Lemon and lime, with its tangy zest, brings a burst of sunshine to any dessert. Whether it’s an easy lemon blossom recipe or a key lime meringue pie recipe, citrus adds that perfect hint of brightness to our sweet treats, while strawberries add a pop of color and sweetness after a cold, grey winter. With berry season starting in spring, a list of spring dessert recipes just wouldn’t be complete without a fresh strawberry cake or something that pairs our favorite berry with some bright citrus notes, like Paula’s Creamy Strawberry-Lime Shortbread Bars. And we can’t forget carrots, which are perfectly at home in desserts, especially in the form of a moist and decadent carrot cake recipe with cream cheese frosting.

As the days grow longer and the air warms up, we find ourselves gathering with family and friends more often. Desserts become the sweet centerpiece of our get-togethers, whether it’s a casual picnic, a Sunday brunch, or a festive Easter spread. So, as the flowers bloom and the world turns green again, let’s celebrate the season with desserts and flavors that bring a smile to our faces and warmth to our hearts.

Here’s to the sweet joys of spring and the delicious moments we share with loved ones! What are some of your favorite spring dessert ideas? Let us know in the comments below.

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Picnics, potlucks, parties—with the warmer weather comes plenty of opportunities to eat and hang out with our family and friends. And every sweet opportunity to spend time with our loved ones deserves a sweet ending, don’t you think? When we think about spring dessert recipes, pie is one type of dessert that immediately comes to mind!

There are so many ways to use spring’s best flavors in pies, from coconut and chocolate to berries and citrus fruits. Pies can also be incredibly easy to make! While a homemade pie crust is always a treat, it can also be a labor of love! Pre-made pie crusts can be found at any grocery store, and they significantly reduce the time and effort it takes to put together one of our favorite sweet treats.

Whether you prefer a store-bought crust or a homemade one, a cookie crust or a classic pastry crust, you simply must try some of these spring pie recipes, y’all!

What’s your favorite pie recipe? Let us know in the comments, won’t you?

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You’ll need the following ingredients:

• ½ cup unsalted butter, softened
• ½ cup sugar
• ¼ cup confectioner’s sugar
• 1 large egg
• 2 tablespoons lemon zest
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1½ cups all purpose flour, plus more for rolling
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• ⅛ teaspoon baking powder
• nonstick cooking spray
• ½ cup prepared cake frosting
• food coloring in colors of your choice (we opted for pastels)
• macaroons (you can buy prepared macaroons or make your own Lemon Coconut Macaroons)
• candied lemon zest
• flower-shaped decorative sprinkles

You’ll also need the following tools:

• Large mixing bowl
• Electric mixer
• Small mixing bowl
• Sifter
• Baking sheet
• Plastic wrap
• Wire racks
• Piping bag

First, let’s start by making the cookies. In a large mixing bowl, beat the butter and sugars together at a medium speed until light and fluffy. Then add the egg, lemon zest, and vanilla, mixing until well combined.

In the small mixing bowl, sift together the flour, salt, and baking powder. Then, gradually beat the flour mixture into the butter mixture at low speed, until smooth. Divide the dough into 2 balls, wrap each ball in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 1 hour.

After chilling the dough, roll it out to a quarter-inch thickness on a lightly floured surface. Then cut out your cookies with round, fluted 2-inch cutters, and place them on a baking sheet coated with nonstick cooking spray. Chill the cookies for 15 minutes more before baking.

Preheat the oven to 350°F, then bake the cookies for 10 minutes or until the edges are lightly browned. Let them cool on the pans for 2 minutes before cooling them completely on wire racks.

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Grits are incredibly versatile and can be served sweet or savory—today, we’ve opted for a sweet version that will make this Southern pie recipe into the perfect St. Patrick’s Day dessert recipe.

You’ll need the following ingredients to get started:

• ⅛ teaspoon salt
• ¼ cup quick cooking grits, not instant
• ½ cup butter
• green food coloring
• ¾ cup granulated sugar
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 3 large eggs, lightly beaten
• ¼ cup buttermilk
• 1 cup whipping cream,
• 1 tablespoon confectioners’ sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 (9-inch) refrigerated (or frozen and thawed) pie crust, unbaked
• strawberries, for garnish

Got everything gathered? Great! Now, let’s preheat your oven to 325˚F.

Then, in a small saucepan, bring the salt and ¾ cup water to a boil before adding your grits and reducing the heat. Then, be sure to cover your pan and let the grits cook on low for about 5 minutes or until the grits are really thick—you’ll want to stir several times while the grits cook.

Once thick, add butter and a drop of green food coloring, stirring until the butter is melted and the color is mixed in. Then, set aside your green grits to cool slightly.

Then mix together the granulated sugar, flour, eggs, buttermilk, and vanilla before adding the mixture to the cooled grits, ensuring it’s well combined. Now, simply pour your green grits filling into the refrigerated pie crust, and bake it for about 35 to 40 minutes, or until it’s set.

While it bakes, you’ll want to whip the whipping cream and confectioners’ sugar together with a drop of green food coloring until you have a sweet whipped topping for your pie. Top your pie with the whipped topping and garnish with strawberries for a festive Southern St. Patrick’s Day dessert recipe. And don’t worry—you can serve this pie warm or cold!

Will you be trying this unique St. Patrick’s Day dessert recipe? If not, what would you make instead? Let us know in the comments below.

The post How to Make a Festive Green Grits Pie for St. Patrick’s Day appeared first on Paula Deen.

Now, let’s get started!

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Follow our step-by-step how-to and you’ll be making your own pretty pie in no time.

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There truly are many kinds of different stuffing, but I’m very dedicated to the one I’ve been making for over 40 years. If there’s any variation at all, it’s that I don’t actually stuff the bird like I remember my grandmother doing. The only time I’ll cook mine in a bird is if I’m cooking a hen. She’s a tough ol’ bird, y’all, so you cook it totally different than you would a turkey or a chicken. You boil the heck out of it, stuff it and bake it in the oven.

But the old-timey stuffing I make does not play second fiddle to anything—not even the turkey. In fact, she’s the best rival around. You sauté some fresh-cut onions, celery and peppers in a stick of butter, toss that with the breads and soak it with stock and you’ll see what I’m talking about. I do add some seasoning, like pepper and dried sage, but I’m careful not to overpower the dish. Just make sure you don’t underestimate the size of your mixing bowl because stuffing can really grow on you. And if you remember one thing about my cornbread stuffing, let it be that you cannot make it from a sweet cornbread. Look at the box. If sugar is an ingredient, you have the wrong stuff. Use that, and it’ll ruin the dressing.

Y’all, I don’t eat this way every day, but I do give myself permission to eat my favorite foods on the holidays. Part of my obsession is the wonderful flavors; the other part is the memories that celebration foods trigger—like the year after my daddy died, I remember my mother cookin’ the best stuffing of her life. I ate and ate and ate until I was sick. Then when momma passed away, I vowed to make a meal she would be proud of. I spent most of the afternoon on the phone with my Aunt Peggy trying to make sure I was doing every little thing right. That went on for a while until my Uncle George finally lost patience and hollered, “If you don’t get off that damn phone, I’m not ever gonna get my meal!”

But the point isn’t just that my family’s cornbread stuffing is arguably the best around. It’s about that one special dish that defines the holidays for you and your family—the recipe that warms our heart, fills our belly and ultimately outlasts each and every one of us.

Southern Cornbread Dressing

Dressing:
Cornbread, recipe follows
7 slices oven-dried white bread
1 sleeve Saltine crackers8 tablespoons butter
2 cups chopped celery
1 large onion, chopped
7 cups chicken stock
1 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon sage, optional
1 tablespoon poultry seasoning, optional
5 eggs, beaten

Cornbread:
1 cup self-rising cornmeal
½ cup self-rising flour
¾ cup buttermilk
2 eggs
2 tablespoons vegetable oil

Dressing Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

In a large bowl, combine crumbled cornbread, dried white bread slices, and saltines; set aside.

Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the celery and onion and cook until transparent, approximately 5 to 10 minutes. Pour the vegetable mixture over the cornbread mixture. Add the stock, mix well, taste, and add salt, pepper to taste, sage, and poultry seasoning. Add beaten eggs and mix well. Pour mixture into a greased pan and bake until dressing is cooked through, about 45 to 60 minutes.

Cornbread Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Combine all ingredients and mix well. Pour batter into a greased shallow baking dish. Bake for approximately 20 to 25 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool.

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Of course, you’re not here to get a non-answer, so we’ll share Paula’s go-to combination because she’s never led us astray in the kitchen! She prefers to use crisp Granny Smith apples paired with either McIntosh apples or Jonagold apples. This gives the perfect combination of tart, sweet, crisp and soft. If you’d like to try a pie with this specific combo, give Mom’s Apple Pie a try.

We’ve shared some of the most commonly used apples for apple pies with their attributes to determine which will work best for you.

Pink Lady

This elegant apple has a crisp & crunchy texture and a tart taste that finishes off with a bit of sweetness.

Granny Smith

This apple tends to be the most popular option for apple pies. Known for its bright green skin and crisp texture, the mouth-watering tartness is heightened when baked or sautéed.

Rome

A Rome Apple is naturally rather mild-flavored, but flavor starts to increase when baked. The sweet flesh is wonderfully crisp beneath the dark red skin.

Honeycrisp

These apples feature a cream-colored flesh. They are super juicy, mouthwateringly sweet, and very crisp—(ahem, in case the name didn’t give that one away.)

Jonathan

Father to one of Paula’s favorite apples for apple pies (the Jonagold), this soft apple is sweet with a tart tang to it. Because of its softness, it breaks down while cooking and baking, so it works best when paired with a firmer apple, like a Granny Smith.

Jonagold

The Jonagold is a product of mixing Jonathan and Golden Delicious apples. This crisp apple boasts a creamy pale-yellow flesh, crisp texture, and sweet taste that is balanced with some acidity—almost a tangy sweet flavor.

Golden Delicious

Another very popular option for apple pies is Golden Delicious. With its firm white flesh and sweet crispy flavor, it won’t break down when baked and it keeps its flavor. Bonus, with its tender skin, you can often go without peeling it!

Braeburn

With its crispy, juicy flesh and a balanced sweet–yet-tart flavor hinting of cinnamon, it’s no wonder this apple is a pie-making favorite.

McIntosh

This crisp, sweet, and tart apple excels in many uses, but pair it with a firmer apple, like Granny Smith, for long bakes, as a McIntosh doesn’t retain its texture or form well.

Now that you’ve had an opportunity to select which apple you’d like to try in a homemade apple pie recipe, you need to know how many you’ll need! As a final bit of knowledge, we’d like to share this simple yield conversion:

1 pound of apples = 2 large apples or 3 medium apples
2.5 pounds of apples = filling for one 9-inch pie

Which apples do you think make the best apple pies? What apples do you plan to try in your apple pies? Let us know in the comments below!

The post Which Apples Make the Best Apple Pie? appeared first on Paula Deen.

From cookies and cupcakes to biscuits and cobblers, these recipes are all simple enough to prepare and delicious to eat! It’s a fun and productive way to get their hands dirty, boost their confidence, and create a sense of accomplishment. Plus, you’ll be creating special memories with them while fostering a love of spending time in the kitchen, which can be beneficial for their health for years to come.

Whether you’re starting with something like a classic chocolate chip cookie recipe that’s special year round or a wonderful Southern peach cobbler recipe while fresh peaches are still in season, the recipes found here are sure to put a smile on everyone’s face. Of course baking doesn’t have to just be desserts too! Having them help with a simple dump-and-stir biscuit recipe, like The Lady & Sons Cheese Biscuits recipe, will allow them to contribute to dinner, as well, which can have a positive impact on their willingness to try new foods at the supper table.

Do you have children that you love to bake with? Will you be making any of these wonderful recipes for kids to bake? Let us know in the comments below. Happy memory-making, y’all!

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What really makes a breakfast casserole easy is that children who love to help out in the kitchen can get involved. Whether it’s sprinkling in cheese, pouring in milk, tearing up bread, or measuring seasonings, it sure does help to have a few extra hands in the kitchen. Not only is it a great way to teach an important life skill, like cooking, but it also gets them excited to eat it. If your kids are anything like ours, they’ll get up a lot easier in the morning if they have something to look forward to, and sampling their own handiwork is truly something to look forward to!

Whether your family prefers a classic ham and egg breakfast casserole, a breakfast casserole with hash browns, an oatmeal breakfast bake, or something sweet, like Paula’s wonderful French toast breakfast casserole, Paula has a hearty and delicious easy breakfast casserole recipe for you.

What kind of breakfast does your family prefer—sweet or savory? Let us know in the comments below!

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