Tag: cheesecake

Sweet Recipes

Cheesecake Stuffed Panettone

Featuredby Lindy MoodyLeave a Comment on Cheesecake Stuffed Panettone
Cheesecake Stuffed Panettone

With Christmas only two weeks away I am in full holiday mode. For me that means baking as many seasonal treats as possible. Since Thanksgiving I have managed to cover almost every holiday staple in the kitchen.

I cannot think of a more Christmas dessert than Panettone – a strange Italian sweet bread version of fruit cake, yet it is nothing like fruit cake. It is airy and buttery with a light peppering of dried fruits. I am not going to pretend like I have ever attempted to bake one. You see bread is kinda my kryptonite. But making a solid dessert doesn’t always require making it fully yourself.

This recipe cuts down some of the effort by using a premade panettone. Like puff pastry, there are just some ingredients that are worth buying premade. It also ensures consistency.

This time of year you can find the bread almost anywhere. You can even find them with variations like pistachio and chocolate

The idea is to gently remove the inside of the panettone, laquer it with egg wash, bake it, then stuff it with cheesecake. Simple right? It really is.

The finished cake is a show stopping and unique dessert. It has a fluffy creamy vanilla inside with a golden brown and carmalized chewy shell. Every few bites you will get a pop of tart dry fruit.

 

For another great holiday dessert click Here

 

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Sweet Recipes

Burrata Cheesecake

Featuredby Lindy Moody1 Comment on Burrata Cheesecake
Burrata Cheesecake

Fall has finally hit Savannah. As of this week are away from our 90 degree days and our on with the coats and boots.

With cooler days I find myself at home more, baking. Especially considering thanksgiving is creeping up swiftly. As a steady at-home baker, it is often hard to come up with new and exciting recipes. But for this one, I think I really discovered something – Burrata Cheesecake.

Burrata is a form of mozzarella cheese. It is ultra creamy and mildly flavored.  You will still taste the tangy notes of the cream cheese, but the burrata lends a more complex and interesting flavor.By replacing one half of the cream cheese in a cheesecake recipe, the result is a cheesecake that balanced and not as sweet.

I portioned down the size of the cheesecake to the size of a tart. After you try out this super easy recipe, I promise you will never go back.

You can top it with whatever fruit you like, peaches, candied oranges, plums, or anything fresh.

a slice of cake

Recipes

Strawberry Cheesecake Rice Crispy Treats

Featuredby Lindy MoodyLeave a Comment on Strawberry Cheesecake Rice Crispy Treats
Strawberry Cheesecake Rice Crispy Treats

Last week I posted a new recipe for homemade Cheesecake Marshmallows, and I wanted to share the recipe of how I used the mallows because the flavor is so unique.

The recipe for the cheesecake flavored marshmallows can be found here.

I created this recipe some time ago. I started with strawberry Rice Krispie treats that I created for my nieces and nephews. To make simple strawberry flavored Rice Krispie treats, all you have to do is use plain marshmallows in lieu of these cheesecake flavored ones.
The natural progression for strawberry cheesecake Rice Krispie treats came when I decided to attempt to make my very own homemade marshmallows.

Like most recipes, it is simple to make your own flavor or version by switching out some of the ingredients. You can create or use any flavor marshmallow you like, and the same goes for the freeze dried fruit. Make banana flavored Rice Krispie treats by using freeze dried bananas. Or even thrown in some vanilla wafers to make banana pudding Rice Krispie treats. Maybe that will be my next recipe to post.

The good news is that this recipe is extremely simple, so any level of cook can make it. It is also a really great recipe to make with your kids. I hope it inspires you to come up with your very own uniquely flavored Rice Krispie treats.

Three finished treats stacked high on a plate

Recipes

Cheesecake Marshmallows

Featuredby Lindy Moody1 Comment on Cheesecake Marshmallows
Cheesecake Marshmallows

Marshmallows are one of those things that I have always wanted to make at home. But when it is so easy to just buy a bag of pre-made marshmallows at the store, why take the time to do it yourself? Have you ever tried a homemade marshmallow? There is no comparison! Making them yourself is totally worth it.

The homemade version is fluffier, lighter, gooier, and even more so of all of the things that everyone loves about a marshmallow. And after making my very first batch (successfully might I add), I concluded that it is not very hard at all. The only troublesome part is dealing with the extra sticky freshly made mallows.

The second benefit to making them at home is that you can flavor your confection with almost anything. I found a bottle of cheesecake extract on Amazon and it arrived in two short days. Click here for the extract.

And finally, you actually get to see what is in your food. Instead of pumping yourself with processed store-bought stuff.In a few short days, I will post my recipe on how I used these little clouds of cheesecake heaven. Until then, just eat them by the handful.

The marshmallow being coated is powdered sugar

 

Recipes

Cherry Cheesecake Ice-Cream Sammies

by Lindy MoodyLeave a Comment on Cherry Cheesecake Ice-Cream Sammies
Cherry Cheesecake Ice-Cream Sammies

August is notoriously sweltering hot in the low country. For cooks, this means foregoing recipes that use an oven to avoid heating up the house and instead opting for recipes that cool you down. I can think of no better way to cool down in the summer heat than with ice cream.

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Growing up in the south, my mom loved to make us homemade peach ice cream with one of those old fashioned ice-driven churners. The result was loosely churned ice cream with chunks of cold fresh peaches. A perfect treat after playing all day on a long, sticky summer day.

Even today, when my husband and I visit my mother for a summer holiday or gathering, she loves to make ice cream with the same machine–and many times it still includes peaches. So of course when I registered for my wedding, I wanted to include an ice cream maker. I thought it would be so lovely to be able to make my own ice cream at home

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Tips to perfect your own ice cream:

• If you want a more pungent flavor, soak your flavoring in your milk starting the night before you make your ice cream base.

• The difference between this ice cream and others is the larger amount of cream and egg yolks used in the recipe.

• Always temper your eggs to avoid creating scrambled egg ice cream.

• Make sure you completely cool you base in the fridge before you add it to the ice cream maker.

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Cherry Cheesecake Ice Cream Sandwiches

Chocolate Cookies

Ingredients:

• 1 Stick of Butter, softened
• 1/2 Cup of Granulated Sugar
• 1 Large Egg
• 1/4 Teaspoon of Salt
• 1 Teaspoon of Vanilla Extract
• 1/4 Cup of Cocoa Powder
• 1 1/2 Cups of All Propose Flour

Directions:

  1. Beat together butter and sugar until thoroughly combined and continue to beat for another three to four minutes until fluffy.
  2. While beating, combine your remaining dry ingredients in a separate bowl and mix together.
  3. In a small bowl, beat together you extract and egg.
  4. Mix 1/2 of your dry mixture into your butter mixture.
  5. Follow by your adding in your egg mixture, beating until fully combined.
  6. Finish by mixing in your remaining dry mixture.
  7. Shape dough into a disc, cover in plastic wrap and let rest in the fridge for one hour.
  8. On a well floured surface, roll out your chilled dough to an 1/8 inch thickness.
  9. Use your desired cookie cutter to cut out your cookie rounds.
  10. Place all of your cookie rounds on a slip-mat lined cookie sheet.
  11. Let the cookies rest in the fridge for another ten minutes before baking. While the cookies chill, preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
  12. Bake for 10 minutes or until just done. Let cool completely before using.

Cherry Cheesecake Ice Cream

Ingredients:
• 1 Block of Creamed Cheese, softened
• 1/2 Cup of Granulated Sugar
• 4 Large Egg Yolks
• 1 Cup of Whole Milk
• 2 Cups of Heavy Cream
• 1/2 Teaspoon of Vanilla Extract
• 1/2 Teaspoon of Salt
• 1 Cup of Fresh Cherries, pitted and coarsely chopped

Directions:

  1.  Pour your milk and cream into a large sauce pan and heat over medium heat. Do not let the milk heat over a simmer.
  2. While the milk heats, whisk together cream cheese, granulated sugar, vanilla, salt and egg yolks until thoroughly combined. Continue to beat for an additional one to two minutes until fluffy.
  3. Slowly temper the egg mixture with your warm milk. Start by adding about 1/2 a cup at the time, pouring slowly while you continually whisk by hand.
  4. Once all of the milk has been tempered in, pour the custard back into your saucepan.
  5. Heat over medium and cook the custard, stirring continually. Heat until the custard coats the back of a wooden spoon or is at least doubled in thickness.
  6. Remove from the heat and pour through a fine mesh strainer.
  7. Let the custard cool completely in the fridge before churning, about one hour.
  8. When ready, add the custard to your ice cream maker and churn according to the machines instructions.
  9. Once churned at soft, stir in your cherries.
  10. Place ice cream into a sealable container, and let harden for at least one hour before serving.
Recipes

Brown Sugar Bottom Cheesecake

by Lindy Moody2 Comments on Brown Sugar Bottom Cheesecake
Brown Sugar Bottom Cheesecake

Everyone has that one recipe that people instantly recognize as theirs. The one that you are stuck always bringing to family gatherings. The one that is asked about all the time. The one recipe that you refuse to give away.

For me, that dish has kind of become cheesecake. I do not know if I should blame my husband (it is his all-time favorite dessert) or his family. Almost every holiday or gathering I find myself returning to baking a cheesecake.

There is one great thing about cheesecake being your signature dish…it is literally a blank canvas for any flavor. You can go tart with lemon, classic with strawberry, a bit more crazy with candy bars, I mean the options are endless. Once, I even saw a recipe for a crawfish cheesecake.

This recipe is not that crazy, just a subtle yet unique twist to the classic cheesecake. I also portioned down the size, my husband has been having a  lot of trouble lately finishing all of the deserts I have been making. The baking time is cut in half as well, another nice addition.

The recipe makes one small tart sized cheesecake, and on the bottom is a layer of brown sugar. When you bake the cheesecake, part of the brown sugar gets gooey and some of it stays crisp. Gives the cake a decadent layer with a bit of texture.

You can have your classic cheesecake with that little extra something that makes people ask “what is that?”.

I want to give you a few cheesecake basics/reminders:

Cook your cake in a water bath to avoid cracking.

To avoid water seeping into your crust (from the water bath) line the outside of the pan with a bit of tinfoil.

Let the cake cool in the oven with the door open…to avoid cracking.

The cheesecake is done when the middle is still slightly jiggly; and I mean slightly.

Recipes

Cheesecake Topped with Candied Blood Oranges and Dark Chocolate

by Lindy MoodyLeave a Comment on Cheesecake Topped with Candied Blood Oranges and Dark Chocolate
Cheesecake Topped with Candied Blood Oranges and Dark Chocolate

Hi. My name is Lindy, and I am a blood orange addict. As anyone with an addictive personality can tell you, when you want something, you find a way to have it, but it was not until I began baking that I became infatuated with blood oranges. As anyone else who is fascinated with a flavor, I am always trying to come up with new ways to use them in the kitchen.

As many bakers know, blood oranges are suitable for baking due to their extra tart flavor. Due to this, however, if you’re using them in a baked sweet, you really need to find a way to cut through that tartness. Obviously I love to bake, and I know that most of my recipes have been baked goods, but I’ve included this recipe because it shows a different technique to deal with blood oranges in a sweet dish and still get that beautiful tart flavor.

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Candied Blood Orange

Ingredients:

  • 2 Blood Oranges
  • 2 Cups of Sugar
  • 2 Cups of Water

Directions:

  1. Thinly slice blood oranges with a mandoline or sharp knife, leaving on the rind.
  2. Fill a small saucepan with water and blood orange slices. Heat on medium until boiling. Let the slices boil for two to three minutes. Drain the liquid.
  3. In the same saucepan add in the two cups of sugar and two cups of water. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer. Allow the slices to simmer in the syrup mixture for at least 45 minutes, or until the white part of the rind is translucent.
  4. Once cooked remove slices and let cool on a cookie rack.

Cheesecake Batter

Ingredients:

  • 1 Sleeve of Chocolate Graham Crackers
  • 5 Tablespoons of Butter, melted
  • 32 Ounces of Cream Cheese
  • 1 1/3 Cups of Sugar
  • 1 Tablespoon of Vanilla Extract
  • 1 Tablespoon of Fresh Lemon Juice
  • 1 Cup of Cream
  • 1/4 Cup of All Purpose Flour

Directions:

For the crust:

  1. With a food processor, crush graham crackers until they are a fine consistency. Grease and line a tin spring form cheesecake pan.
  2. Fill the bottom with your graham cracker crumbs, then pour over melted butter. Mix the butter and crumbs, with you hands, fully incorporated.
  3. Push down, making sure then entire bottom of the pan is evenly covered.

For the Cheesecake:

  1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit. While the oven heats, combine your cream cheese and sugar into a stand mixer. Mix on medium until the sugar is fully incorporated into the cream cheese.
  2. Add in your vanilla, salt, baking…..
  3. Add in your eggs, one at a time, being sure each egg is combined fully.
  4. Mix in your flour.
  5. Once smooth, pour mixture over crumb crust.
  6. Fill a large baking sheet with water, then gently place the cheesecake on the sheet. Very gently place the baking sheet into the oven.
  7. Let cook for at least one hour, or until the jiggle in the middle is slight.
  8. Once cooked, turn off the oven, and let the cheesecake cool in the oven leaving the oven door open, as this will prevent cracking on the top.

For the Cheesecake Topping:

  • 1 Bar of Dark Chocolate (the kind for baking, not eating)

Directions:

*It is your choice on how you want to use the chocolate. You can dip your candied oranges in the chocolate to coat,  you can drizzle the chocolate over the oranges once they are on top of the cheesecake, or create a drip cake effect. The options are endless.

  1. Create a double boiler by heating water over medium in a small saucepan on your stove, then topping the saucepan with a metal bowl. Do not let the bowl touch the water.
  2. Once the water is boiling, add your broken up chocolate into the metal bowl
  3. Stir constantly until about halfway melted. Then remove the bowl from the water.
  4. Keep stirring until all of the chocolate has melted, and fully combined.
  5. Use the chocolate to decorate how you would like. Dipping the oranges…etc.
  6. Top the cheesecake how you would like, see pictures for reference.

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Recipes

Cheesecake Stuffed Cranberry & Orange Cookies

by Lindy MoodyLeave a Comment on Cheesecake Stuffed Cranberry & Orange Cookies
Cheesecake Stuffed Cranberry & Orange Cookies

By no means am I a traditional holiday baker. The holidays brings the welcome challenge of innovation for me. This year, the task of marrying my husband’s love of cheesecake with something my nieces and nephews will adore has been nothing short of troublesome. My husband’s favorite dessert is fruit-topped cheesecake, and every kid loves a soft, fresh-baked cookie.

This Christmas, I had to bake my nephew some cookies considering he specifically asked to decorate cookies with his “Aunt Lenny”. I was not going to show up with plain ol’ cut and bake cookies.

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Cranberry and orange was the first flavor that flooded my mind when I thought of Christmas treats, and how easy would it be to take some creamed cheese (which most of us keep in the fridge) and stuff it inside.

Welp, not as easy as you think. I had to throw out the first batch because my batter was too thin.

A few tweaks later, and my kitchen filled with the scent of warm brown sugar as these little discs of Christmas spirit baked. My husband stood over me as I removed these cookies from the oven, begging for a cookie much like my nephew would.

When you open your cookie jar, the scent of fresh orange invades your nose. The first bite is familiar like a buttery sugar cookie, then the tart cranberry hits your palate which is finished by the velvety surprise of creamed cheese.

I omitted a lot of sugar from the cheesecake filling for this recipe. The cookie base is sweet, and you want your friends to be surprised by the tangy jolt of cheesecake that oozes out of the center.

Be sure to keep your husband from eating too many, so your kids or nephews and nieces can have a few.

Cheesecake Stuffed Cranberry and Orange Cookies

Cookie Dough Ingredients:

  • 1 cup of unsalted butter, softened
  • 2/3 cup of brown sugar
  • 1/4 cup of sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon of salt
  • 1 teaspoon of baking soda
  • 3 egg yolks
  • 1 tablespoon of vanilla extract
  • 2 1/4 cups of all purpose flour
  • 1 cup of dried cranberries
  • Zest from two oranges
  • 2 tablespoons of juice from the oranges

For the filling:

  • 4 ounces of creamed cheese, softened
  • 1/2 tablespoon of vanilla
  • 1/2 tablespoon of powdered sugar

Directions:

Cream the butter and sugars together with a mixer until fluffy. While that mixes, combine all of the dry ingredients into a bowl. Add to the creamed sugar and butter, the vanilla, orange zest, and juice. Once incorporated, slowly add in your dry mixture and egg yolks, alternating between the two.

You will finish the dough by mixing in the cranberries by hand.

Cover the dough and place it in the fridge to let it rest for at least two hours.

Note: Spreading of a cookie occurs when the fat (your butter) is not cold. You can reduce the amount of spreading by chilling the dough before cooking. Alternatively, if you like a thin more crisp cookie, then don’t worry about spreading and bake the cookies immediately. For this cookie you want to avoid as much spreading as possible to prevent the filling from escaping.

Next you will prepare the filling. In a small bowl combine the vanilla, creamed cheese, and powdered sugar. Mix by hand (I used a fork) until fully combined. Place in the fridge while your dough rests.

When the cookie dough is close to being chilled, preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

Remove the dough and filling from the fridge to begin forming the cookies. I take a bit shy of a tablespoon of dough, form a ball, then flatten it to a disc. Next take a teaspoon of filling and place it on the center of your dough disk. You will then take another disc of dough and place in on top of your filling, pressing the edges to seal the cookie dough. You should be able to fit about 5-6 finished dough balls on each cookie sheet.

Bake for about 10 minutes. Be sure to watch the cookies towards the end, and remove them once the edges start to brown.

Let cool and share with your loved ones!