Layered Pumpkin Cheesecake with Gingersnap Crust

And so Turkey month begins!!

Usually I end up with 3 Thanksgiving dinners during this time of year.  The first being the one I host for my friends (a tradition since Junior year of college), the 2nd on actual Thanksgiving with my family, and the 3rd the Saturday after Thanksgiving with Brian’s family.

Well the season kicked off early this year with #4.  Another friend decided to have a “Friendsgiving” this past weekend to double as a house-warming! 

I was excited mostly because I got to see college friends I haven’t seen in a while and try out a new fun dessert!

After racking my brain for a while, and realizing I didn’t have time for anything that involved making any component ahead of time, I opted for a cheesecake.

Not any cheesecake though.  I was going to go off of my grandmother’s recipe which is my and my family’s FAVORITE! 

Ok, so her recipe is from some random old cookbook, but in my mind it’s still “Nanny’s cheesecake”.

I started there, but wanted to put a festive twist on it and after a little online research I blended 3 recipes into what I wanted!

Double-Layer Pumpkin Cheesecake with Gingersnap Crust
makes 1 9” diameter cheesecake

adapted from Nanny’s recipe, this epicurious recipe, and this allrecipes recipe

Crust

• 8 oz gingersnap cookies
• 1 cup pecans
• 2T brown sugar (packed)
• 1/4 cup butter, melted

Filling

• 3.5 packages cream cheese (8 oz each), room temp
• 4 eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 cup sugar (scant)
• 1/2 cup pumpkin puree
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• shake of nutmeg and cloves

Toppings

• 2 cups sour cream
• 1 T sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla

Pre-heat oven to 350

Crust
In a food processor, grind cookies, pecans, and brown sugar until finely ground.  Add melted butter and pulse until all combined.

Grease a 9” spring form pan with cooking spray or butter (I used a non-stick pan and it didn’t need to be greased). 

Pour crust mixture into the pan and press into the bottom and up the sides about 2”.

Bake for 10-12 minutes.  Cool in the fridge while you make the filling.

Filling
With a mixer, beat cream cheese until light.  Add eggs one at a time mixing on low after each.  Then add vanilla and sugar.  Beat until light and creamy. 

Add half of this mixture to your cooled crust. 

To the remaining filling mixture, add the pumpkin and spices and beat until well combined.  Carefully spread this mixture on top of the first layer.

Bake at 350 for 40-45 minutes. 

Topping
In a separate bowl beat together sour cream, sugar, and vanilla with a spoon.  Spread on top of cheesecake surface.  Bake for another 5 minutes.

Cool, and refrigerate for at least 5 hours, or overnight.

YUM!!  Love the crust, and mostly I love that the pumpkin aspect isn’t overpowering the cheesecake flavor.  I love the layer of classic cheesecake, the pumpkin layer adds a nice subtle spice and flavor, and the sour cream topping gives it a delicious sweet tangy flavor. 

This cheesecake got rave reviews at the party and Brian is fully enjoying the leftovers ;)

Watermelon: Granita & Popsicles!

Hellooooo! 

I just got back from an incredibly delicious dinner with my mom and Brian at Toro in the South End.  I haven’t been since last year and my mom and I were craving it…specifically the corn on the cob and paella. 

Anyways…just had to mention that.  Other than that it has been a pretty low key weekend.  My mom has been travelling a lot for work so it was nice to spend some time with her.  It’s also been pretty toasty around here although I can’t complain…it’s summer, and this is summer weather. Although I really wish we had a pool, or a least a close friend with one ;)

Watermelon!

I bought a big whole watermelon earlier this week because I had a few people over on the 4th, but we never got around to eating it. 

I decided to hack away at it so we could eat it during this week.  

SO.MUCH.MELON.  It filled that bowl, and that’s a pretty large mixing bowl…about 12” diameter.  I don’t think the 2 of us could eat it all this week without it either going bad or us getting sick of it so I decided to use about less than 1/2 of it to make some frosty treats!

I saw this recipe on the Whole Foods website earlier in the week: Watermelon Granita

Perfect!

I made about 1/2 batch loosely following the recipe:

• 4 cups watermelon, put into blender
• blend until smooth
• add juice & zest from 1/2 lime
• 1 – 2 tsp honey (more or less if you like)
• blend again
• pour into a glass baking dish (mine was 11” x 7”)
• Place in freezer
• I stirred with a fork every 30min for about 2 hours (then left for dinner), when I came home it was frozen and time to scrape up with a fork!

Until it’s all icy

So cool and refreshing!!  This was so easy I’d love to try it with other flavors.  The original recipe said to top with mint or basil which I think either would be delicious.

I think I want to try Espresso Granita next…we had some in Rome on our honeymoon….it was sweet espresso granita topped with freshly whipped (unsweetened) cream…amazing.      

This is perfect hot weather food.   

Next!

Using the same ingredients, I put more watermelon chunks in the blender, the juice and zest from the other half of the lime and blended again.

This time I ran the mixture through a fine mesh sieve:

And filled popsicle molds with the remaining strained watermelon juice!

I bought those popsicle molds for less than $10 at Bed Beth and Beyond and have been dying to try them out. 

These will also come in handy on these hot days!

Don’t worry, we still have a GIANT container of fresh watermelon to eat this week ;)

sidenote: the pops and granita are paleo friendly!  The use of honey is up to you :)

You could also make some amazing cocktails with fresh watermelon puree…mojitos, margaritas… the possibilities are endless.  I also plan to enjoy some watermelon + feta this week too! 

What’s your favorite way to use up extra watermelon??

Milky Way Tart & other Treats

Happy Halloween!

While I didn’t dress up or get scared by any costumes this year…I think most of us around here got quite the surprise by the freak snow storm we got last night! 

We were luckier than some, but unfortunately Brian and I did return to a power-less house last night!  I’m just SO thankful it came back on early this morning, because I know a lot of people are still in the dark!

On the upside, we had a fabulous evening at Megan and her fiancé Jeff’s condo last night!

Megan, working with the Tri Lamb group, hosted a Fall themed pot luck with a lamb dish being the focus of the meal!  Brian and I both love lamb, so we were excited about it!

The recipe she was sent to make was for a lamb pizza with goat cheese and arugula!  I was a BIG fan of this pizza!!

There was also a plethora of other treats:  cheese, crackers, meats, hummus, Elina’s spinach artichoke dip, Justin’s white chili, Emily’s pretzel bites, butternut squash soup, and more I can’t even remember.

p.s. I want this cheese board (actually I think I registered for it, but never got it…bummer)

There were even “lamb jokes” spread around the room

(the sLAMBer…get it?)

It was a really relaxing night, and I realized no one else was taking too many pictures, so I just put my camera away too :)

I do, however, have plenty of shots from the making of my dessert :)  Megan made some gorgeous mini chocolate orange cupcakes, and the cutest pumpkin/chocolate tartlets! 

I was trying to think of a “fall” dessert, but instead went more for a “Halloween” theme…candy!

As soon as I flipped to it’s page in the Flour Bakery cookbook, I knew it would be a winner!

Milky Way Tart!

I’m a big fan of the candy bar, especially the mini version, but this tart just takes it to a whole new level of awesome!

It’s a fairly simple ingredient list, and procedure, however the different components have different cooling times needed so be sure to read the WHOLE recipe before you dive in!  In that same regard, this would also be a great dessert that you could prepare all the components a head of time!

Lucky for you I found this whole recipe reprinted online, so I will link over to it and just give you my notes :) 

Find recipe here (although I HIGHLY recommend just buying the book, it’s a good one!!)

Flour: Spectacular Recipes from Boston's Flour Bakery + Cafe

As I said, very simple ingredients…

• I made the chocolate cream for the mousse first thing in the morning, as it needs to chill for AT LEAST 8 hours!
• I used instant espresso powder instead of instant coffee and only used 1 tsp.  I was worried it was still too coffee tasting, but the final product was amazing and you couldn’t detect the coffee.  My mom loved it and she hates coffee, so don’t worry about that and DON’T skip the coffee!
• I love making caramel
• The caramel needs to cool for at least 4 hours, so I made it around noon

I always use my copper pot for caramel :)

• Have your caramel ingredients measured out and ready before starting to cook the sugar

In no time you’ll have gorgeous caramel

A little later I got to work on the dough for the crust

• I used a rectangular tart pan, as opposed to the circular one in the recipe, and in my case my crust cooked faster!
• I checked the dough at 25 min and it was even slightly more browned than I would have liked, but luckily not burned and still delicious.
• Once the crust was cooled, I whipped the mousse.
• The recipe says soft peaks, and I did just that, but I think I could have whipped it a tad longer and will next time.
• I also let the caramel come more to room temp before spreading it into the crust just to make it easier.
• When it says the milk chocolate should be slightly warm for ideal “curling” conditions, we’re talking on the verge of melting warm!  Mine wasn’t really warm enough, nor did I have a long enough piece so my curls didn’t really curl.

In the end, it came out lovely :)  At this point it was supposed to chill for 30 min to set, however we were late and I decided I could let it chill at Megan’s place.  Not the best idea as it shifted a little en route, and was a little “melty”, but luckily no one cared because it tasted great. 

I can’t wait to make this again!!  Everyone seemed to really like it which is always a relief :) 

This is an impressive looking dessert, and even though it takes some time, it’s very straightforward and everyone will love it :) 

Megan told me they would make this as mini tarts in the Bakery…LOVE that idea :)

Hope you have lots of treats (and no tricks) this Halloween.

Hmmm guess we should actually get some candy for the trick-or-treaters…

So, what's your favorite candy??     I love Twix, sour patch kids, peanut M&M’s, and the Midnight milky ways (ooo that would be a yummy Tart too!)

Comfort: Chicken Stroganoff & Apple Crisp

I’m willing to bet when you were growing up there were a handful of dishes that your mom or dad always made…they were part of the “rotation” if you will :)  Or maybe they weren’t made often enough, and we’re one of your favorites!  Either way there’s gotta be certain dishes that just remind you of growing up!

I certainly have a few and this past weekend I was REALLY craving one.  My mom’s Chicken Stroganoff! 

I really shouldn’t have been surprised when she told me its in her old Betty Crocker cookbook…of course it was.  All the good recipes came from that damn book! 

Of course she made her changes, and one big one being swapping beef for chicken.  My dad went through about 7 or 8 years when he didn’t eat red meat, so my mom changed a lot of beef recipes into chicken recipes.

I’m still not a big mushroom fan (the texture that is, love the flavor) so I chopped my mushrooms up smaller.

This recipe is definitely a winner!  I even made my own slight changes :)

Chicken Stroganoff
inspired by my mom’s OLD Betty Crocker cookbook

• 1 - 1.5 lb boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into bite size chunks
• 4 tsp butter
• 1/2 lb mushrooms, sliced or chopped
• 1 med onion, diced
• 1 cup concentrated chicken broth or bullion**
• 1/2 can (3oz) tomato paste
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 tsp salt
• 3T flour
• 1 cup low-fat sour cream (could substitute Greek yogurt for all or some…I used about 3/4 sour cream, 1/4 yogurt)

**I didn’t have condensed broth, nor did I want to use bullion cubes (those things aren’t the most “natural” choice and so I save them for Thanksgiving gravy only…not messing with THAT recipe :)  So, I took 1.5-2 cups of low-sodium organic chicken broth and simmered it until it reduced to roughly 1 cup.  Mine reduced to a little less so I just added a bit more broth to get 1 cup.  I did NOT notice any change or lack in flavor using this method. 

1. In a large skillet, melt 2tsp butter over medium heat then add mushrooms and onions.  Sauté until cooked thoroughly, and onions are translucent, 6-7 minutes.  Remove onions and mushrooms and set aside in a separate bowl,

2. Add the other 2 tsp butter and cook chicken for a few minutes just until the outsides look cooked.  Then add garlic, sauté for another minute.

3.  Then add all but 1/3 c. of the broth, salt, and the tomato paste.  Simmer, for 15-20 minutes.  (I forgot to ask whether to cover this or not, so I left it covered for the first 10 minutes, then took the cover off for the last 5-10).

4. In a small bowl, mix together the flour with the remaining 1/3 cup broth, until all lumps are gone.  Then add this to the simmering pan, stirring while adding it.  Add back in mushrooms and onions.

5. Bring mixture to a boil, just until sauce thickens a little.

6. Remove from heat, stir in sour cream/yogurt.

7. Best served over egg noodles :) 

Not the best looking dish around, but SO comforting!

Mmmm it tasted just like I remember!  I was literally licking my bowl.  We didn’t have any egg noodles so I used some Dreamfields linguini, and also steamed up some green beans to go along with it. 

It wouldn’t be a Sunday dinner without some dessert, and we still had a TON of apples that needed to be used up from our apple picking extravaganza the weekend before.

Easy solution…Apple Crisp!

I checked out a few recipes and eventually came up with my own version…slightly healthier of course :)

Apple Picking Crisp
inspiration from Ina, The Neely’s, and Cooking Light

Makes 8-10 servings (at least it will for us!)

Preheat oven to 350 F

Topping:

• 1/2 cup all purpose flour
• 1/2 cup rolled oats
• 1/2 cup quick oats (feel free to use all rolled, or all quick oats as well)
• 1/3 cup packed brown sugar
• cinnamon to taste (about 1tsp)
• 3T chopped walnuts
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 4T butter, soft/room temp
• 2T maple syrup

Combine flour, oats, sugar, cinnamon, walnuts, and salt in a mixing bowl.  Mix with a fork to combine.  Mash butter in with the fork or your hands until it is thoroughly mixed, it will be a coarse sandy mixture.  Stir in maple syrup.

Filling:

• 8-10 apples
• 1 orange, zest and juice
• 1/4 cup maple syrup
• cinnamon, a few shakes
• 1T flour

Zest orange into a large bowl, then cut in half and juice into the same bowl (remove any seeds that may come out!). 

Core, peel, and slice apples into bowl of orange juice.  Toss to coat all apples.  Not only does the orange juice give delicious flavor, it prevents the apples from browning. 

Mix in cinnamon and flour and mix around until all apple pieces are evenly coated.

Pour apple filling into a 9x13 greased baking pan, then top with topping.

Bake for 30-40 minutes, until you’re apples are tender and topping is just starting to brown a little. 

Let sit for at least 5 minutes before serving so all the juices absorb back into the apples.

Wish I had some better pictures, but it was dark by the time it was out of the oven.  Although I’m sure I don’t need any pictures to convince you on apple crisp ;)

Serve with vanilla ice cream, and then have it for breakfast the next day with plain Greek yogurt!  Seriously I think I liked it better with yogurt for breakfast!! 

The chicken stroganoff wasn’t the only recipe I called mom for, so hopefully I’ll have time this weekend for the other one :)

What are your favorite meals from your childhood??  The ones you have great memories of??

Blueberry Dessert

Totally sharing a family recipe here today!  Hope that’s OK Nanny!  Some recipes are just too delicious not to share :)

I mentioned this one a week or so ago.  I brought this to Tina and Mal’s Pig roast! 

Everyone seemed to really like it, and of course everyone was asking what it was.  Well, in my family we call it “Blueberry Dessert”.

Not very descript, but those two words can get anyone in my family excited! 

Basically, it’s a 4-layer dessert:

• graham cracker crust bottom
• a cheesecake-y layer
• a blueberry layer
• and a whipped cream/marshmallow topping

Sounds pretty good right?

I’ll give you both versions…the original, and my adjustments.  Now a days, the original version is just a bit too sweet for my taste, so I like to cut back on the sugar where I can. 

I made “my” version for the pig roast, and don’t think anyone missed the sugar based on the reactions :)

Blueberry Dessert

Layer 1: Graham Cracker Crust

• 24 Graham Crackers  (and by 24, that means 12 full sheets.  i.e. a s’mores is technically made with 2 graham crackers or 1 full sheet…you follow??)
• 1/4 cup butter, melted
• I cut back to 3T and add 1T of water
• 1/4 cup sugar
• I leave this out.  In my opinion graham crackers are sweet enough as is. 

Place crackers in a food processor and pulse until crushed.  Add remaining ingredients and pulse until all combined.  [If you don’t have a food processor, place grahams in a large ziploc bag and, using a rolling pin, roll them out/crush them until they are a course sand consistency.  Then mix all ingredients together in a bowl.]

Pour crust out into a 9x13 pan (I like to spray it with cooking spray first), and press crust evenly into the bottom of the pan.

Bake at 350 for 12-14 min.

While the crust is baking, getting working on the next layer.

Layer 2: Cream Cheese

• 1 8oz pkg cream cheese, softened at room temp
• I used reduced fat/Neufchatel cream cheese
• 1 cup sugar
• I use 2/3 cup sugar
• 2 eggs

Beat all ingredients until creamy.  Pour over your crust once it’s out of the oven.  Now put the whole thing back in the oven (still at 350) for 15-20 min, until slightly browned.

(well mine wasn’t really browned, but it was set)

Once Layer 2 is baked, you can now turn off the oven and let this cool.

Layer 3:  The Blueberries

• 1 can blueberry pie filling
• add in fresh blueberries (optional)

OR, make your own blueberry filling, which is what I do:

• 1 1/2 – 2 pints of fresh blueberries (or a bag of frozen)
• water
• juice from 1/2 lemon
• 1/4 sugar (or more to taste)
• 1 T corn starch

Place berries into a medium sauce pan.  Add enough water to come just about halfway up the blueberries.  Place pan over med-high heat until boiling.

Reduce heat to med-med low, add sugar and lemon juice.  Cook for 10-15 min or until blueberries start to break down.  Mix the cornstarch with 1T of water to dissolve it before adding to the berries.  Bring the heat back up a bit, to get the mixture boiling again.  Pour in the cornstarch/water while whisking the mixture at the same time until it’s thoroughly mixed in. 

Continue cooking for 4-5 more minutes, until it’s cooked down a little more.  The mixture will also thicken up as it cools.

Once cool, pour over the other layers.

Layer 4 – Whipped Cream/Marshmallow

• 1/4 lb marshmallows (about 1/2 of a typical bag)
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 cup heavy cream

Add marshmallows and milk to the top bowl of a double boiler set to med-high heat.  Cook until marshmallows melt and the mixture is smooth.

Let this cool!!  It may separate as it cools, that happened to me, and it was fine. 

Then, whip heavy cream in a separate bowl on medium speed until it thickens up/stiffens to whipped cream consistency.  This takes just a few minutes depending on your mixer.  I just use a handheld mixer for this.

Take this whipped cream and add it to the COOLED marshmallow mixture.  Fold in.  If you had separation issues, just take your mixer and whip this together for another minute or two.  That worked for me. 

Spread final layer on top.  Chill at least 1 hour in the fridge before serving :)

  
I had to go back for seconds. 

This is a great dessert to bring to a party!  Everyone I know that has tried it, has loved it.  My family goes nuts for it.  It’s a winner :)