NEW FRIEND

Wanna see a pic of one of my Birthday gifts?

Isn't he cool? I've decided to name him Freddy Undeady.

One Year Old

One year ago today, I gave birth to this blog. It didn't hurt a bit, but it has caused some stretch marks.

OH SO HOT AND CHERRY

These tomatoes are all that's left of the blazing hot summer that I thought would never leave. The "summer of the hole" being in the bag, is a relief. I've spent the past few months putting in extra hours at work, and at home. The dreary slow down that is Fall, is a welcome respite after spending so much time in a state of puddledom. It's been a tough season, full of a lot of change in my life, some of it good, some of it traumatic, so bye-bye heat index of the damned, so long, and thanks for all the tomatoes.

The dark clouds, and the crisp mornings are already putting me in a better mood.

Let's give some more lip service to pie.

Pie somehow became the star of the dessert world. That's fine, I disagree with its stardom, but who I am I to buck hundreds of years of tradition? If I have to eat pie, I'm picky about what flavors I'm willing to spear my fork into. If I'm going to make a pie, I'm even more picky. I'll make apple pies for others, but in my eyes the only true fruit pie is cherry. The mixture of tartness and sweetness sings in your mouth. It works well with so many different toppings, cinnamon crumb, whipped cream, and is one of the few that goes well topped with chocolate ice cream instead of vanilla.

Fresh cherries can be purchased in my area, but they're inveritably Bings. No offense to the Bing variety but they make for a pie that's too sweet. A nice, even balance of sweet and tart cherries do the trick, which is why I like *whispers* canned pie filling. I know, I'm a big supporter of canned pie filling for cherry pie, with caveats. The secret to a great cherry pie, is ditch the goo. You know what I'm talking about. The goo, the gel, the  so called cherry packing product. A can of "extra fruit" pie filling, mixed with a can of tart cherries in juice ensures the right flavor and the right consistency.

This particular pie was made for Mr. Icequeen's co-worker as a going away gift. This co-worker left her job, and her home state to start a new life. New beginnings can be so exciting, a chance to re-invent yourself and re-shape your world, for some it really is the final frontier.

PISTACHIO MOUSSE BROWNIE TORTE

This is my birthday cake, but I didn't make it, my husband did. I can't say enough about the fudgy chocolate layers, the salty, creamy pistacho filling. Wow, this cake was delicious. But, I do have a weakness for pistachios, and pistachio pudding.....and brownies. I've posted the recipe below. Please, make this cake.

Prep Time: 1 Hr


Total Time: 2 Hr 45 Min

Makes: 16



INGREDIENTS:

Cake1box (19.5 oz) Pillsbury® Traditional Fudge Brownie Mix1/2cup CRISCO® Pure Canola Oil1/4cup water3Eggland's Best eggs Mousse1box (4-serving size) pistachio instant pudding and pie filling mix3/4cup cold whole milk1cup cold whipping (heavy) cream1/2cup pistachio nuts, coarsely choppedGlaze1/2cup whipping (heavy) cream4oz semisweet baking chocolate, finely chopped1teaspoon vanilla1teaspoon light corn syrupGarnish1/2cup whipping (heavy) cream2tablespoons powdered sugarReserved 1 tablespoon pistachio instant pudding and pie filling mix

User Rating: DIRECTIONS:

Heat oven to 350°F. Lightly spray bottom of 2 (8-inch) round cake pans with CRISCO® Original No-Stick Cooking Spray. Line bottoms of pans with cooking parchment paper; lightly spray paper with cooking spray.

In large bowl, stir brownie mix, oil, water and eggs 50 strokes with spoon. Spread half of batter (1 1/2 cups) evenly in each pan.

Bake 27 to 30 minutes or until toothpick inserted 2 inches from edge of pan comes out clean. Cool in pans on cooling racks 10 minutes. Run knife around edge of pans to loosen. Place cooling rack upside down on 1 pan; turn rack and pan over. Remove pan and parchment paper. Repeat with second brownie layer. Place racks with brownie layers in refrigerator to cool completely, about 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, measure 1 tablespoon of the pudding mix; reserve for garnish. In large bowl, beat remaining pudding mix, the milk and 1 cup whipping cream with electric mixer on high speed about 2 minutes or until mixture is thick and creamy. Stir in nuts. Cover; refrigerate.

Carefully cut each brownie layer horizontally in half, using long serrated knife, to make 4 layers. On serving plate, place 1 brownie layer, cut side down. Spread 1/3 of the mousse (3/4 cup) evenly to edge of brownie. Repeat layering twice, using 2 brownie layers (place cut sides down) and remaining mousse. Top with remaining brownie layer, cut side down. Refrigerate torte while making glaze.

In 1-quart saucepan, heat 1/2 cup whipping cream over medium heat, stirring occasionally, just until bubbles start to form at edge of saucepan. Remove from heat. Add chocolate; stir constantly until smooth. Stir in vanilla and corn syrup; let stand 10 minutes. Stir glaze; spoon over top of torte, allowing some to run down side. Return torte to refrigerator while making garnish.

In medium bowl, beat 1/2 cup whipping cream, the powdered sugar and reserved 1 tablespoon pudding mix on high speed until stiff peaks form. Spoon mixture into decorating bag fitted with star tip and pipe rosettes on top of torte, or spoon dollops of mixture on torte. Refrigerate at least 30 minutes before serving. Cover and refrigerate any remaining torte.

BLURG

This blog is at a temporary stand still because, even though I have completed several dessert recipes, and taken pictures of them, I've been too damn lazy to post anything about them. Please stand by.

HOMEMADE CHOCOLATE PUDDING

Making your own pudding is so easy, that if more people took the time to do, they would never buy pudding from their local mega mart again, and Jell-o's stock would plummet. But..... even though this particular recipe is easy, I feel the flavor needs to be tweaked a little. If you're into dark chocolate, you're going to love this pudding. Me, not so much. I know that dark chocolate is good for you, and that it's very hip to be into dark chocolate right now. But, I really don't give a shit, because I like milk chocolate. Give me the creamy, full sugar blast of milk chocolate anytime. And if saying that makes me sound less mature,and like less of a foodie, then so be it. I also have another food confession. When it comes to pudding, I actually LIKE the skin that forms on the top. Yep, I'm a weirdo, but don't knock it if you haven't tried it.

Let's talk about pudding for a minute. If you're a Generation X'er like me, then most of your pudding memories consist of Jell-o instant pudding that your mother threw together and poured into drinking glasses for consumption after dinner. Or, if your family was well off, you had pudding packs in the school lunch your mom packed for you. So there's a chance that many of us only have memories of pudding that originated from a powdered mix, which is really a shame. Because pudding you make yourself has a bold, chocolatey taste that can never be matched by anything that is shilled by Mr. Bill Cosby. If you have an extra 30 minutes on your hands, making your own pudding is completely worth it. I recommend everyone take time to smell the chocolate in life.

MY AWESOME APPLE PIE

The picture turned out pretty well huh? Even a blind squirrel finds a nut once in a while.


If you've read this blog before you know that I don't really get excited about pie. I think it's overrated. Especially that All-American behemoth, the apple pie. Often apple pies are made with canned, apple pie filling, meaning that you really can't tell one person's pie from another. Or you get an apple pie that is made from scratch where the crust and apples are not only overly mushy, but there is a substantial gap between where the top layer of crust ends and the filling actually begins. Even though I don't care for pie, I do care for my Father-In-Law who happens to like apple pie, and because of that caring I set out to put together my own apple pie recipe that would live up to my high dessert standards.


I've always tinkered with pre-existing recipes, and on a few occasions I've made up my own recipes, so this wasn't going to be that hard for me.


It calls for eight large apples ( 2 each Granny Smith, Braeburn, Gala and Golden Delicious). You then peel core and dice the apples. Then toss the apples with about 1/4 cup of lemon juice and 1/2 Tbs. of salt and then let the apples sit in a collander over an empty bowl that the juices can run off into.Let the apples drain for approximately one hour. Take the drained apple juice in the drainage bowl and whisk it together with two Tbs of cornstarch. Put your diced apples into a large bowl and then toss the apples with two Tbs. granulated sugar, and two Tbs. dark brown sugar. Add one cup crushed pecans, and two tsps. finely diced fresh ginger. Add apple juice and corn starch mixture to your apple mixture, stirring until mixture coats apples. Pour mixture into a store bought, bottom pie crust, level out apple mixture, and top with second pie crust. Bake at 375 for one hour.




This pie was freaking fantastic! I don't remember the last time I was so proud of something that I had made, and it had very little sugar in it to boot. You could really taste the apples, and the fresh ginger gave it a little something special. I rock.


It turned out so well the first time I made it, that I decided to make it a second time for my FIL's birthday barbecue last weekend. It was even better on the second try.


Up next....homemade chocolate pudding, and believe it or not, another pie. Cherry this time ( far superior to apple, in my opinion).

For those of you that have been asking, the hole that I previously posted pictures of has been filled in. Wanna see? Here it is.....

Muuuuuuch better. With the hole filled in, my life is back to normal, and I no longer want to burst into tears when I look at my back yard. Also, let me say that Mr. Icequeen and his dad tackled this grand project entirely on their own and did an amazing job. My husband is truly something special and I feel that he can really do anything that he becomes determined to do. Can I get a round of applause for my better half?