S'Mores Bars

I have an addiction to a great new website called "Pinterest". Imagine a giant bulletin board, filled with pictures of all your favorite things, that you can share with your friends --- that is Pinterest. There are boards for design, travel, art, books, crafts, and my favorite: food. It is through Pinterest that I discovered this recipe and, once again, set out to try my hand at baking. The result was gooey deliciousness!

½ cup butter, softened

¼ cup brown sugar

½ cup sugar

1 egg

1 tsp. vanilla

1 1/3 all-purpose flour

¾ cup graham cracker crumbs

1 tsp. baking powder

¼ tsp. salt

2 large chocolate bars (Hershey’s)

1 ½ cups marshmallow cream/fluff

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease square baking dish.

In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugars with an electric mixer, until light and fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla. In a separate bowl, mix together flour, graham cracker crumbs, baking powder, and salt.  Gradually add to butter mixture, mixing on low speed until combined.

Press half of the dough mixture into the bottom of the greased dish. Place chocolate bars, in a single layer, over dough. (The bars may fit nicely side by side, but if not, break them apart to create an even single layer) Spread marshmallow cream over chocolate. Flatten remaining dough and lay over the top.

Bake for 30-35 minutes, until lightly browned. Cool completely before cutting into bars.

*Recipe from Lovin' From the Oven

JELLO Magic Mousse

If you're looking for an incredibly simple, inexpensive, light, and guilt-free dessert, look no further! I largely ignore the recipes that are often found on packaging, but this one sounded too easy to pass up. The multi-textured layers amp up the same old JELLO flavor and can be suited to any flavor. Here I used the sugar-free versions, but feel free to go the traditional route as well!

1 pkg. Sugar-free JELLO, any flavor 

1 ½ cups boiling water

1 carton Sugar-free Cool Whip (small)

Whisk JELLO and boiling water together 2 minutes, or until completely dissolved. Whisk in Cool Whip until combined and smooth. Refrigerate 6-8 hours until firm. 

Apple-Oat Coffee Cake

What goes better with an afternoon tea than coffee cake? (Well, maybe scones, but that's for a different day) When I found myself hosting a tea for some friends last week, I decided to delve into a bit of baking and turned to my trusted friend, Betty Crocker, for some inspiration. I love my new Betty Crocker's Healthy New Choices cookbook - the recipes I've tried consistently taste great and don't make me feel guilty afterwards. This coffee cake was moist, delicious, and packed with fiber. 

Oat Streusel (see below) 

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 cup whole wheat flour

¾ cup sugar

¼ cup margarine, softened

1 cup skim milk

3 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. cinnamon

½ tsp. salt

¼ tsp. nutmeg

¼ tsp. allspice

2 egg whites

2 medium apples, chopped (about 2 cups)

Heat oven to 350 degrees and grease square baking dish. Prepare Oat Streusel (below) and set aside.

In a large bowl, beat remaining ingredients, except apples, with an electric mixer on low, about 30 seconds. Beat on medium speed 2 minutes. Stir in apples. Spread half the batter in the pan; sprinkle with half of the streusel. Top with remaining batter; sprinkle with remaining streusel. Bake 40-50 minutes, until completely firm and toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Serve warm.

Oat Streusel

3 T. margarine, firm

1 cup quick-cooking or old-fashioned oats

¼ cup all-purpose flour

¼ cup chopped nuts (optional)

Cut margarine into oats, flour, and brown sugar using a pastry blender or fork, until crumbly. Stir in nuts if desired.

Mom's Southern-Style Banana Pudding

My mom's banana pudding has been one of my favorite treats for practically as long as I could eat solid foods. It's the bring-to-a-potluck, make-for-holidays, good-day-for-a-BBQ dessert staple. The technique changes a bit depending variables like the flavor of pudding we have on hand or how many boxes of Nilla wafers are in the cabinet, but the essential Southern-style summer-is-here flavor remains untouched. 

1 pkg. banana cream pudding mix

1 pkg. French vanilla pudding mix

4 cups milk

1 lg. container Cool Whip

2-3 bananas, sliced

1 box Nilla wafers

In a large mixing bowl, combine pudding mixes and milk; whisk until smooth. Fold in Cool Whip to pudding mixture until completely combined. Layer Nilla wafers on the bottom of a large serving bowl. Pour a layer of pudding over the top, then add a layer of bananas. Continue layering in this fashion, ending with pudding at the top. Refrigerate at least 1 hour. 

Citrus Pound Cake

Baking is something I usually try to avoid, but sometimes the result is worth the effort. This pound cake takes on a lighter flavor with the fruity notes of citrus and was so simple, I threw it together on a busy night without breaking a sweat. 

1 cup light butter

2 cups sugar or Splenda

6 eggs

2 tsp. vanilla

1 tsp. grated lemon peel

1 tsp. grated orange peel

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp. baking powder

½ tsp. salt

½ tsp. baking soda

1 cup lemon yogurt

Glaze:

1 ½ cups powdered sugar

2-3 T. lemon juice

1 T. grated lemon peel

1 T. grated orange peel

In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar with electric mixer until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla, lemon peel, and orange peel. In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking powder, salt, and baking soda. Alternate combining the dry ingredients and the yogurt into the sugar mixture. Beat until just combined.

Transfer to a greased Bundt pan. Bake at 325 degrees for 55-65 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pan to cool completely.

In a small bowl, combine powdered sugar and enough lemon juice to achieve the desired glaze consistency. Drizzle over cooled cake and sprinkle with lemon and orange peel.

Chocolate Chip Waffle Cookies

I have never been much of a baker. I think maybe I don't have the patience for precise measurements and feel stifled in terms of experimentation. (Though my baking friends assure me there is plenty of room for creativity) When I came across this recipe for cookies made on a waffle iron, I just couldn't help myself. While I did have to stick to the measurements, I was still able to add a little of my own flare (cinnamon is the trick - adds just a little something) and I created something totally unique (and delicious)!

½ cup packed brown sugar

¼ cup sugar

½ cup butter, melted

1 egg

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1 cup plus 2 Tbs. all-purpose flour

½ tsp. salt

¼ tsp. baking soda

¼ tsp. cinnamon

½ cup flaked coconut

½ cup semisweet chocolate chips

In a large bowl combine sugars, butter, egg, and vanilla. Separately, combine flour, salt, baking soda, and cinnamon, and then gradually mix into the sugar mixture with an electric mixer. Stir in the coconut and chocolate chips.

Preheat electric waffle iron and coat with cooking spray. Drop batter by the teaspoonful, about 1 in. apart. Bake 1-3 minutes, until golden brown. (Many waffle irons will signal when they are cooked) Carefully remove and cool completely. 

*Original recipe from Simple & Delicious magazine

Guilt-Free Easy-Peasy Parfaits

Sometimes, simple is better. These parfaits are light, versatile, and beautiful. Change up the flavors to suit your mood or preference. (Try chocolate and raspberry for a richer taste)

1 pkg. sugar-free strawberry-banana Jell-O, prepared per package directions

1 pkg. sugar-free Jell-O vanilla pudding, prepared per package directions

1 banana, sliced AND/OR a few strawberries, sliced

Dollop of sugar-free Cool Whip (or Ready-Whip)

In a clear bowl or glass (I use wine glasses) layer ingredients as follows:

Pudding, fruit, Jell-O, repeat. Top each parfait with a dollop of Cool Whip.