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  • Mini Apple Pie Cheesecakes with Sugar Free Caramel

    Mini Apple Pie Cheesecakes with Sugar Free Caramel

    Fall has officially entered the chat, and I am apple-solutely ready for it. These mini apple pie cheesecakes with sugar free caramel are basically everything I love about fall packed into one ridiculously cute little dessert: creamy cheesecake, warm cinnamon-spiced apples, a buttery crust, and a generous drizzle of sugar-free caramel because apparently I have no interest in doing fall halfway. Pumpkin spice who? I have apples to deal with. These little cheesecakes are giving apple pie meets cheesecake meets cozy sweater weather (which could arrive ANY TIME NOW), and honestly, I support this crossover. They’re sweet, spiced, caramel-y, and just the right amount of over-the-top without requiring you to bake an entire pie. Because if fall is going to insist on making us romanticize changing leaves, dropping temperatures, and spending $7 on a candle that smells like a haunted apple orchard, the least we can do is have dessert…plus, you can save yourself the 7 bucks and make your whole house smell like a Yankee Candle factory just by making these cheesecakes. And unlike the candle, you actually get to eat them…because no matter how good those candles smell, you absolutely shouldn’t try to eat them. I’m not speaking from experience here, there are some things even my ravenous sweet tooth knows better than to do.

    These mini cheesecakes are pie-fect for fall.

    Mini Apple Cheesecakes & Sugar Free Caramel

    • Servings: 10
    • Difficulty: Beginner
    • Print

    Lush, creamy apple-spiced cheesecake with gf crust and apple pie filling on top with a drizzle of guilt-free caramel

    Use can your preferred whey-casein blend protein powder; allulose can also be replaced with regular sugar, but this will change the macros. Feel free to use regular graham crackers or shortbread if not gluten free.

    Ingredients

    CRUST
    *150 g gluten free graham crackers (this was about 10 Pamela’s graham crackers)
    *30 mL (2 TBS) sugar free syrup

    CHEESECAKE
    *150 g (5.33 ounces) 1/3 the fat cream cheese at room temp
    *150 g (5.33 ounces) nonfat Greek yogurt
    *1 tsp vanilla extract
    *20 g Quest vanilla milkshake protein powder
    *96 g (1/2 cup) allulose
    *1 egg
    *1 TBS lemon juice
    *1/4 tsp apple pie spice

    APPLE PIE TOPPING
    *1 honeycrisp or jazz apple, peeled and diced
    *1 TBS lemon juice
    *2 TBS water
    *1/2 tsp golden monkfruit or brown sugar
    *1/2 tsp apple pie spice

    SUGAR FREE CARAMEL
    *1 C (200 g) allulose
    *6 TBS (86 g) light butter
    *1/2 C (120 mL) heavy whipping cream
    *1/4-3/4 tsp salt depending on your taste preferences

    Directions

    1. Line muffin tin with 10 silicone cupcake liners and preheat oven to 350.
    2. In a food processor, process grahams and syrup until sticky.
    3. Place about 2 tsp of crust into each liner and press to even out (it helps to spray your fingers with cooking spray).
    4. Bake for 5-6 minutes, until golden and puffy; place in freezer while you make filling.
    5. Whisk the cream cheese and yogurt on high for 2-3 minutes before adding the vanilla, apple pie spice, protein powder, lemon juice, and allulose, mixing until smooth.
    6. Switch to a paddle attachment and add the egg, blending on low speed until completely mixed in.
    7. Evenly divide batter on top of cooled crust.
    8. Bake at 350 for 20-24 minutes, until cheesecakes are mostly set.
    9. Then turn off the oven and crack the door, leaving the cheesecakes in the oven for an additional 5-10 minutes to finish baking (centers should have barely any jiggle).
    10. Place cheesecakes on a cooling rack (to speed up, place this in the fridge for 1 hour or freezer for 30 minutes).
    11. Once the cheesecakes are totally cool and set, remove from silicone liners.
    12. While your cheesecakes are baking, make the apple pie filling and sugar free caramel.
    13. To make the caramel, place allulose in a medium sauce pan and heat on medium-high heat while stirring continuously with a wooden spoon until amber in color, 6-9 minutes.
    14. Switch to a whisk, lower to medium heat, and add in the butter, whisking for 2-3 minutes until totally melted.
    15. Slowly pour the heavy whipping cream into the saucepan while whisking; let boil for one minute.
      16. Remove from heat and whisk in salt.
    16. Let caramel cool completely to room temp before using in the pie (you can place in fridge to speed this up).
    17. Dump all apple pie filling ingredients into a medium sauce pan and cook on medium heat for 10 minutes, stirring often until liquid is nice and sticky and apples are softened. Let cool a bit before using.
    18. Assemble cheesecakes by topping each with apple pie filling and drizzling with caramel as desired.
    19. Keep leftover cheesecakes in one container and caramel in another and leave in fridge!

    Nutrition

    Macros
    10 servings
    196 cal/12.7 f/15.6 c/4.8 p/6.9g sugar per cheesecake
    A-peel-ing from every angle.
    An apple a day keeps the hunger anger away and all that jazz (apple).
    Keep calm and caramel on.

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  • Simply the Zest

    Simply the Zest

    Consider this my official farewell-to-summer cake, because apparently summer has decided to overstay its welcome and I am officially ready to squeeze every last drop out of the season. While I’m over here dreaming about pumpkin spice, apple cinnamon, cozy sweaters, and anything remotely resembling a crisp fall day, the weather continues to throw lemons at me. So, naturally, I made lemonade… except I made it into cake. This lemon cake is decorated to look like an actual slice of lemon, because when life gives you lemons, you make cake—and when life gives you oppressively hot September weather, you get a little zesty and make dessert about it. It’s bright, citrusy, and basically a giant edible ray of sunshine, which is fitting because apparently that’s all the weather is willing to give me. So here’s to squeezing the most out of summer while I patiently wait for fall to juice its way into my life.

    A beautifully decorated lemon cake featuring a vibrant yellow frosting and a design that resembles a sliced lemon on top, with white and orange accents.
    When life gives you lemons, make cake.

    And then there’s the macro situation… or lack thereof. My calorie-tracking app apparently decided to erase all the ingredients for this cake, so I have absolutely no idea what the macros are anymore. RIP to those numbers…they’ll haunt me well past Halloween. But at least I can confidently tell you exactly how to decorate it! So while I may not know how many calories are in each slice, I do know how to turn a cake into a lemon slice, and honestly, that feels like the more important life skill anyway, so, ex-squeeze me for the lack of macros on the recipe below…but enjoy a photo gallery and video how to!

    Here’s everything I used for this cake:

    • Two #18 piping tips and one #16
    • Yellow and dark yellow gel dye
    • Clean sponge, cut into small sections
    • Lemon cake recipe (below)
    • Buttercream frosting (recipe below), divided up into mostly white, a little bit of light yellow, and a little bit of dark yellow
    A round cake covered in a smooth layer of light-colored frosting, sitting on a cake turntable with parchment paper underneath on a countertop.
    Start with a fully frosted cake.
    Top view of a round cake with a smooth icing surface, marked with cuts dividing it into eight sections.
    Use a toothpick to draw 8 segments.
    Three piping bags filled with different colored icing, arranged on a countertop. The bags display a nozzle tip, including white, yellow, and a lighter cream color.
    Load up the white and dark yellow frosting with #18 tips and bright yellow with #16 tip.
    A round cake with a smooth white frosting on top, featuring a triangular decoration made of yellow and white frosting in the center.
    Use the dark yellow to outline each section, then come in with the white.
    Top view of a round cake decorated with orange and yellow icing in a triangular pattern on a smooth surface.
    Fill in the remaining section with bright yellow.
    A round cake decorated with white frosting and an orange triangular design on top, resembling a slice of citrus fruit, with a hand gently resting on the side.
    Continue to fill in each segment., then freeze cake before painting the side.
    Two bowls with bright yellow and orange liquids, accompanied by two small blue sponges, placed on a textured surface.
    Put dark yellow dye + 1 TBS clear vanilla or vodka into a down and light yellow dye + TBS clear vanilla into a bowl.
    A person with gloved hands is decorating a round cake with yellow frosting, designed to look like a lemon slice, on a countertop.
    Put on gloves and dab one sponge into dark yellow and dab on a FROZEN cake…I recommend freezing 1-2 hours.
    A round cake decorated with yellow frosting and white icing, resembling a lemon slice, placed on a countertop with a paper towel underneath.
    Dip another sponge into the lighter yellow and fill in as desired to finish.
    Rind, set, decorate.

    Recipe and Instructions

    Gluten free lemon cake with protein cream cheese frosting

    • Servings: 12
    • Difficulty: Beginner
    • Print

    A fun lemon cake decorated to look like it's namesake!

    If not gluten free, use any kind of white or yellow cake mix. Monkfruit can also be replaced with regular powdered sugar for frosting. Protein powder can also be replaced with additional monkfruit or regular powdered sugar.

    Ingredients

    CAKE
    *1 box of gluten free yellow cake mix (I used King Arthur GF cake mix)
    *1 packet of sugar free lemon Jell-o powder (0.3 oz)
    *2/3 cup fat free or skim milk
    *160 g (2/3 cup) unsweetened applesauce
    *4 eggs
    *1.5 tsp lemon extract

    FROSTING
    *1/2 cup butter, softened (can use a light butter to cut calories)
    *8 ounces 1/3 the fat cream cheese at room temp
    *12 ounces Lakanto powdered monkfruit
    *4 ounces Quest vanilla milkshake protein powder (cuts the sweetness of the monkfruit and makes a nice, stiff, spreadable frosting; omit and use all monkfruit if desired)
    *1 TBS vanilla
    *1/4 cup + 2 TBS milk
    *1/2 tsp lemon extract
    *1/4 tsp citric acid if you like less sweet frosting

    Directions

    1. Preheat oven to 350 and grease two 9-inch heart-shaped pans.
    2. Whisk cake ingredients together in a stand mixer on low for 60 seconds before switching to medium-high for two minutes.
    3. Pour batter evenly into pan and bake for 30 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out mostly clean from the center.
    4. Allow cake to cool fully before frosting.
    5. To make frosting, whisk cream cheese and butter for 3 minutes before adding in half the powdered monkfruit, protein powder, vanilla, lemon extract, and milk.
    6. Add in remaining monkfruit mix fully. If too stiff, add an additional TBS milk.
    7. Frost cooled cake according to photo or video tutorial.
    8. Keep cake covered and in the fridge. It is best served at room temp, so remove from fridge 30 minutes before eating. Enjoy!

    MACROS
    …blame NutritionIX for deleting my recipe.
    A round cake decorated with bright yellow frosting and designed to look like a lemon slice, placed on a blue plate.
    Just trying to make the most of a zesty situation.
    A round cake decorated to resemble a lemon slice, featuring bright yellow and orange frosting on a blue plate.
    Serving up a little slice of summer before fall takes over.
    A close-up of a round, yellow cake with intricate orange and white frosting designs on top, set against a blurred background.
    Sour about the weather, sweet about the cake.

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  • Strawberry fields forever…

    Strawberry fields forever…

    If you grew up in the ’90s or early 2000s, I know you’ve spent at least some time wondering who was actually buying those mysterious strawberry hard candies that magically appeared in every grandma’s candy dish. You know the ones: wrapped to look like tiny strawberries with that gooey, jammy center that somehow slapped every single time. Were they sold in stores? Did they simply materialize after you turned 65? The world may never know. What I do know is that this cake gives me exactly the same nostalgic joy… just with considerably more buttercream.

    This gluten free strawberry cake understood the assignment and fully committed to the bit by dressing up as an actual strawberry. Could I have just made a round strawberry cake? Sure. But where’s the fun in that? Instead, she’s bright red, covered in tiny piped seeds, sporting leafy green buttercream on top, and looking suspiciously like the giant, glow-up version of that iconic strawberry candy. It’s sweet, just a little dramatic, and guaranteed to be the berry center of attention at any celebration. So if you’re ready to pick the cutest cake in the patch, let’s quit berrying the lead and get decorating. Trust me, this one’s ripe for showing off.

    Berry extra and proud of it.

    Lucky for you, turning a cake into an oversized strawberry is much easier than convincing people those mystery strawberry candies came from an actual strawberry. Follow along with the step-by-step video and photo tutorials below, and I’ll walk you through every swirl, seed, and leaf until you’ve got a cake that’s ripe for showing off.

    Here’s everything I used for this cake:

    • #2 round piping tip for the seeds, #3 round tip for the green leaves
    • Red and green gel dyes
    • Green candy melts
    • Heart-shaped cake pan (I used two silicone ones)
    • Strawberry cake recipe (below)
    • Buttercream frosting (recipe below), divided up into mostly red, a little bit of white, and a little bit of green
    Start by frosting your cooled cake with red buttercream. Freeze for 20 minutes.
    Remove from freezer and use Viva textureless paper towels to smooth your frosting (see video)
    Use the #2 tip to pipe small white dots, alternating in pattern, all over the side of the cake.
    Use gentle pressure to pipe a small dot and pull it down to make the seeds on top of the cake.
    Alternate the pattern here like you did on the sides as well.
    Use a #3 tip to trace the outline of your strawberry leaves.
    Pipe a thin line back and forth to fill in the leaves in each leaf’s section.
    Melt a small amount of candy melts and pipe (no tip needed, just snip the bag), to make the stem…I made various shapes and sizes to see what I’d like best. LET DRY FULLY. Use a knife to carve a small hole in the cake where you can slide the stem in.
    I didn’t like that my green melts didn’t match my frosting color, so I piped on top of it after inserting it into the cake.
    If you can pipe a line and make a dot, congratulations, you’ve already got the skills to pull this off.

    Recipe and Instructions

    Gluten free strawberry cake with protein cream cheese frosting

    • Servings: 12
    • Difficulty: Beginner
    • Print

    A lush strawberry cake decorated to look like it's namesake!

    If not gluten free, use any kind of white or yellow cake mix. Monkfruit can also be replaced with regular powdered sugar for frosting. Protein powder can also be replaced with additional monkfruit or regular powdered sugar.

    Ingredients

    CAKE
    *1 box of gluten free yellow cake mix (I used King Arthur GF cake mix)
    *1 packet of sugar free strawberry Jell-o powder (0.3 oz)
    *2/3 cup fat free or skim milk
    *160 g (2/3 cup) unsweetened applesauce
    *4 eggs
    *1.5 tsp strawberry extract

    FROSTING
    *1/2 cup butter, softened (can use a light butter to cut calories)
    *8 ounces 1/3 the fat cream cheese at room temp
    *12 ounces Lakanto powdered monkfruit
    *4 ounces Quest vanilla milkshake protein powder (cuts the sweetness of the monkfruit and makes a nice, stiff, spreadable frosting; omit and use all monkfruit if desired)
    *1 TBS vanilla
    *1/4 cup + 2 TBS milk
    *1/4 tsp citric acid if you like less sweet frosting

    Directions

    1. Preheat oven to 350 and grease two 9-inch heart-shaped pans.
    2. Whisk cake ingredients together in a stand mixer on low for 60 seconds before switching to medium-high for two minutes.
    3. Pour batter evenly into pan and bake for 30 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out mostly clean from the center.
    4. Allow cake to cool fully before frosting.
    5. To make frosting, whisk cream cheese and butter for 3 minutes before adding in half the powdered monkfruit, protein powder, vanilla, and milk.
    6. Add in remaining monkfruit mix fully. If too stiff, add an additional TBS milk.
    7. Frost cooled cake according to photo or video tutorial.
    8. Keep cake covered and in the fridge. It is best served at room temp, so remove from fridge 30 minutes before eating. Enjoy!

    MACROS
    1 slice: 320 cal
    49.7 c/8.5 f/11.2 p
    Berry cute. Berry delicious. Berry little self-control.
    The attention to de-seed-ail. Proof that I have entirely too much free time.
    Freshly picked from the dessert table.

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  • Rainbow Bridge Memorial Cake

    Rainbow Bridge Memorial Cake

    This isn’t the kind of cake I ever wanted to make. Last week, I said goodbye to Hank, my best friend, shadow, and soulmutt. If you’ve ever loved a dog, you know there are no words big enough for the hole they leave behind. They spend years weaving themselves into every part of your life…the routines, the quiet moments, the memories, and somehow become family in the truest sense of the word. Then one day, all that’s left is the love they gave you and the memories you carry forward.

    So this Rainbow Bridge Memorial Cake is for Hank. It’s a small tribute to the very best buddy who filled my life with a loyalty that will forever be unmatched, the endless laughter he provided in his silly moments, and the comfort he brought to me every day of his almost 15 years. Because of him, I know what it means to love and be loved unconditionally, and I can think of no greater gift he could have given me. Making this cake was a reminder that love doesn’t end when a life does. It stays with us, in our stories, in our hearts, and sometimes in the little ways we choose to remember them.

    This one is for the dogs who leave paw prints on our floors, fur on our clothes, and permanent marks on our hearts. Most of all, it’s for Hank. For the privilege of loving you, I will bear the burden of missing you, little dude.

    “How lucky I am to have had something that makes saying goodbye so hard.”

    The cake & frosting recipe is below. You’ll need gel dye in your preferred colors (I used blue, purple, pink, orange, and yellow), silver leaf, silver star sprinkles, white star sprinkles, and blue pearl sprinkles if desired.

    Use a small amount of plain frosting to crumb coat your cake & freeze 30 min.
    Divide remaining frosting & dye while cake chills.
    Either draw or print out and resize a paw print, tracing on Parchment paper.
    Use an X-acto knife to trim out the paw print pieces carefully.
    Lay your Parchment paper on top of the cake & gently press in so there are no gaps.
    Smatter a bit of color all over the top & swipe a few times to blend the colors with an angled spatula.
    Gently remove to reveal the pawprint.
    Now place dollops of color all over the side of the cake.
    Pass over with an scraper, and fill in color where there are any gaps.Take another pass with a CLEAN scraper until smooth.
    Use tweezers to add silver leaf and remaining sprinkles.
    I wanted it to feel very celestial, so I added a lot of stars.

    Recipe and Instructions

    Gluten free chocolate orange cake with cream cheese frosting

    • Servings: 10
    • Difficulty: Intermediate
    • Print

    A rainbow bridge cake to celebrate the life of our furbabies.

    If not gluten free, use any kind of cake mix. Monkfruit can also be replaced with regular powdered sugar for frosting. Protein powder can also be replaced with additional monkfruit or regular powdered sugar; note: you will need WAY less liquid in the frosting without protein powder.

    Ingredients

    CAKE
    *1 box of gluten free chocolate cake mix (I used King Arthur GF)
    *1 1/3 cup fat free or skim milk
    *152 g (2/3 cup) fat free Greek yogurt
    *4 eggs
    *1 tsp orange extract

    FROSTING
    *112 g (1/2 cup) butter, softened
    *226 g (8 ounces) 1/3 the fat cream cheese, softened
    *12 ounces Lakanto powdered monkfruit
    *4 ounces Quest vanilla milkshake protein powder (cuts the sweetness of the monkfruit and makes a nice, stiff, spreadable frosting; omit and use all monkfruit if desired)
    *1 TBS clear vanilla
    *1/4 tsp orange extract
    *1/2 cup plus 2 TBS milk
    *1/4 tsp citric acid if you like less sweet frosting

    Directions

    1. Preheat oven to 350 and grease three 6-inch pans.
    2. Whisk cake ingredients together in a stand mixer on low for 30 seconds before switching to medium-high for two minutes.
    3. Pour batter evenly into pan and bake for 35-38 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out mostly clean from the center.
    4. Allow cake to cool fully before frosting.
    5. To make frosting, whisk butter and cram cheese for 3 minutes before adding in half the powdered monkfruit, protein powder, vanilla, orange, citric acid if using, and milk.
    6. Add in remaining monkfruit mix fully.
    7. Once fully cooled, frost your cake and use the gallery above to decorate.
    8. Keep cake covered and in the fridge. It is best served at room temp, so remove from fridge 30 minutes before eating. Enjoy!

    Nutrition

    Macros
    10 servings
    344 cal/42.2 c/13.2 f/14.1 p per slice
    To live in hearts we leave behind is not to die.
    I know you’ll find me again one day, Bubba.

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  • Dulce de Leche Mini Cheesecakes

    Dulce de Leche Mini Cheesecakes

    These little cheesecakes are what happens when dulce de leche decides to absolutely show off. Creamy, rich, and loaded with caramel goodness in every bite, these mini gluten-free cheesecakes are sitting on a chocolatey Oreo crust while somehow also managing to have dulce de leche swirled right into the batter and drizzled all over the top like the dessert equivalent of “more is more.” Tiny? Yes. Subtle? Absolutely not.

    They’re smooth, sweet, and completely caramel-ized in the best possible way—basically proof that cheesecake and dulce de leche are soulmates with excellent taste. Honestly, this recipe is feeling a little extra ordin-dairy and I fully support it. One bite in and you’ll be cheesecake-ing your head, wondering why all desserts aren’t this gooey, creamy, and outrageously good. If loving caramel this much is wrong, I dulce de-leche-dly don’t want to be right.

    Cheesecake so good it’s practically flan-ting.

    Mini Dulce de Leche Cheesecakes

    • Servings: 16
    • Difficulty: Beginner
    • Print

    Lush, creamy, caramel cheesecake with gf Oreo crust

    Allulose can also be replaced with regular sugar, but this will change the macros. Feel free to use regular Oreos if not gluten free.

    Ingredients

    CRUST
    *16 gluten free Oreos

    CHEESECAKE
    *16 ounces 1/3 the fat cream cheese at room temp
    *1 tsp vanilla extract
    *96 g (1/2 cup) allulose sweetener
    *2 eggs
    *1/2 cup dulce de leche

    TOPPING
    *Additional dulce de leche

    Directions

    1. Line two muffin tins with 16 silicone cupcake liners and preheat oven to 325.
    2. Plop whole Oreos into each liner
    3. Whisk the cream cheese, vanilla, and allulose on high for 2-3 minutes before adding the dulce de leche.
    4. Switch to a paddle attachment and add the eggs, one at a time, blending on low speed until completely mixed in.
    5. Gently drop spoonfuls of batter on top of the Oreos until liners are mostly full.
    6. Bake at 325 for 20-24 minutes, until cheesecakes are mostly set.
    7. Then turn off the oven and crack the door, leaving the cheesecakes in the oven for an additional 10 minutes to finish baking (centers should have barely any jiggle).
    8. Place cheesecakes on a cooling rack (to speed up, place this in the fridge for 1 hour or freezer for 30 minutes).
    9. Once the cheesecakes are totally cool and set, remove from silicone liners.
    10. To finish, heat up remaining dulce de leche in a microwave safe container before putting into a piping bag or plastic baggy with the corner snipped, and drizzle on top.
    11. Keep leftovers in fridge in an airtight container, and enjoy!
    A little dulce de leche goes a long way… so naturally I used a lot.
    An Oreo crust is my love language, honestly.
    These cheesecakes are dulce de-lovely.

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  • Gluten Free “Carrot” Cake

    Gluten Free “Carrot” Cake

    If you thought carrot cake couldn’t get any cuter, allow me to respectfully prove you wrong. This gluten-free carrot cake said, “Why be subtle?” and fully committed to the bit…each slice is decorated like its own little carrot, because apparently we’re not doing anything halfway this Easter. It’s soft, perfectly spiced, layered with creamy frosting, and dressed up like the most overachieving bunny in the room (both Easter & Energizer are jealous). It’s festive, it’s a little ridiculous, and it’s exactly the kind of dessert that makes people stop mid-conversation and say, “Wait… are those all carrots?” Yes. Yes they are. And you’re about to eat one. Whether you’re hosting lunch or dinner this aster, you’ve got a cake that looks like it came straight out of a Pinterest fever dream…cute, clever, and carrot-ing way too hard.

    This is what happens when I take a theme too seriously. I carrot way too much.

    To bring this carrot patch to life, you’ll just need a few key players: a petal piping tip (I used a 103, 102 or 104 would also work), green chocolate melts for those leafy little tops, orange and brown gel food coloring to give each “carrot” its perfectly imperfect, garden-fresh vibe, and of course the carrot cake and cream cheese frosting recipe featured below (the real MVPs here). That’s it: no complicated tools, no Judy Hopps bunny-level skills required. Just a little mixing, piping, and a willingness to fully commit to the carrot aesthetic. Before you know it, you’ll have a whole crop of cake that looks like it was harvested straight from the dessert garden… and trust me, these are the only vegetables people will be fighting over.

    I did not frost the sides, instead leaving them bare, but there is a plain layer of cream cheese frosting between my two 8″ cakes. I then dyed the rest of my frosting bright orange. Hop on down to the photo and video tutorials below for the rest!

    Start by using a sharp knife to divide your cake into 12 even slices.
    Load orange frosting into a piping bag with a 103 tip; make sure the small end of the tip is facing down, touching the cake.
    Then slowly pipe ribbons back and forth, making each pass a bit wider while staying inside the lines we drew earlier to divide each section.
    Pipe EVERY OTHER slice space with bright orange; once finished, add ONE DROP of brown gel dye to your remaining frosting, mix well, load into a new piping bag, and repeat piping carrots in the remaining spaces.
    Melt chocolate melts according to package directions, load into a piping bag, snip the tip, and just draw carrot toppers freehand, they can and should be messy!
    Finish by gently inserting the carrot tops either into the top layer of the cake or the cream cheese frosting layer.
    Follow along to make your own bunny-approved cake…I’m ~rooting~ for you.

    Recipe and Instructions

    Gluten free carrot cake with cream cheese frosting

    • Servings: 12
    • Difficulty: Beginner
    • Print

    A fun option for Easter and spring celebrations

    If not gluten free, use any kind of white or yellow cake mix. Monkfruit can also be replaced with regular powdered sugar for frosting. Protein powder can also be replaced with additional monkfruit or regular powdered sugar; note: you will need WAY less liquid in the frosting without protein powder.

    Ingredients

    CAKE
    *1 box of gluten free yellow cake mix (I used King Arthur GF)
    *2/3 cup fat free or skim milk
    *113 g (1/2 cup) fat free Greek yogurt
    *4 eggs
    *38 g (2 TBS) no sugar added applesauce
    *75 g grated carrots, processed to small pieces in a food processor
    *80 g raisins or dried cranberries
    *226 g (8 ounce tin) crushes pineapple with juices
    *1.5 tsp cinnamon
    *1 tsp ground ginger
    *1/4 tsp nutmeg
    *1/4 tsp cloves

    FROSTING
    *112 g (1/2 cup) butter, softened
    *226 g (8 ounces) 1/3 the fat cream cheese, softened
    *12 ounces Lakanto powdered monkfruit
    *4 ounces Quest vanilla milkshake protein powder (cuts the sweetness of the monkfruit and makes a nice, stiff, spreadable frosting; omit and use all monkfruit if desired)
    *1 TBS clear vanilla
    *1/2 cup plus 2 TBS milk
    *1/4 tsp citric acid if you like less sweet frosting

    Directions

    1. Preheat oven to 350 and grease two 8-inch pans.
    2. Whisk cake ingredients together in a stand mixer on low for 30 seconds before switching to medium-high for two minutes.
    3. Pour batter evenly into pan and bake for 35-38 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out mostly clean from the center.
    4. Allow cake to cool fully before frosting.
    5. To make frosting, whisk butter and cram cheese for 3 minutes before adding in half the powdered monkfruit, protein powder, vanilla, citric acid if using, and milk.
    6. Add in remaining monkfruit mix fully.
    7. Once fully cooled, frost your cake and use the video and galleries above to decorate.
    8. Keep cake covered and in the fridge. It is best served at room temp, so remove from fridge 30 minutes before eating. Enjoy!

    Nutrition

    Macros
    12 servings
    324 cal/55.4 c/7.2 f/9.5 p per slice
    Locally sourced from my kitchen.
    Eating your vegetables has never been more delicious.

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  • Baileys Shamrock Cookies

    Baileys Shamrock Cookies

    Jump to recipe

    If you’re looking for a dessert that screams St. Patrick’s Day without requiring a full baking marathon, these gluten free Baileys shamrock cookies are about to shamrock your world. Soft cookies get a splash of Baileys (for the Irish spirit, obviously), then take a dramatic dip in white chocolate and a generous shower of green sprinkles because subtlety is not invited to this party. The best part? They’re ridiculously easy to make, which means you can whip up a whole batch faster than a leprechaun can guard his pot of gold. Translation: if you suddenly remembered you promised to bring dessert to a St. Patrick’s gathering… congratulations, you just got lucky. These cookies come together quickly, look ridiculously cute, and deliver just enough Baileys flavor to make people think you tried harder than you did. So grab the sprinkles, pour yourself a little “baker’s tasting” Baileys, and get ready to serve up a treat so good you’d find it at the end of the rainbow.

    White chocolate + Baileys = pot of gold energy.

    Grab your sprinkles and a (another) splash of Baileys (because why not) and follow along with the step-by-step photo tutorial and recipe below to bake up your own batch of lucky little shamrocks. You’ve got the luck of the Irish in the kitchen! You need:

    • Shamrock cookie cutter
    • Various green sprinkles
    • Cookie recipe below
    • White chocolate melts
    • Rolling pin
    • Parchment paper
    • Cooling rack
    Make dough recipe below. Place a sheet of parchment paper down, and add half your chilled dough on top.
    Cover this with another sheet of Parchment (no messy flour dusting this way), and then roll out to 1/4″ thickness.
    Cut out as many shamrocks as you can, then re-roll the leftover dough, and cut out more. Grab the second half of your dough. Repeat until you have 24 shamrocks. If your dough gets too warm, just pop back into the freezer.
    Add 10-12 shamrocks to a cookie sheet with Parchment or a Silpat liner. Place in the freezer for 10-15 minutes so the cookies retain their shape. DO NOT SKIP THIS STEP.
    I like “underdone” cookies, so after chilling, I baked for 10 min @ 350 degrees. Let cool FULLY on a cooling rack before adding chocolate.
    Melt chocolate in a bowl according to package directions, then dip the edge of a cookie into the bowl at an angle.
    Pull up and out quickly, swiping the bottom of the cookie on the side of the bowl to get off excess chocolate.
    Place on a cooling rack and add sprinkles immediately before chocolate sets. Let these rest for 30 minutes before moving.
    You might need to “pop” each cookie off the rack if the chocolate has stuck it to the rack. Just use your fingers to gently pop each cookie up from the BOTTOM of the rack.

    Recipe and Instructions

    Baileys shamrock cookies

    • Servings: 38
    • Difficulty: Beginner
    • Print

    Adult sugar cookies perfect for St. Patrick's parties

    You can definitely use all purpose flour if not gluten free. You can also substitute alcohol with the flavor of your choosing; to make kid-friendly, swap the booze for milk.

    Ingredients

      FOR COOKIES
    • 3/4 cup of butter at room temp
    • 1 1/2 cups of Lakanto golden monkfruit sweetener (regular brown sugar also works just fine)
    • 2 large eggs at room temp
    • 3 TBS Baileys flavor of choice (I used their light flavor with 40% less sugar in it)
    • 2 tsp vanilla extract
    • 3 1/3 cups gluten free measure-for-measure flour
    • 1 tsp baking powder
    • 1/2 tsp baking soda
    • Mint or green gel dye
    • Shamrock cookie cutter

    • 1 bag of white chocolate melts (I used about 2/3 bag)

    Directions

    1. Mix butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
    2. Add eggs, extract, Baileys, and mint or green gel dye mixing well.
    3. Add baking soda, baking powder, and 1/3 of the flour, mixing well.
    4. Add remaining flour in 1/3s, mixing well (add more orange dye if you need to).
    5. Roll dough into a large ball, wrap with cling wrap, and place in freezer for 30 minutes.
    6. Once chilled, roll out half of the dough with a rolling pin dusted with flour, or cover the ball with two sheets of Parchment paper (my preferred method). Roll to about 1/4″ thickness.
    7. Cut out shamrocks with cookie cutter; repeat with remaining dough.
    8. Place Parchment paper or silicone mats on large baking trays. Put 12 cookies on each tray, placing in the freezer to firm for 10-15 minutes before baking.
    9. Preheat oven to 350 while dough chills.
    10. Bake one sheet of cookies at a time to desired doneness. For softer cookies, bake 8 minutes. For crunchier cookies, bake 10 minutes.
    11. Let cookies cool on the sheet for 5 minutes before removing to a cooling rack to cool completely.
    12. Once all cookies have cooled, melt white chocolate in a microwave safe bowl. I used 50% power for 1 minute, stirred, and heated again for 30 seconds at 50% power to get things smooth and melty.
    13. Dip the outer edge of the shamrock at an angle to coat two out of the three clover sides.
    14. Place on Parchment or a cooling rack with Parchment underneath and IMMEDIATELY dust with sprinkles before chocolate sets.
    15. Let all cookies harden for 30 minutes before placing in airtight container to save.

    Nutrition

    Per Serving: 125.5 calories per cookie
    6.3 fat/16.3 carbs/0.9 protein
    The only shamrocks I’m interested in finding.
    Just here for the Baileys because it isn’t over til it’s clover, baby.

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  • Pull Apart 4-Leaf Clover Cupcakes

    Pull Apart 4-Leaf Clover Cupcakes

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    The last few days have been a collective blur of checking the clock and thinking, there’s no way that’s the correct time. Nothing wrecks your circadian rhythm quite like daylight saving time. At this point, I’ve decided the only real perk of having no clue what time it is is that it’s technically never the wrong time for cake. Is it breakfast or 12:30? No idea: have cake. Am I getting ready for dinner or accidentally preparing for bed at 7 p.m.? Couldn’t tell you: have cake. Mild existential confusion about the concept of time itself? You guessed it: have cake. I’m also convinced DST lands suspiciously close to St. Patrick’s Day so we’re all slightly delirious and extremely open to the idea of a stiff drink by the time the holiday arrives. Coincidence? Or Big Liquor pulling the same seasonal marketing stunt the chocolate and flower industries do for Valentine’s Day? Hard to say. What I do know is that if you’re going to lean into the chaos, you might as well do it properly…with boozy cupcakes. And that’s exactly where these Baileys Vanilla Mint Shake cupcakes come in.

    Minty, boozy, and clover-the-top.

    If you’re going to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day, you might as well do it the lucky way: with cupcakes, Baileys, and a shamrock that’s ready to be pulled apart and devoured. These Baileys Vanilla Mint Shake cupcakes are inspired by that iconic minty shake everyone loses their minds over every March, but this version comes with frosting, cake, and a generous splash of Irish cheer. Arranged into a four-leaf clover pull-apart, they’re basically edible good luck… except instead of finding a lucky charm in the grass, you’re finding it in boozy buttercream.

    Each soft, minty cupcake is frosted and nestled into the clover shape so everyone can just grab a piece and go…no slicing, no ceremony, just sweet St. Paddy’s chaos. They’re festive, a little extra, and exactly the kind of dessert that makes people say, “Well aren’t you the lucky one?” And honestly, if Baileys, mint, and cupcakes in the shape of a four-leaf clover don’t count as hitting the dessert jackpot, I don’t know what does. Here’s what you need to make your own pull-apart lucky charm:

    • 15 cupcakes & Baileys cream cheese recipe (below)
    • Green gel dye
    • 1M piping tip
    • Green sanding sugar and sprinkles
    Start by shaping your clover: place three cupcakes together to form an inverted triangle, repeat 3 more times, then use 3 additional cupcakes as the stem.
    Load your green frosting into a piping bag, snip the tip and essentially outline a heart shape around each section of 3 cupcakes to make the clover leaves.
    Once you’ve filled in your outline, smooth gently with an angled spatula; we’re covering with sprinkles, so it doesn’t have to be perfectly smooth!
    Keep outlining, filling the outlines, and smoothing!
    Again, you just want to make sure everything is nice and covered, frosting relatively evenly spread, doesn’t have to be smooth.
    Because we’re adding SPRINKLES! Like the concealer of the cake world. It will cover all your frosting blemishes, I swear.
    Found the four-leaf clover… turns out it’s made of cupcakes. To finish, place more frosting into a piping bag with a 1M tip and simply outline the clover!

    Recipes & Instructions

    Baileys Vanilla Mint Milkhake Cupcakes

    • Servings: 15
    • Difficulty: Easy
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    Cupcakes bursting with Baileys flavor and delicious frosting

    If not gluten free, use any kind of yellow cake mix. Monkfruit can also be replaced with regular powdered sugar, and protein powder can be replaced with either. This recipe makes 24 cupcakes with enough frosting for all, but you only need 14-15 cupcakes to make the shamrock.

    Ingredients

    CAKE
    *One box of gluten free yellow cake mix
    *83 grams (1/3 c) unsweetened applesauce
    *1/2 cup fat free or skim milk
    *3 eggs
    *1/2 cup Baileys Vanilla Mint Shake

    FROSTING
    *224 grams (8 ounces) of 1/3 the fat cream cheese, softened
    *110 grams (1/2 cup) of butter, softened
    *12 ounces (4 cups) Lakanto powdered monkfruit
    *6 ounces Quest vanilla milkshake protein powder
    *1 TBS vanilla extract
    *1/4 tsp citric acid
    *1/4 cup + 2 TBS Baileys Vanilla Mint Shake
    *1/4 cup fat free or skim milk


    Directions

    1. Preheat oven to 350 and line 2 muffin tins with 24 cupcake liners (you only need 15 cupcakes to make the shamrock, so freeze or frost the rest as desired).
    2. Mix all cake ingredients together in a stand mixer on low for 60 seconds before turning to medium-high for two minutes.
    3. Pour batter evenly into liners and bake for 14-18 minutes, until a toothpick comes out cleanly from the center.
    4. Allow cupcakes to cool fully before frosting.
    5. To make frosting, whisk cream cheese and butter for 3 minutes before adding in half the powdered monkfruit, 1/4 cup Baileys, and the vanilla extract, mixing well.
    6. Add in remaining monkfruit, protein powder, 1/4 cup milk, and 2 TBS Baileys, mixing well. If making the clover cupcakes, be sure to dye your frosting with green gel dye at this point.
    7. Frost the cooled cupcakes as desired; to make the pull-apart clover, please see detailed decorating instructions above.
    8. Keep leftovers covered and in the fridge. Best served at room temp, so remove and slice 30-45 minutes before eating. Enjoy!

    Nutrition

    Macros
    15 servings
    146 cal/16.7 c/6.5 f/5.2 p per cupcake
    Who needs a pot of gold when there’s Baileys and sprinkles?!
    Shamrockin’ the dessert table.
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  • No-Bake Mint Chocolate Cheesecake

    No-Bake Mint Chocolate Cheesecake

    This no-bake, gluten free mint chocolate cheesecake is here to shamrock your world. With a gluten-free mint Oreo crust and a creamy, dreamy filling loaded with crushed Andes mints, it’s basically a pot of gold at the end of the dessert rainbow. Cool, chocolatey, and perfectly minty, it comes together so easily it almost feels like a little kitchen leprechaun did the work for you. No oven, no stress: just pure green goodness ready to steal the spotlight on St. Patrick’s Day.

    And if you’re one of those people who claims you “don’t like chocolate and mint together,” I regret to inform you that you may simply not like joy. Because this combo? It’s clover-the-top in the best way. One bite and you’ll be feeling lucky, blessed, and maybe even a little green with dessert envy.

    If loving mint + chocolate is wrong, I don’t want to be right.

    Recipe and Instructions

    No-bake Mint Chocolate Cheesecake

    • Servings: 10
    • Difficulty: Beginner
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    A mint chocolate cheesecake perfect for St. Patrick's Day

    If not gluten free, use regular mint Oreos for the crust. Greek yogurt can be replaced with an additional 8 ounces of cream cheese, and allulose can also be replaced with regular sugar.

    Ingredients

    CRUST
    *264 g gluten free mint Oreos (about 22 Oreos)
    *12 g (1 TBS) allulose
    *42 g (3 TBS) melted butter

    CHEESECAKE FILLING
    *224 g (8 ounces) 1/3 the fat cream cheese at room temp
    *96 g (1/4 cup) allulose
    *226 g (1 cup) nonfat Greek yogurt, strained overnight (so approximately double the amount initially to strain overnight)
    *8 ounces Cool Whip free
    *1 tsp mint extract
    *1 TBS vanilla extract
    *1 TBS lemon juice
    *Green gel dye or food coloring
    *128 g (~18) Andes mints, chopped

    TOPPING
    *Cool Whip Free (I used 77 g)

    Directions

    1. Line an 8″ springform pan with Parchment paper.
    2. Dump the Oreos in a food processor and grind until smooth before adding melted butter and allulose.
    3. Place crust mix into prepared pan and smooth to the edges (I use cooking spray on my hands to make this easier).
    4. Set in freezer for 15-30 minutes while making filling.
    5. Mix the cream cheese and allulose in a stand mixer on medium high for 2-3 minutes until fluffy and smooth.
    6. Add in the yogurt, extracts, and lemon juice.
    7. Add a drop of food coloring or gel dye, until you get the color you want to achieve (I dipped a toothpick in green gel dye and then dipped this into my batter).
    8. Fold in Cool Whip and Andes mints with a spatula until everything comes together.
    9. Pour over prepared crust and refrigerate 4 hours or overnight til set, then remove from pan.
    10. Feel free to serve as is or top with more Cool Whip (I piped 2D stars on top).
    11. Keep cheesecake covered in fridge until serving.

    Nutrition

    Macros
    10 servings
    371.6 cal/35.2 c/22.8 f/4.6 p per slice
    Serving pot-of-gold energy.
    Zero oven. Maximum magic.
    This cheesecake is my lucky charm.

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  • Easy Heart-Shaped Cupcake Tutorial

    Easy Heart-Shaped Cupcake Tutorial

    These heart-shaped cupcakes didn’t come to be subtle…they came to steal hearts and look cute doing it. Dressed up with pink and red sanding sugar and candy hearts, they’re the ultimate Valentine’s Day treat: flirty, festive, and ready in about an hour flat. They’re easy enough for last-minute baking but cute enough to pass for “I planned this,” which is really the dream. If you’re in the mood to spread a little love without committing to a full baking marathon, these cupcakes are here to do the most: with minimal effort and maximum heart eyes.

    Love hurts. Cupcakes help.

    Ready to break some hearts (the dessert kind)? Follow along with the step-by-step photo and video tutorials below and you’ll be whipping up your own love-struck cupcakes in no time. I’ll walk you through every sweet step so nothing gets crushed—except expectations when people realize how easy these were to make. Grab your piping bag, embrace the sparkle, and get ready to serve up cupcakes so cute they’ll have everyone falling head over heels.

    Here’s everything I used for these lil’ heart breakers:

    • Foil
    • Pie weights, marbles, or more foil rolled into a ball
    • Hot pink gel dye
    • Large red heart sprinkles (mine are from Wilton)
    • Hot pink and red sanding sugar or larger flaked sugar (I used both, picked up from Michael’s)
    • Cupcake and frosting recipe below
    Almost all the tools you need!
    Take a sheet of foil, cut it in half, and cut that in half again.
    Fold into small rectangles
    Add the pie weight up top to make the top of the heart.
    Slide the foil rectangles into the sides to give a heart shape to your cupcake liners.
    Add batter carefully, then use a toothpick to evenly distribute in the heart-shaped cups.
    Bake according to directions!
    Pipe a bit of frosting on top, doesn’t need to be pretty!
    Gently smush the cupcake into a bowl with red & pink sanding sugar mixed together and swirl.
    This will flatten out the frosting and give you a sparkly heart.
    Finish by adding the big heart sprinkle to the middle.
    Breaking hearts, not a sweat.

    Recipe and Instructions

    Gluten free strawberry cupcakes with strawberry buttercream frosting

    • Servings: 22
    • Difficulty: Beginner
    • Print

    Super cute cupcakes perfect for Valentine's Day!

    If not gluten free, use any kind of white or yellow cake mix. Monkfruit can also be replaced with regular powdered sugar for frosting. Protein powder can also be replaced with additional monkfruit or regular powdered sugar; note: you will need WAY less liquid in the frosting without protein powder.

    Ingredients

    CUPCAKE
    *1 box of gluten free yellow cake mix (I used Pillsbury Funfetti)
    *1 tsp strawberry extract
    *1 fat free or skim milk
    *85 g (1/3 cup) unsweetened applesauce
    *3 eggs

    FROSTING
    *225 g (1 cup) butter, softened
    *12 ounces Lakanto powdered monkfruit
    *4 ounces (112 g) Quest vanilla milkshake protein powder (cuts the sweetness of the monkfruit and makes a nice, stiff, spreadable frosting; omit and use all monkfruit if desired)
    *1 TBS clear vanilla
    *1 tsp strawberry extract
    *1 cup plus 2 TBS milk
    *1/4 tsp citric acid if you like less sweet frosting

    Directions

    1. Preheat oven to 350 and line muffin tin with cupcake liners. SEE VIDEO OR PHOTO TUTORIAL TO MAKE HEART SHAPE BEFORE BAKING.
    2. Whisk cake ingredients together in a stand mixer on low for 30 seconds before switching to medium-high for two minutes.
    3. Pour batter evenly into prepared cupcake liners and bake fo16-1824 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out mostly clean from the center.
    4. Allow cupcakes to cool fully before frosting.
    5. To make frosting, whisk butter for 3 minutes before adding in half the powdered monkfruit, protein powder, vanilla, strawberry, and milk.
    6. Add in remaining monkfruit mix fully.
    7. Once fully cooled, frost your cupcakes and use the video and galleries above to decorate.
    8. Keep cupcakes covered and in the fridge. It is best served at room temp, so remove from fridge 30 minutes before eating. Enjoy!

    Nutrition

    Macros
    22 servings
    136 cal/16.4 c/5.9 f/4.3 p per slice
    Love at first bite.
    Sweet but dangerously delicious.

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