Those Were the Days

I had a cake mix with no expiration date on it.  That's how old it is.  Ah, the good old days.  Welp, it can only mean one thing; it's still good. 

Chocolate Chip Cake with Strawberries

Chocolate chip cake mix
Buttercream frosting (see below)
9-12 large strawberries, washed, hulled and dried

Prepare cake according to directions.  If you can't find a chocolate chip cake mix add some mini chips to a yellow cake mix batter.  I would say about one cup.  When cake is completely cool, frost.  Top with strawberries right before serving.  

Buttercream Frosting from Wilton
Makes about 3 cups of icing.

1/2 cup solid vegetable shortening
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter or margarine, softened
1 t. vanilla extract
4 cups sifted confectioners' sugar (approximately 1 lb.)
2 tablespoons milk

Stiff Consistency: In large bowl, cream shortening and butter with electric mixer. Add cocoa and vanilla. Gradually add sugar, one cup at a time, beating well on medium speed. Scrape sides and bottom of bowl often. When all sugar has been mixed in, icing will appear dry. Add milk and beat at medium speed until light and fluffy. Keep bowl covered with a damp cloth until ready to use. For best results, keep icing bowl in refrigerator when not in use. Refrigerated in an airtight container, this icing can be stored 2 weeks. Re-whip before using.
For Thin (Spreading) Consistency Icing: Add 3-4 tablespoons light corn syrup, water or milk.

Valentine Door

Metal flower container, red spray paint and flowers all from Hobby Lobby. 

How to Get Rid of Leftover Cake

The place is loaded with all sorts of Christmas goodies and an birthday cake on top of that.  So when a invite to a small get together comes in with a bring the treat assignment one  thinks, "perfect I can get rid of this cake."  And then you turn to look at it and see this:

But then it turns into this: 

Cake Balls or Cake Pops From Leftover Cake

Or What To Do With Leftover Cake

Make about 40 balls from half of a cake 

Half of a leftover cake ( I think I said that already)

6 oz chocolate chips, I used Andes Baking Chips

1 1/2 T. shortening or coconut oil

Some kind of embellishment

Scrap the frosting off of the top and sides of the cake.   Leave the frosting in the middle.  Put the remaining cake in a bowl and mash it all together.  I used my hands.  Form into 1-inch balls.  Place on a cookie sheet, tray or plate lined with parchment or waxed paper.  Place in the refrigerator or freezer for a bit to firm up.  Meanwhile place the chips and shortening or coconut oil in a heat proof bowl.  Place over simmering water to melt the chocolate.  Mix the melted chips and oil.  Take the chilled balls out of the fridge or freezer.  Since they are slightly firm and will hold their shape better, fix any misshaped ones.  Using 2 spoons, dip them one at a time in the melted chocolate and roll them around a couple of times.  Lift out and drain just a bit.  Place on a cookie sheet lined with parchment or waxed paper.  If adding a sprinkle, do so while the chocolate is still wet.  Once the cookie sheet is full, you can place in the fridge to quicken the hardening process.  

I doubled the chocolate and shortening.  I don't think 6 oz is enough.

Christmas Gingerbread Men

I found a tin of gingerbread men from last Christmas. I pulverized them and topped them with dark chocolate. Then I ate them. They didn't stand a chance.

Dark Chocolate Tart with Gingersnap Crust
From Bon Appetit
Serves 10

Crust:

• 8 ounces gingersnap cookies (about 32 cookies), coarsely broken
• 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter, melted

Filling:

• 12 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
• 1 cup heavy whipping cream
• 2 large egg yolks
• 1 large egg
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 tablespoon all purpose flour
• 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• Pinch of salt
• 2 tablespoons coarsely chopped crystallized ginger (optional)

For crust:
Preheat oven to 325°F. Finely grind gingersnap cookies in processor (yielding 1 1/2 to 1 2/3 cups). Add melted butter and salt; process until moistened. Press crumb mixture firmly onto bottom and up sides of 9-inch-diameter tart pan with removable bottom. Place pan on rimmed baking sheet.

For filling:
Combine finely chopped bittersweet chocolate and heavy whipping cream in heavy medium saucepan. Whisk over low heat until chocolate is melted and smooth. Remove saucepan from heat. Whisk egg yolks, egg, sugar, flour, ground black pepper, and salt in medium bowl to blend. Very gradually whisk chocolate mixture into egg mixture until smooth and blended. Pour chocolate filling into crust.

Bake chocolate tart until filling puffs slightly at edges and center is softly set, about 30 minutes. Transfer to rack. Sprinkle chopped crystallized ginger over top. Cool tart in pan 20 minutes. Gently remove tart pan sides and cool tart completely. DO AHEAD: Chocolate tart can be made 1 day ahead. Cover tart and refrigerate. Bring to room temperature before serving.

Cut tart into thin wedges and serve. Top with whipped cream if desired.

Dry Peppermint Bark

Nothing says Christmas like peppermint bark and nothing says Valentine's Day like leftover from Christmas peppermint bark cookies. Here are a couple of recipes.
Peppermint Bark Cookies
From simplyrecipes.com

1 cup of butter
3/4 cup of brown sugar
3/4 cup of white granulated sugar
1 large egg
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
1 3/4 cups of all-purpose flour
3/4 cup of unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon of baking soda
1/2 teaspoon of baking powder
Pinch of salt
1 cup of peppermint bark, broken into little chip size pieces

Preheat the oven to 350°F.

Cream the butter and sugars together for about two minutes at medium speed or until well incorporated and light in color.

Add the egg and the vanilla extract until well incorporated, about a minute. Be sure to scrape down the sides and the bottom of the bowl halfway through.

Sift together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and cocoa powder. Add to the butter mixture slowly, and beating at medium speed, stopping once all of it is incorporated (do not overmix).

Fold in the peppermint bark chips.

Take small spoonfuls of the dough and roll into one inch sized balls and place onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake for 12 minutes. Let cool on the pan for a few minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Makes approximately 3 dozen cookies.


Whole Wheat Peppermint Bark Cookies
From 101cookbooks.com

3 cups whole wheat pastry flour (or unbleached all-purpose flour)
1 cup non-alkalized cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon aluminum-free baking powder
3/4 teaspoon fine-grain sea salt
1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 cups sugar
3 large eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2 cups peppermint bark, roughly chopped
1/2 cup miniature chocolate chips (optional)

Preheat the oven to 375F degrees. Position the racks in the middle of the oven, and line baking sheets with parchment paper or Silpats.

Whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a bowl. Set aside.

In a large bowl or stand mixer, beat the butter until light and fluffy, then beat in the sugar until it is the consistency of a thick frosting. beat in the eggs one at a time, incorporating each fully before adding the next and scraping down the sides of the bowl a few times. Stir in the vanilla until evenly incorporated. Add the dry ingredients in 3 increments, stirring between each addition. At this point you should have a moist uniform dough. Stir in the peppermint bark, and optional chocolate chips by hand, mixing only until evenly distributed. Reserve a bit of the bark to sprinkle on top of the cookies after you have dropped them onto the baking sheets.

Drop a heaping tablespoon of dough for each cookie onto the prepared baking sheets 2 inches apart and bake for about 10 minutes. Cool on wire racks.
Makes 2 to 3 dozen medium-large cookies

Happy Valentine's Day

What's Under Your Bed?

You probably have boring stuff like socks and clothes you never wear under your bed. If you were lucky enough to live here you would have food items such as velvety smooth peppermint truffles. They would be a couple of years old but it sure beats smelly socks. I think.

Peppermint Truffle Steamer
Adapted from Hersheys.com

Ingredients

• 2 to 3 peppermint truffles, or any flavor
• 1 cup skim or 2% milk
• Cocoa for garnish (optional)

Directions

1. Cut or break truffles into pieces. Place truffles and 2 to 3 teaspoons milk in 8-oz. mug. Microwave at HIGH (100%) 30 seconds; stir. If necessary, microwave at HIGH an additional 15 seconds at a time, stirring after each heating, until truffles are melted and mixture is smooth when stirred.
   
2. Slowly stir in remaining milk. Microwave at HIGH 1 minute; stir. If necessary, microwave an additional 15 seconds at a time until the desired temperature is reached. Garnish with cocoa,if desired. Serve immediately. One 8-oz. serving.

Dry Cookies, Brownies and Cake

In the space of one month, there are 5 birthdays in this family. All in the month of December. That's a lot of cake. Throw in Christmas cookies and other treats and you've got the makings of putting on enough fat to produce enough energy to make 1.21 gigawatts. 1.21 gigawatts!? Name that movie. But I digress. Of course I wouldn't want to throw any of those calories out. Not even the dry leftovers that have been hanging around for weeks.

Chocolate Trifle

Dry chocolate cookies, brownies and/or cake cut into 1-inch chunks
Chocolate pudding, prepared according to directions
Heavy cream, whipped and sweetened with powdered sugar

The amount of ingredients that you will need will depend on the amount of cookies/brownies/cake you have. You can make this in a large bowl (clear glass trifle bowl is prettiest) or a flat baking dish such as a 9x13. Clear parfait glasses or any glass works great for smaller amounts. I used a very large bowl and used 5 boxes of pudding, prepared, and 1 1/2 quarts of whipping cream. Add anything you like to the layers, such as caramel, toffee bits, strawberries or raspberries.

In a clear trifle bowl, layer half of the chocolate cookies, brownies or cake. Top with a layer of half the pudding. Layer next with half the whipped cream. Repeat layers. Garnish with shaved chocolate on top if desired. Refrigerate 8 hours before serving

Lasagna

If you have a great meat sauce and a cheese filling using fresh high quality cheeses, you can't go wrong. I used my favorite meat sauce that I had made and froze some for later use. I thinned it out a little with some marinara sauce.

Lasagna
Adapted from foodwishes.com
Serves 9-12

Ingredients (for a deep 15" x 10" lasagna pan):

For the meat sauce:

1 pound Italian sausage

1 1/2 pound lean ground beef

8 oz mushrooms, chopped

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 freshly ground black pepper

1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes

6 cups marinara sauce

1/2 cup water

Note: depending on the seasoning of your sausage, you can add 1/2 teaspoon of an Italian dried herb blend.

For the cheese filling:

2 egg, beaten

2 lbs whole milk ricotta cheese

8 oz soft fresh mozzarella cheese, cubed

2/3 cup freshly grated Reggiano-Parmigiano

1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

big pinch of cayenne

The rest:

1 lb lasagna noodles

8 oz soft fresh mozzarella cheese, torn in small pieces

1/2 cup fresh grated Parmesan cheese to top

In a large skillet and over medium heat, brown hamburger and sausage together, breaking up into as small of pieces as possible. Stir in chopped mushrooms. Add salt, pepper and red pepper flakes. Turn heat to medium high until meat is brown and all the liquid from the mushrooms evaporates. Add marinara sauce and water. If using jars of marinara, rinse the jars with water and use that for the water. Bring to a simmer. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 2 hours. Add water as needed if sauce gets too thick. Skim fat off the top if desired. After 2 hours, turn off the sauce and set aside.

In a large bowl, beat eggs with a whisk. Add ricotta cheese, cubed mozzarella, and grated Reggiano-Parmigiano . Add parsley, salt, pepper, and cayenne. Mix well.

Boil lasagna noodles according to package in salted water. Drain and rinse noodles. Keep in cold water.

To assemble:

Preheat oven to 375.

Spread 1/4 of meat sauce in bottom of lasagna pan, about 3 cups. ( I used 3 cups of my favorite meat sauce.) Top with 1/3 of the lasagna noodles ( probably 6). Carefully spread 1/2 of the cheese filling. Top with 1/4 of meat sauce. (Again, I used 3 cups of my favorite meat sauce.) Layer 1/3 of the noodles. Spread the rest of the cheese filling on top of the noodles. Top with 1/4 of the meat sauce (about 3 cups).

At this point, shake the pan a little to settle it. Layer the remaining 1/3 of the noodles. Broken noodles are fine. Piece them in It all cooks up right. Top with the remaining meat sauce. Make sure all the noodles are covered. Dot with fresh mozzarella and sprinkle with fresh Parmesan.

Cover loosely with foil. Do not let the foil touch the cheese. Place on cookie sheet in case of spillover. Bake for 30 minutes. Remove foil. Bake for 30-35 minutes more until golden brown and bubbling. Let sit for 20 minutes before cutting into squares.

What's This?

Truffles.
From what?
Uhhhh...

I have been ignoring the bag of truffles in the back of the refrigerator for about 5 years now. They somehow had melted into a giant ball but I wasn't about to throw out a bag of chocolate so I stuck them in the fridge to deal with later. Much later. These cookies will leave him speechless.

Chocolate Filled Cookies
Adapted from Sing for Your Supper
Makes about 18 cookies

2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs
Ganache style truffles, about 1/3 oz each, chilled (ie: soft ones, not chocolate covered ones or make your own. The ones at Sam's Club are perfect. My truffles came out of the fridge and were easy to handle)
Sea salt

Preheat oven to 375° F.

Combine flour, baking soda and salt in small bowl. Beat butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar and vanilla extract in large mixer bowl until creamy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Gradually beat in flour mixture. Drop by rounded ice cream scooper onto ungreased baking sheet. They should be about a 2-inch ball. Flatten balls to make about 3-inch circles. Place one truffle in middle of circle and fold up the dough around the truffle making sure to cover it completely. Pick up the dough to form a well shaped ball. Return to cookie sheet. Repeat with remaining dough. Leave plenty of space between cookie balls. Sprinkle with sea salt. If you forget the sea salt you can still sprinkle it after it comes out of the oven pressing the salt gently into the cookie.

Bake for 9 to 11 minutes or until golden brown. I bake mine for 10 minutes 30 seconds. Cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes; remove to wire racks to cool completely.

If you wish to make your own ganache here is a good recipe.

6 oz chocolate chips, semisweet or bittersweet. I like to use half milk chocolate and half semisweet.
3/4 c. heavy whipping cream

Place chocolate chips in a bowl. Heat cream to scalding point (bubbles forming around the edge) over medium heat. Pour hot cream over chocolate chips. Stir until smooth. A wire whisk works great for this. Chill until easy to handle. Can be made a day ahead. Slightly soften at room temperature for ease in handling.

Critical Mass Brownies

So dense they are approaching critical mass.

French Brownies
aka Critical Mass Brownies
From Bon Appetit

½ lb. bitter chocolate squares (can use 1/2 cup cocoa and ½ cup oil)
½ cup butter
6 eggs
3 cups sugar
1.5 cups sifted flour
3 tsp. vanilla

Preheat oven to 350. Melt butter and chocolate. Set aside to cool. Beat eggs adding sugar slowly. Add cooled butter and chocolate. Blend in order: flour, vanilla. Use two 8 x 8 greased and floured pans. Bake for 20-25 minutes. Don’t over bake – the brownies should be moist (very) in the middle while warm. Let cool completely. Dust with powdered sugar and cut into squares.

The recipe calls for 2 pans but one pan can be used for thicker brownies. And as always, brownies are better the next day.

Last Year's Crop

With the arrival of fresh citrus I decided I better do something with last year's grapefruit. I remembered a small restaurant in McAllen, TX called Arthur's that served grapefruit pie. I loved that pie. I don't know if Arthur's is still in business but I did find a recipe for grapefruit pie that looks similar. It's red too. Perfect. Three of my grapefruit were ok. Two were brown and rotten. I supplemented with one can of grapefruit. You could use all canned if you wish.

Easy Ruby-Sweet Grapefruit Pie
by Julie Klement

3 to 4 Texas Ruby Sweet grapefruit
1 cup prepared strawberry glaze*
9"baked pie shell
Whipped cream (optional)

Peel and section grapefruit (see steps for sectioning). Drain well on paper towels. Cut sections in half. Gently fold sections into strawberry glaze*. Pour into pie shell and refrigerate until firm. Top with whipped cream if desired.

How to Section Grapefruit

Easy to master, sections make a beautiful pie; a quick but elegant citrus salad with poppy seed dressing; or a quick breakfast layered with yogurt and granola.

With a sharp, thin-bladed knife, cut off both ends of the grapefruit.
Place fruit on a flat end and cut away peel from top to bottom along the curvature or the fruit. Remove all white pulp.
Cut down along fruit section to the center, then turn knife to loosen section and lift out. Repeat for other sections.

*Strawberry Glaze - Prepared strawberry glaze or packet mix may be found in the produce or canned food section of your supermarket, or try this recipe:

1 cup sugar
1 1/2 cups water
3 tablespoons cornstarch
3 oz. box strawberry gelatin

Blend sugar, cornstarch, and gelatin until no lumps appear. Stir into 1 1/2 cups boiling water. Boil until mixture coats a spoon, approx. 3-4 minutes. Cool before combining with grapefruit sections.

courtesy of Klement's Citrus Grove and Country Store: (800) 580-1002

Wow, I just noticed I was only suppose to use 1 c. of glaze. I used a 10-inch pie plate, all the glaze and 3-4 c. of grapefruit. I made a graham cracker crust, with stale crackers of course. I didn't have enough so I supplemented with some old gingersnaps.

Nabisco Classic Graham Craker Crust

Ingredients:

8 whole HONEY MAID Honey Grahams, finely crushed (about 1-1/4 cups crumbs)-use a food processor.

1/4 cup sugar

1/3 cup butter or margarine, melted

Preparation:

PREHEAT oven to 375°F. Mix all ingredients until well blended. Mix in food processor.

PRESS firmly onto bottom and up side of 9-inch pie plate.

BAKE 8 to 10 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool completely.

Does This Make Me Look Fat?

Yes.


Peppermint Brownies
from topsecretrecipes.com

Brownies
1 19.5-ounce box fudge brownie mix
1/2 cup butter (1 stick), melted
1/4 cup water
2 large eggs
1/4 teaspoon peppermint extract

Peppermint Buttercream Frosting
1/2 cup butter (1 stick), softened
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1 tablespoon milk
1/4 teaspoon peppermint extract
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

Chocolate Frosting
1/3 cup whole milk
1/4 cup butter
1 12-ounce bag semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup powdered sugar

Decorative Icing
1 can white frosting (with fine tip)
1 can red frosting (with fine tip)



1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees, then prepare a 9x9-inch baking pan by spraying it with a light coating of non-stick spray. Cut a piece of parchment paper or non-stick aluminum foil to the same width as the bottom of the pan, but make it much longer than the pan so that the left and right ends go up and out of the pan on the left and right sides. This will create a "sling" that will help you lift the brownies out of the pan after they've baked.

2. Make the brownie batter by first sifting the box of ingredients. This will remove the clumps. Add the melted butter, water, eggs and peppermint extract and mix the batter by hand just until all the dry stuff is mixed in. Pour the batter into your prepared baking pan and bake it for 50 to 55 minutes, or until a toothpick stuck in the center comes out clean. Allow brownie to cool before frosting.

3. Make the peppermint buttercream frosting by beating together 1 cup of powdered sugar and the softened butter in a medium bowl with an electric mixer. Mix in another 1/2 cup of powdered sugar, then add 1 tablespoon of milk, and the peppermint and vanilla extract. Mix for about 1 minute to make the frosting smooth. Add an additional 1/4 cup of powdered sugar if the frosting is too thin and light. You want a frosting that can be spread easily, yet it should be firm enough to hold up the layer of chocolate frosting that's coming next. When the brownie has cooled, use a spatula to spread the frosting evenly over the top. Put the brownie in the fridge to firm up the buttercream frosting.

4. Make the chocolate frosting by bringing 1/3 cup whole milk and 1/4 cup butter to a boil in a small saucepan over medium heat. Pour the chocolate chips into a heat-safe bowl. When the milk and butter comes to a boil, pour the mixture over the chocolate chips and let it all just sit there in the bowl for a couple minutes. Add the vanilla extract to the mixture and whisk until smooth. Use an electric mixer to beat in 1 cup powdered sugar until the frosting is smooth. Spread the chocolate frosting over the white frosting on the brownie. This recipe makes a little more chocolate frosting than you need, so hold back about 1/3 to 1/4 cup.

5. To add the decorative red and white icing if you decide to go for it: First apply the white icing to the top of the cake in a sweeping motion diagonally across the top of the entire cake, then add the red icing over the white in the same sweeping motion in the same direction.

6. Stick the brownie back in the fridge for about an hour before removing it from the pan and slicing it into 9 equal portions. The leftovers will keep well for several days covered in the refrigerator.
Makes 9 brownies.

Happy New Year

Our favorite mixed drinks



Red Mixed Drink

Cran-raspberry juice
Ginger ale
Mix one part juice with one part ginger ale. Use a good kind of ginger ale like Seagram's or Canada Dry. I just realized we have never tried Vernor's in this recipe.






White Mixed Drink (Mock champagne)

Welch's white grape juice (use Welch's for best results)
White soda

Mix one part juice with one part white soda.Use Welch's for best results. White soda can be very hard to find. If it is unavailable use Sprite.

Mimosa

White mixed drink
Orange juice

Mix one part white mixed drink with one part orange juice.

Bye to Buttermilk

I finished my container of hard buttermilk powder.
I celebrated by having a piece of cake.

Red Velvet Cake

1 oz. red food coloring
1 oz. water
2-3 T. cocoa or Nestle's Quick cocoa mix
1/2 c. shortening
1 1/2 c. sugar
2 eggs
1 c. buttermilk
scant 1 t. salt
2 1/4 c. cake flour
1 t. vanilla
1T. vinegar
1 t. soda

Preheat oven to 350. Grease and flour two nine inch cake pans or just spray with Pam.
 
In a small bowl mix the food coloring, water and cocoa. Set aside. In a large mixing bowl, cream together shortening and sugar. Beat eggs into colored cocoa mix and then add to shortening and sugar. Beat until mixed well. Add buttermilk, flour, salt and vanilla. Mix. Stir in vinegar and soda. Pour into prepared pans. Bake for 30 mins. Remove from oven and let cool for 15 mins. remove from pans. Let cool completely.

Velvety Frosting

1/2 c. flour
1 1/2 c. milk
1 1/2 c. sugar
1.1/2 c. butter, softened
1 T. vanilla

Lightly spoon flour into measuring cup; level off. In medium saucepan, combine flour and milk. Cook over medium heat until mixture is very thick, stirring constantly. Cover surface with plastic wrap; cool completely. In large bowl, beat sugar and butter until light and fluffy. Gradually add flour mixture by tablespoonfuls, beating at high speed until smooth. Beat in vanilla. Fill and frost cake, using 1 c. frosting between layers.

OJ

Have you ever left orange juice concentrate in the fridge to thaw and forgot about it? Yeah, me neither. But if I did and it was dark and fermented, it would still taste good in this recipe.


Red Slush

3 packages unsweetened cherry Kool-Aid. I use black cherry.
3 cups sugar
12 oz can frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed

Add all ingredients to a 5 quart container. Add 4 quarts of water, leaving an a couple of inches of head space at the top. Stir until the sugar is dissolved. Freeze for 24 hours in a deep freezer, longer in a frost free freezer. Thaw for about 4 hours before serving or microwave for 10 minutes. Chop the slush completely before serving.

Petits Pains au Chocolate

Petits Pains au Chocolate
from Bon Appetit
So easy and so good!


Ingredients

• 2 sheets frozen puff pastry (one 17.3-ounce package), thawed, each sheet cut into 12 squares
• 1 large egg beaten to blend with 1 water (for glaze)
• 4 3.5-ounce bars imported bittersweet or milk chocolate, each cut into six 2x3/4-inch pieces

• Sugar

Preparation

Line baking sheet with parchment paper. Brush top of each puff pastry square with egg glaze. Place 1 chocolate piece on edge of 1 pastry square. Roll up dough tightly, enclosing chocolate. Repeat with remaining pastry and chocolate. Place pastry rolls on baking sheet, seam side down. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover pastries with plastic wrap and refrigerate. Cover and refrigerate remaining egg glaze.)
Preheat oven to 400°F. Brush tops of pastry rolls with remaining egg glaze. Sprinkle lightly with sugar. Bake until pastries are golden brown, about 15 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.


I forgot to sprinkle with sugar before I put them in the oven. So as soon as they came out of the oven I brushed them with butter and then sprinkled with sugar. I mistake I will make in the future. :)