Grandma Cook's Chocolate Cream Pie

My friend Tiffany has created 4x6 digital recipe cards. I love this idea! Then, if you need a quick gift you simply print out a few 4x6's. I'm in the process of creating mine. They will all have this format to keep it simple. As much as I would love to create different colors for dessert, main dish, etc. I decided to keep it simple or I may never finish the project.

So above is my Grandma Cook's recipe for chocolate cream pie. It can be tricky and not set up on you. It takes practice to get it just right and even then it might not set up. But when it does it is so worth it.

Flourless Chocolate Cake

Don't make this cake unless you have vanilla ice cream on hand. :) So rich. It reminds me of the Chocolate Souffle Cake I get at California Pizza Kitchen. They serve it over a vanilla bean cream with a side of vanilla ice cream.
Flourless Chocolate Cake

Recipe courtesy Aaron McCargo Jr. (Food network)

Ingredients

4 ounces of bittersweet chocolate, chopped

1 stick of cold butter

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 ounces of hazelnut liqueur

3/4 cup sugar

1/2 cocoa powder, sifted

3 eggs, beaten

Chocolate ganache, recipe follows

Berries, garnish

Powdered sugar, garnish

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray an 8 inch round cake pan with nonstick butter spray and line bottom with parchment. Put the chocolate, butter, vanilla and hazelnut liqueur in a large bowl on top of a double boiler. Stir the mixture frequently until combined and smooth. Remove the chocolate from heat and put the bowl into an "ice bath" to cool the chocolate. (Cook's note: This step is important so the eggs will not cook when added to the chocolate.) Mix in the sugar and cocoa powder. Stir in the eggs and pour into the prepared cake pan. Put the cake pan on a sheet tray and bake for 20-25 minutes.

Remove the cake from the oven and invert onto a rack over a sheet pan lined with parchment paper. Pour the ganache over the cake. Allow the cake to cool and set for 10 minutes before serving. Garnish with fresh berries and powered sugar.

Chocolate Ganache

4 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped

1/2 cup heavy cream

Put the chocolate into a large bowl. Heat the cream in a small pot, over low heat, until hot to the touch. Pour the hot cream over the chocolate. Mix well with a rubber spatula until the chocolate melts.

My Own Notes.....

No hazelnut liqueur for me. I did add about 1 tsp. of Almond extract. I could have done without and it would have tasted fine.

Instead of inverting my cake I used a spring form pan. I lined the bottom with foil. After releasing the cake from the pan I simply slid my cake, foil and all, onto the counter to cool. I was worried I would mess up the inverting part. If I was serving it for guests I would probably try to do something nice.

I skipped the ganache part because I did not have heavy cream on hand. I simply sprinkled powder sugar on top. Still tasted yummy.

It was pretty easy to make and didn't require a lot of ingredients.

A snack

I had a craving for blue cheese. So I toasted sour dough bread, threw on some slices of blue cheese and drizzled honey over the top. It hit the spot.

Amazing Cheesy Bread

1 cup Grated Parmesan cheese

1 cup finely shredded Cheddar/Jack cheese mix

Mayo to make a paste

Chives to taste

Garlic powder to taste

Spread on Sourdough bread and broil. So easy!

Sweet and Sour Cranberry Pot Roast

Sweet and Sour Cranberry Pot Roast

Ingredients

One 16-oz can tomato sauce
One 16-oz can whole cranberry sauce
1/4 cup dry red wine or water (I used water)
3 shallots, chopped
2 ribs of celery, chopped
3 tbsp. cider vinegar
1 tbsp. olive oil
1 tbsp. prepared horseradish
1 tsp. dry mustard
One 3-4 pound boneless chuck roast, trimmed of as much fat as possible and patted dry

To cook:

1. Stir together all ingredients (except meat) in your crock pot. Cover and cook on high for 30 minutes.
2. Put meat in crock pot and spoon some of the sauce over your meat. Cover and cook on low for 8-10 hours.
3. Transfer meat to cutting board and slice. Put on platter surrounded by yummy vegetables.
4. If you would like, cook the extra sauce on high for a few minutes, uncovered, and then serve on side.

My tidbits:
I forgot to turn down by crock pot from high to low. My meat cooked much faster and by the time it was ready for dinner it ended up being shredded beef. My guests didn't seem to mind too much. Also, I had noticed that I forgot to turn it down after it had already cooked for about 3 hours. Since I had planned on cooking it for 8 hours I just turned my setting to warm. The recipe says that a 3-4 pound roast will serve about 6-8. My 3 pound roast probably would have serve 4-6 depending on serving size and the number of sides you prepare. :) I would definitely make this recipe again. It was super easy and very tasty. It would probably also taste great served over rice.

My Mom's Lemon Cupcakes

My Mom's Lemon Cupcakes

1 Yello Cake Mix

4 eggs

3/4 c. water

1 (3 oz.) package of Lemon Jello

3/4 c. vegetable oil

Mix all ingredients together.  Follow directions on cake mix box for oven temperature and bake time.  I threw out my box accidentally.  I set my oven for 350 degrees and baked my cupcakes for about 18 minutes.

Frosting (make while cupcakes are baking)

1 1/2 c. powdered sugar

2 tbs. melted butter

juice from 2 lemons to thin frosting down

Mix butter and sugar together first.  Add lemon juice a little at a time to thin down mixture.  It should have a nice pouring consistency and be on the tart side.  Make sure your frosting is nice and smooth or you will end up with powdered sugar lumps on top of your cupcakes.  Just look at my picture above.  It doesn't taste bad but might look a little prettier without the white lumps.  :)

When cupcakes are removed from the oven and still hot, take a fork and poke holes into cupcakes.  You will pour the frosting into these holes.  I poked and poured at the same time so I could use the fork to hold open my holes a bit.  If you have icing left over, feel free to pour directly on top.  

Panera's Cream Cheese Potato Soup

Panera's Cream Cheese Potato Soup

Ingredients

4 c. chicken broth

4 c. potatoes, peeled and cubed

1/4 c. onion, minced

1/2 tsp. seasoning salt

1/4 tsp. white pepper

1/4 tsp. ground red pepper

1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, cut into chunks

Directions

Combine broth, potatoes, onion, and spices.  Boil on medium heat until potatoes are tender.  Smash a few of the potatoes to release their starch for thickening.  Reduce to low heat.  Add cream cheese.  Heat, stirring frequently, until cheese melts.

Thank you Kathi for this yummy recipe!!!

My tidbits:

I don't think I smashed enough potatoes because my soup didn't thicken up.  To solve this, I could up more potato cubes in the microwave, added some of the soup juice, and then mashed the potatoes.  I added that mixture into my soup and it thicken up nicely.  Be sure to give the cream cheese time to melt.  Don't worry if it looks chunky.  Just keep stirring and make sure you have the heat up just right.  We served it with bread and bacon bits.  You could also top it with cheese, chives, or just about anything you like.  

I fed three adults and had enough leftover to feed four adults again the next day.  That's what I love about soups-the gift that keeps on giving.  I'm going to try freezing my leftovers.