Desserts
Here are some of our contributors’ favorite dessert recipes!
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Peanut Crackups from Shirlee Jellum
“One of my favorite holiday recipes that I make every year as gifts.”
10 cups popped corn
1 and 1/2 cups salted peanuts
1/2 cup butter
1 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup molasses
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
Directions:
Mix popped corn and peanuts and keep warm in a 250 degree oven. Melt butter. Add brown sugar and corn syrup. Bring to boil, stirring constantly. Boil without stirring for 5 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla and baking soda. Quickly pour over the popcorn mixture and stir well. Put on baking sheets in a 250 degree oven for 45 minutes (stir 2 or 3 times during baking). Cool on foil. Store in an airtight container.
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Gooseberry Pie from Mehreen Ahmed
3 cups fresh gooseberries
2 cups white sugar, or to taste
3 tablespoons quick-cooking tapioca
½ teaspoon salt
1 (14.1 ounce) package double-crust pie pastry, thawed
2 tablespoons milk
1 ½ tablespoons white sugar
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Place a baking sheet on a lower oven rack. Stem and rinse gooseberries. Crush 1/2 cup berries in the bottom of a saucepan. Mix 2 cups sugar, tapioca, and salt together in a small bowl; pour over crushed berries and mix until combined. Turn the heat to medium; cook and stir until mixture boils. Cook for 2 more minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in remaining whole berries. Press one pastry into a 9-inch pie pan. Pour in fruit filling, then cover with top pastry; cut slits to allow steam to escape. Brush top pastry with milk and sprinkle with 1 1/2 tablespoons sugar. Bake in the preheated oven on the baking sheet until crust is golden brown and filling is bubbly, about 35 minutes.
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Pfefferkuchen (gingerbread) from Lucy Duggan
“Below is one of my favourite recipes. It was passed down through my German/British family.”
250g self-raising flour (or 250g all-purpose flour mixed with 3 tsp baking powder)
2 tbsp black treacle (or molasses)
1 egg, lightly beaten
125g chopped mixed candied peel
60g currants
60g sultanas/raisins
2 heaped tsps drinking chocolate powder (or use cocoa)
60g butter
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp mixed spice (a mix of cinnamon, allspice, coriander, nutmeg, ginger, cloves)
1 tsp nutmeg
Generous pinch of white pepper
1/2 tsp coriander
1 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp milk
For the icing and decoration:
About 60g icing sugar
Glacé cherries, walnuts, almonds, sprinkles (optional)
Directions:
Heat the oven to 200C (400F). Melt together treacle, butter, spices, pepper and chocolate powder. Place dried fruit, candied peel, and sugar in a bowl and stir in the egg. Add the hot mixture, fold in the flour (and baking powder) to make a firm dough. Add the milk if the dough is too stiff. Press the dough into a baking tray (about 20cm by 20cm). Bake for 10-12 minutes in the middle of the oven. When still hot, cut into squares and remove from the baking tray. When the pfefferkuchen has cooled, mix the icing sugar with 1.5 teaspoons of water. Spread icing onto each square of pfefferkuchen and decorate with glacé cherries, walnuts, almonds, and/or sprinkles.
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Baked Apples from Jane Blanchard
10 large apples, peeled, cored, sliced
2/3 cup white sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 cup water
2 tablespoons lemon juice
Directions:
Place apples in large shallow baking dish that has been sprayed with vegetable oil. In small bowl, combine sugar, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg; sprinkle over apples. In small bowl, combine water and lemon juice; sprinkle over apples. Bake, uncovered, at 350 degrees for 40 minutes, stirring after 20.
Yield: 10 – 12 servings
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Mamie’s Fudge from Kim Malinowski
“My grandmother’s secret fudge recipe that she received from Mamie, her friend. It has been passed down with the wording and spellings given.”
1 tall can (1 2/3 cups) evaporated milk
2 tablespoons butter
4 ½ cups sugar
Dash of salt
1 pkg (12 oz. or 2 cups) semisweet chocolate pieces (Nestle’s chocolate chips)
3 bars (4oz. each) sweet cooking chocolate (German Chocolate)
1 pint marshmallow creme
2 cups chopped pecans
Directions:
Combine milk, butter, sugar, and salt. Bring it to a vigorous boil, stirring often. Then reduce heat and simmer 6 min. Meanwhile place remaining ingredients (except pecans) in a large bowl. Gradually pour boiling syrup over the chocolate marshmallow mixture and beat until chocolate is melted. Stir in nuts. Pour into buttered pans or foil lined and store in a cool place several hours to harden before cutting in squares.
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Meg’s Mom’s Kentucky Derby Pie from Vallie Lynn Watson
“In May of 1992, I first encountered the best dessert of my life, made by my friend Meg’s mom for a prom party. I thought about it often over the years, but never asked for the recipe until the pandemic… Thank you, Meg’s mom, for the best dessert ever.”
1 deep dish pie crust
1 C sugar
½ C flour
1 stick margarine, melted and cooled
2 eggs
1 t vanilla
6 oz semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 C pecan pieces
Directions:
Bake at 375 for an hour.
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