Tuesday, November 17, 2020

♥ Pumpkin Swirl Cheesecake

























This is such a pretty cheese cake to make and absolutely delicious.  If you notice, I usually make smaller 6-7 inch cheesecakes here at Welcome Home instead of the larger 9 inch. I find the smaller ones are just the right size for sharing with a friend. This recipe makes a 9 inch cheesecake. 

I made a 7 inch cheesecake in the photo.  I took my leftover ingredients and made mini cheesecakes bites using a mini muffin tin. I have added the link for the small spring 6-7 inch form pans that I use at the bottom of the recipe in case you want to make the smaller ones.

Pumpkin Swirl Cheesecake

Crust
1 cup crushed graham cracker crumbs
3/4 cups crushed vanilla wafers
1/4 cup crushed pecans
2/3 cup of melted butter (or more if needed)

Cheesecake
4 (8 oz. packages) Cream cheese, room temperature
1 cup Libby's pumpkin puree in a can
1 and 1/2 cups sugar
4 eggs
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Crust:
Heat oven to 325 degrees. Combine the graham crackers, vanilla wafers and pecans in a food processor until finely crushed. Melt the butter and stir into the crumbs until they are moist enough to form a crust. Press the crumbs in a spring form pan, going up the sides of the pan and to the top. This is enough to make one 9 inch cheesecake. The one I show in the photo is only a small one.






Cheesecake:
In a large mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese and only one cup of sugar until well blended. Add the vanilla, cinnamon and nutmeg and mix well. Then mix in one egg at a time until batter is smooth and well blended. Remove about half the batter to another bowl and set aside.

Add the pumpkin puree and the other 1/2 cup of sugar to your remaining batter and stir well. Pour the pumpkin batter over the crust and spread evenly with a rubber spatula . Then pour the plain batter that you set aside on top of the pumpkin batter.

With a knife, gently swirl back and forth so that you bring a little pumpkin batter to the top making a pattern. You can swirl as much as you want to make a marble effect. 
























Place the spring form pan on a baking sheet and bake the for about 45 minutes or until the outside is set and the center is almost set (slightly jiggly). Remove from the oven and place the spring form pan on a cooling rack to allow the cheesecake to cool for about 1-2 hours. Then refrigerate the cheesecake for at least 2 hours or overnight. When ready to remove from the spring form pan, run a knife along the edge to loosen up the cheesecake. Decorate with piped whipped cream and enjoy! 

7 inch leak proof spring form pan:







http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000237FS0/ref=as_li_ss_sm_fb_us_asin_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=213733&creative=399837&creativeASIN=B000237FS0&linkCode=shr&tag=welchome08-20&linkId=JNPOM4LW44EDZ55X&=kitchen&qid=1445526013&sr=1-2&keywords=6+inch+springform+pan

Photography is copyrighted and the property of ©Welcome Home.




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Cream Cheese Brownies with Ganache




















I guess if I had to choose which one of all my brownie recipes I might like the best, this one would definitely be on the list.  Notice I can’t commit?  I have so many that are so good that it’s hard to choose just one. But there’s something about this one that sends it way up on that list.  It’s a true marriage of moist homemade chocolate brownie, with a layer of rich and creamy vanilla cheesecake, topped with a decadent, deep rich chocolate ganache... okay its way up there! 

Cream Cheese Brownies With Ganache

Brownies 

2 cups sugar 
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour 
2/3 cup cocoa powder 
1 1/2 teaspoons salt 
1/2 teaspoon baking powder 
5 eggs 
2 sticks of butter, melted 
1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease a 13 x 9 x 2" baking pan. 

Sift together sugar, flour, cocoa powder, salt, and baking powder in a large mixing bowl. Beat flour mixture and eggs on low speed using an electric mixer, scraping bowl occasionally and mixing until smooth. Slowly add melted butter and beat until just combined: do not over mix. Fold in chocolate chips.

Transfer batter to prepared baking dish. Bake until toothpick inserted into center comes out clean, about 25 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside to cool while you make your cheesecake filling. 




















Cheesecake filling

3/4 cup sugar 
3 tablespoons cornstarch 
4 (8-ounce) packs of cream cheese 
1 tablespoon lemon juice 
2 teaspoons vanilla extract 
2 eggs 
2 tablespoons heavy cream 
2 tablespoons sour cream 

Cream sugar, cornstarch, and cream cheese in a large bowl using an electric mixer. Add lemon juice and vanilla extract, mixing thoroughly. Add eggs one at a time, scraping the bowl with each addition. 
Fold in heavy cream and sour cream. 

Spread batter on top of already baked brownies. Bake until cheesecake is lightly browned and firm, about 45 - 50 minutes. Cool completely and then refrigerate at least for one hour before serving.




















Chocolate Ganache

8 ounces heavy whipping cream
4 tablespoons butter
8 ounces semi-sweet chocolate
1/4 cup powdered sugar

Heat cream and butter on stove, but do not allow to boil. Remove from stove and pour over chocolate. Stir till completely combined. Add powdered sugar and whisk until combined and smooth. Pour over cooled cheesecake. Refrigerate overnight, then cut into bars to serve.




















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Creamy Beef Stroganoff

 
























This recipe is one of my personal favorites! I love my simple rendition of Beef Stroganoff. I don't add a lot of ingredients you might find in the classic stroganoff like mushrooms, sour cream, dried mustard and wine. I make it just like my Mom did when we were growing up. Even without the mushrooms, sour cream and other things that go into Stroganoff, this is really delicious.  I start off by finding the perfect chuck roast in the meat case and I ask the meat clerk to trim the fat and cut it into beef cubes for me.....

Creamy Beef Stroganoff

2 pounds beef chuck roast, trimmed and cubed
1 small onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
salt and pepper to taste
1 tablespoons olive oil + 2 tablespoons butter for frying
4 tablespoons of flour
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) butter
2 cups half and half (half milk/half cream) 
1 (16 oz) package egg noodles

Melt butter in a large heavy skillet and then add olive oil. Over medium heat, saute onions and garlic until tender. Add beef cubes and fry until brown on all sides. Cover and simmer on low heat for about an hour or until meat is very tender. You can also pre-cook beef cubes in a crock pot for 6 hours on high with a little beef broth for fork tender beef for all your stews and soups. I do this often and freeze until I need them.

























In a separate skillet, add 4 tablespoons of butter and 4 tablespoons of flour and whisk quickly to blend. Cook, for about 1 minute until lightly browned, stirring the entire time. Whisk in half and half and continue whisking until sauce begins to thicken. Turn off heat and salt and pepper to taste. I like a lot of pepper in mind.

Finally, pour your sauce into the skillet with your meat and with a wooden spoon stir, making sure that you scrape all the bits of meat and garlic and onion from the bottom. Cover for another 10 minutes while noodles cook.

























Boil egg noodles as directed on package. Drain well and pour into bowl. Add meat and sauce over noodles.
























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Saturday, October 24, 2020

Shrimp and Gnocchi in Parmesan Cream

 






















Looking for a wonderful dish to make when you feel like something comforting and delicious?  Try this recipe I put together last night.  So good!  Serve with some crusty Italian bread and a side salad!

Shrimp and Gnocchi in Parmesan Cream

 To make Gnocchi:

1 (16-ounce) package of Gnocchi
2 tablespoons butter, divided
Salt for boiling water

Add the Gnocchi to a boiling pot of salted water and cook for 3-5 minutes. Once all the gnocchi has floated to the top of the pot, remove the gnocchi with a slotted spoon to a large bowl and cover with paper towel.



























 
 
 
To make shrimp:  

1 pound large shrimp, peeled and deveined, tails removed
6 oz. imitation crab meat 
2 cloves garlic, minced
Salt and black pepper, to taste
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

Melt 2 tablespoons of butter over medium heat in a large skillet. Once the butter has melted, add the garlic and cook for 2 minutes or until fragrant.   Add shrimp and salt and pepper to taste. Cook, stirring occasionally, until shrimp is pink, about 2-3 minutes; remove from heat and set aside.







 



Parmesan Sauce

1/4 cup salted butter
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 cup chicken broth, or more, as needed
3/4 cup half and half or ½ cup of heavy cream
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan Reggiano Cheese
salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

To make the garlic Parmesan cream sauce, melt butter in the skillet over medium heat. Add garlic, and cook, stirring frequently, until fragrant, about 1-2 minutes. Whisk in flour until lightly browned, about 1 minute.

 


Gradually whisk in chicken broth and half and half (or cream) whisking constantly. Keep stirring until it is incorporated and begins to thicken. Add in thyme and basil and stir.  

Add in Parmesan cheese and stir until slightly thickened, about 1-2 minutes. If the mixture is too thick, add more half and half as needed; season with salt and pepper, to taste. Add more milk if you need to thin out the sauce at any point it gets too thick.
Stir in shrimp and gnocchi, and imitation crab and gently toss to combine.

 

























 
 
Serve immediately, garnished with parsley, if desired.









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