What's Cooking

Chess Pie

1/2 c sugar
1 T flour
1 T cornmeal
1/2 c butter
4 eggs
3/4 c milk
1 t vanilla

**Substitute brown sugar for a taste more like pecan pie.**

Preheat oven to 350.

Mix first 3 ingredients and cream in butter, add eggs and beat. Add milk and vanilla, beat again. Bake 45-60 minutes, shake occasionally.

Never-Fail Pie Crust

3 c white flour
1 c whole wheat flour
1 T sugar
1-3/4 c shortening
2 t salt
1 egg
1 T vinegar
1/2 c water

Mix these together dry ingredients and shortening.  Add wets, refrigerate 15 minutes, then prepare.

My Favorite Chocolate Pie

1 pie crust (baked, done.)
2/3 c sugar
1/4 c cornstarch
1/8 t salt
6 egg yolks
2-1/2 c milk
4 oz semisweet
4 oz bittersweet chcolate
12 oz whipped cream

Prepare piecrust and bake.
Whisk sugar, cornstarch and salt in saucepan.
Whisk yolks and milk and add to sugar mixture, whisking until smooth. Boil over medium heat, whisking constantly. Boil 1 minute and remove from heat. Stir in chocolate and whisk until melted and smooth.
Pour into crust. Cover and chill 4 hours.
Top with whipped cream before serving and garnish with cocoa powder, chocolate curls, etc.

Pie Crust Tips

Buy and use a pie crust bag.
Never add hot fillings to unbaked crusts.
Bake pies on low oven racks, with a cookie sheet underneath to catch drips.
Brush unbaked crust with egg white before filling.

Captain's Chocolate Pie

Unbaked pie crust
3/4 c brown sugar
1/2 c sugar
3 eggs
1/2 c butter
1/2 c flour
1 c chocolate chips

Combine sugars and eggs, add melted butter. Add flour. Stir in chocolate chips.
Pour into crust and bake 35-40 minutes, until center is set.
Let cool 30 minutes. Serve with vanilla ice cream and caramel topping.

Triple Chocolate Pie

Oreo crust
20 large chocolate marshmallows
1/2 c milk
8 oz semisweet chocolate
16 oz chocolate whipped cream

Combine marshmallows and milk in saucepan on low heat, stirring constantly until marshmallows are melted.

Remove from heat and add chocolate, stirring until melted and smooth. Let cool 5 minutes.
Stir in 8 oz of whipped cream and spoon into crust. Cover and refrigerate 8 hours. Spread remaining whipped cream over pie before serving.

Malted Chocolate Cheesecake

1 15-oz box of malt balls
1-1/2 c chocolate graham crumbs
1/2 c butter

1/2 c butter
12 oz semisweet chocolate
4 8-oz cream cheese
1-1/2 c sugar
1 c malt powder
2 T cocoa
4 eggs
16 oz sour cream

Preheat oven to 300.
Food process malt balls until finely ground, add cracker crumbs and butter. Press into bottom of  and up sides of 10-inch springform. Bake 6 min.

Combine butter and chocolate and microwave on high about 1.5 min in 30 second intervals, stirring in between, til chocolate is melted. Cool slightly.

Combine cream cheese, sugar, malt powder and cocoa. Beat at medium speed until fluffy. Beat in eggs, stir in chocolate mixture and sour cream. Pour into prepared crust and bake 1 hour and 15 min. Turn oven off and leave in oven with door closed for 4 hours. Remove from oven and run a knife around edges to release crust from sides of pan. Cool completely, refrigerate at least 8 hours befor serving.

Top with malted whipped cream, (below,) and malt balls or crushed malt balls.

Malted whipped cream
2 c cream
1/2 c malt powder

Beat cream until slightly thickened, gradually add powder and beat until soft peaks form.

Chocolate Explosion Cheesecake

Oreo crust for 9-inch springform

6 oz semisweet chocolate
6 T butter
1/2 c sugar
2 eggs
2 T flour

1/2 c caramel topping
16 oz package chocolate chip cookie dough
16 oz cream cheese
3/4 c sugar
3 eggs
 1 t vailla
1 T flour
1/2 c sour cream

3 oz semisweet chocolate
2 T cream

Prepare crust and bake 6 minutes.

Combine butter and chocolate and microwave 1.5 min at 30-second intervals, stirring between. Whisk in sugar, eggs and flour. Pour into crust. Bake 15 minutes, cool.

Spread caramel topping over chocolate layer.  Cut cookie dough crosswise into 1-inch slices. Place in an even layer over caramel.

Beat cream cheese and sugar at medium. add eggs. Beat in vanilla dna flour. Stir in sour cream. Pour over cookie dough and bake 1 hour. Remove from oven and run knife around edges of pan. Cool completley.

Combine chocolate and cream and microwave on high 1 min at 30-second interval, stirring between. Spread over cooled cheesecake. Refrigerate at least 8 hours.

Chocolate Silk Pie

2 c chocolate cookie crumbs
¼ c unsalted butter
3 eggs
1/3 c sugar
10 oz semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
6 T unsalted butter
¼ c cream
1 t vanilla
1 c whipped cream

In a medium bowl, stir together cookie crumbs and melted butter, press into bottom and up the sides of a 9-inch tart pan with removable bottom. Bake in a 350 oven for 10 minutes. Cool.

In large, heatproof mixer bowl, whisk together eggs and 1/3 c sugar. Place bowl over saucepan of simmering water. Whisk constantly about 12 minutes or until an instant-read thermometer inserted in egg mixture registers 160. Remove from heat and beat with a stand mixer on high speed for 3 minutes.

Meanwhile, combine chocolate and 6 T butter. Place over simmering water, stir until melted and smooth. Beat into egg mixture until smooth.  Beat in ¼ c cream and vanilla. Spread evenly in crust. Cover surface with plastic wrap and chill up to 24 hours.

Before serving, dollop with whipped cream, garnish with chocolate curls.

Wish Pie

1 bag dove dark minis
1 bag 3 musketeer minis
1 piecrust
Flour for dusting
½ c sugar
1/3 c cornstarch
1/4 t salt
3 c milk
4 egg yolks
1 T warm water
2 c whipped cream
Chocolate curls

Preheat oven to 400.  Chop enough dove minis to get 2 c.

Make, bake and cool piecrust.

In saucepan, whisk sugar, cornstarch, salt. Whisk in milk. Cook over medium-high heat, whisking constantly, until boiling. Cook 1 minute more, remove from heat.

Whisk yolks in medium bowl, then whisk in ½ c hot milk mixture to yolks, return egg yolk mixture to saucepan with remaining milk mixture and return to heat, lowering to medium low and cooking 2 minutes, whisking constantly. Remove from heat. Add chopped dove minis. Stir until smooth and all is melted.

Pour mixture into cooled piecrust. Cover with plastic wrap and chill 4 hours or until set.

Unwrap and chop 1 c of 3 musketeer minis and sprinkle around outer edge of pie. Spoon whipped cream on top and spread to edges.

Garnish with chocolate curls.