I can’t believe summer is winding down and fall is just around the corner. In Southern California, it’s usually warmer in September and October than it is in May and June, so summer isn’t over anytime soon here.
I plan to milk the gorgeous weather – my favorite weather of the year – as long as the sunny, 78F days with no humidity and crystal clear blue skies want to stick around.
I wanted to reflect on 30 of my favorite recipes I made this summer, spanning mid-May until now.
Some are seasonal, some aren’t, but all are worth being made. I truly love each of them. They’re all easy, straightforward, and nothing complicated. Just solid recipes that taste great that you and your family will love.
I’m thinking Labor Day party food with some of them.
1. Peanut Butter Caramel Twix Bars
2. Soft and Chewy Cinnamon Chip Snickerdoodle Cookies
3. Strawberries and Cream Coffee Cake with Vanilla Cream Cheese Glaze
5. Soft and Chewy Snickers Chocolate Chip Cookies
7. Bourbon Maple Slow Cooker Baked Beans (vegan, GF)
8. Cinnamon Sugar Mini Donut Muffins
9. No-Ice-Cream-Maker Funfetti Cake Batter Golden Oreo Ice Cream
10.Chocolate Buttermilk Pancakes with Homemade Salted Caramel Sauce
11. Carrot Cake Cupcakes with Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting
12. Softbatch Cream Cheese Chocolate Chip Cookies
13. Chewy Peanut Butter and Chocolate Cereal Bars (no-bake, vegan, GF)
14. Blueberry Muffin and Buttermilk Pancakes Cake
16. No-Ice-Cream-Maker Salted Caramel, Bourbon, Nutter Butter, and Chocolate Chunk Ice Cream
17. Soft and Chewy Smores Cookies
18. Easy Homemade Cinnamon Raisin Bagels (vegan)
19. The Best Vegan Blueberry Muffins
20. Softbatch Funfetti Sugar Cookies
21. Triple Peanut Butter Monster Cookie Bars
22. Soft and Chewy Seven Layer Magic Bar Cookies
23. Cream Cheese-Swirled Cherries and Mixed Berries Cake
24. Two-Ingredient Peanut Butter Cup Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Bars (GF)
25. Peanut Butter-Swirled Strawberry Cake
26. Malibu Sunset
27. Nutella-Swirled Peanut Butter Chip Blondies
28. No-Bake Peanut Butter Marshmallow Cereal Bars
29. Reese’s Pieces Peanut Butter Fluffernutter Cookies with Peanut Butter Buttercream
30. Peanut Butter-Swirled Cheesecake Bars with Brown Sugar-Graham Cracker Crust
What did you make this summer that you loved?
We so need to have a bakapalooza someday! Everything looks so yummy, and kind of sad…I’m not ready to say goodbye to summer. :(
EVERYTHING looks absolutely delicious!!! And your PB Twix Bars are beyond! LOVE ’em!
This is a fantastic round up of summer recipes! How ever do you even choose? I would just say “all my recipes!” LOL! I have made a bunch of these: the bourbon maple beans, the soft and chewy smores cookies, softbatch funfetti sugar cookies and the chocolate buttermilk pancakes are on the next list! I had a bunch of watermelon this summer, also grapes, papaya and figs. Dates are one of my favorites, too! But the most yummy thing was a homemade dark, sweet cherry sorbet I made in my ice cream maker: just organic, frozen sweet cherries, lemon juice, water and a bit of vanilla stevia. Topped with cinnamon and chopped dates! YUM! Weather warming up around here as well. I prefer it to the cold weather that was creeping up on us at this time of year when I lived in Alaska. Winter (hardcore) was literally around the corner about now. Love living in California! Fantastic recipes, Averie, as always!! xoxo
Your little cherry sorbet sounds so refreshing and yes, here’s to living in CA. I dont know how I grew up in MN and IL and lived my entire life there (I hated the weather, that’s for sure!) but it makes San Diego that much sweeter.
And thanks for trying so many of my recipes – as always. A couple of the cookies, the beans (if you liked those beans, make this https://www.averiecooks.com/2013/08/one-hour-sweet-with-heat-tomato-and-pepper-chutney.html same flavors and it’s vegan, GF, etc.)
Have a great weekend, Michele!
Everything….literally everything, in this post looks incredible. I actually thought to myself (and not for the first time) about halfway through scrolling “I really wish I lived next door to Averie” I know I’ve said that before, but DAMN.
Thank you :) I wish you lived closer too! I was drafting this post when we were talking about selling things and I would love to sell some of this stuff JUST to recoup my grocery money. Most things I make are pretty cheap to make, all things considered, but it’s groceries aren’t free as you know :) Or, i wish I could give some to you or to anyone who I know would really appreciate it rather than who ever I can find! lol
Awesome recipes. Made the tripe peanut butter cookie bars and loved it. Very quick to make. I also made the Malibu sunset drink! Awesome for summer. Thank for great recipes. Love this.
Glad you made & loved the Triple PB Bars and the Malibu Sunset! Those are awesome choices. Thanks for trying them and coming back to LMK about it!
I’ll take one of everything, please!
Terrific recipes Averie! Can’t wait to make some of these :)
I can’t believe the summer is almost over. My little girl is going to official be starting preschool! Where did the time go?? And when am I going to find the time to bake all your awesome sweets??
Thankfully none of them take too long to make :)
Such gorgeous photos! Such incredibly delectable looks treats!
Thanks!
So much yum!! I’m not quite ready to give up summer but at the same time I’m totally ready for fall… weird right?
So much awesomeness! I swear, you have the best recipes!! Every time I just drool over the amazing photos and food! You are a rock star!
Wow, what a super sweet comment, Tieghan! Thank you!!!!! xoxo :)
Love all your recipes :)
I am not saying good bye to summer yet. I think about moving to SoCal all the time. The way you describe it has me working even harder to make it happen.
It’s stunning here this time of year. Actually Sept is the nicest month of the year. 78F and sunny by day, the nights are crisp and cool. The tourists are gone. It’s totally peaceful. In MN growing up, we got like 1 day of the year like this. In CA we get a good 2 mos solid. It’s also my dream photography weather :)
I love Fall and am excited for cooler temperatures and boot weather. However, summer is amazing because of beach times, ice cream, and that I got married this summer! :) Can’t forget that little gem. Have a great Friday!
Congrats on getting married! Wonderful :)
The end of summer is usually bittersweet for me because I really enjoy fall but dislike winter. I tried and loved several of your recipes–the caramel PB Twix bars, skinny caramel frappuccino (I’m having one of those today), bourbon maple beans, and that very special caramelized banana upside down cake from your cookbook!! Two other favorites this summer have been cream of tomato soup with copious amounts of cilantro and a pear-cucumber smoothie with cinnamon and cardamom. Great round up–lots of yummy ideas for any occasion! The tomato chutney is on my to-do list today. Can’t wait to taste it and thanks for the idea to add a splash of bourbon!
pear-cucumber smoothie with cinnamon and cardamom = that sounds great! I am doing a juice cleanse right now and there’s lots of cucumber and also the last one of the night is vanilla and cardamom. The pear sounds great!
And so glad you’ve tried and enjoyed so many of my summertime faves and have loved them. AND the caramelized banana upsidedown cake from my book. I was tickled pink when I read your email about that one…thank you :) Glad that it turned out to be a wonderful bday cake!
LMK how the chutney goes – I loveeeee it. I have made it a couple times already. I actually froze some for about 3 weeks, unthawed, and totally perfect. So you could probably get away with making that for 1-2 months I would suspect, at least. All the vinegar kills everything anyway :)
I made sooo many watermelon slushies-basically watermelon, frozen, then a variety of different add-ins. Also, watermelon gazpacho:
Last summer I went nuts on watermelon and this summer I had a few meh ones early on and they sort of ruined it for me this year. So sad. But I need to try again before the season is over!