Easy Bread Pudding {4 Ways} with Cinnamon Whiskey Butter Sauce

Easy Bread Pudding with Cinnamon Whiskey Butter Sauce (or, alcohol-free UnWhiskey Vanilla Butter Sauce) is the very definition of Scrumptious! Recipe is adaptable and foolproof, with variations including: Traditional Cinnamon, Cinnamon-Orange, Cranberry-Orange, and Cranberry White Chocolate.

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Bread pudding is a delicious way to use up old bread. Growing up, if any part of a loaf of bread went stale, my mom would never even think of throwing it out. Waste not, want not. Instead, she would make one of my all-time favorite desserts: bread pudding.

Post Updated April 22, 2020 (Originally published May 6, 2014)

When I grew up, I adopted Mom’s thrifty practice of saving old bread. I keep a large resealable bag in the freezer, and whenever we have a lone slice of bread or a part of a loaf goes stale, I throw the extra bread in the bag. When I have enough, I make bread pudding.

You don’t need to be picky about the kind of breads that go into your bread pudding. (I mean, that’s kind of the point, right?) I do like to use a variety if I have it, though. Don’t be afraid to use breads with unique flavors or textures, either! Rye bread is one of my favorite breads to use.

This Easy Bread Pudding is full of sugar and spice and everything nice – and the recipe almost impossible to flub. The foundation recipe below (i.e., Basic Bread Pudding), even without any additions or sauces, makes a perfectly delicious dessert just as written.

Cinnamon-Orange Bread Pudding with Cinnamon-Orange Whiskey Butter Sauce is one of our favorite combos!

By now though, you probably know that I like Options. I need to change things up from time to time, and bread pudding is no different. I’ve included four of our favorite bread pudding variations on the recipe card below:

Cinnamon-Raisin Bread Pudding
Cinnamon-Orange Bread Pudding
Cranberry-Orange Bread Pudding
Cranberry White Chocolate Bread Pudding

It all just depends upon the extras you throw in.

Once you master the basic recipe, you’ll find yourself coming up with all kinds of combinations of your own.

5 from 7 votes

Easy Bread Pudding (4 Ways)

This Easy Bread Pudding is absolutely scrumptious! Extremely adaptable recipe, with variations including Traditional Cinnamon, Cinnamon-Orange, Cranberry-Orange, and Cranberry White Chocolate.

Prep Time30 mins

Cook Time1 hr

Total Time1 hr 30 mins

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Course: Brunch, Comfort Food, Dessert

Cuisine: American, Comfort Food

Keyword: bread, leftovers

Servings:

Calories: 325kcal

Author: Renée | The Good Hearted Woman

Ingredients

Basic Bread Pudding

1 pound day-old bread roughly 10 cups, cubed
7 eggs
1 cup brown sugar
½ cup white
4 cups milk or half & half
1 tablespoon vanilla
1½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground ginger
¼ teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
¼ teaspoon salt
1 batch Cinnamon Whiskey Butter Sauce OPTIONAL: SEE NOTES | or Cinnamon-Orange Sauce, or Un-Whiskey Sauce

For Traditional Cinnamon-Raisin Bread Pudding

½ - ¾ cup golden raisins or raisins (As always, raisins are optional)
1½ teaspoons ground cinnamon additional

For Cinnamon-Orange Bread Pudding

½ cup golden raisins or raisins
1½ teaspoons fresh orange zest
1½ teaspoons ground cinnamon additional

For Cranberry-Orange Bread Pudding

½ cup dried cranberries
1 teaspoon fresh orange zest

For Cranberry White Chocolate Bread Pudding

½ cup dried cranberries
½ cup white chocolate chips or chopped white chocolate pieces

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Preheat oven to 325°F [163°C].
Grease a large, heavy baking dish with a thin coating of butter, or spray it with cooking spray.
A 10" cast iron skillet is my preferred baking pan for this recipe. However, you can use whatever works best for you: a 9x13 baking or casserole dish is another good choice.
Cut bread into ¾" - 1" cubes. (You should have roughly 10 cups of bread cubes.)
Put the bread cubes into buttered baking pan or dish.
Sprinkle dried fruit and/or baking chips over bread cubes (i.e., raisins, dried cranberries, white chocolate chips, etc.). Set aside.
In a large bowl, whisk 7 eggs until frothy.
Add sugars to beaten eggs and thoroughly whisk together.
Whisk in ground spices (i.e., cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg), salt, and vanilla.
If you are using orange zest, mix it now as well.
Mixture should be a thick, eggy syrup right now.
Stir in milk (or half & half).
Pour the egg mixture over the bread cube mixture in the pan.
Press it down a little with your hands. You should see a little of the liquid rise up in between the bread cubes.
At this point, if the bread pudding seems really dry, I will mix up another egg with about 3/4 cup of milk and drizzle that over the top. It really depends on the density of the bread you are using.
Allow everything to rest for about 20 minutes to give the bread cubes time to absorb the egg mixture.
Bake 45-60 minutes in the preheated oven, until lightly browned.
Insert a toothpick or skewer into the bread pudding – it should come out clean.
Allow bread pudding to cool on a wire rack.
I usually loosely tent it with aluminum foil to keep it from losing too much moisture as it cools.
When bread pudding has mostly cooled, drizzle with ⅔ of the cooled, prepared Cinnamon Whiskey Butter Sauce.
Reserve the last ⅓ of the sauce.
When you are ready to serve the bread pudding, heat the reserve sauce slightly and serve on the side as you would syrup for pancakes.
Refrigerate any leftovers.

Notes

CINNAMON WHISKEY BUTTER SAUCE is totally optional. (However, adding it will take your bread pudding to the next level!)

Nutrition information includes the "Basic Bread Pudding" recipe ingredients only. It does not take into account additional ingredients listed in the recipe options (i.e., dried fruit, baking chips, etc.) or ingredients in the Cinnamon Whiskey Butter Sauce.

Nutrition

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Basic Whiskey Butter Sauce Recipe

My mom never made a sauce for our bread pudding when I was a kid (hers was heavenly all by itself), so I didn’t discover spirit-infused butter sauce until I was in my late twenties.

Back then, we used to stop at a sweet little diner down in Netarts (if I remember right) on the Oregon Coast, just for their bread pudding. I can still remember the first time a warm piece of bread pudding arrived at our table soaked with decadent, buttery rum sauce – Oh.My.Gosh!

Ever since, I’ve always enjoyed a spirited butter sauce with my bread pudding. (As if it isn’t already decadent enough!)

This buttery Cinnamon-Orange Whiskey Butter Sauce is soooo amazing!

Topping off this Easy Bread Pudding recipe is an amazing Cinnamon Whiskey Butter Sauce. Like my Easy Bread Pudding recipe, this basic butter sauce recipe can be adapted as desired.

Variations listed on the recipe card include Cinnamon-Orange Whiskey Butter Sauce, and an alcohol-free Un-Whiskey Vanilla Butter Sauce.

Pro Tip: Substitute rum for whiskey, and Boom! You’ve got Rum Sauce!

5 from 7 votes

Cinnamon Whiskey Butter Sauce for Bread Pudding

Cinnamon Whiskey Butter Sauce is absolutely amazing over bread pudding! Variations include: Cinnamon-Orange Whiskey Butter Sauce, and even an alcohol-free Un-Whiskey Vanilla Butter Sauce.

Prep Time15 mins

Cooling time1 hr

Total Time1 hr 15 mins

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Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American, Comfort Food

Keyword: Sauce

Servings:

Calories: 202kcal

Author: Renée | The Good Hearted Woman

Equipment

Whisk
Heavy Medium Saucepan

Ingredients

1½ cups white sugar
¾ cups butter
½ cup corn syrup
4 ounces cinnamon whiskey [Fireball] OR 2 ounces Spiced Rum, plus 2 ounces cinnamon whiskey (For Cinnamon-Orange and/or alcohol-free options, SEE NOTES)
¼ cup half & half or milk, or almond milk

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Put a small, clean plate in the refrigerator.
Put sugar, butter, and corn syrup in a medium saucepan.
Set pan on burner, and then turn burner on LOW.
Stir over low heat until mixture begins to boil.
Continue to cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until it reaches a full, rolling boil. (A boil that cannot be stirred down.)
Remove from heat and stir in alcohol. Step back from pan for a moment.
Mixture will bubble up almost immediately and release all of alcohol.
DO NOT have your face directly over the pan when you add the alcohol. All of this happens very quickly, and you can get a nasty steam burn if you stand too close.
Take the plate out of the refrigerator. Drop a teaspoon of sauce on the plate, and determine if the sauce on the plate is thick enough for your tastes.
If the sauce is thick enough for you, move on to the next step.
If you would like your sauce to be thicker, return to the pan to the stove over MEDIUM-LOW. Stirring constantly, allow it to reduce for a few more minutes. Try the plate test again.
When you are satisfied with the thickness of your sauce, pour it into a clean container and allow it to cool.
Serve sauce over warm bread pudding.

Notes

Cinnamon-Orange Whiskey Butter Sauce

Use 2 ounces of cinnamon whiskey, plus 2 ounces of plain whiskey, plus 1 teaspoon orange zest.
OR, Use 2 ounces of cinnamon whiskey, plus 2 ounces of Grand Marnier.

Un-Whiskey Vanilla Butter Sauce

All of the alcohol cooks out of this sauce when made as directed. However, if you prefer not to use alcohol in your cooking at all:

Omit all alcohol
Add 1 teaspoon cinnamon when you add the sugar.
Add 1 tablespoon of vanilla when you remove the sauce from the heat.

The resulting sauce will be a much milder, but still delicious.

Nutrition

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If dessert sauces are something you crave, checkout our round-up of caramel and butterscotch recipes! (And find out what the difference between them is, too!)

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Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links, including Amazon affiliate links, which means we may receive a commission if you click a link and purchase something that we have recommended. While clicking these links won’t cost you any extra money, they do help keep this site up and running. As always, all opinions and images are my own. Please check out our disclosure policy for more details. Thank you for your support!

Chocolate Wacky Cake (No Eggs, No Dairy, No Clean-up!)

March 12 By Renée 19 Comments

Chocolate Wacky Cake is the easiest scratch cake you will ever make! (No eggs, no milk, no butter, no clean-up.) Made exclusively with pantry staples, this surprisingly moist, delicious snack cake mixes up in a jiffy, right in the pan!

This post may contain affiliate links, but don’t worry – they won’t bite.

Chocolate Wacky Cake was the first “scratch” cake I ever baked all by myself. (I think I was eight.) So named because it requires no eggs, no milk, no butter, and is mixed directly in the pan, Wacky Cake is a surprisingly moist, delicious chocolate cake that is easy enough for a child to make.

Wacky Cake is dead simple to make, but the origins of the recipe – also known as Crazy Cake, War Cake, Depression Cake, Magic Cake, and even 3-Hole Cake – are somewhat murky.

Wacky Cake is a recipe created for difficult times, passed down from one generation of frugal bakers to the next. There are references to similar cake recipes dating back over a hundred years; clear back to World War I, when War Cake could be found in a 1918 Food Administration Department pamphlet entitled “War Economy in Food,” under “Recipes for Conservation Sweets.”

After The War to End All Wars ended in 1918, Crazy Cake recipes made their way into 1930’s Depression Era kitchens, when budgets were tight, and milk, eggs, and butter were luxuries. Still later, mothers on the home front during World War II relied on this unusual cake recipe as a way to deal with wartime shortages, when milk and eggs were scarce, and other staples (like sugar and coffee) were rationed and in short supply.

Wacky Cake is the easiest scratch cake you will ever make. It is mixed in one pan with a fork. The trick to this cake is the three-hole method of mixing that allows the vinegar and baking soda to combine at the last moment and act as a leavening agent.

Six Simple Steps for Chocolate Wacky Cake

Start your cake now, and it will be ready to eat in less than an hour!

[Actual amounts can be found in the recipe card below]

Sift together the dry ingredients into a greased 8×8 (or 9×9) cake pan.
Form three wells in the sifted mix.
Fill the depressions with [1] Oil, [2] Vanilla, and [3] Vinegar.
Flood the pan with 1 cup of water.
Stir with a fork until thoroughly mixed. (Check the corners! I use a spoon to do the initial mixing, and finish by whisking it with a fork.)
Bake in a 350°F oven for 25-30 minutes.

That’s literally all there this to it. If you work super slow, you might need 15 minutes to mix it up.

BONUS POINTS: No raw eggs in this batter! Go ahead and let the kids lick the fork!

So what does Wacky Cake taste like? It is an exceptionally moist, delicious chocolate snack cake. Surprisingly so, in fact. It’s perhaps not as quite as rich as a true, butter-filled Devil’s Food Cake, but it will definitely satisfy those chocolate cake cravings.

For 1970’s Kids Only: Remember Betty Crocker’s Snackin’ Cakes? Wacky Cake is a lot like those little cakes as far as texture goes, and it tastes something like a Hostess Cupcake without the cream filling, only a little softer and richer.

5 from 5 votes

Chocolate Wacky Cake

Chocolate Wacky Cake is the easiest scratch cake you will ever make! (No eggs, no milk, no butter, no clean-up.) Made exclusively with pantry staples, this surprisingly moist, delicious snack cake mixes up in a jiffy, right in the pan!

Prep Time15 mins

Cook Time30 mins

Total Time45 mins

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Course: Dessert, Sweets

Cuisine: American

Keyword: cake, chocolate, Dairy-free, eggless, vegan

Servings: servings

Calories: 236kcal

Author: Renée B. ♥ The Good Hearted Woman

Equipment

Ingredients

1½ cups flour
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup baking cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon vinegar
5 Tablespoons vegetable oil
1 cup water

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350°F [177°C].
Spray an 8x8 pan (or 9x9) with cooking spray.
Sift together dry ingredients into the pan.
Flatten the sifted dry ingredeints and form three depressions in the top - one large and two small.
Pour oil into the large depression, vanilla into the second depression, and vinegar into the third.
Pour water over the whole thing.
Stir with spoon or fork until thoroughly mixed. Be sure to check the corners.
The cake batter will produce bubbles on the top of the cake. Gently tamp the cake pan on the countertop once or twice to release gas.
Bake at 350°F [177°C] for 25-30 minutes, until the top springs back when touched.
Allow cake to cool. Wacky Cake can be served as is, or with a sprinkling of powdered sugar, or iced with your favorite frosting.

Notes

Be sure to use natural cocoa if possible, and not Dutch-pressed (which is also sometimes called European-style or alkalized). Dutch-pressed cocoa is washed with a solution of potassium carbonate which lessens its acidity, and Wacky Cake depends on that acidity to strengthen the gluten and help the cake rise.

Nutrition

Tried this recipe?Mention @TheGoodHeartedWoman or tag #thegoodheartedwoman!

I’m sharing this recipe on the Weekend Potluck Recipe Linkup.
Check it out for more great recipes!

Looking for a good STEAM activity? Consider Wacky Cake as a great opportunity to demonstrate the power of baking soda and vinegar outside a volcano! (Whoohoo kitchen science!)

P.S. If you love baking cakes, be sure to try my scratch-made Triple-layer Strawberry Cake. It’s amazing!

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of The Good Hearted Woman. 🌻 Be sure to PIN this post!

Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links, including Amazon affiliate links, which means we may receive a commission if you click a link and purchase something that we have recommended. While clicking these links won’t cost you any extra money, they do help keep this site up and running. As always, all opinions and images are my own. Please check out our disclosure policy for more details. Thank you for your support!

Swiss Chews {Flourless Chocolate Crinkle Cookies}

December 6 By Renée 23 Comments

Classic Chocolate Crinkle Cookies (or Swiss Chews as Mom always called them) are crispy on the outside, fudgy on the inside, and perfect for the holidays!

All you need is love. But a little chocolate now and then doesn’t hurt.

~ Charles Schultz

Crispy on the outside, fudgy on the inside, Chocolate Crinkle Cookies are amazingly simple to make, and taste absolutely decadent: (I also have it on good authority that they are one of Santa’s favorite treats!)

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Back when I was small, every year around the first of December my mom would get together with her friend Betty and bake. Betty would always come up with a few new cookie ideas for them to try, but no matter what else they baked, the holy trinity of Christmas cookies at our house was Joe Froggers (a spicy, rum-infused molasses cookie), Chocolate Thumbprints, and Swiss Chews, more commonly known as Chocolate Crinkle Cookies.

I always knew my mother’s chocolate crinkle cookies were better than anyone else’s, but for a long time, I didn’t know why. I guess I just supposed everyone thinks their mother’s cookies are the best.

It wasn’t until I started comparing chocolate crinkle cookies recipes that I figured out what made Mom’s cookies so unique. Unlike most recipes, Mom’s cookie recipe didn’t require any flour. It uses ground walnuts for structure instead – making these little sweethearts completely gluten-free. (You’re welcome, my gluten-free friends.)

Chocolate Crinkle Cookie dough balls, rolled and ready for the oven

5 from 1 vote

Swiss Chews {Flourless Chocolate Crinkle Cookies}

Crispy on the outside, fudgy on the inside, and perfect for the holidays!

Prep Time30 mins

Cook Time10 mins

Refrigeration Time2 hrs

Total Time40 mins

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Course: Cookies

Cuisine: Yummy

Servings:

Calories: 58kcal

Author: Renée ♥ The Good Hearted Woman

Ingredients

1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tablespoon instant espresso powder optional
1 tsp kosher salt
8 ounces semisweet chocolate chips
1 cup finely chopped walnuts
3 eggs separated
2 tsp vanilla
1/2 - 3/4 cup powdered sugar for rolling prepared dough in

Instructions

Preheat oven to 340° F. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper or Silpat mat.

Cookie Dough Prep

In a small bowl, combine brown sugar, powdered sugar, cocoa powder, espresso powder, and salt. Set aside.
In a small bowl, beat the egg yolks slightly. Set aside.
In a food processor, pulse walnuts until they resemble cracked wheat. [Be careful - if you let them go too long, you'll have walnut butter!] Measure walnuts after chopping. Set aside.
Melt chocolate in a glass bowl in the microwave for 40 seconds at a time, stirring after each cycle, until chocolate is completely melted. Allow to cool slightly.
Using an electric mixer, beat egg whites until they form stiff peaks. To the beaten egg whites, gradually add brown sugar mixture and then vanilla, beating until thick. Gently fold in walnuts and beaten egg yolks.
Fold the melted chocolate chocolate into the whipped egg-white mixture.
Refrigerate dough for at least 3 hours, or overnight. [DO NOT attempt to make cookies until the dough is cold!]

Forming Cookies

Form 1" balls of dough using a small cookie scoop or spoon. (About 2 teaspoons per cookie.) A small cookie scoop works perfect for this.
Pour 1/2-3/4 cup powdered sugar into a shallow bowl or plate. Rolls cookie dough balls in powdered sugar. Place cookie balls on prepared cookie sheet, about 2 inches apart. (You do not need to press the cookie balls down.)
Bake in preheated oven for 10 minutes. (If you make your cookies larger, you may need to bake them for an addition 2-3 minutes.) Remove from oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes before moving to a cooling rack.

Notes

Walnuts should be chopped very fine, but not beyond recognition - about the same consistency as cracked wheat.

Nutrition

Calories: 58kcal

Tried this recipe?Mention @TheGoodHeartedWoman or tag #thegoodheartedwoman!

Swiss Chews are free of added fats. No oil. No butter. (Trust me on this: they don’t need it.) Which brings me to this little extra holiday bonus: these deliciously fudgy bites of heaven have only about 58 calories per cookie! Can you believe it‽ Now you have no excuse: go make a batch or three today!

Thank you so much for being a faithful reader and supporter of The Good Hearted Woman. ❤ Be sure to Pin and Print this recipe!

P.S. I’m sharing this recipe on the Weekend Potluck Recipe Linkup. Check it out for more great Christmas recipes!

^{Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links, which means we may receive a commission if you click a link and purchase something that we have recommended. While clicking these links won’t cost you any extra money, they do help keep this site up and running. As always, all opinions and images are my own. Please check out our disclosure policy for more details. Thank you for your support!}

How to Make an Old-fashioned Chocolate Ice Cream Soda

October 19 By Renée 19 Comments

You need just three ingredients to make a delicious old-fashioned chocolate ice cream soda – and a glass full of wonderful, bubbly memories to share.

^{I teamed up with Canada Dry to bring you this post. This post may contain affiliate links, but don’t worry – they won’t bite.}

My brother LA is sixteen years older than me. He left for college when I was just two, and the only time I ever saw him when I was little was when he came home for holidays or spring break.

Because of our age difference, it would have been easy for us to never have had any kind of real relationship, but LA didn’t let that happen. From the time I can remember, he has always made an effort to make a place for me in his life.

One way he did that was to establish a few simple traditions between us, the most enduring and dear to me being our Soda Time.

Whenever he came home, LA would always make us chocolate ice cream sodas. It was our thing. Soda Time was the one time I had my big brother all to myself, and as I grew up, it became a tradition that – to this day – I look forward to with great anticipation.

I’m pretty sure I drove my mom and dad nuts back when I was a kid, because whenever I caught wind that LA was on his way home, I’d make one of them go up to Freddy’s to get the club soda, chocolate syrup, and ice cream so that we had everything we needed when he arrived.

LA always made a big, fun production of making our sodas, what with his special soda-mixing skills and spoon flourishes and all. He also taught me that you can’t just dump everything into a tall glass and call it good: making a perfect old-fashioned ice cream soda requires some finesse.

How to Make an Old-fashioned Chocolate Soda

You need just three ingredients to make a delicious old-fashioned chocolate ice cream soda – and a glass full of wonderful, bubbly memories to share.

Prep Time5 mins

Total Time5 mins

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Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American, Comfort Food

Keyword: chocolate soda, ice cream

Servings: Soda

Author: Renée ♥ The Good Hearted Woman

Equipment

Ingredients

2-3 scoops vanilla ice cream
6-8 ounces club soda or seltzer
2-3 tablespoons chocolate syrup

Instructions

First, find a suitable vessel. A soda glass is perfect, of course, but if you’re short on those, you can use any large, tall glass. (You can even do what my brother and I do when we’re feeling lazy and make a soda-in-a-bowl.)
Next, drop one scoop of ice cream into the bottom of the glass and pour about 2-3 tablespoons of chocolate syrup on top.
Use a soda spoon to squish and mash and mix everything around until the ice cream and the chocolate syrup become a sort of chocolate ice cream slurry.
Now comes the tricky part: you need to take a soda spoon in your dominate hand and stir constantly while you very slowly pour club soda or seltzer water into the glass with your other hand. Continue adding seltzer until the glass is about three-fourths full.
Taste the soda to make sure it’s chocolaty enough for you. (If not, just stir in a little additional chocolate syrup.)
Finish it off by adding a scoop of ice cream to the soda glass, and mount an additional scoop to the rim, sidecar style.
Top it off with one last splash of club soda or seltzer water (I prefer club soda), pop in a straw and enjoy! We usually serve ours with extra club soda on the side so that we can make our sodas last as long as possible.)

Tried this recipe?Mention @TheGoodHeartedWoman or tag #thegoodheartedwoman!

For the record, LA has lived in Iowa for decades now and sometimes years pass without us getting together. However, whenever he visits, you can bet that I will have the chocolate syrup, ice cream and Canada Dry waiting for him.

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of The Good Hearted Woman. 🌻 Be sure to PIN this post!

Disclosure: This was originally written as a sponsored post [Canada Dry] but has since been updated. This post may contain affiliate links, including Amazon affiliate links, which means we may receive a commission if you click a link and purchase something that we have recommended. While clicking these links won’t cost you any extra money, they do help keep this site up and running. As always, all opinions and images are my own. Please check out our disclosure policy for more details. Thank you for your support!

Who will you share SODA TIME with?
Let us know in the comments below!

Chocolate-Pineapple Meringue Kisses {Recipe}

August 18 By Renée 5 Comments

Light as air, these delicious little Meringue Kisses can hold a multitude of sweet surprises.

These little meringue kisses are incredibly simple and easy to make, and will satisfy any sweet tooth. Here, I’ve topped them with pineapple and chocolate, but you can let your imagination guide you. Other ideas include coconut, ground nuts, chopped dried fruit, a dusting of cinnamon and sugar, or candied ginger. Or sprinkle them with jimmies for the holidays – red, white and blue for the 4th of July, green for St Patrick’s Day, or yellow and orange for the fall holidays.

4 from 1 vote

Meringue Kisses

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Course: Cookies &amp, Sweets

Author: Renée B. ♥ The Good Hearted Woman

Ingredients

3 egg whites
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar
3/4 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla

Top with your choice of:

Fresh pineapple chopped
Mini chocolate chips
Coconut
Ground nuts
Chopped dried fruit
Cinnamon sugar
Candied Ginger

Instructions

Preheat oven to 300° F.
Line a baking sheet with parchment or a silicon sheet.
Beat eggs until foamy. Add salt and cream of tartar. Add sugar a tablespoon at a time, beating eggs until stiff.
Fold in vanilla.
Fill a a pastry bag or resealable bag with the whipped egg mixture. Cut the tip (or corner) and pipe the whipped egg mixture onto the prepared cookie sheet. (Alternative method: Use teaspoons to drop mixture onto cookie sheet.)
Sprinkle topping of your choice onto each cookie.
Bake for 30 minutes and then turn off the oven. Leave the cookies in the oven for 30-45 minutes to allow them to dry.

How to prepare fresh or canned pineapple:

Press pineapple between sheets of paper towel to remove as much juice as you can, and then chop fine and press again. Or, avoid the whole chopping step by using crushed pineapple.

Tried this recipe?Mention @TheGoodHeartedWoman or tag #thegoodheartedwoman!

Chocolate Fountain Tips & Tricks… {Some Learned the Hard Way}

July 7 By Renée 21 Comments

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A few weeks ago, we hosted a little celebratory gathering for our graduating senior. Usually when I host a get-together, I get totally carried away making all kinds of party food, but life has been throwing us a few curves lately, and so I decided to keep things simple this time. And what could be simpler than a chocolate fountain, right?

We did a lot of things right. I’ll share those chocolate fountain tips in a minute, but this is the most important thing I can tell you about using a chocolate fountain, so if you don’t read anything else, read this:

When you are hosting a party and plan to use a chocolate fountain, the wind is not your friend.

Ever.

Say it with me… “The Wind is NOT my Friend.”

Even when you think it is only a little wind, and no one will notice. Because guess what? You’re wrong! The chocolate will notice.

And so will the laws of physics.

Location, Location, Location

Besides the actual chocolate itself, location is the single most important factor in the success or failure of your chocolate fountain. Consider heating and air conditioning ducts, traffic flow, pet access, wind, rain, bugs and small children when choosing where to set up your fountain. Also, be careful about where you lay the electrical cord: if someone were to trip on it, it could have dire consequences for your entire party.

Once we moved everything inside, everything flowed like Willy Wonka’s Chocolate River.

On the Level

Before you ever pour a drop of chocolate into your fountain, make sure it is level. As in, plumb bubble-up level. Once again, melted chocolate is all about the laws of physics.

Prepping the Chocolate

Although I was tempted to buy more expensive chocolate, I decided to go with good old Tollhouse Semi-sweet Morsels, for a couple of reasons: they are low in milk solids, they are available at Costco in huge bags for a decent price, and they taste delicious when you melt them.

In order to get the chocolate to flow properly, you need to mix it with oil. (I know – you just squinched up your nose and said Eww.) But I stumbled onto the perfect solution: unrefined coconut oil.

A ratio of one tablespoon of coconut oil per cup of semi-sweet morsels works perfectly and tastes delicious.

Even if your fountain has an internal heating element (most do), do not attempt to melt your chocolate in the fountain. Heat your chocolate together with your coconut oil for 40 seconds at a time in the microwave, stirring after each interval and repeating until completely smooth. Only then is it ready to pour into your fountain. Follow the directions that come with your chocolate fountain to determine how much you will need to start out. (We used a small fountain, and it took about two pounds of chocolate to start off)

#ChocolateFountain Tip ♥ 1 Tbls #CoconutOil: 1 cup #ChocolateChips = Smooth, Delicious Perfection Click To Tweet

Preheat, Prime & Prep

Preheat your fountain before adding the chocolate. When you have the fountain filled and running, let it run for a minute or two and then turn it off. Wait a minute or two and then turn it back on. This will help get any air bubbles out of the tube and auger system. Also, be sure to take the time to set up a second batch of chocolate for when you need to refill the fountain later.

Dippity-Do’s

We had lots of delicious choices for dipping: Bananas, Pretzels, Pineapple, Cream Puffs, Marshmallows, Pound Cake, and lots of Strawberries.

After the Party’s Over

If that bit about the Wind not being your friend is the most important point in this post, then this is the second most important:

No matter how tired you are – clean the fountain right away.
DO NOT, under any circumstances, “leave it for tomorrow.”

If you wait until the next day, the chocolate will harden up and it will take you ten times as long to clean.

I hope you have great success with your party planning, and if you learn some new chocolate fountain tips, please be sure to come back and share them with us all in the comments!

Crazy Delicious {Chocolate Peanut} Butterfingers Bars

April 28 By Renée 16 Comments

NOTE: The title of this post is NOT hyperbolic. These Butterfinger Bars are truly Crazy Delicious!

Ever belong to a social set or a book club or a church group or whatever, and whenever there is a food-related event, that one lady always brings that one thing that you just cannot pass up, no matter how hard you try? That thing that you keep making excuses to go back to the buffet table for? That thing you literally stand and calculate just how much you can take and still remain socially acceptable? (“Er… this one is for {vague head-gesture toward crowd}…um…. bye…gotta… {mumble, mumble} go…”)

For me, Butterfinger Bars are that thing.

This post may contain affiliate links, but don’t worry – they won’t bite.

And my friend Kelly is that lady who makes that thing.

Author Kelly Nelson is bright, energetic beyond words, and one of the most positive people you will ever meet. She enjoys life on ten-acres of prime horse property in Cornelius, Oregon with her husband, children, and lots of horses. Kelly has traveled far and wide, and her experiences in England, France, Egypt, Israel, West Indies, Mexico, and across the United States sparked a love of history, adventure, and exotic places. All that traveling led to the inspiration behind her debut novel, The Keeper’s Calling, the first book in her four-book series, The Keeper’s Saga. Her most recent book, Love’s Deception, was released earlier this year.

Kelly has a generous soul, and was kind enough to share her Butterfinger Bar recipe with us, for which I am so grateful. I’m not so sure Mr. B feels the same way though: The last time I made these for him, he said (with his mouth full as he lifted another one out of the tray), “Please, please don’t make these again any time soon. I can’t stop eating them.” When he came home today to another pan-full, he just heaved a heavy sigh and pulled out a knife.

5 from 2 votes

Butterfinger Bars

Yum, all the way.

Prep Time15 mins

Cook Time20 mins

Total Time35 mins

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Course: Bar Cookie

Author: Kelly Nelson

Ingredients

¾ C. butter softened
¾ C. sugar
¾ C. brown sugar
¾ C. peanut butter
¾ tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla
2 eggs
1 ½ cup flour
1 ½ cup quick oats

Topping:

3/4 cups creamy peanut butter
1 to 1 1/2 cups Dark Chocolate Buttercream Frosting Betty Crocker Chocolate Fudge works just fine too.

Instructions

Preheat oven to 375° F.
In an electric mixing bowl, cream butter and sugars. Add 3/4 cup peanut butter, baking soda, salt, vanilla and eggs and mix well to combine. Stir in flour and oats.
Spread mixture on greased cookie sheet, and bake in preheated oven for 20-25 minutes.
Let cool until slightly warm. Spread 3/4 cup peanut butter over warm cookies on sheet. Allow to cool for 10-15 minutes.
Warm the frosting in a microwave for 30 seconds. Stir with a spoon until it has an even consistency. Drizzle warm chocolate frosting on top and use the back of a spoon to spread it evenly.
If you have teenagers in the house, stand back or prepare to be trampled.

Notes

Tip: It is much easier to spread the dough with wet hands than a spatula.

Tried this recipe?Mention @TheGoodHeartedWoman or tag #thegoodheartedwoman!

As you can see, I used chunky peanut butter for the batch I made for this post; however, smooth peanut butter works equally well. It is just a matter of preference. And yes, I did take half of these pictures on my back deck on a sawdust covered workbench. Because that’s what food bloggers do sometimes.

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20+ Devilishly Delicious Chocolate Cakes {Roundup}

January 27 By Renée 18 Comments

Let’s face it, a nice creamy chocolate cake does a lot for a lot of people;
it does for me.

~ Audrey Hepburn

Happy National Chocolate Cake Day!

January 27th is National Chocolate Cake Day! (Yes! It’s a real thing!) In celebration of this momentous annual celebration, I asked some of my favorite foodies to share their best chocolate cake recipes. Many thanks for all who generously shared.

All you need is love. But a little chocolate now and then doesn’t hurt.
~ Charles M. Schulz

The Bundts

Eggless Milkless Chocolate Cake with Caramel Frosting from Melanie Makes
Double Chocolate Bundt Cake from It’s Yummy
Quadruple Chocolate Bundt Cake from Shockingly Delicious
Chocolate Caramel & Pecan Bundt Cake from Balancing Motherhood

Chocolate is the first luxury. It has so many things wrapped up in it: deliciousness in the moment, childhood memories, and that grin-inducing feeling of getting a reward for being good.
~ Mariska Hargitay

Decadent Bites

Single Serving No-Bake Chocoalte Peanut Butter Desserts from Mother Would Know
Dark Chocolate & Peanut Butter Brownie Cakes from Chocolate & Marrow
Champagne Brownie Cake from Recipe for Perfection
Molten Chocolate Cake with Peanut Butter Filling from Mind Over Batter

He showed the words “chocolate cake” to a group of Americans and recorded their word associations. “Guilt” was the top response. If that strikes you as unexceptional, consider the response of French eaters to the same prompt: “celebration.”
~ Michael Pollan, In Defense of Food: An Eater’s Manifesto

A Little Something Extra

Chocolate Cola Cake from Baking Beauty
Cold Chocolate Snacking Cake from The View From Great Island
Chocolate Mega or Jumbo Muffins from Mother Would Know

What you see before you, my friend, is the result of a lifetime of chocolate.
~ Katharine Hepburn

Layers Upon Layers

Chocolate Cake with Peanut Butter Buttercream Frosting from Chez CateyLou
Chocolate Mud Cake from Bake Play Smile
Strawberry Chocolate Anniversary Cake from Karen’s Kitchen Stories
Supreme Chocolate Cake with Chocolate Mousse Filling from Sweet & Savory by Shinee

My therapist told me the way to achieve true inner peace is to finish what I start. So far today, I have finished 2 bags of M&M’s and a chocolate cake. I feel better already.
~ Dave Barry

Picture Perfect

Chocolate Almond Pound Cake from The Luna Cafe
Almost Flourless Chocolate Cake from Foodie Goes Healthy
Flourless Chocolate Decadence from The Joy Kitchen

“Can I come back and see you sometime?”
“Long as you bring me some chocolate,” Gramma said, and smiled. “I’m partial to chocolate.”
“Gramma, you’re diabetic.”
“I’m old, girl. Gonna die of something. Might as well be chocolate.”
~ Rachel Caine, The Dead Girls’ Dance

Sweet Temptation

Chocolate Whiskey Bundt Cake from Big Flavors from a Tiny Kitchen
Kahlua Coffee Poke Cake from Very Culinary
Gluten-free Chocolate Cake from No Recipes

Oh. My. Goodness. I just spent a few hours drooling over these while I put this post together, and even after all this contemplation, I can’t pick a favorite. Can you?

Easy Bread Pudding with Cinnamon Whiskey Butter Sauce (or, alcohol-free UnWhiskey Vanilla Butter Sauce) is the very definition of Scrumptious! Recipe is adaptable and foolproof, with variations including: Traditional Cinnamon, Cinnamon-Orange, Cranberry-Orange, and Cranberry White Chocolate.

This post may contain affiliate links, but don’t worry – they won’t bite.

Post Updated April 22, 2020 (Originally published May 6, 2014)

Easy Bread Pudding (4 Ways)

Ingredients

Basic Bread Pudding

For Traditional Cinnamon-Raisin Bread Pudding

For Cinnamon-Orange Bread Pudding

For Cranberry-Orange Bread Pudding

For Cranberry White Chocolate Bread Pudding

Instructions

Notes

Nutrition

Basic Whiskey Butter Sauce Recipe

Cinnamon Whiskey Butter Sauce for Bread Pudding

Equipment

Ingredients

Instructions

Notes

Cinnamon-Orange Whiskey Butter Sauce

Un-Whiskey Vanilla Butter Sauce

Nutrition

THANK YOU so much for being a faithful reader and supporter of The Good Hearted Woman. 🌻 Be sure to PIN this post!

Chocolate Wacky Cake is the easiest scratch cake you will ever make! (No eggs, no milk, no butter, no clean-up.) Made exclusively with pantry staples, this surprisingly moist, delicious snack cake mixes up in a jiffy, right in the pan!

This post may contain affiliate links, but don’t worry – they won’t bite.

Six Simple Steps for Chocolate Wacky Cake

Chocolate Wacky Cake

Equipment

Ingredients

Instructions

Notes

Nutrition

I’m sharing this recipe on the Weekend Potluck Recipe Linkup. Check it out for more great recipes!

THANK YOU so much for being a faithful reader and supporter of The Good Hearted Woman. 🌻 Be sure to PIN this post!

Classic Chocolate Crinkle Cookies (or Swiss Chews as Mom always called them) are crispy on the outside, fudgy on the inside, and perfect for the holidays!

All you need is love. But a little chocolate now and then doesn’t hurt.

Swiss Chews {Flourless Chocolate Crinkle Cookies}

Ingredients

Instructions

Cookie Dough Prep

Forming Cookies

Notes

Nutrition

Thank you so much for being a faithful reader and supporter of The Good Hearted Woman. ❤ Be sure to Pin and Print this recipe!

You need just three ingredients to make a delicious old-fashioned chocolate ice cream soda – and a glass full of wonderful, bubbly memories to share.

How to Make an Old-fashioned Chocolate Soda

Equipment

Ingredients

Instructions

THANK YOU so much for being a faithful reader and supporter of The Good Hearted Woman. 🌻 Be sure to PIN this post!

Who will you share SODA TIME with? Let us know in the comments below!

Light as air, these delicious little Meringue Kisses can hold a multitude of sweet surprises.

Meringue Kisses

Ingredients

Top with your choice of:

Instructions

How to prepare fresh or canned pineapple:

Location, Location, Location

On the Level

Prepping the Chocolate

Preheat, Prime & Prep

Dippity-Do’s

After the Party’s Over

No matter how tired you are – clean the fountain right away. DO NOT, under any circumstances, “leave it for tomorrow.”

NOTE: The title of this post is NOT hyperbolic. These Butterfinger Bars are truly Crazy Delicious!

Butterfinger Bars

Ingredients

Topping:

Instructions

Notes

Let’s face it, a nice creamy chocolate cake does a lot for a lot of people; it does for me.

~ Audrey Hepburn

Happy National Chocolate Cake Day!

The Bundts

Decadent Bites

A Little Something Extra

Layers Upon Layers

Picture Perfect

Sweet Temptation

Thank you so much for being a faithful reader and supporter of The Good Hearted Woman. ❤ Be sure to Pin this post!

THANK YOU so much for being a faithful reader and supporter
of The Good Hearted Woman. 🌻 Be sure to PIN this post!

I’m sharing this recipe on the Weekend Potluck Recipe Linkup.
Check it out for more great recipes!

THANK YOU so much for being a faithful reader and supporter
of The Good Hearted Woman. 🌻 Be sure to PIN this post!

THANK YOU so much for being a faithful reader and supporter
of The Good Hearted Woman. 🌻 Be sure to PIN this post!

Who will you share SODA TIME with?
Let us know in the comments below!

No matter how tired you are – clean the fountain right away.
DO NOT, under any circumstances, “leave it for tomorrow.”

Let’s face it, a nice creamy chocolate cake does a lot for a lot of people;
it does for me.