Dessert

Excellent graham cracker crust for pies (such as pumpkin pie). The toasted nuts are optional. Modified from source. Source http://www.joyofbaking.com/GrahamCrackerTartsWithCreamFilling.html Notes A little bourbon flavor often goes well with pie fillings such Pumpkin Pie. Add about 3 to 4 tablespoons and perhaps an additional 1 to 2 graham crackers. Ingredients 80 grams (5 to 6 tablespoons) unsalted butter, melted 125 grams (1 ¼ cups) graham crackers 30 grams (2 tablespoons) granulated white sugar 40 grams (¼ cup) toasted nuts (pecans, walnuts) Method Toast Nuts If using toasted nuts: ...

Deeply chocolaty, moist cake with a nice crumb. Makes two 9" rounds. Goes very well with Cherry Cream Cheese Frosting. Source http://www.joyofbaking.com/ChocolateButterCake.html Special Equipment Two 9" round cake pans Parchment paper Stand Mixer Preheat Oven Preheat oven to 350° F Ingredients 120 grams unsweetened chocolate, chopped 30 grams unsweetened cocoa powder 1 cup boiling water 295 grams all purpose flour 2 teaspoons baking powder 1 teaspoon baking soda ¼ teaspoon salt 226 grams unsalted butter, room temperature 400 grams granulated white sugar 3 large eggs 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract 1 cup (240 ml) milk Preparation Prepare Cake Pans Butter two 9" round cake pans. Cut to fit a single sheet of parchment for each of the rounds; affix to the inside bottom of buttered pans. Butter the parchment. Lightly flour; shake out any loose residue. Melt Chocolate In a heatproof bowl, combine chopped unsweetened chocolate and cocoa powder. Add 1 cup boiling water. Whisk till smooth. Set aside; cool to room temperature. Combine Dry Ingredients In a medium sized bowl, sift or whisk together: ...

This cake, thought to have first appeared in the 1920s, has had such names as pineapple glacé and pineapple skillet cake. Info yield: Serves 8 active time: 30 min total time: 1 ¼ hours Source: http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Pineapple-Upside-Down-Cake-103088 Special Equipment A well-seasoned 10-inch cast-iron skillet Electric Mixer Preheat Oven Preheat oven to 350°F Ingredients Topping ½ medium pineapple, peeled, quartered lengthwise, and cored ¾ stick unsalted butter ¾ cup packed light brown sugar Batter 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour 2 to 3 teaspoons ground cardamom 2 teaspoons baking powder ¼ teaspoon salt ¾ stick unsalted butter, softened 1 cup granulated sugar 2 large eggs 1 teaspoon vanilla 1 tablespoon dark rum ½ cup unsweetened pineapple juice 2 tablespoons dark rum for sprinkling over cake Preparation Topping Cut pineapple crosswise into 3/8-inch-thick pieces. Melt butter in skillet. Add brown sugar and simmer over moderate heat, stirring, 4 minutes. Remove from heat. Arrange pineapple on top of sugar mixture in concentric circles, overlapping pieces slightly. Batter In a medium bowl, Sift together flour cardamom baking powder salt In a large bowl, using an electric mixer: Beat butter until light and fluffy. Gradually beat in granulated sugar. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla and rum. Add half of flour mixture and beat on low speed just until blended. Beat in pineapple juice Add remaining flour mixture, beating just until blended. (Batter may appear slightly curdled.) Spoon batter over pineapple topping and spread evenly. Bake Bake cake in middle of oven until golden and a tester comes out clean, about 45 minutes. Let cake stand in skillet 5 minutes. Presentation Invert a plate over skillet and invert cake onto plate (keeping plate and skillet firmly pressed together). Replace any pineapple stuck to bottom of skillet. Sprinkle rum over cake and cool on plate on a rack. Serve cake just warm or at room temperature. Notes Some of the food editors found 3 teaspoons of cardamom to be too much, but others loved the intense flavor. Cake may be made 1 day ahead and chilled, covered. Bring to room temperature before serving.

This is an old “easy recipe” which is deliciously deadly. Eat with care. The “Cherry Pineapple” rendition is just one way this cake can be prepared; the basic recipe can be altered to use any flavor of cake mix with any variety of canned fruits. Special Equipment 9x13" Cake Pan Preheat Oven Preheat oven to 350°F. Ingredients 1 can cherry pie filling 1 can crush pineapple, in natural juice ½ cup chilled butter, cut into half tablespoon pieces 1 packaged yellow cake mix Preparation Grease a 9x13" cake pan. Dump cherry pie filling into cake pan. Dump crushed pineapple (including juice) into cake pan. Stir to combine cherries and pineapples; spread evenly. Dump yellow cake mix atop fruits; spread evenly. Evenly distribute butter pieces over top of cake. Bake Bake 45 minutes or until cake mix is golden brown. Variations Strawberry pie filling with chocolate cake mix

This is mom’s classic apple cobbler recipe. Info Recipe by: Cheryl Sigler Preparation time: 30 minutes Cook time: 2 ½ hours Equipment 9x13x2" Baking dish Two recipes Pâte Brisée Preheat Oven Preheat oven to 425°F Ingredients 10 pounds Granny Smith Apples: Peeled, Cored, Sliced 2 cups Sugar ½ cup All Purpose Flour 2 tablespoons Cinnamon 1 tablespoon Nutmeg 1 tablespoon Allspice ½ cup Butter 4 Pie Crusts Pâte Brisée Preparation Line a deep 9x13x2" baking dish with two pie crusts. Combine all ingredients (adding spices to taste) and pour onto pie crusts. Cut butter into 8 pieces; drop pieces over mixture. Top mixture with the remaining pie crusts. Cut vents in top of crust Top with additional sugar & spice mixture Bake Cover with heavy foil and bake 2 ½ hours. Remove foil and bake another 30 minutes.

Patricia Ku’s famous “Deep Sea Salad” Special Equipment 8x8x2" cake pan Blender Ingredients 1 package Orange Jello 4 cups Water, boiling 2 ½ cups Mini Marshmallows 1 cup Heavy Cream 8 ounces Cream Cheese ½ cup Mayonnaise 1 package Lime Jello Preparation Combine orange jello with 2 cups boiling water. Stir 2 minutes; pour into blender. Add into blender; process until smooth mini marshmallows heavy cream cream cheese mayonnaise Pour into an 8x8 cake pan. Refrigerate overnight. Combine lime jello with 2 cups boiling water, stir 2 minutes. Cool to room temperature. Pour over refrigerated mixture. Refrigerate until set.

Mom’s mythical ice cream; not for those on a diet or fearful of egg-borne bacteria. Special Equipment Ice Cream Freezer Ingredients 8 to 12 eggs (higher egg content yields a more rich tasting final product) 24 fl. oz. (2 large cans) of evaporated milk 3 cups sugar Pinch of table salt 2 teaspoons vanilla Whole Milk, to fill freezer Preparation In a large bowl, combine eggs & sugar. Add vanilla and evaporated milk, stir well. Pour into ice cream freezer. Fill freezer with whole milk to the “full line”, stirring mixture while adding milk. Add in additions as desired: can of chocolate syrup, strawberries, pineapple, etc. Freeze Freeze ice cream per manufacturer’s directions.

This is a rich, dense caramel candy which require the simultaneous effort of two people, a lot of sweat, a lot of elbow grease and a highly durable electric mixer. Info Recipe dictated by: Cheryl Sigler Special Equipment 9" cast-iron (or heavy) skillet 1 ½ gallon heavy bottom pot Heavy duty electric mixer 9x13" baking pan 2 people Ingredients 6 cups Sugar 2 cups Milk ¼ teaspoon Baking Soda ½ cup Butter 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract Preparation Butter the Using a cast-iron skillet Slowly heat 2 cups sugar stirring constantly with a wooden spoon until caramelized. Using a heavy bottom pot While the sugar is caramelizing, boil milk and remaining 4 cups sugar. Combine Reduce milk mixture to a slow boil and insert a candy thermometer. Slowly pour caramelized sugar, in a thing thread, while beating constantly, into milk mixture. Boil until firm ball stage (250°F) Remove From Heat Remove from heat. Add baking soda, beat well. Add butter, beat well. Pour into mixer bowl Cool for 20 minutes, or until you can touch the side of the pot with your bare hand. Pour mixture into electric mixer bowl. Add vanilla. Beat on medium/high speed until mixture takes on a heavy dull appearance. Pour into buttered pan.

This is the final product of many, many test cheesecakes. Special Equipment 10" Spring-form Pan Preheat Oven Preheat to 325°F Ingredients 1 ¼ cups Graham Cracker Crumbs 1 tablespoon Sugar 3 tablespoons Butter, melted 1/3 cup Heavy Cream 2 pounds Cream Cheese, room temperature 1 1/3 cups Sugar 4 Eggs 2 tablespoons All Purpose Flour 2 tablespoons Lemon Zest Preparation Crust Melt butter in a bowl. Combine and add to butter Graham cracker crumbs 1 tablespoon sugar Press mixture into a 10" spring-form pan. Bake for 8 minutes, then cool. Increase oven temperature to 400°F. Filling Beat cream cheese and sugar till smooth. Add eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition until smooth. Add the remaining ingredients, wisk until smooth. Pour filling into spring-form pan. Bake For best results, use a water bath. At minimum a bowl full of water should be placed on the lower oven rack to provide humidity. ...

I first made this recipe to frost a double-layer 9" round chocolate cake. This recipe produced enough frosting to top each of the rounds (filling between the two rounds, plus the top). If it is desired to fill & frost both the sides and top, the recipe could be doubled. Depending on the strength of the flavor of the cherry preserves, you may need more or less. Also, due to the varying consistencies of various preserves, more or less confectioners’ sugar may be needed. Ultimately, the finial consistency of the icing is up to the chef and the intended use. ...