Patter Fam Sauces and Pastor's Pantry Cooking School

S'mores Cake

Serves 12 

1 15.25-ounce box devil’s food chocolate cake mix
1 - 7-ounce container marshmallow creme, slightly melted
1 - 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
6 full-size graham cracker sheets, coarsely chopped into 1/2-inch pieces
1 to 1 1/2 cups mini marshmallows
1/2 cup hot fudge, for drizzling (store-bought or homemade)

Preheat oven to 350F. Spray a 9×13-inch pan with cooking spray; set aside.
Make cake according to package directions (likely adding 3 eggs, water, and oil) and bake as directed (likely about 25 to 30 minutes).
While the cake bakes, remove the seal from the marshmallow creme, and heat it for about 10 to 15 seconds on high power in the microwave, just enough to soften it. Watch very closely because it will puff up very quickly and you don’t want it to overflow.
Using a spatula, scrape the marshmallow creme into a large bowl.
Add the sweetened condensed milk and whisk to combine; set aside.
Remove cake from the oven when it’s done and using the blunt end of a wooden spoon, poke holes over the surface of the cake. I didn’t count but I estimate I poked about 60 holes, evenly spaced over the surface.
Slowly pour the marshmallow and sweetened condensed milk mixture over the holes, taking your time to evenly distribute it so that all the holes receive some.
Evenly sprinkle the graham crackers. Evenly sprinkle the marshmallows.
Lightly toast the marshmallows with a handheld torch. I haven’t tried using the broiler and cannot speak to the results or the duration. Likely less than 1 minute and if you try it, watch it the entire time and don’t turn your back on it for a second because it will be very prone to burning. Alternatively, omit toasting step if you’re not confident with your broiler.
Evenly drizzle with hot fudge before serving. Cake will keep airtight for up to 5 days noting the graham crackers soften and marshmallows become gooier over time.

Written by Joyce Peters — April 29, 2020

Old-Fashioned Cajun Cake

Serves 12

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
2 tsp baking soda
1 15 oz. can crushed pineapple, undrained
2 eggs

Icing:
1 stick (8 tbsp) butter
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup milk
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup shredded sweetened coconut
1 cup chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 350.
In a large bowl, stir flour, 1 1/2 cups sugar, and baking soda.
Add pineapple and eggs and stir well to combine.
Bake for 30-35 minutes.
Begin icing once you remove the cake from the oven by heating butter, sugar, and milk to a boil. Stir often.
Add vanilla, coconut, and pecans. Boil for about 2 to 3 more minutes.
Pour over warm cake. Allow the cake to cool for about 30 minutes to an hour before serving.

Written by Joyce Peters — April 22, 2020

Honey Ginger Poached Pears

Serves 8


8 medium firm bosc pears, halved after cooking
6-8 cups water
1 ½ cups honey
1-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and sliced
2 cups plain low-fat Greek yogurt
6 T cooled pear poaching liquid
1 tsp. vanilla extract


In a large saucepan, heat the water and honey until warm and the honey is dissolved.
Add the ginger slices.
Gently add the pears to the liquid and cover with a round of parchment paper with a small hole cut in the center. To make a parchment circle, take a large circle or square of parchment paper and fold into a triangle. Hold the point hovering over the center of the pot you are using and trim away the excess paper so the circle fits around the diameter of the pot. Cut a hole in the center of the parchment circle to allow some steam to escape while poaching.
Simmer the pears at a very low boil until cooked through, 15 to 25 minutes.
Remove from the heat and let the pears cool in their liquid.
To make the yogurt: Stir together the plain yogurt, cooled pear poaching liquid and vanilla extract.
Serve the halved (from stem to bottom) pears warm or at room temperature with a heaping spoonful of the yogurt.

Written by Joyce Peters — April 20, 2020

Baked Cinnamon Raisin Apples

Makes 10 (1/2 apple) Servings

5 medium firm, sweet apples, like Honeycrisp or Fuji
3 T brown sugar
3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
10 T butter, halved (20 pieces)
1 cup raisins
Caramel Topping

 

Heat the oven to 375 degrees F. Lightly spray a baking dish large enough to fit apple halves with non-stick cooking spray.

Halve the apples from stem to end and use a spoon to scoop out the core, seeds, and stem. Arrange the apple halves in the baking dish with the flesh facing up. Place ½ T butter and a few raisins in each core cavity.  Scatter brown sugar and cinnamon over the apples.

Cover with aluminum foil and bake 25 minutes. Uncover the apples then bake another 20 to 30 minutes until the apples are soft and the topping has browned.

Serve with a drizzle of caramel sauce, or plain. The apples will keep for up to a week, simply reheat in a warm oven or in the microwave.

Written by Joyce Peters — April 17, 2020

Homemade Chinese Donuts

Make approx 24 2" donuts

4 cups all-purpose flour
4 tsp. granulated sugar
1 tsp. fine salt
3 tsp. baking powder
1/3 cup cold unsalted butter, cubed
1 1/2 cup whole milk
Canola oil for frying
Granulated sugar for coating

Pour 2 inches of canola oil into a heavy bottomed pot with a deep-fry thermometer attached.
Heat to 350°F.
Meanwhile, in the bowl of a food processor, combine the flour, sugar, salt, and baking powder.
Add the butter and pulse several times to cut the butter into the flour until the mixture resembles coarse meal. You can also do this by hand with a pastry blender. Stir in the milk until combined.
Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and dust the dough with flour. Gently pat the dough out until it’s a 1/2-inch in thickness. Use a 2-inch round biscuit cutter to cut out circles.
Fry the doughnuts a few at a time, being careful not to overcrowd the pot. Fry until golden brown and cooked through, about 2 minutes per side, being careful not to let them burn. Let drain on a paper bag (or paper towels) to soak up the excess grease.
While still hot, generously coat each doughnut in granulated sugar. Serve. Doughnuts are best served the day they are made.

Written by Jacob Peters — April 07, 2020

Italian Lemon Ricotta Cake

Serves 12


2 cups whole milk
2 cups water
3 T unsalted butter
1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/2 cups semolina flour
1 container (15 oz.) ricotta cheese
4 eggs
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
4 medium lemons, zested
2 tsp. vanilla extract
Confectioners’ sugar

Preheat oven to 375°F. Coat 10” springform pan with nonstick cooking spray.
In medium saucepan over medium heat, bring milk, water, butter and salt to simmer. Gradually whisk in flour. Remove from heat.
In large mixing bowl, combine ricotta, eggs, granulated sugar, zest and vanilla; mix until smooth.
Add flour mixture, whisk until smooth.
Transfer batter to prepared pan; bake 1 hour, until edges are lightly browned, and toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Allow cake to cool completely before transferring to serving plate. Dust with confectioners’ sugar.

Written by Joyce Peters — April 06, 2020

Buckeye Cupcakes

Makes 24 regular or 12 LARGE

For the Cupcakes:
1 box chocolate cake mix 15.25 ounces
3 large eggs
½ cup butter softened
1 cup milk

For the Buttercream: 
1 cup butter softened
2 cups creamy peanut butter
1 teaspoon vanilla
4 cups powdered sugar
4-6 tablespoons heavy cream

For the Chocolate:       
2 cups dark chocolate
1- 2 tablespoon heavy cream

Make the Cupcakes:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
In a large bowl, beat together the cake mix, eggs, butter and milk. Mix for 2 minutes on medium speed, scraping the sides of the bowl as needed.
Place paper cupcake liners in a muffin pan.
Use an ice cream scoop to scoop batter into cupcake liners, filling ⅔ of the way full. There should be enough to make 24 cupcakes.
Bake for 19 minutes or until the top of the cupcakes spring back when you touch them.
Allow the cupcakes to cool on a wire rack.

Make the Buttercream:
In a large bowl, beat the butter for 1-2 minutes until it is almost white in appearance.
Beat in the peanut butter and vanilla extract.
Add two cups of powdered sugar and beat well.
Add in the remaining powdered sugar and beat again.
Add heavy cream, one tablespoon at a time, to achieve the buttercream consistency that you’d like for spreading or piping the frosting. If you are piping the frosting, be sure the frosting is not too soft so that it holds shape.
Use Wilton Tip 1M to pipe swirls of frosting on top of the cupcakes. Place the cupcakes in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour so that the frosting can set before dipping in chocolate.

Dip the Cupcakes:
Place the chocolate in a microwave-safe cup or dish. Melt in 20-30 second increments, stirring each time. Once the chocolate starts melting, reduce the time to 10-15 seconds. It’s important to melt the chocolate slowly and stir it often so that it does not burn.  Add heavy cream if needed.
Take a cupcake, turn it upside down and dip it quickly down into the melted chocolate. Pull it back up and allow the chocolate to drip off.
Once the excess chocolate has dripped off, turn the cupcake over.
Once the chocolate has completely set, store in an airtight container at room temperature.
 

Written by Joyce Peters — April 03, 2020

Cranberry Orange Scones

Makes 8 Large


3 cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup sugar
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon grated orange zest
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
3/4 cup dried cranberries
1 cup chilled buttermilk
Glaze:
Orange Juice
Powdered Sugar
 
Preheat oven to 400°F. Sift flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and baking soda into large bowl.  Mix in orange zest. Add butter and rub in with fingertips until mixture resembles coarse meal.  Mix in dried cranberries. Gradually add buttermilk, gently stirring with a wooden spoon until dough begins to come together. Turn dough out onto lightly floured work surface. Knead briefly to bind dough, don’t overwork the dough, about 5-7 folds should do it. Form dough into 1-inch- thick round. Cut into wedges. Transfer wedges to pizza/baking stone, spaced about 1” apart.
Bake until tops of scones are golden brown, about 25 minutes. Let stand on baking sheet 10 minutes. Juice the zested orange and add powdered sugar to create a thick glaze.  Drizzle over the scones. Serve scones warm or at room temperature.

Written by Joyce Peters — April 02, 2020

Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

Serves 12

1 1/2 cups vegetable oil
1 1/2 cups white sugar
4 eggs, beaten
3 cups grated carrots
2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons cinnamon
2 teaspoons allspice (I also added 1 tsp ground cloves and 1 tsp mace)
1 cup chopped pecans
1 cup raisins
1 teaspoon vanilla

Frosting
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
2 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla

Cream oil and sugar together. Add eggs and carrots. Add dry ingredients, a small amount at a time. When well blended, add nuts, raisins, and vanilla. Pour into greased 9 x 13 inch pan and bake at 325 for 1 hour. Cool slightly before frosting.

For frosting: Combine all together and blend well. Spread on slightly cooled cake

Written by Joyce Peters — March 30, 2020

Fruit Crostata

Makes 1 in 9” cast iron pan


1 package of pre-made pie crust
8 cups of fresh or frozen peaches or other fruit
1/2 cup unsalted butter
3 T flour
1/4 cup water
1/2 cup granulated white sugar
1 cup brown sugar
1 egg white
2 T water (egg wash)
Turbinado sugar

Whipped Cream

16 oz. heavy cream
3-4 T powdered sugar
1 tsp. Vanilla extract

Let pastry come to room temp and roll out. Place in a 9-10” greased cast iron skillet.
Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
Melt the ½ cup of butter in a saucepan. Add the 3 T of flour and stir until it begins to form a paste. Add the ¼ cup water, ½ cup white sugar and 1 cup of brown sugar and stir over medium heat until it comes to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 3-5 minutes.
Arrange peaches in the bottom of the pastry. Pour the butter and sugar mixture over the peaches until all the peaches are covered. Gently fold the pastry dough over the edges of the peaches. Mix one egg and water together and whisk to make an egg wash. Brush the pastry dough with the egg wash.
Bake for 20-30 minutes until the crust is golden brown.
To serve, scoop onto a plate and serve with whipped cream.

Written by Joyce Peters — March 07, 2020

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