Mini Blackberry Caramel Cheesecakes January 27, 2008

Once again, another recipe I found on Peabody’s blog that looked tasty, and that it was!  I haven’t made too many cheesecakes in my life, actually I don’t even think I have made one big cheesecake yet (my husband will only eat Snicker’s Cheesecake from the Cheesecake Factory, so if anyone has that exact recipe, please pass it on .  Although he is a good husband and he’ll at least give my cheesecakes a bite or two :)  I have made some bite size cheesecakes made in the mini-muffin tins but a big cheesecake in those springform pans I have yet to try.  Anyway, I was having a few of friends from high school over this past week and decided to make these Mini Blackberry Caramel Cheesecakes.  They all said they loved it (hopefully they weren’t lying to my face, we’ll see how many comments I get from them after posting this).  It turned out very creamy and light.  I also did have the problem Peabody had with the caramel not coming out of the dish.  Next time I would skip the whole caramel part, bake the cheesecake in the dish and drizzle caramel or chocolate topping, some kind of nut or different fruit (the list is endless!) on the dessert after turning them out onto the plate.  My friends and I were talking about how versatile this cheesecake could be.  As Rachael Ray would say YUM-O!   

Mini Blackberry Caramel Cheesecakes

(Recipe from:  Peabody who adopted it from Chocolate Holidays by Alice Medrich)

Caramel:
1 cup sugar
½ cup water

Cheesecakes:
6 oz white chocolate, chopped
¼ c boiling water
1 ½ lb (24 oz) cream cheese, at room temperature
½ c plus 2 Tbsp sugar
1 ½ tsp vanilla extract
2 eggs, at room temperature
5 oz ripe blackberries, rinsed and patted dry

Preheat oven to 325F.
To make the caramel, combine sugar and water in a 1-quart saucepan.  Stir(do no whisk) gently over medium heat until most of the sugar is dissolved.  Stop stirring and bring mixture to a simmer.  Cover and simmer 2-3 minutes to dissolve the sugar.  Uncover and increase the heat to medium.  Simmer without stirring until the syrup begins to color.  Swirl the pan to evenly distribute the color.  Cook until the caramel is a slightly reddish amber color.  Immediately pour equal amounts of caramel into 5 oz ramekin(or 6 oz).  Tilt each cup to spread caramel over the bottom and partway up the sides. Set cups aside to cool.
To make cheesecakes, place the chocolate in a small bowl.  Pour the boiling water over the chocolate and stir until smooth.
In a medium bowl, beat the cream cheese just until smooth, about 30 seconds.  Scrape the bowl and beaters.  Add the sugar and vanilla and beat just until smooth, about 1-2 minutes.  Add 1 egg and beat until incorporated.  Scrape the bowl and beaters.  Beat in second egg.  Stir in the melted chocolate.  Divide the berries among the caramel cups, pour the batter among the cups, pouring it on top of the berries.
Place cups in a baking pan that is deep enough to hold water.  Carefully pour some boiling water into the baking pan to a depth of 1 inch.  Bake until the edges of the cheesecakes are puffed but the centers still jiggle when the cups are tapped, 15-20 minutes.  Remove the pan from the oven.  Transfer each cup from the hot water to a rack to cool completely.  Cover and refrigerate over night or even longer. To unmold, run a knife around the cheesecakes edges and invert onto individual serving plates.

Neiman Marcus Chocolate Chip Cookies January 23, 2008

I found this recipe about a year ago from the Neiman Marcus Cookbook.  The ingredient that makes these cookies different from other recipes is the espresso powder.  This is probably one of my favorite chocolate chip cookie recipes! 

Neiman Marcus Chocolate Chip Cookies

(Recipe from:  Neiman Marcus Cookbook by Kevin Garvin with John Harrison) 

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup unsalted butter
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 3 tablespoons white sugar
• 1 egg
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 teaspoons instant espresso coffee powder
• 1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

   Directions:

• Preheat oven to 300 degrees F.  Grease a cookie sheet (I used my pizza stone).
• In a medium bowl, cream together the butter, brown sugar and white sugar until smooth.  Beat in the egg and vanilla.  Sift together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and espresso powder; stir into the creamed mixture.  Finally, stir in the chocolate chips.
• Drop dough by heaping tablespoonfuls onto the prepared baking sheet.  Cookies should be 1 1/2 to 2 inches apart.
• Bake for 20 minutes in the preheated oven.  For crisper cookies, bake 2 minute longer and for softer, 2 minutes less.

                                                                        Enjoy! 

Chocolate Peppermint Stick Cake–TAKE TWO January 17, 2008

Of course the second time around I had to make a few changes.  The appearance turned out how I thought it would, unlike the previous one and the cake wasn’t as gooey probably because I used a different chocolate cake recipe (the previous one’s batter was pretty runny, but tasty!)  Pudding was my filler this time around and cool whip for the frosting (I really need to give that Marshmallow frosting another try though…). 

I would have to say I liked it better the first time around because it was more gooey and moist then this one, but this one was more cake-like.  Of course, if you give this recipe a try, it may turn out totally different then how mine did no matter which recipes you use!

You can find the recipe in my December 30 post and the substitute Chocolate Cake recipe at Bettycrocker.com. 

Smoky Stuffed Peppers January 12, 2008

I received two recipe books for Christmas this year:  Racheal Ray 365:  No Repeats, which I have made 3-4 meals out of already and EatingWell serves two.  This recipe is from the EatingWell cookbook.  The reason I like this cookbook so much is because it serves 2, my husband and I, with no leftovers.  Not that I don’t like leftovers, but it’s nice to not have leftovers once in a while.  Oh yes, and they were delicious!  I would never eat these when I was a kid, my taste-buds have definitely changed!

Smoky Stuff Peppers

(Recipe from:  Eating Well Serves Two by Jim Romanoff)

2 large bell peppers, tops cut off and seeded

4 oz hot Italian turkey sausage, removed from casing (1 link, I didn’t use turkey b/c I didn’t have any in the house.)

3/4 c reduced-sodium chicken broth

1 large plum tomato, chopped

2/3 cup instant brown rice

1 /3 cup chopped fresh basil (I used the seasoning and only put in about half that amount)

1/3 cup finely shredded smoked cheese, such as mozzarella, Cheddar or Gouda, divided

Position rack in upper third of oven; preheat broiler.

Place peppers cut-side down in a large, microwave-safe dish.  Fill the dish with 1/2 inch of water, cover and microwave on High until the peppers are tender-crisp, 7 to 10 minutes.  Drain the water and transfer the peppers to a roasting pan.

Meanwhile, cook sausage in a large saucepan over medium-high heat, breaking it up into small pieces with a wooden spoon, until cooked through, about 5 minutes.  Stir in broth, tomatoes and rice; bring to a simmer, scraping up any browned bits with a wooden spoon.  Cover, reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until the rice is softened but still moist, about 10 minutes.

Stir basil and half the cheese into the rice mixture.  Divide the filling between the peppers, then top with the remaining cheese.  Broil until the cheese is melted, 2 to 3 minutes.

Makes 2 servings.

Alton Brown’s Homemade Soft Pretzels January 8, 2008

I’ve been wanting to try to make soft pretzels for a long time.  Last week I was watching Good Eats and what do you know the show was on Pretzel Logic.  Seeing this show motivated me to finally give them a try and they turned out good!  My favorite is eating them with some cinnamon and sugar on top.

 

Alton Brown’s Homemade Soft Pretzels

(Recipe from:  Food Network, Alton Brown, 2007)

Yield:  8 pretzels

Prep Time:  30 minutes

Inactive Prep Time:  1 hour

Cook Time:  25 minutes

1 1/2 cups warm (110 to 115 degrees F) water

1 tablespoon sugar
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 package active dry yeast
22 ounces all-purpose flour, approximately 4 1/2 cups
2 ounces unsalted butter, melted
Vegetable oil, for pan
10 cups water
2/3 cup baking soda
1 large egg yolk beaten with 1 tablespoon water
Pretzel salt

Combine the water, sugar and kosher salt in the bowl of a stand mixer and sprinkle the yeast on top. Allow to sit for 5 minutes or until the mixture begins to foam. Add the flour and butter and, using the dough hook attachment, mix on low speed until well combined. Change to medium speed and knead until the dough is smooth and pulls away from the side of the bowl, approximately 4 to 5 minutes. Remove the dough from the bowl, clean the bowl and then oil it well with vegetable oil. Return the dough to the bowl, cover with plastic wrap and sit in a warm place for approximately 50 to 55 minutes or until the dough has doubled in size.Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Line 2 half-sheet pans with parchment paper and lightly brush with the vegetable oil. Set aside.Bring the 10 cups of water and the baking soda to a rolling boil in

an 8-quart saucepan or roasting pan.In the meantime, turn the dough out onto a slightly oiled work surface and divide into 8 equal pieces. Roll out each piece of dough into a 24-inch rope. Make a U-shape with the rope, holding the ends of the rope, cross them over each other and press onto the bottom of the U in order to form the shape of a pretzel. Place onto the parchment-lined half sheet pan.

Place the pretzels into the boiling water, 1 by 1, for 30 seconds. Remove them from the water using a large flat spatula. Return to the half sheet pan, brush the top of each pretzel with the beaten egg yolk and water mixture and sprinkle with the pretzel salt. Bake until dark golden brown in color, approximately 12 to 14 minutes. Transfer to a cooling rack for at least 5 minutes before serving.

Pampered Chef’s Pecan Tassies January 1, 2008

These little tassies are easy to make and the ingredient list is simple, I usually have everything in the house already.  This is the second time I made these this week.  I took the first batch to a birthday party.  My husband loved them so much (which surprised me because he does not like pecan pie) he requested I bring them to our New Year’s Eve party also. 

A mini-tart shaper would be very convenient for making these but I haven’t gotten around to buying one so I use my fingers to press the dough into the muffin pan which works perfectly fine.

Pecan Tassies

(Recipe from:  Pampered Chef)

Yield:  24 tarts, Prep time:  30 minutes, Bake time:  20-25 minutes

Tart Shells

1/2 C butter or margarine, softened

3 oz cream cheese, softened

1 C all-purpose flour

 Beat butter and cream cheese until well blended.  Add flour; mix until a soft dough forms.  Refrigerate for one hour.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Using a small scoop, shape dough into 1-inch balls.  Place balls into ungreased mini-muffin pan and press dough to cover bottom and side of each muffin tin. 

Filling

2 Tbsp butter or margarine, melted

3/4 C packed brown sugar

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla

1 C pecan halves, finely chopped

Stir melted butter, brown sugar, egg and vanilla.  Add pecans and mix well.

Fill each tart shell (do not overfill).  Bake for 20-25 minutes or until edges are light golden brown.  Remove from oven cool in pan 3 minutes.  Remove from pan and cool completely.  Sprinkle with powdered sugar, if desired.