Tag Archives: chocolate bomb

Love Bug Cupcakes

Posted on January 24, 2021 by Ruthanne

*These cute little bugs are filled with berry cream and jam. They sit on top of a dense, not-too-sweet brownie base, and are the *perfect* treat for your Valentine!*

I feel like I am always on the lookout for something creative to make for Valentine’s Day. January is such a blah, grey month, and I miss having something to celebrate with colors and sprinkles. And along comes Valentine’s Day! Even as a single person (for WAY to many years!) I celebrated the day- just because you need SOMETHING in February to make you smile. In fact, if you are single and these love bugs make you want to roll your eyes, try my cute Frog Prince Oreo Pops instead! 🙂

These treats are a little on the fussy side. Obviously. Anything cute requires a little time. If you want a simple, delicious dessert- without the fuss- you can just pipe some topping on, add some sprinkles, and call it a day.

Want to know how to make these fun treats? Here is the recipe: (printable version)

Ingredients: (makes 24 love bug cupcakes)

Love Bugs: (make these 1st)- you will need a silicone chocolate bomb mold to make these:

5 cups powdered sugar
8 tablespoons (1/2 cup) melted butter
2 teaspoons strawberry or raspberry extract
1 cup of raspberry jam
Food color in pink
One bag of Wilton’s Candy melts in pink
About 1/2 cup of Wilton’s Candy melts in black
48 candy eyes
Candy heart sprinkles

Brownie cups:

1 cup butter
2 cup sugar
3 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 cups flour
1/2 cup cocoa
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup milk

Chocolate Glaze:

6oz. semi-sweet chocolate chips
6 tablespoons butter (do not substitute margarine here!)
Green jimmies for grass!

DIRECTIONS:

Berry Love Bugs:

Melt pink candy melts in microwave in 30 second increments, stirring between until smooth.
Use a clean paint brush to brush melts into a chocolate bomb mold and freeze for a couple minutes until hard.
Make berry filling by adding melted butter to sugar and extract.
Mix well, using water to bring it to a thick but spreadable consistency.
Add pink food coloring to make it a fun pink color.
Place filling into a large zip-top bag and seal tightly.
Cut a corner off bag and pipe berry filling into each pink shell- filling them about 1/4 full.
Place jam into a small zip-top bag, clip corner and pipe a little bit in the center of each pink shell.
Pipe more berry filling over the top until it is level .
Use a knife to spread berry filling to edges of shell.
Refreeze these for a few minutes before gently popping them out and setting them on a plate.
Repeat this process until you have 24 berry bombs ready.

Brownie cups:

Preheat oven to 350F.
Cream butter and sugar together.
Beat in eggs, cocoa, vanilla and salt.
Add flour and milk (alternating them and mixing well in between)
Spoon evenly into 24 cupcake liners in a cupcake tin.
Bake at 350F degrees for 15-18 minutes (don’t over bake- they will start to pull away from the liner)
Cool.

Chocolate Glaze:

Melt butter and chocolate together in the microwave in 30 second increments, stirring in between until completely melted and smooth.
Set aside until cupcakes are ready to assemble.
Assemble the cupcakes by spooning a little chocolate glaze on top of a brownie and spreading to all edges.
Place a berry bomb in the center and sprinkle green jimmies around edge.
Allow this all to harden up (refrigerate to speed process up).
Melt black candy melts in microwave in 30 second increments, stirring between until smooth.
Use a clean paint brush to paint a black face on the front of each bomb, and immediately place eyes before candy melts harden. Place the rest of the melts in a plastic zip-top bag, cut a corner and pipe the center line down the bug’s back.
Melt just a few pink candy melts, and use a paint brush to stick each little candy heart “dot” in place.
Enjoy!

My thoughts: These are delicious. Think chocolate covered strawberries. I made half of mine with the love bug domes, and half with just the berry icing and chocolate glaze- just to save time. Either way, they are delicious and sure to make YOUR Valentine smile! Enjoy! ~r

Looking for other fun baking ideas for Valentine’s Day? Click on the title to see the recipe:

Peppermint “Smoke Bomb” Brownies!

Posted on June 25, 2016 by Ruthanne

Celebrate July 4th with these fun peppermint brownie cups! Fun to make and sooooo yummy to eat!

I got a little chocolate bomb mold a few months ago and I love it. I have used it for so many creative things! This time, I am using it to make actual bombs- edible smoke bombs that is! The inside of this red candy shell is packed with sweet mint filling that mixes with the dark chocolate of these brownies perfectly!

Yes, these are a little fussy. It seems like anything super fun in the food realm takes some effort. If you want to make these SUPER easy, they are simply an adaptation from my Candy Cane Brownies from last Christmas. You could certainly add a little blue to the mint filling and just sprinkle stars on top for a fun (and equally delicious) patriotic alternative. OR you could be an over-achiever and make mint smoke bombs. Your choice! 🙂

Here is how we put these fun treats together: (printable recipe here)

INGREDIENTS:

Brownie:

1cup butter
2 cup sugar
3 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 cups flour
1/2 cup cocoa
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup milk

Chocolate Glaze:

6oz. semi-sweet chocolate chips
6 tablespoons butter (do not substitute margarine here!)

Mint “Smoke Bombs”:

5 cups powdered sugar
8 tablespoons (1/2 cup) melted butter
2 teaspoons peppermint extract
Food color in red and blue
One bag of Wilton’s Candy melts in red
One bag of Twizzler’s Red, White and Blue licorice (I found them at Target)
Large Star Sprinkles
Mini Star Sprinkles

DIRECTIONS:

Brownie:

Preheat oven to 350F.
Cream butter and sugar together.
Beat in eggs, cocoa, vanilla and salt.
Add flour and milk (alternating them and mixing well in between)
Spoon evenly into 24 cupcake liners in a cupcake tin.
Bake at 350 degrees for 15-18 minutes (don’t over bake- they will start to pull away from the liner)
Cool.

Chocolate Glaze:

Melt butter and chocolate together in the microwave in 30 second increments, stirring in between until completely melted and smooth.
Set aside until bombs are made

Mint Smoke Bombs:

Melt red candy melts in microwave in 30 second increments, stirring between until smooth.
Use a pastry brush to brush melts into a chocolate bomb mold and freeze for a couple minutes until hard. Do two coats- freezing in between.
Make mint filling by adding melted butter to sugar and extract.
Mix well, using water to bring it to a thick but spreadable consistency.
Divide into 3 parts and color 2 of them red and blue using food coloring.
Place all three colors into a large zip-top bag and swirl together with a knife before sealing bag.
Cut a corner off bag and pipe mint filling into each red bomb shell- filling them about 3/4 full.
Refreeze these for a few minutes before gently popping them out and setting them on a plate. (I took pictures of this process in an earlier recipe here– but I didn’t fill these shells all the way full like I did there).
Repeat this process until you have 24 mint bombs ready.
Assemble brownies by spooning a little glaze on top of a brownie cup and then setting a bomb on top. Sprinkle edges with small star decorations and freeze to harden the glaze.
Once all your brownies are in the freezer, make the wicks by pulling apart the licorice and cutting into 1 to 2 inch pieces of blue.
Dip one end into the leftover red candy melts (you might need to remelt these) and set it on top of a large red star sprinkle to harden.

Once these have hardened, and your brownies are nice and cold, take a few brownies out of the freezer, dip the end of a “wick” in red candy melts and hold it to the top of a cold peppermint bomb. It should immediately set and hold the wick in place.
Then- simply enjoy the smiles as people bite into your yummy (and very patriotic!) peppermint brownies!!!

My thoughts: Ah…I loved making these. I always wonder if the idea in my mind will come across the way I pictured it, and these did—-makes me smile! I loved sharing these with friends and family too. Makes me wish I had a 4th of July party to go to this year!!! 🙂 I hope you get a chance to try these and that you love them as much as I do! ~r

Other fun desserts to make for the Fourth of July!!! (click on a photo to see the recipe):

6 Comments

Posted in Brownies, Candy, Cupcakes and tagged american dessert, brownie cups, brownies, candy melts, candy smoke bomb, cherry bomb dessert, chocolate, chocolate bomb, creative brownie recipe, creative holiday recipe, fireworks dessert, fireworks recipe, fun summer dessert, holiday recipe, July Fourth dessert, licorice, patriotic dessert, peppermint brownies, red white and blue dessert, smoke bomb brownies, stars. Bookmark the permalink.

Orange Creamsicle Cupcakes!

Posted on May 3, 2016 by Ruthanne

These delicious orange cupcakes have a white chocolate cup of vanilla ice cream in the center! Just like everyone’s favorite Orange Creamsicle frozen treats! Summer is coming…. you need these frozen cupcake treats!!!!

Confession: I hate all things orange flavored.

Confession: I was making cookie dough cupcakes for a party last week and I accidentally grabbed an orange cake mix instead of a chocolate cake mix at the store. I’m not sure how you do that… but I did. I had to rush to the store for a chocolate cake mix and then I was stuck with this orange one…. and I hate…hate…hate orange.

My dad suggested a Creamsicle cupcake and I went for it. Turns out, everyone else in the world LOVES orange Creamsicles- so it all worked out.

I knew I wanted ice cream in the middle, but I didn’t want a soggy cupcake. Solution: the fun chocolate bomb mold that I’ve been raving about and using on cupcakes whenever I get a chance! Best kitchen gadget ever! I used the mold to make little white chocolate cups to hold the scoop of ice cream on top. Perfect!

Here’s how I put these fun little desserts together: (printable recipe)

INGREDIENTS:

One box of orange cake mix (plus oil, water and eggs to make according to package)
1 bag of Wilton’s candy melts in white
2 sticks of butter (room temp)
1 1/2 cups of powdered sugar
1 teaspoon of vanilla
Orange food coloring (if desired)
Vanilla ice cream
Cool Whip (if desired)
Sprinkles to decorate

DIRECTIONS

Make cake mix according to package and divide equally into 24 cupcake liners in cupcake tins.
Bake according to package and cool.
Make icing by combining butter, powdered sugar and vanilla in bowl and beating until light and fluffy. Color orange if desired.
Place icing in a large zip-top bag fitted with a round tip, and set aside.
Melt candy melts in microwave in 30 second increments, stirring between until completely melted.
Use a pastry brush to brush candy melts inside each cavity of the chocolate bomb mold and freeze for a few minutes.
Coat a second time (it needs to be nice and thick since we aren’t filling them before popping them out of the mold).
Pop these cups out of the mold by peeling the silicone away. Repeat.

Assemble cupcakes by cutting a small core out of the center of each one, pipe a little frosting into this core, and set a chocolate cup on top.

Pipe frosting dots all the way around the edge of the cup.

You can hold the cupcakes here until serving and do the next steps right beforehand- or do the following steps and keep the entire cupcake frozen until serving. Depends on how and where you will be serving them.
Place a small scoop of ice cream into the center
Top with Cool Whip, and sprinkles as desired

Enjoy!!!!!

My thoughts: Well, I didn’t try these, but I did share them and according to others, they are a yummy success! These work best if you keep them at room temp and add the ice cream just before serving. If you add the ice cream ahead of time, let the cupcakes and ice cream warm up and soften a bit before serving- otherwise they are fairly difficult to eat! At room temperature though… cake and ice cream all at once!!! YUM! Enjoy!!! ~r

Other fun ice cream desserts to try! (click on a photo to see the recipe)

7 Comments

Posted in Candy, Cupcakes, Frozen desserts and tagged butter cream frosting, chocolate bomb, Creamsicle cupcakes, cupcake ideas, cupcakes, dessert, Dreamsicle, fun cupcake ideas, ice cream cupcakes, Orange, Orange creamsicle, Orange cupcakes, summer cupcakes, unique cupcake recipes, white chocolate. Bookmark the permalink.

Berry Bomb Cupcakes

Posted on January 15, 2016 by Ruthanne

These delicious cupcakes are topped with a dome of raspberry cream and a touch of black raspberry jam- a perfectly pink Valentine’s Day treat!

I love berries over vanilla cake- it reminds me of summer and makes me smile. I got a little creative with the presentation, but I think that makes them just perfect as a Valentine– don’t you?

These are incredibly delicious and fun to make. They use a fun (and inexpensive) silicone mold that I got here and have used before on my Peanut Butter Bomb Brownies. I just love how beautiful the dome of white chocolate looks atop these cupcakes! There are so many possibilities for fillings….!

Want to know how we made these cute little desserts? Here you go: (Printable recipe)

INGREDIENTS:

One boxed white cake mix (with water, oil and eggs to make according to package)
1 large jar of black raspberry preserves
1 can of strawberry frosting
2 packets of Dream Whip
3/4 cup milk
1 tablespoon of raspberry extract
6 tablespoons powdered sugar
Pink food color gel (to desired shade)
2 bags of Wiltons candy melts in bright white.

DIRECTIONS:

Make cake mix according to package and divide into 24-28 cupcake liners placed in a muffin tin. Fill only about 1/2 full so that they bake up flat and not mounded up and over edges. Bake according to package.
Make Berry Bomb filling by combining Dream Whip, milk, extract, and powdered sugar in a mixing bowl and blending together with mixer until stiff peaks form. Add coloring to desired shade of pink.
Melt Wiltons candy melts and use a brush to “paint” the melts into the inside of the silicone mold. Do two layers and then freeze until hard (5 minutes).
Place filling into a large zip-top bag and clip a corner. Pipe filling into hardened cups- about 3/4 full- and then top with a little jam.
Use a knife to spread jam flat and freeze another 5-10 minutes.
Carefully remove berry bombs from mold and place, round side down and sticky jam side up, on a wax-papered plate. Keep these cool until all bombs are made.

Open strawberry frosting and warm in the microwave for about 15 seconds- just until it softens a bit when stirred,
Spoon frosting over tops of cupcakes, allowing it to spread to edges.
Gently set a bomb on top of cupcake, pressing it into the soft frosting (I used wax paper to touch chocolate to prevent fingerprints)
Allow frosting to firm up and hold the bomb in place.
Drizzle with a little red or pink melted candy melts if desired. Keep refrigerated until serving.
Enjoy!!!!!!!

My thoughts: These are a fun and refreshing twist on a berry-topped cupcake. The bombs take a little time to make- since you have to to do them in batches of 6. I recommend you start making them when you start the cupcakes. You can be in and out of the freezer while you are baking and save a little time. My other thought- serve these with a fork!!! When you bite into them and that white candy shell breaks it is too much to hold onto. I promise. Use forks 🙂 I hope you enjoy making and eating these as much as I did!! ~r

Other Valentines Day treats to try (click on a photo to see the recipe)

12 Comments

Posted in Cupcakes and tagged berry cupcake, best, black raspberry, chocolate bomb, cupcake, cupcakes, dessert, raspberry, raspberry cream, recipe, strawberry, Valentines day cupcake, white chocolate. Bookmark the permalink.

Peanut Butter Bomb Brownies

Posted on August 29, 2015 by Ruthanne

What could be more yummy than a chocolate brownie covered in creamy peanut butter ganache and topped with a chocolate covered peanut butter mousse bomb? If you are addicted to chocolate and peanut butter, this dessert is for you!

Chocolate and peanut butter are a timeless combination, and these brownies combine those flavors in such a fun way!

The homemade brownies are dense, but not too rich. They compliment that sweet creamy peanut butter mousse perfectly and are such a pretty dessert!

You will need a silicone bomb mold for this, and a brush for coating it in chocolate. I found both of these at a local cake-decorating shop and they were really inexpensive.

Want to see how we did these? Here’s the recipe: (printable version)

INGREDIENTS: (makes 18-24 brownie cups)

Brownie:

Two sticks (1 cup) butter
2 cup sugar
3 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
1/2 cup cocoa
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups flour
1 cup milk

Ganache:

1 cup of peanut butter baking chips
1/2 cup of heavy cream

Bombs:

1 to 2 cups of dark chocolate candy melts
1 c. creamy peanut butter
8 oz. Philadelphia Cream Cheese (softened to room temperature)
1/2 c. sugar
8 oz. Cool Whip topping

DIRECTIONS:

Bomb:

Make these first, so they are ready to use once you need them.
Melt chocolate candy melts in 30 second increments in the microwave, stirring between until melted and smooth.
Use a brush (clean, food brush) to brush the inside of each cavity of the bomb mold with melted chocolate.
Freeze for about 3 minutes and repeat, to give a nice thick layer of chocolate. Re-freeze for another 4-5 minutes.

Make filling by beating together peanut butter, cream cheese and sugar.
Gently fold in the container of whipped topping.
Place filling in a large zip-top bag and keep in the fridge until use.
Cut a corner off the bag, and squeeze filling into each chocolate coated bomb mold. Smooth tops with a spatula.

Refreeze for about 15 minutes- until filling is hardened.
Gently peel mold away from bomb. Place each one on a plate covered in parchment paper and freeze until use.

Brownie:

Preheat oven to 350.
Cream butter and sugar together.
Beat in eggs, cocoa, vanilla and salt.
Add flour and milk (alternating them and mixing well in between)
Spoon into 18-24 cupcake liners placed in a muffin tin (only fill 1/3 to 1/2 full)
Bake at 350 degrees for 12-14 minutes or until a tooth pick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Ganache:

While brownies bake, heat peanut butter chips and heavy cream in a microwave safe bowl in 30 second increments. Stir and repeat until smooth and creamy.
When brownies are out of oven, carefully remove them from muffin tins and spoon warm ganache over warm brownies. Allow both to cool until ganache is firm but still a bit sticky.
Gently place a chocolate bomb on top of each brownie, and press gently into ganache.
Drizzle a bit of white chocolate on top if you desire.
Keep refrigerated. Leave at room temperature for a few minutes to warm before serving. Yum.

My thoughts: Yum!!! These were a huge hit among my friends and family. They do take a little extra time to make that bomb on top– but the wow factor is worth it! I will definitely be using these little silicone molds again- they are easy to use and I love that fun dome of chocolate! I hope you get a chance to try these!! Enjoy!!! ~r