Knock-off Starbucks Cranberry Bliss Bars

You know it's "beginning to look a lot like Christmas" when Starbucks places their Cranberry Bliss Bars in the pastry case!  They don't have them year-round because Cranberry Bliss Bars, like Peppermint Mochas just aren't right in July!

Anyway, these yummy seasonal treats are a personal favorite of my dad's.  I think he treats himself to 1 a year.  (His birthday is always right around or on Thanksgiving.)  Now, however, my sisters can make him a whole Cranberry Bliss Bar cake to help him celebrate!

I recently made these for a coffee I attended and they were a hit.  I did not make the drizzled royal icing to top the cream cheese frosting because I figured they'd be sweet enough.  They were!  :)

Ingredients:

Cake:
3/4 cup butter, softened
1 1/4 cups packed light brown sugar
3 eggs
2 tsp cinnamon
2 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp nutmeg
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 bag craisins
1/2 bag white chocolate chips

Frosting:
1 8oz.-package cream cheese
3 cups powdered sugar
1 tsp. lemon extract
1 tsp. vanilla extract
(the other) 1/2 bag craisins
(the other) 1/2 bag white chocolate chips

Drizzled Icing:
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1-3 tablespoons milk (add 1 tablespoon at a time)

Directions:

Cake:
1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2) Cream your butter and sugar together until smooth and fluffy with an electric stand mixer
3) In a separate bowl, sift together the flour & baking powder
4) Add eggs, 1 at time, mix until well combined
5) Add cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, salt, and vanilla.  Beat well.
6) Add flour mixture.  Be careful to not overmix (this could result in a tough cake)
7) Using a wooden spoon, stir in white chocolate chips and craisins.
8) Pour batter into a well greased 9X13 dish & bake for 25-35 minutes, or until cake it golden brown.
9)  Allow cake to cool completely before frosting

Frosting:
1)  Combine 1 cup of powdered sugar at a time with cream cheese in stand mixer (I like to use my whisk attachment - it gets out any powdered sugar lumps!) until cream cheese is smooth
2) Add extracts and beat well
3) When cake has cooled, using a spatula, spread the frosting evenly over the entire cake
4) Sprinkle remaining chocolate chips and craisins over the top of the frosted cake

Chill cake if not serving immediately.  Can be made 1 day ahead.

Recipe from: http://www.topsecretrecipes.com

Strawberry Mascarpone Tart with Port Glaze

This is another recipe I found when we visited the McDougall's in North Carolina and it was such a good find. I know when you skim this you're going to think its a lot of work, but its really not that hard. It takes a little time but it is worth every second. This recipe is so good that Bree and I have already discussed seasonal variations so we don't have to wait for the berries to arrive to enjoy it. Trust me, try it out!

Strawberry Mascarpone Tart with Port Glaze
For tart shell:
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
Rounded 1/4 teaspoon salt
7 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 large egg yolk
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
3 tablespoons cold water

For filling:
1 1/2 pounds strawberries (about 1 1/2 quarts), trimmed and halved lengthwise
1/3 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup ruby Port
1 pound mascarpone (about 2 cups)
1/4 cup confectioners sugar
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon grated lemon zest
3/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Equipment: a 10-inch fluted tart pan with removable bottom; pie weights or dried beans

Make tart shell:
Blend together flour, sugar, salt, and butter in a bowl with your fingertips or a pastry blender (or pulse in a food processor) just until mixture resembles coarse meal with some roughly pea-size butter lumps. Beat together yolk, vanilla, lemon juice, and water with a fork, then drizzle over flour mixture and stir with fork (or pulse) until mixture comes together.

Gently knead with floured hands on a lightly floured surface until a dough forms, then gently knead 4 or 5 times. Press into a 5-inch disk. Place in center of tart pan and cover with plastic wrap. Using your fingers and bottom of a flat-bottomed measuring cup, spread and push dough to evenly cover bottom and side of pan. Prick bottom of tart shell all over with a fork and freeze until firm, about 10 minutes.

Preheat oven to 375°F with rack in middle.

Line tart shell with foil and fill with pie weights. Bake until side is set and edge is pale golden, about 20 minutes. Carefully remove foil and weights and continue to bake until shell is deep golden all over, about 20 minutes more. Cool in pan, about 45 minutes.

Make filling while tart shell cools:
Stir together strawberries and granulated sugar in a bowl and let stand, stirring occasionally, 30 minutes. Strain in a sieve set over a small saucepan, reserving berries. Add Port to liquid in saucepan and boil until reduced to about 1/4 cup, 10 to 15 minutes. Transfer to a small bowl to cool slightly.

Meanwhile, whisk together mascarpone, confectioners sugar, lemon juice, zest, vanilla, and a pinch of salt until stiff.

Assemble tart:
Spread mascarpone mixture evenly in cooled tart shell, then top with strawberries. Drizzle Port glaze all over tart.

Tart shell can be baked 1 day ahead and kept at room temperature.

Lucky Rainbow Cupcakes

I recently made these rainbow cupcakes with the cute kid pictured above, see here. Below is the recipe.

Rainbow Cupcakes can be enjoyed on St. Patrick's Day or anytime you're feeling a little lucky! Enjoy, they are fun to make!

Ingredients:

Makes about 15-24 cupcakes (depending on how full you fill your muffin pans with batter)

• white cake mix (and all the ingredients the cake calls for, eggs, water, oil)
• food coloring
• whipped cream or frosting (I used Rainbow Chip store bought frosting, but you could definitely make your own butter cream)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Make the cake batter as directed on the box.

2. Pour batter into six small bowls. Add food coloring to each individual bowl as follows:

Purple: 9 drops of red and 6 drops of blue, blend

Blue: 12 drops of blue, blend

Green: 12 drops of green, blend

Yellow: 12 drops of yellow, blend

Orange: 12 drops of yellow and 4 drops of red, blend

Red: 18 drops of red, blend

3. Spray muffin pan with Pam, evenly distribute the purple batter among the cups, then blue, and so on.  As you go gently spread each layer with the back of the spoon. Make sure not to over fill the cups as your cupcakes with become too large!

4. Bake the cupcakes as directed on the box. Frost once they have completely cooled!

Jello Punch

Here is a secret family recipe -- ha! No, not really, just a family tradition. At everyone of my birthday parties and each of my sisters parties our parents would make Jello Punch. As we got older I remember occasionally being able to choose the flavor! :-) Anyway, this recipe is for my sister Bree who is planning an all out Dr. Seuss bash for her son's 1st birthday. Hope the Jello Punch makes the day even more Seuss-filled!

Ingredients:

• 1 (6oz) box of Jello, your choice on flavor
• 2 cups sugar
• 2 quarts (8 cups) boiling water
• 3/4 cup lemon juice
• 1 (46) oz can pineapple juice
• 2 quarts cold water
• Ginger ale or Sprite

Directions:

1. Dissolve Jello and sugar in boiling water. Add remaining ingredients except Ginger ale or Sprite.
2. Pour into containers to freeze. I used my large batter bowl from Pampered Chef, if you have one of those it's the perfect size and shape for dissolving in your punch bowl.
3. Remove from freezer about 45minutes - 1 hr before desired serving time. Set out container(s) and let them thaw out a bit set block in a punch bowl. Pour Ginger ale or Sprite on the punch mixture and break it up until it's slushy.
4. Continue to add more Ginger ale or Sprite to the bowl has the block of punch mixture dissolves and guests consume it. By adding more Ginger ale or Sprite it will keep the punch from tasting too concentrated.

Butterscotch Crescent Rolls

I would look forward to these sweet rolls every Christmas morning as a child. A family friend would deliver them warm to our house wrapped in foil! This year for Christmas that same family friend shared the recipe with me and I was able to 'deliver' them to my parents house, and a few other people who happened to be on our way. The sweet rolls got such rave reviews that I believe I'm expected to make them again next year and for many years to come. 

The rolls may seem like a lot of work (and they are) but they are worth every second of your time. Once you have completed baking and frosting the rolls you can wrapped them in foil and freeze them. Wrapping them in foil will allow for convenient thawing and warming of the rolls in the oven on a future date. 

The following ingredients and directions will make 36 crescent rolls.

Ingredients for the dough:

• 1 pkg. active dry yeast
• 1/4 cup warm water
• 1 – 3 oz pkg. butterscotch pudding and pie filling mix (not instant)
• 1 – 12 oz. can evaporate milk
• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 2 eggs unbeaten
• 1 tsp. salt
• 4-1/2 to 5-1/2 cups flour

Instructions:

1. Dissolve yeast in warm water and set aside.
2. Prepare pudding mix with the evaporated milk. Stir often. When cooked, stir in butter and cool to lukewarm, about 20-30 minutes. 
3. Blend eggs and salt into pudding mixture, then add yeast and mix well. 
4. Stir in flour gradually to form a stiff dough. Knead on board until smooth and no longer sticky. This may take up to 20 minutes. (I use a Kitchen Aid mixer with the dough hook for this making it less laborious). Cover and let rise in warm place until light and doubled in size, about 1-1/2 hours.

Ingredients for the filling:

• 1/2 cup butter, melted
• 1-1/3 cup flaked coconut
• 1-1/3 cup brown sugar
• 2/3 to 1 cup chopped pecans
• 4 Tbsp. flour

Directions:

1. Combine filling ingredients in small bowl and mix well until blended.
2. Punch down dough and divide into thirds. Roll out each part to a 15" circle. Cut each circle into 12 wedges and place a rounded teaspoonful of brown sugar mixture on each wedge. 
3. Roll up, starting with wide end and rolling to a point. Moisten fingers and seal the point to the main part of the roll. Curve ends to form crescent. Place point side down on greased baking sheets. 
4. Cover with towel and let rise in warm place until light and doubled in size, about 1 hour.
5. Bake at 375 degrees for 12-15 minutes until light brown. Remove rolls to a wire rack to cool. Frost while warm.

Ingredients for the frosting:

• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 4 Tbsp. butter
• 1-1/2 cups powdered sugar
• 4 Tbsp. evaporated milk
• 2 cups powdered sugar - sifted

Directions:

1. Combine brown sugar, water and butter the top of a double boiler and bring to a boil. Boil for 1 minute, stirring constantly. 
2. Remove from heat and beat in powdered sugar with wire whisk. Set the pan over the bottom of the double boiler with simmering water. 
3. Don’t let the glaze get too thick. Add more evaporated milk if necessary to reach desired spreading consistency. 
4. Frost rolls. Note: the frosting is very hot and can burn your fingers. Use great caution! Place frosted rolls on wire racks to cool and dry.
5. When you serve the rolls they should be served warm... they taste best that way! :-)

Chocolate Chip Walnut Banana Bread

Got brown bananas?  Toss them in your freezer, once you have 3 or 4 you can thaw and make delicious banana bread!
Ingredients

Makes one regular loaf or 3 mini loaves

• 1/4 c. vegetable oil, plus a little more for your pan(s)
• 1 1/2 c. all-purpose flour, plus a little more for your pan(s)
• 1 c. sugar
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1 tsp. orange zest
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 c. mashed bananas (around 3 or 4 medium size whole bananas)
• 3/4 c. semi sweet chocolate chips
• 1/2 c. coarsely chopped walnuts (optional)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease and flour a loaf pan, I have a large loaf pan that has four mini loaf sections.  (This recipe made enough to fill 3 mini loaf sections.)  In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking soda, zest, and salt.  Mix in oil, eggs, and bananas.  Stir in chocolate chips and walnuts.  Pour into pan(s).
2. Bake until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, 70-80 minutes.  For mini loaves about 40-50 minutes, in my oven.  If the loaf browns too quickly you can tent with foil and continue baking.
3. Cool loaf  10 minutes in pan; then remove from pan and cool completely, right side up, on a rack.

Pumpkin Layer Cake

Ben loves pumpkin! So for his birthday, rather than do the traditional pumpkin pie I decided to try this Pumpkin Layer Cake and it was scrumptious!

Ingredients:

Serves 12

• 2 sticks of butter, plus a little more to butter your pans
• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus a little more for your pans
• 1 tablespoon pumpkin-pie spice
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 cups sugar
• 4 large eggs, room temperature
• 1 can pure pumpkin puree

For Frosting

• 2 sticks room temperature butter
• 1 bar, 8 oz cream cheese room temperature
• 1 lb confectioners' sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon pumpkin-pie spice

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter two 9-inch round cake pans, dust pans with flour tapping out excess. In a medium bowl whisk flour, pumpkin-pie spice, baking soda, baking powder, and salt; set aside.
2. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat butter and sugar until light and creamy. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition; beat in pumpkin puree. With mixer on low speed, gradually add flour mixture; mix until combined.
3. Divide batter between prepared pans. Bake until a toothpick inserted in center of cakes comes out clean, 40-45 minutes. Cool 15 minutes in pans, run a knife around the edge of pans and place on wire cooling racks.
4. Frost once the cakes have completely cooled.

Directions for frosting:

1. In a large bowl using an electric mixer beat together butter and cream cheese until smooth. Gradually add confectioners' sugar until smooth. Mix in pumpkin-pie spice.

I marked mine with a "B" because it was for Ben! :)

Delicious Cheese Pie

This is just like a cheese cake except rather than having a graham cracker crust it forms it's own "crust" when it bakes. Also note that this is made in a pie dish and not a spring-form pan.

Ingredients:

Bottom:
16 oz cream cheese
3 eggs
2/3 cup sugar
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla
1 1/2 tsp. lemon juice (or more if you want it more lemony)

Top:
2 cups sour cream
3 TB sugar
1 tsp. vanilla

Directions:

~Beat the cream cheese unit smooth, beat in one egg at a time. Then add remaining sugar, vanilla and lemon juice and beat until creamy.
~Pour into a greased 9 inch pie pan
~Bake at 325 degrees for 50 minutes
~After the 50 minutes are up, take the pie out of the oven and let cool for about 30 minutes. (At this point the pie will have puffed up A LOT... don't worry, it will go down before you have to put the top on)
~While the pie is cooling mix all of the ingredients together for the top.
~After the pie is cooled (about 30 minutes) pour the mixture on top and bake at 325 degrees for another 15 minutes.
~Chill in the fridge for about 5-6 hours

This pie is great served with fresh fruit or a jam on top! Enjoy!!