Cheesecakes ... Plain and Fancy

Cheesecake was not something we had as children because the ingredients were not readily available. Our butter and cheese came in cans from Australia and milk was reconstituted from dried milk powder for most of our childhood.

It wasn't till the 1980s that cheesecakes appeared as desserts in hotel restaurants and select bakeries and we began to appreciate them. And then I came to the US and having cream cheese everywhere, I started making cheesecakes of every kind. Below are two of our favorites ... one plain and the other a little fancier with chocolate chip cookie dough. Sarah is the one who first started making the chocolate chip cookie dough cheesecake ... it was the first cheesecake she ever made and it holds fond memories for all of us.

Northwest Cheesecake Supreme

4 (8-oz) pkgs. Cream Cheese, softened
1 cup sugar
3 Tbsp all-purpose flour
4 eggs
1 cup sour cream
1 Tbsp vanilla

Shortbread Crust:
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup sugar
1 large egg, separated, yolk lightly beaten
1/2 cup butter, softened

1. To make crust:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

2. In a large mixing bowl, place flour and sugar and mix well. Make a depression in the center of the mixture, and add egg and softened butter. With a fork, blend everything together until dough holds together.

3. In a 9-inch springform pan, place about 1/3 of the dough (put the rest of the dough in the fridge) and press into bottom of the pan with your hands. Prick the crust with a fork. Bake in oven for 10 - 15 minutes, checking frequently to make sure that crust is a light brown. Remove from oven to cool before proceeding to step 4.

4. Once bottom crust has cooled. Remove remainder of dough from fridge and press into sides of springform pan, making sure to seal the edges of the bottom crust. When all the sides have been done, brush the whole crust (bottom and sides) with egg white to prevent it from getting soggy.

To make cheesecake:
1. Combine cream cheese, sugar and flour, mixing at medium speed on electric mixer until well blended.

2. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Blend in sour cream and vanilla. Pour into crust.

3. Place springform pan on cookie sheet and bake at 450 degrees for 10 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 250 degrees and continue baking for 1 hour.

4. Place springform pan to cool on wire rack. When cheesecake is cooled completely, loosen sides from rim of pan and remove rim carefully.

5. Chill in fridge for 4 - 6 hours before serving. Serve with cherry pie filling and whipped cream, or decorate with whipped cream and a chocolate flake.

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cheesecake

1 3/4 cups crushed chocolate chip cookies or chocolate wafer crumbs
1/4 cups sugar
1/3 cup butter, melted

Filling:
3 (8-0z) pkgs cream cheese, softened
1 1/4 cups sugar
3 eggs, lightly beaten
1 cup (8 oz) sour cream
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

Cookie Dough:
1/4 cup butter, softened
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1 Tbsp water
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups miniature semisweet chocolate chips, divided

To make crust:
1. In a small bowl, combine cookie crumbs and sugar; stir in butter. Press onto bottom and 1 in. up the sides of a greased 9-inch springform pan. Set aside.

To make cheesecake:
1. In a large mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese and sugar until smooth. Add eggs, beat on low until just combined. Add sour cream and vanilla and blend with a wooden spoon. Pour into crust. Set aside.

To make cookie dough:
1. In a medium bowl, cream butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Add water and vanilla. Gradually add the flour. Stir in 1 cup chocolate chips.

2.Drop dough by small teaspoonfuls all over cheesecake filling, pushing dough gently under surface, making sure that all dough is covered.

3. Place springform pan on a cookie sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 45-55 minutes or until center is almost set (it should still be a little jiggly). Sprinkle 1/2 cup of chocolate chips over top of cheesecake.

4. Cool pan on a wire rack for about 10 minutes. Carefully run a knife around edge of pan to loosen; cool 1 hour before placing in refrigerator overnight.

5. Remove sides of pan before serving. To serve: drizzle chocolate sauce over bottom of plate, place a slice of cheesecake on top, pipe whipped cream on cheesecake and enjoy!

Bread ... Bread

There was always something baking in my mother's and grandmother's kitchen. As children we enjoyed biscuits (cookies), cakes, puddings, but surprisingly, not loaves of bread. Instead we bought our weekly supply of bread from the local convent. Late afternoon a convent girl would deliver huge loaves of warm bread. We lived close to the convent so we always got our loaves first when the convent girl would come on her bicycle. We would cut huge slices of bread, slather them with butter and sprinkled with sugar ... ah, the memory can still bring a smile to my face.

St. Anthony's Convent

When I started a family of my own, I also started baking bread -- rolls, muffins, loaves. Sarah has enjoyed all kinds of homemade bread. There is nothing to beat the smell of baking wafting through the house and the taste of warm bread dripping with melted butter.

One of Sarah's favorites has always been the sweet cinnamon-raisin swirl bread below. It is so good warm from the oven or toasted a couple of days later.

Raisin Swirl Bread

6 1/2 to 7 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 tsp. salt
2 packages active dry yeast
1 cup milk
1 cup water
1/4 cup butter or margarine
3 eggs, at room temperature
1 Tbsp. ground cinnamon
2 Tbsp. butter or margarine, melted
1 cup raisins

1. In a large bowl, combine 2 cups flour, 1/4 cup sugar, salt and yeast.

2. In a 2-quart saucepan over low heat, heat milk, water and 1/4 cup butter until mixture is very warm but you can still hold your finger in it. Butter does not need to melt completely.

3. With mixer at low speed, gradually pour liquid into dry ingredients; beat until just mixed. At medium speed, beat 2 minutes, scraping bowl with rubber spatula. Beat in eggs and 1 1/2 cups flour or enough flour to make a thick batter; continuing beating 2 minutes, scraping bowl occasionally.

4. With spoon, stir in additional flour (about 3 cups) to make a soft dough.

5. Turn dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes, adding more flour while kneading.

6. Shape dough into a ball and place in greased large bowl, turning dough over to grease top. Cover with towel or plastic wrap; let rise in warm place , until doubled in bulk.

7. Punch down by pushing center of dough with fist, then pushing edges of dough into center. Turn dough onto lightly floured surface; cut in half. Cover; let rest 15 minutes.

8. Grease two 9 x 5 loaf pans. In small bowl, combine remaining 1/2 cup sugar and cinnamon. Roll one dough half into 14 x 9 - inch rectangle. Brush with 1 tablespoon butter. Sprinkle with half the sugar mixture and half of the raisins. Starting at narrow end, roll tightly, jelly-roll fashion; pinch seam to seal. Press ends to seal and tuck under, Place seam side down in prepared pan. Repeat with remaining dough. Cover with towel or plastic wrap; let rise in warm place until doubled, about 1 hour.

9. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Bake 30 - 45 minutes or until tops are golden and loaves sound hollow when tapped with finger. Remove from pans immediately; cool on wire racks. Drizzle with confectioners' sugar glaze.

Note: You can half this recipe to make only one loaf ... I have done it many times.

My sister, Priscilla, gave me this oatmeal bread recipe several years ago and I still like it. It's wonderful on its own but it also makes great sandwich bread. You don't have to knead this bread ... just beat it with a wooden spoon! This recipe can be halved, I often make just one loaf, but there is no reason not to make two loaves and then freeze the other loaf.

Oatmeal Bread

2 cups boiling milk
1 cup regular oats (not instant)
2 tsp. salt
1 egg
1/2 cup honey
4 Tbsp. shortening
5 - 5 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 packets yeast
1/2 cup warm water

1. Add oatmeal to hot milk and let stand for 2 hours.

2. Dissolve yeast in warm water.

3. Place oatmeal mixture in large bowl. Add yeast, 5 cups of flour and the rest of the ingredients to the oatmeal mixture and beat with wooden spoon until well mixed. Add the other 1/2 cup of flour and mix well.

4. Flour hands and form dough into two balls. Place into greased loaf pans, cover with plastic wrap and let stand in warm place until doubled in size.

5. Bake at 350 degrees for about 30 - 45 minutes or until golden brown. Remove loaves from pans immediately and cool on wire racks.

6. Serve warm with honey butter. Loaves freeze well.

Crockpot Apple Butter

Sometimes you find a place that speaks to you and wraps itself around your heart ... Vermont is such a place to us. Fifteen years ago we came for a visit in the middle of summer when the land and the mountains were covered with a lush green that soothed the eye and the soul. The wild flowers were in bloom in colors that only nature could perfect and the air was clean and clear and it was easy to believe that this was indeed God's country.


Who knew that those mountains would hold me in their grasp? There I was -- a child of a tropical island -- of hot sand and cool breezes, mesmerized by this land that spoke to something in me. Was it the memories of my Scottish ancestors within me that recognized this place or was it the memories of my English ancestors from the gently rolling hills of Devon?

It was a call too loud to ignore and we have bought a condo in Newport Center and land in Derby where we hope to someday build our home. And on that land are apple trees as nature intended them to be, producing apples that are small and not very pretty but are nonetheless edible and pesticide free. They screamed to be made into apple butter.

There are two kinds of apples on the Derby land ... one that is red and sweet and the other yellow with a slightly tart bite to it. That is the one that I thought would make the better apple butter.

3 lb. apples, peeled, cored and sliced
3 cups sugar
3/4 cup fresh apple cider
2 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. all spice
1/2 tsp. cloves
Dash of salt

1. Fill a crockpot with the apples. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix well. Cover and cook on low setting overnight or until apple butter is thick and speadable.

2. If apple butter has too much liquid, remove lid and cook until it is of the desired consistency.

3. To can: sterilize jars, fill to 3/4 full, put lids on and place jars in boiling water bath for 10 minutes. Remove jars from water and place on racks to cool ... you will hear a pinging sound as the jars seal themselves.

4. Yields 7 1/2 pint jars of apple butter.

Meatballs and Spaghetti

When I am in the mood to make my own meatballs, this is the recipe that I use. It is a Tyler Florence recipe but I do not make the meatballs as big as he does!

1 onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, smashed
2 Tbsp. roughly chopped parsley
1 cup milk
4 thick slices firm white bread, crust removed
1 1/2 lb ground beef
1 1/2 lb ground pork or turkey or veal
1 large egg
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano

1. Heat 3 Tbsp. oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic and parsley and cook until the vegetables are soft but still translucent, about 10 minutes. Take the pan off the heat and let cool.

2. Pour enough milk over the bread in a bowl to moisten and let it soak while the onions are cooling.

3. Combine the meats in a large bowl. Add the egg and Parmigiano-Reggiano and season generous with salt and pepper. Use your hands to squeeze the excess milk out of the bread and add that to the meat mixture along with the cooled onion mixture. Gently combine all the ingredients with your hands or with a spoon until just mixed together. Do not over mix or the meatballs will be tough. Divide them into 10 equal pieces and shape them into balls. You can make them smaller and get more meatballs.

4. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

5. Heat about 3 tablespoons of oil in frying pan over medium heat and brown the meatballs on all sides, about 10 minutes or less if the meatballs are smaller. Place meatballs in a baking dish. Spoon over half of whatever tomato sauce you will be serving and bake for about 15 minutes.

6. While meatballs are baking, cook your spaghetti and heat up your tomato sauce and enjoy!



Note: If you want to freeze some of the meatballs, just cook them all the way through in the pan, cool and freeze for later use.

Seafood and Mushroom Crepes

When this dish appears, it means that Lent is here. I made up this recipe years ago when John described a dish he had at a restaurant called the Sea Watch in Florida, and it has remained one of our favorite dishes.

Crepes:
2 Tbsp. butter, melted & cooled
1 1/2 cups milk
3 eggs
2/3 cup all-purpose salt
1/2 tsp. salt

1. About 3 hours before serving or overnight: In a bowl whisk melted butter, eggs and milk. Add flour and salt and whisk until smooth. Cover; refrigerate for at least 2 hours.

2. Brush 7-inch crepe pan and 10-inch skillet with butter and heat over medium heat. Pour a scant 1/4 cup batter into crepe pan and spread as thinly as possible. Cook until underside is lightly brown but edges are not crisp. Flip into skillet and cook for about 30 seconds and then remove to waxed paper covered plate.

3. Repeat until all batter is used up.

Seafood filling:
5 Tbsp. butter
3/4 lb mushrooms, sliced
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup chicken broth
1/2 cup milk (2 % or whole)
1/4 cup dry sherry
1 cup shredded Swiss cheese
2 cups medium raw shrimp peeled, de-veined and tails removed
1 cup small scallops
chopped parsley

1. In 3-quart sauce pan over medium heat, in butter, cook mushrooms until soft. Remove to a bowl.

2. In same pan add shrimp and cook until almost done before adding scallops and cooking for another 1 - 2 minutes. Remove seafood to a clean bowl and set aside.

3. Add 3 tablespoons butter to the pan and melt. With a whisk add flour and salt and cook until brown, stirring with whisk. In a bowl, mix broth, sherry and milk; stir into flour mixture in pan; cook until thickened. Stir in cheese until melted, remove pan from heat.

4. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Reserve 1/2 cup of the sauce. Spray a 13 x 9 baking dish.

5. Add the cooked seafood to the cheese sauce and all but 1/4 cup of the cooked mushrooms.

6. Start assembling crepes -- spoon 1/3 cup filling onto a crepe; roll up and place in baking dish. Repeat until all crepes are done.

7. Sir 2 tablespoons milk and mushrooms into reserved sauce; spoon over crepes. Bake 20 minutes. Top with parsley and serve hot.

Note: I make my crepes smaller and can get about 10 crepes out of the batter.

Gluten Free Crepes

1/2 cup Brown Rice Flour

1/8 tsp. salt

1/2 cup milk

2 large eggs

2 tbsp. butter, melted

1. Preheat a  6 - 7 skillet/crepe pan over medium heat.

2. Fix flour & salt.

3. Beat milk and eggs until well combined. Whisk milk mixture into the flour mixture until smooth. Add melted butter and whisk until well combined.

4. Brush pan with butter. Using a 1/4 cup measure, pour batter into pan, swirling to form an even circle around pan. Cook until underside is very lightly golden ... loosen edges and flip over. Cook for about 30 seconds. Slide onto a platter.

5. Repeat until all batter is used up.