dessert recipe

Easy to Make Dessert Recipe - Peach Pie Without the Guilt!

By Jackie Trottmann

Pie is one of my favorite foods. Peach pie counts as a fruit serving right? While I still eat the traditional peach pie, ala mode, of course, I don't want to eat it every day or every week. Here is an easy to make dessert recipe for peach pie that is just as flavorful without having the labor or guilt of eating high calories and fat that goes along with traditional peach pie. What's also great about this recipe is that you can use a broiler or a grill, so you can make it all year long.

It involves the simplicity of fresh peaches combined with vanilla, brown sugar (or brown Sugar Twin) and Triple Sec liquor. Plus, serving it in a martini glass makes it very elegant too if you're entertaining.

I'm basing this easy to make recipe on two servings. You can just increase the ingredients to fit. Ingredients: Large peaches, not overly ripe - about the size of a baseball. Each peach will represent two servings. Vanilla (half a capful per half peach), brown sugar or brown Sugar Twin (my husband really dislikes artificial sweeteners, but he can't taste the difference with the Sugar Twin - I use the Sugar Twin), Triple Sec Liquor.

Cut the peaches in half, discard
Sprinkle brown sugar on top of the peach. ½-1 teaspoon is all that you need. Pour half a capful of the vanilla on top of the peach. Pour 1-2 teaspoons of the Triple Sec on top of the peach. You can do this ahead of dinner so that the flavors will marinate a little bit. If the liquid runs down the sides, that's great. These will go on the grill or under the broiler. Put the pit side down and pour the remainder of any liquid on the top of the peach. Grill or broil between two and three minutes per side until soft.

Serve pit side up with your favorite vanilla ice cream. You can even use light or sugar free ice cream if you wish. It tastes just like a peach pie or cobbler. The Triple Sec and brown sugarrecipes. cause a glaze that really brings out the flavor of the peach. Enjoy! I'm sure you'll want to keep this as one of your staple dessert the pit and put them on a dish pit side face up.

icing recipe

How to Make Icing For Cake Decorating

By Tapan Sarkar

Cake decorating is an enjoyable hobby. Once you have decorated one, you'll be looking for occasions to do it again. Start out simple and in no time you will advance in your new found talent. First things first; if you don't already have icing decorator bags and tips, go to your local hobby shop and purchase these.

This basic cake decorator icing recipe will yield great results.

1 bag confectioners' sugar
1 cup shortening
1 teaspoon almond extract

Beat this icing mixture on low speed about one minute to combine, then on high speed for an additional 3 minutes. If the icing is too thick, add a couple drops of water; but just a few, as you don't want a thin icing that will be near impossible to decorate with.

Never substitute butter or margarine for the shortening, or your icing will be an off-white color. Also, don't bother with liquid food coloring. Using colored paste will give richer colors and won't cause your icing to thin out.

When you spread the icing on the cake, use a long bladed knife to ensure smoothness. Afterward, there are usually a couple areas that need further smoothing out. Dip a clean knife into very hot water and run the blade over the rough areas of icing with a light hand.

Animal shaped cake pans are popular with children and easy to decorate as well.

Here is an elegant pattern used by beginners as well as experts -- After smoothly icing the sides and top of the cake, let sit for at least 4 hours, allowing the icing to slightly harden. Lay a paper doily onto the cake. Sprinkle colored sugar crystals over the doily; carefully remove the doily. All around the edge of the top and bottom, decorate with small stars using a star tip. Whenever decorating the bottom and top edges with a shell border, stars, etc., the border on the top should be smaller in comparison to the bottom. Now show off your lovely cake!

jello recipe

Finger Jello Recipe

By Rachel Paxton

Kids, especially preschoolers, love Finger Jello! They love it
even more when they get to help make it. Let your preschooler
cut the Jello into shapes with cookie cutters when the Jello is
set. Make green and red for Christmas, orange for
Halloween. Making finger jello can be a fun family activity!

Finger Jello Recipe #1

3 3-oz. pkg. Jello
4 pkg. Knox unflavored gelatin
4 c. boiling water

Mix all ingredients together until dissolved. Pour into
13x9x2-in. baking dish and refrigerate. Cut into squares or use
cookie cutters to create shapes.

Finger Jello Recipe #2

3 3-oz. pkg. Jello 1 c. whipping cream 2 1/2 c. boiling water

Mix Jello and boiling water together until dissolved. Add
whipping cream and continue stirring. Pour into 8x8-in. pan and
chill well.

Finger Jello Recipe #3

1 c. sweetened condensed milk 1 3-oz. pkg. purple Jello 1 3-oz. pkg. orange Jello 1 3-oz. pkg. yellow Jello 1 3-oz. pkg. green Jello 1 3-oz. pkg. red Jello 7 pkg. Knox unflavored gelatin

To prepare filling, dissolve 2 envelopes of Knox gelatin in 1/2
cup cold water. Add 1 cup boiling water to sweetened condensed
milk. Add dissolved gelatin to milk and stir in 1 additional cup
of boiling water. Set aside.

To create layers, prepare one box of Jello at a time. Mix 1
envelope Knox gelatin with 1/4 cup cold water. Add 1 cup boiling
water and 1 box Jello. Pour Jello into greased 13x9x2-inch baking
pan. Refrigerate 15-20 minutes until set.

Pour 3/4 cup filling over set Jello. Chill 15-20 minutes.
Continue layering Jello and filling, ending with Jello on top.
Chill each layer 15-20 minutes before adding next layer.

cheesecake recipes

Cheesecake Recipes
By Elizabeth Morgan

A cheesecake may seem simple enough, but it can actually be one of the hardest pastries to whip up for someone with no experience. And no matter how closely you follow cheesecake recipes, your cake could still fall apart if you don’t know the secret steps. Here are some less-popular, but very effective, cheesecake recipe tips to make your cheesecake a big hit.

Use only the best ingredients. Your cheesecake is just as good as the eggs you use to make it, so be sure to buy only the freshest. You should also be very careful about the cheese you choose – unless you’re on a strict diet, ditch the fat-free cream version and go for the real cream cheese. No matter what health buffs say, the real pastereurized kind still tastes better.

Be sure the ingredients are at room temperature, especially the cream cheese and the eggs. Otherwise, no matter how hard you try, your cheesecake will never be smooth. How do you bake when your cream cheese is frozen? Just microwave it on high for a little less than a minute or until it softens up. If you overdo it and the cream cheese melts, refrigerate it until it is just the right temperature.

Don’t bake the fruit. This tip seems simple enough, and yet many people forget about it. Just add in the fruits as toppings later so they can retain their freshness, flavor, and color.

Don’t peek! Opening the oven door when the cheesecake is not yet baked can ruin it. Your cheesecake can have cracks, or worse, may even fall apart. So restrain yourself until it’s done.

Wait thirty minutes before removing the cheesecake from the oven. After baking, just turn off the oven and let your cheesecake sit for another half hour. This waiting time will make it perfectly puffed and moist.

frosting recipe

Easiest, Richest Mocha Buttercream Frosting Recipe
By Sarita Haines

This incredibly delicious mocha buttercream frosting makes an ideal companion to chocolate cake or cupcakes. It should be enough to frost and fill a 9-inch, 2-layer cake. You may also enjoy it on chocolate brownies. There are many buttercream frosting recipes, but we like this one that includes egg yolks because of the richer flavor.

Rich Mocha Buttercream Frosting

(makes 3 cups)

1 c sugar

1/3 c water

1/4 t cream of tartar (This is a stabilizer that helps keep the frosting smooth).

4 egg yolks

6 oz semisweet chocolate (1-ounce squares are the simplest and most accurate option)

1/4 cup strong coffee (You may also use 2 oz espresso or 1 t of coffee or mocha extract)

3/4 lb butter

Chocolate candies, shavings or sprinkles for decoration (optional)

1. Combine the sugar, water and cream of tartar in a saucepan, and boil until syrup reaches 240F on a candy thermometer. If you use a candy thermometer, you'll know this stage as "soft ball" which is between 234F-240F.

2. Beat the egg yolks until they are light and fluffy. Add in the sugar syrup a little at a time, continuing to stir until the mixture is stiff.

3. Melt chocolate and coffee together in a bowl set over hot water, stirring occasionally. Allow to cool slightly.

4. Beat the egg yolk mixture into the chocolate a little at a time until there's a uniform consistency. Chill the frosting in the refrigerator until it reaches the proper texture.

5. After frosting your cake, garnish with chocolate shavings, sprinkles or m&ms for a festive look and a little extra crunch. (optional).

Tip: If the frosting becomes too stiff in the refrigerator, stir in a small amount of milk to thin the mixture.

fruit cake

Fruit Cake
By Richard Romando

The fruit cake with all its fruits and nuts has been around for centuries. Making a rich fruit cake is a very laborious process. They are made well in advance and stored in a cool dry place in order to preserve its traditional great taste and flavor.

The procedure for making a fruitcake takes a few days. First, the fruits and nuts need to be prepared. They are soaked for 2 or 3 days in alcohol, preferably brandy or rum. If you don't want to use alcohol, fruit juice can be substituted. The cake recipe should be followed strictly to obtain the desired result of a wonderful tasty cake. For those who do not like a particular fruit or nut, they can be substituted according to individual tastes. The only thing to remember is that the weight specified in the recipe for the fruits and nuts should be maintained.

After the fruits and nuts are prepared, the batter is made. All the fruits and nuts are mixed in the batter and baked. Fruit cakes are baked at a low temperature for a long time until they are done. It should be tested with a cake tester to see if it is fully done. One point to remember when baking these cakes is to keep a container of water in the oven. This prevents the cake from becoming dry. They should be cooled before taking out from the container.

All the effort put in to making fruitcakes is worth it, as they make an excellent, great tasting treat any time of the day.