It’s National Pie Day! I had a chocolate nut pie crust and Jim suggested I use it to make a chocolate pie.
Most soft pie recipes call for eggs. While I use them in baked goods and frequently eat them for breakfast, somehow the thought of eggs in pudding is unappealing to me.
However, I remembered in years past having seen pudding recipes that used only cornstarch for thickening. So I searched online for an old-fashioned, egg free, chocolate pie recipe. The one I found looks like it could have been printed on the back of a Hershey’s cocoa can a few years ago.
Whether it’s vintage or not, I cannot confirm. But, I can unequivocally declare that this Hershey’s Cocoa Cream Pie recipe is exactly what I was looking for. Happy National Pie Day!!
Hershey’s Cocoa Cream Pie
Servings: 6-8
INGREDIENTS
½ cup Hershey’s cocoa 1¼ cups sugar ⅓ cup cornstarch ¼ teaspoon salt 3 cups milk 3 Tablespoons butter or margarine 1½ teaspoons vanilla extract 1 baked 9-inch pie crust, cooled Sweetened whipped cream
STEPS
1) In medium saucepan, stir together cocoa, sugar, cornstarch and salt.
Gradually add milk to dry ingredients, stirring until smooth.
Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture boils; boil 1 minute.
Remove from heat; stir in butter and vanilla. Pour into baked pie crust.
Carefully press plastic wrap directly onto pie filling.
I’m always excited to welcome a new year, which I view as an invitation to begin a new project. One of the projects I’ve chosen for 2026 is to bake a different cookie each month, based on a list Carissa Hayden and I put together in 2001.
At that time, she was in high school and I was still working; unfortunately, our endeavor never materialized beyond the list. This year, however, I hope to revive the dormant cookie project, following the schedule we initially created and using the same recipes we had originally chosen.
First on the 2001 list was Snickerdoodles–not a new cookie, but certainly a favorite, and a very tasty companion to a cup of hot coffee. The warmth of the cinnamon makes this a perfect treat for a cold January day–or really, for any day!
Each year I like to participate in at least one cooking and/or baking challenge, a tradition that dates back to December 2013. I had accompanied my mother-in-law, her husband, and my mom on a trip to McAllen, Texas to meet baby Avacyn, who had arrived in August of that year. It was New Year’s Eve, and we all sat in the living room, savoring the last few hours of our visit, when my phone alerted me of an incoming message.
I quickly glanced down and saw that the message was from Carissa (who was seated only inches away in the same room). Knowing my love of setting goals and choosing challenges for each new year, she had forwarded me a link with ideas for the upcoming year. The suggestions included reading, photography, and other challenges that sounded interesting. But the one that stood out most to me was a 52 Weeks of Cooking challenge. I participated in and completed that challenge in 2014 and have done at least one cooking or baking challenge every year since–most of them ones I’ve created for myself.
Fast forward twelve years. Once again, it’s New Year’s Eve and, once again, Carissa and I are chatting on Messenger. I haven’t yet chosen a monthly cooking/baking challenge for 2026, and I mention to her some of the themes I’m considering. I am thrilled when she almost immediately replies that COOKIES sound good to her. Goodbye decision fatigue!
But…
Hello decision paralysis! Next came the difficult task of selecting which cookies to make. Choosing twelve cookies from all the mouthwatering possibilities seemed almost impossible. As l scrolled through cookie recipes on my phone, I recalled the time, many years ago, that Carissa and I had made a Cookie of the Month list for the upcoming year. I smiled as I remembered finding that handwritten list tucked inside a cookbook a few months ago.
We had selected cookies from the two cookie books pictured below, but life got busy with school and work; consequently, we never got around to making any of the cookies.
It was in the midst of my reminiscing that inspiration struck. I’d use the list we’d created all those years ago, and make the cookies we’d chosen in the order we’d determined. Woo hoo! Decision made!
Now, 25 years later, I’m excited to begin (and, hopefully, finish) Carissa & June’s 2001 Cookie of the Month project! Let the baking begin!! 👩🍳
For one of my cooking/baking challenges this year, I decided to make a different cookie each month (more on that project later). As I scrolled through recipes, trying to choose 12 different cookies to make, I was reminded of these delicious cookies I made several months ago (June 26, 2025).
I love tiramisu, and I love cookies. So I was doubly excited when I found a recipe for Tiramisu Cookies. I baked them one morning last summer before heading to Charleston for a 10:15 follow-up vet appointment. Our plan was bring Annie back home after her appointment, grab a quick bite, then head to Mattoon and Charleston for our weekly thrifting and grocery shopping expedition.
The cookies had cooled by the time we returned home, and I could hardly wait to sample them. I ate lunch on the run, while I scurried to frost and photograph the cookies. I even managed to eat a couple of them before it was time to depart.
I quickly gathered the miscellany of “stuff” I typically bring along, even on a short afternoon trip. But, just before leaving the house, I decided I needed ONE MORE COOKIE, for the road.
Grabbing a cookie was not as simple as it might seem. First, I had to unburden my hands. Next, I placed the cookie in my mouth–the only feasible means of transport available. Finally, I picked up the items I’d laid down in order to free my hands for cookie snatching.
I must have looked like a pack mule as I left the house with a purse, tote bag, water bottle, and phone dangling from my right arm as both hands clutched a small stack of books. I trudged toward the car, which was farther from the house than usual, since we’d parked it under the shade of a pecan tree.
Jim was just leaving the house when I realized I’d forgotten a book I needed to return to the library. I wanted to get his attention and ask him not to lock the door, but neither yelling nor waving my arms was possible, burdened down as I was with all my travel “necessities.”
And so, picking up pace, I projected my request as best I could with a cookie clamped firmly between my lips. “Own ock uh oar,” I attempted to communicate. Both volume and enunciation were impeded by the precariously placed cookie, and yet I persisted in trying to get my message across. “Own ock uh oar.”
Luckily, though he couldn’t hear me, Jim saw me heading to the house, waiting patiently for me to climb the steps, and then holding the door for me. Once inside, I sat down the books I’d been carrying, picked up the book I’d forgotten, picked back up the books I’d laid down, and headed for the car again.
Carefully opening the passenger door, I deposited my baggage onto the front seat. Miraculously, I didn’t drop a single item, including the cookie.
I was settling in to enjoy my tasty treat when… oh no! The cookie broke in two, and the errant half landed upside down on my chest. I promptly scooped it up, and devoured both cookie halves, relishing each delicious bite. Unfortunately, however, the broken cookie had left its mark–an embarrassingly conspicuous glop of white–on my shirt.
I sheepishly entered the library to return my book, relating my story to the two librarians (who actually hadn’t noticed the “conspicuous“ spot). We all had a good laugh. Before leaving the library, though, I had to make a decision. Should I leave the white spot on my shirt and hope no one else noticed it, or should I wash it off and risk looking as if I were lactating?
I opted for the second choice, reasoning–no, hoping–that the car’s air conditioning would dry my shirt before we reached our next destination. Evidently my shirt dried in time, for I don’t remember getting any strange looks from anyone.
Was just one more cookie worth the ensuing craziness? Yes, indeed! These cookies are that good!! But, there’s one important caveat–the cookies are better suited to eating than wearing!
1/2 cup unsalted butter (120g) 1 tablespoon instant coffee powder 1/2 cup granulated sugar (100 g) 1/2 brown sugar (100g) 1 egg 2 teaspoons vanilla extract 2 cups plain flour (250g) 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon baking powder 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
For the mascarpone cream:
.93 cup double cream (220ml or 1 cup minus 1 TB) 1 cup icing sugar (100g powdered sugar) 2 teaspoons vanilla extract .83 cup mascarpone (200g or 1 cup minus 2 TB) Plus some cocoa powder to sprinkle on top
STEPS
Making the cookies:
1) Start by melting your butter, then pour this into a large bowl. Add the coffee into this and whisk until it has dissolved.
2) Now add both sugars and the vanilla, whisk until combined. Then whisk in the egg.
3) In a separate bowl mix together the flour, salt, baking powder and baking soda. Add this into the other bowl and mix just until a dough forms.
4) Create 6 cookie dough balls out of this dough. Place these onto a tray or plate, then leave them to chill in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.
5) About 10 minutes before you’re ready to bake them, pre-heat your oven to 180c/350f.
6) Once your cookie dough balls have chilled, place them onto a large baking tray that has been lined with baking paper. Make sure to leave gaps between them so they have room to spread.
7) Bake for around 20 minutes, then leave them on the tray to cool completely.
Making the mascarpone cream:
1) In a large bowl add the cream, icing sugar and vanilla. Whip this just until you get soft peaks.
2) Now add the mascarpone and mix until combined.
3) Once your cookies have cooled, pipe the mascarpone cream on top, dust with some cocoa powder and then enjoy!
It’s not really ice cream weather, but when I learned about Plum Nuts ice cream a few weeks ago, I knew I just HAD to make some (based solely on the fact I loved the name). Popular in the late 1950s, this vintage flavor featured vanilla ice cream with walnut pieces and plum ripple.
For my homemade version, I started with a basic vanilla ice cream. When the ice cream had finished churning, I added some toasted walnut pieces and swirled in a plum ripple that I’d prepared beforehand. After letting the ice cream harden in the freezer overnight, I served it with a drizzle of plum sauce, topped with a few chopped walnuts. The ice cream was plum delicious!
How quickly the summer has passed! Tomorrow will be the first day of September, heralding the unofficial beginning of fall and the arrival of Pumpkin Spice season!
In celebration of autumn and all things pumpkin, I’ve chosen pumpkin spice for today’s ice cream flavor(s).
First, I made a Pumpkin Spice Cappuccino ice cream by adding some pumpkin pulp and pumpkin spice to a basic ice cream mixture. I also used dark brown sugar, and added pumpkin spice cappuccino mix to taste.
The ice cream tasted good enough, but I thought the dark brown sugar and cappuccino mix made it look too brown, so….
I decided to churn another bowl of pumpkin ice cream, this time using light brown sugar and omitting the cappuccino mix. Additionally, I stirred in some toasted pecan pieces, as I’d also done with the first batch.
This ice cream was tasty, as well, but only slightly lighter in color than the first. However, I’ll bet either one would be delicious atop a pumpkin waffle, and finished off with a drizzle of caramel.
Today is the last day of Ice Cream Sunday 2025. It’s been a lot of fun, and each of the 14 (actually 15, since today featured two) flavors I made this summer was really good. It would be almost impossible to choose only one favorite, so I’ll choose three instead. They are, in no particular order: Nutty Buddy Drumstick; Oreo Cappuccino; and Maple Walnut.
It’s hard to believe there is just one more week remaining in this month–and one more week of Ice Cream Sunday 2025. July and August are two of my least favorite months of the year, so I’m more than ready to move on to the ‘ber months.
For this week’s autumn-inspired ice cream, I chose Maple Walnut–a delicious flavor combination with underlying vibes of fall.
Once again, I started with a basic ice cream recipe, subbing maple syrup for the granulated sugar. I also toasted some walnut pieces in butter, and stirred them into the ice cream once it had finished churning.
Making the ice cream was a breeze, but getting a good picture of it was a real hassle. This was not the fault of the ice cream itself. Instead, the large ceramic cone is to blame for the difficulty.
As you can see, it took several scoops of ice cream to fill the cone. Producing scoops of an acceptable size and shape was no easy task, but then placing them in a pleasing arrangement AND accomplishing all this before the ice cream started melting proved quite a difficult challenge.
It took four–yes, four–picture taking sessions on three different days to finally get a picture that I deemed acceptable. This may be the first and last time I ever use said ceramic cone. But it certainly will not be the last time I make this delicious ice cream!
The cooler weather we enjoyed a few days ago has me longing for crisp mornings and invigorating autumn breezes.
Thoughts of fall conjure images of bonfires, hoodies, and steaming cups of cappuccino. So, in keeping with an autumn inspired theme, I chose cappuccino for this week’s ice cream flavor–actually, coconut cappuccino laced with pieces of Oreo cookies. Dee-lee-shus!
I dissolved some espresso powder in a small amount of hot water and added this along with a few drops of coconut extract to a basic ice cream mix of cream, milk, sugar, and vanilla. Once it had finished churning, I stirred pieces of Oreo cookies into the ice cream before placing it in the freezer to firm up.
For serving, I chose this beautiful ice cream dish–one from a set of four that I received from my sweet Cousin Patty (Patricia Brooks Palmer) a few years ago. The dish is a favorite, and one I shall forever cherish.
While I always welcome the opportunity to show off my pretty dish, I couldn’t resist also serving a scoop of today’s ice cream in an Oreo cone–in keeping with the Oreo theme. This ice cream is definitely a favorite!
Aren’t you loving these “Augtober” days? I know I am!
Even on the hottest days of August, I start thinking of fall and looking forward to the “ber” months ahead. So it’s probably no surprise that each ice cream this month will be inspired by fall flavors and activities.
Kicking off a month of autumn inspired ice creams, this week’s flavor conjures up memories of roasting marshmallows over an open fire.
I started with a basic ice cream mix, reducing the sugar to compensate for the added sweetness of the marshmallows. After roasting the marshmallows (in a toaster oven instead of over an open fire), I blended them with the other ingredients until they were broken up into smaller pieces.
When the ice cream had finished churning, I added some graham crackers that I’d crumbled and coated with chocolate Magic Shell before placing in the freezer to chill. The s’more ingredients took the ice cream to a new level, transforming it from simple to super. Yummy!
Well, it happened again! I was about to run out of weeks before I ran out of flavors to try for Ice Cream Sunday 2025. (And this year, there’s even an extra week–14 instead of 13–since June started on a Sunday).
Because I didn’t want to eliminate any flavors, I decided to combine two of them and save a third for later, since it contains ingredients that are commonly associated with fall. And, just like that, I managed to create a spot for all the flavors I wanted to make this summer. Yay!
Today’s ice cream celebrates the joining of two wonderful flavors in “chilly matrimony.” It turns out that Nutty Butter and Drumstick ice creams are a perfectly delectable combination.
I stared with a basic ice cream recipe. I heated the milk and then added a big glob of peanut butter. Once the peanut butter had melted into the milk, I added the remaining ingredients.
While the ice cream mix chilled in the fridge, I made some chocolate Magic Shell, which I allowed to cool slightly before using it to coat some pieces of crumbled waffle cones. I then spread the pieces of waffle cone thinly onto a small baking pan and placed in the freezer to chill.
As the ice cream churned, I chopped some peanuts and warmed some hot fudge sauce. When it had finished churning, I spread half the ice cream in a container, swirled it with some hot fudge sauce, and sprinkled it with chopped peanuts and chocolate covered waffle cone pieces. I repeated this procedure with the remaining ice cream, fudge sauce, peanuts, and waffle cone crumbles.
Oh my goodness! This ice cream was so good! I think it was one of the best ever!!
1) Stir the milk, cream, sugar and vanilla or flavored extract together.
2) Stir it well and make sure it’s still cold, then run it through your ice cream machine according to the directions, about 30 mins
3) Stir in any fillings that are chunky, like chunks of chocolate, crushed cookies, sprinkles, nuts, marshmallows, toffee, etc… OR anything that you want to stir in like a ribbon, like peanut butter, hot fudge or marshmallow frosting…
4) Serve immediately for soft ice cream and freeze a few hours for firmer ice cream.
1) Melt chocolate chips and coconut oil in the microwave about 1 minute (depending on your microwave). Allow to sit a few minutes to allow the heat of the oil to melt the chocolate chips and then stir until smooth. It will be runny.
2) Pour into a bottle. We used a recycled pickle relish bottle. (We recommend a glass bottle if you’re gonna refrigerate and then heat.)
3) Store in the refrigerator (though in the summer it’s likely to stay liquidy unrefrigerated). To serve, heat the glass bottle (open cap) in the microwave for 30 seconds until liquid. Stir and continue heating at 30 second intervals if not liquid after the first 30 seconds. Pour over your favorite ice cream and in a few seconds you will see magic!
Note: I made half a batch of the ice cream and 1/4 batch of the Magic Shell.
52 weeks of cooking 
