peanut butter in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave for about 1 minute (or until melted), stirring every 30 seconds. Pour over the bottom layer, and spread evenly with a spatula. Place in the freezer for about 20 minutes, or until chocolate has hardened.
3. Make the top layer: Place the milk chocolate chips and peanut butter in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave for about 1 minute (or until melted), stirring every 30 seconds. Pour over the hardened middle layer, and spread evenly with a spatula. Place in the refrigerator for an hour before serving. 

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Mini Chocolate Chip Pancake Cupcakes with Maple Frosting

Mini Chocolate Chip Pancake Cupcakes with Maple Frosting

I am not a pancake monogamist. I have my diner pancake buddy. A pumpkin pancake pal, and, as everyone should, a granola pancake partner (we're on a quest to find the best granola pancakes in town).  And, finally, there's the one person who's actually willing to make me homemade pancakes. In other words, I'm passionate about pancakes, and I suck my friends into the middle of my love affair. 

I'll eat the fluffy little pieces of heaven any time of day, but I especially love them for dinner. But, it recently occurred to me, why stop at breakfast for dinner? Why not eat breakfast for dessert?

I walked by Baked by Melissa in NYC the other day, and was inspired—if not a little offended—by the bakery's mini pancake cupcakes. Offended, only because I didn't think of it first. I found a similar recipe, and although the maple taste wasn't as strong as I would have liked (I have a super sweet tooth), the pancake texture was spot on. 

Mini Chocolate Chip Pancake Cupcakes 

with Maple Buttercream Frosting

From Two Peas and Their Pod

What you need

1 stick butter, softened

½ cup sugar

1 ½ cups cake flour*

1 tsp baking powder

¼ tsp salt

½ cup pure maple syrup

½ tsp vanilla extract

1/3 cup milk

2 eggs

½ cup mini milk chocolate chips 

*If you don't have cake flour, replace 2 Tbsp of every cup of all-purpose flour with 2 Tbsp of cornstarch. 

Maple Buttercream Frosting

1 stick butter, softened

3 cups powdered sugar

¼ cup pure maple syrup

1 Tbsp milk

2 tsp vanilla extract

Put it all together

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
2. Cream the butter and sugar until smooth. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt.
3. Coat the chocolate chips with ½ tbsp of the flour mixture (so they don’t sink in the batter).
4. Beat the maple syrup, vanilla, eggs, and milk into the butter mixture, combining well after each addition. Add the flour mixture ½ cup at a time, mixing until just combined. Stir in the chocolate chips.
5. Line a mini cupcake tin with cupcake liners, and fill each three-quarters of the way full.
6. Bake for 7-10 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.
7. To make the frosting, cream the butter, sugar, maple syrup, and vanilla on medium speed until smooth, about 5 minutes. Add the milk if the mixture is too thick for easy spreading.
8. Frost the cupcakes after they have cooled completely, and place a few chocolate chips on top of each.