No-Bake Peanut Butter Cream Pie

January is always grey and depressing. So is November, December, and February but January always gets the grief for being so. It’s not it’s fault it has to come after the glitzy over the top month of December.

We should ease off on January. If it weren’t for us telling January it’s grey and depressing then maybe it wouldn’t be.

From now on I think we should give January an ego boost by telling it it’s great no matter how cloudy or cold it is. Because like who needs the sun all year long anyway?

And why would you need the sun to comfort you when you can make a no-bake peanut butter cream pie and eat it? One cannot not like this pie. It asks very little of you. No one likes an over assuming pie and this pie is not assuming .... assuming you like peanut butter that is.

The pie itself is great! Not too peanut buttery and the creamy filling compliments the cookie base really well!

No-Bake Peanut Butter Cream Pie 

Pie Crust 

462g (3 packages) chocolate peanut butter sandwich cookies
150g unsalted butter, melted

Lightly butter a 9 inch pie dish. Blitz the chocolate peanut butter sandwich cookies in a food processor until they are fine crumbs add the melted butter and mix until combined. Press down in the prepared pie dish, use a spoon and your hand to push it up the sides. Cover with cling film and leave in the fridge while you get on with the filling.

Peanut Butter Cream Filling 

226g cream cheese
120g icing sugar
150g peanut butter
1 tablespoon milk
500ml double cream
231g (1/2 package) chocolate peanut butter sandwich cookies

Beat the cream cheese, icing sugar, peanut butter, and milk together until smooth. In a separate bowl whisk the double cream until thick and smooth.
Gently fold the whipped cream into the peanut butter mixture until just combined. Spoon into the set pie crust and smooth down. 
Bash the cookies in a bag with a rolling pin or hammer whatever is to hand and sprinkle the crumbs on the top!
Leave to set for 1 hour or more as it probably should be stored in the fridge! Enjoy!

notes: Inspired by a recipe from Emeril’s New New Orleans Cooking by Emeril’s Lagasse and Jessie Tirsch. Could have possibly done with a peanut butter glaze/drizzle - for next time!

Creamy Cranberry Pie with a Pretzel Crust

This is an awkward post to write. The pie looks beautiful and it tastes good. However it’s not what I was expecting.

Expectations can make or break anything.

If there is a movie that has great reviews saying it’s the funniest movie in a decade; naturally the expectations will be high for a hilarious movie. Once the movie has been viewed and there was only a laugh here or there, disappointment will inevitably follow.

If reviews hadn't been seen previous to viewing the same hypothetical movie, the laughs may have been the same, but as there were no expectations there wouldn't be any disappointment.

I wanted this pie to be more cranberry and less cream cheesey. There was a lack of tartness that I was expecting from the cranberries to balance out the cream cheese and whipping cream.

It could have been because I used homemade cranberry sauce or it could just be the recipe? Plus the recipe for the filling made way too much. Almost enough for a whole other pie!

I saw the recipe in a Better Home and Gardens magazine I picked up when I was in America and immediately knew I wanted to make it. It looked like the perfect addition to any Thanksgiving dessert menu. My expectations were high being a Better Home and Gardens recipe as my sister swears by them.

Saying that this isn't a bad pie, it is definitely creamy so it delivers on the title. It also reminds me more of a cranberry cheesecake than that of a cranberry pie.

Plus, the salty pretzel crust is amazing and it does help balance the sweet creaminess of the pie.

It’s not bad! I just wanted it to be something different!

The recipe is available on the Better Home and Gardens site here, if you are interested in making it for your holiday season. Hey, you never know after reading this your expectations may be extremely low and therefore it will taste pretty darn good.

If I were to tweak it I would start by possibly halving all the ingredients. Then I think I would eliminate the sugar from the pie filling. The reason being that there is a lot of sugar in the homemade cranberry sauce and I don’t know that the pie actually needed it.

notes: If you are interested in this recipe in grams and milliliters instead of ounces and cups let me know I did convert it! 

Baking with Isaiah! Chocolate Dipped Key Lime Pie on a Stick

Here in Minnesota there has been too much snow and it has been too cold for too long, so I decided to bring back some memories of warm times.  

When I was 7 I spent the summer with my dad it Key West Florida. With the sandy beaches and calm waters this is the perfect place to remember when it is too cold.

The best dessert I had when I visited Key West was key lime pie. Once I had chocolate dipped key lime pie I loved it.

Adding chocolate makes it 10 times better. The first time I tried chocolate dipped key lime pie on a stick is when we stopped along the way to Key West at a gas station that sold it.

Ever since that I have been waiting for an excuse to make chocolate dipped key lime pie on a stick. ~ Isaiah

Chocolate dipped key lime pie on a stick

Crust:

1 ½ cups graham crackers or crumbs

1/3  cup sugar

6 Tbsp butter, melted

½ tsp ground cinnamon

Filling:

1(14oz) can sweetened condensed milk

3 egg yolks

½ cup KEY lime juice

 ¾ cup sour cream

2 Tbsp KEY lime juice

3 Tbsp sugar

9-14 Popsicle sticks

The first thing you do is crush your graham crackers. You can also use the pre-crushed graham cracker crumbs. I used my food processor to crush my graham crackers but you don’t have to. You should get the crumbs fairly fine.

Now in a large bowl combine graham cracker crumbs, sugar, cinnamon, and butter.

Next with the back of the measuring cup or you fingers gently press the crust into the pie pan and bake at 375F degrees for 7 min.

Now mix together sweetened condensed milk, egg yolks, and key lime juice. Pour filling in to pie crust and chill in fridge for 10 min.

In a smaller bowl mix together sour cream, key lime juice, and sugar.

Pour and spread the second mixture over the first mixture and bake at 350F for 30 min. Then let cool and freeze until rock hard. (This is very important.)

Cut small slits every 2-3 inches and insert the Popsicle sticks in them. Place back in the freezer.

Cut the pie into slices and spoon melted chocolate on then then flip over and repeat. Make sure the chocolate goes over the sides and covers to whole thing, let chocolate harden.

 Enjoy!

note from Lisa: First off I want to say a big thank you to Isaiah for sharing these amazing and delicious looking Chocolate Dipped Key Lime Pie on a stick on my blog! Isaiah happens to be a friend of my sister's! When I asked her if she knew anyone who would want to guest post on my blog she sent me Isaiah's name. He writes the blog Baking Adventures of a Ten-Year-Old where he shares his adventures learning to bake and cook. He was recently featured in his city's newspaper The St. Cloud Times Newspaper and he has his own YouTube Channel! 

Pie, Pecan Pie

Originally this pie was intended to be made the same weekend that the Rum & Sultana fudge was. It was suppose to be the dessert for my Thanksgiving dinner that weekend. 

Anyway if you read my post on the fudge you’ll already know I didn't because I had tonsillitis. I had to cancel Thanksgiving. I had plans to host my American friend, who moved here early last year, and my friends who are half American.

I was feeling very sorry for myself that weekend. Not that anyone really wants to know, but my throat was so swollen I looked like I had no neck. It was awful!

Then I thought I would make it for Christmas dinner dessert, but because Christmas Eve was chaotic (long story) I didn't make it the day before and couldn't be bothered to make it the day of. A problem I had most of the holiday season. 

I had 200g of pecans sitting in my cupboard waiting to be used. There are numerous ways I could have used them up. However I thought I’d stick with the original plan.

So, as I finally get to the point, here is the Salted Pecan Fudge Pie I made for absolutely no other reason then because I could.

I’m not very good with pastry. I’m not terrible, but there is definite room for improvement. Needless to say I get a little anxious every time I make my own pastry. However I needn't have worried as it turned out well, as did the filling!

I do like pecans, they are probably my favorite nut. It's a wonder why I have never even tried a pecan pie nor made one before now. This particular version is super sweet and I don’t think I could manage more than a small slice. Overall though I was very pleased with my efforts! Enjoy!

Sweet Shortcrust Pastry

250g plain flour, plus extra for dusting

50g golden icing sugar

a pinch of salt

135g butter, straight from the fridge, cubed (small)

1 medium egg, beaten

2-3 tbsp milk

Sift the flour, sugar, and salt into a food processor. Add the butter and pulse until the mixture looks like breadcrumbs. Add the egg and milk (start with 2 tbsp and only add a third if needed) and pulse until the dough comes together. Lightly dust your worktop with flour and very quickly knead the dough into a ball. Handle as little as possible as not to melt the butter. Wrap in clingfilm and chill for at least 30 minutes before using.

Lightly dust your worktop with flour and roll out the pastry to about 3mm thick and line your tart tin with it. Make sure the edge of the pastry stands just a little bit above the rim. Trim the edges and prick the base with a fork. Chill in the fridge for another 30 minutes to help prevent shrinkage.

Preheat the oven to 200C/fan180C/gas6 and place a baking sheet in the oven to heat up. Take the tin from the fridge and line with baking paper and baking beans. Place on top of preheated baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes. Once the time has passed remove the paper and beans and bake for a further 5-10 minutes until the pastry is dry. Set aside.

Salted Pecan Fudge Pie

100g pecans, chopped plus 80-100g pecan halves

100g soft light brown sugar

125g butter

200ml double cream

1 tsp salt, flakes

2 medium eggs, beaten

3 tbsp apricot jam, warmed

Spread the chopped pecans evenly over a baking sheet and lightly toast, in the already heated oven, for 8-10 minutes. Watch them closely they can burn easily. Set aside.

Reduce the oven to 180C/160Cfan/gas4. Place the sugar, butter, and cream in a saucepan over a low heat, stirring until the sugar is dissolved. Cool slightly before adding in the toasted pecans, salt, and eggs.

Pour into the pastry case and arrange the pecan halves on top in a circular pattern. Bake in the oven on the hot baking sheet for 25-30 minutes.

When the pie comes out of the oven gently heat the jam in a small saucepan and brush the top of the pie with the jam to give it a shiny glaze.

Serve with whipped cream or ice cream or eat on its own!

notes: Thanksgiving is always the last Thursday of November, however since being in the UK I tend to celebrate the following Saturday: mainly because I like a relaxed atmosphere and after work and school is never relaxing. This recipe is from The Higgidy Cookbook by Camilla Stephens. I bought it for myself from The Book People, right before Christmas they had a deal a day and I got it with some other cookbooks and books for the girls. 

Apple Pie Ice Cream

I never really liked apple pie growing up. I loved the crust and the apple cinnamon goo, but actual cooked apples, not so much!

In fact even today I don’t like an apple pie that is so full of apples that I should have just baked an apple and been done with it. 

(They have those on Pinterest the ones where they hollow out the apple and fill it with filling the cover the top with pastry and bake.)

Am I the only one who doesn't like cooked apples? But loves the crust and the goo?

Maybe I don't like cooked apples because generally they are either over cooked and mushy or not cooked enough and hard. 

I remember picking out the apples of a pie once and licking them clean and eating everything else. I don't think my mom was too impressed.

This ice cream is a perfect way to get that apple pie flavor without the fat sometimes not all the way cooked apples.

I also realize we are entering that time of year we are all thinking of warm comforting desserts. Not cold treats we crave in the warmer weather.

However this combination really brings the two seasons together. It's so good. The ice cream is rich and smooth and the filling and pie crust bring extra flavor and texture! It was delicious!

Apple Pie Ice Cream

• 1 batch of homemade Cinnamon Ice Cream (I used David Lebovitz’s Cinnamon Ice Cream from his book The Perfect Scoop.)
• 370g Apple Pie Filling (I used Nature’s Finest Pie Perfection Bramley Apple Fruit Filling.)
• 1 sweet pie crust, pre-made or homemade, crushed (I used pre-made)

Follow the instructions to make the cinnamon ice cream then as it’s churning in the maker add a couple handfuls of the crushed pie crust.

In the tub that will store the ice cream line the bottom with about 1/3 of the crushed pie crust.

Then layer about half of the cinnamon ice cream.

Using about half of the apple pie filling swirl it into the top of the ice cream layer before sprinkling on some more of the crushed pie crust.

Layer the rest of the ice cream on top and repeat with the pie filling, swirling it into the ice cream and cover the top with the remaining crushed pie crust.

Freeze for stated time in your ice cream recipe or possibly a little longer.

notes: Part 2 of apple week on United Cakedom. Yesterday I talked about my visit to The Winchester City Mill for their Apple Baking Day! I am not reprinting the ice cream recipe here, because I think it’s from such an awesome book that if you are even going to start making your own ice cream you should get it! DavidLebovitz has not approved of this post. If you are not prepared to buy his book then just find a recipe online! Recipe was inspired by Ben & Jerry’s “Oh My! Apple Pie!” ice cream. I wonder if it’s still available?