Category Archives: Dessert

Chocolate Eclair "Bites"

My children, especially Emily, love this. They asked for it for their birthdays.  The pastry can be piped into small 1 teaspoon size balls or dropped by the spoon-full for larger puffs.  Elizabeth made chocolate eclair bites for a book club meeting where the main character had been poisoned possibly by something in the chocolate eclair!

by Pat Savoie

Puffs:

1               cup  water
1/2           cup  butter
1/4           tsp  salt
1                cup  flour
4               eggs
(Can add 1 tsp sugar too if desired.)

Filling:

1               small box  vanilla pudding
1 1/4        cups  milk
1               cup  heavy whipping cream or Cool Whip
1               tsp  almond extract

Glaze:

1/2           cup  semisweet chocolate
1               Tablespoon  butter
1 1/2        tsp  milk
1 1/2        tsp  light corn syrup

Puff:  Heat water, butter and salt until mixture boils.  Remove from heat.  Vigorously stir in flour all at once until mixture forms a ball and leaves the sides of the pot.  Add eggs one at a time, beating after each with a wooden spoon.  Drop by spoonfuls into greased muffin pan or on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.  Bake 400 40 minutes or until golden.  Turn off oven and leave in and additional 15 minutes.  Remove from oven and poke a small hole in each to let the moisture escape.  Cool

Filling:  Make pudding.  Beat cream until stiff.  Fold into pudding and add almond extract.  Fill each puff using a  pastry bag and large hole tip.

Glaze:  Melt all ingredients together in microwave.  Drizzle over puffs.  Refrigerate. (You may want to put the chocolate in a ziploc bag and snip off the end to help drizzle the chocolate.)

Serving Ideas : You can make a ring of large puffs.

NOTES : I use Cool Whip instead of whipping cream when I’m not going to serve it immediately.  The whipped cream tends to break down when stored.   I usually need more cream filling,  so I double the recipe.

Other ideas:  You can freeze leftover puffs (without filling).  For a savory puff, try other fillings such as egg salad or chicken salad.

Puffs cooked in muffin tins.

Larger sized puffs

I loved to make this pie for holidays.  Everyone loved it especially the children.

by Pat Savoie

2                egg white
1/2          cup  sugar
1/4          tsp  cream of tartar
pecans — chopped

3/4          cup  butter
1                cup  sugar
2                ounces  unsweetened chocolate — melted
1 1/2        tsp  vanilla
3                eggs

1                cup  whipping cream
2                Tablespoons  powdered sugar
1                Tablespoon  Creme de cacao

For an egg white crust:  Beat egg whites, add sugar and cream of tartar.  Grease heavily the bottom of the pie plate, then spread the egg white mixture. Sprinkle with pecans.  Bake 200 degrees for 1 hour.  Turn oven off and leave shell in until cool.

For Filling:  Cream butter, add sugar, vanilla, and chocolate (Melt chocolate in the microwave, then cool.  Do not add hot chocolate to the butter or else the butter will melt.) Add the eggs 1 at a time beating 5 minutes after the addition of each. This will insure the silky texture.  Pour into cool shell and refrigerate.

For Topping:  Beat chilled whipping cream in a chilled bowl.  Add sugar.  Fold in Creme de cacao, do not beat.

NOTES : Sometimes I make a regular pie crust.  Bake it first, then sprinkle toasted pecans on top before pouring in filling.
Top the whipped cream with chocolate curls made with a potato peeler and a Hershey’s candy bar at room temp.

Granny taught Elizabeth how to make this.  Dave likes it a lot.  Serve hot.

by Granny–Dolores Borel

8            ounces  cream cheese — softened
1/3        cup  powdered sugar
1            egg
1            cup  cherry pie filling
2            packages  cresent rolls
1            teaspoon  vanilla or almond extract
1/2        cup  powdered sugar
1            tablespoon  cream cheese
1            tablespoon  milk
1/2        teaspoon  vanilla

Combine cream cheese, sugar, egg and vanilla or almond extract. Unroll cresent rolls and arrange like a pinwheel.  Spread mixture in middle.  Spoon cherries on top.  Pull the spokes of the pinwheel up and over to the center. Bake at 350 for about 15 to 20 minutes. Make and icing out of the powdered sugar, cream cheese, milk and vanilla.  Drizzle on top.  Eat hot.

*Instead of cherries, use apples and pecans.  You may also change the shape to look like a king cake.

Granny made this for Paw Paw to eat while he watched TV at night.  It’s always been one of my (Elizabeth) favorite desserts too. I love it best when it molds to the cold ice cream, but it still chewy in texture.  Once a friend gave me a jar of a similar sauce that also included a little rum.  I’m thinking of testing it with this recipe.

by Granny–Dolores Borel

1 stick butter
2oz unsweetened chocolate (We use Bakers squares.)
2 Tbsp light corn syrup
1 pinch of salt
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup milk
2 tsp vanilla

In a sauce pan combine butter, chocolate, syrup, sugar, and salt.  Cook over medium heat.  Add milk and bring to a boil cooking until slightly thickened.  The longer you cook it, the harder it will turn out.  Test by dropping a small amount in a cold glass of water.  It should form a soft ball.  Remove from heat and stir in vanilla–“makes it shiny.”  Stir until cool.  Serve over vanilla ice cream.

Store leftovers in a glass container in the fridge.  Reheat in the microwave.