Failed Brownie Mess to Amazing Brownie Dump Cake ... A Quick Save!

With our family friends coming over for dinner, I wanted to do something sweet to finish off our fun night. My thought, petite-bite-sized brownies!  Sounded basic with a little classy upgrade sure to please all ten of us!

Due to the many dinner preparations I was trying to cram into the morning, I chose to cheat a bit by using a gluten-free box brownie mix. This was not my usual "go-to" quick baking brand, as Native Sun was out of it (I usually use Bob's Red Mill) and let's just say I will not go this route again!

After 10 minutes of baking these sure to be cute bundles of chocolate bliss, it was apparent that something had gone terribly wrong. Yes, a big FAIL in the Godfrey kitchen. I contemplated throwing them out, but the ingredients in those now crispy, misshaped-square brick bundles are way too expensive to just toss in the garbage. I considered serving them as is with a loving apology, but I quickly remembered I did that with the corn bread I served them last time they joined us for dinner...

Then the flash of memory ... I remembered seeing that So Delicious Dairy Free had a new Coolwhip-like product that was gluten and dairy free! YES! This mess could be salvaged!

In our previous before Allergies and Autism existence, I used to make a brownie-pudding dump cake for big family dinner parties.  I sadly got rid of my glass trifle about 8 years ago thinking I would never have use for it again. But the day has come when we are fitting in a little more with the food world around us. No longer are we on an island, alone. Products are finally catching up with our needs! How freeing!!! How awesome!!! (How expensive!!!!)

So, I squeezed in a trip to Target to buy a bowl that would work for the now amazing dessert I was planning to create!

So here's how I turned this failed bite-sized brownie mess into a yummy Gluten-free, dairy-free, soy-free almost all organic brownie dump cake:

Step 1:  Completely screw up baking a batch of gluten-free brownies! (Or better yet, successfully bake a batch of brownies according to the directions on the box rather than trying to kick it up a notch! - or use the Chocolate Cake recipe in The Air Diet cookbook www.theairdiet.com/store )

Step 2:  Break the baked brownies into small chunks. (Remove any too burnt to eat pieces!)

Step 3:  Place half of the brownies chunks into the bottom of a trifle or trifle-like bowl.

Step 4:  Cover the brownie chunks with a layer of GFCFSF Almond chocolate pudding. (There is probably no doubt a less expensive way to do this, but due to my desperation and lack of time, I used the small individual sized almond puddings by ZEN.)

Step 5:  Then the magical ingredient ... layer the pudding with So Delicious Dairy Free Cocowhipped topping. (Smile because it is at this point at which things go from failed mess to amazing!)

Step 6:  Decorate and enhance the whipped topping with sliced strawberries or raspberries along with some Enjoy Life Allergy Free Chocolate Chips. (You could really layer any fruit or candy you want here to add a little something-something to the dessert.)

Step 7:  Repeat steps 3 - 6. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate. Use a spoon to scoop out the "Brownie Dump Cake" into a shallow bowl. Now, enjoy the delight you just gave your guests with your scrumptious dessert!  (And of course grab a bowlful for yourself!)

Disclaimer

Share the Love!

Holidays, as awesome as they are, can be a stressor for those of us that have loved ones with food sensitivities/allergies; especially the holidays that really revolve around food and candy (hmmmmm....I think that is like ALL of them!) Even if you are not trying to avoid food irritants, all parents can relate to the effect that too much sugar and dyes can have on the kiddos. And if your family is like mine, couple all that with autism, ADHD... there is a reason you'll be toasting with that bottle of wine tonight!

So should you just avoid this LOVELY day altogether. NO way! You can still share in the sweet celebration, share your love, avoid food intolerances and GMOs, and maintain the sanity in your household.

This was my quick solution for this day of LOVE!

So here's your easy steps to these divine chocolate hearts...

I said this was quick, right? So, not totally from scratch but totally in line with our food allergy profile. No Gluten, no Casein, no GMOs, no dyes... you get the idea.

I started out with a bag of Bob Red Mill's gluten free brownie mix. The directions are straight forward, but I used Earth Balance dairy & soy free butter instead of margarine, and a DUCK EGG to replace the chicken egg. There is an egg free suggestion on the bag that you can use if all eggs are not an option. For the chocolate chips, I used a new favorite: Equal Exchange Chocolate Chips (they are sooooooooooooooo good ... too good!) I did not measure, just threw in about 1/3 of the bag. The other thing I did differently was use a fresh vanilla bean instead of the vanilla extract .. you've got to try it!  (If you are not sure how to extract the beans, check out the demonstration in The Air Diet cookbook.)

I mixed it all together as suggested and baked it according to the directions. (If you love chocolate, as we do, or just want that added antioxidant, mood enhancing blissfulness that cocao provides ... sprinkle the top of the brownies with a few more chocolate chips, YUM!)

After a few hours of cooling, the fun begins! Grab your kiddos and a couple heart shaped cookie cutters, and start sharing the joy of Valentine's day ... fun family time, love, and CHOCOLATE!

Had I not been trying to be super quick, I think outlining these chocolate heart brownies with some vanilla icing would have been a fabulous touch.

I hope you enjoy these as much a we did. (Notice I said...we did. They didn't stick around too long!)

Happy Valentine's Day!