Smores graham cracker pound cake

It is a typical summer day here today – hot and humid and close to 100 degrees.  So what better treat to represent such a summer day than smores?  And not just with graham crackers, but a graham cracker pound cake, some pieces topped with fluff frosting and melted hershey kisses and others topped with chocolate fluff frosting.  The pound cake recipe is From one of my grandmothers, given to me a long time ago.

I read the secret to a good pound cake is putting it in a cold oven and then heating the oven to the right temp.  So I tried it.  Also, remember to scoop your flour from your flour bag into your measuring cup so you get the right amount.  Same goes for the powdered sugar in the frosting.

A bit of advice, apply buttercream first, then melted chocolate.  It is much easier than putting the chocolate on the cake first,  then buttercream, I lesson I learned as seen below.

  • Graham cracker pound cake ingredients
  • 16 tbs butter, softened
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 3 eggs
  • 2 tsp vanilla
  • 3/4 cup sweetened condensed milk
  • 1 cup flour (scooped from flour bag into measuring cup so you get the right amount)
  • 1/2 cup finely ground graham cracker crumbs
  • 3/4 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp salt

Line a 8×5 loaf pan with parchment paper and spray with baking spray.  Set aside.  In a bowl, cream butter and sugar.  Beat in eggs one at a time, then mix in vanilla and condensed milk.  Fold in dry ingredients and graham cracker crumbs.  Evenly spread into prepared pan.  Place in oven and turn oven to 350 degrees.  Bake 35 to 42 minutes (toothpick inserted in center comes out with a few moist crumbs). 

Cool completely.  I  sliced the pound cake.

and then cut the slices in half

  • Fluff frosting ingredients
  • 1/2 cup butter softened
  • 1/2 cup marshmallow fluff
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 1 3/4 cups powdered sugar

In a bowl, cream butter, vanilla,  and fluff.  Carefully blend in powdered sugar.   Divide in half.  To one half, add 1/2 cup melted chocolate chips.   frost some cake pieces with melted chocolate

To the other pieces, I topped them with buttercream.

Then scooped some melted hershey kisses on top.

Store in covered container.

Another chocolate chip cookie recipe (this one with condensed milk)

It’s 90 and humid out, so why not turn on the oven and bake cookies?  These are another chocolate chip cookie recipe.  I made them with condensed milk, an ingredient  I have seen used in various brownie recipes.  so i tried it here!   I froze the individual cookie doughs before baking bc I was hoping it would help avoid having them spread.  It did.  These are pretty big and perhaps a little gushy.   I will pop them in the fridge to help them firm up.

Remember to scoop your flour from your flour bag into your measuring cup so you get the right amount.  I recommend chilling the individual doughs for a few hours at least.  And as always, preheat your oven before baking.

  • Ingredients list
  • 1 1/2 cups butter, melted
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1/2 cup brown sugar
  • 1 cup condensed milk (almost all of a 14 oz can)
  • 4 1/3 cups flour
  • 1 tbs cornstarch
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 2 cups chocolate chips

Directions – in a bowl, combine butter, sugar and brown sugar.  Blend in condensed milk.  Slowly fold in dry ingredients.  Mix in chips.  Scoop out 1/4 cups of dough.  Chill or freeze a few hours.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a sheet with parchment paper.  Stagger chilled/frozen cookie doughs on prepared sheet like below.. 

Bake 10 minutes, no longer.  Tops will be gushy,  but bottoms will be browned.   Cool completely.  Chill to firm up if you want.  store in covered container.

Thanks so much for stopping by today!  I wish you a day of joy and peace. 

Magic cookies (hello dollies cookies)

This is a simple recipe – only 5 ingredients (4 if you want to omit the walnuts). They are like magic cookie bars (or Hello dollies as I call them), but in cookie form. My advice is do not bake them longer than 10 minutes and remember to leave them on the cookie sheet for 10 minutes before removing them so they firm up a bit.

  • Ingredients list
  • 4 sheets of graham crackers finely crushed
  • 1 cup chocolate chips (you can also use different flavors, i.e., milk, white etc)
  • 1/2 cup finely ground walnuts (or other nuts or you can omit)
  • 1 1/2 cups coconut
  • 1 can condensed milk (14 oz)

Directions – preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line cookie sheet with parchment paper. In a bowl. Combine crushed graham crackers, chips, nuts, coconut and condensed milk. Scoop out 1/3 cups of dough (I used a cookie scoop). I got nine cookies. Stagger on prepared cookie sheet. Bake 10 minutes (no longer). Let set for 10 minutes. Remove and cool completely. Store in covered container.

Thanks for stopping by today! I wish you a day filled with peace, joy and happiness. Remember to be kind. ❤️💙

Chocolate cheesecake with an oreo crust

I asked Rob what he wanted for Thanksgiving dinner this year, and he said lasagna. He despises turkey and the rest of the Thanksgiving fixings, so the last few Thanksgivings I have worked and we have had lasagna for our dinner on 🦃day. And when it came to dessert, Rob requested chocolate cheesecake. I think I do pretty well, even though I am new to making cheesecakes. (Cheesecake factory has nothing to worry about though) 😉

I pre-baked the oreo crust for 10 minutes because that is what I see people recommending online for cheesecake crusts. Something about keeping the crust from getting soggy.

Here is a peek at the oreo crust
  • Crust ingredients
  • 24 oreos, finely crushed
  • 1/4 cup butter, melted

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Line the inside of a 10 inch springform pan with tin foil on the bottom and halfway up the sides. In a bowl, combine crumbs and butter. Press into bottom of prepared pan. Bake 10 minutes. While crust is in the oven, prepare cheesecake.

  • Cheesecake ingredients
  • 24 ounces cream cheese, softened (I used neufchatel, which is softer, less calories, and lower fat)
  • 14 ounce can condensed milk
  • 12 ounce semisweet chocolate chips, melted
  • 4 eggs
  • 1 tsp vanilla

In a bowl, beat cream cheese smooth. Add condensed milk. Blend in melted chocolate. Beat in one egg at a time. Stir in vanilla. Pour over crust. Bake 70 minutes at 300 degrees. Remove from oven. Cool completely. Store covered in fridge.

Thanks so much for stopping by today! Wishing you peace and happiness. And please, remember to be kind.

Oreo magic cookie bars (hello dollies)

My hubby, who is certainly not a huge fan of coconut, asked if I could make “junk bars,” a treat he saw at a local bakery. I had no idea what they were. He said they had a brownie oreo crust and had coconut. A Yahoo search (yup I utilize yahoo) turned up nothing. So I wondered if he meant Hello dollies/magic cookie bars. So instead of a gram cracker crust, I used an oreo crust. They are very easy to put together. And you can have a very sweet treat in no time!

I used a food processor to crush the oreos. You could also put them in a freezer bag and crush them with a rolling pin.

  • Ingredients list
  • 20 oreos, finely crushed
  • 4 tbs butter, melted
  • 1/2 cup white chocolate whips
  • 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips
  • 1/2 cup milk chocolate chips
  • 14 oz can condensed milk (no substitutions)
  • 1 cup coconut
  • 12 oreos, finely crushed

Directions – preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line an 8×8 pan with tin foil. In a bowl, combine butter and 20 crushed oreos. Press into prepared pan. In a bowl, combine the 3 kinds of chips, condensed milk, coconut, and the remaining 12 crushed oreos. Spread over crust. Bake 25 to 28 minutes. Cool completely. Store in covered container.