Questival

Hi all, taking a weekend out of the kitchen for questival. Go do some good!!!

See you all next week for more fun recipes and kitchen fun!!!

Caramel-Toffee Cheesecake

As far as I am concerned, caramel is the best. Brown sugar and butter is the greatest mixture since yeast and flour. One of the best things which caramel goes with (maybe after onion) is chocolate. And I guess I'm just excited about cheese cakes at the moment, so I present, in my new line of recipes to raise your cholesterol levels just by looking:

Ingredients

Cake:

1 1/2 cups crushed gingersnap cookies
2 tablespoons sugar
1/4 cup butter, melted
5 8 oz. packages of cream cheese, softened (this is the size it comes in)
1 1/3 cups packed brown sugar
3 tablespoons flour
5 eggs
2 egg yolks
2 chocolate covered English toffee candy bars, crushed (Skor or Heath)

Caramel topping:

1 cup Brown sugar

1/2 cup half and half (half cream and half milk, definitely an American thing...)

4 tablespoons butter

Pinch of salt

1 tablespoon vanilla

Method

Biscuit base:

1. Preheat oven to 350. Lightly grease bottom of a 9 inch spring form pan. Wrap a double layer of foil tightly around pan to form a watertight seal.
2. For crust, combine cookie crumbs and 2 tablespoons of sugar.
3. Stir in melted butter, and press into bottom of foil-wrapped pan.
4. Bake about 14 minutes, then allow to cool.

Cheesy bits:

1. In a large bowl, beat cream cheese with electric mixer on medium speed until fluffy.
2. Add brown sugar and flour, beating until smooth.
3. Add eggs and egg yolks, one at a time, beating after each addition, just until combined.
4. Beat in vanilla, and then pour over crust.
5. Place foil-wrapped spring form pan in a roasting pan. Pour enough hot water into roasting pan to reach halfway up sides of spring form pan. (I skipped this water bath with no issues, I don't have a roasting pan or anything else big enough)
6. Bake about 1 hour and 15 minutes. (I baked mine 70 min.) until edges appear set, and center appears nearly set when gently giggled.
7. Carefully remove spring form pan from water, and cool cheesecake on wire rack for 15 minutes.
8. Using a sharp knife, loosen edge of cheesecake from sides of pan.
9. Cool completely for 1 3/4 hour. Remove foil, cover and chill overnight.

Caramel Topping:

FYI: this is very tasty, you could make the topping for anything you wanted it for; such as, my personal favorite, waffles and ice cream.

1. Mix brown sugar, half and half, butter and salt in a sauce pan over medium-low heat.
2. Cook while whisking gently for 5-7 minutes, until it gets thicker.
3. Add the vanilla and cook for another minute to continue thickening.
4. Turn off heat and allow cool slightly, before pouring the sauce into a jar.
5. Refrigerate over night.

In the morning: top with the cake with the caramel topping and chopped English toffee bars.

Red, White and Blueberry Cheesecake Recipe

When I decide I want to cook something I know what sort of thing I want to make (otherwise if I just want to cook I have a ToDo list), then its off to Google image search to find a picture which speaks to my idea. Hopefully there is a recipe attached. In this case I found exactly what I wanted, but lo and behold it was on the Sargento website. A company selling recipes for its own product? Huge red flag, but the recipe looked right and the picture looked good so I gave it a try.

Ingredients

Crust:

1 cup finely crushed graham crackers
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup butter or margarine, melted

Filling:

4 cups (30 oz.) Sargento® Light Ricotta Cheese
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup half-and-half
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 tsp. vanilla
1/4 tsp. salt
3 eggs
1/2 cup blueberry fruit spread, heated
1-1/2 cups fresh strawberry slices or fresh whole raspberries
1/2 cup fresh blueberries
1/4 cup red currant jelly, heated

Method:

1. Combine crust ingredients; mix well. 
2. Press evenly over bottom and 1-1/2-inches up sides of 8 or 9-inch spring-form pan.
3. Chill while preparing filling.
4. Blend together cheese, sugar, half-and-half, flour, vanilla and salt in bowl of electric mixer. 
5. Add eggs, one at a time; blend until smooth. 
6. Pour half of batter into prepared crust. 
7. Spoon half of blueberry spread randomly over batter.
8. Top with remaining batter, and smooth with spatula. 
9. Spoon remaining blueberry spread randomly over batter, then swirl with knife for marbled effect.
10. Bake in preheated 350°F oven 1 hour or until center is just set.
11. Turn off oven; cool in oven with door propped open 30 minutes.
12. Remove to cooling rack; loosen cake from rim of pan with metal spatula.
13. Cool completely; chill 2 to 24 hours.
14. Arrange strawberries and blueberries around edge of cheesecake.
15. Brush jelly over fruit; chill at least 30 minutes to set glaze.

Street Cred:

http://www.sargento.com/recipes/197/red-white-and-blueberry-cheesecake/

Red Velvet Cake

Its another colleagues birthday, which means more cake! Apparently it was his Birthday earlier in the week so this is a way impromptu cake, but I am a lover of Red Velvet cake so I am very happy to make it happen. Check this out at the New York Times website, you can find the Ermine icing here.

I got the idea for the decorations from google images search, basically anything to make the cake more exciting.

The Ermine icing that comes with the recipe is pretty so so. The recipe claimed that it was the 'original' Red Velvet cake, that was used when the cake was first making mouths salivate, but the taste was lacking, the texture rather stiff and it looks nothing like the fluffy white icing mixture I was expecting. Next time I will return to the good old cream cheese based frosting!

Ingredients:

Red Velvet Cake:

1/2 cup butter, at room temperature, plus 2 tablespoons to prepare pans
3 tablespoons cocoa powder, divided
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 tablespoons red food coloring
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 1/2 cups flour, sifted
1 cup whole buttermilk
1 tablespoon vinegar

Ermine Icing:

5 tablespoons flour
1 cup whole milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Pinch of salt
1 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 cup granulated sugar

Method:

Red Velvet Cake:

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare three 9-inch cake pans by buttering lightly and sprinkling with 1 tablespoon sifted cocoa powder, tapping pans to coat and discarding extra cocoa.
2. Cream butter and sugar together. Add eggs one at a time and beat vigorously until each is incorporated. Mix in vanilla.
3. In a separate bowl, make a paste of the remaining 2 tablespoons cocoa and the food coloring. Blend into butter mixture.
4. Sift together remaining dry ingredients. Alternating in 2 batches each, add dry ingredients and buttermilk to the butter mixture. In the last batch of buttermilk, mix in the vinegar before adding to the batter. Mix until blended.
5. Divide batter among 3 pans and bake for about 20 to 25 minutes. Cool on a rack completely. (Can also be made in 2 cake pans.)
6. To assemble, remove 1 cake from its pan and place flat side down on a serving platter. Drop about 1 cup of icing onto cake and, using a flat spatula, spread evenly over top. Remove the second cake from its pan. Place flat side down on top of first layer. Use remaining frosting to cover top and sides of cake.

Ermine Icing:

1. Over medium heat, whisk flour and milk in a small saucepan and heat to a simmer, stirring frequently until it becomes very thick and almost pudding-like.
2. Remove from heat, whisk in vanilla and salt. Pour into a bowl to allow it to cool completely. Put plastic wrap on the surface to keep a skin from forming.
3. Use a mixer to cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy, scraping the sides of the bowl occasionally, about 5 minutes. With the mixer on medium, add the cooled flour mixture a little bit at a time. Continue to beat until the mixture becomes light and fluffy and resembles whipped cream.

Yellow Cupcakes with Chocolate ButterCream Frosting

I did this back for the 4th of July, we got a group of us and went down to Gas Works park in Seattle. There's a hill there so we sat and watched the boat traffic on the lake for the afternoon ready for the fireworks later that night. Probably the best part was the drunk boaters getting ordered to move away from the fireworks barge less than 300 meters out into the lake. The rain sucked but the company was amazing.

But this is all about the freedom, these cupcakes deliver over 300 calories of freedom per cake straight to the heart. But the sugary goodness is amazing. Bonus for me is that I got to whip out the piping tool and make a go of it. If you don't want to get that excited its cool, just use a knife, but know you're missing out on a whole lot of messy fun right there.

Check this out at http://www.averiecooks.com/2013/10/classic-yellow-cupcakes-with-chocolate-buttercream-frosting.html, that's where I found it.

Ingredients:

Cupcakes

1/2 cup unsalted butter (1 stick), melted
1 large egg plus 1 egg yolk
1 cup granulated sugar
6 ounces (about 1/2 cup) Greek yogurt (I used nonfat honey Greek yogurt; vanilla or plain Greek yogurt, or sour cream may be substituted)
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt, optional and to taste

Chocolate Buttercream Frosting

1/2 cup unsalted butter (1 stick), softenend
1/2 heaping cup unsweetened natural cocoa powder, sifted (I used Trader Joe's)
2 1/2 to 3 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted is ideal
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
splash cream or milk, only as needed for consistency
chocolate srpinkles, optional for garnishing

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Line a Non-Stick 12-Cup Regular Muffin Pan with paper liners; set aside.

Cupcakes:

1. In a large, microwave-safe bowl, melt the butter, about 1 minute on high power.
2. Allow the butter to cool momentarily (so you don't scramble the eggs), and add the egg plus yolk, sugar, yogurt, vanilla, and whisk to combine.
3. Stir in the flour, baking powder, optional salt, and mix until just combined and free from large lumps; don't overmix or cupcakes will be tough.
4. Using a medium 2-inch cookie scoop, place about 2 tablespoons of batter per cupcake into each of the 12 cavities so they're solidly 3/4 full. There will likely be enough batter for a 13th cupcake, and either lick the bowl or discard it; or I placed a large paper liner inside a mini loaf pan, and fit the mini pan on the rack next to the main muffin pan.
5. Bake for 18 to 19 minutes, or until tops are golden, set, slightly domed, and springy to the touch. A toothpick inserted in the center should come out clean or with a few moist crumbs, but no batter. Allow cupcakes to cool in pan for 5 to 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. While they cool, make the frosting.

Frosting:

1. To the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add the butter and beat on medium-high speed until pale, light and fluffy, about 5 minutes (or use a hand mixer and beat for at least 7 minutes). Stop to scrape down the sides of the bowl as necessary.
2. Add the cocoa (sift it, or you will have a hard time getting the lumps out of the frosting), 2 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar, vanilla, and beat on medium-high speed until fluffy, about 5 minutes. Stop to scrape down the sides of the bowl as necessary.
3. Based on texture and taste preferences, optionally add 1/2 cup additional sugar (for 3 cups total), which I find necessary to achieve a thick consistency with my ingredients. If your frosting seems thick enough, refrain from the additional sugar and/or add a splash of cream to thin it.
4. Transfer frosting to a piping bag and frost the cooled cupcakes. I used a Wilton 1M tip . Or simply spread frosting on with a knife.
5. Optionally, garnish each cupcake with a pinch of sprinkles (do it over the sink because they fly around when they hit the frosting). Cupcakes will keep airtight at room temperature for up to 3 days. I personally am comfortable storing buttercream-frosted items at room temp, but if you prefer to store in the fridge, that's fine, but note the fridge will dry them out more quickly.

Notes:

• The liquid to sugar ratio for the frosting is the real trick, if in doubt er on the side of making it too dry, nothing is worst than runny frosting falling of your cake! Because I was using a piping bag I wanted to get it very very dry, so it stays in shape coming out of the end, that's the difference between the white and blue, and the less visually satisfying red.
• I skipped out on the cocoa for this recipe because I wanted color. Instead I added food coloring (about 20 drops per layer, but more for red; no one wants a pink American flag) and a little less liquid. But add sugar as appropriate to get the right mixture.

Berry Tiramisu

It took me a while to get on the coffee bandwagon but now I love it, and this is a great coffee and chocolate based desert. Lets be honest chocolate and coffee go really well together, so this is the perfect dinner party desert, especially since it requires no cooking and can wait in the fridge while you enjoy dinner.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup (125ml) freshly brewed espresso, at room temperature (I used instant expresso powder to make a 1/2 cup of coffee)
3 - 4 tablespoons Kahlua
2 large eggs, separated, at room temperature
pinch of salt
7 tablespoons (90g) sugar, divided
1 cup (250g) mascarpone
twelve 3 1/2 -inch ladyfingers (70g, or 3 ounces)
30g grated bittersweet chocolate
unsweetened cocoa powder, for serving (option 1)
punnet of raspberries (option 2)
punnet of blueberries (option 2)

Method:

1. Mix together the espresso and Kahlua. The mixture should taste strongly of alcohol. If not, add more until it does. (That flavor will tone down when mixed with the other ingredients, but feel free to adjust to taste.)
2. In the bowl of an electric mixer, or by hand, beat the egg whites with a pinch of salt until they begin to get stiff. Beat in half of the sugar until stiff. Scrape the egg whites into a small bowl.
3. In the same bowl, beat the egg yolks with the remaining sugar until stiff and light-colored, about three minutes. (If using a standing electric mixer, you may need to stop and scrape down the sides.) By hand, beat in the mascarpone with a spatula or whisk, until lump-free.
4. Fold in half of the beaten egg whites, then the remaining half, just until fully incorporated.
5. Put a splat, a heaping soup spoon, of the mascarpone cream into each vessel.
6. Break each ladyfinger in half and then submerge it in the espresso mixture for 5-10 seconds, until completely, utterly soaked. (Dried ladyfingers will take longer to saturate than softer ones.) Be careful not to soak it for too long as they tend to get really musshy! Then layer them over the mascarpone cream in each vessel.
7. Grate a generous amount of chocolate over each.
8. Repeat steps 5, 6 and 7 as many times as you like for extra layers.
9. Top with remaining mascarpone cream.
10. If you want berries, arrange them on top now.
11. Cover, and refrigerate at least four hours, but preferably overnight.
12. If you are going the traditional Tiramisu route, right before serving, shake powdered cocoa generously on top.