Baking Junkie

Tag: No Bake

Sunday, December 4th, 2011

Cookies and Cream Bark

I imagine that many of you have been busy baking away in your kitchens. I usually try to spend one long day in the kitchen doing all of my holiday baking at once. Because of my schedule this year that isn’t possible, so I am spacing things out and just baking one thing here and there. My biggest dilemma is trying to find the balance between making all of my traditional goodies and also trying to add in some new recipes as well. I decided to kick things off with something new, and this is the recipe I chose.

It helps that it only requires two ingredients!

I have made various different barks in the past, but not for several years. I loved this recipe because of it’s simplicity, but mainly because of it’s taste. One piece was usually not enough for me. You know that something is good when Derek has to hide it from me! Enjoy!

Cookies and Cream Bark
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15 Oreo cookies, coarsely chopped
1 (12 0z) bag white chocolate chips

Place the chocolate chips in a microwave safe bowl. Microwave in 30 second intervals until melted, stirring after each interval.

Once the chocolate has melted, mix in cookies. Pour onto a cookie sheet lined with wax paper, smoothing out with a spatula. Chill for approximately 10 minutes, or until chocolate has hardened. Remove from wax paper and break into pieces.

Tags: Candy, chocolate, Christmas, No Bake, Oreo, White chocolate

Posted in Misc. | 2 Comments »

Sunday, November 20th, 2011

Apple Pie Dip with Cinnamon Tortilla Chips

Recipe adapted from The Peach Kitchen

Last year I must have been craving pumpkin, because that was the base for most of my fall desserts. This seems to definitely be the year of the apple! I still have one more apple dessert to share with you all after this one, but don’t worry, I have a pumpkin recipe I’ll post soon as well (I better get busy)!

I made this dip for a jewelry party I attended last week and then brought the leftovers into work. I love almost any kind of dip, and I’ve been wanting to try making my own cinnamon tortilla chips for a while now so I was very excited to try this recipe! I decided to double it, which is reflected in my version below. If you’re making it for a smaller crowd then just cut the ingredients in half. This was a little more time consuming than I was expecting. Peeling, coring and cutting the apples is kind of a pain, but worth it in the end. The tortilla chips also took a little longer than I expected, mainly because I had to keep reusing my pans and waiting for the chips to cool a bit in between. The end results were definitely delicious, and I had several people mention making this for a Thanksgiving appetizer. Enjoy!

Apple Pie Dip with Cinnamon Tortilla Chips
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Chips:
10 medium whole wheat flour tortillas
2 Tbsp butter, melted
1 ½ tsp cinnamon
4 ½ Tbsp sugar

Dip:
4 medium apples; peeled, cored and chopped
4 Tbsp lemon juice
6 Tbsp brown sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp sugar
3 Tbsp flour

To make the chips, preheat the oven to 410 degrees. Brush the melted butter on a tortilla, then sprinkle with some of the cinnamon sugar mixture. Use a pizza cutter to cut into “chips”. Repeat with all of the tortillas. Place in a single layer on a greased cookie sheet and bake for 5-8 minutes, or until the tops are golden brown (I used two different cookie sheets and put them each in the oven twice). Let cool before serving.

To make the dip, place the apples, lemon juice, brown sugar, cinnamon and sugar in a medium sized pan. Mix together and heat on medium high heat until boiling. Add the flour and continue heating until mixture has thickened slightly. Serve either warm or cold with tortilla chips.

Tags: Apple, Cinnamon, Fall recipes, No Bake

Posted in Uncategorized | 1 Comment »

Wednesday, November 9th, 2011

No Bake Energy Balls

Recipe adapted from Smashed Peas and Carrots

This is another fabulous recipe that I found on Pinterest, and I can gaurantee you it will not be the last.

These are incredibly easy to make. I have many friends who say they cannot bake, but trust me, anyone can throw these together. You simply mix together all of the ingredients, chill in the refrigerator, and roll into balls! What I love about the recipe is how easy it is to make substitutions. I added butterscotch chips, which I thought added a great fall-like flavor. I am planning on making these around the holiday season with some red and green M&Ms added in. I kept these in my refrigerator and grabbed a few at a time for a quick and easy snack. Enjoy!

No Bake Energy Balls
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1 cup quick cooking oats
½ cup creamy peanut butter
⅓ cup honey
1 cup coconut flakes
½ cup ground flaxseed
1 tsp vanilla
½ cup mini chocolate chips
¼ cup butterscotch chips

In a medium sized bowl mix together all of the ingredients until well combined. Chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes. Roll into balls. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to one week.

Tags: Butterscotch, chocolate, Coconut, No Bake, Oatmeal, peanut butter

Posted in Misc. | 6 Comments »

Monday, October 3rd, 2011

Peanut Butter Ice Cream Pie

Recipe adapted from Kevin and Amanda

Have you all been getting sucked in to all of the Fall TV shows like I have? I both love and hate this time of the year. While I get a lot of enjoyment out of watching all of these shows, it tends to send my anxiety skyrocketing just trying to fit them all in!

Glee (as some of you may remember) is among my favorites. This season I am also watching Two and a Half Men, Up All Night, The Office, Grey’s Anatomy, Private Practice, Person of Interest, Dexter, and Storm Chasers.

Ok my head is about to explode now.

{Ok, not really, but I am catching up on tv as I type this}.

Do you know what helps fix my anxiety? Chocolate. Lots and lots of chocolate. Chocolate and peanut butter is even better. This pie gives me both.

This was hands down one of the best desserts I made this summer, so much so that I have now made it twice (something that doesn’t happen very often in my kitchen). It starts with a homemade Oreo crust (you could use a premade crust, but I highly recommend the homemade), and next comes the homemade peanut butter ice cream (without an ice cream maker!). Throw in a layer of hot fudge topping, and then top it all off with pieces of Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, and it really doesn’t get much better than this. Ideally you should wait several hours to let the pie fully set before serving, but I can speak from experience when I say after only about an hour it’s edible Enjoy!

Peanut Butter Ice Cream Pie
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25 Oreos, finely crushed
6 Tbsp butter, melted
1 (14 oz) can sweetened condensed milk
½ cup peanut butter
½ tsp vanilla extract
2 cups heavy whipping cream
1 jar hot fudge topping
23 miniature Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups

Crush Oreos in a food processor. Mix together with melted butter and press into the bottom of a 9 inch pie plate. Place in freezer for approximately 10 minutes.
In a medium sized bowl whisk together the sweetened condensed milk, peanut butter and vanilla extract. In a separate bowl, using an electric mixer on high speed, beat the whipping cream for several minutes until soft peaks form. Fold into the peanut butter mixture.
Remove the Oreo crust from the freezer. Place half of the ice cream mixture on top of the crust. Microwave the hot fudge topping according to directions and pour ¼ – ½ on top of the ice cream. Top with remaining ice cream mixture and more of the hot fudge topping. Coarsely chop the peanut butter cups (add more if you wish) and place on top of the pie. Place in freezer for 6-8 hours prior to serving.

Tags: Candy, chocolate, Ice cream, No Bake, Oreo, peanut butter, Pies

Posted in Ice Cream, Pies | 4 Comments »

Monday, August 29th, 2011

Cake Batter Ice Cream

Recipe adapted from Gingerbread Bagels

I have to admit that I am in a bit of shock that it will be September in a few days. Already?! This year has been FLYING by! I look forward to fall all year long and I’m ready to embrace it with open arms, but I figured I should get you another ice cream recipe before we start talking about cold weather and {gasp} snow!

Life is full of happy accidents, and this is certainly one of them. I found this recipe a few months ago and have been waiting for the right time to make it. I put together the custard last Friday night while I was tired and could only think about sleeping, which is what created my happy accident. Instead of using one cup of cake batter like the original recipe called for, I just used the whole darn box! I honestly never even knew I until I typed up the recipe the next day but trust me,everything turned out just fine. Better than fine really, it turned out FANTASTIC.

I can without a doubt say that this is my FAVORITE ice cream recipe. It is so creamy and tastes exactly like cake, but it doesn’t stop there people. What really makes this recipe are the swirls of buttercream frosting mixed in. AMAZING! I just cannot get enough of this ice cream. It tastes just like eating a birthday cake, frosting and all! With labor day coming up this weekend, trust me you won’t regret saying goodbye to summer with this! Enjoy!

Cake Batter Ice Cream with Buttercream Swirl
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1 box Funfetti cake mix
2 cups heavy whipping cream
1 cup milk (I used skim, any kind will work)
½ cup sugar
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 tsp vanilla

Buttercream Frosting

½ cup shortening, room temperature
½ tsp vanilla
2 cups powdered sugar
4 Tbsp heavy whipping cream

Sift the funfetti cake mix. The sprinkles won’t go through but just pour them in at the end. Set aside.

In a medium saucepan whisk together the heavy cream, milk, sugar, eggs and vanilla. Add in the cake mix and stir until combined. Heat the mixture over medium heat, stirring frequently. Cook until it reaches 160 degrees F, or if you don’t have a thermometer, until it is thickened and starts to bubble.

Remove from heat and pour into a bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator to cool, preferably overnight, but for a minimum of 4 hours.

Freeze in your ice cream maker according to manufacturer’s instructions.

While the ice cream is churning, make the buttercream frosting. Cream the shortening until smooth. Mix in vanilla, then powdered sugar, and finally the whipping cream. Mix on medium high speed for 10 minutes. If desired, add a little gel food coloring to the mixture to give it color (I chose pink).

Once the ice cream is done, spread a layer in the bottom of a freezer safe container. Place a few tablespoons of the frosting on top and swirl with a knife. Continue layering in this fashion with the remaining ice cream and frosting. Place in the freezer for several hours to set.

Tags: Buttercream, Cake, Funfetti, Ice cream, No Bake

Posted in Buttercream, Ice Cream | 5 Comments »