My Favorite Recipes: Melt in Your Mouth Chocolate Contest, Palouse Empire Fair

Clockwise from upper left: Chocolate cookie dough cheesecake bars, mint chocolate brownies, celebrity fudge, chocolate marble cookies and chocolate cookies. Missing from the photo: black bowtie brownies.

After several years of treating judges to wonderful chocolate treats, the contest has no trouble finding judges. A former judge who now lives in Chicago called to bemoan her inability to judge this year.

This is an open class contest, meaning that anyone can enter, and there are youth and adult divisions. Entries were judged individually by a panel of judges, and scores were sorted out by the superintendent and her assistants. The judges had to remember not to overeat the first entries judged or they would be miserable by the last item. This year’s crew of judges attained that standard.

Entries ranged from fudge to cookies, brownies and layered chocolate chip cookie dough cheesecake bars. The idea is world’s greatest chocolate, so faintly chocolate goodies need not apply.

Youth:

Black Bow Tie Brownies

Jenna Harwood, Colfax – first place

1-1/3 cup all purpose flour

3/4 cup cocoa

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup (1-1/2 sticks) butter

1-2/3 cups granulated sugar

2 Tablespoons water

2 large eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 2/3 cups chocolate chips (white, dark, semi-sweet)

2 cups Cool Whip (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease 13x9-inch baking pan. Combine flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt in large bowl. Microwave butter in medium, microwave-safe bowl on high for one minute; stir until melted. Stir in sugar and water. Stir in eggs and vanilla extract. Gradually stir in flour mixture. Stir in one cup chocolate chips. Spread into prepared baking pan. Sprinkle with remaining chocolate chips unless using whipped topping when serving.

Bake for 18 to 25 minutes or until wooden toothpick inserted in center comes out slightly sticky. Cool completely in pan on wire rack. Spread with whipped topping, if using, and sprinkle remaining chocolate chips on top. Refrigerate until serving. Cut into bars.

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cheesecake Bars

Kathryn Amdahl – second place

Crust:

1-1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs

5 Tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

2/3 cup (4 ounces) miniature semisweet chocolate chips

Dough:

5 Tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature

1/3 cup packed light brown sugar

3 Tablespoons granulated sugar

1/8 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

3/4 cup all-purpose flour

1 cup (16 ounces) semisweet chocolate chips

Filling:

10 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature

1/4 cup sugar

1 large egg, at room temperature

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/3 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Position a rack in the middle of the oven. Heat the oven to 325 degrees F. Butter a nine-inch square baking pan and line the pan with a piece of parchment paper that is large enough to extend over the two opposite sides of the pan. Butter the paper.

Make the crust: In a medium bowl, stir the crumbs and melted butter together until the crumbs are evenly moistened. Stir in the chocolate chips. Press the crumb mixture evenly over the bottom and one inch up the side of the prepared pan. Bake for six minutes. Transfer the pan to a wire rack. Leave the oven on.

Make the dough. In a large bowl using an electric mixer on medium speed, beat the butter, brown sugar, granulated sugar, salt and vanilla until smoothly blended, about one minute. Decrease the speed and add the flour, mixing just to incorporate it. Stir in the chocolate chips. Set aside.

Make the filling. In a large bowl, using clean beaters, beat the cream cheese and sugar on low speed just until smooth. Mix in the egg and vanilla, beating just to blend them in. Pour the cheese cake batter into the crust. Spread the cookie dough over the top of the cream cheese filling.

Bake until the top feels dry and firm and looks set if given a gentle shake, about 30 minutes. Transfer the pan to a wire rack. Put the 1/3 cup chocolate chips in a small heatproof bowl or the top of a double boiler and set it over a saucepan of barely simmering water (or the bottom of a double boiler); the water should not touch the bowl or pan. Stir until the chocolate chips are melted and smooth. Use a teaspoon to gently drizzle thin lines of melted chocolate over the top of the bars.

Cool the bars completely in the pan, about one hour. The chocolate drizzle will be set when the bars are cool. Loosen the sides of the bars from the unlined sides of the pan. Use a large knife to cut into 16 bars, wiping the knife clean as needed, and slide the bars off the parchment. The bars can be covered and stored in the refrigerator for up to three days. Serve cold or at room temperature.

Chocolate Cookies

Eric Akesson – third place

3 cups butter

3 cups sugar

2 cups brown sugar

2 cups baking cocoa

3 teaspoons baking soda

2 teaspoons baking powder

4 teaspoons vanilla

8 eggs

1 teaspoon salt

8 cups flour

4 cups white chocolate chips.

Bake 325 degrees F for 9 to 10 minutes.

Cream together the butter and sugars. Add eggs and mix thoroughly. Sift or stir together thoroughly cocoa, baking soda and baking powder, salt and flour. Mix flour mixture in parts into butter/sugar mixture, mixing until just well mixed. Stir in white chocolate chips.

Drop by rounded spoonfuls onto cookie sheet. Bake nine to 10 minutes, let cool for a minute, then transfer to wire rack to cool completely.

Adult:

Mint Chocolate Brownies

Amy Vanek created and baked these – first place

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup margarine

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

3/4 cup Hershey’s York Dark Chocolate Peppermint syrup

1/2 cup flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

Cream together sugar and margarine. Blend in eggs, vanilla and syrup. In a separate bowl, combine flour, salt and baking powder. Add to wet ingredients. Pour into greased 8x8-inch baking pan and bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees F.

Frosting

3 Tablespoons butter

3 Tablespoons milk

1 cups sugar

1/2 cup mint chocolate chips plus extra for decorating

Melt butter in small saucepan. Add milk and sugar. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly, and boil for 30 seconds. Remove from heat and add chocolate chips. Stir until chips are melted and mixture is smooth. Pour onto cooled brownies. Add extra chocolate chips to decorate the top, if desired.

Chocolate Marble Cookies

Janice Meeuwsen – second place

2-1/2 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup butter

3/4 cup sugar

3/4 cup brown sugar

1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 large eggs

2 Tablespoons unsweetened cocoa

Beat butter, sugar, brown sugar and vanilla together. Add eggs. Gradually add flour mixture, including baking powder and soda, and salt. Add two tablespoons cocoa. Drop by rounded tablespoon onto cookie sheet and bake in preheated 375 degrees F oven for 11 minutes. Cool two minutes and remove to wire rack.

Optional: add two cups chocolate chips.

Celebrity Fudge

Shannon Buckley – third place

4-1/2 cups sugar

1 large can evaporated milk

4 Tablespoons unsalted butter

1/4 teaspoon salt

24 ounces bulk dark chocolate (found in the bulk section at Winco)

1 pint marshmallow creme

1 Tablespoon vanilla extract

Combine sugar, milk, butter and salt in a large heavy saucepan. Bring to a full rolling boil. Boil for six minutes, stirring constantly. Place remaining ingredients in a large bowl. Pour syrup over ingredients and stir until chocolate is melted and all ingredients are well blended. Pour fudge into two greased nine-inch square pans. Chill until firm. Cut into squares and store in a tightly covered container. Fudge freezes well for several months.

Note: recipe adapted from my grandmother’s original recipe. Original recipe calls for the addition of two cups of broken walnuts, which were not added due to risk of nut allergies and family preference. Nuts can be added if preferred.