TWD - Two-fer!

I've been AWOL for a couple of weeks.  I've been a little under the weather and just can't seem to completely shake it.  An annoying, lingering cold.  And the weather here has been the same......cold that's been lingering for about four months and it's really getting annoying.  NOT why I live in the South.  

I made both of these desserts on time but haven't had the interest or the energy to post either one of them.  This week's selection was Dulce de Leche Duos chosen by Jodie of Beansy Loves Cake.  Simply amazing.  And I only had two bites.  Be warned....these are complete diet busters.  

As you can see from the picture, I opted for the "playing around" by dipping one half of the sandwich in bittersweet chocolate.  I thought it helped cut down on some the overwhelming sweetness of the dulce de leche.

Initially, I was really disappointed because I thought I wasn't going to be able to make these......no dulce de leche to be found in Birmingham.  So I checked the TWD website for substitutions and found out that it's not rocket science to make your own.  The bad news is......now I know how to make my own.  

Simply remove the labels from two cans (or however many you want to make.....it keeps for some time in the fridge) of sweetened condensed milk, set them in your slow cooker, fill cooker with water to cover cans by at least two inches, set on low and let cook for 8-10 hours (mine was in there for 11....shoot me, I slept in), shut off cooker and let the cans cool in the water for at least another hour.  Open them up and you have dulce de leche!!!  Which is basically thickened, caramelly, sweetened condensed milk.  See what I mean about diet buster!!  But OMG is this stuff delicious.  I can see hubs pouring this over ice cream, and well just about anything you can think of.

This got "the best thing you've ever brought me" award from Blake, my trainer and he get's a taste of every week's TWD (because I want it out of the house and he can afford to eat it!!)  Pretty high praise!

Last weeks choice was the Soft Chocolate and Raspberry Tart as picked by Rachelle of Mommy, I'm Hungry.  

Hubs liked this one better than I did.....he ate all but two slices (yes, one to Blake!).  I thought it was ok.  I'm not really a huge fan of fruit and chocolate.  Love fruit.  Love chocolate.  Not so much together.  This does make a really pretty presentation, so if you're looking for a dinner party impresser, this would be a great choice.

I'm now all caught up with my TWD posts, so hopefully I won't get kicked to the curb!

Make sure you check out the links above for the recipes for these two!