background preloader

The Baker's Daughter: Polka dot cheesecake

The Baker's Daughter: Polka dot cheesecake
I saw someone wearing the greatest polka dot rain coat today and it inspired me to make this cheesecake. It needs to be refrigerated overnight so make sure you make it the day before you want to serve it. I find that popping it into the freezer for about 1/2 hour makes it a lot easier to cut. Using a knife dipped in hot water between cuts also helps to make clean edges. If you want to make this into a traditional cheesecake you will need an 8 inch spring form pan. Crust 1 cup Graham crumbs 2 tbsp sugar ¼ cup melted butter Filling 16 oz softened cream cheese ½ cup sugar 2 eggs 2 oz dark chocolate, melted 1 tsp vanilla 2/3 cup sour cream Directions Preheat oven to 300 degrees F. Grease a 7 X 7 inch square pan and line it with parchment paper. In a small bowl, mix together the graham crumbs, sugar, cocoa, and melted butter and press into the pan. Beat cream cheese until smooth. Pour the plain batter into the pan, smoothing out to the edges. Place in the oven and bake for 1 hour.

http://bakersdaughter.typepad.com/the_bakers_daughter/2010/04/polka-dot-cheesecake.html

28 Muffin Recipes You’ll Want to Try I love muffins. I love them even more than cupcakes. Probably because they are so quick to make. It’s almost instant gratification from the time the muffin idea pops in your head until you’re pulling them from the oven. The Hazel Bloom: The Best Macaroni and Cheese Recipe Ever I can say this is the best macaroni and cheese recipe ever because it's not really my recipe. I tweaked it a tiny bit - basically made it even more fattening - but otherwise, it's someone else's. It's from someone named Bev, who posted her recipe on Recipezaar and to whom I am eternally grateful. See, macaroni and cheese is pretty much my all-time favorite food. How to Make Pizza Without Dough I was getting kind of sick of ordering delivery pizza (this happens at least 2-3 times a month). It was time to put a spin on gourmet pizza, but I just didn't know what it would be. Without pizza dough or an oven that is capable of creating the perfect pizza crust (I don't have an oven that can go up to a 1000 degrees), I decided I would use potatoes instead. This recipe is elegant enough to serve at a dinner party, but easy enough that you can cook it within 5-15 minutes.

Chocolate Cupcakes with Flaming Strawberries Call me easily amused, but these little torch-topped cupcakes delight me. Besides being a cute novelty item for a party, I think they would add a little drama to the end of a romantic meal. I've been looking for something different to serve for Valentine's dessert, and this is definitely different. The strawberries are hollowed out and filled with a bit of liquor, then ignited with a match. For the cake portion, I chose a One Bowl Chocolate Cupcake recipe because 1. it's quick 2. it is easy, and 3. it fits my prerequisite for a light ending on date night. I should say, a light ending provided you don't eat too many.

Recipe: Chicken With Orzo Pasta Interested in uplifting stories on the natural world, sustainable communities, simple food, and new thinking on how to live well? Please enter a valid email address and try again! No thanks Baked Caramel Apple Donuts & shutterbean When you find yourself shopping online at 2AM, mini donut pans sound like a brilliant idea. That’s not something your sharp witted, practical 12PM mind allows you to consider–especially when your husband begged you not to add anymore items to the kitchen. When you wake up the next morning with a confirmation that your donut pans have shipped, you might find yourself wondering what else you’ve ordered online…Japanese steak knives?

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cheesecake Smooth, creamy, decadent cheesecake studded with sweet morsels of cookie dough and bursts of mini chocolate chips? All atop a chocolatey, buttery crust? Garnished with sweetened whipped cream and more chocolate chips? Oh baby, sign me up for a cookie dough cheesecake IV. Immediately. The Ultimate Strawberry Lemonade One of the first times I ever realized that – HEY! I can cook for myself! – was when I first learned to make lemonade. I magically found the refrigerated lemon juice at our house and followed the directions to make my own lemonade. I stirred and stirred and stirred again until that sugar was finally dissolved. Speaking of which, what gives sugar?!

Cinnamon Sugar Pull-Apart Bread I’m sorry. I know it’s Monday morning and you probably came here for some pretty pictures of food that you could glance at, and then move on with your day… and here I go thrusting warm, soft cinnamon sugar bread in your face. It’s not fair. I know it’s not fair. Pizza Braid A pizza braid is very kid-friendly, easy on the wallet and extremely simple to make. My aunt and cousin first introduced me to them and I’ve been hooked ever since. The possibilities are endless of the varieties you could make (check out the Apple Dessert Braid!), but the recipe below is for a very basic hamburger and pepperoni braid. You could make your own dough, but I prefer the shortcut of using Rhodes rise and bake dough. This is one of my favorite shortcuts to make a nice loaf of bread or use in recipes like this one.

peanut butter pretzel bites & Two Tiny Kitchens Salty and sweet. Crunchy and melt-in-your-mouth. Peanut butter and chocolate. Dangerous and delicious (you know what I mean). One little bite, so much to experience.

Related:  handimaniarecepiesCheesecakeCheesecake