If you're looking at this picture for s'mores cake in a jar and thinking ZOMG! -- we totally feel you. (More than you can ever imagine.)
I first saw this picture while looking at Pinterest the other night, that magical place (as many of you already know) where gorgeous, to-die-for recipes are bounced around by the dozen, along with everything else that is beautiful and handmade by lovely, incredibly creative folks. There's so much goodness here, it's hard to focus -- and it's hard to repin everything all at once!
Regardless, this s'mores jar cakes recipe featured on How Sweet it is (by our new favorite foodie, Jessica) completely won us over. We have been thinking about them ALL week, and they've most definitely found a new home on our Christmas Eve menu. Thank you, Jessica. (THANK YOU!!)
So if you're looking for a quick and easy dessert idea for your upcoming holiday meal, be sure to keep this recipe in mind. It's quick and easy, and will surely earn you World's Best Mom honors with your little ones -- and with Dad. As Jessica puts it, "S’mores jar cakes have buttery graham crusts covered with fluffy double chocolate chip cake and pillowy marshmallow toppings that are so perfectly browned and bubbly you can taste the campfire and smell the midnight July breeze." And really, that sounds pretty darn amazing, doesn't it? Be sure to check out the rest of Jessica's gorgeous photography for these campfire-esque chocolate-y desserts, and browse through her other recipes while you're there -- you may have just found your new favorite sweets blog! (We certainly have.)
S'Mores Cake in a Jar
As seen on How Sweet It Is
Makes 4 16-oz. mason jar cakes
For the crust:
1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
1/2 stick butter
Pinch of salt
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Melt butter and mix in graham crumbs and salt. Mix until moistened. Spray 4 mason jars with non-stick spray and press graham crust into jars. I began by adding a tablespoon to each, and repeating until graham crumbs were gone. They don’t need to look perfect. I pressed the crumbs down firmly with the flat bottom of a clean screwdriver.
For the cake: (from peanut butter hot fudge cupcakes)
1 1/8 cups all purpose flour
1/4 cup dark cocoa powder
1 1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup + 1 Tbsp. heavy cream
1/2 cup butter, melted
2 Tbsp. sour cream
For the topping:
1 bag of large marshmallows
In a bowl, whisk egg and sugar until smooth and no lumps remain. Add milk, cream, butter and vanilla, and mix until combined. Stir in sour cream. Sift dry ingredients together and add to wet mixture. Mix until batter is smooth. Using a 1/4 cup measure, add batter to mason jars one scoop at a time. You only want to fill them up about half way, and the batter should work evenly for 4 jars. Again – don’t worry if it is perfect. Place mason jars in a baking dish and add about 1 1/2 cups of water to the bottom. Bake for 30 minutes, or until cake is set.
Remove cake from the oven and press large marshmallows down on top, being careful not to burn yourself. There is no set number of marshmallows to use, I pressed down as many as I could, about 4-5 each. Heat the broiler on your oven and watching carefully, brown marshmallows for about 1-2 minutes, or until golden brown. Do not take your eyes off them! Serve immediately.
Included notes and tips from Jessica:
The recipe looks really long, but it is actually really easy! When you put the marshmallows on top and broil, they may sink down below the edges of the chocolate cake. This is normal. The cake it still more than halfway to the top. These are pretty rich and sweet, and make a really great dessert for two people to share with two spoons… but can still be eaten by one. You can use other sizes of jars, just use your eye to decided how much batter to use, never going over half way. If you have too much batter, just make a few cupcakes.
