This week’s Teche Life recipes are a preview of what will be coming to subscribers in Friday’s The Daily Iberian — the 2019 Cajun Creole Cookbook — a special commemorative edition. A group of Teche Area cooks and cookoff award winners reviewed seven decades of The Daily Iberian’s cookbook, published annually during the Louisiana Sugar Cane Festival. The earliest in The Daily Iberian archives is dated 1952.

As usual, and appropriately for a celebration of sugar, there were just too many dessert recipes to fit into this year’s edition. So although these were chosen for the 2019 Cookbook, make note of them online. Only two will be published with the story Sept. 25, and two more are provided only online. Enjoy the festival week and get extra copies of the cookbook for family and friends. It could just be the Best Cookbook we’ve ever published. The recipes are some of the best spanning decades from Teche Area cooks. 

Snowball Cake

3 envelopes Knox unflavored gelatin

6 Tablespoons ice water

1 1/2 cups hot water

1 1/2 cups sugar

1 1/2 Tablespoons lemon juice

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

1 1/2 cups pineapple with juice, can substitute for favorite fruit

1 medium size angel food cake

1 large Cool Whip

Topping:

1 small container Cool Whip

1 can coconut, optional

Place in a blender the gelatin and ice water and blend for 2 to 3 seconds. Add hot water and blend for 2 or 3 more seconds. Add sugar, lemon juice, salt and fruit and blend for 30 seconds. Pour from blender into a mixing bowl. Fold in large Cool Whip. Break the angel food cake into bite size pieces. Add angel food cake to mixture, thoroughly mixing until all pieces of cake are covered with mixture.

Prepare a 13×9-inch loaf pan with corn oil or Pam. Pour mixture into pan and put in refrigerator and let set overnight. Frost with small Cool Whip and top with coconut. Keep refrigerated.

Janice Adams, Franklin

Old Fashioned Sweet Tart A La Bouillie

Tarts:

2 cups sugar

1 cup butter

4 eggs

4 cups flour

3 teaspoons baking powder

3 to 4 Tablespoons cold water

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Bouillie:

2 12-ounce cans evaporated milk

10 heaping Tablespoons corn starch

1 1/2 to 1 3/4 cups sugar

1 cup real butter

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 evaporated milk cans filled with water

2 large eggs, room temperature

TO PREPARE THE TART, put all the ingredients in a mixer and beat until dough forms. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour. Pull pieces of dough as needed and pat down with fingers. Put dough in greased 13 x 9-inch pan. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes. Set aside and cool.

TO PREPARE BOUILLIE, mix sugar and corn starch together and set aside. Beat eggs in a separate bowl. Slowly add the sugar mixture, and 1 can of evaporated milk, 1 can of water and beaten eggs and blend well. Heat the other can of evaporated milk and 1 can of water and butter in a sauce pan until almost boiling. Add heated milk liquid 1/4 cup at a time to the egg mixture, stirring well with a whisk. Add slowly back to the mixture in the pan, cook and continue whisking until mixture thickens. Stir in vanilla. Pour on top of the tart and bake at 350 degrees for 35 to 40 minutes. Cool completely. Cut into squares. Refrigerate any leftovers.

Joanie Kraker, New Iberia

Sour Cream Pecan Pie

1 9-inch unbaked pastry shell

2 teaspoons all purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 cup dairy sour cream

2 eggs

1-1/4 cups sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1-1/2 cups pecan halves

Whipped cream, optional

Bake the pastry shell at 350 degrees for 7 minutes; set aside. In a small, deep bowl combine the flour and cinnamon then blend in the sour cream. With an electric mixer at medium speed beat in the eggs, sugar and vanilla until well blended.

Reserve 1/4 cup of the pecans, stirring in the remaining pecans. Pour into prepared pastry shell. Bake at 350 degrees for 40 to 45 minutes or until set. Cool. Garnish with whipped cream and reserved pecan halves if desired.

Patricia Dugas, New Iberia

Triple Terrific Coconut Cake

2 (14 ounce) cans regular coconut milk

Cake

2 cups all purpose flour

3 tablespoons cornstarch

3-1/4 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

12 tablespoons (1-1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened

1-1/2 cups granulated sugar

3 large eggs

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup reduced coconut milk

Frosting

3 cups sweetened, flake coconut

2 sticks butter, softened

4 cups (about 1 pound) confectioners sugar

1/4 cup reduced coconut milk

1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Pinch of salt

Do ahead – Bring coconut milk to a boil in a medium saucepan over medium to high heat. Reduce heat to medium and cook, whisking often until reduced to 1-1/2 cups. Be careful not to reduce beyond 1-1/2 cups or solids will start to separate from the fat. Cool to room temperature. It can be stored in the refrigerator for several days.

To prepare cake, adjust the oven rack to the middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour two 8-inch cake pans.

Mix flour, cornstarch, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl. With an electric mixer, beat the butter until fluffy. Add sugar and beat until well mixed. Beat in eggs one at a time and then vanilla, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Beat in half of the flour mixture then add reduced coconut milk and the remaining flour mixture, scraping down the bowl again until just smooth. Divide batter evenly between prepared pans. Bake until golden brown and toothpick inserted into the cake’s center and comes out clean, about 30 to 35 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool for 5 minutes.

Remove the cake from pans, return to rack to cool completely.

To prepare the frosting, reduce oven to 325 degrees and spread coconut on a 13 x 9-inch baking sheet and toast, stirring occasionally until flakes are dry and some are light golden brown, about 20 minutes.

With an electric mixer, beat butter in a bowl until smooth. Slowly beat in sugar until combined. Beat in the coconut milk, vanilla and salt until smooth.

To assemble, place a cake layer top side down on a cake stand lined with strips of parchment paper to keep it clean while icing. Using a knife or offset spatula, spread about 1/3 of the frosting over the cake top. Sprinkle generously with coconut. Place the next layer top side up over the first layer. Spread remaining frosting evenly on cake top and sides. Sprinkle top generously with coconut. Using an opened hand, gently press remaining coconut around the cake perimeter. Remove parchment strips. Refrigerate cake until frosting set for about 30 minutes. Slice and serve.

Dustin Hagar, New Iberia