Desserts

Monday, March 19, 2007

Dove Girl Brownies

Hello
Easiest brownies in the entire world and so good you might want to double batch in-case you eat half the batter.

4 eggs
2tsp vanilla
2 cups sugar
1 cup butter (2 sticks)
1 cup walnuts (optional)
1 cup flour
2 cups mini-mellows
4 squares of unsweetened chocolate
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

1. Beat eggs until thick and lemon colored (I just guess!). Add sugar gradually, continuing to beat.

2. Melt butter, chocolate chips, squares together over a double boiler (or microwave… it’s easier!)

3. Add mixture with vanilla to egg mixture (nuts if used) and fold in flour- stir together.

4. Place in greased pan

5. Bake for ~30 min @ 350

(top secret family recipe so don’t give it out :D)

Saturday, January 20, 2007

Black Forest Brownies

Trust me. It tastes better than it looks.

I’m a pretty crappy baker.  Mostly because I tend to treat recipes as a jumping off point for improvization.  Unfortunately, baking takes no truck with people who wing it.  The sheer number of failed cakes, resolutely reclining souffles and other atrocities prove that I have no business creating any baked goods. I’ve had some good luck with brownies lately judging by the lack of complaints and Emergency Room visits from my food testing lab rats co-workers.

Oh… kinda funny story here. As I was buying sour cream for the topping (the stuff I had on hand had passed it’s expiration a good 2 1/2 years ago), a little kid looked at me with total disgust and said “Yuk! Why do you want to buy cream if it’s already sour?” Also if anyone has recipes for drinks made using kirschwasser that don’t taste worse than an unwashed urinal mint*, would you mind sharing them? I have an entire bottle of it that I don’t have any idea what to do with.

1 Cup All-purpose Flour
1/2 tsp Salt
3/4 Cup Butter
1/2 Cup Unsweetened cocoa
2 Tbs Kirsch (optional)
1 3/4 Cups Sugar, divided
3 tsp Vanilla extract, divided
4 large Eggs, beaten
3/4 Cup Dried cherries
1 Tub Sour cream (16 oz)

Preheat oven to 350; grease a 13” x 9” baking pan. Whisk flour and salt together in a small bowl.

Melt butter over low heat in a large saucepan, then remove from heat. Whisk in cocoa until smooth. Add kirsch, 1 1/2 cups sugar, and 2 teaspoons of the vanilla. Continue whisking until all liquid is mixed in, then add the beaten eggs. Keep whisking until combined.  Add flour and stir with a spatula until well blended. Toss in teh dried cherries and mix them in as well.

Pour batter into pan and spread evenly.  Bake about 20-25 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out fairly clean.

While the brownie is baking, combine the sour cream, the remaining 1/4 cup sugar and 1 teaspoon of vanilla.  Spread topping onto the brownie and put back into the oven for a bout 5 more minutes, or until the topping is set.

Cool on a wire rack and garnish with chopped semi-sweet chocolate if desired. 

* The only drink recipe on the bottle’s label called for 1 oz kirsch and 1 oz gin over ice and topping it off with grapefruit juice.

Vile.

Absolutely vile.

Tuesday, January 02, 2007

Derby-ish Pie

An adaptation of the traditional Derby Pie served at Derby Parties. Best served with coffee rather than a mint julep, but that's up to you.

For Crust:
1 1/2 cups flour
1 Tbsp sugar
1/2 Tbsp salt
6 Tbsp cold butter, cut into small pieces
2 Tbsp cold shortening, cut into small pieces

For filling
1 Cup sugar
6 Tbsp flour
8 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted
2 eggs
1 1/2 tsp bourbon or vanilla extract
1 cup pecans or walnuts, coarsely chopped
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips.

For the crust:
Sift flour, sugar and salt together into a mixing bowl. Work butter and shortening into flour with a pastry cutter or two knives until it takes on a coarse, mealy texture. Sprinkle in up to 4 Tbsp ice water, stirring with a fork until it just starts to hold together. Press dough inot a ball, then transfer to a floured surface. Knead dough several times, roll it into a ball, then flatten into a disk. dust with flour, wrap in plastic and toss in the fridge for an hour.

Preehat oven to 325. Remove dough from fridge and allow to come to room temperature before rolling out into an 11 inch round. Lay dough into bottom of a 9 inch pie pan, crimping the edges. Prick the bottom lightly all over.

For filling:
Combine sugar and flour in a medium bowl and mix together. stir in butter and eggs; mixing till it reaches a creamy consistancy. Stir in whiskey, then add chopped nuts and chocolate chips and mix well. Pour filling into pie crust and bake till crust is golden and filling is set, about 50 to 60 minutes. The filling will create a light crust over the top of the pie.

Allow to cool a bit before serving. May be served cold, but if served while slightly warm, you'll get the full benefit of the gooey filling and melted chocolate.

Saturday, October 07, 2006

Grandma’s Easy Rice Pudding

2 c. cooked rice
1/2 c. sugar
2 eggs, slightly beaten
2 c. milk
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1/4 c. raisins
1/2 tsp. powdered cinnamon

Place rice in bowl, add all ingredients, stir to mix. Pour into greased baking dish or pan. Bake about 25 minutes in a 350 degree oven.

Friday, July 28, 2006

Cuban Bread Pudding Café con Leche Venezuelan Rum Sauce

Chocolate is made from the beans of a beautiful tropical plant with a suggestive name, Theobroma cacao - The Food of the Gods. Cacao grows in humid, warm forests around the world sheltered by a canopy of taller trees.

A mature tree will bear between twenty to forty pods a year. Each pod contains from twenty to forty almond shaped beans enveloped by a mucilaginous ivory tinged substance with a delicious tart flavor. Depending on the variety, a cacao tree will produce between one to three kilos of dried beans per year.

The Spanish conquistadors were fascinated by the hearty chocolate beverages they found in the lands of the Maya and the Aztecs. Their detailed accounts contributed to association of cacao with Mexico. Yet the birthplace of cacao is South America.

El Rey's couvertures are manufactured with the famed Carenero bean, a regional type of cacao that grows east of Caracas. Since the colonial period, the Carenero has been renowned for its complex flavor notes of fruit, flower, nut, and spice, and intense chocolate taste. The Carenero line is composed of five all-purpose presentations flavored with natural vanilla, and is complemented by our white chocolate made only with pure cacao butter:

Gran Saman Dark Chocolate 70%
Apamate Dark Chocolate 73.5%
Bucare Dark Chocolate 58.5%
Mijao Dark Chocolate 61%
Caoba Milk Chocolate 41%
ICOA White Chocolate

Cuban Bread Pudding, Café con Leche, Venezuelan Rum Sauce

Ingredients:

YIELD = one 2-inch hotel pan
SERVINGS = (36) 5 oz. portions
SPECIAL EQUIPMENT : One 18-inch by 12-inch by 2-inch hotel pan.

14 1/2 oz. Cuban or Italian bread
24 Oz. El Rey Bucare Dark 58.5% Chocolate
6 oz. butter, unsalted
6 oz. cashews
1 cup (7 oz.) black raisins
1 cup aged Venezuelan rum (or Bacardi premium Black)
5 cups milk
2 14-oz. cans sweetened condensed milk
4 cups Cuban-style Espresso (or any dark espresso)
2 tablespoons anise seed
8 cinnamon sticks
12 whole allspice berries
1 pinch of salt
10 large eggs
4 egg yolks
2 tablespoons vanilla extract
2 teaspoons almond extract

Caramel - Yield = Caramelizes on hotel pan

2 cups sugar
1/2 cup water
Place sugar and water in saucepan and cook until golden caramel color. Pour into hotel pan.
Allow to set.

Instructions:

Bread Pudding

Prepare caramel coated hotel pan.

Slice bread into 1-1 1/2 inch cubes. Chop chocolate and place into a large bowl with the unsalted butter.
Chop cashews, coarsely. Presoak raisins in a bowl with rum. Set all aside.

Place milk, sweetened condensed milk, espresso, anise seed, cinnamon sticks, whole allspice berries into a pot and bring to a boil. Lower to simmer and allow to simmer/steep for approximately 10- 15 minutes.

Strain steeped milk mixture into chopped chocolate. Whisk to combine.
Whisk eggs, yolks, vanilla and almond extracts together.
Mix warm milk/chocolate mixture with eggs. Whisk eggs/milk/chocolate back into larger chocolate bowl.

Add the cubed bread, soaked raisins, and cashews to custard mixture (about 16 cups of custard mixture.)
Allow to soak for one hour or until the bread has absorbed the liquid.
Mash with a fork or potato masher to break large pieces of bread crust.
Pour into hotel pan and place into 350 degree oven for 35 minutes.

Note: The custard temperature at the time it is placed in the oven should be about 105 degrees. The temperature of the finished product should range between 175 -180 degrees.

Café con Leche Sauce: Yield = 30 fluid oz. (Serving per individual portion of pudding about two oz.)

14 fluid oz. of sweetened condensed milk
1 cup Cuban Espresso or dark coffee
1/2 cup aged Venezuelan rum (or Bacardi Premium Black)
1/2 cup heavy cream, reduced
Mix sweetened condensed milk, espresso and rum and heat in a small saucepan. Do not boil. Add heavy cream.
Stir and cool to serve.

Monday, February 06, 2006

Double Chocolate Raspberry Pudding

View image

Yield: 2

Ingredients:

Double Chocolate Raspberry Pudding

1/2 cup sugar (125 ml)
1/2 tsp salt (2 ml)
4 tbsp unsweetened cocoa (60 ml)
1 1/2 tbsp cornstarch (22 ml)
2 tbsp warm whole milk (30 ml)
1 cup heavy cream (250 ml)
1 oz semisweet chocolate, grated (28 g)
1 oz white chocolate, grated (28 g)
Splash of Chambord (raspberry liqueur)
1/2 tbsp vanilla extract (7 ml)

Directions:

Double Chocolate Raspberry Pudding

Mix together the sugar, salt, cocoa, cornstarch and milk in a small bowl until it makes a paste.

Heat the cream in a small saucepan until just before scalding, then add the dark and white chocolate, stir, and add the cocoa paste. Mix well and bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Add the Chambord and the vanilla. When the pudding begins to thicken, remove it from the heat and let it rest for 2 minutes.

Pour into temperature-resistant bowls or ramekins and refrigerate until set (at least 30 minutes). Let cool before serving.

Thursday, February 02, 2006

Rosewater Rice Pudding

Yield: 6

Ingredients:

Rice Pudding

1 1/2 cups whole milk
1 x 14 oz tin coconut milk
3/4 cup jasmine or basmati rice
1 cup sugar
6 whole green cardamom pods
2 cinnamon sticks
1 tbsp rose water

Topping

2 tbsp water
2 tbsp sugar
2 cups sliced strawberries
1/2 cup shelled pistachios, roughly chopped
1 tsp rose water
1/2 tsp ground pink peppercorns

Directions:

Rice Pudding

Bring milk, coconut milk, rice and sugar up to a simmer. Lightly crush cardamom pods with a knife and add to rice with cinnamon sticks. Simmer uncovered, stirring often, until reduced by half, about 40 minutes. Remove cardamom and cinnamon. Stir in rose water and chill.

Topping

Heat water and sugar to dissolve and allow to cool. Toss strawberries and pistachios in syrup and stir in rosewater and pink peppercorns. Spoon topping over each serving of rice pudding.

Tuesday, January 31, 2006

Peppered Espresso Biscotti with Espresso Granita

Yield: 22

This recipe makes a delectable biscotti, that is easier to chew than the usual hard as nails biscotti. Fear not - these are just as dunkable! For a double hit of expresso, serve refreshing Espresso Granita with biscotti on the side.
Ingredients:

Peppered Espresso Biscotti

1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup dark brown sugar
2 eggs
1/8 cup strong espresso
1 tbsp vanilla extract
2 2/3 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 tsp ground black pepper
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup pine nuts, toasted

Espresso Granita

3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup water
1 1/2 tbsp cocoa powder
5 cups strong espresso brewed coffee

Directions:

To Assemble

PEPPERED ESPRESSO BISCOTTI: Preheat oven to 350° F. Beat butter with sugars until pale and fluffy. Add eggs and blend well. Stir espresso into vanilla . In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking powder, black pepper, cinnamon and salt. Add to butter mixture and mix until blended. Stir in pine nuts. Shape cookie dough into 2 logs and place on a parchment-lined baking tray leaving 3 inches between them. Press lightly with palm of hand to flatten slightly. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until tops are rich golden colour.

Reduce oven temperature to 325° F. While still warm, slice 1/2-inch biscotti on the bias of the loaves and place back on the baking sheet. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes until lightly browned around the edges. Biscotti will firm up further as they cool. Yield: approximately 2 dozen biscotti.

ESPRESSO GRANITA: Simmer sugar, water and cocoa powder for 5 minutes and remove from heat. Stir in coffee and pour into a shallow container and cool to room temperature. Freeze for 1 hour, then stir to distribute crystallizing particles. Put back in freezer and stir 2 more times before frozen solid.

To serve, scrape granules up with a fork and scoop into a glass. Serve with biscotti on the side. Yield: 6 servings.

Monday, November 08, 2004

Jello Salad

1 large box cherry Jello (regular and sugar-free both work well)
1 can Mandarin oranges
1 apple, chopped (do not peel)
1 can whole cranberry sauce
1 can crushed pineapple (do not drain)
1/2 cup nuts (optional, I use walnuts)

Prepare the Jello according to the package directions. Put in the refrigerator and allow to thicken slightly. Stir in the remaining ingredients and refrigerate for a couple of hours (overnight is best.)

Peanut Brittle

2 cups sugar
1 cup light corn syrup (dark will taste funny)
1 cup water
1 cup raw peanuts
1/2 tsp. salt
2T butter
2 tsp. baking soda

Heat sugar, corn syrup, and water over medium heat to the soft ball stage (234? F). Add peanuts when the temperature reaches 250? F. Continue cooking, stirring constantly, to the hard crack stage (290? F), and remove from heat. Quickly stir in the butter and baking soda, and beat until frothy. Pour onto buttered cookie sheets to cool.

Rum Balls

2 1/2 cups crushed vanilla wafers
1 cup crushed walnuts
2T cocoa
3T dark corn syrup
1/4 cup rum*
1 cup powdered sugar

Mix all ingredients except powdered sugar in a bowl. Roll mixture into bite-sized balls, and roll each in powdered sugar. *You can substitute Frangelico, Amaretto, or Kahlua for the rum.

Thursday, September 23, 2004

Caramel Pecan Brownies

4 squares unsweetened baking chocolate
1-1/2 sticks butter or margarine
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
1 cup flour
1 bag caramels (about 50)
1/3 cup whipping cream
2 cups pecan halves, divided

Preheat oven to 350?F. Line 13x9-inch baking pan with foil, with ends of foil extending over sides of pan to form handles. Generously grease foil.

Microwave unsweetened chocolate and butter in large microwavable bowl on HIGH 2 minutes or until butter is melted. Stir until chocolate is completely melted. Stir in sugar until well blended. Add eggs; mix well. Stir in flour until well blended. Spread half of the batter into prepared pan.

Bake 25 minutes or until top is firm to the touch.

Meanwhile, microwave caramels and cream in microwavable bowl on HIGH 2 minutes or until caramels begin to melt. Stir until caramels are completely melted. Stir in 1 cup of the pecan halves.
Spread caramel mixture evenly over brownie; top with remaining brownie batter. Sprinkle with remaining 1 cup pecan halves.

Bake an additional 30 minutes or until brownie feels firm to the touch. Cool in pan on wire rack. Remove brownie from pan; cut into 32 squares.

Wednesday, March 03, 2004

Chocolate-Almond Fondue

2 - 7 oz. bars milk chocolate, broken into pieces
3 oz. white baking bar, chopped
1 - 7 oz. jar marshmallow cream
3/4 cup whipping cream (or half-and-half)
1/4 cup finely chopped almonds, toasted
3 T amaretto (optional)
Pound cake cubes or cut-up fruit

Combine chocolate, white baking bar, marshmallow cream, whipping cream, and almonds in a crock pot and cook on low for two to two and a half hours, stirring occasionally. When it's heated throughout and smooth, add the amaretto and serve immediately.

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