Day 6 of Thanksgiving Recipes-The Sweetest Thing-Dessert

The thing I like best about Thanksgiving is dessert.  I like to eat the big meal, veg out and go for a big walk around my mom and dad's East Memphis home (The Big Block) and then come back feeling like I have burned off at least 1/4 of the roll I ate and eat dessert.  We always have my mom's Fudge Pie, lemon meringue pie, and a cheesecake from my brother, Chef Skunx.  I am including some dessert that we have had in the past that are hits, too.  I so hope you all have a wonderful, safe, delicous and very Happy Thanksgiving.  Happy Cooking! :)

Moppy’s Fudge Pie

1 (9 inch) unbaked pie shell, store bought or homemade

1/3 cup margarine

3 squares unsweetened baking chocolate

2 cups sugar

4 eggs, lightly beaten

1 teaspoon vanilla

¼ teaspoon salt

2/3 chopped pecans or walnuts

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  In a saucepan, melt together the margarine and baking chocolate.  Add sugar and mix well.  Set aside to cool slightly.  Add eggs, vanilla and salt and mix until well incorporated.  Fold in chopped nuts and pour into unbaked pie shell.  Place pie on a rimmed cookie sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 40 to 45 minutes.  If the crust gets too brown, cover with aluminum foil.  Cool to room temperature then cover.  Serve with Cool Whip or vanilla ice cream.

Makes 6 to 8 servings

Lemon Meringue Pie

from the kitchen of Maggie Aiken

Filling:

1 baked and cooled pie crust, homemade or store bought

1 ½ cups water

1 ½ cups sugar

7 tablespoons cornstarch

3 eggs, separated (yolks for custard, reserve whites for meringue-see below)

3 tablespoons butter

6 tablespoons lemon juice

2 tablespoons grated lemon peel

Meringue:

Reserved egg whites

¼ teaspoon cream of tartar

6 tablespoons sugar

½ teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. 

Filling:  Combine water, sugar, and cornstarch.  Cook over medium heat until clear and thick, about 5 to 7 minutes.  Beat yolks and temper with a little bit of sugar and water mixture.  Once combined, add remaining water and sugar mixture to egg yolk mixture.  Add remaining ingredients and mix well.  Pour into cooled pie crust and set aside.

Meringue: In a large mixing bowl, combine ingredients and beat until stiff peaks form.  Cover pie with meringue, spreading it to the edge to completely cover the filling and seal the pie.  Bake at 375 for 10 minutes or until golden brown.

Makes 6 to 8 servings

Copycat Cheesecake Factory Pumpkin Cheesecake

Crust:

1 1/2 cups graham crumbs (1 am using 1 cup graham crackers and ½ cup gingersnaps)

5 Tbsp. butter, melted

1 Tbsp. sugar

Filling:

3- (8oz.pkgs) cream cheese, softened

1 cup sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

1 cup canned pumpkin

3 eggs

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 tsp. nutmeg

1/4 tsp. allspice

Whipped Cream

Mix crust ingredients together, just till coated and crumbly. Press onto the bottom and 2/3 up the sides of an 8" springform pan. Bake for 5 minutes at 350. Set aside.

Combine cheese, sugar and vanilla in large bowl, mix until smooth with an electric mixer. Add pumpkin eggs, and spices, beat till smooth and creamy. Pour into the crust. Bake for 60-70 min. or till the top turns a bit darker. Remove from oven and allow to come to room temperature and refrigerate. After it has thoroughly chilled, remove the pan sides and cut. Serve with whipped cream.

Pumpkin Pie Crunch

from the kitchen of Amy Jones

1 package moist yellow cake mix

1 16oz. can solid pumpkin

1 12 oz. can evaporated milk

3 eggs

1 1/2 c. sugar

4 tsp. pumpkin pie spice

1/2 tsp. salt

1 c. chopped pecans

1 c. butter, melted

Whipped topping

Preheat oven to 350*. Spray bottom of 9 x 13 in. pan. Combine pumpkin, evaporated milk, eggs, sugar, pumpkin pie spice, and salt in large bowl. Pour into pan. Sprinkle dry cake mix evenly over pumpkin mixture. Top with pecans and drizzle with butter. Bake for 50-55 min or until golden. Serve with whipped topping. There will not be any leftovers...

Pecan Tassies

2 cups margarine

4 (3 ounce) packages cream cheese

4 cups all-purpose flour

¾ cup packed brown sugar

1 tablespoon melted butter

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 egg

1 pinch salt

1 cup chopped pecans

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.  In a medium bowl, mix together the margarine and cream cheese until well blended. Beat in flour, 1 cup at a time, until the mixture forms a smooth dough. Roll into small balls, and press into the bottoms and sides of tart pans or mini muffin pans.

In another bowl, mix together the brown sugar, butter, vanilla, egg, and salt. Place ½ to 1 teaspoon chopped pecans in the bottom of each pastry.  Using a teaspoon, fill each of the crusts 2/3 full with the filling mixture. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes until shell is light brown, and the filling has puffed up. Cool for 5 minutes and carefully remove from pans.

Makes 2 dozen

PET® Evaporated Milk Pumpkin Pie

Single Crust Classic Crisco Pie Crust*

1 cup firmly packed brown sugar

2 tablespoons Pillsbury BEST® All Purpose Flour

2 1/4 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 large egg

1 (15 oz.) can pumpkin

1 (12 oz.) can PET® Evaporated Milk

 Whipped cream

Prepare recipe for single crust pie. Roll out and place in 9-inch pie plate. Press to fit without stretching dough. Trim even with pie plate. Flute edges. Heat oven to 375°F.  Mix brown sugar, flour, pumpkin pie spice and salt in large bowl. Add egg, pumpkin and evaporated milk. Beat until smooth. Pour into pie crust.  Bake 50 to 55 minutes or until knife inserted one-inch from edge comes out clean. Cool. Serve topped with whipped cream.

Note:
Instead of pumpkin pie spice, the following mixture may be used: 1 1/4 teaspoons ground cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg, 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger and 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves.

Crisco Flaky Pie Crust

1 1/2 cups White Lily® All Purpose Flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup Crisco® All-Vegetable Shortening, or Butter Flavored Shortening, chilled in freezer

OR 1/2 stick Crisco® Baking Sticks All-Vegetable Shortening, or Butter Flavored Shortening Sticks, chilled in freezer

4 to 8 tablespoons ice cold water or milk

DOUBLE CRUST PIE

2 cups White Lily® All Purpose Flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

2/3 cup Crisco® All-Vegetable Shortening, or Butter Flavored Shortening, chilled in freezer

OR 2/3 stick Crisco® Baking Sticks All-Vegetable Shortening, or Butter Flavored Shortening Sticks, chilled in freezer

5 to 10 tablespoons ice cold water or milk

Combine flour and salt in large bowl. Cut in shortening with a pastry blender, 2 knives, or your fingertips until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.

Sprnkle one tablespoon ice-cold water or milk over part of mixture. Toss gently with a fork; push to side of bowl. Repeat just until mixture is moistened and can be formed into a ball. (The dough should hold together when picked up and pressed, and should not crack).

Flatten ball of dough into disks (one for one crust, two for double-crust). Wrap tightly with plastic wrap; refrigerate 30 minutes or overnight.

Remove one disk of dough from refrigerator. Turn onto very lightly floured surface. (If the dough is too hard, allow it to sit for 5 minutes to soften.) Roll dough gently, use a back and forth motion from center. Do not roll over the edge or it will be thin. Turn dough 45 degrees between each roll to keep it round. If dough sticks to surface, dust lightly with flour. Roll to 12 inches in diameter for a 9 inch pie.

Transfer dough to 9-inch, 4 cup capacity pie plate, being careful to avoid stretching pastry. Trim edge of pastry 1/2 to 3/4 inch beyond edge of the pie plate.

SINGLE CRUST

Fold extra pastry under to build up edge. Flute edge by using the forefinger of one hand and pinching the dough next to it between your forefinger and thumb of the other hand. Continue around pie.

Cover and refrigerate 30 minutes to overnight before baking unless otherwise specified in recipe.

DOUBLE CRUST SOLID TOP

Roll dough as described for single crust. Cut to 10 inches in diameter with an even edge. Transfer the crust over filling, being careful not to stretch the pastry. Tuck edge of crust under bottom crust; press to seal. Flute edge of the pastry as described for single crust. Prick with fork or cut slits to vent steam. Brush with a lightly beaten egg; sprinkle with 1 tablespoon sugar. Create a decorative design in top of crust, if desired, or decorate top with cutout pieces of leftover crust.

LATTICE TOP

Roll dough as described for single crust; cut into strips 1/2 inch in width. Some strips should be 9 inches long. (A pizza cutter works well for this) Place strips over pie in a horizontal direction. Fold alternate strips back; place a strip vertical across top. Unfold strips, and fold the strips back that are under the last vertical strip. Place another strip vertically across. Continue until pie is completed. Tuck the strip edges under the bottom crust and press to seal. Flour the edges of the pastry as described above. Brush the dough with a lightly beaten egg, being careful not to get egg on filling. BAKE according to directions for pie recipe.