EASYBAKED

German Apple Torte (Apfelkuchen)

Posted on December 4, 2025 by Ruthanne

I married into this recipe. My very first time visiting my husband’s grandma Gisela (Gisi, to us), she made this unbelievably delicious apple cake. I don’t even like cooked apples, but I politely took a piece and LOVED it!!!

With all of my heart, I believe we need to carry the recipes of the ones we love forward into new generations. I’ve featured recipes from both of my grandmas, my aunts and my mom here on the Easybaked blog, and I knew that this recipe needed to be shared with the world. Last week, grandma Gisi patiently explained her recipe (translated from German) so that I could try it, and the results made me smile.

This was how she greeted us on our visit last week- the birthday we were celebrating was my husband’s.

Grandma Gisi grew up in Neumarkt, a town in Bavaria, Germany. Her aunt Minni used to make this cake, and now she has made it for her own family occasions for years. To me, it feels like shortbread or butter cookies with a big sweet layer of tart apples in the middle. Is it a cake? A torte? It’s like nothing I’ve ever had before and it’s delicious!

Want to try it? Here’s the recipe (in English!!!) (printable recipe here)

Ingredients:

12 medium McIntosh apples, peeled, cored and thinly sliced
Juice from one lemon
3-4 Tablespoons of water
1 1/3 cup of granulated sugar (divided into two 2/3 portions)
2 teaspoons of cinnamon
2 3/4 cups of flour (may need a little extra if dough is sticky)
2 sticks of butter plus 2 Tablespoons, softened to room temperature
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 Tablespoon of baking powder
1/4 cup of powdered sugar (to sift over the top of cake)

Directions: (pay attention to my extra notes!)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Prepare a 26cm (or 10 inch) springform pan by spraying it with cooking spray.
Place prepared apples, lemon juice, 2/3 cup sugar, and cinnamon into a large pot and cook over the stove on medium heat, stirring to prevent them from burning.
Cook apples until they are softened but not mushy and set aside. *Note: the amount of water needed depends on the size of your apples, so if your mixture is soupy after cooking (small apples), spoon some of the liquid away until the apples are still covered in a light sauce, but not dripping with it.*
In a mixing bowl, cream together butter with 2/3 cup sugar, and add eggs and vanilla.
Add flour and baking powder, and mix until combined.
Knead dough together with your hands until it is smooth. Start with 2 and 3/4 cups of flour and if it is sticky, add a little extra flour until it is a nice roll-out cookie dough consistency.
Divide dough into 2 equal parts, and press one part into the bottom of your springform pan, pushing the edge up a little along the sides (to hold the apple filling in a bit). Think cookie- not cake. I was surprised at how thin the layer of dough was, but it rose some in the oven.
Bake this bottom layer at 350 degrees for about 12 minutes to firm it up a little.
Remove from oven, pour apple filling in and spread it to cover the base.
Press bits of the remaining dough flat with your hands and lay it on the top of the apples, pinching together each section to form a complete layer of dough on top of the apples. *Note: This step sounded difficult to me, so I simply rolled a 10 inch circle of the dough on parchment paper using a rolling pin, and flipped it over the apple layer like a pie crust*
Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes (when you can see that it is beginning to brown a little on top, it is done).
Cool and sift powdered sugar over the top before serving.
Enjoy!

My thoughts: Other than the apple prep, this cake is really simple to make. Grandma Gisi told me that to make this cake the correct German way, you really need to purchase a 26cm springform pan. I found that a 10 inch one worked fine as well, but if you want to stay true to the original recipe, you should get that 26cm pan 🙂 I really hope you try and enjoy this delicious cake! Recipes from grandma are always the best!

Other delicious family recipes you might want to try (click a photo to see the recipe):

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Posted in Cakes, Pies, Tarts and tagged apfelkuchen, apple cake, apple dessert, apple torte, baking, cake, cookies, dessert, family recipe, fruit dessert, german dessert, layer cake, recipe, recipes. Bookmark the permalink.

S’mOreos!

Posted on November 14, 2025 by Ruthanne

These are one of my new favorite treats! Take a S’more, add an Oreo, and you have… a S’mOreo! These take a little while to put together, but the end result is SO worth the effort!

(The links to Amazon in this recipe are affiliate links. Your purchases help to support future recipe creations here on Easybaked!)

One note to make: Originally I made these, and photographed them on sticks, like an Oreo pop, but since then, I have made them in a mold without a stick, and they were much easier to eat, as they are very heavy on a stick. You choose which way you like them best, but use the correct Oreo mold (with sticks or without).

Ready to give these a try? Here is a printable recipe.

INGREDIENTS:

24 Double Stuf Oreos
2 12 oz bags of Wiltons Candy melts in dark cocoa
1 12 oz bag of Wiltons Candy melts in white
1 small jar of marshmallow fluff
About 8-10 graham crackers
24 Hershey’s milk chocolate drops
You will also need a 1 inch circle cookie cutter

DIRECTIONS:

Cut 24 1 inch circles out of graham crackers, and brush away crumbs.
Melt both white and cocoa candy melts in microwave-safe bowl in 30 second increments, stirring in between until smooth.
Place a small amount (1/4 cup) of dark cocoa melts into a zip-top bag and clip a small corner.
Using a fork, dip graham crackers into white chocolate melts. Tap fork on edge of bowl and drag bottom of cracker along edge to get off excess white chocolate.
Slide onto parchment paper and drizzle lines of dark cocoa across the top. Squeeze the remaining cocoa melts back into the bowl with the rest of the cocoa melts.
Set a Hershey drop on top and allow this to cool and harden.

Slide sticks into Oreos at this point (if using).
Using a knife, spread a layer of marshmallow fluff on top of 4 Oreos.
Spoon about 1 tablespoon of cocoa melts into each mold cavity.
Press an Oreo into each cavity, allowing melts to rise up along sides.
Spoon a little more of the candy melts on top, and tap on counter to get bubbles out and fill in along the sides. Note: if you have these clear molds, you can lift them up and check for any areas that might have bubbles or where the melts aren’t covering the Oreo, and use a toothpick to poke those out and allow the candy melts to fill in.
Allow candy melts to harden. I put these on a small cookie sheet and freeze them for about 5 minutes to speed up the process.
Turn the mold over and tap to release the covered Oreo.
Once these are room temperature, use a little of the white melts (reheat if needed) to spread on the bottom of each covered graham cracker and then press on top of covered Oreo.
Allow this to harden, and wrap in a little cello bag to keep fresh. These will stay fresh for about 1 week if they are kept wrapped in one of these.

My thoughts: YUM! These are my favorite variety of Oreo dessert I’ve made so far (and we love Oreos around here!) Nick, my favorite taste-testing hubby agrees. These are the perfect blend of flavors! I really hope you get a chance to try them! Enjoy! ~r

In case you love Oreo desserts, and want a few more ideas, click on a photo to see the recipe!

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Posted in Cake Pops, oreo pops and tagged baking, Campfire dessert, chocolate, dessert, food, marshmallow, oreo, Oreo dessert, recipes, s'mores, S'mores desserts, smores, smores desserts. Bookmark the permalink.

Friendly Monster Oreo Pops

Posted on October 26, 2025 by Ruthanne

These friendly purple monsters are filled with an Oreo, and are sure to make the kids in your life smile this Halloween!

(The links to Amazon in this recipe are affiliate links. Your purchases help to support future recipe creations!)

Usually, I dip my Oreo pops, but this time I used some Oreo Pop molds (got mine here), and I love how they turned out! If you don’t want to purchase molds, these would be just fine dipped as well (instructions here). You could also save some time on these by purchasing the large eyes, but I wanted to save a little on the cost (and I already had both white and black candy melts).

Want to know how to make these fun little monsters??? Here we go! (Printable recipe here)

INGREDIENTS:

One package of Double Stuf Oreos
2 12oz packages of Wilton Candy Melts (in purple)
1 12 oz package of Wilton Candy Melts (in white)
1 12 oz package of Wilton Candy Melts (in black- you will not need the entire bag)
24 Lollipop sticks

DIRECTIONS:

Slide a lollipop stick into each Oreo, making sure it doesn’t come out of the top.
Melt purple candy melts in the microwave in 30 second increments, stirring in between, until melted and smooth.
Spoon about 1 tablespoon of melts into each mold cavity

Press an Oreo into each cavity, allowing melts to rise up along sides.
Spoon a little more of the candy melts on top, and tap on counter to get bubbles out and fill in along the sides. Note: if you have these clear molds, you can lift them up and check for any areas that might have bubbles or where the melts aren’t covering the Oreo, and use a toothpick to poke those out and allow the candy melts to fill in.
Allow candy melts to harden. I put these on a small cookie sheet and freeze them for about 5 minutes to speed up the process.
Turn the mold over and tap to release the covered Oreo.

For the eyes (if you do not purchase them), put some melted white candy melts into a zip-top bag and clip a corner.
Put some melted black candy melts into a bag as well, and clip a smaller corner.
On parchment or wax paper, squeeze the white candy melts out into a 3/4″ to 1″ circle.
Use the black candy melts to squeeze a pupil in the center of the white to create a big eyeball.
Allow your eyes to harden up.
Mix a little white into any leftover purple candy melts you have, to make lavender. Put this lighter purple into a zip-top bag and clip a corner.
Squeeze some lavender melts onto the top-middle of the Oreo pop and press an eye on top until the lighter purple squeezes out around the edges.
Pipe a little half-smile under the eye.
Allow everything to harden up.
Tie these up in cute little bags (I LOVE these ones because they fit a covered Oreo perfectly and leave room to tie a ribbon under it!) to make them last longer (they will last 4-6 weeks in tied bags) and ENJOY!!

My thoughts: These turned out exactly as I pictured them in my mind, and I love that they aren’t scary 🙂 Be creative with yours- maybe you need three eyes or a different color? However you decide to make them, I hope you enjoy the process and the results! ~r

Other monster-y recipes you might enjoy:

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Posted in Halloween, Kids recipes, oreo pops and tagged baking, chocolate covered oreos, dessert, food, Halloween dessert, Halloween Oreo Pop, Halloween party idea, monster cookies, monster halloween, Monster Oreo Pop, Oreo pop, oreo pops, recipe, recipes, spooky oreo. Bookmark the permalink.

Gum Ball Machine Oreo Pops

Posted on July 22, 2025 by Ruthanne

These fun little gum ball machines aren’t filled with gum balls, but with a yummy Oreo! Easy to make, these little treats are sure to bring smiles!

It’s no secret that we love to try new versions of Oreo Pops around here. In fact, the very first time I tried making cake pops (an utter, embarrassing failure), I had the thought… maybe I could put a cookie- like an Oreo- on a stick and dip it in chocolate instead! I searched the internet for an example of this and couldn’t find anyone else who’d tried it. Does this mean I invented the Oreo Pop? Maybe. Or I did a bad job on Google searching them! 🙂 In any case, from that day in 2012 on, we have turned all sorts of things into Oreo Pops! The sprinkles were the inspiration for these. Every time I used them, they reminded me of little gum balls! The basics of how to create an Oreo Pop live on in my original recipe. The only thing I have changed is a little freezer time to harden the stick in place before dipping.

Let’s make these! (printable recipe is found here)

INGREDIENTS:

One package of Double Stuf Oreos
2 (12oz.) bags of Wilton White Candy Melts
24 Lollipop sticks (I like the 6-8 inch ones)
Small, round sprinkles (for the gum balls)
Silver dragees (for top knob)
White heart sprinkles (Or you could use squares too- for the coin slot)
Dots Candy (for the stand)

DIRECTIONS: (to see pictures, refer to my original “how-to” post here)

Carefully twist apart all of the Oreo cookies.
Using one of the pop sticks, make an indentation in the white filling of each cookie.
On the rest of the sticks, slide one red Dots candy about an inch down the stick. Yes, it is sticky, and leaves a trail of red on the stick, but this part will go inside the Oreo.
Melt the Candy Melts in the microwave in 30 second increments, stirring until completely melted and smooth.
Dip the end of one stick into the melted white chocolate, drizzle a little in the center of the white cookie filling and then gently press it into the indentation made, making sure that the Dots Candy is right up against the bottom of the cookie.
Place the top of the cookie back on and allow white chocolate to harden (5 minutes or so), cementing the cookie back together with a stick inside. (I like to place all the cookies on a small baking sheet and set them in the freezer for a few minutes to really firm them up before dipping)
Holding the stick, lower the entire Oreo into the bowl of melted white chocolate, spooning it over the top and sides to cover it completely, but being careful to not get too much on the Dots Candy.
Allow the excess chocolate to drain off, and slide the bottom of the cookie against the lip of the bowl to remove excess. Then, gently place the covered Oreo on a piece of parchment paper to harden.
Immediately (before the candy melts harden!), sprinkle the gum ball sprinkles on the bottom half of the Oreo pop, and set a dragee on the top.
Allow the pops to harden completely.
Use a little bit of the melted white candy melts to “glue” the heart sprinkle on the front of the Dots candy. Allow this to harden as well.
Eat and enjoy!!!

My thoughts: I love these little cuties! They make me smile. How fun would a mason jar of these be at a Birthday party?!? You can easily put a cello bag over each pop and tie them with a ribbon to share! I really hope you try these and enjoy them! ~r

Want to try some of our other Oreo Pops? We have a whopping TWENTY FOUR varieties on the blog- plus a couple of cute not-on-a-stick Oreo creations (scroll here to see them all)- but here are just four of my favorites (click on photo to see recipe):

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Posted in Cookies, Easy recipes, Kids recipes, oreo pops, Oreo pops and tagged baking, birthday party ideas, childrens party ideas, chocolate covered oreos, cookies, dessert, edible party favor ideas, gum ball dessert, gum ball oreo pop, Oreo pop, Oreo Pop ideas, oreos on a stick, party favor ideas, recipe, recipes. Bookmark the permalink.

Knafeh Cheesecake

Posted on April 2, 2025 by Ruthanne

A couple of years ago, while on a trip to Israel, we tried a popular Middle Eastern dessert called Knafeh (also spelled Kunafa). It is made with layers of thin, shredded pastry dough (called Kataifi), a delicious sweet cheese (called Nabulsi or Akkawi), honey or simple syrup, and pistachios. We were sitting in Jericho, the waiter brought us a complimentary piece of this, and the rest is history! I spent far too long reading up on the history of the dessert, finding a local store that sells the ingredients, and making it! (I also specifically visit middle eastern restaurants, looking for this. It’s THAT good!)

Earlier this week, I was thinking about Knafeh and began to wonder if cream cheese, in the form of a cheesecake, would be a good addition to this dessert, and this recipe was born!

Usually, the thin pastry (Kataifi) is wrapped around the cheese, baked or fried, topped with simple syrup and pistachios. So I made the crust of the Kataifi, added my very favorite cheesecake on top, and then topped the cheesecake with a giant pile of crunchy Kataifi, simple syrup and pistachios. YUM!

Want to try this? Here is the recipe: (printable recipe here)

INGREDIENTS:

For the crust:

8 oz. Kataifi (I find this frozen, in a 16 oz box, at our local Halal grocery)
3 Tablespoons butter, melted
2 Tablespoons sugar

For the cheesecake:

Filling:

3/4 cup sugar
3 (8 oz.) Philadelphia cream cheese bars (must be the Philadelphia brand)~ softened to room temperature.
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon lemon juice
pinch of salt

Sour cream cheesecake topping:

1 pint (2 cups) sour cream
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
pinch of salt

Crunchy Kataifi Topping:

Toasted Kataifi (made from original 8 ounces, used for crust)
Simple syrup (boil 1/2 cup water with 1/2 cup sugar and cool)
chopped pistachios- to taste- I like a lot of them!

DIRECTIONS:

Crust:

Heat the oven to 350 degrees
Mix kataifi with butter and sugar in a bowl until well-coated, using clean fingers.
Grease an 8 or 9 inch springform pan, place a piece of parchment paper into bottom (cut into a circle to fit), grease the top of paper.
Press half of the kataifi mixture into the bottom of the pan.
Spread the other half of the kataifi out on parchment paper-covered cookie sheet.
Bake both items at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes (until lightly browned and crunchy)
Cool
Place loose kataifi into a ziptop bag to use as topping prior to serving.

Cheesecake:

Combine the sugar and softened cream cheese in a large mixing bowl and beat together until smooth.
Add the eggs, one at a time, beating between each addition.
Add the vanilla, lemon juice and salt and beat until smooth and creamy.
Pour over crust.
Bake at 350F degrees for 35-45 minutes- I like to set the pan on a cookie sheet to prevent any leaks from getting on oven.
While cheesecake is baking, make sour cream topping by simply mixing together all of the sour cream topping ingredients.
After 35-45 minutes of baking, remove cheesecake from oven and turn oven down to 325F degrees.
Pour sour cream topping over hot cheesecake, gently spreading to edges.
Return cheesecake to oven and bake for an additional 12-15 minutes.
Remove cheesecake from oven and leave sides on pan while allowing cheesecake to cool to room temperature.
Cover and refrigerate overnight.

Crunchy Kataifi Topping: (add this just before serving)

Chop pistachios (as many as you like- I like LOTS!)
Make a simple syrup by boiling 1/2 cup water with 1/2 cup sugar until it is combined, and the sugar is completely dissolved.
Spread crunchy kataifi all over the top of the cheesecake.
Drizzle with simple syrup (enough to add sweetness, but not so much that it gets soggy)
Sprinkle with pistachios
ENJOY!

My thoughts: This fusion of knafeh and cheesecake is delicious! Two of my favorite things all together in one dessert. I wanted to drizzle some melted chocolate over the top, for a little bit of that “Dubai Chocolate” feel, but I haven’t yet! We still have two pieces left though, so I’m planning to try it. The topping gets just a little less crispy as time goes by in the fridge. If you don’t plan to serve the whole cheesecake, you might keep the toppings separate and add them to each piece. I hope you enjoy trying this recipe! If you are a cheesecake purist, this cheesecake is amazing without all the extras. You can find it here.

Other international desserts to try here on Easybaked (click a photo to see the recipe):

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Posted in Cheesecakes and tagged baking, cheesecake, dessert, desserts, Dubai chocolate, international cheesecake, international foods, kataifi, Knafeh, Knafeh cheesecake, kunafa, middle eastern dessert, pistachio dessert, recipes, sour cream cheesecake. Bookmark the permalink.

Coconut Passion Fruit Cupcakes

Posted on May 23, 2023 by Ruthanne

These pretty little cupcakes are a perfect spring treat! A delicious passion fruit filling inside the coconut cupcake puts them over the top with flavor, and it is SO easy to make (forget all those little passionfruit seeds!) These are a must-make recipe to celebrate the beginning of summer!

I already posted a recipe for this cupcake flavor combo a year or so ago, but then I noticed something in the freezer at Walmart recently. I was picking up frozen raspberries to have on my oatmeal in the mornings, and there it was: a bag of frozen passionfruit purée frozen into tiny cubes. I got some, used them on my oatmeal, and fell in love with this product! No seeds, so mess, just a sprinkle of cubes on my warm oatmeal and…. perfection!

So… here’s a second go-around with these flavors except that this time it is WAY more real-fruity, and a totally different feel than the first time I combined these ingredients in a cupcake! The first time was more flavoring from a passion fruit syrup. This time it’s all fruit! My husband says they are like a fruit-filled doughnut and that the filling is “SO good!” I like the decorations on my first cupcakes better, but had no time to make meringues today. Check it out for inspiration though!

Want to know how to make these? Here you go (printable recipe):

INGREDIENTS:

Filling:

1 12oz bag of frozen passionfruit (available at Walmart). This is equal to about 1 1/2 cups or passionfruit purée, if you are unable to find the frozen.
1 cup granulated sugar (more or less to taste- you can decide how sweet you want these!)
1 cup water
1/2 cup cornstarch

Cupcake:

1 boxed white cake mix
1/2 cup unsalted butter (1 stick) – melted
1 can (15-16oz) of coconut milk (not cream!)
4 eggs (whites only!)
1 cup shredded sweetened coconut

Frosting:

1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
2 sticks (1 cup) salted butter, softened to room temperature
2 1/2 cups of powdered sugar

DIRECTIONS:

Filling: make this first, so that it has time to chill before you need it.

Mix water and cornstarch in a small bowl and set aside.
Place entire package of frozen passion fruit cubes and sugar into a small saucepan.
Heat and stir until all cubes are melted and edges are bubbling.
Stir cornstarch slurry together again (it will settle) and gradually pour into fruit and sugar, stirring constantly. You may not need it all- so add it slowly, pause and stir. You want the sauce to be thick enough to not run out of the cupcake center (like the filling in a fruit pie). When it reaches this consistency, stop adding cornstarch, take off stove, pour into a bowl and pop into the refrigerator to cool.

Cupcakes:

Preheat oven to 350 F degrees.
Place cake mix, eggs and melted butter in large mixing bowl and beat on low for about 1 minute until well-incorporated.
Add can of coconut milk and beat on low until incorporated, and then on high for about a minute more.
Gently stir shredded coconut in using a spoon.
Scoop batter into cupcake liners placed in a cupcake tin.
Bake at 350F degrees for 14-18 minutes. Check, and when an inserted toothpick comes out clean, they are done.
Cool completely.

Frosting:

Place powdered sugar and softened butter into a large mixing bowl and beat on medium until well incorporated and starting to get fluffy (a couple minutes).
Add about half of the cooled passion fruit filling to the mixture and beat on high until light and fluffy.
Place in a zip-top bag fitted with a piping tip.

Assembly:

Hollow out a little core in each cupcake using a knife or a cupcake corer, (affiliate link) and saving the top portion to use as a “lid”.
Place remaining filling into a small zip-top bag and clip a corner off.
Pipe filling into each cupcake, and top with “lid”.
Pipe icing on top of each cupcake, sprinkle with coconut, and top with a little drop of filling, if you have enough left.
Enjoy!!!

My thoughts: I really enjoyed making these and sharing them with people. They are such cheery little cupcakes and that pop of flavor from the passionfruit in the middle is amazing! I really hope you get a chance to try these! ~r

Other fun summer cupcakes to try- just click on a photo to see the recipe!

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Posted in Cupcakes, frosting, Seasonal dessert and tagged coconut, coconut cupcakes, fruit filled cupcakes, fruity cupcakes, passionfruit, passionfruit filling, passionfruit frosting, tropical cupcakes, tropical dessert. Bookmark the permalink.

Monster Mash Treats

Posted on October 6, 2022 by Ruthanne

Cookie Monster 1-2

Take your favorite MONSTER cereal (or any other favorite cereal) and make these cute little monsters with it. Delicious and such a fun treat for Halloween!

Monster Mash2-2

Have you ever tried the fun “Monster” cereals from General Mills? As a kid, these were available all year long, but I only see them at Halloween now (so if you want to try this recipe with these cereals, you’ll need to get them in September and October- sorry friends in other countries!). I’m certain that this same recipe will work with a variety of other cereals. I was thinking that Reese’s Puffs might be fun and super yummy.

Read the rest of this entry →

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Posted in Candy, Seasonal dessert and tagged count chocula, halloween recipes, halloween treats. Bookmark the permalink.

Gingerbread Turkey Cookies

Posted on November 5, 2021 by Ruthanne

Turkey Cookie4-1 These no-bake turkey cookies have a blast of ginger, vanilla and chocolate in each bite. Plus aren’t they cute? And not a single piece of candy corn in sight!

Turkey Cookie1-1 I set out on a mission this week. To create a cute turkey cookie without using candy corn. Because candy corn is gross, in my opinion, and it seems to be the staple of all things “turkey” in the baked goods realm. I knew I wanted to use Anna’s Swedish Thin Cookies as my base, because they have that beautiful scalloped edge, and they are DELICIOUS. They come in ginger, orange, almond and (maybe?) mint- I haven’t seen the mint recently, so maybe not. And- before you think you won’t be able to find them, they are at most Walgreens, Walmarts, and (of course!) at Amazon- you maybe haven’t ever noticed them before.

So one Anna’s cookie, one mini Nilla Wafer, a little colored chocolate, candy eyes, and voila! An adorable and tasty turkey cookie- just in time for Thanksgiving!

I also want to say- once you get your chocolates melted, these go together fast. They are a super quick way to make people smile over the holidays.

Turkey Cookie5-1 Want some instructions? (Printable version here)

Ingredients: (makes about 32 turkey cookies)

One box of Anna’s Swedish Thins in whatever flavor you like best
One box of mini Nilla Wafers
One bag of Wiltons Candy Melts in dark chocolate
1/4 bag of Wilton’s candy melts in blue, white and orange
3 small zip-top bags
Toothpicks
Just a few Wilton’s candy melts in red.
Candy eyeballs (2 for each cookie)

Directions:

Unwrap Anna’s cookies and Nilla wafers and place in small bowls for easy reach.
Lay a piece of parchment paper on your countertop.
Place dark chocolate candy melts in a large bowl, and blue, white and orange melts each in their own smaller bowls.
Melt all candy melts (except red) in the microwave (30 second increments, stirring between, until melted and smooth).
Carefully spoon the blue, white, and red melts into individual zip-top bags, zip them shut, and clip a small corner off the bottom of the bag with scissors.
Place these warm bags of melts on a warm plate, and cover with a warm towel (to prevent them from hardening up while you use them).
Place one Ginger Thin in the dark chocolate melts- top down. Turn it over with a fork (covering both sides with chocolate), and then lift it up on the fork and tap the fork against a side of the bowl to allow excess chocolate to drip off cookie. Slide covered cookie off fork and onto parchment paper.
Pipe a line of white melts around the top edge of the cookie- almost in a circle. Then pipe a blue line inside the white, and an orange inside of that.

Use a toothpick to pull the lines of color to the lower center of the cookie, pulling in along the lines of the cookie’s scalloped edge.
Place a mini Nilla Wafer on the bottom center of cookie.

Note: Only do one to two cookies at a time. You want the dark chocolate on the cookie to still be soft when you pull your lines of color in. If your dark chocolate in the bowl begins to cool and harden, just pop it back in the microwave for 30 seconds.

Turkey Cookie8-1 Turkey Cookie9-1

After all cookies are decorated and all have a Nilla Wafer placed, glue eyes on by using a little of the left-over white melts and a toothpick. Dab a little of the melts on the back of an eye and then press it onto the Nilla Wafer.
Add a few red melts to your orange ones and re-melt for the beaks. Use a toothpick to draw little beaks on each bird.
Enjoy!

My thoughts: Sometimes the way I “see” a potential idea in my head just doesn’t work when I make it, but these are even more cute (and they were much easier) than I expected. If you want a fun little edible craft to add to your Thanksgiving table, these really are so perfect! I hope you get a chance to make them! ~r

Turkey Cookie2-1 Want a few more fun recipes for Turkey Day??? Here you go! (just click on a photo to see the recipe)

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Posted in Candy, Cookies, Seasonal dessert and tagged annas cookies, creative thanksgiving dessert, easy cookie recipe, fun turkey cookie, gingerbread cookies, thanksgiving craft idea, thanksgiving dessert, thanksgiving recipe, Turkey cookies, turkey dessert, Wiltons candy Melts. Bookmark the permalink.

Spooky Chocolate Brownies

Posted on October 2, 2021 by Ruthanne

Spooky2

You know it’s October when I pull out the eyeball and bones sprinkles! 🙂 These deliciously rich chocolate brownies are a family recipe that we LOVE. Whether you decorate them or not, they are guaranteed to make your family smile!

Spooky4

A couple of months ago, a friend of mine came across this recipe of my mom’s that I hadn’t ever made. I actually don’t remember her ever making it either, but my friend sent me a copy in my mom’s handwriting and told me that she’d made them for their wedding reception years ago. We lost my mom to cancer about 7 years ago, so I loved trying this recipe of hers for myself. And… these brownies are the BOMB. The brownies aren’t super sweet, but the frosting is like fudge. They cut *perfectly* too- which I love. When you want to share brownies with a group, there is nothing worse than trying to cut them, and ending up with gooey piles of chocolate. Plus…. they are super easy to make!

Spooky3

Want to try them? Here’s the recipe (printable version):

INGREDIENTS:

Brownies

1 cup of sugar
1 stick butter (room temp)
4 eggs
1 1/2 cups Hershey’s chocolate syrup
1 cup flour

Icing

1 1/3 cups sugar
1/3 cup milk
6 Tablespoons butter
6 oz. chocolate chips

DIRECTIONS:

Brownies

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Cream together butter and sugar
Add eggs and syrup
Blend in flour
Pour into a greased 9×13″ pan
Bake at 350F for 30 min
Cool

Icing

Combine sugar, milk and butter in a saucepan
Bring to a boil and boil for 2 minutes
Remove from heat and stir in chocolate chips until completely melted.
Pour over the top of brownies
To decorate, drizzle with colored Wilton Candy Melts and sprinkle with Halloween candies (if desired)
Allow icing to harden up before cutting brownies into squares.

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My thoughts: Just make these. Honestly, they are one of the best brownie recipes I have tried, and they have become a go-to recipe for us! Enjoy! ~r

Want to try a different Halloween dessert? We have SO MANY! Click on a photo to see the recipe:

And… our top two favorite Halloween recipes on Easybaked:

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Posted in Brownies, Kids recipes, Seasonal dessert and tagged brownies, chocolate brownies, fun scary dessert, halloween brownie, Halloween dessert, hershey syrup brownies. Bookmark the permalink.

Happy Flower Cookies

Posted on August 22, 2021 by Ruthanne

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These delicious cookies will make you smile anytime of the year! With a touch of coffee in the cookies, and crunchy chocolate-covered sunflower seeds on top, they are also really delicious!

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Confession: I made these last spring jotted down the recipe as I created, brought them to a party where they got rave reviews, and then got so busy with summer that I never sat down to share the recipe with you all! So here (finally!) you go!

I absolutely love these cookies. In March, I tweaked my favorite chocolate cut-out cookie to make Bailey’s Irish Cream Cookies. They were soooo yummy that I wanted to keep tweaking them and try a variety without the Baileys. This is the result, and they are such a soft, delicious cut-out cookie. Goodness. They are exceptional at keeping their shape when cut (I just did circles, but you could make these in any shape). I just iced them with royal icing, but the sky is the limit with flavor combinations you could use. This recipe is a keeper in our house! 🙂

Here is the recipe (printable version):

INGREDIENTS: (makes about 20 medium cookies)

Cookies:

1 (1/2 cup)stick of butter (softened)
3/4 cup of sugar
2 eggs
1 Tablespoon of half and half
1 Tablespoon of vanilla
2 Tablespoons of instant coffee granules
2 to 2 1/2 cups of all purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon of salt
1/2 teaspoon of baking powder

Icing:

4 cups powdered sugar
1/4 cup water
3 Tablespoons meringue powder
1 teaspoon of clear vanilla flavoring
Chocolate-covered sunflower seeds
Round candy pearls

DIRECTIONS:

Cookies:

Cream together butter and sugar in a large mixing bowl.
Mix in eggs.
Place half and half and instant coffee granules together in a small cup. Mix until coffee dissolves. Add this mixture to the batter and combine well.
Gradually add dry ingredients and mix until smooth (use clean hands at the end, to knead into a soft ball of dough).
Preheat oven to 350F degrees.
Roll out cookie dough on floured counter.
Cut into circles (or whatever shape you want!)and place on a parchment-lined baking sheet.
Bake for 8 to 11 minutes until the edges are firm.
Gently slide parchment paper off of cookie sheet and onto a flat surface. Cool completely before removing cookies from paper.

Icing:

Beat together all ingredients and add powdered sugar until it becomes a thick glaze consistency.
Place about 1/3 of icing in a zip-top bag fitted with a small round piping tip.
Pipe icing around edges of cookie and allow this to harden.
Add water to remaining icing until it is a little thinner than the edge icing. Place it into a second zip-top bag fitted with a small round piping tip.
Fill center of cookie with icing, spreading it to the edges that have hardened.
Before icing is completely hard, set sunflower seeds and pearl in the shape of a flower.
Allow icing to harden completely.
Enjoy!!!

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Aren’t they fun??? Once the icing fully hardens on these, you can stack them up without worrying that the icing will get messed up (the joy of royal icing). As you can see… I am no professional at piping a perfect circle… so no worries if you are not experienced- they will still be beautiful! Flower Cookies 1

My thoughts: I’m glad to finally be sharing this with you all! I figured I’d better get this out to you before fall hits and all things are pumpkin and leaves 🙂 I hope you get a chance to try these cookies- I really think you will love them! Enjoy! ~r

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