Pistachio Pudding Torte and a special birthday!

Yay for the weekend upon us! 

Kids are off this afternoon and tomorrow and 

we get to celebrate Jerry's birthday on Friday as well. 

Happy Birthday to this deer-hunting, ice-fishing, sports-playing, joke-telling

all-around great husband and dad!

So, thought that perhaps a special treat would be in order 

to help us, uh, him celebrate!

Who doesn't love some pistachio pudding,

especially when coupled with layers of graham crackers, 

cool whip and chocolate. 

A simple layer of graham crackers for starters.

Then, whip up 8 oz of cream cheese (softened), 8 oz of cool whip and 1/2 cup powdered sugar.

It makes this awesome creamy and light fluff as the second layer.

Next, 2 packages of instant pistachio pudding
were whisked up with 3 cups of skim milk and
poured over the sweet, creamy, fluffy layer
and gently spread.

Finally, 1 16 oz container of chocolate frosting was melted

and spread over the pudding.

Functionally, this frosting worked great!
Easy to melt and spread.

But, even after being refrigerated over night, 
it still wasn't as firm as I would have liked.

Not sure if I'd use the container of frosting route again.

Perhaps, I'd be inclined to go more with the cookie frosting…
powdered sugar, cocoa powder and milk, 
at least when that cools, it sets up pretty well. 

Finally, sprinkle with some chopped pistachios 
and put in the fridge to firm up before serving!

RECIPE:

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Servings : 12

Ingredients:

Graham crackers

8 oz of cream cheese (softened)

8 oz of cool whip

1/2 cup powdered sugar

2 packages of instant pistachio pudding

3 cups of skim milk 

16 oz container of chocolate frosting

Pistachios  - chopped

Directions:

• Start with a layer of graham crackers. 
• Fold together cream cheese, sugar and cool whip, then spread over crackers. 
• Mix up pudding with mix, until thickened and pour over cool whip. 
• Melt frosting in a microwave safe bowl, spread over pudding. 
• Top with pistachios.

Dried Cranberry Pistachio Goat Cheese

Need a quick idea for Mother's Day, a shower (nope, not the kind falling from the sky this morning) or upcoming get together with friends?

I've got just the answer for you…quick and simple Dried Cranberry Pistachio Goat Cheese.  

It's creamy!  It's tangy!  It's nutty!  What more could you ask for?!!?

This combination is quite the bouquet of flavors and textures, which is like a little piece of heaven in your mouth.

While we are talking about foods that are just meant to be together (see Spinach Artichoke Turkey Burgers)…Cranberry and Pistachio are another pair to add to that list.  I love how the crunchy, nutty pistachios compliment the chewy and tart dried cranberries.

You don't want to miss out on this!

And, of course, with only 3 ingredients, you can put it together soooo fast!  (In fact, I managed to squeeze it in between dinner and my volleyball game last night.)

Started by rough chopping 1 cup of dried cranberries and 1 cup of pistachios.  

Equal ratios would be important in a recipe like this and a rough chop is fine, so that there are a variety of sizes to cover the cheese.

The fruit and nuts were mixed together in my trusty breading (loaf) pan.  This gives a whole new perspective to my Coatings experience…many principles still apply, but no deep frying here.

Gently roll and press to get the fruit and nuts to stick to the goat cheese.

It really was just that easy!  (I actually spent way more time taking pictures than making the food!)

RECIPE

Ingredients:

1 cup of dried cranberries
1 cup of pistachios
Goat Cheese

Directions:

Roughly chop the cranberries and pistachios.
Mix into a pan for coating. 
Gently roll and press to get the fruit and nuts to stick. 

Serve immediately or roll up in plastic wrap to serve later or give as a gift.