Fellow Blogger Recipe: Best Ever Oreo Brownies from Pinch Of Yum

It was my birthday on Monday so I made these Best Ever Oreo Brownies from Pinch of Yum to treat myself right. They were yummy! Especially served warm with vanilla ice cream, but you already knew that. The Oreos just melt right into the batter! You're intrigued, right?

Click {{HERE}} for the recipe.

You'll be glad to have this one in your arsenal.

I also think you could use your favorite scratch brownie recipe in place of the Ghirardelli box mix, so keep that in mind. Enjoy! 

images by Briana

Caramelitas

The picture says it all folks!  These bars are just about the best thing since sliced bread, since PB&J, since peanut butter and chocolate for goodness sake!!!  As per my usual, I'm a HUGE fan of Caramel!(with some chocolate mixed in there too;)  These Caramelitas are buttery-rich and chewy!  Enjoy!

The line up for the crust and topping:
2 cups flour
2 cups quick oats
1 1/2 cups brown sugar, firmly packed
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cups butter, softened


For the filling:
1 (14 oz) bag craft caramels, unwrapped
3 tablespoons evaporated milk
1 tablespoon flour
1 cup milk chocolate chips(semi-sweet is obviously fine to use)


Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease a 9 by 13 inch pan or baking dish.  Combine all of the crust/topping ingredients in a large bowl and mix at low speed until crumbly.  Divide in half.  Press 1/2 evenly into your pan.  Then  put in the oven for 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, in a saucepan over medium heat, melt and combine together the caramels and evaporated milk.  Once melted and mixed well, take off the heat and mix in the flour.  
Remove partially baked crust from the oven.  Sprinkle with the chocolate chips and drizzle the caramel evenly over the chocolate chips.  Sprinkle the other half of the topping over the caramel.  Then back into the oven for roughly 20 minutes or until the top is slightly golden.  Cool on a rack for 1 hour and then refrigerate until filling it set.  
These are soooo dang good, I had to start bagging them up and giving them to friends!  Otherwise, and this is no joke, I would've consumed the entire pan myself!  Yes, I admit, being a nursing mother makes me want to eat a lot of really rich and decadent things!  In really LARGE quantities!:)

  
Original recipe can be found here!
Modified by Kara
Images by Kara




      

How To: Coconut Butter + Coconutty-Pineapple Oat Bars

This week felt like Spring. The snow is melting, the sun is out, the temperatures are warming and a wave of I-must-clean-and-dejunk my house came. I cleaned out and organized my closet last night and I'm feeling like a new woman! Hopefully there are signs of Spring wherever you may be and that you have some fun plans for the weekend. Before I split, I wanted to share with you how to make coconut butter. All you need is unsweetened shredded coconut and a food processor (I suppose you could also use a high powered blender). Here is how ya do it:

Throw the unsweetened shredded coconut in your food processor and power it up. I put in about 2 cups shredded coconut and it took about 8 minutes to turn the shredded coconut into butter (the more shredded coconut you put in, the more time it will take).

This was 5ish minutes in and it is getting close! Feel free to scrape down the sides with a rubber spatula if you feel like it.

Couple minutes more and you have this dreamy concoction. Now what do we do with it?

I used mine and whipped up a pineapple-coconutty oat bar concoction (in the same family as a granola bar). I'm sharing the recipe below if you're interested. You can also use it to top pancakes, muffins, waffles, etc. I'm excited to experiment with it in my baking. The coconut butter will set up and solidify at room temperature so if you want to bring it back to a liquid consistency- heat it up in the microwave for a few seconds. If you use coconut butter, I'd love to hear your ideas so leave a comment!

Here is my Pineapple-Coconutty Oat Bars (is this what I should be calling them?), keep in mind that I didn't measure anything, I just sorta eyeballed, tasted as I went, and added things until the mixture reached the right consistency. Enjoy:

Recipe (yields 10 bars from a 9 in square pan):

2 1/2 ish cups oats

1/2 cup almonds, roughly chopped

3/4 cup chopped dried pineapple (I think mangos or any other dried tropical fruit would also be good)

2 cups unsweetened coconut made into coconut butter (two cups unsweetened coconut will make around 3/4 cup-1 cup coconut butter)

1-2 tablespoons honey (or agave)

1/2 ish cup hot water

1/2 cup unsweetened coconut, toasted

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large mixing bowl combine oats, almonds, dried pineapple, coconut butter and honey. Wash your hands and mix ingredients by hand. When everything is combined, give it a taste and add more honey if it needs more sweetening. Add hot water until the mixture reaches a good sticky consistency. Turn mixture into a parchment lined 9in square pan and spread evenly. Sprinkle and press toasted coconut evenly over the top. Bake anywhere from 15-20 minutes. You want the bars to firm up nicely. Remove and cool completely before cutting into bars. Store in an airtight container. *I thought they tasted better the next day. 

Thanks for stopping in and I'll see you next week! xoxo

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Butter Finger Blondies

Wondering what to do with all of your leftover Halloween candy??  Howabout these beauties?  

These Butter Finger Blondies are sweet, buttery and chewy!  And the great thing about this recipe is it's versatility!  You can easily substitute snickers, twix, milkyway, etc, etc, etc in place of the butter finger!  I found the original recipe here.  And instead of using their buttercream, I drizzled my blondies with a little brown sugar butter frosting found here!  They are so good, my little family went back for seconds!  Enjoy!

Original recipe at sixsistersstuff.blogspot.com


images by Kara

Lime Mascarpone Cream Bars

So, do you remember the Lime Curd + Mascarpone Cream Fruit Dip I made at the beginning of the summer?  Well, here is another way to use all of that tart, sweet and creamy goodness!  Enjoy!

 


Ingredients for crust:
2 cups graham cracker crumbs, about 15 full crackers
1 stick salted butter, melted
1 extra large egg
Mix the above ingredients together and press into an 8 by 10 inch baking dish!  Then into a 350 degree oven for 10-15 minutes!


For the filling:
4 limes
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1 stick salted butter, room temp
1/8 teaspoon salt
4 extra large eggs, room temp
2 (8 oz) tubs of mascarpone cheese, room temp
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
Zest and juice the limes.  Set lime juice aside.  Put sugar, zest and salted butter in the bowl of an electric mixer and beat thoroughly.  Add eggs 1 at a time, beating after each addition.  Add and mix in lime juice and salt.  Then pour into a heavy sauce pan and cook over low heat, stirring constantly until thickened.  About 10 minutes.  Once thickened pour into a clean container with a lid and cool in the fridge.  Whip your room temp mascarpone cheese and 3 tablespoons sugar together until smooth.  Add cooled lime curd to the mascarpone mixture and beat until smooth and well mixed.  Pour over the cooled graham cracker crust, cover with foil and put in the fridge to chill for at least 1 hour.  Then enjoy!


images by Kara

Caramel Brownies

A few weeks ago I tried a new brownie recipe that will now be a staple at our house!  They were dense and moist with the perfect amount of chocolate and a little caramel mixed in!  Exactly what the perfect brownie should be in my opinion!  We couldn't stop eating them!!!!!

 

Ingredients:
For Brownies
3 ounces unsweetened chocolate
1 stick salted butter, softened
4 large eggs
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour


For Caramel
1/2 stick salted butter
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons light corn syrup
1 tablespoon canned milk or whipping cream


Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.  Grease an 8 by 8 inch baking dish.


In a small saucepan, melt the chocolate and 1 stick butter over low heat.  Stir constantly until well combined.  Remove from heat.


Beat the eggs in a large bowl until pale yellow and slightly thickened.  Add the sugar slowly.  Add vanilla and slightly cooled chocolate mixture.  Beat until well combined.  Add flour and mix on low speed until just combined.  Don't overmix!


Spread half of the brownie batter into the prepared baking dish and smooth the top.  Bake for 15-20 minutes.  Until top is firm.


For Caramel:  Heat butter, sugar and corn syrup in a heavy saucepan over medium heat, stirring constantly until sugar dissolves.  Increase heat to high and boil 1 1/2 minutes.  Remove from heat and stir in the milk or cream.


Spread warm caramel evenly over baked brownie layer.  Pour remaining half of the brownie mixture over caramel and Bake an additional 25-30 minutes.


Cool brownies in the pan then cut into squares.

Recipe from the Mrs. Fields Cookbook


images by Kara 

S'mores Bars

Hi all!  Hope you had a great weekend!  Ours was spent enjoying family and playing in the sun!  And eating some really good food along the way!  Here is a quick, easy and crowd pleasing recipe to take to your next get-together!

Ingredients:
2 sticks salted butter
2 (16 oz) bags marshmallows
1 1/2-2 (12 oz) boxes Golden Grahams, depends how gooey you want them!
1 (12 oz) bag semi-sweet chocolate chips


In a large pot melt the butter and mallows together over medium heat, mixing frequently.  Once melted and combined well, remove from heat and add the golden grahams a little at a time to make sure the mixture is consistent and well combined throughout.  Next mix in the chocolate chips.  Pour warm mixture into a buttered 15 by 10 inch baking dish.  Allow the mixture to set up before cutting them into bars!  


image by Kara

Chocolate Dipped Frozen Bananas

Hi, guys! I'm so glad it's the weekend. It's hot out and we've been enjoying lots of frozen treats lately. Here are some throw-back frozen bananas I made this morning that were inspired by some I saw over at the blog- the little red house. We'll surely be enjoying these this afternoon. You should make these this weekend! Have a good one, dudes! Happy Pioneer Day to all us Utahans!

Slice some bananas in half and stick popsicle sticks or candy sticks up through the cut side. Place in freezer at least an hour.

Melt a bag of semi-sweet chocolate chips and a teaspoon of oil. Dip frozen bananas in the melted chocolate then roll the dipped banana in toppings of your choice: rainbow sprinkles (for the kiddies), chopped nuts, crushed candy bars, coconut, marshmallows (per my daughters request), etc.

Place dipped and rolled bananas on parchment lined cookie sheet. Cover lightly with plastic wrap and freeze for at least an hour or two before serving. Enjoy!

images by Briana

King Arthur's Best Fudge Brownies Ever

These are definitely for the hard core chocolate lover in your family. I've seen this recipe for years on the back of the King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour bag and finally decided to try them on Sunday. Every recipe I've tried from King Arthur has been superb-- they've got baking LOCKED DOWN over there. These are rich, super moist and chewy. Just what you want from a brownie. And I think this goes w/o saying, that a glass of milk or scoop of vanilla would round these out perfectly. Enjoy!

Recipe (yield 2 dozen brownies):

1 cup butter (2 sticks)

2 1/4 cups sugar

1 1/4 cup Dutch-process cocoa

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

4 large eggs

1 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour (I highly recommend King Arthur brand)

2 cups chocolate chips (I used milk chocolate)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a 9x13 inch pan.

In a microwave-safe bowl, or saucepan set over low heat, melt butter, then add the sugar and stir to combine. You want the mixture to get hot, but not bubble. It'll become shiny looking as you stir it. Heating the butter and sugar will help dissolve more of the sugar, resulting in a shiny top crust on your brownies. Transfer the mixture to a mixing bowl. Stir in the cocoa, salt, baking powder, and vanilla. Add the eggs, beating till smooth. Add the flour and chocolate chips, beating till well combined. Pour the batter into the prepared pan.

Bake the brownies for 28-30 minutes, until a knife or toothpick inserted in center comes out clean (a few clinging crumbs is fine). The brownies should feel set both on the edges , and in the center. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes. Loosen the edges all the way around with a table knife. This'll prevent the brownies from sinking in the center as they cool. Allow to cool for a few more minutes before cutting and serving.

image by Briana

Mallowy Candy Cane Kiss Brownies

Are you looking for an easy, gooey, chewy, creamy, pepperminty brownie to take to your next holiday party? If the answer is "yes" then look no further! This brownie will knock your holiday socks off friends!:) It's actually a recipe that we've used in our family for years. It's the Ooey Gooey German Chocolate Brownie that I posted months ago. I just adapted it for Christmas and it turned out amazing! Did I mention that my new favorite Christmas candies are the Hersheys Candy Cane Kisses?? Pretty much heaven in the mouth! Creamy and slightly pepperminty white chocolate with the addition of tiny candy cane pieces throughout! Well, the center, not to mention top of these brownies are loaded with them! Enjoy!

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees

A few simple ingredients:

1 german chocolate cake mix (Duncan Hines or Betty Crocker)

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted

2/3 cup evaporated milk

Mix these 3 ingredients together in a mixing bowl. The batter will be thick. Spread slightly more than half of the batter into the bottom of a greased 9 by 13 inch pan. Put this first layer in the oven for 15 minutes. Meanwhile unwrap a 10 oz bag of Hersheys Candy Cane Kisses. Place half of the unwrapped kisses on a cutting board and rough chop (not fine chop) them using a chefs knife. In a microwaveable bowl, heat 1 1/2 cups marshmallow cream for 30 seconds to make it easier to spread. Take the brownie layer out of the oven and using a spatula, gently spread the warm marshmallow cream evenly over the top. Then sprinkle the chopped kisses evenly over the top of the marshmallow cream. Drop small spoonfuls of the remaining brownie batter over the top of the kisses. You will be able to see the mallow cream and kiss bits through the cracks. This gives the top a nice crackly appearance when it comes out of the oven. Place the brownies back in the oven for 25-30 minutes. Once out of the oven, place the remaining kisses every so often on top of your hot brownies. You may not be able to resist...but it's best to allow them to cool just a bit before cutting into them!

Y.U.M!

images by Kara

Apricot Bars

Last night, my kids and I were over at Grammy and Grampy's while Daddy was working late. My Mom started flipping through The Pioneer Women Cookbook and suggested I make the Apricot Bars for the blog! Our Mom makes them with chopped almonds and pecans and they are divine! I decided to keep it as simple as possible and followed the recipe to a tee! I love the flavor combination of brown sugar and butter! Add some oats and flour for texture, apricot preserves for tartness and what you've got is something reminiscent of a warm, homemade cobbler but with a lot less fuss! These bars are DELISH!

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 cups oats

1 cup brown sugar, packed

1 3/4 sticks salted butter, cut into pieces

1 jar (10-12 oz) apricot preserves

Mix all of the ingredients together except the apricot preserves.

Press half of the mixture into a buttered 8 or 9" square (or small rectangle) pan.

Spread the whole 10-12 oz jar Apricot preserves over the top.

Pour other have of mixture over preserves and press down lightly. Then into a 350 degree oven for 30-40 minutes.

Let the bars cool somewhat before cutting into them.

They may be slightly crumbly and gooey...but then again, when has that EVER been a draw back! YUM! Enjoy!

Recipe from Pioneer Woman

images by Kar

Tart, Buttery, Tangy And Sweet Lime Bars

Lime bars or lemon bars for that matter are one of my favorite desserts. (if they are made right) Buttery, flaky, tart and sweet. Need I say more?

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

For the crust mix together:

1/2 cup butter, slightly softened

1/4 cup powdered sugar

1 cup flour

Dough will be crumbly, not sticky. Press into a 9 inch square pan and into the oven for 15 min.

For the filling beat together:

2 tablespoons fresh lime juice

Grated rind of 1 lime

2 eggs

2 tablespoons flour

1 cup sugar

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

Pour over warm crust and back into the oven for 20-25 minutes. Until slightly golden on top.

As a sweet and creamy counterpart to all this zesty and tart goodness, I choose BUTTERCREAM! Lime/Vanilla Buttercream to be exact!

Cream:

1 stick butter, softened

Add the powdered sugar to the butter 1 cup at a time, mixing after each addition.

4 cups powdered sugar

1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Zest of one lime

Juice of 1-2 limes depending on spreading consistency.

Spread over cooled lime bars, cut into squares and eat em up!

Original lemon bar recipe from Janice Hughes, adapted by Kar

Lime/vanilla buttercream recipe by Kar

images by Kar

Mississippi Mud Bars

This recipe came from a neighbor and family friend we’ve known since we were little. Our family has been making these for years. They are gooey and chocolatey. Enough said.

2 cubes melted butter

2 cups sugar

4 eggs

1 1/2 cups flour

1/4 cup cocoa

1 cup coconut

Topping:

8 oz jar Marshmallow Creme

1 recipe chocolate frosting

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Combine all dry ingredients in medium bowl and mix together with a spoon. Add melted butter and mix haphazardly to temper the mixture. Add eggs and mix thoroughly, making sure to scrape the bottom of the bowl to incorporate any dry ingredients that may have settled. Pour batter in a 9x13 glass pan, smooth top and bake for 50 minutes at 325 F (mine baked for 45 minutes). When a toothpick comes out clean, they’re done. Immediately upon removing them from the oven, scoop marshmallow creme in heaping tablespoon amounts across the surface of the bars. Make sure to scatter and stagger your plops (you will see in the picture). Don’t be tempted to spread them. Allow the marshmallow creme to melt down for a few minutes. When the marshmallow creme has melted and spread out a little, take a butter knife and gently spread the creme into areas that it has yet to touch, creating an even layer. Set aside to cool.

Now it is time to make the chocolate frosting. Note: I have never followed a recipe when it comes to frosting. This is the way my mom has always done it, so I have learned from watching her. For the sake of this post, I wrote down the measurements as I went.

6 tbs butter, room temp.

1/2 cup cocoa, leveled

Roughly 3 cups powdered sugar

1/4 tbs vanilla

Milk (to help reach spreading consistency)

With a hand mixer beat butter for at least a minute or until a fluffy texture is reached. Add powdered sugar and cocoa. Beat thoroughly for at least 2 minutes. Add vanilla and continue to beat. Pour in milk a tablespoon at a time until spreading consistency is reached.

Take your pan of bars and frost over the top of the marshmallow creme. You can decide how thick or thin you want the frosting to be. Keep in mind that too thick a layer tends to overpower the brownie/bar. Note: You will most likely have frosting left over.

Devour them with milk. Ya just gotta.

Post by Bri

Mom's Rice Krispie Treats

What can I say about Rice Krispie treats that hasn’t already been said?

These are definitely one of my very favorite desserts or treats- have been ever since I can recall. I turned the big 29 in April and my mom sent me home with a big pan of ‘em as one of my gifts. And. I ate all but 1/4 of the pan in a matter of a week. Phew, that was therapeutic. I should be blaming it on the nursing, huh?

I don’t like to use the phrase “the best” a lot, but these really are the best Rice Krispie treats I have ever tasted. Give them a whirl this weekend- from the looks and sounds of it, the weather here in Utah is going to be crummy.

Recipe:

2 1 lb. bags of miniature marshmallows

2 cubes butter +2 tablespoons (don’t discard the butter wrappers)

1 19 oz box Rice Krispies

Melt the butter in an x-large pot until just slightly brown (medium-low heat). Pour in marshmallows and allow to melt. Stir, allowing mallows to melt in with the butter. When there are no more lumps and the mixture is smooth turn off heat and pour in Rice Krispies. Stir and fold until all the Rice Krispies are coated. Pour coated Rice Krispies into 2 9x11 glass pans. Or you can use a jelly roll pan. You could even use a bundt mold for crying out loud. You get it…

Take butter wrappers and use them to press and mold the mixture into pans (see picture below).

Recipe by Momma

Post by Bri

Ooey Gooey German Chocolate Brownies

As far as brownies are concerned these, my friends, could easily hold the title of king! They ARE that good! What sets them apart????? Well the creamy, smooth milk chocolate and buttery melted caramel center of course! And oh boy are they easy to make…take a look!

1 pkg swiss or milk chocolate cake mix (Duncan Hines is fab, but any brand will do:)

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted

1 cup evaporated milk, divided

35 (10 oz pkg) caramels, unwrapped

2 cups (12 oz pkg) milk chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Combine cake mix, melted butter and 2/3 cup evaporated milk (batter will be thick). Spread 2/3 of the batter into clean 13 by 9 in baking dish. Bake for 15 minutes.

While base is in the oven, in small saucepan melt caramels with remaining evaporated milk over low heat. Stir constantly so it doesn’t burn. Take hot base out of oven and sprinkle chocolate chips over top. Then drizzle with melted caramel.

Drop leftover batter by spoonfuls evenly over the caramel. Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes. Cool in pan on wire rack, cut into bars and ENJOY!

Recipe from the Nestle Toll House Cookbook

image by Kar

Peanut Butter Fingers

I’d like to meet the person who decided to compliment peanut butter with chocolate! I’d like to shake his or her hand! I’d like to say a sincere, deep rooted, “THANK YOU!” I remember eating school lunch as a grade schooler and anticipating the days that Peanut Butter Fingers were served! BEST.LUNCH.DAYS.EVER! Luckily I never had to go too long without these peanut buttery gems, because my wonderful Momma had the BEST recipe for them at home! And I’m gonna share that recipe with you right now! Treat this recipe like gold, people!!!!!!!!!

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Mix together:

1 1/2 cups butter, softened

1 1/2 cups brown sugar

1 1/2 cups granulated sugar

3/4 tsp salt

1 1/2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp vanilla

3 eggs

1 1/2 cups creamy peanut butter

Add and mix in:

3 cups oatmeal, ground up in blender

3 cups all purpose flour

This makes a HUGE batch, because believe me, they go FAST! You can always half the recipe if needed!:)

Divide dough between 2 regular rimmed cookie sheets. Press dough down evenly to reach all four corners. Bake for 15-20 min.

Once out of the oven, dollop spoonfuls of peanut butter (not included in ingredients above) all over top of warm and golden crust. Once the peanut butter has melted slightly, spread evenly over top. Let cool.

Momma’s Chocolate Buttercream

Mix all ingredients:

1- 2lb bag of powdered sugar plus 1 cup

3/4 cup cocoa powder

2 cubes butter, softened

1 tbs vanilla

add milk a little at a time until soft, spreading consistency

Spread over cooled peanut butter fingers, cut into rectangles and DEVOUR!

Peanut Butter Finger and Chocolate Buttercream recipes by Momma

images by Kar