There’s just something about summer fruit desserts. 

They can’t be beat. They don’t compare. And it’s one of the only times that I’ll really consider fruit, dessert! 

This buttery galette crust is wrapped around juicy blueberries and served with a sprinkling of pistachios, lots of vanilla ice cream and all the summer feels! 

It’s perfect and ideal for a hot summer day with a delicious grilled salad or grilled chicken skewers. 

OH yes and the elephant in the room: my pistachio crust! Still going strong on the pistachio train. Hop on here with me! 

I love making blueberry galettes in the summer! It’s the perfect way to use up blueberries, and this recipe also is great with frozen blueberries too. You can even make it in the winter.

Galettes are one of my desserts of choice because, hello, pie crust. I still haven’t mastered it (read: don’t have the patience to make the edges look pretty) and it’s so much easier to fold up a galette crust into something beautifully rustic.

So much so that I actually prefer it!

I like it even more than traditional pie, because I want more crust than filling. And in a galette, you don’t get a super stacked filling. So I’m all about it! 

Regularly, I make a blueberry peach galette. That combo will forever be a favorite. But if peaches are out of season, I’ve got you! You can use all blueberries AND make a crust riddled with pistachios.

THIS IS SO GOOD. 

Galettes also make a better vehicle for ice cream. Add a scoop on top and within a few minutes, you have vanilla rivers making their way through the juicy, bubbly berries.  (more…)

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It’s the epitome of summer today with chocolate ice cream!

This no churn ricotta ice cream is so chocolatey, so rich and creamy and utterly delightful. You can make a batch every week until the end of summer!

Sounds like a good plan to me. 

Are you team cone or team dish?

I’m almost always team cone, BUT with having little kids, I’ve had to get a dish when we all get ice cream so it doesn’t melt all over me. 

I’d pick a cone every time though if I could.

And I love all cones! I do not discriminate. There is a time and a place for a waffle cone (or bowl!), sugar cone, cake cone – everything. I love ‘em all. 

Also, this makes me want to eat a cone right now. 

Anyway, back to ice cream. And summer! 

So. 

I have a ricotta ice cream recipe that we LOVE. It’s such a good, creamy classic recipe and I love that it’s a blank slate – you can add anything to it!

I took that recipe and added some chocolate – some really high-quality dutch process cocoa for the ultimate flavor punch. 

Think rich, dark chocolate but mixed in with creamy ricotta. It’s almost like a cheesecake or a tart in ice cream form.

At the same time, since it’s JUST chocolate, it’s quite simple and delicious. The ultimate summer perfection.

It’s rare that I would ever choose plain chocolate ice cream, but in this case I’m here for it. Homemade chocolate ice cream is a whole different ball game. 

Pass me the spoon and the quart! 

(more…)

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I’ve found our 2024 summer dessert!! 

These atlantic beach pie bars are my new favorite treat. A salty sweet crust made of saltine crackers, topped with a baked citrus curd and piled high with fresh whipped cream and flaked sea salt.

Oh my gosh.

Give me more! 

Lacy has been telling me that I need to make atlantic beach pie for YEARS. It always sounded delicious, but I have to be over-the-top crazy about something to make it and that was how I suddenly became over this pie.

CRAZY. Like I needed to make it and serve it and eat it. 

I couldn’t stop thinking about it!

This pie was created by Bill Smith, a chef in North Carolina who was inspired by the lemon desserts he’d eat at Atlantic Beach. The best way I can describe it is marriage between key lime pie and lemon bars, with a crunchy, saltier crust. 

It is my new hyperfixation and I need you to try it so it can be yours too! 

Pie still isn’t my BFF, so I knew I wanted to adapt this recipe into bar form. I wanted to be able to make a big pan of pie bars that I could take to summer gatherings and wow, this is the ticket. It’s the ideal dessert for summer: tangy, light but rich at the same time, sweet and salty and filled with citrus. 

The best part is that the filling is a mix of lemon and lime juice. It can be a 50/50 mix or a different ratio depending on what you have. Because of that, the filling might taste slightly different based on who is making it. I prefer to use the 50/50 mix of lemon and lime juice and I love it that way. 

To make the saltine crust, you just crush them! They don’t need to be put in a food processor. You don’t want them to turn into dust – the more texture the better. Then, they get mixed with some butter and sugar to create the ideal crust. 

The filling is embarrassingly easy. Sweetened condensed milk, egg yolks and the aforementioned citrus juice. Pour it over the crust and bake for a few minutes.

It’s important to fully chill the bars before slicing. They taste amazing cold! (more…)

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Here’s to the crispiest, crunchiest treat you can make this season.

These golden grahams s’mores bars are filled with melty marshmallows and mini peanut butter cups. They are gooey and crunchy and filled with the best flavor combo in the universe: chocolate and peanut butter.

If you haven’t tried the golden grahams treats, you must. They are basically rice krispy treats, but with golden grahams.

And I don’t even know how to say this, but golden grahams are kind of better than regular graham crackers.

YEP.

I said it. 

They are so thin and crunchy and crispy. Poured into a bowl of milk… the texture is phenomenal. So I can’t even begin to express how great they are mixed with melty marshmallows, brown butter, peanut butter cups… 

I mean, oh my gosh. 

This is how I make them!

First, brown a stick of butter. LOVE this. I let it bubble and get some brown bits.

Then, I stir in the marshmallows. Let them get super melty and creamy. Add a splash of vanilla too!

Next, take everything off the heat. Stir in a bunch of the graham cereal. 

THEN, stir in some mini peanut butter cups! I love the ones from trader joes, but reese’s makes them now too! 

The key is doing a quick fold so they don’t totally melt. Use a strong, sturdy spatula because the marshmallows are sticky and can be hard to stir. 

I press the entire mixture into a 9×13 dish using parchment paper to press and pack. 

The best part about these? They only need, like, 30 minutes to set. Maybe not even that!

On the flipside, you can make them an entire day ahead of time before slicing them. Super fun and versatile for a summer cookout! (more…)

The post Peanut Butter Cup Golden Grahams S’mores Bars. appeared first on How Sweet Eats.

I live for a festive summer cake!

This berry sheet pan shortcake is so delicious and easily feeds a crowd! The biscuit cake is so fluffy and tender, full of creamy vanilla flavor. It’s topped with a whipped mascarpone cream and all the fresh summer berries. 

It’s so fun and gorgeous and looks pretty on the table!

I first saw the idea of this sheet pan shortcake on southern living. I was instantly hooked! It makes so much sense to me – especially when it comes to entertaining friends and family in the summer!

I love that you can make a big slab biscuit that essentially pulls apart easily. And then top it with whipped cream and tons of fresh berries! 

Oh and speaking of whipped cream… It’s mascarpone whipped cream.

!!!!!!!!!

Dreamy! 

Words can’t express how delicious this biscuit cake is. 

The thing is that it’s not sweet. It is not overly sweet at all. And it’s studded with blueberries and strawberries for the perfect fruity pop in the cake. 

I also choose not to sweeten the whipped cream. There is something about unsweetened whip cream that I just love, especially in a dessert. It’s light, fluffy and almost tastes more decadent when it’s NOT sweet. 

What a revelation! 

So this is how I do it!

I cut up tons of berries! I like to use strawberries, blueberries, blackberries and raspberries. But any berries that you have work. Use what is in season for you.

The cake is super simple. Flour, sugar, buttermilk, cream… I love these ingredients. Delicious!

I stir in some chopped berries too. And then I scoop it onto a sheet pan, lined up in the little scoops. Then I bake it and let it cool. 

While the cake is cooling, I make the whipped cream! Heavy cream and mascarpone with a touch of vanilla. I like to keep it soft. I don’t whip it to heavy peaks… just very soft peaks. 

The key is frosting it once it’s cool, this way the whipped cream won’t melt off. And then top it with tons of berries!

You can also do some fresh mint and even a drizzle of honey. 

Use a spatula to gently cut and pull apart the shortcake to serve. It’s so easy! (more…)

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It’s carrot cake season around here!

This carrot cake sheet cake is super easy to make, loaded with carrot flavor, lots of spice and topped with the fluffiest toasted pecan cream cheese frosting. It’s the best carrot cake to make for a big gathering or potluck, because you can make it ahead of time and it will feed a bunch of people! 

Would you believe it if I said I’m not a huge carrot cake fan?! I think it stems from the fact that growing up, most of the carrot cakes I was served included raisins and/or some version of nuts. 

We all know that when raisins masquerade as chocolate chips… It’s just offensive. And I couldn’t get behind nuts in any dessert as a kid. 

Also, the fact that I really hated vegetables back then? Made carrot cake my worst nightmare. 

Then, I started coming around! To be honest, I think it was the cream cheese frosting. I’m freakishly obsessed with cream cheese frosting, as you know. 

I also make a really delicious pistachio carrot cake, and that got me on board with carrot cake + nuts. Pistachios are so buttery and salty and I LOVE what they add to carrot cake. P.S. I also address my cream cheese frosting obsession in that post so… we’ve come a long way. 

Or not. 

This recipe is based on my pumpkin sheet cake and my banana sheet cake. Both are crazy popular here on the site and they are easy to make, taste fantastic and feed a crowd.  

Add this one to the list! (more…)

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I’ve got a Valentine’s treat for you today!

This super easy snack cake is made with fresh grapefruit zest and a zingy grapefruit glaze. It’s a lovely little afternoon snack or even a fun little breakfast. 

We call it snack cake for a reason, after all. Have it whenever you need a snack! 

To me, snack cakes reference a cake that is baked in a square pan, doesn’t have frosting but might have a glaze and often is fruity in nature. Think apple! Lemon! Orange!

And now… grapefruit. 

Citrus season forever, please. 

I have loved grapefruit for as long as I can remember. Which is odd, since it can be so tangy and sour. But my dad LOVED grapefruit and ate it often when I was a kid. So I’ve always enjoyed eating it.

In fact, I practically crave it. I find it to be very thirst quenching and sometimes just the mere sight of one makes my mouth water.

Truly, I love the flavor so much. I don’t add sugar – I simply eat a grapefruit like a bowl with a serrated spoon. (One of my favorite, very underrated kitchen tools, by the way.) 

So even though I don’t sprinkle sugar on my grapefruit or broil it or anything, I absolutely DO love it in dessert form. I also love it in cocktail form, but that’s neither here nor there. 

Grapefruit is like lavender. Delicious and wonderful and elegant on its own, but go and add some sugar and it’s over. The flavor becomes irresistible. Any time that citrus and sugar come together, you know it’s going to be a fabulous thing. 

This is one of the most tender, moist and delicious citrus cakes I have EVER had. The crumb is so perfect. The glaze is drizzled on the top and sinks into the cake in the most dreamy way.

It reminds me a lot of my aperol spritz cake, which is also fabulous! 

The cake actually tastes juicy, in a really good grapefruit kind-of-way. Adore it! (more…)

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Sometimes we need a break from holiday cookies. 

This orange ricotta pound cake is studded with chocolate chips. It’s incredibly tender and rich at the same time, sprinkled with powdered sugar. A slice is so delicious you won’t even want to eat a holiday cookie. 

While I’m all about making special cookies during this season, sometimes a different kind of treat hits the spot. That’s why I love making a christmas cake or, in this case, something super citrusy and sweet. 

Loaf cakes are nice to gift someone or a fun treat to take to a party. Plus, just slice and serve! They are so easy and convenient. 

For proclaiming that I’m not really a huge orange lover, here I am with another orange dessert for you!!

There is just something so incredibly festive about it. 

And while I don’t think I can ever get behind the chocolate oranges, I can get behind this ricotta orange pound cake with chocolate chips. 

I want to shout it from the rooftops: I love baking with ricotta cheese! It adds such a wonderful soft texture to whatever you’re baking. It’s so light and fluffy, as well as neutral flavored. So you can add just about anything!

In this case, we add a huge heaping scoop of fresh orange zest to the pound cake batter. I also like to use mini chocolate chips. 

The chocolate is the perfect complement to the cake. A bite is chocolatey, rich, citrusy, bright and fresh.

Perfect.

The rest of the ingredients are pretty classic and traditional and the loaf bakes in about one hour. Use the downtime to wrap some presents!

Look at that crumb. Incredible! (more…)

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It’s christmas cake day!!

This white chocolate mocha cake is an actual dream. Rich and tender chocolate cake covered in cream cheese espresso frosting and white chocolate curls. 

I mean, oh my goodness. 

There are no words!

For years I’ve shared a christmas cake in early December. The most popular one is my white christmas sparkle cake, and I love it so much. Followed closely by my hot cocoa cake with whipped marshmallow. 

I’ve also shared a pink peppermint cake (it looks like it’s straight out of The Grinch!), this spiced orange snowball cake and this christmas ice cream cake which is incredible. 

The truth is that I don’t love baking. Because I hate following directions! I especially do not love baking cakes, so I like to make cakes that are easy enough for just about anyone. A cake at holiday time is so fun because it feeds a crowd and looks pretty. It can be your festive centerpiece!

I usually like to keep my christmas cake rather “christmas-y” in flavor. Of course, this isn’t a holiday specific flavor, but it’s a super popular flavor! 

It’s been years since I’ve really loved a white chocolate mocha in drink form. However, it was pretty much my gateway drug into coffee! As can be expected, given that it’s like drinking a giant dessert. 

I take my mom a white chocolate mocha every single week – she loves it. She had her first one probably two years ago and thinks it is the best thing ever. That was my inspiration for this cake and I find it to be super festive and cozy.

The flavors are warm, rich and decadent. 

Perfect for the season.

And the best part is that I used components of some of my other favorite cakes to bring this all together. 

First, I used the base of my hot cocoa cake. This is a wonderful, rich chocolate cake. The original recipe is from Ina. The crumb is lovely!

Next, the coffee cream cheese frosting from my banana sheet cake. We all know that I’m an absolute freak over cream cheese frosting. I add a few tablespoons of instant espresso powder to that and the result is incredible. You’ll want to eat it straight out of the bowl. 

Finally, white chocolate shavings! Or curls. I don’t get super fancy here. I take a white chocolate lindt bar and a vegetable peeler and go to town. It’s easy. They stick right to the frosting! As long as you use a high quality white chocolate, you’ll love it. 

A little sprinkle of cocoa or espresso powder on top can finish things off.  (more…)

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Oh my heavens, it’s the perfect bar.

These peanut butter blossom bars are just like everyone’s favorite cookie, but in bar form.

Chewy peanut butter cookie bars topped with a soft and melty hershey kiss. Baked to perfection. A slightly sugary crunch on top, chocolate that melts into the peanut butter cookie…

Need I say more!?

The real question is: why haven’t I been making peanut butter blossom bars all along?!

I don’t know why I love peanut butter blossoms so much. Sure, the peanut butter chocolate combination will forever be my favorite. I do adore it. And I especially love a chewy peanut butter cookie. 

But! I don’t love a hershey kiss – I would eat many other kinds of chocolate before I’d choose the kiss.

However, there is something about how it gets so soft and melty in the oven. It almost turns truffle-like. It is easy to bite through and melts into the peanut butter, really showcasing the best of the best peanut butter chocolate flavor. 

And, the nostalgia. Of course, the nostalgia. I am quite possibly the most nostalgic person I know.

Plus, the other thing is that they are just a cute cookie! A little kiss cookie. Adorable, beloved and pretty easy to make. 

I’ve been making my grandma’s recipe for years and years. We are talking, like, basically my whole life. Easily for 20 years on my own. And so many of you make them every year too!

So, I took that recipe and made a few adjustments to have it fit a 9×13 inch baking dish. The original recipe makes a lot of blossom cookies!! I can’t say that I will always make the bars over the individual cookies, but these bars are such an awesome switch from the classic. (more…)

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