Strawberry Frozen Yogurt Sundae

Whoever said you need to go to the ice cream stand to get ice cream stand quality sundaes?  Not I!

This here is a marvelous concoction I whipped together one night or my boyfriend and I to have as a dessert while watching a movie.  We had some strawberry low fat frozen yogurt in the freezer. Deciding to just rid ourselves of the container to be able to buy another one, we split it.  I took out a 1 cup serving for myself, giving my boyfriend the remainder.  I sliced up some fresh strawberries and a whole banana and divided those equally among the two bowls.  I then stuck two Trader Joe’s Speculoos cookies along the edges of the bowl.  And then I got fancy… I took my beloved Cookie Butter (Trader Joe’s marvelous creation) out of the cabinet, measured out a tablespoon and microwaved it for a few seconds.  Stirred and put it back in for a few more seconds.  When it got ooey gooey I drizzled it over the top of one sundae and returned back to the cookie butter to do the same to the other.

Needless to say this was heavenly.  A bit sweet because Cookie Butter is sweet on its own – then on top of frozen yogurt and naturally sweetened fruit it definitely knocked the glycemic index up there.  But it was to die for.  Sure it was a 9 points plus ice cream BUT if I went out and got a sundae from my local ice cream parlor, it would have cost me probably upwards to 30+ points plus.

QUESTION:

Do you make sweet treat desserts at home?

Trader Joe’s Speculoos Cookies

I purchased these Speculoos Cookies from Trader Joe’s the moment I saw them on the shelf.  I am a big fan of Cookie Butter and gingerbread cookies and desserts in general, plus anything that is used to make Cookie Butter is fabulousness in my opinion.  The fact that the nutrition information is very forgiving is undoubtedly the reason I purchased these cookies.

The cookies are the size of shortbread cookies or lady fingers and they’re delicious. They’re good with ice cream, by themselves or even with a cup of coffee or tea.

If you’ve had Trader Joe’s Cookie Butter then you know exactly what these taste like (just think if Cookie Butter were a crunchy cookie).  If you haven’t then it’s a crispy form of Cookie Butter.  The flavor of the cookies is gingerbread, cinnamon and just udder deliciousness in a crispy cookie form.  I really enjoy these cookies and I admit I went out on a “limb” and purchased 2 boxes before even trying them.  Needless to say I ended up having to purchase another box next time I went to the store because one of my boxes was confiscated (not by me – honest).

Everyone that has tried these has given them two thumbs up.  My boyfriend enjoys them with our homemade ice cream sundaes.  I enjoy them with ice cream or straight out of the box.  My mother enjoys them with a cup of coffee.  I’ve even given a few to my 3 ½ year old niece and she likes them.  They’re just a standup little cookie.

One of the greatest parts is that you can have 4 cookies in a serving for 4 points plus values. Not bad at all!

QUESTION:

Have you tried Trader Joe’s Speculoos Cookies?

Trader Joe’s Dark Chocolate filled with Speculoos Cookie Spread

I had seen this Dark Chocolate filled Speculoos Cookie Spread chocolate bar at Trader Joe’s a number of times but hadn’t picked it up, until one of my last trips.  I was browsing the snack section of Trader Joe’s and decided to just grab the bar to try it out with my boyfriend.  We both absolutely LOVE cookie butter – so cookie butter mixed with chocolate?  Could that possible be the recipe for heaven?

Fristly, I do want to mention that I am not a dark chocolate fan for the most part. But the cookie butter was my immediate seller.  I split this with my boyfriend during our movie night and I have to say the chocolate is pretty good.  The dark chocolate most definitely cuts the sweetness of cookie butter (since I’ll admit, even though I LOVE cookie butter it can get incredibly and overpoweringly sweet after a while).  Creating it with dark chocolate is definitely an A+ and a home run.

The whole bar contains 6 squares, and for those of us who are Weight Watchers members the whole bar is 7 points plus.  Half of the bar (3 squares) is 3 points plus.  In all honesty, half of the bar is well enough to satisfy any sweet tooth.

QUESTION:

Have you trie the Dark Chocolate filled Speculoos Cookie Spread bar?

Cookie Butter Frosted Brownies

As mentioned in my previous post I had two separate idea for Cookie Butter Brownies so instead of making two trays of brownies (which can be dangerous having that many brownies lying around) I made a “snack size” box of brownies, split it down the middle and made the two separate recipes I had in mind.  I simply followed the box directions for the brownies – I avoided eliminating any of the eggs and oil because even with adding them they were going to be around the same point values.

I baked the brownies per the box directions and once they were fully baked I let them cool completely.  When cooled I frosted them with the following frosting recipe:

• 2 tablespoons Cookie Butter
• ¾ cup powder sugar,
• 1 ½ tablespoons softened margarine
• 1 teaspoon skim milk
• Splash (maybe ½ teaspoon) of vanilla extract.

Blend the above ingredients together and frost the cooled brownies.  I found it a lot easier to frost the brownies (uncut) in the baking pan first before slicing into serving sizes.

I will say these were good but they are not for the faint of heart.  These were VERY sweet.  If you’re going to make them for a crowd that really love sweets, then these would be a hit – otherwise, it might be  a bit too much for your palette.

Using the box of mix I used and the Cookie Butter, these brownies (made a serving of 6 – half the box) turned out to be 7 points plus each.

Cookie Butter Swirl Brownies

When holidays are around the corner and my boyfriend and I have a few stops to make while visiting family I enjoy making desserts so we don’t show up somewhere empty handed.  I had a few different ideas for desserts and somewhere in my list of ideas I had “Cookie Butter Brownies.”  The simple mention of Cookie Butter my boyfriend was immediately intrigued.  He then brought out the fact that it would be a good idea to test the brownies before deciding to make something that I may not be impressed with to put down on a dessert table.

I had two separate ideas so instead of making two trays of brownies (which can be dangerous having that many brownies lying around) I made a “snack size” box of brownies, split it down the middle and made the two separate recipes I had in mind.  I simply followed the box directions for the brownies – I avoided eliminating any of the eggs and oil because even with adding them they were going to be around the same point values.

I sprayed my pan with cooking spray, layered in my batter and for the swirl portion I just took 2 tablespoons of cookie butter, melted it in the microwave (about 25 seconds).  I stirred it to make sure it was smooth and drizzled it over half the brownies and “swirled” it in with the tip of a fork.  I then baked them off per the box directions, taking them out when they passed the toothpick test.

I have to say hands down – these were my FAVORITE out of the two I made.  It had a nice subtle cookie butter flavoring, while not being overpoweringly sweet.  They were also only 5 points plus per brownie (6 servings – half the container).

Homemade Salted Cookie Butter Fudge!

Since I have been introduced to Trader Joe’s Speculoos Cookie Butter I have been addicted.  I find myself making Cookie Butter sandwiches quite frequently.  So in having a conversation with Sue I decided to google what you could do with cookie butter.  I spotted cookies and fudge.  Fudge?!  That immediately perked my interest because I make fudge every year.  All of the recipes varied most of them using only 6 ounces of chocolate chips.  But I wanted to incorporate the Cookie Butter right into my fudge recipe without having to try to make fudge in a different way (that I wasn’t familiar with).  With fingers crossed I added 2 cups of Cookie Butter to my bowl of dry ingredients.

In case you aren’t aware of what Cookie Butter is, it’s Trader Joe’s version of a gingerbread flavored like peanut butter.  It’s got a peanut butter consistency, is smooth like butter, but really belongs in a world of its own. It’s delicious.

It turned out to be absolutely amazing!  The fudge had such a smooth and creamy consistency with a very mild gingerbread flavor.  So amazing!  The salt on top of the fudge aided in bringing the flavors together.  My aunt, who is a self-proclaimed “Chocoholic” told me this fudge was THE best fudge she’s ever had in her life.  I call that a success!

If you are going to try this recipe do keep in mind this makes a large 13×9 pan of fudge.

Depending on the amount of pieces you get, which would be what you would throw into e-tools Recipe Builder.  For me, it was 5 Points Plus Values for a piece.

Here’s my recipe:

4 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1 (12 ounce) can evaporated milk
1/2 pound butter
2 (12 ounce) packages milk chocolate chips
1 (12 ounce) package semisweet chocolate chips
4 cups mini marshmallows
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups Trader Joe’s Cookie Butter
~1 ½ tablespoons Sea Salt (I didn’t measure, I just sprinkled it over the top of the fudge out of my shaker)

Pour chocolate chips, mini marshmallows, vanilla extract and Cookie butter in a very large bowl. Set aside.

In a medium sauce pan, place the butter, sugar and evaporated milk into the pan.

Cooking on medium/high to medium heat, bring the mixture to a boil (don’t forget to stir it).  Once you start to see bubbles forming set your timer and cook for exactly 11 minutes (depending on how it’s boiling you can lower your heat setting a little from medium-high to medium), stirring constantly.   Make sure you stir constantly or it WILL burn on you.

Once done, pour your hot liquid mixture over the ingredients in the bowl and stir slowly to blend using a metal spoon.

Pour into a buttered 13 x 9-inch pan.  Once all fudge is into the pan sprinkle with the sea salt (just a very light sprinkle not completely covering every inch) and chill very well. Cut when cold.

QUESTION:

Would you ever make Cookie Butter fudge?