Brownie Mix Bliss: More Than 175 Very Chocolate Recipes for Brownies, Bars, Cookies and Other Decadent Desserts Made with Boxed Brownie Mix [Paperback]

Camilla Saulsbury (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1, 2005

In Cookie Dough Delights, Camilla V. Saulsbury worked magic with refrigerated cookie dough. With Brownie Mix Bliss, she turns her attention to the familiar box of brownie mix and the many possibilities contained therein.

Incredibly, all 175-plus recipes in Brownie Mix Bliss begin with a standard box of brownie mix. What's more, all the recipes have been streamlined for easy, everyday baking. The problem, if you can call it that, will be deciding which treat to make first:

Mocha Buttercream Brownies?

Or Snickers Supreme Brownies?

Or maybe Mint Julep Ganache Brownies?

And that's but the tip of the chocolate iceberg. While brownie mix can be used to create all manner of mouthwatering concoctions, it can also be transformed into countless other very easy, very chocolatey desserts ranging from sophisticated biscotti, souffle cakes, madeleines, and cheesecakes to nostalgic drop cookies, ice cream novelties, gooey layered bar cookies, and so much more.

In addition to the recipes, Saulsbury offers "Brownie Points," or tips for baking success. For the accomplished baker as well as the novice, Brownie Mix Bliss takes the chocolate dessert to a new level, of well, bliss!

PRAISE FOR BROWNIE MIX BLISS:

"The only hard task regarding this collection will be choosing which recipe to make first."
The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel

"...a springboard for better brownies...great way to introduce youngsters or teens to the joys of baking."
Dallas Morning News

"Making brownies is easy...To smother Mom with chocolate, you can make simple, yet over-the-top Chocolate-Chip Cookie Bull's-Eye Brownies."
St. Louis Post-Dispatch

"Camilla Saulsbury opens up a world of confectionary possibilities, giving chocolate lovers almost 200 reasons to indulge."
Baltimore Sun

"...her book appeals to the accomplished baker and the student who has never wielded a wooden spoon."
The Houston Chronicle

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Camilla V. Saulsbury is a food writer, food scholar, and recipe developer. She has won numerous national recipe contests, including the grand prize at the National Chicken Cooking Contest and the 2006 Build-a-Better-Burger recipe contest. Her recipes have appeared in Southern Living, Better Homes and Gardens, Vegetarian Times, Cooking Light, Sunset, and other cooking magazines. She lives in Texas.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

From the chapter on bars:

ULTIMATE FRESH RASPBERRY CHEESECAKE BARS

1 19.5- to 19.8-ounce package brownie mix 1/2 cup (1stick) unsalted butter, melted 4 large eggs 2 8-ounce packages cream cheese, softened 1/3 cup sugar 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour 2 cups fresh raspberries or frozen (unthawed) unsweetened raspberries

Optional: 1-2 tablespoons powdered sugar Preheat oven to 350° for metal or glass pan (or 325° for dark-coated metal pan). Position a rack in the lower third of the oven. Spray the bottom only of a 13x9-inch baking pan with nonstick cooking spray (or foil-line pan).

In a medium mixing bowl mix the brownie mix, melted butter and 2 eggs with wooden spoon until just blended and all dry ingredients are moistened. Spread batter into prepared pan.

Bake 18 minutes. Remove from oven (keep oven on).

While brownie base bakes, in a medium mixing bowl beat cream cheese and sugar with an electric mixer set on medium until light and fluffy. Add remaining 2 eggs, vanilla, and flour; beat until smooth, scraping down sides with rubber spatula. Spread cream cheese mixture evenly over brownie layer; distribute raspberries evenly over cream cheese layer.

Bake bars in middle of oven for 22-25 minutes, or until topping is just barely set when the pan is jiggled (do not overbake). Transfer to wire rack; cool completely. Chill in refrigerator at least 3 hours or until firm. Cut into bars; sprinkle with powdered sugar, if desired. Makes 24 large or 36 small bars.

Product Details

• Paperback: 280 pages
• Publisher: Cumberland House (May 1, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1581824440
• ISBN-13: 978-1581824445
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 7.1 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #376,648 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Camilla Saulsbury is a freelance food writer, recipe developer and cooking instructor. Her culinary focus is translating food and flavor trends into fresh, innovative, and delicious recipes for the home kitchen.

Camilla has been involved in the world of food for more than 16 years, including catering specialty desserts in the San Francisco Bay Area, writing cookbooks and freelance food articles, and developing recipes for national food companies. Further, she has won several of the country's top cooking competitions, including the $100,000 National Chicken Cook-Off, the $50,000 Build a Better Burger Contest, and the Food Network's $25,000 Ultimate Recipe Showdown (Cookies Episode).

Camilla's interest in food is also academic. She holds a Ph.D. in sociology from Indiana University with a specialization in food studies, and her doctoral dissertation was a multi-faceted study of the contemporary meanings of home cooking in American culture. Following completion of her Ph.D., Camilla made food writing, food research, and recipe development her primary occupations.

Camilla is the author of ten cookbooks, published by Sourcebooks and Turner Publishing. She is the brand ambassador for Pepperidge Farm® Puff Pastry and has served as a spokesperson and recipe developer for Pillsbury® Brownie Mixes and Cake Mixes. She is also the featured cooking expert for the online magazine GALTime.


Camilla has made multiple appearances on the Food Network, has been featured in the New York Times, made appearances on Today, Good Morning America-Health, BetterTV and QVC, and is a member of the International Association of Culinary Professionals (IACP). Her work has appeared in such magazines as Southern Living, Better Homes and Gardens, Cooking Light, Woman's Day, Woman's World, Cosmo Girl, Quick & Simple, Country Woman, Sunset, Cook's Country, and Vegetarian Times.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

49 of 49 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Feeding Frenzy, August 1, 2005

By 

Elizabeth Wright "SunnyDay" (Minneapolis) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Brownie Mix Bliss: More Than 175 Very Chocolate Recipes for Brownies, Bars, Cookies and Other Decadent Desserts Made with Boxed Brownie Mix (Paperback)

I made my first recipe from this drooly good book this weekend for my husband coming home from the hospital. He ADORES caramel. I accomplished the Turtle Brownies, using a Ghirardelli mix (this mix was recommended by Cook's Illustrated - vs - homemade brownie) it has chips in it already, so I reduced the chips called for in the recipe by just a little. Very easy - DON'T FORGET TO UNWRAP THE CARAMELS (the recipe calls for 16 unwrapped caramels - you have to assume to unwrap them before melting - duh)I also just melted them slowly in the wave verses the stove top - I'm a horrible cheat)!! oooey-gooey, must have verry good vanilla ice cream along side. Can't wait to try more. I've got the book pretty well tabbed up for future excursions! I had to bring the bulk of the treats to work today so we don't get chocolate sicked at home. You'd a thought an antelope had fallen into a piranna pond the feeding frenzy that insued. Make sure if you take these into a crowd - drop the plate quick and stand back!!:-) kindest regards...

39 of 39 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars yum!, October 27, 2005

By 

C. McGowan (San Jose, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Brownie Mix Bliss: More Than 175 Very Chocolate Recipes for Brownies, Bars, Cookies and Other Decadent Desserts Made with Boxed Brownie Mix (Paperback)

Worth buying for the carmelicious turtle brownies and chocolate dulce de leche bars alone. Made both for a company picnic--they were 2 of about 20 desserts and they disappeared in about five minutes. The recipes are easy to follow and they've all turned out great thus far (made one of the biscotti recipes, too. I had never made biscotti before but these were great). There are some very yummy-sounding treats in here. Buy this if you love chocolate.

45 of 46 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Bliss, indeed!, June 4, 2005

By 

Malina Markowski (San Antonio, TX) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Brownie Mix Bliss: More Than 175 Very Chocolate Recipes for Brownies, Bars, Cookies and Other Decadent Desserts Made with Boxed Brownie Mix (Paperback)

Felt I had to say something about this book--namely, that it is out of this world. Admittedly, I am a chocolate freak, so I knew it would be hard for this book to go wrong for me. But I was very pleasantly surprised by the range of recipes here. I bought this mostly for the brownies and my results have been fantastic. The sour cream brownies are the best brownies I have ever tasted: easy, rich and moist. Other brownie must-bakes are the cookies & cream brownies, black & tan brownies and strawberries & cream brownies. Unbelievably good and easy enough for a novice. Have also made three recipes from other chapters. The author claims the chocolate biscotti made with brownie mix are the best so how could I resist (even though, I have to admit, I was skeptical). Oh...my...goodness!!! They are the best chocolate biscotti--dense and crisp, dunkable, and they kept very well for 2 weeks. Made them again for a chocolate potluck dessert party, dipping them in white and dark chocolate. People went berserk, they were the hit of the party. Made the chocolate madeleines 2 weeks ago--yummy! I froze most of them and take one or two (ok, three or four!!!) out at a time and they hold up extremely well. Just defrost and dust with powdered sugar. And last but certainly not least, the brownie tartlets. I had a recipe for these years ago and lost it. These are very similar and are heaven-sent if you do a lot of bake sale, church baking, and/or bridal/baby showers. You make little brownie tart "shells" in a mini muffin pan, cool, then fill with a white chocolate filling. Top with a berry or a chocolate kiss, whatever. People will think you are a culinary star but they are so easy (for a recent baby shower I made the shells a week ahead and froze them, then defrosted and filled the day of). Love this book!