Showing posts with label Pie. Show all posts

Holiday Recipe: Frozen Grasshopper Pie

From Denny: This retro recipe is a blast from the past - with updates! The decade of the 1950's sported the food trend of frozen desserts, especially for entertaining and the holidays.

Historically, it was in the 1950's when freezers were first mass manufactured as separate from refrigerators. This new appliance trend created some serious creativity in the cooking arena with frozen desserts offered.

This Christmas holiday favorite has survived the test of time, in this decade with a couple of tweaks as options for ingredient substitutions - like frozen yogurt or reduced-fat ice cream for the original full fat ice cream in the filling. Using canola oil reduces the saturated fat in the original crust that used butter - later in the 1960's and 1970's it was worse, using solid shortening like Crisco for the crust.

Basically, this is a type of frozen mint ice cream pie with a delicious chocolate cookie wafer or chocolate graham cracker crust. It's a very easy recipe to make which also makes it a big hit. This recipe is an easy one for beginners.

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Celebrate Chocolate every day as a holiday!

Frozen Grasshopper Pie

Yield: 8 servings

Serving size: 1 slice

From: CanolaInfo

Ingredients:

canola oil cooking spray
1¼ cup finely crushed chocolate wafer cookies or chocolate graham cracker crumbs (310 mL)
3 Tbsp canola oil (45 mL)
4 cups mint chip reduced-fat ice cream or frozen yogurt, softened* (1 L)
1/3 cup chocolate shavings (1 oz (30 g) chocolate)* (60 mL)

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C). Spray 9-inch (22-cm) pie dish with canola oil cooking spray.
In medium bowl, combine cookie crumbs and canola oil and mix until combined, then press mixture into prepared pie dish. Bake until fragrant, 6 to 8 minutes. Allow to cool completely.
In large bowl, place softened ice cream and mix well until uniform texture forms, similar to soft-serve ice cream. Fill cooled pie crust with ice cream, smoothing out top. Garnish with chocolate shavings, cover with plastic wrap and put back in freezer until solidly frozen, at least 4 hours.
When ready to serve, heat knife under hot water and use it to cut pie into slices.

* Notes: An ice cream or frozen yogurt without green food coloring is recommended. To make chocolate shavings, use a vegetable peeler to peel strips from a thick block of chocolate. If the chocolate crumbles as you make the shavings, put it in the microwave at 10-second intervals to soften it slightly.

Per Serving
Calories	290
Total Fat	14	g
Saturated Fat	5	g
Cholesterol	15	mg
Sodium	190	mg
Carbohydrates	36	g
Fibre	1	g
Protein	5	g

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Chicken Fajita Pie

We love chicken fajitas and we love pie. Why not combine them into a Chicken Fajita Pie!

Ingredients (printable recipe)
1 (10 inch) flour tortilla (burrito size)
2 cups cooked chicken, diced or shredded
3/4 cup chopped bell pepper (red, yellow, green, orange, whichever you like)
1/3 cup chopped red onion
2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese, divided
1/2 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro leaves (I used a mini food processor)
2 large eggs
1 cup milk
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
freshly ground pepper to taste
cooking spray
Directions
1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 450 degrees F. Spray a 9-inch pie plate. Press tortilla into prepared pie plate and spray lightly with more cooking spray. Toss chicken, chopped pepper, onion and 1 cup of shredded cheese in a large bowl until combined. Spread filling over tortilla.
2. Whisk eggs, milk, flour, baking powder, salt, pepper and cilantro in bowl until smooth. Slowly pour over filling. Then, sprinkle with remaining cheese. Bake until surface is golden brown about 20-25 minutes. Let cool 5 minutes. Cut into wedges and serve.

Adapted from The Girl Who Ate Everything and Cook's Country

I love that the crust is simply a large tortilla. So easy!

Here's the filling: chicken, chopped bell pepper and onion and cheese

I don't like chopping cilantro leaves. So, I put the leaves into a mini food processor and then added them to the egg, milk, flour mixture. I've used both whole milk and skim milk in this recipe. So, use whatever milk you have. One more tip: put your pie plate on a baking sheet covered with foil before pouring in this runny mixture. Helps if you happen to spill and makes it easier to pull this in and out of the oven. (Wish I hadn't forgot the foil. It makes clean-up so much easier.)

More cheese! Can you really ever have too much cheese?

The Results...
So easy to make! We liked Chicken Fajita Pie. My husband and son gave this about 3 stars (out of 5). They both like their Mexican food spicy and I intentionally made this mild so everyone could enjoy it. I could spice this up with some chopped jalapeno peppers. Maybe next time I'll make two pies, one spicy and one mild.

My little girls were happy this was mild and full of cheese. My 5 yr. old was the biggest fan and ate her entire slice of pie. She gave this recipe 5 out of 5 stars!

“I’m partying at the Pi Day Pie Party at Crazy for Crust today. Come party with us!”

This recipe is featured at:
On the Menu Monday @ StoneGable
Show & Share Wednesday @ Semi Homemade Mom
Tasty Thursdays @ The Mandatory Mooch

I also share recipes are these linky parties.

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Ham and Cheese Slab Pies

I have never made a slab pie. Actually, I'd never even heard of slab pies before I found this recipe on Better Homes and Gardens. Their photo looks delicious and the recipe seems simple enough. I decided it was worth a try.

Ingredients (printable recipe)
6 ounces cream cheese, softened
2 Tablespoons honey mustard
1 17.3 oz. package frozen puff pastry sheets, thawed (2 sheets)
6 ounces thinly sliced ham
1/2 of a medium red onion, thinly sliced
6 ounces thinly sliced cheese (Gruyere, Swiss or Cheddar, we used American)
1 egg
1 Tablespoon water
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper; set aside. In a small bowl stir together cream cheese and mustard. On a lightly floured surface roll each sheet of thawed puff pastry into a 15x12-inch rectangle. Transfer each pastry sheet to a prepared baking sheet; spread half of each pastry lengthwise with cream cheese mixture, leaving a 1/2-inch border around outside edges.

2. Add individual layers of ham, onion, and Gruyere cheese over cream cheese layer, leaving a 1/2-inch border around outside edges. In a small bowl whisk together egg and the water. Brush some of the egg mixture on the uncovered edges of the pastries. Fold uncovered portion of each pastry rectangle up and over filling. Use a fork to seal edges together. Brush tops with egg mixture. Cut decorative slits in top of each pastry for steam to escape.

3. Bake about 25 minutes or until pastries are golden on both the top and bottom. If top browns more quickly than the bottom, cover with foil. Slide pies and parchment paper onto wire racks; cool slightly. To serve, cut crosswise into strips.

Make Ahead Directions
Prepare as directed through Step 2, except do not preheat oven and do not brush tops of pies with egg mixture. Freeze pies on parchment paper-lined baking pans until firm. Wrap pies tightly with plastic wrap; overwrap with foil. Label and freeze for up to 2 months. To serve, thaw in the refrigerator for 24 hours. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Place on parchment paper-lined baking sheets. Brush with egg mixture; bake and cool as directed.

Source Better Homes and Gardens

The Results...
Good, but not great. I had high hopes for this recipe because it looks kinda like a huge Hot Pocket and my family loves those things. Everyone said it was OK. I was surprised that it wasn't a bigger hit.

This recipe was still worth a try. I like the idea of a slab pie and I would make one of these again, but I would change the filling. I thought the filling was slightly bland and it would be fun to experiment. Ham and Cheese Slab Pies were just alright.

I share recipes at these linky parties.

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Ricotta Chocolate Chip Pie

From Denny: Exploring travel sites sometimes yields some delicious recipes! This hefty pie enjoys three pounds of ricotta cheese. A slice of this could be an entire meal considering the protein level.

The pie includes cooked barley which gives it a nutty flavor. Barley is also great for calming the nervous system since it is chock full of B vitamins. FYI :)

The whole process is like making a cheesecake because of the spring form pan. You also lower the baking temperature a couple of times to gently lower the cooling off temperature gradually and prevent the ricotta from drying out.

What's even better is that this is a recipe meant for sitting in the fridge overnight or for a day before serving. So, it's the perfect make ahead dessert like for a holiday or special occasion.

Ricotta Pie

From: ExploreAsheville.com

Estimated Cost: $30

Ingredients:

3 lb. ricotta cheese
6 or 7 eggs
2 c. sugar
1½ c. heavy cream
2 tbsp. flour
2 tbsp. vanilla
1½ c. sweet chocolate chips
1 c. citron
1½ c. barley

Graham Cracker Crust:

2 cups graham cracker crumbs
1/2 cup melted butter
1/3 cup sugar

Directions:

Soak barley for 30 minutes. Boil water and cook barley for 20 minutes. Drain well. Add flour to coat barley.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Mix all ingredients well, folding the barley into the mixture last. Grease spring pan.

Combine graham crackers, sugar and melted butter. Add graham cracker crust to the bottom of pan.
Then, pour pie mixture into spring pan.

Bake in 400 degree oven for 30 minutes.

Lower oven temperature to 350 degrees and heat for 30 minutes.

Then, lower oven temperature to 300 and heat for 15 minutes.

Turn the oven off and let the pie stand in the over for 10 minutes. Take it out and let it cool in refrigerator overnight. Serve next day.

Romancing The Chocolate: Chefs Recipe 4 Valentines Day: Warm Chocolate Cheesecake (dennysfunnyquotes.blogspot.com)
Valentines Day: Warm Upside-Down Pear Cake With Tangerine Custard Sauce (unusual2tasty.blogspot.com)
Romancing The Chocolate: Cookies: Vanilla Rich Chocolate Chip (dennysfoodandrecipes.blogspot.com)

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Beautiful and Easy: Decadent Chocolate Mousse Pie

Photo provided by Spice IslandsFor a delicious chocolaty dessert to celebrate Valentine's Day, try Decadent Chocolate Mousse Pie. It combines a chocolate crumb crust with semisweet chocolate chips and heavy cream -- a combination sure to appeal to most palates.

From Denny: I love searching through the recipe databases of various companies promoting their food products. You never know what gems you will find to inspire you to try something new or tweak a family favorite.

The recipe database at Spice Islands is a real treasure trove of goodies - and I've only started on the dessert section! Color me into the Well Impressed Corner. :)

All this delectable recipe requires is an already prepared chocolate crumb crust you can purchase at your grocery store and then melting the chocolate chips into some of the heavy cream in a microwave. You add your cinnamon and vanilla extract.

Yeah, I know, but what about adding the powdered sugar? Did you forget it? How they handle that is first they cool down the chocolate-cream mixture by placing it in a bowl over another bowl of ice and water.

Then you pull out your trusty electric mixer to whip up the remaining whipping cream into soft peaks. Add the powdered sugar at this stage. To keep the volume going on the pie so it looks beautiful mounded up in the pie shell, you first stir in one-third of this whipped cream into the warmer chocolate mixture. This also equalizes the temperature of the two mixtures.

After that you carefully fold in the remaining whipped cream ever so gently. Folding into a mixture is a slower rounded motion, not a fast slicing motion like stirring. Remember those Julia Child episodes with Jack Pepin or the movie about her? Julia could opine on the importance of proper folding technique for a good 15 minutes of air time. Yeah, like that.

Once everything is gently combined you spoon it into the pie crust and chill. When it's time to serve feel free to garnish with additional whipped cream, shaved chocolate or chocolate sprinkles and maybe some fresh berries for beautiful color contrast whether you serve it plain or adorned with more snowy white whipped cream.

Decadent Chocolate Mousse Pie

From: Spice Islands

Serves: 8 - Makes 1 (9-inch) pie

Ingredients:

1 (9-inch) prepared chocolate crumb crust

1 1/4 tsps. ground Saigon cinnamon, divided

1 (12-oz.) pkg. semisweet chocolate chips (2 cups)

11/2 cups heavy cream, divided

2 tsps. vanilla extract

1/4 cup powdered sugar

Directions:

1. Sprinkle chocolate crust with 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon. Set aside.

2. Combine chocolate chips and 1/2 cup whipping cream in a medium-sized microwave safe bowl. Microwave on high (100 percent) for 1 to 2 minutes or until melted and smooth, stirring every 30 seconds. Stir in remaining 1 teaspoon cinnamon and vanilla extract.

3. Chill chocolate mixture in an ice water bath, stirring frequently until chocolate is cooled to room temperature.

4. Beat remaining 1 cup whipping cream on high speed of electric mixer, gradually adding powdered sugar, until soft peaks form. Stir 1⁄3 of the whipped cream into chocolate mixture. Gently fold in remaining whipped cream; spoon into crust. Cover and refrigerate 2 to 3 hours or until set. If desired, garnish with additional whipped cream, chocolate sprinkles or fresh berries.

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Valentines Day: Chocolate Chip Butterscotch Pie

From Denny: Pies are always an easy idea for holidays as they take less time and fuss than individual portion recipes.

This is a light taste of chocolate and butterscotch. If you want to intensify those flavors, step up the chocolate chips to 3/4 cup, instead of 1/2 cup. You could even drizzle the finished chilled pie with extra chocolate syrup to add that decadence factor.

As to intensifying the butterscotch flavor, why not add a few microwave melted caramel candies to the mix? Or you could add more butterscotch chips instead of taking the time to melt caramels.

Most people prefer a light taste to dishes. At our house we often like spicy dishes and strongly flavored desserts. So, if it's supposed to taste like chocolate and caramel, we want it to be obvious.

I really think this cook was showcasing the mascarpone cheese above the other flavors, so a different name would have been a better idea since the chocolate and butterscotch flavors tend to be background in this pie. The choice is yours: simple and creamy cheese with a light taste of chocolate and butterscotch - or kick it up a notch to just a bit more!

When I think of Valentine's Day it's often for creamy textured dishes as much as the all time favorite of chocolate. Yes, a great Mac 'n' Cheese dish would definitely qualify. :) Check out one of my other food blogs for some great recipes on that front: Comfort Food From Louisiana.

Meanwhile, I like this simple creamy sweet cheese pie with hints of chocolate and butterscotch.

Chocolate Chip Butterscotch Pie

From: Sunny Anderson

Servings: 4 - 6

Difficulty: Easy

Cook Time: 30 - 60 min

Ingredients:

Butterscotch Sauce:

2 tablespoons butter

1/2 cup light brown sugar

1/4 cup light corn syrup

Pinch salt

1/4 cup heavy cream

Pie Filling:

8 ounces mascarpone cheese

1 1/2 cups heavy cream

1/2 cup sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Pinch salt

1/2 cup mini-chocolate chips

1 (6-ounce) pre-made chocolate cookie pie crust (recommended: Oreo or Keebler)

Directions:

For the butterscotch sauce, melt the butter in a sauce pot over medium-high heat. Add the brown sugar, corn syrup, and salt. Bring to a simmer and stir until golden amber in color, about 10 to 15 minutes. Remove from heat and slowly stir in the cream. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool.

For the filling, add the mascarpone cheese and the heavy cream to a large bowl and whisk until combined. Add the sugar, vanilla, and salt. Whisk until soft peaks form, then fold in the chocolate chips. Pour the filling into the crust, smoothing out the pie surface.

Refrigerate for at least 3 hours and serve drizzled with butterscotch sauce.

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Easy Triple Layer Mud Pie

Another delectable version of mud pie from Hummingbird Bakery and minniephoto @ flickr

From Denny: This is an easy recipe for those chocolate lovers who are in a hurry to whip up a dessert and then forget about it for a few hours while it chills in the fridge.

Simple pies like this are also perfect for tailgating to those special sports events.

All you need for this simple dessert is part of a can of sweetened condensed milk, 3 squares of semi-sweet chocolate, a prepared chocolate cookie crumb pie crust, a chocolate instant pudding mix, some two percent milk, 1/2 cup chopped nuts and a small tub of frozen whipped topping of your choice.

What could be easier than that? Hmmm... buying it already made at the grocery store? :) But this pie will taste so much better since you made it!

Triple Layer Mud Pie

From: Gevalia coffee - my fav coffee site that started putting up recipes lately

Gevalia customer and chocolate lover, Jennifer Birdsley, shared this creamy, crunchy, chocolatey treat with us. To add even more oomph, she serves it with a chocolate flavored Gevalia coffee.

Prep Time: 3 hours 15 min

Serves: 10

Ingredients

3 squares (1 oz. each) semi-sweet chocolate, melted
1/4 cup canned sweetened condensed milk
1 ready-to-use chocolate cookie crumb crust (6oz.)
1/2 cup chopped pecans, toasted
2 pkg. (3.9oz. each) chocolate instant pudding mix
2 cups cold 2% milk
1 tub (8oz.) frozen whipped topping, thawed

Directions

Mix chocolate and condensed milk; pour into crust. Sprinkle with nuts.
BEAT pudding mixes and 2% milk with whisk nuts. Stir half the whipped topping into layer in crust.
Top with remaining whipped topping. Refrigerate 3 hours.

Flavor Tips

Mocha: Steep 2% milk and 2 Tbsp. coffee until heated through; stirring occasionally. Strain, cool. Use coffee milk to prepare pudding as above.
Coconut: Substitute nuts with 1/2 cup toasted coconut.

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Awesome Chocolate Pecan Tart

From Denny: This easy tart combines two of my favorite flavors - chocolate and pecans. Louisiana Bergeron pecans are wonderful if you can get them where you live. If not, just look for the freshest ones, even asking your grocer when a new shipment is due.

Pecans exude such a wonderful aroma when roasting in the oven that is hard to resist. Make sure you slightly warm the dessert when you serve it for the holidays. That's how we like it at our house! :)

Awesome Chocolate Pecan Tart

Makes: 10 to 12 servings

From: Wolf SubZero site

Ingredients:

Crust

1 1/2 cups flour

3/4 cup cold, unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

1 tablespoon sugar

1/8 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons ice water

Filling

2 large eggs 2/3 cup light

brown sugar

1/3 cup light corn syrup

2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 tablespoons bourbon, divided

1/3 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

1 1/2 cups pecan halves

1 tablespoon cold butter

Directions:

To Make the Crust: In a medium bowl, combine flour, butter, sugar and salt with fingertips until butter is fully incorporated. Add ice water and gently knead until just combined. Flatten out into a 6” circle, wrap in plastic wrap and chill for at least an hour. Remove from refrigerator and roll out on floured surface with rolling pin until it is a 14 inches circle. Place dough into a 10-inch tart or springform pan that has a removable bottom. Tuck dough into tart pan and trim edges along top or trim dough 1 inch up sides of springform pan. Set aside.

To Make the Filling: Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). In a medium bowl, combine the eggs, brown sugar, corn syrup, melted butter, vanilla and 1 tablespoon bourbon with a whisk. Sprinkle chocolate chips over the bottom of the crust. Pour egg mixture over the chocolate chips. Arrange pecans over surface. Dot the top with cold butter. Place in center of oven about 55 minutes or until set. Remove from oven and drizzle remaining bourbon over the top. Allow to cool before serving.

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ambrosia dessert

Pages

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Holiday Recipe: Frozen Grasshopper Pie

Celebrate Chocolate Queen Duvet

Celebrate Chocolate Earring Circle Charm

Celebrate Chocolate Necklace Circle Charm

Chicken Fajita Pie

Ham and Cheese Slab Pies

Ricotta Chocolate Chip Pie

Beautiful and Easy: Decadent Chocolate Mousse Pie

Valentines Day: Chocolate Chip Butterscotch Pie

Easy Triple Layer Mud Pie

Flavor Tips

Awesome Chocolate Pecan Tart

Pages

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