I have my own tried-and-true chocolate chip cookie recipe, as do most of us, but I really wanted to share this one with you, because it’s full of chocolate … semisweet and milk chips, and chocolate chunks. It is the ultimate decadent dessert! These cookies were given to me by one of my dear friends, who was battling cancer at the same time my mama was and who lost the fight shortly after my mom did. I knew Beth my whole life. Her mother was my second grade school teacher, Mrs. Perry, and her sister Julie was my best friend from first grade on. Every time I enjoy these cookies, I think of Beth and smile. MAKES 2 TO 3 DOZEN COOKIES

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened (see Trisha Tip)

1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar

½ cup granulated sugar

2 large eggs, at room temperature

2½ cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

¼ teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 (12-ounce) bag of chocolate chunks

1 (12-ounce) bag of semisweet chocolate chips

1 (12-ounce) bag of milk chocolate chips

1½ cups finely chopped pecans

Preheat the oven to 350°F.

Using an electric mixer, cream together the butter and sugars until fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing after each addition.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt. Add the flour mixture to the creamed butter mixture by the spoonful until fully incorporated. Add the vanilla. Fold in all the chocolate chunks and chips and the nuts.

Drop the cookies by generous spoonfuls, 2 inches apart, onto an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes until slightly browned around the edges. Remove the baking sheet from the oven, and transfer the cookies to a rack to cool completely, about 10 minutes. Store in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.

Baked Apples

baked apples

One of the joys of fall is fresh apples—Braeburn, Gala, Fuji—I could go on and on! I discovered Honeycrisps last fall and used them in this mouthwatering recipe. Your kitchen will smell like apple-cinnamon heaven! SERVES 4

4 large baking apples

¼ cup butter (½ stick), softened

½ cup firmly packed light brown sugar

¾ teaspoon cinnamon

¼ cup chopped pecans

2 cinnamon sticks (optional)

Preheat the oven to 375°F. Wash and core the apples, leaving ½ inch of the core at the base of the apple to contain the filling.

In a small bowl, combine the butter, brown sugar, cinnamon, and chopped pecans. Spoon enough of the mixture into each apple to fill the core to the top.

Fill a 2-quart glass baking dish with ¾ cup of water. Place the apples upright in the dish. Lay the cinnamon sticks in the water. Bake until the apples are soft and the filling is browned, about 1 hour. Serve plain or top with ice cream or whipped topping.

trisha tip

It’s important to use a type of apple that will hold its shape when baked, so be sure to choose a sturdy baking apple like Granny Smith, Fuji, or Honeycrisp.

Brownie Batter Cookies

brownie batter cookies

It seems like my friends and I are always thinking up ways to combine our favorite foods into one recipe! These cookies were the result of one of those, “Hey, what if …” conversations. I mixed my favorite chocolate chip cookie dough with my mama’s classic brownie recipe, and the result is beyond heavenly. MAKES 3 DOZEN COOKIES

1 cup (2 sticks) salted butter, softened

1 ounce unsweetened baking chocolate, melted

1¼ cups granulated sugar

¾ cup firmly packed dark brown sugar

3 large eggs, at room temperature

2½ cups all-purpose flour

½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1¼ teaspoons salt

1¼ teaspoons baking powder

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

1½ cups semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.

Using an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter, chocolate, and sugars until smooth. Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition.

On a sheet of waxed paper, sift together the flour, cocoa powder, salt, and baking powder and add slowly into the butter mixture until smooth. Add the vanilla and fold in the chocolate chips.

Drop the cookies by heaping tablespoonfuls onto the prepared baking sheet, about 2 inches apart. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes, or until just browned around the edges, but still soft in the center. Remove the baking sheet from the oven and transfer the cookies to a rack to cool completely, about 10 minutes.

caramel apples

Mama always made red candy apples for us when we were children, and I loved them, but they were so hard to eat! After I grew up and started making them for my own children, I cut the apples into pieces before dipping them into the red candy coating to make eating them a little easier. When I discovered caramel apples, I was in heaven. I love caramel-covered anything, so these were right up my alley. What I especially like about using Granny Smith apples is that they are tart and cut some of the supersweetness of the caramel. They are also a gorgeous lime green, so they make a beautiful treat. These apples are best eaten the same day you make them, but you won’t have any left over anyway! MAKES 10 CARAMEL APPLES

10 medium Granny Smith apples

10 popsicle sticks or chopsticks

Crushed toppings of your choice (I like Oreos)

2 cups sugar

1 cup buttermilk (see Trisha Tip)

½ cup (1 stick) salted butter

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Heavy cream, to thin the caramel, if necessary

Sea salt

1 (12-ounce) bag white chocolate chips

Rinse and dry the apples. Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray. Push one stick into the bottom of each apple, then place apple on the baking sheet with the stick standing straight up.

Place the toppings in a large sealable plastic bag and roll with a rolling pin to crush. Set aside.

In a large saucepan over low heat, combine the sugar, buttermilk, butter, baking soda, and vanilla and bring just to a boil, stirring constantly. Attach a candy thermometer to the pan, and continue to boil and stir until the mixture reaches 238°F, 15 to 17 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat.

Dip each apple, one at a time, immediately into the caramel, leaving a ¼-inch ring of green by the stick, and return the apple to the baking sheet. If the caramel starts to solidify while you are dipping apples, stir in heavy cream, a few drops at a time, until the caramel reaches a spreadable consistency. After all the apples have been dipped, lightly sprinkle them with sea salt. Allow the caramel to set, about 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a microwave-safe bowl, microwave the white chocolate chips on high in 30-second intervals, stirring until melted. Dip each apple into the melted white chocolate, leaving a ¼-inch ring of caramel exposed. Immediately dip the white chocolate–covered caramel apple in a layer of crushed toppings, leaving ¼ inch of the white chocolate exposed.

trisha tip

Adding 1 tablespoon vinegar to 1 cup milk makes 1 cup buttermilk. You can use a different acidic component like lemon juice for the same effect. Use this tip when a recipe calls for buttermilk and you don’t have any on hand.

Bret on Halloween (2005).

Beth and me on Halloween (1968).

chocolate chip cookie dough balls

I don’t know anybody who doesn’t eat raw cookie dough. I used to buy those pre-packaged frozen Mrs. GoodCookie chocolate chip cookies and eat the dough before I could ever get them in the oven! Ditto for making homemade chocolate chip cookies. But every time I eat raw dough, I hear my mother’s voice in my head saying, “Don’t eat that! It has raw egg in it!” Didn’t we all eat the raw egg? Rocky did, and he turned out okay! Anyway, I substituted applesauce for the egg here. In cookies, the egg’s function is usually for binding, so applesauce is a great substitute. It does the job, and then you can eat all the raw dough you want. Of course, I dip these in chocolate just to make them more fancy, but they’re just as good plain! See photo MAKES 3 TO 4 DOZEN COOKIE BALLS

BALLS

⅔ cup (1⅓ sticks) salted butter, softened

¾ cup granulated sugar

¼ cup firmly packed light brown sugar

¼ cup applesauce

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1¾ cups sifted all-purpose flour

½ teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon salt

1 cup mini semisweet chocolate chips

DIPPING CHOCOLATE

6 ounces dark chocolate wafers

3 blocks (5.25 ounces) chocolate almond bark or CandyQuik

Using an electric mixer, beat together the butter, sugars, applesauce, and vanilla until smooth. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt. With the beater running on low, slowly add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture. Stir in the chocolate chips.

Using a mini ice cream scoop, scoop out the batter and roll into balls, about 1 inch in diameter. Place the dough balls about 1 inch apart on an ungreased cookie sheet. Put the cookie sheet in the freezer and allow the dough to set, about 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a medium microwave-safe bowl, microwave the chocolate wafers and the almond bark together on high in 30-second intervals until melted, stirring between each interval.

Remove the chilled dough balls from the freezer, and using two spoons or forks, dip the dough balls into the chocolate, then place onto parchment or waxed paper. Store in a tightly covered container in the refrigerator for up to 3 weeks.

trisha tip

To make white chocolate dip, use 6 ounces white chocolate chips and 3 blocks (5.25 ounces) of vanilla almond bark.

Chocolate Marbled Brownies

chocolate marbled brownies

You can never go wrong with brownies and cream cheese! I adore all things “brownie,” from Betty Crocker’s quick and easy boxed mix to Mama’s homemade classics. It’s all good! I love the silkiness that the cream cheese swirl brings to this dessert, and they’re so beautiful. These brownies are the perfect elegant treat to take to a party or bake sale. MAKES 9 BROWNIES

1 tablespoon unsalted butter (softened for greasing)

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter (see Trisha Tip)

6 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped

½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder

2 cups granulated sugar

½ teaspoon salt

1⅓ cups all-purpose flour

3 large eggs, at room temperature

1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened

½ cup confectioners’ sugar (see Trisha Tip)

½ teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 325°F. Grease a 9 × 9-inch baking dish with the softened butter and set aside.

In a medium saucepan over medium-low heat, melt the 1 cup of butter and chocolate together, stirring constantly, until smooth. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the cocoa powder, granulated sugar, salt, flour, and 2 of the eggs. Pour the batter into the prepared dish.

Using an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese until smooth, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the confectioners’ sugar, vanilla, and the remaining egg. Mix until smooth. Dollop the cream cheese mixture over the top of the brownie batter. Using a butter knife or fork, swirl the mixtures together to form a design.

Bake for 45 to 50 minutes, or until the brownies just slightly pull away from sides of the baking dish. Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the pan for 15 minutes. Slice into 9 squares and serve.

trisha tip

You can make your own confectioners’ sugar by streaming granulated sugar into the small opening of a blender set at high speed. One cup of granulated sugar makes ¾ cup of confectioners’.

Glazed Lemon Cookies

glazed lemon cookies

I have to confess that although I bake everything from cakes to pies to cookies to candy, my frosting of said baked goods is not always the most attractive. I always say that my cakes taste really good, but they might not be pretty enough for a bake sale! There is definitely an art to frosting, but glazing is much easier. These are my go- to if I ever need to take a dessert to a party or event. The glaze sets so nicely, you’d almost think they came from a bakery. Almost! MAKES 4 TO 5 DOZEN COOKIES

COOKIES

¾ cup (1½ sticks) salted butter, softened

¾ cup granulated sugar

2 large egg yolks, at room temperature

½ teaspoon vanilla extract

2 teaspoons freshly grated lemon zest (about 1 medium lemon)

2 cups all-purpose flour

GLAZE

1 cup confectioners’ sugar (see Trisha Tip)

1 teaspoon freshly grated lemon zest

2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.

Using an electric mixer, beat the butter and granulated sugar until the mixture is light and fluffy. Add the egg yolks, vanilla, and zest, and beat until combined. Add the flour to the mixture, a little at a time, until a soft dough forms.

Divide the dough in half and, using your hands, shape it into 2 logs, each 2 inches in diameter. Wrap the logs in waxed paper and refrigerate until firm, about 30 minutes. Cut the logs into ¼-inch-thick slices and place them on the baking sheets about 2 inches apart.

Bake the cookies for 15 to 18 minutes, or until the edges are slightly browned. Remove from the oven and allow to cool on the baking sheets for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a small bowl, whisk together the confectioners’ sugar and the lemon zest and juice. Dip the top of each cookie into the glaze, and place the cookies on a cooling rack set over the baking sheets. Allow to set for about 15 minutes before serving. Store in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.

trisha tip

After whisking together the glaze, pour it out onto a salad plate or a small bowl to make dipping the cookies easier, or brush the glaze on with a pastry brush.

No-Bake Peanut Butter Pretzel Squares

no-bake peanut butter pretzel squares

Everyone loves Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, right? If you don’t like them, I really just can’t know you! Most no-bake “Reese’s” cups use crushed graham crackers in the bottom crust, but I use pretzel crumbs. The salt and the crunch send this treat over the top! The best part is that they only take about five minutes to put together. The hard part is waiting the thirty minutes for them to get cold enough to slice! MAKES 16 SQUARES

2 cups thin pretzel sticks

¾ cup (1½ sticks) salted butter, melted

1½ cups confectioners’ sugar (see Trisha Tip)

1¼ cups smooth peanut butter

1½ cups milk chocolate chips

In a food processor, pulse the pretzels into fine crumbs, about 2 minutes. In a medium bowl, mix together the pretzel crumbs, melted butter, confectioners’ sugar, and 1 cup of the peanut butter until fully combined. Press evenly into the bottom of an ungreased 9 × 9-inch pan.

In a medium microwave safe bowl, melt the remaining ¼ cup of peanut butter and the chocolate chips together in 30-second intervals, stirring in between. When the mixture is smooth, spread it over the peanut butter–pretzel layer. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before cutting into squares.

trisha tip

Thin pretzel sticks have the perfect amount of crunch and salt for the bottom layer.

praline cheesecake bars

The story is that “long ago and far away,” French settlers brought to New Orleans the praline, an amazing confection made from brown sugar, cream, and pecans. My family has always enjoyed Savannah’s River Street Sweets version—and thought pralines mixed with cheesecake could be a sweet dream! They make great treats to take to a party. Whether you pronounce it “prah-lean” or “pray-lean,” they’re just plain good! MAKES 9 BARS

1 cup graham cracker crumbs

3 tablespoons granulated sugar

3 tablespoons salted butter, melted

3 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, softened

1 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

3 large eggs, at room temperature

1½ teaspoons vanilla extract

½ cup finely chopped pecans

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line the bottom of a 9 × 9-inch square pan with parchment paper, spray with cooking spray, and set aside.

In a medium bowl, combine the crumbs, granulated sugar, and melted butter, and press into the bottom of the prepared pan. Bake until browned, 8 to 10 minutes. Remove from the oven, and set aside.

Increase the oven temperature up to 450°F, and make the filling. Using an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese until fluffy, then add the brown sugar and flour. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the vanilla. Fold in the chopped pecans.

Pour the batter into the crust and bake for 10 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 250°F and bake for an additional 50 minutes, or until slightly browned on top. Remove from the oven, and allow to cool completely, about 20 minutes, then refrigerate for at least 2 hours. Cut into 9 bars before serving.

snappy pear-cranberry crumble

My sister Beth made this dish for the first time when she and her family were invited to share Thanksgiving with a neighbor’s family. She knew that there would be a houseful of good cooks, so she didn’t want to make something to “compete” with a favorite pie or cake. This fall dish mingles pears, cranberries, and orange zest with a gingersnap crumb topping that was a big hit at the dessert table. Thank goodness! SERVES 8

CRUMBLE

1 cup all-purpose flour

¼ cup granulated sugar

¼ cup firmly packed brown sugar

1 cup gingersnap cookie crumbs (16 to 18 finely crushed cookies)

¼ teaspoon salt

½ cup (1 stick) salted butter, melted

FILLING

2 pounds (4 to 5 large) pears, peeled, cored, and sliced crosswise ¼ inch thick

¾ cup dried cranberries, chopped

1 teaspoon freshly grated orange zest

1 tablespoon freshly squeezed orange juice

½ teaspoon vanilla extract

½ cup granulated sugar

2 tablespoons cornstarch (see Trisha Tip)

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Brush a 2-quart baking dish with softened butter and set aside.

To make the crumble, in a large bowl, mix together the flour, sugars, crumbs, and salt. Stir in the melted butter until crumbles form. Set aside.

To make the filling, in a separate bowl, mix together the pear slices, cranberries, orange zest and juice, vanilla, granulated sugar, and cornstarch.

Pour into the prepared baking dish, and sprinkle the gingersnap crumble over the top. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes, or until golden brown and bubbly. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes. Serve warm.