Tag Archives: dessert

Frosted Lemon Bars (made with a cake mix)

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Frosted lemon bars

Today’s recipe is a change from my usual chocolate overload. Lemon bars. They are for our friend Marc, celebrating his birthday. They use a lemon cake mix and only a few other ingredients. You can use another flavor cake mix. if you want. If you do, use vanilla extract instead of lemon. I also opted for lemon frosting on top of the lemon bars. Again, if you opt for another flavor bar, vanilla frosting would be fine. Quick reminder to preheat your oven to 350 degrees for 20 minutes before baking So the oven is the right temp. If you think 2 tbs lemon juice in the frosting might be too tart, start with 1 and add 1 tbs water.

  • Lemon bar ingredients
  • 1 lemon cake mix
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 tbs lemon juice
  • 1/2 cup oil

Directions – preheat oven to 350 degrees for 20 min. Line an 8×8 pan with parchment paper and spray with baking spray. In a bowl, blend cake mix, eggs, lemon juice and oil. Spread evenly into pan. Bake 15 to 17 min (do not overbake). Cool completely.

Frosting – combine 2 cups powdered sugar amd 2 tbs lemon juice. (Add water, a tsp at a time,if you want to thin it out a bit.). Add yellow food coloring (optional). Frost bars. Store in covered container.

Have a good day and remember to be kind. We are all battling something each day.

Frosted Cake mix cookies with mini m&ms

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Easy cake mix cookies!

I panicked at the thought of bringing 6 cupcakes into work tomorrow (although they are very large), so I decided,to add some cake mix cookies to bring in. I used a white cake mix for the cookies, topped them with white chocolate frosting, and I topped them with mini m&ms. They cookies are puffy and soft and I think you will really like them. You can try and different cake mix flavor if you want. You can also use semisweet or milk chocolate chips in the frosting if you prefer. Remember to scoop your flour from your flour container into your measuring cup so you get the correct amount, and preheat the oven to 350 degrees for 20 minutes before you start baking, so the oven is the perfect temp. Also, I really piled on the frosting thick and still had a little left over. If you don’t want a ton of frosting on the cookies, you can halve the frosting recipe or save it to use on something else.☺

  • Cookies ingredients
  • 1 white cake mix
  • 1/2 cup egg whites
  • 3/4 cup flour
  • 1 tbs cornstarch
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 1 tsp water
  • 1/3 cup vegetable oil

Directions – preheat oven to 350 degrees for 20 minutes. In a bowl,combine cake mix, flour and cornstarch. Add egg whites, vanilla water and oil. Line a cookie sheet with nonstick baking liners. Stagger 1/4 cups of dough on the prepared sheet. Bake 8 to 10 minutes. They will be lightly golden on the bottom. Cool completely.

  • Frosting ingredients
  • 1/2 cup butter, melted
  • 1/4 cup milk
  • 1/2 cup white chocolate chips
  • 3 to 4 cups powdered sugar
  • 1 tsp vanilla

Directions – in a microwave safe bowl, heat milk and white chips in 30 second increments until you cam stir it smooth. Add butter and vanilla. Blend in enough powdered sugar to get the consistency you want. Frost cookies and top with mini m&ms. Store in covered container.

Have a wonderful week! And remember to be kind!

Hostess cupcakes (complete with the squiggle!)

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Hostess cupcakes with marshmallow fluff filling, chocolate frosting and a squiggle!

These dear friends are hostess cupcakes, complete with the fluff filling and magical squiggle. I made these using a chocolate cake mix, but I fancied it up a bit, using an instant pudding mix, fat free Greek yogurt, along with water, oil and eggs. If you don’t have Greek yogurt, you can always use sour cream. My squiggle isn’t so much a squiggle, but a blob of a line. ☺. You can use whatever cake flavor you want, but just use a corresponding flavor pudding mix. I used jumbo cupcake liners here too! a reminder to preheat your oven to 350 degrees before baking.

  • Cupcake ingredients
  • 1 cake mix
  • 3.4 oz instant pudding mix
  • 4 eggs
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 3/4 cup oil
  • 1 cup Greek yogurt
  • 1 cup chocolate chips

Cupcake Directions – preheat oven to 350 degrees for 20 minutes. Line a jumbo cupcake pan with jumbo cupcake liners. In a bowl combine cake mix, pudding mix, oil, eggs and water. Blend in Greek yogurt, then chocolate chips. Scoop put 1/2 cups of batter into each cupcake liner. Bake 13 to 18 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool completely

  • Filling ingredients
  • 1/4 cup butter, softened
  • 1 cup marshmallow fluff
  • 2-3 cups powdered sugar
  • Milk

Filling Directions – combine butter, fluff and powdered sugar. Add milk, a tsp at a time, if you want to thin it out a bit.

  • Frosting ingredients
  • 1 stick butter, melted
  • 2/3 cup baking cocoa
  • 3 cups powdered sugar
  • 2 tbs milk

Frosting Directions – combine all ingredients

  • Squiggle ingredients
  • 1/4 cup butter
  • 1 cup powdered sugar
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 2-3 tsp milk

Squiggle Directions – blend well. Put in a small Ziploc baggie and cut off a small corner

Cut out a cone from the cup of each cupcake.

Set cone aside.

Fill the hole with fluff filling.

Replace cone, gently pushing in.

Frost.

Top with squiggle.

Store in covered container.

Conga/chocolate chip/tollhouse cookie bars

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Someone cut these while they were hot!

These cookie bars seem to go by various names – Conga bars, chocolate chip cookie bars, tollhouse bars. Really they are a chocolate chip cookie dough baked in bar form. I got a late start on them tonight, so I melted the butter to speed up the process. I also added an extra yolk and some cornstarch to make them soft. I know they seem a little underdone after 30-32 minutes, but that is enough time. They will continue to bake in the pan and will be just fine once they cool completely. ( if you cook them too long, they will become dry! And that is not acceptable. )

  • Ingredients
  • 1 cup butter, melted
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 3 /4 cup brown sugar
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 yolk
  • 2 1/2 cups flour (scooped from your flour container into your measuring cup to ensure the right amount)
  • 2 tsp cornstarch
  • 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 2 cups chocolate chips

Directions – preheat oven to 350 degrees for 20 minutes. Line an 8×8 pan with tin foil and spray with baking spray. In a bowl, combine butter, brown sugar, sugar. Add eggs, yolk, vanilla. Fold in dry ingredients. Add 1 1/2 cups,chips. Press evenly into prepared pan. Gently press remaining 1/2 cup chips on top. Bake 30-32 minutes (light golden patches on top). Cool completley. Store in covered container.

Is anything better than a chocolate chip cookie like dessert? (only a Buffalo Bills win)

Mrs Thomas’ Chocolate Chippers

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Mrs Thomas’ Chocolate Chippers

This recipe was given to me by my dear friend Jeff’s mom. Mrs. Thomas is a wonderful woman who I have know since my Geneseo days. She knows how much I love to bake and was kind enough to share this with me. These cookies are marvelous! They use melted butter, so you can whip them up in no time. (A big plus). I used milk chocolate chips and pecans this time. You can use whatever flavor chips you wish. And if pecans are not your thing, try walnuts or macadamias. I made these quite large (1/4 cup), so I think I got 18 total.

  • Ingredients
  • 1 cup butter, melted
  • 11/2 cups sugar
  • 3/4 cup brown sugar
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 2 tsp baking soda
  • 2 tsp vanilla
  • 2 eggs
  • 2 1/2 to 3 cups flour (I used 3)
  • 1 1/2 cups chocolate chips
  • 1 cup chopped pecans

Directions – In a bowl, combine butter, sugar, brown sugar, salt, baking soda, cornstarch, salt and vanilla. Add eggs. fold in flour. Mix in chips and nuts. Scoop out 1/4 cups of dough. Chill for a couple of hours. Preheat oven to 350 degrees for 20 minutes. On a cookie sheet lined with nonstick baking liners, stagger cookies. Bake 11 to 15 minutes (light golden patches on top) cool completley. Store in covered container.

Chocolate cutout cookies (they are decorated as basketballs, which you probably can’t tell)

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This, is a basketball

The NBA playoffs are in full swing.  I thought I would try to make some basketball cutout cookies.  The chocolate cookies,  buttercream frosting and chocolate stripes all taste great

My decorating is a disaster!  But you will like these cookies.

It still tastes good!

Next time, I may try chocolate mini m&ms as the stripes!

  • Cookie ingredients
  • 1 cup butter, softened
  • 1 cup brown sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 1 tsp chocolate extract (or vanilla)
  • 2 1/4 cups flour
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1/4 cup baking cocoa
  • 1/4 tsp salt

Directions – cream butter and brown sugar. Add egg and extract. Fols,in,dry ingredients. On a floured surface, roll out to desired thickness and cut with a round cookie cutter. I chilled the dough for a few hours so the cookies would not spread. Preheat an oven to 350 degrees for 20 minutes. On a cookie tin lined with nonstick baking liners, stagger cookies.

Bake 10 minutes. Let cool completely.

  • Frosting ingredients
  • 3/4 cup butter, softened
  • 2 cups powdered sugar
  • 1tbs heavy cream,or milk
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • Red and yellow food coloring

Directions – cream butter and powdered sugar. Add milk and vanilla. Using directions for orange on food coloring box, add food coloring. Frost cookies.

  • Chocolate icing ingredients and directions
  • 4 tbs butter, softened
  • 1 cup powdered sugar
  • 2 tbs baking cocoa
  • Milk
  • Blend butter, powdered sugar and cocoa. Add enough milk, 1 tsp at a time to get the right consistency to pipe on stripes. (I cut off the end of a sandwich baggied and piped it, disastrously, as you can see). Store in covered container.

Monster size chocolate chip cookies

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Now,that’s a cookie!

You may want to schedule an extra workout session, run or walk before eating one of THESE chocolate chip cookies to burn off the extra calories. To say they are large is an understatement! Everyone loves chocolate chip cookies, so instead of having two or 3, just have one of these and call it a day! These use a mix of cake flour and all purpose flour. If you don’t have cake flour, you can make it by sifting 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour with 1 1/2 tbs cornstarch. Also, I was in a rush and only had cold butter to work with, so I used a cheese grater to shred it so I could work with it quickly.

  • Ingredients
  • 1 cup butter, cold, grated with a cheese grater
  • 1 cup brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 2 yolks
  • 2 1/2 cups flour
  • 1 1/2 cups cake flour
  • 1 tbs cornstarch
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 2 cups chocolate chips

Directions – cream grated cold butter, brown sugar and sugar. Add eggs and yolks. Fold in dry ingredients. Mix in chips. Divide dough evenly into thirds. Then divide each third in half. Then, divide each remaining dough pieces in half. There are your 12 cookies., pile dough into mounds. Chill at least a few hours. Preheat oven to 400 degrees fpr 20 minutes. On a cookie sheet lined with nonstick baking liners, bake 10 to 12 minutes. There will be light golden spots on top. Cool on sheets completely. Do not be like my husband and grab one while it is still hot. 😳 store in covered container.

When it comes to cookies, the bigger, the better!

Brownie cookies stuffed with Hershey Kisses and topped with melted milk chocolate and mini m&ms

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Welcome home NHL!

With the news that ESPN is getting back the NHL, I felt I needed to celebrate with an extra special treat. So I decided on chocolate brownie cookies. Stuffed with Hershey Kisses. Topped with melted milk chocolate AND mini M&Ms. Does that give you an indication about how happy I am the NHL is back?😁😁

Chocolate chocolate chocolate!
  • Ingredients
  • 3/4 cup butter, softened
  • 1 cup brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 tsp chocolate extract (opt)
  • 2/3 cup semisweet chocolate chips, melted
  • 2 cups flour
  • 1/3 cup baking cocoa
  • 1 tsp baking soda

Directions – cream butter, brown sugar and sugar. Add eggs and extract. Mix in melted chocolate chips. Fold in,dry ingredients. Scoop out 1/4 cups of dough. Divide in half. Slightly flatten each half.

On one half of dough, place a Hershey kiss.

Top with second flattened half.

Seal edges.

Chill cookies a few hours. Preheat an oven to 350 for 20 minutes. Line a cookie sheet with nonstick baking liners. Stagger cookies. Bake 9 to 12 minutes. Cool completely.

Topping ingredients and instructions – in a microwave safe bowl melt 2 cups of milk chocolate chips in 30 second increments until you can stir smooth. Add 1 tbs vegetable oil. Spoon on top on cookies. Sprinkle with m&ms. Store in covered container.

M&M’s make everything better!

Big wheels/Ding Dongs/Ring Dings

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Another hostess challenge answered!

These treats were a request from my husband, Rob. They have different names – big wheels/Ding dongs/Ring dings, but seem to be basically the same thing, made by Hostess. He asked if I could make “Big Wheels.” Honestly, I never heard of them. The only Big Wheels I knew of where the bike we all had as little kids! Anyways, I learned Big Wheels by Hostess, were a bigger version of Ding Dongs, which seem to be remarkably like ring dings. Just an individual chocolate cake, filled with a fluff filling and covered In melted chocolate. In my hometown, I remember Stroehmanns seemed to be the king in stores, and they had a lot of the same type of treats as Hostess. My favorites were the Sno balls, especially the pink ones. Anyways, here is the recipe for Big Wheels. I made them with a homemade chocolate cake recipe, but next time I would use a cake mix because it would be easier and faster..and frankly, cake is cake. They are a little messy in the pictures, but my ESPN Radio work family will like them on Monday. (And I didn’t waste the leftover cake after the cutouts! I smooshed it all together and formed whoopie pies! )

  • Ingredients
  • 1 chocolate cake mix, baked in round pans and cooled completely
  • 1/4 cup butter softened
  • 3/4 cup marshmallow fluff
  • 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
  • Heavy cream/milk

Directions – invert cooled cakes onto parchment paper. Using a round cookie cutter, cut out circles. In a bowl, mix butter, fluff and powdered sugar. Add enough heavy cream or milk to get thr consistency you want.

Cut out a cone of each individual cake and save it.

Fill the hole with a spoon of filling

Replace the cone of cake over the hole,and gently press in.

Cover with melted chocolate and store in covered container.

As you can see, I struggle decorating with melted chocolate