Happy Blogiversary and a Giveaway!

When I started this blog at the end of 2007, I wasn't a cook or a baker. In fact, I remember calling Shane's mom (or was it mine?) earlier in the year to ask for clarification about what a clove of garlic was and how I should peel it. Yes, we've certainly come a long way since then. Initially, I looked at this blog as a way to keep a record of the recipes I tried but over the past two years, it's become so much more than that. These posts have documented the growth in my cooking and baking skills and, to a lesser extent, in my photography. More importantly, though, this blog has introduced me to some really fantastic people! I find constant inspiration in the comments you leave, the baking groups we participate in together, the Twitter bake-alongs you suggest - really, I could go on and on. Instead, I'll just say thank you and wish you a healthy and happy 2010!


To celebrate my second blogiversary and to show my appreciation to my readers, I'm hosting my very first giveaway here on Tracey's Culinary Adventures! I'm giving away one copy of The America's Test Kitchen Family Baking Book. I received this book for Christmas last year and it's one of my favorites - chock full of recipes and tips and plenty of color photos.

To enter, just leave a comment on this post telling me whether you make New Year's resolutions for yourself. If so, feel free to share your resolutions for 2010 - I'd love to hear them. I don't typically make resolutions but I've been pondering a few as this year comes to a close. One entry per person, comments will close on Monday, January 4 at 11:59 pm EST. Unfortunately, this giveaway is only open to US residents (my apologies to my international readers). One winner will be chosen at random and announced on Wednesday, January 6. Good luck!

Christmas Dinner - Continued

I know many people are still not ready to go back to baking sweets yet after the gluttony of the holidays so today I wanted to share two recipes that involve more than butter, sugar and chocolate! These are both dishes that I made along with the breaded and stuffed chicken breasts for our Christmas day dinner.



The roasted tomato and goat cheese tart was a bit of a last minute addition to the menu but one I'm glad I made. I've never had goat cheese and there's quite a bit of goat cheese in this recipe so I wasn't sure I'd like it. I also wasn't entirely sure how the rest of the group felt about goat cheese so it was risky, but in the end, the tart was a hit! Puff pastry is baked, then topped with goat cheese and a combination of roasted tomatoes, shallots, and garlic and baked one final time. The buttery puff pastry is a great combination with the tangy goat cheese and sweet roasted tomatoes. It's a simple, yet elegant, dish that could easily work as an appetizer too (maybe for a New Year's Eve or Day gathering?). It can also be prepped ahead of time and refrigerated for up to 1 day before its final bake.

Roasted Tomato and Goat Cheese Tarts
from The Best Make-Ahead Recipe by editors of Cook's Illustrated

Shells
1 sheet of puff pastry, thawed and cut into two 9 by 4 1/2-inch rectangles
1 large egg, lightly beaten

Filling
1 pint cherry tomatoes
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
1 medium shallot, halved and sliced thin
3 large garlic cloves, sliced thin
1/2 teaspoon sugar
8 ounces fresh goat cheese, softened
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil leaves

Preheat oven to 425 F. Lay the puff pastry rectangles on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Brush the pastry with the egg and poke holes all over with a fork. Bake the shells for 10 minutes at 425 F then decrease the oven temperature to 350 F and continue to bake until the shells are golden brown and crisp, about 10-15 minutes. Transfer the baking sheet to a wire rack to cool the shells completely.

Toss the tomatoes with 1 tablespoon of the oil, vinegar, shallot, garlic, sugar, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper in a baking dish. Roast the tomatoes, without stirring, until the skins are slightly shriveled but the tomatoes retain their shape, about 30 minutes. Set aside to cool.

Mix the goat cheese with the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil until smooth then season with salt and pepper to taste. Use a paring knife to cut a 1/2-inch border around the edge of the cooled pastry shells and then press the centers of the shells down gently so they rest about 1/4-inch lower than the edges. Spread the goat cheese mixture evenly over the shells. Top with the roasted tomato mixture.

The assembled tarts can be covered with plastic wrap and refrigerated for up to 1 day. When ready to serve, preheat oven to 425 F. Brush the edges of the tart with the egg and then bake until the shells are a deep golden brown and the topping is hot, about 10-15 minutes. Transfer the sheet to a rack to cool for 5 minutes, then sprinkles with basil and slice to serve.



Speaking of simple, it doesn't get much easier than this green bean dish. The beans are blanched ahead of time and refrigerated for up to 2 days along with a mustard vinaigrette that is made by tossing a few ingredients in a jar and shaking. On the day you want to serve the dish, you just pop the green beans in the microwave to reheat them and toss with the pre-made vinaigrette before serving. The vinaigrette makes the green beans just a little more special; they were a great addition to our holiday meal!

Green Beans with Bistro Mustard Vinaigrette
from The Best Make-Ahead Recipe by the editors of Cook's Illustrated

3 lbs green beans, ends trimmed
6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
4 teaspoons red or sherry vinegar
3 tablespoons whole-grain mustard
1 medium shallot, minced
1 small garlic clove, minced
1 1/2 teaspoons fresh thyme
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

In a large pot, bring 8 quarts of water to a boil. Fill a large bowl with ice water and set aside. Add the green beans and 2 tablespoons of salt to the boiling water & cook for 2-4 minutes. You want the beans to retain a little crunch in the center.

Drain the green beans and transfer immediately to the ice bath. Leave the beans in the ice water for about 5 minutes to cool completely, then drain and pat dry. Wrap the beans loosely in paper towels and store in the refrigerator in a resealable bag for up to 2 days.

To Make the Vinaigrette: Shake all of the ingredients together in a jar and refrigerate for up to 2 days. About one hour before serving the green beans, remove the vinaigrette from the refrigerator.

To Reheat the Beans: Place them in a microwave safe bowl, cover with plastic wrap and microwave on high until hot and steaming, about 6-8 minutes. Drain away any water that accumulated in the bowl. Shake the vinaigrette once more then pour over the green beans and toss to coat. The beans can be served hot or at room temperature.

TWD: Low and Lush Chocolate Cheesecake

I pride myself on trying not to miss a TWD post unless absolutely necessary, but the holidays have really made it difficult the past few weeks. There's been so much to do I haven't had the time to bake extra desserts and, in reality, would have had a hard time finding someone to eat them even if I had made them. Fortunately, I was able to make this week's selection: low and lush chocolate cheesecake - selected by my buddy Margaret of Tea and Scones - and even better, I scaled the recipe way back so I wouldn't have to try and find a recipient for a 9-inch cheesecake!



I made 1/3 of the recipe, which yielded almost enough for 2 mini-springforms (4.5"). The second springform was a bit on the small side (even for a mini) but it worked out perfectly as I kept that one for myself to taste. Because I made just a fraction of the recipe, I was able to throw the whole thing together in my mini-prep. I substituted Oreos for graham cracker crumbs, leaving the cinnamon out of the crust entirely. I also used semisweet chocolate instead of bittersweet for the filling. My filling had a TON of bubbles, and even after rapping the bowl of my mini-prep on the counter several times, I couldn't get them all out.



I baked my minis for about 17 minutes, at which point they were set, but still jiggled just a bit when I shook the pan. After cooling them to room temperature on a wire rack, I only put them in the refrigerator for 2 hours before unmolding them as I was running out of daylight for photographs. Still, they unmolded perfectly. I'm not big on cheesecake and after all the sweets of the past week I really wasn't too excited about this dessert. Then I tried a bite. Wow, was it good - creamy with just enough chocolate flavor to make me happy! I ended up eating my entire mini tonight after dinner.

Thanks to Margaret for a great selection! She'll post the recipe on her blog later today. You can sneak a peek at the other cheesecakes this week by visiting the TWD blogroll.

Breaded Chicken Breasts with Goat Cheese and Thyme Filling

We hosted Christmas dinner for our parents at our house this year and when I sat down to think about the menu, one of my main criteria was that the dishes could be at least partially prepped ahead of time. I wound up turning to several recipes from the book The Best Make-Ahead Recipe because when it comes to cooking, I need explicit instructions to help me plan and host a meal and this book did just that. The dish that received the highest praise of the day was a simple butternut squash puree and, unfortunately, I didn't get a photo before it was devoured, so I'll make it again soon to share with you.



These breaded and stuffed chicken breasts were also a big hit so they're definitely worthy of a post of their own. They can be prepped a day in advance and then baked at the last minute so they were perfect for my needs. There were a number of different cheese filling options provided in the book (the mushroom and provolone sounded wonderful), but I went with the goat cheese and thyme because it was the only one I thought Shane would eat. The breading consists of homemade bread crumbs, though you can substitute toasted panko if you're short on time. For me, the worst part of the recipe was butterflying the chicken breasts. It took forever and I had trouble getting an even cut through the center. In all fairness, I was in a bit of a hurry so it might be easier next time I try these when I'm not pressed for time and also trying to clean the house, bake and wrap presents at the same time...

I baked the chicken at 375 F instead of the 350 F recommended in the recipe because I had another dish in the oven at the same time. At that temperature, my chicken was fully cooked in about 35 minutes. Upon cutting into the chicken, I discovered wonderfully moist chicken with a creamy, rich filling. The breading was crisp and adhered to the chicken instead of falling off as it baked or when I cut into it. The chicken was well received by everyone and will definitely be a repeat in our house.

Breaded Chicken Breasts with Goat Cheese and Thyme Filling
from The Best Make-Ahead Recipe by the editors of Cook's Illustrated

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts, tenderloins removed
salt and ground black pepper
cheese filling (see recipe below)
4-5 slices white sandwich bread, torn into large pieces
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 cup all-purpose flour
3 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

Preheat oven to 300 F. Place half of the bread in a food processor and pulse until coarsely ground. Repeat with the remaining bread. Toss the bread crumbs with the oil, 1/8 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon pepper and spread on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake, stirring occasionally, until the crumbs are golden brown and dry, about 25 minutes. Transfer to a shallow dish and let cool completely.

Butterfly each chicken breast by slicing it lengthwise almost in half (starting on the thinnest side) and then opening it to create a single cutlet. Place each cutlet between sheets of plastic wrap and pound until the cutlets are about 1/4-inch thick. Place about 2 tablespoons of the cheese filling in the center of the tapered half of each chicken breast. Roll the chicken tightly over the filling to completely enclose it and form a cylinder. Press the seam to seal. Repeat with the remaining chicken and filling. Refrigerate the chicken, seam side down and uncovered, for 1 hour to allow the edges to seal further.

Combine the flour, 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/8 teaspoon pepper in a shallow dish and whisk the eggs and Dijon together in a second shallow dish. Working with 1 chicken breast at a time, dredge in the flour, then coat with the egg mixture and finally coat with the bread crumbs you made earlier, pressing gently to adhere the crumbs.

The breaded chicken can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 24 hours. When you are ready to bake, preheat oven to 350 F and place the chicken on a wire rack set over a foil-lined rimmed baking sheet. Bake until fully cooked (an instant read thermometer should register 160 F), about 40-45 minutes. Let rest for 5 minutes before serving.

Goat Cheese and Thyme Filling
adapted from The Best Make-Ahead Recipe

1 tablespoon unsalted butter, softened
2 teaspoons minced fresh thyme leaves
1 small garlic clove, minced
3 oz cream cheese, softened
2 oz goat cheese, softened
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper

Combine all ingredients and mix until uniform.

The Last of the Holiday Cookies

I promised a post yesterday to share the recipes for the last two holiday cookies I made this year, but I got distracted by the goodies Santa brought and never got around to it. Santa was very generous this year and we had a wonderful time with our families! Hope you all enjoyed your holidays as well! I mentioned the other day that I helped Shane pick out my gift this year and now that Christmas has passed I can share what the gift was - a digital SLR camera! I've wanted to upgrade for quite a while now so I'm thrilled we were able to do it this year. I'm so excited to start shooting with it but I've got a heck of a learning curve ahead of me so I'll probably continue to take my pictures for the blog with my point-and-shoot for a little longer.



The first of the recipes I want to share is for cranberry orange drop cookies from Bon Appetit. I saw them on Di's site during her 12 Days of Cookies originally and since I think cranberry and orange are a great combination, I gave them a try. The cookies also include fresh ginger (as well as ground) and I have to admit that I was a bit skeptical about the fresh ginger. I thought it might overpower the other flavors and dominate the cookies. I included it nonetheless since the reviews were generally positive over at Epicurious. Finally, the recipe calls for pistachios, but I used walnuts since that's what I had on hand.

These cookies were some of the most fragrant I've ever baked! The house smelled fantastic after they were in the oven for a few minutes. They're colorful too as you can see specks of red from the fresh and dried cranberries as well as specks of orange from the orange zest. My fears about the fresh ginger were put to rest when I tried a cookie. It was great! The cookies are moist and the combination of the cranberries, orange and ginger was surprisingly delicious. I had chopped the nuts fairly fine which worked perfectly for me since I don't like walnuts - the bits of nut added texture but not much flavor. These are definitely a keeper for me. If you'd like to try them, you can find the recipe here.



I included these pecan crescents in some of the cookie trays I made this year and also left some out for Santa on Christmas Eve. These cookies can be made with almost any kind of nuts so you could substitute if you're not a pecan fan. Even though I don't like pecans much, I still enjoyed these cookies. They're buttery, crumbly and a lot of fun with their powdered sugar coating. They also keep for quite a few days so they'd be great for shipping to family or friends.

Pecan Crescents
from Cook's Illustrated

2 cups whole pecans, finely chopped
2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 sticks (1/2 lb) unsalted butter, softened
1/3 cup superfine sugar (if you don't have superfine, you can process granulated sugar in a food processor for 30 seconds to make it)
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar for rolling cookies

Preheat oven to 325 F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

Mix 1 cup chopped pecans, flour, and salt in medium bowl; set aside. Process the remaining chopped nuts in a food processor (or by hand with a rolling pin) until their texture resembles coarse cornmeal, 10 to 15 seconds. Add these nuts to the flour mixture, stir and set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar at medium speed until light, about 1 1/2 minutes. Beat in the vanilla. Scrape the sides and bottom of bowl with rubber spatula then add the flour mixture and beat at low speed until dough just begins to come together but still looks scrappy, about 15 seconds. Scrape sides and bottom of bowl again with rubber spatula; continue beating at low speed until dough is cohesive, 6 to 9 seconds longer. Do not overbeat.

Working with about one tablespoon dough at a time, roll and shape cookies into the shapes you want - you could do balls, crescents, rings, etc. For the balls, just roll the dough between your palms to form balls. For the crescents, roll the dough into a 3 1/2-inch rope then shape it into a half circle shape. Finally, for the rings, shape the dough into about 4-inch ropes then curve the ropes to attach the ends. Bake the cookies until tops are pale golden and bottoms are just beginning to brown, about 17 to 19 minutes.

Cool cookies on the baking sheet for about 2 minutes before transferring to a rack to cool to room temperature, about 30 minutes. Roll the cooled cookies in confectioners' sugar to coat. Shake off excess sugar then store the cookies in an airtight container for up to 5 days.

Makes about 4 dozen cookies

Cookies for Santa

We're ready for Christmas! I hope Santa enjoys these pecan crescent cookies as much as I enjoyed making them. I'll be back tomorrow to share the recipe along with one more delicious cookie I baked this year. Happy holidays to all of my wonderful readers!

Chocolate Peppermint Bark Cookies

I've been baking up a storm today and, I have to say, there's something really gratifying about being so productive and seeing so many treats emerge from my kitchen in one day. The first thing I made today came from the December issue of Bon Appetit. Somehow I'd convinced myself not to buy this issue after picking up a ton of other baking magazines this holiday season but just the other day I was lucky enough to snag a copy from my library. As I flipped through, this recipe stood out a potential crowd pleaser. It's also fairly simple to put together and can be made up to a week in advance which are nice bonuses.



These cookies did not disappoint. The buttery shortbread base was wonderful with the bittersweet chocolate on top and the crushed candy canes couldn't be more festive. I'm definitely looking forward to sharing these with friends and family!

A few quick tips on the recipe:
- The shortbread base is a bit tricky to press over the bottom of the pan. I found it easiest to use a combination of moist fingertips (as the recipe suggests) and a sheet of parchment paper.
- You don't want to use white chocolate chips for the topping - they do not melt well (as I learned from experience recently). I used a Ghirardelli white chocolate baking bar, which tastes better than the chips yet isn't too expensive. I've found the baking bars on sale at my local grocery stores this month for just over $2.
- This may go without saying, but use a sharp knife to cut the cookies. Mine were far less crumbly after I switched to my sharpest knife. I also chilled them in the fridge for about an hour after drizzling with the white chocolate, which helped.



Chocolate Peppermint Bark Cookies
from Bon Appetit, December 2009 (also available via Epicurious)

2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 large egg yolk
6 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, chopped
1/2 cup finely chopped red-and-white striped hard peppermint candies or candy canes
2 ounces high-quality white chocolate

Preheat oven to 350 F. Spray 13 x 9 x 2-inch metal baking pan with nonstick spray. Line the bottom of pan with parchment paper, leaving an overhang on both short sides of the pan.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour and salt. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat butter until creamy, about 2 minutes. Gradually add sugar, beating until the mixture is light and fluffy, stopping occasionally to scrape down sides of bowl, about 3 minutes. Beat in vanilla, then egg yolk. Gradually add flour mixture, beating on low speed just to blend.

Drop dough by tablespoonfuls into prepared baking pan, spacing evenly. Using moistened fingertips, press dough to form even layer over bottom of pan. Pierce dough all over with fork.

Bake cookie base until light golden brown and slightly puffed and edges begin to come away from sides of pan, about 30 minutes. Place pan on rack; immediately sprinkle bittersweet chocolate over the top. Let stand until chocolate softens, about 3 minutes. Using small offset spatula, spread bittersweet chocolate over top of cookie in thin even layer. Immediately sprinkle chopped peppermint candies/candy canes over.

Stir white chocolate in medium metal bowl set over saucepan of simmering water until melted and smooth. (Alternatively, melt the chocolate in the microwave on 50% power for 30 second bursts, stirring after each burst.) Transfer the chocolate to a resealable plastic bag, snip a corner and drizzle the chocolate over the cookies. Chill until the white chocolate is set, about 30 minutes.

Using the parchment overhang, lift the cookies from pan and transfer to work surface. Using a large knife, cut the cookies into irregular pieces.

The cookies can be stored for up to 1 week in the refrigerator in airtight containers.

Chewy Oatmeal Cranberry Cookies

Well, it's finally here - Christmas week! It's really snuck up on me this year. It's going to be a busy week - shopping, wrapping, baking, cleaning - but with Christmas music playing in the background and holiday decorations everywhere, it'll be fun! I had a hand in selecting my Christmas gift from Shane this year and I can't wait to post about it here at the end of the week. In the meantime, I'm still trying to settle on cookies for my cookie trays so I'm trying a few recipes out at the last minute today.



These cookies are adapted from an oatmeal raisin cookie recipe from Baking Illustrated. Those cookies are wonderful, but I really wanted to do something that would incorporate cranberries, to add both color and variety to my cookie trays this week. I simply subbed the cranberries in for the raisins and then, to make the cookies just a bit more festive, I melted some white chocolate and drizzled it over the cookies. Though white chocolate isn't my favorite, I really think it pairs well with cranberries. These cookies are pretty big, but the recipe indicates that making them smaller will result in them being dry and more cake-like. When made as directed, the cookies are chewy, but more crispy and chewy than soft and chewy in my opinion. Delicious, either way!



Chewy Oatmeal Cranberry Cookies
adapated from Baking Illustrated, by the editors of Cook's Illustrated

2 sticks (16 tablespoons) unsalted butter, softened
1 cup light brown sugar, packed
1 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon fresh ground nutmeg
3 cups old fashioned rolled oats
1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen cranberries, coarsely chopped
white chocolate for drizzling (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 F. Place oven racks in the lower and middle positions. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter until creamy. Add both sugars and beat until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time beating to fully incorporate

In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, baking powder, and nutmeg, then stir them into the butter-sugar mixture with wooden spoon or large rubber spatula. Add the oats and cranberries, if using, and stir to distribute.

Form the dough into sixteen to twenty 2-inch balls and place them on the prepared baking sheets. The cookies will spread so leave at least a few inches in between the dough balls. Bake the cookies until the edges turn golden brown, 22 to 25 minutes, rotating the baking sheets halfway through the baking time from front to back and top to bottom. Transfer the cookies (still on the parchment paper) to a cooling rack. Let cool at least 30 minutes.

If desired, melt white chocolate (or any other chocolate you wish!) either over a double boiler or in the microwave at 50% power in 30-second bursts. Once cool, transfer the chocolate to a resealable bag, snip a corner and drizzle the chocolate over the cookies.

Makes about 16 to 20 cookies.

"Best" Shortbread

I'm always skeptical when a recipe labels itself the "best." It sets a really high standard that I just don't think most recipes are able to live up to. So, when I was browsing recipes the other day and came across this one for the "best" shortbread from Cook's Illustrated I didn't think much of it - another "best" recipe, great... However, the more I read, the more I became hopeful and since the recipe was easy, I decided to give it a shot.



I have to tip my cap to Cook's Illustrated on this one. These shortbread cookies are ridiculously good! They are everything the perfect shortbread should be: buttery, crumbly, slightly crisp - in short, amazing. The cookies incorporate oat flour and cornstarch to achieve the perfect texture and utilize the collar of a springform pan to prevent spreading during baking. They keep well for 7 days, which makes them a perfect treat to share with friends and family during the holidays. I will definitely make them again, though this time I might try one of the variations suggested - ginger shortbread, toasted oat shortbread or chocolate-dipped pistachio shortbread - I'm sure they're all equally as good!

"Best" Shortbread
from Cook's Illustrated, November 2009

1/2 cup old-fashioned oats
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup cornstarch
2/3 cup confectioners' sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
14 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/8-inch thick slices

Preheat oven to 450 F. Place the collar of a 9-inch springform pan upside down on a parchment-lined baking sheet. (The groove of the collar should be at the top.)

Pulse the oats in a mini prep or food processor until reduced to fine powder, about ten 5-second pulses. In bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix ground oats, all-purpose flour, cornstarch, sugar, and salt on low speed until combined, about 5 seconds. Add the butter to the mixer and continue to mix on low speed until dough just forms and pulls away from sides of bowl, 5 to 10 minutes.

Press the dough into the springform collar in an even 1/2-inch-thick layer, smoothing top of dough with back of spoon. Using a 2-inch biscuit cutter, cut a hole in the center of the dough. Place the round alongside springform collar on baking sheet and place the biscuit cutter back into the hole in the center of the dough. Open the springform collar all the way, but leave it in place around the dough.

Bake the shortbread 5 minutes, then reduce oven temperature to 250 F. Continue to bake the shortbread until the edges turn pale golden, 10 to 15 minutes longer. Remove baking sheet from oven and turn off oven. Remove the biscuit cutter and springform pan collar; use a chef’s knife to score surface of shortbread into 16 even wedges, cutting halfway through shortbread. Using a wooden skewer, poke 8 to 10 holes in each wedge. Return the shortbread to the oven and prop door open with handle of wooden spoon. Allow the shortbread to dry in turned-off oven until pale golden in center, about 1 hour.

Transfer the baking sheet to a wire rack and cool the shortbread to room temperature, at least 2 hours. Cut shortbread at scored marks to separate.

Soft Gingerbread Biscotti

I finally started my Christmas shopping yesterday. The stress of Christmas being less than 10 days away was just the motivation I needed to get going! Of course, while I was out I couldn't help but pick a little something up for myself. I had some gift cards to Crate & Barrel so I popped in and saw Gingerbread was on sale. I'd seen a few reviews of this book on blogs recently and was intrigued by the idea of a whole cookbook devoted solely to gingerbread. As I browsed through the recipes more than a few caught my eye so I decided to pick it up.



The task of choosing which recipe to try first wasn't an easy one. I knew I wanted to make a cookie and ended up going with the soft gingerbread biscotti mainly because they could be made without a mixer but also because I was curious about a gingerbread that didn't include molasses. The recipe calls, instead, for a healthy amount of both ground ginger and cinnamon. Additionally, I liked the idea of a biscotti that wasn't hard. I never dip biscotti in coffee or tea so if they're too hard I'm generally not interested in eating them.



Things didn't start out well, unfortunately. I didn't read the instructions carefully and instead of reserving 1 teaspoon each of the ginger and cinnamon for the sugar/spice mixture that is sprinkled on the biscotti before baking, I dumped it all in with the dry ingredients. Oh well, no biggie - extra spicy gingerbread biscotti is probably a good thing. The thing that really gave me trouble, though, was the dough. The recipe says to knead it several times but my dough was more than a little crumbly and did not come together easily. I was afraid of overworking it so I did what I could, leaving a fair amount of crumbs on the work surface that simply were not incorporated into the logs that made it to the baking sheets.



Luckily, the baking process went fairly smoothly. I did underbake the logs a bit, taking them out around 25 minutes, which was the lower end of the recommended range. Next time I'll definitely bake them for closer to 30 minutes. All of the spices in the biscotti made the house smell amazing as they baked, which I loved! As for the taste verdict? Yum! I almost forgot about how fussy the dough was when I tried the biscotti. They're a bit crunchy on the outside but inside they're much softer than most biscotti I've had. I'm not a big fan of molasses so I didn't miss it at all in here and I thought the level of spices was perfect. The spiced sugar mixture added great texture to the biscotti too. I'll definitely make these again because even though the dough gave me trouble, the end result was worth the effort!

Soft Gingerbread Biscotti
from Gingerbread by Jennifer Lindner McGlinn

2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 teaspoons ground ginger
3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoons cloves
3/4 cup plus 3 tablespoons sugar
1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
3 large eggs, at room temperature
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 large egg white, lightly beaten

Preheat oven to 350 F and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, 2 teaspoons of the ginger, 2 teaspoons of the cinnamon, cloves, 3/4 cup of the sugar and the brown sugar.

In a measuring cup or medium bowl, whisk the eggs, butter and vanilla extract. Add the egg mixture to the flour mixture and stir with a wooden spoon until the dough comes together in a soft, sticky mass.

Turn the dough onto a lightly floured work surface and knead until smooth. Divide the dough in half and shape each half into a log about 8 inches long by 2 inches wide. Place the logs about 3 inches apart on the prepared baking sheet.

Mix the remaining 1 teaspoon of ginger, 1 teaspoon of cinnamon and 3 tablespoons of sugar together in a small ramekin. Brush the dough logs with the egg white and sprinkle with 1/3 of the spiced sugar mixture.

Bake the biscotti for 25-30 minutes, until the logs are puffed and golden brown. Cool the logs on the baking sheet set on a cooling rack for about 10 minutes. Meanwhile, lower the oven temperature to 300 F.

Using a serrated knife, cut each log into 1/2-inch thick slices on the diagonal. Arrange the biscotti, cut side down on the baking sheet and sprinkle with 1/2 of the remaining spiced sugar mixture. Bake for about 6 minutes, or until the biscotti are light golden brown. Flip the biscotti over, sprinkle with the remaining sugar mixture and bake for about 6 minutes more.

Cool on the biscotti on the baking sheet set on a cooling rack for 5 minutes then transfer to them to the rack to cool completely.

Makes about 30 biscotti

TWD: Cafe Volcano Cookies

Updated: This morning I was visiting blogs and the fabulous Mary of The Food Librarian showed me how I could jazz up my holiday photos with Flickr (click Edit Photo and then the Create tab at the top). I am feeling much better about my sad little volcano cookie now that it's festively adorned. Thanks Mary :)



Just in the nick of time....I've got an hour until the clock strikes midnight and I miss my TWD deadline!! This week's TWD was chosen by Macduff of The Lonely Sidecar: cafe volcano cookies. I debated about posting my cookies this week because, as you can see, they're not much to look at. In fact, some might say they're a bit of an eyesore. In the end, I figured since I gave the recipe a shot I might as well post about my results.



These cookies are composed entirely of just 5 ingredients: almonds, walnuts, egg whites, sugar, and espresso powder. You simply toast the nuts, pop then in a saucepan with the egg whites, sugar and espresso powder to warm everything through and then bake them. Simple, right? Well, not so much for me. Somehow I managed to screw them up. Dorie says they're supposed to be puffed, cratered, shiny and dry after baking, but mine just looked like the same little pile of nuts I put in the oven before baking. Oh well, you win some and you lose some....

I don't really like nuts so I didn't try these, but I asked my mom to sample one when she stopped by this week. She said they're weren't bad and that they reminded her of crispy chicken skin, which made me think I might have gone more wrong with these than I thought :) Many thanks to MacDuff for hosting this week's very interesting recipe! You can find the recipe on her site or in the book. If you'd like to see what the cafe volcano cookies should have looked like, you can visit the other bakers' sites!

MSC: Gingerbread Cucpakes

This month's MSC recipe was chosen by my good buddy Kayte over at Grandma's Kitchen Table: gingerbread cupcakes. I'm not sure there was a more perfectly appropriate selection in the book for this time of year! I love the smell of gingerbread treats filling my house as they bake in December. I was feeling so festive I pulled my snowman platter out of storage to photograph these treats :)



As much I as was looking forward to making Kayte's selection, there are so many sweets around here right now that I couldn't justify making more than 1/4 of the recipe (which yielded 4 cupcakes). The cupcakes come together quickly and include a healthy dose of holiday spices along with molasses. The recipe suggests 25 minutes of baking time, but mine were finished around 22 minutes so I'm glad I checked them early. I baked them in cute Christmas wrappers but ended up peeling them off because they looked odd when combined with the color of these cupcakes.



A fluffy vanilla frosting is recommended for pairing with these cupcakes and that's what I used. Three simple ingredients - butter, confectioner's sugar and vanilla - and you're good to go! I definitely didn't find this frosting as easy to pipe as I have some of the others we've made from this book (like the cream cheese frosting). It was almost too stiff, even at room temperature. I probably could have whipped it a bit more in my mixer, but the sun was setting and I was running out of light. There were cute little gingerbread men also suggested as toppers for these cupcakes but, like I said, already too many sweets around here so I skipped them and just threw a few festive sprinkles on top!



I have to confess that I didn't taste the cupcakes. I gave them to my mom in exchange for some more eggs from her chickens. I haven't had to buy eggs in months - it's been fantastic!! This morning she emailed to tell me she loved the cupcakes! She thought they were moist and she really enjoyed the fall spices. The frosting wasn't her favorite (she much prefers cream cheese frosting) but she thought it was ok. I'll definitely make these again - if not this holiday season, next year. Many thanks to Kayte for hosting this month's selection. You can visit the MSC site to see how the rest of the bakers fared this month.

Ginger Tea Cakes with Lemon Glaze

I was walking on the treadmill at the gym recently flipping through the latest issue of Everyday with Rachel Ray when I came upon this recipe. It's not the sort of recipe that would typically catch my eye. I'm not a huge ginger fan nor have I ever been drawn to the lemon/ginger combination. However, I had been given a can of crystallized ginger recently and since I've never baked with crystallized ginger before, I wasn't quite sure how or where I wanted to use it. This recipe solved that problem, plus these are adorable mini cupcakes and those are always fun to bake!

I find that the yield listed in most cupcake recipes never matches up with how many cupcakes I get from the batter, but this recipe baked up 24 beautiful mini cupcakes as it claimed it would. The glaze proved a bit tricky to apply. I didn't listen to the instructions to dip the top of the cupcakes in at first, instead trying to use the back of a spoon to spread just a tad bit of glaze on each one. Without fail I applied too much every time and the glaze poured over the edges of the cupcakes. Dipping worked much better, though it required patience to let all the excess drip off before flipping the cupcakes right side up and sprinkling them with the ginger. I wound up with a lot of extra glaze so you could probably cut the recipe below in half or by 2/3 and still have enough for all 24 minis.



I still haven't figured out how to photograph yellow and white foods well so I couldn't get any shots I was excited about but I guess that's just how it goes sometimes. I sent these off to work with Shane today and haven't received any feedback yet. I'm not sure how they'll go over at his office since I typically send mainly chocolate treats. I really liked them though. The cupcakes were light and fluffy and I found that I enjoyed the ginger and lemon combination more than I expected. In fact, it made me want to search out more recipes utilizing the combination to try!

Ginger Tea Cakes with Lemon Glaze
from Everyday with Rachel Ray

1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
pinch salt
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
7 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 large eggs plus 1 large egg yolk
3 tablespoons buttermilk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
3 tablespoons finely chopped candied ginger

Preheat oven to 350 F. Line a 24-cup mini muffin pan with paper liners.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt and ginger. Using a hand mixer, beat the sugar and butter at medium speed for about 1 minute. Beat in the whole eggs and the egg yolk at medium speed until well combined. Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the flour mixture, beating until just combined. With the mixer still on low, add the buttermilk and vanilla. Use a rubber spatula to give the batter one final mix, scraping the bottom and sides of the bowl.

Add 1 tablespoon of batter to each cup of the mini muffin pan. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the centers comes out clean, about 12 to 14 minutes. Transfer the muffin tin to a cooling rack and cool cupcakes for 10 minutes before removing them from the tin to cool completely on the rack.

To Make the Glaze: In a small bowl, whisk together the confectioners' sugar, lemon juice and 1 tablespoon of water. Dip the tops of the cupcakes in the glaze and top them with the candied ginger.

Makes 24 mini cupcakes

Brown Sugar & Almond Scrub

Well, here it is Sunday and it's the first time in a long time I haven't had to bake or post anything for Sweet Melissa Sundays. At first, I was disappointed when I learned we'd be taking a few weeks off before starting up again in 2010, but as the December stress has started to pile on, I've realized it's probably for the best. Shane and I have accomplished a number of things on our to-do list for this month already: our tree is up and decorated, the lights have been hung outside the house, and I've baked a ton of cookies.

One thing we haven't done nearly enough of, however, is Christmas shopping. I need to get going on that this week! Fortunately, I got a little nudge recently when I was contacted by the folks at Domino Sugar, who asked if I'd like to make something from the homemade gift section of their website. They even sent me a $20 gift card to help cover the cost! The past few years I've started trying to put together homemade gifts for friends and family so I jumped at the chance to try something new.



My first thought was that I'd bake some edible ornaments but since I've already spent a lot of time baking this month (and will likely be doing a lot more!), I decided to go in a different direction. There were a number of sugar scrubs on the site that caught my eye. A few years ago a friend bought me a sugar scrub and I loved it so it seemed like a great option to try making one at home! I settled on the brown sugar & almond scrub from the three options available. I had just about all of the ingredients in my pantry already; the only things I had to pick up were the glass jars to hold the scrub and the almond oil.



It couldn't have been easier to put the scrub together. It's as simple as stirring all of the ingredients together and transferring them to decorative airtight containers. I put a festive ribbon around my jar and secured it with a cute sticker but the possibilities for decoration are endless. The scrub smelled amazing and proved to be a wonderful exfoliant when I tried it out. The only thing I'll do differently next time is to grind my almonds finer; I thought the pieces were a bit too large in the scrub. I'm eager to try the white cane glimmer sugar scrub next. These scrubs would be terrific to include as part of a gift and you may even want to keep one for yourself :)

Brown Sugar & Almond Scrub
adapted from Domino Sugar

1/2 cup ground almonds
1/2 cup ground oats
1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
1/4-1/2 cup almond oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Combine all of the ingredients in a large bowl using a spatula until well blended. The mix should have a paste-like texture. I started with 1/4 cup of almond oil, but found the mixture too dry so I wound up adding almost another 1/4 cup to reach my desired consistency. Transfer the scrub to airtight containers and store for up 2 weeks in the refrigerator. The contents may settle so you'll probably need to mix the scrub each time before using it.

To use the scrub: Gently apply a small amount to wet skin in a circular motion, concentrating on dry patches and rough areas of your skin. Leave the scrub on for a few minutes before rinsing with warm water. You'll want to avoid using the scrub on your face or on skin that is cut, sunburned or otherwise sensitive.

Double Chocolate Coconut Cookies

These are the final cookies I included in the package I sent my Secret Baker recipient. I don't know if they're Christmas cookies in the traditional sense, but all cookies are fair game for Christmas in my book. These cookies get their chocolate color and flavor from cocoa powder and are made more complex by the addition of white chocolate chunks, coconut and walnuts (or any other nut you prefer), which are all added to the dough before baking.



My cookies spread quite a bit in the oven so they're a little flatter than the picture that was included in the book. I also found that I needed to bake them a few minutes beyond the recommended baking time of 10-12 minutes. I didn't personally try the cookies because I don't like walnuts, but I gave my step-father a stack when he stopped by the day I made them. I heard from my mom that he enjoyed them quite a bit! I think next time I'll omit the nuts and maybe try adding some oats so I can enjoy a few too!

Double Chocolate Coconut Cookies
from Martha Stewart's Cookies

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
2 cups white chocolate chunks
1 3/4 cups sweetened flaked coconut
1 3/4 cups coarsely chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 350 F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter and both sugars together on medium speed until smooth, about 2 minutes. Add the eggs on at a time, mixing to incorporate each fully before adding the next. Stir in vanilla.

Sift the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt into a large bowl. With the mixer on low speed, add the flour mixture to the mixing bowl and beat until well combined. Stir in the white chocolate, coconut and walnuts.

Drop the batter by rounded tablespoons on prepared baking sheets, spacing the cookies about 2 inches apart. Flatten slightly. Bake until they are set, about 10 to 12 minutes. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheets on wire racks for a few minutes then transfer the cookies, still on the parchment, to the racks to cool completely.

Yields ~ 5 dozen

Soft & Chewy Molasses Spice Cookies

Yesterday I shared the first cookie I included in my Secret Baker package and today I'm back to share the second. I knew I wanted to send my recipient a cookie made with molasses since it's such a holiday staple. I briefly considered making the TWD molasses spice cookies that were selected last month. My recipient is not a member of TWD so I figured there was a good chance she hadn't tried the recipe and those cookies were tasty! However, I have a thing about not repeating recipes - I rarely do it unless I have to - because my list of recipes to try is so long.



Ultimately, I decided to try this Cook's Illustrated recipe for soft & chewy molasses spice cookies. It's very similar to the recipe in Baking: From My Home to Yours so I was curious how the results would compare. (I didn't remake Dorie's version so I'm basing my comparison on my recollection of those cookies - maybe someday I'll have time for a true side by side comparison.) In the taste category, I couldn't pick a clear winner. I really enjoyed the flavor of both cookies! The CI cookies were perfectly soft and chewy; I think I preferred their texture just a bit to the ones from Baking. Other benefits of the CI recipe were that the dough did not have to be chilled after mixing and before baking so I saved some time and the CI cookies retained their shape a bit more in the oven. That said, I don't think you can go wrong with either recipe if you want to make delicious molasses cookies this month!

Soft & Chewy Molasses Spice Cookies
from Cook's Illustrated

1/3 cup sugar, plus 1/2 cup for rolling
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1/3 cup packed dark brown sugar
1 large egg yolk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup molasses, light or dark

Center a rack in the oven and preheat oven to 375 F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Place 1/2 cup sugar for dipping in a shallow, wide bowl.

Whisk flour, baking soda, spices, and salt in medium bowl until thoroughly combined; set aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment, beat butter with brown and granulated sugars at medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Reduce speed to medium-low and add yolk and vanilla; increase speed to medium and beat until incorporated, about 20 seconds. Reduce speed to medium-low and add molasses; beat until fully incorporated, about 20 seconds, scraping bottom and sides of bowl once with rubber spatula. Reduce speed to lowest setting; add flour mixture and beat until just incorporated, about 30 seconds, scraping bowl down once. Give dough final stir with rubber spatula to ensure that no pockets of flour remain at bottom. Dough will be soft.

Using tablespoon measure, scoop heaping tablespoon of dough and roll between palms into 1 1/2-inch ball. Roll ball in sugar to coat and set on prepared baking sheet, spacing cookies about 2 inches apart. Repeat with remaining dough. Bake 1 sheet at a time until cookies are browned, still puffy, and edges have begun to set but centers are still soft (cookies will look raw between cracks and seem underdone), about 11 minutes, rotating baking sheet halfway through baking. Do not overbake if you want the cookies to be soft and chewy.

Cool cookies on baking sheet 5 minutes, then use wide metal spatula to transfer cookies to wire rack to cool completely.

Candy Cane Sugar Cookies

This week it was time to mail our packages for the second round of Secret Baker. The theme for this round was Christmas cookies and I had plenty of resources in which to search for recipes. Have I mentioned my obsession with holiday baking magazines this year? It seems that every time I head to the store the selection grows and I find yet another magazine I simply must have :) I don't remember feeling the need to buy so many magazines last year so hopefully this problem will resolve itself before next year!

I found this recipe for candy cane cookies in Martha Stewart's Holiday Sweets magazine. They're essentially sugar cookies (with either a little almond or peppermint extract for flavoring) and I just thought they were adorable and so appropriate for the season. The recipe only calls for a few ingredients but it is a bit time consuming, between shaping the cookies and the multiple chill times required for the dough. I even roped Shane into helping me shape the cookies so I could get it done faster.



When it comes to tinting the dough, be patient - it will take time and a fair amount of kneading to get the color worked in, but you will be rewarded. I used the no taste red coloring from Wilton and needed a relatively small amount to achieve the pinkish color in my cookies. The dough is fairly easy to work with, though I did have more trouble with the tinted dough than the untinted. While forming the candy canes, the untinted dough had to be repaired several times. If you look closely at the pictures, you can see cracks that formed in the untinted dough as it baked - mainly at the spots where I'd repaired it. Next time I might try kneading the untinted dough just a bit as the kneaded tinted dough gave me no trouble at all. That said, once the cookies cooled completely they were solid and sturdy so I'm not too worried about it.

The cookies are tasty - a very good sugar cookie. I used almond extract in mine so they had just a hint of almond flavor, which is my favorite kind of sugar cookie. The recipe only makes 6 candy canes, but they are quite large. I hope my Secret Baker recipient enjoys these treats. I think they'd be perfect for your holidays gatherings, especially for the kids who will enjoy the fun candy cane shapes!

Candy Cane Cookies
from Martha Stewart Holiday Sweets

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1 cup sifted confectioners' sugar
1 large egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon almond or peppermint extract
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting work surface
red food coloring, preferably gel-paste
coarse sanding sugar, for decorating

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter and confectioners' sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the egg, both extracts and salt. With the mixer on low speed, add the flour and beat until combined.

Divide the dough in half and knead the red food coloring into one half until you reach your desired color. Form both halves of dough into disks, and wrap in plastic. Chill at least 20 minutes, or overnight. The dough can also be frozen for up to 1 month.

Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Divide the untinted dough into 6 pieces. On a lightly floured surface, shape each piece into a 12-inch log. Repeat with the tinted dough. Chill the logs for 10 minutes, until firm but pliable. Twist one tinted and one untinted piece together and bend at one end to form a cane. Repeat with all of the logs until you have 6 candy canes. Arrange the candy canes 2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets. Chill at least 1 hour, or up to overnight, covered in plastic.

Preheat oven to 325 F. Bake, rotating the sheets halfway through, until the cookies are firm but not taking on any color, about 2o-24 minutes. Transfer the baking sheets to wire racks and let the cookies cool completely.

To Decorate: Brush the untinted stripes of candy cane with water. Sprinkle with sanding sugar; tap off excess. Cookies can be stored for up to 1 week at room temperature in an airtight container.

TWD: Festive Lemon Sables!

This week's TWD was chosen by Barbara of Bungalow Barbara: sables! Sables are shortbread-style cookies that are apparently very popular in France. I was tempted to make the basic, plain sables but in the end I couldn't resist the temptation of the various "playing around" options Dorie offered. I went with the lemon sables because it seems like it's been way too long since I baked anything with lemon.



I was thankful for a simple recipe this week. This dough comes together quickly, is shaped into a log and then has to chill in the fridge for at least a few hours; I made the dough before bed and popped it in the fridge overnight. Though I only made 1/2 recipe of the cookies, I used the full amount of lemon zest so my cookies would have a ton of lemon flavor. I rolled the log in festive red and white sugar since it is December after all.



My sables didn't retain their shape in the oven quite as nicely as I'd hoped despite the long chill in the fridge before I baked them. It didn't really matter though, as they were delicious! The sables were very lemony and had the characteristic sandiness Dorie promised. I've been sampling way too many cookies lately so I will have to find someone to share these with. That said, I'm really tempted to try some additional flavors (vanilla bean, spice, parmesan??) so these may have to be added to my Christmas trays so I have another reason to make them :)



Many thanks to Barbara for a fun (and easy!) pick this week! You can find the recipe on her site or in the book. Visit the TWD blogroll if you'd like to see all of this week's sables.

SMS: Chocolate Espresso Cheesecake

Today is the first Sunday of December and it brought with it a little surprise for us. I woke up this morning, rolled over to look out the window and saw that the big tree outside of our bedroom window was covered in gorgeous white snow! It had been snowing when we went to bed last night but I didn't think it'd result in much accumulation. I came downstairs, grabbed my camera and took the photo above from the patio door in the back of our house. This was a perfect introductory storm. We only got a few inches and the sun came out immediately to start melting it for us. I look forward to more snow this winter, though I'm pretty sure I'm alone in that opinion.



On to today's business... This week's SMS, our last of the year, was chosen by Shandy of Pastry Heaven: chocolate espresso cheesecake with blackberry glaze! There is a lot of baking going on around here lately and only so many people to give things to so I decided to scale this recipe way back. Plus, the full recipe is baked in an 8" springform, which I don't own. I wound up going with 1/4 of the recipe, which yielded one full size cheesecake in my 4" springform as well as enough leftover batter to make a second very thin 4" cheesecake.



Aside from scaling the recipe back, I didn't modify the ingredients at all. The recipe is simple, though there are a lot of steps and you will wind up with a sink full of dishes! I skipped the water bath when baking my minis and also disregarded the baking instructions in the book. With the oven at 300 F, I found that my minis needed about 30-35 minutes for the center to set. I took them out of the oven to cool on a rack, skipping the step of leaving them in the oven after turning it off. I didn't have blackberry preserves so I skipped the glaze, opting instead to pipe a few small piles of whipped cream on top.



The verdict? The cheesecake was good - very creamy! It is, however, incredibly rich. I couldn't eat more than a few bites so I was glad I'd opted for the minis. I'm going to share the full size mini with my mom tomorrow. She's a big fan of the chocolate/cheesecake combo so I think she'll really enjoy this dessert. Thanks to Shandy for hosting this week! You can find the recipe on her blog or in the book. We'll be back in 2010 with more delicious recipes from the Sweet Melissa Baking Book - hope to see you then :)