Reduced Guilt Key Lime Pie

Five years ago, I dedicated an entire month to pies on my blog.
I made so many pies that month it's amazing I didn't gain tons of weight.
Please remember that all posts are from 2011, but here are five of my favorites:
Lemon Meringue Pie
Mini Pumpkin Pies
Dutch Apple Pie
Chocolate Cherry Pie
Turkey Pot Pie

With all the pies I made, it's amazing I never made a Key Lime Pie.
I changed that recently though and made one,
but decided to try to make it just a tad healthier!

The Goods:

Graham Crackers

Brown Sugar

Salt

White Chocolate Chips

Butter

Reduced Fat Greek Yogurt

Key Limes

Eggs

Fat-Free Sweetened Condensed Milk

Whipped Cream

Crush your graham crackers in a gallon bag using a rolling pin.

In a medium bowl, combine 1 cup graham cracker crumbs,

1 tablespoon brown sugar, 1/8 teaspoon salt and 1 ounce chopped white chocolate.

Add 2 tablespoons melted butter and toss until evenly moistened.

Press crumb mixture into greased pie pan and bake at 350 degrees for 8 to 10 minutes.

Cool completely on a wire rack.

While crust is cooling, in another medium bowl combine 1/2 greek yogurt, 

1/2 cup fresh key lime juice, 1/2 teaspoon key lime zest, 

3 large egg yolks and (1) 14 ounce can sweetened condensed milk.

Pour mixture into crust and bake at 350 degrees for about 14 minutes.

Cool pie completely on wire rack. 

Chill at least 2 hours before cutting. 

And of course, serve with whipped cream!

Reduced Guilt Key Lime Pie

Adapted from Cooking Light

For the Crust:

1 Cup Graham Cracker Crumbs

1 Tablespoon Brown Sugar

1/8 Teaspoon Salt

1 Ounce White Chocolate Chips

2 Tablespoons Butter

For the Filling:

1/2 Cup Reduced Fat Greek Yogurt

1/2 Cyo Key Limes

3 Large Egg Yolks

1 (14 Ounce) Fat-Free Sweetened Condensed Milk

1. Crush your graham crackers in a gallon bag using a rolling pin.
2. In a medium bowl, combine 1 cup graham cracker crumbs, 1 tablespoon brown sugar, 1/8 teaspoon salt and 1 ounce chopped white chocolate. Add 2 tablespoons melted butter and toss until evenly moistened.
3. Press crumb mixture into greased pie pan and bake at 350 degrees for 8 to 10 minutes. Cool completely on wire rack.
4. While crust is cooling, in another medium bowl combine 1/2 greek yogurt, 1/2 cup fresh key lime juice, 1/2 teaspoon key lime zest, 3 large egg yolks and (1) 14 ounce can sweetened condensed milk.
5. Pour mixture into crust and bake at 350 degrees for about 14 minutes. Cool pie completely on wire rack. Chill at least 2 hours before cutting. 

Favorite Things To Do For 4th of July!

Happy Friday you guys!!!

I'm back today for another Friday Link Up!

This week, I'm linking up with THREE different groups.

Make sure to check them all out at the bottom of this post!

It seems my five favorites are all holiday weekend themed recently.
Last month I posted about my Five Favorite Memorial Day recipes.
And since it's now the Friday before the 4th of July, I'm posting about my
FIVE FAVORITE THINGS TO DO FOR 4TH OF JULY!

While watching fireworks seems pretty typical for 4th of July,
I'm shockingly NOT including that in my list today!
I'm still planning to go see them somewhere in Los Angeles
but wanted to talk about other fun things to do this holiday weekend!

ONE

It's been HOT in LA and I've been loving my pool.

It's forecast to be scorching this weekend,

 so you'll probably find me here at least once!

TWO

I prefer to cool off in the pool over going to the beach,

but I'll deal with the sand to see a sunset like the one above.

If you throw in a beach bonfire, I'll be there even faster!

THREE

Summer holiday long weekends and grilling just go hand in hand to me.

I have absolutely no clue what I'll be making on it just yet,

but you better believe at least one meal I make will be grilled this weekend!

FOUR

And you can't forget a festive dessert to round out your grilled meal!

I made this Fruit Pizza for my aunt's birthday AND 4th of July last year.

It's really that good and can easily be made ahead of time.

FIVE

Lastly, make a batch of seasonal cocktails like my Blackberry Whiskey Punch!

Depending on the number of people you'll be celebrating with,

the above recipe can easily be doubled or halved.

Hope you all have an amazing and safe 4th of July weekend!!!

Now for more Friday Link Up Fun, check out the blogs below!

Andrea and Erika's blogs from Friday Favorites.

April and Christina's blogs from 5 on Friday.

Karli and Amy's blogs from oh hey friday!

Mini No Bake Cheescakes!

Growing up, my mom let us pick what kind of cake we wanted each birthday.

I remember both my brother and dad requesting her cheesecake almost every year.

This cheesecake wasn't a typical cheesecake, but instead more of a cheese pie.

And the best part is that it's not even baked, so that makes things even easier!

While brainstorming dessert ideas to make and share on the blog,

I remembered this cheesecake and how delicious it was,

so I decided to make it myself, but put my own little spin on it!

Instead of making one big no bake cheesecake, I made eight mini ones.

Making cheesecake can be a little intimidating,

but like I already said - this isn't your typical cheesecake

and you don't even have to put it in the oven!!!

Now let me show you how to make these babies.

The Goods:

Mini Graham Cracker Crusts

Cream Cheese Block

Sweetened Condensed Milk

Lemon Juice

Vanilla Extract

Cherry Pie Topping

In a large mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese until soft and fluffy.

Add the sweetened condensed milk and mix well.

Now add your lemon juice...

And vanilla extract, then mix once again.

Pour the cheesecake mixture into the mini graham cracker crusts.

Chill in refrigerator at least three hours, until cheesecake is set.

It's delicious as a plain cheesecake...

But I personally prefer it with some cherry pie topping!

Mini No Bake Cheesecake

8 Mini Graham Cracker Crusts

8 Ounce Cream Cheese Block

14 Ounces Sweetened Condensed Milk

1/3 Cup Lemon Juice

1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract

1 Can Cherry Pie Topping

1. In a large mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese until soft and fluffy.
2. Add the sweetened condensed milk and mix well.
3. Now add the lemon juice and vanilla extract, then mix once again.
4. Pour the cheesecake mixture into the mini graham cracker crusts.
5. Chill in refrigerator at least three hours, until cheesecake is set.
6. Eat either plain or with some kind of yummy topping. 

Rainbow Sprinkle Butter Cookies

If you remember my Birthday Cake Donuts post,
you'll know that I LOVE rainbow sprinkles.

And since this is birthday MONTH,
I thought it was only fitting
to do another rainbow sprinkle recipe!!!

So today, I share with you some oh so yummy
BUTTER RAINBOW SPRINKLE COOKIES!!!

 

The Goods:

All Purpose Flour

Sugar

Butter

Salt

Egg

Vanilla Extract

Rainbow Sprinkles

 

In a larger bowl, cream the butter, sugar, salt and vanilla.

 

Add the egg yolk and mix until incorporated.

 

Add the flour and mix until dough forms.

 

Shape into a long tube and cover in plastic wrap.

Keep in the fridge for at least 2 hours, if not longer.

You can even freeze, covered more securely, for a few months.

 

Let dough soften slightly, then slice thinly with a sharp knife.

 

Add rainbow sprinkles and bake for 15 minutes at 350 degrees.

 

Let cool (if possible) and then dig in!!! 

These may not look like they're anything special,

but man on man they sure taste amazing.

They're buttery and just melt in your mouth!!! 

But wait...

I only used and baked half the dough.

And saved the other half in the freezer,

then made those for a small NYE get together.

But this time COVERED the cookies in rainbow sprinkles!!!

They tasted the same, but I loved this look so much more!

Rainbow Sprinkle Butter Cookies

Adapted from food.com

8 Ounces Butter

3/4 Cup Sugar
1/4 Teaspoon Salt
1 1/2 Teaspoons Vanilla Extract
1 Egg Yolk
2 Cups All Purpose Flour

1. In a larger bowl, cream the butter, sugar, salt and vanilla. 
2. Add the egg yolk and mix until incorporated.
3. Add the flour and mix until dough forms.
4. Shape into a long tube and cover in plastic wrap.
5. Keep in the fridge for at least 2 hours, if not longer. You can even freeze, covered more securely, for a few months.
6. Let dough soften slightly, then slice thinly with a sharp knife.
7. Add rainbow sprinkles, then bake for 15 minutes at 350 degrees.
   

Sinful Devil's Food Cookies

This recipe is almost exactly like my Red Velvet Crinkle Cookies,

except instead of using Red Velvet cake mix, I used Devil's Food cake mix

and came up with another delicious and super simple cookie.

These cookies are so simple to make,

you just have to have a little patience for the dough to chill,

but after that you'll have some yummy cookies to devour.

Let me show ya how simple they really are!

In a large bowl...

cream the cream cheese,

add the butter and cream that too,

then add the egg and mix well,

add the vanilla and mix again,

and FINALLY add the cake mix

and combine until fully incorporated.

Portion out mix and roll into balls of dough.

Roll each ball in powdered sugar and place on a baking sheet,

leaving enough room for each cookie to expand.

Bake at 350 degrees for 10 to 12 minutes.

Remove from baking sheet and cool on wire rack.

Once cooled, dust (or really COVER) with more powdered sugar.

Take a bite and let the chocolate just melt in your mouth.

Yuuuuuuuuuuummmy!

Sinful Devil's Food Cookies

1 Box Devil's Food Cake Mix

1 (8oz.) Block Cream Cheese - Room Temp

1/2 Cup Butter - Room Temp

1 Egg

1 Tablespoon Vanilla

Powdered Sugar 

1. In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter and cream cheese.
2. Beat in the egg and vanilla until combined.
3. Add cake mix and mix until fully incorporated.
4. Cover and refrigerate for at least two hours.
5. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
6. Roll chilled batter into tablespoon sized balls.
7. Roll balls in powdered sugar and place about two inches apart on a baking sheet.
8. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes.
9. Cool completely on a wire rack and then dust with more powdered sugar.

Pumpkin Whoopie Pies

CONFESSION: I don't love the quality of these pictures.

They were taken quite awhile ago on an older camera, 

but I'd been saving this post until Fall because hello - pumpkin!

Even though the pictures below aren't the best,

 these Pumpkin Whoopie Pies are AMAZING.

Please don't let the pictures fool you.

When looking at Pumpkin Whoopie Pie recipes, 

I realized I didn't love everything about a single one,

so I combined two different ones to make something I did love.

For the cake part, I used Mix and Match Mama's recipe,

but I'm not the biggest fan of canned frosting,

so I used the cream part from Momfessional's recipe!

Let me show you how they're made.

The Goods:

Yellow Cake Mix

Vegetable Oil

Eggs

Pumpkin Puree

Cream Cheese

Butter

Vanilla

Powdered Sugar

Cinnamon

Combine cake mix, vegetable oil, eggs and pumpkin puree with mixer.

Mix until ingredients are well combined.

Transfer mixture to large zipper bag.

Cut off the tip of the zipper bag and start piping mixture.

Make small circles on parchment lined baking sheet, leaving room to expand.

Bake for about 10 minutes, then cool on pans for a few more minutes.

Remove to wire racks and finishing cooling completely.

You'll notice about half of mine turned out near perfect,

where the other half sadly just weren't as pretty.

While they're cooling, it's time to make the frosting!

Cream together the butter and cream cheese.

Then add the powdered sugar, vanilla and cinnamon

and mix until everything is combined. 

Grab another large zipper bag and transfer frosting to that.

Then cut off the tip and pipe onto half of the baked cakes.

Lastly, add the other side of the whoopie pie and you're ready to go.

Now dig in and enjoy these yummy pumpkin treats!!

Pumpkin Whoopie Pies

Cakes from Mix and Match Mama

Frosting from Momfessionals 

For the Cakes:

1 Box Yellow Cake Mix

1/2 Cup Vegetable Oil

2 Eggs

1 Cup Pumpkin Puree

For the Frosting:

16 Ounces Powdered Sugar

1 Stick Unsalted Butter

1 Block Cream Cheese

Splash of Vanilla

Few Dashes Cinnamon

1. Combine cake mix, vegetable oil, eggs and pumpkin puree with mixer. Mix until ingredients are well combined.
2. Transfer mixture to large zipper bag. 
3. Cut off the tip of the zipper bag and start piping mixture. Make small circles on parchment lined baking sheet, leaving room to expand.
4. Bake for about 10 minutes, then cool on pans for a few more minutes.
5. Remove to wire racks and finishing cooling completely.
6. Cream together the butter and cream cheese. Then add the powdered sugar, vanilla and cinnamon and mix until everything is combined. 
7. Transfer frosting to another large zipper bag.
8. Cut off the tip and pipe onto half of the baked cakes.
9. Lastly, add a second cake on top to finish assembling the whoopie pies.