Cherry Pie Dip

Another of our dip night dips. Yum! Who doesn't love cherry pie? This would make a delicious filling for a graham cracker crust as well....

 

 Cherry Pie Dip

8 oz. pkg. cream cheese, softened

7 oz. jar marshmallow fluff

8 oz. container Cool Whip, thawed

1 can cherry pie filling

In a small bowl, mix the cream cheese and marshmallow fluff until well mixed. Stir in the Cool Whip. Spread the mixture into a 9x9 square pan and smooth. Top with cherry pie filling. We serve this with graham crackers, animal crackers, and vanilla wafers.

Banana Pancakes

Another use for some of those bananas that sit around for too long and go bad. You can never have too many old banana recipes! I swear, one of these days I am going to get the banana thing right and only buy what gets eaten! Maybe. If I get really, super lucky!

 

Banana Pancakes

2 c. milk

1 c. mashed banana

2 eggs

3 Tbsp. melted butter

2 tsp. vanilla

2 1/2 c. flour

1/4 c. sugar

1 Tbsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. baking soda

In a large bowl, combine the milk, banana, eggs, butter, and vanilla.  Add the flour, sugar, baking powder, and baking soda and stir. The batter will be lumpy- do not overmix it. Cook over medium heat in a frying pan using about 1/3 cup batter for each pancake or you can use a griddle at about 150 degrees. Turn when bubbles rise to the surface and pop. Cook each side until golden brown. Top pancakes with bananas, blueberries, or maple syrup.

Strawberry Brownie Kebabs

I made these for my son's return from his missin to Brazil! They were a hit and disappeared really quickly. Plus, they are really simple to put together and you don't even have to heat up your kitchen!

 

Strawberry Brownie Kebabs

16 skewers

16 store-bought brownie bites

16 large marshmallows

32 large strawberries

1/4 c. milk chocolate chips

You can use the store-bought brownie bites or you can make your own using your favorite recipe, but I opted for store-bought since I was making a LOT of food for the party and  didn't want to heat up my kitchen more than I had to. Wash your strawberries and take the hull out. On each skewer, put on a strawberry, hull-side down so it will be against the marshmallow. Add a marshmallow, then the brownie bite, then another strawberry, hull side toward to brownie. Place the kebabs on a waxed paper-lined cookie sheet. Melt the chocolate chips in the microwave and put into a baggie. Snip off one corner and drizzle the chocolate over the kebabs. Refrigerate until the chocolate is set.

Red, White, and Blueberry Pie

This is the pie I make every year for the 4th of July.  I love the colors and the fresh fruit!

 

Red, White, and Blueberry Pie

4 oz. white chocolate

8 large strawberries, cut in half length-wise

1 deep dish pie crust

8 oz. cream cheese, softened

3/4 c. powdered sugar

1 small package white chocolate instant pudding

3/4 c. milk

1 c. fresh blueberries

Bake the pie crust at 375 degrees for about 10 minutes until the crust is baked and beginning to turn golden brown. Allow to cool. Melt white chocolate. Dip the strawberries in the chocolate then place cut-side down on waxed paper and refrigerate until chocolate is set. Spread the remaining white chocolate on the bottom of the pie crust. Set aside. In a small bowl, beat the cream cheese and powdered sugar together with an electric mixer until smooth. Gradually add in the milk, beating constantly until smooth. Add pudding and beat until it begins to thicken. Spread the mixture in the pie crust and smooth to the edges. Place the strawberries around the edges, stems out. Pour blueberries in the center of the pie. Press fruit lightly into the filling. Refrigerate until serving.

Yogurt Pops

My kids love popsicles in the summer. Well, they love them anytime, but I make them in the summer. Most of the time I do the super easy frozen Kool-Aid popsicles, but sometimes I opt for a healthier kind. Yogurt and fruit. The kids don't care - it's a frozen treat and that is all they really want.

 

Yogurt Pops

1 c. vanilla yogurt

1 c. fruit

Put the yogurt and fruit in a blender and blend until smooth. Pour into the small, bathroom-sized Dixie cups and freeze. For these, I used blueberries, but you can use any fruit you like. You can use regular yogurt or Greek yogurt, but you will need to think the Greek yogurt with some milk or it is too thick. I use regular yogurt since it has to be thinned with Greek. Enjoy!

Chocolate Cheesecake

Happy Father's Day to my husband! This was his Father's Day dessert this year because he loves chocolate and he loves cheesecake. So yummy!

 

Chocolate Cheesecake

crust

1 1/2 c. chocolate graham cracker crumbs

1/3 c. melted butter

Mix graham cracker crumbs and butter together in a small bowl. Press into the bottom of a 9 inch springform pan. Bake at 350 degrees for ten minutes.

Filling

4 8 oz. packages cream cheese

1 1/3 c. powdered sugar

3 Tbsp. cocoa powder

4 eggs 

10 oz. semi sweet chocolate

Melt the chocolate in a small bowl and set aside. In a medium sized bowl, beat the cream cheese with an electric hand mixer until smooth. Add the powdered sugar and cocoa and mix until combined. Add in the eggs, one at a time, mixing well with each addition. add in the melted chocolate and mix in. Scrape the sides and bottom, then mix. Pour the filling into the springform pan and smooth out. Bake at 350 degrees about one hour or until the center is set.

ganache

8 oz. semi sweet chocolate

3/4 c. cream

Melt the chocolate and cream together in a small pan over medium heat. Stir until smooth. Pour over cheesecake and cool. Refrigerate.

*** I used a vegetable peeler to make some chocolate curls for the top of the cheesecake from a milk chocolate bar. My boys don't care if things look pretty, but it's nice to do sometimes. Plus, well, it's more chocolate.

Cake Batter Rice Krispie Treats

When I was growing up my mom would complain about me heating up the house when I would bake in the summer. Or I was just banned from baking. So I had to find some no-bake treats that I would still be allowed to make. Now, I am glad I have a bunch of them because, well, my mom was right! Baking in the summer really heats up the house and I am pretty heat intolerant! But the heat doesn't stop me from baking, so sometimes you need a few no-bake goodies to make instead. Plus, they are great to have when teaching your children to cook! I have some boys that really enjoy it and they love these easy recipes!

 

Cake Batter Rice Krispie Treats

3 Tbsp. butter

10 oz. bag of marshmallows

2/3 c. dry yellow (or white) cake mix

6 c. Rice Krispies

Melt the butter and marshmallows together in a large pot over medium heat. When the mixture is melted and smooth, turn the heat off and add the cake mix. Stir in. Add the Rice Krispies and stir until all are evenly coated. Pour into a greased 9x13 pan and press together. Id you want, you can add cake sprinkles to the top. Press gently so they stick. Allow to cool, cut, and enjoy!