Holiday desserts

What separates holiday meals from other family feasts? The wonderful desserts, of course! Create sweet holiday memories with these recipes from Chef Belinda Smith-Sullivan.

RED VELVET CAKE WITH CREAM CHEESE FROSTING

SERVES 12

Cake

2½ cups all-purpose flour

1½ cups sugar

3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa

1 tablespoon baking powder

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1½ cups unsalted butter, melted

1 cup buttermilk

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1½ ounces red food coloring

2 large eggs

Cream Cheese Frosting

1½ pounds cream cheese, softened

5 cups confectioner’s sugar, sifted

1 stick (½ cup) unsalted butter, softened

1½ teaspoons vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 F. Butter and flour the bottom and sides of three 8- or 9-inch cake pans. Set aside.

Cake

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, cocoa, baking powder and salt. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, combine butter, buttermilk, vanilla, food coloring and eggs. Change to the paddle attachment and add the flour ingredients to the wet mixture one-third at a time, mixing until just combined. Divide evenly among the prepared pans. Bake 25–30 minutes until a cake tester inserted in the middle comes out clean. Remove pans from oven and cool in pans for 10 minutes. Remove layers to cooling racks and cool completely, about 1 hour.

Frosting

In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese, sugar and butter on medium-low speed until well blended. Increase speed to high and mix until fluffy, about 5 minutes. Occasionally turn off mixer to scrape down the sides with a spatula. Reduce speed to medium and add vanilla and blend well. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before applying to cake. Frosting can be stored in refrigerator for up to 3 days. (Yields enough for a 3-layer 9-inch cake.)

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Mini molten lava cakes

Mini molten lava cakes

MAKES 4

6 ounces semisweet chocolate

3 large eggs

½ cup sugar

6 ounces unsalted butter, diced

½ teaspoon instant espresso grounds

½ teaspoon cinnamon

_1/3 cup all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon grated orange zest

Confectioner’s sugar, for garnish

Ice cream, optional

Preheat oven to 350 F. Butter four ramekins and set aside on a shallow baking or cookie sheet.

In a medium bowl, melt chocolate in microwave or over a boiling pan of water. While chocolate is melting, in another medium bowl, whisk together eggs and sugar until the mixture takes on a light yellow color, and set aside. To the melted chocolate add butter, espresso and cinnamon and mix until butter is completely melted. Stir chocolate, slowly and continuously, into the egg mixture and mix until smooth. Add flour and zest and mix thoroughly.

Divide mixture evenly into ramekins and bake in preheated oven for 12–15 minutes, or until outside is set and middle is still soft. Remove from oven and let rest for 5 minutes. Flip cakes onto small dessert plates and garnish with confectioner’s sugar. If desired, serve with a scoop of ice cream.

If the center is not as runny as you prefer, shorten cooking time by a few minutes. Even with a cooked center, the cake is very good to eat!

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Chocolate bourbon pecan pie

SERVES 8–10

1 9-inch pie crust (homemade or store-bought)

3 large eggs

1 cup light brown sugar

1 cup light corn syrup

5 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

¼ cup bourbon

½ teaspoon kosher salt

1½ cups pecans, coarsely chopped

¾ cup semisweet or bittersweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 375 F. Place crust in a 9-inch glass pie baking dish. Line crust with parchment paper and weight with pie weights or beans. Bake in the oven for 6–7 minutes. Remove pie shell from oven and remove pie weights and parchment. Allow to cool.

In a medium to large bowl, whisk together eggs, sugar, corn syrup, butter, vanilla, bourbon and salt. Stir in pecans and chocolate chips. Pour into the pie shell and bake for 35–45 minutes or until the sides are firm but the center is still slightly shaky. Do not overcook. Remove from oven and allow to cool. Serve at room temperature or slightly warmed.      

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Cranberry lemon cheesecake

SERVES 12

Crust

1¾ cups graham cracker crumbs

2 tablespoons sugar

4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

Filling

3 8-ounce packages cream cheese

1 cup sugar

4 large eggs

1 teaspoon grated lemon zest

2 tablespoons lemon juice, freshly squeezed

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 cup dried cranberries, coarsely chopped

Topping, Optional

3 cups fresh cranberries, coarsely chopped

1¼ cups sugar

1 cup water

2 tablespoons cornstarch

¼ cup juice, freshly squeezed

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Crust

In a medium bowl, blend cracker crumbs, sugar and butter and press firmly into the bottom of a 9-inch springform pan. Cover the bottom and sides of pan with foil. Place pan in another larger pan. Set aside.

Filling

In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat cream cheese and sugar until fluffy. Beat in eggs one at a time. Add in lemon zest, juice and vanilla and beat until smooth. Reduce speed and fold in cranberries. Pour into the prepared pan. Fill larger pan halfway with water. Bake in preheated oven for 60–70 minutes until barely firm—the center should still be shaky. Turn off oven, leaving door slightly ajar, and cool in oven for 1 hour. Remove from oven. Discard larger pan with water and cool completely in the springform pan on a rack. Cover with foil and refrigerate overnight or at least 8 hours.

Topping

In a large saucepan, combine cranberries, sugar and water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat, simmer uncovered for 3 minutes. Combine cornstarch and lemon juice until smooth and stir into cranberry mixture. Bring to a boil again and cook for 2 minutes or until thickened. Remove from heat; cool to room temperature. Spoon over cheesecake. Refrigerate cheesecake until ready to serve.

To serve cheesecake, remove side of pan and transfer to serving dish. Cheesecake will keep up to one week in the refrigerator; 6–8 months in the freezer. To freeze, wrap tightly with foil and then in plastic wrap or large zip-close bag.

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Chef’s Tips

Adding hot melted chocolate to an egg mixture. Always add gradually so the hot chocolate does not cause the eggs to cook, resulting in scrambled eggs in the cake.

Why cut “domed” tops off cake layers? Removing the dome off the top of your cake layers will make them easier to stack and frost. This is easily done with a serrated knife or a bread knife.

Why sift confectioner’s sugar? Always sift confectioner’s sugar before adding to batter or frosting. Sifting removes lumps, resulting in a smoother finish.

Microwaving citrus. Microwaving lemons and limes for 10–30 seconds (depending on size) accomplishes two goals. One, it helps get more juice out of the citrus, and two, it gets rid of any bacteria on the skin.

Use room temperature eggs. In baking, especially in recipes calling for 2 or more eggs, always bring to room temperature before incorporating into the batter. The eggs will mix better with the batter and rise more easily.

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BELINDA SMITH-SULLIVAN is a chef and food writer with a culinary degree from Johnson & Wales University and is certified in wine studies from the Culinary Institute of America in Napa Valley, Calif. Her articles have been published in several regional magazines and in her blog, “The Flying Foodie.”

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