Flourless Chocolate Cake

This is the Williams-Sonoma recipe--right out of their cookbook called "Baking."

We made it tonight and it was DELICIOUS. We topped it with strawberries.

Ingredients:
10 oz bittersweet chocolate, chopped (I used chocolate chips...)
3/4 c. butter, cut into pieces
2 t. vanilla
5 large eggs
1 c. white sugar

1. Preheat oven to 350. Grease a 9" springform pan, and line the bottom with parchment paper. Grease the paper and dust with flour.

2. In a heavy saucepan over medium-low heat, combine chocolate and butter. Heat, stirring until mixture is smooth. Remove from the heat and let cool. Whisk in vanilla.

3. In a large bowl, combine the eggs and sugar. Using an electric mixer set on medium-high speed, beat until the mixture lightens in color and triples in volume, about six minutes. Pour the chocolate mixture over the egg mixture. Using a rubber spatula, gently fold them together. Pour and scrap the batter into prepared pan.

4. Bake until the top forms a crust and cracks and a toothpick inserted in the center come out with some wet batter attached, about 45 minutes. transfer to a wire wrack. Immediately run a knife around the pan sides to loosen the cake; it will fall in the center. Press down on the edges to even the top. Let cool.

5. Release the pan sides and remove them. Trim off any crumbly edges. Invert a flat plate over the cake and then invert them together. Lift off the pan bottom and peel off the parchment paper. Frost if desire.

6. Refrigerate about 1 hour. Serve cold or at room temperature.

P-Dub's Cinnamon Rolls

You can see her version (with pics) here, although I typed it up for my family and thought I'd put it here too. They are amazing and while labor-intensive, really easy.

Ingredients:
4.5 c. milk, separated into 4 cups and 1/2 cup
1 c. vegetable oil
2 c. sugar
2 pkg. active dry yeast
9 c. flour
1 heaping tsp baking powder
1 scant tsp baking soda
1 heaping tablespoon salt
2 c. melted butter
lots of cinnamon
1 bag powdered sugar
2 tsp maple flavoring
1 tsp vanilla

Directions:
Mix 4 cups of whole milk, 1 cup of vegetable oil, and 1 cup of the sugar in a pan. "Scald" the mixture (heat until just before the boiling point.) Turn off heat and leave to cool 45 minutes to 1 hour.

When the mixture is lukewarm to warm, but NOT hot, sprinkle in 2 packages Active Dry Yeast. Let this sit for a minute so the yeast gets all warm and moist and happy.

Then add 8 (not nine) cups of all-purpose flour. Stir mixture together. Cover and let sit for at least an hour.

Now add 1 more cup of flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Stir mixture together. At this point, you could cover the dough and put it in the fridge until you need it—overnight or even a day or two, if necessary.

Then roll the cinnamon rolls. Sprinkle surface generously with flour. Take half the dough and form a rough rectangle. Then roll the dough thin, maintaining a general rectangular shape. Rectangle should increase in both width and length as you roll it out.

Now drizzle 1 cup melted butter over the dough. Don’t be shy; lay it on thick!

Now sprinkle 1 cup of sugar over the butter, followed by a very generous sprinkling of cinnamon.
Now, starting at the opposite end, begin rolling the dough in a neat line toward you. Keep the roll relatively tight as you go. Some of the butter/sugar/cinnamon mixture may ooze out toward the end, but that’s no big deal. Pinch the seam to the roll to seal it.

Spread about 1 tablespoon of melted butter in each of seven round, foil cake or pie pans. Then begin cutting rolls approximately 3/4 to 1 inch thick and laying them in the buttered pans. Repeat this process with the other half of the dough.

Let the rolls sit for 20 to 30 minutes to rise, then bake at 400 degrees until light golden brown, about 15 to 18 minutes.

While the rolls are in the oven, make the maple frosting. To a mixing bowl, add the powdered sugar, maple flavoring, vanilla, 1/2 cup milk, and the rest of the melted butter (about 1/4 -1/2 cup). Stir it up. It should be thick but pourable. Taste and adjust as needed.

Generously drizzle frosting over warm rolls after you pull them out of the oven. Drown 'em.

German Chocolate Cheesecake

So good. So, so good. And so, so rich. Inspired by an episode of Throwdown on the Food Network.

Ingredients:
For the crust:
8 whole graham crackers
1/2 cup pecans
2 tablespoons light brown sugar
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

For the cheesecake layer:
3 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese (use only full fat), at room temperature
1 1/3 cups sugar
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
2 extra-large eggs
2/3 cup heavy or whipping cream

For the cake layers:
1 box German Chocolate cake mix (if you have a favorite recipe from scratch, you can use it, but I just prefer the box stuff)
Eggs, oil, water in quantities listed on the cake mix box

For the frosting:
1 cup evaporated milk
1 cup white sugar
3 egg yolk, beaten with 1 teaspoon water
1/2 cup margarine
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup chopped pecans
1 cup flaked coconut

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Place the graham crackers, pecans and brown sugar in a food processor and process until finely ground. With the motor running, add the butter through the feed tube and process until the mixture just comes together. Spray the bottom and side of the pan with cooking spray. Pat the mixture evenly into the bottom of a 9-inch springform pan, place on a baking sheet and bake in the oven until lightly golden brown and just set, about 8 minutes. Remove to a baking rack and let cool completely.

To make the cheesecake layer, put one package of the cream cheese, 1/3 cup of the sugar, and the cornstarch in a large bowl and beat with an electric mixer on low until creamy, about 3 minutes, scraping down the bowl a couple of times. Blend in the remaining cream cheese, one package at a time, scraping down the bowl after each. Increase the mixer speed to medium and beat in the remaining 1 cup sugar, then the vanilla. Blend in the eggs, one at a time, beating well after adding each. Beat in the cream just until it's completely blended. Be careful not to overmix!

Gently spoon the batter into the springform pan and place it in a large shallow pan containing hot water that comes about 1 inch up the sides of the springform. Bake the cake at 350 degrees F until the edges are light golden brown and the top is slightly golden tan, about 1 1/4 hours. Remove the cake from the water bath, transfer to a wire rack, and cool in the pan for 2 hours, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate (while still in the pan) until it's completely cold, about 4 hours. Place in the freezer until ready to assemble the cake.

Meanwhile, make the German Chocolate Cake per the instructions on the box. Bake it in a deep 9-inch cake pan that has been covered in foil (to allow easier turn-out). Allow to cool completely. When cool, use a large (and sharp) knife to cut the cake into two separate (and, ideally, even) layers.

Now make the frosting. In a large saucepan combine evaporated milk, sugar, egg yolks, margarine and vanilla. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until thick. Remove from heat and stir in pecans and coconut.

Time to assemble! First, remove the cheesecake from the freezer and let stand at room temperature about 10 minutes. Place one layer of german chocolate cake, top side down, on a cake plate and spread with some of the frosting. Release and remove the ring of the springform, then remove the frozen cheesecake from the bottom of the pan. Place top side down on the frosted cake layer and spread with some frosting. Top with the second devil's food layer, top side down. Spread with more frosting. If the cheesecake is still solidly frozen, refrigerate for two hours before serving to allow to thaw enough to cut evenly. Enjoy!

Seven Layer Jello Salad

Ok... I debated posting this because this recipe is next to sacred in our household... but for the sake of having it readily available, here you go. Rainbow Jello. A staple for holiday meals in our home.

Ingredients:
4 sm. boxes jello - cherry, orange, lemon, lime
2 c. milk
1 c. sugar
1 t. vanilla
1 envelope Knox gelatin in 1/4 c. cold water
2 c. sour cream

Directions:
Dissolve lime jello in 1 c. hot water. Stir and add 1/2 c. cold water. Put in greased 13 x 9 glass pan. Refrigerate. Scald 2 c. milk, add 1 c. sugar. Remove from heat and dissolve Knox gelatin mixture. Add sour cream and vanilla and beat with beaters until smooth. When lime jello is set, add 1-1/2 c. sour cream mixture on top. Pour very gently to avoid disturbing jello. Make lemon jello next with 1 c. boiling water and 1/2 c. cold water. Set on cupboard until white mixture is set. Alternate white mixture and jello in the following order: lime, white, lemon, white, orange, white, cherry. Voila!

Number Of Servings: 6 - because we each eat about 4 squares each.

Preparation Time: All day

Elephant Stew

Ok, I lied. One more recipe.

1 medium elephant
2 rabbits
Brown gravy
Salt and Pepper

Cut elephant into bite sized pieces. Cook over kerosene fire at 460 degrees for 4 weeks. Add gravy, salt and pepper. Serves 5 -630. If more stew is needed add rabbits. However, this is an emergency measure only because most people don't like hare in their stew.