All about my adventures with cooking, crafts, and travel
Black Cherry Yogurt Brownies are fudgy brownies that use black cherry Greek yogurt in the batter. The Greek yogurt gives it a nice subtle tang with a hint of cherry.
Do you know that you can in fact perform magic acts? Yep, once you make a batch of brownies you’ll have the magical ability to make everyone come running, and make those brownies disappear. These Black Cherry Yogurt Brownies are going to disappear in a flash. *Poof!* And they are gone!
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I’m so ready for Christmas and all the craziness that comes with it. Actually, I’m not at all but I’m trying. At least I will bake and cook myself into the holiday spirit. I have so many recipes bookmarked it’s a bit crazy. But I’m looking forward to tackling that list.
Something you should add to your holiday baking list are these Chocolate Bourbon Balls. As soon as I saw these on Shari’s blog, The Saucy Gourmet, I knew that these would be perfect to make for this month’s addition for Secret Recipe Club. We are taking next month off from posting so I wanted to share something perfect for the holidays.
These are so simple to make and a great treat for the holiday season. In all they took me an hour to make and that included 30 minutes of me watching Parenthood while they cooled for 30 minutes. Not bad at all. Shari suggests that you make them a few days in advance of serving them to allow the flavors to meld together and for the bourbon to mellow out. I follow no such instructions and didn’t wait so they had a real kick to them but were still soooo good. But it’s really great that you can make these in advance of a party or a cookie swap when you are super crazy swamped with a million other holiday things they will be ready and waiting for you.
Prior to making these I recruited one of the general contractors I work with into explaining bourbon to me. Bourbon is American made whiskey that is barrel-aged, which is why it is pricier than something like vodka. We discussed what bourbon to use in this recipe as well. Since this doesn’t have many ingredients it would be best to use a good quality bourbon so you don’t pucker up as you eat the bourbon balls. Basically, he suggested to skip using Jack Daniels (unless you get a nice specialty bottle). I was still confused so I called him from the liquor store… after work. Oh those general contractors are such good sports, which is why I gave them all of these bourbon balls!
Makes 30 1” round truffles
Ingredients
Process
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October: Bacon, Mushroom, Onion, and Cheese Stuffed Bread
September: Spiced Black Bean, Grilled Avocado, and Goat Cheese Tacos
August: Birthday Cake Oreo Truffles
July: Tropical Pork Pineapple Kebabs
June: Cheesy Garlic Knots
May: Berry Brownie Torte
April: Peanut Butter Cup Ice Cream
March: Sauteed Green Beans with Lemon and Almonds
February: Fried Pickles
January: No SRC postings
December: Shrimp Sriracha Stir Fry
November: Vegetable Enchiladas
October: Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars
Check out the rest of the reveal day posts!
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Thanks for visiting. Please leave me a comment to provide some feedback. I appreciate all the comments I receive.
I’m skipping this week’s edition of Monday Munchies because I wanted to participate in sharing a great recipe instead.
I love being part of Secret Recipe Club. It is so much fun to ge a new secret assignment every month. Plus it’s a lot of fun on reveal day having your partner find our out ou had their recipe and what you made while you are searching around to find out who made a recipe on your blog. All of that is great but it is time’s like this that I realize that community is just as important.
Sadly, an email went out sharing the news with out group that one of our members had passed away. Dan, aka the Herring, and Meredith, aka the Haggis shared the blog The Haggis and The Herring. Dan, a man in the prime of his life, unexpectedly passed away recently. Meredith shared a very touching post about Dan, their kids, and their love together. It is unbelievable to me that Meredith is expecting a baby at this point. I could not imagine that pain and sadness. I wish her and her boys nothing but happiness and they rebuild their lives.
In a tiny way of honoring a great cook, a great man is my post of his Chocolate Chip Cookies with Rice Krispies. As soon as I saw these I knew I would have to try them. These cookies are a lot of fun. They are great chocolate chip cookies with a fun surprise inside. The contrasting texture is a lot of fun and makes the cookie more interesting than a typical chocolate chip cookie.
Makes
Ingredients
Process
When I got my assignment for my Secret Recipe Club post this month I did a little dance and clap!! I got from Laura from A Heathly Jalapeno. We are both from Connecticut, root for NY based football teams (me- Giants, Laura- Jets), and have great guys in our life. She recently got engaged & had her bridal shower so I wish her luck on her wedding and lots of happiness in her marriage. Laura blogs about healthy living and healthy recipes. She does like to indulge as well so I did find some great sweets recipes to make. I have been on a crazy baking/sweets kick lately so while I loved some savory dishes (Asparagus and Bacon Eggs Benedict– duh!!) I decided to make the Oreo Truffles that Laura posted.
I have been on an Oreo kick lately. I have 3 varieties at home right now. (Thankfully, I have been good about using them in recipes and not eating them otherwise) Since Oreo is celebrating their 100 year birthday they created a birthday cake Oreo. I die. So decided to make these truffles with the Birthday Cake Oreos. They sell in smaller packages (of course) so I had to use 1 1/2 packages to get to the correct amount of Oreos needed (15.5 oz). The rest of this was super easy and a lot of fun, which insprired the S’mores Truffles I made recently as well.
I don’t think my coworkers would have known they were Birthday Cake Oreo Truffles had I not told them since that flavor was pretty subtle once it was combined with the cream cheese and covered in choclate. I am thinking about making these again with the Strawberry Milkshake Oreos.
*The birthday cake oreos are a limited edition. Get them ASAP!*
Makes 48 truffles
Ingredients
Process
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July: Tropical Pork Pineapple Kebabs
June: Cheesy Garlic Knots
May: Berry Brownie Torte
April: Peanut Butter Cup Ice Cream
March: Sauteed Green Beans with Lemon and Almonds
February: Fried Pickles
Jan: No SRC postings
December: Shrimp Sriracha Stir Fry
November: Vegetable Enchiladas
October: Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars
Check out the rest of the reveal day posts!
____________________
Thanks for visiting. Please leave me a comment to provide some feedback. I appreciate all the comments I receive.
So I don’t really like S’mores.
Don’t hate me!!!!
I could never understand why people liked s’mores when I was growing up. Sure I ate them as I just didn’t want to be that kid but I just didn’t get what they liked. Crisp crackery cookie. Hard chocolate. Marshmallow. And another crisp cookie. I love toasting marshmallows but the rest of it didn’t really work for me over time.
Also, I like graham cracker but I like the Honey Maid Grahams Cinnamon Crackers the best. They are sugary and extra cinnamon-y… but do you think they were ever brought along for camp fires… that would be a n-o. I always felt there was so much potential for s’mores but I didn’t know what it was… until now that is!
I saw that Amanda recently posted a recipe for baked s’mores. The moment I saw them I knew that I had to make them. HAD TO! This was exactly what I have always been hoping for from a s’more. A soft, crumbly texture instead of a crisp cookie. Ooey gooey melted chocolate. Tons of marshmallow goodness. It was all the great flavors of a s’more but in the texture of a blondie. I could stand behind that.
These were so simple to whip up that you can make these for yourself or for your kids when they are dying to a s’more but you aren’t camping.
I used Hershey bars for this but if you didn’t have them on hand and really really wanted these bars then just used chocolate chips. Milk chocolate chips would be better than semi-sweet chocolate chips but chocolate is chocolate so get on with your bad self and make these dang Baked S’mores Bars!!!
I’ve made these several times now and I have to say that the more fluff the better! Make sure you at least use 2 Cups. But if you want to use a bit more, you won’t be mad.
The top will crack when you bake it but it’s okay. I swear. It’s doesn’t have to be super pretty like a cheesecake, but keep this in mind. If you are really upset about cracks then poke the top with a tooth pick a few times before baking to help reduce the cracking.
I do think it would be pretty cool to make these with some winter time indoor camping. Oh so you didn’t do indoor camping growing up? What about bring a pool (no water) into the house to watch the movie Mermaids with your mom? No… just me then. Well, I suggest you give it a try and sing and dance along to this song.
I think you should totally have an indoors camping adventure!! It will put you in a good mood. I swear. Just like I swear that you have to make these s’mores bars!
When it comes to making these Baked S’mores Bars… be prepared to eat a lot of them.
Serves 16
Ingredients
Process
These chewy Irish Coffee Blondies are perfect for St. Patrick’s Day. They have a great texture and are loaded up with coffee and whiskey. Enjoy!
Irish Coffee… yes please!
These Irish Coffee Blondies are the dessert to make for any St. Patrick’s Day party. Skip the typical green treat and go for one that is delightfully chewy and loaded up with Irish Coffee flavors.
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These Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars have a nutty crust, creamy pumpkin cheesecake, and a yummy streusel topping. This recipe is perfect for fall baking.
Post Contains Affiliate Links. Read my full disclosure HERE
It doesn’t even matter if it is still hot out, or if the calendar reads ‘August’, people get fall baking on their mind once school starts up again. And, most of the time, people are craving pumpkin treats. Cracking open that can of pumpkin puree is a sure signal that fall is here (or fast arriving). It’s exactly why people enjoy their PSL’s and start to whip up pumpkin treats with pure abandon. Be sure to make these Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars because they are a great fall treat.
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These Cheesecake Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars are so easy to make that you’ll be saying “Ta-Dah!”. You’ll also be amazing at how quickly they disappear. Yum!
Post from 2/4/18, Pictures updated 8/22/18
Do you know people who don’t cook?
I didn’t think people like that really existed, but my friend Dawn does not cook.
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Another poker night, another treat for the guys. I was struggling coming up with something for the guys for the bi-weekly poker game. Cake is kinda hard to juggle with a beverage, cards, and a cigar. While they won’t turn down (free) cake they like cookies, brownies, and squares for ease of inhaling them. So I turned to food blog browsing for some ideas. I was thinking of lemon squares but when I saw blondies posted on Fake Ginger I knew I had to go with them. Something new to try and it will quickly be out of the house so I can’t indulge.
We spent the afternoon of watching Syracuse lose their basketball game at a bar down town so Price had to go one way to get to poker on time and I went the other to bake. Once the blondies were done I grabbed them and threw them into the back seat- okay gently placed them, but off we were. I heard they really enjoyed them since they were still hot.
The blondies were really easy to make. I use my stand mixer for everything but you can easily use a hand mixer to cream the butter and sugars and do the rest by hand with a wooden spoon or rubber spatula. Our evil little “oven” look soo long to bake the blondies. Maybe it is breaking again? I’m assuming that they normally do take 40 minutes and my hour was due to our oven’s need to act like an Easy Bake Oven.
I’m sure you could make some substitutions with what kind of chips or nuts you use but I really think this recipe is spot on with the chocolate chips, butterscotch chips, pecans, and shredded coconut.
from Fake Ginger
2 cups all-purpose flourCenter a rack in the oven and preheat oven to 325. Butter a 9 x 13 baking pan and put on a baking sheet.
Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
Working with a stand mixer, preferably fitted with a paddle attachment, or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat the butter on medium speed until smooth and creamy. Add both sugars and beat for another 3 minutes, or until well incorporated. Add the eggs 1 by 1, beating for 1 minutes after each addition, then beat in vanilla. Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the dry ingredients, mixing just until they disappear into the batter. Using a rubber spatula, stir in the chips, nuts, and coconut. Scrape the batter into the buttered pan and use the spatula to even the top as best as you can.
Bake for 40 minutes, or until a knife inserted into the center of the blondies come out clean. The blondies should pull away from the sides of the pan a little and the top should be a nice honey brown. Transfer the pan to a rack to cool for about 15 minutes before turning the blondies out onto another rack. Invert onto a rack and cool the blondies to room temperature right side up.
Cut into 32 bars, each roughly 2 1/4 x 2 1/2 inches.
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