Holidays & Events

Peanut Butter Fudge Recipe

BEHOLD: the day has come. The day that I’ve finally mastered Peanut Butter Fudge. Readers have been asking for this recipe for 10 years. It has the EXACT same fudgy, rich, moist texture as classic chocolate fudge made with marshmallow fluff, but has intense peanut butter flavor. It’s decadent and you can’t stop at one…

Creamed Spinach Recipe

Creamed Spinach is your new favorite side dish. What it lacks in looks, it makes up for in dreamy, creamy, bright flavor. It is the perfect plate unifier; it brings together all the other elements of your meal, especially between your mashed potatoes and perfectly seared steak. But it also ties together your Thanksgiving plate…

My 2025 Holiday Gift Guide

What should I get everybody for Christmas?? Here’s your answer, from me, The Gift Charlatan, a big fan of next-day delivery and getting ideas for presents from the internet. It’s the moooost wonderful tiiiime, of the year!! Shopping season is upon us my friends. To be perfectly honest, this IS my favorite time of year,…

Pumpkin Sheet Cake with Maple Cream Cheese Frosting

Pumpkin Sheet Cake is perfectly moist, spicy, and dare I say, PUMPKIN-Y. The pumpkin flavor really shines through! Bake in a half sheet pan for a thin (but still fluffy) cake that results in the exact cake-to-frosting ratio that I always aim for when I take a bite of cake. Top it with Maple Cream…

Butternut Squash Lasagna

This Butternut Squash Lasagna is the vegetarian main dish of my dreams! Layers of noodles, roasted squash, buttery spinach, a rich and savory cream sauce, and of course lots of Parmesan cheese make this the fall casserole that will steal the show this Thanksgiving. Delicious and hearty, it’s the perfect comfort food on a chilly…

Sheet Pan Quesadillas with Chicken

The only thing easier than Sheet Pan Chicken Quesadillas…is making a regular quesadilla. But with this easy oven recipe, you can feed the whole family and not have to stand at the stove making a bunch in a row! These quesadillas are stuffed with chicken, pinto beans, tomatoes, green onions, and of course plenty of…

The Only Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe You’ll Ever Need

I have been wanting to master an Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe for a LONG time and I’m so happy to finally be posting my favorite version!! This recipe is the result of many years of pondering and testing. Oatmeal cookies are serious business; I do not take my job lightly 😂 These cookies have…

The Chicken Flautas of Your Dreams

Got leftover chicken? Turn it into the BEST Chicken Flautas! Tender and juicy seasoned chicken, wrapped up in a tortilla and deep fried. Come to mama. Top them with green avocado sauce, dunk it in some sour cream, sprinkle it with Pico de Gallo and cotija cheese, and you’ve got the most amazing Mexican feast.…

63 Oreo Cheesecake Recipe

There’s cheesecake. And then there’s OREO CHEESECAKE. We are not messing around today: this recipe calls for 63 Oreos. A thick and perfectly tender Oreo crust, rich and creamy vanilla cheesecake, stuffed with chopped, crushed, and halved Oreos, big enough that you can still read the Oreo imprint on the cookie. Topped with chocolate ganache…

30-Minute Chewy Drop Sugar Cookies (No rolling!)

It’s a hard fact: most Sugar Cookies are bland and dry, and covered in frosting to mask their cardboard-ness. THIS is a fast + easy cheat recipe, that you drop on a pan just like chocolate chip cookies; you don’t need cookie cutters. It has the same ultra buttery, chewy flavor of the BEST Soft…

Homemade Biscuits and Gravy

The only thing better than a mile-high Flaky Buttermilk Biscuit is one that’s smothered in sausage gravy! This Homemade Biscuits and Gravy recipe will stop you in your tracks. It’s comfort food like no other. The Biscuits are tender and flaky, and the creamy, savory sausage gravy is deceptively flavorful for how easy it is…

Texas Beef Brisket In The Oven

Hallelujah! I’ve found a way to make KILLER Texas-style smoked beef brisket…without a smoker. Yes, for real! This recipe is magic. Use your gas grill to smoke it, then move it to the OVEN to get the most amazing, mouth-watering, tender, smoky brisket that will make you cry happy tears. I have tons of pictures…

Shamrock Shake

If you don’t know what a Shamrock Shake is, sit yourself down for some learnin. A smooth, creamy, minty milkshake, in an Elphaba-worthy shade of green, topped with whipped cream and a maraschino cherry just because. It’s quite possibly the best thing to come out of McDonald’s besides the Big Mac. This recipe is even…

How to Make Whipped Cream

Whipped cream is basically the pixie dust of desserts. A dollop here, a swirl there, and suddenly your entire life is better. It’s surprisingly easy to make homemade (like, charlatan easy.) All you need is heavy cream, a little powdered sugar, and a dash of vanilla. Seriously, once you’ve tasted this recipe, you’ll be ignoring…

My Favorite Lemon Bars are Ridiculously Tart

If I had to choose a last meal, it would be Lemon Bars for appetizer, main, and dessert. You don’t even KNOW how fast I can finish off a pan of these bad boys; it’s embarrassing. There is just some thing incredibly bright and cheerful about them, from the crumbly-tender buttery shortbread crust, to the…

Super Easy Chicken Tortilla Soup

Chicken Tortilla Soup is usually the thing at a Mexican restaurant that I WANT to order, but can’t, because tacos. (I mean, you get this, right?) But I’m tellin you guys, don’t sleep on this recipe. IT’S SO GOOD. Like a party in your mouth. It’s perfectly spiced, creamy, warm and comforting, and healthy to…

My All-Time-Favorite Shortbread Cookies

Shortbread Cookies: do not sleep on this classic! You might think shortbread sounds boring, but that’s because you haven’t watched Rebecca’s face as she eats it on Ted Lasso yet. I’m telling you guys, classic shortbread is to-die-for. It’s simple, it’s easy, there’s not much to it…but that’s not an apology. Sometimes the simplest things…

Pariserwafiers (Swedish Cream Wafer Cookies)

I am O B S E S S E D with these Swedish Cream Wafer Cookies, you guys!! (Pariserwafiers? Vanilla Cream Cookies?) This is a recipe the world forgot, and I’m still mad about it. How could the previous generation have let us down so hard?? Perhaps because until you taste them, they look unexceptional:…

Frozen Peanut Butter Pie Recipe

The peanut butter pie to end all peanut butter pies! It’s frozen but still smooth and creamy, has a Nutter Butter crust (!!) and a thick layer of fudge at the bottom. Oh my! Did I mention it’s a no bake?? Originally published July 29, 2017. I was looking for my planner everywhere this morning and…

Turkey Bone Broth (or Turkey Stock)

Learn how easy it is to make Turkey Stock from the bones of your Thanksgiving turkey! All you need is a picked over turkey carcass and some vegetables and herbs that you probably already have on hand from cooking your turkey. You are going to love using this flavorful turkey stock in your next soup!…

Prime Rib Recipe To Impress Your Guests

I thought prime rib must be overrated. But boy-oh-boy does it live up to the hype! There is something magical about this roast! The whole process can seem daunting, but I’m here to show you how to cook it step by step, with tons of pictures. With the right techniques (plenty of time + salt),…

The Only Caramel Apple I Will Eat

I am a Caramel Apple snob. So much of a snob, actually, that I usually don’t even bother eating them. But all that changed recently when I discovered the secret to the BEST homemade caramel sauce. These caramel apples are easy to dip, a dream to bite through, with the most FUDGY caramel texture; they…

Soft Homemade Caramel Candy

I’ve had my fair share of ho-hum Caramel Candy. Caramel is all about the texture, and too often, wrapped caramels are hard to bite into, locking your jaw in place, pausing all conversation. Even if the flavor is good, it doesn’t make up for the unpleasant chewing experience. THIS recipe, however, is absolute perfection. My…

Thick & SOFT Sugar Cookie Recipe (That Holds Its Shape)

A secret ingredient in this sugar cookies recipe makes these cookies the SOFTEST and most flavorful cookies of your life! And they even hold their shape after baking, so you get exactly what you want instead of sad blob cookies. (Frost them with The BEST Buttercream Frosting for Sugar Cookies or Royal Icing!) Originally posted…

Biscotti For People Who Thought They Hated Biscotti

Guys, don’t judge me, but I went for years thinking that Biscotti was for old ladies only. Maybe even just the Italian ones. I mean who is eating this cardboard? People whose tastebuds have all died off, obviously. But ohhhh was I wrong. Fresh, home baked biscotti is a delight to the soul. A crispity,…

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