Mocha Cheesecake

In honor of Valentines Day I'm doing dessert!  Todd loves a good cheesecake and it has been a while since I've made one. June of 2010 to be exact, when I made my Brother-in-laws tie-dye grooms (cheese) cake.  I could have gone with plain, but I decided that a Mocha Cheesecake would be a great dessert and it would pair well with a pint of good porter.

What you need:

32 Ounces cream cheese, room temperature

1 Cup granulated white sugar

3 Tablespoons all purpose flour

5 Large eggs, room temperature

1/3 Cup heavy whipping cream

1 Teaspoon of Vanilla Extract

2 Tablespoons of Cocoa Powder, sifted

2 Tablespoons Espresso Powder, sifted

First you want to preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Then begin by putting the cream cheese, sugar, and flour into your mixing bowl and beating on medium speed until smooth (about 2 minutes). Scrape down the bowl as needed. Then one by one add the eggs, mixing well (about 30 seconds) after each one is added. Next scrape down the sides of the bowl and add the whipping cream and vanilla extract and beat until mixed well. Now here is where I removed 1/3 cup of the batter to use in my heart design. If you don't want to make a design then at this point add the cocoa and espresso powders. Mix in and let sit for 5 minutes, then mix again - the espresso powder needs a few minutes to dissolve. If you haven't heard of espresso powder, this is what you're looking for.

Next pour your batter into a spring-form pan that the bottom has been covered in foil, about halfway up the side and lined with parchment paper. Yes, there is no crust for this cheesecake, Todd prefers it that way.  If you want a crust feel free to add one; either a graham cracker or oreo one would work well. Tap the pan a little to even out the batter and then if you want to do a design now is the time. My "hearts" were made my dropping a dollop of batter onto the top and pulling a toothpick or skewer through the top to form a heart - EASY!

When ready place the foil covered pan onto a baking pan and when you put it in the oven, pour about 1-2 cups of water around it. The foil will keep the water out of the pan, but keep the cheesecake moist and prevent the top from cracking. Bake for 15 minutes at 350 and then lower the oven temperature to 250 degrees. Cook another 60 - 90 minutes or until firm and only the center of the cheesecake looks a little wobbly. Mine went for 70 minutes, but ovens vary so yours may take longer. 

 

When done baking you want to refrigerate this for at least 3-4 hours until chilled. Then to serve I usually run a knife around the edge of the pan and then release the spring. The cheesecake should come out easily, so all you need to do is slice and serve. If you want to dress it up a bit you could grate some chocolate over it and add a little fresh whipped cream, but truthfully it's perfect on its own. 

 

A few items worth noting: 

• Obviously a spring-form pan is needed and here is a great deal on 3 heavy-weight ones. I only have the middle one, but it would be nice to have a choice in size. 
• Parchment paper is great for when you don't have a crust, it allows for easy removal from the pan base.
• For grating things very fine, like chocolate, I suggest having a microplane.  It has many uses and worth having in the kitchen. 

And just because I loved how this one turned out, here is the tie-dye grooms cheesecake that I mentioned I made earlier. It was a hit!

Verde Chicken Enchiladas

Our household loves mexican food, but gets tired of tacos all the time.  One of our favorite ways to change it up is enchiladas.  If we do beef, we usually stick with a red sauce, but with chicken verde sauce is the way to go. 

What you'll need:

1/2 medium onion chopped

3 scallions chopped, just the green

1 small handful cilantro chopped

2 tbs cumin

1 clove minced garlic

1 cup chicken broth

7 oz can salsa verde

28 oz can green enchilada sauce

2 lbs chicken breast

4 oz cream cheese

12-15 small white or yellow corn tortillas

2 cups shredded mexican cheese

salt & pepper to taste

Start by adding half the can of salsa verde, chicken broth, cilantro, onions and seasonings to a deep sauce pan; bring it to a boil and then simmer.

 Next take your chicken, trim the fat and cut into 1-2 inch pieces. Add it to the broth and let simmer on medium until cooked through, about 10 minutes. During this time the sauce should also cook down about half way.

Now either add the chicken and sauce to a food processor (My easy way) or chop by hand into small pieces.  Once done put it in a large mixing bowl with the remaining salsa verde, 1 cup of shredded cheese and the cream cheese.  Mix until combined and set aside.

 Now you'll prepare the tortillas. I've found the best way to to quickly fry in a little oil so that they don't break, but I've also heard that you can dip them in the heated enchilada sauce too. For frying I add 2 tablespoons of oil to a small pan on medium-high, fry on each side for no more than 5 seconds and place them on paper towels to cool and drain. I complete 4 this way and take a break so that I'm working with them while still warm. 

 To fill the enchiladas I place the tortilla in my baking pan which I've already spread a little sauce in the bottom of, evenly add 1/4 cup or so of the filling to the center, fold and tuck in one side of the tortilla and then roll over so the seam is down. Continue filling and frying the tortillas until your pan or pans in my case are filled. 

 Now all you need to do is top with the enchilada sauce, more cheese and bake at 375 for 30 minutes or until lightly browned and bubbling.

 Let cool about 10 minutes before serving with sour cream. YUMM!

An item worth mentioning:

• I love my Herb Scissors for cutting things like the cilantro in this recipe.  It goes right into the pan and the scissors, right into the dishwasher.
  

Basic Lasagna

After making last nights Stuffed Cabbage Rolls I found myself with an extra 1/2 pound each of ground pork and beef, plus about a 1/2 cup of the minced carrots and onions. Looking in my pantry and fridge I realized I had the makings of lasagna, so here it is!  It's inexpensive, basic, comfort food and with the cold weather we've been having it will be a welcome meal.

Here's what you need:

1 lb Ground Meat - I'm using a combo, but use whatever you have

 1 jar spaghetti sauce

10 oz shredded mozzarella

1/2-3/4 cup parmesan

1 cup ricotta or pureed cottage cheese

1 package lasagna noodles - I use Barilla No-Boil (So easy!)

Garlic, salt & pepper to taste

The minced onions & carrots aren't necessary, but I love adding veggies in wherever I can.  Get creative!  You can use spinach, mushrooms, peppers, etc. Chopped fine enough and cooked with the meat nobody will even notice and the taste will just be that much better.

Since I already had pans out for the cabbage rolls, I decided to cook the meat ahead of time so that today it would just need assembling. I tossed in the carrots, onions, a little oil, garlic, salt, pepper and the meat and cooked until done. Then I just put it into a container mixed in the jarred sauce and into the fridge it went until today.  At that time I also realized I didn't have any ricotta, but I did have cottage cheese. A few pulses in the food processer and voila'! 

 

 Assembly is easy and didn't take me more than 5 minutes. First spread a bit of the sauce, then cover 2 noodle sheets with your "ricotta", top with a sprinkle of parmesan and a little mozzarella, then repeat. In the 8x8 pan I used I was able to get three layers of noodles and topped it off with the remaining sauce and a little parmesan. 

 

 

 

 If you noticed I resisted putting more mozzarella on after assembling and it's because I usually bake this covered with foil for 1 hour at 375 degrees and in doing that you tend to lose some of the cheese to the foil - that's bad.  Instead I wait until it's done, remove the foil, top with more mozzarella and bake a few more minutes to get much better results.

 

 And here are the results! It was delicious and truthfully it's even better reheated the next day.  

 

A few items worth mentioning:

• A spreader; it makes applying the ricotta to the noodles quick and easy. Either a sandwich or frosting one will work.
• Also a deep baking dish it geat for more layers.  The one I have works, but I'd love this Le Creuset baker.

Mandy's Stuffed Cabbage Rolls

After seeing Ina Garten (Barefoot Contessa) make cabbage rolls on a recent show, I decided I wanted to make them...for the first time.  I started searching out recipes, trying to find one I thought I would like and what I found was that I liked many components of several, but no one recipe that fit what I was looking for.  So I can say that this recipe is truly mine. Here's what you'll need:

Sauce 

1 - 15oz can of tomato sauce

1/3 cup carrot & onions, finely minced

1/8 cup Craisins 

1/3 cup light brown sugar

1/8 cup apple cider vinegar

2-3 dashes worcestershire

1/3 cup red wine 
1/4 cup finely shredded cabbage

salt & pepper to taste 

Cabbage Roll Filling

1 large head of cabbage

1/2 lb ground pork

1/2 lb lean ground beef

1/2 cup uncooked white or brown rice

1/2 cup seasoned bread crumbs

2 eggs
3-4 dashes of worcestershire 

1/2 cup carrots & onions, finely minced

1 tb dried parsley

1 tb paprika

salt & pepper to taste

Begin by making your sauce so that it has some time to let the flavors develop. I minced the carrots and onions in my food processor, I highly recommend it. Other than that you can just toss all of the ingredients into your saucepan and cook on medium.

Next start mixing up your filling. In a bowl I put my ground pork and beef, eggs, uncooked rice, seasonings, bread crumbs and the carrot and onion mixture. Get your hands in there and mix it up well.  If it seems too wet add a bit more breadcrumbs to the mixture, it should form into a ball easily.

Next bring a large pot of water to a boil, core your head of cabbage and submerse the entire head for 2-3 minutes. Carefully remove it to a colander and let it cool for a few minutes. Start removing the whole cabbage leafs and lay them on a paper towel. If you start to pull some off that don't seem as flexible, put the cabbage back in the water for a few more minutes. It was at this point I realized I had plenty of leftover cabbage, so I chopped some up and added it to the sauce to add a bit more texture.

 Next it's time to start assembling them.  I spooned a bit of the sauce into the bottom of the pan to begin. With the cabbage leafs you want to cut out the tough stem, just a small triangle will be enough to open up the leaf (see the photo). Then take a small amount of the meat, maybe 1/4 cup and form it into a small roll. Center it towards the bottom of the leaf and roll up by folding the two ends over then tucking in the sides. Place each roll seam side down in your baking pan. Continue to do this until you run out of filling, but make sure to keep it at one layer.

 

 Once done top with the remaining sauce, cover and put it into the oven which has been preheated to 350 degrees. 

I let the cabbage rolls cook for 1 hour and then just because I'm cautious I decided to check for doneness. I took my digital thermometer, stuck it in the middle of one of the rolls and it registered 175 so I knew it was fine. I think one hour is plenty of time, if you are worried add 15 minutes.

 Now you're ready to dish up! I served it with a salad and make sure to spoon some sauce over the top. Depending on appetite this could be 3-5 servings.

 

This recipe received rave reviews from Todd and I really enjoyed it.  The sauce is tangy, sweet and something in there gave it a nice amount of heat - maybe the pepper or paprika? This was a bit more time consuming than I usually like for a weeknight, but it was worth it. I'm really glad I took the time to go over recipes and come up with one that suited my tastes. 

A few items worth mentioning:

• A food processor can same so much time in the kitchen.  I have this Kitchenaid, but even the less expensive ones will do the job most of the time. 
• I love my Cuisinart Dutch Oven, it's not a Le Creuset, but I don't know the difference at this price. 
• A digital thermometer is a good thing to have in the kitchen for checking meats and they're inexpensive too.

My TWO Ingredient Crockpot Pulled Pork

I've been making this for years.  I used to tease my former vegetarian daughter that it was the one meat she still secretly snuck bites of when nobody was looking, because it's that good.  I'm going to let my pictures speak for themselves and limit my words.  This is definitely something ANYONE can make, it takes no skill whatsoever.  It makes a great, easy dinner or even better for potlucks! Just double or triple the recipe to feed a larger crowd. People will want your recipe and be amazed at how easy it is.

Set the crockpot to high

1 Lean Pork Roast (I buy these 4-packs from Costco. Each roast is approx. 2 lbs.)

 

 Put the roast in the crockpot.

Measure out about 1/2-3/4 cup of your favorite BBQ sauce. (I never measure, but figured I would this time.)

 

Pour the sauce over the pork, then put the lid on and walk away for about 5-6 hours.

 Come back and this is the result, usually about 1 cup of liquid left. 

Now take two forks and pull/shred the meat, it'll soak up all those juices.

Finally dish it up! I serve it with extra BBQ sauce, horseradish (my fave), regular and spicy dill pickles and don't forget the coleslaw.

The only item worth mentioning:

• A Crockpot! If you don't have one, please get one. They are a wonderful, versatile appliance and inexpensive too!
  

Pecan Pie Cupcakes

This recipe found me, yes I said found me, on Pinterest. I pinned them a couple months ago and decided tonight was the night. I figured if they were good, I would bring some to Thanksgiving and to share with my co-workers. And if they weren't....well...how could they not be?! 

The recipe was simple, just 5 ingredients and if you're like me you have already have them in the pantry. You can start off by pre-heating the oven to 350 and preparing the muffin tins. I used Baker's Joy Cooking Spray, but you can also grease and flour them individually. I usually take the easy way out.

  1 Cup Chopped Pecans
1 Cup Packed Brown Sugar (I prefer baking with dark)
1/2 Cup Flour
2 Eggs
2/3 Cup Melted Butter

 

The next two ingredients I decided to add on my own.

1/4 Teaspoon Cinnamon
1/4 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract

 

The nice thing about this recipe is that you can dump all of the ingredients in a bowl and mix, no need to do it in stages and less mess.  After the mixture is blended you want to put about 1/4 cup of batter into each muffin tin. As a note the original recipe called for this to make 18-24 mini cupcakes, but I decided to go for 12 regular size. This way I eat 1 regular cupcake not 4 or 5 or 6 minis.

 

After filled I tapped them down on the counter to even the batter out before popping them in the oven for 16-18 minutes. Mine took 16, but when you see the edges get a dark golden brown they should be done. Pull them from the oven and let cool 10 minutes before turning over on a cooling rack. 

 

I was able to wait close to 20 minutes before I gave in and truthfully now I'm distracting myself  by posting this here. My suggestion? Double the batch and make 24 because if you share these with anyone else, you're going to need them. The edges get wonderfully crispy and the insides stay soft and gooey.

So simple, sooooo good.

A few items worth mentioning:

• Well like I said above, any bakers spray like Baker's Joy Cooking Spray is a helpful time/mess saver.
• I also recommend a good quality muffin tin. Anything too thin or lightweight has a tendency to burn faster and cook unevenly.  I have these two and they didn't cost me an arm and a leg: Mini and Standard.