Peanut Butter Blossom or Kiss Cookies

These cookies are chewy and peanut buttery and delicious. You can use a Hershey's chocolate kiss in the middle or a Brach's Chocolate Stars. I like the stars because they come in milk or DARK chocolate and as far as I'm concerned, the darker the better when it comes to chocolate plus they look so pretty. We love these not only at  Christmas but any time of the year.

 Click here for a printable/ downloadable version of this recipe!

Ingredients
• 48 Hersheys' Kisses or Brach's Chocolate Stars
• 1/2 cup butter
• 3/4 cup Creamy Peanut Butter
• 1 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1 egg
• 2 tablespoons milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1-3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• Granulated sugar to roll dough balls into before baking
Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees 
2. Beat butter and peanut butter in large bowl until well blended. 
3. Add 1/3 cup granulated sugar and brown sugar; beat until fluffy. 
4. Add egg, milk and vanilla; beat well. 
5. Stir together flour, baking soda and salt; gradually beat into peanut butter mixture.
6. Shape dough into 1-inch balls. Roll in granulated sugar and place on ungreased cookie sheet.  Do NOT put the chocolate on the cookie yet.
7. Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until lightly browned. 
8. Remove from oven and immediately press a chocolate into center of each cookie, the cookie will crack around edges. 
9. Remove from cookie sheet to wire rack. 
10. Cool completely. 

Makes About 4 dozen cookies

Scandinavian Almond Bars- Easy and delicious

Click here for the Printable Version of this recipe

Scandinavian Almond Bars

These cookies are so good and very fast to make- ready in 30 to 40 minutes. They are delicious, unique and pretty.We make them all year long but love them during the holidays. This recipe came from my husband's Swedish Grandmother and is a family favorite.
   Makes 4 dozen

Dough
1 cup softened butter
2 cups white sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp of almond extract
3 1/4  cups all purpose flour
4 tsps baking powder
1 tsp salt

Topping
1 cup sliced/ slivered almonds
3-4 TBS milk

Glaze
2 cups powdered sugar
1/2 tsp almond extract
6-8 TBS milk

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).
• In a small bowl sift or stir together the flour, baking powder and the salt. Set aside.
• In a medium mixing bowl, cream together the butter and sugar, until light and fluffy.

• Add the egg and almond extract and beat until light and fluffy.
• Slowly mix in the flour, baking powder and salt; mixing just until combined.

• Divide dough into 4 pieces, and roll each one into a log about 12 inches long. Place 2 logs onto each well greased or preferably parchment lined cookie sheet-  4 to 5 inches apart. 
• Flatten each roll by hand until it is about 3 inches wide. The dough is sticky so you may need to flour your hands a bit. They don't have to be perfect, once their cut you can't tell if they weren't totally even. I love that about this recipe!

• Brush flattened roll with milk and   sprinkle with slivered almonds.
•  Place both sheets into preheated oven.

Bake in preheated oven 12 to 15 minutes or until edges are light golden brown. Rotate trays half way through. 

While the cookies are still warm,  cut them crosswise at a diagonal, into slices about 1 inch wide.

• Make the Glaze: 
• In a small bowl, mix together powdered sugar, almond extract, and milk until smooth.

• Place glaze into a small zip lock bag and snip a small corner off. 
• Drizzle the glaze, out of the corner hole, over the completely cooled cookies.

   Store in a sealed container. These freeze really well.

Soft Candy Cane Kiss Cookies with a Chocolate Star

I found this great recipe on Pintrest and just had to try it. It looks so festive and I love peppermint so it was a great recipe to try. I combined parts of the original recipe from Recipe Girl and parts of the Hershey's Candy Cane Blossom cookie recipe to make these. I wanted the cookie to be soft and chewy like a little pillow of goodness!

As I was taking the first batch out of the oven I had to move the bag of Brach's dark chocolate stars, from making these peanut butter blossom cookies, out of the way and inspiration hit me. Why not put both the chocolate star and the kiss on top? In many places the Chocolate stars are hard to find, I have to order mine on Amazon now. You can substitute Hershey's drops or any kind of chocolate disk or melting wafer.  You could even use 5-6 chocolate chips on top then press the kiss into them once they've melted a bit.

Click here for a Printable version of this recipe!

Candy Cane Kiss Blossom Cookies

Yield: 2 1/2 dozen cookies

Prep Time: 30 min 

Cook Time: 12 min 

When the fall holidays arrive, the Candy Cane Kisses begin to appear on supermarket shelves too. These are an incredibly delicious flavor delivered by the Hershey’s Kisses people. And they’re amazing tucked into a cookie too.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1 1/4 cups butter, at room temperature
1/2  teaspoon peppermint extract
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 large egg
2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup Candy Cane flavored Hershey's Kisses, finely chopped- 15-20
granulated sugar
additional, unwrapped Candy Cane Kisses- about 30-32
Chocolate stars- about 30-32

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Make room in either refrigerator or freezer for your cookie sheet. Or you can do what I do which is to just let them sit out for an hour and they'll set up.
2. In large mixer bowl, combine powdered sugar, butter, extracts and egg. Beat at medium speed, scraping bowl often until creamy (2-3 minutes). 
3. In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder and salt. Add to wet mixture and beat, scraping bowl until just blended.  Stir in chopped Kisses.
4. Shape dough into 3/4-inch to 1-inch balls; roll in granulated sugar. Place 1-inch apart on cookie sheet. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until set.
5. As soon as they come out of the oven, press a chocolate star  point side down in the center of each cookie. They'll crack a little around the edges, so just use your fingers to kind of hold the cookie together while you press the chocolate on.  Do all the cookies on the tray then go back and place a kiss on top of the chocolate star pressing down until the chocolate squeezes out from under the kiss forming a flower around it.

 You can leave the cookies out to set up or put cookie sheet (with cookies) immediately into the freezer (preferred) or refrigerator so that the Kisses will set quickly. Store in a covered container- at room temperature for up to a week. In the freezer they should be ok for a month.

Homemade Plain or Peppermint Marshmallows and Cocoa Mix for Teacher Gifts or Neighbors

Here is an easy gift to make for teachers, neighbors or friends. Marshmallows and cocoa mix. If you've never made marshmallows, I hate to be the one to tell you that they are super simple and very impressive. I love making peppermint marshmallows to put in cocoa but you can make plain if you prefer. You can also try rolling them in toasted coconut or even chopped nuts to eat them like candy.

Homemade Marshmallows:

For a printable version of this marshmallow recipe click here! 

* 3 packages unflavored gelatin
* 2 cups granulated sugar
* 1/2 cup light corn syrup
* 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
* 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
* Confectioners' sugar, for dusting

Sprinkle powdered sugar into 2 8"x8" pans or one 9"x13" until bottom is completely coated.
Pour the gelatin and 1/2 cup of cold water into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with your whisk attachment and allow this mixture to sit while you make the syrup.

In a large saucepan, preferably one that has a spout, combine the sugar, corn syrup, salt, and 1/2 cup water in a small saucepan and cook over medium heat until the sugar dissolves. Place the lid on the pan for 1 minute to wash down the sides of the pan. Raise the heat to high and cook until the syrup reaches 240 degrees F on a candy thermometer. If you live at higher altitudes, reduce the final temp by 2 degrees for every 1000 feet in altitude. I live at 6000 feet so I only cook my mixture to 228 degrees. Remove from the heat.

Turn the mixer onto low speed, while mixer is going, slowly pour the sugar syrup into the dissolved gelatin. The gelatin will be all chunky when you turn on the mixer. Once all of the syrup is poured in turn the mixer up to high speed and whip until the mixture is very thick, about 15 minutes. Add the vanilla and mix thoroughly.

Pour the marshmallow batter into the prepared pans and smooth the top of the mixture with damp hands. Sprinkle with powdered sugar or whatever topping you are using.

For the peppermint, I removed half the marshmallows for the plain pan and then stirred in 2 drops of red food coloring and 1/2 tsp of peppermint flavoring into the remaining half. After placing this into the second pan I sprinkled crushed peppermints over the top.

Allow to dry uncovered at room temperature overnight.

Remove the marshmallows from the pan and cut into squares. I dip a knife into very hot water before each cut then roll each strip in powdered sugar before cutting into squares. Roll the sides of each square carefully in confectioners' sugar.

 

Once they have dried for a few hours and aren't sticky, they  can be bagged up for gifts or stored in a  sealed container or sealed baggies.

Creamy Cocoa Mix

     For a printable version of this cocoa mix, click here! 

This makes 20 cups of mix or about 60 servings. I make a big batch at the beginning or the winter and we use it all season. 

• 13 cups dry milk powder
• 6 1/2 cups sifted confectioners' sugar
• 2 1/2 cups unsweetened cocoa powder
• 2 1/2 cups powdered non-dairy creamer (1- 15oz jar of powdered creamer) 

Sift together all these ingredients into a large bowl.
For extra chocolaty goodness I  add-

• 2- 12 oz package of mini chocolate chips 

Stir to combine the scoop into jars for gifts or store sealed in a container for storage.

Variations- You can use flavored creamer if you want flavored cocoa or try adding some cayenne pepper to the mix for a bit of spicy heat.

To use this cocoa mix; Scoop 1/3 cup of mixture into mug and add boiling water. Stir and enjoy.

Alton Brown has a Recipe for Cocoa mix that I haven't tried just because I love the creaminess of my recipe but for those who don't want to use powdered creamer here is his recipe.

• 2 cups powdered sugar
• 1 cup cocoa (Dutch-process preferred)
• 2 1/2 cups powdered milk
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons cornstarch

Mix all ingredients together and store in airtight container.

Brandy Snaps with Cinnamon Eggnog Cream or Brandy Cream

I love brandy snaps.  They are light lacy crisp tubes that you can fill, leave unfilled and dip one end into melted chocolate or leave plain. They take a bit of practice but after one or two you'll find them very easy to make!

You really have to find some Golden syrup to make this recipe. Karo just doesn't work as well. I get mine at Cost Plus but Amazon has it as well.

This recipe makes 24 cookies.

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• 2/3 cup sugar
• 10 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup Lyle’s Golden Syrup
• 1/2 tsp lemon juice
• Preheat oven to 350º 
• Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment and then grease the handle of a wooden spoon well and set aside. 
• Into a small bowl stir together the flour and the dried, ground ginger
• Add the butter, sugar and golden syrup to a medium saucepan over medium-low heat and heat until the sugar is completely dissolved.  Don't stir too much or allow the mixture to boil or the sugar can crystalize.  This will take about 10-15 minutes
• Once the sugar is dissolved, remove from the heat and stir in the flour and the lemon juice. 
• Using a tablespoon, scoop 1 TBS  onto the cookie sheet.  Place 3-4 scoops 4" apart onto a cookie sheet. 
• Bake for 10-12 minutes until cookies are golden brown, spread out and bubbling. 
• Remove from oven and let sit for 2-3 minutes. The cookie needs to be just firm enough to remove, but pliable enough to shape. I use a thin knife or very thin spatula to carefully peel up an edge. If the edge doesn't stretch out it's time to shape!   
• Roll the cookie around the greased spoon handle and set on a cooling rack. 
• You have to move fast to get them all done before they harden up too much. 

Let the cookies cool completely before dipping one end into melted chocolate or filling with the Brandy cream or the Eggnog cream. 

Brandy Cream

1 1/2 cups whipping cream

2 TBS Brandy

1/3 cup sugar

Combine cream, brandy and sugar and whip until stiff peaks. 

Cinnamon Eggnog Cream

1 1/2 cups of whipping cream

2 TBS Brandy

3 TBS Eggnog

1/2 tsp of cinnamon

1/3 cup sugar

Combine all the ingredients and whip to stiff peaks. 

Thanksgiving is coming!

After years of trying Pumpkin cheesecake recipes, I found this one and with a few changes came up with what I think is the best recipe out there.

Depending on the oven and the temperature of the ingredients, the cheesecake may bake about 15 minutes faster or slower than the instructions indicate; it is therefore best to check the cake 1 1/4 hours into baking. Although the cheesecake can be made up to three days in advance, the crust will begin to lose its crispness after only one day. To make slicing the cheesecake easy and neat, use a knife with a narrow blade, such as a carving knife; between cuts, dip the blade into a pitcher of hot water and wipe it clean with paper towels.
Makes one 9-inch cake, serving 12 to 16

Crust 3 ounces graham crackers(5 whole crackers), broken into large pieces 3 tablespoons granulated sugar  2 ounces pecans ,chopped (about 1/2 cup) 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger  1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves  4 tablespoons butter, melted Filling 1 1/3 cups granulated sugar  1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger  1/4 teaspoon ground cloves  1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg  1/4 teaspoon allspice  1/2 teaspoon salt 1 can pumpkin (15 ounces) 1 1/2 pounds cream cheese, 3-8oz packages , cut into 1-inch chunks and left to soften at room temperature, about 30 minutes 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 5 large eggs that have been brought to room temperature 1 cup heavy cream

Before beginning crust, dry your pumpkin- This makes the filling thicker and creamier: To dry your canned pumpkin: Line baking sheet with triple layer of paper towels. Spread pumpkin on paper towels in roughly even layer. Cover pumpkin with second triple layer of paper towels and press firmly until paper towels are saturated. Peel back top layer of towels and discard. Grasp bottom towels and fold pumpkin in half; peel back towels. Repeat and flip pumpkin onto baking sheet or into an extra mixing bowl; discard towel. 1. FOR THE CRUST: Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and heat oven to 325 degrees. Spray bottom and sides of 9-inch springform pan evenly with nonstick cooking spray. Pulse crackers, nuts, sugar, and spices in food processor until evenly and finely ground, about fifteen 2-second pulses. Transfer crumbs to medium bowl, drizzle melted butter over, and mix with rubber spatula until evenly moistened. Turn crumbs into prepared springform pan and, using hand, spread crumbs into even layer. Using flat-bottomed ramekin or drinking glass, press crumbs evenly into pan bottom, then use a soup spoon to press and smooth crumbs into edges of pan. Bake until fragrant and browned about the edges, about 15 minutes. Cool on wire rack while making filling. At this point, bring about 4 quarts water to simmer in stockpot for the Bain Marie. A bain-marie is the French term for a water bath. 2. FOR THE FILLING:  Whisk sugar, spices, and salt in small bowl; set aside. 3. In standing mixer fitted with flat beater, beat cream cheese at medium speed to break up and soften slightly, about 1 minute. Scrape beater and bottom and sides of bowl well with rubber spatula. Add about one third of sugar mixture and beat at medium-low speed until combined, about 1 minute; scrape bowl and add remaining sugar in two additions, scraping bowl after each addition. Add your dried, canned pumpkin and vanilla and beat at medium speed until combined, about 45 seconds; scrape bowl. Add 3 eggs and beat at medium-low until incorporated, about 1 minute; scrape bowl. Add remaining 2 eggs and beat at medium-low until incorporated, about 45 seconds; scrape bowl. Add heavy cream and bourbon and beat at low speed until combined, about 45 seconds. Using rubber spatula, scrape bottom and sides of bowl and give final stir by hand. 4. Set springform pan with cooled crust on an 18-inch-square doubled layer heavy-duty foil and wrap bottom and sides with foil; set wrapped springform pan in roasting pan.This is to keep the water out of the springform pan while the cheesecake bakes. Pour filling into springform pan and smooth surface; set roasting pan in oven and pour enough of your boiling water to come about halfway up side of springform pan. Bake until center of cake is slightly wobbly when pan is shaken, and center of cake registers 145 to 150 degrees on instant-read thermometer, about 1 1/2 hours. For baking at altitude. Subtract 2 degrees for each 1000 feet of altitude. For Denver, the center of the cake should register 140 degrees. Set roasting pan on wire rack and use paring knife to loosen cake from sides of pan. Cool until water is just warm, about 45 minutes. Remove springform pan from water bath, discard foil, and set on wire rack; continue to cool until barely warm, about 3 hours. Wrap with plastic wrap and refrigerate until chilled, at least 4 hours or up to 3 days. 5. TO SERVE: Slide thin metal spatula between crust and pan bottom to loosen, then slide cake onto serving platter. Let cheesecake stand at room temperature about 30 minutes, then cut into wedges and serve.

Fluffy No-Bake Peanut Butter Pie

This is the perfect dessert to make when it's too hot to turn on the oven or even a burner. We love to go to a very small town cafe about a half an hour away for their pan fried chicken, cooked to order, and their homemade pies. 

The Castle Cafe always has a killer banana cream pie but every few months the chef will get in a mood to make a Chocolate Peanut Butter Pie that is one of the best things I've ever had and I'm not even a big peanut butter person. Note the "only every few months" part of that- it's not nearly often enough so, I had to play with some recipes to come up with one that tastes just like his!!! We all agree that this is a perfect copy!

One of the secrets to his great pies is his chocolate coated graham cracker crusts. He uses it for his Banana Cream Pie and his Peanut Butter Pie. Brilliant! The crust never get's soggy!!  I hope you enjoy this pie as much as we do!

For a Printable Version of this recipe- Click Here! 

Ingredients

Pie Crust- Makes one 9" pie crust- You can also just buy one!!! 

• 1 package from a box of graham crackers- about 10 sheets of crackers
• 1/3 cup of sugar
• 1/3 cup of melted butter
• 3/4 of a cup of chocolate chips

Peanut Butter Filling

• 1 1/2  8oz packages of low fat cream cheese at room temperature(12 oz)
• 1 1/2 cups of creamy peanut butter- store bought not the fresh kind. I like Jif
• 3 TBS of water or milk
• 1 1/2  cup of powdered sugar- divided into 1 cup and 1/2 cup
• 1 1/2 cups of heavy whipping cream
• 1/2 cup of chocolate chips- Optional- you can mix some into the filling or you can just top the pie with some or both. 

Topping

• 1/2 cup whipping cream
• 1/4 cup powdered sugar
• 1/2 cup of mini chocolate chips- Optional

Instructions 

Pie Crust

1. Preheat your oven to 375º
2. While the crackers are still wrapped, press of the sides, top and bottom to start to break them up. 
3. Place the crackers into a food processor. You can also put everything into a large zip lock bag and crush and mix the ingredients in the bag. 
4. Add the sugar
5. Pulse until the crackers are a fine crumb
6. Pour the melted butter over the crumbs and pulse until all combined. 
7. Press the crumbs into the bottom of a 9" pie plate. I use a measuring cup to press it in nice and tightly. 
8. Bake for 7 minutes
9. As soon as you take the crust out of the oven, sprinkle the chocolate chips over the bottom of the crust. 
10. Let it sit for 5 minutes until the chocolate chips are melted. 
11. With the back of a spoon, spread the melted chocolate over the bottom and up the sides of the crust. 
12. Place in the refrigerator until cool 

Peanut Butter Filling

1. In a  mixing bowl, beat the whipped cream with 1/2 cup of the powdered sugar until it forms stiff peaks. That means when the beaters are pulled up out of the whipped cream, the points stand up straight. 
2. In another mixing bowl, place your 12 oz of softened cream cheese, the 1 1/2 cups of peanut butter, 1 cup of powdered sugar and 3 TBS of water. Beat until well combined and slightly fluffy. 
3. 
   
4. Take 1/3 of the whipped cream and stir it into the peanut butter mixture to lighten it. 
5. Take the remaining whipped cream and fold it into the peanut butter mixture and fold until all combined. 
6. Spoon the peanut butter filling into the chilled crust and place in the fridge for at least 2 hours. 

Topping:

1. In a  mixing bowl, beat the whipped cream with 1/2 cup of the powdered sugar until it forms stiff peaks. That means when the beaters are pulled up out of the whipped cream, the points stand up straight. 
2. Spread the whipped cream over the top of the pie and sprinkle on the  mini chocolate chips. 

  Note: You can beat all 2 cups of whipped cream and the 3/4 cup of powdered sugar together- just remember to pull out a quarter of it to top the pie with before mixing the whipped cream into the peanut butter mixture. It's up to you! I tend to forget the pull out the topping so I beat the cream in separate batches! 

Easy, Moist Shortcake or Vanilla Cake for Berries- made all in one bowl!!! An Egg Free Cake!

 I'm not a fan of the dry, crumbly, biscuit style of shortcake. I want a moist tender cake for my berries.  Tender and moist but can stand up to the weight of a ton of berries and whipped cream.

16 years ago, we ordered the strawberry shortcake at a restaurant that sounds like The Black Eyed "Bee" and I was in heaven. It was the perfect cake for berries. I had to have the recipe and with a bit of flattery and begging, the chef shared the recipe with me. The one catch was, he had to leave one ingredient out to give it to me. Thankfully, he made it easy when he told me that it was a vanilla cake and guess what ingredient was missing?
We always have this on Easter to usher in berry season and is one of our favorite spring and summer treats.  It's so fast and easy to mix up and bake. I hope you enjoy it as much as we do. It's delicious with any kind of summer fruit. peaches, berries or just by itself with some whipped cream as the icing. Because my granddaughter is very allergic to eggs, this eggless cake has now become her birthday cake recipe.

 Click here for a Printable Version of this recipe

Moist Vanilla Strawberry Shortcake

Makes one 9x13 pan or 12 cupcakes or one jellyroll pan
Ingredients

• 3 cups of flour
• 2 cups of sugar
• 1 1/2 TBS baking powder
• 1 cup melted butter
• 2 cups milk
• 1 1/2 tsp vanilla

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350°
2. In a 2 cup glass measuring cup or a microwavable container- microwave 1 cup of butter for 60 seconds or until melted. I leave the sticks in the wax paper and micriwave it that way. No spatters and you just have to pull them out when it's melted. Easy and no mess. 
3. In a large bowl stir together the flour, sugar and baking powder
4. Stir in the milk and vanilla then the melted butter and mix well. There may be a few small lumps but just leave them. Don't over stir! 
5. Pour batter into a greased pan and bake in the preheated oven until golden on top and a toothpick comes out clean. 
6. Baking Times: 
1. For a 9x13 or cupcakes-  25 to 30 minutes  
2. For jelly roll pan- or 20 mins f. 

For a large half sheet pan 2”x13”x18”- Double the recipe and bake for 40 to 45 minutes. 

Greek Yogurt Panna Cotta Made with Almond Coconut Milk and Peaches. Gluten Free and Lactose Friendly

Panna Cotta is one of those desserts that sounds much harder to make than it is. Once I discovered how easy it was to make, I make it often. It only takes about 4-5 minutes to whip together and then an hour or so to chill. I came up with this recipe when I wanted something a little different that I could make for a dessert but also eat for breakfast and not feel guilty! I used a combination of Nonfat Greek yogurt and almond coconut milk as the base. It turned out thick and rich and delicious and guilt free. Because it uses Greek yogurt and almond milk it doesn't bother my lactose sensitive stomach at all. If you're lactose sensitive and yogurt doesn't bother you then you'll love this even more! 

I feel so blessed to live in Colorado, especially during the summer peach season.  The peaches here are the kind of peaches that when you cut or bite into them, the juice just flows out and the perfumed scent fills the room. They are so sweet and so delicious! Just writing about them is making me want to go cut another one but I have to pace myself I decided to chop some up to put into this Panna Cotta and I was not disappointed. If you don't like peaches you can use almost any fruit except fresh pineapple or fresh papaya- their enzymes will prevent the mix from setting up. Strawberries, blueberries and raspberries are amazing! 

You can make it in small jars like I did and just eat it out of the jar, or you can make it in small ramekins that you can un-mold onto a plate. You can also make it in a regular 8-9" round cake pan and un-mold that onto a large plate to serve. I just like eating it out of my cute Weck jars plus I didn't feel like un-molding anything!  If you want to un-mold it- Lightly grease the inside of your pans/ ramekins so that the panna cotta will come out easier. I also get a bowl of hot water and hold the mold in the water for a few seconds to loosen it before un-molding.

 Greek Yogurt Panna Cotta  Makes 5-6  medium servings

 Ingredients:

• 1 envelope of unflavored gelatin 
• 1 cup of Almond or Coconut or  The Blue Diamond Almond Coconut Milk. (you can use unsweetened or sweetened it doesn't matter. but if you use sweetened, you might cut back on the agave or sugar a bit) 
• 1/4 cup agave syrup or honey or 1/3 cup sugar to taste
• 1- 17 oz container of Plain Greek Yogurt- nonfat, 1 %, whole milk- doesn't matter
• 1 tsp vanilla- optional
• 2 large or 3 medium peaches chopped- About a cup to a cup and a half depending on how much fruit you want in each. You can also use strawberries, blueberries, blackberries or apricots. Any fruit but fresh Pineapple or papaya- they have enzymes in them that will prevent the gelatin from setting up so you'll end up with a yogurt and fruit drink! 

Instructions:

1. Take a 1/4 cup of the almond milk  in a small bowl and sprinkle the gelatin over the top. Let sit 1-2 minutes while you get the rest of the ingredients together and chop up the peach. 
2. Add the yogurt  and 1/4 of the almond milk to a small bowl- (preferably one with a spout to pour out of) and whisk together until smooth. 
3. Take 1/2 cup of the almond milk and the sweetener and place in a small saucepan 
4. Over Medium heat, heat the milk and sweetener until mixed together and all dissolved. 
5. Add the softened gelatin to the pan and stir until the gelatin is dissolved. You don't have to bring it to a boil. Heat just until everything is dissolved. 
6. Remove from the heat and pour the warm mixture into the yogurt.
7. Add the vanilla to  it if you wish. I think real vanilla tastes like plastic and the fake stuff is worse!
8. Pour the mixture into your containers- filling 1/2 way. 
9. If you are adding fruit, add the chopped fruit and push the fruit down into the yogurt mixture with a spoon. Then top with the remaining yogurt mixture  so that the fruit is covered. 
    
10. Chill for 1-3 hours depending on the shape of your container. a thinner layer will chill in an hour. A 5 oz jar will take closer to 3 hours. 

                               

The panna cotta  will still jiggle a bit but not be  set up. Think a little less gigglier than jello. It's really a softer jello consistency. 

Easy Moist Cake for Strawberry Shortcake or any other Fruit! Egg Free Cake

 I'm not a fan of the dry, crumbly, biscuit style of shortcake. I want a moist tender cake for my berries. 20 years ago, we ordered the strawberry shortcake at a restaurant and I was in heaven. It was the perfect cake for berries. It's moist and dense and perfect with any kind of berry or just on it's own.

 I had to have the recipe and with a bit of flattery and begging, the chef shared the recipe with me. The one catch was, he had to leave one ingredient out to give it to me. Thankfully, he made it easy when he told me that it was a vanilla cake and guess what ingredient was missing?
We always have this on Easter to usher in berry season and is one of our favorite spring  and summer treats.  It's so fast and easy to mix up and bake. I hope you enjoy it as much as we do.

It's also EGG FREE! My granddaughter is very allergic to eggs,so this was her birthday cake this year. Pour into round pans and frost with whipped cream for a wonderful layer cake.

 Click here for a Printable Version of this recipe

Moist Vanilla Strawberry Shortcake

Makes one 9x13 pan or 12 cupcakes or one jellyroll pan or 2 8" rounds
Ingredients

• 3 cups of flour
• 2 cups of sugar
• 1 1/2 TBS baking powder
• 1 cup melted butter
• 2 cups milk
• 1 1/2 tsp vanilla

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350°
2. In a 2 cup glass measuring cup or a microwavable container- microwave 1 cup of butter for 60 seconds or until melted. I leave the sticks in the wax paper and micriwave it that way. No spatters and you just have to pull them out when it's melted. Easy and no mess. 
3. In a large bowl stir together the flour, sugar and baking powder
4. Stir in the milk and vanilla then the melted butter and mix well. There may be a few small lumps but just leave them. Don't over stir! 
5. Pour batter into a greased pan and bake in the preheated oven until golden on top and a toothpick comes out clean. 
6. Baking Times: 
1. For a 9x13 or round layers-  25 to 30 minutes  
2. For jelly roll pan or cupcakes-  20 mins  or so.

For a large half sheet pan 2”x13”x18”- Double the recipe and bake for 40 to 45 minutes. 

Fast Orange Almond Cake- Gluten Free

It's Friday evening. We've eaten dinner, kitchen's all cleaned up, the last load of laundry is in the dryer, I put on some sweats and I sit down to watch, Say Yes to the Dress, and have some Pinterest Time. I 'm looking through the pins and see a delicious looking Orange Cake and have to have some- RIGHT NOW! I look at the ingredients and have everything except the Almond meal, but I have almonds, so I'm all set. I grind up the almonds THEN read the next step- WHAT??? I have to Boil the oranges for 15 minutes, drain, refill, bring to a boil for another 15 minutes, then let them cool!!!????  (OK, I should have read the recipe instead of just looking at the pictures of each step- that was not a step in the photos- My Bad.)  No way was I doing all that! So I do some research.

You're supposed to boil the oranges to soften the skins up and make it easier to cook. But, I think to myself what a wonderful world.... Woops- I''m not supposed to be singing right now... I think to myself- if you boil the oranges and drain the water- wouldn't all the flavorful oils from the peel go down the drain? That's my conclusion.  So I came up with a new plan, played with the recipe, made it 3 times and here is a delicious alternative that only took 8 mins to get into the oven and that  time includes grinding the almonds. Plus Bonus- I used the food processor for every step. less to clean up! I could have made the original recipe faster but where would the fun be in that?!!!

Flourless Orange Almond Cake                                               

Inspired by Scandi Home's Flourless Orange Cake

Click here for a printable version on this recipe. 

Ingredients:

• 2 whole medium size oranges If you only have big ones just use 1 1/2 
• 3 eggs
• 1 cup sugar
• 3 cups of almond meal or 3 cups of whole almonds that you'll grind up
• 1 tsp Baking Powder

Instructions:

1. Grease and flour a 9" spring form pan-  You can do a regular 9 " round but it is harder to get it out of the pan in pretty slices. 
2. If you have almond meal- skip this step- Place 3 cups of whole almonds into the bowl of your food processor. Pulse until the almonds are a fine even texture. I actually left mine a little rougher because I like more texture in  the final cake. It's up to you but DON"T over process or you'll be eating almond butter sandwiches for the rest of the month! Remove the meal from the bowl and set aside. 
3. Stir 1 tsp of baking powder into the meal.
4. Zest all skin off of the 2 oranges and place in a bowl.
5. Preheat oven to 340º. 
6. Peel the oranges then slice or pull into the sections and place the pieces into the Food processor bowl. There will be some almond meal in there but so what, it's all going to be mixed together in a minute. Pulse until the oranges are a nicely pureed. Pour the puree in with the zest and set aside. Try to get as much of the orange out of the bowl as you can. 
7. Crack 3 eggs into the processor bowl and add the 1 cup of sugar. Turn on processor and process until the eggs and sugar are thick and pale yellow. About 45- 60 seconds. 
8. Add the almond meal, the orange puree and zest into the egg mixture and process for about 10-15 seconds until combined. 
9. Pour batter into prepared cake pan.
10. Bake for 50 minutes or until a toothpick can be inserted into the center and come out clean.

Serve dusted with Powdered sugar.