desserts
Oyster “Pearl” Cookies
Sometimes the best party projects are the simplest, and these little Oyster “Pearl” Cookies are the perfect example! They were so easy to put together, using just a few ingredients and taking less than 30 minutes from start to finish. And yet, despite their simple assembly, they added so much–including a perfect pop of color–to our otherwise aqua and sand colored beachy mermaid party table. Oh, and did I mention they were delicious? Hard to go wrong with vanilla wafers and homemade cream cheese buttercream frosting! Here is what you need: 2 boxes vanilla wafers homemade cream cheese buttercream frosting, tinted pink decorating bag with a star tip pearl-colored Sixlets ... read more
How to Make a Sandcastle Cake {Tutorial}
Oh, the cake! I knew as soon as we decided on a mermaid theme for Trouble’s 4th birthday that a sand castle cake would be perfect. I had seen a few really photos on Pinterest, I just couldn’t find any detailed instructions. Since paying hundreds of dollars for a professionally decorated cake was out of the question, I decided to go with plan B: wing it! I kinda prefer plan B anyways. Let me just start by saying that I am not a professional baker, or even anything close to it, but what I lack in technical skill I make up for with sheer determination. I’m not going to lie, ... read more
Sugar-Crusted Blueberry Cake with Sour Cream Glaze {Recipe}
Have you ever had a recipe “fail” turn into one of your best recipes ever? That is exactly what happened with this cake. My plan was to bake a blueberry buckle, but then realized I didn’t have the requisite springform pan. I thought I’d improvise and add the streusel topping to the bottom of the pan first, with the intention of turning it into an upside-down blueberry cake, but then I waited too long to flip it after taking it out of the oven. Some of the topping stuck to the pan, which made the cake look awful, even though it was still perfectly edible. I probably would’ve simply ... read more
Quick & Easy Chocolate Peanut Butter Oreo Pie {Recipe}
Ever have one of those moments where you suddenly realize you were supposed to make a dessert and now you’ve only got a few minutes to whip something up or everyone will know you don’t actually have it all together? Yeah me neither. But in case you ever do, this recipe is the perfect solution! Not only is it SUPER yummy, (But not fattening at all. Nope. Not even a little bit.), it can be quickly whipped up in about 20 minutes, and uses ingredients you probably already have on hand. Here is what you need: 1 refrigerated rolled pie crust 1 small box chocolate pudding 2 cups milk 1 ... read more
Easy Cinnamon Roll Waffles {with Creamy Maple Glaze}
I had a totally different recipe planned to share with you this week, but then I made these cinnamon roll waffles on Saturday and I knew I had to share them with y’all ASAP! I honestly don’t think I have ever seen my kids eat so fast or so much for breakfast! Healthy, they are not, but isn’t that what Saturday morning breakfasts are for? The best thing about them (besides the utter yumminess) is that they are SO easy. I can barely even call it a recipe, but since there was a small amount of mixing and measuring involved, I guess it counts. (Printable version of this recipe ... read more
Pumpkin Sandwich Cookies with Maple Cream Cheese Icing {Recipe}
When it comes to autumn baking, it is hard to go wrong with pumpkin and cream cheese. Add a little maple to the mix and you’ve got yourself a little piece of fall-licious yumminess right there in the palm of your hand. The girls have been begging for weeks to make cookies with frosting, while I’ve had a major craving for all things pumpkin. As it turns out, it was the perfect combination. Cookie Ingredients 3 cups flour 1 teaspoon baking powder 1 teaspoon baking soda 2 teaspoons salt 2 teaspoons cinnamon 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves 1 teaspoon ground ginger 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg 1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter 2 ... read more
Dahlia Sugar Cookies {Tutorial}
Oh what a difference a year can make. Last year was my first Blissdom, and to be quite honest, I was terrified. I am not a natural extrovert so walking into a conference full of 700 women I didn’t know was about as appealing as pouring lemon juice into a paper cut. In the past 12 months, I have learned a lot about putting myself out there, and while it still doesn’t come naturally, I have found it is not quite so hard for me anymore. Of course it also helped that I was getting to see lots of people I already knew. It also helped that this year I ... read more
Pumpkin Coconut Chocolate Chip Cream Cheese Muffins {Recipe}
Sometime last winter I found canned pumpkin on clearance at Walgreeens. It made the perfect “filler” item to complete my multiple transactions, so I stocked up and bought all the cans they had left. I’m so happy fall is finally here so I can start to use it! (I am incapable of eating pumpkin anything at any other time of the year. Is that just me?) These muffins were a breeze to whip up and soooo yummy! If you’re not into coconut or chocolate, you could easily omit one or both and have them taste just as good. Pumpkin Coconut Chocolate Chip Cream Cheese Muffins Muffins 1 c. sugar 1 ... read more
How To Make a Perfect Pie Crust {Tutorial}
Fall is practically upon us, which means pie season is also here (at least for me!) There nothing in the world that can compare to homemade pie crust. Yes, it is a little bit more effort than say, buying a pre-formed pie crust or even one of those handy refrigerated roll-out crusts, but believe me when I tell you it is totally worth it. a.) it is much cheaper than all of the pre-made options and b.) the taste is divine. I use an awesome Pate Brisee recipe given to me by my very close friend Martha Stewart. (wink) Her recipes–labor intensive as they may be–are always divine. Her Cookies ... read more
Magic Diet Banana Bread {Recipe}
After 3 weeks of Weight Watchers®, I honestly can’t say enough good things about the program. It is easy to follow, takes very little time, is very flexible, and I never feel like I’m starving, which means I don’t spend all day obsessing over the things I’m not eating. And best of all, in 3 weeks I’ve lost 7 pounds!* Only 8 more to go and then I swear you won’t have to hear me talk about it anymore. That said, when it comes to baked goods, there are a few adjectives that do NOT appeal to me at all: Healthy. (Bland.) Vegan. (Tasteless) Whole Wheat. (Terrible texture.) High protein. ... read more
Diet Soda Flag Cupcakes {Recipe}
It has been almost two weeks since I started this Weight Watchers® thing, and I can honestly tell you that this is the first diet I have ever tried that hasn’t made me crazy. I don’t feel deprived in the least, it is flexible, easy to stick to, and, best of all, I’ve lost weight. Woo hoo! Every Fourth of July Princess and I make a Flag Cake. I couldn’t bear the thought of giving up our tradition just for the sake of a little diet, but at the same time, even with a diet that has proven easy to stick to, I knew I’d be powerless to resist chocolate cake ... read more
Pineapple Upside-Down Cake {Recipe}
Princess has been begging to bake a cake, ever since I bought her a much-pleaded-for Cooking up Fun with Strawberry Shortcake DVD a few weeks ago (on sale at Target for $4.88). I have to admit, things have been a little crazy around her lately. Between caring for the girls, maintaining two blogs, preparing for house guests and Trouble’s birthday party next week, getting ready to take an extended vacation in June (more on that later), and just all the general day-to-day living stuff like cooking, cleaning, and bill-paying, baking has been the last thing on my mind. I’m honestly not complaining. I love being busy and tend to thrive ... read more
Princess & Trouble’s Everything Cookies {Recipe}
Princess has been begging to make cookies for weeks now. I love to bake, but I don’t like having cookies around because then all I want to do is eat them. And yes, even though we baked them just a few days ago, they’re already long gone. But just the memory still makes me drool. I even tried freezing some of them to prevent myself from eating them all right away. But they taste delicious frozen too! (Especially two of them sandwiching a big scoop of vanilla ice cream. Mmmmmm….) And for those of you who are baking challenged, don’t worry. They are practically foolproof. We barely even measured. I ... read more
Chocolate Coconut Dream Cake {Recipe}
Some dear friends hosted a small get-together on New Year’s Eve. I volunteered to bring a dessert because a.) I love any excuse to bake something fabulous and b.) I try to stock up on baking staples whenever I see them on sale so my baking cupboard is always ready to go. I had seen some yummy-looking cakes in a few different magazines, but none of them were exactly what I had in mind (or used the ingredients in my pantry.) Since my main goal on New Year’s Eve day was to stay in my pajamas for as long as possible, I decided to just improvise using what I had ... read more
Peppermint Bark
Happy Monday!It’s Christmas week and if you’re anything like me, you’ve got a billion things left to do before the big holiday weekend. Because I want to be sure to have enough time to enjoy this special time with my family, my posting will probably be on the light side through the end of the year. However, I thought I’d start off your week with a fun and tasty little DiY project. No party is complete without a sweet little trinket your guests can take home, enjoy, and remember (hopefully) the wonderful time they had. For my little candy-cane themed shindig yesterday, I made peppermint bark favors. It amazes me ... read more
