I made these bars a few days ago for a baby shower. They were a hit, and I’ve been asked a few times for the recipe. So here it is!

This cake surprised me. I wasn’t sure how good it would be. I just knew that I had to make it. I’m so glad I did!

Thanks to the mashed bananas and sour cream, this cake is really moist. There wasn’t any left or otherwise I would have had it for breakfast the next morning with a cup of coffee!

This Banana Cake was also really easy to make. Don’t you love when things are easy? And don’t even get me started on the brown butter icing. You can’t go wrong with brown butter anything. Yum!

Banana Cake with Brown Butter Icing

recipe slightly adapted from The Baker Chick

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup sour cream (I think this would also be good with greek yogurt)
• 1/4 cup butter, softened
• 1 egg
• 1 cup mashed over ripe bananas (about 2 medium bananas)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 cup all purpose flour (I did half white, half wheat flour)
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• for the icing:
• 1/4 cup butter, softened
• 2 cups powdered sugar
• 1/2 vanilla bean split and scraped of seeds or 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 & 1/2 T milk

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line a 8×8 glass baking dish with parchment paper. Set aside.
2. Beat the sugar, sour cream, 1/4 cup butter, and egg until mixed well. Add in the banana and vanilla extract and mix until well combined. Mix in flour, baking soda, and salt.
3. Spread batter in pan.
4. Bake 20-25 minutes or until the cake is done and a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.
5. While the cake is baking, start your icing. In a small pan, over low-medium heat melt your butter and let it bubble and sizzle for about 10-20 minutes until it’s brown and smelling fabulous. Take off heat and let cool. Whisk in powdered sugar, vanilla bean seeds or extract and milk. If you need more milk to get the desired consistency, go ahead and add that now.
6. After the cake has cooled 10-15 minutes, spread the icing over the cake. Let cool completely and enjoy!

– Jill

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Sometimes you just need dessert. How about a healthy dessert? One you won’t feel too bad about eating?

I love strawberries. They’re one of my favorite things about summer. So sweet. So perfect for summer.

This Strawberry Shortcake recipe uses honey instead of sugar. I also used Whole Wheat Pastry flour. And I made fresh whipped cream. Perfection in a bowl!

You are going to love this! It’s the perfect dessert for the summer. And who doesn’t love strawberry shortcake?

Strawberry Shortcake

recipe from Heavenly Homemakers

Ingredients:

• 1 & 1/3 cups whole wheat pastry flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup honey
• 1/3 cup coconut oil, melted
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup milk
• fresh strawberries, sliced
• whipped cream (I whipped my own whipped cream and added a tsp of vanilla extract and a tablespoon of honey)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease an 8×8 baking dish, and set aside.
2. Mix together flour and baking powder. Mix in eggs, honey, oil, vanilla, and milk. Pour into greased baking dish, and bake for 20-25 minutes or until lightly brown and a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.
3. Allow cake to cool and then serve with strawberries and whipped cream.
4. Enjoy!

– Jill

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Sometimes the easiest treats are the best. It’s easy to forget that when all these elaborate desserts pop up in magazines and on food blogs. (And yet I want to make them all!)

Sometimes you just need a good ol’ rice crispy bar. And that’s what I have for you today. Except instead of regular butter, I browned it. You can never go wrong with brown butter!

I found this recipe over on Smitten Kitchen. One of my favorite food blogs for sure!

These were a huge crowd pleaser, especially with my kids. (Not that you’re surprised). I mean, really, who doesn’t love a rice crispy bar?!  If you make these you will love them. And your kids will love them. So will your friends. And definitely your spouse, especially if you give him a cup of coffee to go along with it.

Salted Brown Butter Crispy Treats

recipe from Smitten Kitchen

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup butter
• 1- 10 oz bag marshmallows
• 1/4 tsp coarse sea salt
• 6 cups Rice Krispies cereal (about half of a 12-oz box)

Directions:

1. Grease an 8-inch baking dish, and set aside.
2. In a large pot, melt your butter on low heat. Leave it for like 10-15 minutes until it’s brown and has a nutty smell. If I remember to, I like to whisk it every once in awhile.
3. Take the butter off the heat, and mix in the marshmallows. If you need to put it back on the heat to get the marshmallows to melt completely, go ahead. Next mix in the salt. And then the cereal.
4. Spread mixture into prepared baking dish. You’ll want to press the crispy treats down firmly. I like to use a spatula or Smitten recommends a greased piece of wax or parchment paper.
5. Let cool, and cut into squares.
6. Enjoy!

– Jill

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We always have a ton of candy canes left over after Christmas, and while the kids would be glad to eat them, I like to do something with them.

Last year I made this delicious Peppermint Dessert. This year: No Bake Candy Cake Cheesecake Bites!

After all the food we’ve been eating lately, these are perfect. They are light with a hint of peppermint crunch. They taste almost like ice cream and they melt in your mouth. And my favorite thing? They are so easy to make!

No Bake Candy Cake Cheesecake Bites

recipe adapted from She Knows

Ingredients:

• 1 pint heavy cream
• 1- 8 oz cream cheese, softened at room temp
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 tsp peppermint extract
• 1/2 cup candy canes, crushed

Directions:

1. Sprinkle some of the crushed candy canes in the bottom of a mini muffin tin. I used a mini muffin tin and a heart-shaped candy mold.
2. In a large bowl, whip the heavy cream for a few minutes until you get soft peaks. Transfer whipped cream to another bowl. In the bowl you just used to whip the heavy cream, cream the cream cheese, sugar, and peppermint extract. Once it’s mixed good, fold in the whipped cream.
3. Fill your mini muffin tins or candy colds with the cheesecake batter. Sprinkle remaining crushed candy cakes on top. Put in the freezer for a couple of hours until the bites are totally frozen.
4. Enjoy!

– Jill

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I apparently have a thing for turning my favorite cake into everything and anything. See here and here.

These are no exception. These Hanky Panky Truffles do not disappoint. They are wonderfully chocolate, have a bit of a crunch from the heath bits, and are sweet because of the caramel and condensed milk drizzle.

These are decadent. One is enough. (Or two if you’re my husband.) His first question was, “Can I eat these?” Why, yes, please do. His response after eating a couple, “These were so good!” Awww, I love that kind of feedback!

Hanky Panky Truffles

a Reini Days original!

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1/8 cup caramel sauce
• 1/8 cup sweetened-condensed milk
• 1-8 oz bag of heath bits (found in the baking aisle by the chocolate chips)

Directions:

1. Pour your heavy cream in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil, and then add your vanilla extract.
2. Put your chocolate chips in a medium-sized bowl and add the heavy cream. Let sit for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, the chocolate chips should be melted. If not, put back in saucepan on low for a few minutes until melted and mixed together.
3. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and spread chocolate chip mixture on it. Refrigerate for an hour.
4. Mix caramel sauce and milk in a small bowl, and set aside.
5. Crush up heath bits to make them even smaller. I did this in a mini food processor. Put in a small bowl, and set aside.
6. Take the chocolate chip/heavy cream mixture out of the fridge. Using a teaspoon roll chocolate into a ball. Drizzle caramel/milk mixture on top and then roll in crushed heath bits. You will make a bit of a mess, but that’s okay! It’s fun! Repeat with the rest of the chocolate.
7. Store in airtight container in the refrigerator or freezer.
8. Enjoy!

I am entering this Hanky Panky Truffle recipe into Creative Holiday Recipe Contest hosted by Confessions of a Cookbook Queen and Cookies and Cups. Go to either of their sites to check out the fun recipes!

– Jill

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Pumpkin Bars are my absolute favorite thing to eat when the weather starts to get cool, and when Fall is almost upon us. When I was younger, my mom would make a pan of pumpkin bars and I would eat at least half the pan. I knew I wanted to make some Pumpkin Bars, but that I didn’t want all the sugar. When I stumbled across this recipe, I knew I had to make them.

This are refined sugar free, which means no white sugar. They’re made with coconut oil and whole wheat flour. The best part? They are delicious! I couldn’t believe how good they were when I tasted one.

Frosted Pumpkin Bars

recipe slightly adapted from The Unrefined Kitchen

Ingredients:

• 1 & 3/4 cups whole wheat pastry flour
• 2 tsp. cinnamon
• 2 tsp. baking soda
• 1 tsp. salt
• 7 eggs
• 1/2 cup honey
• 1/2 cup coconut oil, melted and cooled
• 1/2 cup applesauce
• 1-15 oz. can pumpkin puree

Frosting:

• 1/3 cup butter, softened
• 1/3 cup coconut oil (at room temp., not melted)
• 1/4 cup honey
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease a 10 x 15 inch pan.
2. Stir together flour, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl.
3. Combine eggs, honey, coconut oil, applesauce, and pumpkin puree in a large bowl until mixed well. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix really, really well.
4. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 15-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the bars comes out clean.
5. Let cool completely.
6. To make your frosting: mix all ingredients until well blended and fluffy. Spread on bars.
7. Enjoy!

– Jill

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Better Than Sex Cake is my most favorite cake out there. I don’t think I need to explain why. If you’ve had it, you know it’s pretty awesome. If you haven’t, you probably should make it (or these cupcakes!). I made these cookies awhile back, and if I do say so myself they’re pretty fantastic.

These cupcakes are a little more work than the cake, but I think it’s totally worth the effort.

I don’t really have much to say about these cupcakes. I think you can just look at them and see how wonderful they are.

Hanky Panky Cupcakes (or Better Than Sex Cupcakes)

recipe from me

Ingredients:

• 1- box of Devil’s Cake Mix (and whatever ingredients you need for this; water, oil, eggs)
• sweetened condensed milk (about half a can)
• caramel ice cream topping (or homemade if you prefer)
• toffee bits (you can find these in the baking section)
• cool whip (or homemade, which is what I did)

Directions:

1. Make cupcakes according to box directions. When they come out of the oven, poke holes in the tops of the cupcakes. I used a wooden skewer. Pour a tablespoon of sweetened condensed milk on each cupcake. Then let cupcakes cool completely.
2. Then either make your homemade whipped cream or get out your cool whip. After I made my whipped cream, I put it in a Ziploc baggy, and cut a small hole on one bottom corner. Then I frosted my cupcakes.
3. Then warm up your caramel a little bit. I then put my caramel in a little squeeze bottle, and drizzled caramel over the whipped cream. Top with toffee bits, and enjoy!
4. Keep refrigerated! These babies only get better with time.

– Jill

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