KOAM Morning Crew Thanksgiving Feast: Desserts

KOAM’s Michael Hayslip and Tawnya Bach wrap up their Annual KOAM Morning Crew Thanksgiving Feast with desserts! This year Tawnya turned a traditional banana recipe into Pumpkin Pie Spice Bars.
Click here to find our KOAM Morning Crew Thanksgiving Feast: Side Dishes
CHOCOLATE ZUCHINNI BREAD
Submitted by Peyton Holloway
INGREDIENTS:
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup Dutch process cocoa
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
2 large eggs, at room temperature
1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
1/4 cup canola, vegetable oil, or melted coconut oil
3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups packed shredded zucchini
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips, divided
DIRECTIONS:
Preheat your oven to 350°F. Grease a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray and set aside.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and sea salt. Set aside.
In a large bowl, add the eggs, melted butter, oil, vanilla extract, and brown sugar. Stir until smooth. You might have a few small brown sugar clumps and that is fine.
Stir the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients, don’t over mix.
Stir in the shredded zucchini until just combined.
Stir in 3/4 cup of the chocolate chips.
Pour batter into prepared pan. Sprinkle the remaining 1/4 cup of chocolate chips over the top of the bread.
Bake for 50-60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the bread comes out mostly clean, you might have some melted chocolate chips on the toothpick and that is fine. You just don’t want a lot of gooey batter.
Remove the pan from the oven and set on a wire cooling rack. Let the bread cool in the pan for 15 minutes.
Run a knife around the edges of the bread and carefully remove from the pan. Let the bread cool on the wire cooling rack until slightly warm. Cut into slices and serve.
? PUMPKIN PIE SPICE BARS
Submitted by KOAM Anchor/Producer Tawnya Bach
INGREDIENTS:
(PUMPKIN BARS)
1 Cup Sugar
1 Cup Canned or Fresh Pumpkin (not pumpkin pie mix)
1/3 Cup Vegetable Oil
2 Eggs
1 Cup Flour
1 tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
½ tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp pumpkin pie spice
¼ tsp salt
(CREAM CHEESE FROSTING)
1 pkg (3oz) cream cheese, softened
1/3 cup butter or margarine, softened
1 tsp vanilla
2 cups powdered sugar
INSTRUCTIONS:
Heat oven to 350.
In a large bowl, mix sugar, pumpkin, oil and eggs with spoon.
Stir in flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice and salt.
Spread in greased 13×9 in pan. (grease sides and bottom)
Back 25 to 30 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
Cool completely, about 1 hour.
Prepare cream cheese frosting:
In medium bowl, mix cream cheese, butter and vanilla with electric mixer on medium speed until blended.
Gradually beat in powdered sugar with spoon, scraping bowl occasionally, until smooth and spreadable.
Frost pumpkin bars with cream cheese frosting.
For bars, cut into 6 rows by 4 rows.
Store covered in refrigerator.
MINI BERRY TARTS
Submitted by Parker Tipton
INGREDIENTS:
1 (16.5 oz.) package refrigerated sugar cookie dough
1 (3.4 oz.) package instant vanilla pudding
1 1/2 cups cold milk
8 ounces frozen whipped topping, thawed
3 cups fresh berries, washed and dried (sliced strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, etc.)
INSTRUCTIONS:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a miniature muffin tin with non-stick cooking spray.
Roll cookie dough into 1-inch balls and place in muffin cups.
Bake for 8-10 minutes, or until just golden brown. The dough should fall in the center to form a miniature tart shell. If necessary, tap dough down with the back of a spoon to form the shell.
Let cookie shells cool in the pan for about 10 minutes. Carefully loosen the cookies by running a sharp knife around the edges of the muffin cups, then remove to a wire rack to cool completely.
In a medium bowl, combine the pudding mix and milk. Fold in the whipped topping.
Spoon or pipe the pudding mixture into the cooled tart shells. Arrange berries on top of filling. Refrigerate until ready to serve.