I admit it: I am a complete chocolate junkie! I love artisanal chocolate treats but when push comes to shove, and the chocolate “fever” strikes, I dive into whatever I can find- from cocoa to carefully curated drugstore.
Never would I have looked for chocolate in my deli, milk or butter section– yet there is a secret product for chocolate afficianados who crave something different and unique to drive their chocolate-craving tastebuds wild. Philadelphia Indulgence is a chocolate spread available in 3 amazing flavors: milk chocolate, dark chocolate and white chocolate!
Upon learning about this product, I caved in and bought the milk chocolate version of the Philadelphia Indulgence – because I knew it would have greater appeal to my family More than just spreading it on bread, cracker or eating it straight from the container with a spoon (guilty as charged), I started thinking of a variety of ways to use this product– and recipes that I could riff from to create something super-tasty for upcoming gatherings.
Initially while I was putting the various ingredients together, my husband got into the tub before I even got started. To keep him away from the “main ingredient”, I had a quick thought that was something I had done when I had gone to summer camp as a kid. I grabbed a ripe but firm banana- turning it horizontally to open up just one side of the peel and pulling it back. I split the banana down the middle with a knife and spread some of the Milk Chocolate Indulence down the middle in a reasonably thick layer. I didn’t want to skimp but it wasn’t oozing chocolate either. I handed the banana over to my husband with a spoon and told him to hold the banana horizontally and eat it like a sundae with a spoon. He was skeptical but one bite told me that I was correct that this was a product that one can use to create all kinds of dessert iterations. In a word: he loved it– and I did too when I was able to snag a bite. However he ate the darn thing before I had a chance to photograph it. (boo- hiss).
Here are some other ideas I came up with for the Philadelphia Indulgence that were winners!
#1 Peanut Butter & Milk Chocolate Indulgence Smoothie
Ingredients:
Peanut Butter– any texture you like. Personally I went with “super chunky”
Philadelphia Indulgence in Milk Chocolate
Plain yogurt
Ice Cubes– quantity based on how thick & icy you want this smoothie.
A blender
Preparation:
Set up your blender and open up an 8 oz container of plain yogurt and dump it into the blender container.
Take equal parts of peanut butter and your choice of flavor of Philadelphia Indulgence. (This works best with milk or dark chocolate Indulgence) usually about 2-3 tablespoons depending on the intensity of flavor you desire.
Add in ice and turn on the button. Depending on how cold and thick the ingredients are, you might need to add some milk. I added in about 1/8 cup of skim milk (Why skim? It’s what was in the refrigerator.)
You might find that the peanut butter sticks to the side of the blender. Turn off the blender and unplug it while you scrape down the sides of the container to get the peanut butter to blend properly.
What I wound up with was a really nice peanut butter meets chocolate smoothie with a protein boost from the yogurt to give it a bit more tang and off-set the sweetness while keeping the chocolate flavor intense.
#2) Mexican Coffee Indulgence Martini
Yup! You read this right– I created a cocktail. I had wanted to create a cocktail that one could create with pretty much any spirit and easily available ingredients.
Ingredients:
One martini glass
Coffee-flavored Liqueur (you could do a chocolate-flavored or orange-flavored liqueur too)
Silver or Anejo Tequila- for the sake of this recipe, I went with silver tequila.
(Other options include: a cocoa, orange or coffee-flavored vodka, cognac, or whiskey)
Brewed expresso (4 oz)
(Option: if you don’t have expresso, brew a double strong cup of coffee and allow it to cool.)
Philadelphia Indulgence in Milk Chocolate — softened to room temperature
Cocoa powder
(Make sure you get a high-end ground chocolate mix for this cocktail. I don’t mean the stuff your child drinks but you could it in a pinch but it won’t taste as good)
Chile powder (Yes, that’s right– chile powder!)
Preparation:
Rimming the glass:
On a paper towel or a paper plate, mix equal parts of ground chocolate/cocoa powder (about 1 tablesppon) with about 1/2 tablespoon (fast math: 1.5 teaspoons) chile powder until they are well-mixed. You will see the brown and red blend. Spread the mix out so that you have a layer of it the size of your martini glass.
(I went for the gusto and used a hatch chile which is very very spicy. Your ability to handle the heat of chile powder determines which chile powder you use. The one in your spice carousel is just fine.)
Take the martini glass, and spread a light layer of the Milk Chocolate Indulgence along the rim. You should have a bit of a layer that covers the rim of the glass on both sides. Once you have spread the rim of the entire martini glass, carefully turn it over and dip it into the chocolate/cocoa/chile powder mix so the chocolate rim has a light coating of the powdered spice mix.
Set the prepared glass aside.
Creating the drink:
Pour equal parts of tequila and coffee-flavored liqueur into the martini glass.
This could be approximately 1/2 to 1 shot glass of each– depending on your personal preferences as well as the size of your glass.
Pour the spirits into the glass carefully so that you don’t lose the dipped rim.
Add in the brewed expresso to just below chocolate rim and stir carefully with a swizzle stick or a chopstick.
Now you can sip away at this lovely concoction. It does have a bit of a bite, a jolt of caffeine and spirits and a serious dose of sweetness courtesy of the Indulgence spread!
3) Philadelphia Indulgence Modern S’mores!
I thought graham crackers were a great idea but I wanted to take it to the next level. I loved s’mores as a kid but I hated the wait and the messiness. So I came up with a fast– and extremely tasty– way of this childhood treat that everyone will love!
Open S’mores
Ingredients:
Cinnamon or Plain Graham Cracker Flats (I chose Cinnamon. I like the sparkle of the extra flavor)
Marshmallow Creme (Find jars of this in your baking section in the market. I will be on the shelves above the marshmallows)
Philadelphia Indulgence – Milk Chocolate
1 ripe but firm banana– cut into 1/4-1/2 inch slices
(The number of bananas you need are completely dependent on the number of S’mores you are going to make.)
Take 2 graham cracker flats and spread each one with a layer of marshmallow creme that’s about 1/4 inch thick.
Spread them again with a layer of the Milk Chocolate Indulgence so that some of the edges of the marshmallow peeks out and in other spots, the chocolate covers everything.
Top each graham cracker flat with banana slices and then carefully and lightly press down on the banana slices on one flat so they are pretty well “stuck” in the chocolate. Put that graham cracker banana side down on top of the other graham cracker so it looks like a real sandwich.
Now you are ready to eat!! Carefully eat these S’mores because the graham crackers will break. You will need napkins but the oohy-gooey goodness of the S’mores will have you consuming these pretty fast– and heading back for more. Kids will find them messy fun. Adults will love the easy way to make more of these treats.
Philadelphia Indulgence Recipe Trio!
PHILADELPHIA INDULGENCE: Real Chocolate blended with rich, creamy PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese Spread
“Disclosure: Compensation was provided by Kraft via Glam Media. The opinions expressed herein are those of the author and are not indicative of the opinions or positions of Kraft”
Stevie Wilson,
LA-Story.com
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