Do-it-yourself desserts

Last week I told you all about my favorite DIY dinners for the overworked undergraduate! Now we move on to the second installation in this series: DIY desserts.

Everybody needs a little sweetness once in a while, and with the holiday’s right around the corner, having a few ready-to-go dessert recipes can make for a fun, tasty holiday season. Try making these to celebrate Christmas, Thanksgiving, or just for fun.

#1: Cookies! Who can say no to cookies? (Not me…)

Cookies are easy, fun and can have a lot of variety. They are also delicious. Are you bored of your standard chocolate chip? Here are a few ways to spice things up:

Sweeten up your sugar cookies by adding Hershey Kisses! Sugar cookies are delish, but the best way to make them extra special is to press a Hershey Kiss into the middle of each sugar cookie right after they come out of the oven. You can make it extra fancy with a gourmet Hershey Kiss like white chocolate or cherry cordial.

Try no-oven-required s’more cookies! The holidays are most definitely bonfire season, and nothing goes better with bonfires than s’mores! Bring these no-bake s’more cookies next time!  Like the name implies, no-oven-required s’more cookies are easy to make. Melt butter in a pot over medium heat, then add in marshmallows, stirring occasionally. When melted, remove from heat and stir in Golden Graham cereal and chocolate chips. Shape this delicious mixture with a spoon into clumps and cool on a cookie sheet. Drizzle melted chocolate chips over the cookie clusters for added effect!

Cookie cutters! If you want to have a cool holiday event with friends, you can buy very cheap cookie cutters, roll out some cookie dough, and have a cookie-making party! It’s very easy to make a large number of cookies this way. Every person can decorate their own and take home a plate! My friends used to have a cookie-making party every November, and it’s a great way to kick off the holidays.

#2: Cake Waffles! Yummmm

Photo by Calgary Reviews, Flickr Creative Commons

Everyone likes waffles, and everyone loves cake! Combine the two together for a quick and easy birthday cake gift for a friend, or a new dessert!

This recipe is very easy. Take your standard cake mix and make it following the instructions on the back of the box. (You can also be really cool and make your own cake mix, in which case, you rock.) Once your mix is ready, try using a waffle maker to cook it! It works the exact same way with cake batter as it does waffle batter and is ready quicker than an oven-baked cake. Add toppings and a scoop of your favorite ice cream, then enjoy.

#3: Pretzel Brownies! Oh yeah!

Yeah, these are pretty boss. Pretzel brownies are another recipe made by spicing up something that is generally pretty ordinary. Everyone loves a good fudge brownie, but if you make Salted-Caramel Pretzel Fudge Brownie, you’re taking things to a new level. Go you!

Take your favorite brownie mix and make it the same way you always would. But now things get exciting! Put a layer of pretzels in your baking pan and pour the brownie mix over them, making sure to cover every pretzel thoroughly. When your brownies are fresh out of the oven, drizzle caramel sauce and sprinkle sea salt over them, then devour! Delicious!

This concludes the DIY desserts blog post. I hope that one of these delectable delights catches your interest, and your taste buds! Enjoy!