The temperatures are starting to cool down more and more every day, harkening the changing of the seasons and the true arrival of Autumn. The Fall season means different things to many different people such as being the time of the great harvest, the changing of the seasons from warmer to cooler, football season, and bonfires. It’s around this time each year that many folks start thinking warm, cozy thoughts; sweaters, pumpkin spice everything, and baking delicious sweets and treats that aren’t normally enjoyed during the rest of the year.
Maybe you’ve wanted to bake before, but you always seem to be too busy, or perhaps you believe that baking is beyond your realm of possibilities. Or maybe you’re just like us and even though you love baking, you believe that sometimes the simplest recipes are the best. No matter what the case may be, we’re here to help with a list of seven simple treats that you can bake this week, and as a bonus most of them usually consist of only five ingredients or less!
Peanut Butter Kiss Cookies
This recipe is fairly straight-forward, but it makes a delicious cookie with the classic combination of chocolate and peanut butter. These cookies are as easy as mixing the ingredients, baking the cookies according to the directions, and then top them with a Hershey’s Kiss for the finishing touch. These cookies are great to let kids help out with; even small children can place the chocolatey morsels on top of the cookies for their part.
Vanilla Meringue Cookies
If you’re looking for a treat that’s simple and also healthier than average sweets, try your hand at these meringue cookies. Preparing these cookies is a little different than preparing other cookies, because when you mix all of the ingredients, you then place them into a piping bag or a food-safe plastic bag with a corner cut out of it, then you pipe the cookies onto the baking sheet. Once they have baked, they come out as a light, airy cookie that is also fat-free. Take the opportunity to bake this easy sweet treat that you don’t have to feel guilty about.
Graham Cracker Cookies
If you’re a graham cracker fan, then these simple cookies are for you! Substituting flour with graham crackers that have been sent through a food processor is the key to these scrumptious cookies. Once baked, they come out of the oven crispy around the edges and soft and chewy in the middle. Whether you choose to enjoy them on their own, with a glass of milk, or perhaps use them as sandwich cookies for some sophisticated indoor s’mores, with ice cream, or even frosting as a creamy center, this treat is as versatile as it is easy.
A Chocolate Sheet Cake
Very few recipes are as easy as making a chocolate sheet cake, yet as simple as it is, the reward can be incredibly decadent, especially with a thick, rich frosting on top. Sheet cakes are a quick, easy alternative to the traditional layered cakes. You don’t have to take them out of the pan they were baked in to frost them, as you can just spread it right on top. Because they are flat and contained within the pan they were baked in, this makes them easier to transport to dinners and functions as a bonus.
A Flourless Chocolate Cake
Flourless Chocolate Cake is exactly what it says it is. This delicious cake is typically enjoyed without any frosting either on its own or with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, which won’t take away from its simplicity. They can be baked as a single cake or can be baked individually for small cakes, however no matter what you decide to use to bake it with, our tip is to cover the inside with butter and cocoa powder to ensure easy removal after baking.
Whipped Shortbread Cookies
These quick and easy cookies are a favorite around the holidays, however they are a wonderful treat for any time of the year that will absolutely melt in your mouth. Top them with sprinkles, candied cherries, or frost them; do anything you like to customize them if you want to go the extra mile. These simple, yet delicious morsels make great treats for small get-togethers and other special occasions as well.
Rich, Chocolatey Brownies
One of the simplest recipes that you can bake is chocolatey brownies, and the best part is that they normally don’t have a whole lot of ingredients in them. Normally when it comes to brownies, they either fall into the category of cakey, chewy, or fudgy. Each kind of brownie has its own strong fan base, but the chewy ones, which develop that nice sheen on top that flakes a little bit yet they’re soft in the middle, seem to be a common favorite. A secret to achieve even sweeter and more rich brownies, use dark brown sugar in the recipe in place of other sugars.
The Autumn season and baking are two things that just seem to go hand-in-hand; the commencement of the harvest provides many of the ingredients used for baking such as grain for the flour, and of course the change in temperature has us all looking for ways to take the chill out of the air, and what better way to do that than to bake? You achieve warmth throughout the house from your oven as well as being able to enjoy the wonderful aroma of what you are baking.
So if the pull of Fall and the cooler weather that it brings has been inspiring you to bake something, we definitely encourage you to consider taking a stab at baking the seven simple treats that we’ve suggested sometime this week. Whether you bake them for yourself or you choose to share them with friends or loved ones, these quick, easy treats that you can bake won’t disappoint.