Day #17: Chocolate Fudge Muffins & CRAZY Love

I LOVE LOVE!!! Valentines Day is probably my most favorite holiday next to my birthday :-). I love buying Valentines Gifts for my family, friends, and especially my hubby and son. I also love baking special Valentine Treats that almost always include CHOCOLATE. This year, my hubby requested a Heath Bar Cheesecake and since I am so CRAZY in LOVE with him, I agreed. Making real, from-scratch, New York Style Cheesecakes is no easy feat and requires several hours, lots of expensive ingredients, and careful baking. But, my awesome hubby is SO worth it! In case you missed the post about how incredible he is, you can read it here: http://butterflykissesntastydishes.blogspot.com/2009/11/candy-bar-explosion-and-explosion-of.html

There is also a recipe for an INCREDIBLE cheesecake on that post in case you really want to impress your Valentine :-).

I had the privilege of attending an AMAZING Christian Women's Conference this weekend entitled BEAUTIFUL FEET, featuring Author, Angela Thomas, and Singer, Kim Hill. I will write more later about the amazing truths that God used to touch my heart, but there is one thing that I want to share with you today since we are already talking about LOVE.

Your Heavenly is CRAZY in LOVE with you!! His PERFECT LOVE is the Hero in your life that will drive out all the Bullies of Fear that may overwhelm you. He wants to Dance the Dance of Life with you, and He wants to be your GREATEST LOVE. He is the only one who can fill your Heart till it OVERFLOWS! He wants the keys to your heart. He sees you Differently, Pursues you Relentlessly, Loves you Deeply, and Promises you Eternity! You are Beautiful, and Nothing can seperate you from His Love! Happy Valentines Day, my Beautiful Friends!

Ephesians 3:19 says, "May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God."

In Honor of Valentines Day, I chose to make the Chocolate Fudge Muffin recipe from the 100 Muffins Cookbook. I made them in my heart-shaped muffin pan and also used heart cupcake liners for some of them. My Hubby, the chocolate expert, declared these "WONDERFUL!" Split one open, serve it warm, and top it with a scoop of ice cream, a drizzle of hot fudge, and a squirt of reddi-whip and you have yourself a very romantic and delectable Valentine Dessert.

Chocolate Fudge Muffins

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa
1 tbsp baking powder
1/8 tsp salt
Heaping ½ cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1 cup sour cream
2 large eggs
6 tbsp canola oil
3 tbsp light corn syrup

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Farenheit. Grease a 12 cup muffin pan or line with 12muffin pan liners. Sift together flour, baking powder, cocoa and salt in a large bowl. Stir in the brown sugar. Lightly beat the eggs in a large bowl, then beat in the sour cream, corn syrup, and oil. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour in the beaten liquid ingredients. Stir gently until just combined; do not overmix. Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin pan. Bake in the preheated oven for about 20 minutes, until well risen and firm to the touch. Let the muffins cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack and let cool completely.