Thursday, December 9, 2010

Chocolate Chip Cheesecake



Let's face it, cream cheese is a blessing and a curse. It creates cheesecake and also I imagine it blocks arteries just as sufficiently. But let's not think about that just right now. Focus on the positive. Stare at this beauty... and yes, I used the real, regular cream cheese and this came out PERFECT. Light cream cheese can suck it.

Chocolate Chip Cheesecake  
from Mrs. Fields' Best Ever Cookie Book

Ingredients:
-Crust
5 ounces chocolate cookie crumbs (about 1 cup)
2 tbsp salted butter, melted

-Filling
16 ounces cream cheese, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
16 ounces sour cream (about 2 cups)
3 large eggs
1 tbsp vanilla extract
9 ounces semisweet chocolate chips, divided

Preparation:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

2. Prepare the crust: Grind cookies into fine crumbs using a blender or a food processor fitted with a metal blade, Add butter and blend until smooth. Press crust into bottom of 9-inch springform pan, and refrigerate while preparing the filling.

3. Prepare the filling: Beat cream cheese until smooth in a large bowl using an electric mixer. Blend in sugar and sour cream. Add the eggs and vanilla, and mix until smooth.

4. Using a wooden spoon, stir in 1 cup of the chocolate chips. Pour filling into the crust-lined pan, and smooth top with a spatula. Sprinkle the remaining 1/2 cup chocolate chips evenly over the top.

5. Bake 30 to 40 minutes. Turn oven off and leave cheesecake in oven for 1 hour to set. Remove from oven and chill in refrigerator until firm, about 3 to 4 hours.

Yield: 12 to 16 servings


Tine's Notes: No seriously, I understand some people are very health conscious but cheesecakes aren't meant to be low-fat. Use the real stuff, your mouth will thank me while your waist...that's another story.

Wednesday, December 8, 2010

Choconut Macaroons

A twist on a classic.

Choconut Macaroons
from Mrs. Fields' Best Ever Cookie Book

Ingredients:
1/4 cup granulated sugar
2 tbsp almond paste
1 cup shredded sweetened coconut
2 ounces mini semisweet chocolate chips (about 1/3 cup)
3 large egg whites
1/2 tsp cream of tartar

Preparation:
1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Combine almond paste and sugar in a medium bowl. Using your fingers, work paste into sugar completely. Add coconut and chocolate chips and stir to combine.

2. In another medium bowl, beat eggs whites until fluffy using absolutely clean beaters. Add cream of tartar and beat on high until stiff peaks form. Add half of beaten egg whites to coconut mixture and combine to lighten. Fold in remaining whites gently, being careful not to deflate.

3. Drop by rounded teaspoons onto lightly greased cookie sheets. Bake for 20 minutes, or until tops are lightly browned. Cool 1 minute on the cookie sheets before transferring to a cool surface.

Tine's Notes: I used regular chocolate chips so these spread a little more than I would have liked but they came out fine. Crunchy on the outside and chewy on the inside!

Sausage, Apple and Cranberry Stuffing

Yeah yeah, Thanksgiving was a while ago-- I'm doing some catch up blogging. Bear with me.

I've used this recipe for 2 years now and I think it's a keeper. After testing stuffing after stuffing recipe, I'm relieved. Simple, yet exactly what I was looking for. And yes, I say stuffing even though it does not actually go into the bird. The original recipe directs you to, but we don't put anything in our turkey.


Awesome Sausage, Apple and Cranberry Stuffing
from Allrecipes

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups cubed whole wheat bread
3 3/4 cups cubed white bread
1 pound ground turkey sausage
1 cup chopped onion
3/4 cup chopped celery
2 1/2 teaspoons dried sage
1 1/2 teaspoons dried rosemary
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1 Golden Delicious apple, cored and chopped
3/4 cup dried cranberries
1/3 cup minced fresh parsley
1 cooked turkey liver, finely chopped
3/4 cup turkey stock
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

Preparation:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degree F (175 degree C). Spread the white and whole wheat bread cubes in a single layer on a large baking sheet. Bake for 5 to 7 minutes in the preheated oven, or until evenly toasted. Transfer toasted bread cubes to a large bowl.

2. In a large skillet, cook the sausage and onions over medium heat, stirring and breaking up the lumps until evenly browned. Add the celery, sage, rosemary, and thyme; cook, stirring, for 2 minutes to blend flavors.

3. Pour sausage mixture over bread in bowl. Mix in chopped apples, dried cranberries, parsley, and liver. Drizzle with turkey stock and melted butter, and mix lightly. Spoon into turkey to loosely fill.


Tine's Notes: This year I only used white bread, but last year I used both. I actually prefer both. I used an additional half of apple and another 1/2 cup of dried cranberries. Seasoning-wise, I did not have dried rosemary separately so I used liberal amounts of Italian seasoning which also has marjoram-- a great stuffing flavor. Since I did not put this into the turkey, I baked it in a casserole dish at 350 degrees F for 35 minutes.