Chocolate Dipped Marshmallows

These are SUUUPER Easy and great for holidays! You can dip in any sprinkles or candy to coordinate with whatever event you are having!! Kids LOVE THEM!!

1 bag of marshmallows (large or jumbo)
1 bag of candy melts (any color, melted)
Candy, Sprinkles, etc.

Melt your chocolate in the micro or double boiler...Dip your mallows and the dip in your desired candy while still a tad wet. You can also put these on sticks for cuter/pop effect :)

Enjoy! Dani

Mini Caramel Pumpkin Cheesecake Bites

 These were very simple but look real fancy and taste...ugh...TO DIE!!!!  The recipe calls for a mini muffin/cupcake tin but I didnt have one, so I used a regular sized one...Mine are probably a little wider and shorter then they "could" be!

 8-10 whole Oreos, finely ground in food processor
 1 1/2 Tablespoons melted butter
 8 oz softened cream cheese
 1/2 Cup granulated sugar
 1/2 Cup pumpkin puree (I used Libby’s)
 1 large egg
 1 teaspoon vanilla
 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
 1/4 teaspoon fresh ground nutmeg
 Caramel dip/sauce
 12 Pumpkin Spice Hershey Kisses or Caramel, unwrapped

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Combine ground Oreos and melted butter into a bowl until well combined. Spoon into 12 mini cheesecake cups that have been sprayed with cooking spray. Press into the bottom of each cup so the crust is flat. Partially bake for 10 minutes then remove from oven.  (they will probably rise a little on the sides, thats ok)

In a stand or electric mixer beat the cream cheese, sugar and pumpkin until smooth. Beat in egg, vanilla, cinnamon and nutmeg until combined. Pour evenly into the 12 cups filling about 3/4 way full. Spoon about a teaspoon of caramel into the tops of each filled cup and swirl with a toothpick gently. Bake for 25-28 minutes or until cheesecake is cooked through. Let cool completely.

Remove cheesecakes from pan and top each with a spoonful of remaining caramel and a Pumpkin Spice/Caramel Hershey Kiss. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Enjoy!  Dani ;)

Chocolate Crinkle Cookies



 These cookies are super easy and always a hit!! Best part is there very pretty and no   need to decorate! Yay!!

1/2 cup vegetable oil
4 oz unsweetened baking chocolate, melted, cooled
2 cups granulated sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla
4 eggs
2 cups Gold Medal® all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup powdered sugar

In large bowl, mix oil, chocolate, granulated sugar and vanilla. Stir in eggs, one at a time. Stir in flour, baking powder and salt. Cover; refrigerate at least 3 hours.
Heat oven to 350°F. Grease cookie sheet with shortening or cooking spray.
Drop dough by teaspoonfuls into powdered sugar; roll around to coat and shape into balls. Place about 2 inches apart on cookie sheets.
Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until almost no imprint remains when touched lightly in center. Immediately remove from cookie sheets to cooling racks.

Enjoy, Dani :)

Candy Corn Bark

This is SUCH a cute treat for a party or gathering. Very fun & festive and tastes DELISH!!

Candy Corn
2 bags candy melts (I used 2 diff colors)
Oreo's (Use seasonal colors for ultra cuteness)
Pretzels
Sprinkles

Cover a baking sheet with parchment paper or foil.  Break up the Oreo's & Pretzels and spread them out on the sheet, evenly.  Melt your candy melts in the micro (according to pkg) and pour over the mixture.  (If youre doing 2 colors, then just do the 1st bag) Spread the chocolate so it covers as much as possible. 
Take the second bag, melted and pour that over in a squiggly way so the first color shows through.
Sprinkle the candy corn on the top, all over, and place the tray in the fridge or freezer to set.  Once its set, you can break it into pieces and serve!

Enjoy!!
Dani :)

Chocolate Chip Cookie N' Oreo Brownie Bar

This is OMG!! Call the neighbors over!  This past Christmas I made Brownie stuffed Oreo's with the red icing oreo's and they were SOOOO YUM! I was doing some "surfing" and came across this recipe that I just HAD to try!  Its beyond amazing and has everything the chocolate lover is looking for!  A little cookie = CHECK! A little Oreo= CHECK! A little brownie= CHECK! CHECK!!  Dive in- You wont regret it!

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup light brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 Tablespoon pure vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups (12 ounces) milk chocolate chips
1 pkg Double Stuffed Oreos
1 Family Size (9×13) Brownie mix
1/4 cup hot fudge topping
(You can totally use premade cookie dough and layer the bottom with that as well.)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Cream the butter and both sugars in a large bowl with an electric mixer on medium speed for 3-5 minutes. Add the eggs and vanilla and mix well to thoroughly combine. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda and salt, then slowly incorporate into the mixer until the flour is just combined. Stir in chocolate chips. Spread the cookie dough in the bottom of a 9×13 baking dish that’s been lined with wax paper and sprayed with cooking spray. Top with a layer of Oreos. Mix together brownie mix, adding an optional 1/4 cup of hot fudge topping to the mix. Pour the brownie batter over the cookie dough and Oreos. Bake at 350 degrees F for 45-55 minutes.  

Serve warm with Ice cream!!

Enjoy!!! Dani :)

Banana Crumb Muffins

Mmmm....With 4 rotting banana's on my counter I knew I had to whip up some banana magic QUICK!!  I had a few recipes I had saved and wanted to try and this one did NOT disappoint!!
They are sooo nice and moist!  I have to say, though, the brown sugar topping makes regular banana muffins..AMAZING!!!

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

3 bananas, mashed

3/4 cup white sugar

1 egg, lightly beaten

1/3 cup butter, melted

1/3 cup packed brown sugar

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 tablespoon butter

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Lightly grease 10 muffin cups, or line with muffin papers.

In a large bowl, mix together 1 1/2 cups flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. In another bowl, beat together bananas, sugar, egg and melted butter. Stir the banana mixture into the flour mixture just until moistened. Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups.
In a small bowl, mix together brown sugar, 2 tablespoons flour and cinnamon. Cut in 1 tablespoon butter until mixture resembles coarse cornmeal. Sprinkle topping over muffins.
Bake in preheated oven for 18 to 20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into center of a muffin comes out clean.

Chocolate Peppermint Cake

I have been eyeing this cake for QUITE awhile now and finally decided to make it for the holidays...It's soo yummy and Im glad I did :)  Its a peppermint chocolate cake with chocolate buttercream filling, vanilla buttercream icing and a little crushed peppermint for sparkle!  I twisted and changed a few ingredients to make it my own and it was wonderful!! I like mint and chocolate but it wasnt too overwhelming for the non mint fans.

For the cake:
½ cup cocoa powder, plus extra for dusting pans
1½ cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. baking powder
¼ tsp. salt
1¼ cups boiling water
4 oz. unsweetened chocolate, finely chopped
1 tsp. espresso powder
10 tbsp. unsalted butter, softened
1½ cups packed light brown sugar
3 large eggs
½ cup sour cream, room temperature
2 tsp. peppermint extract

For the filling:
1 cup (8 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature
2½ cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 ounces semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, melted and cooled

To make the cake, preheat the oven to 350° F. Grease the edges of 2 round cake pans. Dust with cocoa powder and tap out the excess. Line the bottom of each pan with parchment or wax paper. Whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt together in a large bowl. In a medium bowl, whisk the boiling water, chocolate, cocoa powder and espresso powder together until smooth.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream together the butter and sugar on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, 3-6 minutes. Beat in eggs one at a time, scraping down the bowl between additions. Beat in the sour cream and vanilla and mix until incorporated. Reduce the mixer speed to low and mix in the dry ingredients.

Divide the batter evenly into the prepared pans, and smooth the tops with a spatula. Bake the cakes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with a few crumbs attached, 15-20 minutes, rotating the pans halfway through baking. Cool the cakes in the pans for about 10 minutes, then run a knife around the edges, turn the cakes out onto a wire rack and peel off the parchment paper. Turn the cakes right side up and allow to cool completely.

Filling:
To prepare the filling and frosting, melt the chocolate in the top of a double boiler until smooth. Set aside and let cool until no longer warm to the touch. In the meantime, beat the butter on medium-high speed in the bowl of an electric mixer about 30 seconds. Add confectioners’ sugar and salt, and beat at medium-low speed, scraping down the bowl once, about 1 minute. Add the cream and vanilla and beat on medium speed just until incorporated, about 10 seconds. Increase the speed to medium-high and beat until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes, scraping down the bowl as needed. Transfer half of the mixture to a separate bowl and stir in the cooled white chocolate until smooth.

To assemble the cake, place one cake layer on a cardboard cake round or cake platter. Spread half of the peppermint frosting over the cake. Top with another cake layer and spread evenly with the remaining peppermint frosting. Top with the final cake layer. Ice the outside of the cake with the vanilla buttercream.
Coat the top and sides of the cake with the remaining crushed peppermints. Garnish with reserved whole peppermints as desired.

Grab a fork and enjoy!
Dani ;)

Fluffernutter Cookies

These might be the simplest cookies I've EVER made!! 3 ingredients..DONE!!

1 Cup creamy peanut butter
1 large egg
1 cup marshmallow cream

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a large bowl mix the peanut butter and egg until well combined with a spoon. Slowly stir in the marshmallow cream until just combined. You want to see the marshmallow cream not fully incorporated, almost like swirled through. With a small-medium cookie scoop, scoop dough onto a parchment or silpat lined baking sheet. Bake for 12-15 minutes or until baked through. Let cool for 5 minutes on cookie sheet before transferring to a cooling rack.

Enjoy!
Dani ;)
about 18 cookies

Brownie Stuffed Oreos

These are SOOO YUMMY and CRAZY simple!! 
A friend of me sent me this recipe and they were a HIT!
Jay ate 6 of them before they even cooled!  You could probably experiment and use any cookie!

1 Brownie mix (or use your own brownie recipe)
1 package Oreos, I used the Holiday ones
White chocolate, melted for drizzle, or Wilton White frosting pen works great
White Sprinkles (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Prepare brownie batter according to package directions. Leave in mixing bowl. Place oreos in bottom of generously sprayed with cooking spray, muffin tin (1 in ea). Pour brownie batter over ea oreo. Just enough to cover them. Bake for 12-15 minutes, until brownies are cooked through (doesn’t take long). As soon as you remove, take a plastic knife and run along edges, (this is VERY important so you get the cookie out with brownies not stuck to pan)
Let cool for 5 minutes, drizzle with melted white chocolate or the Wilton White icing pen, sprinkle with nonpariels and EAT! Makes entire package of Oreos.

Enjoy!  Dani ;)

Peanut Butter Banana Oatmeal Muffins

These are so delish!  I was trying to find something to use my very ripe bananas, but didn't want to make banana bread.  I found a recipe, altered it and I have made them a few times.  They are really good! : )

Ingredients:
1½ cups all-purpose flour
1 cup old-fashioned oats
1 tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. clove
2 tbsp. applesauce
¾ cup light brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 cup mashed banana (about 3 bananas)
6 tbsp. creamy peanut butter
1 cup low-fat milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line muffin tins and set aside.  In a medium bowl combined the flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and clove.  In another medium bowl whisk the applesauce, brown sugar, eggs, banana, peanut butter and milk until well combined.  Add the wet ingredients to the dry and stir until just combined. Evenly distrubute the batter into the muffin tray and bake for 18-20 minutes.  Allow to cool in pan for 5 minutes.  Once cool, you can top with peanut butter, or just eat plain!

Lemon Poppy Seed Cake with Raspberry Filling

I wanted to make something less fancy, and more delicious for my moms birthday.  She loves lemon so I thought this would be great!  It was REALLY good!  Everyone loved it. : )

Ingredients:

1 box Duncan Heins lemon cake mix

1 Tbsp poppy seeds

1 Tbsp lemon zest

3 eggs

1/3 cup oil

1 1/4 cup water

Filling:

8 tbsp. unsalted butter

1 pint ripe raspberries or 1 12-oz. package frozen raspberries, thawed
6 large egg yolks, lightly beaten
3/4 cup sugar
Pinch of salt
2-3 tsp. fresh lemon juice

For the lemon buttercream frosting:
16 tbsp. unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 tbsp. finely grated lemon zest
3 cups sifted confectioners’ sugar
3 tbsp. fresh lemon juice

Directions:
Heat oven to 350F.  Grease 2 (I used 3 for 3 layers) 9" round cake pans.  Follow the directions on the box to make the cake, but add the poppy seeds and lemon zest.  Bake until slightly brown, remove from pan and completely cool.

To make the raspberry sauce, melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the raspberries, egg yolks, sugar and salt, and cook, mashing the berries. Stir frequently at first and then constantly at the end, until thickened, about 10 minutes. Pour the mixture through a coarse strainer set over a bowl, pressing hard on the solids to extract as much liquid as possible. Cool to room temperature; the curd will continue to thicken as it cools. Stir in lemon juice to taste. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Frosting-In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and zest on medium speed until light and fluffy. Gradually add the sugar and beat until smooth. Add the lemon juice and beat for one minute longer.

Assemble the cake and garnish with fresh raspberries!  Enjoy!!

Brittney

Chocolate Rum cake w. Rum Glaze

Jason LOVES Rum cake and had a craving the other nite so I decided to give it a whirl.  I cheated a little with the cake box but he thought it was great so I say 'why not save a step?' HA!
I have to confess I didnt try it....Im not a huge fan of 'wet' cake so its not really my style but a HIT all the same!

Ingredients
1 cup chopped pecans or chopped walnuts (optional, I didnt use them)
1  package chocolate cake mix (You just make the cake mix as directed)
1 package chocolate instant pudding mix
4 eggs
1/2 cup cold water
1/2 cup cooking oil
1/2 cup rum (I used Bacardi Rum)

Glaze
1/2 cup butter
1/4 cup water
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup amber rum

Sprinkle nuts over bottom of greased 10 inch tube pan or 12 cup bundt pan.
Stir together cake mix, pudding mix, eggs, water, oil and rum.  Pour batter over nuts.
Bake at 325 in oven for 1 hour.    Cool 10 minutes in the pan then invert it onto a plate.

Glaze-
Melt butter in saucepan. Stir in water and sugar and boil 5 minutes, stirring constantly.
Remove from heat. Stir in the rum and pour glaze evenly over top and sides of cake.
Allow cake to absorb glaze. Repeat until glaze is used up.  (It will look like too much BUT ITS NOT)

Enjoy, Dani  :)

Apple Pie Cupcakes

I LOVE APPLE PIE!!
Im ALWAYS saving recipes I see here or there that I know I want to try.  Around Thanksgiving time I saw this new recipe and I knew I HAD to try them! What better occasion than the Holidays???  They came out DELISH!!!!  I would definitely suggest serving them warm.  In order to accomplish that, I put my filling in Tupperware until it was time for desert.  I nuked it in the micro, filled the cupcakes I brought and then topped them with the icing I brought in a ziplock! My pseudo 'pastry bag'!
They were YUMM!!  You could also do this SUPER easy with a cake box, store icing and just make the filling also.   Makes 24 cupcakes

Ingredients:
For the cupcakes:
3 cups sifted cake flour
1 tbsp. baking powder
½ tsp. salt
1 cup butter, at room temperature
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
1 ½ tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup milk

For the apple filling:
2 tbsp. butter
2 tsp. cinnamon
2-3 tbsp. sugar
3 large Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored and diced

For decorating:
Vanilla buttercream

To make the cupcakes, preheat the oven to 350°. Line two cupcake pans with paper liners.
In a medium bowl, sift together the cake flour, baking powder and salt. In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugar together on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Beat in the eggs one at a time, mixing well and scraping down the sides of the bowl after each addition. Add the vanilla extract and mix well to combine. Add in the dry ingredients alternately with the milk, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients. Stir until just combined.

Divide the batter evenly among the cupcake liners, filling them about 2/3-3/4 full. Bake until golden and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 18 to 22 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes in the pans. Transfer to wire racks to cool completely.

To make the apple filling, heat the butter a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Add the cinnamon and sugar and cook for a minute, until the mixture begins to bubble. Lower the heat to medium and stir in the apples. Mix well. Cook until the apples are somewhat tender, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool.

While the apple mixture is cooling, use the cone method to remove a chunk from the center of each cupcake, making sure to leave a rim around the top of the cupcake. Fill the holes with the apple mixture. To decorate, top each cupcake with a swirl of vanilla buttercream.

Enjoy, Dani:)