Crumbl Cookies review #100 - revisiting Semisweet Chocolate Chip, Red Velvet Cupcake, Pumpkin Cake, Caramel Shortbread ft Twix

Crumbl Cookies review #100 - revisiting Semisweet Chocolate Chip, Red Velvet Cake, Pumpkin Square, Twix, gifted on October 14, 2025 

A blog follower kindly gifted me with Crumbl cookies of my choice recently. She had made the offer earlier but it wasn't until a few weeks ago that I liked enough of the offerings to take her up on her generous offer.

Semisweet Chocolate Chip

I'd had all of these flavors before because, let's face it, when you've done 100 reviews of Crumbl's offerings, there aren't many more untried flavors that I wanted to try.

Red Velvet Cupcake

I've linked my previous write ups on each cookie (or cake) under the captions for each picture. Up until this point, I hadn't tried out the Crumbl(s) in my new location so this delivery was my first experience with the one closest to my niece's house where I'd asked them to be sent.

Pumpkin Cake

I have to say, the Thornton, CO Crumbl made a good first impression on their desserts. The toppings on the three cookies were generous (look at that semisweet chocolate chip! and the Twix!) and the glaze/icing on the pumpkin cake was mercifully not too thick or thin but just right.

Thank you, Meredith, for the Crumbl! My family and I enjoyed them all. Okay, I ate more than my fair share, lol.

Caramel Shortbread featuring Twix

Crumbl Cookies review #99 - Chocolate Peppermint Cake (test cake)

Crumbl Cookies review #99 - Chocolate Peppermint Cake (test cake), visited October 4, 2025 

I'm behind on my Crumbl reviews. Not that I've been going a lot but this is from over a month ago and I'm just now getting to it. I was back in my permanent home (as opposed to the temporary one I'm living in for the next few months) for a few days to take care of some things and, to my surprise, my local store was testing a product. I was surprised because I haven't seen them test anything for awhile.

But I was glad enough to see it this time that, despite my dislike of mint and chocolate together as a flavor, I decided to try this one. Hope always springs eternal when it comes to a test cookie or cake, despite knowing with near 100% certainty that I won't like it.

I think I'm still trying to convince my taste buds they're open-minded. But, alas, it turns out they're not. I knew that ahead of time so it was no surprise to me that I didn't care for this particular cake. I like peppermint and I like chocolate. I just don't like them together.

The frosting wasn't too overwhelmingly minty but it was minty enough to jar my taste buds when combined with chocolate. The combination is just not my thing. The chocolate cake itself was okay but I did my usual scraping off of the entire top layer of frosting and ate as little of the middle sandwich layer of frosting as possible.

The cake was light and fluffy but not particularly rich-chocolatey. In fact, I'm not sure whether, in a blind taste test, I could tell the difference between Crumbl's chocolate cake and one from a cake mix. And y'all know the chip on my shoulder about cake mixes. Sorry, Crumbl, not a fan of this one.

This was $4.98 plus a $0.49 surcharge at my local store. Wise of them not to have a bigger surcharge like some of their more tasty desserts.

Cinnamon Sugar Pumpkin Blondies from The Pypers Kitchen

Cinnamon Sugar Pumpkin Blondies - made October 14, 2025 from The Pypers Kitchen

1/2 cup butter, melted

1/2 cup pumpkin puree

1 cup dark brown sugar

1 large egg

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 cup pecans, lightly toasted and chopped

2 tablespoons granulated sugar

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1. Preheat  oven to 350 degrees F. Line 8 x 8-inch baking pan with foil and lightly spray with nonstick cooking spray.
2. In a mixing bowl, stir together melted butter, pumpkin puree and brown sugar. Stir in egg and vanilla, mixing well.
3. In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, salt and cinnamon. Add to butter mixture and stir until well combined.
4. Spread batter in an even layer in prepared pan. Top with pecans. In a small bowl, stir together granulated sugar and cinnamon. Sprinkle in an even layer over batter. 
5. Bake 25-30 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Remove from oven and let cool completely.

After my previous hit or miss bakes, I'm happy to report this was a hit. High altitude baking notwithstanding, this didn't rise too quickly and fall as sometimes cakey baked goods tend to do at higher altitudes.

The batter was thick which held up the topping quite well. The texture was fluffy and moist and the pecans plus the cinnamon sugar topping added a nice crunch and sweetness. The cake itself isn't that sweet so it provided the perfect base for the topping. I made this for my niece and one of her mom friends; both loved it as well as their kids so I consider this a winning recipe. Plus it's a perfect comfort dessert for autumn.

P.S. to follow up from a previous post, I did go to the No Kings rally in my new community on October 18. I ended up finding a yellow shirt at TJ Maxx on clearance so my sleep shirt stayed home and my new yellow shirt and I joined the hundreds of people peacefully protesting. I went to the first No Kings rally back in June so this was my second one. What I’ve observed from both are the wide spectrum of people from different backgrounds and ages. I saw young people, elderly people, veterans, people with dogs, people with kids and even people in wheelchairs who came out to exercise their First Amendment rights. I’m thankful the protests were peaceful. I was less thankful for the guy who gunned his pickup as he drove past to blow exhaust smoke in our faces, particularly as it blew into the face of an elderly woman in a wheelchair holding the American flag. But that was nothing compared to the hundreds of cars who drove by, honking their horns in support. 

One of my friends was vacationing in Hawaii at the time and attended a rally there. As she put it, “I’m not sure how much good these do but it’s nice to know we’re not alone.” I agree with her except I think they do a lot of good precisely because it lets each of us know we’re not alone. 

Lemon Brownies from 100K Recipes

Lemon Brownies - made October 17, 2025 from 100K Recipes 

1 cup unsalted butter

1 1/2 cups granulated sugar

zest of 1 lemon

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

4 large eggs

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

Glaze

1 cup powdered sugar

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

2 teaspoons lemon zest

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 9 x 13-inch baking pan with foil and lightly spray with nonstick cooking spray.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes.
3. Add lemon zest and lemon juice, mixing to combine.
4. Add eggs, one at a time, beating on low speed after each addition until just combined.
5. Add flour and salt; mix on low speed until just combined.
6. Pour into prepared pan and smooth into an even layer. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
7. In a small bowl, combine powdered sugar, lemon juice and lemon zest, whisking until combined into a thin glaze. Cover hot cake with glaze and let cool.

This was a failure. Again, probably not the recipe but the recipe user. Once again, I should've baked it longer. This time, the toothpick test and the recipe guidelines failed me. I baked it for 35 minutes but turns out it still wasn't done. It was a little too mushy for me. The flavor was good so it wasn't a complete failure. But this needed longer in the oven. Also, I wouldn't recommend spreading the glaze while the "brownie" is still hot. The glaze just melts right in and adds to the gumminess of the bar. Actually, if this had been chocolate, the texture would've been perfect and considered fudgy. But since it was lemon, I didn't care for the gumminess. It would've been better had I baked it longer.

Snickerdoodle Pumpkin Bread from Middle East Sector

Snickerdoodle Pumpkin Bread - made October 13, 2025 from Middle East Sector

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened

1 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup brown sugar, packed

2 large eggs

1 cup pumpkin puree

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Cinnamon Sugar Topping

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line 9 x 5 loaf pan with parchment paper and lightly spray with nonstick cooking spray.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger.
3. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together butter, granulated sugar and brown sugar until light and fluffy, 2-3 minutes.
4. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Mix in pumpkin puree and vanilla extract until combined.
5. Add dry ingredients in 2 additions, mixing on low speed after each addition, until just combined.
6. Pour half the batter into prepared loaf pan.
7. In a small bowl, combine topping ingredients, mixing until uniform. Sprinkle half the mixture over the batter in loaf pan and top with remaining batter. Sprinkle remaining topping in an even layer over batter. Gently swirl batter and topping with a butter knife, being careful not to overmix.
8. Bake 50-60 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Remove from oven and let cool in pan for 10 minutes before gently removing from loaf pan, lifting up using sides of parchment paper. Remove parchment paper and let loaf cool completely.

If a quick bread could be both a success and a failure, I nailed it with this recipe. The success part is largely due to the original blog coming up with the recipe itself as the flavor was very good, successfully combining pumpkin and cinnamon sugar to tease the taste buds.

The failure part was mine and mine alone. I'm baking in a new kitchen with a new oven at a higher altitude than I've baked in in awhile. Although honestly, I'm not sure how much the altitude has to do with it as I've baked successfully and unsuccessfully, sometimes with the same freaking recipe, at this altitude over the past few weeks. Huh. But I still own the failure part of this as I didn't bake it long enough. Y'all know my dire fear of overbaking things and ending up with dry baked goods. So I tend to err on the side of underbaking. In the case of this quick bread, the recipe said to bake it for 50-60 minutes. At the 50-minute mark, there was still raw batter on the toothpick test. At 60 minutes, the crumbs still looked a little too moist for comfort. At 65 minutes, I started to break out in nervous hives that it had been there "too long" but the toothpick test and poking the soft center didn't make me feel confident it was done. So I compromised by turning off the oven but left the loaf in for another 5 minutes. That's 70 minutes total baking time if anyone's keeping track.

Alas, the bread was still too underbaked. The ends were okay enough but the middle was too gummy. I should've done what I always tell people; baking times in a recipe are just guidelines and vary depending on your oven (and altitude). Go by the toothpick test and, more importantly, your gut. I will have to try this recipe again to do it justice as the flavor really was good. Now I just need the texture to live up to it and bake it properly.

And, because I still struggle writing these blog posts as if we aren't in the middle of a fascist takeover of our country, I have to put in a plug for the No Kings rallies happening across the country tomorrow, October 18. If you can, please go, assemble peacefully, find your community, build solidarity and exercise your First Amendment rights to free speech and peaceful assembly. There are several rallies in my (new) area and the one I officially RSVP'd for asked us to wear yellow.  I don't normally wear yellow (doesn't suit my coloring) but as it happens, I have an oversized shirt I normally use as a sleep shirt that's bright yellow and says "I just want to bake stuff and watch Christmas movies all day". My shirt does not lie. But, despite my introvert preferences, I will still show up for my community and my country. Tomorrow at a rally and every day after however I can. 

Pumpkin Sheet Cake with Browned Butter Frosting from Dear Crissy

Pumpkin Sheet Cake with Browned Butter Frosting - made September 26, 2025 from Dear Crissy

1 15-ounce can pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling)

2 cups granulated sugar

1 cup vegetable oil

4 eggs, lightly beaten

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking soda

1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon salt

Frosting

1/2 cup unsalted butter

4 cups powdered sugar

1/4 cup milk

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 9 x 13 baking pan with foil and lightly spray with nonstick cooking spray. 
2. In a medium bowl, stir together flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt; set aside.
3. In a mixing bowl, beat together pumpkin puree, granulated sugar and oil. Add the eggs and mix until well combined.
4. Add dry ingredients to the pumpkin mixture and beat until well combined. Pour into prepared pan. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove from oven and let cool.
5. Make the frosting: in a medium saucepan, melt butter and stir constantly until it foams, a nutty aroma arises and milk solid bits are browned. Remove from heat.
6. In a medium bowl, combine powdered sugar, milk and vanilla. Pour browned butter and beat until well combined. Pour into an even layer over cooled cake.

Just a quick write up as my life has taken a very busy turn that doesn't leave me much time for baking or blogging. The baking I've managed to fit in because I need baked goods for certain occasions but I haven't done much trying of new recipes and have stuck to tried and true ones instead.

And when I did try a new recipe like this one, I went with one that I was reasonably confident would turn out. Sheet cakes are easy to make and in general, turn out well. Such was the case with this recipe. It's fall and we've entered my favorite season of the year. Which means pumpkin. 

This turned out soft and fluffy/cakey. The brown butter frosting paired perfectly with the pumpkin flavor which also went well with the cinnamon. With the oil in the batter instead of butter, this is reminiscent of a carrot cake but without the effort of grating carrots. I liked this cake and baked it to share with several of my niece's friends. They liked it too as two of them asked for the recipe. I always maintain being asked for a recipe is the most sincere compliment someone can give. So make this cake and prepare to be sincerely complimented.

Chocolate Hazelnut Crunch Cookies from Emma's Cake Studio

Chocolate Hazelnut Crunch Cookies - made dough August 1, 2025 from Emma's Cake Studio 

1 1/2 cups (190 grams) hazelnuts, toasted and roughly chopped

1 cup (120 grams) all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons (15 grams) cocoa powder

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened

1/2 cup (100 grams) granulated sugar

1/2 cup (100 grams) brown sugar, packed

1 large egg

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Chocolate Coating

8 ounces semisweet or dark chocolate, chopped

1 tablespoon coconut oil or shortening, optional, for smoother coating

1/2 cup (60 grams) toasted hazelnuts, finely chopped, for topping

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spread hazelnuts in a single layer on a baking sheet and toast them in the oven for 10-12 minutes, stirring halfway through. Let cool then roughly chop. Set aside 1/2 cup for topping.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt.
3. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter, granulated sugar and brown sugar until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes.
4. Add egg and vanilla extract; beat until smooth and combined.
5. Add the dry ingredients in two additions, beating on low speed after each addition until just combined. Do not overmix. Fold in toasted hazelnuts.
6. Line baking sheets with parchment paper. Portion dough into golf-ball-size dough balls then gently flatten to thick discs.  Evenly space on baking sheets.
7. Bake 10-12 minutes or until edges are set. Remove from oven, let rest on baking sheet for a few minutes then transfer to wire rack to cool completely.
8. Coat the cookies: in a microwave-safe bowl, melt the chopped chocolate and coconut oil in 30-second intervals, stirring after each interval, until completely melted and smooth.
9. Dip each cooled cookie into the melted chocolate, fully coating. Place the dipped cookie on a wire rack or parchment paper.
10. While the chocolate is still wet, sprinkle each cookie with the reserved hazelnut bits. Let chocolate set at room temperature or place in refrigerator for faster setting.

If you want slightly fancy cookies, these are a good choice. Mine didn't spread thin exactly but they definitely weren't as rounded as the ones shown from the original blog, Emma's Cake Studio. Still, they baked into fairly thickly uniform discs.

I used good quality chocolate bars for the coating but in hindsight, I think I should've used chocolate chips so the coating would set more firmly. As it was, they were a little soft and I had to refrigerate the coated cookies to get the chocolate to set, especially in the summer heat.

Although these had hazelnuts in the cookie itself as well as garnished on top, surprisingly I liked the hazelnuts inside the cookie as well as on the outside. They added a nice crunch to the cookie. Usually my objection to nuts in cookies is they steam and soften during baking and I don't like their texture inside a cookie. But the hazelnuts retained their crunch aspect plus the cookie texture itself was more crisp (but not hard) rather than soft-chewy so that paired well. Be warned though that these are a little sweet. Add more hazelnuts to cut the sweetness.

Copycat California Pizza Kitchen Butter Cake from Simmer and Sage

Copycat California Pizza Kitchen Butter Cake - made August 1, 2025 from Simmer and Sage

1 cup unsalted butter

1 cup granulated sugar

2 ounces cream cheese, room temperature

1 large egg

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/4 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup all-purpose flour

Cheesecake Layer

3 ounces cream cheese, room temperature

3 tablespoons granulated sugar

1 large egg white

1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Lightly spray 6 ramekins with nonstick cooking spray.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter, granulated sugar and cream cheese until light and fluffy, 2-3 minutes.
3. Add egg, vanilla and salt; beat to combine.
4. Add flour and beat on low speed until just combined. Divide batter equally between the ramekins.
5. In a separate bowl, beat together cream cheese and granulated sugar until well combined. On low speed, beat in egg white and vanilla extract until combined and smooth.
6. Divide cheesecake batter equally between the ramekins, about a tablespoon on top of each ramekin.
7. Place ramekins on baking sheet and bake 40-50 minutes, until tops are golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs. Remove from oven and let cool for 10 minutes before releasing from ramekins. Serve warm with ice cream.

I love the butter cake from California Pizza Kitchen, even though I haven't had it in years. But I love how they serve it slightly warm, topped with vanilla ice cream. Plus I like the pound-cakey texture and flavor of the cake itself.

I'd been meaning to try a copycat version - any copycat version - for awhile and finally got around to it. Since I haven't had the real thing in years, I can't remember the original well enough to judge how good a copycat this is to it but I will say this is a pretty good cake on its own.

I did underbake it accidentally by a few minutes. I say accidentially as the toothpick test fooled me into thinking the cake was done when the toothpick came out clean. But as with most cakes with a high butter content, sometimes the toothpick test doesn't work. This could've used a few more minutes in the oven. Still, the flavor of buttery goodness with a slight tang from the cream cheese was pretty delicious. Because it could've used a few more minutes in the oven, the texture was a bit soft. But, overall, I'm glad I found this recipe and know how to bake it properly for next time.

Sourdough Discard Chocolate Cookies from Dirt and Dough

Sourdough Discard Chocolate Cookies - made dough July 30, 2025 from Dirt and Dough

1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup brown sugar, packed

1 cup sourdough discard, 100% hydration and unfed

1 large egg

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup cocoa powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup mini semisweet chocolate chips (I used toffee bits)

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together butter, granulated sugar and brown sugar on medium speed until well combined, light and fluffy, 2-3 minutes.
2. Add sourdough discard and mix until well combined, scraping down sides and bottom of bowl to keep mixture even textured.
3. Add egg and vanilla extract, mixing until just combined. Do not overmix.
4. In a separate bowl, stir together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt. Add  to butter mixture in 3 additions, mixing on low speed until just combined after each addition and no floury streaks remain. Fold in chocolate chips.
5. Cover and chill briefly (30 minutes) before portioning into golf-ball size dough balls. Cover dough balls and chill another 2-3 hours or overnight.
6. When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper. Evenly space dough balls on prepared baking sheets. Bake 13-14 minutes or until edges are set and middles no longer look shiny or raw.
7. Remove from oven and let rest on baking sheets for several minutes before transferring to wire rack to cool completely.m

Yes, I'm still keeping my sourdough starter alive (at least at the time I made these) by using the discard in various recipes. 

This one made for cakey chocolate cookies. Cakey isn't my favorite when it comes to cookie textures. I like them chewy, dense, chewy-dense but not really cakey.

Not much of a tang from the sourdough but the discard did make the dough rather sticky. I froze the dough balls first but they still weren't super-hard when frozen. They spread a bit but I did the swirling trick to make them smaller, dense and more uniform in appearance.

I didn't have mini chocolate chips and only a handful of regular chocolate chips so I emptied the remaining half a bag of toffee bits into the dough instead. That worked well enough to add a little sweetness and crunch to the cookies.

Soft and Chewy Rolo Cookies from Sweetest Menu

Soft and Chewy Rolo Cookies - made dough July 30, 2025, modified from Sweetest Menu 

1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly

1/2 cup (90 grams) brown sugar

1/4 cup (50 grams) granulated sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 large egg

1 1/2 cups (210 grams) all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

pinch of salt, optional

1/2 cup dark or milk chocolate, chopped

1 cup Rolos, roughly chopped, plus extra for garnishing tops of cookies

1. Stir together melted butter, brown sugar, granulated sugar, vanilla extract and egg until well combined.
2. Add flour, baking soda and salt, if using, and stir until soft dough forms.
3. Fold in chopped chocolate and Rolos.
4. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
5. Portion into dough balls, cover and chill or freeze for several more hours or overnight.
6. When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper and evenly space dough balls. Bake 9 - 10 minutes or until edges are set and middles no longer look raw. Remove from oven and gently press Rolo halves over tops of cookies. Let rest on baking sheets for 5-10 minutes then transfer to wire rack to cool completely.

Despite the title of these cookies, I didn't use Rolos. Instead I "stuffed" them with Sanders Milk Chocolate Sea Salt caramels that I got from Costco. I love those things. I can't eat more than one in one sitting but I love them. Which means the Costco jar lasts me a long time if I don't use them in baking.

They seemed perfect to use for these cookies as they're far superior to Rolos. I made the dough and formed flat discs of small dough balls to flatten and form around each caramel. Make sure to pinch the seams closed and roll into a ball so caramel doesn't risk leaking out during baking. The dough is a little soft so I recommend freezing them first before baking.

I liked these cookies. The cookie itself is similar to a chipless chocolate chip cookie or a brown sugar cookie and you can't go wrong with stuffing it with a milk chocolate covered caramel. It's deceptively simple but makes for a nice bite-sized treat. Don't make the cookies too big as you want the caramel square inside to be the main feature and with just enough cookie surrounding it to provide a surprise in that first bite.