Raspberry Cheesecake

Is it just me or did we skip from winter right into summer? The high this week is going to be 87 degrees. April is usually one of the best weather months in Tampa with highs in the upper 70’s to low 80’s, but upper 80’s? Ugh.

This cheesecake is perfect for spring and summer. It gets a lovely raspberry flavor from not only fresh raspberries but raspberry liquor as well. (Booze makes everything better!) The overall flavor isn’t too sweet and doesn’t wallop you over the head. It has just the right balance of sweet, tart and cream.

Raspberry Cheesecake

*Serves 8-10

(printable recipe)

Ingredients:

Crust -

-          2 ½ cups crushed graham crackers

-          6 tablespoons butter, melted

-          2 teaspoons sugar

Filling –

-          3 8oz packages cream cheese, room temperature

-          1 teaspoon vanilla

-          ½ cup sugar

-          ½ cup sour cream

-          ½ cup raspberry liquor (such as Chambord or razzmatazz)

-          4 large eggs

-          ½ cup whipping cream

-          6oz raspberries

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

2. In a medium bowl combine crushed graham crackers, sugar and melted butter. Mix together until cracker crumbs absorb the butter and are moist. Press into the bottom of a 9” or 10” springform pan and up the sides about ¾ the way up. Bake for 10 minutes and then set aside.

3. Puree raspberries in a blender or food processor then run through a strainer to remove seeds. Set aside.

4. In a large bowl mix together cream cheese and vanilla. Beat with a mixer until smooth and creamy. Next add sugar, sour cream, liquor and mix well. Then add eggs one at a time and mix slowly until just fully incorporated. Finally stir in cream and raspberry puree.

5. Pour filling into crust and bake for 40-55 minutes or until center still slightly jiggles. Remove from oven and let come to room temperature, then refrigerate until fully chilled. About 4-5 hours.

6. Once cheesecake is fully chilled run a knife around the edge to loosen, then remove springform pan and serve.

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Celebrate St. Patrick's Day: Irish Cream Dark Chocolate Truffles

For Valentine’s Day Brent surprised me with some Bailey’s Irish Cream Chocolates. They were pretty fantastic and since then I’ve wanted to play around with a boozy truffle.

I used dark chocolate for these since it’s better for you than milk chocolate, but if you don’t dig dark chocolate, use semi-sweet. The older I get the more I prefer dark chocolate and I loved how these truffles came out. The dark chocolate takes center stage while the liquor plays in the background.

There is a fair amount of straight liquor in these so you may not want to serve them to children. Just a warning to all the parents out there! These are probably best served at an adult only party.

Irish Cream Dark Chocolate Truffles

*Makes approx 35 truffles

(printable recipe)

Ingredients:

-          14oz dark chocolate, chopped or chips

-          ¾ cup heavy cream

-          4 tablespoons butter

-          ¾ cup Irish cream liquor such as Baileys (can dial back to ½ cup)

-          ¼ cup unsweetened cocoa, sifted

-          Optional: sprinkles

Directions:

1. Place chocolate in a large metal or glass bowl. Make sure chocolate is room temperature.

2. In a small sauté pan over medium heat bring heavy cream and butter to a slow boil. Stay nearby b/c it can boil over pretty quickly.

3. Once cream/butter comes to a boil pour over chocolate. Gentle shake bowl to ensure all chocolate is submerged and let sit 2-3 minutes. Then whisk mixture until chocolate is smooth.

4. Add liquor and whisk again until incorporated. Place in fridge and chill for 2 hours.

5. Remove from fridge and beat with hand mixer on low for 2 minutes. Chill again for 1 ½ - 2 hours.

6. Remove from fridge and roll chocolate into small balls. About 1 tablespoon worth of mixture. Place on a wax paper lined sheet pan and refrigerate again for 30 minutes.

7. After 30 minutes re-roll any balls that need to be re-shaped. Dredge lightly in cocoa powder or dust lightly on top. 

I dredged them but next time I think I’ll just light dust them since cocoa powder can be a bit overwhelming for some. I also sprinkled some green sugar on some. Crushed walnuts might also be a great addition for topping.

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How to Basics: Homemade Whipped Cream

I’m not a huge lover of whipped cream. I like it but I just don’t NEED it most of the time. Especially on milkshakes or blended coffee drinks – I always order them without it.

Still, whipped cream has a place in the world…. maybe just not as big of piece in my life.

Making whipped cream at home is very simple and can really make an impression when serving a dessert at a dinner party. I know a lot of people think its intimidating – which I completely understand – but it is actually easy to do. And if you keep powdered sugar, heavy cream, and vanilla on hand most of the time – like me – it is actually cheaper than buying it.

Three things you need to know about homemade whipped cream:
- chill your bowl and whisk first – metal or glass is best
- you need HEAVY whipping cream
- powdered sugar works better than regular sugar, in my opinion

What you’ll need:
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
- 2 tablespoons of powdered sugar
- ¼ teaspoon – ½ teaspoon vanilla extract (optional)

FYI – I only made half the amount because I didn't need two full cups of whipped cream.

Directions:

Step one: Keep your heaving cream in the fridge until you are ready to whip it. Place your whisk attachment and bowl in the freezer for about 15 minutes before making whipped cream.

Step two: Place heavy cream in your bowl and start beating on low. If you’re using a hand mixer, slowly move the whisk around the bowl. Beat until cream nearly doubles in volume and soft peaks form.

Step three: Once soft peaks form, sift powdered sugar over whipped cream and add desired amount of vanilla extract. Beat on low again for just a few moments to incorporate sugar and vanilla.

Use immediately or store in the fridge covered in plastic wrap until needed. It will keep for a few hours. One cup of heavy cream will yield about two cups of whipped cream.

Here is the process in pictures:

Pumpkin Cheesecake

Anyone else tired of everything pumpkin yet?

Yea, me neither.

I’m a HUGE fan of cheesecake, but when I was a kid I thought the idea was kind of gross. Cheese + cake? Ewww.... but then I actually tried some and I fell in love.

This particular recipe I’ve been tinkering with for several years. The first time I made it was the same Thanksgiving I made the Smoked Gouda and Sausage stuffed Mushrooms. I’m pretty sure I’ve made it every holiday season since then, and each time I’ve adjusted it a little bit to get the balance just right.

After six years, I’m pretty sure I've gotten it just where I want it. The cheesecake is smooth and silky, and the flavor hits all the pumpkin pie notes you’d expect and could possible want. It makes me happy just thinking about it.

Pumpkin Cheesecake

*Serves 6-8

(printable recipe)

Ingredients:

Baking at Midnight: Chocolate Peanut Butter Cup Cookies

One thing that Brent and I differ on is keeping snacks on hand in the house. I have a strict policy of not buying sweets or junk food at the store, because honestly if they are in the house I will eat it. ALL of it. I have no self-control.

Sure, I get cravings for cookies, brownies, and chips, but the craving is rarely strong enough to make me want to drive to the store and go buy some. Brent on the other hand never resists he sweet tooth. That man will leave the house at any time of night if he wants some ice cream.

The point I’m getting at is that the “don’t buy it” game plan has served me well for a number of years. Until recently when I started to keep things like flour, sugar, cocoa, baking powder, and chocolate chips on hand.

Do you see where this is going? Do you know how easy it can be to convince yourself at midnight on a Friday that baking cookies is a suburb idea?

I do. And I have 3 extra pounds to prove it.

A recently new product is Reese’s MINI Peanut Butter cups. I love Reese’s and the second I saw the commercial I knew I wanted to try making some cookies with them.

These cookies are pretty awesome. They are soft, slightly chewy and not overly sweet. Oh and the big peanut butter filled bites? They rock. If you have a well-stocked pantry, all you will need is the Reese’s to make them! Resistance is futile.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Cup Cookies

*Makes 2 dozen(ish)

(printable recipe)

Ingredients:

- 2 sticks room temperature butter

- 2 cups sugar

- 2 eggs

- 2 teaspoons vanilla

- 2 cups all-purpose flour

- ¾ cup cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda

- ½ teaspoon salt

- 2 ½ cups of Reese’s Mini Peanut Butter Cups

Directions:

1. In a large mixing bowl beat butter and sugar together until smooth. Add vanilla and eggs. Beat again until mixture becomes fluffy and light.

2. In a separate bowl combines flour, cocoa powder, salt and baking soda. Stir to combine, and then add gradually to mixture of butter/sugar/eggs beating until fully combined. Gently fold in Reese’s cups.

3. Preheat over to 350 degrees. Drop small golf ball-sized amounts of dough onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake for 6-8 minutes. Allow to cool completely before storing.

A couple of notes:

- I needed about a large bag and half of mini Reese’s.

- The dough will seem stiff – it’s totally OK.

- If using a spoon to drop the cookies, it is helpful to spray it just a bit with cooking spray.

- These will keep for about 3 days in an airtight container.

And if you’re wondering what to do with the leftover Reese’s that didn’t make it in to the batter. I suggest tosses them in the freezer for moments of weakness.

Recipe adapted from: Hershey’s Perfect White Chip Cookies Recipe

 

Cherry Almond White Chocolate Swirl Bark

Can we postpone Christmas for just a week? Maybe two? I swear there is not enough time to get everything that needs to be done – done! On the upside I only need to buy one more gift and I’m done with shopping!

Here is a very simple treat for the holiday season. Only 4 ingredients, takes less than 20 minutes to make (not counting the couple of hours it needs to set), and it’s fairly inexpensive as well… all plusses in my book during an always busy time of year.

Cherry Almond White Chocolate Swirl Bark

* Makes about 2 dozen pieces
(printable recipe)

Ingredients:
- 16oz semi sweet chocolate, best to use the baking bar and not chips
- 4 oz white chocolate, ditto^^^
- 10oz jar or maraschino cherries
- ¾ cup whole almonds, toasted and chopped

Directions:

1. Prep your cherries by draining the liquid, rinsing them, squeezing out the excess liquid and chopping.

2. Break up both white chocolate and semi sweet chocolate bars. Set aside in separate bowls.

Autumn Inspired Cookies

Recipe: Cranberry, Walnut, and White Chocolate Cookies

This recipe is a great example how I start out with one idea and eventually end up making something completely different. Fall is starting to set in. In Florida this basically means less humidity, since temps are still in the low 90’s for a few more weeks. Still, I’m ready for fall and wanted to make something that felt like autumn to me. So once I settled on making cookies, I took a standard chocolate cookie recipe and played around with the ingredients.

Cranberry, Walnut, and White Chocolate Cookies
Makes 6 dozen cookies
(printable recipe)

Ingredients:

- 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

- 1 teaspoon baking soda

- 1 teaspoon salt

- 1 cup butter, softened (2 sticks)

- 3/4 cup white sugar

- 3/4 cup packed brown sugar

- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

- 2 large eggs

- 1 cup white chocolate chips

- 1 ½ cups walnuts, chopped

- 1 ½ cups dried cranberries

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375° F. In a small bowl combine flour, salt, and baking soda. Stir together.

2. In a large mixing bowl combine butter, both sugars, and vanilla. Beat together until creamy.

The Great Cake Ball Adventure

S'mores Cake Balls: I’ve been rolling this idea in my head for a while now. Since May actually because I thought about doing it for Mother’s Day. Anyway, a couple of weeks ago I was in a baking mood – a big one. These are based off of Bakerella’s Cake Balls. If you haven’t been to her site you should go – now. Well maybe after you’re done reading this post, but seriously go when you have a little while to get lost in her site. She is nothing short of a Rockstar in my book, and after making these little guys I have a whole other level of respect for her.

So Cake Balls seem to be a pretty easy idea with simple ingredients: boxed cake mix, frosting, and melted chocolate. Totally doable. Or so I thought. Ok, in all honesty they weren’t THAT hard. They take some finesse is all. Once I realized I was suppose to let them chill in the fridge for a while, the hardest part for me was that I couldn’t get my balls to look smooth and as perfect as Bakerella had. She listed using a bar of baker’s chocolate on her site, but I used chocolate chips because they were two bucks cheaper for the same amount of ounces. Maybe this was why my chocolate was a little hard to manage?

I forget how I actually came up with the idea to do a S’mores version of the cake ball, but it seemed like a perfect little match. Instead of just using cream cheese frosting I mixed in Fluff as well (Yes Fluff!) and then rolled the chocolate coated balls in some crushed graham crackers. And thank DOG for those graham crackers because they made my little balls look less like the hot mess that they were.

Originally I intended to take pictures of the process, but that was near impossible since my fingers were coated with chocolate and graham crackers. In fact I almost didn’t get ANY pictures but remembered to at 8:10AM right before BD was walking out the door with them.

S’mores Cake Balls

– Adapted from Bakerella

*Makes approx 55 balls

(Printable Recipe)

 

Ingredients:

- 1 box vanilla cake mix

- 1 cup cream cheese frosting

- ¾ cup fluff

- 2 12 ounce packages of milk chocolate chips

- 9 graham cracker sheets, crushed

Directions:

1. Prepare the cake according to box directions. Allow cake to cool completely.

2. Mix cream cheese and fluff together in a bowl.

2a. Wait impatiently and eat remaining cream cheese frosting with spoon out of the can.

3. Crumble cake and add fluff mixture and combine. It’s best to use your fingers.

4. Roll cake mixture in balls about the size of a quarter and lay on a sheet lined with wax or parchment paper. Refrigerate for several hours.

5. Once balls (I’m seriously giggling every time I write that word. Sooo Karen Walker) are ready, crush graham crackers and place in a bowl. Melt chocolate in either microwave or double boiler.

6. Set up assembly line. Take each ball and dip in chocolate. Tap off excess and roll in graham cracker. Set back on cookie sheet lined with parchment or wax paper. And repeat…again and again and again until done. Allow balls to firm. Won’t take long if you put them back in the fridge.

Notes:

- I crushed the graham crackers by placing them in a large ziplock bag and rolling a rolling pin over top. You want them as fine as possible.

- When melting chocolate in a microwave, use a small amount and heat for short increments - like for 45 seconds and then stir in between. If I do these again I will use a double boiler, because I had to keep going back and forth with the micro.

Thoughts: I liked them and so did BD and he is not a fan of graham crackers or cake. (I suspect he’s an alien or something because of this.) After these little guys were “set”, I packed them up and sent them off to work with BD. I did not need 55 cake balls in my fridge calling my name. The marshmallow flavor was not as prominent as I thought it would be, so next time I might play with the ratio OR just use regular vanilla frosting with the fluff instead of cream cheese frosting.

I would definitely make these again or would do another variety of cake balls. Perhaps next time I will use the bakers bark instead of chips to see if that works better. If not, I shall roll them in nuts or sprinkles or sugar or something to make them pretty.

Now what to do with the rest of the jar of Fluff???

Vinegar + Ice Cream = Heaven

While I don’t know where I learned about Balsamic Syrup, or how to make it, I can recall the first time I made it. I didn’t tell BD that the chocolate looking drizzle on his ice cream was NOT chocolate. I was afraid if I told him I poured vinegar all over it, he wouldn’t have tried it.

Now, I love to bake but sadly I never seem to have the time. A friend of mine reminded me of this recipe the other day and I thought it would be great to post here. This recipe is as common as how to make Béchamel, but I will post it anyway for easy reference.

Balsamic Syrup

(print recipe)

Ingredients:- Balsamic Vinegar (BV)

- Sugar

Directions:

1- The ratio is: 1 cup of BV to 2 tablespoons of sugar.

2- Add BV and sugar to a sauce pan and bring to a low boil over medium heat.

3- Stirring frequently, reduce by ¾. Once the syrup fully coats the back of a spoon – you’re done!

4- Remove from heat and allow cooling.

How easy is that! The best part about Balsamic Syrup is it is so versatile. Put it on anything you want – fresh fruit, ice cream, cheesecake – sky is the limit.

Heads Up:

- It doesn’t smell fantastic while it’s boiling. Don’t let this detour you from trying it!

- Use it sparingly on food. This syrup has some punch to it and by going heavy-handed with it, you may not be able to taste whatever you put it on.

- if you don’t use it all, just keep it in the fridge. It will be fine for a while.

Tonight I did one of my favorite little midweek desserts. I love this one because it’s easy and doesn’t take a lot of time. Plus for some reason, it just sounds decadent to me. Vanilla bean ice cream with fresh strawberries and a balsamic syrup drizzle. I imagine myself sitting in a little sidewalk bistro on a summer night with a cool breeze as the waiter gives me the dessert specials for the night….

Vanilla Bean Ice Cream with Strawberries and Balsamic Syrup

My thoughts on this dish: I love this. It doesn’t really make you feel like your being “bad” for eating ice cream. The creamy ice cream with sweet strawberries and the tangy, yet almost velvety-chocolate tasting balsamic syrup is simply heavenly. Everything balanced each other out, and at the same time highlighted the other ingredients. I made this tonight and I wasn’t even hungry but I said I would have a few bites. I ended up eating the whole bowl without thinking twice.