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Thanksgiving Tip: Freeze the Butter Before Making Pie

partysugar — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 09:00:32 -0800

When making pie dough, it's very important to use really cold butter. This will ensure that the crust is rich, flaky, and buttery. Most recipes remind you that the butter should be cold, but whenever I'm baking a pie, the first thing I do, before measuring anything, is cut the butter into 1/4-inch cubes. I put the cubes in a small dish and place it in the freezer. Then, I start making the dough. The butter is in the freezer for only a few minutes and doesn't really freeze; instead it gets really cold. Do you have a tip for great Thanksgiving pie?

Would You Rather Eat Pumpkin or Pecan Pie?

partysugar — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 01:30:50 -0800

Source: Flickr Users delgaudm and museinthecity

This Thanksgiving, Make Triple-Chocolate Pumpkin Pie!

partysugar — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 13:00:33 -0800

Although I can't deny the deliciousness of a slice of classic, cinnamon-laced pumpkin pie, in recent years, I've expanded my horizons to somewhat non-traditional Thanksgiving desserts. Pecan pie? Surprisingly easy, yet wildly delicious. Pumpkin meringue pie? An unexpected crowd-pleaser. Pumpkin cake with pecan brittle and whipped cream cheese frosting? Devoured in seconds. Triple chocolate pumpkin pie? Sign me up! When I came across this recipe, while browsing Martha Stewart's Thanksgiving central, I knew I had to try it. If you've made pumpkin pie in the past, you can master this. It's actually easier because the crust is made from graham crackers instead of a standard pastry dough. The resulting pie is dense and rich. Each bite is an experience of flavors: first you taste chocolate, then pumpkin, and finally the sweet crust. To take a look at the recipe, read more.

Triple-Chocolate Pumpkin Pie
From Martha Stewart

Ingredients

For the graham cracker crust
2 cups finely ground graham cracker crumbs (about 16 crackers)
3 ounces (6 tablespoons) unsalted butter, melted
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
2 tablespoons packed light-brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3 ounces bittersweet chocolate (preferably 61 percent cacao), finely chopped
For the filling:
6 ounces semisweet chocolate (preferably 55 percent cacao), chopped
2 ounces (4 tablespoons) unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
1 can (15 ounces) solid-pack pumpkin
1 can (12 ounces) evaporated milk
3/4 cup packed light-brown sugar
3 large eggs
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 1/2 teaspoons coarse salt
3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Ground cloves
1 ounce milk chocolate, melted

Directions

Make the crust: Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Combine graham cracker crumbs, butter, sugars, salt, and cinnamon in bowl. Firmly press mixture into bottom and up sides of a deep, 9 1/2-inch pie dish. Bake until firm, 8 to 10 minutes.
Remove from oven, and sprinkle bittersweet chocolate over bottom of crust. Return to oven to melt chocolate, about 1 minute. Spread chocolate in a thin layer on bottom and up sides.
Let cool on a wire rack. Reduce oven temperature to 325 degrees.
Make the filling: In a large heatproof bowl set over a pot of simmering water, melt semisweet chocolate and butter, stirring until smooth. Remove from heat.
Mix pumpkin, milk, brown sugar, eggs, cornstarch, vanilla, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and a pinch of cloves in a medium bowl. Whisk 1/3 pumpkin mixture into chocolate mixture. Whisk in remaining pumpkin mixture until completely incorporated.
Transfer pie dish to a rimmed baking sheet, and pour pumpkin mixture into crust. Bake until center is set but still a bit wobbly, 55 to 60 minutes. Let cool in pie dish on a wire rack.
Refrigerate until well chilled, at least 8 hours (preferably overnight). Before serving, drizzle melted milk chocolate on top. Serve immediately.

Serves 12.

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10 Dishes to Get You Excited For Thanksgiving

partysugar — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 06:50:50 -0800

Just ask YumSugar, there's no one who gets more excited about Thanksgiving than yours truly. It's my favorite holiday and while I've been telling myself not to worry about it, the time has come: We are officially in November and I'm ready to talk turkey. And mashed potatoes. And gravy. And cranberry sauce. Well, you get the idea! To encourage you to start thinking about the big day, I rounded up our best Thanksgiving recipes.

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Fast & Easy Dinner: Capellini-Tomato Pie

partysugar — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 07:50:19 -0700

When it comes to pasta, sometimes it pays to think outside the box. This recipe isn't your grandmother's baked pasta dish. It's healthy, meatless, and not oversaturated with melted cheese.

Instead, it's a clever rendition of a pie with cooked cabbage leaves acting as the crust. Mediterranean ingredients - kalamata olives, capers, tomatoes, and fresh basil - make a filling that is high in flavor, but not in fat.

To serve this creative one-pan meal to your family, get the recipe and read more.

Capellini-Tomato Pie
From Vegetarian Times

Ingredients

1 Tbs. breadcrumbs
8 oz. capellini or other thin, spaghetti-like pasta
6 large outer leaves of savoy cabbage, or more if needed
2 cups chopped tomatoes plus 1 large tomato
30 black olives, chopped, preferably kalamata
1 Tbs. large capers
1 tsp. minced garlic
1 Tbs. olive oil
2 Tbs. fresh sweet basil, minced
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Minced parsley for garnish

Directions

Preheat oven to 350F. Spray deep 10-inch pie plate with nonstick cooking spray, and dust with breadcrumbs.
Bring large saucepan of lightly salted water to a boil, and cook pasta about 10 minutes, or until tender. Drain, and set aside in large mixing bowl.
Trim off any tough ribs at base of each cabbage leaf, and cook leaves in boiling water about 5 minutes, or until tender. Remove from water, drain, and pat dry with paper towels.
Line pie plate with cabbage leaves, using scissors to trim leaves evenly along rim of dish. Make sure to overlap leaves so they completely cover bottom.
Combine cooked pasta, chopped tomatoes, olives, capers, garlic, olive oil, sweet basil and pepper in large mixing bowl, and toss together. Place pasta mixture into lined pie plate, and pat down firmly with wooden spoon or spatula.
Cut tomato into thin slices, and arrange evenly over top of filling. Scatter grated cheese evenly over tomatoes.
Bake 30 minutes. Remove from oven, and cool on rack. Garnish with minced parsley, and serve at room temperature.

Serves 8-10.

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All the News That's Fit to Eat - Feb. 25, 2009

YumSugar — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 12:50:47 -0800

Even pizza delivery chains are proclaiming this year to be the worst they've ever seen. - Wall Street Journal
The rib-sticking recipe for this Latvian cabbage pie has traveled around the world. - Boston Globe
Harold McGee answers the question: How much water do you need when cooking pasta? - New York Times
Chef Jeremy Fox of Ubuntu in Napa, CA, is paving the way for vegetarian cuisine. - Washington Post
In a taste test of canned tomatoes, find out which variety came out on top (not San Marzano!). - San Francisco Chronicle
Learn the secrets to making sensationally crunchy vegetable chips at home. - Chicago Tribune
Now that slow cookers have gotten a makeover, they've become instrumental in a new movement. - Los Angeles Times

Source

Man Dies in Company-Sponsored Pastry Eating Contest

YumSugar — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 14:00:22 -0800

A few months ago we noticed that competitive eating was a rapidly growing "sport": This year, 1.5 million people tuned in to ESPN to watch the Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest, and there's now a game, Major League Eating, available on the Nintendo Wii. Yet while it's entertainment for many, it comes at a cost for others. Yesterday, Saurab Sabharwal, a 22-year-old engineer at Nokia-Siemens in Gurgaon, India, died during a company-sponsored pastry eating contest held in the office cafeteria. After choking, he ran to the bathroom alone, and was found unconscious an hour later. Colleagues called for an ambulance, which rushed him to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead. This isn't the first death we've heard of from competitive eating. Last month, a Taiwanese student fell unconscious and died during a steamed bun eating contest.

Does this call for further measures to be taken, so that others don't get hurt? Should a medical expert have been mandated to stand by, just in case? Or should government officials consider placing a ban on eating contests?

Source

Come Party With Me: Fast Thanksgiving - Dessert

partysugar — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 15:00:17 -0800

If you are in a hurry for a Thanksgiving dessert, the easiest thing to do is be like Sandra Lee and take some help from the store. Use a ready-made pie crust, instant pudding mix, and caramel sauce to assemble a delicious turtle pumpkin pie. The recipe calls for cool whipped topping, but it really doesn't take that long to make.

If you have the time, I suggest whipping the cream with a couple tablespoons of sugar and a teaspoon of vanilla extract. To look at this easy recipe, read more.

Turtle Pumpkin Pie
From Kraft Foods

Ingredients

1/4 cup plus 2 Tbsp. caramel ice cream topping, divided
1 graham cracker pie crust
1/2 cup plus 2 Tbsp. pecan pieces, divided
1 cup cold milk
2 pkg. (3.4 oz. each) Jell-o vanilla flavor Instant Pudding
1 cup canned pumpkin
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
1 tub (8 oz.) cool whip whipped topping, thawed, divided

Directions

Pour 1/4 cup caramel topping into crust; sprinkle with 1/2 cup pecans.
Beat milk, pudding mixes, pumpkin and spices with whisk until blended. Stir in 1-1/2 cups cool whip. Spread into crust.
Refrigerate at least 1 hour. Top with remaining cool whip, caramel topping and pecans just before serving.

Serves 10.

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Yummy Links: From Cookies to Top Chef

partysugar — Tue, 11 Nov 2008 07:45:19 -0800

Gourmet selects the best cookie recipes ever. - Gourmet
Looking for an alternative to turkey? How about boneless leg of lamb? - Chow
Getting groceries just got a little easier. - Epicurious
New ideas for lunch. - Simply Stated
President-elect Barack Obama on pie. - The Kitchn
What the magazines recommend making for Thanksgiving dinner. - The Bitten Word
Get excited for the premiere of Top Chef by watching these videos of the upcoming season. - Serious Eats

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Nutella + Wafer Cookies = Ferrero Rocher Frozen Pie

YumSugar — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 16:15:16 -0700

After drooling over PartySugar’s mojito cakes, I wanted to experiment with my own freezer pie. When searching for a recipe, I remembered one of my favorite frozen dessert cookbooks, Icebox Pies by Lauren Chattman. Since I'm crazy for Nutella, I decided to make her Gianduia Pie. Gianduia is a type of chocolate candy made with hazelnuts or almonds.
I was unable to find chocolate wafer cookies, so I substituted Fudge Stick cookies, a wafer sandwich-cookie covered in chocolate. To my delight, the creamy, chocolately, hazelnut filling and crunchy crust reminded me of delicious Ferrero Rocher chocolates, minus the gold wrapping! Learn how to make this divine yet minimal, no-bake pie when you, read more!

Gianduia Pie
Adapted from Ice Box Pies by Lauren Chattman

Ingredients

Crust
20 Fudge Wafer Bar Cookies
1/2 cup hazelnuts, toasted and skinned
1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled
1 tablespoon sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Filling
3/4 cup hazelnuts, toasted and skinned
1 1/2 cup heavy cream, chilled
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 13 ounce jar of Nutella

Directions

Preheat the oven 350°F. Place all of hazelnuts (1 1/4 cup) on a baking sheet. Bake for 10 minutes until they are fragrant.
Place the nuts on a clean kitchen towel and let cool for 10 to 15 minutes. Once cool, rub the nuts with the towel to remove the skin. A little skin won't hurt but try to remove as much as possible.
Make the crust: place the nuts and cookies in a food processor and grind finely. Combine the crumb and nut mixture, butter, sugar, salt, and vanilla in a medium size mixing bowl and stir until the crumb and nut mixture is moistened.
Press the mixture evenly across the bottom of a 9-inch pie plate and all the way up the sides of the pan, packing it tightly with your fingertips so it is even and compacted.
Bake the crust for 15-20 minutes until edges start to become firm. The crust will become more firm as it cools. Let cool completely before filling. The crust may be wrapped in plastic wrap and frozen for up to 1 month.
Make the filling: place 3/4 cup toasted and skinned hazelnuts in a food processor and process until very fine.
Combine the cream and vanilla in large mixing bowl. Using an electric mixer, whip the cream until stiff peaks form.
Place the Nutella in a medium-size mixing bowl and stir in one quarter of the whipped cream.
Gently fold the lightened Nutella mixture back into the remaining whipped cream. Fold in the chopped hazelnuts.
Scrape the filling into the prepared pie shell and smooth the top with a rubber spatula. Cover the pie with plastic wrap and refrigerate until the filling is completely set, at least 6 hours and up to 1 day.

Serves 8 or makes one 9-inch pie.

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