Tag Archives: dessert

Gingerbread Biscotti – Dipped in Chocolate

Posted by deliciousonadollar in Bars and Cookies, Holiday and tagged with , , , , , ,
Chocolate-dipped gingerbread biscotti

Chocolate-dipped gingerbread biscotti

Biscotti, those twice-baked Italian cookies, have been on my must-make-for-Christmas-list for the past few years.  The Holidays wouldn’t be the same without them.  I have made a variety of flavors over the years, some of them we really loved, others were just so-so.  Some kind of biscotti always ends up in the cookie-gifts I put together for friends and family.  This particular recipe is one of our very favorites, and becomes a favorite of everyone who has it.  I either get asked for the recipe, or “are you making those spicy biscotti cookies this year?”  The answer is Yes, Yes,Yes.

These cookies are just great as a light dessert,  with a cup of coffee,  on a dessert buffet, or for a cookie swap.   I can’t imagine anytime when they wouldn’t be welcome, and not just for the Holidays.  They can be made and enjoyed any time of the year.  Dipping them in chocolate may be omitted, but the combination of gingerbread and chocolate is so good and a little decadent!   I’ve even gone so far as to sprinkle the chocolate end with finely ground nuts or decorative sugar while the chocolate is still moist.

CHOCOLATE-DIPPED GINGERBREAD BISCOTTI

YIELD:   Makes about 2 1/2 dozen biscotti

INGREDIENTS

Molasses, spices and ginger are the essentials for these cookies.

Molasses, spices and ginger are the essentials for these cookies.

  • 3/4 cup crystalized ginger, chopped
  • 2 Tablespoons ground ginger
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/2 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
  • 6 Tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1/4 cup light molasses
  • 2  3/4 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1  1/2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 2/3 cup ( 4 ounces ) chopped bittersweet chocolate, or chocolate chips

DIRECTIONS

1.    In a large bowl, whisk together the the spices and the sugars.  Sift in the flour and baking powder, and whisk to blend well.

2.    In a large mixer bowl, beat the butter until light and creamy.  Beat in the eggs, 1 at a time, followed by the molasses, until the mixture is smooth.

3.    Add the flour/spice mixture and mix to blend.  Add in the chopped ginger.  The dough will be thick and slightly sticky.  You may need to stir in the last of the flour and the ginger.

Cover the dough and chill for at least as hour.

Cover the dough and chill for 2 – 3 hours.

4.   Divide the dough in half, wrap each half in wax paper or plastic wrap, and chill for 2 to 3 hours.  (When tightly sealed, the dough will keep for up to 1 week in the refrigerator.)

5.   Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.  Grease a baking sheet, or line with parchment paper, set aside.

6.   With lightly floured hands, shape each portion of dough into a loaf about 1/2 inch thick, 2 inches wide, and 12 to 14 inches long.

Shape the dough into two long loaves with your hands.

Shape the dough into two long loaves with your hands.

Place the loaves on the prepared sheet at least 2 inches apart.   Bake until the loaves are completely set and a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean—-about 25 minutes.    Do not turn off the oven.

IMG_2053

7.    Place the baking sheet on a wire rack and let the loaves cool on the sheet for 5 minutes.  With a serrated knife, firmly cut each loaf on the diagonal into slices 1/2 inch thick.

Cut each loaf crowd-wise into slices.

Cut each loaf crowd-wise into slices.

Place the slices upright on the baking sheet and return to the oven for 10 minutes, or longer if you like a crisper cookie.   Remove the biscotti from the oven and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

8.    Melt the chocolate in a heat-proof bowl over boiling water or in the micro-wave.  Dip one end of each cookie into the chocolate, and using a knife or spatula, smooth as needed.  Do not dip more than half of each cookie.  Set the cookies upright on a wire rack until the chocolate has set.

After dipping stand the cookies upright to allow the chocolate to firm up.

After dipping stand the cookies upright to allow the chocolate to firm up.

Cookies may be stored in an airtight container, separated by wax or parchment paper between the layers.

Biscotti are always good with coffee or a glass of wine.

Biscotti are always good with coffee or a glass of wine.

Nutrition summary:  per cookie:  135 calories, 4 g. fat, 1 g. fiber, 21 mg. cholesterol, 33 mg sodium.

SOURCE:   Martha Stewart,  Gifts From Your Kitchen

Cranberry-Pear Pie

Posted by deliciousonadollar in Pies, Pastry and tagged with , , , , ,

Pear Still Life

Today I’d like to speak on behalf of the pear.  I don’t think that pears get the attention they deserve.  The apple, on the other hand, gets all kinds of attention.  It’s as American as well, apple pie!  Eaten out of hand, baked into cakes, pies, squares, covered with caramel on a stick—I could go on and on.  But how about the pear?  Raise your hand if you’ve ever made a pear pie.  Right!  I thought not. So today I want to introduce you to a wonderful treat–a cranberry pear pie with a streusel crumb topping.

Cranberry Pear Pie with Streusel Topping

This is the time of year when pears are plentiful and there are many different kinds of pears.  The ones we are most familiar with are probably the Bartlett, the Anjou, and the Bosc. Each has its own characteristics, but one thing they all have in common is a juicy sweetness when they are ripe.  Most pears are not strong flavored so they pair well with other fruits and seasonings that bring out their flavor, like cranberries, ginger, nutmeg, and orange.  This pie incorporates three out of those four.  It has fresh cranberries, cooked with orange zest and ginger, which is then mixed with the fresh pears, and piled into a flaky pie crust.  Then it’s topped with a streusel that combines oatmeal with brown sugar, orange juice, more ginger and cinnamon.  There’s not much more I can say in praise of this pie except try it and find out how good it is for yourself!

CRANBERRY PEAR PIE WITH STREUSEL TOPPING

Source:   Cooking Light, 2009

Servings:  about 10

FOR THE PIE

  • 1 cup water
  • 1/3 cup sugar
  • 1/2 cup cranberries ( can be fresh or dried)
  • 1 ( 1-inch ) piece peeled fresh ginger cut into thin slices.
  • 1 teaspoon grated orange rind
  • 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
  • 6 peeled pears, cored and sliced about 1/4″ thick  (Anjou or Bosc pears work best as they are firm)
  • 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/3 cup packed brown sugar
  • 1 refrigerated pie crust
  • cooking spray

FOR THE STREUSEL

  • 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
  • 2 Tablespoons butter, melted
  • 2 Tablespoons orange juice
  • 1 cup old-fashioned oats
  • 1/3 cup packed brown sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon ginger
  • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt

Position oven rack in the lower third of the oven.  Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

To Prepare pie:

1.  In a small saucepan, combine 1 cup water and 1/3 cup sugar.  Over medium-high heat, bring to a boil;  add cranberries, ginger slices, and orange rind.  Return to a boil and stir until sugar dissolves.  Reduce heat to low and simmer 15 minutes or until liquid is reduced to 2 tablespoons.  Remove from heat.  Discard ginger slices.  Cool.

Cook cranberries with sugar and ginger.

2.  Combine lemon juice and sliced pears in a large bowl; toss.  Combine 1/4 cup flour and 1/3 cup brown sugar.  Add to pears; toss to coat.  Stir in cranberry mixture.

3.  Fit refrigerated pie crust into a 9-inch pie pan which has been lightly sprayed with cooking spray.  Fold edges under; flute.  Spoon pear mixture into prepared crust.

Pile seasoned pear filling in the pie shell.

To prepare Streusel:

1.  Melt the butter in a medium bowl in the microwave.  Add the orange juice and stir to mix.  Measure flour and add along with oats, and remaining ingredients;  toss.

2.  Sprinkle oat mixture over pear filling.

Sprinkle oatmeal crumb topping on pie filling.

Cover pie loosely with foil, place on a baking sheet.  Bake covered in the lower third of oven at 400 degrees for 1 hour.  Uncover; bake another 15 minutes or until nicely browned.  Cool on a rack 1 hour before serving.

Additional notes:  raisins would be a good addition if cranberries are not available.  Also you could vary the fruit and use apples instead with equally good ( and tasty) results.

A reeeealy good pie!

Pumpkin Butterscotch Granola Bars

Posted by deliciousonadollar in Bars and Cookies, Snacks and tagged with , , , , , , , , ,

Pumpkin Butterscotch Granola Bars

Are you tired of recipes with pumpkin?  I hope not, because this is another one, and as long as no one raises a red flag and shouts STOP, they’ll probably keep coming.  You know me and pumpkin by now, so as long as a recipe has the “P” word in it, I’m on it.

These are the BEST Granola Bars I have ever made.  I know that because my husband told me so, and I believe what he says.  🙂

Seriously, they are awfully good tasting, but also hold their shape without crumbling and cut nicely when cool.  They make a nutritional after school snack, or lunch box treat.  You can wrap them individually in wax paper or parchment paper and freeze them so they are available to grab on short notice.  Actually mine never made it to the freezer, because as you are chewing the last bite of the first one, your hand will be reaching for another one so in my house they didn’t last long.  Give them a try and I think you’ll agree with me —they are the best!

PUMPKIN BUTTERSCOTCH GRANOLA BARS

YIELD:  makes 20 – 24 bars depending on how you cut them.

1.  Preheat the oven to 325 degrees and prepare a 13″ x 9″ pan with a sheet of parchment paper  lining the bottom.

2.  Get these ingredients ready:

  • 4 cups oats, preferably old fashioned whole oats, but quick oats work, too.

    Get all the ingredients ready in advance.

  • 1/2 cup vegetable oil
  • 1/2 cup honey
  • 1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
  • 1/2 cup pumpkin puree
  • 2 teaspoons cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 1/3 cups slivered or sliced almonds
  • 1/2 cup pepitas ( I used toasted sunflower seeds)
  • 11 ounces butterscotch chips ( 1 bag)

3   In a large mixing bowl, combine oats, and vegetable oil, mixing until the oats are well coated.

4.  Add the honey and the  brown sugar, pumpkin and cinnamon and salt and mix to combine.

5.  Add the almonds and pepitas and mix in.

6.  Stir in the butterscotch chips.

7.  Transfer the granola to the prepared pan and spread it out evenly.

8.  Bake the bars at 325 degrees for 30 minutes and then press down hard with a spatula.

9.  Bake for another 20 minutes.

10.  Let cool completely before cutting into bars.  Wrap individually and store in an air-tight container, or freeze.

PUMPKIN BUTTERSCOTCH GRANOLA BARS, a delicious snack.

SOURCE:    blog:  Heather Christo Cooks

Apple Cobbler Cupcakes

Posted by deliciousonadollar in Cupcakes and tagged with , , , ,

Apple Cobbler Cupcakes with Caramel Frosting

After deliberating for several days over what kind of cupcakes to make for my father-in-law’s birthday party.  I finally decided on these:  Apple Cobbler Cupcakes.  Since this celebration was the weekend before Halloween, it seemed logical to make a tie-in.  Then I thought, well no, his birthday should be the main focus, but it is Fall so something with apples would be good.  When you frost these with a caramel frosting, you get a riff on the traditional caramel apple—a Halloween treat.  Makes perfect sense, yes?  Everyone at the party thought so, and didn’t waste any time in making them disappear.   In fact, I had to hold back the crowds so I could get a picture or two.:)

Presentation on the Dessert Table

This recipe is supposed to make 12 cupcakes; that’s filling the baking cups nearly full.  I felt they didn’t need to be that big since we also had Birthday cake and ice-cream for dessert.  So I filled my cupcake tins (paper lined ) about half full and I got a total of 18 cupcakes.  Once baked they came up to the tops of the liners.  I topped them with a generous swirl of frosting, some orange colored sugar and a “gummy ” pumpkin for decoration.

APPLE COBBLER CUPCAKES

YIELD:   12 – 18 cupcakes

INGREDIENTS

  • 1 1/2 cups flour
  • 1/1/4 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon ginger
  • 1/2 cup ( 1 stick ) unsalted butter, at room temperature
  • 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
  • 1/4 cup granulated sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 1/2 cup sour cream
  • 1/4 teaspoon lemon extract
  • 2 1/2 cups apples, roughly chopped

DIRECTIONS

1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line cupcakes tins with paper liners or grease lightly.

2.  Whisk together the dry ingredients;  flour through ginger.

3.  Beat butter and sugars together in a large mixer bowl until light and fluffy.

4.  Beat in eggs, sour cream, and lemon extract till well blended. Scrape down the bowl once or twice.

5.  Mix in the flour mixture till well incorporated.

6.  Fold in the apples.

7.  Scoop into 12 – 18 cupcake liners.

8.  Bake at 350 degrees for 23 minutes (18 cupcakes) or 25 minutes (12 cupcakes).  A toothpick inserted into the center of one should come out clean.

9.  Cool for a few minutes in their pans, then transfer to wire cooling racks to cool completely before frosting.

CARAMEL FROSTING

YIELD:  Makes about 2 1/4 cups

  • 1 cup packed brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup butter
  • 1/4 cup milk or light cream
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 2 1/2  – 3 cups confectionery sugar, sifted.  It’s always best to sift your confectionery sugar for a silky smooth frosting.

1.  In a saucepan, heat butter, brown sugar and milk.  Bring to a boil over medium heat.  Cook and stir for 2 minutes.  Remove from the heat.  Add vanilla.  Cool to lukewarm.

2.  Gradually beat in the confectionery sugar till you get a spreadable consistency.  If you are piping on the frosting it needs to be a little stiffer to hold its shape.

3.  Frost cupcakes and decorate as desired.

  

SOURCES:    Cupcakes:  The Cupcake Connection

Frosting:        Luscious Bakeshop Favorites From Your own Kitchen,  Shelly Kaldunski

Election Day Cake

Posted by deliciousonadollar in Cakes, Desserts and tagged with , , , , , , , ,

Election Day Cake

With tomorrow being Election Day I thought it might be fun to share with you a recipe for Election Day Cake.  No kidding, there really was such a thing–and there still is if you care to make it.

The custom of making a special cake for  Election Day has a long history.  Back in the early days of America, voters would have to travel great distances to cast their ballots, often to the state Capitol.   Since only the men were allowed to vote back then, the women of the hosting towns would serve cake to the visiting voters.  Election Day was a festive occasion calling for a special treat.   The Election Cake ( also called Hartford Election Cakes) is a yeast-raised fruitcake first reported as early as 1771 in New England, and then spreading in popularity across the country to the West throughout the nineteenth century. This cake is not heavy like a true fruitcake, but more cake-like with spices, whisky and colorful dried fruits, making this a delicious and patriotic treat.

The recipe takes a good bit of time to make having several steps to it, but the end result is a very impressive tall, tube cake.  Most of the syrup that the fruits were soaked in is used to brush on the cake as it cools adding some additional flavor and moisture.  A small amount of the soaking syrup is also used to make the glaze topping. With whisky as a preservative and containing a good quantity of dried fruits that have been soaked in the whisky, the cake is definitely a keeper,  I mean it keeps well.

ELECTION DAY CAKE

YIELD:   Makes one 10-inch tube cake or bundt cake

INGREDIENTS

  • 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar

    Cranberries, blueberries, and golden raisins soaked in American Whisky.

  • 1/2 cup water
  • 1 1/2 cups dried fruit, such as cranberries, golden raisins, and blueberries ( red, white and blue)
  • 1/2 cup American whiskey
  • 1/2 cup warm water
  • 1/2 cup milk
  • 1 package (3/4 ounce) rapid-rise yeast
  • 1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour, sifted
  • 2 cups all-purpose flour, sifted
  • 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 pound (1 stick) soft unsalted butter, cut into cubes
  • 3 eggs
  • 1 cup confectioners’ sugar for glaze

PREPARATION

1.  Grease a 10-inch tube pan or spray with non-stick baking spray and lightly flour.

2.  Combine 1/2 cup of the granulated sugar with the water  in a small saucepan.  Simmer over med-high heat until sugar is completely dissolved.  Remove from heat.

3.  Place the dried fruit in a large bowl.  Add the sugar mixture and whiskey;  stir and set aside.

4.  In a measuring cup, combine the warm water and milk.

Add warm milk mixture to the yeast and whole wheat flour.

5.  Combine yeast with 1 cup of whole-wheat flour in a medium bowl.  Add the milk mixture and stir in.  Sprinkle the remaining 1/2 cup whole wheat flour on top.

Sprinkle 1/2 cup whole wheat flour over the top.

Set aside to allow the yeast to ferment until the  yeast breaks through the surface of the flour, approximately 30 minutes.  This is called a sponge.

“Sponge” is ready, when yeast breaks through top layer of flour.

6.  Sift together the remaining dry ingredients and set aside.

7.  Drain the fruit mixture; reserve the syrup for later use in the glaze.

8.  In a stand mixer, beat together the butter and the remaining 1 cup granulated sugar until light in texture.  Add eggs one at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl with a spatula after each addition.

Beating in the eggs one at a time.

9.  Turn the mixer to low speed and add the sponge; mix until fully combined.

Beating in the sponge and  dry ingredients.

Add the remaining dry ingredients.  The batter will be stiff.  Stir in the drained fruit.

Stir in the drained dry fruits.

10. Place the batter in the pan, cover, and set in a warm place to allow the cake to rise, approximately 1 1/2 to 2 hours.***  I gave my dough the full two hours and it doubled in size.

Batter in the tube pan before rising.

11. Meanwhile, make the glaze:  In a medium bowl, combine the 1 cup confectioners’ sugar and 2 Tablespoons of the reserved syrup drained from the fruit.  Stir until smooth and set aside.

12.Bake cake in a 350 degree oven for 45 – 60 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean.

A nice, tall tube cake after baking.

Allow the cake to cool in the pan for about 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool.  When cool, lightly brush the cake all over with reserved syrup, and finally top with glaze, allowing the glaze to drip down the sides.

Brush cake all over with the fruit syrup.

Frost with glaze, allowing some to drip down the sides.

A tender cake, studded with bits of fruit, and lightly sweetened by the glaze.

***TIP:  To provide a uniform temperature for yeast doughs to rise, set the bowl of batter on a heating pad set at LOW temperature. The microwave oven provides a draft free place to raise yeast doughs.  Works beautifully!

Cover yeast batter, place in microwave oven on a heating pad set at LOW temperature.

SOURCE:    About.com,    courtesy of Culinary Institute of America

Pumpkin Cake

Posted by deliciousonadollar in Cakes, Desserts and tagged with , , , , , ,

Using some of the pumpkin I cooked and pureed myself, I made this cake for my husband’s birthday. Although the title of the recipe is  ordinary this cake is anything but.  From the bottom up to the top there is something extraordinary going on.  My recipe card for this cake has a smily face sticker on it and the words, “exceptionally good” to remind me of how much we and others like this cake whenever I make it.  It is tried and true, and always dependable.  One year, several years back, I made it for my husband to take to work for a pot-luck luncheon at Thanksgiving, and ever since I get requests for “that good cake”.  One of his co-workers has since ordered one from me each year for Thanksgiving.  So I am confident when I say “it will come out good, and you will like it”.

The bottom-most layer of the cake is a crumb crust.  The recipe specifies graham cracker crumbs, but we here have an allergic reaction to graham crumbs, so I substituted ginger snap crumbs instead.  Now I always make it that way; ginger snaps just seem to go so much better with pumpkin.  The cake layer is a pumpkin spice cake, and I have played around with changing some of the quantities and ratios, but it always comes out good.  The frosting is a cream cheese frosting.   Who doesn’t like that?

The recipe makes a large cake baked in a 15″ x 11″ pan, in which case pieces are more like squares with a crumb crust;  or you may use two smaller pans, 1 8″ round, and  1  8″ square and the pieces will be taller and cake like. I really like that aspect.  What I usually do is bake the two smaller size cakes, then I have 1 to keep and 1 to give, or 1 to eat and 1 to freeze, you get the idea.  OK, enough said,  here’s how to make it—–

CRUST

  • 2 cups graham cracker crumbs or ginger snap crumbs.  One sleeve of ginger snaps, pulsed in a processor makes about 2 cups.
  • 7 Tablespoons butter, melted
  • 1/4 cup sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Mix all these together for the base.  Press into the bottom of baking pan or pans of choice.  Bake 5-6 minutes.  Let cool.

CAKE

  • 1 2/3 cups sugar,  or I use 1 cup granulated sugar and 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
  • 4 eggs,  or 2 eggs and 1/2 cup egg substitute product
  • 1 can pumpkin, or 2 cups homemade pumpkin puree
  • 1 cup vegetable oil.  I use 1/2 cup and it comes out fine.
  • 2 cups flour
  • 2 teaspoons cinnamon, or 2 teasp. pumpkin pie spice
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon salt

1.  Mix the first 4 ingredients together with a whisk.

Mix wet ingredients together with a whisk.

2.  Mix the dry ingredients together:  flour through salt

3.  Combine the wet and dry ingredients with a whisk.  Blend them well, but do not over mix.

Combine wet and dry ingredients.

4.  Pour over the crust.

5.  Bake at 350 degrees for 25 – 30 minutes.  Test for doneness with a toothpick.

6.  Cool completely then frost with cream cheese frosting and decorate as desired.

CREAM CHEESE FROSTING

  • 8 ounce package cream cheese, at room temperature
  • 6 Tablespoons butter, at room temperature
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1 cup confectioners’ sugar, sifted

Makes about 2 cups

In a bowl, with an electric mixer on medium speed, beat the cream cheese, butter and vanilla together until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.  Gradually beat in the sugar and mix thoroughly, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.  If the consistency is too stiff, thin with a drizzle of milk or cream.  If it is too soft, refrigerate until frosting is spreadable, about 15 minutes.

                  

 This is my husband’s half-eaten piece.  He couldn’t wait for me to photograph it!

Rustic Autumn Fruit Tart

Posted by deliciousonadollar in Desserts, Pies, Pastry and tagged with , , , , , , ,

Rustic Autumn Fruit Tart

As a hostess gift when I went to visit in North Carolina I brought some apples grown right here in the town where I live.  We who live here are so spoiled by the ease with which we can obtain fresh orchard-grown apples and pears ( at this time of year) as well as other fruits earlier in the season.  Folks who formerly lived here miss that kind of freshness in the fruits they are able to buy in their local grocery stores, and the variety of kinds of apples.  So a gift like the one I brought with me is always welcome.

Coincidentally, my hostess wanted to make a baked gift to give to a friend who had been kind to her and her husband, so together we made this Rustic Autumn Fruit Tart.  Actually we made two;  one to keep and one to give.   We used some of the apples I brought, and some pears that she had on hand, ripe and beautiful.

This is very easy to make, goes together quickly and looks very impressive when completed. It tastes as delicious as it looks.  The recipient of this gift was surprised and delighted to receive it.

RUSTIC AUTUMN FRUIT TART

SERVINGS:   8

INGREDIENTS

  • 1 roll packaged refrigerated pie crust, at room temperature
  • 2 large apples – peeled, cored, and thinly sliced
  • 1 pear – peeled, cored and sliced
  • 1/4 cup orange juice
  • 1/3 cup brown sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
  • 1/4 teaspoon cardamom
  • 1 1/2 Tablespoon cornstarch
  • 1/2 cup apricot jam, warmed

DIRECTIONS

1.  Unroll the pie dough and lightly roll into a 10 – 11″ circle.  Fit into a 9 ” pie pan, or place flat on slightly greased baking sheet.

Tart can be made in a tart/pie pan or flat on a baking sheet.

2.  Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

3.  Toss the sliced apples and pear with the orange juice.  Whisk together the brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, cardamom, and cornstarch.  Toss the fruit with the sugar-spice mixture.

Toss sliced fruits with orange juice.

4.  Arrange the fruit decoratively in the pastry shell.  If you’re baking it on a baking sheet, leave a 2-inch rim of dough with the fruit arranged in the middle.

5.  Fold the dough up and over the edge of the fruit ( the pastry folds will overlap).

Fold edges of pastry up and over top of fruits, pleating the excess.

6.  Bake the tart in the preheated oven until the crust is browned and the filling is bubbly, about 30 minutes.  Remove the tart from the oven and brush the whole top with the warmed apricot jam.  This creates a beautiful glaze.

Serve warm with a dab of ice cream——Deeelish!

SOURCE:   allrecipes.com

Mexican Spiced Shortbread Cookies

Posted by deliciousonadollar in Bars and Cookies and tagged with , , , , , , , , ,

Chocolate shortbread cookies with a little “kick” to them—-Oh, my!  The combination of chocolate, cinnamon and chile peppers is unbelievable; and the buttery, tender cookies just melt in your mouth.  Really they do!  The recipe has been making the rounds in my neighborhood  since one person brought them to our July 4th celebration, and everyone wanted the recipe.  They are that good!…I’ve made them twice since then and I expect I’ll be making them again for the Holidays.

MEXICAN SPICED SHORTBREAD COOKIES

YIELD:  Makes  3 dozen cookies

COOKIES

  • 6.75 ounces all-purpose flour  (about 1  1/2 cups )
  • 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa
  • 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/8 teaspoon chipotle chile pepper
  • 1/8 teaspoon ancho chile pepper
  • 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
  • 1/2 cup canola oil
  • 3/4 cup powdered sugar

ICING

  • 2 Tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup 1 % milk
  • 1 1/4 cups powdered sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

NUTS

  • 1 teaspoon light brown sugar
  • 1 teaspoon sea salt
  • 1 teaspoon butter, softened
  • 36 small pecan halves

PROCEDURE

1.  Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  Baking sheets, un- greased, or parchment lined.

2.  Weigh or measure flour.  Combine flour, cocoa and next 4 ingredients (through ancho chile powder) in a bowl;  Stir with a whisk to blend.

3.  Place 1/2 cup butter in a large mixer bowl;  beat at medium speed until light and fluffy.  Gradually add oil;  Beat about 3 minutes till well blended.  Gradually add  3/4 cup powdered sugar, beat well.  Add flour mixture; beat at low speed till well blended.  Cover and chill for at least an hour.  This dough becomes quite soft as you mix it and needs to be well chilled before continuing.  I chilled mine overnight.

Ready for the Oven.

4.  Shape dough into 36 balls.  Place 2-inches apart on ungreased cookie sheets.  Flatten cookies to 1/4-inch thickness.  Keep formed cookies on a baking sheet in the refrigerator prior to baking so they don’t spread too much in the oven.  Bake at 325 degrees for 18-20 minutes.  Cool 1 minute on baking sheet, then remove to wire rack to cool completely.

Out of the Oven.

5.  To prepare icing, melt 2 tablespoons butter in a large saucepan over medium heat.  Add 1/2 cup brown sugar and milk; This mixture will look curdled.   Cook 1 minute or until sugar dissolves, stirring constantly.  Bring to a boil;  reduce heat, and simmer 3 minutes or until slightly thickened, stirring constantly.  Remove from heat;  cool to room temperature.  Add powdered sugar and vanilla,  stirring with a whisk until smooth.

6.  To prepare nuts, combine 1 teaspoon brown sugar, sea salt and 1 teaspoon butter in a medium bowl.  Arrange pecans on a baking sheet.  Bake at 325 for 10 minutes or until toasted.  Add hot pecans to butter mixture, tossing well to coat.  Cool.

7.  Spread 1 teaspoon icing over each cookie;  top each with 1 pecan half.

SOURCE:  Unknown

Peach Soda Ice-cream

Posted by deliciousonadollar in Desserts, Snacks and tagged with , , , , , ,

My very first job as a teenager was in a dairy bar where ice cream in all forms was served along with burgers, hot dogs, fries, and sandwiches.  There I learned how to make sundaes, ice-cream sodas, milkshakes, banana splits, and so much more.  This dairy was very well known throughout the area, and on hot summer evenings and weekends it was packed with customers from morning till evening.  We hustled our butts off, BUT, the payoff was that we could eat our mistakes.  You can be sure we made a few, and funny, it always seemed to happen just before our break or lunch time.  My favorite “mistake” was fresh peach ice-cream with fruit salad topping and lots of whipped cream.   Oh Gosh, my mouth is watering just remembering it.

Well, the point of telling you all of this is to introduce my recipe for  Peach Soda Ice Cream.

Peach Soda Ice Cream

Just a few weeks ago I got an ice cream maker and since then I have made Vanilla, of course,( my husband is a vanilla man);  and strawberry which was very good, and now fresh peach.  Each recipe was a little different in its ingredients.  The unique thing about the peach is that it calls for Peach Soda.

This is a quick and easy version with just 3 ingredients plus the peach soda.  I  did a web search and found some at homer soda .com, and I purchased mine locally at Hosmer Mountain Soda, so if you know of a small specialty soda company somewhere near where you live or can find it on line, you’ll be glad you did–it’s the secret to awesome peach ice cream.

PEACH SODA ICE CREAM

SERVINGS:   Makes about 8 cups

WHAT YOU NEED

  • 1  14 ounce can sweetened condensed milk
  • 8 or 9 peaches, peeled and cut into wedges
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 36 ounces peach soda

WHAT YOU DO

1.  Puree the sweetened condensed milk, peaches and sugar in a blender until peaches are in very small pieces; transfer to a large bowl and stir in the soda.

2.  Churn in an ice cream maker ( in batches if necessary).  Mine required 2 batches.  Transfer to an airtight container and freeze until firm.   Oh, YUM!,  cool, creamy, and delicious.

SOURCE:  Food Network Magazine

Brown Butter White Chocolate Pretzel Blondies

Posted by deliciousonadollar in Bars and Cookies and tagged with , , , , , , , ,

Brown Butter Blondies with White Chocolate M & M’s and Pretzels

I do believe I’m becoming a convert to blondies.  I used to think they were sort of second-rate to “real” brownies.  But since early Spring when I first started writing this blog,  I’ve found three recipes for blondies, all of which appealed to me enough to want to make them.

I’ve been saving this recipe since late winter/early spring when it was featured for Easter using pastel colored M & M’s.  My thought at the time was that it could easily be adapted to any time of year just by changing the M & M’s.  So this past week, when I saw white chocolate M & M’s on display for Halloween I grabbed them and thought “now is the time to try that recipe”.

These squares are so easy and quick to make– mixed by hand, no need to get out your mixer–and so pretty to serve with the colorful M & M’s.  They taste a little salty from the pretzels, have crunch from the  pretzels and candy, and the browned butter provides a nutty background flavor to all of it.   My only concern about these bars is related to the salt content.  Unsalted butter is not specified but I would recommend it, since the pretzels add salt and the recipe calls for 1/2 teaspoon of salt.  If you use salted butter, cut back the added salt to 1/4 teaspoon, since browning the butter adds to its saltiness.

BROWN BUTTER WHITE CHOCOLATE PRETZEL BLONDIES

SERVINGS:   24 squares

INGREDIENTS

  • 1 1/2 cup flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 3/4 cup butter, browned and cooled
  • 1 1/2 cup brown sugar, tightly packed
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1 cup pretzels, crushed
  • 1 cup white chocolate M & M’s ( or white chocolate chips)

Browned Butter

1.  Begin by browning your butter.  Use a light colored pan rather than one with a dark interior, so you can see the color change in the butter.  Allow the butter to melt over low heat,  once melted raise heat to medium and let butter cook, watching it all the while for a color change to golden brown.  This can take from 2-3 minutes, but it will happen quickly.  Remove from the heat at that point, otherwise it will burn.  Allow to cool.

2.  Crush the pretzels:  Place in a zip-lock bag and crush with a rolling pin or meat mallet.  They will be a variety of sizes. Break some of the larger pieces with your hands.  Large pretzel pieces will make it difficult to cut the squares, but you don’t want them to be all crumbs either.

3.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line a 13″ x 9″ pan with foil, and spray the foil with non-stick spray.

4.  In a medium bowl whisk together all the dry ingredients.

5.  In a large bowl, mix butter with brown sugar, stirring until all the sugar is saturated with the butter.  Add eggs and vanilla, stir to combine well.

6.  Fold in dry ingredients using a spatula.  Don’t overmix.

7.  Add in pretzels and white chocolate M & M’s and stir to distribute.

8.  Transfer to prepared pan and bake for 22-25 minutes.  The top will be shiny and somewhat crackled.  A toothpick should test clean.  Remove from oven and cool on rack.

Ready for the Oven.

Out of the Oven.

     

SOURCE:   Cook’s Illustrated New Best Recipes