Chocolate Raspberry Tarts with Vanilla Brandy Crème

This a really easy, but decadent dessert that is great any time of year !

Chocolate Raspberry Tarts with Vanilla Brandy Crème

Ingredients:

24 prebaked mini tart shells (I bake my own using my favorite pie crust recipe)

1/3 cup plus 3/4 cup heavy cream

4 ounces semi-sweet baking chocolate chips

1 teaspoon raspberry extract

2 ounces  cream cheese, softened

4 tablespoons sugar, divided

2 teaspoons vanilla divided

1 teaspoon brandy

In small sauce pan over medium heat, heat cream just till it starts to boil (watch very closely). Remove from heat. Add chocolate chips raspberry extract, and 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
and allow stand for 10 minutes; whisking together after standing until well blended and shiny. Set to side, and allow to cool completely.

Beat cream cheese and 2 tablespoons of the sugar in large bowl until smooth. Beat remaining 3/4 cup cream, remaining 2 tablespoons sugar, vanilla, and brandy in medium bowl with electric mixer until stiff peaks form. Add 1/2 of the whipped cream to cream cheese mixture; stir until well blended. Gently stir in remaining whipped cream.

Fill empty tart shells with cooled chocolate, till almost full, then spoon about 1 tablespoon vanilla brandy crème onto the top each tart. Garnish with chocolate shavings, if desired. Refrigerate until ready to serve

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Hummingbird Cake

Seem like everyone has their own twist on this delicious cake, that reminds me of a carrot cake. Now I know your saying how can that be? Well basically as you go through the recipe, it’s very close almost as if it started as a carrot cake, then someone realized opps, I’m out of raisins, and carrots……but I do have pineapple and bananas! You know know what… it WORKED!! But like I said I have added my own twist to this wonderful cake, enjoy!

3 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups granulated sugar
½ teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground fresh nutmeg
½ teaspoon ground ginger
3 eggs, beaten
1 ¼ cups vegetable oil
1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup crushed pineapple, well drained
1 cup chopped toasted pecans
2 cups chopped firm ripe banana
.
Cream Cheese Frosting:
16 ounces cream cheese, softened
1 cup butter, room temperature
2 pounds confectioners’ sugar sifted
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup chopped toasted pecans

Preheat oven to 350°.

Sift flour, sugar, salt, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger together into mixing bowl. Beat eggs, oil, and sugar together till well blended. Slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet. Mix until completely combined. Stir in vanilla, pineapple and 1 cup pecans. Stir in the bananas. Spoon the batter into 2 well-greased and floured 9-inch round cake pans. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan for 10 minutes, turn onto cooling rack. Cool completely before frosting.

Cream Cheese Frosting:
Combine cream cheese and butter; cream until smooth. Add powdered sugar, beating with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Add in vanilla.

Frost cake with cream cheese frosting, and coat side of frosted cake with the chopped toasted pecans. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

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Chocolate Almond Loaf

1 ½ cups all purpose flour
1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
¾ teaspoon baking powder
¾ cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
¾ cup white sugar
1 cup sliced almonds toasted
½ cup vegetable oil
¾ cup half and half
2 large eggs + 1 large egg yolk
1 teaspoon vanilla
½ teaspoon almond extract
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
Powdered sugar for garnishing

Preheat oven to 350’

Spray a 10 inch loaf pan with nonstick baking spray.

In large bowl sift together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and baking powder. Add both sugars combine well. Add almonds. Set aside.

In another bowl beat together half and half, oil, eggs, vanilla, and almond extract.

Slowly pour wet mixture into dry mixture, stirring till completely combined.( If mixture is too dry you can add an additional 2 tablespoons of half and half. ) Add semisweet chocolate chips.

Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake for 1 hour or until toothpick comes out clean.

Cool on wire rack.

Serve sliced with a dusting of powdered sugar.

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Something old with a twist

Something old with a twist……

Everything old is almost always new again, we just have to sit back and wait for it to be reinvented! This holds true even with ingredients, and of course recipes. I have for you today a VERY old ingredient, has a wonderful new twist on it. Cornmeal, now what can you do with cornmeal…….cornbread, use it as a breading, mush, and many other dishes; but what about a sweet muffin? Well the answer is a resounding YES!

Today I am sharing with you my recipe for Cranberry Orange Cornmeal Muffins / with a Honey Orange Drizzle

 

 

 

2 medium eggs
1 cup buttermilk
1 teaspoon vanilla
¼ cup orange juice
¼ cup oil
1 ½ cups cornmeal
¾ cup flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
¼ cup sugar
1/8 teaspoon ground ginger
¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
½ cup dried cranberries
¼ cup chopped pecans

Preheat over to 400’
Line or spray 12 count muffin pan

Combine all of the above ingredients in a large bowl until well blended. Pour out into prepared muffin pans. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes. Remove from oven and serve warm or allow to cool and drizzle with the Honey Orange Drizzle below.

Honey Orange Drizzle

2 cups confectioners’ sugar
2 tablespoons honey
¼ cup orange juice
1 teaspoon vanilla
water

In medium bowl, combine all ingredients (except water) stirring until smooth, adding small amounts of water if need to help thin drizzle. You want it to be a drizzle consistency. Drizzle over cooled muffins.

© 2011 Phaedra Spencer
All Right Reserved No part can be reprinted without written permission from the author.

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Warm and Fuzzy

 

 

There are many beverages associated with the winter months, particularly during the holiday season. During December many of us enjoy hot apple cider, hot cocoa, and, of course, eggnog, but wouldn’t it be nice to mix it up a little?

Drinking eggnog at Christmas is believed to go back as far as the early 1600s. Eggnog actually was a beverage that was common to the upper class in England during the 1800s. During Colonial times, rum was used as the alcohol, but in Louisiana we like to do thing just a little bit different than everyone else!

Below is a wonderful traditional eggnog, and after that recipe is one to combine with the traditional recipe to make an adult holiday eggnog that will delight and warm every adult!

 

 

 

Eggnog

6 eggs
1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
2 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 cups milk
1/3 pint heavy whipping cream
1 pinch fresh ground nutmeg
1 pinch salt

Beat eggs; mix in condensed milk, vanilla, quart of milk and salt.
Beat the whipping cream until soft peaks form. Fold in to egg and milk mixture and sprinkle with nutmeg. Serve warm or cold. Use with recipe below for a different flavor.

 

The ADULT Eggnog…………

 

6 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
4 cups eggnog, divided (see recipe above)
2 cups bourbon whiskey
2 cups Irish cream liquor
Grated bittersweet chocolate and peppermint stick

Whisk together cocoa powder and 1/3 cup eggnog until smooth. In a pitcher, whisk cocoa mixture into remaining eggnog. Add whiskey and Irish cream. Pour 4 ounces into small glasses; top with grated bittersweet chocolate and peppermint stick.

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Cooking with a Cajun

Hello and welcome! I have been asked on more than one occasion, ” Is everything a Cajun eats spicy? “, the answer is NO! Now while it is true we do like our food with a kick, we also don’t mind cooling it down either. It basically comes down to just good old fashion cooking! Use what is fresh from your garden, or farmers market, and if that’s not an option there is always the market…..but remember fresh is best!

With that being said lets get to cooking!

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