Chocolate Cheesecake

 I love cheesecake! Almost any kind of cheesecake (I go crazy at the Cheesecake Factory- forget the meals, just give me cheesecake). I've made many different kinds and recipes of cheesecakes ( I have a cookbook that is JUST cheesecake recipes!) There are unlimited versions and preferences when it comes to cheesecake. With crust, without, with topping, without, cream cheese, mascarpone, with sour cream , without sour cream and so on and so forth. 

If I had to pick a favorite, it would probably be the trusted New York cheesecake, but even with that, there are varying recipes and approaches. In my travels through cheesecake making, I find that the amount of butter used to make a graham cracker or cookie crust is always too much. It comes out so "butter" heavy and seeps out the sides of the spring form pan. Through the years I've cut down drastically on the amount of butter a recipe calls for in the crust. You really just need enough to hold the crumbs together- and that will do the trick.

I like this cheesecake because it's easy, quick and not overly, sickeningly sweet- it's even got a touch of sourness ( is that a word?) to it. I've changed the original recipe and used my new discovery (I know, I'm probably way behind and this stuff has been around for ages , but I just found it.) Those little individually packaged caramel cookies you get on the plane? They are amazing and I always want more than the one or two they give you. I finally found them here in Israel (I even found a spread like peanut butter or Nutella , from the same company that makes the cookies- oh what joy!!!!)and decided to use them for the cheesecake crust. WOW!! That's all I can say- what a great flavor it adds to the cake. 

This recipe is from Carine Goren's new book- Sweet Secrets 2 . I've adapted it slightly , but the basic recipe is the same. Definitely worth a try!
Recipe coming soon!

Angry Birds Cake

Just finished this cake for an Angry Birds fan. Chocolate cake with butter cream frosting and  4 little fondant black angry birds for the corners. It was my first time making any kind of 3 D figures - I'm ok with the results but I have a LOT to learn. It's fun though! The facial features were made with royal icing pieces that I made on parchment paper, let dry and then transferred to the cake.

Sambousek

Sambousek are mini pies filled with either meat, hummus or cheese. The origin is Middle Eastern and there are endless versions of these delicious little hand held pies. The recipes for the dough and fillings vary according to the country or group of people who make them. These are great to make and freeze, then all you have to do is take them out and reheat. I suggest reheating in the oven, but a very quick zap in the micro will do just fine. My husband likes taking one out for a quick ( and filling) breakfast each morning on his way to work.

The recipe I used is for a  pastry type dough with a cheese filling. You can play around with the fillings

(I did- I used basically what I had in the house, which was not exactly what the recipe called for, ,but  it worked out just fine). I had some leftover filling so I added some chopped olives and made another batch of dough for that. Mushrooms, mashed seasoned potatoes and a meat mixture are also a wonderful option for the filling. This recipe is adapted from the book "The Best of Micky Shemo", a wonderfully talented Israeli pastry chef.

before baking

yum!

after baking

 Here's the recipe: adapted from the original
( 25-30 sambousek)

Dough:
500 grams ( 3 1/2 cups +1 tbsp.) flour
200 grams softened butter ( 1 cup)
1/2 tsp. salt
10 grams baking powder
180 ml. (3/4 cup) water 
80 ml. ( 1/3 cup) canola oil


Filling:
250 grams feta cheese, finely grated
250 grams no fat soft cream cheese
1 egg+ 1 egg yolk (I just used one egg)
I also added a few gratings of fresh Parmesan cheese

Topping:
 1 slightly beaten egg
 sesame seeds

How to:

1. Make the filling: 

    Mix all the ingredients to a smooth texture. Refrigerate.

2. Make the dough:

    Using the flat beater in a standing mixer, mix the flour, butter, salt, and baking powder to a crumbly    consistency. Add the oil and water and mix until the dough is smooth and uniform.

3.  Wrap the dough in nylon wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour (I found it had to be refrigerated for longer to achieve the proper consistency for rolling.)

4. Preheat oven to  170 C ( 340 F)

5.  Form and bake:

     Divide the dough into 25 -30 balls and cover with a kitchen towel to prevent from drying out. Roll out each ball into a circle about 1/2 cm . thick. Place a heaping teaspoon of  filling in the center and fold over in half. Secure the  edges by pinching and folding or rolling( sort of a braided look as you can see in the pictures). Mine didn't come out perfect but they held just fine.

Place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Brush with egg and sprinkle sesame seeds on top.

 6. Bake for 20 minutes until browned. (I found they needed more time , but that depends on your oven- just keep an eye on them)

7. Cool thoroughly and store in a  tightly closed container ( not in the fridge) only on the day of baking.

They can be frozen for up to a month. To serve, heat for a few minutes in a 170C oven.  

Enjoy!

  

Cookie Chanukiya( menorah)

I got the idea of making a cookie chanukiya after seeing some 3 dimensional cookie creations on the web. The base is one big rectangle cookie, circle bases for the candles ( one group being higher than the rest , since that candle is called the "shamash" , or helper candle- it is the one you use to light all the other candles each night) and , of course candle cookies. It really didn't come out as I had envisioned it, but for a first try , it isn't that bad. At least I got the feel for it and now I know what I will do differently next time.

Getting back into the swing of cookie decorating , so hope to be posting more soon.

Happy Chanukah and Merry Christmas to all!

Honey Cinnamon Mousse Bavaria

This was a first try for a fairly involved and interesting tasting dessert. I didn't follow the recipe exactly and I probably should have. The taste was light, not too sweet and a nice change from the typical honey cake for Rosh Hashana. I like to play around with recipes, but I would go back to the original next time.

1st Birthday Cookies

she loves penguins!

candy for the birthday girl

Ronny

balloons for Ronny

and baby elephants, too

already a year old!

baby animals

Halloween and other stuff

It's been months since my last post. Good reasons, mind you, but still... trying to get back into the habit of writing. I've made a lot of things in the past few months but have been very bad about taking pictures.Here are a few very recent things.

things that go bump in the night

Boo!

candy corn, mummies and other Halloween stuff

Baby On the Way

Some cookies  for a colleague who is expecting in the fall and taking the next school year off. I did the basic covering in fondant and accented with royal icing, except for the letters on the blocks which were fondant cut outs too. As usual, had lots of fun doing them!

 Wishing her all the best!

baby blocks

assortment

onesies

baby bottles

rocking horse

Now that I think about it, I don't know why I label the pictures- I mean duh, you can tell what they are...!

Cakes and Cookies

I've been busy baking cakes lately. Some for friends' birthdays, some for actual paying orders ( how fun !). A few more to do this weekend- love every minute of it!

Milk Chocolate Malted Milk Ball Cake from Baked!

Devil's Food Whiteout Cake from Baking: From My Home to Yours

by Dorie Greenspan

Super Hero cookies for a birthday party

Sugar Baby

I've always wanted to explore the world of candy- beyond eating it, that is! I have to admit to being a sugar lover. Tried many times to kick the habit, but it's more powerful than me. I think , though, in recent years , I've at least managed to cut down my sugar intake, but what the heck- only pass this road called life once, and as long as I don't overdo it, I'll enjoy every last bite.

I came across this new book Sugarbaby, by the wonderful Gesine Bullock-Prado. It's not just a "cookbook"- she writes in a way that anyone can understand the workings and magic of sugar even if you've never(like me) dealt with it before ( other than in baking and that's really different). Her writing is humorous and fun to read. I ordered the book and when I received it, just sat down and read the whole thing from cover to cover. I continue to read it and learn more about working with sugar each time. You can check out Gesine's site for the book at http://www.sugarbabycookbook.com/. She has a lots of extra tips and ideas that aren't in the book. She also has another great blog called Confections of a Closet Baker which is definitely worth following!

ANYHOO.... my first go at candy(this is the one I saw pictures of that made me buy the book.) Does anyone remember those bullseye caramel creams? I certainly do! Can't remember the brand name.

These Fleur de Sel Spirals are a vanilla cream fondant wrapped in a fleur de sel caramel. The caramel would be fantastic on it's own , but that touch of salt just takes it to a whole other level! Just like the original but 100x better. 

The process was nowhere near as difficult as I had imagined and I was soooo proud of myself! They came out great and I wrapped them individually in squares of waxed paper. Can't wait to try another project from the book. Enjoy!

Happy Mother's Day to all Mommies, Grandmas, mommies-to -be etc. ,etc.!!