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Blackberry Pie Bars.

The perfect spring treat, from Joy The Baker, as delicious berries being popping up in the market!

CRUST

3 C Flour

1 1/2 C Sugar

1/4 tsp Salt

1 1/2 C Unsalted Butter, chilled and cubed

Zest of Two Lemons

FILLING

4 Eggs

2 C Sugar

1 C Sour Cream

3/4 C Flour

Pinch of Salt

32oz Frozen Blackberries (thawed and drained) OR 6 generous cups of Fresh Blackberries

MAKE IT

1. Preheat oven to 350. Grease 9x13" pan with butter.

2. Combine 1 1/2 C sugar with lemon zest, working with your fingers to release zestiness.

3. Add 3 C flour, 1/4 tsp salt, and butter cubes and mix until crumbly. (I use either a pastry cuter or a food processor, pulsed a few times.)

4. Reserve 1 1/2 C of "dough" for the topping. Press remaining dough into bottom of 9x13 pan. Bake at 350 for 12-15 minutes until it starts to brown. Remove and cool while you make the filling.

5. Whisk eggs in a large bowl. Add in 2C sugar, sour cream, 3/4 C flour, pinch of salt, and whisk until well-combined. Gently fold in fresh or defrosted/drained blackberries.

6. Pour blackberry mixture over top of baked crust. Sprinkle remaining 1 1/2 C of crust dough evenly over top.

7. Bake at 350 for 45-55 min, until top crust is golden and middle doesn't jiggle much. Let cool for one hour before slicing.

**You can honestly bake this in any size pan, just cook a little longer or a little shorter per pan size - I enjoy doing a couple small pans and a few ramekins, all at the same time. Then the ramekins are easily served snacks or desserts, and the pans are good for taking somewhere to share!

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Have extra box of Funfetti Cake Mix lying around, will make Funfetti cookies. 

Eventually.

That box was lying around for a while.

But in the end, it was totally worth it!! And even better, unlike having to use oil when you make it in cake form, these cookies use butter instead! Which means I can pretend they are healthy.

Here’s what you’ll need:

1 Box Funfetti Cake Mix (just the mix, not the additional ingredients listed on the back of the box which you would use if making a cake)

1/2 C Unsalted Butter, room temp

1 Egg

1 tsp Vanilla Extract

1/4 tsp Salt

1. Preheat oven to 350 Degrees Fahrenheit. If you don’t have non-stick cookie sheets, grease or line with parchment paper two cookie sheets.

2. In a standup mixer, beat together cake mix and butter. Add in egg, vanilla, and salt, and beat until well combined. If you like your cookies super full of sprinkles, you can also add in extra sprinkles of your choosing (a Tablespoon or two) at this point.

3. Drop by the tablespoon-full on cookie sheets, about two inches apart. These cookies won’t spread much, so you don’t have to give them too much space. Bake at 350 for 10-11 minutes, or until edges are just starting to brown.

4. Cool on cookie sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to cooling racks to complete cooking.

5. Eat em! You can go all crazy on me and dip em in some Funfetti frosting, or just eat em plain (my preference).

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The Christmas Party Cookie Season is upon us. To kick off the season, I made my simplest cookie recipe this weekend. And by simple I mean there are 5 ingredients, and you mix it up all at once, in one bowl, so then you only have to wash one bowl, and if you play it right you could probably get away with only having to wash one measuring cup, and basically it’s Christmas joy all around.

Here’s what you’ll need for 24-30 cookies:

2 C Peanut Butter (I like using one that’s just peanuts and salt, but any will work)

1 1/4 C Granulated Sugar

2 Eggs

1/4 C Melted Butter (you do NOT need this if you use a peanut butter that has added oil...it just helps to up the moisture in the cookie if you go the natural PB route like I do)

24-30 Hershey’s Chocolate Kisses (milk or dark)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper.

2. In a large bowl, mix peanut butter, sugar, eggs, and butter (if you decide to use it). Slightly wet your hands and form dough into tablespoon-sized balls, placing evenly on cookie sheets. (These won’t really spread out at all, so you don’t have to have more than an inch or so between each ball of dough.)

3. Bake at 35 for 10-12min, until dough starts to crack. While baking, unwrap chocolate kisses - one per cookie. As soon as you remove the cookies from the oven, gently press one kiss into the center of each cookie. Allow to cool for two minutes on the pan, then transfer to cooling racks.

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Sometimes you just want a little bit of pumpkin pie at a time, and you don’t really feel like crust, so you just make the filling and bake it for 30 minutes in ramekins. 

And then you make whipped cream by whipping up some heavy whipping cream with a dash of sugar and a dash of vanilla extract.

And then all is good in the world.

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I tripled my stuffing recipe this year and thus had to use this much butter. I was not mad.

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I made tots out of broccoli.

They were delicious and I highly recommend them as a way to get your daily dose of broccoli and parmesan cheese.

That’s right. They have a sh*t ton of delicious parmesan cheese in them as well. Protein. Boom.

Here’s what you’ll need for about 25 Tots:

2 Packed Cups of Steamed, Diced Broccoli (aka just steam two large heads of broccoli, chop it up, and it’ll likely come out to be about two cups when you measure the chopped bits)

1 C Shredded Parmesan Cheese (I recommend shredding it yourself. Better than the pre-shredded kind that never quite tastes like parmesan.)

1/4 C Diced Yellow Onion

3/4 C Italian Panko Breadcrumbs (if you use plain Panko, that’s totally fine, just add in some garlic powder and/or additional spices to your liking, as the Italian ones add a great kick of flavor)

1/2 tsp Salt

1/2 tsp Pepper

1/2 tsp Paprika

2 Large Eggs

1. Preheat oven to 400 Degrees Fahrenheit. Grease or line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

2. Combine chopped broccoli, cheese, onions, breadcrumbs, salt, and pepper in a large bowl and stir until well combined. Crack two eggs on top of the mixture and again, stir until well combined. I found using my hands for this really worked well.

3. Using just your hands, scoop mixture out by about the Tablespoon-full. Shape into balls or loggish tot shapes, or if you’re really pressed for time, just plop em by the tablespoon-full onto prepared baking sheet.

4. Bake at 400 for 20 minutes, turning halfway through. Allow to cool five minutes prior to eating.

The great thing about these tots is you can adjust the recipe to your liking! Use plain breadcrumbs, and instead add spices like garlic and rosemary, or use cheddar cheese instead of parmesan. You can likewise serve with a whole variety of dipping sauces -- melted butter, ketchup, oil and vinegar...

And guess what? Even though there’s all this cheese in them, they really aren’t unhealthy. There’s no sugar (watch out for what breadcrumbs you use -- many contain sugar or evil palm oil -- run away!!), they’re made mostly of a vegetable, so unless you eat all of them in one sitting, you’re doing well on the healthy tots spectrum.

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CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIE BARS and/or BLONDIES

You choose what to call em. I’ll call em delicious.

My husband loves the chocolate chip cookies I make, but I wanted to make something a little different, because making chocolate chip cookies every weeks gets a bit boring. So I made these. 

Note to the wise: I know it’s tempting to eat things asap after they come out of the oven (guilty), but these are truly better once completely cooled. Even better the next day (if stored in a tightly sealed/saran wrapped container). An anomaly, I know.

Here’s what you’ll need:

1 C Unsalted Butter, melted

1/2 C Granulated Sugar

1 C Brown Sugar

2 tsp Vanilla Extract

2 Large Eggs

2 1/4 C All Purpose Flour

1 tsp Baking Soda

1 tsp Salt

1 Tbs Unsweetened Cocoa Powder

2 C Semi Sweet Chocolate Chip Morsels

1. Preheat oven to 375 Degrees Fahrenheit. Grease 9x13″ pan with butter (I like to use the butter wrappers from the 1 C of butter in this recipe).

2. In a mixer, beat together sugars and melted butter until smooth. Add in vanilla and eggs, one at a time, again beating until smooth. Sift together flour, baking soda, salt, and cocoa powder. Add to sugar mixture and mix until combined. Stir in chocolate chips.

3. Press into prepared pan. Bake for about 25 minutes, until golden brown. Remove and cool completely in pan prior to slicing and serving.

**If you like your bars thinner, you can set some of the dough aside for later use. I suggest that later use be putting 1/2 C of dough into a ramekin, baking at 375 for 12-15 minutes, allowing to cool for 5 minutes before topping with ice cream and eating your very own homemade pizookie a la BJs Restaurant.**

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STRAWBERRY SHORTCAKE Like My Mom Used To Make.

I grew up in a household that used biscuits in our strawberry shortcake. I know, I know, some of you are used to a more cake-like substance, but let me tell you, these biscuits are the way to go. Just trust me on this one.

Here’s what you’ll need (8 servings):

BISCUITS (adapted from Taste of Home)

2 C All-Purpose Flour

2 Tbs Sugar

1 Tbs Baking Powder

1/2 tsp Salt

1/4 C Cold Butter, cubed

1 C Milk (I used half and half because RICHNESS...any milk works)

1. Preheat oven to 425 Degrees Fahrenheit. Cover baking sheet with parchment paper, or grease sheet.

2. In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt. Stir until combined. Cut in butter until mixture is crumbly. Slowly stir in milk until a soft dough forms (you might not use all of the milk).

3. Drop dough by heaping tablespoonful onto prepared baking sheet. (Should make 8 biscuits.) Bake at 425 for 12 minutes, or until edges are lightly browned.

Meanwhile, slice the strawberries (about two pints) and make the strawberry syrup (requires another cup of strawberries)!

STRAWBERRY SYRUP (adapted from Add A Pinch)

1 C Sliced Fresh Strawberries

2 Tbs Sugar

1/4 C Water

In a tiny saucepan, combine strawberries, water, and sugar. Bring to a boil, which will probably take all of two minutes with such a small amount of water. Reduce heat and allow to simmer 10 minutes. Remove from heat and use a blender or immersion blender to blend until smooth, about 10 seconds. 

ASSEMBLE!!!

Slice the biscuits in half with a sharp, serrated knife. Fill with sliced strawberries, a generous dollop of whipped cream, and drizzle strawberry syrup on top.

EAT.

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Anyone who says (ahem ALL of Pinterest) you can just make brownie batter and pour it into a waffle maker and make perfect waffle brownies is a liar. 

This was the closest I got to a decent waffle brownie following those instructions. And I had to break out my normal waffle maker after three attempts crumbled miserably in the belgian waffle maker.

BUT THEY WERE ALL DELICIOUS.

So, I’ll be working on a recipe that holds firm, while still tasting like a brownie, and I’ll post it here when I get it.

For now, make brownie mix, put it in a really well greased regular waffle maker, cook on a higher setting, and carefully peel out the waffle when done, top whatever you get with ice cream, and devour.

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Fresh-squeeze orange juice. Fresh-grated orange zest. Heavenly-smelling apartment. Just-the-right-sweet-tasting ORANGE BARS.

Happy Spring.

Here’s what you’ll need (adapted from Better Homes and Gardens):

THE CRUST

1 C All-Purpose Flour

3 Tbs Powdered Sugar

1/4 tsp Sea Salt

1/3 C Unsalted Butter, chilled and cubed

THE FILLING

1 C Granulated Sugar

2 Large Eggs

2 tsp Fresh Orange Zest

2/3 C Fresh Orange Juice, minimal pulp (I used three medium oranges to achieve this)

2 Tbs All-Purpose Flour

1/4 tsp Sea Salt

Additional powdered sugar for decorating

1. Preheat oven to 350 Degrees Fahrenheit. Line an 8x8 inch baking pan with foil, extending it over the top edges of the pan. Grease the foil with butter or cooking spray.

2. Make the crust. In a large bowl, sift together flour, powdered sugar, salt. Cut in butter using a pastry blender, or a fork, until a crumbly mixture forms. Press crust evenly into prepared pan. Bake at 350 for 15 minutes, until edges of crust just begin to brown.

3. In the same bowl (wiped clean), or a new one if you please, whisk together granulated sugar, eggs, orange zest, and orange juice until smooth. This is about one minute of strong whisking. Whisk in flour and sea salt, until most lumps have disappeared, another two minutes of strong whisking. Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes, until center appears set when pan is nudged.

4. Allow to cool completely on wire rack or top of stove. Lift the foil (and bars) out of the pan, carefully peel foil away from the edges, slice into bars, dust with powdered sugar for appearance if desired, and serve.

Eat one or three yourself first. Trust me. These disappear quickly.

These are also great chilled, and last well for up to three days if refrigerated. Dust with powdered sugar just prior to serving, otherwise the sugar will soak in, you’ll have to re-dust, and your bars will be sweeter than intended.

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Ultimate Carrot Cake

Yes, that’s what I’m calling this. It disappeared at Easter, immediately consumed by a group that considers themselves quite the carrot cake connoisseurs. Even those who scoffed that there were no nuts (I hate nuts in deserts) were literally eating their own words as they scraped their plates clean.

This recipe is for a two-layer, 9-inch round cake, but you can make a three-layer, sheet cake, or cupcakes just as easily, adjusting the baking time accordingly. 

Here’s what you’ll need:

2 C All Purpose Flour

2 tsp Baking Soda

1/2 tsp Salt

2 tsp Ground Cinnamon

1 tsp Allspice

3 Large Eggs

2 C Sugar

3/4 C Vegetable Oil

3/4 C Buttermilk

2 tsp Vanilla Extract

2 C Grated (via food processor) Carrots

1 8-oz Can Crushed Pineapple, drained

1 C Chopped Nuts if you like them...I don’t...but they’ll do just fine in this cake if you do

Pre-heat oven to 350 Degrees Fahrenheit. Line two 9-inch round cake pans with parchment paper. Lightly butter and flour the edges of the pans and the parchment paper.

Sift together flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and allspice. Beat eggs, sugar, oil, buttermilk, and vanilla until smooth. Add in flour mixture, beating on low speed until well-combined. Stir in carrot and pineapple (and nuts should you choose). **For carrots -- I like putting them in a food processor and pulsing until almost the consistency of cous cous, doing so until I have two cups of cous cous-y carrot bits. I find this leads to a more moist, carrot-y cake. You may also finely grate the carrots.

Pour batter into prepared cake pans. Bake at 350 for 30-35 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cakes comes out clean. Allow cakes to cook completely in pans. Run a knife along the edges of the pans and carefully flip over pans to remove cakes. 

And for the frosting:

16oz Cream Cheese

1/2 Cup Unsalted Butter, room temperature

1 3/4 Cups Powdered Sugar, sifted

1 tsp Pure Vanilla Extract

Blend cream cheese and butter until smooth. Add in vanilla and sifted powdered sugar, beating slowly to begin with, until ingredients begin to combine, then up the speed of your mixer, beating until smooth and frosting-y.

Prior to frosting, I’d recommend leveling out the cakes so they stack more easily. You can do this with a serrated knife. The cooler the cake is, the easier it will be to level it off. Once you’ve accomplished that, spread frosting between layers, on top and sides of cake.

This cake is best served cold, so I’d recommend refrigerating for an hour before serving. You can also refrigerate over night and it will be just as good the next day!

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Giant, Gooey, Chocolate Chip Cookies.

The basics? I upped the brown sugar to granulated sugar ratio, added some cocoa powder, and undercooked them. Husband declares this the best cookie I’ve ever made.

Here’s what you’ll need (for 24 big ol’ cookies):

1 C Unsalted Butter, room temp

1/2 C Granulated Sugar

1 C Brown Sugar, packed

2 tsp Vanilla Extract

2 Large Eggs

2 1/4 C All Purpose Flour

1 tsp Baking Soda

1 tsp Sea Salt

1 Tbs Unsweetened Cocoa Powder

2 C Mini Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips

1. Preheat oven to 375 Degrees Fahrenheit.

2. Beat together butter, sugars, and vanilla extract in a mixer until creamy. Add in eggs one at a time, beating each well. Sift in flour, baking soda, salt, and cocoa powder. Beat slowly until just combined, scraping down sides of bowl as you go. Stir in chocolate chips.

3. Drop in 2-3 tablespoon-full-sized balls onto un-greased baking sheets. Bake for 10 minutes, until edges are just turning golden brown. Cool on pan for two minutes, then transfer to wire rack for continued cooling. 

I recommend eating while still warm, ideally with some vanilla bean ice cream from Trader Joe’s. If you really want to amp up the gooey-ness, refrigerate the dough for at least an hour (up to 3 days) prior to baking.

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Soufflé for Two. Adapted from Real Simple.

Now, half my egg white mixture went flying out of the bowl (thank you, husband, for distracting me) mid-whipping, so my soufflés did not rise as much as they should have. But I can vouch for the amazing flavor and richness of these guys. So as long as you keep all your ingredients where they should be, you’ll be just fine.

Here’s what you’ll need:

3 T Unsalted Butter

2 T Unsweetened Cocoa Powder

3 oz Bittersweet Chocolate

1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract

2 Large Eggs, separated

2 Tbs Granulated Sugar

Pinch of Salt

Pinch of Cream of Tartar

1. Preheat oven to 375 Degrees Fahrenheit. Use one tablespoon of butter to grease the inside of two 8-oz ramekins. Coat your buttered ramekins with cocoa powder, tapping out the excess.

2. Place a glass bowl over a pot of water on medium heat, creating a double boiler. Add your chocolate and remaining two tablespoons of butter to the glass bowl and heat until melted, stirring occasionally. (You can do this with a microwave as well, I just prefer the stovetop method.) Once melted, remove from heat. Stir in vanilla, then egg yolks, one at a time.

3. In a clean bowl, use a hand mix (or standup mixer) to beat the two egg whites until soft peaks form. Add in sugar, salt, and cream of tartar, and beat until stiff peaks form. Gently fold egg white mixture into chocolate mixture until just combined. Spoon into prepared ramekins.

4. Bake at 375 for about 20 minutes, per your preference of how well-done the center should be. (Should you be unable to bake right away, and need to refrigerate the batter prior to baking, up the bake time to about 25 minutes.) Serve immediately!

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Making homemade churros is not as difficult as it may seem. And the only reason I knew these ones were baked instead of fried is because I made ‘em. So, click through to Bigger Bolder Baking and follow Gemma’s recipe for fantastic baked churros, no pot of oil necessary! A third of this recipe made 12 6-inch churros, all of which my husband and I ate in one sitting. So...either we eat more churros than the average person, or Gemma’s estimate that the full recipe serves 30 means that we should have only eaten 1 churro each. Olé!!

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Great choice of the day: Took my blackberry pie bar recipe and made it in ramekins instead.

Poor choice of the day: Placing baking racks too close to each other, resulting in the pies (well, in this form I guess they’re more cobblers) rising into the racks above, and acquiring that artistic stripe down the middle.

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Experimenting with making a wedding cake out of rice krispie treats. The full version will be FIVE times the size of this and serve 150 people!!

Cute decorations will of course be a part of the final cake too :)

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CaityBakes starred in a music video!