PecanPIECaken - A Pecan Pie Inside a Maple Dark Chocolate Truffle Cake

I have been wanting to pair up my home-roasted pecans with a flourless chocolate cake for as long as I can remember, but have never got 'round to it for some reason. And then I thought, why not put a pecan pie inside of a flourless dark chocolate cake? This seemed to be the inspiration I needed, because I jumped right to the task without hesitation.

The overall taste was delicious. A rich, fudgy not-to-sweet chocolate cake surrounded a sweet pecan pie. The whole thing was topped with a maple-chocolate glaze, which added a nice, smooth finish to this over-the-top dessert.

Here is how to do it:

1. Make (or buy) a pecan pie.  I prefer to make my pies because the ingredients are all natural - most store-bought pies have all sorts of modified cornstarch and hydrogenated oils in the ingredients, so it is best to just make it. I made this recipe: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchens/p/pe/pec/peca/pecan-pie-recipe.html.  I modified it only by using rum instead of rye and changing the brown sugar to muscovado. I also used an 8" pie plate instead of 9", and I lined the pie plate with parchment paper to make it easier to extract the pie.

2. Prepare the batter for a Maple Flourless Chocolate Cake by doubling the recipe at this link: http://ultimatechocolateblog.blogspot.ca/2013/07/maple-dark-chocolate-truffle-cake.html. You can also use maple syrup instead of maple sugar crystals, or if you don't have any maple syrup, forget it in the cake and use regular granulated sugar.

3. Once you have the batter prepared, then prep a 9" or 10" springform cake pan by lining the bottom with parchment paper and buttering the paper and the sides. Pour half the batter into the bottom of your cake pan. Then flip the pie upside down onto the centre of the batter. Pour the rest of the cake batter on top of the pie.

4. Bake the entire PIECAKEN for 50 minutes to 1 hour in an oven that is pre-heated at 350 degrees Fahrenheit.  With flourless chocolate cakes, it is difficult to tell when they are cooked. But I just scrape back a little of the top see if it looks slightly spongy.  If it is wet and still completely uncooked, add a few more minutes. 

5. Let cool for an hour on a rack on the counter, then refrigerate until completely cooled.

6. Run a knife around the insides of the cake pan and then open and remove the sides. Flip the entire PIECAKEN upside down onto your serving plate.

7. Top with a maple-chocolate glaze (the 'ganache' recipe here) and roasted pecans, or chocolate shavings.

8. Makes 12-16 servings. Remember: this is rich so pieces do not need to be very big!

Enjoy!

Gluten-Free No-Bake Peanut Butter Cheesecake & Chocolate Piecaken

The healthiest PIECAKEN yet!   er...?

This is absolutely delicious. However truthfully, 'healthiest' is probably not the best way to describe this PIECAKEN, but I did make it only with organic coconut sugar (no cane sugar) and with no flour and no gluten, so it seems to fit into all the trendy health-food categories.

Here is my recipe and pictures to show how I did it:

Recipe: No-Bake Peanut Butter Cheesecake & Chocolate Pie PIECAKEN

Ingredients:

For the cookie crust:
1 cup of peanut butter (I used Kraft Natural, but you can use your favourite PB)
1/2 cup of organic coconut sugar (you can use regular granulated sugar, if you want)
1 large egg, lightly beaten with a fork

For the "no bake" cream cheese filling, you need:
1 cup peanut butter
1 pkg cream cheese, softened to room temperature
1.5 cups of whipping cream, whipped and set aside in fridge
2/3 cup of organic coconut sugar (or use regular granulated sugar if you wish)

For the Chocolate Tart filling:
10 ounces of milk chocolate, chopped into 1/2" - 1" inch pieces
3/4 cup of whipping cream

For the Topping:
6 ounces of milk chocolate, chopped
1/2 cup of whipping cream

Tools:

One 9" Springform pan and one 8" pie plate or tart pan (you can use a 4" pie or tart pan like I did (I got an extra tart out of the deal!)

Instructions:

For the cake and tart crusts:

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F
2. In a medium bowl, beat together the peanut butter and sugar until mixed with, then add the egg and stir until combined. Press the mixture into your parchment-lined tart or pie pan and into your cake pan (i.e. you are making a crust for the pie and a crust for the outer cake). If you have chosen to make a small cake, you can make two crusts of each.
3. Bake the crusts for 12 minutes, until it starts to brown, then remove from the oven and let cool while you make all the other ingredients.

For the chocolate tart filling:

1. Place your chopped chocolate into a microwavable bowl. Pour the whipping cream over the chocolate. 
2. Microwave for 2 minutes on half power and then stir until smooth. Pour the filling into the tart crust. Immediately place your tart in the refrigerator and chill until firm.

For the cheese cake filling:

1. In a medium bowl, beat your whipping cream until stiff.  Do not overbeat (if it starts to look a bit bumpy, stop mixing). Set aside in the fridge.
2. Beat your cream cheese in a large bowl until softened and mixed. Add the sugar and beat until fluffy. Be sure to use a spatula to scrape the bottom of the bowl to incorporate any unmixed cream cheese.
3. Add the peanut butter and beat until combined and fluffy.
4. Take your whipped cream out of the fridge and scoop 1/3 of it into the peanut butter/cream cheese and mix with beater on low until combined. Then fold in the remaining whipped cream gently with a spatula.

Assembling the PIECAKEN:

1. Scoop half of the cream cheese mixture into your springform cake pan.
2. Pick up your Chocolate Peanut Butter Tart and carefully remove the pie plate and parchment and then place it on the bottom layer of cream cheese filling, in your cake pan. Press it down a little to ensure the filling surrounds the tart.
3. Scoop the remaining filling on top of the tart and smooth it out.  If you have some left, you can put it in a pastry bag and use it to make designs around the edges of the cake.

Make the topping:

1. Place your chopped milk chocolate into a microwavable bowl and pour the whipping cream on top of it. Microwave on half power for 2 minutes. Take out and stir until smooth. 
2. Pour over the cake and either: let drip down the sides a little or, if you have built up the sides of the cake you can pour it into the centre (see picture to the right for an example).
3. Refrigerate the cake immediately.  Once chilled for 1 hour, you can run a knife around the inside of the springform pan sides and remove them. You can transfer to a serving plate if you think you can do it without breaking the cake. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Additional tips:

• Can be frozen if well sealed.
• Best to keep a lid on this while in the fridge (or in a box wrapped in plastic) in order to keep the cream cheese from getting a thick outer layer.
• For extra chocolaty-ness, you can add a layer of chocolate filling on top of the cookie crust just before adding the cream cheese filling and assembling the PIECAKEN.  I did that and it helped to hold the crust together, but the extra calories certainly are not necessary!

Nearly No-Bake Cheesecake with a Pumpkin Pie Tucked Inside!

This delicious piecake, or PIECAKEN, as I call it, was whipped together in 20 minutes.  You might ask: How can that be?  PIECAKENs normally take hours to make, with hundreds of steps and ingredients!  But no, of course it can take only 20 minutes when you don't need to bake it, and when you buy a store-bought pie. Oops.  Did I really say that out loud? 

That's right folks, the pie was store-bought for this week's creation, but only because I needed to make a super quick dessert, for a sort-of-short-notice kind of dinner party. So I bought the pumpkin pie.  I figured it would be the last of the season and might as well enjoy it now, because it will be 8 months or so until Pumpkin Pie Season is back in full swing. And with some shortbread cookies and an easy, no-bake cheesecake recipe the whole thing came together quickly.

This is delicious. Want to make one? Here is what I did:

1. So I quickly crushed some shortbread cookies (about 2 cups of store bought, or find a recipe here), and mixed them with 1/4 cup of melted butter and 1/4 cup of evenly mixed organic coconut sugar and organic cane sugar, then pressed the mixture into a parchment-lined 8" springform pan. I baked this in a preheated 350 degree oven for 12 minutes, then I let cool on a rack, and finally placed it in the fridge to fully cool.

2. I warmed 2 packaged of cream cheese (250g each, packaging removed) in the microwave for 30 seconds until room temperature.  While doing that I whipped 1.5 cups of whipping cream in my stand mixer until stiff. I transferred the shipping cream to another bowl, and then placed the warmed cream cheese in the stand mixer bowl that I used to whip the whip cream.  I whipped it for about 10 seconds, stopped the mixer, stirred in the bottom bits of cream cheese with a long spatula, and whipped it again for about 15 seconds. 

3. Then I added 2/3 cups of sugar slowly, while whipping on low and stirring with the spatula (stop the mixer to stir if necessary). Then I whipped it on high for about 20 seconds.  Stopped the mixer and stirred again and whipped again until just combined and lightly fluffy.

4. I then added 1 tsp of real vanilla extract and beat until combined (10 seconds), then added in half the whipped cream and whipped on low until combined. I stirred the bottom in and beat again for a few seconds.  Then I took the whole bowl out and slowly folded in the rest of the whipped cream.

5. Next, I placed half the mixture onto my cooked and cooled crust.  Then I took off the pie plate (carefully) and placed the pie, right-side-up, onto the crust and cream cheese mixture.  Next I topped the whole thing off with the rest of the cream cheese mixture.  I used a flower cut-out to sprinkle a mixture of cinnamon and coconut sugar on the top of the cake and let set in the fridge for an hour.  Once ready to serve, I simply cut around the edges with a knife, just inside the sides of the springform pan.  I carefully transferred to a serving plate (although you don't have to) and voila! A PIECAKEN was born.

For a homemade pumpkin pie recipe, click here.

What kind of quick PIECAKEN recipe can you whip up?  Feel free to share in the comments below or tweet me @ultimatelychoc with a picture of your creation!

Blueberry, White Chocolate and Lemon TART-CAKENs

I had some extra lemon buttercream icing on hand recently and to use it up, I decided to design a piecaken that included lemon buttercream. So I pulled out The Flavour Thesaurus (written by Niki Segnit) and looked for lemon pairings.  I looked no further when I saw lemon & blueberry because I make a mean white chocolate and blueberry tart, and I knew that altogether, it would be a great pairing.

So I made mini versions of the blueberry-white chocolate tarts and popped them into vanilla cupcakes, and topped the whole thing with the lemon buttercream.  The end result was delicious! 

Here is the how-to:
Before you start: Start one day in advance to make your lemon buttercream!


Recipe for Blueberry-White Chocolate & Lemon Cupcakes

What you need:

For the lemon icing:

• 1/2 lb of unsalted butter, at room temperature & softened.
• 1/4 cup of canola oil
• 2 cups of sifted icing sugar
• 2 whole lemons with peel on, washed.

For the tart filling:

• 2 cups blueberries
• 1 tbsp. lemon juice
• 1/3 cup of granulated sugar

For the tart dough, see the tart recipe in this Chatelaine recipe, and have these ingredients on hand:

• 1 and 1/4 cup of unbleached all-purpose flour
• 2 tbsp. granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup cold, unsalted butter
• 1 egg yolk

For the cupcake recipe, use a cake package mix or check the ingredients on this recipe.

• 

Instructions:

1. Make the lemon buttercream icing. Start by taking two washed lemons and peeling off large pieces of the skin with a vegetable peeler. Place 2 cups of icing sugar into a bowl and add the lemon rinds to the icing sugar.  Squeeze the juice out of both lemons and add to your icing sugar (through a sifter to get the seeds and pulp out).  Stir until well mixed and the icing sugar is wet.  Let soak overnight. The next day, use a fork to remove the pieces of rind from the icing sugar.  In a separate bowl, beat 1/2 1b of unsalted softened butter until fluffy.  Add 1/4 cup of canola oil and beat again until fluffy, using a spatula to work in the butter. Slowly add the lemon icing sugar and beat until fluffy, being sure to incorporate the butter from the bottom of the bowl with a spatula, so no lumps form. Cover with plastic wrap and set aside until ready to use.

2. Make the crust. Make the crust recipe in this Chatelaine tart recipe for a shortbread tart (I can't give mine away since it is a business secret, but this is close and will work just as well). Then, cut small circles with a round drinking glass and place them into a greased mini cupcake pan, ensuring the tart dough comes up over the sides (the dough can shrink while cooking in the oven, so you want to be sure to have a good ridge for your tart). Bake for 12 to 15 minutes at 350 degrees F or just before they start to brown. Let cool on a cooling wrack for 10 minutes then pop out onto the counter.  If you let these cool completely in the pan, you may have a harder time getting them out.  It is best to take them out while still warm.

3. Cook the blueberry filling. Place 2 cups of frozen blueberries in a small saucepan on the stove. Add 1/3 cup of granulated sugar and 1 tbsp. of lemon juice.  Simmer on the stovetop for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Once done, take off the element and let it cool a bit. Once cooled, scoop small spoonfuls of cooked blueberries into the centre of each tart crust.  Leave a slight ridge (about 1/8" to 1/4") for room for white chocolate. Let cool in the fridge while preparing the white chocolate.

4. Melt the white chocolate. Normally I would use a white chocolate ganache (white chocolate and cream combined) to top this tart, but a ganache would just melt inside the cupcakes, so hardened white chocolate is a better solution. Melt 8 ounces of chopped white chocolate in the microwave for 1 minute and 55 seconds on half power.  Take out and stir until fully melted. Add back into the microwave for only five second intervals if not yet melted and stir until melted. Place in a Ziplock sandwich bag, seal the bag and then cut a small hole in one of the corners.  Through the hole, squeeze white chocolate to fill and seal each blueberry tart. Let cool until the white chocolate hardens (in the fridge if necessary).


5. Make vanilla cupcakes. Use your favourite recipe or a cake mix.  Try this lemon cupcake recipe from the Chatelaine Magazine website, and leave the lemon in or take it out - whatever you like.  Line cupcake pan for medium/large cupcakes with large cupcake papers. Then pour a little batter into the bottom of the cupcake papers, and place a blueberry-white chocolate tart inside and press down.  Scoop more batter on top of the tart to fill in the sides and top.  Bake for 15 minutes in the oven or until the cupcake bounces back when you touch it (a little undercooked may be tastier, as the outside of the cupcake can cook quickly).

6. Ice and serve. Let the cupcakes cool then decorate with icing using a cut piping bag or freezer bag. Top with white chocolate shavings, caramelized lemon zest or fresh blueberries!

'CUP-PAKEN' - Miniature PIECAKENs with a delicious Chocolate and Cherry Combination

What's the cutest dessert you could make this year?  A CUP-PAKEN - that's what!  You may be asking yourself what on earth is a CUP-PAKEN?  It is simply a mini version of a PIECAKEN, which is sometimes also called a 'pake' - so a CUP-PAKEN is a mini pie inside of a cupcake. 

So here is a recipe that will impress all of your friends and family. And stay tuned for more CUP-PAKEN recipes posted to this site in the future.

Recipe: Cherry Pie Inside of a Chocolate Cupcake
Topped with Dark Chocolate Ganache

Before You Start:

• Make your ganache (see recipe below) one day in advance of making your cupcakes. Otherwise you might need a chocolate buttercream recipe or will have to wait a day to ice the cupcakes, but since cupcakes are only fresh for 2 days or so, it is best to make your ganache in advance.
• You will need the following tools for this recipe:  a regular 12-section cupcake pan for your cupcakes, and a mini 12-cup cupcake pan (or just use 12 sections of a 24-section mini cupcake pan) for your mini pies.

Mini Cherry Pies (Makes 12):

You need:

• 50 frozen or fresh (pitted) cherries
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tbsp. corn starch
• 2 tsp cold water

Mini Cherry Pie Instructions:

1. Make the Perfect Pie Crust (find the recipe here).
2. Cut 12 round pieces of pie crust using a small bowl or round 1 cup measuring cup. Cut another 12 smaller round pieces for your top crust (using a 1/4 or 1/3 cup round measuring cup - or any round glass about 2-inches wide). Set aside the smaller pieces.
3. Grease and then sprinkle flour in each section of a mini cupcake pan. Also grease the top of the pan, since each mini-pie crust may hang over a bit.
4. Press the larger circles of pie crust into each mini cupcake container.
5. Bake at 350 degrees F for 10 minutes. They do not need to turn brown, they just need to be cooked a little bit just to firm the crusts.
6. In a medium mixing bowl, mix together the cherries, sugar, cinnamon and the cornstarch-water mixture.
7. With a small spoon, scoop 3 or 4 cherries from the mixture into each mini pie shell. Place your small rounds of pie crust on top of each cherry pie.  Use a fork to poke holes in the top of the crust.
8. You can seal the top and bottom crusts together by brushing on an egg wash (1 egg yolk whisked with 2 tbsps. water, milk or cream) and brush the egg wash over the top of the crust also to crisp and brown the pies. Although this is not necessary if you are putting the pies into the cupcakes. 
9. Bake in the oven for 25 to 30 minutes at 350 F (until they are sizzling and browning slightly on top).
10. Once cooked, place on a cooling rack and let cool for 1/2 hour and then pop out each mini pie onto the cooling rack.

While your mini pies are cooling, make your cupcake batter:


Chocolate Cupcakes:

You need:

• 1 cup of unbleached flour
• 1/3 cup  of sifted cocoa powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup of granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup of canola oil
• 1/2 cup of sour cream

Cupcake Batter Instructions:

1. Place the dry ingredients in a mixing bowl and mix until all ingredients are dispersed.
2. Add the canola oil and mix again until the mixture is dampened.
3. Add the eggs and beat until the mixture is mixed and lump free.
4. Stir or briefly beat in the sour cream until combined.
5. Line your cupcake pan with 12 cupcake papers.

Assemble the CUP-PAKENs:

1. Place your batter in a pastry bag and cut a small hole in the end (or place it in a large freezer zipper bag and cut a small hole in one corner).
2. Place a small amount of batter into the bottom of each cupcake paper, just to cover the bottom with a layer of about 1/4" to 1/2" thick.
3. Pick up your mini pies and press each one into the cupcake batter.
4. Pour a little more cupcake batter onto the top of each mini pie and fill in around the edges, and then smooth out the top (see the photo on the right for a visual guide).
5. Bake at 350 degrees F for 15 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.  Do not over-bake.
6. Let cool completely on a cooling rack. This will take longer than regular cupcakes take to cool, since there is a small pie inside. Ice these once they are cooled and consume within 2 days or freeze in an airtight container until ready to eat.

Dark Chocolate Ganache Recipe:

You need:

• 1 cup of whipping cream
• 8 ounces of semi-sweet dark chocolate (chocolate with anywhere between 50% and 65% cocoa solids will do), chopped into 1/2 to 1 inch cubes.

Instructions:

1. Place your chocolate in a stainless steel or glass bowl.
2. Place your whipping cream in a small saucepan on the stovetop. 
3. Bring the cream to a near-boil (not boiling) on medium-high heat.
4. Immediately pour the cream over the chocolate and stir with a wooden spoon until smooth.
5. Cover with an airtight lid or seal with plastic wrap and let rest on the counter overnight or for 8 hours.
6. Place in a piping bag to decorate your cupcakes.  If it is too stiff, you can massage the bag with your hands until the ganache is soft enough to use. Alternately, you can whip this ganache with a hand mixer or stand mixer until fluffy. Pipe onto the cupcakes or simply use a spatula to ice the cupcakes.



Whipped Dark Chocolate Ganache

 

Vanilla Bean & Peach PIECAKEN Recipe

A Fresh Peach Pie inside a Vanilla Cake with Vanilla Bean Icing

This Vanilla Bean & Peach PIECAKEN sold out at a local restaurant within just 2 hours.  With fresh, ripe Ontario peaches, this cake was timed to take advantage of Ontario's peach season. It was delicious, so why not surprise your friends and family and try it at home!  Here is the recipe:

What you need:

For the pie:

• 4 to 6 cups of sliced peaches
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 3/4 of a cup of granulated sugar (raw or white)
• 1 tbsp. lemon juice
• 1 tbsp. cornstarch and 1 - 2 tsp cold water
• The Perfect Pie Crust, see recipe here.

For the cake (if not using a store-bought cake mix):

• 3  cups of unbleached all purpose flour
• 1.5 cups of granulated sugar (raw or white)
• 3 tsp baking soda
• 1 cup of canola oil
• 6 eggs
• 1.5 cups of sour cream

For the Vanilla Bean Buttercream Icing:

• 1 lb unsalted butter (at room temperature)
• 1/2 bag of icing sugar (or the small bag)
• 1 to 2 tsp. of real vanilla extract
• 1 tsp ground vanilla bean or the scrapings from 1 or 2 large vanilla pods

PIECAKEN MAKING TIP before you begin: If you have a 9-5 kind of job, and you need this cake for a party on Saturday, make your pie on Thursday night, then bake the cake (with the pie inside of it) on Friday night, and ice it on Saturday morning.  If the cake is for Friday night, make your pie on Wednesday.

Instructions to Make the Peach Pie:

1. Make the Perfect Piecrust. Remember to line your 9" pie plate with parchment paper. Grease, with lard or butter, under the parchment (to stick the parchment to the plate) and over the parchment paper.
2. Place a large round of pie crust on the parchment paper in the pie plate. Trim the sides as needed (they should hang over a little bit, as they will shrink).
3. Precook your bottom crust for 10 minutes and let cool.
4. Place 4-6 cups of sliced peaches in a bowl.  Add the cinnamon, sugar and lemon juice and stir. 
5. Mix 1 tbsp. of corn starch with 1.5 tsp water and pour over peaches.  Stir until mixed.
6. Pour your peach mixture into the prepared pie crust.
7. Roll out another round piece of pie crust and cut a circle large enough to cover the pie and the sides.
8. Use egg wash (1 yolk whisked with 1 tbsp. of cream and 1 tbsp. of water) to seal the edges together by brushing the top and bottom, then brush the top of the crust all over.
9. Use a fork to stab several holes into the top crust to let the pie breath.
10. Bake at 350 degrees F for 45 to 50 minutes.
11. Remove from the oven and place on a cooling rack. Let cool for 1/2 to 1 hour while you prepare the cake. Or let cool overnight and make the cake the following day.

To make the Vanilla Cake:

Tips before you bake:

• You can use a cake mix from the store, but note, you will need at least two boxes, and you will need to cook it for about the same amount of time.
• The cake takes a long time in the oven and a very long time to cool. So plan accordingly because you cannot ice it until it is cool.

Instructions:

• Prepare a 10- or 10.5-inch springform pan, by lining it with parchment paper and greasing both the parchment and the sides of the pan.
• Place your flour, sugar, and baking soda in a mixing bowl and stir until combined.
• Add the canola oil and, using your hand mixer or stand mixer, mix for about 30 seconds until your mix is crumbly and damp.
• Add the eggs all at once and mix until combined, being sure to stir the bottom and incorporate any dry bits. Mix again until smooth.
• Add the sour cream and mix for just 10 to 30 seconds until combined.
• Pour 1/2 the mix into the bottom of the pan so that you have at least a 1/2-inch layer.
• Pick up your pie.  If you are able to remove the pie plate, do so.  If not, simply flip the pie upside down into the batter. Centre the pie and then remove the parchment paper.
• Pour the rest of the batter onto the pie and spread it around and into the cracks in the side. Jiggle the cake a bit to ensure the batter is even and level.
• Bake for 1 hour. Then check to be sure the sides are not burning. You make want to cover with foil at this point to prevent the cake from browning too much. Bake for up to one half hour more.  Keep checking it with a knife in the centre and remove it from oven when the knife comes out clean (or nearly clean, as you may never reach the "clean" point).
• Let cool on a rack on the counter until nearly cool.  Run a knife around the cake edges, then release the springform pan. Cover with plastic wrap and place in fridge.  If you have your icing ready, you can place a very thin crumbcoat on the cake to prevent it from drying. Refrigerate the cake until chilled.
• Flip the cake upside down onto a serving plate (this will put your pie right-side-up).

To make the Vanilla Bean Buttercream Icing:

1. Beat 1 lb of unsalted, room temperature butter until fluffy (stirring often).
2. Slowly add in 1/2 bag of sifted icing sugar. Beat, stir, and continue beating until fluffy. 
3. Add 1 tsp (or more to taste) of real vanilla extract and 1 tsp of ground vanilla beans or the scrapings from 1 or 2 large vanilla beans. Beat again just until mixed.  Ice immediately or cover with plastic wrap and leave at room temperature until you are ready to ice the cake.
4. Ice the cake however you wish, and then place it back in the fridge.

Once iced, be sure to chill your cake in the fridge until you are ready to serve. Out of the fridge, the pie will squish quickly, so it is important to keep it refrigerated.

Serves 12 to 16 people.

Enjoy!