Hazelnut and Chocolate Spekkoek Lapis Legit (Thousand-Layer Spice Cake)

I still have to work on getting my layers more even.

I knew when I made this cake before that I wanted to try it again with different flavours. I made this version for a dinner we had for our nephew Brian some weeks back. Hazelnut and chocolate are a great combo, think Nutella and I figured it would make a wonderful layer cake!

I actually got 16 layers out of the batter because I used less per layer.

Hazelnut and Chocolate Spekkoek Lapis Legit with Chocolate Ganache Topping (Thousand-Layer Spice Cake)

Serves 4-6 depending on how thick you slice it

Ingredients:

• 170 g (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 6 large eggs, separated
• 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 tbsp confectioners’ sugar
• 1/4 cup hazelnut butter
• 1 tsp hazelnut essence
• 1/4 cup sifted unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/4 cup chocolate chips
• 1/4 cup whipping cream
• 1 tbsp hazelnut butter
• 1/4 cup whipping cream

Directions:

1. Preheat the broiler (I have this range with two ovens, this time I used the smaller oven and it still took 2 minutes per layer and did not burn).
2. Butter the bottom and sides of a 4″ x 6.7″ loaf pan and line with buttered parchment paper. I left enough of the parchment to go past the top of the pan, so I could use it to lift the cake out when it was done.
3. Weigh your empty bowl, write down the measurement. In this bowl, cream the softened butter, 1/4 cup of sugar, vanilla, and salt. Add the egg yolks one at a time and beat until smooth. Fold the flour into the batter with a rubber spatula.
4. In a clean bowl with clean beaters, beat the egg whites with the remaining 1/4 cup of sugar until stiff and shiny but not dry. With about 1/3 of the beaten whites, loosen the batter by mixing it in with a wooden spoon. Fold the remaining whites into the loosened batter, being careful not to over-mix.
5. Weigh your bowl with the cake batter. Subtract this new weight from the old weight so you know how much your batter weighs and divide this weight in half. Put a second bowl on a scale that can tare and zero it out. Pour half the batter into this bowl (you can see exactly when you reach half on the scale).
6. Into one half of the batter, gently fold in the 1/4 cup hazelnut butter and the essence. Into the other batter, gently fold in the 1/4 cup sifted cocoa powder.
7. Pre-heat the pan (this makes the batter easier to spread out). Pour 2 tablespoons of the hazelnut batter into the bottom of the pan and spread out evenly.
8. Bake in a hot broiler for 2 minutes. Watch carefully. Mine is exactly two minutes.
9. Pour 3 tablespoons of the chocolate batter, spreading it over the first layer to form a thin second layer. Place the pan under the preheated broiler for 2 minutes, or until the layer is firm. Continue until you have exhausted both batters. Emeril noted that the cake typically has between 12 and 15 layers — I ended up with 16, not bad for a second timer!
10. Allow the cake cool on a wire rack, turn out onto a cutting board and even up the sides by cutting clean new edges.
11. To make the ganache, heat 1/4 cup of whipping cream until it almost boils. Pour over the chocolate chips and stir until melted. Allow to almost cool and pour over the cooled cake (you can allow it to drip down the sides, I didn’t want to).
12. To make the hazelnut whipped cream, beat 1/4 cup of whipping cream until stiff, add 1 tbsp hazelnut butter and whip until entirely encorporated and smooth.
13. Slice thinly and serve at room temperature with a dollop of the hazelnut whipped cream.

A nice delicate hazelnut flavour in the whipped cream balances the chocolate ganache on the cake.

Read Full Post »

Quinoa Energy Bars

With JTs job, he sometimes misses lunch or dinner, so I went to our local health food stores to pick up some healthy energy bars. I was shocked! The high protein versions could run as high as $5 EACH! That’s absolutely crazy, and they are not even that “good” for you. So instead I bought some quinoa (sorry indigenous people of Peru), sunflower seeds, flax seeds, dark chocolate, dried cherries and agave and came home to search for a tasty recipe. My inspiration came from this recipe in Epicurious but it was purely Barb (from Profiteroles and Ponytails) that inspired the Quinoa addition to this treat, thank you Barb!

I toasted the quinoa so that it popped like pop corn; toasting brings out the nuttiness (hmmm, that’s a coincidence, when I’m toasted I become nuttier too !) and makes them nicely crunchy and not too jaw breaking.

A delicious healthy snack or meal replacement

Makes one pan 10″ x 13″ (25cm x 33cm), cut into 20 bars

Ingredients:

• 2 cups toasted quinoa (or you could buy the commercially puffed quinoa, which is like puffed rice)
• 1 cup unsalted sunflower seeds, slightly roasted in a frying pan
• 2 cups uncooked oatmeal, old-fashioned or instant
• 1/4 cup partly ground flax seeds
• 1/2 cup dried cherries or other dried fruit
• 3/4 cup crunchy peanut butter, organic, just peanuts
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/2 cup agave syrup or honey
• 1/2 cup dark chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup water

Directions:

1. Pre-heat the oven to 121° C or 250° F.
2. Prepare a 10″ x 13″ pan by lining it with parchment paper, enough to have the sides come up as ‘handles’.
3. Add the quinoa to a hot dutch oven (you will need the high sides) and stir as the quinoa pops. Keep stirring so it doesn’t scorch. This volume will take about 10-12 minutes. The quinoa pops like corn, but not nearly as aggressively, but you do need the high sides of the pan, otherwise you’ll be chasing the quinoa all over the place!
4. In the same pan, slightly roast the sunflower seeds. Combine with the puffed quinoa, oatmeal, flax and cherries. Set aside.
5. In a micro-wave proof bowl, add the peanut butter, brown sugar, agave syrup and chocolate chips and microwave on a low setting until chocolate and sugar have melted . Add the water and stir well.
6. Pour into the dry ingredients and mix well (I used a very large bowl with a wooden spoon). You want to make sure that everything is coated with the wet ingredients.
7. Pour the combines ingredients into the prepared pan and press evenly into all corners (I used a glass as a rolling pin). Bake for about 20 minutes.
8. Allow to cool about 10 minutes, carefully remove from the pan with the parchment handles onto a cutting board and cut into 20 slices. Allow to cool completely before storing in an air tight container in the freezer.

Notes: depending on how dry your house is, you may need to adjust the wet ingredients as the final product can be a bit crumbly (so say the comments on Epicurious). That’s why I added the water and baked it out. Mine came out nice and tight and even after freezing wasn’t crumbly.

Read Full Post »

Christmas Baking 2012 Final Entry: Chocolate Peanut Fudge

Clipart from Microsoft Clip Art Gallery

I’ve never made fudge. There. I said it. I love fudge, but have never made it and when I saw Katherine’s (Rufus’ Food and Spirits Guide) recipe for his mother’s back of the bag fudge, I had to try it and with pure luck, I had everything in my pantry! The recipe came together very easily and the taste was wonderful, and great creamy texture (very much like ganache). Our tin of Sweetened Condensed milk was a slightly different weight than what the recipe called for so I had to adjust all the ingredients accordingly, plus I didn’t have butterscotch morsels so I used chocolate chips as the flavour. Kudos Katherine another great recipe to add to my Christmas baking collection!

Chocolate Peanut Fudge

Original recipe by Katherine at Rufus’ Food and Spirits Guide

Melt in your mouth, fudge-o-licious

Makes one 23 cm (9 inch) square pan, about  2 cm (0.8″) thick

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup sugar
• 20 g unsalted butter
• 300 mL Sweetened Condensed Milk
• dash salt
• 300 g chocolate chips
• 155 g marshmallows
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 100 g peanuts (unsalted, skin off)

Directions:

1. Line your square pan with parchment paper (it’ll make it easier to lift it out of the pan to cut it).
2. In a heavy bottomed pot over medium heat, bring sugar, butter, sweetened condensed milk and salt to a boil, stirring constantly. Lower heat if it starts to brown too quickly.
3. Remove from heat and add chocolate, marshmallows and vanilla; stir until smooth and marshmallows have entirely melted. Add peanuts and stir to combine.
4. Pour into prepared pan and let set. Refrigerate once cool. The fudge should take a few hours to set.
5. Cut into smallish square.

Delicious Chocolate Peanut Fudge

Read Full Post »

Christmas Baking 2012: Dried Fruit Truffles

This time of year the blogosphere is chuck full of tempting recipes and creative ideas, the trick is to try to manage what you want to bake with what you can bake, given your time constraints. Last week, Kelly over at Inspired Edibles (a fellow Canadian) made up a very interesting vegan ‘brownie’ and although her’s looked delightful, I was inspired to make something a wee bit different, dare I say festive, plus it wasn’t necessary for me to keep it 100% vegan.

These are surprisingly good. I have a high tolerance for healthy (or healthier foods) but JT does not; if it doesn’t taste as good as it’s full fat/sugar cousin, he will want no part of it. But I kid you not, these passed even the strictest taste test: the JT taste test. So Kelly, I hope you don’t mind, here is a slight variation on your wonderful recipe, my dried fruit hazelnut truffles, thank you kindly for the inspiration. I used hazelnut butter and hazelnut essence because hazelnuts and chocolate are a winning combo in this household.

The smooth, sweet centre is nicely contrasted by the rich chocolate and crunchy peanuts.

Dried Fruit Truffles

Adapted from Inspired Edibles’ Vegan Brownies

Makes 50-60 pieces

Fruit Paste Ingredients:

• ½ c dried prunes
• ½ c dates
• 1 cup dried blueberries (I couldn’t find cherries)
• 1 c almond flour
• 3 tbsp hazelnut butter
• ¼ c unsweetened coco powder
• 1 tsp hazelnut essence (or more depending on how strong it is)

Chocolate Coating Ingredients:

• 1 cup semi-sweet and milk chocolate chips
• 2 tbsp unsalted butter
• 1 tsp hazelnut essence (or more depending on how strong it is)
• 1 ½ cup coarsely chopped peanuts

Fruit Paste Directions:

1. Combine all the ingredients for the fruit paste in a food processor and process until smooth. Make 1-1.5cm balls of the paste, set aside.
2. Melt the two chocolates and butter in a saucepan over low heat, dip the balls one by one into the hot chocolate and roll in the chopped peanuts to coat. Refrigerate to set. Serve at room temperature.

Don’t let these little delights fool you, they are darned tasty!

Read Full Post »

Christmas Baking 2012: Nanaimo Truffles a new take on an old Canadian favourite!

I posted a quick picture of this recipe on Facebook and Pinterest and received overwhelming response so instead of putting it in-line with my Christmas 2012 baking, I thought I would interrupt regular programming and post the recipe today. I did a search and found that I might indeed be the first person to make these all-time Canadian favourites into a truffle instead of their normal bar form. Every year JT asks me to make this bar, which personally I find just too sweet. I got to thinking a smaller, bite sized version might be the answer I was looking for so I came up with this idea and only had to marginally modify an existing recipe. I hope you enjoy it. And if you make them, please do let me know how it worked out.

Not nearly as teeth tingly as regular Nanaimo Bars

Nanaimo Truffles

For the original recipe, please click here.

Makes about 36 truffles

Inside Layer Ingredients:

• ¼ cup unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 tbsp vanilla custard powder
• 1 cup icing sugar

Inside Layer Directions:

1. Cream butter, custard powder and icing sugar together well. Scoop out about 1 tsp and roll into a ball. Freeze for 30 minutes.

Second Layer Ingredients:

• ½ cup unsalted butter
• ¼ cup sugar
• 5 tbsp cocoa
• 1 egg beaten
• 1 ¼ c graham wafer crumbs
• ½ c finely ground almond flour
• 1 cup coconut
• 1/4 cup corn syrup (spray your measuring cup with non-stick spray and it will slide right out)

Second Layer Directions:

• Melt first 3 ingredients in top of double boiler. Add egg and stir to cook and thicken. Remove from heat.
• Stir in graham crumbs, coconut, almond flour and the corn syrup. Set aside.

Assembly Directions:

1. Take about 1 packed tbsp of the second layer (crumb layer) in the palm of your hand and press to flatten to a large circle about 2mm thick.
2. Put one custard ball into the centre and wrap the circle around the custard so that it totally covers it. Squeeze the crumb layer to form a tidy ball. Repeat until you have made all of the balls. Freeze for 30-60 minutes.

Chocolate Layer Ingredients:

• 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 4 tbsp unsalted butter

Chocolate Layer Directions:

1. Melt chocolate and butter over low heat and mix well. Without allowing the chocolate mixture to cool down, take a frozen ball and carefully stick a toothpick or skewer into it and dip into the melted chocolate to cover. Remove the stick and allow the chocolate to set on parchment paper (you could dip a finger into the chocolate to hide the hole, or not). The frozen balls will help set the chocolate faster. Store in refrigerator. Allow the balls to come back up to room temperature to serve.

The centre is creamy and smooth which is a nice texture to the outside

Yum.

;

Read Full Post »

Chocolate Espresso Crinkle Cookies

Happy Thanksgiving to all my American friends! And anyone else who happens to celebrate Thanksgiving now. Hope you enjoyed an overload of turkey, stuffing and pies! And then there’s Black Friday, which for some reason Canadian retailers have jumped on and are promoting the heck out of it! Get out there and get some GREAT DEALS, but not before you leave me some of your lovely words.
Honestly, I don’t eat sweets. I just like to bake ‘em! And fortunately, JT started a new job (and career) in June and his office are the perfect guiney pigs recipients of my baking! I wanted to bake another batch of the molasses spice cookies, but JT put in a request for something chocolate. OK, I can live with that. The cookies lasted less than one hour and JT only had two. He came home with a request for the next bake: macarons! Can you believe it?

A very tasty treat, if I do say so myself

The recipe is an adaptation from the wonderful Chocolate Crinkle Kisses I make every year at Christmas, but since it’s not Christmas yet (unbenounced to many department stores who are playing Christmas music incessantly) I altered the recipe to be a Chocolate Espresso flavour and I omitted the Candy Cane Kisses!

These cookies have a strong coffee and chocolate flavour and it’s texture is a little browny like.

An explosion of chocolate and espresso in every bite

Makes about 30-36 cookies

Ingredients:

• ½ cup icing sugar
• 3/4 cup melted butter
• 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/4 cup espresso powder
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 2 tsps vanilla extract
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 large eggs
• 6 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions:

1. Sift icing sugar into a small bowl.
2. In a large bowl, mix the melted butter with the cocoa powder, espresso powder and sugar.
3. Using an electric mixer, beat the eggs and vanilla Into the chocolate mixture.
4. Slowly mix in all the dry ingredients until combined. Stir in the chocolate Chips.
5. Cover and refrigerate about 2 hours.
6. Preheat oven to 350°F. Roll dough into a small ball about the size of a walnut; roll balls in the icing sugar and press flat with the palm of your hand.
7. Place on parchment covered baking sheet, leaving about 2 inches between the cookies. Bake 8-10 minutes.
8. Let the cookies cool on the sheet; transfer to racks to cool completely before storing.

Read Full Post »

Pear and Milk Chocolate Clafoutis with Caramel Sauce

Happy Halloween, tomorrow! What will you be for this momentous occasion? JT and I will share a costume, one that he thought up! I need mine for work on Tuesday and he needs it for Wednesday! Good timing! We’re Phantom of the Opera! Well, I hope you all have a great time Trick or Treating tomorrow night!
As you know during our cooking class in Lyon, we made this absolutely delightful Claffoutis with a wonderful Caramel Sauce. Chef Villard was kind enough to provide the recipes for the dishes we made together in his kitchen and we recreated the entire dinner for my friend Barb and her hubby (Profiteroles and Ponytails).

It’s a delicious dessert. I snapped this pic earlier in the day because of the light.

Makes 6 Claffoutis about 10cm or 4 inches in diametre

Ingredients:

• 2 eggs
• 1 egg yolk
• 80 g granulated sugar
• 40 g all purposes unbleached white flour
• 100 mL Carnation Evaporated Milk (or cream)
• 150 mL milk (I used skim)
• 2 ripe bosc pears
• 50 g Lindt milk chocolate, chopped
• 5 g butter
• 5 g sugar

Directions:

1. Pre-heat oven to 175° C (350° F).
2. Butter the pans and dust with sugar until sides and bottom are totally coated.
3. In a bowl, mix the sugar and flour well. Make a well in the centre and slowly pour the cream in and then the milk. Add the lightly beaten whole eggs and yolk and mix delicately until all of the flour and sugar are combined.
4. Peel and cut up the pears into smallish cubes (1 cm or 0.5 inch), divide evenly in the 6 pans. Add the chocolate so that it is evenly distributed in each pan.
5. Pour the egg mix into the pans dividing equally among the 6.
6. Bake for about 30-40 minutes or until firmly set. Cool in pans and remove carefully.
   Set aside.

This is only the photo I took of the Clafoutis, it was pear, chocolate with a glorious caramel sauce. I can hardly wait to make this again!

You can make the traditional caramel sauce, or try this unique microwave version.

Caramel Sauce Ingredients:

• 200 g sugar
• 50 g water
• 150 mL heavy cream (I did not substitute this one as the sauce needs the fat)
• 15 g unsalted butter
• pinch of salt

Directions:

1. Add the sugar and water to a heavy bottomed pan and heat on a low setting until the sugar is dissolved and has cooked to a beautiful golden caramel colour (be careful, I burned my first two attempts!)
2. DO NOT STIR. Apparently stirring causes the sugar to crystallize and you will not have a smooth sauce.
3. When you have achieved the desired colour, add the cream carefully and whisk well. Add the butter and a pinch of salt. Allow to cool.

Assembly:

1. Warm the clafoutis in the oven for about 10 minutes.
2. On a large rimmed plate, pour the caramel sauce into the centre and spread out evenly.
3. Drop one clafoutis into the centre of the sauce and serve warm.

And that concludes our dinner party from Lyon. I hope some of these recipes will inspire you to make something similar. Cheers.

Read Full Post »

Kladdkaka (Swedish Sticky Chocolate Cake)

There were too many candles to put on the cake so I just used one

It was JT’s birthday last week. It’s just the two of us, so we usually keep it low key, but we do like to fancy it up with the food. Lobster was on sale at our local market so we took advantage and bought two for his birthday dinner. We love lobster and rarely indulge due to its rich and pricey nature so a birthday celebration is the perfect time to take advantage of this delicacy. We dined in our outdoor dining room under the early evening sky. It was wonderful.

JT didn’t mind, because this entire cake was his. Of course, he didn’t eat it in one sitting

When I asked what JT would like for dessert he said cake. Now that stopped me in my tracks because he is more of a pie person than a cake person. But then again, I had just shown him Charles’ recipe (Five Euro Food) for Kladdkaka and he knew I was dying to make it so he said ‘cake’ or kaka in Swedish. He is so thoughtful and generous. Oh, but wait…this generosity may have some selfish motivations !

Night-time photos are not the best

I knew I would like this dessert from the name alone. Kladdkaka. Kladdkaka, kaka, kaka, kaka, kaka, Kladdkaka. Giggle, giggle, giggle. But I digress; I knew I would like this dessert because I LOVED his Tuppkaka dessert (that, for the record I have now made about 6 times). Plus Kladdkaka is very easy to make, one bowl is all you need. In fact, I was lazy and made the entire cake in the food processor. I didn’t even bother to change the blade to the plastic ones. Just processed away. The cake has an intense chocolate flavour without being sweet; don’t be too afraid of the sugar quantity, you need it to mellow the bitterness of the cocoa powder. Next time I think I’ll add a tbsp of espresso powder and a good pinch of cayenne pepper! I may even try to make this gluten free, using almond flour instead of white flour. Stay tuned.

Caster sugar is plain sugar that is much finer than regular sugar but not as fine as powdered sugar. It is supposed to melt a lot easier. I just put my regular sugar in the food processor with metal blades and I pulsed it until it looked significantly finer than original but now powdery.

Kladdkaka

Such a moist and chocolatey cake, but not as sweet as you would think

adapted from Charles at Five Euro Food

Ingredients:

• 200 g Caster Sugar
• 140 g unbleached Flour
• 50 g Cocoa Powder
• 2 tsp Baking Powder
• 2 tsp Vanilla
• 120 g Butter
• 2 eggs
• 1/4 cup seedless raspberry jam, heated until runny

Directions:

1. Preheat your oven to 350°F. Add the sugar, flour, cocoa powder and baking powder to the bowl of your food processor. Plus few times to incorporate evenly.
2. In the microwave, melt the butter slowly so it doesn’t overheat. Add melted butter and vanilla to the food processor in an even stream. Mix well, scraping down the sides as required. Lightly beat the eggs and add to the chocolatey mix until a smooth thick batter forms.
3. Lightly grease a round tin about 20cm in diametre (I used a spring form tin). Spoon the batter into the tin and smooth out to the edges (it is rather thick). Resist the urge to try this batter, it’s seriously good and you won’t be able to stop.
4. Take a knife and draw a spiraling circular pattern into the cake top (dig in about 1/2cm). Using a fine tip cake decorator, squeeze the slightly warm but runny seedless raspberry jam into the cut pattern. Don’t worry about how it looks on top, it will be dusted with confectioner’s sugar so it doesn’t matter. I wanted the raspberry jam to seep into the cake, which it did very nicely.
5. Bake in the preheated oven for 25 minutes before removing and allowing to cool for ~10 minutes before carefully removing from the tin. Try not to over-bake the cake. If you do, all delicious gooeyness may be lost!
6. Serve with fresh raspberries and whipped cream, or just on its own, for a gooey, chocolatey delight!

Thanks Charles for another winner — hope you don’t mind my creative license!!

Read Full Post »

Peanut Butter and Milk Chocolate Chip Brownie Bars

My SIL’s mother, Lea was one of my Mom’s dearest friends (JT’s Mom was her other dearest friend but sadly she passed away quite a few years before my Mom). Lea recently had hip replacement surgery and is recovering slowly, and when I spoke to her, I detected quite bit of frustration in her voice. She has 6 grand children and she likely feels like she’s missing out on quite a bit of action! So, to help cheer her up, I decided to bake her some brownies, but not just any brownies, but Peanut Butter and Milk Chocolate Chip Brownie Bars! Now who wouldn’t cheer up with a big, fat bucket full of Peanut Butter and Milk Chocolate Chip Brownie Bars? Frankly, she wouldn’t expect anything less from her good friend’s daughter; my Mom always had food whenever there was a visit!

Chewy, chocolatey and peanuty. I know you want one!

Year’s ago JT was in NYC on business (why wasn’t I with him you ask aghast? I’m still asking myself that same question) and he bought me a Hershey’s Chocolate Cookbook as consolation (huh, diamond tennis bracelet would have done the trick!). Believe it or not, I have not made a single thing from that book. Why, you might ask? Although the book is FILLED with wonderful delectable sweets, it is by far, the most unhealthiest recipes I have in my collection and therefore put it aside for the ‘right moment’. And the right moment is upon us, because as we all know ‘cheer’ is nothing without copious amounts of calories and fat.

So join me in wishing my SIL’s Mom a speedy recovery so she can get back to baby-sitting those rug-rats !

Small, bite sized little morsals

Ingredients:

• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
• 1-1/4 cups sugar
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract, divided
• 3 eggs
• 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1/3 cup cocoa
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 can (14 oz.) sweetened condensed milk (not evaporated milk)
• 1/2 cup crunchy peanut butter (I used all natural, unsweetened)
• 1 cup milk chocolate chips
• 1 cup peanut butter chips
• 3/4 teaspoon shortening

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 350°F. Grease 13x9x2-inch baking pan.
2. Stir together the melted cooled butter, sugar and 1 teaspoon vanilla in large bowl. Add 2 beaten eggs; stir until blended.
3. Sift together flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt. Add to egg mixture, stirring until blended. Spread in prepared pan.
4. Bake 20 minutes.
5. Meanwhile, stir together sweetened condensed milk, peanut butter, remaining beaten egg and 1 teaspoon
   vanilla extract. Pour evenly over hot brownie. Set aside 1 tablespoon each milk chocolate chips and peanut
   butter chips; sprinkle remaining chips over peanut butter mixture.
6. Return to oven; continue baking 20 to 25 minutes or until peanut butter layer is set and edges begin to brown.
7. Cool completely in pan on wire rack.
8. Stir together remaining milk chocolate chips, remaining peanut butter chips and shortening in small
   microwave-safe bowl. Microwave at MEDIUM (50%) 30 seconds; stir. If necessary, microwave at MEDIUM an
   additional 15 seconds at a time, stirring after each heating, until chips are melted and mixture is smooth when
   stirred. Drizzle over top of bars. When drizzle is firm, cut into bars. Store loosely covered at room temperature.
   24 to 36 bars depending on the size you cut them.

Read Full Post »

New York Style Chocolate Cheesecake with a Cherry Pie Topping

To finalize Super Bowl Food Frenzy, I deliver to you the piece de resistance: New York Style Chocolate Cheesecake with a Cherry Pie Topping.

Would you like extra cherry sauce with your slice?

I made a cheese cake which was supposed to be representative of the NY Giants, New York Style Chocolate Cheesecake with a Cherry Pie Topping. The recipe originated from my very old and battered Fanny Farmer Cookbook which was given to me as a wedding gift by one of the wives of a guy that worked in John’s Father’s factory. I used to make it all the time, but now it’s reserved for very special occasions (mainly because it is quite rich and fattening). I’ve lightened it up quite a bit from the original, but you can use the full fat versions should you please. This is a baked cheesecake and therefore not as creamy as an unbaked cheesecake, but that’s exactly what I love about it.

Crust Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup graham cracker crumbs (or any type of cookie, your choice)
• 2 tbsp ground almonds
• 2 tbsp sugar
• 2 tbsp melted butter
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg
• 1 tbsp unsweetened cocoa, sifted

Crust Directions:

1. Mix all of the ingredients above well and press into a 7″ spring form pan. Set aside.

Cheese Cake Ingredients:

1. 2 small eggs separated
2. 200 g low fat cream cheese
3. 1/2 cup fat free Greek yogurt
4. 1/4 cup sugar
5. 2 tbsp unsweetened cocoa
6. 1 tbsp flour
7. 1/4 tsp salt
8. 1 tsp vanilla

Cheese Cake Directions:

1. Pre heat oven to 325°F / 165°C.
2. Beat the egg yolks until thick and pale.
3. Add the yogurt, sugar, sifted cocoa, flour, salt, sugar and vanilla and beat until smooth.
4. Add the cream cheese and beat until smooth. Set aside.
5. Beat the egg whites until stiff peaks form, add 1 tbsp sugar gradually, until it is stiff and shiny (as if you were making a meringue).
6. Fold the egg whites into the cream cheese mixture until fully incorporated being careful not to deflate.
7. Bake for about 1 hour until a cake tester comes out clean.
8. Top with sour cherry pie filling topping (recipe below).

Sour Cherry Pie Filling

Ingredients:

1. 540 mL / 19 oz Pitted Sour Cherries in a jar, strained, liquid reserved
2. 2 tbsp cornstarch
3. 1/4 cup sugar

Directions:

1. Dissolve the cornstarch in a little bit of cold water.
2. Bring the reserved liquid to a boil, add sugar and stir until dissolved.
3. Gently pour in the cornstarch and stir until the liquid has thickened.
4. Return cherries to the liquid and stir gently.
5. Allow to cool a bit. Gently pour over cheese cake. Save any left over sauce for extra sauce for the cheese cake.

Read Full Post »