I scored a good deal on some courtland apples at last week's farmer's market and ended up making some apple strudels to take to a potluck picnic.

I thawed a couple frozen puff pastry crusts and heated my oven to 350F.

I peeled and thin-sliced five apples, and threw them in a bowl with very diluted OJ to keep them from browning, scooped them out again, and tossed them with 2 Tbsp of sugar (a little more because they were tart), 1/2 tsp of cinnamon, and a handful of finely ground almonds. I warmed up a couple Tbsps bourbon and threw a handful of golden raisins in it so they could plump up on the flavor.

I then rolled out the puff pastries, keeping them squarish. I cut 1" tabs on the outer left and right thirds of the pastry at a slight angle and tossed the triangular scraps to my dog. I arranged the apple stuff in pretty rows in the middle third of the pastry, tossed the plumped raisins over them, cubed 4 Tbsp of very cold butter, and scattered it on top of the apples.

I then folded the edges in (left, then right, and so on) so it looked like a braid, threw some almond slices on top, brushed it with an egg wash, and threw some raw sugar on the top. I cooked them on parchment for 45 mins - 1 hour.

I brought a pizza slicer to the picnic and sliced them in thin strips. They made good finger food, and went immediately.

I love the lemon brownies.....recipe was posted here not too long ago.
Easy and to die for.

Here is a link that might be useful: Lemon brownies

Not sure if this is too close to cookies but I have made Bar Cookies from Cake Mix a couple of times and they are really, really good. Nice for a picnic because it is really easy, not expensive, makes a respectable amount and you won't mind if the kids hog these down because you didn't have to work hard to make them.

When I made this last I used a yellow cake mix, butterscotch chips and doubled the called for amount of water from 2T to 4 Tablespoons. Yum.

Kate

Here is a link that might be useful: Bar Cookies from Cake Mix

How about a fruit pizza? Lots of good fruit in season, it's easy, it's pretty, and it's nice and light. You could make it square and cut it in squares rather than wedges.

Fruit Pizza

Crust:
1-1/2c flour
1/4c sugar
1/4c butter
1/4c cooking oil
3T cold water

Mix and press into 11 inch circle on pizza pan. Bake 12-14 minutes at 375F

Sauce:
6oz cream cheese
1/4c sugar
1/2tsp vanilla

Beat until smooth and spread on crust

Strawberries, Kiwi, Grapes, Peaches, Pineapple, Blueberries, Raspberries, etc.
Arrange your choice of fruits on top of sauce.

Glaze:
1T cornstarch
1T water
1/4c fruit juice (any)
3T powdered sugar

Whisk all ingredients together in small saucepan, bring to boil stirring constantly. Spread over fruit, chill well. Cut in wedges or squares to serve.

Linda

Fruit pizza sounds lovely, but way over those Chips Ahoy kids' heads.

I'm assuming that there will be other desserts? How about a platter of fruit, cut ready to eat? Melon, grapes, berries, orange wedges, etc.

Apple crisp? Easy. Seasonal. Yummy.

Carrot cake or pound cake.....easy and serves a lot.

I have never made it, but the thing that goes the fastest at cookouts, team dinners, or anything else that includes kids around here is dirt pudding. I think it is pretty easy to make, and the presentation is really cute.
There are many, many recipes on the web. I have attached one.

Here is a link that might be useful: Dirt Pudding

I think "grab n go" type desserts are best for this type of event; like cookies, brownies or cupcakes. Homemade cookies are always a hit with kids and adults!

As for the kids gobbling down your really wonderful cookies, I'm sure they inhaled them BECAUSE they were so good!

A trick I learned at church pot lucks to prevent children from hogging down the "fancier" desserts was to put a couple of bowls of simple, store bought cookies on the buffet while the "fancier" desserts were being cut. The kids would scarf the cookies and then be much less interested in (or have the room for) the other desserts.

I don't think fruit pizza is out of the kids' league. I have served it often and kids really like it, as do adults.

Here is a similar idea, but more of a "grab-n-go".

Fruited Shortbread Bites
Source BH&G Appetizers

4 oz cream cheese
2 T sour cream
1 T powdered sugar
1/2 tsp grated orange peel
24 2-inch square shortbread cookies

Assorted fruits : sliced strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, sliced & quartered kiwi, grapes, mandarin oranges, etc.

Stir together cream cheese, sour cream, powdered sugar and orange peel until combined. Spread 1 T of cheese mixture on each cookie. Arrange fruit on top of cheese mixture. Chill and serve.

Linda

I think the fruit pizza is a good suggestion. In my experience, kids are slightly afraid of things with fancy-looking glazed fruit on the top. You could make sure it's in the middle of the table with decoy brownies all around it. If you make little individual ones, I think kids will be even less likely to attack.

Chocolate cupcakes with cinnamon buttercream icing is always a hit, with kids and adults alike. Adults love the cinnamon buttercream (ooooohhh, what IS that?) and kids really get that these cupcakes are something they don't see all the time. If you pipe the frosting on with a giant star tip, it goes really fast, yet looks pretty special. The cupcakes are Portion Controlled (no cutting for serving) and the cinnamon is good for anyone with diabetes. The recipe for the cake is made in one bowl, so it's easy. If you want the recipe, let me know.

I'm going to try this again....I typed a "thank you" to those who responded this morning and it kept going back to Preview Message, then disappeared -

Thanks for all your ideas & suggestions. I think I'm going with the Lemon Brownies and would like to try the Chocolate Cupcakes w/ Cinnamon Buttercream as another offering.

Claire, if you read this, I would love the recipe!

Sure! Please forgive me for not typing it out again (or even copy and pasting), but the link is good, and both recipes are included. I hope everything turns out great. The last time I made these was for a funeral offering and they flew off the kitchen counter. I think people really like the ''personal offering'' of a cupcake, and piping that frosting on really makes a difference. People love a bit of fancy!

Here is a link that might be useful: Chocolate Cupcakes with Cinnamon Buttercream

Linda, I love that idea for those Fruited Shortbread Bites.

The party was today and the Lemon Brownies & Chocolate Cupcakes w/ Cinnamon Buttercream Icing were such a hit! DH & I sampled a cupcake last night...you know, just to make sure they were good enough to serve LOL...and we just swooned over them. The combination of flavors & textures is perfect.

In case anyone goes to the link Claire posted to get the recipe, I noted that under the Ingredients list 3/4 Cup of Warm Water is indicated. In the instructions though, it says to add 1 1/2 Cups warm water, and buttermilk. That sounded like too much liquid to me. I only did 3/4 Cup water and they turned out beautifully. I'm guessing the 1 1/2 Cups was meant to be the total of the water and the buttermilk combined.

Thank you, again, to everyone who offered suggestions. There are a few new recipes I want to try when another one of these events comes up.

Oh, I just love it when there's swooning going on!

Just to clarify, the ingredients list is the correct version. I think what happened when I pasted the recipe, is that I got the version for the layer cake, and not the cupcakes. There is a difference between the two, and I'm so glad you figured it out. Thanks for clearing that up; I'd hate for anyone to have a mess on their hands because of instructions that were incorrect, given out by me!

I need to make a dessert on Wednesday night to serve on Friday night. Do you think the lemon brownies would work?

I wouldn't make them 2 days ahead. I baked mine late Friday night and cut them Saturday morning. They were great when I served them Saturday afternoon. By Sunday night, IMO, the couple that were left over were past their prime.

Others may have made them in advance and might offer suggestions on keeping them fresher tasting longer, but if I had to prep 2 days before serving, I think I'd probably do something like key lime pie, an ice cream or cheesecake -something that won't dry out or lose its fresh flavor when covered in the fridge for more than a day.