Tag: Illinois home baking

Easy Bruschetta Biscuits

Easy Bruschetta Biscuits: this best-ever recipe takes the classic Italian appetizer for a spin…with winning results!

Do you love bruschetta? Diced tomatoes and fresh basil on top of toasted baguette slices? With its color and aroma, I remember loving it before I even tasted it.

This easy bruschetta biscuits recipe is inspired by a recipe Marty Ann Johnson won with at the Illinois State Fair (2014) in  a 2014 Bisquick best recipe competition.

Easy Bruschetta Biscuits PLATED

These biscuits are not only super delicious, but are also super easy to make. I love how it takes just 10 ingredients.

When you go to make them (highly recommended), here are a few helpful tips. After you dice and de-seed the tomatoes, lightly pat them dry with a paper towel to take away their extra moisture.

Diced fresh tomatoes

Another tip: Be sure to lightly blend the initial dough ingredients as the recipe notes. i.e. try not to over-mix. Add the cheese, tomato and basil after your dough starts to form.

Easy Bruschetta Biscuits flavorful dough

Bake ’em how you love ’em

I did tweak the winner Marty’s already terrific recipe. (She won third place and a lovely rosette ribbon on contest day.) I used plain yoghurt and lemon juice instead of buttermilk. I had a lot of basil so I increased that. I also upped the diced tomatoes. This added more color and moisture, making the biscuit even more tender and yummy! Brushing them fresh out of the oven with a combo of olive oil and garlic powder was a great finishing touch. The 1/4 cup I used–a bit less than the original–was perfect for “generous brushing.”

As a final tip-or more of a suggestion-serve these biscuits with a big leafy green salad and you have a meal. Whip up your batch soon! They are a winner!

-Cyndi

p.s. If you find yourself without Bisquick in your pantry, no worries. With flour, baking powder, salt, and shortening, you can do a homemade baking mix (scroll down to bottom of this post).  Simply adapt the ingredient amounts or make a big batch to pull from. Refrigerate any leftovers.

Chocoholic Chocolate Dessert Custard

For the best tasting, thickest chocolate pudding you’ll ever experience, make this Chocoholic Chocolate Dessert Custard. This simple yet luscious recipe is sure to satisfy any chocolate lover’s craving. You can make it with five basic ingredients: bittersweet chocolate chips, cream, sugar, vanilla, and egg yolks.

Chocoholic Chocolate Dessert Custard

Chocolate Takes Center Stage

Since chocolate is the superstar of this creation, using Ghirardelli 60% cacao bittersweet chocolate chips is key for the intense chocolate taste you want in a dessert like this.

The richness of the chocolate custard pairs perfectly with the homemade raspberry whipped cream. A perfect bite of this dessert has a bit of each.  The hint of raspberry, thanks to the extract, gives a delicateness you’re going to love. The plush whipped cream is not overtly sweet, which is also why it works so well as the topping. For a splash of color, top it with a fresh raspberry.

Recipe Obsessed

For almost 10 years I managed a national dessert contest Ghirardelli supported. When this winning recipe came in, Crystal and I became recipe obsessed with it. Between the two of us, we made it nearly a dozen times and ways. A favorite form is this miniature cup size, ideal for dinner parties when you’re feeling full but want a sweet finish to your meal.

Chocoholic Chocolate Dessert Custard - Mini Size

I also tried this recipe with full eggs versus just yolks and it tasted like the unforgettable “pots de creme” the Minneapolis restaurant 112 Eatery once had on their menu.

Pudding? Custard? Pots de creme? No matter how you categorize this dessert, it is downright dreamy.

Chocoholic Chocolate Dessert Custard – Step By Step Tips

Crystal did a step by step tutorial of sorts so you can remake this dessert at home. Her “how to” highlights will walk you through everything you need to do. Soon you’ll be delighting in this creamy, yummy goodness yourself. It is highly recommended! And hat’s off to the winner Sherri Jones for sharing her award-worthy creation with us (which she originally titled, “Simply Chocolate.” Sherri placed second back in 2013 with it at Illinois’ Du Page County Fair, just outside of Chicago.

-Cyndi

From Crystal:

Chocoholic Chocolate Dessert Custard…The name for this simple recipe says it all. The only ingredients are chocolate, cream, sugar, vanilla, and egg yolks. The simplicity of the dark chocolate paired with the raspberry whipped cream left me unable to stop taking the dessert out of the fridge and nibbling on it throughout the day.

In making this pudding, prep the egg yolks first and choose your serving dishes. This way you can keep a good eye on melting and whisking your chocolate. Beat the eggs in a medium or large sized bowl. You’ll be adding and whisking in part of the chocolate mixture later.

Whisking eggs

To make the chocolate mixture, put your Ghirardelli 60% cacao chips into a 2 quart saucepan and add the vanilla extract. (I doubled the recipe this time through, so my portions look bigger.)

mixing melting chocolate

Next, add your heavy cream and sugar.

milk chocolate

Stirring continually, heat the mixture on medium until the chocolate comes to a boil.

Chocoholic Chocolate Dessert Custard-Melted

This will take about 10 minutes. Use a wire whisk until the crème is smooth.  Then drop the heat source level to low.

This next step is important. Temper the eggs by adding a 1/2 cup of the hot crème, otherwise your eggs will “cook” and ruin your texture. Whisk this mixture to fully combine it before — slowly — adding it back to the saucepan of hot crème. Be sure to do this slowly and while continually whisking.

tempering eggs

Cook another 2 minutes – while whisking – just until it starts to thicken and stirs smooth. Then quickly pour it into your cups.

Pouring Simply Chocolate Dessert Recipe

Cover and chill at least 30 minutes, or overnight…if you can wait that long. I couldn’t wait to bust into one.

The sweetened raspberry whipped cream is a delightful finishing touch. I could eat a bowl of that alone. And nothing is better than homemade whipped topping. If you’ve never made some, just go for it and taste the difference.

My last tip is to chill both your bowl and beaters before whipping up your whipped cream. Whip until you get the texture you want. For me, that’s soft, medium stiff peaks.

Whipped Cream Texture

I like when it will stick to the spoon for dropping dollops.

-Crystal

This post was updated 1/7/2021 for new photos and context.