The Answer is Chocolate Pie

Yesterday was a cool, rainy day here in middle Tennessee and I was in the mood to cook.   One of my friends made the comment they wished they had something to bake.  I said I was thinking about apple pie bars or chocolate cream pie.  Her remark - chocolate cream pie - so pie it was.

This is a "from scratch" pie that is rich and chocolaty and delicious.  It takes a little time at the stove stirring to keep the filling from scorching, but is more than worth the time and effort.  I also made the crust from scratch and whipped cream from scratch.  Here is the recipe:

Crust:

1 and 1/2 cups sifted all purpose flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup shortening (I used 2 stick butter)
4 - 5 tablespoons cold water

Sift the flour and salt together in a medium sized bowl.  Cut the butter into small pieces and cut into the flour with a pastry blender until it looks like small peas.  Add water 1 tablespoon at a time and stir with a fork until it forms a ball.  Roll out to fit a 9 inch pie pan.  Place crust in pie plate and crimp edges.  Prick the bottom and sides of the crust with a fork and bake at 350 until golden brown.  Remove from oven and let cool before adding filling.

Pie Filling:

2 and 2/3 cups milk
3 eggs - separated
3 squares baking chocolate, quartered
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup corn starch
1/4 tsp salt
1 tablespoon butter
1 teaspoon vanilla

Combine 1 2/3 cups milk, 3 egg yolks, chocolate, 3/4 cup sugar, 1/4 cup cornstarch, 1/4 tsp salt, 1 tablespoon butter in blender for 15 - 20 seconds.  Put in top of double boiler.  Add remaining cup of milk.  Cook on medium until thickened  - stirring constantly.  The filling will start as a light chocolate with lots of little chocolate pieces in it.  Suddenly, it will start to thicken and become a rich dark chocolate as all the little chocolate pieces melt.  Takes about 20 - 25 minutes of cooking.  Remove from heat.  Add 1 teaspoon vanilla and stir.

Cool slightly.  Pour into baked pie shell.  Top with whipped cream.

Whipped Cream

1 pint heavy whipping cream
sugar to taste

Place whipping cream in a deep bowl and use mixer on high until whipping cream starts to thicken.  Add a couple tablespoons of sugar and continue whipping until stiff peaks form.  Cover pie with the whipped cream and place in refrigerator.


This is such a delicious treat with coffee, especially if you share it with friends or family!  The crust is buttery and flakey, the chocolate filling is rich and silky topped by the delicious whipped cream.  Is your mouth watering?  Mine sure is.  Think I'll go have a piece right now.  Give it a try.  I hope you will like it as much as we do.  All I can say is yummmmmmmm.

Everyday Donna


Things to Remember:


Chocolate is the answer.  Who cares what the question is.  ~Author Unknown

Blackberry Winter and Soup

It has been really damp and cool the last two days.  My grandparents referred to this as Blackberry winter.  This cool weather is necessary to set the buds on blackberry plants so there will be juicy ripe berries to pick around the fourth of July.  There are a lot of "winters" in our part of the country.  Dogwood winter, redbud winter, strawberry winter and now blackberry winter.  Every time you think warm weather is here, it is time for something else to bloom and we get a little cold spell.  Hopefully, this is the end of them for this year.  I am ready for some consistently warm weather!

Cool days always make me want soup.  Soup is easy, nutritious, and goes a long way for little money.  Today, I am making chicken tortilla soup.  Yum.  This is my own recipe, one that I invented after having chicken tortilla soup in a restaurant.  It was really good and my thought was "I can come close to this!"  I don't always use  recipes, but I am going to share how I make this soup with you so I have been measuring ingredients as I prepare them.  This makes a lot of soup, but we eat it for days.  It is so nice to have something just to warm up when we get hungry and not have to prepare a full meal every time.  Saves money too!  When you make soup, make a lot.  You can freeze some of it for later, you can take some in your lunch and you have a quick and easy dinner when you get home.   You can always add a sandwich if you like, or a  salad.  We like jalapeno cheddar corn muffins with ours.  (see recipe below)
I make this in a 12 quart pot.  It makes about 6 quarts of soup or 1/2 pot.

Chicken Tortilla Soup

2 32 ounce boxes of chicken stock (I use Aldi's Fit and Active....low sodium, no msg and fat free)
8 cups water
3 boneless/skinless chicken breasts, I get 3 skinless breasts at Aldi's for around $5.00 (or you can boil  a whole chicken if you want to pick it off the bone or use one of the roasted ones from the grocery, just remove the skin)
2 large potatoes, peeled and cut into 1 inch pieces (2 cups)
1 cup carrots peeled and cut into 1/2 inch medallions
l large onion cut into 1 inch pieces
1 28 ounce can crushed tomatoes
1 can rotelle with chilis
1 15 ounce can black beans drained and rinsed
1 cup frozen whole kernel corn
1 cup rice
cumin, to taste (I used 1.5 Tbsp)
salt if needed

Grated cheddar cheese
Your favorite tortilla chips

Boil chicken breasts whole in stock and water until done, about 30-40 minutes.  They are done when white all the way through.  Remove breasts.  If the water/stock has gone down a lot due to cooking, I add more water at this point.  I like the pot 1/2 full of liquid.  Add the diced vegetables, crushed tomatoes, rotelle with chilis and let cook until potatoes and carrots are soft. Add black beans, corn and rice, let cook until rice is no longer hard.  At this point, I add cumin and salt to taste. Cumin gives it that lovely smokey taste that makes the soup so good.   Cut chicken into bite sized pieces and add to soup and let heat through.  Time to serve!

 Put chips and cheese on the table in serving bowls.  Add the amount of grated cheese you want to your bowl of soup (it melts fast when soup is hot) and crumble tortilla chips on top of soup.  Enjoy!


Jalapeno cheddar cornbread -- very easy!

Mince 6 or seven pickled jalapeno slices (these are about the size of a nickel, not whole jalpenos)
Grate your favorite cheese (we like cheddar)
1 box jiffy  cornbread mix
1 can creamed corn
1 egg


Add 1 can creamed corn and egg to Jiffy Cornbread mix.  Stir until mix is no longer dry and egg is blended in.  Add jalapenos and about 1/2 cup cheese.  You can bake these as muffins or in a round pan.  We prefer muffins as they are easy to reheat if there are leftovers.  They need to bake a little longer than the box calls for because of the creamed corn.  Bake until golden brown.  Remove.  Delicious with some butter on them.


Our kitchen is filling with the wonderful smell of soup and it's making my mouth water.  I can honestly say I am looking forward to this delicious meal and we will have a few lunches and dinners ready for the rest of the week.   I only used one pot, and a few utensils and bowls.  Now how easy is that?

It is supposed to warm up by the end of the week which will be very welcome, but for tonight, we will be enjoying a delicious, filling meal and I will have a few day's reprieve from meal preparation.  That leaves a LOT more time for all my creative projects.  Give this recipe a try.  I hope you enjoy it.

Everyday Donna

Things to remember:

“You have not lived a perfect day, even though you have earned your money, unless you have done something for someone who will never be able to repay you.” - Ruth Smeltzer

Ambrosia For The Gods (Peach Cobbler)

In my hometown in Southern Indiana,  there was this stuff people made at Thanksgiving and Christmas called ambrosia.  It had mandarin oranges, coconut and miniature marshmallows in it among other things.  I liked it okay, but I would not call it ambrosia, food fit for the gods.  In Greek mythology, the food fed to the gods was called ambrosia and their drink was called nectar.  Therefore, we use the saying nectar of the gods, or food for the gods.  I am here to tell you, this peach cobbler truly is ambrosia and fit for any mythological god or human being to eat!  

Our weekend trip to the farmer's market here in Nashville offered up some of the most divine, delectable peaches I have had in a long, long time.  They are cling peaches from South Carolina and are positively indescribable.  I cannot think of enough descriptive words for them.  They are sweet and juicy and simply heavenly.  I peeled two, sliced them and put them on our breakfast plates and there are no words for the gastronomical sensation these peaches created.  I knew the rest of the basket was destined for pure ambrosia..... homemade peach cobbler!  

I am a very thrifty person when it comes to our food, mainly because I have had to be raising four children on a teacher's income.  Those of you out there who can relate understand.  There is no shopping at Whole Foods for us even now(or as my daughter calls it, Whole Paycheck). I do cook from scratch most of the time using few prepared foods.  I know that organic food is the best for us, but it is not always within our retirement budget, even though there are only two of us to feed most of the time.  We do love to shop the farmer's markets though and support locally grown food which is very important.  This, on the other hand, was time for a splurge of epic proportions.  A basket of peaches was $18.00.  It actually hurts me to type this, but I knew what the results of this purchase would be as the smell of the ripe peaches wafted through the air at the market.  So, I ponied up the money and took my basket of peaches home along with my tomatoes, corn, cabbage and Vidalia onions.  We are going to have our first major summertime feast.  Soon, we will be picking vegetables right from our garden.  Our tomato plants have little tomatoes on them.  Oh boy, oh boy.  Sorry, I am digressing.

There is not a written recipe I use for the filling, so I will do my best to tell you how I make this. I can only call it Grandma's way.   The crust is another matter.  The recipe will be below and it is a truly flaky crust that is a complete complement to this cobbler.  If you prefer, you can make it a pie since it is a two crust recipe, but we prefer the cobbler.  

Ingredients:

Peeled and sliced fresh peaches (as many as it takes to cover the bottom of a 9x13 baking dish 1/3 to 1/2 full which was most of the basket)

sugar to taste  (these only needed about 3/4 cup because they are so sweet and juicy)

a pinch of salt

pats of butter

cinnamon

After peeling and slicing the basket of peaches, I put sugar over them, and stirred, mixing well.  Add a pinch of salt and repeat.  I put them in the refrigerator in a covered bowl overnight to allow the sugar to draw the juice from the peaches. This step is not mandatory.  You can put the peaches directly into a baking pan.   The next day, I made my crust, put the peaches in the bottom of the pan, cut pats of butter and placed them randomly over the top of the peaches (about 12) and sprinkled the  entire pan with cinnamon.  Place the crust over the top and place in a 400 degree oven until the crust turns a light brown.  Remove from oven.  Delicious served warm with a big dollop of ice cream.  Pure ambrosia, there is no other description.

Crust recipe (will make an 8, 9 or 10 inch double crust pie or one 9x13 cobbler)

2 cups sifted all-purpose flour

1 tsp salt

10 tbsp butter

5 to 7 TBSP cold water

Sift flour and salt together.  Cut in shortening with a pastry blender until pieces are about the size of small peas.  (cut butter into small cubes before blending)  Add water 1 TBSP at a time stirring with a fork until all the dough is moistened and forms a ball. Do not over mix, crust will be tough.   Flour countertop.  Flatten dough slightly with hand and roll with floured rolling pin until about 9x13. Gently lift the crust using rolling pin and place over peaches.  Leave a little open boarder around crust so steam can vent.  Place in 400 degree oven and bake until crust is light brown.

If you want to make a pie, divide dough ball in half.  Roll out one ball and place in bottom of pie pan.  Place peaches in crust, add butter and cinnamon.  Roll out remaining dough ball and place over peaches. Crimp edges and make vent holes in top of crust.  Bake at 400 degrees until crust is light brown.

This pastry recipe is from my Better Homes and Garden Cookbook I received as a wedding gift 41 years ago.  I have always used this recipe.  It is easy, really flaky and delicious.  

This cobbler will keep for several days in the refrigerator.  We take out a few scoops of peaches and crust, place in a bowl and warm it in the microwave for about 20 seconds, add some ice cream and devour!   Ambrosia is the only fitting description I can think of for this heavenly, divinely delectable dessert.  Give it a try.  I truly hope you will love it.  We sure do!  

It's Wednesday afternoon and time for the East Nashville farmer's market.  We are on the hunt for more summertime goodies.  Can't wait!  Will let you know what I find.  Happy summer eating.  

Everyday Donna

Things to Remember:

“One day your life will flash before your eyes. Make sure it's worth watching.” Unknown Author

I Need CHOCOLATE

That sudden overwhelming urge comes over me.  I need chocolate and soon.  Ever have that feeling?  So, I asked Dan if he would eat something chocolate if I made it and without hesitation he replied "Yes!"
You know what that means?  Get out the baking stuff.

To me there is something so comforting about baking.  Measuring and mixing.  It makes me happy.  I baked my first cake from scratch when I was 10.  Yes, it was lopsided but good.  No one refused to eat it.  Well, it's Friday night and we need a treat so I am going to share the easiest cake recipe in the world with you.  Really.  It's so easy.

I always keep a few cake mixes in the pantry for emergencies and this is an emergency.  We need chocolate.....soon.  Here is the recipe and I bake it in a bundt pan.  You can bake it in a 9x13 if you want.  I just like the way it looks from a bundt pan.  Remember the scene in My Big Fat Greek Wedding about the "boont" cake?  Still makes me laugh.  Anyway, here it is

1 chocolate cake mix
2 large eggs
1 21 oz. can of cherry pie filling

Yup, that's it.  Now mix them all together until there is no shiny egg showing or dry cake mix.  At this point, I spray my non-stick bundt pan with cooking spray just so the cake doesn't stick. Now, you can put the cake mix in the pan and spread evenly.  This is where you and I may part ways.  I  like to doctor my cake up a bit.  I add:

1/4 cup chocolate chips
1/4 cup flaked coconut
1/4 cup chopped walnuts or pecans, whichever I have on hand.

As Emeril says, we just took it up a notch...or two.

Mix any or all of the above ingredients into the cake mix and NOW pour it in the pan.  You may not like coconut, or nuts, or chocolate chips, or like us you may like all three.  It's your choice.   Bake at 350
until a toothpick comes out clean, about 35 minutes.  Let the cake cool and turn it onto a plate.  I put mine on my cake stand because it looks pretty.  Now, you can dust it with confectioner's sugar OR you can make a chocolate glaze first......which I do.  This is how you do it:

2 TBSP butter in small saucepan
approx. 1/2  cup confectioner's sugar
2 heaping TBSPs unsweetened cocoa
1 TBSP of milk at a time

Melt the butter over medium heat, stirring with wooden spoon so it doesn't burn.  Add confectioner's sugar, cocoa and 1 TBSP of milk.  Stir to combine all ingredients until it is chocolate in appearance and all lumps have disappeared.  Add just a little milk if necessary, like a tsp at a time.  The glaze needs to be pourable, not too thick.  When it is the desired consistency, remove pan from stove.

Pour chocolate glaze over the cake.  Dust with confectioner's sugar.  I use my tea strainer and put a couple teaspoons full of confectioner's sugar in it, rub the edge of the spoon back and forth over the sugar moving the strainer around the cake.  It looks like snow falling on your cake.  There is more control this way than if you use a sifter.  Or, you may have a shaker container that you fill with sugar and shake it on the cake.  Any of these ways will work.

Now, it's time to dig in.  This dense chocolaty cake is wonderful with a hot cup of coffee, a glass of cold milk, with ice cream or without.  However you like to eat it.  Any way will do and any way is delicious!

This is a good "go to" recipe when you need a cake in an emergency.  I have also made it with yellow cake mix which is delicious too.  It's your decision.  I just know it is quick and easy and especially great for a chocolate emergency.

This is also a great picnic cake which you could take to a Memorial Day gathering next weekend. You could even make cupcakes to take.  Everyone loves cupcakes.   I may make this and some good homemade vanilla ice cream to take to a gathering we are going to attend.  Or maybe a strawberry dream cake, or strawberry shortcake, or whatever strikes my fancy next weekend.  Anyway, give this recipe a try and I hope you will enjoy it.

Everyday Donna

Things to remember:

Love is all there is.