Tag: chocolate

Categories
Dessert

Creating a decadent cheesecake isn’t ‘cherry’ difficult

Making chocolate cherry cheesecake is a whole lot of hurry up and wait, as the components need to come up to room temperature between steps, but the final dessert is a deliciously decadent dessert that is worth all the time it takes to create.
Making chocolate cherry cheesecake is a whole lot of hurry up and wait, as the components need to come up to room temperature between steps, but the final dessert is a deliciously decadent dessert that is worth all the time it takes to create.

“We’re in! What can I bring?” I texted my mom about Easter lunch.

“A dessert of some kind,” she wrote back. “Make something easy!!!!”

“Since when do I make complicated desserts?” I responded, punctuating it with a laughing emoji.

So, in other words, here’s a slightly complicated (but amazingly decadent) dessert I made for Easter lunch with my family.

This comes from “The First Year” blog. You can find the original post at https://thefirstyearblog.com/chocolate-cherry-cheesecake/. I added extra vanilla in my version and changed up the topping, as I’ll explain later.

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Chocolate Cherry Cheesecake

Making chocolate cherry cheesecake is a whole lot of hurry up and wait, as the components need to come up to room temperature between steps, but the final dessert is a deliciously decadent dessert that is worth all the time it takes to create.
Course Dessert
Keyword cherry, chocolate, chocolate ganache, chocolate graham crackers, cream cheese, fresh cherries, graham cracker crust, Italian creamer, semisweet chocolate chips, vanilla

Ingredients

Crust Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 cups chocolate graham cracker crumbs
  • 5 tablespoons butter melted

Cheesecake Ingredients

  • 3 8- ounce packages cream cheese use the full fat
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla
  • 1/2 cup Italian cream flavored coffee creamer use the full fat
  • 3 eggs
  • 1 cup cherries chopped (use fresh or thawed and drained frozen fruit)

Ganache Ingredients

  • 1/4 cup heavy whipping cream
  • 3/4 cup chocolate chips I used semi-sweet

Topping Ingredients

  • about 1/4 cup mini chocolate chips
  • about 1 cup fresh cherries

Instructions

Crust Directions

  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
  • Prepare an eight-inch springform pan by wrapping the bottom piece in aluminum foil and then assembling the pan. Wrap the outside in three more layers of foil, making sure it goes up along the outsides of the pan. Set it aside.
  • Find a nine-by-13-inch pan or something similar that your springform will fit into so you can use it to make a water bath. (I ended up using a large bowl.) You’ll need this later.
  • Make sure the graham crackers are crushed finely, and pour them into a bowl along with the melted butter, mixing well to coat all the crackers with the butter.
  • Press the crumbs into the bottom of your prepared pan, using a glass or measuring cup to compact them firmly.
  • Bake for eight to 10 minutes or until the crust is lightly toasted.
  • Set the pan aside and let it come up to room temperature.
  • Lower the oven temperature to 325 degrees.

Cheesecake Directions

  • In a large mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese on high speed for two to three minutes, making sure it is smooth and creamy.
  • Beat in the sugar and vanilla until smooth. Next, beat in the creamer, and finally, beat in the eggs, one at a time, making sure the mixture is completely smooth in between additions.
  • Finally, beat on high for one more minute, and then fold in the cherries.
  • Once the springform pan is cooled to room temperature, pour the cheesecake mixture into it.
  • Place the springform pan into your nine-by-13 pan and fill the nine-by-13 with water until it’s about one inch below the top of the tin foil on the springform pan.
  • Carefully transfer the whole contraption to your 325-degree oven and bake for one hour or until just the middle of the cheesecake wobbles when you gently shake the pan, but the edges are firm.
  • When the cheesecake is done, turn off the oven and crack the oven door. Leave the cheesecake in the oven to cool for about an hour to an hour and one-half. Once it is at room temperature, remove it from the oven and water bath (you can toss the foil layers at this point) and put in the refrigerator for six hours or overnight to completely chill.

Ganache Directions

  • Remove the cheesecake from the refrigerator, run a knife around the outside to loosen the edges from the springform, and remove the cheesecake from the pan.
  • Move it to your serving plate.
  • Add the chocolate chips to a heat safe bowl.
  • In a small pot, bring the heavy cream to a boil over medium heat, stirring regularly to keep it from scalding. As soon as it boils, pour it over the chocolate chips. Stir to incorporate the chocolate and cream, and then let it sit for about five minutes to cool.
  • Using a spatula, spread the ganache over the top and sides of your cheesecake, trying to form an even layer. (It will harden as you go, so work quickly.)
  • Add chocolate chips and fresh cherries to the top for decoration. Refrigerate until you’re ready to serve.

This got rave reviews from everyone. It was creamy and fruity and chocolatey and fabulous. I ended up creating a homemade cherry pie filling that I put on top instead of fresh cherries, since I was using up fruit from my freezer, and that was fabulous, too.

And, in my defense, it was really only complicated because of all the waiting time between steps for this recipe. Overall, it actually wasn’t too bad.

See, Mom? I can totally do simple.

This piece first appeared in print on April 4, 2024.

Spice Up Your Life is a weekly newspaper column written by Lindsey Young in south central Kansas. If you are interested in sponsoring this column, please contact us through the “Contact Lindsey” link at the top of the page.

Categories
Dessert

Get lost in a piece of amazing cake

Amazing cake has too many ingredients to put in its title. It features an easy base of a boxed cake mix, elevated by pecans, shredded coconut, chocolate chips and a swirled cream cheese mixture that is not to be missed.
Amazing cake has too many ingredients to put in its title. It features an easy base of a boxed cake mix, elevated by pecans, shredded coconut, chocolate chips and a swirled cream cheese mixture that is not to be missed.

The names people choose for recipes often crack me up.

There’s the embarrassing-to-talk-about “better than sex” or “sex in a pan” variety of dishes, followed by “blue-ribbon” and “award-winning” options, and of course, there are a million recipes purporting to be “Mom’s” or “Grandma’s,” although few identify which matriarch those actually belong to.

So you’ll excuse my skepticism as to how “amazing” the recipe I tried this week was when the author simply called it “amazing cake.”

Upon reading the long list of ingredients, though, not only did I start to believe that this just might be amazing, but I also realized that she couldn’t have possibly come up with a more descriptive name without having to list at least five items in the title. Amazing cake it was.

This recipe comes from a Facebook reel by @genie_cooks. I adjusted the ingredients just a tiny bit, based on what I had in my pantry. I also used an Oreo chocolate cake mix that had Oreo bits in it for the cake part, and that was phenomenal.

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Amazing Cake

Amazing cake has too many ingredients to put in its title. It features an easy base of a boxed cake mix, elevated by pecans, shredded coconut, chocolate chips and a swirled cream cheese mixture that is not to be missed.
Course Dessert
Keyword cake mix, chocolate, chocolate cake, chocolate chips, coconut, cream cheese, easy cake, easy dessert, pecans, powdered sugar

Ingredients

  • 1 cup pecans divided
  • 1 cup shredded coconut
  • 1 chocolate cake mix and ingredients listed on the box
  • 8 ounces cream cheese
  • 2 cups powdered sugar
  • 1/2 cup butter melted
  • 1/2 cup chocolate chips I used semi-sweet

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
  • Prepare a nine-by-13-inch baking pan by spraying it with cooking spray.
  • Spread one-half cup of the pecans and all of the shredded coconut evenly along the bottom of the pan. Set it aside.
  • In a mixing bowl, prepare the chocolate cake mix according to the directions on the box. Pour the prepared mix evenly over the top of the pecans and coconut in the prepared pan.
  • In another mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese, powdered sugar and melted butter until it is smooth. Fold in the remaining pecans and the chocolate chips.
  • With a large spoon, place dollops of the cream cheese mixture all over the surface of the cake batter, and then gently swirl the cream cheese mixture into the batter with a knife.
  • Bake for 35 to 40 minutes. Let the cake cool completely before cutting into it. Sore any leftovers in an airtight container.

This really did turn out, well, amazing. I brought some to the office to share, and Adam described it as a “German chocolate upside down cake,” which I thought was a fairly apt way of putting it. The incorporation of so many different flavors and textures in this cake makes it decadent and delicious, and the best part was that it was super easy to create. Put this one on your “I need to make a quick dessert” list.

While “amazing cake” doesn’t really tell you everything you need to know about this recipe, it was a decent descriptor after all, and I certainly recommend it. As for some of the other descriptive terms people tend to use in their recipe names, I think I’ll stick to the tamer adjectives. I don’t need my cooking to get a strange reputation.

This piece first appeared in print on April 20, 2023.

Spice Up Your Life is a weekly newspaper column written by Lindsey Young in south central Kansas. If you are interested in sponsoring this column, please contact us through the “Contact Lindsey” link at the top of the page.

Categories
Dessert

Stop ‘pudding’ off sweets with a dessert for two

Bread pudding for two features chocolate and pecans surrounded by warm bread and a hint of vanilla.
Bread pudding for two features chocolate and pecans surrounded by warm bread and a hint of vanilla.

When I first moved out on my own, I discovered that I had no idea how to cook for only one person. I was great at making portions for four, but cooking for one was a challenge.

So I generally still made my four-person meals and brought lots of leftovers to work for lunch throughout the week. It actually worked out great.

The problem, I found, was when I wanted to satisfy my sweet tooth. Making a nine-by-13-inch cake for one is a bit more over the top than a nine-by-13-inch casserole, I discovered.

Even today, since I mostly cook only for Joey and I, I find myself giving away tons of the desserts I make so that they don’t stay around the house, tempting us to keep nibbling on them. But every once in awhile, I also just seek out recipes that will make just enough for that one serving each and then be gone.

Needing a chocolate fix, I decided to try one of those recipes this week.

I found this one on the aptly named blog “Dessert for Two.” You can find the original post at https://www.dessertfortwo.com/bread-pudding-mugs/. I doubled the vanilla in my version and added pecans.

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Bread Pudding for Two

Bread pudding for two features chocolate and pecans surrounded by warm bread and a hint of vanilla.
Course Dessert
Keyword bread pudding, chocolate, pecans, quick dessert, vanilla

Ingredients

  • 2 eggs
  • 6 tablespoons milk I used skim
  • 2 tablespoons sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
  • 3-4 slices bread cut into one-inch cubes
  • 1 1/2 ounces chocolate chips or chopped chocolate
  • 1 ounce pecans chopped

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Prepare two coffee mugs or other oven-safe vessels by spraying them with cooking spray, and set them aside.
  • In a bowl, combine the eggs, milk, sugar and vanilla and whip with a fork until everything is well combined. Mix in the bread, making sure it is all evenly coated. Stir in the chocolate and pecans, and bake for 25 minutes.
  • Remove from the oven and carefully serve while still warm—using a potholder or towel, since the handle and vessel will be hot.

This turned into almost a pantry clean up recipe for me. I just had a few pieces of wheat bread in the fridge that I used in this (including the heels), I had a partial bag of chocolate chips in the freezer, and I still had a few pecans leftover from holiday pies that I hadn’t managed to use up.

This might be a great recipe to keep on hand for after Easter if you have some chocolate eggs or bunnies floating around that you want to try to get rid of, too.

It turned out really yummy, and each serving was about the size of a large piece of cake. You could easily make both servings for yourself, too, and have one now and one for later.

As I learned way back when I made a gigantic cake that only I would end up eating, sometimes you have to get a little creative with dessert leftovers, but I always told myself: if you can eat a donut for breakfast, then why not a slice of cake instead?

This piece first appeared in print on April 7, 2022.

Spice Up Your Life is a weekly newspaper column written by Lindsey Young in south central Kansas. If you are interested in sponsoring this column, please contact us through the “Contact Lindsey” link at the top of the page.

Categories
Cookies Dessert

These cookies are sugar, spice and everything ‘mice’

Chocolate mouse cookies take a bit of effort to put together, but they are delicious and turn out super cute.
Chocolate mouse cookies take a bit of effort to put together, but they are delicious and turn out super cute.

When my sister and I were kids, my mom would take us to the Rainbow Bread Outlet in Hutchinson on weekly grocery trips.

If we were especially good, we sometimes got a chance to pick out a bag of Sathers candy, which were two for $1 at the time. One of my favorites was black licorice laces. They were so fun to tie into knots and play with while you ate your treat.

I was reminded of that this week when I set out to make little mouse cookies, which called for licorice laces for the tails. I was disappointed when I couldn’t find them in my local grocery store, settling instead for some Pull ‘N’ Peel Twizzlers. I had no idea kids weren’t readily greeted with licorice laces in the candy aisle anymore.

Well, despite my licorice-based disappointment, it didn’t last long, as my cookies not only turned out adorably but really delicious, too. In fact, if you’re not in the mood to do all the work to form mice out of your cookie dough, I still recommend making this recipe just as plain cookies.

The recipe I used comes from the blog “Pampered Chicken Mama.” You can find the original at https://thefrugalchicken.com/childrens-book-read-and-bake-series-chocolate-cookie-mice-for-frederick-by-leo-lionni/. I added extra vanilla in my version.

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Chocolate Mouse Cookies

Chocolate mouse cookies take a bit of effort to put together, but they are delicious and turn out super cute.
Course Dessert
Keyword chocolate, cocoa powder, cookies, licorice, M&Ms, peanuts

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup butter room temperature
  • 1/2 cup vegetable shortening
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 3 teaspoons vanilla
  • 2 1/2 cups flour
  • 1/4 cup cocoa
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • pinch of salt
  • mini M&Ms for noses
  • shelled peanuts for ears
  • lace licorice for tails

Instructions

  • Cream the butter, shortening and sugar together, beating for about two minutes until the mixture is light and fluffy. Beat in the vanilla and egg.
  • Beat in the flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt until everything is well combined.
  • Form the dough into a disc shape and wrap it in plastic wrap. Refrigerate it for at least three hours or overnight.
  • For baking, preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
  • Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set them aside.
  • To form the mice, scoop out about one tablespoon of dough. Roll it into a ball and then shape it into a teardrop shape.
  • Add an M&M to the pointed end to create a nose for your mouse, and then stick two halves of a peanut into the top of the dough to form ears. (Make sure they’re stuck in about halfway so they’ll stay better.)
  • Place the cookies about one inch apart on the prepared sheets.
  • Bake for 10 minutes and then let the cookies sit on the baking sheet for about five minutes before carefully poking a piece of lace licorice into each cookie to create tails. (I used my meat thermometer to make a small hole to make it a little easier to get my licorice to stick into the cookie.) Let the cookies cool completely, and then store them in an airtight container.

These were adorable and a perfect, bite-sized treat. Plus, the recipe made almost 40 little mice, so if you’re looking for some cookies to share, this is a great recipe.

The only drawback was that the peanuts shifted a bit, and some of them popped out. I ended up either sticking them back into the warm cookies or deciding that they were good samples for me to try. You also really need to put these in a single layer in your container if you want to keep them intact.

Also, if you’re like me and can’t find black licorice laces, you’ll have to settle for red tails, too. In the end, it’s not so bad, though. Making a mouse-shaped cookie look too realistically might make them decidedly less appetizing.

This piece first appeared in print on March 17, 2022.

Spice Up Your Life is a weekly newspaper column written by Lindsey Young in south central Kansas. If you are interested in sponsoring this column, please contact us through the “Contact Lindsey” link at the top of the page.

Categories
Dessert

‘Choc’ this recipe up to a new pan purchase

A bittersweet chocolate pumpkin tart is a great holiday recipe, along with having deep, rich flavor that makes small pieces the default serving size.
A bittersweet chocolate pumpkin tart is a great holiday recipe, along with having deep, rich flavor that makes small pieces the default serving size.

After years of saying I was going to do it, I finally took the plunge last week: I bought a tart pan.

If you remember, I made miniature tarts earlier this year, aided by a cookie cutter and a cupcake tin, and that really pushed me towards making my ultimate purchase.

I’ve been staring at the tart pans in our local kitchen store for months, trying to decide if I really needed one as much as I thought I did.

In the end, I bought two different sizes. Go big or go home, I guess.

So, with my new purchase, it will be no surprise that I made a tart for this week, and not only was it the perfect flavor combination for Thanksgiving, but it was delicious, too.

The recipe I tried comes from the blog “Love & Olive Oil” by Lindsay Landis. You can find the original post at https://www.loveandoliveoil.com/2015/11/bittersweet-chocolate-pumpkin-tart.html. I just changed the spices a little bit for my version.

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Bittersweet Chocolate Pumpkin Tart

A bittersweet chocolate pumpkin tart is a great holiday recipe, along with having deep, rich flavor that makes small pieces the default serving size.
Course Dessert
Keyword bittersweet chocolate, cinnamon, cloves, fall, ginger, nutmeg, pecans, pumpkin, tart, Thanksgiving, vanilla wafers

Ingredients

Crust Ingredients

  • 8 ounces vanilla wafer cookies
  • 1/2 cup pecans
  • 2 tablespoons brown sugar
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/8 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 cup butter melted

Filling Ingredients

  • 3/4 cup heavy cream
  • 1/4 cup milk I used skim
  • 9 ounces bittersweet chocolate chopped
  • 2 eggs
  • 2/3 cup pureed pumpkin
  • 1 heaping teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/2 heaping teaspoon ginger
  • 1/4 heaping teaspoon cloves
  • 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
  • 1 tablespoon bourbon or vanilla

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.
  • For the crust, add the cookies and pecans into a food processor and process until the mixture is in small crumbs. Add the sugar, cinnamon, salt and butter, and pulse until the butter is evenly distributed.
  • Pour the crust mixture into a nine-inch tart pan and press with the bottom of a glass or measuring cup to evenly coat the bottom and up the sides. Make sure the crust mixture is firmly pressed together.
  • Put the pan onto a baking sheet and bake the crust for about 10 minutes or until it’s set. Remove the pan the oven and set it aside to cool.
  • Turn the oven down to 250 degrees.
  • Heat a saucepan over low heat, and add the milk and cream. Stir regularly to keep it from scorching on the bottom, and once the milk just starts to bubble a little around the edges of the pan, remove it from the heat and stir in the chocolate, continuing to stir until the chocolate is completely melted.
  • In a mixing bowl, combine the eggs, pumpkin puree, cinnamon, ginger, cloves and nutmeg, and stir until it’s well combined.
  • Add about one-fourth cup of the chocolate mixture into the pumpkin mixture to temper the eggs. Add the rest of the chocolate mixture, stirring well. Finish it out by adding the bourbon or vanilla extract and stirring again.
  • Pour the mixture into the prepared crust and bake on the baking sheet for 30 to 35 minutes or until the tart is just barely jiggly in the middle. Remove the tart from the oven and let it cool completely before serving.
  • Store any leftovers in the refrigerator.

This was intensely rich and not overly sweet. I used a 62 percent cacao chocolate for my version, and I really liked the darker chocolate flavor. The pumpkin is definitely there but not the dominant flavor. I would recommend cutting this in smaller slices. You don’t need a lot of it to feel satisfied.

If you don’t have a tart pan, you could easily substitute in a springform pan or just use a pie pan, too.

I must say, though, I really liked my pretty scalloped edges on my tart. It made me feel like a real baker, despite this being a fairly easy recipe overall.

I’m not sure what kitchen store product will be the next I’ll be pining after, but for now, my friends, family and coworkers better be excited for some new tart experiments.

This piece first appeared in print on Nov. 11, 2021.

Spice Up Your Life is a weekly newspaper column written by Lindsey Young in south central Kansas. If you are interested in sponsoring this column, please contact us through the “Contact Lindsey” link at the top of the page.

Categories
Dessert Snack

The Sweet Granada’s avalanche bark truly rocks

Avalanche bark has a great texture, with crunchy rice cereal, fluffy marshmallows and chocolate chunks, along with the flavor of peanut butter.
Avalanche bark has a great texture, with crunchy rice cereal, fluffy marshmallows and chocolate chunks, along with the flavor of peanut butter.

I used to love field trips as a kid—visiting the Wichita Art Museum, the Kansas Cosmosphere, the zoo, the Kansas State Fair, etc.

It was always an adventure in a new place, and I’m the type of person who enjoys learning something new whenever possible.

As an adult, you don’t seem to get to do field trips as often, so when Joey told me we were going to go to Emporia to visit his new friend Kim, owner of The Sweet Granada: A Chocolate Cafe, he didn’t have to do any convincing for me to jump in the car.

Joey recently met Kim through a small business group, and she invited us to come hang out for a bit and see her operation.

Guys.

There. Was. Chocolate. Everywhere.

It was amazing.

When you walk in, you’re hit with a smell wall of deliciousness, and you immediately want to empty your entire bank account into their till when you see the display cases full of every kind of chocolate-y treat you can imagine. I was, almost quite literally, a kid in a candy shop.

We had a great visit with Kim, got a full tour of their operation, and she even sent me home with a recipe to share with all of you for a treat they make at the shop.

This stuff is not only easy to make but delicious, too. It’s a perfect treat for the upcoming holiday snack table. The only alterations I made was to pare this recipe down, since Kim is used to making everything in bulk.

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Avalanche Bark

Avalanche bark has a great texture, with crunchy rice cereal, fluffy marshmallows and chocolate chunks, along with the flavor of peanut butter.
Course Dessert
Keyword chocolate, crisp rice cereal, marshmallows, no bake, peanut butter, Sweet Granada

Ingredients

  • 22 ounces white chocolate or vanilla almond bark
  • 1 1/2 cups plus 3 tablespoons creamy peanut butter
  • 1/2 cup mini marshmallows
  • 1/4 rounded cup crisp rice cereal
  • 1/2 cup chocolate chunks I used bittersweet

Instructions

  • Prepare a nine-by-13-inch baking dish by lining it with parchment paper.
  • In a microwave-safe bowl, melt the almond bark, heating 30 seconds at a time and stirring in between, until it is all melted. Stir in the peanut butter.
  • Once everything is smooth, stir in the marshmallows, cereal and chocolate chunks.
  • Spread the mixture evenly into the prepared pan. Sprinkle with a few more toppings, if desired.
  • Let the mixture cool completely on the counter or in the refrigerator and then cut into squares. Store in an airtight container.

This stuff was great. It was rich and had a fantastic texture. I had to immediately give away as much of the batch as possible to keep from eating the entire pan myself.

Plus, I had other goodies from The Sweet Granada that I needed to spend my calories on. (I highly recommend the dark chocolate pretzel caramel bar. That was my favorite.)

If you’re ever in Emporia, I highly recommend your own field trip to The Sweet Granada at 803 Commercial St. And if you can’t make it over there, get online and do your sweets shopping that way—they ship! You can find them at https://sweetgranada.com/. Locally made treats are a great gift for those hard-to-buy-for folks, or you can just let a group of experts make your holiday treats for you and save yourself some time and energy this year.

I love getting the chance to see how different small businesses do their thing around our state, and it was so fun to meet Kim and see her adorable shop and taste her delicious goodies.

That will definitely not be my last visit to The Sweet Granada. Joey just better watch out, because next time, it won’t be a field trip—it’ll be a shopping trip.

This piece first appeared in print on Nov. 4, 2021.

Spice Up Your Life is a weekly newspaper column written by Lindsey Young in south central Kansas. If you are interested in sponsoring this column, please contact us through the “Contact Lindsey” link at the top of the page.

Categories
Dessert

Family pie recipe is ‘choc’ full of flavor

This chocolate pie is a family recipe, passed to Adam Strunk by his mom, Ruth. It features lots of dark chocolate flavor, along with a light, fluffy meringue topping.
This chocolate pie is a family recipe, passed to Adam Strunk by his mom, Ruth. It features lots of dark chocolate flavor, along with a light, fluffy meringue topping.

Several years ago, Danielle Oteri wrote a column for the website “Good Food Stories,” where she explored the differences in personality between her friends and family who preferred to cook, versus those who preferred to bake.

It’s a fun read, if you get the chance (goodfoodstories.com/the-psychology-of-baking), but one quote from her friend Melissa resonated with me from a baking experience I had this past week: “Baking [also] has seemed to me to be chemistry, while cooking is like art,” she said. “Art you can taste as you go—and for me, that’s a big part of it. I like to stick my fingers, er, spoon, into whatever I am cooking and taste at every step.”

Adam Strunk, who is the managing editor of Harvey County Now, was asked to be a celebrity baker for a charity pie auction last week, but Adam is most definitely a cook.

He’s an improviser and follows his instincts in the kitchen. If you ask Adam for a recipe, he’ll give you vague lists of ingredients, not amounts. And he makes darn good food.

So he found himself a bit intimidated by pie, which is why he asked me, the baker, to come make sure the recipe he chose turned out.

That was not only because he’s super competitive and wanted to create a great pie for the auction but also because he chose a family recipe, one his grandmother and mother made only for special occasions. I was only too happy to give the fly-by-the-seat-of-his-pants cook a lesson in pie dough and patience.

So, the only source I can give you for this week’s recipe is Ruth Strunk, Adam’s mom. I can’t tell you if she would have considered herself a cook or a baker, but I can tell you after this experience that she could make one mean pie.

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Ruthie’s Chocolate Pie

This chocolate pie is a family recipe, passed to Adam Strunk by his mom, Ruth. It features lots of dark chocolate flavor, along with a light, fluffy meringue topping.
Course Dessert
Keyword chocolate, meringue, pie

Ingredients

Pie Ingredients

  • 9- inch pie shell baked
  • 2/3 cup sugar
  • 1/2 cup flour
  • 2 2/3 cups milk we used whole
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 tablespoon butter
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 4 egg yolks beaten
  • 3 ounces unsweetened chocolate we used Ghirardelli

Meringue Ingredients

  • 3 egg whites
  • 4 tablespoons sugar
  • 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
  • pinch of salt

Instructions

  • Pre-bake your pie shell and place it to the side for when the filling is complete.
  • In a bowl, combine the sugar, flour, milk, salt, butter and vanilla. It doesn’t have to be perfectly combined, just mostly mixed together and set aside.
  • In another bowl, beat your egg yolks and set aside.
  • Heat a double boiler and melt the chocolate in the top, being careful to stir it constantly so it doesn’t burn.
  • Once the chocolate is melted, add the sugar mixture and continue stirring with a whisk for 10 minutes in the double boiler.
  • After 10 minutes, add about one cup of the chocolate to the egg yolks, beating them together, then add the egg mixture to the double boiler, continuing to whisk constantly for another five minutes.
  • Remove the mixture from the heat and let it cool for about five to 10 minutes, then pour it into your prepared pie shell, smoothing it out evenly, and set it aside.
  • For the meringue, preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
  • Add the egg whites to a mixing bowl and beat until they are very stiff. Add in the sugar, baking powder and salt and beat again. Spread the meringue over the top of the filling. Using a knife, create some peaks in the meringue to create a nice pattern when it browns.
  • Bake until the meringue is light brown. (I think ours took about 10 minutes. Just keep watching it.)
  • Refrigerate the pie until you’re ready to serve it.

According to Adam, we managed an excellent recreation of his mom’s classic, and it was delicious—perfectly chocolatey without being too sweet.

We didn’t earn the highest bid at the auction, but Adam’s pie still managed a very nice sum and got great reviews.

I don’t think Adam is quite ready to turn in his reporter’s notebook for a rolling pin, but I do think he’s less nervous about pie crust. Now, if I can just get him to pay attention to what he throws in the pan while cooking, I might have a few more great Stunk recipes to share.

This piece first appeared in print on Aug. 19, 2021.

Spice Up Your Life is a weekly newspaper column written by Lindsey Young in south central Kansas. If you are interested in sponsoring this column, please contact us through the “Contact Lindsey” link at the top of the page.

Categories
Dessert

Baking brownies can be a sticky situation

A gooey layer of caramel is nestled in between from-scratch chocolate brownies in this decadent dessert.
A gooey layer of caramel is nestled in between from-scratch chocolate brownies in this decadent dessert.

At some point in my baking adventures, I plan on trying to make homemade caramels, but I haven’t been brave over the years when it comes to candy making. 

I think that’s mostly because I didn’t grow up making candies regularly and only very recently invested in my own candy thermometer. But I am incredibly intrigued by the idea of making my own caramel and have earmarked several recipes that I want to try out at some point.

Part of the reason I want to try it out is because I love caramel so much. As a kid, I loved getting a Sugar Daddy or a box of Sugar Babies during Halloween or Easter.

The other reason is because every time I make a recipe that features caramels I buy from the store, I end up with a huge pile of little plastic wrappers on my kitchen counter. Not only does it make me feel wasteful to create all of that trash for one dish, but I also find it incredibly difficult not to pop those little squares into my mouth as I unwrap each one individually.

So you can say that I’m either environmentalist or I lack self control, but either way I should probably learn how to make this stuff myself. Unfortunately for this week’s recipe, I still have a conquered candy making, so we’ll stick with the stuff from the shelf.

This recipe comes from Sabrina Snyder’s “Dinner Then Dessert” blog. You can find her original post at https://dinnerthendessert.com/fat-witch-bakerys-legendary-chocolate-caramel-brownies/. I added extra vanilla in my version.

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Chocolate Caramel Brownies

A gooey layer of caramel is nestled in between from-scratch chocolate brownies in this decadent dessert.
Course Dessert
Keyword brownies, caramel, chocolate

Ingredients

  • 14 tablespoons butter
  • 1/2 heaping cup of bittersweet chocolate chips
  • 11 ounces caramel squares unwrapped
  • 3 eggs
  • 1 cup plus 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 3 teaspoons vanilla
  • 1/2 cup flour
  • 1/8 teaspoon salt

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
  • Prepare an eight-by-eight-inch baking pan by spraying it with cooking spray and lining it with parchment paper.
  • In a microwave-safe bowl, heat the butter and chocolate in 30-second increments, stirring in between each. Remove it from the microwave once the butter is fully melted, and continue stirring until the chocolate melts, too.
  • Set the bowl aside to cool a bit.
  • Place the caramels in another microwave-safe bowl along with two tablespoons water, and microwave for one minute. Remove it from the microwave and let it sit for about two minutes, and then stir until the mixture is smooth.
  • In a mixing bowl, beat together the eggs, sugar and vanilla for a couple minutes until the mixture is light and fluffy. Beat in the melted chocolate/butter mixture.
  • Beat in the flour and salt until the mixture is smooth.
  • Spread half of the batter evenly into the baking pan. Pour the caramel into the pan next, keeping it about one inch away from the edges.
  • Place the pan in the refrigerator for 20 minutes or until the caramel is set up.
  • Spread the rest of the batter evenly over the top of the caramel layer and bake for 35 minutes. Let the brownies cool before removing them from the pan using the parchment paper and slicing them into squares. Store them in an airtight container.

These brownies were incredibly decadent. Despite my sweet tooth, I was very satisfied with eating just one. They also were a little on the messy side, since the caramel was nice and gooey in the center. I would highly recommend these with a side of ice cream.

And at some point, I am sure I will learn to make caramel myself. Of course, that really only solves the problem of all the extra wrappers, since there’s no way I will be able to resist eating it, too. I mean, somebody’s got to test out the new recipes; it may as well be me.

This piece first appeared in print on March 25, 2021.

Spice Up Your Life is a weekly newspaper column written by Lindsey Young in south central Kansas. If you are interested in sponsoring this column, please contact us through the “Contact Lindsey” link at the top of the page.

Categories
Dessert

Time commitment not a deal-‘baker’ for no-bake pie

This no-bake chocolate peanut butter pie has quite a few steps that require refrigeration in between, so have plenty of time to prepare—and plenty of people to enjoy—this decadent dessert.
This no-bake chocolate peanut butter pie has quite a few steps that require refrigeration in between, so have plenty of time to prepare—and plenty of people to enjoy—this decadent dessert.

As a general rule, when I see the words “no-bake” in the title of a recipe, I assume I’m about to have a really easy time in the kitchen. 

Those are the types of recipes I save for when I need a quick dessert to bring at the last second.

Well, this week’s recipe completely defies its no-bake moniker, my friends. I’m a little embarrassed to tell you that I started this recipe on a weekend and didn’t finish it until the end of the next week.

Despite that—and I mean this seriously—you absolutely have to try this. It’s delicious and created a pie that was completely demolished during a backyard get-together.

This no-bake monstrosity comes from the blog “Kitchen Fun with My Three Sons.” You can find the original at https://kitchenfunwithmy3sons.com/no-bake-chocolate-peanut-butter-pie. I added extra vanilla in my version, and while calories are the least of your problem with this pie, you can substitute fat-free cream cheese and whipped topping with ease for this.

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No-bake Chocolate Peanut Butter Pie

This no-bake chocolate peanut butter pie has quite a few steps that require refrigeration in between, so have plenty of time to prepare—and plenty of people to enjoy—this decadent dessert.
Course Dessert
Keyword chocolate, M&Ms, no bake, Oreos, peanut butter, pie

Ingredients

Crust Ingredients

  • 15 to 20- ounce package double-stuffed Oreos
  • 1/4 cup mini M&Ms
  • 1/2 cup butter melted

Filling Ingredients

  • 16 ounces cream cheese softened
  • 1 cup creamy peanut butter
  • 8 ounces whipped topping
  • 1/4 cup mini M&Ms

Ganache Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 semi-sweet chocolate chips plus a handful for sprinkling
  • 3/4 cup heavy whipping cream
  • 1/4 cup mini M&Ms

Frosting Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup butter softened
  • 1/4 cup creamy peanut butter
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla
  • 1 cup powdered sugar
  • 3 to 5 tablespoons heavy whipping cream

Instructions

  • For the crust, pulverize the entire package of Oreo’s with a blender or food processor. In a bowl, combine the cookie crumbs, butter and M&Ms until everything is well mixed, and press the mixture into a 9- to 10-inch springform pan (or a pie pan, but the springform is so much easier!), going up the sides.
  • Place the crust in the fridge for 30 minutes.
  • For the filling, beat the cream cheese and peanut butter until the mixture is light and fluffy. Beat in the whipped topping, and then fold in the M&Ms. Spread the filling evenly over the crust, and refrigerate for one hour.
  • For the ganache, combine the chocolate chips and cream into a glass bowl and microwave 30 seconds at a time, stirring in between each, until the mixture is smooth. Pour the ganache over top of the filling and spread it evenly. Sprinkle the top with chocolate chips and M&Ms, and refrigerate for another hour.
  • For the final step, beat all the frosting ingredients until it’s fluffy, and then transfer to a piping bag or a plastic bag with the tip cut off to pipe the frosting around the edges of the pie. Or, if you’re exhausted at this point, just spread it on there and decorate with a couple more M&Ms and call it good.
  • Serve immediately and keep any leftovers in the refrigerator.

I highly encourage you to cut this pie into small slices, as it is sinfully rich. Joey called it comical after it was finally done. It would be absolutely a show stopper for a birthday celebration.

And even though it took me a few evenings to finally get through all the steps, it was worth it, especially since I might have “accidentally” purchased too many M&Ms and had to clean those up myself. Waste not, want not, right?

This piece first appeared in print on Sept. 17, 2020.

Spice Up Your Life is a weekly newspaper column written by Lindsey Young in south central Kansas. If you are interested in sponsoring this column, please contact us through the “Contact Lindsey” link at the top of the page.

Categories
Dessert

It will be nice ‘toffee’ these bars on your dessert plate

Chocolate chip toffee bars are sweet with lots of rich flavors.
Chocolate chip toffee bars are sweet with lots of rich flavors.

I finally worked through the last of several bags of Heath toffee baking chips I had hanging out in my freezer. I can never resist a sale, and I hadn’t resisted one featuring those yummy bits several months ago.

It was the first time I’d purchased them—especially since I’m generally too cheap to buy most name-brand items—and they did not disappoint.

I have to admit, there was probably a time in my childhood when I would have said I didn’t really care for toffee. I think it probably stems from the Heath bar being one of my least favorite in a variety bag of fun-sized candy bars and it always seeming to be a “grown-up” kind of candy bar to choose from the array of brightly colored packages.

I suppose I can say I’ve reached the level of maturity where a toffee candy bar sounds pretty nice, though, and when I finally cracked that last bag of toffee bits, I might have snuck a few of them into my mouth.

Quality control, you know.

The recipe I used comes from the blog “Can’t Stay Out of the Kitchen.” You can find the original at https://cantstayoutofthekitchen.com/2013/03/12/chocolate-chip-toffee-bars/. I stuck to the recipe but did try to give a bit more clarity to the directions.

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Chocolate Chip Toffee Bars

Chocolate chip toffee bars are sweet with lots of rich flavors.
Course Dessert
Keyword bars, chocolate, toffee

Ingredients

  • 2/3 cup brown sugar
  • 3/4 cup butter melted
  • 1 egg
  • 2 1/3 cup flour
  • 12 ounces chocolate chips divided
  • 1 cup chopped pecans or nuts of your choice, divided
  • 14 ounces sweetened condensed milk
  • 8 ounces toffee bits baking chips or chop 8 ounces Heath bars into small pieces, divided

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and prepare a 9-by-13-inch baking pan by coating with cooking spray.
  • Beat the brown sugar and butter together until smooth. Beat in the egg, and then beat in the flour.
  • In a separate bowl, combine the chocolate chips and nuts and then incorporate about 1-1/2 cups of them to the batter (it will be crumbly).
  • Set aside 1-1/2 cups of the batter and press the remaining batter into the bottom of the prepared pan.
  • Bake for 10 minutes.
  • Pour the sweetened condensed milk over top of the baked crust, and sprinkle all but 1/4 cup of the toffee bits on top, then sprinkle on the rest of the batter, chocolate chips and nuts.
  • Bake for 40 to 45 minutes or until golden brown.
  • Top with the final 1/4 cup of toffee bits, and press them gently into the top. Cut into bars once the pan has cooled completely, and store them in an airtight container.
  • You have to trust the golden brown color on these bars to know they’re done, because it’s impossible to use the toothpick trick with the gooey sweetened condensed milk in the middle.

These turned out really well, and I highly recommend enjoying one with a hot cup of coffee. They were a hit with family, too. I noticed, though, that some of the kids in the group were much more interested in the other desserts on the table than my toffee bars.

Apparently, the hesitancy to choose toffee over other desserts is a family trait.

I was perfectly OK with it, though. Those kids don’t know what they’re missing, and that leaves more for me.

This piece first appeared in print on Feb. 27, 2020.

Spice Up Your Life is a weekly newspaper column written by Lindsey Young in south central Kansas. If you are interested in sponsoring this column, please contact us through the “Contact Lindsey” link at the top of the page.

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