Tag: powdered sugar

Categories
Dessert

Try as you ‘maple,’ you can’t avoid these delicious bars forever

Maple apple pie bars combine the sweetness of apples with maple syrup, brown sugar, vanilla and cinnamon to create a delicious dessert, worthy of enjoying alongside a hot cup of coffee.
Maple apple pie bars combine the sweetness of apples with maple syrup, brown sugar, vanilla and cinnamon to create a delicious dessert, worthy of enjoying alongside a hot cup of coffee.

I generally make the exact same New Year’s resolution each year.

Unfortunately, I’m pretty sure my resolution messes up some of your resolutions, so I’ll apologize in advance for the calorie-laden recipes that will continue to grace my column in the coming months.

It’s necessary, though, in order for me to meet my ultimate goal: cleaning out my fridge, pantry and freezer.

Throughout the year, I tend to collect all kinds of random ingredients, from those that are leftover from experiments to things I find on the sale shelf and can’t leave there—just in case the perfect recipe comes along

The first item to exit my freezer in the spirit of a new year? A plastic bag of peeled and diced Granny Smith apples.

I bought a huge bag of apples months ago, because it was being clearanced out, and I couldn’t pass them up. So here they are, now in all their unhealthy glory.

This comes from the blog “A Latte Food.” You can find the original post at https://www.alattefood.com/maple-glazed-apple-blondies/. I added extra vanilla and cinnamon in my version.

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Maple Apple Pie Bars

Maple apple pie bars combine the sweetness of apples with maple syrup, brown sugar, vanilla and cinnamon to create a delicious dessert, worthy of enjoying alongside a hot cup of coffee.
Course Dessert
Keyword apples, bar cookies, brown sugar, cinnamon, fall dessert, glaze, Granny Smith apples, maple syrup, powdered sugar, vanilla

Ingredients

Filling Ingredients

  • 2 large apples diced (I used Granny Smiths)
  • 2 tablespoons brown sugar
  • 1 tablespoon butter
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1 heaping teaspoon cinnamon

Bar Ingredients

  • 1 cup butter
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1 cup brown sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 2 cups flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 heaping teaspoon cinnamon

Glaze Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 1/4 cup pure maple syrup
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 cup powdered sugar

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
  • Prepare an 11-by-seven-inch baking pan (I actually used an eight-by-eight) by spraying it with cooking spray, and set it aside.
  • For the filling, combine all of the ingredients in a saucepan, and heat over medium-low, stirring regularly. Once it comes up to temp and the butter and sugar are melted together, cook for another three or four minutes, and then set it aside to cool.
  • For the bar layer, cream the butter, brown sugar and regular sugar together. Beat until everything is combined and the mixture is light and fluffy.
  • Beat in each egg, one at a time, and then beat in the salt and vanilla.
  • Finally, beat in the flour, baking powder and cinnamon until the dough is well combined.
  • Spread half of the dough evenly into your prepared pan.
  • Spread the apple filling evenly over the dough layer.
  • Spread the other half of the dough on top of that. (This is easier said than done. I ended up doing rough dollops all over the top and lightly spreading them out with a scraper. Don’t worry about not getting 100-percent coverage.)
  • Bake for 25 to 30 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
  • Let the bars cool while you make your glaze.
  • Add the butter, syrup, vanilla and cinnamon to a saucepan and heat it over low heat, stirring regularly. Once everything is melted and well-combined, remove the pan from the heat and whisk in the powdered sugar until all of the lumps are gone. (You can speed that process up by sifting the sugar into the pan.)
  • Allow the glaze to cool for about 10 minutes so that it thickens, and then pour it over the bars. Once the glaze and the bars are fully cooled, slice them and serve.
  • Store leftovers in an airtight container.

These were delicious. They were soft and flavorful. I love the combination of maple, cinnamon and apples, and these bars were a great dessert to share with friends.

I’m sorry if these sugar-filled, delicious bars mess with any of your resolutions going into 2026. But if it’s any consolation, there is a really nice empty space in my freezer.

This piece first appeared in print Jan. 8, 2026.

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

Turn to easy lemon cake when you’re squeezed for time

There are only three ingredients in this easy lemon cake (and one is optional). The best part is it can be served in slices to be eaten with a fork or as a finger food for your next gathering.
There are only three ingredients in this easy lemon cake (and one is optional). The best part is it can be served in slices to be eaten with a fork or as a finger food for your next gathering.

With plans to have company over recently, I was on the lookout for something easy to share for our snack table.

After perusing several websites, I landed on one of my favorite ways to make a quick sweet without working all that hard for it: a cake mix transformation.

The recipe I tried promised to produce lemon bars with only three ingredients—cake mix, pie filling and powdered sugar—and I decided I was in.

And these turned out well, although I wouldn’t really call these lemon “bars.” Because you use an angel food cake mix, these are more cake-like than bar-like, but they are still darn delicious, so regardless, you can’t argue with the results.

This comes from the blog “My Crazy Good Life” by Becca Ludlum. You can find the original post at https://mycrazygoodlife.com/3-ingredient-lemon-bars/. I didn’t add anything to this recipe, but I did leave something out when I made these. I didn’t feel like the extra powdered sugar was necessary.

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Easy Lemon Cake

There are only three ingredients in this easy lemon cake (and one is optional). The best part is it can be served in slices to be eaten with a fork or as a finger food for your next gathering.
Course Dessert
Keyword angel food, cake mix recipe, easy dessert, lemon bar, lemon pie filling, light dessert, powdered sugar, tea party

Ingredients

  • 16 ounces angel food cake mix
  • 21 ounces lemon pie filling
  • 1/2 cup powdered sugar optional

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Prepare a nine-by-13-inch pan by spraying it with cooking spray or coating the insides and bottom with butter, and then set it aside.
  • In a mixing bowl, mix the dry cake mix and the pie filling until everything is well combined.
  • Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until the edges are lightly browned.
  • Let the cake cool completely.
  • Once it’s cool, evenly sprinkle the powdered sugar over the top, if you want to use it (this is plenty sweet and tasty without it), and slice into pieces.
  • This can be served as a finger food or eaten with a fork. Store any leftovers in an airtight container.

These had delicious lemon flavor without being overpowering. I think sometimes lemon bars tend to have a bit of a pucker factor that I’m not as big on, but these were light and tasty.

I was also really glad I left out the extra sugar. I think it would have taken away from the rest of the flavors.

I kept thinking these would be such a cute little dessert to serve at a tea party because of the lightness and the pretty pale yellow color. Putting a little strawberry sauce over the top would be absolutely delicious.

And despite the fact that these took almost no time or effort, our guests were happy to help us dig into them. Time in the kitchen can be very satisfying, but time with friends is much more rewarding.

This piece first appeared in print Feb. 27, 2025.

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 Snack

Overcome old assumptions with something sc‘rum’ptious

These balls can be made with rum or bourbon and feature cocoa, vanilla and chopped nuts, along with a hint of alcohol.
These balls can be made with rum or bourbon and feature cocoa, vanilla and chopped nuts, along with a hint of alcohol.

It must have been sometime when I was in middle school that a family acquaintance gifted us with a basket of homemade goodies during the holidays.

Most of the items were run-of-the-mill, well-done treats, but there was one none of us could identify initially. Upon further inspection, we discovered a sweet that none of us liked: the rum ball.

In our fabulous, pre-teen humor, my sister and I deemed these as “baby poop balls.” Of course, as an adult, I realize we (A) probably shouldn’t have been eating mildly alcoholic candies and (B) there has to be a better way to make this classic treat that doesn’t induce gagging.

So, with a gathering coming up, I decided it was time to find a recipe and redeem the “baby poop balls” once and for all.

The recipe I settled on comes from the website “Food.com.” You can find the original post at https://www.food.com/recipe/christmas-rum-balls-or-bourbon-balls-13214. I added vanilla to my version.

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Rum or Bourbon Balls

These balls can be made with rum or bourbon and feature cocoa, vanilla and chopped nuts, along with a hint of alcohol.
Course Dessert
Keyword boozy candy, bourbon, bourbon ball, cocoa powder, light corn syrup, no-bake dessert, pecans, powdered sugar, rum ball, spiced rum, vanilla, vanilla wafers, walnuts

Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoon cocoa
  • 1 1/4 cups powdered sugar divided
  • 11 ounces vanilla wafer cookies finely crushed
  • 1 cup pecans or walnuts chopped
  • 1/2 cup spiced rum or bourbon
  • 2 tablespoons light corn syrup
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla

Instructions

  • Process the wafers in a food processor until they are fine crumbs. Pulse in the chopped nuts.
  • In a small bowl, stir the rum or bourbon with the corn syrup until the corn syrup is totally incorporated.
  • Add the alcohol mixture, along with the vanilla, to the processor and process until the mixture looks like wet sand.
  • Finally, sift the cocoa and one cup of the powdered sugar into the processor and process until the mixture is well combined.
  • (All of these steps can, alternatively, be done in a mixing bowl.)
  • Once the mixture is done, place the rest of the powdered sugar into a small bowl.
  • Roll the mixture into about one-inch balls, and then roll them in the sugar. Store the finished rum balls in an airtight container.

I liked these. I’m sure part of that is that I don’t mind the taste of a little spiced rum, and the texture in this particular recipe was very nice.

Rolling them into one-inch balls instead of the approximately three-inch behemoths I tried long, long ago also allowed the added vanilla, along with the powdered sugar on the outside, to help mellow the rum flavor a bit, which I appreciated. I’m interested to see what the bourbon version would taste like, too.

And, since these do contain some booze, I will caution that they should probably be for adult-only enjoyment, despite the fact that I think you’d have to eat quite a few of these before the rum had any effect on you.

With this recipe in the books, I feel like I have redeemed rum balls in my culinary memory, which also feels nice. Now I’ll just have to make another batch to convince the rest of the family that we can lay the “baby poop balls” to rest.

This piece first appeared in print Jan. 16, 2025.

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

‘Chews’ something sweet and nutty this week

These decadent bars feature tons of flavor from brown sugar, maraschino cherries, pecans and coconut, resulting in a fabulous addition to the dessert table.
These decadent bars feature tons of flavor from brown sugar, maraschino cherries, pecans and coconut, resulting in a fabulous addition to the dessert table.

One of the benefits of being married for as long as Joey and I have is that there are times when I can perfectly judge what his reaction to a recipe will be before I even make it.

When I spotted this week’s recipe—featuring cherries, coconut and pecans—online, I knew I had a hit on my hands, and I couldn’t wait to try it out.

But then, after the bars were cooled and I took my first bite, I realized I majorly underestimated this particular dessert.

It was better than I ever could have imagined, and Joey was going to love them. He was also going to lobby for me to get the entire pan out of our home as quickly as possible so he wouldn’t be tempted to finish them off.

I was correct on both counts.

So, the recipe you must try—especially if you like cherries, coconut and pecans—comes from the blog “Red Cottage Chronicles.” You can find the original at https://www.redcottagechronicles.com/baking/cherry-chews/. I replaced the almond extract with vanilla in my version, and I added toasted coconut.

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Cherry Chews

These decadent bars feature tons of flavor from brown sugar, maraschino cherries, pecans and coconut, resulting in a fabulous addition to the dessert table.
Course Dessert
Keyword bar cookies, brown sugar, coconut, cookie exchange, maraschino cherries, pecans, powdered sugar, quick oats, vanilla

Ingredients

Crust Ingredients

  • 1 cup flour
  • 1 cup oats I used quick oats
  • 1 cup brown sugar
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 cup butter

Filling Ingredients

  • 2 eggs
  • 1 cup brown sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 2 tablespoons flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup shredded coconut
  • 1 cup drained maraschino cherries quartered (save the juice)
  • 1/2 cup pecans chopped

Topping Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 tablespoons butter softened
  • 1 cup powdered sugar
  • 4 to 5 tablespoons reserved cherry juice
  • 1/4 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1/2 cup shredded coconut

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Prepare a nine-by-13-inch pan by spraying it with cooking spray.
  • In a mixing bowl, prepare the crust by combining the flour, oats, brown sugar, baking soda and salt, stirring to combine. Cut in the butter with a fork or a pastry cutter until it is mixed well and the mixture is coarse crumbs.
  • Press the mixture evenly into the bottom of the prepared pan, and bake for 10 minutes.
  • For the filling, beat the eggs in a mixing bowl. Beat in the brown sugar and vanilla until it is smooth.
  • Beat in the flour, baking powder and salt. Fold in the coconut and cherries, and then spread the batter evenly over top of the crust. Sprinkle the pecans over the top of the batter, and then bake for 25 minutes or until the top is lightly browned.
  • Let the bars cool completely before adding the topping.
  • For the frosting layer, add the butter, powdered sugar, cherry juice and vanilla to a bowl and whisk thoroughly. You want the mixture to easily coat the back of a spoon, but create the texture you like best. If it’s too runny, add more powdered sugar. If it’s too thick, add more cherry juice.
  • Spread the frosting over the top of the bars. (This will be a thin layer. If you want it thicker, double the ingredients.)
  • Finally, add the shredded coconut to a dry skillet over medium-low heat. Stir regularly until most of the coconut is lightly browned. Remove it from heat and sprinkle on top of the chews. Cut and serve, and store any leftovers in an airtight container.

Like I said, these were amazing. They’re definitely sweet, but since they feature the pecans and brown sugar, it’s not a sickeningly sweet dish. It’s actually decently balanced. I was also really glad I used vanilla instead of almond extract in these. I think the almond would have been good, but I also think it would have overshadowed some of the other flavors.

Also, I highly recommend the toasted coconut on top. That was fabulous.

And, as I predicted, these ended up on our office counter the day after I baked them, tempting our co-workers instead of just us, which is just as well.

I can deal with all of them grumping at me about their diets. I have to live with Joey.

This piece first appeared in print Oct. 31, 2024.

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

Beautiful pastries are just within your ‘rasp’

Raspberry danishes include decadent sweetened cream cheese, along with tart fresh berries and crunchy puff pastry. They can also be made with pretty much any fresh berry, if raspberries aren’t your thing.
Raspberry danishes include decadent sweetened cream cheese, along with tart fresh berries and crunchy puff pastry. They can also be made with pretty much any fresh berry, if raspberries aren’t your thing.

Throughout our marriage, one of my side projects with Joey has been figuring out how to make foods he didn’t think he liked into something he likes.

This has been really easy for tons of vegetables and mushrooms, but I recently decided to tackle one that I thought might be impossible: raspberries.

I knew it was a difficult assignment for two reasons: 1. He’s not much of a dessert guy to start with, and 2. He’s tried raspberries several times over the course of our marriage and not really liked them.

Challenge accepted.

I decided to try three different applications for raspberries to see what he might go for, so if you’re like Joey and not much of a fan, I’ll apologize now for the bombardment of raspberries over the next few weeks.

The good news, though, is this week’s recipe can easily be made with any berries, so you still have options.

This comes from the blog “Vanilla Bean Cuisine” by Molly Pisula. You can find the original post at https://www.vanillabeancuisine.com/raspberry-danish/. I added extra ingredients, including bonus vanilla, in my version.

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Raspberry Danish

Raspberry danishes include decadent sweetened cream cheese, along with tart fresh berries and crunchy puff pastry. They can also be made with pretty much any fresh berry, if raspberries aren’t your thing.
Course Dessert
Keyword cream cheese, danish, easy dessert, fresh raspberries, powdered sugar, puff pastry, raspberry, vanilla

Ingredients

  • 1 or 2 sheets frozen puff pastry thawed in the refrigerator (I had about 13 ounces of pastry.)
  • Flour for rolling pastry
  • 1 egg
  • 8 ounces cream cheese softened
  • 3/4 cup powdered sugar plus some for decorating
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla
  • 6 ounces fresh raspberries

Instructions

  • Line a baking sheet or a couple plates that can fit in your freezer with parchment paper, and set it aside.
  • Lightly flour a cutting board or your countertop, and roll out the puff pastry to a square about 1/8-inch thick. Cut the pastry into about three-inch squares using a knife or pizza cutter.
  • Prepare an egg wash by beating the egg in a small bowl with a fork. Whisk in a tablespoon of cold water, and set it aside.
  • In a mixing bowl, beat together the cream cheese, powdered sugar and vanilla until the mixture is smooth.
  • To assemble, put a scant tablespoon of the cream cheese mixture into the middle of each square, and top it with three or four raspberries.
  • Fold one corner to the middle of the pastry, and then brush the opposite corner with a little egg wash and fold it on top of the other, pressing it a little to make sure it sticks.
  • Place the finished danish on the baking sheet. Repeat until all of the puff pastry is used. (There’s no need to put the danishes very far apart on the baking sheet at this point, so go ahead and squeeze them on there.)
  • Place the egg wash in the refrigerator to use later, and place the danishes in the freezer for at least 30 minutes.
  • When the 30 minutes is nearly up, preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
  • Line another baking sheet with parchment paper and place the danishes about two inches apart on the sheet. Using the egg wash from before, brush a solid coating all over each danish.
  • Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until the pastry is golden brown and cooked through. Let them cool fully, and then sprinkle them with powdered sugar just before serving.
  • Store any leftovers in an airtight container.

I really liked these, and when I took them to the office, Adam declared them one of my better triumphs as of late. Plus, they were pretty to look at while being fairly low effort.

The sweetened cream cheese is a great compliment to the slightly tart berries, and the crisp of the puff pastry sends it over the top.

The real question, though, is how did Joey feel about them? I asked. He gave them an eight out of 10. Not too bad for someone who started out disliking the fruit entirely.

And with that newfound confidence, I was ready to give a few more options a try.

This piece first appeared in print on Aug. 8, 2024.

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

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

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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.

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 lost in a piece of amazing cake

Amazing cake has too many ingredients to put in its title. It features an easy base of a boxed cake mix, elevated by pecans, shredded coconut, chocolate chips and a swirled cream cheese mixture that is not to be missed.
Amazing cake has too many ingredients to put in its title. It features an easy base of a boxed cake mix, elevated by pecans, shredded coconut, chocolate chips and a swirled cream cheese mixture that is not to be missed.

The names people choose for recipes often crack me up.

There’s the embarrassing-to-talk-about “better than sex” or “sex in a pan” variety of dishes, followed by “blue-ribbon” and “award-winning” options, and of course, there are a million recipes purporting to be “Mom’s” or “Grandma’s,” although few identify which matriarch those actually belong to.

So you’ll excuse my skepticism as to how “amazing” the recipe I tried this week was when the author simply called it “amazing cake.”

Upon reading the long list of ingredients, though, not only did I start to believe that this just might be amazing, but I also realized that she couldn’t have possibly come up with a more descriptive name without having to list at least five items in the title. Amazing cake it was.

This recipe comes from a Facebook reel by @genie_cooks. I adjusted the ingredients just a tiny bit, based on what I had in my pantry. I also used an Oreo chocolate cake mix that had Oreo bits in it for the cake part, and that was phenomenal.

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Amazing Cake

Amazing cake has too many ingredients to put in its title. It features an easy base of a boxed cake mix, elevated by pecans, shredded coconut, chocolate chips and a swirled cream cheese mixture that is not to be missed.
Course Dessert
Keyword cake mix, chocolate, chocolate cake, chocolate chips, coconut, cream cheese, easy cake, easy dessert, pecans, powdered sugar

Ingredients

  • 1 cup pecans divided
  • 1 cup shredded coconut
  • 1 chocolate cake mix and ingredients listed on the box
  • 8 ounces cream cheese
  • 2 cups powdered sugar
  • 1/2 cup butter melted
  • 1/2 cup chocolate chips I used semi-sweet

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
  • Prepare a nine-by-13-inch baking pan by spraying it with cooking spray.
  • Spread one-half cup of the pecans and all of the shredded coconut evenly along the bottom of the pan. Set it aside.
  • In a mixing bowl, prepare the chocolate cake mix according to the directions on the box. Pour the prepared mix evenly over the top of the pecans and coconut in the prepared pan.
  • In another mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese, powdered sugar and melted butter until it is smooth. Fold in the remaining pecans and the chocolate chips.
  • With a large spoon, place dollops of the cream cheese mixture all over the surface of the cake batter, and then gently swirl the cream cheese mixture into the batter with a knife.
  • Bake for 35 to 40 minutes. Let the cake cool completely before cutting into it. Sore any leftovers in an airtight container.

This really did turn out, well, amazing. I brought some to the office to share, and Adam described it as a “German chocolate upside down cake,” which I thought was a fairly apt way of putting it. The incorporation of so many different flavors and textures in this cake makes it decadent and delicious, and the best part was that it was super easy to create. Put this one on your “I need to make a quick dessert” list.

While “amazing cake” doesn’t really tell you everything you need to know about this recipe, it was a decent descriptor after all, and I certainly recommend it. As for some of the other descriptive terms people tend to use in their recipe names, I think I’ll stick to the tamer adjectives. I don’t need my cooking to get a strange reputation.

This piece first appeared in print on April 20, 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.

Categories
Dessert

The best ‘tart’ of a fundraiser is the dessert

This French lemon cream tart is the perfect balance between sweet and tart, with a crispy, shortbread-like crust to top off the experience. It takes a bit of effort to make, but the time commitment is worth it.
This French lemon cream tart is the perfect balance between sweet and tart, with a crispy, shortbread-like crust to top off the experience. It takes a bit of effort to make, but the time commitment is worth it.

I have been thinking about this week’s recipe for nearly a month.

I was asked back then if I would be willing to make a dessert for Peace Connections’ annual soup supper and dessert auction.

The event is a fundraiser for the Harvey County Circle of Hope, which does amazing work in helping families, and I was honored to be asked to help.

But then the problem of what to make started to race through my mind. I finally landed on something that looks a little fancy, would be delicious but also would be just enough of a pain in the keester to make that it would be way easier to let someone else do the hard work and bid on it instead.

So I landed on this week’s recipe, which comes from the blog “Confessions of a Baking Queen” by Elizabeth Waterson. You can find the original post at https://confessionsofabakingqueen.com/french-lemon-cream-tart/. I added extra zest in my version.

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French Lemon Cream Tart

This French lemon cream tart is the perfect balance between sweet and tart, with a crispy, shortbread-like crust to top off the experience.It takes a bit of effort to make, but the time commitment is worth it.
Course Dessert
Cuisine French
Keyword butter, fancy dessert, fresh berries, fresh lemon, heavy cream, lemon cream, lemon juice, lemon zest, powdered sugar, shortbread, tart, vanilla

Ingredients

Crust Ingredients

  • 1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons heavy whipping cream
  • 1 egg yolk
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1 1/4 cup flour
  • 2/3 cup powdered sugar
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 8 tablespoons butter cold

Filling Ingredients

  • 1 cup sugar
  • 5 to 6 medium-sized lemons
  • 4 eggs
  • 1 cup plus 5 tablespoons butter room temperature

For Decoration

  • fresh berries I used blackberries and raspberries
  • powdered sugar

Instructions

  • To prepare the crust, add the cream, yolk and vanilla to a small bowl. Whisk them together and set it aside.
  • In a food processor, pulse the flour, powdered sugar and salt a few times to combine them. Cut the cold butter into chunks and pulse it in with the flour mixture until it resembles coarse crumbs.
  • Turn the processor on low and stream in the egg mixture. As soon as the dough starts to come together in the food processor, turn it off and dump the contents onto a clean countertop. Gently press the dough together, trying not to handle it too much so you don’t melt the butter.
  • Form the dough into a six-inch disc, wrap it in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
  • Once the dough is chilled, roll it out into a large circle on a well-floured surface until it is about one-eighth-inch thick. Transfer the dough to a 10-inch tart pan and press the dough into all the nooks and crannies of the pan. Fold about one inch of the overhanging dough over to create thicker sides and press those in, too. Trim off any excess dough.
  • Prick the bottom of the crust all over with a fork and place the pan in the freezer for at least 30 minutes.
  • To bake, preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Spray a large sheet of aluminum foil with cooking spray and place it, spray side down, in the cold crust, lining it with the foil. Fill the area with dry beans or pie weights. Place the pan on a baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes.
  • Remove the foil and weights and bake for another five to 10 minutes or until the crust is golden brown.
  • Let the crust cool completely before filling it.
  • For the filling, combine the sugar and zest from about five lemons (you’ll want to get at least four tablespoons worth of zest) in a bowl. Stir until they are well combined.
  • Juice the lemons into a measuring cup until you have 3/4 cup of juice, and add it to the sugar mixture, along with the eggs. Whisk the mixture until it’s well combined, and add it to a medium-sized saucepan.
  • Turn the heat to low-medium and monitor the temperature with a candy thermometer, whisking constantly, until it reaches 180 degrees. (If the temperature stalls out, carefully turn the burner temperature up a bit at a time. Be careful not to heat it too quickly, or your eggs will clump up.)
  • Once the mixture is up to temp, remove it from the heat and pour it into a sieve over a bowl. This will remove all the zest and any lumps formed in the cooking process.
  • Let the mixture cool for at least 10 minutes.
  • Pour the filling into a food processor and turn it on low speed. Add the butter, one tablespoon at a time, letting the mixture process for at least one minute between each addition. Once all the butter is added, process for another three to five minutes.
  • Pour the filling into a clean bowl and gently press a piece of plastic wrap on the top of the cream so it doesn’t form a skin. Place it in the refrigerator for at least four hours.
  • To assemble the tart, stir the cream (it should be thick), and add it to the crust, smoothing it out evenly with a spoon or offset spatula.
  • Place a piece of plastic wrap pressed on top of the cream and refrigerate for at least 30 more minutes.
  • Before serving, top with fresh berries and a sprinkling of powdered sugar, if so desired. Refrigerate any leftovers.

The tart I made this week was a test run for next week’s showstopper, and Joey and I enjoyed getting to taste test it. It’s in the perfect middle ground between sweet and tart, and the fresh fruit takes the flavors up to a whole new level.

Baking this tart ended up taking a few hours in the kitchen, but not only was the taste worth it, but I hope the one I bring to Peace Connections will help them raise some funds for a worthy cause, too. If you want to try this without having to make it yourself, plan on attending the event at the First Church of the Nazarene, 1000 N Main Street, Newton, on Thursday, Feb. 16. The soup supper starts at 5:30 p.m., and the dessert auction will begin at 6:15 p.m.

I hope the event turns out as well as my tart did. If so, it’s going to be great.

This piece first appeared in print on Feb. 9, 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.

Categories
Appetizer Dessert Snack

You ‘cran’ easily whip up these delicious holiday bites

Cranberry orange bites are incredibly easy to make, and not only are they a pretty appetizer or item for your holiday dessert table, but they're delicious, too.
Cranberry orange bites are incredibly easy to make, and not only are they a pretty appetizer or item for your holiday dessert table, but they’re delicious, too.

For all the complicated dishes that come along with the holidays, I tend to be especially attracted to all the fun snacks, candies and sweets that people make throughout November and December.

Our family get togethers always feature a wide array of goodies on the snack table. It would be easy to skip the actual meal altogether and fill up on all the delicious bites on the side. I love digging into a homemade cheeseball or peanut clusters, filling my plate with tons of completely uncomplimentary flavor profiles. It’s the best.

We recently hosted a get together at the office, so I decided to try a recipe for some cranberry orange bites to share on our snack table. They turned out great, and they were really pretty, too, with the color of the cranberry peeking out around buttery crescent dough.

This recipe comes from the blog “Play, Party, Plan” by Britni Vigil. You can find the original post at https://www.playpartyplan.com/mini-cranberry-orange-bites/. The only thing I changed is the amount of sugar, and I decided not to glaze these, too.

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Cranberry Orange Bites

Cranberry orange bites are incredibly easy to make, and not only are they a pretty appetizer or item for your holiday dessert table, but they're delicious, too.
Course Appetizer, Dessert, Snacks
Keyword cranberries, cream cheese, crescent roll dough, dried orange peel, orange, orange zest, powdered sugar

Ingredients

  • 1 can crescent roll dough
  • 2/3 cup cranberries fresh or thawed
  • zest of one large orange
  • 1 teaspoon dried orange peel
  • 2 ounces cream cheese
  • 2 tablespoons to 1/4 cup powdered sugar

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Prepare a mini muffin tin by spraying each well with cooking spray.
  • In a food processor, process the cranberries until they’re fully chopped up.
  • Add in the orange zest, orange peel, cream cheese and two tablespoons powdered sugar and process until the mixture is smooth.
  • Taste it and mix in more powdered sugar, a few tablespoons at a time, until the mixture reaches your desired sweetness. (It will be just a bit tart, but it shouldn’t make your lips pucker.)
  • Roll out the sheet of crescent rolls and, with a pizza cutter, cut it into 36 to 38 squares.
  • Using your hands, flatten out each square just a bit before placing it into the prepared muffin tin.
  • Scoop about one teaspoon of the cranberry mixture into each piece of dough, and then pinch the opposite corners together to make a little bundle.
  • Bake for 11 to 13 minutes or until the crescent rolls are lightly browned.
  • Store the bites in an airtight container.

My filling was incredibly tart when I first tried it, which led to me adding quite a bit more sugar to get it to a place where I didn’t think people would screw up their faces when eating it.

These were a very simple treat that went over well with our guests, and it made me excited for all the holiday snack tables to come over the next couple of months.

As those big meals come, I won’t mind skipping a larger scoop of mashed potatoes or foregoing the gravy. I’d much rather spend my holiday calories in a little different way.

This piece first appeared in print Nov. 24, 2022.

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
Breakfast Dessert

Lots of leftovers results in some recipe (sour) scheming

Sour cream donuts are cake-y, sweet and simple, with a light sugar glaze to really make them something special. Enjoy these for breakfast or as a dessert.
Sour cream donuts are cake-y, sweet and simple, with a light sugar glaze to really make them something special. Enjoy these for breakfast or as a dessert.

So much sour cream.

Seriously, you should see the nearly literal vat of sour cream in my refrigerator right now.

We hosted a catered meal about a week ago, and I ended up with the leftovers in my fridge. I’m not complaining, mind you, because the meal was absolutely delicious, and I’m never going to complain about somebody else cooking something amazing for me.

But now, even after the rest of the goodies are gone, there’s the sour cream.

Not being one to let things go to waste if I can help it, I’m starting a sour cream series this week. I’m not sure quite how many weeks of recipes it will take for me to clean out the bowl, but I’m no quitter.

To kick it off, I decided to try out a recipe for some baked donuts that looked fantastic, and they turned out great.

The recipe comes from the blog “Semisweet Sisters.” You can find the original post at https://www.thesemisweetsisters.com/2014/09/03/baked-sour-cream-donuts-recipe/. I added extra nutmeg and vanilla in my version.

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Sour Cream Donuts

Sour cream donuts are cake-y, sweet and simple, with a light sugar glaze to really make them something special. Enjoy these for breakfast or as a dessert.
Course Breakfast, Dessert
Keyword baked donuts, donuts, glaze, nutmeg, powdered sugar, sour cream, vanilla

Ingredients

Donut Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup sour cream
  • 1 egg
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1/4 vegetable or canola oil
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1 cup flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/4 heaping teaspoon nutmeg
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt

Glaze Ingredients

  • 1 1/4 cups powdered sugar
  • 4 tablespoons milk
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Prepare a donut pan by spraying the wells with cooking spray (I got seven large donuts out of my batch, for reference).
  • In a mixing bowl, whisk the sour cream, egg, vanilla, oil and sugar until well combined.
  • Whisk in the remaining donut ingredients until the mixture is smooth.
  • Spoon the batter into the prepared donut tin.
  • Bake for 12 to 15 minutes or until a toothpick stuck in the donuts comes out clean.
  • Once the pan is cool enough to handle, remove the donuts and let them cool completely. Bake the rest of the batter if you still have some left.
  • Once the donuts are cooled, prepare to glaze the donuts by lining your countertop with a large piece of waxed paper and setting a cooling rack on top. In a bowl, combine the powdered sugar, milk and vanilla for the glaze and mix well. You’ll want it thick enough to coat your spoon and thin enough that you can easily dunk the donuts into it.
  • Dunk each donut fully to coat it in the glaze, and place them on the cooling rack so the glaze can set up.
  • Once the glaze is dry, enjoy the donuts immediately or store them in an airtight container for later.

These were cake-y and not overly sweet. Even Joey, who tends to shy away from anything that’s overly sugary, really liked these. They are a fantastic pairing for a cup of tea or coffee for breakfast.

I must admit, I was a little disappointed that scooping a mere half cup of sour cream out of my bowl didn’t seem to make much of a dent, but I still have quite a few new recipes to try before I’m all done.

This piece first appeared in print on Oct. 13, 2022.

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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