White Chocolate Pumpkin Cheesecake

*Plan ahead... needs to chill

Halloween oreo crumbs!

1 1/4 c. cream-filled chocolate sandwich cookie crumbs

2 packages (8 oz each) cream cheese, softened

2/3 c. sugar

2 tsp. vanilla extract

3 eggs, lightly beaten

1 1/4 c. white chocolate, melted and cooled (the original recipe calls for vanilla chips, but real white chocolate adds way more of a rich flavor)

1/2 c. canned pumpkin puree

1/4 tsp. each ground ginger, cinnamon and nutmeg

White chocolate curls, optional

Place a greased 9-in. springform pan (don't use larger than a 9-in. or the proportions will be off!) on a double thickness of heavy-duty foil (about 18 in. square). Securely wrap foil around pan. Press cookie crumbs onto the bottom of the springform pan; set aside.

Ready for baking!

In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese, sugar and vanilla until smooth. Add eggs; beat on low speed just until combined. Stir in melted white chocolate.

In a small bowl, combine pumpkin and spices; gently fold into cream cheese mixture. Pour into prepared pan.

Place springform pan in a large baking pan; add 1 in. of hot water to larger pan. Bake at 325° for 60-65 minutes or until center is almost set and the top of the cake looks dull. Remove springform pan from water bath. Cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes.

Carefully run a knife around edge of pan to loosen; cool 1 hour longer. Refrigerate overnight. Remove sides of pan.

Ready to eat!

The original recipe didn't say when to remove the foil, but you should probably do it after it cools for 10 minutes, and make sure no water has seeped into the pan.

Garnish with white chocolate curls if desired. I made a whipped cream topping before adding the white chocolate (I beat together heavy whipping cream and baker's sugar). Refrigerate leftovers.

Recipe from Taste of Home

Cauliflower and Cheese

Basically macaroni and cheese, but with cauliflower instead of pasta.

Cooking spray
1 lb. cauliflower, cut into pieces

Cauliflower with sauce

2 Tbsp. butter
2 Tbsp. flour
1 1/4 c. milk
1 tsp. dry mustard
Dash of chipotle tabasco
1/2 c. Cheddar, grated
1/2 c. Parmesan, grated
Salt and white pepper
2 Tbsp. breadcrumbs
3 Tbsp. Cheddar, grated, extra

Spray a 1.5 litre baking dish with cooking spray. Cook the cauliflower in lightly salted boiling water until just tender. Drain. Place in the dish and keep warm.

Melt the butter in a pan. Stir in the flour and cook for 1 minute, or until golden and bubbling. Remove from the heat and whisk in the milk, mustard, and chipotle. Return to heat and bring to the boil, stirring constantly. Cook, stirring, over low heat for 2 minutes, then remove from the heat. Add the cheeses and stir until melted. Season with salt and white pepper, and pour over the cauliflower.

Ready to eat!

Mix together the breadcrumbs and extra cheddar cheese, and sprinkle over the sauce. Bake at 350 F. for about 15-20 minutes, or until the top is browned and bubbling. Serve immediately.

Adapted from The 1000 Best Recipes

*Update - I've also made this with cauliflower and broccoli mixed. I also added black pepper and garlic that time. =)

*Another update - last time I added Polish sausage. I cooked it separately, then added it to the cauliflower before pouring the sauce over it. I added black pepper and garlic powder to the sausage while it was cooking. This was an excellent addition. 

Cheesy Potato Bread

3/4 c. water
1/2 c. potato, peeled and chopped
1/3 c. milk
1/3 c. cheddar, shredded
2 tsp. butter
3 c. bread flour
1 Tbsp. sugar
3/4 tsp. onion salt (you can substitute onion powder, but then also use 1/2 tsp. salt)
1/4 tsp. dried chives
1 tsp. active dry yeast
melted butter (optional)

In a small saucepan, combine the water and potato. Bring to boiling. Reduce heat and simmer, covered, about 10 minutes or until the potato is very tender. Do not drain. Mash potato in the water. Measure potato mixture. If necessary, add water to equal 3/4 c. mixture. Discard any excess potato mixture. Cool slightly.

Add the potato mixture and remaining ingredients in a bowl. Mix together to form a dough (I had to add a bit more water at this step; just enough so that it will form a dough). Knead on a lightly floured surface about 10 minutes. Grease a large bowl, and place the ball of dough into bowl, making sure to grease the sides of the dough. Cover and let rise 40-60 minutes or until the dough has almost doubled in size. Knead again for several minutes, then roll out and shape into a loaf. Place in greased loaf pan; cover and let rise 30 minutes. Bake at 350 for 45 minutes (I checked mine at 40 minutes and it was done). Before you take it out of the pan, spread melted butter on the top of the bread with a pastry brush. Let bread cool a few minutes before removing it from the pan and placing it on a cooling rack.

Orange Chicken

Sauce:
1 1/2 c. water
1/4 c. orange juice
1/4 c. lemon juice
1/3 c. rice vinegar
2 1/2 Tbsp. soy sauce
1 Tbsp. orange zest
1 c. packed brown sugar
1/2 tsp. fresh ginger root, minced
1/2 tsp. garlic, minced
2 Tbsp. green onion, green
1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes  
3 Tbsp. cornstarch
2 Tbsp. water

2 chicken breasts, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1 c. all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
2 Tbsp. olive oil

Pour 1 1/2 cups water, orange juice, lemon juice, rice vinegar, and soy sauce into a saucepan and set over medium-high heat. Stir in the orange zest, brown sugar, ginger, garlic, chopped onion, and red pepper flakes. Bring to a boil. Remove from heat, and cool 10 to 15 minutes.

Place the chicken pieces into a resealable plastic bag (or deep bowl). When contents of saucepan have cooled, pour 1 cup of sauce into bag. Reserve the remaining sauce. Seal the bag, and refrigerate at least 20 minutes - 2 hours. In another resealable plastic bag, mix the flour, salt, and pepper. Add the marinated chicken pieces, seal the bag, and shake to coat.

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Place chicken into the skillet, and brown on both sides. Drain on a plate lined with paper towels.

In a second skillet add the sauce. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Mix together the cornstarch and 2 tablespoons water; stir into the sauce. Reduce heat to medium low, add the chicken pieces, and simmer, about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Serve over hot white rice.

Flourless Chocolate Cream Cake

Here is a link to my friend's recipe that I used: http://bakingbuzzybee.wordpress.com/2011/08/22/flourless-chocolate-cream-cake/

It turned out pretty well, though it does take a bit of time.

Cake:
6 eggs
2/3 c. caster sugar
1/2 c. cocoa powder (it's actually supposed to be slightly less than 1/2 cup, so just don't fill the cup to the top)

Filling:
200 g. white chocolate (a little less than 8 oz.)
1/2 c. cream (again, slightly less than 1/2 cup)

Topping:
1 c. cream (it's actually 7/8 c. or 13 1/2 Tbsp., or just shy of 1 cup)
50 g. dark chocolate, grated



Preheat the oven to 350 F.

Grease two 8 inch round baking tins and line with baking parchment (if you only have one 8 inch baking tin, like me, then you can just divide the cake ingredients by two and bake one cake at a time).

To make the cake: Start by separating the eggs, place the white in a clean bowl and whisk till stiff. With the yolks beat them with the castor sugar until pale and thick, then add in the cocoa powder to the yolks and beat this lightly.

Gently fold egg whites into the chocolate yolks in three parts, use a metal spoon. Once combined, pour the mix into the prepared tin/s and bake for 10-15 mins. They should be slightly shrunken and springy to the touch. Leave to cool slightly then strip off the paper base.

While waiting for the cake to cool make the filling.

To make the filling: Break up the white chocolate into small pieces and place in a bowl. Bring the cream to the boil then immediately pour over the chocolate, leave for a min then stir till melted. Leave to cool slightly then spread on one layer of the cake to 1 cm away from edge.

(optional) Add berries to the ganache filling e.g. cherries, raspberries, strawberries, blueberries, blackberries…

Place the other cake on top of the filling. Whip the cream until it is firm then spread all over cake, sprinkle all over with grated dark chocolate.

 

Recipe courtesy of Miss Deborah Nugent

Lentil and Sausage Soup

Oil
1/2 c. onion, chopped
28 oz. chicken broth
1 1/4 c. water
1 c. brown lentils
1 c. carrots, sliced
1/2 tsp. dried thyme, crushed
1/8 tsp. red pepper flakes
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 tsp. basil
1/4 tsp. coriander
6 oz. Polish sausage, cooked and sliced

In a large saucepan,  cook the onion in a small amount of oil for about 5 minutes or until soft. Combine chicken broth, water, lentils, carrots, thyme, red pepper, and garlic, basil, and coriander in the saucepan with the onion. Bring to the boil; reduce heat. Simmer, covered, for 20-30 minutes or until vegetables and lentils are tender. Stir in sausage. Heat through. Enjoy. This soup is delightful.

Pumpkin Bread

Makes 2 loaves

3-1/2 c. flour
2 tsp. baking soda
1 1/2 tsp. salt
2 tsp. cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp. nutmeg
3 c. sugar
1 c. vegetable oil
4 eggs
2/3 c. water
2 c. canned pumpkin

Throw it all in a bowl and mix it up really good - maybe a couple minutes. Grease bread pans. Fill them until about 2/3rds full. It grows quite a bit while baking. Bake at 350 degrees for about an hour. When it's fully cooked on the top it's ready to come out. Let sit in pans about ten minutes then turn out onto rack to cool. Eat warm or wrap tightly in foil.

Recipe courtesy of Robyn Fox

Enchilada Casserole

Here is a link to the original recipe: http://www.squidoo.com/enchilada-casserole-recipe

And here is the recipe with the alterations I made. =)

Olive oil
1 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
15 oz. can black beans, drained and rinsed
14 oz. can diced tomatoes, drained
4 oz. can diced green chile peppers
1 can whole kernel corn
Cilantro, chopped
Spices: cumin, coriander, pepper
6 corn tortillas
16 oz. Enchilada sauce
Black olives, sliced
Cheddar, shredded
Pepperjack, shredded
Sour cream (optional)

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Lightly grease a baking dish.

I prefer cooked onions and garlic, so I cooked them in olive oil for about 5 minutes. Combine beans, garlic, onion, tomatoes, peppers, cilantro, and corn. I sprinkled the spices over the mix. Stir it up.

Pour the enchilada sauce into a shallow bowl. Dip 3 tortillas in the sauce, then place them on the bottom of the baking dish, covering the bottom of the dish as completely as possible. Layer half of the bean mixture on top of the tortillas. Repeat the process. Drizzle the remaining enchilada sauce over the casserole. Sprinkle with black olives and cheese.

Cover and bake 30 minutes. Uncover and bake 15 minutes or until bubbling and the cheese is melted. I served it with sour cream because sour cream is delicious.

Spicy Sweet Potato Fries

2 lbs. sweet potatoes, cut into wedges
3 Tbsp. olive oil
1 1/2 tsp. brown sugar
salt
1/4 tsp. cumin
1/4 tsp. chili powder
pinch of cayenne pepper

Toss together. Layer on a cookie sheet. Roast at 425 F about 20 minutes. Turn once.

Cranberry-Pumpkin Cookies

Here's a link to where I found the original recipe I adapted: Cranberry-Pumpkin Cookies

1/2 c. butter, softened
1 c. white sugar
1 tsp. vanilla

1 egg
1 c. pumpkin puree
2 1/4 c. flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 c. fresh cranberries, chopped


Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease cookie sheets. In a large mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in vanilla, egg and pumpkin. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon; stir into pumpkin mixture until well blended. Stir cranberries into mixture. Drop by teaspoonfuls onto cookie sheets. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes.