Downtowner Fudge Pie

Friday night around midnight, I got in the mood to bake.  This happens more often than you would think.  So the only question was, what was I going to make?  The answer was simple.  My FAVORITE chocolate pie.  My mother had made it at Christmas but due to my bout of cluster headaches I was unable to partake ( chocolate + cluster headaches =  even more pain).  It was terrible, no chocolate a christmas!!  The horror.  So, I made up for it this weekend.  This recipe actually came from my Aunt which I'm sure she also got from somewhere.  It's one of those recipes that's just been passed along.  So I'm going to pass it on to you. In mixing bowl, beat 3 eggs until light, beat in 3 T. white caro syrup, 1 1/2 c. sugar, 1/4 t vanilla.  That right there is delicious.

Meanwhile, over low heat melt 1 stick of butter and 3 square of baking chocolate.  NOTE: I do this in the microwave just because it's simpler, but you can do this in a saucepan if you wish.  Also by "3 squares" it turns out that means 3 oz.  Hershey now sells bakers chocolate in 1/2 ounce squares so that can be a little confusing.  I also use unsweetened baker's chocolate.

Now at this point you may be tempted to lick this whole freakin' bowl, ahem, but remember this chocolate is unsweetened.  It will not taste as yummy as it looks.  Not yet.  Add slightly cooked chocolate mixture into mixing bowl.

Stir until combined.

Pour into 9" pie pan and bake at 375 for 45-50 minutes.  Remember this is a chess pie, so be careful not to over bake.  When it is done it should still shake like a custard.

Mine was not very pretty but very very delicious.  I think the reason it fell and cracked was because instead of stirring in the chocolate mixture I beat it in, thus adding more air, so it puffed up a lot.  WARNING:  This chocolate pie is so good you (and maybe your husband) might just eat the whole thing before the weekend is out...and gain 3 pounds...might happen.  Just sayin'.

While Visions of Sugar Plums...

Last week my good ol' pal Stephanie and I did some Christmas baking.  It was such a great time!  We baked, we mixed...we washed lots of dishes. My messy kitchen...

Wonderful peanut butter fudge.  Mmmm.  We accidentally forgot to check how much the recipe made, so we doubled it.  And we made 6 lbs...you heard me 6lbs of peanut butter fudge.  If you need a fudge fix, stop by my house.

Stephanie working away.

These cheesecake cookies are fantastic, like unbelievable!

Cashew Brittle!

What's that Stephanie?  Your apron is amazing and it's only been 6 hrs since we started cooking?  Whew.  I need some peanut butter fudge.

Dish-o-the-week: Butternut Squash Baked with Tomatoes and Cheese

Last week Speed Racer had a hankerin' for a dish his Step-Mom use to make, Butternut Squash Baked with Tomatoes and Cheese.  She delightfully shared the recipe with me and it is this weeks, dish-o-the-week! 

That's right you heard me!  My first non-Pioneer Woman dish-o-the-week!  Ha!  I'm not an addict.  I'm not sure what cookbook this recipe is from, but pretty much the name explains the recipe.  You chop up butternut squash, saute it, saute some onions, add pepper and salt, put it in a casserole and add tomatoes and cheese.  Then pop it in the oven and wait for the delicious to seep in.

So first thing's first.  You peel and cut up the butternut squash.  Admittedly I've never cooked anything with butternut squash before, so this was a new experience.  A frustrating new experience.  I don't know if it was my peeler or me, but peeling with a potato peeler did not work.  So, after some help from Speed Racer when my frustrated sighs brought him into the kitchen, I switched to a knife.  Then you have to clean out the seeds...which is kinda like cleaning out a pumpkin.

It's pretty amazing I didn't cut off my finger.  I was frustrated, it was not working, and I started on this too late so I was really really hungry.  Not a good combo.

Speed Racer was enjoying taking frustrated pictures of me.  He only enjoyed the picture taking though, not the frustration...or did he?

Finally, I got all the squash chopped up and in the pan.  It smelled delicious with all that oil and butter.  If I were to do this again, I would go for smaller chunks though.  But that's just me.

Next I chopped up some green onions which was far easier than the squash.

Yum, I love me some onions.

Next we layered these over the squash in the casserole dish.  Then sauteed up some tomatoes that our lovely neighbors shared with us.  They were divine.  Just the right mix of tangy and sweetness.  And I put these over the onions, and then grated the cheese.

Delicious delicious cheese.  It turned out pretty well, I should have sauteed the squash a bit longer but live and learn.  Speaking of learning, Speed Racer's Step-Mom had doubled the recipe and added little numbers on each side, but I wasn't sure how many people that was for.  So thinking that it was just the two of us, I stuck with the recipe thinking it would be enough.  And it was, I guess.   I don't know about you, but I like my leftovers.  Usually the dish-o-the-week is precisely that.  It feeds us for the entire week.  Oh well, we just might have to cook up something extra this week.  There may also be some baking in my future, so stay tuned.