The Disappearing Cheesecake

So remember when I said I found the new local cream cheese, and it was so good I'd make a cheesecake with it? I did.

And it was so so delicious. I mean, it was the real deal. 16 slices disappeared in 24 hours. Here is what I did, because it is so easy to reproduce.

Crust:

1 c. crumbed Gingernut cookies

1 c. crumbed HobNob cookies

1/4 c. breakfast or castor sugar

1/2 c. melted butter

Filling:

1 kg cream cheese, room temperature (that's 5 1/2 boxes of the Britannia Cream Cheese)

1 c. breakfast sugar

3 T. flour

5 large eggs, room temperature

1/3 c. Amul cream

1 T. lemon zest (this made a fairly strong lemon flavor, use less if you want)

1 t. vanilla extract

Topping:

1 c. sour cream (or 1 T. vinegar mixed with 1 c. Amul cream)

2 T. breakfast sugar

1/2 t. vanilla extract

Grease the bottom of a 9 inch springform pan. Place pan on a larger baking sheet to catch any leakage while the cheesecake is baking. Preheat oven to 177C. with rack in center of oven.

Crust: In a medium sized bowl, combine the cookie crumbs, sugar and melted butter. Press the crumbs evenly over the bottom and about 1 inch up the sides of the springform pan. Cover and refrigerate while you make the filling.

Filling: In a large bowl, place the cream cheese, sugar and flour. Beat on medium speed (I did this with a hand blender) until smooth (about 2 minutes, DO NOT OVERBEAT!), scraping down the bowl as needed. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well (about 30 seconds) after each addition. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add the whipping cream, lemon zest, vanilla extract and beat until incorporated. Remove the crust from the refrigerator and pour in the filling. Place the cheesecake pan on a larger baking pan and place in the oven.

Bake for 15 minutes and then lower the oven temperature to 120C and continue to bake about another 1 1/2 hours or until firm and only the center of the cheesecake looks a little wet and wobbly. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack.

Meanwhile, in a small bowl combine the sour cream, sugar and vanilla extract. Spread the topping over the warm cheesecake and return to oven to bake for 15 more minutes. Remove from oven and carefully run a knife or spatula around the inside of the pan to loosen the cheesecake. This helps prevent the surface from cracking as it cools.

Let cool before covering with plastic wrap and refrigerating. Tastes best after being refrigerated for at least a day.

Tips: Sometimes the surface of the cheesecake cracks. To help prevent this from happening do not over beat the batter, especially when creaming the cheese and sugar.

Another reason for cracking is overbaking the cheesecake. The cheesecake is done when it is firm, but the middle may still look a little wet. Also, make sure the springform pan is well greased as cracking can occur if the cheesecake sticks to the sides as it cools.

Only slightly adapted from www.joyofbaking.com

Classic French Bread

This is probably the easiest, fail-proof bread recipe I have. Four ingredients. Maybe five. : ) All of which most of us have on hand at any given time. This bread takes about 15 minutes to put together. Just give it a try! :)

Classic French Bread

2 1/4 t. dry yeast

1 c. water water (100-110 degrees, very important it's in between there!)

3 c. flour

1 t. salt

Dissolve yeast in warm water. (I put the water in a liquid measuring cup, heat it in the microwave until it's the right temp, then dump the yeast in, stir, and let it sit till it starts to bubble and foam). Let stand about five minutes.

Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups: level with a knife. Place flour and slat in a food processor and pulse two times to blend. WIth processor on, slowly add yeast mixture through the food chute; process until dough forms a ball. Process 1 additional minute. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead lightly 4-5 times. (Kneading means pushing the dough, folding it in half, turning, pushing again, then folding, turning, etc. One push-fold-turn sequence is one knead).

Place dough in a large bowl coated with oil, turning to coat top of dough. Cover dough, adn let rise in a warm place free from drafts for 45 minutes, or until doubled in size. (I cover the dough with a clean kitchen towel, then put a small cup of water in the microwave, heat it up, then put the bowl inside and close it up. Keeps it nice and warm.)

Punch dough down and shape. You can either shape it into approximately a six inch round loaf, or you can make a baguette. For a baguette, gently roll the dough out into a 18x9 inch rectangle. Roll it up tightly along the 18 inch edge (so you'll have a 9 inch baguette), pressing firmly to eliminate air pockets. Pinch the seam to seal.

Either way, when dough is shaped, cover and let rise another 30 minutes or until double in size. (I just do this rise on the kitchen counter).

Preheat oven to 230C. Uncover dough and make 3 diagonal cuts, 1/4 inch deep. Combine 1 T. water and 1 egg white and brush mixture over the top of the loaf. Bake at 450 for 20 minutes, or until loaf sounds hollow when tapped.

It's really easy, especially if you have a mixer. I use my Bajaj Food Factory. :) If you don't have a mixer that will do this, you can do it by hand, it just won't be quite as easy. Just add the water/yeast mixture a little at a time and combine thoroughly before adding more.

Gingerbread Men

We've never done Gingerbread cookies in our house before, but we tried it this year, and it was a lot of fun! I turned into a whole unit for homeschool. The cookies topped it all off. Here's a good recipe that turned out great!

Gingerbread Cookies

3 c. flour

1/4 t. salt

3/4 t. baking soda

2 t. ground ginger

2 t. ground cinnaomn

1/4 t. ground nutmeg

1/4 t. allspice

1/2 c. butter, room temperature

1/2 c. granulated sugar

1 large egg

1/3 c.maple syrup

1/3 c. honey (if you don't have syrup, just use all honey)

In a large bowl, sift together the flour, salt, baking soda, and spices.

With an electric mixer, beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the egg, syrup and honey and beat until well combined. Gradually add the flour mixture beating until incorporated.

Divide the dough in half, and wrap each half in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least two hours or overnight.

Preheat oven to 177C and place rack in center of oven. Line 2 baking sheets with butter paper and set aside while you roll out the dough.

On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough to a thickness of about 1/4 inch. Use a gingerbread cutter to cut out the cookies. With an offset spatula lift the cut out cookies onto the baking sheet, placing the cookies about 1 inch apart. You can make ornaments or gifts by making a hole at the top of the cookie and baking longer till hard and brown.

Bake for about 8 - 12 minutes depending on the size of the cookies. Small ones will take about 8 minutes, larger cookies will take about 12 minutes. They are done when they are firm and the edges are just beginning to brown.

Remove the cookies from the oven and cool on the baking sheet for about 1 minutes. When they are firm enough to move, transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

For frosting:

2 c. icing sugar, sifted

1/2 c. butter at room temperature

1 t. vanilla

1 1/2 T. milk

In an electric mixer (or with a hand mixer), cream the butter until smooth and well blended. Add the vanilla extract. With the mixer on low speed, gradually beat in the sugar. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and beater. Add the milk and beat on high speed until frosting is light and fluffy (about 3-4 minutes). Add a little more milk if too dry. Place in a decorating bag to dress up your gingerbread men. If you don't have a decorating bag with tips, you can place it in a ziploc and cut just a tiny bit of one corner off.

This is adapted from The Joy of Baking website.

Merry Christmas!

Caramel Almond Popcorn

Caramel Almond Popcorn

1 cup (2 sticks, 250g) butter, plus more for pans

3/4 cup corn kernels

2 1/2 tablespoons oil

2 cups almonds, lightly toasted

2 cups packed light-brown sugar

1/2 cup light corn syrup or Golden Syrup (last year I tried this with liquid glucose and it worked pretty well)

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon almond extract (I omit this... do NOT use almond flavor from India. Way too strong!) :)

3/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

Preheat oven to 250 degrees. Butter 2 baking sheets; set aside.

Place corn kernels and oil in large pot, partially covered, over medium heat. Once popping begins, shake pan frequently; when popping slows down, about 3 seconds between pops, remove pan from heat and uncover. Transfer popped corn to a large bowl; add almonds. Set aside.

In a medium saucepan, combine sugar, butter, and corn syrup over medium-high heat; stir to dissolve sugar and melt butter. Cook, stirring constantly, until it reaches 255 degrees on a candy thermometer.

Remove pan from heat; stir in extracts, salt, and baking soda. Working quickly, pour over popcorn and almonds; toss with wooden spoons while rotating the bowl. When completely coated, divide evenly between prepared baking sheets. Bake, stirring occasionally, for 1 hour and 20 minutes; popcorn will crisp when cooled. (I don't usually bake it this long... just watch it and keep tasting it until it tastes crunchy and just right.

Chocolate Bon-Bons/Oreo Truffles

This is a seriously simple recipe for chocolate bon-bons. Also, recently I asked my shop keeper for wax paper. He didn't know what I was talking about of course, but when I described it, he said, "Oh, that's butter paper." I bought a few sheets, and it's not exactly like wax paper, but it functions the same way for baking and candies, etc. So, ask for it next time you're at the shop! :)

Chocolate Bon Bons

1 box of oreo cookies/3 rolls here

8 oz. box cream cheese softened (or 11/2 tubs of Britannia cream cheese)

2 c. chocolate chips or chopped chocolate bars, milk, dark, whatever you want

2 T. plus 2 t. shortening/vanaspati

White chocolate for drizzle, optional

In a food processor, combine oreos and cream cheese. Chill in refrigerator for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, place chocolate and vanaspati in a large bowl that will fit over another bowl. Place warm water in the second bowl, and place the first bowl in the warm water. Stir the chocolate and shortening with a rubber spatula continuously , allowing the water underneath to melt it. If the water cols off, replace it with warm water. Roll dough into 1 inch balls. Using a fork, lift each ball, dip it in the chocolate mixture, then place on butter paper to cool. Drizzle with the white melted chocolate if desired.

Peppernuts!

This is a Jantz family tradition. My grandmother, Dorothy, used to make these every year. My mother made them as well, and now that I'm in charge of the Christmas baking, I'm making them too. I've never had them anywhere but at my house! :)

Peppernuts

1/2 c. butter

2 c. brown sugar

2 eggs

1 1/2 t. baking soda (dissolved in 1 1/2 t. hot water)

2 1/2-3 c. flour

1/2 t. cinnamon

1/2 t. mace

1/2 t. cloves

1/2 t. nutmeg

1/2 t. anise extract

1/2 c. finely chopped nuts

Cream butter and sugar. Beat in eggs. Add soda and water. Stir in dry ingredients. Chill dough. (Can be kept up to two weeks) Roll into 3/8” snakes. Flour board as needed. Slice thinly and bake on a cookie sheet at 350˚ for about 8 minutes.

Cream Cheese!!

I was at my local dukan today, the only place in town that carries any kind of import things. To my shock and glee, there was this in the refrigerator:

Yes, that's right, a locally made cream cheese, in a tub, that's spreadable. Seriously. And look at the price!

150. 150 Rupees. I would make a cheesecake with this. It's good enough. So look for it in stores near you. And if you don't see it soon, print these pictures out and take it to your dukandar and tell him to get it! :)