20111104 Mini Oreo Cheesecakes

(SOURCE: Baking Bites - Halloween Oreo Cheesecakes)

Though I love cheesecakes, I just can't seem to make them right and they always look awful. Argh! One of the biggest challenges is to know when it is done. For muffins and cakes, you can test if they are done by inserting a toothpick in the middle. But how do you know when cheesecake is "set"? I think I have overbaked these mini cheesecakes. They still tasted alright and my husband liked them - there are Oreo cookies in them, so what not to like? But they were just not cheesecake-y enough for me, as my cheesecake craving was still there after eating two of them. One tip: make sure you have some spare Oreo cookies in case you have enough batter left to make more mini cheesecakes.

INGREDIENTS
1/2 cup sugar
450g cream cheese, room temperature
3 large eggs, room temperature
1/2 cup milk
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 tbsp flour
1 1/2 cups chopped Oreo cookies
16-20 whole Oreo cookies

METHOD
1. Heat the oven to 175 degree C. Line 16 to 20 muffin cups with paper liners, and place one Oreo in the bottom of each muffin cup.
2. In a large bowl, beat together sugar, cream cheese, eggs, milk, and vanilla extract until very smooth. Then blend in flour, and lastly stir in the chopped Oreo cookies.
3. Top each muffin cup with 1/4 cup cheesecake batter. Bake for 16-19 minutes, until cheesecakes are set. Cool in pan.
4. Chill cheesecakes for at least 2 hours before serving.

20101226 Mojito Cheesecakes

(SOURCE: thepassionatecook - Mojito Cheesecakes)

I wanted a dessert that I can prepare few hours ahead, so I can relax and play sjoelen with the family before dinner. And this dessert is the STAR of our boxing day dinner - my father in law is never crazy about dessert, but he finished two cheesecakes last night! The rum in the cheesecakes make them perfect for a jolly Christmas dinner, and the lime and mint in the cheesecakes make them perfect for a barbeque party too. This is definitely my favorite dessert!

INGREDIENTS
100g digestive biscuits
25g butter, melted
4 limes
120g light muscovado sugar
4 tbsp rum
1 large handful mint leaves + more for decoration
250g quark
100g creme fraiche
250g mascarpone

METHOD
1. Heat the sugar in a saucepan with 5 tbsp of water until the sugar has fully dissolved. Leave to simmer for 2 minutes without stirring. Add the zest and juice of 3 limes, the rum, and the mint leaves to the saucepan. Remove from heat and leave to cool completely.
2. Blitz the digestive biscuits in a food processor until left with fine crumbs, add the butter and combine. Press equal amounts of the mixture into the base of 8 small cocktail tumblers or shot glasses as the base of the cheesecakes. Set aside.
3. Remove the mint leaves from the pan, draining them thoroughly. Pour the mojito mix into a bowl and beat in the quark, creme fraiche and mascarpone until smooth. Pour the mixture carefully on top of the base, then place the glasses in the fridge for at least 1 hour to set.
4. When ready to serve, cut the remaining lime into thin wedges and use one each plus a few small mint leaves for decoration.

20091228 Baked Pears with Amaretti

(SOURCE: BBC Easy Cook Magazine)

INGREDIENTS
4 ripe pears
100g ricotta
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
4 tbsp clear honey, plus extra to serve
8 amaretti biscuits

METHOD
1. Cut each pear in half and place on a large baking tray. Use a teaspoon to scoop out the cores and make a dip in the center of each pear. Put about 1 heaped tsp of ricotta into each dip, then sprinkle over the cinnamon and drizzle with a little honey.
2. Heat the oven to 170 degree C, then roast the pears for 10 minutes. Tip the biscuits into a food bag and lightly crush them with a rolling pin. Remove the pears from the oven, then scatter the crumbs over each pear. Return to the oven for 10 minutes, or until the pears are soft and the topping is golden.

20091108 Chopped Fruit Salad

(SOURCE: Nigella Express by Nigella Lawson)

INGREDIENTS
250g strawberries, finely chopped
1 tsp pomegranate juice
100g diced mango
1/2 tsp lime juice
125g blueberries
150g vanilla yoghurt
2 tsp mixed seeds (pumpkin, sunflower, sesame)

METHOD
1. Mix the chopped strawberries with the juice.
2. Spritz the mango cubes with the lime juice.
3. Using two tumblers, layer the ingredients: strawberry, mango, blueberries, yoghurt and, finally, the seeds.

20091011 Apple Amaretti Pudding

(SOURCE: BBC Good Food Magazine)

This is the perfect dessert to finish a dinner party in the fall.

INGREDIENTS
3 large apples, peeled and cut into chunks
2 tbsp caster sugar
squeeze of lemon juice
250g mascarpone, at room temperature
142ml whipping cream
2 tbsp icing sugar
10 amareetti biscuits
4 tbsp Disaronno Amaretto liquor

METHOD
1. Put the apples in a saucepan, then add the caster sugar, lemon juice and 2 tbsp water. (taste to see if more sugar is needed) Cover and cook gently for about 10 minutes, until softened. Leave to cool.
2. Beat the mascarpone until softened. Softly whip the cream, then fold into the mascarpone along with the icing sugar. Put two amaretti biscuits into the bottom of each of four dessert glasses, drizzle with a little amaretto liquor, then top with the cooked apple. Spoon on the mascarpone mix, then crush the remaining biscuits and scatter over the puddings just before serving.