Caffe Bene for Desserts in Glenview

**Disclosure: No compensation was received for this post. All opinions are 100% my own.

One rainy and totally dreary day, we decided to do some exploring and settled on finally visiting Caffe Bene in Glenview. I say finally because we must pass it at least once or twice a week and often remark we should stop. A damp and dreary day seemed to be the perfect excuse to take an adventure to a coffee shop. I knew that Caffe Bene was noteworthy for its coffee creations. However, I did not expect it to be a haven for dessert! Gelato, honey breads, waffles, cheesecakes, macaroons and more! We were actually a bit take aback by the choices and took awhile to decide.

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Mixed Berry Cobbler {Simple, Berry Goodness}

It has been way too long since we have done a recipe on here! My hubby and I actually have a few that are in the formative phases but not quite there yet. This time of year is berry-good in our house as my husband snaps up organic berry deals. I was inspired by our recent collection of berries to make a cobbler for the Fourth of July. Cobblers are pretty easy and please most. I made ours in one dish wish we split three ways, but you can also easily bake cobblers in individual portions. I used cherries and strawberries in my cobbler, but you can simply add blueberries, blackberries and raspberries as well.

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Simple Sugar Cookies

I have one of those cookie bibles full of cookie recipes. There are pages after pages of sugar cookie recipes---over 1000, actually. I have morphed a couple of them into the sugar cookie recipe that we used this year. My husband and daughter can't keep their hands off them, so this one is a keeper!

Ingredients:

3 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 cup butter {room temperature}
1 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp pure vanilla extract

Directions:

 Mix flour, baking powder and cinnamon in mixing bowl. Set aside. Next, cream butter and sugar in a large mixing bowl. Beat in eggs and vanilla extract. Then, gradually add the dry mixture to the wet. Cover and chill for 4 hours. {I chilled mine over night and had to let it warm a tad to be workable.}

When you are ready to bake, preheat oven to 400 F. Lightly grease 2 baking sheets. Prepare a floured surface for rolling out dough. Lightly flour rolling pin and cookie cutters. Roll out dough to desired thickness. Cut cookies and place on baking sheet with cookies about 1" apart. Bake for 8-10 minutes for desired brownness. {My husband likes his a bit crunchy. I like a mix of soft and crunchy.} Let cool on wire racks. Then, store or decorate and then store.

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Enjoying a Chocolate Tulip at The Glenview House

Recently, we enjoyed dinner at The Glenview House in Glenview. The Glenview House has quite a menu ranging from old pub favorites to traditional fare that has been kicked up a notch to even more sophisticated dishes. Being a chocophile, the item on the menu that spoke to me immediately happens to be the chocolate tulip cups for dessert (of course). I normally skip desserts. However, I just had to have a chocolate tulip cup dessert. The dessert definitely lived up to my chocolate expectations:

The chocolate tulip was graceful and full of a thick chocolate ganache sprinkled with a few berries. Almond biscotti drizzled with raspberry lambic accompanied the flower.

To say we enjoyed the dessert is an understatement since we devoured it. Thank goodness that there were three of us enjoying this creation as I probably would have felt a wee bit guilty later. The ganache was pretty thick and had a very addictive chocolate flavor.

Here is another view:

We enjoyed our meal at The Glenview House, so I will be blogging about them in the future. However, I had to share this dessert with you. What a wonderful discovery!

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Decadent Flourless Chocolate Cake {Munchie Monday}

I love working with chocolate. I do have some tried and true recipes. However, every once in awhile, I like to try something new. One of my favorite restaurants has a flourless chocolate cake so I thought I would try making one this past weekend. Most of the recipes I found used six eggs. Now, I believe in allowing indulgences here and there. But, six eggs seemed a little much for me. (Six---really????) I found a recipe by King Arthur using only three eggs. I adapted my recipe from this one. It came out great!

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Irish Lemon Sponge Pudding {Munchie Monday}

I know that St. Patrick's Day has passed. However, I love, love, love Irish Lemon Sponge Pudding. I make it every year for the big day. Yesterday, it finally dawned on me--I should make this for other dessert-worthy events! The pudding is really neat in how it separates between a spongy top and a lemon sauce bottom. I love to eat it warm--it just seems to bring the lemon alive!

Here is a little pic:

The recipe is surprisingly easy. You can find the pudding recipe in our last year's post for St. Patrick's Day. The lemon in dessert is not overwhelming. It is actually pleasant and comforting. While I prefer it warm, the pudding can also be served chilled. It may make for a great citrus addition to BBQs alongside cobblers.

(Last year, I did not have a picture for my post. This year, I made sure to get a picture. I thought that I would reshare the recipe with this picture!)



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Peanut Butter Maple Brownies {Munchie Monday}

I am always looking for new baked goodies to make. I recently concocted a Peanut Butter Maple recipe that my husband loves. He is not a big chocolate fan, so these brownies were definitely a welcome treat. I adapted the recipe from one in Cooking Light.The recipe is really simple, so this is a good one to go to when in a pinch.

Ingredients

1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/8 tsp salt
1/4 cup chocolate chips
1/4 cup pure maple syrup
1/4 cup + 1 Tbsp smooth peanut butter
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 large egg white
1 large egg

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 F.

Combine the flours, salt, and baking soda in a mixing bowl. Put to the side. Mix sugar, maple syrup, peanut butter, vanilla, and eggs together in another bowl. Add flour mixture to the wet mixture and blend until moist. Fold in chocolate chips. **I actually tempered my chocolate and mixed it straight in. However, I think that folding in the chocolate chips may work better.**

Once the mixture is blended, place into a greased brownie pan. (I just sprayed it with nonstick spray.) Bake in the oven for 25 minutes. Test with a toothpick. When the toothpick comes out nearly clear, remove from oven. Cool. Then, cut and serve! (They were great a little warm!)

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Melting Snowmen {Chocolatey and Sugary Goodness}

I happened to spy a melting snowman treat while holiday shopping last week and I thought to myself--this is doable. I was right! Here is a quick shot of what I came up with:

I found the project relatively easy to do. Here is what you need for your ingredients:

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Double Chocolate Avocado Drop Cookies--Delish!

For our avocado party, I was determined to find an intriguing avocado dessert concoction to serve. I stumbled on the Dark Chocolate Avocado Recipe at The Greatist and had to give it a whirl. I made a few changes and whipped up something that party guests really enjoyed. Everyone was surprised that the delicious result contained avocado--including my toughest judge, Mini-Mel.

Here is the recipe we have all been waiting for:

Delicious drop cookies made with avocado!

Ingredients:

1/2 cup mashed avocado
1/2 bag dark chocolate chips  (150 grams)
3/4 cup whole wheat flour (yes, guests, I snuck that in!)
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 cup honey
2 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 tsp apple cider vinegar
2 tsp cinnamon
2 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 cup water

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Strawberry Granola Cobbler

With the evenings getting a little brisker, I thought that it was time for a warm dessert! I love cobblers and granola--so I thought that I would mix the two for a tasty concoction. The result--a warm and crunchy berry dessert!

Ingredients:

1.5 cups fresh washed and sliced strawberries
2 Tbsps fresh lemon juice
1Tbsp brown sugar
1 cup granola
1 Tbsp butter
1 Tbsp honey

Instructions:

Mix strawberries, sugar, and lemon juice in a small bowl. Place bowl in refrigerator for a couple of hours.

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Peanut Butter Maple Fudge

I am a big peanut butter fan, so it was only a matter of time before I would try to make a peanut butter fudge. I perused a few recipes and created my own adding peanuts and maple syrup (one of my new favorite tastes!).

Ingredients:

1/2 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1 Tbsp maple syrup
2 cups sifted confectioner's sugar
1/4 cup crushed peanuts

Directions:

For this fudge, I used a double boiler. While I brought the water up to a boil, I lined a 9x7 pyrex dish with foil. I sprayed the foil with a nonstick spray.

Once the water was boiling, I lowered the heat and put the peanut butter and butter into the top pan. I heated the ingredients while stirring until they were melted. Then, I added the maple syrup. After, I removed the pan from the heat and stirred in the powdered sugar and crushed peanuts. Next, I poured the mixture into the prepared pyrex dish. Then, I covered the dish and put it in the refrigerator. You should keep the fudge in the refrigerator for about 2 hours or until firm.

Once the fudge is firm, you can open the dish and flip the fudge right on to a cutting board. The foil should easily peel right off! Then, cut the fudge into squares.

This recipe is super easy and results in some yummy peanut butter maple fudge!

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Jazzing up Duncan Hines Dark Chocolate Brownies

My couponing husband is always getting us some awesome deals. Awhile back, he got a whole bunch of Duncan Hines Dark Chocolate Brownie mix for next to nothing.

I usually make my own brownies but, sometimes, it is nice to have a lot of the ingredients already gathered for you in a box! Yesterday, I decided to whip up a box. I wanted to jazz the brownies up a little bit and noticed a recipe for Dark Chocolate Espresso Cookies on the box. I tried the recipe. I found it to be an easy way to make some fudge cookies with a little bit of splash. Here is the recipe that I used, based on the Duncan Hines recipe:

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