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The Pre- Post- Birthday Cake

Saturday, July 23, 2011

This was a quick birthday cake for my 17 year old son. When he was little his favorite flavor of ice cream was Neapolitan. So I thought I'd make him a Neapolitan cake instead.

As you can tell... I can't cut a straight piece of cake to save my life!  LOL

I called it his pre- birthday cake because I was going out of town so we ate his cake a day early. I also called it a post- birthday cake because it's not the real cake he wanted me to decorate! He has a very creative imagination when it comes to things like this. For his official birthday cake he asked for.... are you ready!

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A marlin and a narwhal dueling each other as they jump out of the water. A huge octopus... tentacles and all... holding a puffer fish, a crab, and a nudibranch. Oh, and don't let me forget about the occasional sea turtle swimming by!!! Whew! It makes me tired just thinking about it!

I've been out of town most of this month, so I told him I wouldn't be able to make his "real cake" until later. He said, "That's fine, I don't care if I have to wait until September. This is going to be the coolest birthday cake ever!"

The things a mom will do for her child..... ;)

 Stay tuned!

Amazing Creamy Cheesecake

Sunday, July 3, 2011

Cheesecakes are an amazing dessert, the flavor possibilities are endless! I've tried making all kinds of cheesecake recipes... quick and easy, complicated and time consuming, ones you bake and ones you don't, very light and refreshing cheesecakes, others that are rich and dense, some have a very strong cheese flavor, and others are mostly sweet. Recently tried a new recipe, and I have to say it's by far the best cheesecake I've ever made! The one word I'd use to describe this cheesecake is... Creamy!


I first saw this recipe on Allrecipes.com. On their web site it's called "Strawberry Cheesecake" by Luverene Dove. I made a few alterations to Luverene's recipe and came up with this:

Creamy Cheesecake
Crust:
1- 13oz. pkg. pecan sandies cookies
1/3 to 1/2 C melted butter
Crush cookies then add melted butter until it comes together. Press into a springform pan. Chill.

Cheesecake:
3- 8oz. pkgs cream cheese (2 regular and 1 Neufchatel)
1- 14oz. can sweetened condensed milk
1 tsp. vanilla
2 Tbs. lemon juice
3 eggs
Bring all the ingredient to room temperature. Beat cream cheese until light and fluffy. Add vanilla, lemon juice, and sweetened condensed milk then beat well. Add eggs and mix just until combined. (Over mixing at this point will cause the top to crack while baking.) Bake at 300 degrees for 50 minutes or until center is almost set. Cool for 1 hour on a wire rack, then refrigerate overnight.

Strawberry Topping:
3 C pureed fresh strawberries
2 Tbls. cornstarch
1/2 C granulated sugar
Mix together cornstarch and sugar. Add strawberries and mix well. Heat in a saucepan and stir until it comes to a boil. Boil for 1 minute. Using half of the strawberry mixture, spoon dollops on top of the cheesecake batter then lightly swirl. Refrigerate the other half of the sauce and use later as an additional topping for the cheesecake. (You change the flavor of the topping recipe by using other fruits. If you so this, however, you may need to adjust the amount of sugar and/or cornstarch.)

Bake at 300 degrees for 50 minutes or until the center is almost set. Cool for 1 hour on a wire rack, then refrigerate overnight.

If you prefer your cheesecake plain, don't worry. This recipe's just as delicious all by itself without any toppings. So the next time you're craving cheesecake (especially creamy cheesecake)... try this one. You won't be disappointed!

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