For Tammy and Marvin - Part 2

I'm making this a two part story because I couldn't let the occasion of Tammy and Marvin's wedding pass without something a little more special than Chicken Adobo. They needed something sweet and utterly sinful. I needed to find something just as sweet as she is, and I think I may have found it in these brownies. They are not exactly photo-perfect and I decided not to add the caramel drizzle, but I just had to test a little bit of one, and they are gooey and oh so good! With the pink, I think they are perfect for Tammy!

I will be honest here, the sweetest thing I usually make is cookies. And I don't make cookies very often at all. I do make scones more often, but scones are not very sweet - at least not the scones that I cook. Patrick is both the sweet-tooth and the sweet-baker of the house. He stopped making eclairs and cheesecakes after marrying me because I asked him not to. I would prefer not to weigh any more than I already do! But even he was not sure what to make to celebrate Tammy and Marvin's wedding. Then I remembered this cookbook that I bought for him "Sticky, Chewy, Messy, Gooey"by Jill O'Connor. It is described as having desserts for the serious sweet tooth, and as I was looking through it, I will have to agree! I did see many things that I wanted to make. But as I thought about Tammy and Marvin, I remembered how much she likes brownies, and there is a recipe in the book called Heart of Darkness Brownies.

Now, I'm not exactly sure why, perhaps it is the 5 full size Snicker's bars that are cut up and added to the brownies, or it could be the marshmallows melted on top, but these brownies remind me a lot of the South. A lot of good friends of mine are from the South - Tammy included. I'm not originally from the South, so a recipe like this scares me - it has too much sugar, butter and all of those things that we are told not to eat because they are so bad for our health. But I think that every once in a while - like a wedding - it is O.K. to eat something as sinful and delicious as these brownies!

Just a warning - these are extremely sweet and Patrick joked could cause a diabetic coma!

P.S. These would also be a great thing to make for Valentine's Day, which is right around the corner. Also, I think the men who work with Patrick are going to be happy tonight because these are not staying in the house!

Heart of Darkness Brownies

Adapted from "Sticky, Chewy, Messy, Gooey" by Jill O'Connor

1 1/2 cups (3 sticks) unsalted butter

6 ounces unsweetened chocolate

2 1/2 cups granulated sugar

1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar

6 large eggs, lightly beaten

1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup coarsely very coarsely chopped raw almonds or pecans, toasted

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

5 full size (2.07 ounces each) Snicker's candy bars, but into small chunks3 cups mini marshmallows

For the Caramel Drizzle:

6 ounces (about 25) unwrapped caramel candies

2 tablespoons heavy cream

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

pinch of salt

Position a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 350F. Spray two standard 12 cup muffin tins with nonstick cooking spray.

Melt the butter and unsweetened chocolate together in a small saucepan over medium low heat and stir until smooth. Pour the chocolate mixture into a bowl and stir in the sugars, eggs, and vanilla. Sift the flour and salt into the chocolate mixture and stir just until combined. Stir in the cooled chopped nuts, chocolate chips, and chunks of candy bar.

Fill each cupcake cup halfway with batter. Bake until the surface of the brownies has a glossy, cracked surface, about 20 minutes. Remove the brownies from the oven and top each one with approximately 1/4 cup of the mini marshmallows. Return the brownies to the oven and cook just until the marshmallows start to melt and puff up a bit, but not browned too much, about 2 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool just enough to handle, then remove from the cupcake cups, running a knife around the edge of each brownie to loosen it from the cup. Let cool completely on the rack.

While the brownies are cooling, make the caramel drizzle. Combine the caramels, cream, vanilla and salt in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave, uncovered, on high for 1 minute. Remove from the microwave and stir until smooth. If the caramels are not completely melted, continue heating in 30 second increments, stirring until smooth.Drizzle the brownies with melted caramel and let cool completely for the caramel to harden. Do not chill. Serve immediately, or store for up to 3 days in a covered container.

For Tammy and Marvin - Part 1

Tammy and Marvin are getting married this weekend!

I think I may be the only person who always sings the song from "My Fair Lady" when someone is getting married. The song is going through my head right now -"I'm getting married in the morning. Ding - Dong the bells are going to chime..."

I became friends with Tammy while Patrick was on a six month deployment to Germany. It was July 4th when we first went out to dinner, and it felt a little strange because she is a lot younger than I am. It wasn't long before she became a very good friend. And now, well, she is one of my closest friends. After Patrick came home, he soon realized that she was a fixture at our house, and there were even certain days of the week that were dedicated to Tammy. She loves White Russians, and if it wasn't 10:30 in the morning right now, I would toast you with a White Russian!

We have a lot in common. Even her relationship with Marvin is very similar to my relationship with Patrick. They are both the same age that we were when we started dating, and they dated the same amount of time that we did before getting married! I will never forget when I asked her about their first date, her response was almost identical to the response that I had after my first date with Patrick! I'm trying to think of a way to describe the response, but I can't seem to put it into words. It was the look in her eye, and the way that she said it was - nice. I knew then that she was a goner! So, it was no surprise to me when he asked her to marry him right before they took a cruise to Alaska this past summer.

It feels like just yesterday that we were looking through Bridal magazines and talking about her wedding. I am sad to say that I'm not going to be in Corpus Christi smiling (with tears running down my face) as they say their vows. I'm not going because Patrick doesn't have vacation time yet, and I feel uncomfortable going alone to the wedding. But I want both Tammy and Marvin to know that I love you both very much and wish you only the very best.

A few weeks ago, I told Tammy that I wanted to do something for the special occasion on my blog, and I asked if she had any special requests. She said that she has always wanted my Chicken Adobo recipe. I learned this recipe from my friend Tara, but this is not exactly her recipe because in her family they never put garlic in the adobo. Sorry Tara!

This is not every one's idea of wedding celebration food, but it's what she wanted! I like to serve Chicken Adobo along with Garlic Vegetable Fried Rice. In order to get as many vegetables as I can, I use whatever I have on hand, fresh, frozen or canned. You can make this with only the rice and the garlic, if that is all you have, but I do recommend at least using the carrots - they add a certain something to the dish.

Chicken Adobo

4 lbs chicken thighs

4 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 cup soy sauce

3/4 cup rice vinegar (or regular white vinegar)

1 bay leaf

1-3 tablespoons sugar, to taste

3/4 cup water, or more to cover

Place the chicken, garlic, soy sauce, vinegar, bay leaf, and one tablespoon of the sugar in a large dutch oven. Stir to combine all ingredients. Place over medium high heat and bring to a boil, then lower the heat to a simmer and cover until the meat is tender. Season to taste with a little more sugar if needed, pepper and even a little adobo seasoning (this is a Latin spice mix that you can find in the ethnic aisle at the supermarket, but be careful for it is very salty).

Garlic Vegetable Fried Rice

2 cups rice, cooked according to the package directions

1/4 cup vegetable oil

4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced

1 onion, thinly sliced

2 carrots, chopped

1 can French style green beans, drained (optional)

1 can corn, drained (optional)

salt, pepper and red pepper flakes

Add the oil to a large pan over medium high heat and fry garlic until lightly browned, stirring constantly. Add onion and carrot, stir and cook until the onion is translucent. Stir in the rice, breaking up any clumps with the back of the spoon. Season to taste with salt (or soy sauce), pepper and red pepper flakes.