Florida Pie - Tuesdays with Dorie

Thank you Dianne of Dianne's Dishes for choosing this super pie. This is a pie that takes quite a lot of patience - boiling and stirring the cream and coconut mixture took me about 20 minutes, even more, until I could see a very slight thickening. I ended up dragging a chair into the kitchen so I could stove watch in comfort. I wasn't too sure about how pale yellow the egg yokes should be but beat them at high speed for about 10 minutes - until they were a nice yellow, but certainly not pale. After that it was plain sailing.Felt ever so tempted to add a drop of green food coloring to make it a green lime pie but resisted - it might have spoiled it.

Had a strange experience doing the meringue - the recipe said to heat the egg white and sugar and keep beating until the egg white was hot to the touch - so I kept on sticking my finger into the foam. I smelled something burning - it was the base of the egg white under the foam - so next time I'll know to test below the foam. Picked out the few burned spots and did the whisking and broiler thing. Am not too confident about how it will taste. I didn't add any more coconut as I felt the pie had enough. I hope we are not all eating burned meringue tomorrow.

Here's the recipe:

Florida Pie
1 9-inch graham cracker crust (page 235), fully baked and cooled, or a store-bought crust (I swapped for a ginger cookie crust)
1 1/3 cups heavy cream
1 1/2 cups shredded sweetened coconut
4 large eggs, separated
1 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
1/2 cup fresh Key (or regular) lime juice (from about 5 regular limes)
1/4 cup of sugar

Getting Ready:

Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Put the pie plate on a baking sheet lined with parchment of a silicone mat.

Put the cream and 1 cup of the coconut in a small saucepan and bring it to a boil over medium-low heat, stirring almost constantly. Continue to cook and stir until the cream is reduced by half and the mixture is slightly thickened. Scrape the coconut cream into a bowl and set it aside while you prepare the lime filling.

Working with a stand mixer, preferably fitted with a paddle attachment, or with a hand mixer in a large bowl beat the egg yolks at high speed until thick and pale. Reduce the mixer speed to low and beat in the condensed milk. Still on low, add half of the lime juice. When it is incorporated, add the reaming juice, again mixing until it is blended. Spread the coconut cream in the bottom of the graham cracker crust, and pour over the lime filling.

Bake the pie for 12 minutes. Transfer the pie to a cooling rack and cool for 15 minutes, then freeze the pie for at least 1 hour.

To Finish the Pie with Meringue:

Put the 4 egg whites and the sugar in a medium heavy-bottomed saucepan and heat over medium-low heat, whisking all the while, until the whites are hot to the touch. Transfer the whites to a stand mixer, fitted with the whisk attachment, or use a hand mixer in a large bowl, and beat the whites at high speed until they reach room temperature and hold firm peaks. Using a rubber spatula, fold the remaining 1/2 cup coconut into the meringue.

Spread the meringue over the top of the pie, and run the pie under the broiler until the top of the meringue is golden brown. (Or, if you've got a blowtorch, you can use it to brown the meringue.) Return the pie to the freezer for another 30 minutes or for up to 3 hours before serving.

Recipe for Ginger Snap Cookie Crust
1/4 cup butter
1-1/4 cups gingersnap cookies, finely crushed (about 30 cookies)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Melt butter, blend in cookie crumbs with a wooden spoon, until well mixed. Press into 9 inch pie plate; freeze for 10 minutes then bake for 10 minutes. Remove and allow to cool.

Peanut Butter Torte - Tuesdays with Dorie

This is so full of lovely favorites my mouth was watering as I made it - cream cheese mixed with lots of cream; peanuts; cookies; chocolate; and of course PB. I haven't tried it yet as it's going to work tomorrow but I made quite a few inroads into leftover ingredients - in fact there are no cookies or peanuts left. So much for saving stuff for future baking!

It was quite relaxing to make - no anxiety about rising, temperature and so on - just mixing and mushing. I've never boiled cream for ganache before - does anyone know why this makes a good ganache, compared with just adding room temperature cream?

I used about 34 Oreo's and 5 tablespoons of butter to get the crust to come up the pan; fewer than that just wouldn't do it.


Here's the recipe

Peanut Butter Torte
1 ¼ c. finely chopped salted peanuts (for the filling, crunch and topping)
2 teaspoons sugar
½ teaspoon instant espresso powder (or finely ground instant coffee)
¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
Pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
½ c. mini chocolate chips (or finely chopped semi sweet chocolate)
24 Oreo cookies, finely crumbed or ground in a food processor or blender
½ stick (4 tablespoons) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
Small pinch of salt
2 ½ c. heavy cream
1 ¼ c confectioners’ sugar, sifted
12 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
1 ½ c salted peanut butter – crunchy or smooth (not natural; I use Skippy)
2 tablespoons whole milk
4 ounces bittersweet chocolate finely chopped
Getting ready: center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350°F. Butter a 9-inch Springform pan and place it on a baking sheet lined with parchment or a silicone mat.
Toss ½ cup of the chopped peanuts, the sugar, espresso powder, cinnamon, nutmeg and chocolate chops together in a small bowl. Set aside.
Put the Oreo crumbs, melted butter and salt in another small bowl and stir with a fork just until crumbs are moistened. Press the crumbs evenly over the bottom and up the sides of the spring form pan (they should go up about 2 inches on the sides). Freeze the crust for 10 minutes.
Bake the crust for 10 minutes, then transfer it to a rack and let it cool completely before filling.
Working with a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, whip 2 cups of the cream until it holds medium peaks. Beat in ¼ cup of the confectioners’ sugar and whip until the cream holds medium-firm peaks. Crape the cream into a bowl and refrigerate until needed.
Wipe out (do not wash) the bowl, fit the stand mixer with the paddle attachment if you have one, or continue with the hand mixer, and beat the cream cheese with the remaining 1 cup confectioners’ sugar on medium speed until the cream cheese is satiny smooth. Beat in the peanut butter, ¼ cup of the chopped peanuts and the milk.
Using a large rubber spatula, gently stir in about one quarter of the whipped cream, just to lighten the mousse. Still working with the spatula, stir in the crunchy peanut mixture, then gingerly fold in the remaining whipped cream.
Scrape the mouse into the crust, mounding and smoothing the top. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours, or overnight; cover with plastic wrap as soon as the mousse firms.
To Finish The Torte: put the chopped chocolate in a heatproof bowl and set the bowl over a saucepan of simmering water. Leave the bowl over the water just until the chocolate softens and starts to melt, about 3 minutes; remove the bowl from the saucepan.
Bring the remaining ½ cup cream to a full boil. Pour the cream over the chocolate and , working with a a rubber spatula, very gently stir together until the ganache is completely blended and glossy.
Pour the ganache over the torte, smoothing it with a metal icing spatula. Scatter the remaining ½ cup peanuts over the top and chill to set the topping, about 20 minutes.
When the ganache is firm, remove the sides of the Springform pan; it’s easiest to warm the pan with a hairdryer, and then remove the sides, but you can also wrap a kitchen towel damped with hot water around the pan and leave it there for 10 seconds. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Fluted Polenta and Ricotta Cake - Tuesdays with Dorie

As soon as I finish writing this I will be able to delete my silly petulant post about not posting this week; I think I was just discouraged because my DB Cheesecake Pops bombed. The best thing to do is to get right up again, so I rushed to the store near me after work today to buy some polenta and made a quick start as soon as I got home. The Polenta Cake is fun to make and quite unusual - I have never used polenta before. I decided to use raisins as I really don't care for figs and a 10 inch cheesecake pan with a removable base as I don't have a fluted pan that size. I browned a handful of sliced almonds in the 1oz. of butter instead of dabbing the butter on top of the cake - as soon as it was ready I scattered the buttered almonds over the top. Looks quite attractive except some of them got a bit over-browned. Found that my cake took about 55 mins. to bake at almost 350 degrees F - oven does not like going below 350 so has to be watched like a hawk. I'm so pleased I'm out of my funk and will take the cake to the office tomorrow. The guys at work are having a job pick so it will provide the lucky few with some sustenance.

Recipe (slightly adapted)for Fluted Polenta and Ricotta Cake

2 handsful of raisins (plumped)
1 cup polenta
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup ricotta
1/3 cup tepid water
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup honey
Grated zest of one lemon
1 stick unsalted butter, melted and cooled
1 tablespoon butter
1 handful sliced almonds
2 large eggs

Center rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 325 degrees F (mine to almost 350 degrees). Butter a 10-1/2 inch fluted tart pan with a removable bottom and put it on a baking sheet lined with parchment or a silicone mat.

Whisk the polenta, flour, baking powder and salt together.

Working with a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat the ricotta and water together on low speed until very smooth. With the mixer at medium speed, add the sugar, honey and lemon zest and beat until light. Beat in the melted butter, then add the eggs one at a time,beating until the mixture is smooth. Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the dry ingredients, mixing only until they are fully incorporated. You'll have a sleek,smooth, pourable batter. Pour about one third of the batter into the pan and scatter over the raisins. Pour in the rest of the batter, smooth the top with a rubber spatula, if necessary.

Bake for 35 to 30 minutes (55 mins. for me), or until a thin knife inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. The cake should be honey brown and pulling away just a little from the sides of the pan. Heat the one oz. of butter and gently saute the almonds in the butter until a light gold color. Transfer the cake to a rack and remove the base of the pan with the cake on it. Scatter the buttered almonds on the top of the cake. Cool to warm, or cool completely.

Daring Bakers - Cheesecake Pops

Oh dear! I did not have a good baking weekend. The less I say about my Cheesecake Pops the better. It's 5:25PM on April 27 so I don't have time to go back and try again. But I must put them up - want to get DB credit for April. Here's to May!
Cheesecake Pops Recipe

Makes 30-40 Pops

5 8-oz. packages cream cheese at room temperature
2 cups sugar
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
5 large eggs
2 egg yolks
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1/4 cup heavy cream
Boiling water as needed
Thirty to forty 8-inch lollipop sticks (used 6-inch wooden skewers)

1 pound chocolate, finely chopped (used bitter sweet)
2 tablespoons vegetable shortening

Assorted decorations (finely chopped pistachio nuts; chocolate sprinkles; ground shop-bought shortbread crumbs,can shredded sweet coconut;finely chopped crystallized ginger bits(obtainable from "King Arthur Flour").

Position oven rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 325 degrees F. Set some water to boil.

In a large bowl, beat together the cream cheese, sugar, flour, and salt until smooth. If using a mixer, mix on low speed. Add the whole eggs and the egg yolks, one at a time, beating well (but still at low speed) after each addition. Beat in the vanilla and cream.

Grease a 10" cake pan (couldn't find mine so I used a 9" square cake pan), and pour the batter into the cake pan. Place the pan in a larger roasting pan. Fill the roasting pan with the boiling water until it reaches halfway up the sides of the cake pan. Bake until the cheesecake is firm and slightly golden on top, 35-45 minutes (mine took over an hour, probably because I used a smaller square pan - almost the same volume but the batter was denser). Remove the cheesecake from the water bath and cool to room temperature. Cover the cheesecake with plastic wrap and refrigerate until very cold, at least 3 hours or up to overnight.

When the cheesecake is cold and very firm, scoop the cheesecake into 2-oz round balls (I sliced mine into 2 oz. squares)and place on a parchment paper-lines baking sheet. Carefully insert a skewer into each cheesecake square. Freeze the cheese cake pops, uncovered, until very hard, at least 1 - 2 hours.

When the cheesecake pops are frozen and ready for dipping, prepare the chocolate. In the top of a double boiler, set over simmering water, or in a heatproof bowl set over a pot of simmering water, heat half the chocolate and half the shortening, stirring often, until chocolate is melted and chocolate and shortening are combined. Stir until completely smooth. Do not heat the chocolate too much or your chocolate will lose its shine after it has dried. Save the rest of the chocolate and shortening for later dipping, or use another type of chocolate for variety.

Quickly dip a frozen cheesecake pop in the melted chocolate, swirling quickly to coat it completely. Shake off any excess into the melted chocolate. If you like, you can now roll the pops quickly in optional decorations. You can also drizzle them with a contrasting color of melted chocolate). Place the pop on a clean parchment paper-line baking sheet to set. Repeat with the remaining pops, melting more chocolate and shortening as needed.

Refrigerate the pops for up to 24 hours, until ready to serve.

Bill's Big Carrot Cake - Tuesdays with Dorie

Cake for me and carrots for China Bunny. This was a delightful cake to make, easy to prepare and yummy gooey to frost. I got all the prelim. stuff ready last night, including grating the 9 carrots with a hand grater. When I got home this evening my cake was a breeze to make.

I wasn't too keen on the idea of baking at different levels in the oven but my newest cook book* arrived this afternoon which recommended baking 2 layers at the same middle level and putting the third to wait in the refrigerator. Apparently if you use regular baking powder, which contains sodium aluminum sulfate, the "waiting" cake will still rise nicely as the baking powder responds to heat, not so much to moisture.

Can't wait for 11 o'clock coffee tomorrow morning to munch into luscious carrot cake.

Recipe for Bill's Big Carrot Cake

FOR THE CAKE

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 cups grated carrots
1 cup coarsely chopped walnuts or pecans
1 cup shredded coconut (sweetened or unsweetened)
1/2 cup moist, plump raisins (dark or golden) or dried cranberries
2 cups sugar
1 cup canola or safflower oil
4 large eggs

GETTING READY: Position the racks to divide the oven into thirds and preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Butter three 9-x-2inch round cake pans, flour the insides and tap out the excess. Put two pans on baking sheet and one on another.

TO MAKE THE CAKE: Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. In another bowl, stir together the carrots, chopped nuts, coconut and raisins.

Working with a stand mixer, preferably fitted with a paddle attachment or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat the sugar and oil together on medium speed until smooth. Add the eggs one by one, and continue to beat until the batter is even smoother. Reduce the speed to low and add the flour mixture, mixing only until the dry ingredients disappear. Gently mix in the chunky ingredients. Divide the batter among the baking pans.

Bake for 40 to 50 minutes, rotating the pans from top to bottom and front to back at the midway point, until a thin knife inserted into the centers comes out clean; the cakes will have just started to come away from the sides of the pans. Transfer the cakes to cooking racks and cool for about 5 minutes, then run a knife around the sides of the cakes and unmold them. Invert and cool to room temperature right side up. (The cakes can be wrapped airtight and kept at room temperature overnight or frozen for up to 2 months.)

TO MAKE THE FROSTING: Working with the stand mixer, preferably fitted with paddle attachment, or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat the cream cheese and butter together until smooth and creamy. Gradually add the sugar and continue to beat until the frosting is velvety smooth. Beat in the lemon juice or extract.

If you'd like coconut in the filling, scoop out about half of the frosting and stir the coconut into this portion.

TO ASSEMBLE THE CAKE:Put one layer top side up on a cardboark cake round or a cake plate protected by strips of wax or parchment paper. If you added the coconut to the frosting, use half of the coconut frosting to generoudly cover the first layer (or cover generously with plain frosting). Use an offset spatula or a spoon to smooth the frosting all the way to the edges of the layer. Top with the second layer, this time placing the cake top side down, and frost with the remainder of the coconut frosting (or more plain frosting). Top with the last layer, right side up, and frost the top-and the sides, if you want-of the cake. Finish the top with swirls of frosting. If you want to top the cake with toasted nuts or cocomut, sprinkle them on now, while the frosting is soft.

Refrigerate the cake for 30 minutes, just to set the frosting before serving.

*This wise and wonderful new cook book is "Sky High - Irresistible Triple-Layer Cakes" by Alisa Huntsman and Peter Wynne.

THINK SPICE ... THINK CLOVES

Surfing around I came across this lovely blog,Canela & Comino by Gretchen. I love spicy food but not the fiery hot type - this blog has recipes with delicate spice flavors - Gretchen's challenge for using cloves for this month is just what I want and need.

My recipe is for KEVIN'S SPICED ROAST CHICKEN WITH POTATOES, PENANG STYLE. It's from a fabulous cook book, "Cradle of Flavor" by James Oseland, featuring "Home cooking from the Spice Islands of Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore." It's quite new, published in 2006 and has many. many rave reviews.

Here's KEVIN'S SPICED ROAST CHICKEN WITH POTATOES

1 whole free-range chicken, 3-1/2 pounds
1/3 cup soy sauce
2 tablespoons double-black soy sauce
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
3 bay leaves
2 pieces cinnamon stick, each 4 inches long
6 whole cloves
5 small red or yellow onions (about 1 pound), each no more than 3-1/2 inches long, halves (used shallots)
1-1/2 teaspoons coarsely crushed black pepper
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
1-1/2 pounds small potatoes such as Yukon Gold, Peruvian blue, or Maine, no more than 1-1/2 inches in diameter

1.Remove and discard the fat inside the chicken. Rinse the chicken and thoroughly pat it dry inside and out with paper towels. Tuck the wingtips behind the shoulders.

2.Place the chicken in a bowl large enough to hold it comfortably. Pour both soy sauces and the Worcestershire sauce over it. Add the bay leaves, cinnamon sticks, cloves, and onions. Using your hands or a large spoon, turn the chicken a few times, making sure that some of the liquid, spices, and a few onion halves are slipped inside the cavity. Rub the inside and outside of the chicken with the pepper. Let the chicken marinate, uncovered, at room temperature for 1 to 2 hours. Turn the bird over every 15 minutes or so to distribute the marinade evenly. Its skin will darken a few shades from the sauces.

3.Toward end of the marinating, preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.

4.Place the chicken, breast side up, in a shallow roasting pan. Scatter the onions around the chicken, making sure that 1 or 2 halves remain inside the cavity. Rub the chicken inside and out with the softened butter. (I like to rub some underneath the breast skin as well, which helps make the breast meat juicier.) Pour the remaining marinade over the chicken, placing the cinnamon sticks and a few of the cloves inside the cavity. Cover the pan loose with aluminum foil

5.Roast the chicken for 20 minutes, then turn it over. Tilt the pan toward you and, using a large spoon or baster, baste the chicken and its cavity with the pan juices. Cover the pan once more with the foil and continue roasting for another 20 minutes.

6.Meanwhile, scrub the potatoes but don't peel them. Fill a 3-quart saucepan three-fourths full with water and bring to a boil over high heat. Add the potatoes and cook at a rolling boil until they are just tender when pierced with a fork, 5 to 10 minutes. Drain the potatoes will in a colander.

7. Add the cooked potatoes to the roasting pan. Combine them gently with the onions already in the pan and baste them well with the pan juices. Turn the chicken over again (it should be breast side up this time) and baste it once more. Continue roasting the chicken, uncovered now so that it can brown just a bit, until it's cooked. The total cooking time will range from 1 hour and 10 minutes to 1-1/2 hours. To test for doneness, using a fork, pierce the skin at the thigh joint and press down gently. The juices should have on the faintest tinge of pink. Or, you can insert an instant-read thermometer into the thickest part of the thigh, not touching the bone. The chicken is ready when the thermometer registers 170 degrees F.

8.Place the chicken on a serving platter. Pour half of the pan juices over it and allow the chicken to rest for a least 10 minutes before carving (this allows time for the juices to be absorbed by the flesh). Place the potatoes and onions around the chicken or in in a serving bowl. Pour the remaining pan juices over the potatoes and onions. This chicken is best when served slightly warm. The flavors will be more pronounced and the flesh juicier.

Serve with boiled peas and roasted beets.

This is quite a fancy dish - a took a bit of fussing, what with the turning over and basting and the foil on and off. But I think it looks rather grand on its platter, a fine dinner to serve to guests. I've never roasted beets before; I ended up baking them like potatoes and it took well over an hour at 375 degrees F before they were ready. Altogether much grander than my usual casseroles; I'm quite excited about it.

Weekend Cookbook Challenge and Introducing Mystery

What more 70's than "Chicken a la King!" -aka as Creamed Chicken, a more mundane title but describing the dish exactly. It graced family style tables, PTA lunch meetings, and was presented to guests for dinner. It seems to have gone out of fashion big time; however, it's a tasty dish and easy to make.

The book I have chosen is a 70's recipe book published by "The Star" newspaper in Johannesburg, S. Africa. The cover page is lost so no publication date, but it was in use in the 70's and is a collection of recipes by Angela Day who was the home expert of "The Star." Here goes:

CHICKEN A LA KING

1 large chicken
salt and pepper
pinch of thyme
one small onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
6 tablespoons butter
1/2 lb mushrooms, sliced
1 tablespoon flour (potato starch)
1/2 cup stock from the chicken
1 tin mushroom soup
1/2 cup milk (half-and-half)
1 red or green pepper, seeded and chopped

Season the chicken and steam in very little water, to which a pinch of thyme has been added, until tender. Remove all the flesh and cut into small pieces. Place in a casserole.

Fry the onion and garlic in the butter until the onion is golden brown. Add the mushrooms and fry for a minute, then blend in the flour and pour on the chicken stock. Add the mushroom soup and milk and stir until the sauce thickens. Finally add the red or green pepper. Pour the sauce over the chicken in the casserole. Cover and place in a 350 degree F oven for 15 minutes to heat through.

Serve with white rice.

I used potato starch instead of flour after I learned about it for my Marshmallows baking effort for Tuesdays with Dorie; it's such a nice thickener and it blends easily. Also used half-and-half as it adds a touch of luxury. I made this dish recently for a Church Potluck and it got "Yums" all around.

Thanks so much to Carla of Chocolate Moosey for selecting the Vintage Cookbook theme. I think there are going to be lots of interesting recipes in this challenge - my oldest vintage cookbooks are a 1943 American cookie book and a 1948 Australian's Women's Weekly cookbook, both of which I picked up on e-bay recently. (AWW has a great website and fantastic current books as well.)

Well, here's to the Seventies!.

Goodness, my recent blog entries look as if I'm filling up on pale pies - I must obviously rectify this situation - my next blog will be (to be announced). To add something bright and beautiful to my blog, here's a formal introduction to Mystery, my darling big boy, who ate a lot of the chicken before it reached the casserole!