Biscoff Streusel Pumpkin Muffins

Fall screams baking to me! How about you? I've been on a muffin kick lately and this recipe is just another product of my obsession with pumpkin puree. My pantry is full of it, dangerously full of it, so prepare yourself for more pumpkin-packed recipes in the future ;) Anyway, back to these bad boys. I originally share this recipe over at Lil' Luna a few weeks ago, but now I get to share it here with you. These muffins are a pumpkin/Biscoff/cream cheese lover's dream. I know that there's kind of a lot going on here, but trust me, it all works. Here's what I did- I started off by making a really simple spiced batter, then topped it with slices of cream cheese, and then sprinkled over it a chunky speculoos streusel. The cream cheese helps to bind the muffin and the topping together and gives it a tangy creamy component that it really needs. I decided to bake my muffins in a taller and larger cupcake liner so that they'd be more like bakery-style muffins, but you don't need to worry about them overflowing if you're using standard liners or even just spray. These have turned out to be one of my new favorite muffins, I hope you'll think the same too!

Biscoff Streusel Pumpkin Muffins

Ingredients:

1½ c. all-purpose flour
1 c. sugar
¼ c. brown sugar
1 c. pumpkin puree (not pie filling)
2 eggs
¼ c. vegetable oil
¼ c. unsweetened applesauce
¼ c. water
¾ tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda
¼ tsp. baking powder
2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
½ tsp. ground cinnamon
½ tsp. vanilla extract

Streusel:

¼ c. sugar

¼ c. brown sugar

¼ c. all-purpose flour

¼ c. finely crushed Biscoff cookies

2 tbsp. Biscoff spread

3 tbsp. butter, cold

4 oz. original cream cheese, cold and cut into dime size slices

½ tsp. ground cinnamon

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line one standard size muffin pan with liners or grease with baking spray, set aside.

2. In the bowl of a stand mixer with mixing speed on low, combine sugars, puree, vegetable oil, applesauce, water, and vanilla extract. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing until just combined.

3. In a medium size mixing bowl, whisk together flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder, pumpkin pie spice, and ground cinnamon. With mixing speed on low, gradually add in the dry ingredients, mixing until no flour pockets remain. Remove bowl from stand and set aside.

4. For the streusel, in a small mixing bowl combine sugars, flour, crushed cookies, and ground cinnamon. Using a pastry blender, cut in cold butter and Biscoff spread. Continue working the mixture with the pastry blender until it resembles chunks about the size of a rice krispie. 

5. Pour batter into prepared muffin pan, dividing evenly. Top with slices of cream cheese, then sprinkle streusel over top. You will want to be generous with the streusel, but you may have a few tablespoons left over. Gently pat the streusel into the batter to help it bake into the muffin. 

6. Place in oven and bake for 18-22 minutes or until the tops spring back and the streusel is golden brown in color (note: baking times may vary depending on how much you streusel you add and the heat of your oven). Remove from oven and allow to cool in the pan for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

Recipe adapted from Libby's Pumpkin Cranberry Bread | Makes 12 standard size muffins

Raisin Walnut Oatmeal Cookies

I have to admit, I'm a sucker for a good oatmeal cookie. I know that there are a lot of people out there who really dislike raisins and nuts in their cookies, but I'm a fan! Today's recipe is really similar to my mom's oatmeal chocolate chip cookies, but has a few adjustments that help make them slightly more thick and chewy. The one main addition is an extra yolk, but also chilling the dough before baking it helps the cookies hold their shape and stay thick and chewy. The dough itself is perfectly spiced and the brown sugar really helps give these cookies the soft center and crisp edges that I love so much. If you're feeling extra adventurous you can always add coconut or even switch out the raisins for cranberries. I will definitely be making these cookies time and time again!

Raisin Walnut Oatmeal Cookies

Ingredients

1 c. all-purpose flour

1¼ c. old-fashioned rolled oats (not quick cooking)

1 c. brown sugar

8 tbsp. (1 stick) butter, room temperature

1 egg + 1 egg yolk

½ tsp. baking soda

¼ tsp. salt

1½ tsp. cinnamon

pinch nutmeg

1½ tsp. vanilla

¾ c. raisins

½ c. chopped walnuts

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or a Silpat mat, set aside.

2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together butter, brown sugar and vanilla for 3-4 minutes on medium-high. Add egg, mix, then egg yolk, mixing for an additional minute on medium-high.

3. In a medium size mixing bowl, combine flour, oats, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Whisk to combine. With mixing speed on low, gradually add dry ingredients, mixing until no flour pockets remain. Remove bowl from stand and fold in raisins and walnuts. Allow the dough to chill in the refrigerator for 2 hours before baking.

4. Scoop chilled dough onto the prepared cookie sheets. Gently pat down each ball. Place in oven and bake for 10-12 minutes, or until the edges of the cookies begin to turn golden brown in color. The centers should look slightly underbaked, they will firm up once cooled. Remove from oven and allow cookies to cool on sheets for 3-4 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
Inspired by a Life Made Simple Family Recipe | Makes approximately 24 cookies

Zucchini Carrot Pumpkin Muffins

I had this crazy idea the other day to combine three of my favorite kinds of quick breads. Zucchini bread, carrot cake bread and pumpkin bread. They all have a spiced batter and require fall vegetables for texture and flavor. I started off by using a cup of pumpkin puree, then added a bit of grated carrot to it and a half cup of grated zucchini. I was a bit nervous about how the liquid in the carrot and zucchini would effect the texture of the muffins, but since I was able to squeeze most of it out, it wasn't a problem. These baked up perfectly and smelled divine! I topped mine off with a bit of whipped cinnamon cream cheese topping, but these are just as tasty without. Nuts or raisins would also be a great addition to this recipe along with pepitas (pumpkin seeds). Enjoy and happy baking!

Zucchini Carrot Pumpkin Muffins

Ingredients:

1½ c. all-purpose flour

1 c. sugar

¼ c. brown sugar

1 c. pumpkin puree (not pie filling)

2 eggs

¼ c. vegetable oil

¼ c. unsweetened applesauce

¼ c. water
¼ c. finely grated carrot, liquid removed
½ c. finely grated zucchini, liquid removed

¾ tsp. salt

1 tsp. baking soda

¼ tsp. baking powder

2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice

½ tsp. ground cinnamon

½ tsp. vanilla extract

Whipped Cinnamon Cream Cheese Topping:
4 oz. cream cheese, room temperature
¼ c. butter, room temperature
½ c. powdered sugar
¼ tsp. vanilla
¼ tsp. cinnamon
2-3 tbsp. milk

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line one standard size muffin pan with liners or grease with baking spray, set aside.

2. In the bowl of a stand mixer with mixing speed on low, combine sugars, puree, vegetable oil, applesauce, water, and vanilla extract. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing until just combined.

3. In a medium size mixing bowl, whisk together flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder, pumpkin pie spice, and ground cinnamon. With mixing speed on low, gradually add in the dry ingredients, mixing until no flour pockets remain. Remove bowl from stand, gently fold in carrot and zucchini, set aside.

4. Place in oven and bake for 18-22 minutes or until the tops spring back and are golden brown in color. Remove from oven and allow to cool in the pan for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
5. While muffins cool, to make the whipped topping, combine all ingredients in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Gradually bring up the mixing speed to high, beat until smooth, about 2-3 minutes. The mixture should be very soft and spreadable, this is like frosting, but with less sugar. If more milk is needed to create a smoother consistency, add more and continue beating. Spread onto the tops of the cooled muffins.

Recipe adapted from Libby's Pumpkin Cranberry Bread | Makes 12 standard size muffins

Funfetti Sugar Cookies

This week is full of birthdays! It was my Dad's birthday on Wednesday, it's mine today, and it's my Mother-in-law's on Sunday. Not to mention we're awaiting the arrival of our little one, which could be any day now! With that said, I was determined to make some kind of treat to celebrate all of our special days- but mainly mine ;) Since I wasn't really feeling up to making a funfetti cake or cupcakes, I whipped up a quick batch of sugar cookie dough and made these festive little cookies. They're sweet, chewy, tangy, and of course, covered in sprinkles! They just scream happy birthday to me!

Funfetti Sugar Cookies

Ingredients

1 c. all-purpose flour

½ c. cake flour

¾ c. sugar

8 tbsp. (1 stick) butter, room temperature

1 egg

1 tsp. baking powder

½ tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. cream of tartar

1 tsp. cornstarch

2 tsp. vanilla extract

¼ tsp. almond extract

½ c. colorful sprinkles

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line one baking sheet with parchment paper or a Silpat mat, set aside.

2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine sugar, butter, vanilla and almond extracts. Beat on high until fluffy and light in color, about 2-3 minutes. With mixing speed on low, add egg and mix until just combined.

3. In a medium size mixing bowl, combine flours, baking powder, baking soda, cream of tartar, and cornstarch. Whisk together until combined. With mixing speed on low, gradually add the dry ingredients, mixing until no flour pockets remain. Remove bowl from stand. Fold in sprinkles, if desired, or place dough into the refrigerator to chill for 2 hours.
4. If you chose not to fold in the sprinkles, create balls from the chilled dough and roll in the sprinkles, completely covering the outside. Place on the prepared baking sheet and place in oven to bake for 8-10 minutes. The cookies should be slightly firm around the edges but look under-baked in the center (these are soft cookies and they should not brown). Remove from oven and allow to cool on the cookie sheet for 3 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

Adapted from Sally's Baking Addiction and Averie Cooks | Makes approximately 12 standard size cookies

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Banana Muffins

Sometimes I find myself needing to eat something other than cereal, fruit or eggs for breakfast. Does anyone else feel like that? Usually if I get up early enough I'll scavenge our kitchen for things that I can toss into a batch of muffins. Since we had a single spotted banana I decided to mash it up and make this "half batch" of muffins. It only yields 6 muffins, but honestly that's the perfect amount for a small little family like ours. Instead of doing a plain muffin, I tossed in a few chocolate chips and some old-fashioned rolled oats. The muffins smelled wonderful and tasted delicious too! It was kind of like eating a healthy oatmeal chocolate chip cookie :) Next time I might try tossing in some strawberry chunks or even swirl in some peanut butter... the options seem endless! 

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Banana Muffins

Ingredients
1 c. all-purpose flour
⅓  c. old-fashioned rolled oats (not quick cooking)
⅓ c. brown sugar
1 egg
6 tbsp. melted butter
3 tbsp. sour cream (or buttermilk)
½ c. mashed ripe bananas, from one large banana
½ tsp. baking soda
¼ tsp. salt
1 tsp. vanilla
½ c. chocolate chips

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly spray or line six wells of a standard size muffin pan, set aside.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together melted butter and sugar. Add sour cream (or buttermilk) and mashed bananas, mix on low for 30 seconds. Add egg and vanilla, mix until just combined.
3. In a small mixing bowl, combine flour, oats, baking soda, and salt. Whisk together then with mixing speed on low, gradually add dry ingredients. Mix until just combined. Remove bowl from stand and fold in chocolate chips. Using a large scoop, fill each well ¾ of the way full (or a little more if you have some extra).
4. Place in oven and bake for 18-22 minutes. The tops should be lightly golden brown and they should be nice and firm. Remove from oven and allow to cool in pans for 2-3 minutes before removing and transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
NOTE: You will want to double this recipe for 12 muffins
Life Made Simple Original Recipe | Makes 6 standard size muffins

Death By Mint Chocolate Cookies

It's been a while since I've made a chocolate-based cookie, mainly because I've never been satisfied with any of them that are out there. So after a late night cookie fail, the following morning I decided to rework the recipe that Stephen and I had made and see what resulted. It turns out that I needed to adjust a few ratios and add some baking powder. These cookies are now one of our favorites! Thick, chewy, chocolately and moist- it doesn't get much better than that! Now onto the really impressive part. I decided that despite Stephen's ongoing protest against mint, I would make a few "death by mint chocolate" cookies. I chopped up Andes mints, tossed in a handful of mint chips and of course added chocolate chips too. To my surprise, Stephen actually ate a few... and really liked them! Success!!! You really can't go wrong with this dough, anything can be added to it (just sub out the peppermint extract) and it'll be delicious! Trust me, your friends and family will be begging you to make more!

Death By Mint Chocolate Cookies

Ingredients

2½ c. all-purpose flour

¼ c. Hershey's unsweetened cocoa powder

¼ c. Hershey's Special Dark unsweetened cocoa powder

¾ c. sugar

1 c. brown sugar

16 tbsp. (2 sticks) butter, room temperature

2 eggs + 2 egg yolks

½ tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. baking soda

½ tsp. salt

1½ tsp. vanilla

¼ tsp. peppermint extract

¼ c. warm water + ¼ tsp. espresso powder (dissolve in water)

½ c. semi-sweet chocolate chips

½ c. mint chips

12-14 Andes mints, chopped

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line baking sheets with parchment paper or a Silpat mat, set aside.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together sugars, butter, vanilla and peppermint, until light and fluffy (about 2-3 minutes). Add in "espresso" (water + espresso powder) and one egg, mix until just combined. With mixing speed on low, continue to add in egg and egg yolks until mixture is smooth.
3. In a medium size mixing bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa powders, baking powder, baking soda and salt. With mixing speed on low, gradually add the dry ingredients, mixing until no flour pockets remain.
4. Remove bowl from stand and fold in chocolate chips, mint chips and chopped Andes bits. Cover the dough with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes to 1 hour.
5. Remove dough from refrigerator, scoop onto prepared cookie sheets and place in oven. Bake for 10-12 minutes, being careful not to overbake! The cookies will look soft and gooey in the centers, but once they cool they will firm up (going over 13 minutes will result in hard cookies)! Remove cookies from oven, allow to cool on sheets for 2 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. 

Life Made Simple Original Recipe | Makes 36 standard size cookies

Peach Crumb Cake

Lately I've been feeling a little guilty about neglecting the blog, but this past week I just haven't felt like baking. I don't know if it's because of all of the last-minute baby prep or because Stephen went back to school this week and we've been trying to spend as much time together as possible. Either way, I've been avoiding the kitchen. Yesterday after I saw him out the door I mustered up the energy and will-power to bake up a breakfasty treat. We had a giant lone peach sitting on our counter that was begging to get used in something other than a smoothie. Since I had both buttermilk and sour cream on hand (a rare occasion in our household) I jumped on the opportunity to make a coffee or crumb cake. I started off with a light, moist cinnamon cake, topped it with slices of fresh peach, and then covered it with a sweet brown sugar crumble. By the time it had finished baking our entire house smelled heavenly- I was ready to dig in! I let it cool for half an hour before slicing it up, but let me tell you the wait was worth it, because the result was out of this world! Fresh, light and perfectly sweet!

Peach Crumb Cake

Ingredients

1 c. all-purpose flour
¼ c. cake flour

½ c. sugar

8 tbsp. (1 stick) butter, room temperature

1 egg + 1 egg yolk

¼ c. sour cream

¼ c. buttermilk

1½ tsp. baking powder

¼ tsp. salt

½ tsp. cinnamon

2 tsp. vanilla

1 extra large ripe peach (or 2 small), skin removed, thinly sliced

Crumb topping:

⅓ c. + 1 tbsp. all-purpose flour

½ c. brown sugar

4 tbsp. butter, cold

½ tsp. cinnamon

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly spray an 8x8" baking dish or a 9" round baking dish, set aside.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together butter, sugar and vanilla until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add egg, then egg yolk, mixing until just combined.
3. In a small mixing bowl, whisk together flours, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. With mixing speed on low, alternate dry ingredients with sour cream and buttermilk (this will help prevent the mixture from curdling). Mix until well combined and no flour pockets remain. The batter will be relatively thick.
4. Remove bowl from stand and spread the batter evenly into the prepared dish. Place the sliced peaches on top, making sure to completely cover the batter.
5. In a small mixing bowl combine all crumb topping ingredients. Using a pastry blender, cut the butter into fine pieces, creating tiny lumps in the mixture. Pour the mixture over the peaches, spread evenly.
6. Place in oven and bake for 35-40 minutes or until a cake tester inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean (I baked mine in a round dish and it took about 38 minutes). The topping should be nice and brown and the center should look slightly moist. Remove from oven and allow to cool for 30-45 minutes before serving.

Inspired by Spoon Fork Bacon's Blueberry Cardamom Crumb Cake | Makes approximately 8-12 servings

Mile High Mississippi Mud Pie

Remember how I said I was horrible at making layered cakes? Ok, so maybe just ones that involve various types of layers. When Stephen begged me to make this Mississippi Mud Pie from the Baked Explorations cookbook, I was really hesitant! It's not often that he requests that I make a dessert for him, or at least a very specific and complicated one :) But I wanted to give it a try, so I shopped for the ingredients and told him that if he would help me tackle it, I'd be happy to do it. The book has the recipe split up it steps, but I've made some adjustments to help things flow a little more smoothly (I love to simplify recipes and make it easier on home cooks). I also added a few ingredients and cut down the portions of others. I think that with these changes it turned out to be one tasty pie! I mean, look at all of those layers, how could you go wrong?! Oreo crust, flourless chocolate chip cake, dark chocolate pudding, marshmallows and homemade whipped cream... mmm. Stephen loved how dark and rich it was and I did too! I know the picture above is a little less than perfect, but it's mud pie right? It's bound to get a little messy when you cut into it!

Mile High Mississippi Mud Pie
Ingredients
Crust:

2 c. (16 oz.) Oreos, about 40 individual cookies, finely crushed
6 tbsp. butter, melted

Flourless chocolate chip cake:

1 c. sugar

6 oz. dark chocolate (60-70%), chopped
¼ c. warm water + 1 tbsp. espresso powder (dissolved in water)

4 tbsp. (½ stick) butter
6 eggs, separated

¼ tsp. salt

1 tbsp. vanilla

½ c. semi-sweet chocolate chips

Dark chocolate pudding:

¼ c. + 2 tbsp. sugar

¼ c. dark unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tbsp. cornstarch
1½ tbsp. butter
2 egg yolks

1¼ c. milk

¹⁄₈ tsp. salt
1 tsp. vanilla
1½ oz. dark chocolate (60-70%), chopped

1½ c. miniature marshmallows, set aside for assembly

Homemade whipped cream:

1 c. heavy cream

1 tbsp. granulated or powdered sugar

½ tsp. vanilla

pinch of salt

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Lightly spray a 9" springform pan with baking PAM, then line with parchment paper, lightly spray again with PAM, set aside.
2. In a food processor or blender, grind cookies until they become fine crumbs. Place crumbs into a medium size mixing bowl and pour melted butter over top. Mix with a spatula until the crumbs are coated.
3. Firmly press crumb mixture into the bottom and sides of the springform pan, leaving about ½" inch between the top of the crust and top of the pan. It may take several minutes, but you want to make sure it's thin, even and it climbs up those sides! Place crust in oven and bake for 8 minutes, remove and allow to cool.
4. Meanwhile, to make the flourless cake, increase oven to 350 degrees.
5. Using a double boiler, melt butter and chocolate, mixing until smooth. Remove from heat and set aside to cool.
6. In a 1 c. glass measuring cup, dissolve espresso powder in warm water. Add salt and vanilla, set aside.
7. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment (note: I have two KitchenAid bowls so I used one for the whites and one for the yolks), beat the egg whites until foamy, about 2 minutes. Gradually increase speed to high and slowly add ½ c. sugar, beating until soft peaks form. If you've got the ice cream cone top when you lift your whisk out, you've gone too far! Set aside.
8. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, beat the egg yolks with the remaining ½ c. sugar until the eggs are light and have almost doubled in volume, about 3-4 minutes. Add the cooled chocolate mixture and beat until just combined. Scrape down sides and bottom of bowl and with mixing speed on low, add the coffee mixture. Beat until just combined.
9. Remove the bowl from the stand and gently fold in 1 c. of the beaten egg whites. After about 30 seconds of gentle folding, add remaining egg whites and continue folding until almost completely combined, do not overmix.
10. Pour the batter into the cooled crust, gently sprinkle chocolate chips over top and place in oven to bake for 38 to 40 minutes. The cake will have a semi-crisp top and will still jiggle a bit. Remove from oven and allow to cool to room temperature. The center and edges of the cake will fall- this is normal. Once the cake is cool, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 2 hours.

11. While the cake is baking, to make the pudding, in a medium saucepan, whisk together sugar, cocoa powder, cornstarch, salt, egg yolks and milk. Whisk until no clumps remain. Set pan over medium heat. Whisking constantly, bring mixture to a boil. Once the mixture has boiled it will begin to thicken immediately. Cook for one minute then remove from heat. 

12. Whisk in chocolate chunks, butter and vanilla. Pour into a bowl and let sit for 15 minutes before covering with plastic wrap (directly onto the surface of the pudding to prevent a skin from forming) and placing in the refrigerator for 2 hours.

13. While cake and pudding are cooling, to make the whipped cream, in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat together all ingredients for 1-2 minutes until soft peaks begin to form. We like our whipped cream extra firm so we go until stiff peaks. Remove whipped cream from bowl, transfer to a smaller bowl, cover and refrigerate until needed.

14. Once the cake and the pudding have cooled for two hours (really you can let them go longer if you want), remove from refrigerator and spread the pudding over the top of the cake in an even layer. Gently press the marshmallows into the top of the pudding. Spread the whipped cream over the marshmallows, filling in the cracks and spreading until smooth. Refrigerate for 2 more hours before serving.

Adapted from Baked Explorations, Mississippi Mud Pie | Makes one 9" round cake or approximately 8-12 servings

Hershey's Chocolate S'mores Bars

Happy National S'mores Day!!! I'm super excited to share this recipe with you today. It's inspired by the graham cracker s'mores bars I made a few years back, only these bars are all chocolate! I was trying to come up with something to "snack on" over the weekend, something that would last a few days and that wouldn't require a lot of work. These bars were the perfect solution. All you need to do is whip up a batch of chocolate cookie dough and assemble the bars as you go. They only take 18 minutes to bake and are perfectly gooey and toasty when they come out of the oven- no campfire needed! I cut our bars into generously sized squares, but these are rich, so miniature squares would be perfect too. I hope you eat something wonderful today, even if it's just a classic s'more!

Hershey's Chocolate S'mores Bars
Ingredients
¾ c. all-purpose flour
¼ c. cake flour
¼ c. Hershey's natural unsweetened cocoa powder
½ c. sugar
¼ c. brown sugar
8 tbsp. (1 stick) butter, room temperature
1 egg + 1 egg yolk
½ tsp. baking soda
¼ tsp. salt
¼ tsp. vanilla
⅔ c. Hershey's semi-sweet chocolate chips, melted
½ c. Hershey's semi-sweet chocolate chips
⅓ c. miniature marshmallows

1 sleeve chocolate graham crackers, more if needed
1½ c. miniature marshmallows
1 Hershey's milk chocolate candy bar
1 Hershey's dark chocolate candy bar

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 9x13 or a quarter baking sheet with parchment paper. Use the chocolate graham crackers to cover the parchment, set aside.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together butter, sugars and vanilla for 2-3 minutes. Add melted chocolate chips, mix until combined. Add egg, then egg yolk, mixing just until combined.
3. In a medium size mixing bowl, whisk together flours, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt. With mixing speed on low, add dry ingredients. When no flour pockets remain, turn off and remove bowl from stand. Fold in ½ c. chocolate chips and ⅓ c. miniature marshmallows. Spread cookie dough over the graham crackers, in an even layer.
4. Place in oven and bake for 6 minutes, remove and gently press in remaining graham crackers (broken into pieces), marshmallows, and candy bar pieces. Place in oven and bake for an additional 10-12 minutes or until the marshmallows become golden brown in color. Remove and allow to cool in pan for 25-30 minutes before removing and cutting into bars.
Inspired by Graham Cracker S'mores Bars | Makes approximately 12 bars

The Ultimate Peanut Butter Cookie Cake

For those of you that know me, or frequently follow the recipes posted here on Life Made Simple, you know I'm kind of obsessed with peanut butter! I'll take it any form, but today it's a cookie cake! Being almost 9 months pregnant, I've been trying to scale down the amount of time I spend in the kitchen. Sad, I know, but with some dislocated ribs it's been hard to bend over and prep and wash dishes. So I've been simplifying meals and baking treats that require minimal work. Although cookies aren't the most difficult or time consuming thing to make, I wanted to whip up something that I could just pop in the oven and forget about for a few minutes. I decided to make a peanut butter version of this M&M Chocolate Chip Cookie Cake that I made for Stephen's birthday last year. I mixed in a handful of peanuts, peanut butter M&Ms, peanut butter chips and of course, peanut butter! It baked up perfectly in my Wilton cookie cake pan and I topped it with some peanut butter frosting once it had cooled. It was a fun and easy treat to make that was perfect just for the two of us to snack on, but would be great for birthdays or parties too!

Peanut Butter Cookie Cake

Ingredients

1½ c. all-purpose flour
¾ c. sugar
½ c. brown sugar
1 c. creamy peanut butter
½ c. butter, room temperature
2 eggs
2 tbsp. heavy cream milk
¾ tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. baking powder
¼ tsp. salt
1 tsp. vanilla extract
½ c. peanut butter M&M's or peanut butter cups, coarsely chopped

½ c. peanut butter chips
½ c. dry roasted peanuts, coarsely chopped

Creamy Peanut Butter Frosting:

1 c. powdered sugar

8 tbsp. (1 stick) butter, room temperature

¼ c. creamy peanut butter

1 tbsp. heavy cream

pinch of salt

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line one giant (11") cookie pan with parchment paper, set aside (I usually just cut out a large circle for the bottom).
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together sugars, butter and peanut butter until smooth, about 2-3 minutes. With mixing speed on low, add vanilla, heavy cream and one egg. Mix until incorporated, then add remaining egg.
3. In a medium size mixing bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. With mixing speed on low, gradually add dry ingredients, mixing until no visible dry ingredients remain. Remove bowl from stand and gently fold in M&M's (or peanut butter cups), peanut butter chips and chopped peanuts.
4. Using a spatula, place the dough into the pan, pressing to create an even layer. Place the pan in oven and bake for 16-20 minutes or until the edges become golden brown in color. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 45 minutes before frosting.

5. Meanwhile, to prepare the frosting, beat all ingredients together for 3 minutes or until mixture becomes light and fluffy. Place into a piping bag with desired tip and pipe onto the cooled cookie, around the edges or in the center if you want to write something on it.

Recipe adapted from Smitten Kitchen, Peanut Butter Cookies | Makes 1 (11") Giant Cookie Cake

Blueberry Crumble Cheesecake Bars

I love baking with fresh blueberries, don't you? They undergo a magical transformation when exposed to heat that makes them turn that beautiful color and burst on impact. The other day I knew I wanted to bake something for National Cheesecake Day, I mean, I'm kind of obsessed with cheesecake. Instead of doing something with chocolate or candies, I decided to use the fresh blueberries I had in my refrigerator. Stephen loves blueberry truffles so I figured he'd really enjoy these bars. I started off with a traditional graham cracker crust, then filled it with a vanilla cheesecake, topped it with those delicious berries and then cover it with a layer of sugary buttery crumble. Perfection! These bars scream summer to me! I think they'd be great with mixed berries or even peaches too! I know we'll be eating a few of these to celebrate, how about you?! For more cheesecake inspiration, click here!

Blueberry Crumble Cheesecake Bars
Filling ingredients
12 oz. cream cheese
½ c. sour cream
½ c. sugar
2 eggs
½ tsp. salt
1½ tsp. vanilla or vanilla bean paste

Blueberries:
2 tsp. sugar
2 tsp. all-purpose flour
1 tbsp. fresh lemon juice
1 c. fresh blueberries, rinsed and patted dry

Graham cracker crust:
10 graham crackers, finely crushed
3 tbsp. sugar
4 tbsp. (½ stick) butter, melted

Crumble topping:
1 c. all-purpose flour
¼ c. brown sugar
¼ c. sugar
7 tbsp. butter, cold

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line an 8x8 square baking pan* with parchment paper, leaving an overhang on at least 2 sides for easy removal.
2. In a medium size mixing bowl combine crust ingredients, then spread into prepared pan, creating an even layer. I pressed mine flat with the bottom, of a measuring cup. Place in oven and bake for 10 minutes. Remove and allow to cool while preparing the remaining components.
3. In a small mixing bowl, combine all blueberry ingredients, toss gently to combine, set aside.
4. In a medium size mixing bowl, combine all ingredients for crumble topping. Cut the butter in with a pastry blender until the mixture is coarse, set aside.
5. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together cream cheese, sour cream and sugar until smooth. NOTE: it's really important that the cream cheese, sour cream and eggs are at room temperature, otherwise you'll end up with a clumpy batter! With mixing speed on low, add vanilla, salt and one egg. Mix until combined, then add the remaining egg, mixing until incorporated.
6. Pour the cheesecake batter over the baked (and slightly cool) crust. Spread evenly with a spatula. Carefully place blueberry mixture over top, evenly covering the cheesecake. Finally, top with crumble. Place in oven and bake for 40-45 minutes or until the cheesecake has set and the crumble is lightly golden brown in color. Remove from oven and allow to cool for 1½ hours or until it reaches room temperature. Place in refrigerator and chill for at least 4 hours before removing, cutting and serving.
NOTE: *The pan will be completely full almost to the top, so make sure it's 2" in height! Also, this can be baked in a 9" round cheesecake pan... although the baking time may vary and the result will be a thinner cheesecake. I have not yet tried this, so I can't give exact time amounts.
Adapted from Tyler Florence, Lemon Blueberry Cheesecake Bars | Makes approximately 12 bars

Lemon Pound Cake with Vanilla Bean Glaze

 
When I came across a version of this recipe it was love at first sight. I've always been a huge fan of pound cake, but this recipe promised a pound cake that was moist and fluffy. That sounds a little weird for pound cake, right? But really, who wants to bite in to a dense, dry cake? So I went to work adjusting things here and there so that it would be extra moist and so that the lemon flavor would really pop. Instead of doing a lemon glaze for the top, I opted for a light and simple vanilla bean glaze. That was a great decision! The cake turned out to be everything that I had hoped for- moist, fluffy and flavorful. Stephen was circling the cake as it sat on the counter and kept asking me when it would be ready to eat. As soon as I had photographed it we cut ourselves a few slices and dug in. He agreed that it would be perfect with poppyseeds and I thought it would be great with a handful of fresh blueberries! I hope that you'll give this recipe a try, you won't be disappointed! Enjoy this lovely summer treat!

Lemon Pound Cake

Ingredients

1¾ c. all-purpose flour

1¼ c. sugar

16 tbsp. (2 sticks) butter, room temperature

5 eggs

⅓ c. sour cream

½ tsp. baking powder

½ tsp. salt

Zest of 3 lemons

3 tbsp. fresh lemon juice

½ tsp. lemon extract (optional)

½ tsp. vanilla 

¾ c. blueberries *see note below

OR 3 tbsp. poppyseeds

Lemon simple syrup:

¼ c. sugar

¼ c. fresh lemon juice

Vanilla bean glaze:

½ c. powdered sugar

1 tbsp. milk

¼ tsp. vanilla bean paste
pinch of salt

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Place your rack in the middle of the oven (mine was the second "shelf" from the bottom). Lightly grease one 9x5 loaf pan with butter, then lightly dust with flour, set aside.

2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together butter, sugar, lemon zest, lemon juice, lemon oil, and vanilla for 3 minutes (on medium-high) or until light and fluffy. Add sour cream, beat until incorporated. Add eggs one at a time, mixing to incorporate after each addition. 

3. In a small mixing bowl whisk together flour, baking powder and salt. With mixing speed on low, gradually add dry ingredients, mixing for an additional 45 seconds after all of the dry ingredients have been added. Remove bowl from stand and fold in any "mix-ins" (blueberries* or poppyseeds), if desired.

4. Pour batter into prepared pan and spread evenly. Place in oven and bake for 1 hour or until the top becomes golden brown in color. Remove from oven and allow to cool in pan for 20 minutes.

5. Meanwhile in a small saucepan over medium heat, combine sugar and lemon juice to create a syrup. Once sugar has dissolved allow to gently simmer for 2 minutes. Remove from heat.

6. Remove loaf from pan after 20 minutes of cooling. Using a toothpick or cake tester, poke holes into the top of the cake- lots of 'em! Brush the syrup over top (and the sides too) so that it seeps into the cake. Allow the loaf to cool for another 1½ hours before frosting with glaze.

7. To prepare the glaze, in small mixing bowl, whisk together the powdered sugar, milk, vanilla bean paste, and salt. It may not look like a lot, but a little goes a long way, trust me! Spread over the loaf and allow to drip over the edges and sides. Allow to sit for 20 minutes to harden before serving.

NOTE: If you are planning on folding in blueberries, toss them in flour before adding, this will help prevent them from sinking to the bottom of the loaf.
NOTE: You can find vanilla bean paste (Nielsen-Massey brand) at Williams-Sonoma, Sur La Table, King Arthur Flour and many other baking stores.

Adapted from Best Summer Desserts, Lemon Pound Cake | Makes one 9x5 loaf

M&M Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies

The other day I had a HUGE craving for oatmeal cookies! I turned to my mom's oatmeal chocolate chip cookie recipe and halved it. I decided to adjust a few of the ingredients, using only brown sugar and adding an extra egg yolk to keep the cookies extra moist, chewy and thick. Since I'm a big fan of vanilla I also increased the amount to help flavor the cookies a bit more. Now you don't have to chill the cookie dough, but ever since I made these cookies, I've been obsessed with refrigerating my dough! I just think that it helps create a nice stiff dough which allows the cookies to better hold their shape during the baking process. Being the M&M lover that I am, I loaded mine up with them, and chocolate chips too :) These cookies definitely hit the spot- it's a recipe I'll be using time and time again!

M&M Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies

Ingredients

1 c. all-purpose flour

1¼ c. old-fashioned rolled oats (not quick cooking)

1 c. brown sugar

8 tbsp. (1 stick) butter, room temperature

1 egg + 1 egg yolk

½ tsp. baking soda

¼ tsp. salt

1½ tsp. vanilla

½ c. chocolate chips

½ c. M&Ms

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or a Silpat mat, set aside.

2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together butter, brown sugar and vanilla for 3-4 minutes on medium-high. Add egg, mix, then egg yolk, mixing just until combined.

3. In a medium size mixing bowl, combine flour, oats, baking soda, and salt. Whisk to combine. With mixing speed on low, gradually add dry ingredients, mixing until no flour pockets remain. Remove bowl from stand and fold in chocolate chips and M&Ms. Allow the dough to chill in the refrigerator for 1 hour before baking.

4. Scoop chilled dough onto the prepared cookie sheets. Gently pat down each ball. Place in oven and bake for 10-12 minutes, or until the edges of the cookies begin to turn golden brown in color. The centers should look slightly underbaked, they will firm up once cooled. Remove from oven and allow cookies to cool on sheets for 3-4 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

Adapted from my Mom's Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies | Makes approximately 24 cookies

Biscoff Peach Crisp

Ok folks, it's summer which means that it's crisp time! Let's start out with this one... Biscoff Peach Crisp. If it weren't for the fact that Stephen and I were taking this over to our friends for an after dinner dessert, we probably would have eaten the whole thing by ourselves... in one sitting... seriously. I had been dreaming about making this crisp for months, and now that it's finally peach season I told Stephen that we had to make it! I literally threw this together in a matter of minutes. It was a good thing Stephen wasn't watching at the time because I snuck in a few ingredients that he's less than keen on. #1 oats- but really, a crisp just wouldn't be a crisp without a few oats in the topping. #2 cinnamon- for some reason he's not a big fan of it, but the flavor here is just to enhance the sweetness of the peaches and brown sugar, it by no means overwhelms the crisp. And #3 Biscoff cookies- I crumbled them up and used them as part of the topping. He was smitten and so was I! We served it up with a nice big scoop of vanilla ice cream- talk about the perfect summer treat! Enjoy!

Biscoff Peach Crisp

Ingredients

5 ripe peaches, skin removed and sliced

3 tbsp. sugar

1 tsp. cornstarch

¹⁄₈ tsp. salt

¼ tsp. cinnamon

1 tsp. vanilla

Topping:

⅔ c. all-purpose flour

⅓ c. old-fashioned rolled oats (not quick-cooking)

¼ c. sugar

¼ c. brown sugar

4 Biscoff cookies, crushed to your liking

6 tbsp. (¾ stick) butter, cold and cubed

¼ tsp. cinnamon

¹⁄₈ tsp. salt

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Set aside an 8x8 or 8x6 glass baking dish.

2. In a large mixing bowl, combine the sliced peaches (don't slice them too thin), sugar, cornstarch, salt, cinnamon, and vanilla. Toss gently and allow to sit while preparing the topping.

3. To prepare the topping, in a medium size mixing bowl, combine the flour, oats, sugar, brown sugar, crushed Biscoff cookies, cinnamon, and salt. Mix to combine. Using a pastry blender, cut in the cold butter. Mix until medium size clumps remain, about the size of dime, maybe a little bit smaller.

4. To assemble, pour the peaches into the baking dish, cover with topping. Place in oven and bake for 25-30 minutes. Keep a careful eye on the top, making sure that it doesn't get too dark- if the peaches are not soft yet and the top is getting too dark, cover with foil. I didn't have a problem with mine, but all ovens are different!

5. Remove from oven and allow to cool for 20 minutes before serving warm.

NOTE: For a 9x13 pan you will need to double the recipe.

Life Made Simple Original Recipe | Makes 4-6 servings

Triple Chocolate Brownies

My search for the ultimate fudgy brownie is over. It's been a long journey but I think I've finally found a brownie recipe that I really love! It's dark, it's fudgy and it's really rich! Best of all, it's got a nice crisp top that cracks when you bite into it. Adding espresso powder helped to enhance the chocolate flavor and adding baking soda gave these an extra lift which eliminated any battery goo that might have otherwise resulted. I tossed in three kinds of chocolate to create the ultimate chocolatey brownie, but I think peanut butter chips or maybe even thin mints would be really good too! I took these to a family reunion and they were gone in about 15 minutes, everyone loved them! I hope you'll give this recipe a try, because I think you're going to love them too! P.S. See the note below if you're using an 8x8 pan.

Triple Chocolate Brownies

Ingredients

1 c. all-purpose flour

1¾ c. unsweetened cocoa powder

2½ c. sugar

1⅓ c. (2 sticks + 6 tbsp) butter

4 eggs

¼ tsp. baking soda

½ tsp. salt

½ tsp. espresso powder

1 tsp. vanilla

½ c. milk chocolate chips

½ c. semi-sweet chocolate chips

½ c. bittersweet chocolate chips (60%)

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line a 9x13 inch pan with parchment or foil, set aside.

2. In a large double boiler, melt butter then add espresso powder, mixing to dissolve. Add sugar and cook until the mixture becomes smooth and glossy. Remove from heat and allow the mixture to cool for 20 minutes. 

3. In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the cooled (really it can be slightly warm) butter mixture and vanilla. With mixing speed on low add one egg at a time, mixing just until incorporated. 

4. In a medium size mixing bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt. With mixing speed on low, gradually add dry ingredients. Mix until no flour pockets remain. Remove bowl from stand and fold in the three kinds of chocolate chips. 

5. Spread the brownie batter evenly into the prepared pan. Place in oven and bake for 25-30 minutes or until the brownies are set. Remove from oven and allow to cool for 45 minutes before cutting and serving.

NOTE: This recipe is for a 9x13 pan. You can make a half recipe and bake it in an 8x8 square pan for the same amount of time.

Adapted from Bittersweet, by Alice Medrich | Makes approximately 24 brownies

Chocolate Chunk Zucchini Muffins

One of my all-time favorite breads is my mom's zucchini bread. It's sweet, moist and loaded with garden-fresh zucchini. The other day I was craving something chocolaty for a late afternoon snack and I realized that I had a few extra zucchini laying around. I didn't want to bake anything that would require frosting, but I did want it to be a little decadent. So I decided to make some muffins that incorporated both chocolate and zucchini. I had the first batch of these in the oven and when it occurred to me that I forgot to add the sugars! Yep, we'll blame that one on my "pregnancy brain."I immediately pulled them from the oven and tossed them. A sad day indeed. Thankfully I had another zucchini on hand so I started over, this time being really careful to remember the sugars. I did. In my attempt to be slightly more healthy (slightly because this is a chocolate recipe), I used 1 c. all-purpose flour and ¾ c. whole wheat flour. The recipe below uses only all-purpose (for convenience), but I must say, the chocolate does a great job of masking any wheaty flavor that you might otherwise be able to detect (side note: my favorite brand is King Arthur Flour Premium 100% Whole Wheat Flour, in fact I use a lot of their products and get great texture and taste in my baked products). Anyway, these muffins turned out great! I ate three within about 15 minutes! No joke. There's something about the zucchini that convinced me that it was ok to keep eating more... or maybe it was all of the gooey chocolate bits ;) I'll let you decide!

Chocolate Chunk Zucchini Muffins
Ingredients
1¾ c. all-purpose flour
½ c. sugar
¼ c. brown sugar
¼ c. oil
½ c. sour cream
½ c. milk
1 egg
2 tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. baking soda
3 tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder
¼ tsp. salt
1 tsp. vanilla
½ c. grated zucchini, pressed to remove moisture
½ c. chocolate chunks + ¼ c. for on top (one 4oz Ghirardelli semi-sweet chocolate bar, chopped)

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line or lightly spray one standard size muffin tin, set aside.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together sugars and oil for 30 seconds. Add sour cream, milk, vanilla and egg, mix until just combined.
3. In a medium size mixing bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, cocoa powder, and salt. With mixing speed on low, gradually add dry ingredients until the mixture becomes smooth and no flour pockets remain.
4. Remove bowl from stand and fold in zucchini (I used the smaller "cheese" holes on my grater for the zucchini, the large ones would have been too thick and chunky) and chocolate chunks. Scoop batter into prepared muffin tin, filling each ¾ of the way full. Top with additional chocolate chunks.
5. Place in oven and bake for 16-18 minutes or until the tops spring back. Remove from oven and allow to cool in the pan for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
Life Made Simple Original Recipe | Makes 12 standard size muffins

Patriotic Funfetti Cupcakes

I know what you must be thinking - this girl is obsessed with funfetti. Yeah, you're pretty much right :) The other day when I was at work, I was organizing our baking shelf and an idea for patrotic cupcakes popped into my head... funfetti with a surprise star in the middle! What could be more fun?!?! Since Stephen and I celebrated early (we went to a BBQ tonight), I thought it would be a great treat to take and I'd be able to share it with you just in time for the 4th! These are soft and moist vanilla cupcakes that are bursting with red, white and blue sprinkles. They've got a swirled star in the middle and are topped with a light and fluffy vanilla buttercream. These may not be apple pie, but they're pretty darn good and festive too! Happy 4th of July- enjoy the fireworks!

Patriotic Funfetti Cupcakes
Ingredients
1 c. all-purpose flour
¾ c. cake flour
¾ c. sugar
¼ c. brown sugar
8 tbsp. (1 stick) butter, room temperature
1 egg + 1 egg yolk
¼ c. sour cream
¾ c. whole milk
½ tsp. baking powder
¼ tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. salt
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 tsp. vanilla bean paste
¼ tsp. almond extract

Red and blue food coloring
½ c. red, white and blue jimmies

Vanilla buttercream:
3½ - 4 c. powdered sugar
16 tbsp. (2 sticks) butter, room temperature
3 tbsp. heavy cream
1¾ tsp. vanilla extract

Pinch of salt

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line one standard cupcake pans with liners, set aside. Line the bottom of one standard size loaf pan with parchment paper, lightly coating it with baking spray and flour, set aside.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat butter and sugars until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add vanilla bean paste, vanilla extract and almond extract. With mixing speed on low, add egg, then egg yolk, mixing until just combined.
3. In a medium size mixing bowl whisk together flour, cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In a glass measuring cup mix together sour cream and milk. With mixing speed on low, alternate dry and wet ingredients, mix until batter is smooth and homogeneous (being careful not to over mix).
4. Remove bowl from stand. Portion out ¾ c. batter into on small mixing bowl, and ¾ c. of batter into another mixing bowl. Dye one red, and the other blue. Gently swirl the two together in the prepared loaf pan (don't go too crazy or you'll end up with purple). Bake for 15-18 minutes or until the cake is set. Once the cake has cooled, remove from pan and cut out star shapes (you'll want to use a small star, about 1" in diameter and ½"- ¾" thick/depth so that it fits nicely into the cupcake liner with room for the cupcake to bake around it).

5. Gently fold in sprinkles to the remaining "white" batter. Scoop a small bit into the base of each of the  cupcake liners. Place a start standing upright into each, then pour the remaining batter around the start, just covering the top. Place in the oven and bake for 18-22 minutes or until the cupcakes spring back when touched and are slightly golden brown on top.

6. Remove from oven and allow to cool in pans for 5 minutes before removing and transferring to a wire rack to cool completely (about 25 minutes).
7. While cupcakes are cooling, in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, combine butter, salt, and vanilla. Beat until fluffy (2-3 minutes). With mixing speed on low, add heavy cream, then gradually add ½ c. powdered sugar at a time until the mixture becomes soft but firm enough to hold it's shape. Beat frosting for an additional 3 minutes until light and fluffy. Pipe on cooled cupcakes as desired, decorate with festive sprinkles.
Adapted from Sally's Baking Addiction, Easy Homemade Funfetti Cupcakes | Makes approximately 12 standard size cupcakes

Cake Batter Cookies & Cream Ice Cream

Have you tried the Birthday Cake Oreos? What did you think? Like or dislike? For me it they were good, but not my favorite... I thought that the golden ones were better than the chocolate ones, but that the flavor was a bit overwhelming for just cookies and milk. With more than 3/4 of a pack left I decided I needed to make ice cream. I figured that the cookies would help flavor the ice cream and that they would taste a little more subtle. I used one of my favorite vanilla ice cream bases and added a few extra extracts to give it a slight cake batter taste (I'm not a fan of putting cake mix into ice cream). I chopped up a bunch of the Golden Birthday Cake Oreos and tossed them in along with a scoop of sprinkles. Voilà! Cake Batter Cookies & Cream was born! Once I churned the ice cream I allowed it to sit overnight so that the flavors would meld together a little more. Stephen and I had a scoop after lunch the following day and absolutely loved it! The creaminess of the vanilla base really worked well with the sweet buttery flavor of the Oreos... it was a match made in heaven. So if you've got some extra Oreos laying around, I highly suggest making some ice cream- it's definitely worth it!

Cake Batter Cookies & Cream Ice Cream
Ingredients
¾ c. sugar
2 c. heavy cream
1 c. whole milk
5 egg yolks
¹⁄₈ tsp. salt
1 tsp. vanilla bean paste
1 tsp. vanilla extract
¼ tsp. imitation butter extract
¹⁄₈ tsp. almond extract
12-16 Golden Birthday Cake Oreos*
¼ c. rainbow sprinkles, jimmies

DIRECTIONS:
1. In a medium saucepan set over medium heat, warm the milk, salt, sugar and cream until it reaches 100 degrees.
2. In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the egg yolks. Slowly pour the warm milk mixture into the yolks, whisking constantly (go very slow at first so you don't scramble your yolks). After combined, scrape the mixture back into the saucepan and return to medium heat. Using a heatproof spatula, scrape the bottom as you stir, until the mixture coats the bottom of the spatula and/or reaches 170 degrees.
3. Pour the heated mixture through a mesh sieve set over a medium size mixing bowl (this will help remove any eggy bits). Add the extracts and whisk to combine.
4. Place the bowl over an ice bath to cool, stirring with a rubber spatula for about 8-10 minutes. The mixture should be slightly cool to the touch. Cover the bowl with base in it and refrigerate for 1 hour or until chilled throughout.
5. Freeze according to manufacturer's instructions. I use the KitchenAid bowl attachment. It usually takes me about minutes to get the consistency that I want, which is never solid, but more like hard frozen yogurt. Be careful not to overchurn or you might curdle your mixture! When finished churning, stir in cookies and sprinkles with spatula.
6. Place in a air-tight freezer safe container and freeze for at least 4 hours before serving.

*NOTE: if you can't find Golden Birthday Cake Oreos you can use regular golden Oreos and increase the imitation butter extract to ½ tsp. and the almond extract to ¼ tsp.

Life Made Simple Original Recipe | Makes 6-8 servings

Cinnamon Sugar Banana Nut Muffins

I always find myself with one overly ripe banana left on my kitchen counter. Since most recipes for banana bread or banana cookies call for more than one banana it's always tricky to figure out how to use it. Last week I tossed it in a smoothie and the week before I bit the bullet and ate it. But this time around I thought I'd bake up a small batch of muffins using only one large spotted banana. That's right... it's a half batch. Aside from the fact that we only had 1 banana, we can never eat an entire batch of 12 muffins, so 6 just seemed practical. If you happen to have two ripe bananas then go ahead and double it. I wanted to experiment a little with this recipe. I knew I wanted to use a little bit of whole wheat flour but I also wanted to add nuts and some kind of topping that wasn't crumbly or overwhelming. I ended up using ¼ c. of whole wheat flour, which made them just a little more wholesome and then tossed in  ¼ c. of chopped pecans. The topping is a cinnamon sugar mixture that you sprinkle on top once you've scooped the batter into the muffin tin. Have you ever walked by one of those nut stands at a sporting event, you know, the ones that sell those cinnamon sugar coated pecans? Yep, your entire house will smell like one of those!

Cinnamon Sugar Banana Nut Muffins
Ingredients
¾ c. all-purpose flour (or 1 c. if you don't want to use wheat)
¼ c. whole wheat flour
⅓ c. brown sugar
1 egg
6 tbsp. melted butter
2 tbsp. sour cream or buttermilk
½ c. mashed ripe bananas, from one large banana
½ tsp. baking soda
¼ tsp. salt
¼ tsp. cinnamon, heaping
¾ tsp. vanilla
¼ c. chopped nuts, plus more to sprinkle on top

Cinnamon sugar sprinkle:
1 tbsp. sugar
¹⁄₈ tsp. cinnamon, heaping

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly spray or line six wells of a standard size muffin pan, set aside.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together butter and sugar. Add sour cream (or buttermilk) and mashed bananas, mix on low for 30 seconds. Add egg and vanilla, mix until just combined.
3. In a small mixing bowl, combine flours, baking soda, salt and cinnamon. Whisk together then with mixing speed on low, gradually add dry ingredients. Mix until just combined. Remove bowl from stand and fold in chopped nuts. Using a large scoop, fill each well ¾ of the way full (or a little more if you have some extra). Sprinkle with extra nuts. In a small bowl combine cinnamon and sugar, sprinkle mixture over the tops of each muffin.
4. Place in oven and bake for 18-22 minutes. The tops should be lightly golden brown and they should be nice and firm. Remove from oven and allow to cool in pans for 2-3 minutes before removing and transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. Serve just by themselves or with some whipped cinnamon butter!
NOTE: You will want to double this recipe for 12 muffins
Life Made Simple Original Recipe | Makes 6 standard size muffins

Toll House Chocolate Chip Blondies

Yesterday we had my brother and sister-in-law over for dinner. Earlier that afternoon I was trying to come up with some kind of treat to make and decided that a batch of blondies was the way to go. I turned to a recipe out of my Ina Garten Foolproof cookbook. I could tell that the recipe wasn't perfect, I read some reviews online and knew it needed some work. So I adjusted some ingredients here and there and came up with a recipe for blondies that is both crunchy and chewy and loaded with the right balance of chocolate chips and walnuts. Also, can I just tell you that I love how moist and thick they were?! Yum! I think this recipe is a keeper and I hope you will too!

Toll House Chocolate Chip Blondies

Ingredients

2 c. all-purpose flour

¾ c. sugar

¾ c. brown sugar

14 tbsp. (1¾ stick) butter, room temperature

2 eggs

1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. salt

2 tsp. vanilla

½ c. chopped walnuts

¾ c. Nestlé® Toll House® chocolate chips

¼ c. Nestlé® Toll House® mini chocolate chips

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 9x13 inch pan with parchment paper (don't use butter/spray or the bottoms will be too moist), set aside.

2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together sugars and butter until light and fluffy, 2-3 minutes. Add vanilla, then eggs one at a time, mixing until just combined. 

3. In a small mixing bowl, combine flour, baking soda and salt, whisk together. With mixing speed on low, gradually add the dry ingredients, mixing until no flour pockets remain. Remove bowl from stand and fold in chocolate chips and walnuts.

4. Spread the dough into the pan creating an even layer. Place in oven and bake for 27-30 minutes or until the blondies are medium golden brown in color. Remove from oven and allow to cool in pan for 30 minutes before cutting and serving.

Adapted from Ina Garten, Chocolate Chunk Blondies | Makes approximately 15 bars