Speculoos No-Bake Cookies

This Speculoos spread might just be my weakness.  If you have never heard of Speculoos before, it is Trader Joe’s version of Biscoff cookie spread.  And it is deeelicious.  Trust me, you need to go by yourself a jar of this stuff.  Pronto.

I hate turning on the oven in the summer, so I love that these cookies are no bake.  What's not to love about enjoying delicious cookies without having to turn on the oven?

What you need:

6 Tbs Biscoff spread

½ C sugar

4 tbs butter

½ C sugar

1 ¾ C old fashion oats

1 tsp vanilla

¼ C milk

What you do:

Bring sugar, milk, and butter to a boil, stirring constantly and making sure to scrape the bottom and sides of the pan so that the mixture does not stick and burn.  Let boil, and stir for one minute.

Remove from heat and add other ingredients.  Line cookie sheet or baking pan with parchment paper and either shape into balls for a round cookie or press into the pan if you desire a bar cookie. 

Refrigerate for 15-20 minutes, or until firm.

Lemon Curd

I usually end up in a situation where I end up with either extra egg yolks or extra egg whites, and I’m always looking for recipes I can make that will use up whichever part of the egg I have extra of.   I made a white cake the other day, and that left me with extra egg yolks.  I thought about making pudding, but then some fresh lemons caught my eye.  After about 2 seconds of consideration, I immediately decided to make lemon curd instead.

I find lemon curd to be really light and refreshing.  I am sure that I ate more than my fair share before I offered some to my family.  I like my lemon curd on the tart side, so I used less sugar.  But if you would like it more sweet, I would recommend you use the full amount.

What you need:

4 -6 Tbs sugar (I like my lemon curd to be tart, but if you prefer it more sweet, add the full amount)

Zest of 1 lemon

3 large egg yolks*

½ c lemon juice

4 Tbs unsalted butter, cut into pieces

What you do:

Combine the first four ingredients in a saucepan and heat over medium-high heat, stirring constantly.  Boil the mixture for one minute, stirring constantly.  Then remove the pot from the heat and add the butter, one piece at a time, incorporating each slice before adding the next one. 

*Most recipes for lemon curd call for the entire egg, and then require you to strain the mixture.  That is because the egg whites and the yolks cook at different times, which can lead to little curdled bits.  Because we are using just the yolks, we can bypass the straining step.

Transfer the curd to a bowl and cover with plastic wrap, making sure the wrap comes into contact with the entire surface of the curd.  Refrigerate for 30 minutes or until set. 

Serve on top of toast, with scones, muffins, or pancakes.

Summer Vacation!

Last week I told you all I was going on vacation, and since I promised to show you pictures, here they are!  We went to New York City for a few days before sailing on a cruise ship to Bermuda.  It was a wonderful trip!

The ball in Times Square.  It's a lot smaller in person!

We also visited Rockefeller Center, 5th Avenue, and Central Park.

We at lunch at Carnegie Deli one day.  Look at the size of this sandwich! They were all that big!  Note to self: If I ever go there again, one sandwich can easily feed four people!

All to soon we said goodbye New York and were on our way to Bermuda!

 Here we are enjoying our first dinner together on our ship, the Norwegian Breakaway.

Of course we had to go to the beach while we were there!  We found our own private cove to enjoy.

The water here is so incredibly beautiful.  I wanted to take it all back with me!

We also visited Crystal Cave near St. George's.  It always amazes me to see such incredible natural structures. 

A view from the streets of St. George's.

Again, this water.  I love it.

We found working old fashion telephone booths!  Finding items such as these in the 21st century is really exciting to me.

These are just a tiny tiny handful of the pictures I took and the memories I made while in Bermuda.  I hope all of you are having a wonderful summer- you deserve it!