TWD: Late Low and Luscious Chocolate Cheesecake

At last I have completed the final 2009 TWD recipe, Low and Luscious Chocolate Cheesecake. It was my New Year's Project and I was pleased with the results. Because I had decided to make only one third of the recipe, it took awhile to figure out the baking pan requirements. (We analyticals always take forever to make up our minds.)

After perusing some of the other TWD blogs, it occurred to me that I could use my silicone muffin pan and make individual mini-cheesecakes.


It worked beautifully, better for cheesecakes than muffins, actually, so I will keep it in my baking arsenal.


Here are the mug shots of one of the little darlings.





One third of the recipe made six cheesecakes. Two were consumed last night.


One is being saved for a coworker at the library.

Three should probably go into the freezer for a future dining pleasure.

I can envision making regular cheesecake in this fashion, then playing around with the decorations and the flavorings.

Thanks to Margaret of Tea and Scones for adding to our cheesecake repertoire. Stop by the other TWD bakers to see their versions.



And a big thanks to Dorie and Laurie for making it all possible. Happy New Year!

New Year's Dinner

Each New Year's Day, I cook a dinner to start the year off on a healthy and positive note. In previous years, I've made a black-eyed pea soup, but for 2010 I opted for a change: Lentil Ham Soup. Lentils are also known to increase one's luck, and, as luck would have it, we all love lentils.




I've been making this soup for many years, and even though it tastes good on the day it's made, it's even better the following day. Guess what we're having for dinner tonight?

Accompanying the soup is cornbread. I alternate between several recipes just because.

This year I decided to play a cooking game with myself. I chose 12 chefs/bakers that I wanted to focus on during the year, and the plan is to make one recipe per week from the chosen one. If I get too busy, I might only be able to prepare one during the month, and since it's just for fun, I'll cut myself some slack.

For the selection process, I wrote their names on little bits of paper, placed the paper bits in a bag, then did a blind draw.

January will be Julia Child.


Now, to start planning.



Lentil Ham Soup

In a large saucepan sauté ½ c. minced onion, 1/3 c. minced celery, and 2 garlic cloves, minced, in 3 Tablespoons butter until vegetables are soft

Dice enough cooked ham to measure ¾ c., add it to the vegetables, and sauté the mixture for 5 minutes. Add 2 c. peeled, seeded, and chopped tomatoes, ½ teaspoon oregano, and salt and pepper to taste. Simmer the mixture for 5 minutes.

Stir in 4 c. brown stock or beef broth, 2 c. water, and 1 c. lentils, rinsed and picked over, and simmer the soup, covered, for 1 hour, or until the lentils are very soft.

Swirl in 2 Tablespoons softened butter and sprinkle the soup with freshly grated Parmesan cheese.

Serves 6.

Holiday Traditions

For over 30 years now, I have been making the same meals for Christmas eve dinner and Christmas morning breakfast. I suppose that would make them Traditions. My family expects these meals. My older daughter, who now has a family of her own, is continuing some of the traditional recipes.


Christmas eve dinner consists of white posole, homemade flour tortillas, and, sometimes, a salad of sliced oranges and pomegranate seeds. While the posole is simmering, I make the tortillas using my comal. Homemade tortillas are much better than store bought ones. They are so tender that they melt in your mouth.



Simmering posole:


Finished soup with garnishes and tortilla:



Christmas breakfast is composed of cold blueberry soup, topped with a dollop of sour cream, eggs, bacon, and a sweet bread.



While I was cooking the posole, I was also making the Blueberry Lingonberry Soup. It’s not Christmas without this delicious chilled soup. In a moment of distraction, I accidently dumped a teaspoon of whole black peppercorns into the blueberry soup rather than the posole. I did manage to retrieve most of the pepper before it sank to the bottom of the pan. The blueberry soup was exceptionally good this year, so I’m wondering if a few peppercorns added an extra flavor level.



This year’s sweet bread was one of my favorites, scones from the Stone Lion Inn in Massachusetts. Years ago I discovered this recipe through the King Arthur Baking Circle, and it is better than any other scone recipe I’ve tried. I added mini cinnamon chips and pecans to the dough, and threw in a few mini cherry chips for color. The scones always turn out tender and delicious and can be varied by the addition of different fruits, nuts, and chips.




I’m sending along the scones to Cinzia at Cindystar for this month’s Bread Baking Day (25), Baking under the tree.


Recipes:


Blueberry Lingonberry Soup can be found here.

STONE LION INN SCONES

2 cups flour
1 Tbsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt (preferably Kosher)
1/4 cup sugar
1 cup dried fruit
1 1/4 cup heavy cream (more or less depending on type of flour and humidity)

1 - 2 Tbsp. melted butter for brushing top


Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Measure dry ingredients and mix together in a bowl with a fork. Add dried fruit and mix so that fruit does not stick together.

Add cream and stir until a dough forms. Gather dough together in bowl and turn out onto work surface dusted with flour. Knead 8 - 10 times until dough holds together.

Pat dough into a circle approximately 10" in diameter and brush top with melted butter. At this point I sometimes sprinkle the top with coarse sugar. Cut dough into 12 triangles and place on buttered sheet pan (or use parchment paper on the sheet pan). Bake for 15 minutes until just golden. Transfer to cooling rack.

Makes 12 scones.

For dried fruit, you can add: dried cherries, chocolate chips, lemon chips, nuts of various kinds, other dried fruit of various kind, chopped in to raisin-sized pieces.

Can also make round with biscuit cutter.

White Posole

1 lb boneless lean pork (if using a large piece, cut into 1” cubes; I use boneless pork chops)

6 boneless chicken thighs, or 3 boneless chicken breasts.

½ medium onion

2 garlic cloves

2 teaspoons salt

12 peppercorns

6 cups water

2 1-lb cans golden hominy, drained

1 tablespoon dried oregano

1 lime

crushed red chile pods, to taste

Garnishes

Salsa Fresca

Radishes, julienned

Green onions, sliced

Shredded lettuce

Diced avocado

Place the first 7 ingredients into a large pot and bring to a boil. Skim off any foam from the surface. Cover and simmer for about 1 hour, or until the pork is tender. Remove the chicken thighs after 45 minutes, or the chicken breasts after 30 minutes.

After one hour, remove the pork. Strain the broth and return to pot. Shred the pork and the chicken and add to the broth. Then add the hominy, oregano, juice of one lime, and the crushed chiles. Cover and simmer for 30 minutes. Season, if necessary.

Serve in large soup bowls with garnishes.

BB: Sausage-stuffed Mushrooms

Ah, so much to post, so little time.

Before I wax poetic about mushrooms, let me say that a certain chocolate cheesecake will be forthcoming, probably before the end of the week. The ingredients are present; time isn't. Yet.


Now, back to the current topic.

The last Barefoot Blogger recipe of the year (really?) turned out to be Sausage-stuffed Mushrooms. They make a lovely appetizer, or a light snack, and they are quick to prepare.



They don't photograph particularly well, being all browns and such. I chose to use Stuffing Portabellos rather than white mushrooms, because the portabellos (or mature creminis) have such a meaty, substantial flavor. Did you know that the name portabello was just a marketing ploy, akin to kiwi fruits? Apparently, the name made the plain brown mushroom seem more exotic, and thus easier to market and sell. Taste alone would have done that for me.



Anyway, while I did bake the mushrooms for the requested 50 minutes, I thought it was just a tad bit too long. Next time I will cut back to 45, maybe 40 minutes. Even so, every bite was delicious.


This recipe was chosen by Michelle of Welcome to the Club. Be sure and stop by Michelle's blog for the instructions.

I'm looking forward to the 2010 selections now.

TWD: Jazzed-up Pecan Pie

What a busy week this has been! Work took a back seat to baking and cooking for a change, and, hopefully, I won't pay for it later on.

On the schedule for Tuesdays with Dorie was My Favorite Pecan Pie, chosen by Beth of Someone's in the Kitchen with Brina. I saved this one for our Christmas day dessert




As a switch from a normal pecan pie, Dorie's version jazzes it up with additions of cinnamon, chocolate, and espresso. I watched the progress of the baking pie, and decided to add about 10 minutes to the total time so it would be cooked through. The end result was a perfectly baked pecan pie.



We enjoyed the pie, so I'm sure it will be considered for future holiday feasts.

Although, I have to say, as good as this pie is, and, as much as I like it, it still can't quite beat my favorite pecan pie.

My Daring Baker Gingerbread Home

The December 2009 Daring Bakers’ challenge was brought to you by Anna of Very Small Anna and Y of Lemonpi. They chose to challenge Daring Bakers’ everywhere to bake and assemble a gingerbread house from scratch. They chose recipes from Good Housekeeping and from The Great Scandinavian Baking Book as the challenge recipes.

If you can believe it, I have never made a gingerbread house before in all my years of baking. When the December Daring Bakers challenge was announced, I hesitated for a moment. These projects always seem like too much work, especially around the holidays.

But, as a Daring Baker, I looked at the challenge in various ways. First, I would make it a Christmas day project. After all the presents are open, what's left to do? Well, this year, it was house-building.

Second, during the holidays, I always dream about being back home in New Mexico, so I figured a pueblo-style house was the next best thing.

The challenge was on.

I used the second gingerbread recipe, Y's recipe from The Great Scandinavian Baking Book by Beatrice Ojakangas. My dough turned out nice and pliable, sort of like play dough.


I placed it in a gallon-sized plastic bag, rolled it out, the placed it in the refrigerator for its overnight rest.


Architectural plans were drawn up.

The dough was cut accordingly, then baked. There was some dispute among the builders about pre-cutting the windows.

I won. And, they turned out perfectly.


For the royal icing, I used some dried pasteurized egg whites, just to be on the safe side. The final icing texture was great, and I have plenty left over to decorate the cookies that will be made from the gingerbread scraps.


Of course, there had to be a blue door with chile ristras along either side. And, don't forget the luminarias to light the night. The vigas were fun to make, too, thanks to miniature Tootsie Rolls.

The final touches were a dusting of powdered sugar and some edible white glitter.

I have to say, the house turned out better than I expected. Perhaps this will become a Christmas day tradition.




For the recipes, head on over to either Anna's or Y's blogs. For house viewing, check out the Daring Bakers' website.

Barley and other things

If you're tired of the usual potato/rice/pasta side dish, I'd like to recommend barley. It has a nutty crunchiness that is a nice change of pace from the usual. I always have barley in my pantry, but I don't use it as often as I could, and even then I primarily make one specific dish, barley stew.

However, the most recent issue of Everyday Food (#68) contained a recipe for Barley Pilaf (p. 126) that I couldn't pass up. I served it with Baked Parmesan Chicken and it was a hit. I've included the recipe at the bottom of the post.



On to some general comments.

Remember last week's volcano cookies? I am reporting that these cookies actually tasted better the second day. Sometimes cookies are like that. They were gone by day three.


With the remaining half of my Wholewheat Cranberry Orange Challah dough, I made a 6-braid loaf. This time I preheated the oven to 425F, then lowered it to 350F when the bread went in. As a result, I had improved oven spring and a second tasty loaf of bread.




And, last but not least, I made a simple boule from the last third of my Pumpkin Pie Brioche.


That should clear up all the loose baking ends. My Tuesdays with Dorie post will be later this week, since I plan to make the pecan pie for Christmas dinner. Everyone has been raving about it, so I'm looking forward to baking it.

If I can squeeze in some cookie baking, I will, but this year has been such a busy work year that my usual baking has taken a back seat.

Be that as it may, I wish everyone a joyous holiday over the next two weeks.



Barley Pilaf

In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook 1 cup of pearl barley until tender but still al dente, about 35 to 40 minutes. Drain and rinse with cool water to stop the cooking process.

In a large skillet, melt 2 tablespoons butter over medium high heat, then add 1 minced shallot and saute, seasoning with salt and pepper, until it softens, about 2 or 3 minutes. Add the barley and stir to combine, then transfer to a serving bowl. Stir in 1/4 cup toasted pine nuts, 2 tablespoons finely chopped parsley, and 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice. Taste, and season again if necessary.

Makes 4 servings.