Copycat Cranberry Bliss Bars

Starbucks, step aside! These homemade copycat Cranberry Bliss Bars are even better than the original and so satisfying to make at home. Orange extract adds a bright surprise to these holiday classics, while a perfect balance of white chocolate & cranberries makes this one of my most-requested bars all year round. Recipe lightly adapted from Belle of the Kitchen.

My pet bird smells like wet socks.

As I sit here trying to describe the bright, citrus tones and velvety rich white chocolate notes that make these Copycat Cranberry Bliss Bars so damn wonderful, all I can focus on is the … Read more

The BEST Salted Caramel Snickerdoodle Bars

These are possibly THE most requested dessert that I now bring to parties, gatherings, and potlucks galore! Stuffed with a rich layer of salted caramel, these perfectly chewy snickerdoodle bars are made with oil instead of butter and come together in just 20 minutes.

Here you are, scrolling idly on your internet browser, and you catch a startling flash of these salted caramel snickerdoodle bars. For a moment, your finger pauses as you consider swiping past. You can almost feel the caramel oozing off the screen, a crystal mess of cinnamon-sugar showering your plate as you sink your teeth into … Read more

Small-Batch Mickey Mouse Rice Krispie Treats

Add some adorable chEARs to your new year with these cute, marshmallow-y Mickey Mouse Rice Krispie Treats! This small-batch recipe makes just two or three treats, making it perfect for a date night or sweet snack to share.

Happy new year, friends!

I’ve been sitting on the news for a teensy while now, but in the spirit of 2022, I’m beyond thrilled to share my latest life update with you all: I’m back making magic at the House of Mouse!

A few months ago, I finally returned to Disneyland as a Disney cast member–for the first time in forever!–and salted … Read more

Vegan Caramelitas

When it comes to vegan desserts, these Vegan Caramelitas are among the best I’ve ever had! A golden brown sugar crumb filled with layers of chocolate and dairy-free caramel makes these quick bar cookies an irresistible addition to any dessert spread.   

The first time my college roommate caught me eating her homemade caramelitas, she suggested (rather mildly) that I could just take one and eat it if I wanted. You see, she had put them in the freezer for safekeeping and invited me to help myself anytime–but in my half-hearted attempt at self-control, I politely declined her invitation every time. … Read more

Top 10 Recipes of 2016

A few weeks ago, I posted some of my very favorite photos from this year. Now that it’s the last Thursday of 2016, I’m throwing back to some of this year’s most popular and viewed recipes!

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10. Copycat Red Lobster Cheddar Bay Biscuits

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If you secretly make trips to Red Lobster just so you can stuff your with their famous, melt-in-your-mouth buttery Cheddar Bay Biscuits, here’s some good news for the new year: now you can make (and enjoy) them in your own home! (Recipe here.)

9. Slutty Cheesecake Bars

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A thick layer of chocolate chip blondie, … Read more

Super Chewy Molasses Ginger Cookie Bars with Cheesecake Filling

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Growing up in California, my Christmases were never filled with real snowdrifts and cups of hot cocoa over a crackling log fire. Christmases were thin flyaway scarves on nippy sun-soaked mornings and Chinese sticky rice served in a large rice cooker. They were elaborate piles of wrapped presents under a tree, but they were also eggnog-free, booze-free, cookie-free celebrations of time together with family. Until a few years ago, I never even considered what it meant to have a conventionally Western Christmas: to build floppy houses made of real gingerbread, to squeeze into an abhorrently amusing ugly holiday sweater for … Read more

Millionaire’s Shortbread Bars

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In England, where I started my 3-week Europe trip, I was stunned by the sheer variety of food that I encountered. Okay, so maybe the fish-‘n-chips and beer British stereotype I had always entertained wasn’t exactly a fair one–though they do like their beer–but I wasn’t ready for the amount of GOOD STUFF I inhaled during my 6 days around Kent, London, Oxford, Cambridge, and York. From tea time scones & jam to gratins and savory pies, there simply was no shortage of perfect nibbles to fuel our packed daily schedules.

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By far my favorite eateries to visit were the … Read more

Strawberry Cream Cheese Oat Bars

Happy middle of Jul–wait, what?

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I’m not sure how we’re already halfway through the summer–nobody ever consulted with me about this matter, or I would’ve veto’d it faster than you can say “pandas on a water slide”–but here we are, even so…and in spite of me, it seems!

These past two weeks have been unusually crazy ones…which is my way of excusing myself for the recent lack of updates. Whoops! Thankfully, we’ve finally hammered out our final plans for le big Europe trip, which is exciting because I hate travel planning with a passion, and more than one late … Read more

Caramel Shortbread Cocoa Krispies Bars

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For anyone who is currently sitting in an office, classroom, library, or other public setting, you may want to bookmark this page and come back to it later…unless you don’t mind running the risk of accidentally salivating onto your keyboard in front of your boss. If that’s the case, then by all means: scroll on!

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I was editing the photos for these treats this weekend when the boy poked his nose hopefully over my shoulder and stared at my computer monitor. “What are those?” he asked with an air of studied nonchalance that wasn’t fooling anyone. When I told him … Read more

No-Bake M&M’S® Cookie Butter Avalanche Bars

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #MakeItAMovieNight #CollectiveBias

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Animated films are my jam, my cup of tea, my sweet love, my obsession and my vampiric life blood. If you don’t like animation, you may as well leave now because I’m pretty sure we can’t ever be friends again.

And no, you can’t have any of these bars on your way out. Hmph!

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Animated movie nights are one of my favorite bonding activities ever. If you want to find the want to my heart–because lezzbereal here, everyone does–you … Read more