November 30, 2010

Cookie Dough Brownies...Santa's Watching

 My kid's are scared.
Maybe scared is not the right word...
they have a healthy respect for the power that is Santa.
What they ARE scared of is the possibility that Santa won't bring them presents on Christmas.
That's fear in it's most primal form.
As a parent, I have learned how to take their "fear" and harness it into ways that will benefit me.
The origins of my Santa manipulation are rather innocent, only over the years have they evolved into something slightly more self-serving.
Let me break the scenario down:
A random day in December 2007
A 2 and 4 year old fighting over the noise-making-toy-of-the-day.
Mommy pleasantly asking them to knock it off.
Fighting obviously continues.
Mommy threatens time-outs, no desserts and corporal punishment in the form of push-ups.
Fighting obviously continues.
Mommy about to have a nervous breakdown because of the screaming and noise making.
Fighting has turned to crying.
A worn down mommy looking around for help and/or inspiration.
A-ha!  Santa!  Santa won't come to little boys that are fighting.
4 year old smart alleck - How can Santa see us?
Mommy goes blank because kid's fighting kills brain cells.  It's true.
Enter Daddy, fresh from his child-free day...
Santa can see you through this...
Daddy pulls out an old web-cam circa 2001, places it on the counter and deems it "The Santa Cam".
Santa can see you through this super secret camera that he sent in the mail.
Children silenced.  Noise Maker silenced.
Kids ~ He can see us through that?
Daddy  ~ Yes, and if you are misbehaving he will send us an email letting us know that he saw you.
The fear healthy respect was then born.
Never mind that the camera wasn't plugged into anything...
Kids don't care about the details when Santa is involved, obviously.
Ever since that day, the "Santa Cam" comes out every year with the holiday decorations.
It sits perched on our kitchen counter as I type this.
I might have abused the "Santa Cam" a little over the years.
"Santa Cams" now exist in stores in the form of security cameras.
So, I can pull out the "Santa is watching" card pretty much wherever I go.
The first thing my little guy does when we walk into Target et al is look up at the ceiling to see if the "Santa Cams" are there.
Genius.
Feel free to use my idea.  It works and you will thank me.

Here's another thing you are going to thank me for...
Actually, you will need to thank Melanie Noe from Noe Place Like Home.  She posted the recipe back in September and Amanda from i am baker made a different version of them, which is where I first saw the idea.
I knew there was no way that I wasn't going to make them.
Seriously, cookie dough and brownies...it's the kind of recipe that makes you a little loopy with excitement.
Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Brownies
  adapted slightly from noe place like home

For Brownies:
1 c. butter
3/4 c. unsweetened cocoa powder (I used Hershey's Special Dark)
2 1/4 c. granulated sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
3 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 1/4 c. all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 c. mini semi-sweet chocolate chips

Line 9x13 baking pan with foil, so the bottom and sides are covered. Spray with cooking spray.
Melt 2 sticks of butter in a medium saucepan; add cocoa, stirring until smooth. 
Remove from heat and cool slightly. Add sugar, salt, eggs, and vanilla; beat with a spoon until combined. Add flour and baking powder; mix well. Stir in chocolate chips. Spread batter into pan. 
Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes. 
*Good tip for brownies is remove from oven when toothpick inserted 1-2 inches from edge comes out clean.
Allow brownies to cool completely before moving on to the next step.
I let mine sit overnight covered after cooling.

For Cookie Dough Filling:
1 c. butter, softened
1 c. packed light brown sugar
1/2 c. granulated sugar
4 Tbsp. milk
2 tsp. vanilla extract
2 c. all-purpose flour
1 c. mini semi-sweet chocolate chips

Combine first 5 ingredients in a mixing bowl and cream together. Add flour and stir until combined. Stir in chocolate chips. Spread in an even layer on top of cooled brownies. Chill for at least 15 minutes in fridge before adding the chocolate topping.

For Chocolate Topping:
1 c. semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 Tbsp. Crisco shortening

Melt chocolate and shortening in microwave for 1 minute, stirring until smooth.
Spread over the cookie dough layer and chill until topping is set.
Keep refrigerated until serving.
 Hope your holiday baking is off to a good start!
 

37 comments:

Anonymous said...

ohmystars...

I thought the webcam idea was amazing till I saw the recipe...

greatgooglymoogly... will HAVE to bake these...

Thank you!

M

Danielle said...

Haha what a great idea! I was babysitting my little cousin with my mom on saturday and she kept wanting EVERYTHING in the store we were in. And she kept running all over the place, maybe i'll have to try that next time!

I'll have to make those brownies, they look really yummy!

Cookbook Queen said...

Girl, I am sooo with you. We gotta spend all that money, the least we can get out of it is a few harmless threats.

One particularly bad day, Santa left a reprimanding letter in the fireplace. There may have been a few wet spots on it that were "Santa tears" from where he cried over my son's poor behavior.

I hung it on the fridge as a reminder.

These brownies look awesome. Never can go wrong with cookie dough!!

I was desperate.

Beth said...

Love it! I wish I had thought of this when my kids were a little younger. Unfortunately my oldest is 8 now and I doubt I could get away with the Santa Cam idea.

The brownies look like they are to-die-for yummy!

Diane Schmidt said...

They look great, cookie dough and brownies together sounds delicious :) Love the Santa Cam!

Unknown said...

Holy wow! these look amazing!

Joanne said...

That is one awesome trick. I am saving it for whenever I am around kids. Ever again.

Damn do these look good. I didn't think cookie dough could get any better. But wow.

Amanda said...

You rocked them girl... they look fantastic and I KNOW they are delicious!!!

Blessings-
Amanda

Kemimor said...

They look really delicious :)
Can I share a not-quite-similar-but-still-along-the-same-page recipe?
http://www.frkoverballe.dk/?p=1239&lang=en
Cookie Cake!

katie@tulsadetails said...

Hilarious!!!! Love this idea!! And the brownie/cookies look like they were sent by Santa himself!!!

Anonymous said...

I need these.
I need them right now with a chocolate milkshake next to them :)

If I make the brownies now maybe I can do the cookie dough part before dinner and be able to eat them after dinner with a chocolate milkshake :) oh yes, good idea :)

CJ said...

GENIUS on the Santa Cam! Wish I had read this oh say...14 years ago! LOL!

Anonymous said...

Yes, you cannot argue the power of Santa. Very clever of you.

Anonymous said...

The brownies look wonderful.

Anonymous said...

this is great! At first I wondered about the cookie dough, whether it was safe to eat, then I looked at the ingredients and there aren't any eggs! I need to try these out. Btw, the Santa story was very cute. :)

trooppetrie said...

Didn't I see on facebook that I could come over for brownies, somehow I thought they may pop off the page. I am a little disappointed. HAHA! I can not wait to try these

Ms. Morgan said...

First I love the Santa Cam story. I'm going to have to share that with a few parents I know.

Second OMG those cookie/brownies look to die for. I'm always looking out for a new recipe at the holidays - I'll have to give them a try.

Keep up the good work and I hope you get a chance to read and follow my food blog: http://epicureanenthusiast.blogspot.com/

Cat J B said...

Ha, that's priceless, I love it! And I'm bookmarking those brownies for future indulgence, mmmmmm...

Sara Tea said...

My Father looks a lot like Santa Claus and this time of year kids will be freaking out in the grocery store, see him, and stop dead in their tracks. It rules.

p.s. mother of God... these look delicious.

kang said...

HAH sly trick! Gonna try this idea someday, i like eating dough more than the baked products sometimes.. :) Have a great- no fighting Christmas!

Jocelyn said...

omgoodness...those look so delicious!!! I can't wait to make some of these...guess my diet will have to wait:-) LOL!

Unknown said...

Ohhh That looks so good.

SweetSugarBelle said...

Oh wow, wow wow!!! This looks amazing!!!

Shannon said...

Now I have a massive cookie dough craving! And I LOVE brownies so I can't wait to make these!

Chef Bee said...

Great story. Even after mine no longer believed, telling them Santa won't come til they go to bed, had preteens running for their bedrooms. Santa rules!

Plan B

Ingrid_3Bs said...

LOL, a little loopy with excitement. :) Yeah, I can see that.
~ingrid

Sue said...

You had me at cookie dough! :)

grace said...

i never realized santa (or the idea of santa) had such power!
stellar brownies, by the way. some of the best ever.

erica said...

wow these look out of this world. Perfect for the holidays. I will definitely have to give them a try. Definitely saving this recipe! I am your newest follower.

xo

Patti said...

I wonder if the web cam would work with my 3 and 7 year olds. They have no fear of the power of Santa whatsoever.*sigh

The brownies look amazing. I so need some of those today.

Monica H said...

hey, if Santa isn't watching, it's somebody, right? That's why you should ALWAYS be on your best behavior :-)

Anonymous said...

Love the Santa Cam story and the brownies are outrageous!re

Unknown said...

Hahah that is hilarious!! Those brownies look delicious, I mean, what's not to love??

Mostly Food and Crafts said...

These look amazing! Im your newest follower stopping by from http://mostlyfoodandcrafts.blogspot.com/
stop by if you have time!

MelisaH said...

love this! We have an "Elf on the shelf" from when I was a kid...this has evolved into Elfcam...some how kids are convinced that the eyes are a magical one way window to the NorthPole...and those treats yu-um! will definitely have to be making those soooon!

Tiffany said...

Santa Cam...that is awesome! Totally loving that idea.

And these brownies. Oh have mercy...those just look sinfully good :)

Tiffany
www.noordinaryhomestead.com

Anonymous said...

I loved this and wanted to make it right away! Unfortunately I don't think I baked the brownie long enough :(

Check out my attempt at the Cookie Dough Brownie here

Keep them tastey ideas coming!! So glad I found your blog. :)

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