Old Fashioned Coconut Cream Pie

This pie is a bit time consuming, since you have to bring it to a boil over low heat, but it is SO worth it!

Old Fashioned Coconut Cream Pie
by Carol H at Allrecipes.com

3 cups half-and-half
2 eggs
3/4 cup white sugar
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup flaked coconut, toasted
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 9-inch pie shell, baked
1 cup frozen whipped topping, thawed

In a medium saucepan, combine half-and-half, eggs, sugar, flour and salt. Bring to a boil over low heat, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and stir in 3/4 cup of the coconut and the vanilla extract. Pour into the pie shell and chill for 2 to 4 hours, or until firm.

Before serving, top with whipped topping and with the remaining 1/4 cup of coconut.

Note: To toast coconut, spread it in an ungreased pan and bake in a 350 degree oven for 5 to 7 minutes, or until golden brown, stirring occasionally. (But watching CONSTANTLY! It can burn very easily!)

Chocolate Cheesecake

Not being an overly huge fan of chocolate myself, I do have to say that this cheesecake is AWFULLY good. Although a little bit goes a long, long way with me.

Chocolate Cheesecake II
by Diane Young at Allrecipes.com

1 1/2 cups chocolate cookie crumbs
2 Tablespoons white sugar
1/4 cup butter, melted
1/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1/4 cup heavy whipping cream
3 8-ounce packages cream cheese, softened
1 cup white sugar
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Topping (if you choose to use it - which I don't):
1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
1/4 cup heavy whipping cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

**These tips are not part of the recipe but they're good tips to keep in mind when making cheesecake. Found at allrecipes.com.**

Cheesecake Tips - Cream Cheese:

• The cream cheese should be at room temperature before you begin mixing, or you'll end up with lumps in your cheesecake.
• Using cold cream cheese also leads to overbeating--whipping too much air into the batter--which forms unattractive air bubbles on the surface of the cake.
• Unless the recipe instructions specifically note otherwise, you should beat the cream cheese by itself until it's smooth and light, before adding any other ingredients.
• If you end up with lumps in your batter, run the mixture through a sieve or give it a quick spin in the food processor and you'll have silky smooth results.

Cheesecake Tips - Baking:

• Cheesecake tends to get over-baked because, while they look underdone, they are actually done when the center is still wobbly. At this stage the residual heat of the baking process will "carry over" and the center will continue to cook.
• Remove the cheesecake from the oven to cool on a rack, or you can simply leave the oven door closed, turn off the heat and let the cheesecake cool for at least an hour. This helps prevent the cheesecake from sinking in the center.

Now the directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F ( 175 degrees C) and lightly grease a 9 inch springform pan.

In a small bowl, mix together 1 1/2 cups chocolate wafer crumbs, 2 tablespoons sugar, and the melted butter. Press onto the bottom and 1 1/2 inch up the sides of the prepared 9 inch springform pan.

Bake crust at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 10 minutes then allow it to cool. Reduce oven temperature to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).

To Make Filling: In a small saucepan, heat 1/4 cup whipping cream and 1/4 cup chocolate chips, stirring constantly, until chips are melted. Remove from heat.

In a large mixing bowl, beat cream cheese until smooth and then add 1 cup of sugar, beating again until smooth. Add cocoa and beat well. Add eggs and beat on low until just blended. Stir in 1 teaspoon vanilla and reserved chocolate mixture until blended. Pour over crust.

Bake at 325 degrees F (165 degrees C) for 45 to 50 minutes or until center is almost set.

To Make Topping: In a small saucepan, heat 1/4 cup whipping cream and 1 teaspoon vanilla until just before boiling. Stir constantly and be careful not to boil over. Have 1 1/2 cups chocolate chips ready in a small bowl. Pour in the hot cream and stir with a spoon until smooth. Spread over baked cheesecake and refrigerate overnight.

The Best Unbaked Cherry Cheesecake Ever

Unless you don't like flavors/fruits on top of your cheesecake -like me- and then it's just the Best Unbaked Cheesecake Ever.

The Best Unbaked Cherry Cheesecake Ever
by LuCynda at Allrecipes.com

Graham Cracker Crust:
(You can always just buy a crust if you don't want to make it. Store bought graham cracker crumbs make it easier, too. I'm all about easy/simple helps!)
1 1/4 cups graham cracker crumbs
1/4 cup margarine, softened
1/4 cup sugar (or 1/3 cup, dependent on your preference)

Filling:
1 (8 ounce) package of cream cheese, softened to room temperature
1 cup powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup heavy cream, whipped

1 can cherry pie filling or other filling of your choice

**These tips are not part of the recipe but they're good tips to keep in mind when making cheesecake.**

Cheesecake Tips:

• The cream cheese should be at room temperature before you begin mixing, or you'll end up with lumps in your cheesecake.
• Using cold cream cheese also leads to overbeating--whipping too much air into the batter--which forms unattractive air bubbles on the surface of the cake.
• Unless the recipe instructions specifically note otherwise, you should beat the cream cheese by itself until it's smooth and light, before adding any other ingredients.
• If you end up with lumps in your batter, run the mixture through a sieve or give it a quick spin in the food processor and you'll have silky smooth results.
  

Now to the preparation...

Mix together graham cracker crumbs, margarine and sugar in a bowl until well incorporated and crumbly. Press into a pie plate, going up the sides as much as possible.

Beat the cream cheese until smooth. Add powdered sugar and vanilla and beat until smooth again and to a spreadable stage. Add the whipped cream into the cream cheese mixture and whisk/beat until smooth. Pour cream cheese into the prepared crust. Smooth the top with a spatula and refrigerate until firm, about 2 to 3 hours.

Spread the cherry pie filling over the top and refrigerate until ready to serve.

The Best Banana Bread

I've tried a LOT of banana bread recipes. I've found many that we like, some that we really like and then this one. The kids LOVE this recipe and prefer it over all others I've used. There are suggestions from reviewers about changes they've made to this recipe but I haven't used them so far since we like the recipe just as it is right now. I haven't really paid attention to the suggestions before since I like to try recipes "as is" before I make changes to it. I AM going to finally try them with the suggested changes, though. I'm just waiting for my current supply of bananas to get more ripe. That's if Boy 2 lets that happen. He's currently on a banana kick, usually eating two at a time!

The Best Banana Bread
by Libby at Allrecipes.com

1/2 cup margarine, softened (I usually prefer to use butter but margarine's still good)
1 cup white sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups mashed bananas
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. (Use 325 if you use a glass pan.) Grease and flour (I never flour it) a 9x5-inch pan.

Cream margarine and sugar until smooth. Beat in eggs, then bananas. Add flour and soda, stirring just until combined. (Don't overmix.)

Pour into prepared pan and bake at 350 degrees for about 1 hour or until toothpick comes out clean. (Start watching after 45 minutes so it doesn't get too well baked and therefore dry.)

Remove from pan and let cool, store in refrigerator or freeze.

(Careful removing it from the pan. I often have some of the bottom stick to the pan, which would probably be fixed if I floured the pan but I'm too lazy to do it.)

The suggested changes:
Use 1/2 cup white sugar and 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
Add a pinch salt (or about 1/4 teaspoon salt if you don't have a "pinch" on hand)
Add vanilla - suggestions ranged from 1/2 tsp to one tablespoon, so I guess this is preference

As is, the recipe comes out pretty flat on top. It would probably be a good idea to add the salt so that it works with the baking soda to help it rise more. When I make it again with the changes I'll put an addendum on this post to let you know how it turns out.

Buttercream Dream Icing

This buttercream icing recipe isn't too different from the Wilton recipe but it tastes so much better! I highly recommend using this recipe instead of Wilton's for decorating. The almond extract (although I can't stand the smell) adds so much to the recipe!

Buttercream Dream
Agentcakebaker (with a couple of minor alterations with flavoring)

15 minutes – 5 minutes prep
Yields: 4 cups

I got this recipe from a cake site and can't stop making it. It is the best buttercream recipe that I have found. I modified my recipe to include Almond Extract, but you can use just about any extract. I've done clear vanilla and raspberry with rave reviews. I use this recipe for all my cakes and cupcakes. It colors nicely. If you want a stiffer buttercream for roses and such, omit or add very little milk. If you want a thinner buttercream, add more than 6 tbs of milk.

½ cup unsalted butter
½ cup butter, salted
1 cup Crisco shortening
2 lbs powdered sugar
2 teaspoons almond extract, clear
2 teaspoons vanilla, clear
5 Tablespoons milk
(If you have it and want a stiffer icing, use about 1 Tbsp of meringue powder and mix in with the powdered sugar)

Bring butter to room temperature.

In a mixing bowl, whip butter and Crisco together.

Add the extract and whip.

Slowly add the powdered sugar (and meringue powder) and one tablespoon of milk and mix well.
Continue adding one tablespoon of milk at a time until you get your desired stiffness.

Whip for 5-10 minutes, until fluffy.

Chocolate Buttercream Icing

This is just the icing recipe from Wilton, but as chocolate it's really good!

Chocolate Buttercream Icing
Wilton - Makes about 3 cups of icing

1/2 cup solid vegetable shortening
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter or margarine, softened
3/4 cup cocoa or three 1 oz. unsweetened chocolate squares, melted
1 teaspoon clear vanilla extract
4 cups sifted confectioners' sugar (approximately 1 lb.)
3-4 Tablespoons milk

Stiff Consistency: In large bowl, cream shortening and butter with electric mixer. Add cocoa and vanilla. Gradually add sugar, one cup at a time, beating well on medium speed. Scrape sides and bottom of bowl often. When all sugar has been mixed in, icing will appear dry. Add milk and beat at medium speed until light and fluffy. Keep bowl covered with a damp cloth until ready to use. For best results, keep icing bowl in refrigerator when not in use. Refrigerated in an airtight container, this icing can be stored 2 weeks. Rewhip before using.

For Thin (Spreading) Consistency Icing: Add 3-4 tablespoons light corn syrup, water or milk.

Darker Chocolate Icing: Add an additional 1/4 cup cocoa (or one additional 1 oz. square unsweetened chocolate, melted) and 1 additional tablespoon milk to Chocolate Buttercream Icing. (This would absolutely kill me off, the regular chocolate icing is more than enough for me!)

Chocolate Cream Cheese Filling with Ganache

This little lovely was found at a friend's food blog called A Table for 7. I've made two chocolate cakes so far with this yummy filling and I think they turned out very well. I just use box chocolate cake mixes, pipe a ring around the top edge of the bottom layer and fill it in with this frosting before adding the top layer of cake. I suppose you could do three layers, but this is a LOT of chocolate already in my opinion! It's really good, though, along with the chocolate buttercream icing I frost the cake with in the end. Yummy!

Chocolate Cream Cheese Filling with Ganache
Table for 7

1 brick of softened cream cheese
½ cup of ganache frosting (recipe below)
¾ cup powdered sugar

Mix cream cheese, powdered sugar and ganache together and use as a filling between chocolate cake layers.
(I doubled this recipe for the 10-inch double layer cake I made last time)


Ganache
2 parts chocolate to 1 part cream

Example:
2 cups of Hershey's chocolate chips (milk chocolate)
and
1 cup heavy whipping cream

Stir with a whisk on medium heat until chocolate starts to get shiny. Remove from heat and set aside.