A few days ago, I was invited to one of my best friend’s son’s birthday party. He was turning 3.
Prior to the event, however, I was having irrational anxiety about a 3 year old’s birthday.
I spent a good hour browsing the boy toy aisles in Target trying to find the perfect toy for a child I didn’t really know. Actually, I don’t really know any children and always make it painfully obvious when I unknowingly ‘insult’ the children and/or parent.
Example: a parent will say “Oh, Billy is starting to crawl now! He’s only 11 months old!” and I’m like “really? He’s crawling at 11 months?” and then the parent proceeds to give me the death glare like how dare you insult my crawling baby.
Or they’ll say, “Sasha is finally potty trained! It came two months after her third birthday!” and I sit there like “she was finally potty trained at three? Dude, isn’t she supposed to be like, writing novels and collecting paychecks at three?”
Just so you know, I know nooooothing about babies. When they’re supposed to crawl. When it’s prodigal of them to read. When the typical walking time frame is, etc. If I question your baby, it’s just because still pooping your pants at two seems too old, or walking at six months or whatever seems insane. I have no clue. I promise I am not insulting your child.
So you can imagine my fear as I shopped for a toy for a three-year old. What do three-year olds like? The last time I shopped for a little boy toy was when I was buying Hot Wheels and Thomas the Tank Engine stuff for my younger brother… about fifteen years ago. And even then, I was too stuck up in glittery Barbie-girl world to even notice what boys played with. GI Joes? Legos? Hell if I know, just pass me my Skipper doll, dammit.
Anyway, I asked approximately 14 strangers in the toy aisle what typical three-year olds liked, and all of them looked at me like I was a scary weirdo who drove a windowless minivan. Would NERF guns be too violent? Would puzzles be too advanced? Are standard Legos a death-sentence for a three year old? I DON’T KNOW MAN.
Eventually, I found a little handheld video game thingie based off of one of Disney’s latest movies and figured it was pretty safe for a three year old. No potential choking hazards, nothing rocket science-y, and most importantly, not a Barbie which I was pretty much 99% convinced I would buy him instead because I had just about given up on this boy toy thing. But as I walked around with it in my cart, I began to second guess my gift-buying abilities. I did what any sane person would do: text the mother of said child and unknowingly insult her.
“Hey…” I typed, “do you think a video game thing would be too advanced for him? I mean, it says 3 and up but I’m not sure. It has them do puzzles and reading. Can your kid read yet? I mean, not yet, but can he? I mean, I’m not judging him, I just wondered. Would he have the capacity to understand puzzles? Or technology? I didn’t mean that he’s not capable, I just don’t even know what a three year old can do. Wait, he can walk, right?”
Thankfully, we’re good enough friends that she didn’t think I was totally making her kid out to be some inept weirdo who sat on his hands all day. Aaaand he loved his present, which was more important. I only had to accost 27 people in Target regarding appropriate gift-giving for toddlers.
Allll this shopping & stuff makes me think of the holidays, holiday shopping and of course, holiday fooooood. I am a total fan of everything holiday related but holiday food is my favorite by far. Turkey and stuffing sandwiches loaded with cranberry, mashed potatoes smothered in rich brown gravy, green bean casserole topped with crispy onion strings, and of course — PIE! While pumpkin is traditional for Thanksgiving, I thought of taking this classic Thanksgiving table staple and twisting it up by stuffing it inside of one of my famous brownie bombs. The result of luscious, creamy pumpkin pie stuffed inside of a rich, fudgy brownie and coated in chocolate is simply heavenly — especially when topped with a flaky, buttery pie crust leave for embellishment.
These brownie bombs are sure to be a huge hit after the big feast — just make sure you save room for one or five 🙂
- 1 store-bought pumpkin pie (I used a slightly thawed one from the frozen section)
- 1 13x9" pan fudge brownies, baked and cooled
- 1 pkg white chocolate Candiquik
- Fall sprinkles (I used yellow & orange non-pareils)
- Prepared pie crust (refrigerated or homemade -- you only need about ½ of a sheet)
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Line a small baking sheet with foil and mist it lightly with cooking spray. On a floured work surface, cut out the pie crust using small cookie cutters into desired shapes. For this, I used a miniature leaf, but a small pumpkin would be cute, too! Space the cut-out pie crust evenly on the prepared baking sheet. Bake for approx. 10 minutes or until just lightly browned. Cool completely.
- Prepare another foil-lined baking sheet. Using a cookie dough scoop, scoop out Tablespoon-sized balls of the pumpkin pie -- crust and all, if you can. Place the balls on the baking sheet -- you should get around 10-15 or so. Discard or eat remaining pumpkin pie. Freeze the pie balls in the freezer for about 30 minutes or until firm.
- Meanwhile, cut the brownies into approx. 1" squares. Flatten each square in the heel of your hand and wrap it around each pie ball, covering the ball completely with brownie. If some of the pie peeks out, that's okay too. Return the brownie-covered balls to the freezer to set for another 10-15 mins.
- Prepare the Candiquik according to package directions until smooth & melted. Stir in the sprinkles if you'd like. Dip each brownie bomb into the chocolate, allowing excess to drip off. Return to the baking sheet and immediately top with a pie crust leave. Allow the chocolate to set before serving. Store refrigerated or frozen.
If you are looking to switch up this year’s Thanksgiving spread, these brownie bombs are the perfect alternative to classic pie. Instead of slaving over the perfect pie (just crimping the crust is enough to give me anxiety), get a hand from a store-bought pie and jazz it up with a layer of fudgy, rich milk chocolate brownies coated in smooth white chocolate. If you want to spice things up, consider adding a pinch of cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice to the white chocolate after melting to give it a nice, warm hint of flavor. Or if you’re short on time, save any remaining pie crust from the actual pumpkin pie and crumble it on top of the bombs for a rustic garnish — no baking necessary! These bombs are sure to please family & friends this holiday season!!!
Have a delicious day!!
xo, Hayley
Megan - The Emotional Baker says
I recently was shopping for my toddler cousins and had no idea what to get them. Sounds like you got a great gift though. AND these brownie bombs – amazing – I love all the elements. I’ll have to give them a try 🙂
Jennifer @ Not Your Momma's Cookie says
I have a kid and I have NO idea about milestones… I guess I should look that stuff up 😉 These brownie bombs look incredible!
Kayle (The Cooking Actress) says
you are queen of brownie bombs, you can friggin make anything into a brownie bomb! I love that about you!
and laugh ouuuut louuuuud! 😛 I cant imagine not knowing stuff about babies but I’m a freak. And 3 year old boys ARE kinda hard to shop for. Sounds like you did an awesome job though!
Emily @ Life on Food says
i had no idea about kids until my nephew was born a year ago. now i am just quiet until the mom and dad inform me. very educational i must say.
Pamela @ Brooklyn Farm Girl says
These bombs are da bomb (I always wanted to say that). They look delicious!
Red @ Adventures of a Hungry Redhead says
You VIXEN! I’m totally making these after Thanksgiving, you know, like wearing white shoes after Labor Day. I’m a rebel like that. You can relate 😉
Renee @ Tortillas and Honey says
These are some of the most beautiful and adorable desserts ever! Love pumpkin pie and brownies together (yum!!), so I know that I would love these!!
sarah @ Miss CandiQuik says
THIS is why I love you! Everything from the story to the dessert….
You’re the best – The End.
Aimee @ ShugarySweets says
You’re quite the funny one 🙂 And these bombs. You are the bomb queen. The queen of bombs. Hmmm, not sure which way sounds better????
大人気 コンフォートシューズ 直営 says
Great information. Lucky me I ran across your
website by chance (stumbleupon). I’ve saved as a favorite for later!
Paris-lux says
Looks really nice
Tara the Tearful Baker says
Listen here. I saw this recipe and it looked amazing. I thought by making it, I could turn my husband into a believer that chocolate and pumpkin really do go together. I gathered all the ingredients, baked the brownies, let them cool and cut them into squares, even measuring them to make sure they were the correct size. I scooped the pumpkin into exactly tablespoon sized balls and let them freeze for precisely 30 minutes. I attempted to flatten my first brownie. It was a disgusting mess and hardly flat enough to wrap around a ball. I exhaled and put on some soothing music and decided it was time to try some alternative methods. I got some parchment paper, a rolling pin, an icing smoother and some latex gloves. Things were about to get serious. I rolled a brownie square between some parchment, scraped the sad, flat mush and wrapped it around a pumpkin ball. I looked at your picture and I looked back at mine. I exhaled again, this time growling a bit. I kept this up until I became so frustrated that I wanted to rage quit and throw sheet pans and brownie covered latex gloves at my laundry room door. After I finished wrapping them all, I put them in the freezer for the precise amount of time prescribed and prayed that some magical freezer elves would make them perfectly round and beautiful. The timer went off. There were no magical elves. I hoped that perhaps the chocolate coating would make everything beautiful, but as I dipped and dipped it became apparent that lumpy, vaguely ball shaped were as good as I was going to get. I laugh at Pinterest fails because I know half of their problem is lack of proper equipment and substituting things that should not be substituted. I had all the appropriate accoutrements and more than a firm grasp of kitchen skill, both pastry and food wise. I used exactly the ingredients you specified except a different chocolate coating which was in this case an acceptable substitution. So this only leaves me with one conclusion – you are a wizard and possess a wand. Since I do not have a wand, I was doomed to fail from the start. Thinking about retrieving those abominations from my freezer seriously makes me want to cry because they are so deformed and hideous and nothing at all like your beautiful picture. I guess what I’m trying to say is, if those things aren’t the most delicious thing I ever put in my mouth…I shall be very cross with you.