Easy, breezy dessert

I love dessert. I love it after a meal, I love it for breakfast, I love it as a midnight snack, and I admit, sometimes it even comes in handy as stress therapy (not that I've ever done that, ha ha!!). In my opinion there really is never a bad time for dessert. But I also love making it. The smell of baked goods is just so fantastic! It has a way of making its way into every nook and cranny of a house. It’s wonderful! It makes a house smell so homely, so welcoming. But sometimes I just don’t have the time or energy to bake from scratch. That however, doesn’t mean I want to sacrifice the taste of homemade dessert. Here’s a recipe for a quick dessert and you can take all the credit for it! In fact, I made it tonight and it was a hit. Make brownies out of a box and top it with this homemade frosting that I like to call: Mascarpone, Cream Cheese Decadence. And here’s the recipe:

• ½ pound mascarpone cheese
• ½ pound cream cheese at room temperature
• 3 sticks unsalted butter at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon pure almond extract
• 1 ¼ pounds confectioners' sugar

Mix all ingredients together with a hand-mixer until everything is well incorporated. I recommend that the butter and cream cheese is room temperature, otherwise you will have a hard time mixing it. The mascarpone is generally softer and doesn’t have to be warmed to room temperature. I love the flavor of mascarpone. Mascarpone is an Italian cream cheese and you can generally find it in the specialty cheese aisle in your grocery store. If you can’t find it, feel free to substitute it with regular cream cheese. NONE OF THAT LOW FAT CREAM CHEESE STUFF! Yuck!!! Use the real stuff with all the fat! You only live once, enjoy it :)!! Also if you bake the brownies in cupcake molds it adds a cute little touch. It's a great recipe if you are cooking for your date for the first time and looking to impress!

What’s so great about this frosting is that you can use it for multiple desserts. It’s also great on cupcakes, carrot cake, coconut cake, red velvet cake, or serve it in a bowl to dip fruit in! You can really put it on anything your little heart desires. The sky is the limit!

Happy eating!!

J

P.S.: I misplaced my camera cable so pictures are to follow soon.