Oatmeal Chocolate Chunk Skillet Cookie

Mon 19 Oct. UNC chums and alums is going to have to be an ongoing affair around here. Yesterday’s blog post chronicled the meal around which four of us gathered, and our conversation and consideration (and occasional consternation) about place and people kept us rooted to our seats until almost midnight. But we turned our serious attention to a rewarding dessert offering just in time: oatmeal chocolate chunk ramekin cookies fresh from the oven, topped with scoops of double chocolate liqueur ice cream. I do believe they were a hit. (Anything I can do to increase the likelihood of more nights like that with these very fine folks is going to propel my confectionary machinations!)

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Adapted from "Mini Oatmeal Chocolate Chunk Skillet Cookies," by Lindsay Landis of loveandoliveoil.com. [Published 21 September 2015 / Updated 22 November 2019]

Vanilla Texas Sheetcake

Sun 18 Oct. The raucous reunion of RoHo regulars last Sunday night required a dessertish denouement, and I figured a sizable soup serving needed a grand spread of Texas sheetcake as its concluding complement. Fortunately, the double chocolate liqueur ice cream batch I’d made the previous week had sufficient quantity as to let it ride alongside. We didn’t seem to mind doubling up on the fun.

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"Vanilla Texas Sheet Cake," from Karli Bitner of Cooking with Karli. [Published 11 March 2026]

Double Chocolate Liqueur Ice Cream

When I found myself heading into a full week on the road Sunday before last, I had some heavy cream that was not going to survive my absence, according to its use-by date on the carton. And who doesn't love ice cream? So I dug into the archives and brought out double chocolate liqueur ice cream, a nudge more chocolatey than called for, and slightly sweeter so that I'd find it more sensational, it proved rich and creamy and decadent...and a special container was left for the latest Wednesday visit by the dear and delightful Amy. I have sometimes served it along with some other dessert, like cake, but why? It pretty much stands on its own, or else we risk being completely overwhelmed when asking it to ride shotgun with something else.

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"Double Chocolate Liqueur Ice Cream," by Kita Roberts. From her Pass the Sushi blog. [Published 09 August 2012 / Updated 11 June 2024]

Lemon Sugar Cookies

Sat 10 Oct. The Saturday of Presidents’ Day Weekend was gravely dampened by the passing remnants of a tropical system that came ashore along the Gulf of Mexico, but the Roediger House was brightened by the visit of a film crew of students from the University of North Carolina School of the Arts. They are evaluating the usefulness and adaptability of this grand domicile and, if they decide this can work for them, they’ll come take over the place in early November. I wanted to have something to offer while they were here working, and that put me onto the trail of lemon sugar cookies. They seemed to like ‘em pretty well and even took extras along to share with roommates and significant others. That pleased the chef, no doubt!

Also, when I was in Stafford, VA, I caught sight of this license plate on the last day of September that I’m sure remains an unknown message for most folks who might see it up there. As for me, I read it immediately as “Fighting Pickle,” which is indeed the mascot of the UNC School of the Arts.

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"Lemon Sugar Cookies," from Melissa Stadler of ModernHoney.com. [Published 21 March 2016 / Updated 06 September 2018]

Apple Crisp Cheesecake Bars

Dateline: 26 Sept. The annual pilgrimage of dear friends Margaret and Tathy to Winston-Salem to fully immerse themselves in the Bookmarks Festival of Books and Authors had the bonus not only of dinner together on their final night, but also the special fall-anticipating dessert we had: apple crisp cheesecake bars. This is one of those special-occasion dinner appenders that brings such satisfaction, both to chef and diners. We partook of these while visiting post-supper in the north parlour, part of a great evening of conversation and catching up.

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"Apple Crisp Cheesecake Bars," from Meghan McGarry of ButtercreamBlondie.com. [Published 03 October 2014 / Updated 09 December 2023]

Butterscotch Bourbon Praline Ice Cream

Dateline: Sat 19 Sept. The time was ripe for a return of UNC chum Chris a couple of Saturdays ago, and it was yet another fine visit. After our supper together, I wanted to offer up a special dessert of some sort, and I used this as the excuse to try out a butterscotch bourbon praline ice cream...with butterscotch sauce to boot. It’s not anywhere near my most favorite ice cream but every wild once in a while something like that has to make it into one of the dessert offerings. And as long as we were running this track in the ice cream circuit, why not go the extra mile with homemade butterscotch sauce?

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Slightly adapted from “Butterscotch Bourbon Praline Ice Cream," from Rebecca Blackwell, who blogs at Of Batter and Dough. [Posted 30 May 2017 / Updated 28 July 2026]

"The Best Butterscotch Sauce," from Barry C. Parsons of RockRecipes.com. [Printed 21 August 2016 / Updated 27 March 2026]

Carrot Cake, Eggnog Ice Cream, and Big Mama's Homemade Vanilla Ice Cream

A couple of weekends ago, we wrapped up our days off with a birthday gathering, which was perfect for bringing out a hearty celebratory dessert consisting of an amazing moist carrot sheet cake that just can't be beat. I also had two different ice creams. One of those has long been a faithful go-to: eggnog ice cream. But the other was a creamy variation on vanilla ice cream, from the delightful Jocelyn Delk Adams, whose recipes have found their way to my kitchen before [like this, or this, or this]. I was looking to up the cream content, and achieving something much more rich, all while still maintaining a good vanilla wallop. As for the gathered crew: I reckon we were all glad for how well all those desserts worked together for the good of the kind humans enjoying time in this treasured sanctuary. Or at least to goad our stomachs to push out a little further into this poor troubled world.

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Based on "Copycat J. Alexander's Carrot Cake," from Jamie Lothridge of MyBakingAddiction.com. [Updated 19 April 2019 / 20 April 2026]

"Eggnog Ice Cream," from Bi-Rite Creamery's Sweet Cream and Sugar Cones, by Kris Hoogerhyde, Anne Walker, and Dabney Gough. Berkeley: Ten Speed Press (2012), p. 186-187.

"Big Mama's Homemade Vanilla Ice Cream," from Jocelyn Delk Adams of GrandbabyCakes.com. [Posted 15 May 2025 / Updated 08 July 2026]

Oatmeal Pizookie with Eggnog Ice Cream

Dateline: Wed 09 Sept. Another special evening with Amy at the house was a fine reason for a dessert that would not bore anybody. I had a few balls of oatmeal skillet cookie dough remaining, but I had to make a fresh batch of ice cream if I was going for another pizookie evening. And ice cream is a must for that. It occurred to me that maybe eggnog ice cream could still be complementary to the oatmeal and cinnamon of the ramekin-baked cookie, and it was. We rather enjoyed this treat for the brief moment it was before us...and then suddenly gone.

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"Eggnog Ice Cream," from Bi-Rite Creamery's Sweet Cream and Sugar Cones, by Kris Hoogerhyde, Anne Walker, and Dabney Gough. Berkeley: Ten Speed Press (2012), p. 186-187.

Adapted from "Mini Oatmeal Chocolate Chunk Skillet Cookies," by Lindsay Landis of loveandoliveoil.com. [Published 21 September 2015 / Updated 22 November 2019]

Cinnamon Oatmeal Pizookie with Brown Sugar Cinnamon Ice Cream

Dateline: Sat 05 Sept. The Labor Day Weekend evening with dear friends Kristen and Mookie allowed for time upstairs after dinner, a mix of music and tv and a bit of pool playing. We took a break for sampling a new dessert option: a baked ramekin with a cinnamon oatmeal pizookie, topped with a generous scoop of brown sugar cinnamon ice cream. I could see a reason to repeat that treat, easily.

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Adapted from "Mini Oatmeal Chocolate Chunk Skillet Cookies," by Lindsay Landis of loveandoliveoil.com. [Published 21 September 2015 / Updated 22 November 2019]

"Brown Sugar Cinnamon Ice Cream," from Heather Tullos of SugarDishMe.com. [Published 11 September 2015 / Updated 14 June 2019]

Sweet Treats for the Chi Psi Meet

Dateline: Mon 31 Aug. I’ve gotten myself elected to the alumni advisory board for my college fraternity, and on the final day of August there was a gathering of board members together with a huge crew of the current active brotherhood. Another alum lives near The Lodge and was the exceptionally generous host for the affair. I figured I might as well show up with some goodies to go along with the other foodstuffs, so I made Ina Garten’s lemon bars on shortbread crust.

But wait: there’s more! As long as I was in the mode, I also baked a heaping pile of DoubleTree-style chocolate chip cookies, full of semisweet morsels and chopped walnuts. I had to have a hot one as they came out of the oven, of course, and the rest went with me to Chapel Hill.

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"Lemon Bars," by Ina Garten, the Barefoot Contessa. Published in Barefoot Contessa Parties!, Clarkson Potter Publishers, 2001.

"DoubleTree Hotel's Chocolate Chip Cookies," by Ayşegül Sanford and her blog, Foolproof Living. [Published December 29, 2013 / Updated 07 December 2020] Official DoubleTree recipe from Hilton.com was released to the public on 09 April 2020.

Hot Fudge Pudding Cake

Dateline: Sat 22 Aug. It was a Saturday night special a couple of weeks ago to have Amy on hand, and I was ready to celebrate her return with a tempting dessert offering. This time around, I was nudged into nostalgia and reached for one of my Hershey’s cookbooks, wherein might be found a recipe for a hot fudge pudding cake. We’re pretty fond of pudding cakes around here, mind you. And it was all the better and a bit on the overwhelming side that I had homemade vanilla ice cream to go with it.

That probably spurred the delightful 4-mile stroll that night, around a very lively and happening downtown, outdoor music at a number of venues, and tons of people enjoying these last days of summer. And as if it sensed the need to let it all ride long enough, but then send people home to bed at a decent hour, in rolled a storm system of tight-packed intensity with quite a lightning show and a moderate amount of rain, in and out in a flash (or two or twelve), we might say.

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Hershey's Hot Fudge Pudding Cake," from 100 Years of Hershey's Favorites. Lincolnwood, IL: Publications International, Ltd (1994), p. 8.

Skillet Peach Cobbler and Sweet Milk Vanilla Ice Cream

Dateline: Tue 18 Aug. A terrific gathering of fellow Tar Heels back on August 18th was a fine evening all to itself, although I’d like to hope that the dessert contributed to the ambiance and good vibes of our fellowship. It seemed fitting to serve up skillet peach cobbler, since I had a nice batch of sweet milk vanilla ice cream to go with it. They might have thought the cobbler was passable but that ice cream was a definite hit.

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"Old-Fashioned Peach Cobbler in an Iron Skillet," from Laura Scalone, who blogs at Elle Jay at Home. [Published 04 May 2020]

Based on "Sweet Milk Ice Cream," published in the King Arthur Flour catalogue some years ago, but the recipe is no longer available on their website.

Much-Loved Butter Toffee Cookies

Dateline: Sun 16 Aug. A favorite cookie of mine that is not universally loved (unfortunately) is called butter toffee cookies. After our mini meatloafs dinner a couple of Sundays ago, it’s what sounded just right to me for our sweet evening treat. And this seemed like the night to make ‘em grander-sized, so I pulled out the red scoop and tried to space them properly on the cookie sheets. With a splash of butter toffee flavoring, an abundance of dark brown sugar, and the full slate of mix-ins including cappuccino morsels, chocolate toffee pieces, and chopped pecans, these cookies manage their weighty lift with aplomb. I ate three.

Which is why I really needed to get in a hardcore walk that night, thinking all was clear...and then getting caught in a most unexpected pop-up storm that seemed designed specifically for the expanse of city we call Winston-Salem.

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"Butter Toffee Cookies," originally from King Arthur Flour. The catalog that comes periodically from KAF has recipes in it, which is where I first snagged it. But, as sometimes happens, it is no longer available on their website. I'm glad someone posted it to Food.com.

Meal No. 4177: Salmon Croquettes

Dateline: Wed 12 Aug. A fine foursome sat down to dinner a couple of Wednesdays ago, on a mid-week movie night, with the main feature being salmon croquettes (i.e., cakes, patties, or burgers: call ‘em what you will.) A chili-garlic-lime aioli is always the right choice for dipping bites into, and I also spiced and roasted whole green beans. I sure didn’t grow up eating dishes like this but boy howdy have I come to like ‘em a lot.

It would have seemed like a missed opportunity not to have dessert, so I’d grabbed blackberries and raspberries on a recent grocery run and had a multi-berry version of Gerry’s cobbler in the oven while we ate our dinner. It really came out awfully sweet this time, and I wouldn’t have minded the filling setting up a little better. But I absolutely ate every bit and crumb and sent my bowl to the sink well-scraped of all its residual goodness.

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Adapted from “Salmon Burgers,” from Denise Austin, Shrink Your Female Fat Zones, Rodale Books (2003), p. 396.

"Chili-Lime Aïoli," from David Wald of Princeton, NJ, May 2009.

Adapted from "Gerry's Blackberry Cobbler," by Baritone Bob. In allrecipes, Summer 2024, p. 43. Also found online at AllRecipes.com. [Updated 14 January 2022]

Vanilla Ice Cream with Sweet Apples Compote

Dateline: Wed 05 Aug. Was it only two weeks ago that on Amy’s regular dinner visit we indulged in a strange concoction for dessert? Why yes: homemade vanilla ice cream topped with a sweet apples compote, which was really an over-sauced stewed diced apples filling like one might use to stuff handpies with. But I overdid its runniness and had also just made ice cream and I thought: Why the heck not?

Dateline: Fri 07 Aug. A couple of days passed with that delicious runny apple filling in a storage container, and in the meantime, I’d also made pastry for a double-crust pie but only used the bottom crust. What remained in the fridge was the perfect amount of dough to create four well-filled apple hand pies, brushed with egg yolk and cream and coated with cinnamon sugar, baked to a toasty doneness, and consumed with another big scoop of that vanilla sweet milk ice cream.

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Based on "Sweet Milk Ice Cream," published in the King Arthur Flour catalogue some years ago, but the recipe is no longer available on their website.

Adapted from "Hand-Held Apple Pies," by Diana Rattray of TheSpruceEats.com. [Updated 10 September 2019]

White Wine Coffee Cake

Dateline: Sun 26 July. Intentionally timed to be the final meal’s dessert before my brother-in-law wrapped up his summer visit, on the last Sunday of last month, we interrupted our movie watching to indulge in huge slices of white wine coffee cake. Originally brought to my attention in my youth, surrounded by the very many sweet old ladies of Buies Creek and thereabouts, this cake-mix-shortcut treat is hard to mess up and always proves pleasing. Plus: slices could be wrapped up to help Beau manage the long drive home the next day.

Sweet Milk Vanilla Ice Cream

Dateline: Fri 24 July. While the churning of vanilla ice cream coincided with National Vanilla Ice Cream Day back on July 23rd, it did not get served until after the next evening’s supper. And as is always the case, it was sweet and delicious and much appreciated by its partakers. Some chocolate fudge sauce was an added touch of grandness and it did not take long for the desserts to be disposed of.

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Based on "Sweet Milk Ice Cream," published in the King Arthur Flour catalogue some years ago, but the recipe is no longer available on their website.

Giant Sugar Cookies

Dateline: Tue 21 July. On a fridge clean-out night when leftovers served as supper, cookies were called for. And since it seemed like it had been a while since I had made regular (but giant) sugar cookies, that was the call that ultimately was made. Sweet and soft, chewy at the edges and luscious in the middle, them cookies is right tasty.

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Based on "Mardi Gras Sugar Cookies," from Kelly who once blogged at the now-defunct website AmericanCupcakeAbroad.com. [Published 20 February 2012]

Vanilla Bean Pudding Cake

Dateline: Mon 20 July. With the latest visit of fellow Tar Heel Chris late last month, some dessert was called for, and I went with the marvelous vanilla bean pudding cake. Simple enough to throw together while I'm making the rest of dinner, so that it can be ready soon after the evening meal, this sweet explosion of vanilla comes across as a real treat, even though it's not a grand production. But the end result is worth even small efforts, for sure.

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"Vanilla Bean Pudding Cakes," from Susan Reid. Published by King Arthur Baking. Recipe printed July 2017.

Meal No. 4157: Poppy Seed Chicken

Dateline: Sun 19 July. A small gathering of a mixed bunch from the regular crew was here so we could watch the recent film phenomenon, Obsession. That called for an earlier dinnertime and a doable menu, but I still wanted it to be a decent one. A Sunday night comfort casserole sounded perfect, and that meant dropping a seasoned whole chicken into the Instant Pot and whipping up the mushroom and onion filling on the cooktop. It all comes together in the baking dish with a Ritz cracker buttery crumb topping. When it’s dished up on the plates, the guests are advised, to their happy delight, that they shall dig into poppy seed chicken. And some roasted herbed whole green beans, too.

After the movie, I had some dessert to put together, with most of the prep having been done in advance: chocolate frosty-style shakes. Cold, creamy, chocolatey, and brain-freeze-inducing: we found the cupsful to be an entirely suitable way to close out the night.

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"Poppy Seed Chicken Casserole," by Ashley Moore in Cook's Country, February/March 2015, p. 20.

Guidance from "How to Cook Instant Pot Whole Chicken - Rotisserie Style," by Sheena Strain from noshtastic.com (formerly glutenfreepressurecooker.com). [Printed 08 January 2018 / Updated Online 21 January 2023]

"Rotisserie Chicken Seasoning," by Judith Hannemann, The Midnight Baker. [Published 22 March 2017]

"Homemade Chocolate Frosty," from Tieghan Girard of Half-Baked Harvest. [Updated 04 August 2025]