Peanut Butter Chocolate Dessert

Adapted from: tasteofhome.com

20 cream filled chocolate sandwich cookies, divided
2 Tbsp. butter, softened
1 (8 oz.) pkg. cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup peanut butter
1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar, divided
2 (8 oz.) cartons frozen whipped topping, thawed
15 miniature peanut butter cups, chopped
1 cup cold milk
1 (3.9 oz.) pkg. instant chocolate pudding

Crush 16 cookies; toss with butter. Press into an ungreased 9-inch square dish; set aside. In a large bowl, beat cream cheese, peanut butter, and 1 cup confectioner's sugar until smooth. Fold in one carton of the whipped topping. Spread over crust. Sprinkle with peanut butter cups. In another large bowl, beat milk, pudding mix, and remaining confectioners' sugar on low speed for 2 minutes. Let stand for 2 minutes, or until soft-set. Fold in remaining carton of whipped topping. Spread over peanut butter cups. Crush remaining cooking and sprinkle over the top. Cover and chill for at least 3 hours.

I made this dessert for Vann's birthday gathering last Sunday. It went over like crazy! It was super easy to throw together, and since it had to chill for a few hours, it was nice to just put it in the refrigerator and finish making dinner. I know the picture isn't wonderful, but I had to snap one quickly before we tore into it even more! If you are looking for a quick dessert to make, or something you can even throw together the night before, this is definitely worth trying. Huge hit with the kids and the adults!

Cannoli Cake

Adapted from: food.com recipe #126279

For the Cake:
6 large eggs, separated
1 cup sugar, divided
3/4 cup flour
1 Tbsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
2 Tbsp. water
1 tsp. vanilla extract

For Brushing Cake Layers:
2 large oranges
2 Tbsp. orange-flavored liqueur (optional)

For the Filling:
1 (32 oz.) container ricotta cheese
1 (8 oz.) pkg. cream cheese, softened
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup confectioners' sugar
1/4 cup semi-sweet mini chocolate chips

Vanilla-Cream Frosting:
3 Tbsp. butter, softened
3 Tbsp. milk
1 3/4 cup confectioners' sugar
3/4 tsp. vanilla extract
2 cups heavy whipping cream

For the cake: Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In mixing bowl, beat 6 egg whites until soft peaks form. Gradually sprinkle in 1/2 cup sugar, beating until sugar is completely dissolved and whites stand in stiff peaks. In a large mixing bowl, on low speed, beat 6 egg yolks, flour, baking powder, salt, remaining 1/2 cup sugar, 1 tsp. vanilla, and the 2 Tbsp. water until well blended. With rubber spatula, gently fold beaten egg whites into egg yolk mixture. Spoon the batter into an ungreased 10x3-inch springform pan. Bake 30-35 minutes, or until cake is slightly golden and springs back after being lightly touched.

For brushing the cake layers: From the oranges, grate 2 tsp. peel (use the rest of the peel for the filling) and squeeze 1/3 cup orange juice. Stir liqueur into juice; set aside.

For the filling: In large bowl, beat ricotta, cream cheese, rest of the grated orange peel, confectioners’ sugar and 1 tsp. vanilla until smooth. Stir in 1/4 cup semisweet-chocolate mini pieces. With metal spatula, loosen cake from edge of pan; remove pan side. Loosen cake from pan bottom; remove pan bottom. With serrated knife, cut cake horizontally into 2 layers. Brush juice mixture evenly over cut side of each layer. Place bottom cake layer, cut-side up, on cake plate. Spoon filling on center of cake layer. Spread some filling out to edge, leaving a center rounded to create dome effect. Cut small wedge out of remaining cake layer; gently rest cake layer over filling. (Cutting wedge will allow cake layer to bend, without cracking, to fit over dome shape.)

For frosting: In small bowl, beat butter, milk, confectioners’ sugar, and vanillat until smooth, adding more milk if necessary until mixture has an easy spreading consistency. In large bowl, beat heavy whipping cream until stiff peaks form; fold confectioners’sugar mixture into whipped cream. Spread over top and down side of cake.

Phew! Did you get all of that? I will first say that this cake really was a doozy. I was ill-prepared for the time it would take to make this baby, and the joke was obviously on me! I thought that even though the recipe seemed a bit lengthy, I would be able to knock it out in no time, brush my hands off, and be done with it. Nuh-uh! So didn't happen. I would also like to say that the time put in this cake was more than worth it. My sister-in-law has been requesting a cannoli cake for quite some time, and I thought that her birthday was the perfect way to break this puppy out and try it!

The flavors were incredible, and my only regret is that we didn't take a picture of the cake once we cut into it. It was beautiful (on the inside). The icing and I were about to have an all out war, but this wasn't the recipe's fault, it was the wonderful humidity and the fact that no matter how long I beat the whipping cream, it would not "whip". Frustrating! The icing was hard enough to put on in the first place because it was a little runny. By the time we got the cake to Vann's brother's house, it looked like the Wicked Witch of the West when she was hit with water in the Wizard of Oz. If it could have talked, you would have heard it scream "I'm meeeeellllttttiiinnnggg!!!" I made the best efforts to make it look pretty by putting chocolate chips around the whole thing, but somehow it just made it look even more pitiful when it melted.... like little chocolate tears. It was so sad! But it was still delicious, and in the end, the way it tastes is what truly matters. :)

Cookies n' Cream Brownies

Adapted from: kevinandamanda.com

1 box brownie mix
Eggs and oil (as called for by brownie mix)
Heaping 1/2 cup cookies n' cream ice cream
1/4 cup hot fudge, at room temperature
16 Oreos

Preheat oven and spray an 8x8 baking dish with cooking spray. Combine brownie mix, eggs, and oil, making sure NOT to add the water. To the batter, add ice cream and fudge, stirring to combine. Pour half of the brownie batter into the baking dish, layer with Oreos, then top with the remaining brownie batter. Bake for 40-50 minutes, or as directed on the back of the box.

As mentioned in a previous post, Vann requested this delicious dessert for his birthday. These were gooey and delicious! Even better, the Oreos softened when the brownies baked, making them even more wonderful. Unfortunately (and fortunately) I was so full from the Philly Cheesesteak Sloppy Joes that I couldn't eat more than a bite of these. But they were oh so good, and ridiculously easy! I used the rest of the Birthday Cake Oreos (which are AMAZING, by the way), and then filled the remaining spots with Double Stuft Oreos. Yum! Prepare yourself a gigantic glass of milk if you make these. Better yet, have the whole gallon ready.... you will need it! Happy Birthday, Beebs! :) Love you! (That's right, I got mushy!)

Hot Bacon and Swiss Dip

Adapted from: macaroniandcheesecake.com

8 oz. cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 cup swiss cheese, shredded
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
1/2 cup ritz crackers, crushed
1 pkg. real bacon bits

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray baking dish with cooking spray. In a medium bowl, combine cream cheese, mayonnaise, swiss cheese, and onion. Spread cream cheese mixture into baking dish. Top cream cheese mixture with crackers, then bacon, and bake for 10-12 minutes, or until dip is bubbly.

This is addicting... ridiculously addicting! I found this recipe via Pinterest (we might as well assume that this is the case unless otherwise stated, because that is where I have been getting ALL of my recipes from lately!), and decided that it would be the perfect appetizer to make for the family when they came over to celebrate Vann's birthday. Luckily that day was today, and this went over like crazy! In fact, none of it is left.... and I doubled it! Our nephew has even requested that I make this again next time we all get together. I know that I've done good when even the kiddos like the dip! I bought tortilla chips to eat with this, but I personally believe that the ritz crackers tasted better. And if you happen to have some buttered french bread laying around, go ahead and scoop a little bit on that, too. Sinful!

Philly Cheesesteak Sloppy Joes

Adapted from: tasteofhomecooking.blogspot.com

1 Tbsp. olive oil
1 lb. ground beef
1 onion, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
4 Tbsp. steak sauce (we used Walmart's version of A1)
1 cup beef consomme
Salt and pepper, to taste
Hawaiian Rolls (the sweet kind, we used the Hawaiian Roll hoagie buns)
1 Tbsp. butter
1 Tbsp. flour
1 cup milk
1 cup provolone cheese, shredded

Add oil to a large skillet and brown beef over medium-high heat. Drain excess grease, then return to heat. To the beef, add the onion and green pepper, cooking until vegetables are tender. Add the steak sauce and beef consomme, then add salt and pepper to taste. Allow mixture to bubble and cook for a couple of minutes. While the meat is cooking, melt butter in medium size pot. Stir in the flour and cook for about 1 minute. Whisk in the milk, bring up to a boil, the allow to thicken, about 2 minutes. Turn off heat and add the cheese.

Vann's birthday was on the 1st of this month, and for his special day I always enjoy cooking him a good meal and dessert! (I actually enjoy doing this quite often, but this day is all his, and he gets to have whatever he wants!) So one night I made him scroll through Pinterest and try to find a meal and dessert that he deemed birthday-worthy. Luckily he chose these for his meal (and an amazing dessert, but that post shall come soon)! These were seriously easy to throw together, and they tasted incredible!

I doubled the batch because I knew that we would probably love them, and I am all about eating leftovers either for lunch the next day or dinner the next night. The original recipe called for dinner rolls, which I am absolutely positive would be delicous, but the Hawaiian Rolls made these to die for! The saltiness of the meat mixture with the sweetness of the rolls was a match made in sloppy joe heaven. Also, I would highly suggest allowing the beef mixture to simmer on medium heat for about 30 minutes. I had to throw the fries in the oven, and decided to leave the meat on the stove, and it was absolutely perfect. It gave all of the ingredients enough time to marry, and allowed the beef to really soak in the beef consomme and thicken. It was delicious! And the cheese sauce.... oh the cheese sauce. I think I could pour it on a shoe and eat it. I couldn't find shredded provolone cheese, so I just used the sliced and it turned out perfect and melted quickly. Give these a try, soon!