Peppermint Stick Dessert Recipes

Steps:

• Coat a 12-by-17-inch rimmed baking sheet with cooking spray, and set aside. Place sugar, corn syrup, and 1/2 cup water in a medium saucepan. Cover; bring to a boil. Remove lid, and cook, swirling pan occasionally, until syrup registers 305 degrees (hard-crack stage) on a candy thermometer, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat, and carefully stir in lemon juice, extract, and food coloring.
• Pour hot syrup onto prepared baking sheet, being careful not to touch syrup. Using a metal spatula coated with cooking spray, fold edges toward the middle (this will help cool the syrup). When it is cool enough to handle but still quite warm, using plastic gloves, strech and pull candy, folding it over onto itself before pulling again, until it is opaque and just starting to firm up, about 10 minutes.
• Immediately pull off pieces to form long pencil-thin ropes. Working quickly, cut into 7-inch lengths with a pair of kitchen scissors. Continue pulling until all candy is used or is no longer pliable.
• Temper chocolate: Heat 2/3 of chocolate in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of barely simmering water until chocolate registers 118 degrees on a candy thermometer. Remove pan from heat, and add the remaining chocolate; stir with a rubber spatula (avoid using a wooden spoon, which can impart other flavors) until it cools to 84 degrees. Remove any unmelted pieces, and discard. Return bowl to pan, and stir until chocolate reaches 88 to 90 degrees.
• Dip top 3 inches of each pepperment stick in the chocolate, if desired. Allow excess to drip off; set on a parchment-lined baking sheet, and let harden.

Steps:

• In a small saucepan, combine crushed candy and cream. Cook over low heat until candy is melted, stirring occasionally. , In a small bowl, sprinkle gelatin over water; let stand for 1 minute. Stir into hot peppermint mixture until dissolved. Refrigerate until mixture begins to set, about 20 minutes. Fold in whipped cream., Crush 3 chocolate wafers; set aside for garnish. Line a 1-1/2-qt. serving bowl with 12 wafers. Top with half of the peppermint mixture. Repeat layers. Sprinkle with chocolate crumbs. Refrigerate for at least 8 hours. If desired, sprinkle with additional crushed peppermint candy just before serving.

Steps:

• In medium bowl, mix crushed cookies and 1/2 cup melted butter. Press mixture firmly in bottom of ungreased 13x9-inch pan.
• In large bowl, stir together ice cream and 2 cups of the whipped topping; spoon evenly over cookie crust. Freeze about 3 hours or until firm.
• Meanwhile, in 2-quart saucepan, melt 1/2 cup butter and the chocolate over low heat, stirring constantly.Stir in sugar; gradually stir in milk. Heat to boiling over medium-high heat, stirring constantly. Cook and stir 5 minutes or until slightly thickened; stir in vanilla. Cool completely, about 2 hours.
• Pour 2 cups of the chocolate sauce evenly over ice cream. Freeze at least 8 hours but no longer than 2 weeks. Cover and refrigerate remaining sauce.
• Reheat reserved sauce until just warm. To serve, cut into 5 rows by 3 rows. Top with sauce and remaining whipped topping; sprinkle with crushed candies.
• To soften the ice cream, place it in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
• Make a dozen little desserts by dividing the cookie crust among 12 paper-lined muffin cups, then filling with the ice cream mixture and continuing as directed.

Steps:

• Combine milk, cream, and 1/2 cup sugar for ice cream in a medium pot over medium heat; bring to a simmer.
• Meanwhile, stir together egg yolks, remaining 1/4 cup sugar, and salt in a small bowl.
• Pour some of the hot milk-cream mixture into the egg yolk mixture, whisking quickly to avoid scrambling the eggs. Pour the mixture back into the saucepan. Whisk and cook until custard coats the back of a spoon and does not flow when you run a finger through it, about 3 minutes.
• Transfer custard to a clean bowl and refrigerate until cold, at least 2 hours but preferably overnight.
• Remove custard from the refrigerator and stir in peppermint extract and food coloring. Pour mixture into an ice cream maker and freeze according to manufacturer's instructions, about 20 minutes; add crushed candy canes at the end of the churning time, or right before. Transfer to an airtight container and freeze until firm, about 4 hours.
• Combine cream, corn syrup, and sugar for hot fudge sauce in a medium saucepan. Sift in cocoa powder, stir, and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Add chocolate, reduce heat to medium. Simmer, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon, until completely melted. Remove from the heat and stir in butter, vanilla, and salt.
• Place a scoop of peppermint ice cream into a bowl, dribble on some hot fudge sauce, and sprinkle with additional crushed candy canes.

Steps:

• Crush vanilla wafers.
• Melt butter.
• Mix wafers, butter, and powdered sugar together. Spread 2/3 of mixture in bottom of 9X13 (or slightly larger) pan.
• Melt sweet and milk chocolate in a double boiler.
• Beat egg yolks, add to melted chocolate and remove from heat.
• Beat egg whites until stiff, add to chocolate mixture.
• Pour 2/3 of chocolate sauce over wafer mixture.
• Sprinkle with chopped nuts.
• Carefully spread softened ice cream (Mary's recipe says to cut in sticks and lay on top of nuts, but that kind of box is hard to find anymore). I use a wide spoon and put fairly thin chunks across the surface, then smooth it out a little to make sure all the chocolate is covered.
• Pour rest of chocolate sauce over the ice cream.
• Sprinkle with remaining wafer mixture.
• Freeze at least overnight or for a few days. Remove from freezer shortly before serving to make it easier to cut.

Steps:

• For crust:
• Finely grind cookies and sugar in processor. Add butter and blend until crumbs begin to stick together. Press crumbs firmly onto bottom and up sides of 9-inch-diameter springform pan with 2 3/4-inch-high sides. Place in freezer.
• For filling:
• Grind candies in processor, leaving some small pieces. Whisk yolks, sugar and water in medium metal bowl to blend. Set bowl over saucepan of rapidly simmering water (do not allow bottom of bowl to touch water). Whisk constantly until candy thermometer inserted into mixture registers 170°F, about 6 minutes. Remove bowl from over water. Add half of ground candies and whisk until melted. Let mixture stand until cool, whisking occasionally, about 5 minutes. Mix in remaining candy and peppermint extract.
• Using electric mixer, beat cream in large bowl to stiff peaks. Fold cream into yolk mixture. Spoon mixture into crust; smooth top. Cover and freeze until firm, at least 6 hours or overnight.
• For sauce:
• Bring 1 cup cream and corn syrup to simmer in heavy medium saucepan. Remove from heat. Add chocolate and whisk until smooth. Cool until barely lukewarm and slightly thickened, whisking occasionally, about 30 minutes.
• Spoon 1 cup sauce over frozen filling, spreading to edges. Freeze until firm, at least 2 hours. (Can be prepared 1 week ahead. Cover and keep torte frozen. Cover remaining sauce and refrigerate.)
• Rewarm sauce over low heat, stirring frequently. Run sharp knife around pan sides to loosen torte. Release pan sides. Transfer torte to platter.
• Beat remaining 1 cup cream in large bowl until stiff peaks form. Spoon into pastry bag fitted with star tip. Pipe rosettes of cream around top edge of torte. Place candies between rosettes. Serve with warm sauce.