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Could Easter really have been a week ago? Time is flying like the wind! We had a wonderful long visit from my mother, and my brother. It was a whirlwind weekend but such fun to have little ones in the house. Just yesterday we finished off all of the leftovers ( and I sent some home with them! ). My husband announced last night that the 2 refrigerators are officially empty! I think that was a signal for baking to commence. I'm not a huge coconut fan, but he certainly loves it ( along with anything else containing sugar). And since I am going to the gym 4 days a week, I am perfectly happy to have sweets in the house that do not tempt me. This recipe makes a 9x13-inch pan of coconut pie bars. There are several advantages... Portion control, more servings than a traditional pie and no pie crust to make! Winner! Winner! Recipe >> Coconut Cream Pie Bars @ willowbirdbaking.com

Darkest Chocolate Cake with Red Wine Glaze Yield: 10 servings Ingredients: Cake:     1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into pieces, plus more for pan     1/3 cup all-purpose flour, plus more for pan     8 ounces bittersweet chocolate (at least 70% cacao), chopped     1 cup sugar     4 large eggs     3/4 teaspoons kosher salt Glaze and assembly:     8 ounces bittersweet chocolate (at least 70% cacao), finely chopped     1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, cut into small pieces     1/2 teaspoon kosher salt     1/2 cup powdered sugar     1/2 cup red wine (such as Pinot Noir) Special equipment:     A 9" springform pan Directions:   For cake: Preheat oven to 325°F. Lightly butter and flour pan. Heat chocolate, sugar, and 1 cup butter in a heatproof bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water (bowl should not touch water), stirring, until chocolate is almost completely melted, about 3 minutes; remove from heat and continue to stir until chocolate is completely melted. Let cool comp

Mango Mousse Cake Ingredients: For the Rolls 4 eggs, 4 tablespoons flour, 3 tablespoons sugar, 1 teaspoon vanilla, ½ teaspoon lemon zest. Instructions: Beat egg whites with sugar until stiff. Add egg yolks, vanilla, lemon zest, mix gently, add flour. Bake in 28×38 cm. pan with parchment paper 10-15 min. While still warm, roll it with wet kitchen towel. Let it cool. Unroll, spared few tablespoons of apricot preserve. Roll into a small roulade, 2 cm thick. Cut, and continue rolling and cutting until you get 3 rolls. Freeze the rolls so you will be able to slice them evenly. Cut marmalade rolls each about 5 mm thick. Line the sides and the bottom of the 9 inch cake pan with slices. Brush them with syrup made with 2 tablespoons sugar, 1 tablespoon water, 1lemon juice, 1 teaspoon vanilla. For Mousse Ingredients: 450 gr. mango, 75 gr. sugar, 2 tablespoons lemon juice, 3 1/2 teaspoons gelatin, 500 ml. heavy cream. Instructions: Puree the mango flesh with the sugar and lemon juice. Strain to r

If you are having a few guests over and want a quick and easy appetizer, here is the perfect recipe! Pizza Ring Ingredients: 2 8 oz tubes of Pillsbury Crescent rolls 1/2 cup tomato sauce (either homemade, or jarred) 1 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded (use more or less to your preference) 1 tbs garlic powder 1 tbs italian seasoning Pepperoni slices (optional) * add any pizza toppings - be creative! Directions: Preheat oven to 425 degrees 1. Line the crescent rolls in strips of two on a pizza stone (or baking sheet) - example below. 2. Spread a layer of sauce, then cheese. Top with pepperoni slices (I placed them on half of the ring only. 3. Fold over the edges to create the ring. Top with garlic powder and seasoning. 4. Bake in oven for 15-18 minutes, or until golden brown.* I have a gas oven which seems to bake a little bit quicker than electric ovens. * If crescents come out too doughy, try cooking for longer or raising the temperature of the oven to 450 degrees.

Try making cinnamon rolls with your waffle iron! Weekend breakfast will never be the same. Cinnamon Roll Waffles with Cream Cheese Glaze Servings: 5 Ingredients: 1 can Pillsbury™ Grands!™ refrigerated cinnamon rolls with cream cheese icing 1 cup powdered sugar 3 tablespoons milk 1 teaspoon vanilla Directions: Heat waffle maker; spray with cooking spray. Remove cinnamon rolls from can; set icing aside. For each waffle, place 1 cinnamon roll in center of waffle maker; close. Bake 3 to 4 minutes or until waffle is thoroughly cooked and golden brown. Meanwhile, in small bowl, stir together reserved icing, powdered sugar, milk and vanilla until glaze is smooth. Serve glaze over hot waffles.

Just made this and it’s absolutely fantastic! definitely a crowd pleaser, everyone is already going for seconds. I halved the sugar (I don’t like things too sweet) and cooked it in a bundt pan,, The texture is great–I topped topped mine with just a bit of confectioners sugar and it’s so delicious, very moist and sweet but not overwhelming. There aren’t a lot of recipes I like to repeat but I definitely plan on making this again in the future. Recipe >> Old Fashioned Hot Milk Cake @ amykayskitchen.com

Peanut Butter Secrets Yield: 3 1/2 dozen Ingredients: Cookie: 2 cups All Purpose Flour 1/2 cup Jif® Creamy Peanut Butter 1 cup Crisco® Butter Flavor All-Vegetable Shortening or 1 stick Crisco® Baking Sticks Butter Flavor All-Vegetable Shortening 3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar 1/2 teaspoon salt 40 to 45 chocolate-covered miniature peanut butter cups 1 large egg 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1/2 cup granulated sugar 1 teaspoon baking soda Crisco® Original No-Stick Cooking Spray Glaze: 1 cup (6 oz. pkg.) semi-sweet chocolate chips 1 teaspoon Crisco® Butter Flavor All-Vegetable Shortening or 1 teaspoon Crisco® Baking Sticks Butter Flavor All-Vegetable Shortening 2 tablespoons Jif® Creamy Peanut Butter Directions: HEAT oven to 375ºF. Coat baking sheets lightly with no-stick cooking spray. COMBINE shortening, brown sugar, granulated sugar and peanut butter in bowl of electric mixer; beat at medium speed until well blended. Beat in egg and vanilla. COMBINE flour, baking soda and salt in mediu

I stumbled upon these white chocolate lemon beauties on Pinterest (I don't know what I would without this website sometimes) and knew I had to make them. It was love after first bite. The list of ingredients is minimal and the final product will dazzle you. The texture of these truffles are silky smooth. Hints of lemon ooze out of this velvety white chocolate. The best part is they are so easy to make. Melt all the ingredients together and cool for about two hours and you have yourself a delectable dessert that will impress everyone. (I have made these 3 times already!) White Chocolate Lemon Truffles Ingredients: 1 cup white chocolate 5 Tbsp. unsalted butter 3 Tbsp. heavy cream pinch salt 1 tsp. lemon extract icing sugar, for dusting Instructions: Melt chocolate, butter and cream over a double boiler or in a microwave. Stir until smooth. Stir in salt and extract. Allow to cool slightly before covering with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 2 hours or until firm enough to handle. With a