Thursday, May 31, 2012

"Cookie" Divine and Beanilla Review

I used to watch "Take Home Chef" on TLC RELIGIOUSLY and Curtis Stone used to use Vanilla Beans all the time.  I've gone to the store to purchase them and just couldn't afford them.  So, I've never had the opportunity to cook with one before.

Last month, I attended the "What's Cooking Detroit?" show and was SO excited when I passed by the Beanilla table!  They had a very nice variety of vanilla beans on display, all of which I got to smell (heavenly!)  They also had some other products, such as vanilla paste, vanilla extract, vanilla salt and more! I am happy to say, they gave me the Madagascar Vanilla Beans and Vanilla Salt to try. I was ecstatic!!!!  

I checked out Beanilla's Website and their vanilla beans are priced EXTREMELY reasonably!  I couldn't believe it!  I can afford to cook with their beans!  LOL  Please visit them on Facebook too!

This dessert was wonderful!  I didn't know which I wanted to make with my vanilla beans....cookies or brownies.  So, I decided to combine them and make a "divine" dessert.  I succeeded!  It was the perfect amount of sweetness and the tiny sprinkle of vanilla salt on top was a perfect contrast to the sweetness! I put a dollop of cool whip on mine when it was still warm and it was wonderful! The next day, I ate leftovers cold, out of the fridge and it was SOO SOO good!  It was like eating a very soft cookie, but better!

It does take a little bit of time to put this together since you are making 2 batters, but I promise, it's worth it!  Mine did burn around one side quite a bit, but I cooked it on HIGH due to time contsraints and feel it wouldn't have burned so bad had I cooked it on LOW and let it take its time!  The bottom was not burnt at all....even though I thought it might be.  I had envisioned cutting this out in squares, but I decided to scoop it out and I'm sticking with my decision.  

I chose to not add chocolate chips to my Cookie Divine due to my niece's peanut allergy, (most chocolate is not safe for her, poor thing!) but please feel free to add some chocolate chips in yours if you wish!  For the cookie part, I used the recipe from the back of the Toll House Semi-Sweet Morsals bag, but exchanged the vanilla for the contents of 1 vanilla bean :)

"Cookie" Divine

Cookie Ingredients:
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 vanilla bean contents (or 1 tsp. vanilla extract)
2 large eggs

Brownie Ingredients:
2/3 cup Flour
2/3 cup Sugar
1/3 cup Cocoa Powder
1/4 tsp. salt
2/3 cup Cream
1/2 cup butter, melted
1 egg, slightly beaten
1 vanilla bean contents (or 1 tsp. vanilla extract)

Vanilla Salt (optional)

Directions:
Before you begin, I'm going to teach you how to scrape the contents of the vanilla bean out!  That's important!
Place your vanilla bean on your cutting board.
With the tip of your knife, run it down the center of the bean.  You want to slice it all the way through, so it's ok to use some pressure.
You'll have two "sides" now.  With the back of your knife, scrape each half of the bean from one end to the other.  
Your knife should look like this after scraping one half.
Scrape both halves.

Now, on to the batters........
We'll start with the Cookie Batter first.
In a bowl, mix together the flour, baking soda and salt.
In a separate bowl, mix together the butter, sugar, brown sugar, contents of one vanilla bean and eggs.
(I used my Kitchen Aid Mixer)
Add your dry ingredients slowly to your wet ingredients until well mixed.
******Spray your slow cooker liner with non-stick spray!******
Spread your cookie batter in your crock.

NOW, let's begin the brownie batter.....
In a bowl, mix together the flour, sugar, cocoa powder and salt.
In a separate bowl, mix together the cream, butter, eggs and contents of 1 vanilla bean.
(I used my Kitchen Aid Mixer)
Slowly add your dry ingredients to your wet ingredients.
Pour your brownie batter on top of your cookie batter that is already in your crock.
Take a knife and slowly move the tip through the batter in an "s" pattern.....dragging the batters through each other to "marbelize" your batter.
Go the other way too....

Cook on LOW for 3-5 hours.  Keep an eye on it and when the middle is "set," turn it off.
Scoop it out into bowls while warm and top with a little bit of Vanilla Salt and a dollop of Cool Whip, OR let it cool and serve at room temperature with a little bit of Vanilla Salt.
This is also fantastic cold!  You can stick it in the fridge and sprinkle a tiny bit of Vanilla Salt on it before serving!
Enjoy!

*All opinions expressed here are entirely my own.  I was given products from Beanilla in exchange for my honest review.
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8 comments:

  1. This sounds great. Slow cooker does wonders :) I love Beanilla beans as well :) In fact right now I have a giveaway going on for Beanilla beans! Here is the link. http://zaikazabardast.com/2012/05/31/pineapplecurd/
    Glad to find your blog!

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  2. I'm sure that tasted good, but it looks disgusting. There is nothing artful or presentation worthy from this at all.

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    1. Dear Anonymous,

      I'm sorry you feel this looks disgusting and isn't "artful or presentation worthy" at all. I've never claimed to be a photographer at all. I'm just a mom, cooking for my family and posting my recipes for FREE, on my own time, for the world to see and make. I do it to help others. Please remember this next time you decide to comment on one of my recipes. I am all for constructive criticism, but there is no reason to be rude. Why even comment at all?

      If you feel as though you could take a better picture, by all means, please do so and send it to me. I would be happy to give all the credit back to you. As fir the picture, I took this with a house full of guests, including children running around, before it was eaten by my family. I don't just cook to take pictures. I cook for my family. Sometimes, that means sacrificing an "artful" picture so I can attend to my family.

      Sincerely,
      Hope

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    2. I've been looking for recipes to use in my crockpot since I live in Georgia, and it's hot as you know what. I know it's an old post, but I had to tell you how yummy that looks. Gonna try to find time to make it in the morning, and I'll swing back by to let you know how it turned out. Unlike the tard above, I think your pictures look scrumptious, and I appreciate you taking the time out of your busy life to share your pictures and recipes with strangers on the internet. THANK YOU! :)

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  3. Awesome! I am making this right now

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  4. Thanks for this recipe. Can't wait to try it for my family. I'm sure my boys will gobble it right up!! Well said about the above nasty comment. How rude is that! Those types of people are nasty in every aspect of life and probably very lonely!!

    ReplyDelete