{ Striped Delight Dessert }

Years and years and.. uh.. years ago, when I was first married, I had the brilliant idea of putting together a Family Cookbook. Both sides of my family submitted recipes, which we then typed together, printed, copied, and then bound put into inexpensive folders & handed out. My mother in law and mom did most of the typing. I didn't have a computer then or even a typewriter! GASP. I can't find the date anywhere in my book, (it's since been put in a nicer binder)  but I believe it was 1994 or 1995. Holy moley.. time, it flies.

This book, while time consuming, really has come in handy over the years. I've often gone to it for family favorites, like, Grammy's Pancakes, Aunt Diana's Corn Casserole, Mom's Homemade Noodles,

Grammy's Strawberry Pie, and much more. The recipe I'm sharing today, and my next, also came from this book.

So, if you are looking for a unique and inexpensive Christmas gift, think of doing something like this. It'd be much easier with today's technology. I wish we'd had the ability to have them printed up in actual hardbound books like they sell at Winkflash, Snapfish, Shutterfly, etc. That'd be an AWESOME gift.

This recipe is from my Sister in Law, Dorothy. She always called it Striped Delight. I've heard it called several things like "Better Than Robert Redford", Eclair Dessert", but most prominent on the internet is the name "Better Than S#x". Yes, I'm a grown up. Yes, I just bleeped out that word. I do not want to show up in any questionable web-searches. LOL. For that reason, I'm sticking with Dorothy's name for it... Striped Delight.

I've never found her EXACT recipe though, but ones very close.

Now, let me tell you a little story. I made this to have tonight when my mother-in-law & grandmother-in-law came over for a little weenie roast (it's somethin' we country folk do, ya know). We'd just gotten everything down to our fire pit, when Luna, our 4 year old Jack Russell decided to go on the lam. 

We searched, yelled, posted to neighbors on Facebook, drove around, yelled, searched more. For over an hour. We'd finally given up and decided if she was going to come back, she'd come back, but there was no way we could find her in the acres and acres and acres of 8 foot tall corn that surround us.

And then, just when we'd given up.. there she was. 

Guess who's never allowed outside the fence again? Yeah, this girl:

So, sorry if the finished dessert photos aren't quite up to par. This little mutt had us all in a tizzy!

Back to the dessert, eh?

Here's what you'll need:

Striped Delight Dessert

Crust:

1 sleeve of Graham Crackers

1/3 Cup Butter, melted

1/4 Cup Sugar

2nd Layer:

1- 8oz Block of Cream Cheese (1/3 less fat & fat free will work, but will result in a softer set)

1 Cup Cool Whip (thawed)

1/4 Cup Sugar

2 Tablespoons Milk

3rd Layer:

2 Small Boxes (4 serving size) Chocolate Pudding, Instant

3 Cups Milk (2% or Vitamin D)

4th Layer:

Remaining Cool Whip

Finely crush graham crackers

Add sugar

Then add melted butter. Mix throughly, and press into a 9x13 dish.

 Chill the crust for 15 minutes.

Prep the 2nd layer by adding cream cheese 1/4 cup sugar & 2 Tablespoons milk to the mixer. Beat until well mixed. Then fold in 1 cup of thawed Cool Whip.

When this is done, it will be thick and delicious. Seriously, try not to eat it ALL.

Spread over chilled crust. Be careful, because your crust may want to peel up a bit.

You'll see crumbs in my layer.

 The third layer is 2 small boxes of instant chocolate pudding & 3 cups of 2% or vitamin D milk.

Beat together until thick (should be a bit thicker than regular 'quick set' method puddings due to using less milk), then spread over the cream cheese layer.

 Just before serving, add the rest of the cool whip to the top. Sprinkle with chocolate chips, toffee bits, drizzled caramel topping, coconut flakes, grated chocolate... the sky is the limit! My guys are kinda boring, so I just did chocolate chips.

Some people can do perfect lovely layers... I am not one of those. Here are my messy  layers

Messy, but delicious.

Did I mention delicious?

Great dessert for a crowd, so perfect for get togethers, pot lucks (do y'all call them pot lucks or carry in dinners?), Easter, Christmas, Thanksgiving, picnics, etc!

Easy, quick, cheap. Yay.

Enjoy!

Tina

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{ Layered Drinks: For the 4th }

Yessterday, the drinks I made were red, blue, and yellow,

Since the 4th of July is in a few days, I thought I should substitute the yellow for white!

I was out today, while the Bean was at his Summer Drama Troupe practice and grabbed a Mt. Dew White Out from the gas station.

This is Mt. Dew White Out- 30 grams of sugar

V8 Splash - 14 grams of sugar

Propel (with blue food coloring) 0 grams of sugar

There are also plenty of  Gatorade & Powerade flavors out there with the medium & no/low sugar contents, so they are great for the middle and top layers.

 Full instructions in my prior post here.

Tina

{ Quick & Cute for the 4th }

I saw these cuties a week or so ago when I was pinning my little heart away on Pinterest. 

I knew I had to try them.

They are cheap, quick, and hello, EASY to make for the upcoming holiday.

And your guests will think you are super clever.

Simply wash and dry strawberries, melt up some white chocolate per package instructions, dip into the chocolate, then dip into blue sprinkles, and let dry.

Congratulations. You’re a genius.

 I did these two ways.

First with blue sanding sugar.

and again with blue sprinkles.

The sanding sugar is my favorite, but the sprinkles are a more “American” blue.

Either way, they look really cute!

And taste even better.

~Tina

PS, for overuse of the word “cute”, you may now cyberslap me. k,thanks.