Tag Archives: dessert

Funfetti Cookies

I work for a company that likes to show employee appreciation by celebrating certain sports events so from time to time, the company will buy us lunch and we get to wear our favorite sports apparel. Not long ago, we celebrated MLB opening day and shortly thereafter celebrated the NHL and NBA playoffs. Because they happened about a week apart, the powers that be decided not to have a second lunch but to surprise us with a sundae bar with tons of ice cream and all kinds of fun toppings. Since then, each time I go into the kitchen cabinet for a bowl or plate at lunch, I see a little plastic container holding the leftover rainbow sprinkles from that ice cream party. I finally asked one day if I could take them home so I could make Funfetti Cookies which I would share with people at work. The answer was “Um…cookies?! YES!!”

The result are these colorful, chewy, perfect little cookies. A basic sugar cookie dough with both vanilla and almond highlights is made fantastic with the addition of both rainbow sprinkles and nonpareils. These cookies didn’t last long at the office and it was everything I could do to keep my paws off of them before I set them out for everyone to enjoy. You don’t have to be a kid to like funfetti, ask my co-workers. It looks like I’m going to have to make these again.

And again.

Good thing there are more sprinkles left.

The ingredients:

Preheat the oven to 375ºF. Cream the butter and sugar until fluffy.

Add the vanilla, almond extract, and egg. Beat until well combined.

In a separate bowl, sift in the flour, cornstarch, baking soda, and salt.

Slowly add the flour mixture to the butter mixture, and continue on low speed until it’s all added and combined. (The dough will be thick).

Mix in the sprinkles until just combined.

Roll the dough into equal sized balls and place on a cookie sheet.

Bake for 12 minutes in a 375ºF oven.

Additions: None

Omissions: None

Substitutions: None

Overall Rating: Love It

Source: TastyKitchen.com

Sweet Raspberry Dip

June 14, 2012
Shannon
1 comment
appetizer, dessert, food, raspberry, yogurt

I’ve been going a little crazy lately in the produce department of my grocery store because as the weather gets warmer, the fruits seem to be getting brighter and more colorful and they all call my name. I swear I don’t know which direction to go to first and end up spinning around in circles as I decide on peaches vs. nectarines, grapes vs. cherries, blueberries vs. blackberries, or apricots vs. plums. The problem with not being able to decide is that I end up buying a little of everything and I’m left with more fruit than I know what to do with. Generally, I whip up a big batch of mixed fruit salad but sometimes when friends come over I want to make something a little less ordinary.

Sweet Raspberry Dip is a creamy, light fruit dip perfect for dipping summer stone fruit or other seasonal gems. Fresh raspberries are mashed with sugar and blended with plain Greek yogurt to make a dip similar in taste to raspberry yogurt except fresher and brighter. Serve with slices of mango, peaches, apricots, or plums or use strawberries or cherries to dunk. Use thawed frozen raspberries in the fall or winter and serve with autumn fruit like apples or pears. If you’re craving something sweet but are trying to stay healthy, this is one fruity appetizer or dessert where you won’t feel guilty if you eat too much.

Speaking of SWEET, today is my sweet, sweet sister Katie’s birthday! She’s 12 years younger than me and one of my best friends. I wish I could’ve made some cookies or cake for her but she is in Texas so that means it would have all ended up in MY belly and on MY thighs! Maybe next week when I see her in Chicago, we’ll make something sweet that we can share with you! 🙂

The ingredients:

In a small bowl, mash the raspberries with the sugar.

Stir in the yogurt.

Serve with your favorite fruit.

Additions: None

Omissions: None

Substitutions: None

Overall Rating: Like It

Source:

Strawberry-Chocolate Paninis

June 1, 2012
Shannon
0 comments
chocolate, dessert, food, sandwiches, strawberries

I’ve been on a little bit of a strawberry kick ever since one day last week when I went to this relatively new eatery in Philadelphia’s Suburban Station called Yoshi which sells – wait for it – yogurt and sushi. The thought of yogurt and sushi grosses out the majority of us but I finally got to a point where I just couldn’t listen to another person rave about the yogurt (not one word on how the individually wrapped sushi is selling) without trying it myself. I grabbed a co-worker and stepped into this vibrant little shop which offered several different kinds of non-fat yogurt (like vanilla, peach, cheesecake, chocolate, and mint) and all kinds of toppings. From Oreo cookies, gummy bears, and peanut butter chips to kiwi fruit, blueberries, and lychee, you can make your treat as good or as bad as you want. I was in a fruity mood so I chose peach yogurt with fresh slices of strawberries. I generally choose other berries to snack on over strawberries but that day, they seemed to go well with the peach frozen yogurt and the whole dessert was fresh, light and tasty. Now, I can’t get enough of those plump little berries.

Since then, I’ve been craving strawberries and bought a pint earlier this week that never seems to end. Looking around my kitchen and noticing some whole-wheat buns that I probably wouldn’t finish and a few ounces of cream cheese that I had nothing to eat with, I decided to make a Strawberry-Chocolate Paninis using my sweet, sweet strawberries as the star of the show. Cream cheese is spread on whole-wheat bread and topped with slices of fresh strawberries and semi-sweet chocolate chips before being smooshed and toasted in a panini press. The cream cheese provides the slightest bit of tang to balance out the sweetness from the strawberries and chocolate. Any kind of bread will do here (like sourdough or French) and dark chocolate could easily be substituted too. My ingredients below made two sandwiches but you can easily double everything to make more. This is a nice little dessert panini that’s perfect for when plain strawberries just won’t do the trick. I mean, who doesn’t like strawberries and chocolate?

Strawberry-Chocolate Paninis (makes 2 sandwiches)

2 whole-wheat hamburger buns or any 4 slices of preferred bread
4-6 medium sized strawberries
2 ounces cream cheese, reduced-fat or regular, preferrably room temperature
1/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat a panini maker over medium-high heat. Spread 1 ounce of cream cheese onto the bottom sides of each bun. Layer strawberries slices over the cream cheese. Evenly sprinkle the chocolate chips over the strawberries. Top each with the remaining bun halves. Grill sandwiches in the panini press until golden on both sides (about 2-3 minutes). Halve sandwiches and serve.