Peach Pie

I’ve been waiting for the peaches to be in season. I love peach pie, although I am the only one that seems to eat peach pie. My family just doesn’t appreciate the golden little beauties. Still, I couldn’t resist the Peaches in season and I couldn’t pass up the bag of peaches they had, a 5 lb. Bag for 3.99. I picked up a couple of them. Came home and made Peach Pie. So tasty!

Use the crust recipe here.

Peach Pie

6-8 med to Large  Peaches,

2/3 Cup Granulated Sugar

1/2 tsp. Salt

3 Tbsp. Instant (quick Cooking)  Tapioca

1 Tbsp. Cornstarch

2 tsp. Cinnamon

1/2 tsp. Vanilla

Freshly ground Nutmeg

Peel the peaches, by making an x in the bottom of the peaches, and then putting them into boiling water.  Remove peaches, when you start to see the x start to peel. Plunge into cold ice water to stop the cooking process and peel and slice the peaches. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees, and make your pie crust. Line a deep dish pie plate with a crust.  In a bowl combine the peaches, sugar, salt, Tapioca, cornstarch, cinnamon, and vanilla. Lightly grate nutmeg over the pie. Top with your crust, making vents for steam to escape. Paint the pie crust with milk, and sprinkle with sugar. Turn the oven down to 350 degrees and place your pie in the oven. Bake for 40 minutes. Remove from oven and set on a rack to cool. Serve with a scoop of Vanilla Ice Cream, if desired!

Blackberry Frosted Dream

This is a dessert that I came up with to use up the blackberries that I had on hand. This turned out absolutely delicious and I will definitely make this again.   This doesn’t need to be frozen to be served, but it makes it frosty and cool if you do. I have included a Lemon Glaze that you can put on top of this, make sure to let the glaze set up before you freeze it if you choose to add the glaze.  These can be used refrigerated and if you use the glaze, just refrigerate, no need to wait for the glaze to set first.  I still prefer them frozen, but you decide.

Lemon Pound Cake

3 Cups Cake Flour, Sifted

1/4 tsp. Baking Soda

1/4 tsp. Baking Powder

1 1/2 Cups (3 sticks) Unsalted Butter, at room temperature

2 1/2 Cups Granulated Sugar

1 tsp. Kosher Salt

5 Large Eggs, at room temperature

2 Tbsp. Lemon Juice

1 Tbsp. Lemon Extract

1 Cup Buttermilk

1 tsp. Vanilla

Set the oven rack in the middle position. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Generously butter a 15X10 inch  baking pan.  Line with parchment paper, spray with nonstick. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and baking powder; set aside.   In the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter with the sugar and salt on medium high speed until light and fluffy, scraping down the sides of the bowl about halfway through, 2 to 3 minutes.  Add the eggs one at a time, beating  after each addition.  If the mixture curdles, beat in a little of the flour mixture, 1 tablespoon at a time; the flour will absorb the excess moisture and the batter will smooth out again. (If the batter stays curdled, you run the risk of having butter lumps in your cake.)  Beat in the lemon juice and lemon extract.

With the mixer on low speed, beat in half of the dry ingredients until absorbed. Beat in the buttermilk. Beat in the remaining dry ingredients until absorbed.  Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and bake on the prepared pan. Bake until a cake tester comes out clean when inserted into the center of the cake and the cake springs back when gently touched, 25 to 30 minutes.  ( NOTE: Start checking after 20 minutes. Do not over bake cake.)   Let the cake cool in the pan for about 10-15 minutes, and then invert onto a towel, sprinkled with powdered sugar until completely cool.

Blackberry Curd:

6 Cups Blackberries

2/3 Cup Granulated Sugar

1/4 Cup Lemon Juice

6 Egg Yolks

2 Tbsp. Cornstarch

4 Tbsp. Water

1/2 Cup (1 Stick) Butter, cut into little cubes

In a saucepan, combine blackberries, sugar and lemon juice.  Bring to a boil, turn heat to low and simmer for 20 minutes covered.  Strain berries over a bowl in a fine mesh strainer to capture juice using a spoon to extract as much juice as possible. (Discard seeds).  Return blackberry juice to saucepan. In a small mixing bowl beat egg yolks, cornstarch and water for about 2 minutes.  Add 1/2 Cup of the blackberry sauce  to the egg yolks, whisking constantly to temper the yolks. Return mixture to saucepan and cook, stirring constantly until mixture thickens.  (if you have any lumps, strain your curd through a fine mesh strainer.)  Remove from heat, whisk in butter than let cool to room temperature. Set aside.

Blackberry Mousse:

3 Cups Heavy Whipping Cream

6 Tbsp. Powdered Sugar

Blackberry Curd

In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the heavy whipping cream with the powdered sugar until you have medium soft peaks.  Fold 1/3 of the whipping cream into the blackberry curd. Than combine the blackberry curd and the whipped cream, stirring gently until no white streaks remain. Set aside.

Lemon Glaze: (Optional)

3 tsp. Powdered Gelatin

2 Tbsp. Water

1/2 Cup Lemon Juice

1/2 Cup Water

4 Tbsp. Sugar

Sprinkle the gelatin over the 2 Tablespoons of water and stir. Set aside.  In a small saucepan, combine the 1/2 cup water, lemon juice and sugar. Stir to dissolve the sugar. Bring to a boil. Add the gelatin, and stir till the gelatin is dissolved. Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature.  Spoon or pour the mixture over the mousse. Let sit until gelatin has set. Freeze until ready to serve.

Assembly:

Take Dessert molds (I used Cans, from my cheater chili. I cut both ends out, removed the labels and then used the grinder to remove any sharp edges, and threw them in the dish washer. I didn’t have any molds.) Cut rounds of cake with the dessert molds, leaving the cake inside the molds. Set on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper (or wax paper, or Silpat liner). Put in freezer while making the blackberry curd.  Spoon some blackberry curd, onto the cake layers, making a thin layer, but not thin enough to see the cake underneath. Return to freezer while making the mousse.  Spoon the mousse into the dessert molds, filling up all the way to just below the top. Return the desserts to the freezer while you make the glaze. (The glaze is optional). Spoon or pour the glaze over the top of the mousse, and let sit until glaze sets. Decorate with Blackberries and Mint leaves.  You could also reserve a little of the whipped cream and top your dessert with a swirl of whipped cream in the center with a blackberry set in the center. No matter how you decorate, these will not disappoint! To unmold desserts, use a propane torch and go around the mold until it releases the dessert.

NOTES:  My Molds are rather large, 3 inches round by 3 1/2 inches tall, which I felt were too big. I suggest smaller molds.  This recipe made 8 this size. Also, the cake will make the 15X10 inch cake and a loaf. Or you could cut the recipe in half. I made the whole recipe, freezing the leftover cake for cake balls or another dessert for another time. The pound cake recipe was adapted from: The Sono Baking Company Cookbook and is delicious!

Chocolate Cake with Strawberry Mousse

My husband loves mousse desserts. Doesn’t matter what kind of mousse, he just likes that creamy, cool, refreshing mousse and isn’t picky what kind. I didn’t have any fresh fruits on hand but I did have the Jumex nectar juices. That worked pretty good, and made a nice creamy mousse topping for the chocolate cake. The Strawberry nectar wasn’t dark enough in color to make my mousse red, I guess you could use a food coloring to color the mousse if you wanted too. I thought it worked out just fine without coloring. The flavor was wonderful!

Chocolate Cake:

6 Tbsp. Butter, room temp.

1 Cup Light Brown Sugar, packed

1 1/2  tsp. Vanilla Extract

2 Eggs, room temp.

1 Cup Plus 3 Tbsp.  All Purpose Flour

1/2 Cup Cocoa Powder

3/4 tsp. Baking Powder

1/4 tsp. Baking Soda

1/4 tsp. Salt

3/4 Cup Buttermilk, room temp.

Mousse:

2/3 Cup Jumex Strawberry Nectar (Or a flavor of your choice)

1/4 Cup Cold Water

1 1/2 tsp. Gelatin Powder

2 Large Eggs

1/2 Cup Sugar

1 Tbsp. Lemon Juice

3/4 Cup Whipping Cream

Cake Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. while making the cake batter.  Grease and flour a 9 inch Spring form pan, line with parchment paper and set aside.  In a bowl, beat butter and sugar until smooth and creamy.  Beat in Vanilla and add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.  In a separate bowl, sift all flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Add alternately with buttermilk, starting and ending with flour mixture blending gently but well after each addition. Scrape batter into spring form pan, tap on counter to remove any air bubbles and bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Cool in pan for 20 minutes, than invert cake to a cooling rack to cool completely. Wash, rinse and dry the spring form pan, and line again with parchment paper around the sides of the pan. Return cake back to pan and set aside.

Pour cold water over gelatin and stir. Whisk eggs, sugar and lemon juice over a pot of simmering water until fluffy and warm.  Remove from heat and add gelatin, whisking until melted.  Set aside to cool to room temperature.     Whip cream to medium peaks, and fold in egg mixture, gently but quickly add strawberry nectar. Pour over the cake in the spring form pan and refrigerate  for at least 4 hours, preferably overnight.  To serve, remove ring from pan, and gently peel away the parchment paper from the side of the cake.  Top with Fresh Fruit if desired. (I just didn’t have any.)

Attention Michigan Readers! An Act of Tenderness!!

Do you know a Michigan resident in the habit of helping others?

Tender Ridge Angus is hoping to recognize those people who usually go unnoticed. They don’t have to be the leaders of charities, they can be:
•    The man who coaches a little league baseball team, and dedicates his weekend to their competition and to being a positive role model

•    The woman who watches out for an elderly neighbor – bringing over meals, offering rides and always a listening ear.

•    The high school student who started a service project as a requirement, but became inspired and continued giving.

Someone who tutors children after school, volunteers rides for the elderly, feeds the homeless or does other nice things for people in their community? Nominate them. You’ll both receive a Tender Ridge^® Angus $5 coupon.

Now through August 2010, Michigan readers can submit nominations of a few short sentences online at www.TenderRidgeAngus.com/Tenderness. They simply share a description of how the person they’re nominating gives back to the community and if they work with an official charity. Anyone who lives in and gives back to Michigan is eligible to be nominated.

Tender Ridge Angus beef, the beef known for tenderness, will honor Michigan residents who do nice things for others. Nine Michigan residents will be chosen to be recognized on WOOD-TV’s “eightWest” May 17 through Sept. 6.We will also recognize the local charities that benefit from their acts of tenderness by donating $1,000 to these charities in the name of each tenderhearted honoree.

Our Tender Ridge Facebook page has a video with some easy instructions on how to nominate:

http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=555872595330.

We very much want this to be a true community effort. So the more people who are aware, the more opportunities we have to recognize Michigan citizens.

So Easy!  So rewarding to the soul to be involved and able to pass this message on. Feel free to copy this information and share it with your Michigan Readers, neighbors, friends, co-workers, and anybody else you come in contact with!!

Creamy Smooth & Lucious Raspberry Cheesecake

My daughter (Sherie) loves cheesecake and is always asking for one.  Usually she wants the Fudge Brownie Raspberry Swirl Cheesecake I always make. Anyways, I had wanted to try a different cheesecake than that and came up with this one. This was quite good, but very rich, so you’ll want to cut small pieces. Did this satisfy Sherie’s cheesecake craving? No, and I’ve been informed that the next cheesecake will have to be the fudge brownie Raspberry Swirl Cheesecake that she absolutely loves! (Sometimes, you just can’t get around making favorites.) But don’t let this stop you from trying this one, it is delicious!

Raspberry Cheesecake

Crust:

1 1/4 Cups Graham Cracker Crumbs (9-10 full size Graham Crackers)

1/4 Cup Sugar

1/3 Cup Butter, melted

Filling:

2 Cups Sugar

1/4 Cup Cornstarch

4 pkg.  (8 oz. each) Cream Cheese, softened (room temperature)

1 Tbsp. Vanilla Paste (or 1 Vanilla bean, split and seeds scraped)

3/4 Cup Heavy Whipping Cream

3 Large Eggs

Directions:

Crust:

Spray a 9 or 10 inch spring-form pan , with nonstick spray. Position a rack in the center of your oven and place a 9X13 inch pan on a rack underneath the middle rack. Were gonna need it for a water bath. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.  In a medium bowl, combine cracker crumbs and sugar. Stir well and add the melted butter. Pat crumbs into the bottom of a  9 or 10 inch cheesecake pan. Set aside.

Filling: In the bowl of a stand mixer, with the paddle attachment combine cream cheese, sugar and cornstarch. Beat on low speed until creamy, 1 to 2 minutes, scraping the bowl as you go. Beat in the vanilla on low.  Add the heavy cream slowly, drizzling along the side of the bowl. Scrape down sides and continue beating, until cream is fully incorporated. Add the eggs, 1 egg at a time, fully incorporating before adding the next one. Do not over beat. Stop the mixer, remove the bowl and scrape bowl gently mixing in any batter on the sides. Gently tap the bowl on the counter to remove any air bubbles. Using a spoon gently pour the mixture onto the spoon, letting it flow into your graham cracker crust. Smooth the top and gently tap the pan with a spoon to remove any air bubbles that might remain.

Place the cheesecake on a foil lined baking sheet. Pour 1 1/2 inches of water into the 9X13 inch pan, and set the cheesecake in the oven. After about 10-15 minutes, turn the heat down to 325 degrees. Bake the cheese cake for about 1 hour or until cheese cake is set around the edges, but still moves slightly in the center. The center will wobble, and look a little wet, but should not be soupy.  Place on a wire rack to cool. When completely cool, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 10-12 hours, preferably overnight.

Raspberry Mousse

4 Cups Raspberries

1/4 Cup Cold Water

1 1/2 tsp. Gelatin Powder

2 Large Eggs

1/2 Cup Sugar

1 Tbsp. Lemon Juice

3/4 Cup Whipping Cream

Mousse:

Puree raspberries and strain. Puree should measure 2/3 cup. Reserve any extra for another use. Pour cold water over gelatin and stir, set aside. Whisk Eggs, sugar and lemon juice over a pot of simmering water, until warm. Remove from heat and stir in gelatin, whisking until melted.  Set aside to cool to room temperature.  Whip cream to medium peak, and fold in egg mixture. (Save a little whip cream if you want to put a border on your cheesecake.) Pour mixture into spring-form pan over the top of the cheesecake and refrigerate again until set.

Lemon Glaze:

3 tsp. Powdered Gelatin

2 Tbsp. Water

1/2 Cup Water

1/2 Cup Lemon Juice

4 Tbsp. Sugar

In a small bowl, sprinkle the gelatin over the 2 Tbsp. of water, stir and let sit to thicken. Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, over high heat, combine water, lemon juice and the sugar and bring to a simmer, stirring to make sure the sugar is dissolved. Stir in the gelatin, and stir until gelatin is completely melted. Remove from heat to cool to room temperature. Gently pour over the top of the mousse, decorate with raspberries and refrigerate until fully set.

Pipe a border of whipped topping around edges of cheesecake if desired, unmold cheesecake and serve.

Miniature Tarts!

I love making Individual Tarts! They go over so well, they’re dainty, and small enough that you can have one of each without breaking the scale, that is if you can eat just one of each. These were delicious. I will make these over and over.

Lemon Meringue Tarts

Filling:

1 Cup Sugar

3 Eggs

1 Cup Fresh Lemon Juice

2 Tbsp. Cornstarch

3 Lemons, zested

1/4 Cup (1/2  stick) Butter

In a microwave safe bowl, whisk the sugar and eggs together until smooth. Combine the lemon juice, cornstarch and lemon zest, stir well and add to the sugar and egg mixture. Add the butter and stir well. Cook in the microwave, in 1 minute intervals, whisking very well after each minute until the curd thickens. Remove from microwave, whisk very well, and strain though a fine mesh strainer. Cover with plastic wrap directly on the curds to prevent a crust from forming, and cool completely.

Tart Shells:

1/2 Cup Sugar

1/2 Cup Butter (1 stick)

1/2 Cup Powdered Sugar

1/2 Cup Vegetable Oil

1 Egg

1/4 tsp. Almond Extract

1/2 tsp. Baking soda

1/2 tsp. Cream of Tarter

2 Cups Flour

In a medium bowl (or food processor) combine butter, sugar and powdered sugar and beat until creamy. Add Vegetable oil, egg and almond extract and mix well. Add the dry ingredients, and stir with a wooden spoon just until it comes together. Gather the dough and shape into a ball, wrap in plastic wrap and chill for at least 15 minutes. (I chilled mine for about 1 hour). Scoop dough out with 1 Tbsp. and roll into balls. Fill mini muffin tins with the balls and with a tart tapper, make wells in the center to form shells. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 9 minutes, or until dough is slightly firm, but not set.  Remove from oven.  Working quickly, push tapper gently back into dough and bake for another 2 to 3 minutes or until firm and golden.  Remove shells from pan to cool, then fill with your choice of filling.

Dutch Apple Pie Filling:

3 Large Apples, peeled & diced

1/4 Cup Brown Sugar

1/8 tsp. Salt

1 tsp. Cinnamon

1/4 tsp. All Spice

1/4 tsp. Cardamom

2 Tbsp. Butter

1 Tbsp. Flour

In a medium saucepan, melt butter. Combine Apples, brown sugar, salt, cinnamon, all spice and cardamom together and saute until fork tender. Add flour, stirring constantly until thickened. Set aside to cool.

Crumb Topping:

3/4 Cup Brown Sugar

1/2 Cup All Purpose Flour

1/2 Cup Granola (or Oatmeal)

1 tsp. Cinnamon

1/4 tsp. Nutmeg

1/3 Cup Butter, melted

In a medium bowl combine all ingredients together, stirring well. Spread mixture onto a cookie sheet and bake at 425 degrees for about 5 minutes or until golden. Let cool. Spoon filling into cookie tarts, and sprinkle with the crumb topping.

My Favorite Chocolate Chip Cookie

Just like everyone else out in blogger land, I am always looking for a good Chocolate Chip Cookie. Every blog out there had this recipe from the New York Times, adapted from Jacques Torres. And, like a lot of bloggers out there, agree that this cookie is the Best Chocolate Chip Cookie to date. (Cuz you know, the next time you come across a new chocolate chip cookie, you will make it, just to see if it tops your current  favorite Chocolate Chip, I know I will).  If you are the person that missed out on all the talk about the best chocolate chip cookies out in blogger land, here is the recipe that was the talk of blogger town, at one time, and currently my favorite Chocolate Chip Cookie!!

2 Cups minus 2 Tablespoons Cake Flour

1 2/3 Cup Bread Flour

1 1/4 tsp. Baking Soda

1 1/2 tsp. Baking Powder

1 1/2 tsp. Coarse Salt

2 1/2 Sticks  Unsalted Butter (Do Not Substitute)

1 1/4 Cups Light Brown Sugar

1 Cup plus 2 Tbsp. Granulated Sugar

2 Large Eggs

2 tsp. Natural Vanilla (Do not use fake vanilla!!)

1 1/4 lb. Bittersweet Chocolate Chips (Or whatever kind of chocolate chips you favor!)

Sift flours, baking soda, baking powder and salt into a bowl. Set aside.

Using a mixer fitted with the paddle blade, cream butter and sugars together until very light, about 5 minutes.

Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Stir in the vanilla. Reduce speed to low, add dry ingredients and mix until just combined, 5 to 10 seconds. (I mix all my dry ingredients in with a wooden spoon when I make cookies, just until combined. I never use the mixer to mix in the dry ingredients, I find I have a more tender cookie that way). Drop chocolate pieces in and incorporate them without breaking them. Press plastic wrap against dough and refrigerate for 24 to 36 hours. Dough may be used in batches, and can be refrigerated for up to 72 hours.

When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a non stick baking mat. Set aside.

Scoop dough onto baking sheet, sprinkle slightly with sea salt, and bake cookies for 10-12 minutes or until lightly browned. (I use a medium cookie scoop).  Let cookies set for 5 minutes, and then transfer to a wire rack to cool.

My size cookies yield: 4-5 dozen cookies.