Tag Archives: dessert

Super Simple Sunday Night Dinner

If you are looking for a quick and easy dinner idea, consider one of my family’s favorites. It includes an entree and dessert, but the recipes won’t drain your budget or take up a ton of valuable family weekend time. The first recipe is lovingly nicknamed Everything But the Kitchen Sink Casserole. It was created from leftover items that I refused to waste. I combined the refrigerated leftovers with a few pantry items and presto—-instant dinner. Dessert is an easy Pistachio Torte that sounds fancier than it really is. You can put it together in less than 20 minutes, though … Continue reading →

Simple Spring Desserts

Easter is still three weeks away, but if you are expecting company for the holiday, then you might want to get a jumpstart on your menu planning. Easter traditionally means ham, grandma’s potato salad and great green bean dishes around here. For dessert I like to stick with sweet treats MINUS the chocolate (the Easter Bunny takes care of filling baskets with loads of chocolate and having brownies or other fudgy desserts is a bit too much for one day). The following fruity desserts are extremely popular with my friends and family. They are ideal for a spring or Easter … Continue reading →

Fruitastic Desserts

Whenever I feel particularly overwhelmed by life’s curveballs I console myself by remembering that I am the mother of a young child who would happily choose fresh fruit over chocolate any day. (Hey, whatever helps you get through the day, right?) As a result, I tend to seek out dessert recipes, which feature fruit as a natural sweetener, versus ones that are dripping with chocolate, caramel or other artificial flavors. The following sweet treats are among my daughter’s favorites: EASY BANANA PUDDING Ingredients: 1 bag Pepperidge Farm Chessman cookies 5 to 6 ripe bananas, sliced 2 cups milk 1 (5-ounce) … Continue reading →

Tips for Stress Free Entertaining for You and Your Spouse- Part 2

Here are more tips for stress free entertaining for you and your spouse. 4. Know Your Spouse Growing up I don’t remember my parents entertaining a lot and Mick said the same about this parents. We got to wondering if it was because our fathers where both quiet men who didn’t like a lot of people? They just liked to come home and relax after a hard day at work and not have to make conversation, and the same applied on weekends. 5. Do they Get Along? Consider too, are the people you want to invite mutual friends? Do the … Continue reading →

How to Make Your Own Milk Chocolate Masterpieces for Valentine’s Day

What did you ask your sweetie to get you this Valentine’s Day? Diamonds? A romantic dinner for two? A massage? Since requests aren’t always granted (depending on the particular sweetie involved), you might want to brace yourself for a bar (okay, a box) of chocolates and a pat on the back. If you are lucky, your honey will honor you with a slice of Emeril Lagasse’s Milk Chocolate Cheesecake. If you are really lucky, you won’t have to make it yourself. Either way, the recipe is provided below along with the directions for mouthwatering milk chocolate cookies sealed with a … Continue reading →

Red-Hot Valentine’s Day Recipes

They say the fastest way to a man’s heart is through his stomach. So why not ditch the expensive cologne and heart-covered boxer shorts and give your honey a really sweet treat this Valentine’s Day? The following Love Day recipes are fancy enough to celebrate the occasion, but don’t require spending the entire holiday in the kitchen: CHOCOLATE RASPBERRY CHEESECAKE Ingredients: 1 pint fresh raspberries 1 (8 ounce) package low fat cream cheese 1 (15 ounce) container low fat ricotta cheese 1/2 cup sugar 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract 3/4 cup cocoa powder 2 cups crushed almond biscotti 2 ounces unsalted … Continue reading →

Simple Sweet Treats for Valentine’s Day

Valentine’s Day is about a week away and if you are looking for the perfect treat to take into the office or you need a simple dessert to send to school with your kids, the following recipes are just for you. Both desserts feature the Valentine’s Day ingredient we can’t live without—CHOCOLATE. But, the rich delicious flavors that these recipes impart are not the only reason they are some of my favorites. Making the Oreo Cookie Pudding and the Brownie Extravaganza is a cinch-—perfect for busy moms who only find out their child needs to bring a treat to school … Continue reading →

Ways to Use Extra Girl Scout Cookies

Extra Girl Scout cookies? What’s that? If you can devour an entire box of Thin Mints in a single sitting, then you might not need the following recipes. However, if you are like my parents, who buy a box of cookies from every smiling Brownie and Girl Scout that comes within a 50-yard radius of their home or office, then you might consider whipping up these simple yet tasty treats: THIN MINT CHOCOLATE PIE Ingredients: 1 box Thin Mint Girl Scout cookies 3 tablespoons melted butter 2 cups cold milk 1 package chocolate instant pudding (6 serving size) 2 to … Continue reading →

You Can Never Have Too Much Chocolate

At least in my book. Which is why most of my playgroup potluck contributions feature the tantalizing treat. Even if you are not a huge chocolate fan, you will have a hard time saying no to the following fudgy offerings: CHOCOLATE BREAD PUDDING Ingredients: 3/4 loaf white bread 2 cups milk 1/2 cup chocolate syrup or melted sweet chocolate 1 tablespoon melted butter 5 eggs Dash of vanilla extract Directions: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cut and cube bread and place in a large bowl. Mix together eggs, sugar, chocolate and butter and add to the bowl of cubed bread, … Continue reading →

Simple Sweet Treats to Take to Holiday Parties

The following festive treats are guaranteed to spread holiday cheer at your next party. Gather your children and let them help out with these simple recipes. The Festive Fudgy Fruit Pizza is kid-friendly and you can let your youngsters help choose their favorite fruits and place the “pizza toppings” on the cookie crust. And what child (or adult) doesn’t like Jell-O? The following recipe for Creamy Cream Cheese Christmas Gelatin Dessert is sure to score raves from family members of all ages. FESTIVE FUDGY FRUIT PIZZA Ingredients: 1/2 cup margarine 3/4 cup granulated sugar 2 teaspoons vanilla extract, divided 1/2 … Continue reading →