Thursday, January 27, 2011

Oreo Truffles

"Today is my 111th birthday!" #bestmovieever

Thank you to all my lovely family and friends who wished me a wonderful day.


Thank you Erica for these! My first spurs game! Omg, those seats are unbelievable.








Thank you Jasmin for this! Molly approves. I will be baking you something, insha'Allah!












Thank you Sammar and Yousra for these!

They were delicious. I love the cream cheese, oreo cookie, and white chocolate combo! They were heavenly! And thank you for the recipe!







Oreo Truffles
One package of oreos
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
8 oz. white chocolate chips
4 oz. semi-sweet chocolate chips
Mini paper cups


Blend the whole package of oreos into crumbs in the food processer. Mix the cookie crumbs and cream cheese in a bowl until combined. Roll the mixture into even sized balls and place on a cookie sheet. Place the cookie sheet in the freezer for about 20 minutes until chilled. Fill a small pot with water and place over stove on low heat. Place the white chocolate chips in a small heat proof bowl and place the bowl on top of the pot of water to make a double broiler. Stir chocolate until completely melted. Remove from heat. Coat each truffle with the melted chocolate and place onto wax paper to set. Melt the semi-sweet chocolate in the same way and drizzle on top of the truffles. Also: you could reserve some of the oreo crumbs to garnish on top of the truffles before the melted chocolate sets up.  

Monday, January 17, 2011

Award Winning Soft Chocolate Chip Cookies

So we've been using Alton Brown's "The Chewy" recipe for years and then we come across this recipe with thousands of good reviews and nearly 5 stars. It uses the dry pudding mix in the dough, which I have never tried, but sounds very promising of a soft cookie to me!

They did bake up soft and slightly sweeter than Alton's. I'm glad they didn't turn out flat either- and you can make them even puffier by chilling them until they are icy cold before baking. The cookie dough was pretty yummy to eat too. Looks like it is a winner!



I bet it would taste even better with caramel or butterscotch pudding for a more golden flavor that should pair well with the brown sugar.

Sunday, January 2, 2011

Eggnog Cheesecake


Taste of Home’s “Cheesecakes and More” has a lot of good ideas but this has to be their best one. I’ve never even heard of such a thing! Eggnog is rich and creamy with great nutmeg flavor. Add it to a cheesecake and you’ve got a dessert that’s luscious and silky with such a special taste- I wish my grocery store had eggnog all year round! I just happened to want to make this on Christmas eve, so my sister ran out to three different grocery stores only to find everyone sold out of eggnog. When we finally got our hands on some, we made this cheesecake with Oak Farm’s eggnog. I didn’t know it was a strong eggnog until we also tried Borden’s eggnog which was lighter in flavor but creamier. I’m glad we made it with the stronger flavored one because I love eggnog. I even added ¼ cup more eggnog to my recipe because I wanted to be sure to taste it. On a graham cracker crust, this eggnog cheesecake was just divine!





Eggnog Cheesecake
Adapted from: Taste of Home

Crust
1 cup graham cracker crumbs

4 tablespoons butter, melted

Directions
You can process the graham crackers in a food processor or blender to finely chop. Add butter and mix together. Press mixture into the bottom of springform pan. Set aside.

Eggnog Cheesecake
3 packages (8 ounces each) cream cheese, softened
1 cup sugar
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 cup eggnog
1/2 teaspoon rum extract, optional
Dash ground nutmeg

Directions
Preheat oven to 325° F.

Place a 9-in. or 10 inch springform pan on a double thickness of heavy-duty foil (about 18 in. square). Securely wrap foil around pan.

In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese, sugar and flour until smooth. Add eggs; beat on low speed just until combined. Gradually stir in the eggnog, extract and nutmeg. Pour filling over crust.

Bake for 45-50 minutes or until center is set and top appears dull. Cool on a wire rack. Refrigerate until cold or overnight.
 
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