White Chocolate Cranberry Bars Dessert bars filled with white chocolate chips, pecans and cranberry sauce, a festive treat for the holidays. I’m not a huge baker and usually do the minimum required for the holidays. Always kolachkes and buckeyes, and occasionally something new, like these white chocolate cranberry bars. They are rich and gooey and festive and nutty. The …
Greek Baklava Classic baklava recipe, the traditional Greek pastry made with ground nuts, layers of phyllo and drizzled with honey syrup. I’ve had baklava now and then over the years, sometimes good, sometimes not so much. In other words, not a huge fan, just kind of neutral. But if you’ve ever had really good baklava, it’s a …
Classic Buckeyes Classic Buckeyes recipe for peanut butter balls dipped in chocolate, a popular treat in the midwest, especially Ohio, and must-have on the holiday dessert table. I had my first buckeye years ago in Ohio, when I married into family from Dayton. On the buffet at the holidays when we were visiting one year were a …
Magnolia Bakery’s banana pudding ~ the iconic NYC bakery’s famous banana pudding is creamy, dreamy, fluffy and so easy to make at home with simple ingredients! I have three daughters, two of which attended college in New York City. I’m pretty sure the first thing they both discovered was Magnolia Bakery. At the time, the …
Homemade peach pie made with seasonal, fresh peaches and a perfectly flaky, crispy crust made with lard and butter. This is the quintessential summer fruit pie! Summer peach season is in full swing. I’ve been having a blast with peaches this year. Peach bellinis, grilled peaches and peach pie. I’ve made peach pie twice so …
Fresh Blackberry Crisp Fresh blackberry crisp made with just-picked blackberries from the farm ~ the best summer dessert, with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, of course! I absolutely love fresh berries in the summer and if they’re local, even better. Just so fresh and bursting with flavor. The farm near my house has blackberries you can pick, …
Chocolate Cream Pie Chocolate cream pie ~ rich, dark chocolate pastry cream topped with whipped cream in an Oreo cookie crust. I make two really good pies, cherry and chocolate cream pie. The cherry pie I used to make when I could get my hands on fresh Michigan tart cherries, that was long, long ago. The chocolate cream …
Chicago-style bakery apple slices. Apple filling between two crusts in a sheet pan, topped with vanilla glaze and cut into squares. These slices are very portable and travel well for your potluck or next get-together! I grew up in the Chicago suburbs and as an adult I lived in the city. I love Chicago neighborhood …
Cherry Pie Bars Cherry pie in bar form! Cherry pie bars made with pie filling, homemade crust and drizzled with vanilla-almond glaze. A portable crowd pleaser perfect for summer get togethers. At the farm stand I worked at this past summer, we had jars of Amish pie filling for sale from a local farm in Illinois. I grabbed …
Prize-Winning Pumpkin Bars Prize-winning pumpkin bars recipe for homemade pumpkin sheet cake topped with cream cheese frosting. A fall favorite that feeds a crowd! It’s October and that means birthdays, Halloween and pumpkin bars in my house. I have shared two of my pumpkin recipes so far, but I think I saved the best for last. These really …