What's Cooking

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.

Chocolate Cream Pie

1 12-oz box of chocolate wafers
7 T unsalted butter, melted
½ c milk
1 T unflavored gelatin
1 c cream
¾ c plus 2 T sugar
8 oz milk chocolate, finely chopped
1 t vanilla
4 large egg whites

Food process wafers until finely ground. Press into 8-inch springform pan, evenly coating bottom and lower half of sides. Cover pan with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Pour milk into small bowl. Sprinkle gelatin over milk and let soften 5 minutes. Place cream and 2 T sugar in small saucepan and bring to boil, stirring to dissolve sugar. Add gelatin mixture and stir to combine. Remove from heat. Add chocolate and vanilla; cover and let stand 3 minutes. Stir until thoroughly combined.

Pass mixture through a fine sieve into prepared crust, leave behind any undissolved chocolate to prevent filling from becoming grainy. Return filled crust to refrigerator for 6 hours or overnight.

Place egg whites and remaining ¼ c sugar in the heatproof bowl of an electric mixer and place over a pan of barely simmering water. Stir constantly until the egg whites are warm to the touch and the sugar is completely dissolved, about 3 minutes. Attach the bowl to the mixer and use whisk attachment to beat the egg whites on medium, to soft peaks about 3 minutes. Increase speed to high for about another 1.5 minutes, until stiff and glossy but not dry.

Remove pie from refrigerator. Using a rubber spatula, drop meringue on top, lifting to create tall peaks. Use a kitchen blow torch to brown tops of meringue or place under a broiler. Chill in refrigerator and serve cold. Will keep up to 2 days.

Deep Dish Pate Brisee (Pie crust)

3-3/4 c flour
1-1/2 t salt
1-1/2 t sugar
1-1/2 c chilled unsalted butter, cut into small pieces.
½ to ¾ c ice water.

Place flour, salt and sugar into the bowl of a food processor fitted with the metal blade and process until combined. Add butter and process until mixture resembles coarse meal; about 10 seconds.
Add the ice water in a slow, steady stream through the feed tube with the machine running just until dough holds together. Do not process more than 30 seconds. Test by squeezing dough; if crumbly, add more water.
Turn dough out onto clean surface and divide into three equal pieces. Place each on plastic wrap, flatten into a disc, and wrap tightly. Refrigerate 1 hour to 1 day before using.

Shortbread Pecan Crust

1 c pecans
12 10-oz box shortbread cookies
6 T butter, cold, in pieces

Heat oven to 350. Pulse pecans and cookies in food processor til crumbly. Add butter and pulse until just combined. Transfer into 8 or 9 inch pie plate and press evenly over bottom and up sides.  Bake 20-25 minutes.  Let cool. Can be left at room temperature for 24 hours.

Chocolate Silk Pie

2 pints cream
6 oz semisweet chocolate
6 T sugar
1-1/2 T cornstarch
6 egg yolks
½ t vanilla
2 T unsalted butter
1 shortbread pecan crust
1 T cocoa
In a small saucepan combine 1 pint of cream, chocolate and 3 T of sugar. Cook over medium low heat, whisking frequently until chocolate melts. Combine cornstarch and remaining sugar in small bowl. Add yolks and whisk.

Add 2 t of warm chocolate mixture to the egg mixture. Whisking constantly, slowly add egg mixture back to pan. Cook, still whisking, until thickened, about 2 min. Remove from heat, add vanilla and butter and whisk until butter melts.

Pour filling into crust. Wrap in saran wrap and chill 3-48 hours. Sprinkle with cocoa. Whip remaining cream and use to garnish.

Raspberry-Lemon Pie

8 oz cream cheese
4-serving Lemon pudding pkg
1 c milk
2 t grated lemon peel
2 c cool whip
1 graham crust
1 c raspberries

Beat cheese, pudding mix, milk and peel in large bowl with whisk until blended. Stir in 1 c topping.

Spoon into crust and spread evenly. Top with remaining cool whip.

Refrigerate 4 hours or until firm. Top with raspberries before serving.

Oreo Ice Cream Pie

½ c hot fudge topping, divided
1 Oreo pie crust
1 tub Cool Whip, thawed and divided
1-1/4 c milk
2 pkg Oreo pudding

Remove 2 T of the topping and set aside. Spoon remaining fudge into crust and spread evenly. Top with half of whipped topping and freeze 10 minutes.

Prepare pudding with milk – beat 2 minutes with wire whisk. Gently stir in remaining whipped topping and spoon over whipped topping layer in crust. Freeze 4 hours. Remove from freezer 15 minutes before serving and let stand at room temperature. Drizzle with fudge topping. Store leftovers in freezer.

Snicker Bar Pie

Crust:
1-1/2 c graham cracker crumbs
1 T sugar
6 T butter

Filling:
1 stick of butter cut into pieces
4 oz semisweet chocolate, chopped
1 oz unsweetened chocolate, chopped
1/2 + 1/3 c sugar, divided
2 eggs, divided
1 egg yolk
2 t vanilla, divided
6 T flour
1/2 t baking powder
1/8 t salt
2 c Snickers bars, broken into 1/2" pieces
10 oz cream cheese

Topping
2 oz. milk chocolate
2 T whipping cream

Prepare crust by combining crumbs, sugar and butter. Press into bottom and up sides of 12" pie pan. Bake 5 min at 350.

Make fudge layer by melting butter and chocolates over low heat until smooth. Set aside to cool.

In a medium mixing bowl, beat together 1/2 c sugar and 1 large egg plus egg yolk. Add 1 t vanilla and cooled chocolate.

Sift together flour, baking powder and salt; add to chocolate mixture. Pour into crust and bake 16 minutes at 350. Let cool 11 minutes. L eave oven on.

Places Snickers pieces on top of fudge layer.

To make cream cheese layer, mix cream chees,e remaning 1/3 c sugar, mreaning egg and 1 t vanilla. Spread on top of Snickers bars Bake 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, prepare topping by stirring chocolate and cream together in a small saucepan over low heat until chocolate is melted and blended. Drizzle over baked pie. Chill.

Limeade Pie

12 oz cream cheese, room temp
1 c sugar
2 T grated lime zest of about 4 limes
1/3 c lime juice
½ c powdered sugar
1 lime, washed and thinly sliced
Graham crust
Combine cream cheese and sugar in food processor, whip until smooth. Add zest and juice, pulse several times to combine. Transfer filling to prepared crust and cover with plastic wrap, refrigerating until set, about 1 hour.
Preheat oven to 250. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Sprinkle powdered sugar on a small plate. Dredge each lime in sugar, coat on both sides and transfer to baking sheet. Bake until stiff but not brown, about 40 minutes. Transfer to wire rack to cool.
To serve, arrange slices around tart, or make a slit halfway through each serving of tart and tuck slices into slit.