Black Forest Brownie Pie

Yield: 8 servings

Chocolate Crust
24 chocolate wafers
3 tablespoons butter or margarine, melted

Filling
1/4 cup butter or margarine, melted
2 (1 ounce) squares unsweetened chocolate, melted
2/3 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
1/4 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup chopped nuts

Frosting
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips
2 teaspoons whipping cream
1 can cherry pie filling

Chocolate Crust: Finely crush chocolate wafers to make 1 1/4 cups crumbs; pour into a 9-inch pie pan. Mix with 3 tablespoons melted butter or margarine and press firmly over pan bottom and up side. Bake at 350 degrees F until darker brown at rim, 8 to 10 minutes. Cool.

Combine butter, chocolate, sugar, egg, milk and vanilla extract; beat well. Add flour and nuts; beat well. Spread batter into crust. Bake at 350 degrees F until top looks dry and feels firm when gently touched, 18 to 20 minutes. Cool.

Spread top with frosting. When frosting is cool, transfer cherries from can with a slotted spoon to top dessert.

Frosting: In a 1- to 1 1/2-quart pan over low heat, stir baking chips with whipping cream just until smooth. Use warm.

Berry Cheesecake Pie

Source: Family Circle – 3/4/03

Makes 12 servings.

Crust
3 cups finely ground graham crackers (about 18 boards)
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) butter, melted

Filling
3 tablespoons raspberry- or strawberry-flavored gelatin
1/3 cup water
12 ounces cream cheese, softened
1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
3/4 cup heavy cream
1 cup (4 ounces) shaved milk chocolate

Garnish
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
2 tablespoons raspberry- or strawberry-flavored liqueur
1/4 cup fresh raspberries or halved strawberries

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Crust: In large bowl, stir together graham cracker crumbs and butter until crumbs are evenly moistened. Press crumb mixture over bottom and up sides of 9-inch glass pie plate. Bake for 10 minutes. Transfer the pie dish to a wire rack; let cool.

Filling: In small saucepan, sprinkle gelatin over the water; let stand until gelatin is softened, about 3 minutes. Heat over medium-low heat until gelatin is melted and liquid is clear, about 3 minutes. Let cool slightly.

In large bowl, beat cream cheese until smooth and creamy, about 1 minute. Add sweetened condensed milk; beat until smooth. On low speed, drizzle in gelatin mixture. Increase to medium-high speed; beat 2 minutes or until smooth.

In medium-size bowl, beat the 3/4 cup heavy cream on medium speed until foamy. Increase speed to medium-high; beat until soft peaks form. Gently fold whipped cream and shaved chocolate into cream cheese mixture. Spoon into crust. Refrigerate 4 hours or until firm.

Garnish: In medium-size bowl, beat together the 1/2 cup heavy cream and sugar until soft peaks form. Drizzle in the liqueur; beat on medium high speed until stiff peaks form. Gently spoon the whipped cream mixture into a pastry bag fitted with a star tip. Pipe rosettes decoratively on top of the cheesecake. Garnish the top of the cheesecake with the raspberries or strawberries.

Nutrient value per serving: 560 calories; 39 g fat (23 g saturated); 8 g protein, 48 g carbohydrate; 1 g fiber; 282 mg sodium; 109 mg cholesterol

Sweet Potato Pie with Pecan Topping

1 (9-inch) unbaked pie shell
1 pound sweet potatoes, cooked and peeled
1/4 cup butter or margarine
1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
1 teaspoon grated orange rind
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 eggs

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

In a large mixing bowl, beat hot sweet potatoes with butter until smooth. Add remaining ingredients except pie shell and Pecan Topping ingredients; mix well. Pour into pie shell.

Bake for 30 minutes. Remove from oven; spoon Pecan Topping evenly over top. Bake 20 to 25 minutes longer or until golden brown. Cool.

Pecan Topping
1 egg
3 tablespoons dark corn (Karo) syrup
3 tablespoons light brown sugar, firmly packed
1 tablespoon butter or margarine, melted
1/2 teaspoon maple flavoring
1 cup chopped pecans

In small mixing bowl, combine egg, corn syrup, brown sugar, butter or margarine and maple flavoring; mix well. Stir in chopped pecans.

Pistachio Banana Cream Cheese Pie

1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup vegetable shortening
1 egg
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 ripe bananas, mashed
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup chopped pistachio nuts, divided
3 ounces cream cheese
2 tablespoons confectioners’ sugar
2 tablespoons semisweet chocolate chips, melted

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Coat a 9-inch pie plate with nonstick cooking spray.

In a large bowl, with an electric beater, cream together the granulated sugar and shortening until light and fluffy. Add the egg and beat thoroughly. Gradually blend in the flour, baking soda, and salt. Beat in the mashed bananas and vanilla extract until smooth. Fold in 3/4 cup of the chopped pistachios. Spread the mixture into the pie plate. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until a wooden pick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cool for 30 minutes.

In a medium bowl, beat the cream cheese and confectioners’ sugar until fluffy. Spread evenly over the top. Drizzle with the melted chocolate and sprinkle with the remaining 1/4 cup pistachios.

S’Mores Truffle Pie

1 graham cracker pie crust
2/3 cup whipping cream
12 ounces semisweet chocolate chunks
2 cups miniature marshmallows
1/4 cup milk
8 ounces whipped topping, thawed, or 2 half-pints
    whipping cream, whipped

Microwave 2/3 cup whipping cream in bowl on HIGH for 1 1/2 minutes. Add chocolate; let stand 2 minutes. Whisk until chocolate is melted and smooth. Pour into crust; refrigerate 30 minutes.

In separate bowl, microwave marshmallows and milk on HIGH for 1 1/2 minutes, stirring after 1 minute. Refrigerate for 15 minutes.

Stir in whipped topping or whipped cream. Spread over chocolate mixture in pie crust. Refrigerate 3 hours.

Sprinkle with marshmallows, chocolate shavings, miniature chips or cocoa powder to garnish.

Peanut Butter Pie

5 heaping tablespoons creamy peanut butter
12 ounces cream cheese (at room temperature)
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups confectioners’ sugar
1 regular size container frozen whipped topping, thawed
1 prepared chocolate graham cracker pie crust

Mix all ingredients together with an electric mixer. Put into pie crust. Cool in refrigerator for several hours or overnight.

Garnish with shaved dark chocolate.

Frozen Pina Colada-Cream Cheese Pie

3 ounces cream cheese, softened
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1/2 cup milk
1 cup (8 ounces) crushed pineapple in juice, drained, divided
1 1/3 cups (3 1/2 ounces) Baker’s Angel Flake coconut
3 1/2 cups (8 ounces) thawed Cool Whip
1 (9-inch) graham cracker crumb crust

Combine cream cheese, sugar, milk, 1/2 cup of the pineapple and the coconut in blender. Cover and blend at medium speed for 30 seconds. Fold into whipped topping. Spoon into crust. Freeze until firm, about 4 hours.

Let stand at room temperature 5 minutes (or longer for softer texture) before cutting. Garnish with remaining pineapple. Store any leftover pie in freezer.

Cut into wedges. Garnish with pineapple and cherries if desired.