Cooking and Baking Archives - Page 48 of 52

Oreo Ice Cream Cake

June 13, 2009 jennifer Desserts

Last week my oldest turned 12.
He was having a birthday party but really isn’t a cake guy.
He much prefers to have me make him an ice cream cake of some kind.
This year’s version features Oreo cookies.
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It’s a simple recipe that can be used with countless combinations of ice cream flavors, cookies, nuts, toppings, or whatever you prefer. For this cake, Oreo cookies were the request.

Start with almost 1/3 of a package of regular oreo cookies and chop them up.
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I should note here that I am using a 10 inch springform pan. You could also use a cake pan or whatever dish you’d like.
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Don’t chop them too finely. Sprinkle them over the bottom of the pan unti it’s well covered. Having the cookies on the bottom will make it a lot easier to get the pieces out of the pan when you serve it.
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Now cover the cookies with a thick layer of ice cream. I used chocolate chip.
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Then I chopped another layer of Oreo cookies (again, about 1/3 of the package) and drizzled with hot fudge sauce.
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Keep adding chocolate sauce until it looks like this:
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Now add another layer of ice cream and a sprinkling of cookie crumbs.
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Drizzle with a little bit more chocolate for decoration.
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I added some caramel topping for fun.
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Now freeze for at least 2 hours before serving.
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Yum! So good, especially for a summertime birthday celebration.
Enjoy every bite, because this is what will happen before you realize it:
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This is one of those treats that can be thrown together so easily, and is a great make-ahead treat.
I also love that I can take the basic idea and change flavors for a different cake every time.
Start thinking about your favorite combinations of ice cream flavors and toppings and you’ve got a recipe.
For example, this is the birthday cake I made in March for another son.
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For this cake, I used Oreo cookies on the bottom, and chocolate ice cream for the first layer.
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Then I put on a thicker layer of hot fudge sauce and added a layer of Oreos on top of the sauce.
I then put on a layer of oreo cookie ice cream and finished with a layer of cool whip. A sprinkling of Reese’s pieces topped it all off.
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And let me tell you, it was just as yummy!
Try making one of these today! You’ll love it.

Peanut Butter and Jam, three year old style

June 4, 2009 jennifer Main Dishes, Musings on Life and Beauty

My three year old asked for a sandwich at a random time of day.
He wanted to make it himself.
I said yes.
I just wish I’d grabbed the camera sooner.

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There is some peanut butter underneath all that yummy strawberry jam.
But it just wasn’t enough jam, I guess, because he laid it on.

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Of course, he needed to taste every spoonful just to make sure it wasn’t poisonous or something.

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Oh no! Will he get the drip?

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Phew.

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Lick those lips!

Then he had to spread it like only a 3 year old does

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Next comes the lid.

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And he had to make sure it wouldn’t come off, so:

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Gratefully he stopped before the whole sandwich was crushed.
But he had squeezed so much jam out that he was now afraid to pick it up.
But hungry enough to eat anyway.

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Eating like that is only so much fun, so licking his finger kept things interesting.

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Leftovers, anyone?

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Granola Bars

May 30, 2009 jennifer Snacks and Appetizers

My children love snacks, and homemade granola bars never last long in this house.

They are a simple thing to make, and what I love about them is that they’re so versatile; I can use what I have on hand and they always taste great. They start with a few basic ingredients, and you can be creative from there.

Begin with 1 cup of margarine or butter img_4863-large Melt the butter and add 2 cups brown sugar.
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Pour in 1 cup light corn syrup img_4865-large and 2 teaspoons vanilla extract.
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Next, add 1 1/2 cups creamy peanut butter.
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Stir the ingredients together until it forms a sort of smooth paste.
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Add 1 cup shredded coconut img_4869-large and 5 cups oatmeal. (You can also do half oatmeal and half rice krispies for variety.)
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Stir together, and then start adding whatever your family will like.
In this batch, I added some chopped smoked almonds (about 1/2 cup) img_4871-large I also added 1/2 cup flax seeds img_4872-large and 2/3 cup sunflower seeds.
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Finally, I added about 1/3 cup miniature chocolate chips.
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Stir well. The key is to have the mixture sticking together in large clumps.
As long as you do that, you can add whatever you’d like.
I like to add wheat germ, but I’m out of that today. My family likes nuts, so I always add some.
You can also add raisins or other dried fruit, or any other flavor that you love in granola bars.

Next I dump the mixture onto a lightly greased cookie sheet.
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I usually save the wrappers from the butter and I use them to help spread and pack down the mixture a little before I bake it.
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Spread the mixture to the edges of the pan.
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Bake at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes or until the edges are bubbly and the granola bars are just beginning to brown a little bit.

Remove them from the oven and let them cool.

Now, my family always manages to get permission to cut them while they’re still a little bit warm.
They’re yummy warm, but I must warn you that they fall apart more.
If you let them cool for several hours or even overnight, then they will cut well and hold their shape without crumbling.
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These granola bars are really yummy and they’re also filling.
Granted, they have brown sugar, butter and corn syrup in them.
But I also tend to pack them with other healthy nuts so my kids are eating something with a lot more substance then most store-bought granola bars. Furthermore, the children love them because they’re delicious!

These store well. When school is in, I usually make a bunch and wrap them individually for quick and easy lunch assembly in the mornings. If I don’t cut them up and store some quickly, the whole pan disappears before I know it!

Hopeful Homemaker’s Granola Bars 1 cup melted butter or margarine 2 cups brown sugar 1 cup light corn syrup 2 tsp. vanilla extract 1 1/3 cups creamy peanut butter 1 cup shredded sweetened coconut 5 cups oatmeal (or a combination of oatmeal and rice krispy cereal) sunflower seeds wheat germ nuts of any kind raisins chocolate chips any other flavor you’d like to supplement!

Preheat oven to 350. Grease cookie sheet. In large bowl, melt butter and combine butter, sugar, corn syrup, vanilla and peanut butter. Stir well until mixture forms a good paste. Add coconut and oatmeal and stir well. Start adding in whatever ingredients you want, as long as the mixture sticks together in large clumps. Press onto cookie sheet and bake for 20 minutes or until edges are bubbly and it is beginning to turn golden brown. Cool completely and cut into bars.
For a 9×13 pan, cut this recipe in half.