Eat, Read, and Be Mommy

Years ago I started bringing cupcakes into my hubby’s work on his birthday.  I think he might have requested it initially–as in, “hey, some people do this, could we maybe?” in a very low-pressure kind of way–but I like to bake for people, and I was kind of excited at the chance to try some different recipes.  The only problem is–I hate making cupcakes.  HATE it.  My OCD makes trying to fill the cups equally kind of excruciating, frosting them is a royal pain, you waste some of the cake on the wrappers but have to use them to make them maneuverable, and oh, did I mention that they’re kind of evil to transport when you’re hauling kids with you as well?

Anyway.  I don’t know why it took me so long, but about three years ago it finally occurred to me to ask my hubby–does it have to be cupcakes? At the ‘what are you talking about’ look I clarified–could I bring in brownies or something instead?  He sure didn’t care, and it makes my life a heck of a lot easier, so now I bring birthday brownies into his work.  Sometimes I actually make it ON his birthday–that used to be the norm, in fact–but now that we have more kids doing more things, it tends to be a ‘pick a day around his birthday that works the best’ kind of thing.  And today, of course, was the day.  Last night (with a bit of help from him, I confess) I tried this recipe for Oreo Truffle Brownies, and after dropping my preschooler off at, you know, preschool, the boy and I went on to Daddy’s work with the whole panful.  (By the way, last night was sheer torture.  The bottom brownie layer smelled amazing coming out of the oven, all buttery chocolate-y goodness, and I couldn’t get away with stealing ANY, since I had to wait until it cooled and then spread the oreo truffle layer on top.  Although to be fair, my hubby did the spreading.)

From what he said and from what I observed, they were a success.  Really, they’d almost have to be–they tasted remarkably like a sort of oreo brownie fudge.  (One co-worker assumed that they had coffee in them, and all I can figure is that he’s really used to milk chocolate and the semi-sweet feel was confusing for him.)  You really want to cut them small–they’re just too rich for large pieces–but oh, they’re tasty.  And not that bad to make, really (especially if your significant other does the spreading!).  Doing it during the day would solve the “OH MY GOSH, it’s 8:30 and the house smells like homemade (from scratch!) brownies and I WANT SOME” problem, and the recipe’s pretty straightforward.  (As in, other than trying to wait patiently for the first layer to cool, my biggest problem was dealing with my teething son at Daddy’s work.  He was NOT his usual cheerful, genial self today.  (Bonus points if you get the movie reference.))

So there you have it.  Make some tonight!  Or rather, tomorrow.  You’ll be up all night waiting for the brownie layer to cool if you start now!