Four Stack Dessert Recipes

PERFECT FOUR-LAYER DELIGHT

Steps:

• Cut the butter into the flour to form crumbs, then add the pecans
• Press mixture into a greased 9x13 pan.
• Bake at 375 degress for 15 minutes and set aside to cool.
• On medium speed, beat the cream cheese, vanilla and powdered sugar until creamy.
• Change speed on mixer to low, and mix in 2 cups of the Cool Whip.
• Spread cream cheese mixture over cooled crust.
• Mix the pudding mix with the milk for 2 minutes.
• Pour over cream cheese layer.
• Spread remaining cup of Cool Whip over the top, being sure to spread to the edges to seal.
• Garnish with additional chopped pecans and/or chocolate shavings, if desired.
• Refrigerate at least 2 hours or overnight before serving.

EASY FOUR-LAYER CHOCOLATE DESSERT

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°. Place flour in a small bowl; cut in butter until crumbly. Stir in 1/2 cup walnuts. Press onto bottom of an ungreased 13x9-in. baking dish. Bake until light golden brown, 12-15 minutes. Cool completely on a wire rack., In a small bowl, beat cream cheese and confectioners' sugar until smooth; fold in 1 carton whipped topping. Spread over crust. In a large bowl, whisk milk and pudding mix for 2 minutes. Gently spread over cream cheese layer. Top with remaining whipped topping. Sprinkle with chocolate chunks and remaining walnuts. Refrigerate until cold., Cut into bars. Just before serving, drizzle with chocolate syrup.

FOUR STACK PIE RECIPE - (4.8/5)

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350. Whisk together chocolate pudding mix and milk for 2 minutes. or until thickened. Cover with plastic wrap; refrigerate. Using your hands or a pastry blender, mix together flour, butter, pecans and granulated sugar until well combined and crumbly. Press into bottom and sides of a 9-inch deep dish pie plate. Bake crust at 350 for 18 minutes, until very lightly browned. Remove to a wire rack and cool completely. Beat together cream cheese and confectioners' sugar on medium-high speed until completely smooth. Spread cream cheese mixture evenly over cooled crust. Top with chocolate pudding, then spread whipped topping over the pudding. Chill for at least 1 hour or until set.

FOUR-FLAVOR SHEET PAN PIE

Steps:

• For the crusts: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Unroll 3 of the pie crusts on a lightly floured work surface. Stack them on top of each other. Roll out the thick, layered dough to a 15-by-21-inch rectangle. Press into a rimmed baking sheet so that the crust comes up the sides and hangs over slightly. This will be the bottom crust. Chill until ready to use, at least 30 minutes.
• Use the remaining crust for the top of the pie. Unroll it on a lightly floured work surface and roll it to a 14-by-18-inch rectangle. Cut the dough in half so you have two 7-by-9-inch pieces. One half will be the top crust for the apple portion of the pie. Cut the other half into 1-inch diagonal strips to use for the lattice on the cherry pie. Place the rectangle and strips on a parchment-lined baking sheet and chill until ready to use.
• For the apple pie: Toss the apples in a medium bowl with the sugar and lemon juice. Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat, add the apples and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 10 minutes. Stir in the flour, cinnamon and a pinch of salt and cook until thickened, about 1 minute more. Cool completely.
• For the sour cherry pie: Place the cherries in a medium bowl. Whisk 1/4 cup cherry juice with the cornstarch in a small saucepan until completely smooth. Add the remaining cherry juice and sugar and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Cook, whisking constantly, until thick and glossy, about 30 seconds. Pour the sauce over the cherries and gently fold to combine. Cool completely.
• For the pumpkin pie: Whisk together the pumpkin, evaporated milk, sugar, pumpkin pie spice and the egg and in a medium bowl until smooth. Set aside.
• For the pecan pie: Whisk together the brown sugar, corn syrup, butter, vanilla, eggs and a pinch of salt in a medium bowl until smooth. Fold in the pecans and set aside.
• Once all fillings are made, begin assembling the pie. Remove both baking sheets with dough from the refrigerator.
• Visualize the sheet pan is divided in half lengthwise and then crosswise so you have 4 equal quadrants. Each quadrant will hold a different pie filling. Prick the bottom crust all over with a fork.
• Add the pie fillings in this order: Add the apple pie filling to the upper left quadrant of the crust; spread it to cover a 7-by-9-inch rectangle. Moving counter clockwise, pour the pumpkin filling right under the apple pie filling and spread it the same size as the apple filling. Spread out the cherry filling next to the pumpkin filling. Fill the top right empty space with the pecan filling.
• Cover the apple pie quadrant with the reserved rectangle of dough. Lay the pie strips out diagonally over the cherry pie quadrant. Press any remaining strips of dough around the edge of the pie to thicken the rim. Crimp the edge of the pie, making sure to incorporate and crimp together the dough from the apple quadrant. Brush the edges and the dough on top of the pie with egg and sprinkle with turbinado sugar. Cut decorative slits in the apple pie crust.
• Bake until all pies are set and the crust on the apple pie and cherry pie is golden brown and crisp, 55 minutes to 1 hour 5 minutes.

FOUR LAYER DELIGHT

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 300 degrees F (150 degrees C). Coat a 9x13 inch baking dish with cooking spray.
• In a bowl, cream together margarine with 1/4 cup confectioners' sugar. Mix in flour and 1 cup pecans. Press into prepared dish.
• Bake in preheated oven 15 minutes, until very lightly browned. Cool completely.
• In a bowl, cream together cream cheese with remaining 1 cup confectioners' sugar. Fold in half the whipped topping. Spread over cooled crust.
• Stir together pudding mix and milk and allow to set up slightly. Spread over cream cheese layer. Top with remaining whipped topping and sprinkle with remaining nuts. Keep refrigerated.

FOUR-LAYER APPALACHIAN STACK CAKE

Steps:

• Bring apples and cider to a boil in a large pot. Reduce to a simmer; cook, stirring occasionally, until apples begin to soften and liquid has reduced, 40 to 50 minutes. Add 1 cup water; cook, mashing apples slightly, until liquid has reduced, about 10 minutes. Add 2/3 cup granulated sugar and 1/2 cup water; simmer until apples are very soft and coated in syrup, about 15 minutes. Let cool completely.
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Butter two 9-inch round cake pans. Line bottoms with parchment paper, and butter parchment. Dust with flour; tap out excess. Set aside.
• Put butter and the remaining cup sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix on medium-high speed until creamy, about 3 minutes. Reduce speed to low; mix in egg, molasses, buttermilk, baking soda, flour, spices, and salt.
• Divide batter evenly between prepared pans. Bake until a cake tester inserted into centers comes out clean and tops spring back when lightly touched, about 35 minutes. Let cool on a wire rack 10 minutes. Run a knife around edges of pans to loosen; invert to unmold. Remove parchment; reinvert onto racks. Let cool.
• Using a long serrated knife, cut each cake in half horizontally. Place 1 bottom layer on a serving platter. Top with 1/3 of the apple mixture, spreading to edges. Stack 1 top layer on top of apples, and top with another 1/3 of the apple mixture. Repeat with remaining cake bottom and apples, and top with remaining cake top. Let stand at room temperature at least 1 hour before serving. Sift confectioners' sugar over top of cake.

THE BEST SHORTBREAD COOKIES FOUR WAYS

Steps:

• All of the shortbreads are made in the same manner using an electric mixer. If you're making a shortbread with two kinds of flour, whisk the flours together.
• Working in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or in a large bowl with a hand mixer, beat the butter, confectioners' sugar, salt and zest, if using, together on medium speed until soft, creamy and homogenous, scraping the bowl as needed. One by one, beat in the yolks, followed by the vanilla.
• Turn off the mixer, add the flour(s) all at once and mix on low speed only until incorporated. If you've got wheat germ, chocolate or flax seeds or nuts, mix in now.
• Scrape the dough out onto the work surface and divide it in two; the dough will be soft and sticky. Put each piece on a sheet of parchment and cajole it into a log that's 6 to 6 1⁄2 inches long, tightening the log with the paper and twisting the ends. Refrigerate the logs for at least 3 hours (overnight is better) or freeze them for 2 hours. (The logs can be frozen for up 2 months; slice when they're still frozen. You might need to add a minute to the oven time.)
• When you're ready to bake: Center a rack in the oven and preheat it to 350°. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a baking mat.
• Using a chef's knife, cut each log into 1⁄2-inch-thick rounds. Lay them out on the baking sheet, leaving about an inch between them.
• Bake, rotating the cookie sheet after 10 minutes, for 21 to 23 minutes, or until the cookies are golden brown around the edges and set. The cookies will still be soft, so leave them on the sheet for 5 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack and allowing them to cool to room temperature. DO AHEAD: The cookies can be packed in an airtight container and kept at room temperature for at least 5 days.

GRETCHEN'S 4 LAYER CHOCOLATE DESSERT

Steps:

• Layer 1: soften margarine. Mix with flour, add pecans. Put into 9 x 13 baking pan and bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. Remove and cool completely.
• Layer 2: Mix powdered sugar with cream cheese, add 1 cup of cool whip, and spread on crust.
• Layer 3: Mix instant pudding with milk. Follow pkg directions and spread over layers.
• Layer 4: Top the 3 layers with remaining Cool Whip. Garnish with shaved chocolate bar and top with cherries and chopped nuts.