the Nightmare Before Valentine's Day

I finally managed to finish crafting for one of my partners for the Tim Burton Nightmare Before Valentine's Day craft swap. Though I had millions of ideas buzzing around my brain for the swap I ended up running late with the actual crafting of it. This morning I invited my friends Emma and Alison over for coffee and cake and while they were here I finished making a Burton-esque pincushion for Alison who ended up being one of my two craft partners in the swap. So instead of me posting her things I made coffee and gave her a red glitter covered triple chocolate and espresso brownie.... I'm nice like that.

We geekily talked about books, iphone apps and crafts, while I finished sewing and gluing the pincushion in place. I made the pincushion from a little silver plated bowl (possibly a sugar bowl?) that I found at a little junk/antique shop in Cromford (Arkwright's Attic in the mill). When I saw the bowl with it's lovely tarnished silver I knew it would be right for Alison and would fit perfectly into any Burton world.... OK maybe not Mars Attacks or Batman Returns but certainly it wouldn't go amiss in Beetlejuice, Nightmare before Christmas, or Alice in Wonderland. I used a scrap of vintage doily and some black and white ticking that I thought would fit in with the worlds of Burton.

I also gave her a copy of the Meloncholy Death of Oyster Boy and Other Stories by Tim Burton and a small zombie doll with a loose eye as Alison loves books and zombies too. The Corpse Bride is a zombie right? I really had a ball crafting for the swap, when we weren't all under the weather with awful colds and luckily for me I still have one more thing to finish crafting for my second craft partner the lovely Jessica of Kids Napping? I'm Scrapping before I can blog that too.

triple chocolate and espresso brownies

(I should probably write up the recipe)

I best go do some crafting... or put the kettle on for another cup of coffee. It's Valentine's Day and we never do very much but we will watch some crappy horror flicks later.. I quite fancy a zombie film as nothing quite says love like zombies eating brains...right?

espresso brownies

espresso brownies (sorry for the bad pic the camera battery died)

Espresso Brownies

Ingredients:
2 cups light brown sugar
3/4 cup cocoa
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
¾ cup butter (softened)
1 shot espresso (or 3 tablespoons very strong coffee)
1 tablespoon ground espresso/coffee
4 large eggs
2 ½ bars dark chocolate chopped into small pieces.

Preheat oven
Grease a 9in square baking pan

Beat brown sugar, butter in a medium mixing bowl.

Add eggs, vanilla, espresso and salt. Beat until well blended.

Stir in espresso grounds, flour and baking powder, mixing until smooth.

Fold in the chocolate chunks.

Spread batter into the greased pan

Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 45minutes.


Once cooled lightly dust brownies with icing sugar, cut the brownies and serve with whipped cream, drizzled cream or a dollop of your favourite ice-cream. Best served with a cup of espresso based beverage, for that caffeine kick.

cook's notes: the brownies turned out perfect, they did taste of coffee once cooled, but when still warm they mostly tasted of all the chocolate I added to the mixture.

my thought process on making the brownies went something like this:

"hmm I think I will make some espresso brownies for Frizbe's birthday."
*googles espresso brownies*
*reads a dozen different espresso brownie recipes*
"Hmm ok then but I don't have espresso powder I have ground lavazza espresso, and I'm not using a brownie mix"
*sets out ingredients to make brownies*
*pulls tattered favourite brownie recipe out of file*
*ignores every googled recipe for espresso brownies, flicks espresso machine on an expiriments*
*pops brownies in the oven and eats brownie batter while pretending to do the dishes*
*ding brownies are done*