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Cinnamon Roll Cupcakes

May 16, 2016 by Abby

Bringing all the classic flavors without the time or effort of making real dough, cinnamon roll cupcakes are the perfect rich, decadent addition to any celebration.

Last month I was tasked with making the cake for my grandmother’s- Granny’s- birthday party. When I asked her what she thought she wanted, she said, “Surprise me.” I was excited by the freedom she gave me, but at the same time, having no parameters made choosing flavors difficult.

I was playing around with the idea of churro or snickerdoodle cupcakes when it hit me: I already had the perfect recipe inspiration on the blog. If you’ve not yet had cinnamon roll bars, you must make them soon. They’re thick and chewy and smothered with a generous layer of homemade cream cheese frosting. The recipe manages to bring all the classic drool-worthy cinnamon roll flavors and pack them into a simple-to-make bar.

And they’re the inspiration for this equally delectable cupcake.

Cinnamon roll cupcakes deliver the warm, comforting flavors of the classic, but without the pain of baking with yeast and rolling out dough. In fact, they start with a boxed cake mix; can you get any easier than that? The thick batter is portioned into cupcake liners, baked and cooled, and topped with a smooth and rich cream cheese frosting.

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Oreo Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

May 2, 2016 by Abby

With an Oreo baked inside the moist chocolate cake and a topping of rich cream cheese frosting, these Oreo cupcakes are decadent, sweet, and mouthwatering.

I first made these cupcakes- or a variation- for G’s first birthday. We let him have one, but he wasn’t sure what to think. I think his dad ended up eating it.

I made them again a few weeks ago for a baby shower at school. It was a “sprinkle,” really, and it was for us and for another teacher who is also expecting a sweet baby girl (really, by the time this is published, little Wiley Jo might already be here!). I volunteered to make the cupcakes because I have a hard time passing up an opportunity to bake something.

I’d considered going with soft colors, specifically pink, but this recipe was in my brain, nagging me and begging to be made. I make it a habit to listen to that voice, so I bought a package of double stuf Oreos and got to work.

Just like with my strawberry limeade cupcakes, I went with a boxed cake mix to save time and mess. If you’re careful not to over-bake your cake, you can still get moist, light cupcakes from a box. These devil’s food cupcakes were begging to be matched by an equally rich, smooth topping; cream cheese frosting was the obvious choice.

As a whole, these Oreo cupcakes are delectable and full of flavor. The Oreo at the bottom is an unexpected treat that’s matched by the decadent frosting. It doesn’t really matter what occasion you’re celebrating, these little guys will make it memorable.

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Easy Holiday Dessert Recipes

November 23, 2015 by Abby

This year, don’t waste time trying to impress everyone by replicating your grandmother’s famous recipe; knock their socks off with something new, like one of these easy holiday dessert recipes.

Do you have a signature holiday dessert? If so, by all means, stick with that this year. You wouldn’t want to disappoint the people who’ve spent 364 days looking forward to it.

But maybe you don’t have a go-to holiday dessert recipe? Maybe you’re the one who always volunteers to bring paper products to the gathering. Or maybe your idea of “homemade” is arranging store-bought cookies on a platter. Maybe you’re banned from the kitchen ever since the fire incident of ‘o9.

Whatever your reason for foregoing holiday baking, it’s time that changed. The easy holiday dessert recipes compiled here are all easy and mouthwatering. Some of them don’t even require you to use the oven. Be careful, though; you just might find a new signature holiday dish.

Easy Holiday Dessert Recipes

Brown Sugar Pound Cake with Caramel Icing

This pound cake is a decadent alternative to even the most indulgent pie. The cake itself is moist, buttery, and flecked with melty toffee bits. The whole thing is smothered with the kind of rich, gooey caramel icing that you haunts your dreams in all the best ways.

Peanut Butter Cup Bars

If you don’t think it was possible for a four-ingredient dessert steal the show at a holiday gathering, give these bars a try. They’re ridiculously easy to put together- no baking!- but your friends and family will go crazy.

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Frosted Cranberry White Chocolate Cookie Bars

October 26, 2015 by Abby

A hearty oat cookie bar base, packed with cranberries and white chocolate chips, spread with a thick layer of white chocolate cream cheese frosting, and topped off with more cranberries and a white chocolate drizzle.

Frosted cranberry white chocolate cookie bars taste like home. My mom, whose cookie prowess I’ve mentioned before, makes a cranberry white chocolate oatmeal cookie that’s to die for. Like, good enough to convert cranberry and white chocolate hating people like J. Seriously, her cookies have powers.

So I texted her a couple weeks ago and asked if I could blog that recipe. She didn’t hesitate to send it to me, but the wheels in my head were already turning. My mother-in-law, a darn good cook, too, had mentioned her affection for Starbucks’ cranberry bliss bars. I checked them out and the basic idea reminded me of my mom’s cookies.

So I decided to combine the two. To make my mom’s cookies a little more holiday-friendly, I added cinnamon, nutmeg, and orange zest. I baked them in bar form, as much to save time as to mimic the coffeehouse kind. And then I smothered the whole thing in a decadent white chocolate frosting.

I’ve got to confess that I’ve never had a cranberry bliss bar, but these bars are the definition of bliss (perfect happiness; great joy). Happiness is devouring a generous square of these frosted cranberry white chocolate cookie bars.

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Cinnamon Roll Bars with Cream Cheese Frosting

October 19, 2015 by Abby

(this isn’t a sponsored post; I just really love this product)

Pillsbury Traditional Yellow Cake Mix gets a boost with cinnamon and brown sugar. They’re baked until chewy, and then spread with a thick layer of icing for cinnamon roll bars with cream cheese frosting.

Who doesn’t love cinnamon rolls? I know I do, and I even make them on occasion. I’m not afraid to work with yeast and there’s just something about a warm homemade cinnamon roll that defies description.

But this is real life. Sometimes it’s 10 p.m. and you remember, as you’re about to climb into bed, that you promised a group of students you’d feed them at your 7:30 a.m. meeting. And since cinnamon rolls are certainly not happening, you rack your brain for a simpler solution. Something mouth-watering, yes, but something that comes together quickly.

That’s where these cinnamon roll bars come in. The base is Traditional Yellow Cake Mix, so it doesn’t take too many more ingredients for the bars to come together. As soon as you open the bag of cake mix, you’re hit with its rich vanilla-y smell. By the time you add the cinnamon, brown sugar, and other ingredients, your whole kitchen smells like a decadent cinnamon roll.

As I put the bars in the oven, J walked in the kitchen and said, “That smells so good; what did you make?” He was surprised I hadn’t baked anything yet because the kitchen smelled that good. And by the time I pulled the cinnamon roll bars out of the oven, the whole house smelled like cinnamon and sugar.

Sure, you could make this recipe from scratch, but the Pillsbury Traditional Yellow Cake Mix does all the work for you. It delivers deep flavors while doing most of the hard work for you. You get the convenience of a boxed mix with the ability to transform it into something entirely your own.

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frosted sugar cookies

February 12, 2015 by Abby

Forget the crumbly, tasteless grocery store version. These homemade frosted sugar cookies are crisp and buttery around the outside and chewy in the middle. They’re everything a sugar cookie should be.

These cookies. These cookies.

Let’s be real for a second. Is there anything tastier than a well-made sugar cookie? I’m not talking about those crumbly, under-baked messes you buy from the “bakery” section of the grocery store. I’m talking about the real thing. The homemade version, with the slightly crunchy, buttery outside and the chewy, firm inside.

Every year I take my FBLA students to a district conference, where they compete in various business-related events. It isn’t the competition that they’re most excited about, though. It’s not the pizza we have for lunch, the scholarship opportunities, or even the day away from school that they most look forward to.

No, the thing my students spend all year talking about is these cookies. Because they’re that good, that buzz-worthy. If you think store-bought sugar cookies are “almost as good” as homemade, you owe it to yourself to make these and prove you wrong.

Frosted Sugar Cookies
cookie recipe adapted slightly from here, frosting recipe adapted slightly from here

for the cookies
1 1/4 cups butter, room temperature
2 cups sugar
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2 eggs
1/2 cup milk
5 cups flour
1 tsp salt
4 tsp baking powder

for the frosting
3 cups powdered sugar
1 cup butter, room temperature
1 tsp vanilla
4 tsp whole milk or cream

Using a stand or hand mixer, cream together butter and sugar. Add in the vanilla, eggs, and milk and mix until well combined. Add the flour, salt, and baking powder and mix just until everything comes together.

Form dough into a ball, wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate until firm, about an hour.

On a generously floured surface, roll dough out to 1/4 inch thickness, cut cookie shapes with cookie cutters, and bake at 350 degrees for 9-11 minutes.

Using a stand or hand mixer, cream together butter and powdered sugar until they’re thick and well-mixed, about a minute. Add vanilla and milk or cream and mix on medium-high for about another minute.

Cool cookies completely before frosting.

What’s your favorite sugar cookie occasion?

Want to try more homemade favorites? Try these surprisingly simple and stunningly scrumptious peanut butter cup bars or this rich and fudgy mug brownie.

cinnamon roll bars with cream cheese frosting

January 15, 2015 by Abby

That’s where these cinnamon roll bars come in. The base is a box cake mix, so it doesn’t take too many more ingredients for them to come together. I love to bake the bars the night before, then whip up the frosting in the morning and frost them right before I walk out the door.

These bars are so easy, yet so moist and rich, that they could easily become a new make-ahead holiday favorite. Or, if you really love the people in your life, make them this weekend.

Cinnamon Roll Bars
adapted from Cookies & Cups

For the bars:
1 box white or yellow cake mix
3/4 cup melted butter
1/2 cup brown sugar (I’ve used light or dark; both work fine)
2 eggs
1 tablespoon water
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch
2 tablespoons cinnamon
cinnamon sugar for sprinkling (optional)

For the frosting:
1 8 oz. brick of cream cheese, softened
1 cup butter, softened
4 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

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