Black Forest Pie

Ingredients:

1 Pastry Shell (baked)
4 oz unsweetened Baking Chocolate
14 oz sweetened Condensed Milk
1 tsp Almond Extract
1 1/2 cup Whipping Cream (whipped)
21 oz can Cherry Pie Filling Almonds (Toasted)

Making:

Melt chocolate with sweetened condensed milk over low heat in pan.
Remove from heat.
Combine almond extract and stir well.
Pour it into a bowl and let it cool completely.
Beat it till it becomes smooth.
Mix whipped cream.
Place it into prepared pastry shell.
Let it chill about 4 hours so that it is set.
Serve it with the cherry pie filling.
Garnish with toasted almonds.

Gulab Jamun

Ingredients:

1 cup Carnation Milk Powder
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
2 tablespoons butter -melted
Oil for frying
Whole milk just enough to make the dough

For Sugar Syrup:
2 cups Sugar
1 cup water

Gulab jamun:

Make the dough by combining the milk powder, Bisquick, butter. Add just enough whole milk to make a medium-hard dough. Divide the dough into 18-20 portions. Make balls by gently rolling each portion between your palms into a smooth ball. Place the balls on a plate. Cover with a damp yet dry kitchen towel.

Heat the oil on high and then lower the heat to medium. Slip in the balls into the hot oil from the side of the pan, one by one. They will sink to the bottom of the pan, but do not try to move them. Instead, gently shake the pan to keep the balls from browning on just one side. After about 5 mins, the balls will rise to the surface. The Gulab Jamuns should rise slowly to the top if the temperature is just right. Now they must be gently and constantly agitated to ensure even browning on all sides.

If the temperature of the oil is too high then the gulab jamuns will tend to break. So adjust the temperature to ensure that the gulab jamuns do not break or cook too quickly.
The balls must be fried very slowly under medium temperatures. This will ensure complete cooking from inside and even browning.

Sugar Syrup Preparation

The syrup should be made earlier and kept warm. To make the hot sugar syrup add mix the 2 cups of sugar to 1 cup of water.Mix with a spoon and then heat at medium heat for 5-10 minutes until sugar is all dissolved in water. Do not overheat, that will caramelize the sugar.

Transfer this hot syrup into a serving dish. Keep warm on stove. Add the fried gulab jamuns directly into the warm syrup. Leave gulab jamun balls in sugar syrup for half an hour. They can be served warm or at room temperature.

Gajer(Carrot) Ka Halwa

Ingredients for carrot halva:

1 kg Carrots
1 litre Milk
1 teaspoon Cardamom seeds
3/4 cup Water
3 tablespoons Ghee
2 tablespoons Raisins
2 tablespoons Almonds
2 tablespoons Pistachios
450 grams Sugar

Preparation of carrot halwa :
Wash and grate the carrots. Soak the raisins in water for 30 minutes. Blanch and shred the nuts.
Put the water to boil, when it starts boiling add the grated carrots. Cook for 5-7 minutes.
Add the milk. Cook on a low flame for 1 hour stirring occasionally. Add sugar, mix well and cook till the sugar has dissolved and all the milk has been absorbed.
Add ghee and simmer for 2-3 minutes. Add the slightly crushed cardamoms and the raisins. Mix well.
Remove the gajjar halwa from heat and arrange in a serving dish. Garnish with almonds and pistachios. Serve cold, hot or at room temperature.

Badaam(Almond) Ka Halwa

Ingredients:
2 cups Badam (Almond)
2 1/2 cups Sugar
2 drops Kesar Colour
1 cup Ghee
1 cup Milk

How to make badam halwa:
Leave the almonds in hot water for 1 hour.
Remove the outer skin and grind to a paste with the milk.
Make sugar syrup and boil till it reaches a one string consistency.
Add the badam paste and cook till it thickens.
Add the kesar colour.
Add ghee little by little stirring continuously on low heat.

Cherry Ice Cream with Chocolate Chips Recipe

Ingredients
1 1/2 cups pitted ripe sweet cherries (from about 3/4 lb cherries)
3/4 cup milk
1 3/4 cups cream
1/2 cup sugar
1 pinch salt
1 teaspoon lemon juice
2 Tbsp crème de cassis, kirsch, cherry liqueur, or rum (optional)
4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped fine, keep in freezer until used

Method

1 Put cherries, milk, one cup of the cream, sugar, and salt into a medium saucepan. Heat on medium heat until the mixture is steamy, then lower the heat to warm and just let sit for about 15 minutes. Remove from heat. Pour mixture into a blender, or use an immersion blender, and carefully purée. (Careful because you are dealing with a hot liquid. Make sure you hold the cap down on the top of the blender while puréeing.)

2 Put mixture into a large bowl. Stir in the remaining 3/4 cup of cream. Chill for several hours in the refrigerator until completely cold. (Can also place bowl over an ice bath, to speed up the cooling process.)

3 Before putting the mixture into your ice cream maker, stir in the lemon juice and the crème de cassis or other liqueur (or rum) if you are using. Note that you can skip the alcohol if you want, but the addition of it will help the ice cream from getting too icy, and the flavored liqueurs such as kirsch or crème de cassis can add a nice flavor boost to the ice cream. Churn the ice cream in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's instructions.

4 Once the ice cream has completed churning, the ice cream should be pretty soft. Gently fold in the finely chopped chocolate. Put in an airtight container and place in the freezer for at least an hour, preferably several hours.
Makes about one quart.

You can also try making this ice cream with yogurt instead of cream. Heat the cherries, sugar, salt, and milk first. Then let cool. Add 1 3/4 cup of full-fat yogurt and purée. Everything else is the same except no need to add lemon juice.

Berry Tart Recipe

Ingredients
Tart Crust1 cup all-purpose flour1/4 cup ground almonds or almond flour (can substitute regular flour)1 1/2 teaspoons sugar1/4 teaspoon salt1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, very-cold, cut into 1/2 inch cubes1/4 teaspoon almond extract4-6 Tbsp ice cold water
Filling1 cup (8 oz) mascarpone cheese1/3 cup cold heavy cream1/4 cup sugar1 1/3 cup raspberries1 1/3 cup blueberries1 1/3 cup strawberries - stems removed and quartered2 Tbsp orange marmalade2 Tbsp berry liqueur such as creme de cassis
Equipment needed: Food processor, a 9-inch fluted tart pan with a removable bottom

Method
Pre-bake the Crust

1 In a food processor, combine flour, ground almonds, salt and sugar, pulse to mix. Add butter and pulse 6 to 8 times, until mixture resembles coarse meal. Add almond extract to 4 Tbsp of ice water, then add the almond water to the flour and pulse a few times to incorporate. Add ice water, one tablespoon at a time, pulsing after each addition, until the dough begins to clump together. Remove the dough from the food processor and form into a ball onto a lightly floured surface. Shape the dough into a disc, 5-inches wide. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill for at least an hour.

2 Remove the dough disc from the refrigerator. Let sit at room temperature for 5-10 minutes. Sprinkle some flour on top of the disk. Roll out with a rolling pin on a lightly floured surface to a 12 inch circle; about 1/8 of an inch thick. As you roll out the dough, use a metal spatula to check if the dough is sticking to the surface below. Add a few sprinkles of flour if necessary to keep the dough from sticking. Carefully place dough into a 9-inch fluted tart pan with a removable bottom. Gently press dough into pan; have the dough come up 1 1/2 inches up the sides of the tart pan. Put tart pan in the freezer for 30 minutes.

3 Preheat oven to 375°F. Take tart pan out of freezer and poke the bottom in several places with a fork. Line with aluminum foil, with enough extra foil off the two of the sides to use for lifting. Fill with pie weights - beans, ceramic or stainless pie weights. Place a shallow baking pan on the bottom rung of the oven to catch drippings. Put the tart pan in the oven on the middle rack. Bake for 20 minutes. Remove from oven and remove the pie weights. (I lift the hot beans out by holding on to the aluminum foil and place the foil and beans into a large bowl to cool before storing.) Return the tart pan to the oven for 10-15 more minutes - bake until lightly golden. Remove from oven and let cool completely.

Assemble the tart
4 In a medium bowl, using a hand electric mixer or stand mixer, beat together the mascarpone, cream, and sugar at high speed until stiff peaks form, about 1 minute. Scoop mixture into tart crust, and spread so that it is level.

5 Combine marmalade and liqueur into a small saucepan and heat on medium heat until well mixed. If you are using a liqueur that is not sweet, you might want to add a teaspoon of sugar. Cook down to 3 Tbsp. Put berries into a bowl and pour the marmalade mixture over the berries. Use a large rubber spatula to gently mix the berries so they are all well coated with the marmalade mixture. Use a slotted spoon to lift up the berries from their bowl and place on the mascarpone cream.
Remove the rim of the tart pan before serving. (You may need to use a knife to gently separate the edges of the tart from the pan.)
Serves 8.

Note: The marmalade and liqueur mixture brings added sweetness, berry flavor, and citrus acidity to the tart. The acid from the citrus sharpens the flavor of the berries. If you don't have marmalade on hand, and don't want to buy some just for this recipe, you might try making a berry coating with sugar, water, and a little lemon juice and lemon zest.

Spicy Chicken Nuggets (Chicharrones de Pollo) Recipe

Ingredients
1/4 cup dark rum
1/4 cup lime juice
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 Tbsp sugar
1 1/2 pounds boneless chicken thighs or breasts, cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces
Vegetable oil (canola oil, grapeseed oil, peanut oil or other high smoke point oil)
1/2 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon paprika (hot or sweet)
Lime wedges
Hot sauce

Method

1 Prepare marinade, stirring together lime juice, rum, soy sauce, and sugar in a bowl until sugar has dissolved. Add the chicken to the marinade and let marinate for 30 minutes at room temperature (can marinate longer chilled, but allow to come to room temp for 30 minutes before cooking).

2 Pour enough oil in a skillet so that it comes up the sides at least a half an inch. Heat oil on medium high until it is shimmering, and a little pinch of flour sizzles when you drop it in the pan.

3 While the oil is heating, whisk together the flour, paprika, and salt in a bowl. Remove the chicken pieces from the marinade and pat dry with paper towels. Dredge the chicken pieces in the flour mixture and transfer to a plate.

4 Fry the chicken in batches (about 3), about 3 minutes on each side, until deep golden brown and the chicken is cooked through. (If the chicken is browning too quickly, reduce the heat a bit). Remove to a plate lined with paper towels to soak up the excess oil.

Apple Upside Down Cake

Ingredients
8 Tbsp (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
1 1/4 cups white, granulate sugar divided (1/2 cup and 3/4 cup)
1 1/2 pounds Braeburn, Jonagold, or Golden Delicious apples (about 4 medium), peeled, quartered, cored, each quarter cut into 2 wedges
3/4 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/3 cup cornmeal
1/2 cup boiling water
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs
1/3 cup whole milk
1-9-inch cake pan with 1 1/2-inch high sides

Method

1 Preheat your oven to 350°F. Butter the sides of the cake pan. Line the pan with a 10-inch round of parchment paper. The paper will come up 1/2-inch up the sides of the pan. Butter the parchment paper.

2 Melt 2 Tbsp butter in a non-stick skillet on medium heat. Add 1/2 cup sugar and cook until sugar dissolves and mixture turns golden brown, stirring occasionally, about 6 minutes. Add apple wedges to the pan and gently stir to distribute the caramel evenly across the apples. Cover the pan and cook until apples release their juices, about 5 minutes. Uncover and cook until apples are tender and caramel thickens and coats the apples, stirring occasionally, about 13 minutes more. Remove apples and caramel sauce and place in the prepared cake pan.

3 Whisk together the flour, salt, and baking powder in a small bowl and set aside. Place cornmeal in a large mixing bowl. Pour 1/2 cup boiling water over the cornmeal and stir to blend. Add 3/4 cup sugar and 6 Tbsps (3/4 stick) butter to the cornmeal mixture. Beat until well blended. Beat in vanilla and eggs. Beat in the flour, salt, baking powder mixture alternating with the milk. Pour the batter over the apples in the cake pan.

4 Bake until top is golden and a tester inserted into the center comes out clean, about 40 minutes. Cool cake in the pan for 5 minutes. Then run a knife around the edges of the cake to loosen it from the sides of the pan. Carefully invert the cake onto a serving plate or dish, and remove the parchment paper. Cool for 15 minutes.
Makes 6 to 8 servings. Serve with vanilla ice cream.