If you’ve ever wished you could recreate Cinnabon Cinnamon Rolls, Girl Scout Thin Mints, Auntie Anne’s Pretzels, or Starbucks Cranberry Bliss Bars, I have a collection of recipes that will help.
Rather than being dependent on going to mall for my fix, waiting for seasonally-available treats to come along, or over-paying for storebought, I came up with at-home, copycat versions of the real thing.
Included are 25 of my Favorite Copycat and Restaurant Knock-Off Recipes, and some fun DIY recipes, like making vanilla extract or peanut butter, which save money and taste far better than storebought.
1. Overnight Buttermilk Soft and Fluffy Cinnamon Rolls – My ode to Cinnabons, and I prefer these to the real thing
2. Baked Vanilla Donuts with Vanilla Glaze – The baked version of a Krispy Kreme
3. Ritz Cracker-Stuffed Peanut Butter Cups (No-Bake, Vegan) – I like adding crackers for added crunch along with salty-and-sweet, or try this recipe for classic Peanut Butter Cups (No-Bake, Vegan, GF)
5. Cranberry Bliss Bars – Starbucks Copycat Recipe and the reader feedback on these has been extremely positive
6. Old-Fashioned Butter Mints (no-bake, gluten-free)
7. Homemade Little Debbie Star Crunch (no-bake)
8. Soft Buttery One Hour Pretzels (vegan) – Faster and easier than going to the mall for Auntie Anne’s or Wetzels Pretzels
9. Outback Steakhouse Wheat Bread (vegan) – Copycat Recipe for the soft, brown bread many steakhouses like Longhorn and Outback serve. I don’t eat steak but I do love this bread
10. Little Debbie Cosmic Brownies – My favorite homemade brownies, ever
11. Twinkies
12. Butterfinger Bars (No Bake, Vegan & GF options) – Make in less than 5 minutes in the microwave
13. Homemade Baileys Irish Cream – Make in the blender in 1 minute
14. Homemade Cinnamon-Sugar Graham Crackers
15. Samoas Bars (Vegan & GF options) – The flavors of the Girl Scout classic cookies combined in easy-to-make bars rather than fussy, layered, multi-step cookies
16. Homemade Vanilla Extract (vegan, GF) – A truly work-free recipe. Just wait it out
17. Homemade Ginger Ale (vegan, GF)
18. 10-Minute Homemade Hot Fudge (GF)
19. Homemade Peanut Butter (vegan, GF) – Make in minutes in your food processor. Once you try homemade, you’ll never want storebought
20. Homemade Cookie Butter (vegan, GF) – Very similar to Trader Joe’s Cookie Butter or Biscoff spread
21. Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Granola Bars (no-bake, vegan, GF) – Better than Quaker Chewy Granola Bars and ready in minutes
22. Hot Pepper Jelly (vegan, GF) – Like Trader Joe’s Hot Pepper Jelly, which is sometimes only seasonally available
23. Pumpkin Spice Latte (vegan, GF) – Starbucks Copycat Recipe
24. Thin Mints (vegan, no-bake) – Make in minutes and they’re a dead-ringer for the original
25. Orange Push-Up Smoothie (GF, can be kept vegan) – Tastes like an Orange Push-Up, in smoothie form
CopyKat.com’s Dining Out at Home Cookbook: Recipes for the Most Delicious Dishes from America’s Most Popular Restaurants by Stephanie Manly is packed with the most popular recipes from CopyKat.com
This book offers over 200 unauthorized restaurant re-creations that have been tested and re-tested by people just like you. Each delicious dish is guaranteed to taste like the restaurant original so you can:
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There are recipes for all your favorite entreés, appetizers, soups, salads, desserts and more from Americas best restaurants, including:
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•Chili’s®
•Cracker Barrel Old Country Store®
•IHOP®
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•Joe’s Crab Shack®
•Mrs. Fields®
•Olive Garden®
•Outback Steakhouse®
•Red Lobster®
•Taco Bell®
•T.G.I. Friday’s®
•The Cheesecake Factory®
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And for any peanut butter lovers, my cookbook, Peanut Butter Comfort, was released last week. Thank you for your support!
The Asian Zing sauce for Buffalo Wild Wings! I have yet to find a really amazing sesame chicken recipe that tastes as good as what I get at my local Chinese restaurant.
These are awesome recipes, Averie! I’d love to recreate any number of Asian dishes that I always eat at restaurants, especially potstickers, sushi or orange chicken.
On the Border enchiladas!
I would love to recreate chic-fil-a chicken nuggets. Or the Olive Garden’s bread sticks or minestrone soup. All sooo good!!
Would love to try the Cinnamon Rolls & Butterfinger Bars. I have made the Homemade Peanut Butter & the Cookie Butter, love them both. And several members of my family also love the Cookie Butter!
I would love to recreate a great Grand Marnier souffle at home!
Love copykat recipes!
can’t wait to try these, they sound delicious!
I LOVE your 1-hour pretzel recipe! I’ve made it a few times now and they are always a hit!
Oh that’s awesome to know – thank you!
love love love copycat recipes!!! Thanks!
Definitely the girl scout thin mints, those are my ultimate favorite cookie ever!
Every Christmas morning my dad has a box of cinnabons waiting for us, and I look forward to them all year! If you prefer those to the real things, I need to try them out. I have yet to meet a recipe that beats the kind you buy, but I’d so much rather have them homemade if they can compare!
The Boston Market mashed potatoes and the gravy.
Amazing! What an incredible roundup, Averie!
I love the spicy garlic chicken from P.F. Changs. Anything from there is excellent!
There is a fabulous restaurant on a golf course near my parents house that serves up the best crab cakes. Although I had my wedding rehearsal there, AND my brother got married there, the chef still isn’t willing to share the recipe!
He needs to loosen up :)