The Executive Cook

Weeknight Cook ~ Weekend Entertainer

tonmarmor

Chestnut & Pork Mini Pies

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Ingredients 
1 lb. Ground Pork
5.5 oz. Roasted & Peeled Chestnuts
1 Leek (1 cup finely chopped)
2 Tbsp. Olive Oil
6-8 Pie Crusts
2 Tbsp. Flour
1 ½ cups Chicken Stock
3/4 tsp. Allspice
¼ tsp. Garlic Powder
1 tsp. minced Thyme
1 dry Bay Leaf
¼ Granny Smith Apple
1 Egg
Salt
Pepper
Flaked Sea Salt

❃❃Makes 48❃❃

Preparation
Preheat oven to 400.  Spray two mini- muffin tins with non-stick cooking spray.
Mince leeks, mince thyme, chop apple into small pieces and chop chestnuts into small pieces.  All ingredients need to be small as they need to fit into the mini pie.
Beat egg with 1 tsp. of water and set aside.
Cut out 48 5-centimeter circles and put into the muffin tins.  Cover with a damp paper towel.  Cut out 48 4-centimeter circles and set aside under a damp paper towel.

Pork Filling
In a skillet over medium high heat add the pork, breaking apart with spoon into small pieces, and cook until done.  Remove from pan with a slotted spoon.  Add 2 Tbsp. olive oil to the pan and add leeks and chestnuts along with allspice, garlic powder, thyme, bay leaf, apple, pinch of salt and a pinch of pepper.  Cook until onions and chestnuts are soft. 
Once cooked add 2 Tbsp. flour to the pan and cook for 1-2 minutes to cook out the raw taste.  Turn heat to high and add the chicken stock, scraping any bits off the bottom of the skillet.  Turn heat down and add back pork.  Let the mixture cook for about 5 minutes on medium heat and until thickened.  Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Remove from burner and let cool. 

Assemble & Bake
Once mixture has cooled evenly fill all 48 pie shells.  Top each with the smaller disk of pie dough, slightly tucking around the bottom shell and seal with a fork on the edges.  Once complete cut a small slit into each pie on the top to release the steam. 
Brush each pie with egg and lightly sprinkle each with some flaked sea salt. Bake for about 20 minutes or until the tops of the pies are golden.   

Crème Bruleed Cranberry Clafoutis

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Ingredients
1 cup Crème Brulee flavored Coffee Creamer
3 Eggs
1 tsp Vanilla
¾ cup + 2 tsp. Sugar
2 Tbsp. Butter
½ cup Flour
Pinch of Salt
¾ cup Cranberries

❃❃Serves 6❃❃

Preparation
Preheat oven to 325 and spray a glass pie pan with non-stick cooking spray.
Add cranberries, ¼ cup water and 2 tsp. sugar to a saucepan.  Cook until the cranberries just soften and begin to pop. Remove from heat and cool.
Melt butter.

Cook
Mix coffee creamer, eggs, vanilla, ½cup sugar, 2 Tbsp. melted butter, salt and flour together until well combined.
Add to pie pan and place cranberries around pan in the mixture.
Bake for 45 minutes or until mixture is set and toothpick comes out clean.

Assemble
After clafouti has cooled evenly spread the remaining ¼ cup of sugar over the top.  Brule the top with a kitchen torch or place in oven and broil until sugar is browned and crisp.

Christmas Fudge Three Ways

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Ingredients
¾ cup Butter
1  14oz. can Sweetened Condensed Milk
1 11.5oz. bag of Milk Chocolate Chips
1 11.5oz. bag of Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips
1 11.5oz. bag of Peanut Butter Chips
½ 11.5oz. bag of Butterscotch Chips
7 oz. Marshmallow Cream
¼ cup Heavy Cream
1 tsp Vanilla
1/3 cup Andes Mints
2 Tbsp. Dulce de Leche

❃❃ ❃❃

Preparation
Measure all ingredients for fudge.
Line a 9X13 pan with foil making sure there is over hang on both ends to lift fudge out of pan to cut.

Make the Fudge
Melt the butter over medium heat and add sweetened condensed milk, heavy cream and all the chips.  Stir until all chips are melted.  Add vanilla and marshmallow cream stirring until fully combined.

Finish
Pour all ingredients into the 9X14pan and immediately top 1/3 of the fudge with Andes mints lightly pushing them in.  Drop the 2 Tbsp. of Dulce de Leche onto 1/3 of the fudge and swirl in with a butter knife.  Leave 1/3 of the fudge with no additions.
Cover with plastic wrap and put into the refrigerator for no less than 4 hours to set.
Remove fudge from pan with foil and cut into desired size pieces.

Roasted Beet & Fried Goat Cheese Skewers

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Ingredients
3 Red Beets
8 oz. Goat Cheese
¼ cup Flour
1 Egg
¾ cup Panko
1 Tbsp. Olive Oil
24 – 48 oz. Canola Oil
Salt
Pepper
Balsamic Drizzle

❃❃Makes 18❃❃

Preparation
Preheat oven to 450, line a bakingsheet with foil and spray with non-stick cooking spray.  Add canola oil to a heavy bottomed pan, casteiron pan or Dutch oven with a thermometer.

Beets
Add beets to the sheet pan with olive oil, pinch of salt and a pinch of pepper. Roast for 50 – 60 minutes or until soft.
Remove from oven and let cool slightly.  Once cooled use plastic gloves and peel the beets.  Once peeled cut the edges of the beets off to form a square and cut beets into cubes about ½ inch by ½ inch.

Goat Cheese
Roll goat cheese into 1 Tbsp. size balls and refrigerate for about 20 minutes.
Set up a dredging station with one bowl of flour, one bowl of beaten egg and one bowl of panko.  Completely cover each ball in the flour, then the egg and then the panko.  Return to the refrigerator for about 20 minutes.

Heat canola oil to 350 and add about 4 – 5 balls at a time to the oil making sure oil stays at 350 and fry until golden brown.  Remove to a paper bag or paper towels to drain excess oil.  Set aside until all goat cheese balls are fried.

 Assembly
On a short skewer add the goat cheese ball and then the square pieces of beet making sure they will stand up when placed on a plate.  Drizzle the skewers with desired amount of balsamic reduction or drizzle.

Cranberry Cheesecake

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Ingredients
Crust:
12 oz. Gingersnaps
3 Tbsp. Butter
Cranberries:
3 cups Cranberries
1 cup Water
1 cup Sugar
½ tsp. Orange Gelatin
Cheesecake:
4 packages Cream Cheese
1 cup Sugar
1 tsp. Vanilla Extract
4 Eggs
Topping& Decoration:
9-12 Cranberries
1 Egg White
1 Tbsp. Sugar
Mint Leaves
¾ cup Heavy Cream
1 Tbsp. Sugar

❃❃Serves 6-8❃❃

Preparation
Pulse gingersnaps in a food processor until they are the texture of sand. 
Melt butter, separate one egg keeping egg white and sift through cranberries removing stems and any old cranberries.
Preheat oven to 375.

Crust
Mix the melted butter into the gingersnaps and press into the bottom of a 9” springform pan.  Bake on 375 for ten minutes.  Remove from oven and let cool.
Turn oven down to 325.
Once cooled place a piece of foil large enough to go up the sides of the spring form on the bottom of a roasting pan.  Set the springform pan on the foil and fold up the sides to ensure the entire springform pan is covered on the bottom and sides.  This will ensure water from getting into the pan during baking.

Cranberries
Add cranberries, water and sugar to a saucepan over medium high heat.  Cook until cranberries have all popped, are soft and the mixture is thick.  Remove half to a bowl to cool slightly and in the remaining half add the ½ tsp. orange gelatin. 

Cheesecake
In the bowl of a stand mixer add the cream cheese and sugar.  Mix until well combined and then add one egg at a time mixing until entirely incorporated.  Add vanilla. Remove from mixer and by hand stir in the cranberries that were set aside to cool in a bowl.  Pour into the springform pan.  Place roasting pan with spring form pan inside of it on the oven rack and then slowly pour hot water into the roasting pan about ½ way up the sides of the springform pan.  Place in oven and bake for 1 ½ hours. 
Turn oven off and leave the cheesecake in the oven to cool down slowly.  Once cooled to room temperature remove from oven. 
Gently and evenly spread the other half of the cranberry mixture, with the gelatin in it, over the cheesecake. 

Whip Cream
In a bowl beat the cream and sugar with a handheld mixture until it is has formed very, very stiff peaks.  Gently and evenly cover the top of the cranberry layer with the whip cream layer. Refrigerate covered for at least four hours.

Sugared Cranberries & Assembly
In a small bowl beat the egg white.  Drop the cranberries in to the egg white coating completely and then roll in sugar ensuring they are completely covered in sugar.  Place 2 mint leaves in three areas on the top of the cheesecake and then arrange three cranberries in each area to look like berries of holly. 

Eggnog Cake Truffles

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Ingredients
½ cup softened Butter
1 cup Sugar
1 ½ cups Powdered Sugar
1 Egg
1 ¾ cups Flour
¾ tsp. Baking Powder
¾ cup + 6 Tbsp. Eggnog
½ tsp. Cinnamon + more for sprinkling
½ tsp Vanilla
¼ tsp Salt
5 4oz. White Chocolate Bars

❃❃Makes 50 Truffles❃❃

Peraration
Preheat oven to 350 and spray an 8X8baking dish with non-stick cooking spray.
Add 6 Tbsp. eggnog to 1 ½ cups powdered sugar.  Set aside.
Chop chocolate bars up in a microwave safe bowl. Set Aside.
Add a piece of parchment paper to a cookie sheet.  Set Aside.
Sift together or whisk together flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. Set Aside

Make the Cake
Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy.  Add egg and mix until fully combined.  Add vanilla.   Once vanilla is combined add 1/3 of the flour mixture and mix until just combined, add ½ of the eggnog and mix until combined, add another 1/3 more of the flour mixture until combined, add the final ½ cup eggnog and mix until combined. Finally add the last 1/3 of the flour mixture and mix until combined.
Pour cake mixture into 8X8 and bake for 30-40 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean when put into the center.
Let cake cool.

Making Cake Truffles
Once cake is cooled scrape the cake with a fork breaking the cake apart into crumbles.  Once thoroughly crumbled add the cake to a bowl with the eggnog and powdered sugar mixture.  Mix until combined and the cake holds its shape when rolled into balls.  Roll all the cake into balls that are about 1 Tbsp. in size.  Once all the balls are rolled cover them to keep them moist and melt the chocolate in the microwave.  Start in 30 second increments stirring the chocolate in between.  Reduce to 20second intervals once the chocolate begins to melt stirring in between each time.  Once almost all the chocolate is melted stir until all the chocolate is melted and smooth.  Roll each cake ball in the chocolate and place on a piece of parchment paper on a cookie sheet.  When chocolate is still wet sprinkle lightly with cinnamon. Continue until all the truffles are coated and put cookie sheet into the refrigerator until chocolate sets.