A Month of Chocolate: My Chocolate Chip Pie

8
Mine, as in “I’ve played with this recipe and this is the way I like it.” 
Mine, as in “No, get your own piece, I’m not sharing.”
Ok, ok. I keep my piece of pie, but I’ll give you the recipe. But only if you promise to serve it with Blue Bell Homemade Vanilla!
My Chocolate Chip Pie
1 c. melted butter
2 eggs
1 c. each flour, white sugar, brown sugar
1 t. vanilla
1/2 t. salt
1/2 c. each chocolate chips and chopped pecans
1 unbaked piecrust
Combine dry ingredients. Add eggs and cooled melted butter. Stir in chips and nuts. Place in pie crust and bake at 325 degrees for 60-70 minutes. Serve with Blue Bell Homemade Vanilla.

A Month of Chocolate: Milkshake Madness

7
I know, I know. Who needs a recipe for milkshakes, right? You just scoop out some chocolate ice cream, pour on some syrup and start mashing to your heart’s content. That may be fine for the amateur hour, but if we’re talking recipe-quality milkshakes here (it’s Chocolate Month after all!) then you owe it to yourself to hunt down the ingredients (chocolate sorbet? hot fudge sauce?) and give these a whirl. I live in Houston. Ice cream in February is not an odd thing.
Kevin's  Milkshake Supreme
3 c. vanilla ice cream
1 1/2 c. chocolate sorbet
1/2 c. milk
2 T. Hershey's hot fudge sauce
Reddiwhip for topping and a cherry if you're feeling extra fancy
Blend all ingredients in your industrial strength blender (or use a food processor).

A Month of Chocolate: Getting Saucy

6 Mocha Moons
Oh my. OH My… Coffee and Chocolate in one inspired dessert. Oh and did I mention the Haagen Dazs? And cashews? This one is worth it. So very worth it. In case you are wondering, these are all recipes from my collection, tried and true. This one comes from the Houston Chronicle, back in 1995.
Serves 4 (and you’ll have sauce left over)
3/4 c. chopped cashews
1 pint Haagen Dazs coffee ice cream
Remove the lid and cut the carton away from the ice cream. Roll the cylinder in the chopped nuts. Cover with plastic wrap and freeze. To serve: Slice cylinder lengthwise and then cut each piece into 4 semi-circles. Put two semi-circles on a plate and top with sauce. (Or, get all fancy-schmancy and put the sauce on the plate first.)
Mocha Sauce
2/3 c. chocolate chips
1 t. instant espresso powder
1/2 c. whipping cream
2 T. light corn syrup
2 T. Kahlua
In a 4 c. measuring cup, microwave all ingredients except liqueur for 2 minutes. Stir until blended. Add liqueur and cool for at least 15 minutes before pouring over ice cream.

A Month of Chocolate: Take Me Home, Rocky Roads

5
Can we ever have too many brownie recipes? Of course not! This one was clipped from a copy of Bon Appétit magazine, ages and ages ago.
Rocky Road Brownies
4 1-oz. squares bittersweet chocolate
1 c. butter
2 c. sugar
4 eggs, room temp
1 c. flour
1 t. vanilla
2 c. mini marshmallows
1 c. chocolate chips
1 c. chopped pecans
Heat oven to 350. Grease a 9x13 pan. Melt chocolate squares and butter in a saucepan over low heat. Remove from heat and add sugar, blending well. Beat in eggs, one at a time. Stir in flour and vanilla. Add marshmallows, chips, and nuts and mix thoroughly. Turn mixture into pan. Bake until almost set, about 40 minutes. Cool 10 minutes and cut into squares. Makes about 24.

A Month of Chocolate: Strong Women Bake Brownies

4
Best Brownies
These are not for wimps. What I mean is that if you haven’t been doing your strength training, you won’t be able to lift the dish! I don’t know what the secret is behind these squares of deliciousness, but I suspect it is the sheer size of them.
In a mixing bowl combine:
1 ¼ c. flour
1 ¼ c. cocoa
½ t. salt
In a saucepan melt:
3 sticks butter
Stir in 3 c. sugar, followed by 7 eggs (1 at a time)
Add to the mixing bowl along with
2 t. vanilla
4 ½ c. pecan pieces  (No this is not a typo.)
Line a 9x13 pan with buttered foil. Pour in brownie batter and bake for 50-60 minutes at 350.
Don’t over bake. Cool enough to turn brownies onto a large baking sheet. Chill and remove foil. Cut into large squares.

A Month of Chocolate: Chip, Chip, Hooray!

3
This one is simple and straightforward. It assumes you don’t want to get into scientific discussions about water baths, optimal cooking/cooling and no-crack temp. Just buy the Oreos and Eagle brand and get started already!
Chocolate Chip Cheesecake
18 Oreos, finely crushed
¼ c. butter, melted
3 8-oz. packages cream cheese, softened
1 can Eagle Brand milk
3 eggs
2 t. vanilla
1 c. miniature chocolate chips
1 t. flour
Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Combine cookie crumbs and butter. Press into bottom of 9” springform pan. Beat cheese until fluffy and add milk, eggs, and vanilla. Mix well. In a small bowl, toss ½ c. chocolate chips and flour to coat. Stir into cheese mixture and pour into pan. Sprinkle remaining chips on top. Bake 1 hour. Cool to room temp. Remove sides of pan.

A Month of Chocolate: Warm Hearts, Frozen Mousse

2
Because sometimes you just need to go all out! This impressive showstopper can actually be prepared up to 3 days ahead of time. No quibbling over whether white chocolate is “real” chocolate. This is red and white for Valentine’s Day so it counts. When I make this for Christmas I love the way the bright green pistachios look sprinkled over the top. If green and red is "so two months ago", then feel free to substitute macadamia nuts.

Frozen White Chocolate Mousse Cake with Raspberry Sauce
Crust:
1 c. vanilla wafer crumbs
3 T. melted unsalted butter
Mousse:
6 oz. plus 2 oz. white chocolate, chopped
3/4 c. sugar
1 c. water
4 large egg whites
1/8 t. cream of tartar
1 1/2 c. heavy whipping cream, chilled
1 T. Grand Marnier
1 t. vanilla
3 T. chopped pistachios
Raspberry Sauce:
2 c. fresh or frozen unsweetened raspberries
1/4 c. sugar
2 T. Grand Marnier
Crust: Combine crumbs and butter (don't use food processor or you'll end up with glue.) Press into the bottom of a 9" springform pan. Refrigerate.
Mousse: In a glass measuring cup, melt 6 oz. white chocolate. Cool slightly. In a mixing bowl, beat egg whites and cream of tartar until soft peaks form. In a small saucepan, bring sugar and water to boil, stirring until sugar dissolves. Continue to boil, without stirring, until sugar reaches 238 degrees (soft ball stage). Gradually beat hot sugar syrup into egg whites. Continue beating until whites are stiff and glossy, about 3 minutes. Fold in warm chocolate. Refrigerate until cool, but not set, about 5 minutes.
Whip cream, Grand Marnier, and vanilla until soft peaks form. Fold cream into chocolate mixture. Fold in remaining 2 oz. white chocolate. Pour into prepared springform pan and smooth the top. Sprinkle with pistachios. Freeze until firm (about 6 hours), cover with plastic wrap and return to freezer.
Sauce: Puree berries, strain to remove seeds. Add sugar and Grand Marnier. Refrigerate at least 1 hour.
To serve: Remove cake from freezer. Spoon sauce onto individual plates and top with a slice of cake. Serves 12.