Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Butter one side of a sheet of aluminum foil large enough to cover the inside of the pie shell, pressing into place. Weigh the foil down with pie weights or enough dried beans/legumes to cover the bottom of the pie shell. Bake for 10 minutes. Remove from oven, removing foil and whatever was used to weigh it down. (Please note, if you used dried beans or legumes, save them for the next time you wish to “blind bake” a pie crust. They won’t be edible after being used as pie weights.)
In a large bowl, mix the filling ingredients, trying not to froth the mixture.
Pour custard mixture into pie crust. Sprinkle with nutmeg (and cinnamon if using).
Bake for 30 minutes or until a knife inserted near center comes out clean.
Nothing can compare to a warm serving of French Onion Soup…especially if it’s homemade! This recipe has been modified from Julia Child’s French Onion Soup recipe…you can adjust the ingredients to your own tastes.
INGREDIENTS:
5-6 cups of yellow onions, thinly sliced
3 tbsp butter
1 tbsp vegetable oil
1 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar
3 tbsp flour
2 quarts beef stock or beef bouillon
1/2 cup dry white wine or dry white vermouth
Salt and pepper to taste
Rounds of hard-toasted French bread (1/2″ – 3/4″ thick) store purchased or homemade (Rustic Herb Bread (recipe here) is good for this soup)
1 to 2 cups grated mozzarella or 4 cheese Italian blend
It is important to know that (1) sweet onions cannot be used for a good, quality French Onion Soup and (2) it will take 2-3 hours from start to finish. Attempting to rush the preparation will leave you with burnt onions or a sub-par soup.
In a large pot over medium heat, melt butter and oil, then add onions. Reduce heat to low.
Stir onions into oil and butter, then scatter salt and sugar overtop. Allow onions to cook down and caramelize, intensifying flavour and reducing in volume. Once the onions take on a medium caramel colour (this will take 40-50 minutes), add flour and stir to combine. Cook for 1-2 minutes to cook out the raw flour flavour. (The flour will also provide a slight thickening to the soup.)
Ladle in the beef stock/bouillon (you can make your own, use canned, or a stock from paste or cubes…though homemade stock allows you to control the strength, flavour, and sodium). Stir the liquid into the onions after each addition. Once the stock/bouillon has been fully incorporated, add the wine or vermouth, if so desired. (If you choose to cook without alcohol, add an additional 1/2 cup of beef stock.) Season with salt and pepper to your own liking.
Keeping heat on low, allow soup to simmer for 30-45 minutes, allowing flavours to meld. (If you wish, at this point you can allow the soup to cool, uncovered in the refrigerator and then cover and freeze for up to three months. When you’re ready to serve, thaw and bring back to the simmer.)
Use an oven safe serving dish (if making in large volumes) or a oven safe bowl or mug. If making in volume, cover bottom of dish with toasted rounds; if making individual servings, place 1-2 toasted rounds of bread in the bottom of the bowl or mug. Ladle over the French Onion Soup (the toasted bread will float to the top). Scatter shredded cheese over top of soup and bread, and place under a broiler set on low until the cheese melts and browns. Serve immediately. Bon Appetit!
½ cup butter, softened
½ cup brown sugar (packed)
1 egg
1 cup molasses
2 tsp baking soda
1 cup boiling water
3 cups all purpose flour
1 tbsp ground ginger
½ tsp cinnamon
¼ tsp salt
¼ tsp ground cloves
Cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Beat in the egg, again, beating until light and fluffy. Stir in the molasses until incorporated.
Dissolve the baking soda in the boiled water. Set aside.
Sift together the flour, cinnamon, ginger, salt and cloves. Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture, alternately w/ the boiling water. Mix only until blended, making sure not to over mix the batter.
Spoon into a greased 9 inch pan and bake at 350 F 45-55 minutes (until cake tester comes out clean).
Cut into squares and serve warm w/ a lemon sauce (below).
Lemon (or lime, or orange) Sauce:
½ cup sugar
2 tbsp Corn Starch
1 cup water
¼ cup butter
1 tsp lemon peel (finely grated or lime or orange depending upon the citrus you are using just substitute it for the lemon)
¼ cup lemon (or lime, or orange) juice
In small pan bring water to a boil over medium heat. Add the sugar and cornstarch, stirring well to avoid lumps. Reduce heat and stir until mixture is thick and translucent (5 mins.).
Remove from heat and stir in the remaining ingredients until well mixed. Cool slightly and serve over the warm Gingerbread.
1 1/2 cups milk
1 cup warm water (110 degrees F)
2 (.25 ounce) packages active dry yeast
1 tsp sugar
3 eggs
1/2 cup white sugar
1 tsp salt
1/2 cup margarine, softened
2 cups raisins
8 cups all-purpose flour
2 tbsp milk
3/4 cup white sugar
2 tbsp ground cinnamon
Heat the milk in a small saucepan just to a simmer, then remove from heat. Let cool until lukewarm.
Dissolve yeast and 1 tsp sugar in warm water, and set aside until yeast is frothy (proofed). In your mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix together eggs, sugar, butter or margarine, salt, and raisins with the proofed yeast. Stir in cooled milk. Add the flour gradually to make a stiff dough.
Knead dough for three minutes in the mixer, then turn out on a lightly floured surface. If overly sticky, kneed in a little more flour. Be careful not to overwork the dough and develop the gluten, however. Place in a large, greased mixing bowl. Roll the ball around to completely grease the surface of the dough. Cover with a cloth, and place in a draft free area. Allow to rise until doubled, which should take about 45 minutes.
Roll out on a lightly floured surface into a large rectangle 1/2 inch thick. Moisten dough with 2 tablespoons milk. Mix together 3/4 cup sugar and 2 tablespoons cinnamon, and sprinkle mixture on top of the moistened dough. Roll the rectangle up tightly — the finished roll will be about 3″ thick. Divide in half, tucking under the ends. Place loaves into greased 9 x 5 inch pans. Lightly spray the tops of the loaves with cooking spray. Allow to rise again for 30-40 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 350, and bake for 45 minutes, or until loaves are lightly browned and sound hollow when knocked. Remove loaves from pans, and allow to cool before slicing.
1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup unsweetened Dutch Process Cocoa (sifted)
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
3/4 cup milk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 tsp vanilla
5 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped coarsely
2/3 cup dried fruit
Topping
2 tbsp granulated sugar
In a medium bowl, mix together flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt.
In a large bowl, mix together sugar, eggs, milk, oil and vanilla. Mix in dry ingredients and incorporate. Fold in chocolate and dried fruit. Scoop batter into prepared muffin cups.
Sprinkle tops with sugar.
Bake in oven preheated to 375 degrees F for 22 minutes or until tester inserted into center comes out clean. Let muffins cool in a pan on wire rack.
6 large egg yolks
6 tbsp. sugar
1 1/2 cups heavy (whipping) cream or 18% coffee cream
1/2 tsp. good-quality vanilla (I used Madagascar vanilla bean paste, in which you can see the teeny seeds from the vanilla pod)
sugar, for sprinkling on top
Preheat oven to 325°F. In a bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and sugar. Whisk in the cream and vanilla.
Divide among 6 small ramekins, and put them into a roasting pan or 9″x13″ pan; pour water in so that the water comes about halfway up the sides of the ramekins. This will sort of insulate them so that they cook gently and evenly.
Bake for about 40 minutes, until the custards are set but still just slightly jiggly in the middle (you’ll get a feel for this!). Take them out, let them cool and then refrigerate for a few hours or overnight, until nice and cold.
Sprinkle an even layer of sugar over each dish and caramelize with a torch or transfer to a cookie sheet and place under the broiler in the oven for about 2 minutes, just until the sugar is caramelized and golden. Turn the sheet around, if you need to, to help them caramelize evenly. Refrigerate again, or just let them sit on the countertop while you eat dinner or make coffee, just until the sugar is set and crackly.
