THANKSGIVING SAMPLER

It's been a while since my last post. I think my pregnancy has temporarily stumped my creativity in the kitchen. I expect that along with the arrival of my little one, will also come the inspiration to try out some new and tasty recipes.

However, as Thanksgiving is here, I couldn't let it pass me by without spending some time in the kitchen working on a few dishes of my own. While I won't be going to the full extent of my usual turkey day spread, I did nominate myself to be in charge of desserts. My Thanksgiving dessert sampler includes Pumpkin Souffle Bread Pudding, Chocolate Pecan Pie and Cinnamon Rum Ice Cream.

I hope you enjoy these recipes and wishing you and your families a Happy Thanksgiving!

PUMPKIN SOUFFLE BREAD PUDDING

I was told that where I was headed for Thanksgiving this year, there was a chance there might not be any pumpkin pie. If there is one thing I have to have on Thanksgiving, it's pumpkin. Since I had already decided on bringing a dessert sampler, that included cinnamon rum ice cream and chocolate pecan pie, I thought that another pie may be redundant. So I started my search for an alternative pumpkin recipe. I came across the following recipe from Charles Phan of the famed Slanted Door restaurant here in San Francisco and thought it would be a good balance to my other two desserts. It could also be made ahead and seemed quite simple to put together.

Pumpkin Souffle Bread Pudding

1 cup whole milk
1 cup heavy cream
9 ounces brioche cubes, crusts removed and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
3 1/2 ounces (7 T) butter
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 t cinnamon
Pinch of nutmeg
4 egg yolks
1 cup pumpkin purée, at room temperature
2 egg whites
1 T sugar
1/2 t salt

Preheat oven to 375°F.

In a small saucepan, bring milk and cream to a simmer over low heat. Place brioche cubes in bowl. Remove milk mixture from heat and pour half of the liquid over the brioche.

In a mixer, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add cinnamon, nutmeg, and egg yolks, beating well. Add pumpkin purée and the other half of the heated cream and milk.

Fold the soaked brioche into the pumpkin mixture. Beat the egg whites and sugar until they form stiff peaks and gently fold into the batter. Butter and sugar 8 three-inch ramekins, then divide batter evenly among ramekins. Bake for 25 minutes, or until knife comes out clean. Baked brioches can be wrapped and kept in the refrigerator for up to 3 days, then heated in the oven wrapped in foil or microwaved until warm.

CINNAMON RUM ICE CREAM

I was torn between a cinnamon or rum raisin ice cream to top off my Thanksgiving desserts. Cinnamon could be too sweet for my already rich desserts and rum raisin can be hit or miss with a crowd. I combined the two recipes, with the thought that the rum would give some bite to the cinnamon, reducing the sweetness and omitted the raisins in an effort to please most tastes.

I researched a lot of recipes and reviews and became concerned that the large quantity of cinnamon can sometimes create a granular texture. I therefore reduced the amount of ground cinnamon in my recipe and steeped a few whole cinnamon sticks in the cream mixture to create an intense cinnamon flavor.

Cinnamon Rum Ice Cream

6 large egg yolks
1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream, divided
1 1/2 cups whole milk
3/4 cup sugar
Pinch of salt
2 T dark rum
1 t ground cinnamon
2 whole cinnamon sticks

Whisk egg yolks to blend in medium metal bowl. Pour 1 cup cream into another medium bowl; set fine strainer over bowl with cream. Whisk milk, sugar, pinch of salt, 1/2 cup cream and cinnamon sticks in heavy medium saucepan; bring to simmer, stirring until sugar dissolves. Remove from heat and let cinnamon sticks steep 30 minutes to 1 hour.

Return pan to heat and bring to a simmer. Gradually whisk hot milk mixture into egg yolks. Return mixture to same saucepan and stir constantly over medium-low heat until custard thickens slightly and instant-read thermometer inserted into custard registers 160°F to 170°F (do not boil), about 5 minutes. Remove cinnamon sticks from pan and place into bowl with cold cream. Pour custard through strainer set over bowl with cream. Whisk mixture to blend; then whisk in rum and ground cinnamon. Chill custard until cold, about 2 hours or overnight.

Remove custard from refrigerator and discard cinnamon sticks. Process custard in ice cream maker according to manufacturer's instructions. Transfer ice cream to container. Cover; freeze until firm, at least 4 hours or overnight.

CHOCOLATE PECAN PIE

With the growing popularity of southern, home style restaurants opening up, I've noticed a lot of dessert menus offering Pecan Pie. I have only tried it a few times, but it is a southern classic and thought it would be something new to add to my Thanksgiving menu and collection of sweets.

Considering my lack of exposure to Pecan Pie, the one thing I do know from the few times I tried it, is that it is extremely sweet. If I was going to attempt this dessert, I was determined to find a recipe that had a balance of nutty and sweet flavor. I searched high and low. I found some that incorporated chocolate in the crust and my first hypothesis to balance the sweetness was to use a good quality bittersweet chocolate to line the shell. I also did a lot of research on light versus dark corn syrup, chopping or not chopping and toasting or not toasting the nuts. I combined several different recipes into one and think I came up with quite a successful pecan pie.

Now, I just have to figure out the correct pronunciation before I serve it. I have always referred to these delicate nuts as puh-cahns, but with this recipe I'm going with the good ol' South and calling this my Chocolate PEE-CAN Pie.

Chocolate Pecan Pie

1 (3 1/2- to 4-ounces) fine-quality bittersweet chocolate bar, finely chopped
2 cups pecan halves, roughly chopped*
3 large eggs
1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
2 T melted butter
1 T all purpose flour
1 t pure vanilla extract
1/4 t salt
3/4 cup dark corn syrup
Pastry Dough (see below)

*Optional-Reserve about 1/2 cup pecan halves (do not chop) and use to decorate the top layer of the pie, after the filling is poured into the pie shell. See photo.

Preheat oven to 375°F with rack in middle.

Melt chocolate in a metal bowl set over barely simmering water, stirring. Remove from heat.

Roll out dough into a 13-inch round on a lightly floured surface with a lightly floured rolling pin. Fit into a 9-inch pie plate. Trim excess dough, leaving a 1/2-inch overhang. Fold overhang under and press against rim of pie plate, then crimp decoratively.

Spread chocolate in bottom of pie shell with back of spoon and let it set.

Whisk together eggs, brown sugar, melted butter, flour, vanilla, and salt in a bowl. Whisk in corn syrup. Add chopped pecans. Pour filling into pie crust. Decorate with reserved pecan halves if desired.

Bake pie until filling is puffed and crust is golden, 50 to 60 minutes. (If pie is browning too fast after 30 minutes, loosely cover with foil.) Cool pie on a rack to warm or room temperature.

Pastry Dough

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
Rounded teaspoon salt
1 t sugar
1 stick cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
3 to 5 T ice water

Blend together flour, salt, sugar, and butter with your fingertips or a pastry blender (or pulse in a food processor) just until mixture resembles coarse meal with some small (roughly pea-size) butter lumps. Drizzle with 3 tablespoons ice water and gently stir with a fork until incorporated.

Squeeze a small handful: If it doesn't hold together, add more ice water, 1/2 tablespoon at a time, stirring (or pulsing) until just incorporated, then test again. (Don't overwork, or pastry will be tough.)

Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface and divide into 4 portions. With heel of your hand, smear each portion once or twice in a forward motion to distribute fat. Gather dough together, with a pastry or bench scraper if you have one, and form into a 6-inch disk. Chill, wrapped in plastic wrap, until firm, at least 1 hour.