MagicallyDelicious

I’ve been a member on AllRecipes.com for over a decade.  I joined December of 2000, actually.  I wish I remembered why or how I stumbled onto the site, but I’m glad I did.

Now, my recipe box is overflowing with over 300 recipes, and I’ve even made some of them   The first one I saved was sugar cookies, and that’s probably what I was looking for at the time.  I love to bake, and I have spent a lot of time looking for my favorite rolled sugar cookie.  I’m not sure it even exists, but I keep trying them to see if there’s a better one.

I’ve settled into many favorites on the site, but I’m always trying something new. Something I wouldn’t have known about.  Something surprising.  Something I can share with family and friends that makes everyone smile.  And that’s probably my favorite part of AllRecipes.com and why I go back day after day.

Image from GoBoldWithButter.com - I've made this twice and haven't stopped to photograph it either time. So you know it's good!

For me, nothing compares to the taste of warm (not melted, not firm, but just warm and spreadable), creamy, fresh salted butter.  The way it melts into the crevasses of a crunchy toasted English muffin, the way it fills all the spaces in the grid of a warm waffle under a cascade of maple syrup.  The way it slides across a stack of pancakes.  What’s not to love about butter?

Ok, there’s fat.  But fat is flavor, and to me, it makes much more sense to use a little butter than to use a lot of something synthetic.  Margarine will never be butter.  It really shouldn’t try.  There’s no substitute for the natural, creamy goodness of melty butter.  It makes everything better.

My newest favorite recipe containing butter is from the fine folks at GoBoldWithButter.com.  French Toast with Honey Butter.  I can’t even describe how mouth-watering this is.  As if the french toast isn’t enough (it’s really pain perdu with brandy…divine!) the honey butter is the best I’ve ever tasted.  It’s mixed with honey, vanilla bean, and some powdered sugar and a little salt to create a butter so perfectly sweet and salty it’s great on everything.  And easy – don’t miss it.

These are better than they look believe it or not.  The ganache is bittersweet Ghiardelli, the cheesecake is peanut butter, and the crust is Oreo crumbs.

If you decide to make these lovelies, prepare to exercise your patience and a food processor is a big plus.  I have neither, but I managed to turn these out anyway.

It probably took me the longest to chop the chocolate and to turn the Oreos into crumbs, but modern machinery would probably make quicker work of both those tasks.

Peanut buttery with a bittersweet chocolate ganache on top, it’s a great combination.  I’d recommend silicone pans for these – they pop out great that way.  I probably should have let the ganache set a bit more before I piped it, but now we’re back to the lack of patience.

Want to make these?  Head over to Go Bold With Butter for the recipe.  Enjoy!

Cooking with wine can be a great way to use the end of that bottle of French wine you might have open in the refrigerator. It can really add a new layer of flavor to your main dish. But what do you need to know to have a successful dish?

The number one rule – don’t cook with a wine you wouldn’t drink. Of course if we’re using the end of that open bottle, you’ve already enjoyed it and you know what the flavor is like.

What type of character does your wine have? Red or white, fruity, herby, spicy? Consider the character of the wine you’ll use when you decide what dish to use it in. If you’d pour a glass of wine to enjoy with your dish, it will probably go well in the dish.

You can use wine at any point in the cooking process. Add flavor as you make the sauce by deglazing the pan with it, marinate vegetables, or finish your sauce with it.  If you deglaze with the wine, be sure to let it reduce to cook the alcohol out and concentrate the flavor.  And taste before you add it to your protein.  You still have a chance to go another way or add other flavors, so there’s not much risk in giving it a try.

Bottom line, don’t be afraid to play with flavors and add wine to your dishes – taste as you go and your food will be better for a little vino.  Just be sure to save yourself a glass to enjoy with your dish, too!

The combination of sour cherry, bittersweet chocolate and real butter make these brownies an over-the-top delicious dessert that couldn’t be easier to make.

I used the best chocolate I could, and mountmorency dried cherries that I found at Target (also available at Trader Joe’s).  The intense cherry flavor plays against the slightly bitter bittersweet chocolate in these.

Make them; you won’t be sorry.  Get the recipe at GoBoldWithButter.com.

Have you ever had a craving for s’mores but you want to skip that whole “sleeping on the damp, cold, hard ground in a tent” thing?  Try this quick idea.

Here’s all you need:

• jumbo marshmallows
• skewers
• graham crackers
• milk chocolate candy bar
• any candle you’ll be unlikely to accidentally knock over
• individually wrapped soft caramels (optional)

Just thread the marshmallow onto the skewer, and rotate it slowly over the flame, but keep it moving so that it doesn’t flambé.  When it’s done, assemble the s’more as usual, sandwiching the marshmallow and candy bar between the graham crackers and enjoy the messy goodness.

For added sweetness, thread a caramel on top of the marshmallow on the skewer before you start roasting it, and then pull the toasted marshmallow up over the caramel and sandwich between the grahams with the chocolate.

Thanks to AllRecipes.com’s Shudderuppers recipe for the caramel idea!