Desserts

99 Flavors of Bars: #1 Peach Streusel Bars

/ Leslie / 2 Comments

It is peach season here in Georgia.  Yesterday we went peach and blackberry picking at a local farm.  The peach trees laden with heavy fruit look just beautiful.

20180616_095726

The peaches were so plentiful it took only a few minutes to pick a peck of peaches.

20180616_095737

Now I have to use all of these peaches.  My daughter dreamed up the idea for these Peach Struesel Bars.  I’m glad they turned out so perfectly.

They start with a blondie base.

blondie base

Which is then topped with sweetened chunks of peaches.

sweetened peach chunksAnd finally, a streusel crumb is added to the top.

peach streusel bars before baking

I love that these bars aren’t overly sweet.

Peach Streusel Bars

If you can get your hands on some fresh peaches, definitely give these a try.

Peach Streusel Bars

Peach Streusel Bars

  • Servings: 16 small bars
  • Print

A blondie bar base topped with diced peaches and streusel

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup butter, melted
  • 1 cup light brown sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 1 egg white
  • 1 ts vanilla extract
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 ts baking powder
  • 1/4 ts salt

Peach topping

  • 3 large peaches, pealed and chopped
  • 1/3 cup white sugar
  • 1 Tb all-purpose flour

Streusel topping

  • 2 Tb butter, melted
  • 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/4 cup white sugar
  • 1 dash cinnamon
  • 1 dash salt

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line an 8×8 inch baking pan with parchment paper.

2. Stir together the peach topping ingredients in a microwave safe bowl.  Microwave on high 2-3 minutes until the mixture is bubbly.  Let sit while preparing the blondie base.

2. In a large bowl, stir brown sugar into melted butter until well combined.  Stir in egg, egg white, and vanilla.  Blend in flour, baking soda, and salt until fully combined.  Spread the mixture evenly into the prepared baking pan.

3. Using a slotted spoon, spread peach chunks all over the blondie base.  Let most of the juice drain away as you’re scooping.  Slightly press the peaches into the base.

4. Prepare the streusel topping: fluff all of the streusel toppings in a small bowl until small balls of crumbs form.  Sprinkle over the top of the bars.

5. Bake in the oven for 25-30 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

99-taste.com

99 Flavors of Ice Cream Sandwiches: # 1 Double Pistachio Ice Cream Sandwiches

/ Leslie / 1 Comment

This might quite literally be one of the most amazing, delicious desserts I have ever had.  The chewy, sweet cookies combined with the slightly sweet, creamy ice cream is simply divine.  I wish I had an ice cream truck to share these…

The cookies are simple and can be whipped up in just 20 minutes.  I used my Pistachio Pudding Cookies recipe without chilling the dough.

pistachio pudding cookies for ice cream sandwiches

I used Talenti brand pistachio gelato for the inside of my ice cream sandwich.  I love the extra creaminess of gelato.  You can sit the ice cream or gelato outside of the freezer for about a half an hour to make scooping and squishing between the cookies easier.

20180527_193524

Rolling the outside edges of ice cream in slivered almonds adds a little bit of crunch.

Double Pistachio Ice Cream Sandwich

Double Pistachio Ice Cream Sandwich

Sink your teeth into this green beauty – the textures and flavor are truly amazing!

Double Pistachio Ice Cream Sandwich

Double Pistachio Ice Cream Sandwiches

  • Servings: 8-9 sandwiches
  • Print

Two chewy pistachio pudding cookies filled with pistachio gelato.

Ingredients

Directions

1. Follow the recipe for Pistachio Pudding Cookies, but do not chill the dough.  After mixing the batter, drop by large tablespoonfuls onto parchment lined cookie sheets.  Bake in the 375 degree oven for 8 minutes.  Do not roll in powdered sugar.  Let the cookies cool.

2. Take the ice cream or gelato out of the freezer 30 minutes before serving the ice cream sandwiches, if desired (for ease of scooping).  Crush the slivered almonds into smaller pieces onto a small plate.

3. Sandwich a scoop of pistachio ice cream/gelato between two pistachio pudding cookies.  Roll the outside edges of the ice cream in the crushed slivered almonds.

99-taste.com

99 Types of Cookies: # 3 Banana Pudding Cookies

/ Leslie / Leave a comment

These Banana Pudding Cookies are AMAZING and EASY!  They are another concoction thanks to my daughter.  After taste testing, she described them as “sweet, with melty, gooey chips, and a surprising crunch.”  The crunch is provided by vanilla wafers, which are paired with white chocolate chips in a banana-flavored cookie dough.  Banana pudding turned cookie!  Yum!

20180428_110432.jpg

You can whip these cookies up in 20 minutes.  No chilling required, just mix and drop and they turn out beautifully chewy.

banana pudding cookies ready for baking

I think these are a new favorite of mine.

Banana Pudding Cookie

This recipe bakes up 24 cookies, perfect for sharing.

20180428_113343.jpg

20180428_154400.jpg

Banana Pudding Cookies

Banana Pudding Cookies

  • Servings: about 24 cookies
  • Print

Chewy banana pudding cookies studded with white chocolate chips and vanilla wafer pieces

Ingredients

  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • ½ ts baking soda
  • ½ cup margarine, softened (use one with a high vegetable oil content like Land O’Lakes)
  • 2 Tb white sugar
  • 1/2 cup light brown sugar
  • 1 3.4 oz pkg instant banana pudding
  • 1 egg
  • 1 cup white chocolate chips
  • 8 vanilla wafer cookies
  • yellow food coloring, optional

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.

2. Beat margarine, brown sugar, and white sugar until completely creamy. Beat in banana pudding mix until fully combined with the butter mixture, then beat in the egg.  Add a few drops of yellow food coloring, if desired.  Mix in flour and baking soda until fully incorporated.  Break the vanilla wafers into pieces and add them to the cookie dough, along with the white chocolate chips.  Stir until combined.

 
3. Use a cookie scoop or large spoon to drop by tablespoonfuls on cookie sheet.  Bake in upper third of oven for 8-9 minutes.  Do not over bake.  Cookies will appear underdone, but will set while cooling.  Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

99-taste.com

99 Types of Cookies: # 2 Strawberry Pudding Confetti Cookies

/ Leslie / Leave a comment

These Strawberry Pudding Confetti Cookies are a variation of my Pistachio Pudding Cookies.  My daughter came up with the idea, and after making these she thought they’d be great for a birthday party, which they would!  They are easy, sweet, and chewy.  The sprinkles add festive color and the dough is just barely pink, but you could add food coloring to make it brighter.

20180325_112514

The drops of dough look like little balls of strawberry ice cream with sprinkles.

20180325_113004.jpg

These cookies bake up really soft, so be careful when transferring to a rack to cool.

20180325_114319

These cookies are sweet, soft, chewy, and gooey – just like the pistachio version!

Strawberry Pudding Confetti Cookies

Super simple – just mix, drop, and bake and you’ve got a sweet treat.

Strawberry Pudding Confetti Cookie

20180325_120627

Strawberry Pudding Confetti Cookies

  • Servings: about 18-20 cookies
  • Print

Soft and chewy strawberry flavored cookies with rainbow sprinkles

Credit: 99Taste original by Leslie

Ingredients

  • 1 cup plus 2 Tb all-purpose flour
  • ½ ts baking soda
  • ½ cup margarine, softened (use one with a high vegetable oil content like Land O’Lakes)
  • ¼ cup white sugar
  • ¼ cup plus 2 Tb light brown sugar
  • ¼ ts vanilla extract
  • 3 Tb instant strawberry pudding, dry
  • 1 egg
  • 1/3 cup rainbow sprinkles
  • pink food coloring, optional

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.

2. Beat margarine, brown sugar, and white sugar until creamy. Beat in strawberry pudding mix and vanilla until fully combined. Beat in egg. Mix in flour and baking soda, dough will be stiff.  Blend in pink food coloring to desired color, if using.  Stir in rainbow sprinkles.
3. Use a cookie scoop or large spoon to drop by large tablespoonfuls on cookie sheet.  Bake for about 10 mins, until bottoms are just barely golden.  Cookies will appear underdone, but will set while cooling.  Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

99 Types of Cookies: # 1 Pistachio Pudding Cookies

/ Leslie / 2 Comments

I absolutely love pistachios – both the taste and the color.  These Pistachio Pudding Cookies have the most amazing flavor and texture!  They are easy to make and perfect for St. Patrick’s Day, since they are green, or delicious enough to have any time.

The pistachio pudding mix makes the dough a split pea soup color, so I added about four drops of green food coloring to get a prettier hue.

20180311_131555

The cookies bake up perfectly.

20180311_145239

Let the cookies cool slightly before rolling in powdered sugar.  Be careful if they are still a bit warm, because they will be soft and fragile.

20180311_145912

These cookies are sweet, soft, chewy, and gooey.

20180311_150107.jpg

Try them for yourself!

Stack of Pistachio Pudding Cookies

Pistachio Pudding Cookies

  • Servings: about 2 dozen cookies
  • Print

Soft and chewy pistachio-flavored cookies

Credit: 99Taste original by Leslie

Ingredients

  • 1 cup plus 2 Tb all-purpose flour
  • ½ ts baking soda
  • ½ cup margarine, softened (use one with a high vegetable oil content like Land O’Lakes)
  • 2 Tb white sugar
  • ¼ cup plus 2 Tb light brown sugar
  • ¼ ts vanilla extract
  • 1 4 oz. package instant pistachio pudding dry mix
  • 1 egg
  • ½ cup powdered sugar
  • green food coloring

Directions

1. Beat margarine, brown sugar, and white sugar until creamy. Beat in pistachio pudding mix and vanilla. Beat in egg. Mix in flour and baking soda.  Blend in green food coloring to desired color.
2. Wrap dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
3. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Roll tablespoonfuls of dough into round balls and place 2 inches apart on parchment lined cookie sheet.
4. Bake for 8-10 minutes, until bottoms are just slightly browned. When cookies have cooled slightly, carefully roll in powdered sugar.

99 Ways with the Instant Pot: # 1 Instant Pot Upside Down Peach Pudding

/ Leslie / Leave a comment

I’m new to the Instant Pot game.  But I really want to expand my instant pot recipes.  For this peach pudding, I re-vamped a baked version from Southern Living magazine to work in the instant pot.  The result is a spongy pudding that is just slightly sweet, perfect with vanilla ice cream.

For this recipe you will need a 6 qt Instant Pot and a 7″ springform pan or another deep-sided dish that fits inside your Instant Pot.

One large ripe peach that is sliced fits perfectly in the bottom of a 7″ springform.

20180213_174044

Chopped peaches and buttermilk are blended to add moistness to the pudding.

20180213_174930

After you mix all the ingredients, the batter will be thin.  I loved the hint of cinnamon.

20180213_175454

Pour the batter over the sliced peaches.

20180213_175755

Pour 1 cup of water into the bottom of the instant pot.  Set the trivet down inside.  Wrap both the bottom and top of the pudding with aluminum foil, then make a long strip of foil and place it under the pan.  Make sure it is long enough that you can hold the ends to lower and lift the pan out of the instant pot.

20180213_180015

20180213_175948

Once you’ve lowered the pudding into the instant pot, seal on the lid.  Make sure the steam release handle is set to “sealing.”  Select “pressure cook” and set the timer to 50 minutes.  When the timer goes off, turn the steam handle to “venting” to quick release the steam.  Once the pressure valve has gone down, you can remove the lid and use the handles from the foil sling to lift out the pan.

20180213_193512

Dig in with your spoon, and you’ll find the tender peaches on the bottom.

20180213_193749

To take this dessert to the next level, serve with vanilla ice cream.  Yum!

20180213_194001

Instant Pot Upside Down Peach Pudding

  • Servings: 6
  • Print

Tender peaches topped with a lightly sweetened spongy cake topping

Credit: adapted from Southern Living magazine

Ingredients

  • 3/4 cup flour
  • 1/2 ts baking soda
  • 1/2 ts baking powder
  • 1/2 ts salt
  • 1 large peach, sliced
  • 1 large peach, chopped
  • 1/2 cup buttermilk
  • 1/4 cup butter, softened
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1 large egg

    • vanilla ice cream

Directions

  1. Grease a 7″ springform pan, or another deep-sided dish that will fit inside your instant pot.  Lay sliced peaches on bottom of pan.
  2. In a blender, puree the chopped peaches until smooth.  Add the buttermilk and blend until mixed.  Set aside.
  3. Beat butter and sugar at high speed in a stand mixer or with a hand beater until light and fluffy.  Beat in egg.  Pour in your reserved peach buttermilk mixture and stir by hand until blended.  Fold in flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt until well mixed.  Pour batter over peaches in springform pan.
  4. Cover bottom and top of pan with aluminum foil.  Make a sling out of a long piece of foil and place under the pan so that the sides are tall enough to hold onto.  Pour 1 cup of water into the bottom of the instant pot and place the trivet inside.  Holding the ends of the foil sling, lower the springform pan into the instant pot.  Place and seal on the lid, making sure the steam release handle is turned to “sealing.”  Set the instant pot to pressure cook for 50 minutes.
  5. When the instant pot timer is done, quick release the steam handle.  When the pressure valve has gone down, open the lid and remove the pan by lifting the ends of the foil sling.  Serve the peach pudding warm with vanilla ice cream.

 

99 Flavors of Cake Balls: # 1 Chocolate Chip Little Muffin Cake Balls

/ Leslie / Leave a comment

While staring at my daughter’s pile of half-eaten bags of little muffins, I had a genius idea.  Why not make cake balls out of them? – thereby, cutting out the need to bake a cake first!

I tried it out right away and they came out perfectly the first time.  No baking a cake required – I just crumbled the little muffins right into a bowl!

20180204_103455Mixing, or should I say mushing, in the frosting was a lot of fun.

20180204_103746

I was able to make 18 little muffin cake balls, ready to go in the freezer before dipping.

20180204_104741

I used a Wilton chocolate melting pot to make dipping easier.  It keeps the chocolate at a perfect low, but warm temperature for velvety smoothness.  You can dip all of your balls without the chocolate hardening and having to reheat it.

20180204_121341

When I took my first bite – yum! – exactly what I was hoping for.  Chewy, dense, chocolatey and sweet.

20180204_135727

I used Entenmann’s Chocolate Chip Little Muffins and Duncan Hines Creamy Classic Chocolate frosting for this recipe.  Using pre-packaged ingredients makes this recipe easy.  Enjoy!

Chocolate Chip Little Muffin Cake Balls

  • Servings: 18 balls
  • Difficulty: easy
  • Print

No-bake cake balls made with mini chocolate chip muffins

Calories per ball = 169

Ingredients

  • 20 mini chocolate chip muffins (5 packages)
  • 8 oz chocolate frosting (1/2 of a 16 oz container)
  • 4 oz semi-sweet baking chocolate
  • 1 ts coconut oil

Directions

1. Crumble all of the mini muffins in a bowl.  Blend in half of a 16 oz container of chocolate frosting.  Form the mixture into small balls, about 1 inch in diameter.  Place the balls in the freezer for at least 1 hour.

2.  Shortly before removing the balls from the freezer, melt 4 oz of semi-sweet baking chocolate with 1 ts of coconut oil in 30 second increments in the microwave.  Stir the chocolate after each 30 seconds until smooth and fully melted.  (I used a Wilton chocolate melting pot for this step, placing the chocolate and coconut oil on high until melted,then reducing to low.)

3.  Remove cake balls from the freezer.  Lay out a sheet of wax paper.  Dip and roll each cake ball in the melted chocolate until completely covered.  Place on waxed paper to set.  Once partially set, place the muffin cake balls in the fridge to set completely.  Store in the fridge in an airtight container.

99-taste.com