Triple Chocolate Pumpkin Pie

Ah, Pie. Pie is a weird form of dessert to me. You can throw anything into a pie crust; it seems nothing is off limits. People put weird things in pie, and it makes me nervous. "What's going to happen when I cut into this thing?" is what I'm usually thinking.

I have a thing against cooked fruit. It's weirdly sour and is usually not cooked all the way through (I'm looking at you, apples). However, pumpkin pie is a mainstay at the holidays, and one I enjoy. But, it's a little boring and expected, so at thanksgiving I took this baby out for a spin.

It's rich. It's decadent. It has just enough pumpkin flavor without being just pumpkin, and has a rich, chocolatey, velvety texture and a yummy, perfect graham crust.

It had a tough time at thanksgiving competing with the 4 other desserts we had going on, so I suggest making this as a stand-out dessert, with no competition from all those bars and cookies floating around this time of year.

Oh, and did I mention this thing is pretty easy? Let's get going!

After baking the spiced crumb crust, you put a layer of chopped chocolate on the warm crust, popping it back in the oven to melt it. Genius.

In another genius move, you melt more chocolate and blend it with the pumpkin mixture. YUM.

Let this cool in the fridge, at least 6 hours or until totally set and firm. 

It was a very good pie, and again, easy enough to throw together the day before your event but different enough to impress your guests (and your mouth.)

RECIPE (adapted from Closet Cooking)
For the crust:

• 2 cups graham cracker crumbs (about 16 crackers)- I used a mix of ginger cookies and graham crackers.
• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
• 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
• 2 tablespoons packed light-brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
• 3 ounces bittersweet chocolate (preferably 61 percent cacao), finely chopped
• For the filling:
• 6 ounces semisweet chocolate (preferably 55 percent cacao), chopped
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
• 1 can (15 ounce) solid-pack pumpkin
• 1 can (12 ounce) evaporated milk
• 3/4 cup packed light-brown sugar
• 3 large eggs
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 teaspoons coarse salt
• 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 3/4 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
• Topping:
• 1 ounce milk chocolate, melted
• whipped cream, optional

Method:

• Preheat oven to 350. Mix the graham cracker crumbs, butter, sugars, salt, cinnamon and ginger and press into bottom of a 9 inch pie plate and bake until lightly golden brown, about 8-10 minutes.
• Sprinkle the bittersweet chocolate over bottom of crust, return to oven until it melts and spread it in a thin layer over the bottom of the crust, for about 5 min. It won't look like it has melted, but it will be spreadable.
• Melt the semisweet chocolate and butter in a double boiler until smooth and set aside.
• Mix the pumpkin, milk, brown sugar, eggs, cornstarch, vanilla, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves in a large bowl. Mix the chocolate into this mixture.
• Turn the oven down to 325. Pour the mixture over the crust and bake until the center is set but still jiggly, about 50-60 minutes. I had quite a bit of filling left over. 
• Let cool, refrigerate overnight.  Then, before serving, melt the milk chocolate, drizzling in a semi-artistic fashion.

Holiday Ham

I love the holidays. All holidays, but Christmas is the shining star on top of the holiday tree. The big three (Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter) all have one thing in common.

My dad's ham.

I already gave you a mom recipe, and now it's time for a dad recipe. Alright it's not really a recipe, per say, but it is the best, and ONLY, way to make a ham. I'm sure of it.

My dad has to make two hams to meet the demand of the family. And the demand is large. My dad has 15 siblings, and my mom has 8, so the holidays invariably mean a whole lot of family mingling and eating. And this ham is at the center. Even at thanksgiving, when there is a turkey to contend with.

So here it is. The magical, secret, amazing recipe that will make you a popular guest and you will be asked to make it again. So, I guess before you make this ham, think long and hard if you are prepared to make this ham for the rest of your life.

 Here's dad, mixing up the most important part of this ham: the glaze.

Scoring the ham for maximum glaze capacity

 Also-please throw alway that nasty glaze packet that came with your ham. Don't even look at it.

 Pour it on!

 Baste it up! Basting is another key step.

 This ham is literally covered in hammy caramel.

RECIPE:
A ham: you need enough ham to feed your crowd. So whatever ham you choose, just make sure it is spiral cut, bone-in. Smoked or not smoked, it is your choice, but a smoked ham goes really well with the sweet glaze. Less peaked on the top (the one pictured is not ideal!) the better, because the glaze stays on the top better.
1 cup Brown Sugar
2 TbsYellow Mustard (to taste)
2 Tbs flour (this is important, don't forget the flour)
A bit of water (a couple table spoons to start. you want the glaze to be pourable, but not runny)
1 tsp cinnamon (or, however much you'd like. This is all to taste!)

Preheat oven to 325. Spray a roasting pan with non-stick spray. Score ham with a sharp knife before glazing. Wisk all glaze ingredients together and pour over ham, spooning over to cover entire ham. Pop it in the oven. The rule with ham is 10 minutes per pound. You should be purchasing a fully-cooked ham, so you just need to get it hot. 

Baste the ham about every 15-20 minutes. This will ensure your ham will have a nice, caramelized glaze and will keep the ham from drying out. 

Essentially, this is it. Take your ham out when it's done, and carve it up. I can't give you tips on this...I leave this job to the people more comfortable wielding very sharp carving knives.
Save the excess glaze at the top of the ham. After carving, pour a little bit of the sauce over the ham, and pour the rest in a small serving bowl for the table or buffet. We lovingly call the excess "ham sauce."

Please enjoy!

Mom's Meatloaf

The weather isn't cold enough for me. Wisconsin is known for its brutal winters, but last year we got virtually no snow, and I'm starting to worry this year will be the same. 

My sophomore AND junior years of college we got a snow day. The first in half a century. People were cross-country skiing in the streets and the liquor stores had lines out the door. (This is Wisconsin, after all). It was grand. I want that type of winter again.

I know, I'm a crazy person, but the snow around Christmas time is mandatory for a beautiful, wonderful Christmas. I need it. I want it more than anything else.

I'm crazy.

But on the plus side,  is cold enough for comfort food classics.

This is where the meatloaf comes in!

Don't go away yet! This meatloaf is magical. It's my mom's recipe; that woman is a wiz with ground beef and this is just one of her many masterpieces.

This meatloaf is moist and full of flavor. It's simple enough to make on a weekday, but impressive enough to...impress people. Even if it's just your cat. 

 The ingredients are humble. Just two pounds of ground beef (I always use lean) an onion, an egg, some crackers or other bread-like product, some onion soup mix and some seasonings to taste.

Onion soup mix is an unsung hero.

Mix this all up. You'll probably have to use your hands. And it will be gross. But totally worth it.

 Shape this into a vague, loaf-like shape. When I was little, my mom shaped it into a heart. I opted for a wonky oval.

Now these ingredients, my friends, are the KEY to this meatloaf. You're probably going to leave again. Don't! It's the special sauce!

 The sauce is totally to taste. It's a bit of a guessing game and I only know when I get it right because I've had it before but don't fret! I will give you guidelines.

 Pour about half-ish of the sauce over the loaf. You'll want more sauce for dipping!

Delectable!

I would suggest some mashed potatoes and maybe some green beans or a fresh salad for a really really good winter meal!

RECIPE:
For the meatloaf:
2 lbs hamburger
1 chopped onion
1 pkg of onion soup mix
1/2 cup of some kind of crushed cracker or croutons-crush it not super fine but not super coarse-somehwere in the middle.
1 egg
salt and pepper, or other seasonings of your liking

For the sauce:

1/4 cup brown sugar, packed

1/4 cup ketchup

3 tbsp yellow mustard

Preheat oven to 350

Mix all ingredients for the meatloaf together in a large bowl. Use a spoon if you can get it to be uniform, otherwise, dig in with your hands. Place in a baking dish. Wisk the brown sugar, ketchup, and mustard together. Taste- and if it tastes sweet and tangy and good, then that's all you'll need. Otherwise, keep messing with proportions to get it to your liking. bake for "an hour or so" according to mom. Which means nothing, because she doesn't really use recipes. So, for you, i'd say at an hour, check it. Mine took about an hour and a half, but it was pretty thick!

Let it cool for a few minutes before slicing into the loaf. 

ENJOY!