Author: Charlotte Hancey

Blueberry Croissant Bake

We just got back from the Oregon Coast which has become our family’s favorite vacation. We found the best beach house about 5 years ago and have now stayed there 3 times. It is so dreamy! The kitchen is so pretty and has the BEST light! I love cooking there and knew this time I had to make something “blog worthy” to take advantage of that beautiful light. I chose to make a variation of something from one of my favorite blogs, “The Girl Who Ate Everything.” I’ve had her recipe for “Blueberry Croissant Puff” pinned for a long time waiting for a special time to make it. Our beach house was the perfect setting and they even had the perfect blue dish to make it in! My whole family absolutely loved this and I definitely will not wait for a special occasion to make it again. I love that it was so easy but tasted and looked like I spent tons of time on it. Ha! I am not a fan of soggy overnight French toast bakes usually so I changed the cooking process to make it my own. I did not soak overnight and added quite a bit of time to baking it. I also added a little cinnamon to the cream cheese custard and loved the extra depth of flavor that it gave. I can’t wait to make this again!

Blueberry Croissant Bake

  • Servings: 8
  • Difficulty: easy
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Ingredients

6 large croissants, cut up into bite sized pieces
2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries
2 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened well
1 1/3 cup sugar
4 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
½ teaspoon cinnamon
2 cups milk
Powdered sugar for serving

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare 9×13 baking dish by spraying lightly with cooking spray. Place croissant pieces in the pan and sprinkle with blueberries.

Beat cream cheese, sugar, eggs, cinnamon and vanilla in medium bowl with electric mixer until smooth and creamy. Gradually add milk, beating well after each addition. Pour evenly over croissant pieces. Let sit 10-20 minutes.

Bake at 350°F for 55 minutes or until center is set and golden brown. Cover lightly with foil for the last 10 minutes to prevent over-browning.

Let sit for 5-10 minutes then serve warm dusted with powdered sugar.

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White Chocolate Cherry Blondies

Utah cherries are my favorite! We have a giant, beautiful cherry tree at my house but it didn’t do well this year. I was so sad but got excited when I saw that fresh, local cherries were on sale at Lee’s Marketplace this week. I knew that cherries would be amazing in my go-to blondie recipe and love how it turned out! My son proclaimed this my “best Lee’s recipe so far!” With the pop of red from the cherries and the white chocolate chips, they are the perfect 4th of July dessert but you don’t need a holiday for an excuse to make them!

Items on sale for July 2-July 8: cherries, butter, brown sugar, eggs, almond extract, flour

This is a sponsored post for Lee’s Marketplace. My posts for them are usually only posted to my Instagram but I’ll be posting them on my blog as well now. I love working with them! It gets my creative juices flowing as I think of recipes based on their weekly sale ads! Even if you aren’t local, these are still great recipes that anyone can use!

White Chocolate Cherry Blondies

  • Servings: 12
  • Difficulty: easy
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Ingredients

1 cup butter, mostly melted and slightly cooled
2 cups brown sugar
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon almond extract
2 cups + 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour, divided
¼ teaspoon salt
1 cup white chocolate chips
1 cup fresh dark cherries, pitted and cut in half

Directions

Preheat oven to 350. Prepare a 9×13 baking dish by lightly coating with nonstick cooking spray.

Mix together the butter and brown sugar then mix in the eggs, vanilla, and almond extract.

Add flour and salt then stir until everything is well combined. In a separate small bowl, toss cherries in 1 tablespoon flour until coated. Fold white chocolate chips and cherries into the batter.

Pour batter into baking dish and bake for 30-40 minutes or until edges just start to brown and center is set. (The top will have a shiny look to it and that is ok.) Let cool completely before cutting.

Charlotte Hancey3 Comments

The BEST Baked Beans

Me to my husband, “What title should I give my baked beans? I can’t just call them Baked Beans.” He replied with, “You just need to call them The BEST Baked Beans because that’s what everyone says after they take a bite of them.” So there you have it, these really are the BEST Baked Beans ever!

Before I started making these, I really wasn’t a fan of baked beans. When I saw them at a BBQ or potluck, I’d pass them by. Why? Because they were always full of floppy bacon and long stringy onions. Yuck. About 10 years ago, I decided to take matters into my own hands. I based my recipe off of my mother-in-law’s because the sauce in hers had good flavor. I decided to cook the bacon FIRST until it was nice and crispy. Then I cooked the diced onions in some of the bacon grease until they were brown and flavorful. GAME CHANGER. The rest of the ingredients are pretty basic as far as baked beans go. The sauce is the perfect amount of sweet from the brown sugar but still tangy and savory with ingredients like Worcestershire and dry mustard.

Do not pass this recipe by because the ingredient list looks like “basic baked beans.” I’m telling you, the technique is what takes these beans to the next level. If you’re taking these to a potluck, you’re going to need to quadruple this recipe. I always do and come home with an empty pot. Every time I’ve taken them to a potluck I hear someone yelling, “Who made the beans?” Haha! You’ll be the star of all the BBQs this summer if you make them!

The BEST Baked Beans

  • Servings: 6
  • Difficulty: easy
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Ingredients

2 one lb cans Pork and Beans, undrained
2/3 cup ketchup
1 1/2 cup yellow onions, chopped
3/4 cup brown sugar
8 slices bacon, chopped in bite sized pieces
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper

Directions

Preheat oven to 325. Heat a large oven-safe pan (or pot) to medium-high and cook bacon until crisp. Remove bacon from pan to drain on a paper towel-lined plated. Remove all but 2 tablespoons bacon grease from pan. Add the onions and cook until onions are tender and browned. Add beans, ketchup, brown sugar, dry mustard, Worcestershire, bacon, and S&P to the pan. Stir to combine. Cover and bake 45 minutes. Uncover and bake for an additional 30 minutes.

*Note: The beans will not thicken properly if made in a slow cooker. If you need to keep them warm, bake in oven as directed then transfer to a slow cooker.

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Tex-Mex Pasta Salad

Y’all know that I like to add a little Tex-Mex to any dish that I can.  I have been dreaming up this salad for a while now and love how it turned out!  I tried to think of as many ingredients that reminded me of home to put in this salad. Cheddar cheese, bacon, cilantro, pickled jalapenos, lime…yum! You’ll find a jar of pickled jalapenos on every table, at almost every supper, where I grew up in East Texas. Add more jalapenos if you want it spicier! Black beans would be a great addition to this pasta salad as well. My son hates beans so I was nice and left them out! This pasta salad is the perfect dish to take to all of your summer BBQs!

Tex-Mex Pasta Salad

  • Servings: 10-12
  • Difficulty: moderate
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Ingredients

16 oz bowtie pasta
1 (11 oz) can Mexicorn, drained
8 oz cheddar cheese, small cubes
8 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
4 oz can sliced black olives, drained
1/3 cup pickled jalapenos, finely diced
1 bunch green onions, chopped
1 cup fresh tomatoes, diced
½ cup cilantro, chopped

Dressing:
1 cup mayonnaise
½ cup sour cream
1 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon sugar
¼ cup lime juice
Salt and pepper, to taste

Directions

Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and set aside.
In a large mixing bowl, make dressing by whisking together mayo, sour cream, cumin, chili powder, garlic powder, sugar, lime juice, salt, and pepper.
Add all remaining ingredients to the bowl and toss to combine. Taste and add more salt if desired. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Charlotte Hancey3 Comments

Frozen Coconut Lime Pie

I’ve got another yummy dessert for y’all! I made my Frozen Coconut Lime Pie on ABC4’s Good Things Utah on Monday and had a blast. We were singing “You put the lime in the coconut…” all day! Ha! You can watch me make it here with the adorable Ali Monsen.

My mother-in-law made a version of this years ago and I fell in love! It quickly became my go-to summer dessert. One of my favorite flavor combos is coconut and lime so I started thinking of a way to incorporate coconut into the recipe. The crust! I decided to add coconut to the crust and it took this pie to another level! The coconut gets nice and toasty with the graham cracker crust in the oven. It adds the perfect amount of coconut!

The filling only has 3 ingredients! Three! Lime, sweetened condensed milk, and heavy whipping cream. This pie is incredibly easy but full of flavor. It will quickly become a favorite I promise!

Frozen Coconut Lime Pie

  • Servings: 8
  • Difficulty: easy
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Ingredients

1 1/4 cups graham cracker crumbs
1/4 cup sweetened coconut flakes
2 tablespoons brown sugar
6 tablespoons butter, melted
5 limes
1 can (14 oz) sweetened condensed milk
2 cups heavy whipping cream, divided
1/4 cup confectioners sugar

Directions

Preheat oven to 375. Prepare pie crust by combining graham cracker crumbs, coconut, sugar, and butter in a bowl. Stir until moistened. Pour mixture into 9-inch pie plate and firmly press into bottom and up the sides. Bake crust 10 minutes. Cool completely on a wire rack.

Zest limes to make 1 tablespoon of zest. Juice limes to make 1/2 cup juice. In a large bowl, whisk together sweetened condensed milk, zest, and juice. Set aside.

In a separate bowl, beat 1 cup of whipping cream until stiff peaks form. Gently fold cream into lime mixture. Pour filling into cooled crust. Freeze at least 3 hours or until firm.

Beat remaining 1 cup whipping cream with 1/4 cup confectioners sugar until stiff peaks form. Use to garnish individual pie servings.

On the set of ABC4’s Good Things Utah!

Charlotte Hancey1 Comment

Root Beer Float Brownies

Need some inspiration for a Father’s Day dessert this weekend? Or just looking for a fun dessert to take to a BBQ? Look no further because these Root Beer Float Brownies are unique and delicious! I have been making them for years and have adapted them from a recipe I found on the Cookies and Cups blog.

I recently made this for my fun collaboration with Lee’s Marketplace and have gotten some comments like, “What? Chocolate and root beer?!? That sounds weird.” Trust me, the flavor combo is perfect! The root beer in the brownie batter gives them a rich, deep flavor. They turn out so thick and fudgy! The creamy root beer frosting is so ridiculously good too. Have I ever steered you wrong? Just. Trust. Me.

Because they turn out so thick, I cut them pretty small for serving. They also freeze really well! My husband is a huge root beer fan and absolutely loves these brownies! They are the perfect Father’s Day dessert and I hope you all love them as much as my family does!

Root Beer Float Brownies

  • Servings: 24
  • Difficulty: moderate
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Ingredients

For the brownies:
1 1/3 cup flour
1 cup cocoa powder
1 teaspoon salt
12 oz semi sweet chocolate
6 oz white chocolate
8 tablespoons butter
1 cup white sugar
1 cup brown sugar
6 eggs
16 oz root beer
4 teaspoons vanilla

For the frosting:
1/2 cup butter, room temperature
1/3 cup root beer
5 cups powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon root beer extract

Directions

Preheat oven to 375. Grease a 9×13 pan with baking spray.
Combine flour, cocoa powder and salt in a bowl by whisking slightly, set aside.
Add butter, semi sweet and white chocolate to a microwave safe bowl. Microwave in 20-30 second increments until melted then stir to combine, set aside.
Using a mixer, mix eggs, white sugar, brown sugar, and vanilla. Slowly add chocolate mixture.
Add the flour mixture and root beer alternately to the mixer. Mix until just combined. Pour batter into prepared pan and bake for 30-40 minutes or until center is just set. Let cool completely before frosting.

To make frosting, beat butter and 1 cup of sugar at a time on medium speed until combined. Mix in root beer (slowly) and extract and continue mixing until frosting is smooth.

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