Desserts

Is there anyone who doesn't love desserts? There might be, but I haven't met anyone who doesn't love 'em. That said, here are six yummy dessert recipes, including Almond Joy Pie, Salty Peanut-Pretzel Ice Cream Cake, and English Toffee Bars. Enjoy!

4-INGREDIENT FROZEN LEMONADE PIE

This is from the Food Network, and begins, "This easy-to-make pie is sweet and tart - just like the drink. Don't stop at lemon, though; try any other fruit sorbet for a variation."

Active Time: 15 minutes; Total Time: 2 hours 20 minutes (includes freezing time); Yield: 6 to 8 servings; Level: Easy

To view this online, go to https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchen/4-ingredient-frozen-lemonade-pie-3365016.

Ingredients

1 cup lemon sorbet

3/4 cup sweetened condensed milk

2/3 cup heavy cream

One 9-inch graham cracker pie crust

Directions

Put the sorbet in a medium microwave-safe bowl and heat until melted. Stir in the condensed milk and let cool.

Put the cream in another medium bowl and beat with an electric mixer until it is thick and holds a ribbony shape when you run the beaters through it (do not let it form soft peaks), 2 to 3 minutes. Gently stir the thickened cream into the lemon sorbet mixture and pour into the pie crust. Smooth out into an even layer. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and freeze until set, about 2 hours or up to overnight.

DENSE AND DELICIOUS CHOCOLATE CAKE

This is from the October 2006 issue of Vegetarian Times (page 31), and begins, “Wow the chocolate lovers in your life with this fudgy creation that’s as easy to whip up as a cake mix.” Makes 10 servings.

To view this online, click here.

Ingredients

Chocolate Cake

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 cup sugar

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/4 cup low-fat buttermilk

1 large egg

2 tsp. vanilla extract

1/2 cup brewed espresso or strong coffee

1/2 cup cocoa powder

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

Fudge Glaze

2 Tbs. low-fat buttermilk

2 Tbs. cocoa powder

2 Tbs. unsalted butter

1/2 cup confectioners' sugar

1 tsp. vanilla extract

Preparation

Preheat oven to 400F. Coat 9-inch round springform pan with cooking spray. Combine flour, sugar, and baking soda in bowl. Whisk together buttermilk, egg, and vanilla in separate bowl.

Combine espresso and cocoa in large saucepan. Add butter, and bring to a boil over medium-high heat, whisking constantly. Remove from heat, and stir in dry ingredients. Add buttermilk mixture, and whisk until smooth.

Pour batter into prepared pan, and bake 15 to 20 minutes, or until top looks dry but toothpick inserted in center comes out moist.

Meanwhile, make Fudge Glaze: Combine buttermilk, cocoa powder, and butter in medium saucepan, and bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Remove from heat, and stir in sugar and vanilla.

Pierce holes all over cake with skewer or fork. Spread glaze over cake with spatula. Let stand 5 minutes before unmolding, and serve.

GRAIN FREE TAHINI BROWNIES

This comes from Monique on her really cool site, Ambitious Kitchen. If you've never checked out Ambitious Kitchen before, I highly recommend it. Go ahead, I'll wait. (Tap, tap, tap…)

Okay, cool. Now the "official" title of this recipe is Grain Free Tahini Brownies (the best brownies I've ever eaten!), and Monique starts off, "The best brownies I've ever eaten: tahini brownies. No butter, flour, oil or refined sugar. These paleo, gluten free and grain free brownies are simply incredible with REAL, wholesome ingredients!"

Prep Time 10 minutes; Cook Time 25 minutes; Total Time 35 minutes; Serves 16

To view this online on the Ambitious Kitchen site, go to https://www.ambitiouskitchen.com/grain-free-tahini-brownies-the-best-brownies-ive-ever-eaten/.

Ingredients

1 cup tahini

1/2 cup coconut sugar

1/4 cup pure maple syrup

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 eggs

1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1 tablespoon coconut flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/3 cup chocolate chips (dairy free if desired)

For the chocolate drizzle

2 tablespoons chocolate chips

1 teaspoon coconut oil

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9x9 inch baking pan with nonstick cooking spray.

In a large bowl, combine the tahini, coconut sugar, maple syrup, vanilla extract and eggs until smooth and well combined. Gently fold in cocoa powder, coconut flour, salt and baking soda until batter is smooth. Fold in 1/3 cup chocolate chips into the batter. This batter should be rather thick.

Spread batter evenly in prepared baking pan. If it's giving you trouble to spread (because it's on the thicker side), spray a rubber spatula with nonstick cooking spray (trust me, it helps!).

Bake for 22-30 minutes or until knife inserted into the middle comes out clean or with just a few crumbs attached. Don't overbake!

After brownies have cooled a few minutes, prepared the chocolate drizzle: Place a small saucepan over low heat, add chocolate chips and coconut oil and stir frequently until melted and smooth. Generously drizzle over the brownies. Makes 16 brownies.

Recipe Notes

To store: I’d recommend leaving them on the counter for no more than a day or two, and then storing the brownies covered in the refrigerator. They’re especially delicious straight from the fridge!

To freeze tahini brownies: allow brownies to cool completely, then cut the brownies as directed. Wrap individual brownies in plastic wrap, then in foil or a reusable bag such as Stasher bags. Freeze for up to 3 months.

SALTY PEANUT-PRETZEL ICE CREAM CAKE

This is from Yossy Arefi in The New York Times cooking e-newslestter. Yossy wrote, "Grab a couple quarts of your favorite vanilla ice cream, crush up some peanuts and pretzels, and invite the neighborhood over for this sweet, salty, satisfying summer treat. For the most robust peanut flavor, use well-stirred natural, unsweetened peanut butter. You can also use a sweetened variety, if that’s what you have on hand, but bear in mind that the ice cream and honey lend this cake enough sweetness. The savory dry-roasted peanuts add a wonderful depth of flavor, but make sure to look for a brand without onion or garlic powder listed among the ingredients."

Yield: One 9-inch cake; Time: 40 minutes, plus cooling and freezing

To view this online, go to https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1018866-salty-peanut-pretzel-ice-cream-cake.

Ingredients

For the Crust and Crumbs:

2 cups mini pretzels

1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons salted peanuts (preferably dry roasted)

2 tablespoons light brown sugar

4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled

For the Ice Cream Layers:

2 quarts high-quality vanilla ice cream

3/4 cup natural, unsweetened peanut butter, well stirred

2 tablespoons honey

To finish:

1 cup heavy cream

Preparation

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Add pretzels, 1/4 cup peanuts and brown sugar to the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade. Pulse until the mixture resembles very coarse sand with a few larger pieces remaining. Pulse in the butter until well combined.

Press about 3/4 cup of the mixture into the bottom of a 9-inch springform pan. Spread the remaining mixture in an even layer on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake crust and crumbs until light golden and fragrant, about 4 to 5 minutes. The crust may take a bit longer to brown (another 2 to 3 minutes). Set pans on a rack to cool completely.

When the crust and crumbs are cool, transfer 1 quart of the ice cream to a large bowl and use a wooden spoon to break it into a few pieces. Let the ice cream sit at room temperature until slightly softened, about 10 minutes. Drizzle half the peanut butter over the top and gently fold it into the ice cream, so some ribbons of peanut butter remain.

Scoop the ice cream mixture onto the cooled crust and use an offset spatula to gently spread it to the edges of the pan, being careful not to pull the crust away from the bottom of the pan. Drizzle the top of the ice cream with 1 tablespoon of honey and use the tip of a knife or wooden skewer to swirl it as best you can into the surface of the ice cream. Sprinkle about 1/2 cup of the peanut-pretzel crumbs from the baking sheet over the top and gently press them into the ice cream. Cover the pan with plastic wrap and place the cake in the freezer.

After about an hour, soften the second quart of ice cream, and mix the remaining half of the peanut butter into it, and spread as before. Drizzle the remaining honey over the top and swirl it into the surface of the ice cream. Cover the pan with plastic wrap and return it to the freezer to chill the cake for at least 4 hours before serving, and up to overnight.

Just before serving, whip the cream to soft peaks, and stir the remaining whole peanuts into the remaining peanut-pretzel crumbs.

To unmold the cake, run a thin knife or offset spatula under hot water to warm it, and slide it around the edges of the cake. Remove the outer ring of the springform pan, dollop the top of the cake with whipped cream, lightly spread it to the edge, and sprinkle the remaining peanut-pretzel mixture around the top edge. Slice and serve.

ENGLISH TOFFEE BARS

This comes from the infamous long-since-forgotten emailing list. Yield: about 3 dozen bars depending on size.

Ingredients

2 cups all purpose flour

1 1/3 cups packed light brown sugar, divided

1/2 cup plus 2/3 cup cold butter, divided

1 cup pecan halves

1 cup milk chocolate chips

Directions

Heat oven to 350 F. Combine flour and 1 cup brown sugar in a large mixer bowl. With a pastry blender or fork, cut in 1/2 cup butter until fine crumbs form. A few large crumbs may remain - it is okay. Press the mixture onto the bottom of an ungreased 13 x 9 inch baking dish. Sprinkle the pecans over the crust. Set aside. Combine remaining 1/3 cup brown sugar and 2/3 cup butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture comes to a boil. Boil for 30 seconds, stirring constantly, then immediately pour over pecans and the crust. Bake for 20 to 22 minutes or until the topping is bubbly and golden brown. Remove from oven. Immediately sprinkle the milk chocolate chips evenly over the hot surface. Press gently onto surface. Cool completely in pan on wire rack. Cut into bars.

ALMOND JOY PIE

This is one of those recipes that I found somewhere or another. Long-since-forgotten emailing list? Facebook, perhaps? No clue, as it was saved without any "here's where it's from" notes.

Ingredients

Pie Filling Ingredients:

4 tbsp butter, melted

1 egg, beaten

1 tbsp all purpose flour

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1 1/2 cups shredded sweetened coconut

3/4 cup whole milk

1 tsp vanilla bean paste (extract will work)

Crust & Topping:

1 (6 oz) Chocolate Oreo Pie Crust

Ghiradelli Milk Chocolate Chips, melted

1/2 cup whole roasted almonds

Directions

Whisk the pie ingredients together: melted butter, egg, flour, sugar, coconut, vanilla paste and milk together.

Spread 1/4 cup almonds on the bottom of the pie crust, cover with 1/2 of the melted milk chocolate.

Place in the freezer for 5 minutes to set up. After the chocolate sets up a little bit, pour in the pie filling.

Bake at 350 degrees for 40-45 minutes or until set. The top will be golden brown.

Allow to cool.

Scatter remaining 1/4 cup almonds on the top of the cooled pie; pour melted chocolate over the almonds. Put in fridge for the chocolate to set up. Enjoy!

Sometimes you feel like a nut, sometimes you don’t? No problem.

To make a Mounds Pie: Leave out the almonds and use dark chocolate instead.

Best served at room temperature! If you'd like to eat it chilled, combine 3 tbsp of room temperature heavy whipping cream to the melted chocolate mixture before filling and topping the pie.