OUT WEST: Food & Lifestyle

Dessert

Apple Bourbon Peach Pie

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Apple Bourbon Peach Pie is loaded with fresh, juicy peaches and a hint of Jim Beam Apple Bourbon then baked to perfection in an all butter crust.

Let’s face it, peaches and bourbon go hand in hand. I mean who wouldn’t love sweet juicy peaches soaked in sugary Jim Beam Apple Bourbon? Pair that with the flaky all butter crust and you have the perfect summer pie.

We like to head east of the mountains to get our fresh peaches by the box. Yes, layers of huge, juicy peaches just picked from the trees of Eastern Washington. I can never wait until we get them home. One bite and it’s dripping all the way down your arm. It’s peach perfection.

Once you do get them home. Apple Bourbon Peach Pie is a cinch to make! Of course, you could omit the Jim Beam Apple Bourbon and make a simple peach pie. It’s just as tasty. But, if you happen to have it on hand, I would suggest trying it. It adds that little bit of extra goodness to your pie.

Why All Butter?

Butter = Flaky It’s that simple.

Everyone has their favorite crust. My mom uses Crisco, some people use a blend of shortening and butter, but I prefer straight butter. I feel butter gives an extra flaky crust with the best natural flavor. Shortening seems to have a less desirable after taste.

Tips to make your pie crust a success:

  • Use cold butter
  • Grate butter
  • Use very cold water
  • Work quickly
  • Avoid over mixing
Peaches coated in apple bourbon glaze in all butter pie crust
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Apple Bourbon Peach Pie

Juicy peaches gently coated in a sweet apple bourbon glaze and layered ever so perfectly in an all butter crust
Course Dessert
Cuisine Dessert
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 45 minutes
Resting Time 1 hour
Servings 8

Ingredients

Filling

  • 7 very large peaches pitted, sliced and peeled (or not peeled either is good)
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 cup Jim Beam Apple Bourbon
  • 5 tbsp flour
  • 2 ½ cup flour
  • 2 sticks salted butter, grated 1 cup
  • ½ tsp sugar
  • 2-8 tbsp very cold water
  • Other:
  • 1 egg blended for brushing over crust

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
  • In a large bowl, combine filling ingredients and let sit while you make the crust. (You want enough peaches to mound up because they will shrink when cooked)
  • Combine flour and sugar in a large bowl.
  • Cut in butter ¼ cup at a time until mixture resembles crumbs.
  • Add cold water and form into a ball.
  • Seperate ball into two (I like to make one ball slightly bigger than the other for the bottom crust.
  • Wrap balls in saran wrap and refrigerate for about 10 minutes or so to help with rolling out.
  • Throw some flour on your board or counter and roll out dough. Place bottom piece in pie pan and mold edges.
  • Place filling in pie dish.
  • Place top crust over or make lattice, whatever makes you happy.
  • Brush with blended egg.
  • Place foil over crust edge to keep from burning, make sure to tent it and not press against the crust.
  • Bake at 450 degrees for about 45 minutes or until golden and bubbly.

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Peppermint Mocha Cake

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Peppermint Mocha Cake is a festive dessert sure to satisfy your sweet tooth. Rich, chocolate espresso cake topped with creamy mint frosting and crushed candy canes.

Peppermint Mocha Cake is a festive dessert sure to satisfy your sweet tooth. Rich, chocolate espresso cake topped with creamy mint frosting and crushed candy canes.
Chocolate espresso cake with creamy mint glaze and crushed candy canes

What Inspires You?

Inspiration comes from many places, our surroundings, people we meet, our daily activities. Often, as a recipe creator, I get a little uninspired. Some weeks the ideas just flow in out of no where and other times…nada.

This Peppermint Mocha Cake is inspired from a holiday favorite @Starbucks Peppermint Mocha. I start off with a rich, chocolate espresso cake that is super moist from the addition of milk in the mix. Then I like to drizzle over cream cheese frosting that has a hint of mint extract running through it. Topped off with, yes, candy canes that are crushed for that extra special Christmas touch. It’s your favorite holiday drink in a CAKE!

B.T.W. – I know a certain someone who ate this entire cake to themselves.

Ingredients

  • Chocolate Cake Mix – Grab your favorite box mix from the grocery. Look for one with pudding in the mix for extra moisture.
  • Espresso Instant Coffee – Medaglia D’oro is a little glass jar of instant espresso powder and it is pretty amazing.
  • Eggs – Large eggs, preferably farm fresh.
  • Milk – Whole milk for a richer flavor.
  • Vegetable Oil – I don’t use vegetable oil for much these days, but it’s what you need for this recipe.
  • Cream Cheese Frosting – Whipped cream cheese frosting goes on easier.
  • Mint Extract– A little goes a long way with mint extract.
  • Candy Cane – One regular sized mint candy cane, crushed.

Preparation

  1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees and grease your bundt pan.
  2. Combine cake mix, espresso instant coffee, eggs, milk and vegetable oil.
  3. Bake for 40 – 45 minutes until edge of cake just pulls away from bundt pan. Remove from oven and rest until cool to the touch.
  4. Gently turn bundt cake upside down and remove to serving plate.
  5. Heat cream cheese frosting in microwave for about 20 seconds, stir in mint extract, combine well.
  6. Pour frosting over prepared cake and top with crushed candy cane.
Peppermint Mocha Cake is a festive dessert sure to satisfy your sweet tooth. Rich, chocolate espresso cake topped with creamy mint frosting and crushed candy canes.
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Peppermint Mocha Cake

Rich, chocolate espresso cake, creamy mint glaze and crushed candy canes
Course Dessert
Cuisine Dessert
Keyword bundt cake, Candy Cane Cake, Chocolate Cake, Christmas Dessert, Holiday Dessert
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 45 minutes
Servings 8

Equipment

  • Bundt pan, greased

Ingredients

Cake

  • 1 15.25 oz chocolate cake mix with pudding
  • 1/4 cup espresso instant coffee
  • 3 eggs
  • 1 1/2 cup milk
  • 1/2 cup vegetable oil

Glaze

  • 1 16 oz cream cheese frosting
  • 1/8 tsp mint extract
  • 1 large candy cane, crushed (place in Ziplock and smash until crushed)

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 325 degrees for a greased bundt pan.
  • Mix together cake ingredients. Pour into greased bundt pan and bake for 40-45 minutes.
  • Remove from oven and let rest until bundt pan is cool to the touch.
  • Turn upside down and remove cake.
  • Heat cream cheese frosting container in microwave for 20 seconds, until just softened, but not liquid. Add mint extract and stir well.
  • Pour frosting over prepared cake. Top with crushed candy canes.

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Individual Blackberry Pies

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Fresh picked blackberries come together in a personal size blackberry pie with an all butter crust and vanilla bean ice cream. Simplicity at it’s best.

Time to Get Picking Blackberries

I have the fondest memories of my grandfather out back picking bowls of blackberries. He would spend hours picking these blackberries because, of course, you have to get them while they are good. When he brought them back to the house, my mother would whip up one of her famous blackberry pies and we would eat it warm from the oven with vanilla ice cream.

All About The Crust

I’ve tried sooo many different ways to make crust and have settled on ALL BUTTER. People try too hard when making pie crust. It really just needs to be simple and all butter is the way to go for the flakiest crust. I like taking a very cold stick of butter and grating it straight into the bowl of flour. Then, very gently, crumble the butter and flour into crumbs. Add very cold water a little at a time until dough forms. It’s that simple.

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Individual Blackberry Pies

Fresh picked blackberries come together with an all butter crust in your own individual ramekin. No need to share, it's all you!
Course Dessert
Cuisine Dessert
Keyword Blackberry Pie, Blackberry Cobbler, Personal Pie
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 45 minutes
Servings 4

Ingredients

  • 4 cups fresh picked blackberries
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1/3 cup flour

Pie Crust ( Makes 4 ramekin size top crusts )

  • 1 1/2 cup flour
  • 1 tbsp sugar
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 stick butter grated
  • 1/2 cup very cold water

Instructions

  • Combine blackberries, flour and sugar in a large bowl and let sit.
  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  • Divide blackberry mixture into four individual ramekins and top each with dough.
  • Bake at 350 degrees for about 45 minutes or until nice and golden brown.

Pie Crust

  • Combine flour, sugar and salt together. Mix grated butter into dry mixture, crumbling with your fingers. Add cold water until dough forms. Dust counter top very lightly with flour. Roll out dough and cut four circles slightly larger than ramekins.

Tiramisu Pie

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Rich and creamy rum laced Tiramisu Pie with chocolate espresso crust.

Are you thinking about Valentine’s Day yet? I know I am. When I think of Valentine’s Day dessert I think of three things: rich, creamy and chocolate like this Tiramisu Pie. Chocolate espresso crust, run infused filling, espresso cream topping and crushed chocolate covered espresso beans. Yep, that hits all the must haves for celebrating with my husband.

Rich and creamy rum laced Tiramisu Pie with chocolate espresso crust.
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Tiramisu Pie

Course Dessert
Cuisine Dessert
Keyword Pi Day, tiramisu, Valentine’s Day
Prep Time 30 minutes
Chill time 1 hour
Servings 12

Ingredients

Crust:

  • 1 9 oz pkg Nabisco Chocolate Wafer crushed
  • 6 Tbsp Melted Butter
  • 1 Tbl Espresso Powder

Filling:

  • 1 3.5 oz pkg white chocolate pudding mix
  • 1 ¾ cup heavy cream
  • 1 8 oz pkg cream cheese
  • 2 Tbsp full fat sour cream
  • ¼ cup powdered sugar
  • ¼ cup rum

Topping:

  • 2 cup heavy cream
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 2 tsp espresso powder
  • ¼ cup sugar

Garnish:

  • 2 tsp espresso powder
  • ¼ cup ground chocolate/white chocolate covered espresso beans

Instructions

Crust:

  • Melt butter in saucepan
  • Mix espresso powder and wafers together
  • Pour butter over wafers
  • Press into deep pie dish and partially up sides
  • Bake at 350 degrees for about 7 minutes
  • Set aside to cool

Filling:

  • Mix ingredients together, one at a time, with mixer until thick and creamy
  • Spoon mixture over wafer crust
  • Chill in fridge for about an hour

Topping:

  • Mix on high speed all ingredients until stiff peak form
  • Spread over filling mixture, pulling up to make swirled peaks

Garnish:

  • Sprinkle espresso powder over topping
  • Sprinkle chocolate covered espresso beans over powder
  • Chill in fridge until ready to serve

Polish Babka Rumowa

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Christmas traditions start with this Polish Rum Cake. These sugary, rum soaked yellow cakes are easy to make and will make everyone come back for more.

Sugary rum soaked mini yellow cakes

Buttery, yellow cake soaked in a sweet, sugary dark rum glaze with delicate minced walnuts crusting the top. That is Polish Rum Cake and our family Christmas tradition.

As long as I can remember my mother has made rum cake for Christmas. I used to feel so very grown up eating this cake, a special privilege to be eating something soaked in rum. Kinda like I was breaking the rules. Yes, it’s that good! One bite into this rich buttery cake and you’ll be in heaven. It’s unlike anything you’ve ever tasted. Are you ready?

Sugary rum soaked mini yellow cakes
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Polish Rum Cake

Prep Time10 mins
Cook Time25 mins
Total Time35 mins
Course: Dessert
Servings: 12 mini cakes

Ingredients

  • 1 pkg yellow cake mix with butter
  • 1 small package vanilla pudding
  • ½ cup butter softened
  • 3 eggs
  • ½ cup water
  • ½ cup dark rum
  • ½ cup walnuts minced

Glaze:

  • ½ cup Butter
  • ½ cup Brown Sugar
  • ½ cup Dark Rum

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  • Butter 2-3 mini bundt cake mold pans (6 mini cakes per mold).
  • Place about a ½-¾ tsp. walnuts in bottom of each cake mold.
  • Mix yellow cake mix, vanilla pudding, softened butter, eggs, water and rum together with an electric mixer.
  • Pour into buttered molds and bake about 25 minutes or until golden brown.
  • Make glaze by heating butter, brown sugar and rum over medium low heat until smooth.
  • Remove from oven, gently turn onto a sheet pan and poke holes in the tops.
  • Slowly pour the glaze over the cakes, letting it absorb.