The Giveaway is closed.

Congratulations to Renee G. and Cindy D.! You are the winners of the McCormick gift pack. I will be contacting you both by email shortly.

It’s the small things…

Both given and received that make life much sweeter. That make life bearable during choppy times and even more glorious during the best of times.

Small things like hugs on the way out the door to school. A shoulder massage from my hubby as I work at the computer, or a twenty shoved in the hand of my teenage son as he picks up his keys.

Maybe it’s being poked by a ridiculously toddler like Golden Retriever while you are trying to read…

Or a Mai Tai AND a Chi Chi shared with friends at a cheesy and very kitchy local hang out.

If you ask my daughter though, it’s a batch of favorite mint chocolate brownies which are my way of saying, “Yes, three tests on the same day is kinda rough, but at least you can nibble on this sweet treat while you study. And lick the beater if you like…”.

These minty, rich, wicked little brownies are my daughter’s very favorite brownie. And around here, where baking is not just a hobby, but a sport and a way of life, that’s no small thing. 😉  Of course, I top them with the darkest chocolate for that added yum factor. They are fantastically minty and just a hint green courtesy of some fun products I received from McCormick. They have generously offered up a sweet giveaway to help you celebrate St. Patrick’s Day and bake up a storm.

This Giveaway will end on Monday, March 5th at 8:00pm PST (U.S. entries only).  To earn entries comment on any or all of the following: 1)Go to McCormick’s St. Paddy’s Day recipes and let me know which you want to make in a comment here. 2) Subscribe to Sweet and Crumby (in side bar) 3) Like McCormick on FB 4)Become a follower of Sweet and Crumby on Twitter 5)Become a follower of S&C on Pinterest 6)Tweet the giveaway! 7)Share this on FB.

Wowza! That’s certainly a lot of ways to enter and a whole heck of a lot of social media…just make sure to comment separately and let me know each thing you did for an added entry. Two winners will be chosen at random from my comments section.

Zoie’s Favorite Mint Chocolate Brownies

Brownie Layer
Taken from Family Fun Magazine’s site
Makes 12-16 brownies depending on size
1/2 c. unsalted butter, cut into fourths
4 0z best quality unsweetened chocolate
1 1/2 c. granulated sugar
3 eggs
1 1/2 t. McCormick’s Pure Vanilla Extract
1 c. all purpose flour (loosely scooped, not packed)
1/2 t. salt

Mint Frosting – (Geni’s own recipe)
3/4 c. unsalted butter softened
4 T. cream cheese (room temp)
4 c. powdered sugar
1 t. McCormick’s Peppermint extract
4 drops McCormick Green (or 1/4 t.)

Chocolate Topping
3/4 c. Chocolate chips

To Make the Brownies: Preheat your oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a 8×8 SQUARE baking pan with two sheets of foil (if rectangle, the center brownies will ALWAYS be softer). One layer going left to right, and one layer going top to bottom. Smooth them out as best you can. This is the best way ever to get brownies out of a pan nice and neatly. Grease the bottom and sides of the foil lined pan with butter.

In a microwave safe bowl, melt the chocolate for 30 seconds, then add the butter and melt for 1 minute. Stir. Melt another 30-60 seconds depending on the consistency. You want it completely melted by the end but don’t scald it.

Beat sugar and eggs together with a wire whisk  in a large mixing bowl. Add just a couple large spoonfuls of the chocolate and butter mixture. Stir with a rubber scraper right away. You don’t want to curdle your eggs. Pour in a little more of the chocolate and stir. Repeat until chocolate and egg mixture are well incorporated.

Add the flour and sprinkle salt over the flour (dispersing it fairly evenly over the flour). Using the rubber scraper, stir together until combined. Don’t over mix. Pour batter into lined pan. Bake for about 25 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. I usually just touch it and if it’s slightly firm to the touch (not squishy), but not hard, then it’s done. But that’s me. I like to keep things simple.

Cool for 1 hour before frosting! Very important if you don’t want your frosting slip sliding away (now the song is stuck in your head, huh?!) 🙂

To make the frosting: In the bowl of a stand mixer, fitted with a paddle attachment, beat together butter and cream cheese. Add sifted powdered sugar if you want a smooth frosting. I usually don’t do this. I am a realist. Beat again. Add the peppermint and green and beat until smooth and creamy. Frost your brownie, trying to leave a nice smooth top layer. Refrigerate for at least an hour (two hours is ideal).

For the Chocolate topping: Melt chocolate chips in a microwave safe bowl for a minute and then 30 second and another 30 seconds if needed until smooth. Pour over the green frosting and using a spatula, smooth out the top. Refrigerate again for about an hour. When you are ready to cut them, use the foil to lift the whole thing out of the pan. Then peel off the foil and cut the brownies.

If you want smooth cuts, you must freeze them for about an hour instead. If you don’t give a rat’s behind about terribly smooth cuts, then just refrigerate and cut. Enjoy! These are truly wicked.