Category: Dessert

Recipes for desserts.

Categories
Dessert

Melt their heart with ice cream sandwiches

Homemade ice cream sandwiches have simple ingredients, including a cake mix, even if they're a bit tricky to create.
Homemade ice cream sandwiches have simple ingredients, including a cake mix, even if they’re a bit tricky to create.

With Joey out of the house a few evenings ago, I decided it was time to clean another random ingredient out of the pantry and settled on a red velvet cake mix that I don’t even remember purchasing.

With Valentine’s Day looming, I thought it was perfect.

When I finally got through all my baking, though, it looked more like I’d performed open heart surgery on my countertops rather than making something from the heart.

Love is messy, it seems, but it’s also delicious.

I will also warn you that this recipe is a bit tricky, as it requires some painstaking spreading of thick cake batter into an evenly thin layer, but even if you’re like me and have less than beautiful results, you can still make something that tastes great, and if your sweetie is a fan of cake and ice cream, they won’t mind, either.

The recipe I decided to try is ice cream sandwiches made with a cake mix. While the original asks for red velvet and vanilla ice cream, you can use whatever combination of cake and ice cream sounds good to you. I kept thinking a spice cake with butter pecan ice cream or a dark chocolate one with some mint chocolate chip would be amazing.

This comes from the website “Delish” and is by Lauren Miyashiro. You can find the original at https://www.delish.com/cooking/recipe-ideas/recipes/a53798/red-velvet-ice-cream-sandwiches-recipe/. I doubled the vanilla in my version.

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Cake Mix Ice Cream Sandwiches

Homemade ice cream sandwiches have simple ingredients, including a cake mix, even if they're a bit tricky to create.
Course Dessert
Keyword cake mix, ice cream, red velvet

Ingredients

  • 1 boxed cake mix
  • 2 eggs
  • 1/2 cup butter softened
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 gallon ice cream slightly softened

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and prepare a large, rimmed baking sheet by lining it with parchment paper.
  • In a mixing bowl, beat together the cake mix, eggs, butter, vanilla and salt until it’s smooth. This will create a very thick batter.
  • Spread the batter out to about one-quarter- to one-half-inch thick. The main goal is to have the thickness be as consistent as possible so the cake bakes evenly. Mine did not go all the way to the edges of my pan.
  • Bake for 18 to 20 minutes or until the cake is set (depending on how thinly you spread it out, you may need to watch it carefully so it doesn’t burn).
  • Remove the cake from the oven and let it cool completely.
  • Once the cake is cooled, cut it in half to create two, equal parts. Spread the ice cream evenly over one half of the cake and then top with the other half. Put the whole thing in the freezer to let it firm back up—probably about 30 minutes, depending on your freezer and how soft your ice cream was.
  • Slice into your desired size of sandwiches and store in an airtight container in the freezer.

I had some very jagged edges on my cake and ended up trimming it up. I also took one for the team and ate those trimmed off pieces. If your cake doesn’t turn out 100 percent like you wanted, don’t worry. It’s a very forgiving recipe if you just get your knife out and trim away the mistakes.

For mine, I definitely didn’t end up getting my batter thin enough, but even my thick sandwiches were really yummy.

Also, be careful not to let your ice cream soften too much. If it’s soupy, you will have a hard time getting it to stay put, and you’ll end up with more cake than ice cream in your sandwiches.

I did manage to get the kitchen cleaned up before Joey got home. I figured seeing red everywhere and hearing your wife say, “I have a surprise for you.” isn’t the best Valentine’s Day present.

But it turns out that ice cream sandwiches are a pretty decent gift—even if they are from an old cake mix from the back of the pantry.

This piece first appeared in print on Feb. 13, 2020.

Spice Up Your Life is a weekly newspaper column written by Lindsey Young in south central Kansas. If you are interested in sponsoring this column, please contact us through the “Contact Lindsey” link at the top of the page.

Categories
Cookies Dessert

I ‘Congo’ on and on about these great cookie bars

Congo bars combine brown sugar, chocolate chips and pecans into a delicious, soft cookie bar.
Congo bars combine brown sugar, chocolate chips and pecans into a delicious, soft cookie bar.

I’m always on the hunt for easy recipes to feed a crowd, and as I mentioned a couple weeks ago, I found a great cookie bar recipe that fit the bill.

And then I forgot to take a photo before my crowd inhaled every last one.

So, with the Super Bowl in my sights, I whipped up this recipe once again and made sure that I snapped a photo long before they hit the snack table.

With the added experience of baking these a second time, I can say with absolute confidence that not only are these incredibly easy to make, but they’re definitely a crowd pleaser, as well.

I suppose you could say the outcome of the game and the full bellies leaving our house afterwards were a win-win.

This awesome recipe comes from the blog “Six Sisters Stuff.” If you haven’t heard of their site, I highly recommend it. It’s written by six sisters who now live in various parts of the country. They co-write the site as a way to keep in touch, which I think is a fantastic idea. You can find the original post at https://www.sixsistersstuff.com/recipe/congo-bars-recipe/. I doubled the vanilla in my version.

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Congo Bars

Congo bars combine brown sugar, chocolate chips and pecans into a delicious, soft cookie bar.
Course Dessert
Keyword bars, chocolate, pecans

Ingredients

  • 2/3 cup butter softened
  • 2 cups packed brown sugar
  • 3 eggs
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla
  • 2 3/4 cups flour
  • 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 12 ounces semi-sweet or milk chocolate chips
  • 1 cup chopped pecans

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
  • Prepare a 9×13-inch baking pan by spraying it with cooking spray and set it aside.
  • In a mixing bowl, cream together the butter and brown sugar until it’s light and fluffy.
  • Beat in the eggs and vanilla, and then beat in the flour, baking powder and salt.
  • Once everything is well incorporated, mix in the chocolate chips and pecans.
  • Spread the mixture evenly into the prepared pan and bake for 30 minutes or until the top is nicely browned. (You don’t need to do the toothpick test on this one. The bars will finish setting up as they cool.)
  • Let the bars cool completely and slice for serving. Store leftovers in an airtight container.

I told Joey that I don’t remember making cookie bars that used 100-percent brown sugar and no granulated sugar before this recipe. I think that addition is what made these really soft and chewy.

This particular recipe is getting its own card in my recipe box, which is my way of giving a gold star to a dish.

This time, after our friends exited and we started cleaning up, I actually had a few bars left over, but those were easily taken care of the next morning for breakfast along with a nice cup of coffee.

And really, I don’t think it would have mattered what dessert landed on our table for the Super Bowl last weekend. The victory was already sweet enough.

This piece first appeared in print on Feb. 6, 2020.

Spice Up Your Life is a weekly newspaper column written by Lindsey Young in south central Kansas. If you are interested in sponsoring this column, please contact us through the “Contact Lindsey” link at the top of the page.

Categories
Dessert Uncategorized

Candy bar cheesecake brings king-sized flavor

If you're in a hurry, a no bake toffee cheesecake pie comes together quickly and is a crowd pleaser.
If you’re in a hurry, a no bake toffee cheesecake pie comes together quickly and is a crowd pleaser.

We have a yearly tradition of getting together with our friends for the first round of the NFL playoffs. We eat, yell at the TV and have a good time.

It’s one of the few times during the year we all set aside to spend time together.

This year, we decided to wait for our party until this past weekend, when the Chiefs would be playing for a spot in the Super Bowl, and as is common knowledge by now, we were not disappointed.

Our basement was full of a big group of friends, and Joey even borrowed a second television so that we had great sight lights for everyone in the room. We had a pretty nice spread on our snack table, of course.

I made a new kind of cookie bar I was excited about and decided I’d just take a photo of them for my column after the game was over. Surely there would be leftovers, right?

Yeah. There were not.

So my plan to give you an idea for a great Super Bowl snack kind of backfired on me, since they were clearly such a great football snack that I couldn’t keep even one to photograph, so I’ll be making them again in the near future to get a good photo to share, but I’m going to give you another idea instead that, thank goodness, I did manage to photograph before it all disappeared.

This recipe comes from the blog “Together as Family.” You can find it at https://togetherasfamily.com/toffee-cheesecake-pie. I added extra vanilla in my version.

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No Bake Toffee Cheesecake Pie

If you're in a hurry, a no bake toffee cheesecake pie comes together quickly and is a crowd pleaser.
Course Dessert
Keyword candy bar, cheesecake, no bake, toffee

Ingredients

  • 9- inch prepared graham cracker crust regular or chocolate
  • 8 ounces cream cheese softened (I used fat free)
  • 1/3 cup sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 8 ounces frozen whipped topping thawed
  • 8 ounce bag of chocolate toffee bits OR 6 Heath bars chopped

Instructions

  • In a large bowl, beat together the cream cheese, sugar and vanilla until it’s smooth.
  • Beat in the whipped topping, and then fold in the toffee pieces, saving a handful to sprinkle on the top.
  • Spread the mixture into the prepared crust and top with the remaining toffee pieces.
  • Cover the pie and refrigerate for six to eight hours or overnight. (For some reason, I never realized that the plastic insert in a pre-made graham cracker crust is meant to be flipped over and used as a domed lid for the fridge, so I was pretty excited about finding that out.) Slice and serve. Refrigerate any leftovers.

When you slice this pie, you may want to opt for smaller pieces, as it’s pretty rich, and a little goes a long way. Plus, if you’re hosting a big party, it will let everyone sample more goodies.

I shared this pie with friends awhile back for a different gathering, and it was a big hit. It was also a nice respite from having to deal with the oven for a bit. That’s one thing I often don’t like about baking right before company comes over—heating up the house more than necessary.

When the Super Bowl comes around in February, I think I’ll plan on some more cookie bars, and this pie might make another appearance on our snack table as well.

One thing I’ve learned as a Chiefs fan is that you may not always be happy after every game, but as long as you have a paper plate full of something delicious, you can get over it pretty quickly.

Go Chiefs!

This piece first appeared in print on Jan. 23, 2020.

Spice Up Your Life is a weekly newspaper column written by Lindsey Young in south central Kansas. If you are interested in sponsoring this column, please contact us through the “Contact Lindsey” link at the top of the page.

Categories
Dessert

Get shakin’ with salted caramel brownies

Salted caramel brownies have a hint of saltiness and lots of sweet caramel and chocolate flavors.
Salted caramel brownies have a hint of saltiness and lots of sweet caramel and chocolate flavors.

I have been on a popcorn kick lately when I’m in the mood for a snack.

Really, to be accurate, I should say that both I and our schnauzer, K.C., have been on a popcorn kick lately, since I never eat a bowl of it alone if she can help it.

There’s something about that combination of the sweetness of the corn covered in just a bit of salt that I can’t get enough of, and apparently, it’s because our bodies are literally wired to like salty and sweet tastes together.

An article by Justine Sterling for “Delish” notes that researchers have found a certain sweet tastebud that only activates when sodium is also present.

In other words, if salt and sugar are both in whatever we’re eating, we get a bonus taste receptor to notice it for us.

The good Lord knew what he was doing when he was crafting our tongues, it seems.

With my love of salty and sweet, I was immediately drawn to a recipe for salted caramel brownies recently, and the dense chocolatey-ness along with the caramel makes this a recipe worth trying.

I found it on the blog “The Salted Marshmallow.” You can find the original at https://thesaltymarshmallow.com/sea-salt-caramel-chip-brownies/.

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Salted Caramel Brownies

Salted caramel brownies have a hint of saltiness and lots of sweet caramel and chocolate flavors.
Course Dessert
Keyword brownies, chocolate, salted caramel

Ingredients

  • 2 cups flour
  • 1/2 cup cocoa powder
  • 2 cups sugar
  • 1 cup butter melted
  • 4 eggs
  • 3 teaspoons vanilla
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 10- ounce bag of sea salt caramel baking chips
  • 1/4 cup caramel ice cream topping

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
  • Line a 9-by-13-inch baking pan with aluminum foil or parchment paper and spray it with cooking spray. Set it aside.
  • Add all of the ingredients except the baking chips and caramel topping to a mixing bowl and beat until everything is combined.
  • Fold in the baking chips and spread the batter into your baking pan.
  • Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean.
  • Let the brownies cool and then top with the caramel topping.
  • Store in an airtight container.

I didn’t wait for my brownies to cool all the way before adding the caramel topping, and it sort of melted into the tops, which still tasted amazing, but it didn’t let them have that nice drizzle effect. But if you don’t have time to wait, you won’t mess anything up by just dumping on the sauce while your brownies are still warm.

I also wish I would have sprinkled a little coarse salt on the top of these and definitely will the next time I make them, so you may consider that addition as well.

This also helped me clean out two different ingredients in my kitchen, since I had some salted caramel chips in my freezer and half of a jar of caramel sauce sitting in my refrigerator. If I keep it up, I may have my excess ingredient collection cleaned out by spring.

I really liked the combination of flavors in the brownies, and we enjoyed sharing them with friends, too.

K.C., on the other hand, was less than impressed with me eating chocolate snacks she’s not allowed to have. Her vote is still for the popcorn.

This piece first appeared in print on Jan. 9, 2020.

Spice Up Your Life is a weekly newspaper column written by Lindsey Young in south central Kansas. If you are interested in sponsoring this column, please contact us through the “Contact Lindsey” link at the top of the page.

Categories
Cookies Dessert

Sugar cookies had me at ‘Jell-O’

Jell-O sugar cookies with Jell-O frosting can be made in every color of the rainbow.
Jell-O sugar cookies with Jell-O frosting can be made in every color of the rainbow.

A few months ago, Joey and I moved into a new house, and I must confess that my pantry is still an absolute mess.

I often reference my pantry in this column, but up until we moved, my “pantry” has always been a large, open bookshelf in my kitchen, so a lot of my food items are tucked into containers and baskets to give it all the semblance of organization.

Now I have an entire, floor-to-ceiling cabinet, and I haven’t quite figured out how to get it into a state I’m proud of yet.

While digging for some rarely used Christmas spices, I came across a stash of gelatin, which I totally forgot existed. I added it to another stack of Jell-O I already had, wondering how and why I had so many boxes of the stuff, when I don’t really use it all that often.

(If someone understands the finer points of gelatin reproduction, you might enlighten me.)

But, in following with my new resolve to rid my pantry of its overabundance, I found a recipe that let me use up two whole boxes of gelatin, which I was pretty excited about.

I found a cookie recipe on the blog “Family Cookie Recipes.” You can find it at https://familycookierecipes.com/jello-sugar-cookies/ .The author suggests a frosting recipe, too, but I decided to go a different direction. The frosting recipe I used came from “Little Delights Cakes.” You can find that one at http://littledelightscakes.com/jello-frosting/. The recipe author notes that sugar-free Jell-O shouldn’t be used for making this. My only changes were to add a bit more vanilla to the frosting and bring these two great recipes together.

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Jell-O Sugar Cookies

Jell-O sugar cookies with Jell-O frosting can be made in every color of the rainbow.
Course Dessert
Keyword colorful, cookies, frosting, gelatin, Jell-O

Ingredients

Cookie Ingredients

  • 1 cup butter softened
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 3 ounces Jell-O any flavor
  • 3 eggs
  • 3 cups flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt

Frosting Ingredients

  • 3 ounces Jell-O any flavor
  • 2/3 cup sugar
  • 1-1/2 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1 egg white
  • 1/2 cup boiling water

Instructions

  • For the cookies, preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
  • Cream the butter and sugar together until smooth, and then beat in the Jell-O.
  • Beat the eggs in until the mixture is smooth, and then finish out by beating in the dry ingredients.
  • When everything is well-incorporated, scoop the dough by the tablespoon onto a prepared cookie sheet, spacing them about two inches apart.
  • Bake for 8 minutes or until the edges just start to brown.
  • Let the cookies cool completely before frosting them.
  • For the frosting, combine the Jell-O, sugar, vanilla and egg white in a mixing bowl and beat together until they’re well combined.
  • Add in the boiling water and beat the mixture for about 7 minutes to get the frosting nice and fluffy. To make it easier to spread on the cookies, refrigerate it for about 30 minutes to let it set up a bit.
  • Spread or pipe the frosting onto the finished cookies and store them in an airtight container. (Fair warning: this frosting is more like a whipped cream, so it won’t harden, and you won’t be able to stack the finished cookies.)

These were really good. I had an overabundance of strawberry gelatin, so that’s what I used for both the cookies and the frosting, but you could use any flavor combination that sounds good to you.

I also wondered if you could make two different colors and swirl the dough together to get a fun look.

It felt nice to get a couple items cleaned out of the pantry, but I’m still going to need to get to work on my food organization. There may be even more surprises just waiting to be discovered.

This piece first appeared in print on Jan. 2, 2020.

Spice Up Your Life is a weekly newspaper column written by Lindsey Young in south central Kansas. If you are interested in sponsoring this column, please contact us through the “Contact Lindsey” link at the top of the page.

Categories
Dessert Microwave Snack

This no-bake recipe is just ‘mint’ to be

Andes mint baking chips are the star of these easy, no-bake bars.
Andes mint baking chips are the star of these easy, no-bake bars.

I suspect that one of my New Year’s resolutions this year is not quite compatible with most everyone else’s, mostly because it involves some treat making.

Joey pointed out that our freezer was starting to get a little ridiculously full of random ingredients I planned on using at a later date, so I started digging items out and realized he was definitely correct.

My pantry isn’t much better.

So one of my resolutions will be to actually use up the extra ingredients I have laying around and free up some space in the kitchen.

With that being said, if your resolution is to lose weight or eat better, you might want to avoid my column for a little while.

The first thing I decided to use up was a glut of Andes mint baking chips, and I found a great no-bake recipe to use them in.

I found this recipe on the blog “Inside BruCrew Life.” You can find the original at https://insidebrucrewlife.com/andes-mint-cookie-dough-truffle-bars/. I added extra vanilla in my version.

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Andes Mint Cookie Dough Truffle Bars

Andes mint baking chips are the star of these easy, no-bake bars.
Course Dessert, Snack
Keyword Andes mint, chocolate, cookie dough, no bake, truffle

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup butter softened
  • 1/2 cup brown sugar
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
  • 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon milk
  • 1 cup flour
  • 1/2 cup cocoa powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 2, 10- ounce bags Andes mint baking chips divided
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons shortening

Instructions

  • Start by greasing an 8-by-8-inch baking dish and set it aside.
  • In a mixing bowl, beat the butter, sugars, vanilla and milk until the mixture is smooth.
  • Add the flour, cocoa powder and salt and beat until everything is well combined. It takes a little bit to get it completely mixed together. Mine started out looking really dry at first, and I was afraid I messed it up. Just keep mixing.
  • Set aside one cup of the Andes mint chips and fold the rest into the mixture. Press the mixture into your prepared pan.
  • In a microwave-safe bowl, combine the cup of mint chips and the shortening and microwave for 30 seconds at a time, stirring in between, until it is melted and smooth.
  • Spread it out over the top of the mixture in the pan and place the bars in the freezer to set up.
  • Once the topping hardens, cut into bars and serve.

The recipe’s author said she used to make this recipe but roll it into balls and dip it in chocolate. Making it in bar form instead made the process go a lot more quickly. I’d recommend putting these in your “I need to make treats but have no time to make treats” section of your recipe box.

These were a huge hit with my family and would be a great recipe for beginning cooks to tackle. I’m a massive fan of Andes mints, so I was extremely fond of these and had to try to stay away from them long enough to share them.

And now my freezer is two bags of baking chips lighter. I figure getting a head start on my New Year’s resolution in December isn’t a bad way to go. I’ll just have to get used to the fitness fanatics in my life avoiding me for a few months.

This piece first appeared in print on Dec. 26, 2019.

Spice Up Your Life is a weekly newspaper column written by Lindsey Young in south central Kansas. If you are interested in sponsoring this column, please contact us through the “Contact Lindsey” link at the top of the page.

Categories
Dessert Salad Side Dish

Recipe traditions can provide a ‘berry’ Christmas

This simple combination of ingredients is a beautiful addition to the family table for the holidays.
This simple combination of ingredients is a beautiful addition to the family table for the holidays.

This is the first year of major holidays our family will celebrate without my maternal grandparents. Thanksgiving was a tough transition to the new normal, and I know Christmas will be even more difficult.

When my paternal grandmother passed away several years ago, I began taking solace in using her pie pans every holiday season. Bringing them out of my cupboard always makes me feel close to her.

I employed the same strategy this Thanksgiving, baking pies in her pans, and then pulling out the handwritten recipe for cranberry sauce I asked my maternal grandma for only a year before.

In typical Grandma fashion, there were no measurements—although, to her credit, she wrote it down for me from memory while we sat chatting after dinner—but as I tentatively walked the aisles of my grocery store, wondering if I’d be able to decipher what she meant by a “tuna-sized” can of crushed pineapple, I discovered that her instructions were perfect.

She had given me just what I needed to recreate the cranberry sauce that graced her Thanksgiving and Christmas tables alike throughout my childhood.

So I wanted to share it with you this week. I added the measurements for the ingredients now that I have them figured out.

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Lola’s Cranberry Sauce

This simple combination of ingredients is a beautiful addition to the family table for the holidays.
Course Dessert, Salad, Side Dish
Keyword Christmas, cranberry, pineapple, Thanksgiving

Ingredients

  • 6- ounce package cherry gelatin
  • 8 ounces crushed pineapple
  • 14 ounces jellied cranberry
  • 1 cup diced celery

Instructions

  • Prepare the cherry gelatin according to package instructions. Once it is set up, proceed with the next step.
  • Drain the crushed pineapple well.
  • In a serving bowl, stir together all the ingredients. (It’s kind of fun to mess up a whole batch of perfectly set gelatin.)
  • Once everything is well-combined, serve or refrigerate covered overnight.

This has always been one of my favorite side dishes at our family get togethers. It’s certainly nothing fancy, and I don’t think it would win any culinary awards, unlike many of my grandma’s other recipes, but it tastes like the holidays to me.

My favorite way to eat it growing up (and I confess I may still employ this strategy), was to put a spoonful into the middle of a dinner roll and enjoy it like jelly.

I will warn you that the gelatin and jellied cranberry break down pretty quickly if you leave this sitting in the refrigerator for a few days, so it’s best to either stir it up the same day you plan to enjoy it or the night before.

I chopped my celery and mixed up the gelatin the night before so it was simple to throw together right before our meal.

And if you get some especially green celery, you’ll get perfect Christmas colors to add to the holiday table.

I’m still working on perfecting recipes from both of my grandmothers without the benefit of their help these days. It always makes me feel connected to them, even if I’m not always the best at recreating each dish.

Celebrating the holidays without loved ones is tough, but just like my grandma’s handwritten notes for cranberry sauce, the people we’ve lost often give us just what we need to keep going—whether we realize it or not.

This piece first appeared in print on Dec. 12, 2019.

Spice Up Your Life is a weekly newspaper column written by Lindsey Young in south central Kansas. If you are interested in sponsoring this column, please contact us through the “Contact Lindsey” link at the top of the page.

Categories
Dessert

Baking pumpkin cake easier than pie

A pumpkin pie cake has all the flavors of a traditional pie with very little effort.
A pumpkin pie cake has all the flavors of a traditional pie with very little effort.

For the week before Thanksgiving, some friends of ours invited us to their house for a “Friendsgiving,” where we’ll all enjoy a big potluck meal together with a large group. This is the second year for the tradition, and we’re really looking forward to spending time with everyone while eating a great meal.

I will be taking pie this year, and it led to a discussion on the best Thanksgiving pies between Joey and myself.

Joey is a big advocate of pecan pie above all others. I tend to be one of those folks who will try a sliver of everything on the dessert table.

But one thing is certain, and that is that baking pies can get labor intensive pretty quickly. Although I’m a big fan of the process, I would guess I’m in the minority, so I decided to try a new recipe this week that might help those of you who want to bake something at home but don’t want to have to fiddle with pie crust this Thanksgiving.

This recipe came from the blog “The Country Cook.” You can find the original at https://www.thecountrycook.net/pumpkin-pie-cake/. I used just pureed pumpkin instead of pumpkin pie filling in my version and added extra spices.

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Pumpkin Pie Cake

A pumpkin pie cake has all the flavors of a traditional pie with very little effort.
Course Dessert
Keyword cake, cake mix, pie, pumpkin

Ingredients

  • 30 ounces pumpkin puree
  • 4 eggs
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 2 teaspoons cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon ginger
  • 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
  • 1/2 teaspoon cloves
  • 1 box spice cake mix
  • 1 cup butter melted
  • 1 container vanilla frosting

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Prepare a 9×13-inch baking pan by spraying the bottom with cooking spray and set aside.
  • In a mixing bowl, beat together the pumpkin, eggs, salt and spices until the mixture is smooth.
  • Beat in the cake mix and butter for two minutes until well combined, and then spread the mixture into the prepared pan.
  • Bake for 45 minutes or until the center doesn’t jiggle. (Don’t use the toothpick method. Since it’s a little pie-like, it won’t be a good indicator.)
  • Once the cake is cooled, spread the frosting on top and serve.

My entire house smelled just like I baked a fresh pie in my oven, which was a nice way to get in the mood for Thanksgiving, and it was an extremely easy recipe to complete. 

I’m still planning on making a pie for Friendsgiving this week, but this cake would fit in perfectly on any Thanksgiving dessert table without making anyone too disappointed.

Well, anyone but Joey, who would wonder why you bothered with making a pumpkin pie version of cake instead of figuring out how to do the same thing with pecans.

This piece first appeared in print on Nov. 21, 2019.

Spice Up Your Life is a weekly newspaper column written by Lindsey Young in south central Kansas. If you are interested in sponsoring this column, please contact us through the “Contact Lindsey” link at the top of the page.

Categories
Dessert Snack

‘Hummus’ give a strange combination a try

Banana bread hummus is a surprising twist on the normally savory dip made with chickpeas.
Banana bread hummus is a surprising twist on the normally savory dip made with chickpeas.

When I’m searching for recipes, I sometimes stumble across ideas that seem so weird that I’m completely compelled to try them.

This week’s recipe is one of those: banana bread hummus.

I have made hummus quite a number of times, and it’s a favorite for us, especially when we’re setting up a snack table for guests.

Our normal recipe is a traditional one with tahini, olive oil and tons of garlic, served with carrots and pita bread, so the thought of a sweet hummus recipe threw me for a loop, but I also knew I had to give it a try if for no other reason to just say that I did.

So if you’re like me and enjoy trying weird, new ideas, this is the recipe for you.

This comes from the blog “Make the Best of Everything.” You can find the original post at https://makethebestofeverything.com/2015/09/banana-bread-hummus/. I added extra cinnamon and vanilla and left a hint in the recipe to sweeten the hummus up, if necessary.

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Banana Bread Hummus

Banana bread hummus is a surprising twist on the normally savory dip made with chickpeas.
Course Dessert, Snack
Keyword banana, chickpeas, cinnamon, hummus

Ingredients

  • 15.5- ounce can of chickpeas rinsed and drained
  • 2 tablespoons coconut oil
  • 2 ripe bananas
  • 3/4 cup walnuts roughly chopped, plus more for topping
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla

Instructions

  • Combine all the ingredients in a blender or food processor and blend until it’s smooth. If the mixture isn’t quite smooth enough, add a little more coconut oil to get it to the consistency you like.
  • Also, I’d recommend taste testing this, and if your bananas weren’t quite sweet enough, you might add a little powdered sugar or a sugar substitute to sweeten it to your liking (I wouldn’t recommend regular sugar, since that might make it taste a bit grainy).
  • Top with some more walnuts and serve with vanilla wafers or animal crackers for dipping.

Truth be told, I don’t think banana bread hummus is going to be on my regular rotation for snacks, but we enjoyed it at a game night with friends. Also, any time I can get ahold of a reason to eat more vanilla wafers, I’m in.

It was a bit tough to get past the idea of eating a sweet dip made with chickpeas, I thought.

It also would be a good snack for someone looking for a wheat-free, egg-free option to enjoy the flavors of banana bread, especially if you can find a good gluten-free cookie to go with it.

I won’t be ready to give up on the classic garlic-y hummus any time soon, but it’s fun to go outside of your comfort zone with ingredients and see what you can do.

Sometimes, the results can be surprising.

This piece first appeared in print on Oct. 31, 2019.

Spice Up Your Life is a weekly newspaper column written by Lindsey Young in south central Kansas. If you are interested in sponsoring this column, please contact us through the “Contact Lindsey” link at the top of the page.

Categories
Cookies Dessert

Here’s a dessert that’s perfect for crunch time

No-bake chocolate crunch bars are a perfect recipe for beginning cooks, those who are in a hurry, or anyone wanting a nice, sweet treat.
No-bake chocolate crunch bars are a perfect recipe for beginning cooks, those who are in a hurry, or anyone wanting a nice, sweet treat.

When we were kids, my mom would give my sister and I each a quarter a day for snacks at the Haven pool when we’d go swimming with our babysitter.

That quarter could get you some licorice or Now and Laters, but I would often hoard my coins for several sessions until I had enough to get a cold Twix from the pool’s freezer. It was always worth going a few days without a treat to bite into that icy candy bar.

I still like to toss candy into the fridge or freezer at home. I’m not sure what it is about a cold chocolate bar that’s so appealing, but I always love them.

That was part of what I liked about this week’s recipe, because these no-bake bars are chewy and crunchy and chilly right out of the fridge—a perfect combination.

This recipe comes from the blog “Barefeet in the Kitchen” by Mary Younkin. You can find the original at https://barefeetinthekitchen.com/no-bake-chocolate-cereal-bars-recipe/. Because this was such a simple recipe, my only change was swapping in crunchy peanut butter instead of creamy.

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No-Bake Chocolate Crunch Bars

No-bake chocolate crunch bars are a perfect recipe for beginning cooks, those who are in a hurry, or anyone wanting a nice, sweet treat.
Course Dessert
Keyword chocolate, crunchy, no bake, peanut butter

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1/2 cup honey
  • 3/4 cup creamy or crunchy peanut butter
  • 3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
  • 2 cups cornflakes

Instructions

  • Line a 8-by-3-inch bread pan or a 6-by-6-inch square pan with parchment or waxed paper (hang it over the sides to help remove the bars later) and set aside.
  • In a large, microwave-safe bowl, combine the sugar, honey and peanut butter and heat for 30 seconds at a time, stirring in between, until everything is smooth. Add in the chocolate and stir until the chocolate is melted.
  • Dump the mixture into the prepared pan and press it down evenly.
  • Place the bars in the refrigerator for two or three hours to set up. Pull the bars out of the pan using the paper and transfer to a cutting board.
  • Cut into bars the size of your choosing and store in an airtight container in the fridge.

I’m not often as big of a fan of no-bake cookies as many people are, but these were a slam dunk. Using honey for part of the sweetener gave these a richness that I really liked, and the crunch of both the cornflakes and crunchy peanut butter was excellent.

It’s probably a good thing this recipe makes a smaller batch of bars, since we managed to eat all of them in pretty short order.

I would say you could get away with using a normal 8-by-8-inch pan, too, but part of these bars’ appeal is how nice and thick they are.

They were also a nice, cool treat out of the fridge for a few days, which I really appreciated on some warm evenings. And, as a bonus, I didn’t even have to put on a swimming suit to enjoy them.

This piece first appeared in print on Oct. 3, 2019.

Spice Up Your Life is a weekly newspaper column written by Lindsey Young in south central Kansas. If you are interested in sponsoring this column, please contact us through the “Contact Lindsey” link at the top of the page.

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