I’ve had many requests for this German Chocolate Cake … A cake recipe I’ve been putting together since I was a teen. Three layers with cooked frosting and expensive ingredients make this a special occasion cake. One of my verybest friends (you know the kind … you don’t talk for years but you are there for each other when needed as if no time had passed) loves this cake. She and I worked together on and off for over 20 years … some of the most fulfilling work years I’ve experienced. Our work was grueling but Lori’s humor made often unbearable days bearable.
Here is your birthday cake … really late but I hope you enjoy it!
Amazingly simple, three recipes in one. The sequence is important … cook custard or pudding first, follow with preparing the pastry, and lastly, the icing or glaze. My glaze was done just a little too soon and became a little difficult to spread or dip.
A family owned bakery in our little town perfected this eclair and offered it with either custard or whipped cream filling. Our family preferred the custard filling but often didn’t get to the bakery before they were sold out. Now the bakery is gone and eclairs are even harder to come by.
So, here is my recipe! And yes, I believe I may like these better. There is something about making it yourself!
Guests With An Unknown Time Of Arrival + A Storm With A Potential Outage =
Wine and Cheese Dinner Tonight
At least that’s my excuse!
You don’t need to be a connoisseur of wine or cheese to put together a nice dinner like this. Choose a variety of cheese textures, add fruit & nuts, bread & crackers. There are so many change ups you can do! Dried fruit is amazing! Want fresh figs but can’t find them this time of year. Substitute dried ones.
Brie, Parmesan-reggiano, Blue Cheese, Gouda are pictured here and are some of my very favorites. Pinot Noir is one of my favorite wine varietals. It will pair well with the Brie and Parmesan … Blue Cheese, maybe a Port, and Gouda a Merlot. Give your guests a variety of cheeses and wine choices … White wines are great too. It’s just fun to try out for yourself.
I do recommend high quality cheese. Brie is a soft cheese with a distinctive white rind. The rind is edible but is often not consumed because of the strong flavor. Do sample the Brie, rind and all, before you purchase if you can … Flavors differ widely. About Parmesan-reggiano … Fortunately I’ve never met one I didn’t like. The rind is edible as well but really chewy. I prefer to use this rind in a soup or sauce to add flavor. Gouda, a medium soft cheese, is usually covered with a wax. This wax is not edible.
The ingredients in these two favorites, Mexican Wedding Cakes and Portuguese Almond Cookies, make a perfect marriage, Almond Wedding Cake Cookies. They’re rich and densely packed with almonds. To make it vegan I suggest vegan butter. I have substituted almond butter for half of the cup of butter called for in the recipe. This I do not recommend. Substituting no more than 1/4 cup of almond butter plus using 3/4 cup butter is doable.
Butterscotch Meringue Pie is the longtime family favorite cream pie. I’ve noticed cream pies are not in vogue as they once were in the 40’s and 50’s. We’ve developed such complex desserts these days the simple old fashion ones, it seems, no longer tease our sophisticated palates. For this recipe bringing together butterscotch with peanut butter just seemed a perfect combination to satisfy our tastebuds.
Pies with meringue were passed over by me as a child with the exception of this one. It just seemed to be the only way to top off this pie. If you aren’t into meringue a dollop of whipped cream will do. Or creme fraiche. And frankly, with this crust a topper isn’t even necessary.
If butterscotch pie isn’t your fav but peanut butter is … try this crust with chocolate cream, cheesecake, or ice cream. Beware it is rich and addictive … And vegan!
These filled mini-cupcakes are a great treat for both children and adults. My sister-in-law, Ruth, had suggested these mini-cupcakes for my blog … They are such an easy change up treat. Use my quick white cupcake recipe here, your own, or a box mix. You can change up the flavor of both the cupcakes and frosting-filling … And the color of the frosting-filling. This dessert will work for so many occasions … baby showers, bridal showers, holidays, birthdays….
This is my first attempt at the new cross between a croissant and donut. I’m sure you’ve heard about this new pastry originating in Manhattan. I wanted to try it! Since I live over 2000 miles away the only way would be to make it. This wasn’t enough! I’d heard this pastry creation takes 3 days from start to finish. And I wanted to devise a recipe that had family eating this flaky melt-in-your-mouth treat in one day.
I had a plan, a recipe. It was going to work beautifully. Then I decided to use my processor! Wrong thing to do! I had not expected my new processor, gift from my brother, to pulverize, the ice cold butter. The butter chunks create the flakily layers and I had just eliminated all the flakes. I’m afraid it was the operator and not the processor! But I had to move forward with all these wonderful ingredients partially processed.
Still haven’t tried the new Manhattan pastry but these Donuts With An Attitude were delicious!
My apology, no recipe yet. But soon I’ll give it another try!
This is what happens when berries are a bargain price at the grocers. And it was such a beautiful day here .. This Berry Cobbler was enjoyed on the patio.
The rustic looking crust makes this so easy. Just wash the berries, add a few simple ingredients and place the crust over it all. Use your 10 inch skillet or an oblong baking dish. I just like the look of the skillet cobbler.
This rich and sweet Cheesecake Bar is low in sugar. Children love these too!
This easy recipe whips up quickly. Usually baked in an 8 inch square baking dish … I am always looking for a baking method to change up the presentation. I am not sure the baking method created a more attractive outcome this time. So next time I will be baking in the square baking dish.
Enjoy this no fuss dessert. One of our family favorites.
This is an impressive topping for pound cake, sponge cake or vanilla ice cream. It’s so simple, only 10 minutes start to finish. And you probably have all the ingredients. I always keep pound cake in the freezer for a quick dessert. If you have the time my sponge cake is wonderful!
Just place small squares of the cake into a dessert dish … place a small scoop of ice cream on top and add the wine sauce over the top of both.
