What many people fail to understand is that there is no need to complicate evenings and gatherings with dishes that take hours in the kitchen. There are, in fact, simple sweet recipes that speak volumes with their potent flavors and are prepared without much effort from your end. These recipes will impress everyone with a sweet tooth, and will also fit seamlessly within a hectic schedule. So, this Children’s Day, if you’re planning to make it special for your little one, you may want to dig into these dishes.
Peanut Butter Cookies:
Ingredients:
- 251 gm flour
- 102 gm sugar
- 53 gm peanut butter
- 2 eggs
- 2 tsp baking powder
- A pinch of salt
Method:
- First, you have to preheat the oven to 180°C.
- You need to line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Then, you are going to mix the flour, sugar, peanut butter, egg, baking powder, and salt all together.
- You need to keep kneading the mixture until it turns into a smooth dough.
- After this, with your fingers, you need to flatten the dough a little bit.
- You have to cut the dough into your favorite shapes or generic round cookie shapes, and then bake them for around 10 to 12 minutes.
- While serving, you can dust the cookies with some powdered sugar.
Lemon Bars:
Ingredients:
- 151 gm flour
- 52 gm sugar
- 53 gm butter
- 204 gm sugar
- 101 gm lemon juice
- 3 eggs
- 2 tsp lemon zest
Method:
- You need to first preheat the oven to 180°C.
- You are going to grease a square baking dish with butter.
- Then, you need to mix the butter, sugar, and flour, and keep whisking till the mixture transforms into a crumbly crust.
- You have to press this crust into the baking dish.
- Then, you need to bake it for around 15 minutes.
- Moving on to the filling, you need to mix the lemon juice, sugar, and lemon zest.
- Once the crust has been baked, you have to pour the filling over it.
- Once more, you need to bake it for around 20 to 25 minutes.
- At this time, your lemony treat will be ready. Before serving, you need to slice it into the shape of bars or rectangles and dust it with some confectioners’ sugar.
Berry Crumble Bars:
Ingredients:
- 151 gm flour
- 52 gm sugar
- 53 gm butter
- 204 gm berries
- 101 gm sugar
- 3 tbsp cornstarch
- 101 gm oats
- 52 gm sugar
- 53 gm butter
Method:
- First, you need to preheat the oven to 180°C.
- You have to grease a square baking dish with butter.
- You need to mix some melted butter, flour, and sugar for the crust.
- Once mixed, you need to press the combination into the baking dish.
- Then, you are going to bake it for around 15 minutes.
- While it is getting baked, you have to mix the sugar, mixed berries, and cornstarch for the filling.
- After the crust has been baked, you need to pour the filling over it.
- Next, you need to add the ingredients for the crumble which include melted butter, oats, and brown sugar.
- Then, you have to sprinkle the crumble over the filling.
- Once again, you need to bake it for around 25 to 30 minutes.
- Before serving, you can add a dollop of whipped cream.
For these easy recipes, you can use different types of nuts or flavorings. You can also experiment with various types of citrus fruits for the lemon bars, and turn them into orange bars, if you please. There's also the option for you to replace the berries with tropical fruits.
To make these easy recipes even simpler, you should procure the ingredients beforehand so that you don't have to scramble for them when it's time for you to bake. Considering that you already live a complex and fast-paced life, it will be immensely helpful if you prepare these desserts beforehand, and store them in airtight containers for up to three days. While serving, you can heat them up in the microwave, and they would be as good as fresh.
When you are baking cookies, you must take care to use a low temperature so that they do not spread. If the lemon bars become very tart, you can add a bit of lemon juice to balance out the flavor.
While serving, you can offer ice cream scoops alongside the cookies. If you are baking for the kids, you can cut fun shapes on the lemon bar, and present interesting and unique treats.
These simple sweet recipes will break the myth of having to spend hours in the kitchen to whip up beautiful flavors. Your guests will surely be surprised with how low effort, and tremendously flavorful these treats are.