Tag: Bars

Pumpkin Pie Bars

It’s that time of year! Pumpkin Pie Time 🙂 Thanksgiving is right around the corner and I have the perfect recipe for you! Pumpkin Pie bars taste like pumpkin pie, but better. They are very moist, just like pie, but the crust on these is sooo good! Could you imagine the holidays without a pumpkin dessert?!

If you like pumpkin, these are a must! I have made these for years and they are always a crowd pleaser.

I got this recipe off the tasty kitchen back in 2011. I have made it every year since! Hats off to the person who came up with this delicious dessert.

This recipe can be soy free, dairy free and gluten free! It’s all in the cake mix! Choose a soy free mix or get the gluten free yellow cake mix! You can also substitute the milk and butter for non dairy options!

Ingredients

  • FOR THE CRUST:
  • 1 box Yellow Cake Mix, 18 Ounce Box, Reserve 1 Cup
  • ½ cups Melted Butter
  • 1 whole Egg, Beaten
  • FOR THE MIDDLE LAYER:
  • 2 whole Eggs
  • ⅔ cups Evaporated Milk
  • ¼ cups White Sugar
  • 1 teaspoon Cinnamon
  • 15 ounces, weight Canned Pumpkin
  • ½ cups Brown Sugar
  • 1 teaspoon Pumpkin Pie Spice
  • 1 teaspoon Vanilla
  • FOR THE TOPPING:
  • 1 cup Reserved Cake Mix
  • ½ teaspoons Cinnamon
  • ½ cups White Sugar
  • ½ cups Melted Butter

Instructions

  • Mix together the first 3 ingredients (make sure to reserve 1 cup of the cake mix and set that aside) and press into a 9×13 ungreased pan.
  • Combine the eggs, evaporated milk, sugar, cinnamon, pumpkin, brown sugar, pumpkin pie spice and vanilla and pour over the crust.
  • Lastly, mix together the topping ingredients: reserved cake mix, cinnamon, white sugar, and melted butter. Spoon over pumpkin filling.
  • Bake at 350F for 40-50 minutes (it will be a bit soft still).
  • Serve with whipped topping, warm. OR even better, serve it the next day, cold!
I definitely prefer these cold! They are so delicious and make me so happy!

I hope you enjoy these Pumpkin Pie Bars as much as I do! Follow me on Pinterest or right here on my blog for more recipe ideas!

Lemon Sugar Cookie Bars

Sugar Cookies + Lemon = Absolute deliciousness! I am so excited about these! They have the right amount of lemon flavor and the perfect cookie texture!!

Typically, when I think of sugar cookies, it’s usually in a “cut out” shape and is for some sort of occasion; Christmas, Easter, Valentines Day or in many cases Birthdays. Cutouts are great, but can be a lot of work. Making them into a cookie bar takes out all of that extra work, but they are still delicious!!

I love that these Lemon Sugar Cookie Bars are so easy to make! Also, you can easily substitute different flavors, and top them with frosting! Lemon is surely a hit, but I’m thinking lime or orange would be great as well! I included a recipe for the glaze, but it’s definitely not needed, it just adds a little more lemon flavor!

Also, whenever we have lemons, my kids cannot resist eating them to to see who can handle the sourness!! My mouth is watering just thinking about it!

Don’t Be Afraid to “Zest”

This recipe calls for the zest of a lemon. If you haven’t used zest from a citrus fruit before, don’t let that scare you. It’s super easy and it really gives it a lot of flavor. I take a cheese grater and scrape the side of the lemon until you see the white part, keep rotating the lemon until there is nothing left to zest! Easy as that!

Here Is What You Need

For the Sugar Cookie
  • 1 cup (2 Sticks) of Unsalted Butter – room temp
  • 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar + 3 Tbsp for the top
  • 2 Eggs
  • 1 Tbsp juice from a lemon + (1-2 Tbsp for the glaze)
  • 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
  • 1 Tbsp lemon Zest (1 Lemon)
  • 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp salt
For The Glaze
  • 1/2 cup powdered sugar
  • 1-2 Tbsp juice from a lemon
  • 3-4 Tbsp Milk

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 350 Degrees F
  • Grease a 9×13 dish with baking spray, or you can use my cake release recipe
  • Using your stand mixer or an electric mixer, mix butter and sugar until well combined
  • Mix in the eggs, vanilla and lemon juice
  • In a separate bowl, mix together the dry ingredients; Flour, baking powder, salt and the lemon zest

Slowly pour incorporate the flour mixture into the bowl with the wet ingredients

  • Press the dough into the 9×13 baking dish
  • Top with 3 tbsp of sugar
  • Bake for 22-25 minutes
  • For the glaze, mix together the powdered sugar, and lemon juice.
  • Slowly mix in the milk until you get the consistency you desire. More milk for a thinner glaze, less for thicker

  • Wait for the cookies to cool before drizzling the glaze over top. You can glaze the whole dish or individual pieces, whatever you like!
  • Enjoy!

There you have it! Lemon Sugar Cookie Bars (Say that fast 3 times!) They are delicious and one of my absolute favorites!

Follow me on Pinterest for more great ideas! https://www.pinterest.com/FunandFrosted/

S’mores Cookie Bars

Now that I have had a S’more’s Cookie Bar, I don’t know how I have survived without them. Life surely just got better! Any type of “cookie bar” is really my favorite kind of dessert. They are easy to make, easy to eat, and the possibilities are endless!

Marshmallow Fluff

We are still in isolation here in Michigan, due to the Coronavirus. Therefore, I stare for hours on end into my pantry. Then I see it- Marshmallow fluff. This has been sitting in my pantry for months and months. I can’t remember why I bought it, I can only imagine I told myself I would need it someday. Well guess what? That day came, I definitely needed it!

I’ll be honest, S’mores are not a “go to” dessert for me. Although delicious, and I won’t turn down a s’more, they aren’t something I have to have. However, I’ve been watching my husband build our fire pit and patio in the backyard this past few weeks and I keep thinking about the fun bonfire’s we will have! Now, I’ve got s’mores on my mind.

Like I said earlier, I really wanted to use the Marshmallow fluffy stuff, so S’mores cookie bars, here we come! They are very easy to whip up and they don’t take that much time. The are delicious, rich with chocolate and marshmallow, but have a great cookie texture. Part S’more and part cookie! You will not be able to stop eating these! These are best eaten warm in my opinion. Stick them in the microwave for a few seconds to heat them up and…yummy!

Here’s What You Need

  • 1 Cup all purpose flour
  • 1 Cup graham cracker crumbs (I used Nabisco, because they are Soy Free!!)
  • 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1 stick of unsalted butter (8 Tbsp)
  • 3/4 Cup light brown sugar
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 1 egg
  • 7oz. container of marshmallow fluff (or you could substitute for marshamallows – just enought to cover the surface)
  • 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips (you can also use chocolate bars) (I used Nestle Toll House Simply Delicious – they are soy free!)

How To Make

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees F
  • Grease a 8″ square pan (If you don’t have baking spray you can use my cake release recipe and it works great!)
  • Crush your graham crackers into crumbs. You can use a food processor or put the crackers in a bag and hit with a mallet, rolling pin or crush with fist)
  • In a small to medium bowl, mix together graham crackers, flour, salt, and baking powder. Set aside
  • In a large bowl, use an electric mixer or your stand mixer to mix the butter and sugar
  • Add in the eggs and vanilla, beat until well mixed and scrape the sides of the bowl
  • Slowly add in the flour mixture
  • Divide the dough in two.
  • Press half of the dough into the bottom of your greased pan. You may want to coat a spatula or your hand in flour, so the dough sticks to the pan and not your fingers!
  • Spread the marshmallow fluff onto the dough
  • Sprinkle the chocolate chips on top of the marshmallow
  • Take the remaining dough and crumble over the top. It doesn’t not need to be even.
  • Bake for 28-20 minutes. Or until the top and the marshmallow turns a golden brown.
  • Enjoy!!!

Follow me on Pinterest for more great ideas! https://www.pinterest.com/FunandFrosted/

Gingerbread Bars

I have made these Gingerbread Bars for the past two Christmas’. They have been circulating around Pinterest from various blogs. I am not entirely sure where they originated from, but my guess is Six Sister’s Stuff. They always have great recipes and this one is no exception!

The holidays are so busy with gatherings and everyone always expects me to bring dessert! (which I enjoy!) I try to make a variety of desserts and different flavors to mix things up a bit. I can tell you my husband appreciates that! These Gingerbread Bars are an unpredictable dessert, and everyone loves them, including myself. These are one of my favorites…Yum!! I will be taking these to work tomorrow, for a holiday party. I guarantee they won’t last long 🙂

These Gingerbread Bars incorporate all of those spices associated with Christmas smells, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and molasses! This dessert is just the right amount of sweet!

This is definitely a recipe to hold onto!!

Ingredients for the Gingerbread Bars

  • 1/2 Cup butter, melted
  • 3/4 Cup sugar
  • 1/4 Cup brown sugar
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla
  • 1/3 Cup molasses
  • 1 Egg
  • 2 tsp baking soda
  • 2 Cups flour
  • 1 Tbsp cinnamon
  • 1/2 tsp ground ginger
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/4 tsp ground cloves
  • 1/4 tsp Nutmeg

Gingerbread Bar Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees F
  • Grease a 13×9 baking dish. You can get my cake release recipe here. It’s easy to make and Soy Free!
  • In your stand mixer, cream together the butter, sugars, vanilla, and molasses.
  • Add in the egg, and mix until fully incorporated
  • In a separate bowl, mix together the dry ingredients
  • Slowly add them into the stand mixer, and mix thoroughly
  • Pour mix into baking dish and pat down to get it evenly distributed
  • Bake for 15-18 Minutes
  • Let cool before frosting!

Ingredients for the Cream Cheese Frosting

  • 8 oz cream cheese softened
  • 1/4 unsalted butter, softened
  • 4 cups powdered sugar
  • 1 tsp vanilla

Frosting Instructions

  • In your stand mixer, cream butter and cream cheese together. Make sure they are both softened and at room temp. Otherwise your frosting will be chunky
  • Add in the vanilla and mix
  • Add in the powdered sugar slowly until all incorporated
  • Pour on the sprinkles, or cinnamon and serve!

Make sure to store them in the refrigerator!

I hope you enjoy these Gingerbread Bars. If you want more Fun and Frosted recipes, make sure to follow my blog, and my Pinterest page!

I really appreciate all of my subscribers! Thank you