November 6, 2009

How am I ever going to get through this Holiday Season without gaining a pound or two, or ten? Seriously!

I don't even have a sweet tooth, but lately I find myself drooling, (literally) over the lavish amount of desserts featured on some of my favorite food blogs!

I'm one of those people who never thinks about making a dessert when I host a party or have friends over for dinner. (I know, I know, that's rude.) I guess since I don't eat dessert, I forget that for some people, dinner just isn't complete without dessert. Now, when I have a get together, my friends and family will usually call and offer to bring the dessert. (Because they know if they don't, then we won't have one.) I'm going to try to work on that.

If I made a dessert every night, I'd probably be as big as a house, but I do need to treat my guys, who both have a sweet tooth, to an occasional treat. I'm also going to try some of these recipes for the holidays and maybe even surprise my friends with a dessert at our next dinner party. (They would be shocked!)

In no particular order, here are several “to die for” desserts that I can't wait to try. If these don't make you drool, nothing will!

• Argo Classic Cheesecake from Cookie Madness

• Upside Down Apple Pie by Noble Pig

• Oatmeal Maple Bars from Lisa is Cooking

• Coconut-Crusted Sour Cream Pound Cake from A Southern Grace

• Coffee-toffee Pecan Pie by Evil Chef Mom

• Deluxe Pumpkin Cheescake from Culinary Covers

• Vanilla Yogurt Cake with Orange Glaze from Culinary Concoctions by Peabody

• Apple Walnut Gorgonzola Rustic Tart from Simply Recipes

• All in One Holiday Bundt Cake from Baking and Boys

• Brown Sugar Pear and Cranberry Bars from Peanut Butter and Julie

• Pumpkin Swirl Brownies from The Kitchen Sink Recipes

• Blueberry Pound Cake from My Wooden Spoon

• Tunnel of Love Apple Spice Cake from Cinnamon Spice and Everything Nice

And last, but not least,

• Texas Sheet-Not Cake by BigSis

(Yeah, I know BigSisLilSis isn't technically a food blog, but she is my sister and this is my post so I'm including her cake recipe. )

It would appear that maybe I do have a sweet tooth, after all! 🙂

Could someone please tell me how you can make such amazing, tempting desserts on a regular basis and keep from eating half of it yourself? Do you share it with neighbors, take it to work or invite a bunch of teenagers over to devour it? Or is it just plain and simple will power? I'd love to know your secret!

~LilSis

August 7, 2009

There are only a few weeks of Summer left, so I find myself daydreaming about a nice trip to Paradise before it's time to get ready for back-to-school.  If someone were to ask me to describe my idea of Paradise, I'd probably say something like this:

“I'm on an island far, far away where the sand is so soft and so white that it reminds me of powdered sugar, and the beach is surrounded by the most gorgeous, clear turquoise blue water that you've ever seen. There is not a cloud in the sky and the sun's rays feel perfect on my skin that is slathered in my favorite Hawaiian Tropic. There are no cell phones, computers or televisions on the island and I am able to leisurely read a book while laying on the beach, totally uninterrupted, except for the occasional delivery of food and cold beverages”.

Unfortunately, it's highly unlikely that I'll be experiencing anything like that any time in the near future so I'll have to compromise.

(Yes, this sign really is in my backyard; but, no, it's not always Happy Hour.) 🙂

Since it's Friday and the guys are golfing today, I thought I might be able to experience a little Paradise right here in my own backyard. I'm going to try and take a couple hours off this afternoon to read by the pool while I have the house to myself. I may have a couple of friends stop by later so I wanted to make some sort of refreshing, tropical dessert.

While browsing the Internet looking for some ideas for a freezer pie, I stumbled upon this recipe for Paradise Pie on texascooking.com. I knew right away that I wanted to make this pie and I was thrilled that it was so fast and easy to put together!

The combination of the pineapple, coconut, and pecans was so tropical that I almost felt like I if I closed my eyes, I could pretend that I was in Paradise!

Paradise Pie poolside, anyone?

Paradise Pie

• 1 can (14 oz.) sweetened condensed milk
• 1/3 cup lemon juice
• 1 can (8 oz.) crushed pineapple, well drained
• 1/2 cup coconut
• 1/2 cup chopped pecans
• 1/2 carton (8 oz.) frozen whipped topping, thawed (use 4 oz.)
• 1 9-inch graham cracker crust

Combine the milk and lemon juice in a bowl. Stir well. Add the drained pineapple, coconut and pecans, mixing well. Gently fold in the whipped topping. Pour into the crust. Freeze until firm, at least 4 hours. Remove from the freezer about 15 minutes before serving. Cover any leftover pie loosely with foil or place inside a large freezer storage bag and return to the freezer.

I'm submitting this recipe to this month's You want pies with that event. Be sure to check the site on August 8th for the full roundup!

~LilSis

July 3, 2009

I know lots of you are going to be grilling for July 4th, and you're going to need a dessert that doesn't involved heating up the kitchen with a blazing oven, right?  Right.

When I think of a cool no-bake dessert, the first thing that comes to my mind – and makes my mouth water – is the classic Cherry Cream Cheese Pie!  When we were kids, this was our favorite.  There weren't many leftovers with 4 kids around, but whoever got up earliest the next morning always scarfed up the remaining bit of pie for breakfast!  SisMama still makes this and we all still love it!

It looks like Paula Deen makes our Cherry Cream Cheese Pie too!  That's one of the things we love about you Paula…you know what good is, whether it's fancy foo-foo or not!

Cherry Cream Cheese Pie from Paula Deen

This other awesome cool pie just popped back into my head today.  I got this recipe from a boss MANY blue moons ago!  I wish my darn camera hadn't passed away, and I'd make this and take a photo, but alas, I'm still camera-less.  I do have two notes on this recipe for you.

1. Do they still make Dream Whip?  I hope so, because this is a good pie and I'm not sure what we'd substitute for it.
2. Fresh Texas blueberries are so awesome now that I feel guilty giving you a recipe using blueberry pie filling, but I'm sure you could modify the recipe to use the fresh blues.

Now for the pie!

Banana Blueberry Pie

2 graham cracker pie crusts
3 bananas, sliced
2 packages Dream Whip
1 cup sugar
Dash of salt
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
1 can blueberry pie filling

Line pie crusts with banana slices.  Mix Dream Whip as directed on package.  Mix sugar and salt with cream cheese and add to prepared Dream Whip.  Pour into shells over bananas and cool until firm, about 1/2 hour.  Top with pie filling.  Keep refrigerated.

I haven't mentioned it before, but I'm not the hugest Rachael Ray fan in the world.  I'm not hatin', cause life's too short for that; I'm just not lovin'.  I do have to give snaps to her for her scrumptious-looking Frozen Mojito Cake-tail. Note that I didn't say yummo, or delish…I just said scrumptious.  This dish screams summer to me, and it's all boozed up with rum!

Rachael Ray's Frozen Mojito Cake-tails

Enjoy your 4th of July everyone, and stay cool with a delicious no-bake dessert!

~BigSis

May 12, 2009

we all scream for ice cream!

I have great childhood memories that include some favorite ice creams. Before I started working at Six Flags over Texas, we had season passes every year and would go to the park almost every day in the summer. We always went to the cute little ice cream parlor there and I always got the pink peppermint ice cream with the red and green peppermint candies in it. When we went to Baskin Robbins, I loved the Pralines and Cream! And, on a really special Sunday afternoon, SisMama and Daddy would take us four kiddos to a local spot for a gargantuan Banana Split.

Of course, at home, we always made homemade vanilla ice cream. We had one of those ‘old timey' ice cream makers where you put the rock salt and ice inside the tub all around the stainless steel container. We would take turns turning that thing for what seemed like hours. But it sure made some excellent homemade ice cream.

After years of not eating sugar, I just don't have a desire for ice cream anymore… Well, I should rephrase that and say, I haven't had a desire for ice cream until now! I've recently come across some amazing ice cream recipes on some of my favorite blogs that have really peaked my interest in purchasing an ice cream maker.

Roasted Banana Ice Cream with Walnut Praline and Toasted Coconut by Evil Chef Mom

• This Roasted Banana Ice Cream with Walnut Praline and Toasted Coconut from Evil Chef Mom makes me drool!
• The Almond Butter Ice Cream from A Southern Grace looks so creamy and yummy! I especially like it because it doesn't have chocolate!
• Strawberry-Sour Cream Brown Sugar Ice Cream is another that I found via Evil Chef Mom. (Yum! The strawberries soak in a little vodka!)
• I can't wait to try this Pomegranate and Blood Orange Sorbet from Recipe Girl.

Maybe these recipes give you a little glimpse as to why I'm now in the market for an ice cream maker. I've asked a few people and done a little research and the Cuisinart ICE-30BC Pure-Indulgence 2-Quart Automatic Frozen Yogurt, Sorbet, and Ice Cream Maker seems to be a favorite.

So, it's standing by in my Amazon shopping cart at this very moment…If my guys are on their best behavior, this little puppy is only a click away from being shipped to us!

~LilSis

March 29, 2009

I saw this Peanut Butter Coconut Bar recipe on Cookie Madness recently and I thought it sounded interesting. I love coconut and I love peanut butter, so why not put them together? It's a combination that I haven't seen in too many recipes.

I'm not always successful at my baking attempts, but I'm not ready to give up on trying to become a better baker (yet) !  I do, however, try to find recipes that aren't too complicated. This one seemed pretty easy so I decided to give it a try.

Anna said that she felt the bars were a little dry so I asked her what she would change if she were to make them again. She made a few suggestions. First of all, I did take her advice to start off by making a half batch to make sure everyone liked them.

I cut the recipe in half, but still used the one egg that was in the original recipe. Anna had suggested possibly adding an extra egg yolk to help moisten the bars, so I didn't think it could hurt to use the whole egg. (I got lucky and it worked out fine.) I also added 1 T. of Coconut Milk and used chopped pecans on top of the bars instead of peanuts.

These really did turn out good! They were rich and moist and almost a cross between a blondie and a peanut butter cookie, with a little surprise of coconut.

Peanut Butter Coconut Bars
(adapted from Gourmet via Cookie Madness)

6 T. unsalted butter, softened
1/2 c. sugar
1/2 c. smooth peanut butter
1 large egg
1/2 t. vanilla
1 T. coconut milk
1/4 t. salt
1 c. all-purpose flour
1 c. sweetened flaked coconut
1/4 c. chopped pecans

In a bowl with an electric mixer, cream the butter with the sugar and beat until the mixture is light and fluffy. Add the peanut butter, beat the mixture until it is combined well, and beat in the egg, the vanilla, the coconut milk, and the salt. Add the flour, beat the mixture until it is just combined, and stir in the coconut. Spread the mixture evenly into a buttered pan (for this half batch, I used an 8 x 8 pan). Sprinkle the pecans over it, pressing them into the mixture lightly, and bake in the middle rack of a preheated 350 degree oven for 20 minutes, or until a tester comes out clean. Let the mixture cool completely in the pan on a rack, then cut into bars.

Thanks for the recipe and the suggestions, Anna! Now, does anyone have any ideas on what to do with an entire can of coconut milk?

~LilSis

February 10, 2009

Valentine's Day is sneaking up on us just like Christmas did, and 2009 did.  It's February already?  Mid-Feb, in fact?  Oy vey, time goes by fast!

Now that I've made myself sound like a 110 year old woman – not that there's anything wrong with that – let me get on with Valentine's Day Food of Love!  If you're looking for some new ideas for your Heart Day, check out these.  They aren't your Grandma's sugar cookie cut-outs, but again, nothing wrong with that.  🙂

• Strawberry Shortcake Trifle from Bakers Banter
• Fast and Easy Valentine's Treats from Bakerella
• Heart Shaped Nutella S'Mores with Homemade Chocolate Graham Crackers from Baking And Boys
• Cherry Filled Chocolate Wafers from Little Window Shoppe
• Raspberry White Chocolate Mousse Parfaits from Peanut Butter and Julie
• Valentine Treats from Pillsbury
• Raspberry Cheesecake Brownies from BakingBites
• Chocolate Mascarpone Cheese Pie from Sticky, Gooey, Creamy,Chewy
• Valentine's Day Desserts from Joy of Baking
• Valentines Day Chocolate Desserts from Gourmet

Check back for more Valentine's Day stuff coming your way this week!

~BigSis