Miscellaneous Desserts

[Aline]

Deadly Chocolate Trifle

Serves a crowd unless real chocolate lovers get started at it. Brownies may be prepared hours ahead of time with Kahlua if desired.


1 Fudge brownie mix (or your own), prepared
1/3 cup kahlua (or sweetened black coffee)

3 Instant chocolate mousse dessert mix, prepared (3.1 oz., 87 g each)
8 chocolate-covered crispy toffee bars (such as Heath or Skor), 1-1/2 oz.,
39 g each, crushed (about 1-1/3 cups)
4 cups frozen light whipped topping, thawed


Make holes, using a fork, all over top of brownies. Drizzle Kahlua over top. Let stand for 10 minutes. Chop brownies into small pieces. Divide into 2 piles. Put 1 pile into glass trifle bowl.

Layer 1/2 of mousse, 1/2 of crushed candy bars and 1/2 of whipped topping over brownies in bowl. Repeat layers, beginning with remaining pile of chopped brownies. Chill.

Garnish with shaved chocolate and a sprinkle of crushed chocolate-covered crispy toffee bars over the whipped cream, if desired.

Serves 20.


**You can use 2 instant chocolate pudding powders (4 servings size each) instead of the instant chocolate mousse dessert mix. Beat pudding powders with 4 cups milk until smooth but not thickened. Pour 1/2 of pudding over brownie in bowl, and proceed as directed above.

[Aline]

Triple Chocolate Pizza

Chocolate Pizza Crust:

2 cups all-purpose flour
1-1/4 cups granulated sugar
1/3 cup cocoa, sifted
3/4 cup hard margarine or butter, softened
2 large eggs, fork-beaten

Measure flour, sugar and cocoa into bowl. Add margarine. Cut in until crumbly.

Add eggs. Mix well. Press in greased 12-inch pizza pan. Bake in 350 F oven for 15 minutes.


Chocolate Filling:

8 oz. pkg cream cheese, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
1/4 cup cocoa, sifted
1 tsp vanilla

Beat all 5 ingredients together until smooth. Spread over hot crust. Return to oven for 10 minutes.


Topping:

1/3 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1/3 cup white chocolate chips
1/3 cup butterscotch chips
8-10 Maraschino cherries, drained and halved
1-2 tbsp sliced almonds

Sprinkle with 3 kinds of chips. Let stand until soft. Draw tip of knife back and forth over top to smooth out most of the chips. If necessary, return to warm oven for a minute.

Place cherries here and there. Place almond slices around edge. Cool. Cuts into 12 wedges.


1 wedge: 493 calories; 7g protein; 24.5g total fat; 65g carbohydrate; 229mg sodium; 3g dietary fiber

[b-man]

Grilled Pears with Raspberry Grand Marnier Sauce


A special dessert treat!

MAKES 4 SERVINGS


Ingredients:

Vegetable oil for coating


Raspberry Grand Marnier Sauce:

1 cup fresh strawberries
1 Tsp honey
1 Tbsp Grand Marnier
4 firm winter pears
1 lemon, halved crosswise
3/4 cup sugar
1 Tbsp ground cinnamon
Vanilla Ice Cream for serving

Prepare a charcoal or gas grill for direct grilling over medium-high heat and oil grill rack.

Raspberry Grand Marnier Sauce:
Combine raspberries and honey in a bowl. Mash raspberries lightly with a fork and stir in the Grand Marnier. Set aside.

Cut pears in half lenghtwie and remove cores. Squeeze lemon over cut sides of the pears to prevent browning. IN a shallow bowl, stir together sugar and cinnamon. Dip cut sides of pears in cinnamon sugar.

Grill pears, cut side down, directly over medium-high heat until fruit is grill-marked and sugar is caramelized, 2-4 minutes. Do not allow to char. Using a spatula, turn pear and grill until tender and heated through, 3-4 minutes.

Serve pears topped with raspberry sauce and with a scoop of ice cream.

B-man

[b-man]

Cheesecake Supreme


Ingredients:

3/4 c All-purpose flour
3 tb Sugar
1 t Lemon peel -- grated
6 tb Butter
1 Egg yolk -- slighly beaten
1/2 ts Vanilla
24 oz Cream cheese -- softened
1 c Sugar
2 tb All-purpose flour
1/4 ts Salt
2 Eggs
1 Egg yolk
1/4 c Milk
3/4 c Sugar
2 tb Cornstarch
ds Salt
1/3 c Water
4 c Cherries

To prepare crust, combine the 3/4 cup flour, the 3 tablespoons flour, the 3 tablespoons sugar, and the 1/2 teaspoon of the lemon peel. Cut in butter till crumbly. Stir in 1 slightly beaten egg yolk and 1/4
teaspoon of the vanilla.

Pat 1/3 of the dough onto the bottom of an 8 or 9 inch spring- form
pan (with sides removed).

Bake in a 400F oven for 7 minutes or till golden. Cool.

Butter the sides of pan; attach to bottom. Pat
remaining dough onto sides of pan to a height of 1 3/4
inches; set aside.

For the filling, in a large mixer bowl beat together the softened cream cheese, remining lemon peel, and remaining vanilla till fluffy. Stir together the 1 cup sugar, the 2 tablespoons flour, and the salt;
gradually stir into cream cheese mixture.

Add the 2 eggs and 1 egg yolk all at once, beating at low speed
just till combined. Stir in milk. Turn into crust-lined pan. Bake in a 450F oven for 10 minutes.

Reduce heat to 300F; bake 50 to 55 minutes more or till center appears set and a knife comes out clean. Cool 15 minutes.Loosen sides of cheesecake from pan with a spatula. Cool 30 minutes; remove sides of pan.

Cool about 2 hours longer. Chill thoroughly. Top with Cherry Sauce.

Cherry Sauce: In a saucepan combine 3/4 cups sugar, 2
tablespoons cornstarch, and dash salt. Stir in 1/3 cup water. Stir in 4 cups
fresh or frozen unsweetened pitted tart red cherries, thawed. Cook and stir till thickened and bubbly.

Cook and stir 1 to 2 minutes more. Cover. Chill without stirring. (Or, use one 21 ounce can cherry pie filling instead of sauce.)


B-man

[b-man]

Bisquick Cobbler


Ingredients:

1 Cup Bisquick
1 Cup Milk
1 Cup Sugar
1 Stick Margarine
1 Large Can Peaches -- in Heavy Syrup

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Melt the margarine in the (13"x9") pan.

Mix the milk, sugar and Bisquick together in a bowl. Pour into the melted margarine.

Pour off half the syrup from the peaches.

Spread the peaches with the remaining syrup on top of the batter.

Bake 45 minutes. Serve warm.

Yields one 13"x9" Pan

B-man

[b-man]

Almond Cream Confections


Ingredients:

1/2 C. butter
1/4 C. sugar
2 T. cocoa powder
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 tsp. salt
1 egg, slightly beaten
1 C. slivered almonds, toasted and chopped
1 3/4 C. vanilla wafer crumbs
1/2 C. flaked coconut
Cream filling (see below)
2 (1 oz.) squares semisweet chocolate

Combine first 6 ingredients in a heavy saucepan; cook over low heat,
stirring constantly, until butter melts and mixture begins to thicken.

Remove from heat; add almonds, vanilla wafer crumbs, and coconut, stirring well. Press firmly into an ungreased 9-inch square pan; cover and chill.

Spread Cream Filling over almond mixture; cover and chill.

Cut into 1 1/2-inch squares. Remove from pan, and place about 1/2 inch apart on a baking sheet.

Place chocolate in a zip-top heavy-duty plastic bag; seal. Submerge in hot water until chocolate melts. Snip a tiny hole in end of bag with scissors; drizzle over Cream Filling.

Makes 3 dozen.

Cream Filling:

1/3 C. butter, softened
3 to 4 T. milk
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
3 C. sifted confectioners' sugar

Cream butter at high speed of electric mixer. Add milk and vanilla extract. Slowly add sugar; mix until smooth.

B-man

[b-man]

Dessert Butters

Easy Raspberry Butter

4 oz. of unsalted butter, softened
4 tbsp. strained raspberry jam

Whip butter in an electric mixer until fluffy. Beat in raspberry jam.
Spoon into a small crock or bowl, and refrigerate. Set out to soften
well ahead of time.

Strawberry Butter

1 (10 oz.) pkg. frozen berries, thawed and drained
1 c. butter
2 c. powdered sugar

The fruit and butter should be at room temperature. Cream butter and
sugar until fluffy. Add berries. Refrigerate. makes 4 cups.

Cranberry Apricot Butter

1/2 c. butter, softened
1/4 c. apricot preserves

In small bowl, combine. Beat until light and fluffy. Makes 3/4 cup.

Cranberry Butter

1 bag cranberries (coarse chopped, grated in priocessor (can use less)
1/2 c. powdered sugar
1 stick unsalted butter (1/2 c.)
1 tbsp. lemon juice

Blend sugar and butter together. Add lemon juice and then add
cranberries. Put in bowl and refrigerate.

Honey Pecan Butter

1/2 c. butter, room temperature
2 tbsp. honey
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 c. chopped pecans

Mix and serve with nut breads, croissants or biscuits. (Good on
pancakes or waffles, too.)

Honey Butter

1 c. soft butter
1 c. powdered sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 c. honey

Cream butter, sugar and cinnamon thoroughly. Add honey and cream
again. Pour into jars and cover. Serve with homemade bread.

Honey Lemon Butter

1/2 c. butter, softened
2 tbsp. honey
1 tsp. fresh grated lemon peel
1 tbsp. fresh squeezed lemon juice

In small bowl, combine all ingredients, blending well. Makes about
1/2 cup.


B-man

[b-man]

Elephant Ears

These are a little time-consuming, but very worth your while!

Ingredients:

1 package dry yeast
1/4 cup lukewarm water
2 cups sifted all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 egg yolk
1/2 cup milk, scalded and cooled
2 tablespoons butter
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
3 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 cup chopped pecans
1/3 cup melted butter

Dissolve yeast in lukewarm water and set aside.

Mix together flour, 1 1/2 tablespoons sugar and salt. Cut in 1/2 cup butter.

Combine egg yolk, milk and softened yeast. Add to dough, mixing well. Cover and chill at least 2 hours.

Turn dough onto lightly floured board. Punch down. Cover with a towel and let rest 10 minutes.

Roll to a 10 x 18-inch rectangle. Spread with 2 tablespoons butter.

Combine cinnamon and sugar. Sprinkle 1/2 cup cinnamon-sugar mixture over dough. Roll up as for a jellyroll. Seal edges and cut into 1-inch slices. Dip slices, one at a time, in remaining cinnamon-sugar mixture. Roll out into 18 (5-inch) rounds. Sprinkle with a few nuts, pressing nuts in gently. Place on ungreased cookie sheets, brush with melted butter and sprinkle each with 1 teaspoon of the cinnamon-sugar mixture. Bake at 400 degrees F for 12 minutes. Cool on wire racks.

Makes 18.

B-man

[b-man]

DEEP-FRIED PEACHES


Fresh peaches
Graham crumbs
Ice cream
Liqueur of choice

Wash peaches and drop in boiling water for 30 seconds. Remove
from water and slip the skin off. Cut peach in half and remove the pit.
Fill the pit area with ice cream. Press the two halves back together
and cover with graham crumbs. Place carefully in deep fryer
(at 300ºF) for 30 seconds or until brown. Place in a bowl and pour
1/3 ounce of liqueur (Grand Marnier is good) then light. After flame
is out, put either more ice cream or fresh cream on top.

B-man

[b-man]

Reference Guide


Here's a handy reference guide for those baked desserts with some amusing names.

Betty — a baked pudding made of layers of spiced and sugared fruit and buttered bread crumbs.

Clafouti — a French cobbler, with fruit (usually cherries) on the bottom, custard, and a rough batter crust baked on top

Cobbler — a spoon pie (more like a fruit stew with dumplings), in which biscuit dough is dropped onto the fruit before baking. The consensus is that the dish got its name because the lumps of cooked dough resembled cobblestones.

Crisp — a deep-dish fruit dessert made with a crumb or streusel topping and baked.

Crumble — a British dessert in which raw fruit is topped with a crumbly pastry mixture and baked. One reference says a crumble is like a crisp, but not as rich.

Grunt — a spoon pie, with biscuit dough on top of stewed fruit, which is steamed, not baked

Pandowdy — a spoon pie, with fruit on the bottom and a rolled crust on top, which is broken up to allow the juices to come through

Slump — a spoon pie, including cooked or uncooked fruit topped with biscuit dough or piecrust, which can be baked or steamed, and can be made upside down.

B-man

[b-man]

SNICKERS CARAMEL APPLE SALAD

This recipe is a huge hit with my family. Enjoy!!

8 Granny Smith apples
6 (2 oz.) Snickers bar, chopped
1 large container Cool Whip
1/2 jar caramel sauce

Cut apples into bite size pieces. Chop 5 of the Snickers
bars and combine with apples and Cool Whip. Save a little
Cool Whip for garnish. Mix 1/4 jar of caramel sauce in mixture.
Garnish with Cool Whip, drizzled caramel and top with remaining
Snickers.

B-man

[b-man]

MARSHMALLOW CHEESECAKE DIP


8 oz. cream cheese, softened
1 (7 oz.) jar Marshmallow Crème

Mix cream cheese and Marshmallow Crème on medium
speed of electric mixer until well blended. Refrigerate.

Serve with assorted cut-up fresh fruit or pound cake
cubes. Garnish, if desired. Makes 1 3/4 cups.

B-man

[b-man]

BERRY CROISSANTS WITH CHOCOLATE SAUCE


Ingredients:

1/2 cup sliced fresh strawberries or raspberries
1/2 cup water
3 T. sugar
3 tsp. cornstarch
1 1/2 T. orange liqueur or orange juice concentrate
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1 pint berries: strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, or blackberries, or any combination of the four
Red food coloring, optional
4 large croissants
Chocolate sauce
Berries as garnish
Whipped topping

Puree 1/2 cup strawberries or raspberries and water in
a blender.

In saucepan, combine sugar, cornstarch, and juice. Cook
over medium heat until thickened, stirring constantly. Remove
from heat, let stand a few minutes.

Add liqueur and spices, adjust to taste if desired. Add fresh berries and food coloring, and chill.

When ready to serve, split croissants lengthwise. Drizzle a small serving plate with chocolate sauce. Place croissant bottom on the serving plate. Top with Whipped Topping.

Replace top of croissant. Garnish with berries.


B-man

[b-man]

COFFEE CAN APPLE ROLLS


Ingredients:

4 C. diced apples
1 C. broken pecans
2 C. granulated sugar
3 C. all-purpose flour
2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. allspice
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
3/4 tsp. cinnamon
1 C. butter or margarine
2 tsp. vanilla extract
2 large eggs, beaten

Grease and flour two 1-pound coffee cans.

In a medium bowl stir apples, pecans and sugar. Let stand for one hour, stirring often to make juice.

In a large bowl, stir flour, baking soda, salt, allspice, nutmeg and cinnamon together. Add apple mixture. Mix well, and stir in butter, vanilla extract and eggs. Pour into coffee cans. Tie a 2-inch strip of foil around top of each can. Bake in 325 degree oven for 1 hour and 15 minutes.

Let stand 10 minutes, then remove from cans. Serve warm or cool with cream cheese.

B-man

[b-man]

CAFE NOCHE BAKED APPLE ZAPATA

Source: Cafe Noche, Houston, Texas

Ingredients:

2/3 lb. flour tortilla dough
Flour
3 Granny Smith apples, peeled and sliced
2 T. lemon juice
1/2 C. brown sugar
1/2 tsp. cloves
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 C. walnuts, chopped
2 T. cornstarch, dissolved
3 T. water

Use your favorite recipe for flour tortillas, or make dough
from the recipe on the Tortilla mix package. Divide the dough
into four 2-inch balls. Roll each into a 6-inch tortilla. Dust with
flour, cover with plastic wrap and set aside.

Place apples in a saucepan with enough water to cover.
Add lemon juice. Cook over high heat until boiling 5 minutes.
Add sugar, cloves, cinnamon, and walnuts; continue cooking
over low heat until slightly thickened. Combine cornstarch
and water and add to mixture, stirring until thick. Remove from
heat.

Lay out tortillas; dust off excess flour. Spoon on
2 tablespoons of the apple mixture down the middle of each
tortilla. Fold one side of the tortilla over the mixture; then fold
the remaining side over. Fold in the ends and seal by
moistening the tortillas with a little water. Bake in a preheated,
400 degree F oven until lightly browned. Remove and sprinkle
with cinnamon and sugar.

Serve with whipped cream (at Cafe Noche, it is served with Tequila Sabayon sauce made with tequila, egg yolks, and sugar).

Note: Tortillas and apple mixture may be made ahead several hours or a day before.

Yield: 12 servings

B-man

[b-man]

HOTEL IMPERIAL SWEET CHEESE DUMPLINGS

Source: Chef Stefan Hierzer, Hotel Imperial, Vienna, Austria

Stefan Hierzer pipes a beautiful swirled chocolate design on the plates, then fills the large spaces in the swirl with strawberry purée, before he even starts adding the dumplings. These cheese dumplings are boiled in rum-scented water, then rolled in crunchy butter-sautéed breadcrumbs and dusted with confectioners' sugar.

Serves 4


Ingredients:

Strawberry Purée

1 C. fresh strawberries, hulled
1/4 C. confectioners' sugar

Coating

2 T. (1/4 stick) unsalted butter
1 C. dried fine breadcrumbs
1/4 C. granulated sugar

Dumplings

2 C. fresh bread cubes
1 1/4 C. sweet (farmer's) cheese (may substitute ricotta)
1/2 tsp. lemon zest
1/2 tsp. orange zest
1 vanilla bean
1 egg
Pinch of salt
1/4 C. granulated sugar
1/2 C. rum

Garnish

2 oz. bittersweet chocolate, chopped
12 to 16 blueberries
4 strawberries, halved
12 to 16 raspberries
4 mint leaves
Confectioners' sugar for dusting

To make the purée: Combine the strawberries and sugar in a food processor or blender and purée. Strain through a fine-meshed sieve and set aside.

To make the coating: Melt the butter in a medium sauté pan and stir in the breadcrumbs and sugar. Sauté until golden and crispy. Set aside in a shallow bowl or plate.

To make the dumplings: In a large bowl, mix the bread cubes, cheese and zests. Split the vanilla bean and scrape the tiny seeds into the mixture; discard the pod (or place in granulated sugar to make vanilla sugar). With a wooden spoon, stir in the egg, pinch of salt and sugar. Let stand for 5 minutes.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil and add 1/2 cup rum. Form the dumpling mixture into 2-inch balls. Drop the dumplings into the boiling water and cook 5 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon and drain on towels.

To serve: Melt the chocolate in the top of a double boiler over barely simmering water. Put into a pastry bag fitted with a very small plain tip, or put into a small plastic bag and snip a tiny hole in one corner. Pipe a design on each of four dessert plates, incorporating two large circles in the design. Let set for 1 minute. With the tip of a spoon, fill the circles with strawberry purée. Roll the dumplings in the coating mixture and place two or three dumplings on each plate. Garnish each plate with a few blueberries, one split strawberry and a few raspberries, topped with a mint leaf.

Dust the dumplings with confectioners' sugar.

B-man

[b-man]

PEARS IN WINE

Ingredients:

2 pounds pears, ripe but firm (such as Bosc)
1/4 cup blackberries
3 cups Chianti
1/4 cup sugar
Juice of 1/2 lemon
1 teaspoon powdered ginger
1 bottle of Moscato or Sardinian Vernaccia

Peel the pears and leave them whole. Cook the pears and the
blackberries in the Chianti for 30 minutes. The fruit is cooked when
you can easily insert a needle through the pulp of the pear.
Meanwhile, add the sugar, the lemon juice, and the ginger to the wine
and reduce it by half, until the consistency is similar to a syrup.
When the wine is reduced and the pears are cooked, immerse them in
the Moscato or Vernaccia wine and let them macerate until serving
time.

Serving suggestion: arrange the pears in a pyramid formation on a
platter and pour the Moscato syrup over them or dust with
confectioner's sugar. Serves 4.
__________


PEARS IN MERLOT

Ingredients:

Zest of one orange
1 cup orange juice
4 cups water
1 bottle Merlot wine
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 cinnamon sticks
1 tablespoon whole cloves
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
6 pears peeled, 1/4 inch cut off at bottom to flatten

Combine all ingredients in the slow cooker except for the pears.
Cover; cook on HIGH for 1 hour.

Add the pears to the stoneware and cook for an additional 1 hour.

Remove pears and strain liquid. Pour the liquid over the pears. Serve
chilled.

B-man

[b-man]

Microwave Caramel Chex


Hey All- This is a super recipe for something quick and easy! But BEWARE-you will not be able to stop filling your face with it!

Line your counter with tin foil that has been sprayed with PAM.

Take a brown paper bag (from the grocery store) and dump in a 16-17.5 ounce bag of CORN CHEX. Set aside.

In a saucepan put the following:

2 cups brown sugar
1 cup (2 sticks) butter
1/2 cup Karo syrup
Dash of salt

Bring to a rapid boil for 1 minute. Stirring constantly. Remove from heat
and add 1/2 teaspoon baking soda. Stir well. (Mixture will foam.)

Dump this mixture over the cereal in bag and roll down the top. Shake well to coat.

Put in microwave on HIGH Power for 4 minutes, shaking after each minute.

Dump out on foil and let cool. Break into individual pieces while cooling.
Yummmmmmm!

B-man

[b-man]

Maple Praline Supreme

Serves 8.


Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups chopped pecans or hazelnuts
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
3 tablespoons butter or margarine, melted
1 (7 ounce) jar Marshmallow Creme
1/2 cup pure maple syrup
2 cups whipping cream, whipped

Combine nuts, brown sugar and butter until well mixed. Spread onto a greased baking sheet. Bake at 350 degrees F for 12 minutes or until browned. Cool; crumble and set aside.

In a bowl, combine Marshmallow Creme and syrup until smooth; fold in whipped cream. Place half of the nut mixture in a greased 9 x 5-inch loaf pan. Top with marshmallow mixture and remaining nut mixture. Cover and freeze overnight or until firm.

Invert onto a serving plate