Death by Chocolate Trifle

Ooohhh, and it's as good as it sounds! If you don't like chocolate, you probably won't like this! :) It was another one of my desserts at my Christmas Brunch.

Death by Chocolate Trifle

1 large package fudge brownie mix (for a 9 x 13 pan)

(1) 4 oz. package instant chocolate mousse mix

)8) 1 1/2 oz. toffee candy bars (like Heath bars), crushed

12 oz. whipped topping (I used Chocolate Cool Whip)

Chocolate curls

Prepare and bake brownie mix using package directions for a 9 x 13 baking pan. Let stand until cool and then crumble. Prepare mousse using package directions, omitting cooling step. Layer brownie crumbs, mousse, candy and whipped topping 1/2 at a time in a 3 quart trifle dish. Chill for 8 hours. Garnish with chocolate curls. Yield: 16 to 18 servings.

Recipe source: Beta Sigmi Phi "Company's Coming" cookbook

Weight watcher points: don't even bother counting! LOL

Cherry Puff Ring

I love eclairs (or cream puffs as some call them) filled with custard and iced with chocolate. So trying a new pastry filled with a vanilla almond pudding seemed like I was giving up on the old standard. But I like almond flavor as well, and thought I'd give it a shot. And it turned out really well. For those that have never made the eclair pastry, it's a lot easier than what it sounds.

Cherry Cream Puff Ring

For pastry:

1 cup water

1/2 cup butter

1 cup all purpose flour

4 eggs

1 cup milk

3/4 cup sour cream

(1) 4 oz. pkg. vanilla instant pudding mix

1/4 tsp. almond extract

(1) 21 oz. can cherry pie filling

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Bring water and butter to boil in a 1 qt. saucepan. Add flour, stirring for 1 minute or until mixture forms a ball; remove from heat. Beat in eggs at low speed for 2 minutes. Drop by tablespoonfuls into 8 inch ring on greased baking sheet; smooth with spatula. Bake for 50 to 60 minutes or until puffed and golden brown. Cut off top of ring with sharp knife; discard pastry filaments. Combine milk, sour cream, pudding mix and almond extract in medium mixer bowl; beat at low speed for 1 minute or until smooth. Spoon into pastry ring. Spoon 1/2 c. pie filling over pudding; replace top of ring. Spoon remaining pie filling over top. Chill until serving time. Yield: 10 to 12 servings.

Recipe source: Beta Sigma Phi "Company's Coming" cookbook

This is the top of the pastry ring....cut off

.....pulling out the filaments from the ring and top of ring:

...it kind of looks like a soft scrambled egg....

.....adding the pudding filling....

A festive Christmas dessert! Enjoy!

Banket (aka Dutch letters)

Pecan Turtles

Who can resist rich chewy caramel over crunchy pecans dipped in chocolate? Not me! These have become my new holiday favorite to make and give away. My good friend, Linda J., won 2nd place in a Taste of Home contest one year (sorry, can't remember which year now!) with this recipe. The only thing I do is not cook it as long as she did to make mine more like soft caramel and I dip mine in chocolate, rather than drizzle it. Yummy, yummy!
Pecan Turtles

2 1/4 cups packed brown sugar

1 cup butter or margarine (I use butter)

1 cup light corn syrup

1/8 tsp. salt

1 can (14 oz) sweetened condensed milk

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1 1/2 lbs. pecan halves

1 1/2 lbs. melting chocolate (you can mix semi sweet chips and milk choc. chips or buy the melting chocolate discs at a bakery)

2 TBSP. shortening (to thin chocolate)

In a large saucepan, combine the first four ingredients. Cook over medium heat until all the sugar is dissolved. Gradually add the milk and mix well. Continue cooking until candy thermometer reaches about 220 degrees (or soft ball stage). Remove from heat; stir in vanilla until blended. Fold in the pecans. Drop by teaspoonfuls onto a freezer paper lined cookie sheet. Chill until firm. Melt chocolate in a small crockpot and dip the turtles until fully covered and place back on freezer paper lined cookie sheet. Cool. Yields about 4 dozen.

Recipe by Linda Jonsson

Slush Punch

This is a great punch--nice and red and a great flavor. So easy to make ahead as well. When I catered with my friends, this was our standard punch.

Slushy Punch

(1) 3 oz. package cherry jello

(1) 3 oz. package strawberry jello

(1) 3 oz. package raspberry jello

Mix in a LARGE bowl or pan. Add 4 cups boiling water and 8 cups COLD water. Add 64 oz. can pineapple juice and (1) 12 oz. can pink lemonade concentrate, thawed. Pour into DOUBLED freezer ziploc bags x 2. Freeze until firm.

To serve: take out of freezer at least 2 hours ahead of time. Put one bag into punch bowl and 2 liters ginger ale. Each bag serves 25 people.

Fruit Slush

This fruit slush is a really good thing to keep on hand. I make it and then put it in 5 oz. dixie cups. For my party, I used 3 oz. cups though because the only 5 oz. ones I could find had Sponge Bob on them! Just mix up the batch, then pour it into a pitcher and pour into the cups (have them on a baking tray) and then freeze them. Get them out about 20 minutes before you want to serve them and they'll be nice and slushy. A different twist on serving juice.

Fruit Slush

3 Cups water

2 cups sugar

Mix the two in a saucepan and boil to dissolve the sugar. Let cool. Then add:

(1) 6 oz. can orange juice concentrate, thawed

3 cans water

2 cups mashed bananas

(1) 20 oz. can crushed pineapple, undrained

Pour into 5 oz. cups and freeze.

Makes (24) 5 oz. cups. Thaw 20 minutes prior to serving to make it slushy.

Coconut Rum Crescent Rolls

I just hosted a Christmas Brunch and served lots of yummies and thought I would share, since I remembered to take pictures! I don't have a habit of photographing my food on a regular basis and after we eat it, I thought, I should have taken a picture! Oh well, I'll get better. Because I really want to show you what it's supposed to look like. Isn't that why we buy all the little magazines in the grocery store check out aisle? Because the pictures make it look so yummy. And how many times do we try a recipe without a photo? Not as much as when we have a photo, is it? :) I'll post a new recipe each day until I complete the menu of what I served.

Coconut Rum Crescent Rolls

2 cans crescent rolls

2 TBSP. butter, melted

2/3 cup sugar

2/3 cup shredded coconut

1 TBSP. rum extract

1/2 tsp. nutmeg

Heat oven to 350°. Grease a 9" x 13" pan. Separate crescent rolls into 4 rectangles total, firmly press perforations to seal. Brush with butter. In a small bowl, combine sugar, coconut, rum extract and nutmeg, sprinkle over rectangles. Starting with the shorter side, roll up rectangles and press to seal ends. Cut each roll into 3 slices. Arrange cut side up in pan. Bake 20 to 25 minutes. Drizzle glaze over warm rolls (let them cool off a bit from the oven, or the glaze will melt into the rolls). Serves 12.

Glaze: mix 1 cup confectioner's sugar, 2-3 TBSP. milk and 1/4 tsp. rum extract until it's smooth.