Cheesecake may just be the perfect food.  It is certainly one of the oldest on record.  It is believed that cheesecake was served to the Olympic athletes during the first Olympic games in 776 B.C.  Any food with that kind of staying power just has to have something to … [visit site to read more]

© Jerry D. Russell and Cooking... by the seat of my Pants!.com, 2008. | Permalink | 5 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: cakes, cheesecake, chocolate, dessert, Desserts, Holiday-Recipes, liqueur, sweet, sweets

When we invited our friends over for Christmas this year, I only asked for one thing.  I asked for the apple pie pictured above and the recipe that went with it.  The fact that the pie dish pictured was also given to us was a bonus (and a very nice one, thanks guys!) but the real gift is a pie that I will gladly make and share with friends and family for the rest of my life.

I know I say this all the time, but the simple things in life are usually the best.  This hods true with food as well.  Overcomplicating a recipe usually does little to enhance the flavors of the food, it just adds extra steps that are not necessary. (There are, of course, times when this rule does not hold true, but this is not one of those cases.)

This has to be just about the simplest recipe for a German apple pie I have ever seen.  There’s no fuss, nothing picky or finicky, just a good-solid recipe that tastes far better than you would expect for the ingredients used.  In my opinion this is true perfection.

I know that statement may ruffle a few feathers.  Everyone has their own favorite apple pie recipe.  Of those, I’m sure that 99% would be a pie that I would enjoy as well.  But for me, Brie’s German Apple Pie is quite simply the pie I will crave whenever I think of apple pie in the future.  I’ve been spoiled, but I’m not complaining.

The recipe as given to m is only for the pie filling.  I’m not sure if she made her own crust or if she used a prepared crust, so I’ll leave that decision up to you.  If you’re bent on making your own pie crust, the best recipe I’ve ever seen for one is here. I am not a baker by nature, so if my wife wants to make a crust from scratch, great!  If not, I’ll use what I can get.  With this filling adorning it, it could be shoe leather, I really wouldn’t care.

… [visit site to read more]

© Jerry D. Russell and Cooking... by the seat of my Pants!.com, 2008. | Permalink | 21 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: apples, christmas, cinnamon, Desserts, Holiday-Recipes, pie, pies, sweet, sweets, Thanksgiving

Is there really an more perfectly simple topping or dipping sauce than caramel?  In its purest incarnation caramel is nothing more than sugar that has been heated until deeply browned, but the transformation is enough to bring out deep flavors and subtle overtones that simply can’t be found in any other form of sugar. With the addition of a few simple flavorings this humble mix of melted sugar and water can take on sweet, savory or succulent flavors and it plays with each very well.

In this instance we were looking for a sweet caramel sauce for a few desserts.  My wife found this recipe at Martha Stewart’s website and we both thought it would be a perfect fit to some of the other flavors we were going into the mix, so we gave it a shot.

It’s fabulous.  Really.  I can’t say how fabulous. I’ll admit that I upped the butter content over the version at Martha’s site, but I prefer a very rich caramel. (I may have added a bit more bourbon than listed as well.  OK, A tablespoon more… But this has a tendancy to cause the sauce to thicken a bit overmuch, so I don’t reccomend it.)

If you’re going to take the leap and try just once in your life and attempt to make your own caramel sauce, this is the one you should try!  No really, go make this right now.  I’ll wait….

Good, isn’t it?

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© Jerry D. Russell and Cooking... by the seat of my Pants!.com, 2008. | Permalink | 6 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: dessert, sauces and glazes, sweet, sweets

Who doesn’t love cheesecake? If made properly it is decadent, creamy, fluffy and just sweet enough to satisfy the cravings of any sweet tooth. It can be made in a variety of flavors, and toppings are always welcome. It plays well with others and finds its place easily as the star dessert at back yard barbecues and five star restaurants.  It’s just that good. The only problem with it is that I have a tendency to eat way too much of one kind and don’t have room to sample others. This little recipe solves all that.

These mini cheesecakes are tiny.  They are perfect for appetizers or if served in all of their possible variations, as a perfect dessert sampling menu. Go crazy with toppings and you could serve a seven course dessert without breaking a sweat. Trust me, the Oooh’s and Ahhhs you’ll get will be worth the effort.

The inspiration for them came from a recipe by Giada DeLaurentis, but as usual, I found Giada’s original version somewhat uninspired.  Oh, they were good, but they weren’t jaw dropping, and they were more labor intensive than this variation. The original called for orange zest, but for my tastes it just didn’t work as well as I’d hoped, so i swapped out for vanilla.  The results were superb.

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© Jerry D. Russell and Cooking... by the seat of my Pants!.com, 2008. | Permalink | 8 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: cakes, caramel, cheesecake, chocolate, Custard, Desserts, pies, Recipes, sweet

Just in case you weren’t aware, the pecan is the state tree of Texas, and around here pecan pies are what people think of first when the word pie is used. I may not be a native Texan, but I’ve had a love of these pies all my life. My Grandma Rosemary made a wicked mean pecan pie. (And a to-die-for German chocolate cake…)

Don’t get me wrong, I’m a pretty big apple pie fan as well. But to be honest, I prefer an apple crumble or a Dutch apple pie to the more common varieties. Pears I detest no matter what, and berry pies, though good, simply don’t make me go “Oooooh!” when I see them. Not true the pecan pie.

I will avoid eating the last bit of a good dinner to save room for these. Please, don’t top it with anything, add sugar, ice cream or anything whipped. This pie asks nothing of you other than to consume and enjoy, something I am most happy to oblige.

I hope you try these little gems and enjoy!

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© Jerry D. Russell and Cooking... by the seat of my Pants!.com, 2007. | Permalink | 7 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: christmas, dessert, Holiday-Recipes, pies, Recipes, sweet, Thanksgiving