Category: Dessert

Recipes for desserts.

Chewy cookies can be a real ‘raspberry’ in blue

Post author By Lindsey Young
Post date October 12, 2023

Raspberry white chocolate cookies feature fresh raspberries in a soft, chewy cookie, with plenty of white chocolate chips to take these to a whole new level of delicious.

“They have some gross cookies over here,” a gentleman said into his cell phone at a Hesston event we held this weekend, making sure to say it just loud enough for me to hear.

Luckily, he was joking. Or at least I think he was.

The cookies, made with lots of fresh raspberries ended up with a little bit of a strange, green-blue hue from the fruit juice spreading throughout the dough, and he teased that I was trying to give away moldy cookies. I guess that’s what I get for using fresh fruit instead of buying something fake or freeze-dried.

But, darn it, they were far from gross. Instead, they were downright delicious, and I ended up being very happy I doubled the recipe, since my first Tupperware container emptied out extremely quickly. Plus, doubling let me use a full bag of white chocolate chips and a full 12-ounce container of raspberries. I always appreciate not having random bits and pieces of ingredients sitting around after trying a new recipe.

If you want to give these “gross” cookies a try, the recipe comes from the blog “Erhardt Seat” by Caitlyn Erhardt. You can find the original at https://erhardtseat.com/raspberry-white-chocolate-cookies/. I doubled the vanilla, added a few extra chocolate chips and added some salt in my version.

Raspberry White Chocolate Cookies

Raspberry white chocolate cookies feature fresh raspberries in a soft, chewy cookie, with plenty of white chocolate chips to take these to a whole new level of delicious.

Course Dessert

Keyword brown sugar, fresh raspberries, raspberry, soft cookies, vanilla, white chocolate chips

Ingredients

8 tablespoons butter room temperature
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 egg
1 3/4 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup white chocolate chips
1/2 cup raspberries chopped

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Prepare a couple baking sheets by spraying them with cooking spray or lining them with parchment paper.
In a large mixing bowl, beat the butter and sugars until the mixture is light and fluffy.
Beat in the vanilla and egg until they are well combined.
Beat in the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Once the dough is smooth, carefully fold in the white chocolate chips and raspberries, trying not to squish them too much.
Using a one- to one-and-one-half-inch cookie scoop, scoop the dough into about ping-pong-ball-sized mounds onto the prepared cookie sheets, placing them about two inches apart.
Bake for 12 to 15 minutes or until the tops of the cookies are starting to turn golden brown. Let the cookies cool almost completely before storing them in an airtight container.

Like I said, these were fantastic. Joey hates raspberries as a general rule, and even he really enjoyed these. The fruit and the white chocolate paired great together, and the cookies were soft and chewy, just how I like them.

I suppose another benefit, if you want to keep these all to yourself, is if yours turn a little bluish, too, you can just sadly tell your family how disappointed you are that the cookies went bad, and you’ll have to dispose of them before anyone accidentally eats one.

I won’t spoil your secret, but there is a guy in Hesston who might.

This piece first appeared in print on Oct. 12, 2023.

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.

Tags brown sugar, fresh raspberries, raspberry, soft cookies, vanilla, white chocolate chips

Dessert

There is no point(s) to this easy ‘cheesecake’

Post author By Lindsey Young
Post date October 5, 2023

Zero-point cheesecake is a low-sugar, low-calorie dessert that can satisfy your sweet tooth even if you’re trying to stick to a healthy diet.

Although I have never joined an official weight loss program—tracking points, writing down my calorie counts and eating only pre-portioned foods delivered to my door—I have always been fascinated how they work for so many people to slim down.

For me, when working on trying to eat healthier, I normally just follow the rules of “eat more veggies” and “eat less sugar.”

But I am definitely addicted to sweets, and it’s a struggle some days to keep myself from indulging—especially since I know how to bake, and my pantry is well-stocked with supplies.

This week, though, I took a page out of the weight loss program handbook and tried a “zero-point” dessert, which for those unfamiliar, means that a person on Weight Watchers could eat it with no penalties on their diet for the day. It’s low fat, low sugar and low calorie.

The recipe I tried comes from the blog, “Our Wabi Sabi Life.” You can find the original post at https://ourwabisabilife.com/0-point-weight-watchers-cheesecake/. I chose to add some fruit to our cheesecake, doubled the vanilla, and I substituted the cheesecake-flavored pudding mix for a vanilla one, because my local grocery store didn’t have it.

Zero-point Cheesecake

Zero-point cheesecake is a low-sugar, low-calorie dessert that can satisfy your sweet tooth even if you’re trying to stick to a healthy diet.

Course Dessert

Keyword cheesecake, diet dessert, eggs, instant pudding, low-calorie, low-fat, low-sugar, non-fat Greek yogurt, Splenda, sugar substitute, vanilla, Weight Watchers

Ingredients

3 eggs
3 tablespoons sugar substitute
2 teaspoons vanilla
3 cups plain fat-free Greek yogurt
3.4 to 3.9 ounce box instant sugar-free pudding (cheesecake flavor or just your favorite)

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Prepare a glass pie dish by lightly greasing it with butter or margarine.
In a large bowl, beat the eggs, sugar substitute and vanilla extract until everything is combined well.
Beat in the yogurt and pudding mix, and once the mixture is smooth, pour it into your prepared dish.
Bake for 30 minutes. Once the cheesecake cools enough to handle it, place it in the refrigerator for at least two hours or overnight.
Serve with fresh fruit. Store leftovers in the refrigerator in an air-tight container.

This was decently good. I would not say that it was a perfect substitute for full-fat cheesecake, although it might have been a bit closer in flavor if I would have had access to cheesecake-flavored pudding.

That being said, it was a bit like a custard texture, and especially with some fresh cherries I had in my freezer from this summer, it was a nice, guilt-free option. It would also be a nice option for people who are low-sugar.

I wondered if it would be good with a lemon or chocolate pudding mix, too, or even with a fat-free Greek yogurt with some flavoring to it. The possibilities are vast.

I still don’t think I want to jump into a structured diet plan, but it’s nice to have some recipes in my repertoire for those times when depending on my own willpower isn’t hacking it.

And, yeah, I know there’s irony in the fact that I’ll probably share something high-calorie, high-fat and delicious with you in this space again very soon. Sometimes you just have to live a little.

This piece first appeared in print on Oct. 5, 2023.

Tags cheesecake, diet dessert, eggs, instant pudding, low-calorie, low-fat, low-sugar, non-fat Greek yogurt, Splenda, sugar substitute, vanilla, Weight Watchers, zero-point dessert

Dessert Snack

It’s good to have a fallback recipe for whatever pops up

Post author By Lindsey Young
Post date September 21, 2023

Popcorn balls are simple to make and easy to customize with tons of sweet or salty mix ins.

On a recent free evening, Joey and I decided to watch a movie together, and I wanted popcorn.

Of course, I couldn’t just toss a bag of microwave popcorn in to cook; I needed to make the real stuff on my stovetop.

I melted a spoonful of coconut oil in a pot and waited for it to be nice and hot, testing it with a couple kernels, just like you’re supposed to.

But then it came time to add the rest of the kernels, and honestly, I couldn’t remember how many to dump in. After a bit of time thumbing through my mental Rolodex, I somehow determined that popcorn kernels were measured out like rice, and I dumped a full cup of kernels into the pot, figuring I would make about two cups of finished popcorn.

I added the lid and waited. Soon, my popcorn was popping.

And then it kept popping.

And popping.

It wasn’t long before the lid started lifting off my pot, and I realized the error of my ways.

Joey walked into the kitchen just in time to see me frantically scooping popcorn into several bowls on the counter while more popcorn flew out onto the floor and our schnauzer, K.C., excitedly performed clean up duties. It was a bit crazy, and the aftermath left me with a ton of popped kernels.

So, with that in mind, I decided to opt for a great recipe for leftover popcorn: popcorn balls.

The recipe I used is from Martha Stewart’s website. You can find the original post at https://www.marthastewart.com/339167/popcorn-balls. I simplified the mix-ins a bit.

Popcorn Balls

Popcorn balls are simple to make and easy to customize with tons of sweet or salty mix ins.

Course Dessert, Snack

Keyword brown sugar, Halloween treat, honey roasted peanuts, mini marshmallows, popcorn, popcorn ball

Ingredients

1/4 cup stick butter plus more for your hands
10 ounces mini marshmallows
1/4 cup brown sugar
10 to 12 cups popped popcorn
1 cup nuts dried fruit and/or baking chips

Instructions

Spread a large piece of waxed paper or parchment paper on your workspace.
In a large stockpot or Dutch oven, melt the butter over low heat. Once the butter is melted, stir in the marshmallows and brown sugar, and continue stirring until it’s all melted.
Remove the pot from the heat.
Add the popcorn and whatever mix ins you want to add, and stir well.
Butter your hands, and then shape the mixture into about two- or three-inch balls. Lightly press them together so they stick, but be careful not to crush the popcorn.
Place the balls on the waxed paper to cool. Either individually wrap the popcorn balls or store in an airtight container.

I really liked these, and the nice thing about making your own popcorn balls is you can make them whatever size you want for snacking.

I ended up using some honey roasted peanuts I already had in the pantry, and it was delicious.

Plus, I managed to get rid of all of the extra popcorn on my counter. Despite eating a nice, large bowl during our movie night and receiving lots of gracious help from K.C., there was no way I was going to get through all of it on my own.

The next time I decide to make popcorn, I’ll actually look up the measurements so I don’t end up in a cartoon-like situation again. But at least now I know what to do with the extra.

This piece first appeared in print on Sept. 21, 2023.

Tags brown sugar, Halloween treat, honey roasted peanuts, mini marshmallows, popcorn, popcorn ball

Cookies Dessert

‘Soy’ vey: These cookies were quite the weird experiment

Post author By Lindsey Young
Post date August 31, 2023

These soy sauce chocolate chip cookies don’t look pretty, but they are tasty, sweet and chewy and don’t taste like soy sauce one bit.

“Well, these are a disaster,” I told Joey, pulling my baking sheet out of the oven. “I guess they won’t be going in the column.”

Earlier in the week, I was excited to try a recipe I ran across that used soy sauce in chocolate chip cookies. It sounded just weird enough that I had to see what they tasted like.

But then, catastrophe struck. I’m assuming I softened my butter a bit too much, because these cookies spread out like crazy, and I was bummed that the recipe was a total fail.

But then I tried one. And another one. And, dear reader, I must admit, several more, and they were, well…good.

They were thin, yes, and the chocolate chips kind of just hung out in the middles instead of spreading throughout the cookies, but they were tasty, and the texture was soft and chewy.

I was also delighted to find that they didn’t taste like soy sauce at all.

This recipe, aptly enough, comes from the Kikkoman website. You can find the original at https://kikkomanusa.com/homecooks/recipes/soy-sauce-chocolate-chip-cookies/. I doubled the vanilla in my version and increased the chocolate chips a bit.

Soy Sauce Chocolate Chip Cookies

These soy sauce chocolate chip cookies don’t look pretty, but they are tasty, sweet and chewy and don’t taste like soy sauce one bit.

Course Dessert, Main Course

Keyword chocolate chips, sea salt, semisweet chocolate chips, soy sauce, vanilla

Ingredients

1/2 cup butter
2/3 cup sugar
2 tablespoons soy sauce I used low-sodium
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 eggs
1 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
12 ounces semisweet chocolate chips
1/4-1/2 teaspoon coarse or flaky salt

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Prepare two baking sheets by lining them with parchment paper, and set them aside.
In a mixing bowl, beat the butter and sugar until it is light and fluffy.
Beat in the soy sauce, vanilla and eggs. Finally, beat in the flour and baking soda.
When everything is well combined, fold in the chocolate chips.
Place the bowl in the freezer for 15 minutes.
Spoon out the dough onto the prepared baking sheets in rounded tablespoon scoops, leaving about two inches between them.
Bake for 12 minutes or until the edges of the cookies are browned. While they are still hot, sprinkle the cookies lightly with salt. Let them cool before transferring them to an airtight container.

Like I said, despite the weird secret ingredient, these were just darn good chocolate cookies. Honestly, I’m not sure why they spread out so badly for me—especially since I chilled my dough as directed.

But it ended up being a happy accident. Honestly, the fact that the cookies were thinner probably helped with the chewy texture.

“These are going into the column after all,” I told Joey through a large bite of cookie.

He just nodded.

He’s used to my strange kitchen shenanigans. Besides, he’s too polite to talk with his mouth full.

This piece first appeared in print on Aug. 31, 2023.

Tags chocolate chips, Kikkoman, sea salt, semisweet chocolate chips, soy sauce, vanilla

Dessert

You’ll have strong ‘peelings’ for lemon blueberry bars

Post author By Lindsey Young
Post date August 17, 2023

Lemon blueberry crumb bars are made with fresh fruit and use a cake mix as a base, making them flavorful and sweet while coming together quickly and easily.

Upon being invited to a barbecue recently, I announced that it would be a good time to try out a recipe for some cheesecake-y blueberry lemon bars.

“No. No lemon,” one of our friends declared. “Lemon is gross.”

(I think he was at least halfway joking.)

The rest of the group immediately objected.

“Yes! Make lemon bars. Don’t listen to him!”

So lemon bars, it was, and while our one friend didn’t dig into the Tupperware, the entire batch disappeared quickly, and I had absolutely zero leftovers.

And that’s with a recipe that features a cake mix as a base, which made it super easy to put together.

This comes from the blog “Lemon Blossoms,” by Kathy McDaniel. You can find the original post at https://www.lemonblossoms.com/blog/lemon-blueberry-crumb-bars/. I added vanilla in my version.

Lemon Blueberry Crumb Bars

Lemon blueberry crumb bars are made with fresh fruit and use a cake mix as a base, making them flavorful and sweet while coming together quickly and easily.

Course Dessert

Keyword bake sale, cake mix, cream cheese, easy bars, fresh blueberries, fresh lemon, lemon glaze, lemon juice, lemon zest, powdered sugar, vanilla, yellow cake mix

Ingredients

Bars Ingredients

8 tablespoons butter melted
1 yellow cake mix
2 eggs divided
1/4 cup lemon juice divided
2 teaspoons lemon zest
16 ounces cream cheese softened
1/2 cup sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 pints fresh blueberries

Glaze Ingredients

1 cup powdered sugar
2 tablespoons lemon juice

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and prepare a nine-by-13-inch baking dish by lining it with parchment paper, leaving some hanging over the edges so it’s easier to remove the bars from the pan later. Set it aside.
In a large mixing bowl, combine the butter, cake mix, one egg and two tablespoons lemon juice. Beat the ingredients together until they’re smooth
Dump about two-thirds of the mixture into the prepared baking dish and press it down evenly on the bottom of the pan with your hands.
In another mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese and sugar until it is well combine. Beat in one egg, lemon zest, vanilla and two tablespoons lemon juice until the mixture is smooth.
Spread the cream cheese mixture evenly over the batter layer in the baking dish. Evenly distribute the blueberries on the top of the cream cheese.
Crumbling it with your fingers, evenly sprinkle the rest of the batter over the top of the blueberries. You will have gaps, and that’s OK.
Bake for 45 to 50 minutes or until the center is set.
While the bars bake, whisk the ingredients for the glaze together. It should be just thin enough to be pourable. If your mixture is too thin, add more powdered sugar. If it’s too thick, add more lemon juice.
When the bars are finished, drizzle the glaze over the hot bars, and then let the bars cool completely before placing them in the refrigerator for about one-half hour.
Carefully lift the bars out of the dish with the parchment paper and slice.
Serve. Store any leftovers in an airtight container.

These were lightly sweet with a nice combination of fruit flavors and just a bit of tartness from the lemon juice and zest. They were a huge hit at the barbecue.

And, being the peacemaker I am, I may have made a second, lemon-free dessert to go on the table, too. You have to give the people what they want, I suppose—even if they’re wrong about lemons.

This piece first appeared in print on Aug. 17, 2023.

Tags bake sale, cake mix, cream cheese, easy bars, fresh blueberries, fresh lemon, lemon glaze, lemon juice, lemon zest, powdered sugar, vanilla, yellow cake mix

Breakfast Dessert

Say ‘oui’ to this yummy overnight breakfast casserole

Post author By Lindsey Young
Post date July 27, 2023

Overnight French toast casserole is a much easier way to feature French toast for breakfast. Add in a little fresh fruit, and you have quite the wow factor for your morning meal or even a dessert table.

When I began writing this column over 10 years ago, I had grand illusions of people sending me their favorite recipes and me trying them.

What I found was that people are normally pretty guarded with their best dishes, and even more so, everyone wanted me to tell them something new to try instead of the other way around.

Since then, I have amassed quite the Pinterest page of recipes, a notebook of magazine cutouts and a large collection of saved tutorial videos that I source each week for my inspiration.

But for this week’s recipe, I didn’t have to go out looking. It found me.

Every summer, I get the opportunity to direct a short kids camp at Camp Mennoscah, and for the past I-don’t-know-how-many years, a wonderful group of ladies has volunteered to man the kitchen during our little camp.

This summer, on the last morning, they served us a fabulous blueberry French toast casserole for breakfast, and as I came through the chow line, they teased me a bit.

“Are we going to see this one in the paper?”

“If you send it to me, you will,” I told them.

So Marla emailed it to me right after camp, letting me know that her way of spicing up the recipe was to add the blueberries.

Well, over a month later, I finally had time to give this a try, only I used fresh cherries, since that’s what I had on hand. It was still delicious.

This original recipe comes from the blog “Fresh April Flours,” was tweaked by Marla Gillmore and the rest of the amazing kitchen crew, and received some more cinnamon in my version below.

Overnight Baked French Toast Casserole

Overnight French toast casserole is a much easier way to feature French toast for breakfast. Add in a little fresh fruit, and you have quite the wow factor for your morning meal or even a dessert table.

Course Breakfast, Dessert

Keyword breakfast casserole, breakfast for a crowd, brown sugar, canned cinnamon rolls, easy breakfast, French toast, fresh fruit, vanilla

Ingredients

8 to 9 cups stale bread cut into one-inch cubes
2 cups fresh fruit cut in bite-sized pieces (I used cherries)
1/4 cup butter melted
2/3 cup brown sugar
8 eggs
2 cups milk I used 2 percent
2 tablespoons vanilla extract
3 rounded teaspoons cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt

Instructions

Prepare a nine-by-13-inch casserole dish by spraying it with cooking spray.
Spread all the bread cubes and fresh fruit evenly into the dish and set it aside.
In a mixing bowl, combine the butter, brown sugar, eggs, milk, vanilla, cinnamon and salt and whisk well until everything is well incorporated. (My brown sugar got a bit lumpy. If that happens even after lots of mixing, don’t sweat it. Just evenly distribute the lumps on the next step, and it’ll be fine.)
Evenly pour the egg mixture over the bread cubes in the dish and cover it with aluminum foil, plastic wrap or a lid. Refrigerate overnight or for at least three hours.
To bake the casserole, preheat the oven to 350 degrees and bake, uncovered, for one hour or until the top is nicely browned and the custard is set.
Serve warm by itself, with some syrup, or even with a little powdered sugar sprinkled on top.

I ended up making a half batch of this in an eight-inch casserole dish, and it turned out great. It was more sugar than I’d want to have all the time for breakfast, but the warm, fresh cherries combined with the cinnamon and custard-y bread was excellent.

I don’t think mine turned out quite as well as the one I had at camp, but I think it’s because I made mine on my own. I suspect when you add the love of half a dozen wonderful volunteers, everything is bound to taste better.

This piece first appeared in print on July 27, 2023.

Tags breakfast casserole, breakfast for a crowd, brown sugar, canned cinnamon rolls, easy breakfast, French toast, fresh fruit, vanilla

Cookies Dessert

Preserve your time with a quick strawberry bar

Post author By Lindsey Young
Post date July 13, 2023

Strawberry oatmeal bars are a snap to put together and bake in 30 minutes or less. They feature a light sweetness from coconut, nuttiness from quick oats, and of course, delicious strawberry flavor from preserves.

I am often lost when it comes to buying preserves, jams, jellies, etc.

I know there are differences, but for some reason, my brain can’t seem to keep it all straight. If you ever see me at a store, staring at my phone in front of a shelf of spreads, you’ll know exactly what I’m Googling at that moment.

A farm out of Pennsylvania, Masonic Village Farm, has a blog post on its website, explaining all the ins and outs of the fruity offerings.

Jelly is made with juice. Jam has fruit mashed up in it. Preserves uses big pieces or whole fruit. Spreads are fruit without any added sugar, and butters have pureed fruit.

It’s amazing to me that there’s a term for every subtle difference.

I found myself researching this mystery yet again this past week, as I needed to buy some strawberry preserves for some delicious bars, which did not disappoint at all.

This recipe comes from “Taste of Home” magazine. You can find the original post at https://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/strawberry-oatmeal-bars. I added just a touch extra of vanilla in my version.

Strawberry Oatmeal Bars

Strawberry oatmeal bars are a snap to put together and bake in 30 minutes or less. They feature a light sweetness from coconut, nuttiness from quick oats, and of course, delicious strawberry flavor from preserves.

Course Dessert

Keyword bar cookies, coconut, easy dessert, quick bar cookie, quick dessert, quick oats, strawberry, strawberry preserves, vanilla

Ingredients

3/4 cup butter melted
3 teaspoons vanilla
1 1/4 cups flour
1 1/4 cups quick oats
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup strawberry preserves or flavor of your choice
1/2 cup sweetened shredded coconut

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
In a microwave-safe mixing bowl, melt the butter. Dump in the vanilla, flour, oats, sugar, baking powder and salt and mix well until everything is completely combined.
Add all but one cup of the mixture to a nine-by-13-inch baking pan (you don’t need to grease it). Press it down evenly over the bottom of the pan.
Spoon the preserves over the top, spreading it out evenly.
Stir the shredded coconut into the remaining cup of crumbs, and loosely sprinkle the crumb/coconut mixture evenly over top of the preserves layer.
Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until the top is nicely browned. Let the bars cool completely before cutting, and store them in an airtight container.

These were a big hit at the barbecue I took them to, and they were so, so easy to make, too. This would be a great recipe to make for a young or beginning baker. The tinge of coconut was the perfect amount, and the preserves did all the work outside of that.

The nice thing is, you can easily use the preserves of your choice if strawberry isn’t really your thing or if you want to have several options for a bake sale or snack table.

And honestly, if you wanted to use a jam instead, you’d probably be just fine. Although, as we have established, I am definitely no expert.

This piece first appeared in print on July 13, 2023.

Tags bake sale, bar cookies, coconut, easy dessert, quick bar cookie, quick dessert, quick oats, strawberry, strawberry preserves, vanilla

Dessert

Don’t crumble under hosting pressure; make a quick and easy dessert

Post author By Lindsey Young
Post date June 29, 2023

Quick cherry crumble lives up to its name. With super easy assembly, the dessert can be baked an on the table in just over 30 minutes.

I was remarking to some friends the other day about how Joey and I are complete opposites when it comes to socializing.

As an extroverted social butterfly, Joey draws his energy from being around people and generally loves a crowd.

For me, while I love to socialize, I tend to be reenergized by some alone time, and after a long day of hanging out with people or going to an event, I need a break to recharge.

Despite that difference, what Joey and I do have in common is that we love to host.

Planning a meal or a snack table and having people over to spend time chatting or playing games or watching sports with us is one of our favorite activities.

This past week, Joey casually mentioned, “Oh, I probably should have told you but I invited a bunch of people over to hang out this weekend.”

I was totally on board.

We discussed menu a bit, and that was that.

But then, the night before our get-together, I remembered I totally forgot to plan a dessert, which is a necessity for any big meal, in my humble opinion.

Luckily, the Internet and my pantry saved the day on this one, and I managed a delicious, quick dessert for our guests.

This recipe comes from the blog “Julie’s Eats & Treats” by Julie Evink. You can find the original at https://www.julieseatsandtreats.com/cherry-crunch-pie/. I added cinnamon and almond extract in my version.

Quick Cherry Crumble

Quick cherry crumble lives up to its name. With super easy assembly, the dessert can be baked an on the table in just over 30 minutes.

Course Dessert

Keyword almond extract, brown sugar, canned cinnamon rolls, cherry crisp, cherry crumble, cherry pie filling, easy dessert, quick dessert, quick oats

Ingredients

1/2 cup butter softened
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup flour
1 cup quick oats
1 heaping teaspoon cinnamon
21 ounces cherry pie filling
1 teaspoon almond extract

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
In a mixing bowl, combine the butter, brown sugar, flour, oats and cinnamon until everything is well incorporated and the mixture looks like pea-sized crumbs.
Dump half of the mixture into an eight- or nine-inch glass pie plate and press it firmly to an even layer on the bottom and up the sides.
Pour the can of cherry pie filling into the plate, and sprinkle on the almond extract. Give the filling a gentle stir to distribute the extract, and then crumble the rest of the crust mixture evenly over the top of the filling.
Bake for 30 minutes or until the top of the crumble is browned.
Serve warm or room temperature for the best flavor, but out of the fridge is a winner, too.

As you can see, this really was a quick recipe, and I was glad I added the extra oomph with the cinnamon and almond extract. You could leave those out, but I thought it made the dessert taste a bit more homemade.

This would also be absolutely amazing with some ice cream, if you wanted to pull out all the stops.

I know some people hate hosting, but despite my tendencies to be a bit of an introvert, I love opening our home to our friends and family and watching them have a good time.

Plus, it generally means just a little leftover dessert in the fridge when they all leave.

This piece first appeared in print on June 29, 2023.

Tags almond extract, brown sugar, canned cinnamon rolls, cherry crisp, cherry crumble, cherry pie filling, easy dessert, quick dessert, quick oats

Dessert

‘Poppy’ in the kitchen and try some beautiful scratch-made cupcakes

Post author By Lindsey Young
Post date May 11, 2023

These lemon poppy seed cupcakes feature a decadent, from-scratch, blackberry buttercream that sends the springtime fruit flavors to the next level.

I have always been a sucker for poppy seeds.

If there is a tray of pastries that includes poppy seed bread or muffins, that is what’s going on my plate. That nutty flavor is just irresistible.

That being said, I rarely bake with poppy seeds, for some reason. I had to change that, and what better way than making a delicious, springtime dessert featuring the little seeds along with fresh lemon and blackberries?

A match made in heaven.

This comes from the blog “Just So Tasty” by Fiona Dowling. You can find the original post at https://www.justsotasty.com/lemon-poppy-seed-cupcakes-with-blackberry-frosting/. I added extra vanilla and poppy seeds in my version.

Lemon Poppy Seed Cupcakes with Blackberry Frosting

These lemon poppy seed cupcakes feature a decadent, from-scratch, blackberry buttercream that sends the springtime fruit flavors to the next level.

Course Dessert

Keyword baby shower cupcake, buttercream, fresh blackberries, fresh lemon, from-scratch, frozen blackberries, lemon zest, poppy seeds, poppyseed, vanilla, wedding shower cupcake

Ingredients

Cupcake Ingredients

1/2 cup butter room temperature
1 cup sugar
2 tablespoons lemon zest
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup sour cream
1 1/2 cups flour
3 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons poppy seeds

Frosting Ingredients

1 1/2 cups blackberries
1 cup butter room temperature
4 cups powdered sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon milk or cream if needed

Instructions

Cupcake Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line one and one-half regular-sized muffin tins with cupcake liners.
In a large mixing bowl, beat the butter, sugar and lemon zest for a few minutes until the mixture is light and fluffy.
Beat in the eggs and vanilla, add in the baking soda and salt, and then alternate beating in a bit of the sour cream, followed by a bit of the flour until everything is well combined.
Stir in the lemon juice and poppy seeds.
Pour the batter into the prepared liners, filling each to about two-thirds full.
Bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cupcakes comes out clean. Cool in the pan until you can handle the cupcakes, and then let them cool completely on a wire rack.

Frosting Directions

Add the blackberries to a blender or food processor and process until they are smooth.
Pour the berries into a fine-mesh sieve over a small saucepan, and stir them around, pressing the mixture to get as much out of the berries and into the pan as you can.
Heat the saucepan over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, for 10 to 20 minutes or until the mixture has thickened to a jam consistency. Remove the pan from the heat and let the berries cool completely.
When you’re ready to frost the cooled cupcakes, beat the butter in a large bowl until it is soft and creamy. Beat in two cups of the powdered sugar, along with the salt. Add the blackberry puree and beat again.
Beat in the rest of the powdered sugar, one-half cup at a time. If the mixture is too runny to frost the cupcakes, add more powdered sugar, just a bit at a time, until you reach your desired consistency. If it is too stiff, add a tablespoon (or more) of milk or cream until you are happy with it.
Frost the cupcakes and store in an airtight container.

These were delicious. The cupcake flavor was delicate but still stood up to the blackberry buttercream, which was fabulous. Plus, they were just really pretty.

I did feel a bit bad about having all the bits and pieces of the blackberries left over in my sieve, so I ended up transferring them along with equal parts water and sugar to a pan and making a blackberry simple syrup. It’s great in everything from cocktails to iced tea.

And I was glad to get my poppy seed fix. These were perfect to fit that bill. Unfortunately, you’ll have to make your own to find out. Mine are—mysteriously—all gone.

This piece first appeared in print on May 11, 2023.

Tags baby shower cupcakes, buttercream, fresh blackberries, fresh lemon, from-scratch, frozen blackberries, lemon zest, poppy seeds, poppyseed, vanilla, wedding shower cupcakes

Cookies Dessert

Turn cookies on their heads with these pineapple treats

Post author By Lindsey Young
Post date April 27, 2023

Pineapple upside-down cookies taste just like mini cakes. They are perfect to eat without a fork and would look beautiful on a snack table or for a bake sale.

If anyone tries to tell you that I don’t suffer for my art, please correct them.

After all, I spent a lovely afternoon recently, shoulders deep in my oven with some Easy Off and a scrubber, all thanks to this week’s recipe.

Did my oven probably need a good scrub down anyway? Yeah. Probably.

But it was especially dire when I tried to modify a recipe that called for using a six-well mini cake pan to my normal-sized cupcake tin but didn’t actually change how much batter I put in each well.

Let’s just say that my cups runneth over.

But the cookies were fabulous. They were actually more like mini cakes than cookies in a lot of ways, but I was definitely not complaining.

The recipe I tried comes from the blog “Cookie Dough and Oven Mitt” by Miranda Couse. You can find the original post at https://www.cookiedoughandovenmitt.com/pineapple-upside-down-sugar-cookies. I added extra vanilla in my version and updated the recipe to include using a cupcake tin, for those of us who don’t have fancy mini cake tins.

Pineapple Upside-down Cookies

Pineapple upside-down cookies taste just like mini cakes. They are perfect to eat without a fork and would look beautiful on a snack table or for a bake sale.

Course Dessert

Keyword bake sale, brown sugar, cake cookies, maraschino cherries, pineapple slices, pineapple upside-down cake

Ingredients

1 cup butter room temperature
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 eggs
3 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 cup sour cream
3 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon salt
2, 20- ounce cans sliced pineapples in pineapple juice
6 ounces maraschino cherries
1/2 cup butter melted
1 cup packed brown sugar

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Have a couple six-well mini round cake pans or a couple 12-well cupcake tins at the ready. (There’s no need to grease them.)
In a large mixing bowl, beat the butter and sugar until it is light and fluffy.
Beat in the eggs, vanilla and sour cream, and then beat in the flour, baking powder, cornstarch and salt. Set the mixture aside.
In another bowl, combine the melted butter with the brown sugar, and stir until it is well combined.
If you are using a cake pan, add one tablespoon of the brown sugar mixture to each well. You will likely end up making about 12 to 13 cookies. If you are using a cupcake tin, add about three-fourths of a tablespoon of the brown sugar mixture to the wells until you run out. You may end up making somewhere between 15 and 20 cookies. Spread the brown sugar mixture around to cover the bottom of each well.
Add a pineapple slice to each well. (If you are using a cupcake tin, you’ll want to take a small chunk out of each slice so that it fits flat in the bottom of the well. You can either eat the extra chunks and tell no one or use them to create a ring in one of the wells, too.)
Place a cherry at the center of each pineapple slice.
For the cake pan, use a one-inch cookie scoop to add about three tablespoons of the cookie dough to each well. For the cupcake tin, add around two tablespoons. You only want the mixture to come up about three-fourths of the way in the well.
Bake for 25 minutes or until the edges of the cookies are golden brown.
Let the cookies cool for 10 minutes, and then invert the pan onto waxed paper (be ready for a little bit of a mess, and you may have to rescue some stuck-on pineapples from the pan and place them back on top of the cookies).
Let the cookies cool completely before serving. Store any leftovers in an airtight container.

These really did just taste like mini pineapple upside-down cakes, but they were easy to eat with just your hands, which was awesome.

If you’re nervous at all about your own cookies overflowing a bit, I’d recommend putting the cupcake tin on a rimmed baking sheet, just in case.

Or, you can always take it as a challenge from the universe that your oven needs a good, springtime scrub down. I’m not sure the universe actually cares about such things, but now that the grime is finally out of my stove and out from under my fingernails, that’s what I keep telling myself.

This piece first appeared in print on April 27, 2023.

Tags bake sale, brown sugar, cake cookies, maraschino cherries, pineapple slices, pineapple upside-down cake