Tasty Tuesday: Brownie Pops

Valentine's Day is fast approaching. There are so many Valentinesy recipes I'd love to make, but there just isn't enough time to make them all - nor enough people to help us eat them all! Michaels had a fantastic coupon ($5 off $5 purchase!) this past weekend and I was able to pick up a few things for free! I grabbed a bag of red candy melts, knowing they would come in handy this time of year. Also, I've had a bag of sucker sticks lurking in the cupboard for quite a while, begging to be put to good use. Throw in a batch of brownies and some sprinkles, and you got yourself a yummy Valentine - or anytime - treat. 

Start by making a batch of brownies. Line your pan with aluminum foil to make it easy to remove the brownies after they're baked.

 Once the brownies are cool, cut off the yummy crusty edges.

And of course, eat them! I absolutely love the end pieces of brownies. The chewiness of the edges, the mushiness of the middle, the richness of the chocolate . . . mmmm! You know, we bake a lot of different desserts and such around here, but the simple brownie will always remain at the top of my favorites list.

Once you've finished indulging in the discarded edges, put the rest of the brownies in a bowl and mash them into crumbs.

 You can tell how much Alyssa loved this part.

 Of course, little Zachy had to join in the fun.

 But I'm pretty sure it was just a ploy to eat more brownies.

We used our cookie scoop to measure approximately 2 tablespoons of brownie crumbs and rolled it into balls. 

If your brownies won't hold together on their own, you can add in 1/4-1/2 cup frosting to help them adhere. Ours were pretty fudgy and mushed together fine by themselves.

Push a sucker stick, or even a popsicle stick, deep into the brownie balls. Place the balls in the freezer for at least 30 minutes or the refrigerator for 2 hours to harden. 

 Dip a ball into melted chocolate, making sure to coat it all.

Allow the excess chocolate to drip off. Tapping the stick gently on the side of the bowl helps to speed the process.

 Hurry to add your sprinkles before the chocolate hardens.

 Repeat.

And repeat.

If your balls are out of the freezer too long before you get a chance to coat them, they will fall off the stick in a mushy mass into the melted chocolate. Fish it out, plop the stick back in, and pop it into the freezer to harden up again.

Then, do the respectable thing and eat it. You certainly wouldn't want to serve such a hideous pop to company. It's best to just discard the evidence before anyone can see it.

I had been planning to jam the sticks into styrofoam or floral foam to keep them upright while the chocolate hardened, but I couldn't find any in the house. My sweet hubby offered to make me a holder for them and returned a few minutes later with this wooden stand. I sure do love that man.

Now who wouldn't want to receive one of these lovely brownie pops for Valentine's Day??? They're small and cute and very festive! And best of all . . . 

 . . . there's a fudgy brownie inside!!!

Make a batch today and surprise the ones you love!



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