Ghirardelli Chocolate Peanut Butter Bread

UPS surprised me with a double delivery, chocolate and coffee on the same day, woo hoo! Oh my gosh, be still my heart, the first box filled with Ghirardelli chocolates and dark chocolates are my all time favorite. The depth of my chocolate obsession prevailed, couldn't wait till later to sample this chocolate.

Removing the large bars first, I noticed they felt a bit soft. Overcome by that chocolate obsession, regardless of the “feel” I was determined to sample the New Sea Salt Soiree flavor straight away. I attempted to unwrap a single serving. Guess I shouldn’t have ignored that first touch because the single servings were liquefied!

I decided to pop the bars into the fridge while allowing the individual pieces to reach room temperature. Refrigeration proved ineffective and quite frankly, damaging. The chocolate bars were coated with a white bubbly film. This melting and cooling process severely altered the taste. I purchase Ghirardelli dark chocolate bars frequently and can tell you for sure, straight from the package these tasted rather flat. I thought to myself, "Oh my this review will be severely skewed" followed by a big sigh.

The Sea Salt Soiree squares, while uneven and crumbly in the corners, were edible and quite delicious. The sea salt granules along with the almond bits present the palate with a nice contrast to both the sweetness and smooth texture of the chocolate. Dark, rich, and yummy!

Depressed by the UPS heat damage, I checked out these Ghirardelli Tastemaker Reviews, hoping to gain some insight.

1. Avocado Muffins with Ghirardelli Intense Dark Chocolate
2. Ghirardelli Flourless Dark Chocolate Torte
3. Ghirardelli Intense Dark chocolate pairings
4. Ghiradelli Chocolate Pavlova

Not ever wasting food much less chocolate, this was the inspiration I so needed. I melted and drizzled, chopped and baked with the large bars. The Twilight Delight Bar, which contained 72% cacao, was drizzled atop a square of flat apple cake. Not only did the Ghirardelli drizzle add some chocolate flavor, it improved the overall presentation too, don't you think?

The final baking experiment was to adapt this peanut butter bread recipe I’ve been wanting to try this recipe for a long time now.  “You got Ghirardelli in my peanut butter!” came to mind. My thought was not only funny but also the perfect addition to this rich peanut butter bread.

Cinnamon Spice & Everything Nice

Peanut Butter Bread
(adapted from Tate's Bake Shop)

2 cups all purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
¼ cup salted butter, room temperature
½ cup sugar
¼ cup packed brown sugar

1 Midnight Reverie Intense Dark Chocolate Bar
1 cup creamy peanut butter
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup milk

1. Preheat oven to 350° F. Grease a 9 x 5 x 3-inch loaf pan and set it aside.

2. In a small bowl whisk flour, baking powder, and salt together. (Pulse a 3 oz. Ghirardelli Intense Dark Midnight Reverie chocolate bar until ground, set aside.)

3. In a separate large mixing bowl beat butter and sugars until combined. Mix in peanut butter. Mix in egg and vanilla, scraping down sides of bowl. Add flour mixture and beat on low until combined; the batter will be very thick and crumbly. Pour in milk and beat on low until batter is smooth. (Stir in the ground chocolate)

 

4. Add batter to loaf pan and evenly spread it out. Bake for 50 minutes or until the center springs back when pressed with a fingertip. Cool in pan on wire rack 15 minutes, remove from pan, and cool completely.

Thanks to Foodbuzz Tastemaker program and Ghirardelli for supplying the chocolates. Boooo Hisssss to UPS for the slow and dreadful delivery service!

Are you hungry? ♥