Tag Archives: dessert

Orange Creamsicle Cupcakes!

Posted on May 3, 2016 by Ruthanne

These delicious orange cupcakes have a white chocolate cup of vanilla ice cream in the center! Just like everyone’s favorite Orange Creamsicle frozen treats! Summer is coming…. you need these frozen cupcake treats!!!!

Confession: I hate all things orange flavored.

Confession: I was making cookie dough cupcakes for a party last week and I accidentally grabbed an orange cake mix instead of a chocolate cake mix at the store. I’m not sure how you do that… but I did. I had to rush to the store for a chocolate cake mix and then I was stuck with this orange one…. and I hate…hate…hate orange.

My dad suggested a Creamsicle cupcake and I went for it. Turns out, everyone else in the world LOVES orange Creamsicles- so it all worked out.

I knew I wanted ice cream in the middle, but I didn’t want a soggy cupcake. Solution: the fun chocolate bomb mold that I’ve been raving about and using on cupcakes whenever I get a chance! Best kitchen gadget ever! I used the mold to make little white chocolate cups to hold the scoop of ice cream on top. Perfect!

Here’s how I put these fun little desserts together: (printable recipe)

INGREDIENTS:

One box of orange cake mix (plus oil, water and eggs to make according to package)
1 bag of Wilton’s candy melts in white
2 sticks of butter (room temp)
1 1/2 cups of powdered sugar
1 teaspoon of vanilla
Orange food coloring (if desired)
Vanilla ice cream
Cool Whip (if desired)
Sprinkles to decorate

DIRECTIONS

Make cake mix according to package and divide equally into 24 cupcake liners in cupcake tins.
Bake according to package and cool.
Make icing by combining butter, powdered sugar and vanilla in bowl and beating until light and fluffy. Color orange if desired.
Place icing in a large zip-top bag fitted with a round tip, and set aside.
Melt candy melts in microwave in 30 second increments, stirring between until completely melted.
Use a pastry brush to brush candy melts inside each cavity of the chocolate bomb mold and freeze for a few minutes.
Coat a second time (it needs to be nice and thick since we aren’t filling them before popping them out of the mold).
Pop these cups out of the mold by peeling the silicone away. Repeat.

Assemble cupcakes by cutting a small core out of the center of each one, pipe a little frosting into this core, and set a chocolate cup on top.

Pipe frosting dots all the way around the edge of the cup.

You can hold the cupcakes here until serving and do the next steps right beforehand- or do the following steps and keep the entire cupcake frozen until serving. Depends on how and where you will be serving them.
Place a small scoop of ice cream into the center
Top with Cool Whip, and sprinkles as desired

Enjoy!!!!!

My thoughts: Well, I didn’t try these, but I did share them and according to others, they are a yummy success! These work best if you keep them at room temp and add the ice cream just before serving. If you add the ice cream ahead of time, let the cupcakes and ice cream warm up and soften a bit before serving- otherwise they are fairly difficult to eat! At room temperature though… cake and ice cream all at once!!! YUM! Enjoy!!! ~r

Other fun ice cream desserts to try! (click on a photo to see the recipe)

7 Comments

Posted in Candy, Cupcakes, Frozen desserts and tagged butter cream frosting, chocolate bomb, Creamsicle cupcakes, cupcake ideas, cupcakes, dessert, Dreamsicle, fun cupcake ideas, ice cream cupcakes, Orange, Orange creamsicle, Orange cupcakes, summer cupcakes, unique cupcake recipes, white chocolate. Bookmark the permalink.

Cookie Dough Layer Cake

Posted on February 27, 2016 by Ruthanne

Creamy cookie dough filling surrounded by rich chocolate cake and topped with a delicious chocolate glaze. An easy, beautiful and oh-soo-yummy dessert!

I’m in love with cookie dough. When I go to those fancy yogurt shops where you make your own sundae I am always tempted to skip the yogurt and just fill my dish with those little cookie dough bites. This easy (super, super easy) layer cake is filled with my favorite creamy cookie dough. I’ve used it to top cupcakes and to fill brownies— and now to fill cake. I love it. I think you will too!

As in most of my recipes, this dessert is made simple with the use of a cake mix (I used a Duncan Hines Dark Chocolate Fudge here), but you can substitute your favorite cake recipe instead. More work… but that’s up to you!

Here is how we put this cake together: (printable recipe)

INGREDIENTS:

Cake/Filling:

One boxed chocolate cake mix (plus water, oil and eggs to make according to package)
2 sticks (8 oz.) unsalted butter(softened)
2 sticks (8 oz.) salted butter(softened)
2 c. powered sugar
1 c. brown sugar (packed)
3 T. vanilla
1/3c. flour
1 (12 oz) bag of mini chocolate chips.

Glaze:

1 1/2 sticks of salted butter
1 12 oz. package of semi-sweet chocolate chips

DIRECTIONS:

Make cake mix (or your favorite cake recipe) and bake according to box/recipe in 2- 8 or 9 inch round pans.
Cool cakes completely.
While cakes are baking and cooling, make your filling.
Place all filling ingredients except mini chips into a large mixing bowl and beat with mixer on low until combined and then high until light and fluffy.
Add mini chips (keep about 1/3 of a cup aside to sprinkle on sides and top of cake) and beat on low until fully combined.
Make glaze by melting butter and chips together and set aside.
Once cakes are cool, trim the tops so they are flat.
Place 1 cake on serving plate, cut side up, and spread a little of the glaze on top.
Spoon all of filling on top and spread all the way to the edge of the cake.
Place second cake on top, cut side down, and use a knife to smooth edges of filling flat between the two cake layers.
Sprinkle edges of filling with extra chocolate chips, and then pour glaze over the top and add the rest of the chips.
Refrigerate until firm.

My thoughts: I wondered if the filling layer was too thick (it’s a lot of filling!) I knew that I would love all that cookie dough, but would others? They did. It got rave reviews and even a 2 thumbs up from a frosting-hater 🙂 You could make half of the filling recipe if you want- but it is honestly soooo yummy to have a big bite of cookie dough with every bite of cake. Wish I had some left…! Enjoy! ~r

Other fun layered caked here at Easybaked (click on a photo to see the recipe):

18 Comments

Posted in Cakes, Cookies and tagged best, cake, chocolate, chocolate chip cookie dough cake, chocolate fudge cake, chocolate glaze, cookie dough, cookie dough cake, cookie dough dessert, creative cake recipe, creative dessert, dessert, layer cake, recipe, unique dessert. Bookmark the permalink.

Berry Bomb Cupcakes

Posted on January 15, 2016 by Ruthanne

These delicious cupcakes are topped with a dome of raspberry cream and a touch of black raspberry jam- a perfectly pink Valentine’s Day treat!

I love berries over vanilla cake- it reminds me of summer and makes me smile. I got a little creative with the presentation, but I think that makes them just perfect as a Valentine– don’t you?

These are incredibly delicious and fun to make. They use a fun (and inexpensive) silicone mold that I got here and have used before on my Peanut Butter Bomb Brownies. I just love how beautiful the dome of white chocolate looks atop these cupcakes! There are so many possibilities for fillings….!

Want to know how we made these cute little desserts? Here you go: (Printable recipe)

INGREDIENTS:

One boxed white cake mix (with water, oil and eggs to make according to package)
1 large jar of black raspberry preserves
1 can of strawberry frosting
2 packets of Dream Whip
3/4 cup milk
1 tablespoon of raspberry extract
6 tablespoons powdered sugar
Pink food color gel (to desired shade)
2 bags of Wiltons candy melts in bright white.

DIRECTIONS:

Make cake mix according to package and divide into 24-28 cupcake liners placed in a muffin tin. Fill only about 1/2 full so that they bake up flat and not mounded up and over edges. Bake according to package.
Make Berry Bomb filling by combining Dream Whip, milk, extract, and powdered sugar in a mixing bowl and blending together with mixer until stiff peaks form. Add coloring to desired shade of pink.
Melt Wiltons candy melts and use a brush to “paint” the melts into the inside of the silicone mold. Do two layers and then freeze until hard (5 minutes).
Place filling into a large zip-top bag and clip a corner. Pipe filling into hardened cups- about 3/4 full- and then top with a little jam.
Use a knife to spread jam flat and freeze another 5-10 minutes.
Carefully remove berry bombs from mold and place, round side down and sticky jam side up, on a wax-papered plate. Keep these cool until all bombs are made.

Open strawberry frosting and warm in the microwave for about 15 seconds- just until it softens a bit when stirred,
Spoon frosting over tops of cupcakes, allowing it to spread to edges.
Gently set a bomb on top of cupcake, pressing it into the soft frosting (I used wax paper to touch chocolate to prevent fingerprints)
Allow frosting to firm up and hold the bomb in place.
Drizzle with a little red or pink melted candy melts if desired. Keep refrigerated until serving.
Enjoy!!!!!!!

My thoughts: These are a fun and refreshing twist on a berry-topped cupcake. The bombs take a little time to make- since you have to to do them in batches of 6. I recommend you start making them when you start the cupcakes. You can be in and out of the freezer while you are baking and save a little time. My other thought- serve these with a fork!!! When you bite into them and that white candy shell breaks it is too much to hold onto. I promise. Use forks 🙂 I hope you enjoy making and eating these as much as I did!! ~r

Other Valentines Day treats to try (click on a photo to see the recipe)

12 Comments

Posted in Cupcakes and tagged berry cupcake, best, black raspberry, chocolate bomb, cupcake, cupcakes, dessert, raspberry, raspberry cream, recipe, strawberry, Valentines day cupcake, white chocolate. Bookmark the permalink.

Praline Fudge Brownies

Posted on December 8, 2015 by Ruthanne

A dense brownie covered in creamy praline filling and topped with chocolate fudge and pecans. This will satisfy the most demanding sweet tooth!!!!

I adore pralines. Especially around Thanksgiving and Christmas when anything with pecans is somehow better. Some people say they are just too sweet- and this filling is no exception! Paired with this not-too-sweet brownie, I think it is perfect though. These got rave reviews and several people exclaimed, “These taste like Christmas!”

So let’s make these yummy little treats! (printable recipe)

INGREDIENTS:

Brownie:

1cup butter
2 cups sugar
3 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 cups flour
1/2 cup cocoa
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup milk

Praline Filling:

1 cup whipping cream
12 Tablespoons of butter
3 cups of brown sugar (packed)
1 1/2 cup of finely chopped pecans (divided)
3 cups of powdered sugar
2 teaspoon of vanilla

Fudge Topping:

12oz. semi-sweet chocolate chips
12 tablespoons butter (do not substitute margarine here!)

DIRECTIONS:

Brownie:

Preheat oven to 350.
Cream butter and sugar together.
Beat in eggs, cocoa, vanilla and salt.
Add flour and milk (alternating them and mixing well in between)
Spread evenly in greased jelly roll pan (12 1/2 x 17 1/2 x 1″).
Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes or until done in center and just starting to pull away from sides.
Cool.

Praline filling:

In a large saucepan, mix cream, butter and brown sugar.
Cook over medium heat, stirring often, until mixture comes to a boil.
Cook for one minute, stirring constantly and then remove from heat.
Stir in powdered sugar, vanilla and 1 cup of pecans (you may need to do this in a separate bowl if your saucepan isn’t big enough)
Cool for 5 minutes, stirring often until it thickens up a bit.
Spoon mixture over cooled brownies and spread into a smooth layer over the top.

Fudge Topping:

Melt butter and chocolate together in the microwave in 30 second increments, stirring in between until completely melted and smooth.
Pour over praline filling and spread evenly over top.
Sprinkle with remaining 1/2 cup of chopped pecans.
Chill until top layer is hard and cut into bars.

My thoughts: These aren’t hard to put together and they are oh-so-yummy!!! I froze about half of the batch in an air-tight container for several weeks and just pulled them out for a party I was having- they freeze GREAT. In fact, they are pretty yummy frozen. 🙂 I hope you get a chance to try these and enjoy them as much as I did!

Other yummy Christmas desserts: (click on a photo to see the recipe)

6 Comments

Posted in Brownies and tagged beautiful brownies, best, brown sugar, brown sugar frosting, brownies, candy, chocolate, christmas, dessert, fun, layered brownies, pecans, praline filling, pralines, recipe. Bookmark the permalink.

Mini Pumpkin Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Icing

Posted on November 23, 2015 by Ruthanne

Pumpkin Cupcakes4

These cute little bites of pumpkin and sweet cream cheese frosting are a perfect Fall treat! Top them with a little Hershey Kiss acorn, and they are a sweet place setting for Thanksgiving!

Pumpkin Cupcakes1

If you have followed this blog for very long, you know that I hate pumpkin. I cave in to autumn recipes though and sometimes create pumpkin treats for you all. I rely on others to tell me how they taste, and these got RAVE reviews from my taste-testing friends.

They are an adaptation of my mom’s delicious Pumpkin Roll, but in cute and bite-size portions!

And then there are those cute little acorns- easy and fun to make for your fall celebrations.

Pumpkin Cupcakes3

Here’s how we created all of this yummy-ness! (printable recipe)

INGREDIENTS: (makes about 38-40 mini cupcakes)

Cupcakes:

2/3 cup pumpkin
3 eggs
1 cup sugar
3/4 cup flour
1/2tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. baking soda

Frosting: (halve this if you don’t like piles of frosting as shown in my photos!)

8 oz (1 package) cream cheese (softened)
1/2 cup of butter (softened)
1 teaspoon vanilla
dash of salt
4 cups powdered sugar
1 cup white chocolate chips (melted)

Acorns:

40 Hershey kisses
40 mini Nilla Wafers
about 1/2 cup of chocolate chips

DIRECTIONS:

Cupcakes:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Mix together all of the cupcake ingredients, adding the flour, cinnamon and soda last. Blend well.
Spoon into mini cupcake liners, filling each about 3/4 full.
Bake for 14-16 minutes
Cool completely and frost.

Frosting:

On medium speed, beat together cream cheese, butter, vanilla, and salt until creamy.
Gradually add powdered sugar, beating until smooth.
Melt white chocolate chips in the microwave in 30 second increments, stirring between, until smooth.
Add melted white chocolate to icing and beat on low until completely combined.
Place in a zip-top bag fitted with a decorating tip and pipe frosting on top of cooled mini cupcakes.
Add leaf sprinkles and acorn (if desired)

Acorns:

Count out about 40 chocolate chips, Nilla Wafers and (unwrapped!) Hershey kisses.
Melt remaining chocolate chips
Set Nilla Wafers flat side up on a plate.
Spread a small amount of melted chocolate on the bottom of a Hershey kiss and set it (melted chocolate side down) on a Nilla Wafer. Repeat until all kisses are placed and refrigerate until hardened together.
Use a toothpick to put a small amount of melted chocolate on a chocolate chip and carefully hold to the top of the Nilla Wafer until it hardens and stays (when the Nilla Wafer is cold from the fridge, this happens in seconds).
Use to decorate your table and your cupcakes!!!

Pumpkin Cupcakes2

My thoughts: Cute, easy and (according to my friends!) delicious! I hope you get a chance to try these little bites of fall happiness! Enjoy!! ~r

Pumpkin CUpcakes5

Other really fun and cute fall treats: (click on a photo to see the recipe!)

8 Comments

Posted in Cupcakes and tagged acorn, acorn candy, acorn cupcake toppers, cream cheese frosting, cupcake, cupcakes, dessert, fall, fun, leaf sprinkles, mini cupcakes, pumpkin cupcakes, thanksgiving. Bookmark the permalink.

Spider Egg Cupcakes

Posted on October 10, 2015 by Ruthanne

These delicious little chocolate cupcakes are topped with terrifyingly cute little spiders, webs and egg sacs. A perfect Halloween treat!

There is nothing worse than finding spiders hatching somewhere in or around your house. Spiders are bad. Baby hatching spiders? Way worse. That’s what makes these fun little cupcakes so terrifying! That little egg sac? A Lindt white chocolate truffle. The spiders? Drizzled chocolate and mini M&Ms. Easy, fun and so cute that you almost start liking spiders! Almost.

Aren’t they fun??? All by themselves, on cookies, on cupcakes… so many ways you could use these.

Here’s the recipe: (printable version)

INGREDIENTS:

One boxed cake mix (plus water, oil and eggs to make according to package)
One tub of white frosting
1/4 cup of Wilton’s candy melts in dark chocolate
1 cup of Wilton’s candy melts in white chocolate
One bag of mini M&M’s (usually found by the chocolate chips)
Orange food coloring
Purple food coloring
24 Lindt white chocolate truffles

DIRECTIONS:

Make spiders and egg sacs 1st, to give them time to harden up.
Melt the Wiltons dark chocolate candy melts in the microwave in 3o second increments, stirring in between until completely melted and smooth.
Clip a corner off a small zip top bag, and place a small round decorating tip in the corner.
Spoon melted chocolate into bag, and pipe spider “legs” onto parchment paper, topping each set with a brown mini M&M. Pipe spider legs directly on each Lindt Chocolate and add the M&M on top. You’ll need 24 Lindt truffles and 24 extra spiders. I made about 40, and I was glad I did because some of their legs fell off as I pulled them off the parchment paper.
Allow these to harden completely (you can put this in the fridge to speed this process up if needed)

Make cake mix according to package and bake in 24 cupcake liners placed in muffin tins. Cool completely.
Divide the frosting into two parts. Soften it a little bit (10 seconds or so) in the microwave, and color it with purple and orange food coloring.
(Optional) Cut a small, (the size of the Lindt Truffle) and shallow hole into the top of each cupcake. I did this so that the truffle would settle a little “into” the cupcake rather than just perching on top. It makes frosting these a little messy with crumbs, but I liked the way it looked a little better.
Dip the top of each cupcake into frosting, covering the top (and inside the little “dent” on top) completely.
Place a spider “egg sac” on top of each cupcake.
Melt Wiltons White Candy Melts in the microwave in 30 second increments, stirring in between until completely melted and smooth.
Place in a zip-top bag, clip a corner and drizzle liberally over the top of each cupcake in a web-like pattern.
Before the Candy melts firm up, place a couple of spiders on top.
Allow frosting and candy melts to firm up.
Enjoy!

My thoughts: These are fun, easy and just a tiny bit creepy. A perfect October treat. The spiders take a little time and patience, but they can be made ahead of time and won’t hold you up when you go to make the cupcakes. I hope you have as much fun as I did with these! Enjoy!! ~r

Other creepy and fun October treats you might enjoy: (click on a photo to see the recipe)

8 Comments

Posted in Candy, Cupcakes and tagged best, chocolate, cupcakes, dessert, easy, fall, Halloween, halloween cupcakes, kids, lindt chocolate, October, recipe, spider cupcakes, spider dessert, spider egg. Bookmark the permalink.

Peanut Butter Bomb Brownies

Posted on August 29, 2015 by Ruthanne

What could be more yummy than a chocolate brownie covered in creamy peanut butter ganache and topped with a chocolate covered peanut butter mousse bomb? If you are addicted to chocolate and peanut butter, this dessert is for you!

Chocolate and peanut butter are a timeless combination, and these brownies combine those flavors in such a fun way!

The homemade brownies are dense, but not too rich. They compliment that sweet creamy peanut butter mousse perfectly and are such a pretty dessert!

You will need a silicone bomb mold for this, and a brush for coating it in chocolate. I found both of these at a local cake-decorating shop and they were really inexpensive.

Want to see how we did these? Here’s the recipe: (printable version)

INGREDIENTS: (makes 18-24 brownie cups)

Brownie:

Two sticks (1 cup) butter
2 cup sugar
3 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
1/2 cup cocoa
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups flour
1 cup milk

Ganache:

1 cup of peanut butter baking chips
1/2 cup of heavy cream

Bombs:

1 to 2 cups of dark chocolate candy melts
1 c. creamy peanut butter
8 oz. Philadelphia Cream Cheese (softened to room temperature)
1/2 c. sugar
8 oz. Cool Whip topping

DIRECTIONS:

Bomb:

Make these first, so they are ready to use once you need them.
Melt chocolate candy melts in 30 second increments in the microwave, stirring between until melted and smooth.
Use a brush (clean, food brush) to brush the inside of each cavity of the bomb mold with melted chocolate.
Freeze for about 3 minutes and repeat, to give a nice thick layer of chocolate. Re-freeze for another 4-5 minutes.

Make filling by beating together peanut butter, cream cheese and sugar.
Gently fold in the container of whipped topping.
Place filling in a large zip-top bag and keep in the fridge until use.
Cut a corner off the bag, and squeeze filling into each chocolate coated bomb mold. Smooth tops with a spatula.

Refreeze for about 15 minutes- until filling is hardened.
Gently peel mold away from bomb. Place each one on a plate covered in parchment paper and freeze until use.

Brownie:

Preheat oven to 350.
Cream butter and sugar together.
Beat in eggs, cocoa, vanilla and salt.
Add flour and milk (alternating them and mixing well in between)
Spoon into 18-24 cupcake liners placed in a muffin tin (only fill 1/3 to 1/2 full)
Bake at 350 degrees for 12-14 minutes or until a tooth pick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Ganache:

While brownies bake, heat peanut butter chips and heavy cream in a microwave safe bowl in 30 second increments. Stir and repeat until smooth and creamy.
When brownies are out of oven, carefully remove them from muffin tins and spoon warm ganache over warm brownies. Allow both to cool until ganache is firm but still a bit sticky.
Gently place a chocolate bomb on top of each brownie, and press gently into ganache.
Drizzle a bit of white chocolate on top if you desire.
Keep refrigerated. Leave at room temperature for a few minutes to warm before serving. Yum.

My thoughts: Yum!!! These were a huge hit among my friends and family. They do take a little extra time to make that bomb on top– but the wow factor is worth it! I will definitely be using these little silicone molds again- they are easy to use and I love that fun dome of chocolate! I hope you get a chance to try these!! Enjoy!!! ~r

Other yummy peanut butter treats on Easybaked:

11 Comments

Posted in Brownies, Candy and tagged best, brownies, chocolate, chocolate bomb, chocolate dessert, dessert, fun, mousse, peanut butter, peanut butter bomb, peanut butter mousse, recipe, unique dessert, unique recipe. Bookmark the permalink.

The BEST Chocolate Cut-out Cookies Ever!!

Posted on August 22, 2015 by Ruthanne

They taste…like rich chocolate brownies. They cut…perfectly, no refrigeration needed. The recipe…is so simple to make! Absolutely perfect cookies!

Well. Here we are. It has been over a month since I have posted a recipe here, and I miss you all! It’s funny how blogging creates community, isn’t it? I’ve really missed hearing from you all, and reading many of your blogs!

So, what have I been doing? These cookies are more than just a recipe- they tell the story of summer in Eastern and Central Europe, and they tell the story of new chapter in my life.

For those of you who have followed Easybaked for years, you know I spent most of my life working in the field of medicine. You also know that I spent most of last year in Arizona, working with a small church on the Navajo Nation~ a journey and experience I absolutely LOVED.

When my time drew to a close with the Navajo, I wondered if I’d return to medicine, but God had other plans, and I was invited to join a mission organization called Josiah Venture as their Intern Coordinator. Josiah Venture’s vision is to be a movement of God among the young people of Eastern and Central Europe, that finds its home in the local church and transforms society. We have missionaries in 14 countries, and this summer there were over 100 college age interns sent to help local churches host camps and outreach events in their cities. My job is to recruit, resource and prepare these interns to go each year.

I’ve spent the 1st part of this year training for this position and raising the financial support I need to be able to do this job full-time. I was able to be in the Czech Republic at the end of May to welcome this year’s interns. It was incredible to see so many young people giving up their summer to serve God overseas. I loved it!

Each year, Josiah Venture has a theme for the summer camps hosted by local churches. This year it was “You are Here”. The logo was a Metro map. They used #urhere on Instagram and Twitter to connect people, and if you visit these hashtags you will see incredible testimonies of God’s faithfulness this summer!

I was invited to a cookout this summer with some missionaries visiting the US from Slovakia. I was asked to bring dessert- because when you have a baking blog, everyone asks you to bring dessert! 😉 I made these cookies for them, and they were SO much fun. I keep saying that I hate royal icing, but there are some times when it is your only option.

So… this is what I’ve been doing. It has been a struggle to keep baking and sharing with you all because it has been such a busy summer with so much travel. I keep telling myself that Easybaked is a HOBBY, and I am allowed to take a break for awhile. But I will be back- I promise! My head is swimming with new ideas 🙂

Before I share this recipe, I want to ask a favor. If you are reading this post, and you are a follower of Christ that wants to see the incredible news of God’s love shared around the world, would you consider becoming a part of my support team? I am slated to begin this position on September 1st and I am not fully funded yet- but I’m SO close! I am looking for people who are able to give toward this ministry on a monthly basis, and to pray.

If you are interested in learning more, here are a few links:

More about Josiah Venture here.

More about how to become a part of this ministry (and how to contact me with questions) here.

More about summer internships for college students interested in missions here.

More about me (my personal/ ministry blog) here.

Thank you dear followers, fellow bloggers, and friends. I have been asking God fervently to provide what I need before September 1, and who knows? Maybe he will answer my prayers through you!!!

Now, that cookie recipe!

It is the best cut-out cookie recipe ever. Plus it’s chocolate, which is bonus in my book!

I’ve shared this recipe many, many times on this blog. I’ve added espresso to the recipe for the delicious cookies posted above, I’ve made them into cookie cups to be filled with all sort of sweet happiness, and I’ve even made them into cookie lollipops. I don’t even feel bad re-sharing this recipe with you because it is one I keep returning to as a staple for so many ideas.

I simply cut this particular batch into squares, and decorated them using royal icing (click here for icing recipe) with the actual camp logo as a guide!

Here’s the cookie recipe (printer friendly recipe -by the way, this says to chill the dough, but you definitely don’t need to. Experimentation has proved otherwise! :))

INGREDIENTS: (makes 30-32 medium square cookies)

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 like them fairly thick.
Cut into squares 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.
Frost as desired. A simple powdered sugar glaze would be delicious on these, or if you want to get fancy, use royal icing to create whatever your heart desires!

I hope you enjoy these delicious little cookies! Thank you for letting me share with you a little beyond the recipe today! *hugs* ~r

Here’s a few more of my non-baking stories from the past 2 years!

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Posted in Cookies, Uncategorized and tagged best, chocolate, cookies, cut-out cookies, dessert, Josiah Venture, mission internships, missions, outreach, recipe, royal icing, summer camps. Bookmark the permalink.

Key Lime Cookie Bars

Posted on July 16, 2015 by Ruthanne

These delicious cookie bars have white chocolate and coconut on the bottom and key lime pie filling with whipped cream on top. Such a refreshing treat for summer!

I love key lime pie. I love cookies. These smash those two worlds together into a sweet and tart summer dessert! Love it!

Here’s how we made it: (printable recipe)

INGREDIENTS:

Cookie base:

1 box of yellow cake mix
1/3c. oil
2 eggs
1 cup of white chocolate chips
1 cup of shredded coconut
1/2 cup graham cracker crumbs

Key lime topping:

1 cup of lime juice
1 egg
1 can (14oz) of sweetened condensed milk
One tub of cool whip, or 2 cups of whipping cream, whipped.

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat the oven to 350F degrees
In a mixing bowl, combine cake mix, oil and eggs well.
Add chips, coconut and graham crumbs, and mix together with clean hands until well- combined.
Press mixture into a greased cake pan and bake for 10 minutes at 350F degrees.
While this is baking, make key lime topping.
Mix together lime juice, condensed milk and one egg until well combined.
Pour over partially baked cookies and return to oven for another 20 minutes.
Cool completely and top with whipped topping, sprinkle with graham crumbs, if desired.
Chill until serving, but allow dessert to return to room temperature before serving.
Enjoy!

My thoughts: Sweet and fruity and white chocolatey….what is not to like here??? I love the sweet and tart balance of these little desserts and they just LOOK like summer! Enjoy! ~r

Other refreshing summer treats: (click on a photo to see the recipe)

6 Comments

Posted in Cookies, Pies and tagged coconut, coconut cookie bar, cookie bars, dessert, key lime, key lime cookie, key lime pie filling, recipe, summer, whiiped topping, white chocolate. Bookmark the permalink.

Boston Cream Pie Cupcakes

Posted on July 8, 2015 by Ruthanne

Filled with cream and topped with rich chocolate, these cupcakes capture all the delicious flavor of a Boston Cream Pie in a single-serving form! Easy and soooo yummy!

I’ve never understood why they call it a pie, when it is SO obviously a cake, but Boston Cream Pie is one of my favorite desserts. There’s something about that filling that makes it so moist and flavorful!

These little creations are as easy as can be because they use a cake mix and instant pudding. Easy and delicious!!

Here’s how we made them: (printable recipe)

INGREDIENTS:

One boxed yellow cake mix (plus water, oil and eggs to make according to package)
One packet of Jell-O White Chocolate Instant Pudding (plus milk to make according to package)
One cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips
6 Tablespoons of butter
Cool Whip, or Butter Cream frosting (1 stick of (softened)butter with 3/4 cups of powdered sugar and 1 teaspoon of vanilla)
24 red Sixlets candies (as desired for decoration)

DIRECTIONS:

Make cake mix according to package and divide into 24 cupcake liners placed in tins. Bake according to package, and cool.
Make pudding according to package and spoon into a large zip-top bag. Refrigerate until use.
Make chocolate sauce by melting chocolate chips and butter together in the microwave in 30 second increments, stirring between, until melted and smooth.
If you are making butter cream for the top (this gives you a swirl on top that is more firm for transporting than Cool Whip): Beat together the butter cream ingredients until they are light and fluffy.
Place either Cool Whip or butter cream in a zip-top bag fitted with a decorative tip.
To assemble: use a cupcake corer (or a knife) to remove a core out of the center of each cooled cupcake.
Cut the tip off the bag containing the pudding and pipe a dollop of pudding into the center of each cupcake.

Trim the “core” a little bit (makes room for the pudding) and place the top of the core back on, covering the pudding with cake.
Carefully spoon the warm chocolate over the top of each cupcake, gently pushing it toward the sides, but not over the sides.
Allow chocolate to cool. It will firm up.
Once it is completely cool, pipe Cool Whip or butter cream in a little swirl on top.
Decorate using sixlets (or any other sprinkles or decorations you like!)
Enjoy!

My thoughts: These really are delicious… I try to only “taste” my treats and give the rest away, but you better believe I finished this little cupcake…with a cup of coffee. Yum! I hope you get a chance to try them too! ~r