Category Archives: dessert

May 13 2013

Mini Doughnut Muffins

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Saturday of Mother’s Day weekend is also the big plant sale for the local master gardeners group. Since we’ve moved here, I’ve been going and picking out plants to round out the year’s vegetable garden – and my Mother-In-Law comes too. She’s an avid gardener and helps us so much with the yard. I don’t know what it would look like without her!

The plant sale starts early, so it’s become a tradition to have brunch after the sale and before we dive into planting everything in the yard. This year, we made these mini doughnut muffins as part of the brunch spread and they were a bit hit. My husband and I happily polished them off the next morning.

These aren’t “healthy” by any stretch of the imagination, but since they’re not fried they’re a slightly-better-for-you splurge.

Mini Doughnut Muffins
(from The Sweet Life)
Make approx. 1 1/2 dozen

for the doughnuts:
1/2 c. sugar
1/4 c. butter, melted
3/4 t. ground nutmeg
1/2 c. milk
1 t. baking powder
1 c. all-purpose flour

for the topping:
1/4 c. butter, melted
1/2 c. sugar
1 t. ground cinnamon

Preheat your oven to 375F degrees and generously spray or grease 2 mini muffin tins.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the white sugar, melted butter and ground nutmeg. Stir in milk, baking powder and flour until just combined.

Divide mixture among mini muffin tins and bake for 10-15 minutes, until lightly browned on the top.

While they are baking, place melted butter in a small bowl. In another small bowl, whisk together the sugar and cinnamon.

When the muffins are done, let cool for a few minutes until cool enough to handle and then turn out on a plate. Dip each muffin in the melted butter and then roll in the cinnamon-sugar mixture.

 

Apr 17 2013

Mini Chocolate Thin Mint Cookie Pies

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It’s Girl Scout Cookie season. They’ve had booths set up at the grocery stores and the mall and I seem to buy a box every time I walk by. You have to stock up while you have the chance!

I made these for a causal dinner party because they seemed so seasonally appropriate. They’re super quick and easy to put together and are a great combination of chocolate and mint. If you like Thin Mints, you’ll love these.

Don’t have a box of Thin Mints handy? You can search for a Girl Scout Cookie sale in your area here.

Mini Chocolate Thin Mint Cookie Pies
(adapted from foodie crush)
Makes 12 mini pies

2 packages mini graham cracker pie crusts
1 (3.4 oz.) package chocolate instant pudding and pie filling
2 c. frozen whipped topping
18-20 Thin Mint cookies, about 1 1/2 sleeves or 1 1/4 cup, crumbled, plus more for topping

Prepare pudding according to package directions and set in the refrigerator for 5 minutes to set up.

Mix the prepared pudding and 1 1/2 cups whipped topping together. Fold in the crumbled cookies. Divide pudding mix between pie shells. Top with remaining whipped topping and addtional cookies.

Refrigerate for at least a half hour before serving.

Mar 15 2013

Macadamia Lemon Bars

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The latest recipe swap covered my favorite topic: dessert. I’ve never met a dessert I didn’t like.

I was really pleased about my assigned recipe from Christine’s Kitchen Chronicles. I’ve had lemon bars on my to-make list for quite some time, but they always get bumped in favor of something chocolately. This was the perfect opportunity to finally try them out!

These were just as good as I was imagining and I really loved the addition of the macadamia nuts. Another check on my cooking bucket list thanks to the recipe swaps!

 

Macadamia Lemon Bars
(from Christine’s Kitchen Chronicles)
Makes an 8×8 pan of bars

For the crust
1 c. all-purpose flour
1/4 c. powdered sugar
1/2 c. butter, melted
1/4 c. macadamia nuts, finely chopped

For the filling
1 c. sugar
2 T. all-purpose flour
1/2 t. baking powder
1/4 t. salt
2 eggs
3 T. lemon juice
2 t. lemon zest
2 t. macadamia nuts, chopped
Powdered sugar, for dusting

Preheat oven to 350F degrees.  Grease an 8-inch square baking dish and set aside.

In a large bowl, stir togetherthe flour, powdered sugar and melted butter until well combined .  Stir in the nuts.  Press the crust mixture into the bottom and 1/2″ up the sides of prepared baking dish.  Bake for 15-20 minutes, until lightly browned.

In another bowl, combine the sugar, flour, baking powder and salt. Beat in the eggs, lemon juice, and lemon zest until light and fluffy.  Pour the filling over hot crust and sprinkle with nuts.

Bake for 10-15 minutes or until lightly browned and the center is set.  Cool completely on a wire rack.

Dust with powdered sugar and cut into bars.  Chill until ready to serve.

You can see the rest of the yummy desserts made as part of the swap below. Thanks to Sarah at A Taste of Home Cooking for hosting!

 



Mar 11 2013

Make it Yourself Monday: Shamrock Shakes

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For me, Shamrock Shakes appearing at McDonald’s are a sign that spring is coming. By the time you hit St. Patrick’s Day, the weather around here is starting to get decent again. And by decent, I mean you probably won’t need the scarf, gloves, hat AND your car warmed up so you don’t freeze on the way to work. I’ve grabbed two so far this season and have sipped them happily dreaming of warmer weather.

Of course, Friday morning we woke up to some unexpected snow – total buzz kill. I decided another dose of the minty goodness was what I needed to shake the snow blues. Luckily, these are ridiculously easy to whip up yourself at home.

I used low-fat ice cream and low-fat milk to keep these slightly healthier and it didn’t feel like I was missing calories at all. I also opted for the more generic mint extract over peppermint extract, which a lot of the Shamrock Shake recipes call for. I think the flavor of the mint extract is closer to what you get at McDonald’s. Add on some whipped cream, a cherry and a green straw and you’ve got a perfectly festive treat.

 

Shamrock Shake
(adapted from Number 2 Pencil)
Makes 1 Shake

1 1/4 c. vanilla ice cream
1/4 t. vanilla extract
2-3 drops mint extract
1/4 c. milk (plus additional if needed to thin the shake)
1 T. sugar
2-3 drops green food coloring
Whipped cream and cherry, for garnish

In a blender, combine the ice cream, vanilla extract, mint extract, milk, sugar and green food coloring. Blend until smooth. If too thick, blend in a little more milk until the desired consistency is reached.

Top with whipped cream and a cherry.

Feb 25 2013

Buckeye Brownies

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My favorite part of award season is trying to guess the winners. Each year, I set up pick ‘ems for my friends and offer up baked goodies to the winners. These delicious little things are going in the mail today for Laura, our Grammy winner.

I just had to sample these before mailing them off and, my goodness, they’re delectable – a really dense, fudge-y brownie with a creamy, peanut butter element. I must find a reason to make these again soon!

 Buckeye Brownies
(from Cookies & Cups)
Makes 1 9″x13″ pan

1 box (18-19 oz) Brownie Mix
2 eggs
1/3 c. vegetable oil
3/4 c. coarsely chopped peanuts
1 (14 oz.) can sweetened condensed milk
1/2 c. peanut butter

Preheat the oven to 350F degrees. Lightly grease a 9″x13″ pan.

In a large bowl, mix together the brownie mix, eggs and oil until smooth. Stir in the chopped peanuts. Press half of the brownie mixture into the bottom of the prepared pan – set the remainder aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the sweetened condensed milk and peanut butter. Spread over the brownie mixture in the pan. Drop remaining brownie batter over the peanut butter mixture by spoonful and press down into the peanut butter mixture.

Bake for 25 minutes until the peanut butter mixture is just set. Let cool completely before cutting.

Feb 11 2013

Chocolate Snow Ice Cream

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We spent a good part of our weekend snowed-in in Connecticut. We had friends from Oregon and Texas staying with us last week and our plan was to meet other friends in CT for the weekend so they could transport the crowd up to Boston for their flights home. We raced the storm up Friday morning and then spent most of Friday and Saturday hunkered down at our hotel waiting for the roads to clear.

The Texans hadn’t ever seen so much snow so we gave them the full snowstorm experience – snowball fights, shoveling out cars and, of course, snow ice cream.

We bought some chocolate milk from the gas station next to our hotel (and begged a cup of sugar from the gas station owner) to make this variation of my snow ice cream recipe.  We made it in the hotel ice bucket and ate it with forks – when you’re snowed in you’ve got to work with what you’ve got!

The pictures are courtesy of my friends’ cell phones, so they’re not the best but this was a great variation on the classic!

Chocolate Snow Ice Cream

1/2 c. sugar
1 c. chocolate milk
Large bowl of snow

In a large bowl, mix together sugar and chocolate milk. Stir in enough snow to make an ice cream consistance. Enjoy immediately!

Linked up with Ingredient Spotlight: Chocolate at Finding Joy in My Kitchen.

Jan 28 2013

“Fried” Ice Cream

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The theme for our annual New Year’s Day party this year was Fiesta. We made Honey Lime Chicken Enchiladas and Refried Beans for lunch, and this treat for dessert. I completely forgot I’d taken pictures of it so I could share it here!

I made a ton of cakes and cookies for Christmas so I wanted something a little different – and not as heavy. Instead of actually being deep-fried, this ice cream is rolled in a seasoned cereal mixture to give it a crunch. I used low-fat ice cream to make it even more guilt-free – it was the perfect way to top off our meal.

“Fried” Ice Cream
(from Mr. Food)
Makes 8

1 quart vanilla ice cream
2 1/2 c. frosted corn flakes cereal, coarsely crushed
1 T. butter, melted
1 t. ground cinnamon
Honey and whipped cream, for topping, optional

Line a baking sheet with parchment. Scoop ice cream into eight even balls and place them on the baking sheet. Freeze for one hour.

Preheat the oven to 350F degrees. In a medium bowl, combine the crushed cereal, melted butter and cinnamon. Toss until cereal is covered evenly. Spread on a baking sheet and bake for 5 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool completely.

When the cereal mixture is cooled, roll ice cream bowls in the mixture to coat all sides and return to freezer for at least two hours.

Serve with a drizzle of honey or whipped cream (or both!).

Dec 21 2012

Peanut Butter Nutella Swirl Cookies – Cookies and Crafts for Sandy Hook

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While I’m sharing another cookie recipe today, I’m not thinking of Christmas as I write this post. I’m thinking of all of the people who lost their lives in the horrific shooting in Newtown, CT last Friday. Today, bloggers are coming together to honor the victims.

We’re also spreading the word about Newton Youth & Family Services, a non-profit mental health clinic that is providing emergency counciling to anyone in the Newton community that wants it. You can donate to them here.

These cookies are comfort food – soft and very peanut-buttery. The Nutella swirl gives them an extra nutty kick. They’re a perfect feel-good treat.

Peanut Butter Nutella Swirl Cookies
(from The Sisters Cafe)
Makes about 3 dozen

1 c. butter (2 sticks) room temperature
2/3 c. creamy peanut butter
1 c. sugar
1 c. brown sugar
2 eggs
2 t. vanilla
2 2/3 c. flour
2 t. baking soda
1 t. salt
Heaping 1/3 c. Nutella
 
In a large bowl, cream butter, peanut butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs and vanilla until well combined.
 
In another bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda and salt. Mix the dry ingredients into the butter mixture until just combined. Add Nutella in dollops over the top of the dough and swirl through the dough using a butter knife.  Chill the dough in fridge for 15 minutes to firm the Nutella.
 
Preheat oven to 350F degrees. Roll dough into 1 inch balls and place 2 inches apart on a cookie sheet. Bake 8-10 minutes, until slightly brown at edges.  Let cool a few minutes on cookie sheet before transferring to a cooling rack.

Dec 19 2012

Nutella-Stuffed Browned Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

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To celebrate the holidays, I participated in a cookie swap with some of my food blogger friends. I recieved an awesome batch of monster cookie bars from Heather and I sent this batch of cookies off to Christine.

Oh, how I wanted to keep these, though.

These are truely amazing cookies. With browned butter and three different kinds of chocolate chips, they’re like chocolate chip cookies taken to the next level. And then, you bite in and find the gooey, Nutella center. So, so awesome.

 

Nutella-Stuffed Browned Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
(from Ambitious Kitchen)
Makes about 2 dozen

2 1/4 c. all-purpose flour
1 1/4 t. baking soda
1/4 t. of salt
2 sticks (1 c.) unsalted butter
1 1/4 c. packed dark brown sugar
1/4 c. granulated sugar
1 large egg plus 1 egg yolk
1 1/2 t. vanilla extract
1 T. plain greek yogurt
3/4 c. semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/2 c. milk chocolate chips
1/2 c. dark chocolate chips
1 jar of Nutella, chilled in refrigerator

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda and salt. Set aside.

Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat. The butter will begin to foam. Make sure you whisk consistently during this process. After a couple of minutes, the butter will begin to brown on the bottom of the saucepan; continue to whisk and remove from heat as soon as the butter begins to brown and give off a nutty aroma. Immediately transfer the butter to a bowl to prevent burning. Set aside to cool for a few minutes.

Beat together the butter and sugars until fluffy. Beat in the egg, yolk, vanilla and yogurt until combined. Add the dry ingredients slowly and beat on low-speed until just combined. Fold in all of the chocolate chips.

Cover the dough and chill for at least 2 hours in the refrigerator.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Once dough is chilled measure about 1 1/2 tablespoons of dough and roll into a ball. Flatten the dough ball very thinly into the palm of your hand. Place 1 teaspoon of chilled Nutella in the middle and fold dough around it; gently roll into a ball — it doesn’t have to be perfectly rolled! Make sure that the nutella is not seeping out of the dough. Add more dough if necessary. Place dough balls on cookie sheet, 2 inches apart and flatten with your hand gently to flatten out the top slightly.

Bake the cookies 9-11 minutes or until the edges begin to turn golden brown. They will look a bit underdone in the middle, but will continue to cook once out of the oven. Cool the cookies on the sheets at least 2 minutes. Remove the cooled cookies from the baking sheets after a few minutes and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Repeat with remaining dough.

Dec 17 2012

Cowboy Cookies

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This week, I’ll be sharing a few cookie recipes. If you haven’t already finished up your holiday baking, these are all great candidates for your list!

I’m starting off with a cookie I didn’t make for the holidays, though. A week after Sandy and still without power, I put up a frustrated note on Facebook: “Taking bets: When will we get power back? Closest guess wins a batch of homemade cookies.”

My friends all responded with guesses along the lines of what the power companies were telling us – it’d be a few more days. My husband admonished them all: “Come on, I want optimism!!” To which one of our friends, Edgar, offered up a guess that the power would come on in the next 45 minutes.

Wouldn’t you know, exactly 45 minutes after Edgar’s comment, our lights popped back on. Color me impressed! These cookies were his delicious prize for guessing right.

Cowboy Cookies
(Laura Bush via Family Circle Magazine, as seen on Lemons and Lima Beans)
Makes about 2 dozen

1 c. flour
1 t. baking powder
1 t. baking soda
1 t. cinnamon
1/4 t. salt
1/2 c. butter, at room temperature
1/2 c. sugar
1/2 c. brown sugar
1 eggs
1 t. vanilla
1 c. semisweet chocolate chips
1 c. old-fashioned rolled oats
2/3 c. sweetened coconut flakes
2/3 c. chopped pecans
Preheat oven to 350F degrees.
In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Set aside.
In another bowl, beat the butter on medium speed until smooth. Add the sugar and brown sugar and beat for another 2 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Mix in the vanilla.
Stir in the flour mixture, blending until just combined. Add the chips, oats, coconut and pecans and stir until fully incorporated.
Drop by rounded tablespoon onto an ungreased baking sheet, making sure to allow plenty of room between cookies. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until the edges are set and golden brown. Allow the cookies to cool on the pan for 1-2 minutes before placing on a cooling rack.