Who said scrumptious desserts had to be difficult? These yummy summer treats are fun to make and make great additions to parties. Try your hand and be the guest that everyone raves about!


Strawberry No-Bake Cheesecake with Chocolate Crust
ivillage.com
Yields 8 servings
Prep time: 10 minutes, Total: More than 1 hour
Ingredients:
- 2 cups chocolate cookies or biscuits
- 1/4 cup, plus 2 tbsp sugar, divided
- 8 tbsp unsalted butter
- 1 package (8 oz) cream cheese
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
- 12 oz strawberries, washed, hulled and sliced

In a sealable plastic bag, thoroughly crush chocolate cookies with a rolling pin. Add cookie crumbs and sugar to a bowl. Melt butter and blend well with the crumb-and-sugar mixture. Press into the bottom and up along the sides of a buttered and floured 8-inch tart pan. Cover with plastic wrap and chill until firm.

While crust is setting, beat cream cheese in a bowl until soft. Add sugar, lemon juice and vanilla extract, and beat mixture until fluffy and smooth. In a separate chilled bowl, beat whipping cream until firm peaks form. Fold the whipped cream into the cream cheese. Add the filling into the chocolate crust and spread out evenly. Arrange sliced strawberries on top of cheesecake. Cover and chill for a couple of hours before serving.


Fruit and Nut Chocolate Bark
kraftcanada.com
Yields: 20 servings (32 g each)
Prep: 10 minutes, Total: 1 hour, 10 minutes
Ingredients:
- 3 packages, (170g each) Baker's Premium 70% Cacao Dark Chocolate
- 2/3 cup Back to Nature Trail Mix (almonds, raisins, cranberries and pistachios, coarsely chopped)
- 1/4 cup crystallized ginger

Cover baking pan with parchment or waxed paper. Microwave chocolate in microwaveable bowl on medium setting for three to four minutes or until chocolate is almost melted, stirring every two minutes. Stir until chocolate is completely melted.

Pour onto prepared baking pan; spread to form even layer. Sprinkle with trail mix and ginger. Refrigerate one hour or until firm. Break into pieces. Store in an airtight container in refrigerator.


Double Chocolate and Peanut Butter Chip Ice Cream Sandwiches
ivillage.com
Yields: 42 cookies or 21 ice cream sandwiches
Prep: 15 minutes, Total: 30 minutes
Ingredients:
- 2 cups unbleached, all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup Dutch processed cocoa powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 10 tbsp unsalted butter, softened
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup brown sugar, packed
- 3 large eggs
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup semisweet or bittersweet chocolate chips
- 1 cup peanut butter chips
- 1 pint vanilla ice cream

Blend flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt in a bowl. Set aside.

In a large bowl, cream butter and sugars, then beat in eggs and vanilla. Stir in the flour mixture. Add the chocolate and peanut butter chips, and combine well.

Preheat oven to 350°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Drop rounded teaspoonfuls of batter onto the sheets. Bake about 10 minutes, switching the sheets' position halfway through for even baking. Cookies should have set around the edges but still be soft in the center. Cool cookies by sliding them still on the parchment on top of wire racks.

When cookies are room temperature, scoop vanilla ice cream onto one cookie and place another on top to make an ice cream sandwich. Repeat.


S'mores Cupcakes
marthastewart.com
Yields 24 servings
Prep: 30 minutes, Total: 1 hour
Ingredients:
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

- 1 1/3 cups graham flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 1/4 cups (2 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 2 cups packed light-brown sugar
- 1/4 cup honey
- 6 large eggs
- 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- Marshmallow Frosting (see right)

Preheat oven to 350°F. Line standard muffin tins with paper liners. Whisk together both flours, baking powder, salt and cinnamon.

With an electric mixer on medium-high speed, cream butter, brown sugar and honey until pale and fluffy. Reduce speed to medium; beat in eggs and vanilla, scraping down sides of bowl as needed. Add flour mixture; mix until just combined.

Divide batter evenly among lined cups, filling each about three-quarters full. Bake, rotating tins halfway through, until golden brown and a cake tester inserted in centers comes out with only a few moist crumbs attached, about 25 minutes. Transfer tins to wire rack to cool 10 minutes; turn out cupcakes onto racks and let cool completely. Cupcakes can be stored up to one day at room temperature, or frozen up to one month, in airtight containers.

To finish, spoon 2 teaspoons chocolate glaze onto each cupcake. Fill a pastry bag fitted with a large, plain tip with frosting (see right); pipe frosting onto each cupcake, swirling tip and releasing as you pull up to form a peak. Hold a small kitchen torch 3 to 4 inches from surface of frosting, and wave it back and forth until frosting is lightly browned all over. If you don't have a kitchen torch, just make the icing rounded (like a half of a snowball) and put the iced cupcakes under the broiler for a few seconds — watch carefully, they brown quickly.

Serve immediately.

Marshmallow Frosting
(frosting for S'mores Cupcakes recipe)
- 1 envelope unflavored gelatin (1 scant tbsp)
- 1 cup sugar
- 1/3 cup plus 1/4 cup cold water

In a mixing bowl, sprinkle gelatin over 1/3 cup cold water. Allow gelatin to soften, about five minutes.

Heat remaining 1/4 cup water and the sugar in a saucepan over medium-high, stirring until sugar is dissolved. Stop stirring; clip a candy thermometer onto side of pan. Boil syrup until temperature reaches the soft-ball stage (238°F), brushing down sides of pan with a wet pastry brush to prevent sugar crystals from forming. Remove from heat; add syrup to softened gelatin. Whisk mixture by hand to cool, about one minute, then use an electric mixer to whisk on medium-high speed until soft, glossy (but not dry) peaks form, eight to 10 minutes. Use immediately, as frosting will harden.