Tag Archives: baking

Fall Peanut Butter Crisps

Posted on November 1, 2019 by Ruthanne

Fall Peanut Butter Crisps1

These beautiful fall cookies are special– not just because they are salty, sweet, crispy deliciousness– but because they use up your kids’ Halloween candy!!!!

So… Halloween is over, and you are likely in possession of more candy than you know what to do with. The chocolate will be gone in days, and then the name-brand candy will slowly get picked away at. But there are always those candies that sit in the bottom of the plastic pumpkin until Thanksgiving. For me, those candies were always Bit-o-Honey and the bright orange and black-wrapped “Peanut Butter Kisses“. These are a candy that only seems to make an appearance at Halloween. A combination of taffy and peanut butter, they just always seem to make the left-over candy list.

But not any more!!! Go ahead, dig through all of that Halloween candy and pull these little guys out- they make the best filling for these beautiful cookies!

Fall Peanut Butter Crisps2

You can also grab other candies to fill these cookies with- rolos, kisses, peppermint patties, mini snickers… all work in this recipe! I actually began making these crisp cookies with Rolos about 5 years ago at Christmas.

Fall Peanut Butter Crisps5

Want the recipe? Here it is!! (printable version)

Ingredients: (makes 20 cookies)

40 Ritz crackers
20 Peanut Butter Kisses (or other small candy that melts at a low temperature)
1 bag of Wilton’s dark chocolate candy melts
1 chocolate transfer sheet (I used 12×16″, and I got mine here).

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350F degrees.
Place 20 Ritz crackers on a cookie sheet, bottoms up.
Unwrap all 20 peanut butter kisses, and set one on each Ritz cracker.
Place cookie sheet in oven for about 4-5 minutes- check! Candy should be soft but not completely melted.
Remove from oven, and place Ritz cracker, bottom side down, on top of candy and press to spread candy to edge.

Place entire tray in freezer to chill for a few minutes.
Melt chocolate candy melts in a bowl in the microwave for about 2-3 minutes, stirring once every 30 seconds, until completely melted and smooth.
Place parchment paper on a cookie sheet (that fits in your freezer!)
Cut chocolate transfer sheet into 20 squares.
Take a cookie, place it in the melted chocolate and cover it completely. Use a fork to pick it up and tap on the side of the bowl until all excess chocolate drips off the bottom. Slide bottom along edge of bowl, and using fork, slide onto parchment paper.

Immediately place chocolate transfer sheet square on top of the melted chocolate (you’ll need to put the rough side down- the smooth side up) and gently press it into contact with the entire top of the cookie. Repeat 20 times.

Place entire cookie sheet into the freezer for 5 minutes or so. As soon as you remove it, gently peel off the transfer sheet from each cookie- and enjoy!!!

How-to-crisps8

My thoughts: There are three things that I love about these cookies…

They are EASY to make- they take almost no time but look so fancy!
They are CHEAP to make- the Ritz crackers and peanut butter candies are really inexpensive (I got mine at the Dollar Store), the chocolate isn’t too costly, and the transfer sheet is like $4.40, but SO worth it! (you could use sprinkles instead, to cut the cost even more though!)
They keep for a long time. Put these little guys in cello bags, tie them up, and use them to decorate your place settings at Thanksgiving!

They also can use a variety of candies up- and you can decorate them so many fun ways!

Fall Peanut Butter Crisps3

Go – find your kids’ candy and re-purpose it into these beautiful, crunchy, deliciously salty but sweet treats!

Need other ideas for using up that Halloween candy? This is a project we have a few ideas for! Click on a photo to see the recipe.

A Cut-out Cookie Collection!

Posted on December 19, 2014 by Ruthanne

It’s nearly Christmas, and those cute bells, stars and tree cookie cutters are begging to be used! This post is dedicated to our favorite cut-out cookie recipes featured here on Easybaked. We have everything from gingerbread to mocha, simple sugar cookies to international favorites! Make this year’s cookies your best yet!

Let’s start with the family favorite. My mom’s thick and cake-like cutout cookie recipe features a hint of cinnamon flavor and is truly a part of our Christmas (and Easter, and 4th of July, and back-to-school and GO PACKERS!) traditions. These are easy, and freeze well- so you can make them ahead. Go ahead and click on that photo to see the recipe.

Next, is my personal favorite: GINGERBREAD! These, too, have been a part of our family Christmas traditions. This recipe is my grandmother’s, and she faithfully made them every year, cut them as Christmas trees and decorated them with red-hots! Click on the photo to see her oh-so-yummy recipe!

Similar to gingerbread are my Pumpkin Spice Cookies. These are sweeter and bake very flat and easy to decorate.

Chocolate cut-out cookies that taste like the richest brownie but roll out and cut like a dream? Yes, please! I love how the frosting colors really stand out on that dark chocolate! These chocolate cut-outs have been in our family awhile too- but as drop cookies that I tweaked to make cut-outs. Click the photo to see this delicious recipe:

That chocolate cut-out recipe is so yummy that I experimented a little more with it to create a chocolate espresso cut out cookie and…oh my…one of my favorites!

I’ve spent some time overseas and discovered a wonderful dessert in Prague called Medovnic. Then I found these wonderful little honey-filled cut out cookies called Medovniky that are often made at Christmas. I made them for autumn, but they are a delicious flavor for any season!!

Speaking of international cookies, these Alfajores from Peru add a totally unique (and deliciously caramel-filled) flavor to the holidays.

When it comes to cut-out cookies, the cookie cutters make all the difference! I absolutely LOVE the look created by Linzer cookie cutters. Typically they are layered with a fruit filling, but I just used colored frosting and you have beautiful cookies with very little fancy frosting technique!

One other thing you’ll need are some good frosting recipes, which I’ve compiled right here in a post called: Frostings, fillings and fun!

I hope that these recipes inspire fun-filled cookie making times with your family this season.

Merry Christmas!

12/19/14: On a personal note: I blog my recipes ahead, and I prepared this post and my next one (very fun New Years cookies) several weeks ago. Since that time, my mom has been diagnosed with very, very aggressive cancer and admitted to Hospice. I just wanted to ask for all of you who have followed this little blog and enjoyed these recipes to keep our family in your prayers as we say good bye to her this Christmas. After next week’s post (which is already scheduled), I will probably take a little break from sharing recipes here. Many thanks, friends! ~r

(My personal and ministry blog is at: www.thenavajojourney.com, if you want to keep up with me there.)

Creepy Earthworm Cupcakes

Posted on October 10, 2014 by Ruthanne

These fun little cupcakes will entertain your family and friends with slimy (raspberry!) earthworms poking out of the top!

Well, it’s October, and that means it is time for creatively creepy edibles! Last year I had SO much fun with my Broken Glass Cupcakes and my Toxic Slime Cupcakes! Oh my goodness, I love both of those recipes so much that it was hard to think of anything that fun and creepy for this year!!!

I loved the idea of worm-filled cupcakes and decided that gummy worms are way too cheery, with all their fun bright colors. I wanted WORMS- big fat earthworms- in my cupcakes.

I’m not sure why these are not readily available for purchase in the candy aisle of my grocery store, but fortunately I found a TON of recipes for make-your-own gummy earthworms online. I read about 10 recipes (they were all very similar) and gave it a shot.

I love them!!!! I had a hard time biting into one to try out the flavor because they were so realistic! These are really not very hard to make, and I can think of a TON of desserts these would be fun to serve with. These are even Father’s Day friendly (I realized this when the men who were eating the cupcakes started talking about fishing with earthworms…) or maybe you could “dress up” my apple cupcakes from last week with a few worms! 🙂

Here’s how to make these fun little desserts: (printable recipe)

INGREDIENTS:

1 boxed chocolate cake mix (plus water, oil and eggs to make according to package)
2 sticks (1 cup) of butter (softened)
1 1/2 cups of powdered sugar
2 tablespoons of vanilla
Green sugar crystals
About 15 Oreo cookies crushed into crumbs
brown and green food color gels
1 (6 oz) packet of raspberry jello
4 (1/2 oz) packets of unflavored gelatin
1/2 cup heavy cream
3 cups boiling water

DIRECTIONS:

WORMS: (make the day before)

Take about 40-60 bendable plastic straws and pull them out to full length.
Place them each in a tall glass with the bendable part down.
Put a rubber band around the top to hold them together and upright.
Mix jello and unflavored gelatin together in a mixing bowl and add boiling water.
Stir until dissolved and refrigerate for about 20 minutes until cooled.
Place cream and a little bit of green food coloring in a separate bowl and mix well.
Mix cream with gelatin mixture until well combined.
Gently pour the mixture over the tops of the straws until they, and the glass are full.
Refrigerate overnight.
Place a sheet of parchment paper on a cookie sheet, and lightly spray it with cooking spray.
Run warm water over the glass until you can pull the entire jello mold out (straws and all!)
Gently pull apart straws and use a rolling pin to roll each little worm out.
Place each worm on the parchment paper until all of them have been removed from the straws.
Keep covered and refrigerated until use.

CUPCAKES:

Make cake mix according to box and divide evenly among 24 cupcake liners placed in tins.
Bake according to package, and allow them to cool.
Make frosting by placing butter, powdered sugar and vanilla in a large mixing bowl and beating it on high for about 3 minutes, until light and fluffy.
Color frosting using a combination of green and brown to make a clay-like color for inside the cupcakes
Use a cupcake corer or a small knife to cut a core out of each cupcake.
Pour green sugar into a small bowl.
Use a knife to spread a thin layer of frosting on the top of each cupcake, around the hole cut out by the corer.
Turn the cupcake top down into the green sugar, coating the frosting entirely.
Spoon or pipe a small amount of frosting into each cored cupcake.
Set a worm into the frosting, letting it “stick” and be held in place.
Spoon Oreo crumbs over the worm and frosting, filling up the rest of the hole in the cupcake.
Keep refrigerated until serving.
Enjoy!!

My thoughts: These crack me up. Everyone loves them, but kids are SO suspicious that you might have used real worms! One of my friends gave some to her grandkids and the oldest just sat and stared at hers and finally declared, “I saw one move!” They are disturbingly life-like. These are great covered in the fridge for a day, but at room temperature the worms start to dry out after a few hours. I hope you get a chance to try this creepy little treat! Enjoy!!! ~r

Other creepy recipes for your October fun: (click on a photo to see the recipe)

12 Comments

Posted in Cupcakes and tagged baking, chocolate, cupcakes, dessert, frosting, fun, gummy worms, Halloween, halloween dessert ideas, how to make gummy earthworms, Oreo dirt, party, recipe, sugar, unique, worms. Bookmark the permalink.

Pancake and Bacon Cupcakes!!!

Posted on September 26, 2014 by Ruthanne

These sweet maple pancake flavored cupcakes are topped with syrup-coated bacon and real mini-pancakes. The only question remaining is, will you eat them for breakfast???

My answer to that question is a resounding YES, I will eat them for breakfast, and any other time of the day too!

Did you know that today is National Pancake Lovers Day??? There is no better way I know of to celebrate pancakes than by making these! [Plus, Monday is National Coffee Day, and believe me these go GREAT with coffee!]

These cupcakes were a complete experiment, and when they came out of the oven and I tentatively tasted one, I smiled. They taste like pancakes- they really do! Here’s how we made them: (printable recipe)

INGREDIENTS:

Cupcakes:

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
1 cup sugar
½ cup butter, melted
1/4 cup whipping cream
2 eggs
3 teaspoons vanilla
1/2 cup maple syrup (I didn’t use the real stuff– too expensive!)

Frosting and toppings:

2 sticks (1 cup) of salted butter, softened
2 sticks (1 cup) of unsalted butter, softened
3 cups powdered sugar
2 teaspoons of vanilla
8 pieces of bacon, cooked until very crisp
1/4 cup of maple syrup
Pancake batter- enough for about 50 mini pancakes (I used the add water and shake Bisquick bottle, and it took about 2 cups of batter to make these up.

DIRECTIONS:

Cupcakes:

Combine all dry ingredients and mix in medium bowl
In large bowl, whisk eggs, whipping cream and vanilla together, add melted butter slowly while whisking.
Alternately add dry ingredients and syrup to the egg mixture, whisking until thick and smooth.
Scoop evenly into 18-20 cupcake liners placed in muffin tins. Don’t overfill!
Bake at 350F degrees for 14-18 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
Remove cupcakes from tin and allow them to cool completely.

Frosting and toppings:

Crumble bacon into small pieces and toss with maple syrup until completely coated.
Make mini pancakes on a hot griddle by using a small spoon and making just a tiny circle of batter. Let these cool on a piece of parchment paper.
Make frosting by placing butters, powdered sugar and vanilla in a mixing bowl and beating on high for 3-4 minutes until very light and fluffy.
Place frosting into a large zip top bag that has a decorating tip fitted into one corner.
Pipe a circle of icing around the edge of the cupcake.
Sprinkle with bacon.
Place pancakes on top, using a small amount of frosting to stick them together into a stack.
Add a dollop of frosting on top and add sprinkles or a red “cherry” sixlet, like mine.
ENJOY!!!!

Pancake Cupcakes!!! My thoughts: These are really good. The sweet cupcake with that salty bacon….yum! I was a little skeptical about the bacon, but it really adds a wonderful flavor to these! If you are short on time, skip the mini pancakes on top and just frost these and sprinkle them with bacon. You could even use a bottle of those real bacon bits, but I suspect that the freshly cooked bacon tastes best. Happy Pancake Day to YOU!!! Enjoy!! ~r

Other treats that you “could” eat for breakfast:

15 Comments

Posted in Cupcakes and tagged bacon, baking, best, breakfast, buttercream, cupcakes, dessert, fun, idea, maple, maple syrup, pancake, recipe, salty, sweet, syrup, unique. Bookmark the permalink.

Caramel Gelato with Gingerbread Spoons

Posted on September 19, 2014 by Ruthanne

This creamy frozen caramel dessert is perfect when it is eaten with a spicy gingerbread cookie spoon. Does dessert get much more fun than this?!?

This recipe has a story. I was flying home to Michigan for a wedding when I saw the most amazing dessert in one of those in-flight magazines. It was some sort of mousse with a COOKIE SPOON in it. I stared at it and thought….and wondered if spoon cookie cutters exist (they do), and I decided right then that I would make something caramel with gingerbread spoons.

Something caramel…..something sweet and rich. About a week later, I saw this post on Foodgawker and the words, “Three ingredients. No churn. No machine. No whipping cream. It’s magic.” swirled in my head. Sour cream, Sweetened condensed milk, Vanilla. No machine.

What if I added Dulce de Leche instead of the sweetened condensed milk? I had to try it. I felt like I was surely wasting a container of sour cream when I mixed this up….but then…. creamy, cold caramel deliciousness. It is magic. You need to try this!

Here’s how: (printable recipe)

INGREDIENTS:

Caramel Gelato:

1 1/2 cups of sour cream (use full-fat)
1 can (13.4 oz.) of La Lechera Dulce de Leche (now….imagine coconut cream in this recipe….!)
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

Cookie Spoons:

1 stick (1/2 cup) butter, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1 egg
1/2 cup dark molasses
1 tablespoon vinegar
2 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon of baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon of ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon of ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon of ground cloves

DIRECTIONS:

Caramel Gelato:

Mix all ingredients together well, spread into a freezer safe bowl and cover tightly.
Freeze overnight.
Allow gelato to warm a little before serving.

Gingerbread Cookie Spoons:

Cream together butter and sugar.
Beat in egg, molasses and vinegar.
Blend in sifted dry ingredients.
Chill 2-3 hours (this is important– the dough is very easy to roll after chilling)
Roll 1/8 inch to 1/4 inch thick on a floured counter or board and cut into spoon shapes, using a cookie cutter, and place on greased cookie sheets.
Bake at 375 degrees for about 10 minutes. Check often- take out when cookies have risen and are easily removed from sheet.

My thoughts: This caramel desert is unbelievably creamy and rich. I pictured 2 scoops in my photos, but I would serve just one. It is almost like frozen custard- so heavy and rich. The caramel flavor is amazing though! Amazing. The cookies are so delicious with the caramel. They are hard to actually use as spoons until the frozen caramel warms a bit. I love this flavor combination! I hope you get a chance to try it! Enjoy!!! ~r

Other fun chilled desserts you might enjoy:

16 Comments

Posted in Cookies, Frozen desserts and tagged baking, caramel, caramel gelato, cookie spoons, cookies, fall, frozen custard, frozen desserts, fun, gelato, gingerbread cookies, ice cream, idea, party, spoons. Bookmark the permalink.

Cheesehead Cupcakes!

Posted on September 4, 2014 by Ruthanne

Cheesehead Cupcakes!!!!! These colorful Green Bay Packer CHEESEHEAD cupcakes are the perfect treat for game day!!! Make them in YOUR team colors and start the season off with some fun!

Today is the day!!!! NFL football season starts!!!! Tonight it’s the Packers vs. Seattle (GO PACK GO!!!!!!!), and I had to add some cheese on these fun little cupcakes to make them just perfect!

Wait— what’s inside? That’s what makes these so much fun!!!!!

A little splash of team color hidden in the middle. You can make these in any team colors you want- but if you make them for the Chicago Bears or the Detroit Lions you will need this tutorial here to make your cupcake toppers. 🙂

Here is how we made these: (printable recipe)

INGREDIENTS:

One boxed white cake mix (plus water, oil and eggs to make according to box)
Green and gold food color gels (or your team colors)
2 sticks (1 cup) of salted butter, softened
2 sticks (1 cup) of unsalted butter, softened
3 cups of powdered sugar
1 teaspoon of vanilla (or any flavoring you’d like to add to your frosting)
1 bag of Wilton’s candy melts in yellow (if you want cheesehead toppers!!) You will also need little triangle chocolate molds for these.

DIRECTIONS:

Make cake mix as directed on box, and take about 1/4 of the batter and mix it with yellow food color gel.
Using a cake pop maker or a small mini muffin tin, make 24 small, baked balls of cake in yellow. (click here for pictures of how to make these cake balls)
Color remaining batter with green food color gel.
Preheat oven to 350F degrees.
Spoon a little bit of green batter into 24 cupcake liners placed in muffin tins.
Place one cake ball in each cavity in the center of the green batter.

Carefully spoon more green batter over the top of each yellow cake ball, filling each cup only 2/3 to 3/4 full (be careful to not over-fill. That is easy to do when you are focused on covering up that cake ball!)
Bake at 350F degrees for 15-18 minutes.
Allow cupcakes to cool completely.
Make frosting by placing butters, powdered sugar and vanilla in a large bowl and beating on high for 3-4 minutes until light and fluffy.
Divide frosting in half and color one half gold and the other half green. Place each color in a zip top bag that has been fitted with a decorating tip.
Pipe yellow icing on 1st followed by green and top with a bit of cheese!!!!!

To make little cheese head cupcake toppers:

Yes, that is a tire pressure gauge…..

Melt yellow candy melts in a microwave-safe bowl, in the microwave, in 30-second increments, stirring in between.
Put candy melts into a sturdy zip top bag, clip a corner and pipe into triangle candy molds.
Tap on counter to remove bubbles, and place in the freezer for 5 minutes, or until completely hardened.
Turn mold upside down and tap on counter to remove chocolate.
Repeat this process.
Allow the triangle chocolates to return to room temperature, and use whatever you find handy to put “holes” in your cheese. I used a (cleaned in hot soapy water) tire pressure gauge for mine. Let’s hear it for problem solving in the kitchen!!!!!!

My thoughts: These are just plain fun. I recommend using a cake pop maker for the center circles. It really does take less time and it makes the most adorably round little cake balls. Plus you can make a Polka-Dot cake with it too!!! I hope you get a chance to celebrate your team with these fun and colorful cupcakes!!! IT’S FOOTBALL SEASON!!!!!!

Other fun cupcake recipes you might enjoy:

6 Comments

Posted in Cupcakes and tagged Aaron Rodgers, baking, best, buttercream frosting, cake mix, candy, candy molds, Cheesehead, cupcakes, dessert, football, fun, Green Bay Packers, idea, NFL, party, recipe, unique. Bookmark the permalink.

Chocolate Football Cookies!

Posted on September 1, 2014 by Ruthanne

These soft and chewy chocolate cut-out cookies make the perfect little footballs! Are you ready for the season to start? Kick it off with these adorable treats!

NFL football starts this week with a Thursday night game against the Packers (GO PACK GO!!!!!!) and Seattle. Let the season of fun tailgating and snacking begin!!!

These are seriously the yummiest chocolate cookies ever, and the PERFECT, not-sticky, dough for cookie cutters. I’ve used this recipe SO many times here on easybaked. When I thought about making football cookies I automatically defaulted to this wonderful family recipe. I promise, you will love it!!!

Here’s how they are made: (printable recipe)

INGREDIENTS:

2 sticks (1 cup) butter, softened
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
3 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 350F degrees.
Add butter, sugar, eggs, vanilla and cocoa together in large mixing bowl.
Blend on medium speed with a mixer until smooth.
Gradually add dry ingredients and mix until smooth (use clean hands at the end, to knead into a soft ball of dough)
Roll out cookie dough on floured counter. I roll mine thick, so I get nice and chewy cookies.
Cut into football shapes using a football cookie cutter and place on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Leave a little room for the cookies to spread.
Bake for 10 to 14 minutes until the edges are firm.
Gently slide parchment paper off of cookie sheet and onto a flat surface. Cool completely before moving- this allows the cookie to “set”.
Frost as desired. I used royal icing in a zip-top bag with a corner clipped off to decorate these. You can click here for my royal icing recipe and instructions for use. You could also use regular icing or even melted white chocolate.
Allow icing to harden up before stacking.

My thoughts: These are so cute, and so yummy that I kept wandering by the table just took look at them while they hardened up. I couldn’t help but smile every time….and eat one. Which was bad, because I’ve eaten too much fry bread here on the Navajo Nation and I need to diet! They are irresistibly good…so I quickly have given them all away! Happy football season everyone!!! Bring on the fun!!!!! ~r

Other desserts that use this cookie recipe:

14 Comments

Posted in Cookies and tagged baking, chocoate, chocolate, cocoa, cookie cutters, cookies, cut-out cookies, dessert, football, fun, Green Bay Packers, idea, NFL, party, sports, tailgate. Bookmark the permalink.

Piña Colada Cupcakes!

Posted on July 25, 2014 by Ruthanne

These pineapple cupcakes are full of coconut and rum flavored happiness. A perfect pool party treat!

Aren’t these just the cutest little things? I love the flavor combination of coconut and pineapple, it is such a refreshing taste! The light whipped frosting on these, combined with the crunch of toasted coconut makes them such a delicious summer treat! I even added a cute little edible coconut drink topper that I found on Party Pinchers. So. much. fun!!!!

INGREDIENTS: (printable recipe here)

1 boxed pineapple cake mix (I used Duncan Hines), plus water, oil and eggs to make according to box directions.
5 cups of shredded, sweetened coconut
3 teaspoons of rum flavoring (divided)
2 teaspoons of coconut flavoring
2 sticks (1 cup) salted butter (softened to room temperature)
2 sticks (1 cup) of unsalted butter (softened to room temperature)
3 cups of powdered sugar
Decorations (as desired)

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 325F degrees
Spread 5 cups of coconut out on a large baking sheet that has edges.
Toast in 5 minute increments, stirring with a big spoon to evenly toast (It usually takes me about 20 minutes)
Allow coconut to cool, then place in a large zip-top bag, and crush into smaller pieces.
Make cake mix according to directions on box, and after it is made, add one cup of crushed, toasted coconut and mix completely into batter.
Add 2 teaspoons of rum flavoring and stir completely into batter.
Divide batter evenly into 24 cupcake liners placed into tins.
Bake according to package directions and cool completely.
To make frosting, place butters, coconut flavoring, remaining rum flavoring, and powdered sugar into a large mixing bowl and beat on high for 3 or 4 minutes until very light and fluffy. Add one cup of crushed, toasted coconut and stir until well blended.
Use a spoon or a cookie scoop to place a rounded scoop of frosting on the top of each cupcake.
Place the rest of the crushed coconut into a small bowl, and turn each cupcake upside down into it, pressing coconut into the top and sides of each scoop of frosting.
Decorate as desired. I found these cute little edible “coconut cups” on a site called Party Pinching, and I couldn’t resist making them for my pina colada cupcakes! You just cut the tops off of a Whoppers malted milk ball, put a dab of melted white chocolate and add little flower sprinkles and a bit of string licorice. FUN!

My thoughts: I really thought these captured the flavors of coconut and pineapple in a perfect combination. I loved the little crunchy bits of coconut in the cake and frosting. These are such a festive cupcake and make a perfect refreshing summer or vacation dessert for all ages!
Other fun cupcake recipes:

22 Comments

Posted in Cupcakes and tagged baking, buttercream frosting, coconut, cupcakes, dessert, luau, party, pina colada, pineapple, recipe, rum, summer, toasted coconut, whopper drink cups. Bookmark the permalink.

Mini S’mores Pies

Posted on July 18, 2014 by Ruthanne

Rich dark chocolate pie in a graham crust, topped with marshmallow meringue. S’mores with a new, fun look!

Everyone loves these flavors together.

Don’t they?

It just occurred to me that someone might hate s’mores.

Ok, well I don’t personally know anyone who doesn’t just adore this flavor combination. I LOVE them, and crave them, and sometimes cheat by making them in the microwave when it’s snowing and a campfire is out of the question!

These little pies capture the flavor of a s’more, but add a rich chocolate flavor that is incredibly delicious, and can’t be had with just 2 squares of Hershey’s chocolate. Or four squares… sometimes I use four. Don’t tell.

Here’s how these simple little treats are made: (printable version)

INGREDIENTS: (makes 12 mini pies)

12 pre-made mini graham cracker crusts.
1 cup of Ghirardelli Bittersweet chocolate chips (melted)
1 cup of Ghirardelli Semi-sweet chocolate chips (melted)
8 eggs (divided)
5 Tablespoons of heavy whipping cream
2 Tablespoons of vanilla
2 cups of granulated sugar
1/4 teaspoon of cream of tartar

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 350F degrees.
Divide eggs, keeping ALL of the 8 egg whites and only 5 of the yolks.
Place the melted chocolate, 5 egg YOLKS, whipping cream and vanilla in a large mixing bowl and stir until well combined.
Evenly divide among all twelve mini pie crusts.
Bake (I put them all on a baking sheet) for 14-16 minutes, until the middle of each pie is set.
Make meringue while these bake, by adding all of the 8 egg WHITES, sugar and cream of tartar together in a medium heat-proof bowl that will sit on the top of a sauce pan of boiling water without touching the water. (I had to experiment a bit to find a good fit.)
Bring water to a boil in the saucepan and set the bowl on top.
Whisk ingredients together for about 3-4 minutes. Sugar will be dissolved and egg whites should be heated to 145F degrees.
Remove bowl from top of sauce pan and beat on low until the mixture thickens a little, then beat on high for about 10 minutes. The meringue will become the most beautiful, white, glossy mixture. It should form stiff peaks before you stop beating it.
Spoon all that wonderful marshmallow yumminess into a bag fitted with a decorating tip.
Once mini pies are removed from the oven, let them cool completely.
Pipe marshmallow meringue on the top of each pie and toast it with a kitchen torch.
Add a few graham cracker crumbs if you want, and enjoy!!!!

My thoughts: These are delicious. You can see from my pictures that I didn’t beat my meringue as long as I should have. The are not the tall swirls of happiness I wanted them to be…. it was only my second time making meringue though, so I guess I won’t beat myself up too much. My 1st time was perfect. If you want to see how fluffy it SHOULD be, click here. I LOVE this meringue. When you read the instructions you might think it is too hard to make- but once you do it, you will realize that it isn’t hard at all. Just a lot of time with a mixer in your hands. I hope you get a chance to try this recipe out! Enjoy! ~r

We like our chocolate and marshmallow here at easybaked… here are other recipes that feature that yummy combo:

13 Comments

Posted in Candy, Pies and tagged baking, best, chocolate, cream, desert, easy dessert, graham crackers, marshmallow, mini dessert, pie, recipe, s'mores, summer, sweets. Bookmark the permalink.

Root Beer Float Cupcakes!

Posted on July 4, 2014 by Ruthanne

These cupcakes capture all the summer flavors of a root beer float~ all you need is a frosty mug!

People ask me a lot about if I would ever open a bakery, and I always say no. I can’t imagine making hundreds of the same thing every day. My favorite part of baking is the process of creating something new.

I thought about this recipe for a long time. I wanted root beer in the cupcake and root beer in the frosting, but how to create that “scoop of ice cream” flavor without actually using ice cream? I sometimes cheat in my photos by using scoops of frozen cool whip instead of ice cream. It melts slower and keeps a scoop shape longer under the heat of my photography lights. I decided to try Cool Whip as my scoop of ice cream for these cupcakes.

Oh my. If I could jump up and down and point giant neon arrows toward this cupcake recipe I would. These are so, sooooooooooo good. You need to make these!!! They even use a cake mix, so they aren’t horribly complicated. That Cool Whip…with the root beer buttercream…. perfect.

Here’s the recipe: (printable version)

INGREDIENTS: (makes 24-26 cupcakes)

One boxed white cake mix, plus water, oil and eggs to make according to package.
1 cup of root beer
5 teaspoons of root beer concentrate (divided)
1 stick (1/2 cup) of salted butter (softened)
1 stick (1/2 cup) of unsalted butter (softened)
1 1/2 cups of powdered sugar
2 tubs of Cool Whip (frozen)
Sprinkles and straws (optional)

DIRECTIONS:

Make white cake mix as directed on box.
After beating cake, add root beer and 3 teaspoons of root beer concentrate. Mix well until combined.
Place cupcake liners in muffin tins and fill each one only about 1/2 full (these cupcakes rise a bit higher than just a plain mix)
Bake according to package directions, remove from oven and cool completely.
Make buttercream by adding both butters, powdered sugar and 2 teaspoons of root beer concentrate to a mixing bowl and beating on high for 4-5 minutes until very light and fluffy.
Place frosting into a sturdy zip-top bag that has been fitted with a large round decorating tip in one corner.
Assemble cupcakes one at a time.
Use a medium cookie scoop and place a ball of frozen Cool Whip in the center of a cupcake.
Pipe round “bubbles” around it immediately, by squeezing the frosting out into a circle and then pulling straight out.

Only have one container of Cool Whip out at a time, and if it starts to get soft, switch it back into the freezer to harden up.
Keep these chilled until you serve them.
Just before serving, add some sprinkles and a straw for a root beer float feel!
Enjoy!!

My thoughts: Such a fun summer dessert. It is actually very light and not too sweet because a lot of the topping is just Cool Whip. I was really happy with how this experiment came out and I can’t wait to make them again! Enjoy!!!!!

Our very first cookbook is available for purchase this week!!! Check it out in our new “Store” tab. You can also find our greeting cards from Warner Press and our fun new recipe notecards distributed by Trifle Recipe Cards there.

These aren’t our first cupcakes that recreate a yummy beverage! Try these other fun recipes: