Fabulous desserts add glamour to holiday dining

As Hanukkah, Christmas and New Years’ celebrations take the spotlight, today’s offerings of wonderful celebratory desserts promise to make any dinner ultra-special. We begin with the knockout cake illustrated. Enjoy!

Very Berry Chocolate Cake

1 quart fresh strawberries

Chocolate glaze*

2 Tbsps. granulated cane sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

1 1/2 cups heavy cream

3 Tbsps. cane sugar

3/4 tsp. vanilla

2 baked 9-inch chocolate cake layers, cooled

Select 5 large strawberries for garnish. Partially dip into the glaze and set aside. Hull and halve remaining berries. Place in a bowl, add 2 Tbsps. sugar and 1 tsp. vanilla; mix gently.

Whip cream with 3 Tbsp. sugar and 3/4 tsp. vanilla until soft peaks form. Place one cake layer on serving plate; spoon on half of the strawberries, drizzle with half of the glaze; top with half of the whipped cream. Repeat with the final cake layer and ingredients, topping with glaze and remaining whipped cream. Garnish with the chocolate-dipped berries and serve.

* drizzle with purchased chocolate sauce or make your own glaze as follows:

5 squares semi-sweet chocolate

3 Tbsps. water

1 Tbsp. butter (real)

1 cup sifted confectioners’ sugar

Dash of salt

1/2 tsp. vanilla

Place chocolate, water and butter in saucepan. Stir constantly over very low heat till mixture is smooth. Remove from heat. Combine sugar and salt in a bowl. Gradually blend in the chocolate mixture and vanilla. Pour into a spouted container and drizzle over cake layers as shown in picture.

*Baker’s Book of Chocolate Riches ca.1983.

Holiday Pecan Pie

1 package (4 ounces) German’s Sweet Chocolate

3 tablespoons butter

1 teaspoon instant coffee (not flavored)

½ cup cane sugar

1 cup maple syrup (only)

3 eggs, slightly beaten

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 cup coarsely chopped pecans

1 unbaked 9-inch pie shell (purchased or your own)

Coffee topping (below)

Set oven to 375. Have pie shell at hand. Beat eggs gently together in medium bowl; set aside. Melt chocolate with butter in saucepan over very low heat, stirring constantly until smooth. Stir in coffee powder, remove from heat. In another saucepan, combine sugar and syrup. Bring to a boil over high heat, stirring until sugar is dissolved. Reduce heat and boil gently for 2 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat, add chocolate mixture, combining well. Slowly pour over eggs, stirring constantly with a whisk. Stir in vanilla and pecans and pour into pie shell. Bake at 375 45 to 50 minutes or until filling is completely puffed across top. Cool, Garnish with piped-on coffee flavored topping and pecan halves if desired.

Coffee Topping: Combine 1 teaspoon full blend (unflavored) instant coffee, 1 tablespoon granulated sugar, ¼ teaspoon vanilla and ½ cup heavy cream in small bowl. Beat just until stiff peaks form. Pipe over top of cooled pie in a lattice design or spoon dollops as desired.

Eggnog Pie

9-inch pie crust

1 envelope unflavored gelatin

1½ cups eggnog

1 cup powdered sugar

¼ cup butter, softened

8 ounces cream cheese, softened

1/3 teaspoon nutmeg

½ teaspoon rum extract

½ pint whipping cream

Have pie crust ready. Graham cracker crust, whether homemade or purchased is nice for this pie.

In small saucepan, evenly sprinkle gelatin over ½ cup of the eggnog. Let stand a minute or so to soften gelatin. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until gelatin is dissolved. Remove from heat, set aside.

In large mixer bowl, combine powdered sugar, butter and cream cheese. Beat on low speed until light and fluffy. Gradually add nutmeg, rum extract, gelatin mixture and remaining eggnog. Beat on high speed until smooth. Refrigerate 15 minutes or until mixture mounds slightly when stirred; pour into crust. Store in refrigerator till an hour or two before serving. Whip cream into stiff peaks and top pie as desired: fully covered, dolloped, or wreathed around the outer edge of the pie. Sprinkle with nutmeg. Chill till serving time.

Next, a showpiece that’s as beautiful as it is delicious!

Old-fashioned applesauce

cake w/caramel sauce

1 cup butter

1 cup granulated sugar

1 cup brown sugar

2 eggs

3 cups flour

1 teaspoon EACH ground cloves, nutmeg, cinnamon

½ teaspoon salt

1½ teaspoons baking soda

1 cup applesauce

½ cup finely chopped dates (or raisins)

1 cup finely ground coconut

1 cup finely chopped pecans or walnuts

Optional – 1 cup chocolate chips*

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 10-inch tube pan. In a large bowl cream butter with sugars until light. Add eggs, mix well. Set aside. In a small bowl combine flour, spices, salt and soda. Add to sugar mixture, stirring to mix well. Stir in remaining ingredients, incorporating well. Pour into prepared tube pan and bake 1½ hours until tester inserted in middle comes out clean. Cool cake till it is able to easily come out of the pan.

* Traditionally, chocolate chips were not used in this cake, but nowadays some people like them. It’s up to you.

Shortly before cake is ready to come out of the oven, prepare the caramel sauce.

Caramel Glaze

1 cup light brown sugar, firmly packed

1 cup granulated cane sugar

4 tablespoons flour

1½ cups cold water

1 stick butter

1 teaspoon vanilla

Whole walnut or pecans halves for decoration

Combine sugars, flour, cold water and butter in a medium saucepan. Cook until sauce is clear and thick, about 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally with a wire whisk. Stir in the vanilla and remove pan from the stove. When cake is removed from pan and still warm, place on its serving plate. Stir the warm glaze and pour it over cake, covering top completely and allowing it to drizzle lavishly over the sides. Decorate top with walnut/pecan halves if you wish.

For the cook who needs to cut corners, here’s the easiest dessert of all. First, buy a ready-made angel-food cake at your favorite bakery. At serving time, bring it to the table already cut into slices, to be served on individual plates and topped with the following:

Caramelized pears

(Makes 3 cups)

3 cups peeled, seeded ripe pears, chopped

1 can dark red sweet cherries, drained (rinsed if in syrup)

1 cup firm packed light brown sugar

½ cup white wine

½ teaspoon vanilla

In a small saucepan over medium-high heat, combine pears, brown sugar, wine and vanilla. Cook, stirring occasionally until thickened, about 25 minutes. When nearly thick, stir in cherries to heat through. Serve warm in a pretty dish with a ladle for all to spoon on their own cake slice as desired. Have a bowl of whipped cream at hand for dolloping.

Note: You can make this without the cherries, or perhaps add chopped walnuts to the mix if you wish.