Morning (or whenever you are reading it 
)!
So remember the bake-off I mentioned a few posts ago? I emailed the organizer yesterday and she clarified the rules to me – this is a brownie contest! Dang, and I thought a had a winning recipe all planned out. Brownies happened to be one of my favorite desserts of all time, so I’m super excited for the tasting portion of the contest, but I’ve never actually baked a brownie I thought was outstanding. My last attempt at rocky road brownies was a good try. I liked the topping (and think it may be a great contestant!) but the brownie was really dry. 
I asked you for your favorite brownie recipe in that post (and Jen came to the rescue – I plan on testing it soon, Jen!) but I’m asking again. Do you have a favorite brownie recipe? It can be a basic brownie (I’ll add my own topping) or a great brownie “combo.” Thanks again!! I love that I have you all here as my resources. 
Yesterday’s eats – it’s was Meatless Monday, fyi.
BREAKFAST
A green smoothie: almond milk, water, frozen banana, frozen strawberries, frozen spinach, ground peanuts (from a failed attempt at making pb) + Amazing Grass Kidz Superfood packet
Oh yes, let’s not forget the Bran Buds I received as a sample from the company. They added a nice crunch to the smoothie, which I ate with a spoon. Adam and I agreed we’d buy this cereal – it was really yummy 
LUNCH
My favorite sandwich combo of all time – seriously! I brought it to work with me and couldn’t resist but eat half before my lunchtime workout.
Grilled peppers, zucchini and eggplant, fresh tomato, goat cheese and Stonewall Kitchen sundried tomato pesto on a TJ’s scooped out ciabatta roll
Just thinking about this sandwich again makes me happy. I can never resits this combo!!
WORKOUT
Power yoga at my gym. The girl’s voice wasn’t as soothing as my favorite instructor’s on Thursdays but the practice was good at the end. Once we started flowing I forgot about all this other nonsense like how I wish the girl didn’t sound so “valley.”
DINNER
I really tried being vegan for the day but couldn’t resist the urge to add the goat cheese to my lunchtime sandwich. For dinner the cheese jumped in once again but we couldn’t really taste it at the end, so it’s going to be 100% vegan next time. So what did we have, you ask?
Avocado and pinto black bean enchiladas from Eat, Drink & be Vegan
I made a few tiny modifications to the recipe – if you can get a hold of it and want to recreate my version exactly, here they are. I used only 8 corn tortillas (to save cals – 2/prs is plenty), black beans instead of pinto (Adam is obsessed with black beans!), almond slices instead of cashews (all we had), no onions, 1 jar of TJ’s enchilada sauce, 1/4-1/2 cup of Stonewall kitchen peach mango hot sauce and a sprinkle of TJ’s light Mexican cheese. I think that’s it
I served it with a Russian inspired salad – fresh tomatoes, cucumbers, S&P + nonfat yogurt (Russians would traditionally use sour cream) – it was perfectly cool to balance out the spiciness of the enchiladas!
Let’s peak inside the enchiladas…
They were “meaty”, creamy, spicy, super flavorful. Adam already requested that we make these again. Yay the vegan book is coming in handy! 
Dessert (definitely not vegan!) – break-up bars
Yeah, go ahead and double that – so much for portion control. 
Other snacks throughout the day included edamame hummus with baby carrots, a packet of somersaults, pickles, toast with hummus. I was definitely snacky!
We are having our outdoor furniture delivered today. Our first farmers market is also opening today. Lots of excitement for one day. 
What are you looking forward to today?
I’m looking forward to getting our new grill we ordered! Should be delivered today! yay! Grilling tonight!
Privet Elina! Esli ja pravil’no poniala tvoj rodnoj jazyk russkij, poetomu pishu na russkom, hot’ i latinskimi bukvami. Izvini, navernoje eto ne ochen’ udobno chitat’, no moj anglijskij ne tak horosh kak tvoj ;o). Menia zovut Tania, ja zivu v Litve i uze davno chitaju foodblogerov. Vot nedavno sluchajno natknulas’ na tvoj blog i teper’ ja tvoja postojannaja chitatel’nica. Prosto hotela skazat’, chto u tebia zamechatel’nyj vkus i pishesh ty interesno. Mne kazetsia my ochen’ pohozi. A za takoj sandwich, kotoryj u tebia byl na lunch ja gotova rodinu prodat’ ;o)) Udachi tebe.
That sandwich looks incredible!
Hi, Tania!
Spasibo za comment… i ne nado prodavat’ rodinu. Prosto zdelai takoi je 
awee hehe thats okay id have more too if i made those break-up bars.. i mean look how delicious! theyre bound to call ur name
oh guess its time to get on that brownie baking.. too bad tho but at least u found out the rules in time. seriously hoping u get some good recipes from bloggers.. cuz im the worst for destroying brownies. good luck love <3
Perfect timing!!
Today’s post – http://foodtherapy4me.blogspot.com/2010/05/spicy-bridezilla-brownies.html
Additional ideas/source for today’s post – http://bridezillabakes.com/tag/brownies/
Good luck!
Zal’ tolko, chto takoje chudo kak “sundried tomato pesto ” u nas najti ne tak prosto ;o) no ja pridumaju chto-nibud’ i sdelaju obiazatel’no! ;o)
That sandwich looks like heaven!!! Wow. I’d probably be eating it at 9 a.m. if I had that packed for lunch! I say you can never go wrong by adding peanut butter to brownies
I think I need to get that cookbook! Also grilled veggie + goat cheese sandwich is ALWAYS a winner in my book.
We just got our new patio furniture too!!
Brownies are my absolute favorite too! I have two recipes that are both completely ridiculous. No joke.
Peanut Butter Honey Brownies – http://www.pillsburybaking.com/Recipes/Details.aspx?recipeID=2301 (This calls for brownie mix, but you could make the brownie portion from scratch.)
Caramel Brownies – http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Caramel-Brownies/Detail.aspx (I use 2 cups chocolate chips! And only press 1/2 the batter into the pan for the first bake. I would recommend doing a test run before the big day to get the baking time just right. You want to take them out before they look done and let them set for a while before cutting – that’s how they’re perfectly gooey!)
I just submitted a comment, but it’s not showing up – maybe it got lost in cyberspace? Anywho, if this is a repeat, my apologies. I have to share these recipes!
Brownies are my absolute favorite too! I have two recipes that are both totally ridiculous. No joke.
Peanut Butter Honey Brownies – http://www.pillsburybaking.com/Recipes/Details.aspx?recipeID=2301 (The brownie portion calls for using a mix, but you could make it from scratch.)
Caramel Brownies – http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Caramel-Brownies-III/Detail.aspx (I always use 2 cups chocolate chips instead of 1 cup! You could throw some pecans in there too. I would do a test run of these before the big day to get the baking time just right. e.g. I bake the first 1/2 of the batter for a little less time than this recipe says. And you want to take them out before they look done and let them set for a while before cutting – that’s how you ensure perfect gooeyness!)
Check out http://www.howsweeteats.com/tag/brownies/
She makes tons of fun brownies that look delicious.
Goat cheese makes the world a better place, doesn’t it??
That lunch sandwich looks amazing!
those enchiladas, wow. totally want some for lunch
hmm, i don’t make brownies all that often, so not sure that i have a fav… sorry!
The enchiladas look amazing! I’m so hungry now!
To add to my previous comment, that recipe is the brownie recipe I use for everything. But my favorite way to make them is with a layer of safe-to-eat cookie dough on top. I’ve made them in standard brownie form and also as mini cupcakes.
That’s too funny about the power yoga instructor’s voice. I have the same problem with one of the yoga instructors at my gym – her voice tends to grate away at me!
As for the brownies – these two recipes receive rave reviews whenever I bake them:
1) “Baked” brownies…Give these a quick google search, you’ll see what I mean. People are obsessed with them.
http://www.thecookbookchronicles.com/blog/?p=3428
2) King Arthur Brownies – my personal favorite. Sooo fudgy and delicious:
http://www.kingarthurflour.com/recipes/fudge-brownies-recipe
Enjoy!
Hey girl! I saw this and thought of you, then I realized that someone else posted the SAME link! It def. is a good one though if you’re looking for a fudgy, almost half-baked version! Soooo rich. http://blog.kingarthurflour.com/2009/02/12/serious-brownie-points/
I keep trying to recreate sandwiches like that on my own, but they never are quite as good.
Those enchilladas look so good!! Wow! I am looking forward to going grocery shopping at a real store now that I am home
I love brownies and so I LOVED reading these comments…so many great recipes I’m going to have to go back and try.
Those enchiladas look amazing!!
And today something that I was looking forward to was a job interview I had for a position that I would love…keeping my fingers crossed that works out!
What tasty enchiladas!
Brownies: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/peanut-butter-cookie-dough-brownies-recipe/index.html
I’m biased of course, but they are getting good reviews too
I just got that cookbook and I am totally going to buy that recipe soon
i want this post, all of it, all the food. astonished!
If you’ve ever had the toffee blondies from starbucks, that’s what these are like. It might be interesting to do a blondie instead of a brownie.
http://foodmakesfunfuel.com/recipes/Starbucks-toffee-almond-blondies/
YUM those enchiladas look SO delicious!!!
stonewall kitchen has the most amazing condiments, sauces etc…I love that you used it!!
I love the Ina Garten Outrageous brownies. I use them as my base for almost any brownie type. I’ve made them in mini muffin pans, big muffin pans (filled with peanut butter and drizzled with chocolate), with toasted hazelnuts and a nutella ganache (with some frangelico added). Here is a link to the basic recipe that Brown Eyed Baker has posted!
If you look at my blog you’ll see the peanut butter ones!
http://www.browneyedbaker.com/2007/10/09/outrageous-indeed/
I actually have a pan currently cooling in my kitchen right now to sell at the farmers market this weekend
I am looking forward to sleeping! I didn’t sleep at all last night.
I love that type of cucumber salad. My grandmother’s family is from Eastern Europe, and I remember them making something similar.
I just bought Bran Buds last week. Love them with some soymilk. I think they have great flavor, and I like that they stay crunchy. I might try them in yogurt next.
I highly recommend Cook’s Illustrated’s brownie recipe. I’ve made a lot of brownies… and that’s definitely my new standby recipe. (Email me if you want it and don’t have access to it.)
)
I made enchiladas too!! So good
I’m not a huge brownie person, does it have to be a “brownie” or can it be a “bar”?
Salty sweet brownies – I had them at a place in Brooklyn where a friend worked and managed to get the recipe from her. There’s a caramel layer in the middle and a touch of sea salt. Amazing. I’ll unpack my recipe book tonight and send it your way.
. I think the spelling of your name had me make the assumption, so, apologies for confused geography!
Oh, and I realized that I identified you as Ukrainian in my last comment, when Moldova is obviously not in the Ukraine
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