Tag Archives: Coconut

Coconut Cream Pie

Strange as it sounds, coconut cream pie has always been one of those recipes I have struggled with. Robb loves coconut cream pie, and will frequently order it at restaurants. Which makes me feel like I just need to get this one right.

I have tried several recipes over the years, and none of them have quite met my standards, except one glorious recipe which promptly disappeared from the internet, never to be seen again. Here are my parameters for success:

Not too runny. Most of those I tried required a bowl and looked like a pile of goo.
Has enough coconut. I was shocked at how many were thin on coconut content. They were more like vanilla pudding with a little coconut mixed in.
Uses both sweetened and unsweetened coconut. The unsweetened, fine shredded stuff is great for flavor and texture, but many don’t use it.
Maybe this goes without saying, but it has to taste good. I’m shooting for a nice, heavy, rich coconut flavor.

I ended up creating my own version, which takes the pieces I like from all the recipes I tried.

I felt like I really perfected this recipe some time ago, but for whatever reason, I was unable to photograph it, and therefore unable to blog it. But I didn’t want to forget it, so I wrote it on a white board calendar in my hallway, where it has remained for many months.

You might think I have a more organized way to keep my recipes. But I don’t.

This pie uses 5 egg yolks. Yes, FIVE. I know it’s indulgent, but this is, after all, my husband’s favorite dessert. If you’re wondering what to do with the leftover whites, you could try these fun meringue cookies. They’re actually pretty easy to make.

Let’s talk about where to spend your time on this pie. I chose not to use a boxed pudding mix, but to make this one from scratch, so if you’re looking for some time savers, I can suggest two.

Frozen pie crust
Cool whip

You can do the homemade crust if you want, and if you have patience. I have a recipe for a good one here. You only need a bottom crust for this one, and whether you use frozen or fresh crust, you do have to blind bake it. I recommend baking at 400F for 11-14 minutes, until it’s just starting to turn brown.

You can do real cream too, if you’re going all out. I’m a fan of real cream, but I’m also a fan of not spending my entire freaking day baking pie. Which is why I chose the frozen whipped topping for this recipe.

Of course, if you use real cream you can add a little coconut extract to it for flavor. Or you could use coconut milk to make the cream, if you’re really ambitious.

I can’t wait to share of piece of this with Robb!

Print Recipe

Coconut Cream Pie

A creamy coconut pie in a baked shell, topped with whipped cream and toasted coconut.

Servings: 1 pie

Ingredients

5 egg yolks
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup cornstarch
1 package unflavored gelatin
3 cups half and half
1 tablespoon butter
1/2 teaspoon coconut extract
2/3 cup unsweetened coconut finely shredded
1 cup sweetened coconut, + 1/4 cup for garnish
1 pie crust
whipped cream, to garnish

Instructions

Blind bake pie crust at 400F for 11-14 minutes. (For detailed instructions, read here: http://www.thekitchn.com/how-to-blind-bake-a-pie-crust-cooking-lessons-from-the-kitchn-197553 )
Place yolks in saucepan. Mix lightly. Add sugar, cornstarch, gelatin and half and half. Whisk ingredients together. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until it reaches a boil.
Let boil, stirring constantly, for one minute. Remove from heat and add butter and extract.
Stir in unsweetened and sweetened coconut. Mix to incorporate. Pour completed filling into baked pie crust, and let cool.
Place 1/4 cup coconut on a piece of foil or a small baking sheet and bake at 400F for about 5 minutes, checking frequently, until it reaches a brown color.
Top cooled pie with whipped cream and toasted coconut. Serves 6.

Rocky Road No-Bake Cookies

This no-bake cookie recipe uses peanuts and marshmallows for a rocky road flavor combination!

I ran over my niece with a scooter. It’s a true story.

We recently went on this big family vacation, all eighteen of us spent a week together on a cruise. When we got to Cozumel, Mexico, we decided to rent scooters and drive down the highway to the beach. We must have looked like one strange scooter gang.

I don’t actually have any experience driving a scooter, but I swear this accident wasn’t my fault.

Well, it mostly wasn’t my fault.

The scooter in front of me caught the edge of the road when we were turning around, and they went sliding. I couldn’t stop in time, and literally just drove right over the top of poor JFK. You could literally see the tire tread on her arm. It was awful.

I had visions of spending the rest of the vacation in a Mexican hospital, but as it turned out, JFK was fine. No broken bones, no internal bleeding, just the huge scrape on her leg that she got before I drove over her.

BEFORE. It’s important you know that.

I came away with some nasty bruises (I’ll spare you the details, but for real, I looked pretty beat up.) but JFK and her mom had the worst of it, with scrapes that ran the length of their legs. To her credit, JFK smiled and laughed, and made the best of the situation.

And then she lobbied me for cookies.

“I think you owe me some sorry-I-ran-over-you-cookies!” she told me, about 10 minutes after the crash.

“Wrong,” I said. “You owe me some sorry-I-fell-under-your-tire cookies.” She didn’t buy this argument at all.

So I put on my thinking cap. I mean, what cookie says we were in a scooter accident on vacation? Well, Rocky Road, obviously.

One word about the marshmallows in this recipe. I used the Jet-Puffed Mallow Bits. I like these, because they are small, and dry, and don’t melt into the cookies as easily as the regular variety. I have discovered that they are not available in every grocery store, but I can almost always find them in Walmart, next to the hot chocolate mix.

They’re meant for cocoa, but they’re really fun for baking.

And they’re perfect for saying, sorry I ran over you with a scooter.

Print Recipe

Rocky Road No-Bake Cookies

An easy no-bake chocolate cookie with peanuts and marshmallows.

Servings: 3 dozen

Ingredients

1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup milk
2 cups sugar
3 tablespoons cocoa powder
dash salt
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup shredded coconut
3 cups quick oats
1/2 cup peanuts
1 cup dry marshmallow bits (Jet-Puffed Mallow Bits)

Instructions

In a heavy saucepan, melt butter. Add milk, sugar, cocoa, and salt, and mix well. Bring to a boil and let boil 1-2 minutes. Remove from heat and add vanilla.
Stir in coconut and oats, until well coated and combined. Fold in peanuts and marshmallow bits.
Drop spoonfuls onto a baking sheet lined with wax paper or parchment paper. Refrigerate 10-15 minutes before serving.

Coconut Skillet Cake

Of all my cake recipes, coconut might be my favorite! This is the best coconut cake recipe because it uses buttermilk and is made in a skillet.

Here’s the thing about me and cake. I cannot make a layer cake look good to save my life. They always look like they were frosted by a 3 year old when I make them. (Not naming names, *cough* Hummingbird Cake *cough*)

Sometimes, I’d just rather not deal with trying to make a cake look pretty at all.

Which is exactly why this skillet cake is all that and a bag of chips. Not only is it all fantastically coconut and buttermilk, but since it’s just one cute little layer in a skillet pan, no one expects it to look like a work of art.

Just a little glaze and some toasted coconut are all the toppings this baby needs.

Pin this to your Cake Recipes board on Pinterest!

I have to tell you that when it comes to buttermilk, I have created monsters.

Literally one minute ago, my daughter asked me if I bought buttermilk while I was at the store today. She was devastated when I told her no. (I try not to buy it unless I really really need it, because I’m a freaking addict and I will fill the house with buttermilk baked goods.)

When I asked her what she wanted it for, she looked at me as if the answer was completely obvious. “Cookies.”

Well, let’s be honest. It’s hard for me to say no to that. I have a feeling I’ll be running to the store for buttermilk later.

You know what’s super fun? Seeing my recipes and photos in print. I know it’s a little self-indulgent, but seeing my Coconut Buttermilk Skillet Cake and my Orange Slow Cooker Rice Pudding in the spring 2015 issue of Dish & Done magazine really made me smile.

Check it out. The cover looks like this:

So don’t worry about the frosting. A cake made in a cast iron skillet has it’s own kind of beauty!

Want more? Try these delicious coconut recipes!

Coconut Skillet Cake

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Cook time

25 mins

Total time

25 mins

A simple, one-dish coconut cake made in a cast iron skillet.

Author: Jen @ Jen's Favorite Cookies

Recipe type: Cake

Serves: 8

Ingredients

½ cup butter
¾ cup sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1½ cups flour
1½ cups buttermilk
½ cup coconut + more for garnish

Instructions

In a 12-inch skillet, melt butter and cool slightly. Add sugar, and use a wooden spoon to mix well.
Add eggs and vanilla, and mix. Add salt, baking powder, and mix until combined. Add flour and buttermilk alternately, stirring until combined. Stir in coconut.
Spread batter to cover the entire pan. Place the skillet in the oven, and bake at 350F for 25-30 minutes. Garnish with coconut.

Notes

This cake can also be made in a 9-inch skillet, but increase baking time to be sure cake is done in the center.

Fruit and Nut Granola

This simple granola recipe is full of nuts and dried fruits! This is the best granola recipe for energy in the morning.

The power went out at my house this morning. And I was reminded why being without power is one of the most annoying things to experience ever.

Holy moly, I am dependent on my electricity. I could use my computer, but without a modem, not my internet, so what’s the point of that? And then there’s no tv, the laptop doesn’t last long without being plugged in, and I even had to keep and eye on my cell phone battery.

I did listen to some podcasts (like this one for bloggers) but the whole time I was thinking about how I didn’t have wifi, so I was streaming and paying for all that data.

And, obviously, there’s no baking in my fancy-schmancy new electric oven, so I couldn’t even work on this cake recipe I have planned.

Talk about frustrating.

Pin this to your Breakfast Recipes board!

I ended up going to the dog park where Monster and I wandered around alone (no one goes to the dog park in the middle of the morning in January, apparently) and nearly froze to death.

Let me tell you, I was glad there was some granola in the pantry, so I could at least have something decent to eat for breakfast. It was that or a bag of pretzels.

This simple granola recipe is one of my favorites. It’s chock full of nuts and dried fruits, with a touch of sweetness from honey. It’s a great way to get a little energy for your morning.

If you’ve never made homemade granola, can I urge you to try it? It’s SO crazy easy to make, easy to customize, has very few ingredients, and homemade granola tastes ah-maaaaaz-ing.

I customized this with some of my favorite nuts, namely almonds and pecans. Though I may have used walnuts if I hadn’t been completely out of them. And I used dates and craisins, but you could use raisins, or those gorgeous golden raisins, or dried apricots, or tart cherries, or whatever you like. And, I obviously threw in some coconut, because… yummmmm… coconut!

I hope the next time your power goes out, there’s some granola in your pantry too. It almost makes a morning without Netflix bearable!

Want more? Try these granola recipes!

Fruit and Nut Granola

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Prep time

10 mins

Cook time

20 mins

Total time

30 mins

A simple granola recipe with nuts and dried fruits.

Author: Jen @ Jen's Favorite Cookies

Recipe type: Breakfast

Serves: 3 cups

Ingredients

2 cups rolled oats
1 cup shredded coconut
½ cup chopped pecans or walnuts
½ cup sliced almonds
¼ cup sunflowers seeds (kernels)
¼ cup vegetable or canola oil
⅓ cup honey
dried cranberries
dates

Instructions

Combine oats, coconut, pecans, almonds and sunflower seeds in a mixing bowl. Add oil and honey, and stir to coat.
Spread evenly on a baking sheet, and bake at 350F for about 20 minutes until browned, stirring halfway through.
Let cool. Add dried cranberries and dates to taste. (about ⅓ - ½ cup each)

Almond Joy Fudge

One of my favorite easy chocolate fudge recipes! This almond joy fudge recipe only requires 4 ingredients and 10 minutes!

I showed the Fruitarian the pictures of this easy chocolate fudge, and he immediately chimed in with, “Is that available?”

The Fruitarian, for those who don’t know, is my 16 year old son. I also call him The Hungry One. And The Chocoholic. And The Sugar Addicted. I knew he would be all over that fudge.

However, he has a little problem where he doesn’t like nuts. It makes me wonder if he was switched at birth. I couldn’t let an opportunity like this pass me by.

“Of course you can have some fudge. But there’s a problem. It has almonds.”
“Well, it also has coconut.”
“But what will you do about the almonds?”
“I think I can suffer through them.”
“You know, I’m going to remember this.”

I think the bigger problem will be keeping his sticky fingers out of the freezer, since I intend to save the bulk of this fudge for Christmas. (See related post: Chocolate Peppermint Fudge)

(Add this to your Christmas recipe Pinterest board!)

I’m sure there are plenty of fun and fancy ways to add coconut and almonds to fudge. (Layers, anyone?)

But seriously, I was having one of those what-can-I-throw-together-in-5-minutes kind of days. Tell me I’m not alone.

It seems like it’s worse in December. All that shopping and going to parties and gift-exchanging lunches with friends takes a lot of time, you know. A girl can’t spend her whole life in the kitchen, can she? (See related post: Black and White Fudge)

In the end, I can promise you this takes less than 10 minutes to throw together, and maybe an hour in the fridge to set. Maybe less. You could be eating it by the time your favorite tv show is over.

Just be sure to put a few pieces in the freezer BEFORE your teenage son sees that there is fudge in the house!

Want more? Check out these easy candy recipes!

5.0 from 1 reviews

Almond Joy Fudge

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A very simple chocolate fudge with almonds and coconut.

Author: Jen @ Jen's Favorite Cookies

Recipe type: Candy

Serves: 36

Ingredients

1 can (14 oz) sweetened condensed milk
12 oz. chocolate chips (about 2 cups)
1 cup shredded coconut
½ cup sliced almonds

Instructions

Place milk and chocolate chips in a double boiler. *(see notes) Stir until melted and smooth.
Remove from heat, add coconut and almonds.
Pour into a greased or lined 9x9 pan. Let cool. Cut into 36 squares.

Notes

If you don't have a double boiler, do what I do! Put a large heat-proof glass bowl over a small pot of boiling water. Keep a towel or hot pad handy.

Samoas Brownies

Samoas Brownies! These coconut topped brownies with caramel will become a memorable favorite!

I dreamed these brownies up clear back in August when my family had a brownie bake-off at the family reunion. I brought these.

After they didn’t win, and I was in my little corner licking my wounds, I thought that I should have made something like these Samoas Brownies. The caramel coconut pecan topping is seriously to die for.

I was inspired, in part, by the Samoas Rice Krispie Treats I made a while back. They might be the tastiest thing I have ever stuffed in my face. And make no mistake, stuffing them in my face is exactly what I did. I couldn’t stop doing it. These things are evil that way.

These brownies kind of had the same effect on me. Apparently the chocolate-caramel-coconut combination is my own personal form of ambrosia. I had to send extra brownies in the kids lunches to keep myself from eating the whole pan.

My daughter loves to share her treats with her friends at school. She reports that girls offered her their food, and even their cash, for them.

She didn’t accept the cash, but shared freely. Good girl. I sometimes send extra treats with her, because I know she does this.

There are, of course, other recipes similar to this out there in the interwebs. Most of them, however, melt store bought caramels. I figure, caramel is easy enough to make, there’s no reason not to. It’s probably easier than melting down the candies, if you ask me. And the taste is so much better!

The entire recipe is listed below. But if you must know, I used my favorite go-to brownie recipe (minus the vegetable oil), and this caramel sauce recipe, and threw in some coconut and pecans.

It’s so awesome having trusted basic recipes to build from. It makes these Samoas Brownies a total no-brainer. AND, I dare say they would do very well in the family brownie bake-off!

Want more? Try these family bake-off inspired treats!

Peanut Butter
Marshmallow Brownies

Samoas Rice
Krispie Treats

Scotcheroos
(PB Krispie Treats)

Samoas Brownies

Save Print

Cook time

20 mins

Total time

20 mins

A chocolate brownie topped with coconut, caramel, and pecans.

Author: Jen @ Jen's Favorite Cookies

Recipe type: Brownies

Serves: 20

Ingredients

BROWNIES:

½ cup butter
4 oz. semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate, roughly chopped
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup flour

CARAMEL:

½ cup butter
1 cup brown sugar
¾ cup whipping cream

TOPPING:

1½ cups shredded coconut
½ cup pecan chips

Instructions

For brownies: Place butter and chocolate in a medium sized microwave safe dish. Microwave in 30 second intervals, stirring between each, until chocolate is melted and mixture is smooth.
Add sugar and mix well. Add eggs and vanilla and mix well. Add flour and mix until combined. Do not overmix.
Pour batter into a greased or lined 9x13 pan. Bake at 350F for 18-22 minutes, until edges are dry.
For topping: While brownies are baking, make caramel. Melt butter in a heavy saucepan. Add brown sugar and cream, and bring to a boil, stirring. Let boil 4-5 minutes. Remove from heat.
Add coconut and nuts to the caramel sauce, stirring to get an even mixture. Pour topping over the top of baked brownies.
Let cool on the counter or in the fridge before cutting into 20 bars.

Dark Chocolate Coconut Cookies

These chewy chocolate coconut cookies aim to please! Rich and flavorful chewy dark chocolate cookies, full of coconut; they’ll be your new favorite!

I had an idea the other day for a chewy chocolate coconut cookie, and I could not get that thing out of my head.

Not that I tried. Thinking about chocolate and cookies and coconut is pretty much what I do.

The real problem was that I was completely out of dark cocoa powder, and grocery budget. And desire to go to the grocery store.

I feel like I am ALWAYS at the grocery store!! #foodbloggerproblems But for real, that stuff gets old. I was willing to do it, though, for dark cocoa powder.

Especially since I new that dark cocoa powder would be transforming itself into cookies. Chewy cookies. Heavenly chewy dark chocolate cookies with coconut. Just the thought of it brings a smile to the face.

A secondary problem with the grocery store is the distractions. Every time I go to the store, I think, “Ooh, I smell french bread! Oh, and I need toothpaste. And last time I was here, they were out of the Boyle’s Birch Beer. I wonder if they have any today. What am I making for dinner Sunday? Maybe I should check the butcher block for deals.”

And it goes on and on like that. Let’s just say focusing my efforts at the grocery store is NOT the thing I’m best at.

Yes, I make lists, but it doesn’t help. I always purchase 10 things that weren’t on my list, and forget at least one or two that are.

I made these Salted Dark Chocolate Cookies some time ago, and this recipe is quite similar. I left the oats out of this one, though, since I was going to be filling them chock full of coconut.

Trust me, they are a great reward for a job well done at the grocery store.

Or a job fairly done. Or a job half done.

Want more? Check out these coconut recipes!

Coconut Chocolate
Chip Cookie Bars

Coconut
Biscotti

Coconut White Choc
Buttermilk Scones

Dark Chocolate Coconut Cookies

Save Print

Cook time

8 mins

Total time

8 mins

A rich and chewy dark chocolate cookie with coconut.

Author: Jen @ Jen's Favorite Cookies

Recipe type: Cookies

Serves: 3 dozen

Ingredients

½ cup butter, softened
1½ cups sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
½ cup dark cocoa powder (I used Hershey's Special Dark cocoa powder)
1¼ cups flour
1½ cups shredded coconut

Instructions

Cream butter and sugar. Add eggs and vanilla and mix well.
Add soda, baking powder, salt, and cocoa powder and mix well.
Add flour and mix until combined. Add coconut and mix just until combined.
Drop spoonfuls onto a baking sheet, and bake at 350F for 8-10 minutes. Let cool on the baking sheet for 1-2 minutes before moving to a cooling rack.

Whole-Grain Coconut Waffles

Healthy whole wheat waffles are easy and tasty! Use almond milk to make this healthy waffles recipe.

While this is primarily a dessert blog, I occasionally like to share some breakfast ideas with you.

I’d like to say that’s because you can’t have dessert for breakfast, but who am I kidding? What are chocolate muffins and coffee cake, if not dessert that you eat for breakfast?

And yes, I’m aware that this particular breakfast is pictured slathered in syrup and toasted coconut, but beyond that, these babies are actually healthy. They are healthy in the sense that they are extra-wheaty and dairy-free.

I was a little worried that the gaggle of teens at my house would turn their noses up at these “healthy” waffles. I warned them that they were whole-grain. They literally answered by saying, “We don’t care. We want the waffles.”

Fine with me. Dive in. Just save me one.

At my house, the teens come in the extra-skinny variety. My doctor always tells me they are underweight, and not to restrict their diets at all. Trust me, doc, there are no food restrictions in this house.

Since I am overly fond of dessert foods, I sometimes worry that their diet is a little heavy on the carbs, and light on the nutrients. I figure it can’t hurt them to eat whole grains once in a while. It also gave me an excuse to try the new Silk Almond Coconut blend.

Have you seen this stuff? I asked my good friend about it, since she had to cut dairy out of her diet a while back. Dairy AND gluten. She almost can’t eat anything.

She told me she uses Silk Almond Milk all the time, and that she really likes the Silk Almond Coconut Blend. It doesn’t have as strong a coconut flavor as coconut milk does, and it’s a nice change from using almond milk every day. She bakes with it, cooks with it, even pours it on her cereal.

I think you should try the Silk Almond Coconut Blend for yourself, and to make it a little easier, I am including a coupon! CLICK HERE to get the coupon details.

I’m sure you’ll have trouble keeping your kiddos away from these waffles long enough to get your own helping, but they’re worth the trouble!

Want more? Try these breakfast favorites!

Pumpernickel
Bagels

Banana Chocolate
Chunk Muffins

Glazed
Muffin Bites

Whole-Grain Coconut Waffles

Save Print

Cook time

7 mins

Total time

7 mins

Whole grain waffles made with almond milk and coconut.

Author: Jen @ Jen's Favorite Cookies

Recipe type: Breakfast

Serves: 5

Ingredients

1½ cups whole wheat flour
¼ cup wheat germ
½ cup shredded coconut
1 tablespoon sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
1½ cups Silk Almond Coconut Blend
1 egg
⅓ cup vegetable oil
½ teaspoon coconut extract

Instructions

Combine flour, wheat germ, coconut, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a bowl.
In a separate bowl, combine Almond Coconut milk, egg, oil, and extract.
Pour wet ingredients into dry ingredients. Mix until combined, mixture can be slightly lumpy.
Pour into waffle iron, and cook for 5-8 minutes.
Top with syrup and toasted coconut.

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Silk. The opinions and text are all mine.

Toasted Coconut Popcorn

This sweet popcorn recipe includes toasted coconut. Very easy and quick to make sweet popcorn recipe.

The whole family was together recently for a funeral. After the funeral, we played games and shared memories.

My brother provided the root beer floats for the game night, and I brought a giant bowl of popcorn.

Maybe you’ve heard me tell you before how often we eat popcorn, and how picky we are about how the popcorn is prepared. I should seriously start a second blog just for popcorn recipes.

And, maybe you’ve heard me tell you before about how much we love coconut in this family.

It’s only natural that I should put coconut and popcorn together. Honestly, I’m surprised I haven’t done it before now.

For this recipe, I started with my favorite Sweet Popcorn Glaze, and added coconut in the form of coconut extract and toasted coconut. Continue reading “Toasted Coconut Popcorn” »

Coconut Truffles

Coconut truffles recipe; This easy coconut truffles recipe is a great fit for Easter or spring celebrations.

Regular readers of this blog know how I feel about coconut.

It’s lovely. It’s fantastic. It’s delicious. It’s one of my favorite flavors, right behind chocolate. And peanut butter. And mint. I’m so indecisive. I just love all of it.

When I spied these completely adorable Bunny Tails on Pizzazzerie recently, I knew I had to give them a try myself. Partly because they’re adorable, but mostly because they are coconut. Anything that involves copious amounts of coconut and powdered sugar is fine with me.

I asked my son and his buddy whether they loved the coconut truffles enough to serve them to their hypothetical girlfriends. (At least, they better be hypothetical.) They were concerned that girls wouldn’t like the idea of bunny tails, (too gruesome) so they opted to call them cotton balls.

I don’t know what cotton balls have to do with anything. But, to each his own, I guess.

Either way, they were fine eating them, fine enough that they went back to the fridge several times in a 5-minute span.

This recipe is proof positive that candy making doesn’t have to be the laborious and detailed process that I always thought it was. I remember a neighbor showing some of us girls how to make homemade suckers, back when I was a teenager. I thought the process was hard and scary, and I was just certain I would ruin a pan doing it, so I never did try it on my own. Continue reading “Coconut Truffles” »

50 Fruit Cookies

Fruit Bar Cookies; This collection of more than 50 fruit drop cookies, fruit bar cookies, and fruit cut-out cookies is so great, you’re sure to find a few you love!

Spring came early this year. I think it’s because the winter was so nasty.

Whatever the reason, this spring fever has me craving fruity cookies of all kinds. So guess what I did?

I put together a collection of some of my favorite fruity cookies from around the web. All these cookies have one big requirement to make it on this list: They have to contain actual fruit in some form. (In other words, no strawberry cake mixes or lemon pudding mixes, it must be real fruit.)

And what a collection! I can’t wait to dive into all of these recipes! I just know you’ll find one or two (dozen) recipes you’ll love.

Big thanks to my friends who contributed their best recipes for this collection. Be sure to check out their blogs while you are there.

Lemon Burst Cookies	Fresh Peaches & Cream Cookies	Strawberry Lemonade Cookies
Apricot Shortbread Cookies	Fresh Cranberry Lemon Cookies	Mango White Choc Macadamia Cookies
Oatmeal Cherry Cookies	Chocolate Blackberry Cookies	Lemon Shortbread Cookies
Linzer Cookies with Plum Jelly	Snow Coated Apricot Cookies	Cranberry Cookies
Tropical White Chocolate Cookies	Healthy Banana Cookies	Strawberry Cheesecake Cookies
Caramel Apple Snickerdoodles	Cherry Pie White Chocolate Cookies	Chocolate Orange Sandwich Cookies
Orange Cardamom Coco-doodles	Strawberry Cream Sandwich Cookies	Blueberries & Cream Cookies
Orange Spice Cookies	4-Bite Apple Pie Cookies	Raspberry Cookie Bars
Cranberry Cashew Oatmeal Cookies	Butter Cookies with Prune Filling	Meyer Lemon Shortbread Cookies
Lemon Sugar Cookies	Double Chocolate Cherry Cookies	Iced Apple Drop Cookies
Raspberries & Cream Chocolate Cookies	Linzer Torte Thumbprints	Lemon Ricotta Cookies
Strawberry Spritz Cookies	Blueberry Chocolate Chunk Cookies	Raspberry Lemon Cheesecake Cookies
Chocolate Raspberry Yogurt Cookies	Lemon Coconut Cookies	Cherry Vanilla Pop-Tart Cookies
Orange Cherry Oatmeal Pecan Cookies	Tart Cherry Fudge Thumbprints	Banana Bread Cookies
Strawberry Cheesecake Cookies	Apple Cinnamon Breakfast Cookie	Vegan Fruit & Nut Ginger Cookies
Coconut Crispies	Cranberry White Choc. Shortbread	Mini Fruit Pizzas
Blueberry Muffin Cookies	Coconut Oatmeal Breakfast Cookie	Lemon Mini-Meringues

Need more cookie recipes? Follow my Pinterest board, called “Cookie Recipes.” There’s new fantastic stuff on that board every day!

Or, connect with me on Facebook, where I love to share cookie and other dessert recipes of all kinds.

Leave a comment below and tell me about your favorite fruit cookie!

Samoas Rice Krispie Treats

Rice krispie squares recipe; These krispie treats are filled with caramel and coconut, and taste like a Samoas girl scout cookie.

Don’t you love when the timing is just perfect?

For example: Robb and I have been watching Breaking Bad on Netflix. Because it is an awesomely well-written show. And even though I am starting to kind of hate Walt, it’s not going to keep me from seeing how his story ends.

There are 5 seasons of this show. When we watched the final season, there were only 6 episodes on Netflix. Robb assumed this was because there were only 6 episodes period. But I thought, there have to be more.

I thought it even more after we watched that 6th episode. I was so annoyed that it didn’t wrap anything up, and ended with a cliffhanger. “This cannot be the end!” I screamed. “It doesn’t make any sense!” Robb just shrugged his shoulders at me.

But… literally the following morning the rest of that season showed up on Netflix. Talk about kismet.

Now I’ll be staying up late every night to finish up the season. I’m kind of obsessive that way.

Good thing I have these Samoas treats to keep me company. Who am I kidding? These didn’t last 6 hours in my house. Continue reading “Samoas Rice Krispie Treats” »

Pumpkin Spice Nanaimo Bars

Easy nanaimo bars; This recipe for easy nanaimo bars uses pumpkin spice pudding for a fall flavor profile.

True story: This was my first time making Nanaimo Bars. And it was the first time my family had even heard of them.

Me: I think I’m going to make Nanaimo Bars.
Robb: What?
Me: Nanaimo Bars.
Robb: {pause} Mah-what?

I explained to him all about the no-bake layered goodness, the chocolate, the coconut, the cream filling. He just looked at me suspiciously. Robb has no imagination for food.

Then I explained all about the Canadian origins, and about the first place I ever heard of them. Which, strangely enough, was in one of my favorite movies, A Mighty Wind. (See a trailer for the show here) Then I did my best North Dakota / Canadian border accent, which netted me one genuine compliment from Robb. {It’s one of the few accents I can pull off.}

Robb: What are they called again? Mah-mine-ah?

Let’s not forget that it is now November. I have no idea where this year went, and I can’t decide whether I’m happy or sad to have it behind me. But that is beside the point. The point is, it’s fall, and I needed some fall flavors in these bars.

Enter Pumpkin Spice Pudding Mix. If you can find it {you’ll probably only see it at Walmart} you should grab a couple boxes. It’s nice to have some kind of special fall-flavored baked goods around this time of year.

Or, to be more precise, no-baked goods. Whatever.

Now that we’ve experienced Nanaimo Bar goodness, we’re going to have trouble forgetting it. Perhaps I’ll tell the kids that if they can pronounce it, they can have a bar. (cue evil laugh)

Mah-nee-nee? Na-mine-ah? Mo-nah-nee-nah?

More pumpkin spice goodness for you to enjoy:

Pumpkin Spice
Krispie Treats

Pumpkin Fudge
Cookie Bars

Pumpkin No-Bake
Cookies

Pumpkin Spice Nanaimo Bars

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Traditional no-bake nanaimo bars with a pumpkin spice twist.

Author: Jen @ Jen's Favorite Cookies

Recipe type: No-Bake Desserts

Serves: 9

Ingredients

CRUST:

½ cup butter
⅓ cup cocoa powder
¼ cup sugar
1 egg
1¼ cup graham cracker crumbs
1 cup shredded coconut
¼ cup finely chopped pecans

FILLING:

¼ cup butter
1 box pumpkin spice pudding mix (3.4 oz)
¼ cup milk
1¼ cups powdered sugar

TOPPING:

4-5 oz. chocolate (or ¾ cup chocolate chips)
1 T. butter

Instructions

FOR CRUST: Melt butter in a saucepan over low heat. Add cocoa and sugar, and quickly stir to combine.
Add egg before mixture becomes too hot, and mix well. Continue cooking and stirring another minute or so to let mixture thicken. Remove from heat.
Stir in cracker crumbs, coconut, and nuts. Press mixture into the bottom of a 9x9 pan, and let chill while you make the filling.
FOR FILLING: Soften butter, and combine with pudding, milk and powdered sugar. Beat until smooth. Spread evenly over crust layer.
FOR TOPPING: Melt chocolate and butter together in the microwave, in 30-second intervals, stirring between each. Quickly pour over other layers, and smooth with a knife.
Let bars chill for at least 1 hour before cutting into 9 large or 16 small bars. Keep in refrigerator, and serve chilled.

Dark Chocolate Coconut Muddy Buddies

This post is part of a social shopper marketing insight campaign with Pollinate Media Group®, PEOPLE Magazine & Hershey’s, but all my opinions are my own. #HersheysPeople #pmedia http://cmp.ly/3/8vNxcO

True story: A ton of my friends tell me Halloween is their favorite holiday. But me? Not so much.

In fact, I kind of hate Halloween. I hate spending money on candy and coming up with costumes for my kids, and dealing with candy wrappers all over the house.

I do like passing out candy, though. And I like the decorations. But that’s about it.

It seems like Halloween is always hectic. Is that just me? Between the school parties for the kids, and trying to get everyone into their costumes, and get some actual dinner in them, and the trick-or-treating, and visiting the grandparents, and passing out candy… there is just a lot to do. It’s always a busy night.

I mean, let’s face it, sometimes a girl needs a break.

Let me be more specific: Sometimes, on Halloween, a mom needs 10 minutes to herself, so she doesn’t lose her cool. We all know what that looks like, and it ain’t pretty. It might be the scariest part of Halloween, actually.

Here’s what you do… Continue reading “Dark Chocolate Coconut Muddy Buddies” »

German Chocolate Skillet Cake

German Chocolate Skillet Cake; This chocolate cake is made in a skillet and topped with coconut pecan frosting. You’ll love this German Chocolate Skillet Cake!

I remember, there was a time when I didn’t fully appreciate a good cast iron skillet.

I’m pretty sure that when Robb and I first got married, he brought a very small (maybe 6-inch?) cast iron skillet into the marriage. Having no previous experience with cast iron, I never used it, and I’m pretty sure I got rid of it some time ago.

What was I thinking? Do you have any idea what I would give to have that little skillet back now?

My awesome brother gave me a brand new 12-inch skillet as a gift recently. I was so excited to get it seasoned and start using it. I couldn’t decide what to make in it first!

I finally decided on this skillet cake. I have always wanted to make skillet cakes, brownies, and cookies, but never had a skillet that could go in the oven.

Why didn’t I just go buy one? I have no idea. Sad, but true.

My one disappointment with this cake was the frosting.

I love, and I do mean luuuuuuvve this coconut-pecan frosting. It’s basically one of the seven wonders of the world. It’s right next to the Taj Mahal in beauty, no lie.

The problem was that this recipe didn’t quite make enough for my taste. It’s probably plenty for the average person, but I have a major sweet tooth, and frankly, the “more frosting the merrier” is the motto of my dessert-loving life.

So, if you are like me, go ahead and double this frosting recipe. That way you can get it all the way to the edges, so you can be sure that every bite of cake comes with a generous bite of this caramel-y nutty piece of heaven.

More simple and delicious cakes you might enjoy:

Almond Buttermilk
Cake

Intense Dark
Chocolate Cake

Choc Sheet Cake with
Warm Cherry Topping

Lightly adapted from My Baking Addiction

3.0 from 2 reviews

German Chocolate Skillet Cake

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Cook time

25 mins

Total time

25 mins

A chocolate cake cooked in a cast iron skillet and topped with coconut pecan frosting.

Author: Jen @ Jen's Favorite Cookies

Recipe type: Cake

Serves: 8

Ingredients

CAKE:

¼ cup butter
4 oz. unsweetened chocolate
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
¼ cup vegetable oil or canola oil
½ tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda
1 cup flour

FROSTING:

½ cup sweetened condensed milk
¼ cup butter
1 egg yolk
½ cup pecans
½ cup shredded coconut

Instructions

For the cake: Coarsely chop chocolate and place in a microwave safe bowl with butter. Melt in the microwave in 30-second intervals, stirring between each.
Once melted, add Sugar, oil and eggs to the chocolate mixture, and mix well. Add salt and soda and mix well. Add flour and mix until combined.
Spread mixture evenly in a 12-inch cast iron skillet. Bake at 350 for about 25 minutes.
For the frosting: combine milk, butter, and egg yolk in a sauce pan. Cook over medium high heat, stirring constantly, until mixture is thick and starts to darken in color. (about 5 minutes)
Stir in pecans and coconut. Spread over cake while still warm.

If you enjoy this recipe, you might also enjoy:

German Chocolate Cheesecake from Willow Bird Baking
German Chocolate Sandwich Cookies from Chocolate Moosey
German Chocolate Cake Donuts from Tina’s Chic Corner

Baked Coconut Almond Oatmeal Cups

Recipe for baked oatmeal; This delicious baked oatmeal recipe makes 12 individual cups, and uses almonds and coconut. Coconut baked oatmeal is the best!

I’ve been feeling a touch stressed about the coming school year. All three of my kids will be going to brand new schools this year, and I don’t exactly know what to expect. I’m one of those people who prefers to know what I’m getting into, so it’s making me really uncomfortable.

I’m also realizing that like it or not, this family will need to be morning people. The kids and Robb all need to be out the door by 7:00, and for a woman who prefers to get up around 8:00 or 8:30, this is a real problem.

I’ve been preparing everyone by telling them that breakfast will be served at 6:30, and they are to be dressed and at the table by that time. Whether or not that will actually happen is up for debate.

I realize that this means I will need to be up by 6:00 at the latest, and depending on what I’m serving for breakfast, maybe even sooner. This idea does NOT thrill me. I can do it… I just don’t want to.

In the meantime, I am auditioning new recipes for our early morning breakfast line up, and I think I found a winner in this one.

Can I make a confession? I don’t like oatmeal. Never have. Continue reading “Baked Coconut Almond Oatmeal Cups” »

Coconut Biscotti

Recipe for biscotti; This easy biscotti recipe is flavored with coconut and tastes great with coffee or cocoa.

Today was the last day of school. This means the end of getting up early to make lunches and drive carpools, and the end of screaming about homework and scheduling school activities. For three months, anyway.

It also means an end to quiet mornings by myself and uninterrupted reading.

*sniff sniff*

I like to read the kind of stuff that makes me think. I like to sit quietly and contemplate the nature of the universe. It takes me away from the unending hectic activity that dominates the rest of my life.

And it only gets more hectic in the summer.

But don’t worry about me… I have a solution. My kids are teenagers, which means they won’t be up before noon. And since Robb tends to be a late sleeper, too, all I have to do is get up the tiniest bit early to have a good hour of reading Emerson and sipping breakfast drinks.

And eating biscotti.

Truth be told, this was my first time ever making biscotti. I’m not sure why I waited so long, because I love the stuff.

I probably have a few tricks to learn yet, because this batch did have one little problem, but not one that made it inedible or anything, so I figured I was still safe to share it with you.

Apologies in advance for the poor quality of this next photo, but I wanted a shot of the pre-baked loaves of dough, to give you an idea of their size.

Once I baked, cooled, and sliced them, I realized they were a touch crumbly and would have a bit of a hard time really staying in one piece. The ends kept breaking off. It made them look silly, but it gave me lots of crunchy little ends to snack on, so I wasn’t too upset.

I love how these turned out in the end, crunchy but not too hard, and full of yummy coconut flavor.

I think Emerson and I are going to love them.

Coconut Chocolate
Chip Bars

Coconut White
Chocolate Scones

Coconut
Crispies

Continue reading “Coconut Biscotti” »

Toasted Coconut Milkshake

Toasted Coconut is the key ingredient in this milkshake recipe; This is one of the best coconut dessert recipes I’ve tasted!

True story: My brother asked me to drive him to the airport, and I totally forgot about it. In my defense, I was a little preoccupied with my own very serious issue, namely, that my car broke down. I’ll spare you the details, but sufficeth to say, I spent a whole day without a car, and getting the car home involved a lot of smoke and embarrassment.

The whole day was a mess, to tell you the truth. Between my afternoon responsibilities and the kids evening events, we had just 15 minutes to cook and eat dinner.

We had Cheerios. Yeah, yeah, you’ve done it too, admit it.

Later that night, after the embarrassing car situation, and the worst-dinner-ever situation, and some kind of painful plain-talk with Robb about my life’s goals, I was feeling pretty nervous and uptight and overwhelmed. And hungry.

Robb, always the sweetheart, loaded everyone in his car to take us out for a late meal. Robb drives a small pickup truck, that really only holds two, so cramming all 5 of us in there was something of a joke. We looked like a clown car. It’s lucky my kids are skinny, and the doors have locks, that’s all I’ll say. We laughed through our discomfort, all the way to the very nearby restaurant.

I have never been in this particular fast food establishment when I wasn’t the only person there. I don’t really get it, either, because the food is good. Nevertheless, it has a bit of a low-end reputation. We ordered our food, and choose a large booth to balance out the feelings of togetherness we had during the drive there.

And that was the moment at which my brother sent me a text to be sure I was still okay to drive him to the airport.

I am SUCH a loser sometimes. I told my brother he had to provide the car AND pick me up at the fast food joint. We he got there, I made Robb promise to bring the rest of my sandwich home, and I walked out of the trashy restaurant in an oversized sweatshirt and wild hair, carrying a paper cup full of Diet Pepsi.

I made myself feel better by explaining to my brother that I had spared him the burden of having to envy me.

It’s one of the 7 deadly sins, yo.

At least I had a coconut milkshake and episodes of Arrested Development to end my day with.

I may have told you of our family’s love of coconut a few {dozen} times. {In fact, my last post was a coconut recipe, too.} Not too long ago, we went to this fancy donut place in town, and Robb got a toasted coconut donut, which is one of the best things in the entire world. To die for.

I wanted to capture that same flavor in this milkshake. It’s crazy how much tastier coconut is when it is toasted. Don’t skip the toasting, folks. Trust me on this one. I knew I hit a home run when I heard Robb shout from the other room, “Are you kidding me?!” {That means it’s really good.}

By the way, I never did get to eat the rest of my sandwich. Turns out The Fruitarian spilled his root beer all over everything, and my sandwich went in the trash.

Stupid Wednesday.

Coconut Lime
Poke Cake

Orange Ice
Cream Freeze

Coconut Lime
Sugar Cookies

Continue reading “Toasted Coconut Milkshake” »

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Coconut Cream Pie

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Instructions

Rocky Road No-Bake Cookies

Ingredients

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