Cook, Bake, Live

Two baking posts in one day!

Cheesecake is my absolute favorite dessert and the dinner I was making tonight seemed to pair perfectly, so, cheesecake it is! 

Crust: 

3/4 box of Reduced Fat Nilla Wafers 

5 tbls butter or margarine, melted

1 egg 

Grind the cookies in a food processor and in a bowl (you can do it in the food processor, I don't because I use my mini food processor) add the butter and egg and combine well, press into a tart pan. I baked it for about 20 minutes at 350, but it may take more or less time in your oven.

Filling: 

2 containers fat free cream cheese (you can use full fat, I just use the fat free because I personally can't tell the difference) 

1/2 cup sugar 

1 tbls good vanilla extract 

2 tbls light sour cream (again, I just can't tell the difference) 

Whip in a stand mixer or with a hand mixer very well, being sure to get all the lumps out and pour over crust. Bake for 20-30 minutes at 350. Once it's done baking, take off the outside of your pan and refrigerate tart for at least 1 hour. (or until ready to serve)

The top of mine cracked, it still tastes wonderful and presentation isn't the most important thing, I do know that if you put water in another container in the oven, it won't crack, but I forgot. 

Just in case you were curious, the meal that preceded this wonderful dessert was just as wonderful, risotto! Risotto has a reputation for being tedious to make, but it also has a reputation of being worth the wait. =) I didn't take a picture of it, because I browned the garlic (I like it better that way) so it wasn't pretty and white, but rather brown, it was still insanely good! Here's that recipe. 

1 cup arborio rice 

2-3 tbls EV olive oil 

1 shallot, chopped fine or minced

2 cloves garlic, chopped fine or minced

1 cup white wine, warmed*

5 cups no-chicken broth (or vegetable broth), warmed*

About 1/2 cup Parmigiano Reggiano, grated**

1/2 stick butter, sliced 

Start by heating your oil in a large, heavy pan, then add the shallot and garlic and cook until golden, remove shallot and garlic with a slotted spoon, set aside. Add the rice and fry until translucent, add the wine and add the shallot and garlic back to the pan. Cook on low medium heat (on my stove, it's 3) until wine is absorbed, then add a ladle of broth and cook until almost absorbed. Continue this until the rice is cooked and the broth is gone, about 20 minutes. When you've added the last ladle of broth, cook until almost absorbed, then add the cheese along with the butter, stir to combine and take it off the heat for 3-4 minutes and serve warm, with cheese on top. 

*If you've never made risotto, I'll clue you in, the wine and broth need to be warmed because cold liquid would shock the rice and it wouldn't cook evenly.

**Preferably with a Microplane, as it gives it a fluffy texture. 

I am not a big fan of Starbucks, everything has so much fat and sugar, I just don't think a coffee and a tiny scone is worth it, but I am intrigued by their new line of healthier fare, which I'm sure you all have heard about, the oatmeal I could do without (5 bucks for an instant oatmeal packet?!) but I couldn't help but love the idea of the granola bars and the berry stella, but when checking out the nutr. info, I don't think that that granola bar is worth it either, so, I made my own, Oatmeal Raisin Stellas. 

2 cups maple oat base (recipe follows) 

1 tbsp butter or margarine, melted (I use Promise) 

1 tbsp canola oil 

1 tbsp grade A maple syrup 

few sprinkles of cinnamon 

2 eggs 

1/2 cup golden raisins 

1/4 cup dried cherries, chopped 

Combine all of your ingredients in a bowl and put the mixture in either a casserole dish or disposable star shaped foil pans and bake in a 300 degree oven for about 15 minutes, depending on your oven. If using a casserole dish, wait for it to cool and cut into bars, if using foil pans, you can pop them out of the pans within a few minutes of taking them out of the oven. 

Variations: 

 -If you prefer a chewier texture, you can also add a 1/4 cup honey, agave, or brown rice syrup.

-Add chocolate chips instead of the dried fruit and omit the cinnamon. (this variation is best if you also follow the chewy variation) 

-Add pistachios, keep the dried cherries and omit the raisins and cinnamon.

Maple oat base: 

2 cups oats

1 tbsp butter or margarine, melted (I use Promise) 

1 tbsp canola oil 

1 tbsp grade A maple syrup 

few sprinkles of cinnamon 

Combine all of the wet ingredients with the oats, sprinkle on the cinnamon, pour onto a baking sheet and bake in a 300 degree oven for 30 minutes, stirring at the 15 minute point. 

Update: Photos are now working! 

Today is my birthday! I had such a great day, but, I'll tell you about that in a minute. Anyway, last night, I was bored and decided to use up some apples and pears i had left by making an Apple Pear Tart, I personally thought it was good, but not great (the dough was too cookie-eey) but dad and Hil have already eaten the whole thing, so, they liked it. =) 

Today, I enjoyed a fabulous birthday, Dad and I went to a nearby garden and took some photos (but there weren't a ton of good flowers), then we headed over to the Dem HQ to get an Obama sign for our neighbor and No on 8 (you know what 8 is if you live in CA) signs for both of us because we have sucky Republican neighbors on the other side and they have declared sign war, so, we're in. After hitting the Dem HQ, we went to Whole Foods for our usual food fix, while we wee there we had lunch, some yummy vegetable soup and a grilled provolone sandwich on parmesan bread, so good! We got lots of great food, including some aged asiago and crazy good Parmigiano Reggiano to use for a risotto this week and Dad has decided that the bulk bins are his friends, so, he loaded up on rice and dried black beans and of course his usual vegan cookies and garlic chips. After shopping, he dropped off our things at home and picked up Mark and Hil and went out to dinner to Chili's and then went to see W, we really enjoyed it, in my opinion, the height of the film was Josh Brolin and Elisabeth Banks, they were so good in their roles. 

After we came home, I cleaned out the pantry and fridge and organized everything and I currently have some Maple granola in the oven, yum! 

Goodnight!