Grasshopper Cheesecake

Posted on March 14, 2011 by Sweet Jumbles

I affectionately refer to myself as a Euro-mutt.  That’s right.  I’m a mutt.  When someone comes up to me and says, “So, where does your family come from?” I typically give a blank stare and say “um, here…”.  Trust me, my dad is a geneology freak buff and I know this to be true.  My “people” came to this country before it was a country.  I do not say this to brag, in fact I often wish there was a bit more cultural heritage (FOOD) to celebrate, but it is what it is.

I’m telling you this as a preamble to my St. Patrick’s Day post.  Despite being a mutt, I’m pretty sure there is negligible Irish in me.  It’s not a holiday I particularly care about, because (a) I’m not Irish, (b) I’m not Catholic, and (c) I’m not a fan of drunken revelry.   For those of you who are Irish and/or Catholic, enjoy your day!  (For those of you who partake in drunken revelry, well…I’ll tiptoe around that one.)

Nevertheless, I wanted to give you all a green treat for the holiday.  (Hey, I do really like green, does that help?)  So, without further ado, behold, a Grasshopper Cheesecake!

Grasshopper Cheesecake

Crust
30 mint cookies (Grasshoppers or Thin Mints)
2 T butter, melted

Filling
4 oz semisweet chocolate
3 8-oz packages of (low fat) cream cheese, softened
1 c sugar
4 eggs
1/3 c green creme de menthe liqueur OR 1 t. peppermint extract and 4-6 drops of green food coloring

Garnish, if desired
sweetened whipped cream
Mint candies (Andes Candies)

  • Preheat oven to 300 degrees.
  • In a large bowl, mix crust ingredients with a fork until crumbly.  Press into the bottom and 1″ up the sides, of a 9″ springform pan.  Bake for 12 minutes.  Cool at room temperature for 30 minutes.
  • Melt chocolate in the microwave for 45-60 seconds, stirring halfway through and every 15 seconds thereafter until smooth.  Set aside.
  • In an electric mixer, beat cream cheese and sugar on medium speed until smooth and creamy.  Add eggs, one at a time, until smooth after each addition.  Stir in liqueur or extract/food coloring
  • Pour filling evenly over crust.
  • Drop 8-10 spoonfuls of the melted chocolate randomly onto the filling, allowing it to sink in.  Using a knife, cut through the chocolate and filling to make a marbled pattern.
  • Bake 1 hour 10 minutes, or until set 2 inches from edge of pan.  Then, turn off the oven and allow the cheesecake to cool in the oven with the door slightly ajar for 1 hour.
  • Cool at room temperature for 1 hour, refrigerate for 3 more hours.
  • Garnish with whipped cream and candy, if desired.

Serves: 12
Calories: 375 (not counting garnish)

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S’mores Cupcakes

Posted on February 27, 2011 by Sweet Jumbles

Sometimes, the only reason I pick a certain recipe is because I have (need to use up) certain ingredients in my kitchen.  This is one such recipe.  I had purchased graham flour quite some time ago, and  – enough is enough – it is definitely time to use it.

This recipe was adapted from Martha Stewart’s Cupcakes, and I did make a few changes and do have some warnings/disclaimers.

1.  These are good, but the cake is dense.  If you are looking for a light, fluffy cake, this isn’t it.

2.  You need to save the last bit of work (fluff icing) until right before serving these, so if you don’t have the time available, either substitute the icing or pick another recipe altogether.

3.  Ideally, these would be finished with a torch.  I don’t have a torch and therefore resorted to the broiler.  So while the taste of my fluff icing was perfect, and they were a bit crisp just like they should be, they didn’t have the nice brown toasty look that a torch would give.

4.  This recipe makes a pretty huge batch – I halved everything and still had 15 cupcakes.  Amounts below are for the full recipe.

Smores Cupcakes (insta)

S’mores Cupcakes
adapted from: Martha Stewart’s Cupcakes

for the cupcakes:
1 1/2 c cake flour
1 1/3 c graham flour (I used Bob’s Red Mill)
2 t baking powder
1 1/2 t salt
1 1/2 t ground cinnamon
1 1/2 c unsalted butter, room temperature
2 c packed light brown sugar
1/2 c honey
6 large eggs
2 t vanilla extract

  •  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line muffin tin with cupcake liners.
  • Sift together flours, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon.  Set aside.
  • Cream butter, sugar, and honey until light and fluffy.  Reduce mixer speed and add in the eggs and vanilla untill well combined.  Add the flour mixture gradually until just incorporated.
  • Fill each baking cup 2/3 full  and bake for 25 minutes.  Cool for 10 minutes in the pan before turning them out to cool completely.

for the topping:
2/3 c heavy cream
6 oz. semi-sweet chocolate
1 T light corn syrup
Large jar of marshmallow fluff

  • Bring cream to a simmer on the stovetop.  Remove from heat.
  • Add chocolate and corn syrup, and allow it to sit and soften for 1 minute before stirring.  Whisk together to incorporate well.
  • Allow to cool slightly to create a thicker consistency, and then top each cupcake with a dollop of ganache.
  • Just before serving, pipe (or drop) a bit of marshmallow fluff atop the ganache.  Toast with a kitchen torch or place in broiler to create a hard shell on the fluff.

Smores-Cupcakes

 serves: 30
calories: 275

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Strawberry Panna Cotta

Posted on February 16, 2011 by Sweet Jumbles

Happy Belated Valentine’s Day!

Wouldn’t it have been nice if I had posted a Valentine’s Day recipe on time?  Aaah yes, but I didn’t.  So you are getting it now.  Sorry Charlie.  Seeing as I didn’t do much on or for Valentine’s Day (in fact, I was in my pajamas until early afternoon), in my book this isn’t late because the exact date of the holiday was not relevant.  Consider this an extended Valentine’s Treat.

Whether you celebrated Valentine’s Day precisely on the 14th, or any other day, or no day at all, I hope you felt loved, even if self-love, and ate something sweet.

 

Strawberry Panna Cotta for Two

1 1/2 c sliced strawberries (about 1/2 lb)
3/4 c + 1/8 c buttermilk
3 T sugar
1 1/4 t unflavored gelatin
1/8 c milk
1/8 c heavy cream

  • Puree strawberries, buttermilk, and sugar in blender until very smooth.  Pour into a medium bowl through a fine sieve, carefully removing any solids.
  • Sprinkle gelatin over milk in a small bowl, and let it sit for about 1 minute to absorb.
  • In a small saucepan, bring heavy cream to a boil.  Remove from heat and add gelatin, stirring until dissolved.
  • Whisk cream mixture into strawberry puree and pour into two molds or small dishes.
  • Chill, covered, overnight or at least 8 hours.
  • To remove from molds, dip mold into hot water for a few seconds to loosen gelatin.
  • Garnish with strawberries, or any berry of your choice, on the side.

 

serves: 2
calories: 135

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Tastycakes, Punxsutawney Phil, and the Pittsburgh Steelers

Posted on February 2, 2011 by Sweet Jumbles

Happy Groundhog Day!

This is one of my favorite holidays.  I’m not kidding.  You see, I’m originally from Pennsylvania, and unless you are also from Pennsylvania, you cannot truly appreciate the day.  It’s not that it’s all that noteworthy (though I do think we should have the day off from work!), but it’s quirky.  And I like quirky. 

In fact, one year back in college (which I’ve begrudgingly come to realize was quite a while ago) my friends and I drove to Punxsutawney, PA for an all-nighter of groundhog festivities, culminating in the great prognostication by the oversized rat.  At the time, the event was made even more exciting because the man who pulled Phil out of the hole (aka the “Handler”) was my friend’s father.  I don’t remember if Phil saw his shadow or not that year.  This year he did not see his shadow, so spring should be just around the corner.  Oh please, oh please!

In celebration of Groundhog Day I have decided that it would be most appropriate to bake a treat that celebrates my Pennsylvania roots.

When I was in elementary school, my best friend’s mother would bake homemade Tastycake Kandy Kake bars.  These things were top notch; they tasted like the real thing.  The summer after fourth grade, however, my family moved from this part of the state and I never again had the Kandy Kake bars.  In other words, for the past 25 years I have thought of these delicious treats!  Thanks to the magic of Facebook, last year I reconnected with my childhood friend and not too long ago I got my hands on the beloved recipe. 

Yup, they were as good as I remembered, even with the very minor tweaks I made.  These things are easy and a sure crowd-pleaser.

Crowd-pleaser, you say?  Oh yes.  As in “I will have a crowd over to my house to watch the Superbowl this weekend and I need to feed them.”  And, as in, “I will be rooting for the STEELERS and they, like Punxsutawney Phil, Sweet Jumbles, and Tastycakes are also from Pennsylvania.  Therefore this would be the perfect addition to my gameday menu.”

Eat up.  Respect the Groundhog.  Go Steelers!

 

Kandy Cake Bars 

2 c flour
pinch salt
2 t baking powder
1 c milk
4 large eggs
2 t butter, melted
2 c sugar
2 t vanilla
1 c creamy peanut butter
8 oz milk chocolate
paraffin wax

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease a 9 x 13 baking dish.
  • Sift together flour, salt, and baking soda.  Set aside.
  • Mix together milk, eggs, and melted butter until well blended.  Add sugar and vanilla, again blending well.
  • Pour batter into the baking dish and bake for 20-25 minutes.
  • Immediately upon removal from oven, spread peanut butter over the cake.  The heat of the cake will make it easy to spread.
  • Refrigerate until firm.
  • In a double boiler, melt milk chocolate (I used Green & Black’s) and paraffin wax (I used 3/8 oz, but precision is not important here).  Pour over firm peanut butter and spread smooth. 
  • Refrigerate to harden.

serves: 25
calories: 243

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Chocolate Mug Cake

Posted on January 30, 2011 by Sweet Jumbles

mug-cakeHave you ever wanted a slice of cake?  Just one slice?  But you don’t have a cake.  And if you made a cake, you’d surely eat the whole entire cake.  And, well, that just wouldn’t be pretty.  And that means a mess in the kitchen to clean.  All you want is a simple piece of cake, is that too much to ask?

Well, my friends, not any more. Continue reading →

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A brief intermission for a Chocolate Commercial

Posted on January 27, 2011 by Sweet Jumbles

ripe-red-orange-yellow-cocoa-pod-held-by-young-asian-hand-farm-cacao-pod-theobroma-cacao-l_380409-72For those of you who regularly read my blog, you know that slave-free chocolate is my “thing”.  I only buy fair trade chocolate and it is one of the primarily causes that I have made an effort to undertake in my daily living and baking adventures.  As a refresher, here’s my introduction to Chocolate and Slavery.

NOTE: Many of the following links and campaigns are no longer active.  Please refer to the link above for more information.  I have opted to retain the blog content below for context only.

Continue reading →

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Finnish Coffee Braid

Posted on January 9, 2011 by Sweet Jumbles

Yesterday was a busy day, but also the perfect day to make some bread since there’s so much “rest” time in the process.  Plus, I love the smell of a bread-baking kitchen, especially in the winter.

I didn’t change a thing on the Finnish Coffee Braid recipe below.  It was perfect as-is.  There is a very distinct orange & cardamom flavor to this dense bread, which I would not suggest fiddling with.  It makes two braids and you can put them both in the oven simultaneously with no problem.  Freeze, gift, or share the extra one and you’re all set.  People will be impressed with the attractiveness of the bread, so you could even use it as part of a centerpiece.

Finnish Coffee Braid
source: Desert Candy

 

2 1/4 t (1 package) active dry yeast
3 T warm water
1 c milk
6 T butter, cut into pieces
2 eggs, beaten
1/2 c sugar
1/2 t salt
1/2 t cardamom
grated peel of one orange
about 5 c all-purpose flour
for glaze: 1 egg yolk + 1 T milk

  • Place yeast and water in the bottom of a large bowl and let set
  • Place milk and butter in a saucepan (or microwave safe bowl) and heat until butter has melted and milk is hot but does not boil.  Cool to lukewarm.
  • Add eggs and milk/butter mixture to the yeast.  Add sugar, salt, cardamom, and orange zest, stirring to combine.  Gradually add the flour to make a stiff dough.
  • Turn dough out to a well-floured surface and knead until smooth.
  • Place dough ball in an oiled bowl, cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled in volume, about 2 hours.
  • Punch down and divide into two portions, then divide each portion into thirds.  Form each third into a rope about 18-24 inches long.  Braid ropes, pinching together at ends, and form into rings.
  • Place each ring onto a parchment-lined baking sheet, cover, and let rise for another 1 – 1 1/1 hours.
  • Preheat oven to 350 F.  Brush each loaf with beaten egg/milk mixture, and bake for 35 minutes or until golden.  Cool on wire racks.

serves: 30
calories: 117

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Pumpkin Marshmallows

Posted on December 28, 2010 by Sweet Jumbles

Pumpkin MarshmallowsI write this post as I decompress from several days of celebration, chaos, and cold.  I hope that all of you had a joyous Christmas, and were able to spend time doing what you like with those who you like.  I hope that you got great gifts, whether under your tree or in your hearts.  And I hope that you were filled with treats and the wild abandon of all healthful eating for just one week.  Back to the gym in January, ok?

As for me, my Christmas ended with a blizzard that we’re still recovering from.  We are buried under 26″ of the white stuff.  Side streets have yet to be plowed, cars are under drifts of snow, and the heat in my building is doing an inadequate job.  I snapped this picture of Times Square on Monday night.  (Sorry, just a camera phone shot.)

To make matters worse, the snow on my roof is heavy and melting just a bit, causing a leaky crack in my ceiling.  (We urbanites have flat roofs, you know….)  This would be the perfect time to warm up the house by turning on the stove and using the brand new KitchenAid Artisan Stand Mixer that I got myself for Christmas.  Oooooh my gosh, YES!  It’s black and shiny and I loooove it.  I know you aren’t supposed to love material things but I do, so there.

In my continuing attempt to stay warm, I made some hot chocolate (cheated with the powdery stuff) with homemade pumpkin marshmallows.  I don’t even usually like pumpkin but these are good.  And I never knew how easy marshmallows are to make.  Don’t be surprised if more, new flavors, pop up sometime on this blog!

NOTE: This post originated in 2010, before Sweet Jumbles Marshmallows was born in 2012. This was, in a way, the first spark. This recipe is not what we use for our seasonal pumpkin pie marshmallows (trade secrets, ya know), but for those curious about the marshmallow-making process this gives a glimpse.

Pumpkin Marshmallows
source: Oven Love

Pumpkin Marshmallows

1 1/2 envelopes unflavored gelatin (0.4 oz on the scale)
1/4 c cold water
1 c sugar
1/3 c light corn syrup
2 T water
1/4 c pumpkin puree
1/2 t ground cinnamon
1/2 t ground ginger
1/8 t grated nutmeg
pinch ground cloves
1/8 t salt
6 graham crackers

  • Line an 8×8 pan with plastic wrap and spray with nonstick cooking spray.  Set aside.
  • Put gelatin and 1/4 c cold water in the bowl of a stand mixer.  Allow it to sit and bloom for 10 minutes.
  • Meanwhile, combine sugar, corn syrup, and water in a saucepan over medium-high heat, bringing it to a boil.  Once boiling begins, do not stir.
  • Bring temperature of syrup up to 250 degrees, or until a drop of syrup dropped into a glass of cold water forms a rigid ball.
  • In a separate small bowl, combine pumpkin, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves.
  • With the wire whip attachment, start the mixer on low speed.  Carefully add the boiling sugar mixture to the gelatin.  Increase speed to medium-high and add salt.  Mix until stiff, shiny, and white, about 5-7 minutes.
  • Remove bowl from mixer and fold in pumpkin mixture to combine.
  • Return to mixer and mix for another 3 minutes.  When you are done, if you dip a spatula into the pumpkin and a continuous ribbon runs off the spatula back into the bowl, you’re good.
  • Pour mixture into prepared pan and let sit at room temperature for at least 8 hours.
  • Crumble graham crackers in a food processor to create fine crumbs.
  • Lift plastic wrap to remove marshmallows from the pan and place on a cutting board.  Cut into 1×1 squares using a pizza cutter sprayed with nonstick spray.
  • In a shallow bowl or plastic bag, toss marshmallows in graham cracker crumbs for a nice coating.
  • Eat fresh or store in airtight container for a week or freezer for a month.

makes: 40 marshmallows
calories: 30 per marshmallow

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Rum Raisin Truffles

Posted on December 28, 2010 by Sweet Jumbles

Oh Ina, so annoying but such yummy recipes.  I’m sorry to all you “Barefoot Contessa” fanatics, but I just sit on the brink of a breakdown every time I see her show.  I force myself to occasionally watch since some recipes are worth trying. 

As you have surely noticed by now, the theme as of late has been food gifts.  I made a chocolate basket of sweet happiness for my grandparents this Christmas (including two previous posts), and this is yet another sweet jumble from that gift. 

I had the good fortune of using Havana Club Rum, but since most of my readers have not traveled to that forbidden paradise, I’ll suggest you use any rum of your choosing.  The recipe calls for dark rum, but I say use whatever (excepting a spice rum, of course, that might be a little funky).  The recipe is all in weight, so hopefully you have a kitchen scale.  Sorry, I prefer not to post this way so as not to scare anybody off, but hopefully the approximations I’ve included will make it less intimidating.

Rum Raisin Truffles
source: Barefoot Contessa

75 grams heavy cream (about 1/4 c)
375 grams milk chocolate, divided (about 13 oz)
7.5 grams butter (about 1/2 T)
20 grams raisins (about 1/16 c)
30 grams rum (about 1/8 c)

  • Chop up 175 grams of the milk chocolate into small pieces (about 6 oz).
  • In a double boiler, heat heavy cream until hot to the touch.  Remove from heat and add chopped chocolate and butter, mixing until melted.
  • In a mini food processor or blender, process rum and raisins until finely minced.  Stir into chocolate mixture.  Set aside at room temperature for at least 6 hours or overnight to cool.  It will become almost like a heavy mousse in consistency.
  • Scoop balls approximately 1″ diameter and place on a sheet lined with parchment paper.
  • Chop remaining chocolate and place 3/4 of it in a small microwave safe bowl.  In 20 second increments, heat and stir, repeating until chocolate is smooth and shiny.  Then, stir in the remaining 1/4 of the chocolate.  As it melts, it will reduce the temperature of the chocolate.  It should register 85-59 F on a candy thermometer.
  • With two spoons, pick up each truffle and cover it with the melted chocolate.  (Or use your hands!)  They don’t have to look smooth.  Return to parchment sheet and let them sit at room temperature to harden.  Enjoy!

 

serves: 35
calories: 68 per truffle

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Balsamic Chocolate Truffles

Posted on December 23, 2010 by Sweet Jumbles

I’ve never made truffles before, but there’s one thing I know, and that’s the fact that I like to eat them.  As I continue with my theme of baking treats that are good to give as gifts, I have prepared two different types of chocoalte truffles.  This is the first.  (The second will be blogged shortly.)  I went into this thinking that truffles might be hard to make, but they aren’t!  Yay!

These truffles have a definite balsamic flavor, which I really enjoy.  They’re smooth and creamy with a nice powdered coating.  I happen to have a strawberry balsamic vinegar and a blueberry balsamic vinegar in my cabinet, and I think next time I make these I might experiment further with those flavors.

The original recipe claimed that this made 36 truffles.  I think they meant 36 Tic-tacs, because in order to get 36 these would have to be pretty small.  I got about 15-20 and mine were about 1″ diameter.  Don’t tease me with a little bitty truffle.

Balsamic Chocolate Truffles
source: Giada DeLaurentiis

8 1/2 oz dark chocolate, chopped
1/4 c heavy cream
2 t balsamic vinegar
1/2 c cocoa powder

  • Melt chocolate and heavy cream in a double boiler over hot but not simmering water.
  • Place melted chocolate in a small bowl and add vinegar, stirring well to combine.
  • Cool in refrigerator for 1 hour, then remove from refrigerator and let sit at room temperature for 2 hours.  The chocolate is ready when it is firm but still moldable.
  • Use a teaspoon your fingers to scoop out the chocolate and shape into balls.  Place on a tray lined with parchment paper.
  • Place cocoa powder in a shallowd dish.  Roll a few truffles at a time in the cocoa powder to coat, and then return to baking sheet.  You may have to coat them twice to get a consistent layer.
  • Store in an airtight container.

Makes: 15-20 of my size, 36 of Giada DeLaurentiis size  😉
Calories: around 73

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