Desserts

Whenever I used to make cookies, my three boys would always find something they didn't like about them. After some trial and error, I finally came up with a cookie they all enjoyed.

After I experimented in the kitchen mixing and matching ingredients to come up with a new and different cookie recipe, my husband proclaimed these the winner! With a little peppermint extract, these cake-like cookies bring a nice close to any meal.

I can't resist these soft cookies topped with a maple-flavored frosting. Dates, pecans and coconut add some unexpected wholesomeness.

Think of cowboy bars as pecan squares gone “heehaw!”  These cowboy bars have a familiar and always inviting shortbread crust (this time with a touch of oatmeal for texture) and they’re topped with BBQ sauce, maple syrup and pecans.  Yahoo!  Sweet, smokey, buttery, salty, and earthy with the smell of finger-lickin’ BBQ sauce, these bars will create a gold rush-style stampede. You’ll see in the photo above that I made two different styles of bars. Version one has four layers: Shortbread crust Maple syrup and BBQ sauce Shortbread crumbs Crushed pecans Version two has only two layers: Shortbread crust Maple syrup and BBQ sauce with pecans mixed in The flavor of both versions is identical, the only difference is the crumb. Version one is my favorite of the two – I’m a crumb glutton.  However, the flaw in the first version is that the crumb topping and loose pecans fall off all over the place.  Do I care?  I do not!  However, if I were bringing cowboy bars to a party and the host had carpeting, I’d opt for version two. Print Cowboy Bars With Crumb Topping Yield: A 12.8" x 9.5" x 2" baking pan full of cowboy bars IngredientsShortbread Ingredients 1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature 1 cup sugar 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 1 cup oats 1 teaspoon baking powder BBQ Maple Syrup Filling Ingredients 1/2 cup pure maple syrup 1/3 cup BBQ sauce (I suggest something thick, sweet, and smoky.) 3 tablespoons unsalted butter 1 1/2 cups chopped pecans 1/4 cup milkInstructionsPreheat oven to 350 F. Use your hands to mix all shortbread ingredients together in a medium-sized bowl. You should end up with a loose crumb. Lightly grease a 12.8" x 9.5" x 2" baking pan. Press half of the shortbread mixture into the bottom of the baking pan. Bake for 20 minutes or until the shortbread just begins to brown. In a small saucepan, heat all BBQ maple syrup filling ingredients except the pecans on medium heat until they begin to boil. Pour BBQ maple syrup mixture over baked shortbread crust. Top with remaining shortbread dough and chopped pecans. Bake for 30 minutes. Turn heat up to 375 and bake for another 15 minutes. When cool, cut into squares and serve.Schema/Recipe SEO Data Markup by ZipList Recipe Plugin2.2http://www.cupcakeproject.com/2013/05/cowboy-bars.html Print Cowboy Bars Without the Crumb Topping Yield: A 12.8" x 9.5" x 2" baking pan full of cowboy bars IngredientsShortbread Ingredients 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature 3/4 cup sugar 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour 3/4 cup oats 3/4 teaspoon baking powder BBQ Maple Syrup Filling Ingredients 1/2 cup pure maple syrup 1/3 cup BBQ sauce (I suggest something thick, sweet, and smoky.) 3 tablespoons unsalted butter 1 1/2 cups chopped pecans 1/4 cup milkInstructionsPreheat oven to 350 F. Use your hands to mix all shortbread ingredients together in a medium-sized bowl. You should end up with a loose crumb. Lightly grease a 12.8" x 9.5" x 2" baking pan. Press the entire shortbread mixture into the pan. Bake for 20 minutes or until the shortbread just begins to brown. In a small saucepan, heat all BBQ maple syrup filling ingredients except the pecans on medium heat until they begin to boil. Mix pecans into BBQ maple syrup mixture and pour over cooked shortbread. Bake for 30 minutes. When cool, cut into squares and serve.Schema/Recipe SEO Data Markup by ZipList Recipe Plugin2.2http://www.cupcakeproject.com/2013/05/cowboy-bars.html

Have you ever thought of making your own sprinkles? Well now you can.Taco Bell's new breakfast taco waffle looks like it could take the world by storm.As it turns out, how often you eat candy is not a reason that you may be overweight, but I'm pretty sure how much you eat might do something.The folks at Nutella don't want us to celebrate World Nutella Day, and why would they? It's only a time for us to buy and consume more of their product.The growing trend in Swedish candy "medicated confectionery".Do you know what "theobromine" is? Well if you want to eat more chocolate you should learn more.This past week I got an awesome shipment of treats from Japan, and some of them look pretty fascinating I can only hope they're as cool as this.If I had to learn one new language that I felt would improve my work as a Candy Critic, I think it might be Aztec.If you want to keep up with all of the daily candy news that we come across as it happens, follow us on Twitter.

These cute cat cupcakes are by London's Crumbs and Doilies, via their blog, made for Erica's birthday.

I am a total summer-lover but there are a few things I look forward to in our colder seasons: open fires and red wine, pretty woollen jumpers (which can hide a multitude of comforting-carbohydrate-sins) and big woollen socks, slow cooked meats and cold weather thriving fruits like rhubarb, persimmons and tamarillos. Tamarillos or tree tomatoes [...]

At first glance, this cake seems innocent enough. Nothing about it screams for attention. But its plain appearance is somewhat deceptive. The sleek minimalism doesn’t quite convey the quiet deliciousness that unfolds with each bite. It all starts with a plain yogurt cake. But this canvas of simplicity gets punched up with a light touch of Kahlua simple syrup to make it a little more interesting. Then comes the filling and topping. If you don’t care for buttercream or are interested in a momentary diversion from chocolate, this cream is one to try. It’s a lovely combination of sweetened ricotta cheese, cream cheese and whipped cream punctuated with a little spot of rum and vanilla. It’s creamy and flavorful without being overly heavy or too sweet. Perfect for an initmate celebration, this cake has a sort of Italian flair that is rustic and luscious. And if you’d like to liven up the platter, you can dress it up with some fresh cherries or berries for extra bling. Bench notes: - Fresh ricotta in this is fabulous. It doesn't take long to make and it's super delicious. - If you use commercial ricotta, strain out any excess liquid, if necessary. One of my favorite brands is Bellwether Farms. They also make great creme fraiche. - Start with softened cream cheese and beat it together with the ricotta just until it combines. Mixing it for too long will cause it to become thin and runny. - The filling for this cake is from a recipe called Baby Shower Cake in Cocolat by Alice Medrich. Ricotta Cream Cake Serves 6 - 8 1 1/2 cups (7 1/2 oz; 213 g) flour 2 teaspoon baking powder 1/4 teaspoon salt 1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons (3 oz; 85 g) canola oil 3/4 cup (5 1/4 oz; 149 g) sugar 1 large egg 1 large egg yolk 3/4 cup (6 oz) plain yogurt @ room temperature 1 teaspoon vanilla Kahlua Simple Syrup 2 tablespoons (1 oz) water 2 tablespoons (26 g) sugar 2 tablespoons (1 oz) Kahlua Ricotta Filling adapted from Cocolat by Alice Medrich 1/2 cup (4 oz; 113g) ricotta 3 oz (85 g) cream cheese @ room temperature 1 cup (8 oz) heavy cream 1/2 cup (2 oz; 57 g ) powdered sugar 1 1/2 tablespoons rum 3/4 teaspoon vanilla Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9” x 9" x 2” square pan and line the bottom with parchment, leaving an overhang on two sides. Sift the flour, baking powder and salt and set aside. In a separate bowl, whisk together the oil, sugar, egg and egg yolk and blend thoroughly. Add the yogurt and vanilla. Mix in the dry ingredients just until there are no streaks of flour. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and tap the bottom of the pan on a work surface a few times to release the air bubbles. Bake the cake until it's a light golden brown and springs back when touched or a tester comes out clean, about 25 minutes. Place on a wire rack to cool. For the syrup, heat the water and sugar until dissolved. Add the Kahlua and set aside. Strain the ricotta and beat together with the room temperature cream cheese just until combined. Slowly add the heavy cream. Then add the powdered sugar, rum and vanilla and beat until thickened and airy like whipped cream. Lift the cake out of the pan and remove the parchment paper. Using a serrated knife, trim all four edges of the cake, preserving its square shape. Cut the cake in half and, using a pastry bruch, imbibe each cut side with the Kahlu

One of the best things my grandmother made was a dessert called banana split cake. It wasn’t really a cake at all, but a layer of cookie crumbs topped with a creamy custard of some sort, whipped cream, pineapple and bananas. Over the years I’ve tried several versions of the recipe trying to get it [...]

La Maison du Chocolat are chocolatiers that I have a sense of guilt about. When I first started reviewing chocolate a few years ago I caught up in the swell created by their funkier alternatives. The Banksies of the chocolate world pushed from the underground closer to the mainstream and naively this seemed more exciting. [...]You may also like: Laurent Gerbaud Yuzu 75% Dark Chocolate Bar La Maison Du Chocolat Tastings and Ganaches for Chocolate Week 2010 Michel Cluizel 99% and 85% Ganaches