Egg Custard Pie

I made an egg custard pie last week, and it came out better than I expected. The recipe I had tried before (it was the crustless kind) did not taste like egg pie at all. So I browsed online again and came up with this recipe. The filling recipe was from allrecipes.com but the crust is from my pecan tart recipe. It's really so easy to make and tastes delish, too!

Crust:
3 oz. cream cheese, softened
1/2 c. butter, softened
1 c. sifted flour

Pie filling:
3 eggs, beaten
3/4 c. white sugar
1/4 tsp. salt
1 tsp. vanilla
2 1/2 c. scalded milk
1 egg white

Directions:
1) For the crust: Cream butter and cream cheese. Add in the flour until mixed thoroughly. Chill for 20-30 minutes.
2) For the filling: Combine egss, sugar, salt and vanilla. Gradually stir in scalded milk.
3) Take the crust out of the fridge. Press into sides of pan (I use a tart pan). Brush entire crust with egg white to keep it from getting soggy.
4) Pour in pie filling.
5) Bake at 400F for 30-35 minutes or until toothpick inserted comes out clean.

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Mini Pecan Tarts

This is a very easy recipe and makes about 5 dozen mini tarts. You can make the pastry dough ahead of time and keep it refrigerated until you're ready to bake.


Ingredients:

• 1 cup butter
• 6 ounces cream cheese, softened
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 4 eggs
• 3 cups packed brown sugar
• 4 tablespoons melted butter
• 1 pinch salt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup chopped pecans

Directions:

1. To Make Pastry: Cream butter or margarine and cream cheese. Add flour and mix well. Chill for 30 minutes for best results.
   
2. Make the pastry into 48 balls. Place one ball in each cup of a mini tart pan. Use your fingers or a tart tamper to press out into a tart shell.
3. To Make Filling: Break the eggs, but do not beat. Add sugar, melted butter, salt, vanilla and pecans. Mix well. Fill the tart shells. Bake at 350 degrees F (180 degrees C) for about 30 minutes or until crust is lightly browned.

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Molten Chocolate Baby Cakes by Danny Boome

I watched the Food Network this morning and saw Danny Boome's show. He made this mouth-watering molten (as in, oozing!) chocolate baby cakes. I've been thinking about this recipe all day! The only thing holding me back from making it is that I'm out of chocolate. Hah! This'll teach me to always keep that in stock.

Well, anyway, I thought I'd share the recipe until I can try it myself.

Ingredients:

1/4 cup brandy or cognac
1/3 cup orange juice
1/2 cup dried cherries
6 oz bittersweet chocolate, chopped
3/4 cup (1 stick plus 1/2 stick) butter, plus some for buttering the ramekins
3 eggs
3 egg yolks
1/2 cup sugar
3 tsp flour
6 teaspoons cocoa powder, for coating the baking cups

Directions:
In a small saucepan over low heat, bring the brandy and orange juice to a simmer. Add the cherries, simmer 1 minute and turn off the heat. Soak the cherries in the warm mixture until they plump up, about 10 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.
Set a heat-proof bowl over a saucepan of simmering water. Place the chocolate and the butter into the bowl and let it sit over the heat until the chocolate begins to melt. Stir to combine and continue to heat until the mixture is smooth and the chocolate is completely melted. Remove from the heat.
In a large bowl, beat together the whole eggs, yolks and sugar until the mixture turns light and thick.
Pour the melted chocolate into the egg mixture. Beat in the flour until just combined. Do not over-mix the batter.
Butter 6 (4-ounce) ramekins. Sprinkle each ramekin with 1 teaspoon cocoa powder and tap out the excess. Divide the batter among the ramekins. Drain the cherries and put a few cherries into the center of each ramekin. Use a spoon to push the batter over the cherries to cover them.
Place the ramekins on a baking sheet and bake for 7 to 9 minutes. The outside of the desserts will be set, but the centers will be soft.
To serve, invert each mold on a plate and let sit for 10 seconds. Slowly lift one side of the mold and the cake will fall out. (If the cakes won't easily come out, just serve them right in the cups.)
DB note: These little desserts are easy to make ahead. Refrigerate them in the baking cups and when you're ready to bake, bring them up to room temperature and bake as above.
You can also see this recipe at the Food Network website. Click here to access it.


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Fruit Salad

Yummy Fruit Salad! And it's so easy to make, too!

You can go with fresh fruits or, if you're in a hurry, just buy a can (a BIG can) of tropical fruit cocktail...or any regular fruit cocktail will do. That's the beauty of fruit salad, you can pretty much mix any fruits that you want.

Now that you have your fruit cocktail, all you need are raisins, condensed milk, cottage cheese and whipped cream to complete the salad. Mix enough of the ingredients to suit your taste and, voila!, you're done!

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Empanadas

An empanada is technically a stuffed bread or pastry, with Spanish origins. Depending on which part of the world you're in, the stuffing can vary from tuna to meat to just plain cheese. You can also see a variety of empanada shapes. Mine are semi-circular, sort of shell-like.

I always like to think that an empanada is a complete meal in itself. It has potatoes, carrots, green peas, eggs, raisins, and ground meat. At least that's what my recipe calls for. But you can also choose to stuff it with just the ground meat...or with cheese (yummy!).

But no matter what stuffing you choose, the secret to this sumptious dish is in the crust. The perfect crust is crunchy and flaky with just a hint of saltiness. How to achieve this? The right combination of flour, salt, canola oil and water. When mixing these ingredients, be sure to fold and not stir. Stirring makes the crust hard and chewy.

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Torta

The Boholano Torta is a delicious pastry. It is like a muffin but made with egg yolks, sugar, flour, butter and canola oil. This special combination makes it delightfully light and tasty. I first learned the recipe some 10 or so years ago. Since then I have tweaked the recipe a bit to get just the right combination of softness and taste.

A light sprinkling of granulated sugar on top of the cooked tortas adds a little bit of crunch and sweetness.It is sweet enough to satisfy anyone's sweet tooth, but not too sweet that you won't have the appetite for a second helping...or three...or four.

Here's a little tip: Tortas can last a week in room temperature and still taste as good as the freshly cooked ones. Storing them in the fridge will make the tortas hard and crumbly. Instead, store them in well-sealed container at room temperature. Also, hold the sugar on top of the tortas. Wait until you are ready to eat them before sprinkling the sugar.

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