Welcome to Happylifeblogspot! A food blog with drool worthy recipes
Raise your hand if you’re enjoying every last bit of summer! We sure are!! And that means getting our fill of all the wonderful summer flavors before the days start getting cooler. Key Lime Cream Pie is the most perfect dessert for June, July, and […]
Serve up a little slice of sunshine with our White Chocolate Fruit Tart! As summer heats up it’s only natural to crave juicy fruits and refreshing desserts and this beautiful tart is both. This marvelous dessert is super versatile and perfect for brunch, picnics and […]
Happy First Day of Summer!!! What better way to celebrate than with a fun new recipe? No Churn Blackberry Cheesecake Ice Cream is the perfect way to cool off on a hot summer’s day. This recipe is amazing for so many reasons. It starts off with a simple 3-ingredient base, takes super minimal prep work, and is ready after just a few hours of freezing. And since it’s no churn that means there’s no need for an ice cream maker. That’s right! You already have everything you need right in your very own kitchen. Sweet blackberry swirls, luscious cream cheese, and crunchy graham cracker pieces transform this easy recipe into an indulgent treat. No more chasing down the ice cream truck this summer, the ice cream man will be stopping by your house for dessert.
Here’s all you’ll need: blackberries, sugar, cream cheese, heavy cream, sweetened condensed milk, and graham crackers.
Add the blackberries and sugar to a blender or food processor and process until the fruit is pureed. This recipe is super versatile. You can easily swap out the blackberries for your favorite fruit. Strawberries, raspberries, blueberries or even peaches would make excellent additions to name a few.
Next strain the fruit puree over a fine mesh sieve to remove the seeds. If you don’t have a mesh sieve handy, cheesecloth makes a great strainer too. You can find it in most grocery stores. Set the blackberry puree aside for a little later.
Add the softened cream cheese to a large bowl or stand mixer. If you don’t have a stand mixer a hand mixer will work just the same. So no worries! It took me quite a few years until I made the splurge on a KitchenAid. If you do have a stand mixer, I recommend using the whisk attachment in this recipe.
Beat the cream cheese on medium-high speed until smooth. Pour in the heavy cream and whip at a medium-high speed until soft peaks form. Soft peaks will barely hold their shape and flop over immediately when the beaters are lifted. Reduce the speed to a lower setting (or turn the mixer off completely) and pour in the sweetened condensed milk. Sweetened condensed milk will keep Blackberry Cheesecake Ice Cream smooth, airy and really creamy.
Gradually increase the speed of the mixer until you’re on the highest setting and whip until the mixture is thick and holds stiff peaks. Stiff peaks will stand straight up when the beaters are lifted. They can take anywhere from 5-10 minutes to form. See how thick and creamy…Mmmmm!!!…This is gonna be good!
Gently fold in the crushed graham cracker cookies by hand. To make crushed graham crackers simply break them apart by hand or use a rolling pin or heavy kitchen object to smash into pieces. I’d steer clear of the food processor as it will pulverize the graham crackers a bit too much in this case.
Add a third of the ice cream mixture to an 8″ X 5″ loaf pan or a shallow container. Drop several spoonfuls of blackberry puree randomly over the top of the ice cream mixture. Drag a butter knife through to create distinct swirls of blackberry throughout the ice cream. Add another layer of ice cream and repeat twice. Our goal is to get the blackberries swirled somewhat evenly throughout the batch.
Cover Blackberry Cheesecake Ice Cream and freeze for at least 4 hours or overnight. Remove from the freezer and allow the ice cream to sit at room temperature for a few minutes before serving. This will make it easier to scoop! Store leftover ice cream in the freezer for up to 3 months We recommend covering tightly with plastic wrap to prevent ice crystals from forming.
Did I mention this recipe is really easy to double? Life is short. Eat more ice cream! Who wants the first scoop? If you’re an ice cream addict (like me) then you’ve gotta try our Rhubarb Ice Cream and No Bake Black Forest Ice Cream Pie too!
We’d love to hear from you! Leave us your comments and love down below.
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If you like Pina Coladas and getting caught in the rain…..then you’ll LOVE this cake!!! Pina Colada Cake is moist, delicious, and loaded with the same tropical goodness as the popular summer drink. Now you can sip your favorite drink and eat it too. This […]
If you’re a dessert lover with less than fabulous baking skills then you’re in luck! This next recipe is for YOU!!! Black Forest Ice Cream Pie is a no bake, easy to prepare frozen dessert you’ll find yourself making again and again…..and again. This creamy, […]
Summer is literally disappearing before my very eyes this year! Between starting an exciting new job, a revolving door of house guests that we hadn’t seen in foreva, and a few really spectacular parties, I pretty much blinked and July was gone. On the bright side, we’ve already had A LOT of fun this year!! But a hectic schedule leaves ya with little time to cook. Thank goodness for this next recipe! Key Lime Mousse Tarts are a quick and easy summer dessert that can be thrown together last second. In fact I even encourage it! Let me just start by telling you this….they’re no bake! Uh huh!! Think super easy, no fuss, best dessert of summer kind of thing. A spinoff on the classic key lime pie, these dreamy little delights are sure to wow your tastebuds. They’re best served fresh, which is all the more reason to grab a second helping…or third….or fourth!
Here’s all you’ll need: cream cheese, sweetened condensed milk, key limes (or regular limes if you can’t find key limes), heavy whipping cream, frozen mini phyllo pastry shells, and raspberries to garnish. 
First things first we’re going to need to thaw those phyllo shells. Don’t worry! They only take like 15 minutes to thaw. So take ’em out of the freezer, get to work on this recipe, and they’ll be ready to go by the time we need them. Next combine the cream cheese, sweetened condensed milk and lime juice in a large bowl.
Don’t panic if you can’t get your hands on key limes. Regular old limes work just as well. We heated the limes in the microwave for about 15-30 seconds before juicing. Heating the limes is a great way to squeak out a little more juice. And by juicing I mean I just cut them in half and squeezed them until all the juice came out. But if you have access to a juicer then by all means have at it! You fancy huh?!?
Blend the mixture with a hand mixer at medium speed until smooth and creamy (about 3-5 minutes). It doesn’t have to be perfectly smooth but we want to make sure that no large cream cheese chunks are hanging out in there.
Next in a separate bowl, beat the heavy whipping cream. Start on low, and keep increasing the speed every 30 seconds or so until you’re maxed out at the top speed. Keep mixing on high until stiff peaks begin to form. Voila! Homemade whipped cream! I find that it helps to speed along the process if you move the beaters in a back and forth motion in the bowl.
Now gently fold the whipped cream into the cream cheese mixture. Continue to mix until the two mixtures become one aka a light and fluffy mousse!
Add the mousse to a ziplock baggie and seal. Snip a large opening in the corner to create a DIY piping bag. Pipe a generous amount into each of the phyllo shells. Mound that stuff up!! This is a situation where you WILL want to lick the bowl if there’s any leftovers. Just warning you! If you’re not planning to serve these right away then you should refrigerate the mousse until ready to use. You want to pipe it into the shells just before serving otherwise the shells will get soggy.
Garnish each tart with a fresh raspberry and lime slice! Aren’t they just the most amazingly cute little mini dessert???? So simple. So delicious. Sign me up!! If summer desserts get ya all excited then head on over to our Fresh Blueberry Pie recipe pronto!!
We’d love to hear from you! Leave us your comments and love down below!
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I’ll be honest…I’ve never even tried rhubarb until I made this recipe! But if you’re going to be adventurous and try something new, I can’t think of a better way to do it than in ice cream form. My Dad grows rhubarb in his garden […]
Everyone and I do mean EVERYONE loves a good cannoli. But not everyone enjoys the work! Well this fun to eat, Easy Ice Cream Cone Cannoli recipe is a game changer people!!! It’s all the deliciousness of a good old fashioned cannoli but without any […]
Every year I make my famous Banana Split Cake for my Grandma’s birthday. I’ve probably made it for at least the last 15 years without missing a birthday. I have alot of other cakes that I can make. And I’ve tried to convince her to mix it up, but she always requests this one. With age comes wisdom so who am I to argue? At 88 years young she knows what she likes. There have been times when I didn’t feel like making it or I’ve felt like I didn’t have the time. But I’ve done it anyways because I know the day will eventually come when I miss making this Banana Split Cake for her every year. Happy Birthday Grandma and here’s to many, many more Banana Split cakes shared together!
Here’s all you’ll need: yellow cake mix, instant vanilla pudding, cream cheese, milk, bananas, crushed pineapple, pineapple chunks, Cool Whip, maraschino cherries, strawberries, walnuts, and chocolate.
Bake cake according to package directions. I’ve used a simple boxed yellow cake mix here. You can certainly use your favorite from scratch mix too! Sometimes I switch it up and go with a strawberry cake mix! Pick your favorite! I like to put the cream cheese near the oven warmer to soften while the cake is baking. We’ll need it in the next step.
Allow the cake to cool. While the cake is cooling, mix up the instant pudding, softened cream cheese, and milk. Beat on medium speed until the mixture is smooth and creamy, about 3-5 minutes.
Once the cake has cooled completely, spread the pudding mixture over top. Be sure to cover the entire cake including the sides. The filling is delicious and also helps to keep the cake nice and moist. Grams will be loving that leftover slice on day three just as much as she did on day one!
A sturdy cake board is a good idea BTW! This cake will be HEAVY by the time we’re done! Cut 2 bananas into thin slices. Cover the top of the cake with the thinly sliced bananas. This cake looks super hard and time consuming but really the majority of it is just cutting up fruit!
Next we’re going to layer the crushed pineapple on top of the bananas. Be sure to drain the pineapples. I even go a step further and squish out any excess juice with hands.
Cover the entire cake with Cool Whip. You don’t have to be an artist to make this cake. Don’t worry about it being pretty or neat. Just cover it all up! The Cool Whip will be completely covered up by the end of this recipe. So don’t feel bad it you don’t have any cake frosting skills. You don’t need ’em for this one!
Next we’re going to slice a bunch of strawberries in half. How many you need will depend on how large your strawberries are. I like to cherry pick (or strawberry pick as my hubby pointed out) the biggest ones for this part. Push the strawberry halves into the side of the cake to create a border all the way around the outside. Then cut a few strawberries into slices and plop them on the cake. For reals. You can just toss em right on there. They’ll stick.
Now slice up some bananas and toss them on top. What would a Banana Split Cake be without bananas? Then add some pineapple chunks to that! Add the maraschino cherries as well.
Keep adding fruit until the whole cake is covered. You’ll know its done when your husband says, “you’ve gone too far this year” or “you’re just being ridiculous”. If you’re a fruit lover, this cake is for you!!
And just when you thought we were done….sprinkle with chopped walnuts. OMG!! This cake is SO extra!! Then melt chocolate (in 30 second intervals in the microwave) and drizzle over top of EVERYTHING!!! Again you don’t have to be fancy. I just take a spoonful of chocolate and kind of shake it all over the cake. You can use chocolate chips or melt up some chocolate bars. I had some leftover Merckens chocolate wafers to use up. Repeat as many times as you think is necessary. Basically the perfect bite of Banana Split Cake has a little bit of everything, strawberries, pineapple, banana, walnuts, chocolate, whipped cream and cake!
And Voila! This years masterpiece!!! The World’s Best Ever Banana Split Cake!! Be prepared to pass out the recipe to anyone and everyone that tries it. This cake is perfect for parties or to serve for a crowd.
Grandma’s favorite! Made with love!!
We’d love to hear from you! Leave us your comments and love down below!
We make my famous Red, White, and Berry Fruit Pizza every Fourth of July. And sometimes on Memorial Day. And Labor Day. And whenever berries go on sale. And even on just because days. It’s so good that I promise you will never get sick of […]
Hi There! I’m Lisa. I’m a lover of all things crafty, creative, DIY, and delicious!!! Oh yeah and puppies too! I love cooking and baking for my friends and family but especially WITH my friends and family. I show my greatest affection through food. If I cook or bake for you, it means I really like you!
