Tag: Blue Ribbon Group recipe

Mini Cheesecakes

Mini cheesecakes make great after-dinner desserts.

Their size is small enough so you don’t feel like you are over indulging. At the same time, their richness and creaminess will easily satisfy your sweet tooth. With the paper liners, they transport easily and work well at parties as easy-to-pass-around desserts.

You’ll love the texture and tang of these mini cheesecakes. You can credit that to the sour cream or Greek yogurt. Another great thing about them is how easy they are to make. There are just three ingredients in the crust: graham crackers, butter and brown sugar. In seconds you are half-way done making this dessert.

The filling has just four core ingredients (cream cheese, egg, sugar, and vanilla), plus whatever flavoring(s) and food color(s) you choose. And that’s the added beauty of this recipe. You can flavor your mini cheesecakes in so many different ways. With all the extracts and compatible ingredients, the options are endless. I’ve made many coconut versions with this coconut extract from Frontier-Co-op, plus a lot with citrus extracts. Key lime anyone? Chocolate is another go-to. And think of all the fruits you could feature. Any berry would work, or banana, or even mango. You could go the cookie/candy path, with crushed Oreos, Reese’s peanut butter cups, or Snickers.

For this version and because of my state fair love, I did cotton candy mini cheesecakes. I’ve been in love with cotton candy as a flavor since my first taste at the since closed, Izzy’s Ice Cream. In fact, I confess to not liking cotton candy itself, at all! But put cotton candy flavoring in something creamy and I’m all in. One of my favorite products to use is Amoretti’s cotton candy “artisan flavor.” It gives the cheesecake almost a raspberry meets cotton candy.

I hope you get to enjoy these soon!

-Cyndi

Black Bottom Cupcakes

Black Bottom Cupcakes: Any time I come across a recipe for something I grew up baking with my mom, I’m filled with warm fuzzies and food cravings. Lots of no-bake cookies and “strike-it-rich” cakes come to mind. Imagine my delight then, when I bought this Guittard Chocolate Cookbook.

I was blasted to the past with these “Black Bottom Cupcakes.” They were a go-to treat in my family, bigtime. I was thrilled to make them again after all these years.

This “cake-meets-cheesecake” dessert is so absolutely fabulous. I couldn’t even wait until they fully cooled to dig into one. It is definitely a winning recipe!

Warm, melted chocolate chips inside a tangy cream cheese filling, all surrounded by a rich and tender chocolate cupcake. There’s something about this ingredient combination that is marvelous. As a bonus, these cupcakes are incredibly easy to make!

Easy Bake

Once you prep the batter, divvy it up in a lined cupcake tin.

Whip up the cream cheese filling. Add that on top of the chocolate batter.

After about 20 minutes in the oven, you get your Black Bottom Cupcakes.

Thank you Guittard for taking me and my taste buds back in time. This one is blue ribbon worthy for sure! Their recipe was my inspiration, but I changed a few things. I used coconut oil instead of vegetable oil, and added almond extract. I also upped all the amounts of cocoa, cream cheese, and chocolate chips. Coffee creamer came in handy when I didn’t have whole milk. Plus I made a few other minor tweaks.

Black Bottom Cupcakes is a forgiving (translate: very easy) recipe, so it is a fun one to make with kids. Grab your ingredients and get baking!

-Cyndi

p.s. The Guittard Chocolate Cookbook is filled with fabulous recipes. I give it a thumbs up and hope you buy it. Here’s a link.

Savory Buffalo Chicken Mini Pies

Next time a flavor craving for “buffalo chicken wings” hits you, make these Savory Buffalo Chicken Mini Pies.

They are basically baby-sized savory pies packed with diced chicken, cheddar cheese, and spicy red hot sauce. A bleu cheese crumble topping and celery garnish bring home the buffalo chicken theme. You can tailor them to your preferred heat level with how much sauce you use. You can also easily make these gluten-free by using Gluten-Free Bisquick.

Savory Buffalo Chicken Mini Pies – Step by Step

The recipe comes from Betty Crocker. Thank you BETTY! Here’s how incredibly and impossibly easy they are to make. Get your ingredients set out. Mix the chicken, buffalo sauce, and ground pepper.

Add the cheese.

Mix it up and set it aside. You’ll use this “filling” in a few seconds.

In a separate medium bowl, combine Bisquick, milk, and eggs.

Take a muffin pan prepped with cooking spray. Spoon a tablespoon of batter into each cup.

Add 1/4 cup chicken mixture to each cup.

Add another tablespoon of batter to each cup.

Bake them in a pre-heated 375-degree F oven for about 25-30 minutes. The tip of inserting a toothpick in the center applies here. If it comes out clean, it’s fully baked.

Once your savory buffalo chicken mini pies are out of the oven, add your finishing touches (like bleu cheese and celery), and you have a fantastic party food on your hands.

On a closing note, we ran a Bisquick recipe contest many years back. Thanks to that, we have numerous award-winning Bisquick recipes on our site. One of my favorites is this savory pie. Want more? Simply search for Bisquick in the search bar, from anywhere on our site. You’ll find fun recipes ranging from savory crackers and biscuits, to hand pies and zucchini fries. Wow! You will want to try all of them.

-Cyndi

Homemade Caramel Corn

Homemade Caramel Corn: Lean how to make it with this special recipe.

Caramel corn and state fairs go hand in hand. In fact, Cracker Jack’s, the molasses-coated peanut/popcorn treat debuted at the Chicago World’s Fair in 1893. Next time you have a hankering for this sweet snack, use this easy go-to recipe. It calls for just 6 ingredients. Add some salted peanuts and you’ll have homemade Cracker Jack’s, a snack the whole family will love.

And if you’re looking for another quintessential state fair recipe, try your hand at these homemade corndogs.

-Cyndi

Almond Joy Cookie Bars

These Almond Joy Cookie Bars will bring utter joy to any almond, chocolate, or coconut lover. With three decadent layers, these bars are thick, dense and delicious!

Thanks to almond extract, whole toasted almonds, and sliced toasted almonds, these sensational sweet treats burst with almond flavor. The shredded coconut filling, chocolate, and almonds altogether give them an addictive texture that’s crunchy, chewy, and rich, all at the same time. AND…they are super easy to make.

3 Easy Pieces

Making these Almond Joy Cookie Bars, only takes three main stages. You par-bake a lush cookie crust made simply with butter, corn syrup, egg yolk, flour, baking powder, and salt.
Next you mix shredded coconut and sweetened condensed milk with almond extract, then bake that mixture on top of the cookie crust as the filling. Check out the gooey good look of the filling (image below).
You finish these fabulous treats with whole almonds, melted semi-sweet chocolate chips, and sliced almonds.

Top Preparation Tip

Using parchment to line your pan will make removing the bars from the pan and cutting them easy peasy. Once they’re chilled, all you need to do is lift them out by the parchment edges. Here’s a shot of the bars once they’ve chilled. This time I made them, I didn’t add the almond slices until just before serving. Just look at how is golden brown the crust is and how jammed the bars are with almonds.

Blue Ribbon Winning Sweet Treat

Recipe credit goes to Tammy Michalec of Leesville who won a KARO best recipe contest at her local fair, the South Carolina State Fair with this recipe.

Want More Almond Joyfulness?

Hey all you almond, coconut and chocolate lovers! If you love this recipe, be sure not to miss our Mounds of Joy Cake also. In January 2021, it was one of our #1 most popular recipe on the site.

Enjoy!

Cyndi