Citrus Flavored Cheesecake

When I was testing the recipe for Red Velvet Cheesecake, I made about a million plain cheesecakes. Once I finally felt like I nailed it, I decided to start testing different versions of the cheesecake to get some variety. This one was the first one I tried, and it got rave reviews at two different parties. What makes this cheesecake special is the orange zest and Grand Marnier, an orange liquor, which gives it a fresh and festive flavor. I personally think the orange is perfect for the holidays but if you are more of a lemon fan, you could substitute lemon zest and Limoncello for a different citrus flavor.

Now this recipe is super easy and almost full-proof but there are two things that you must do to ensure success. Tip #1: Make sure ALL the ingredients are at room temperature. When all the components are soft and at the same temperature, they combine so much easier in your mixer and the end result is smooth and velvety as opposed to lumpy. Tip #2: This cheesecake has to refrigerate for at least 6 hours, so plan accordingly. I always make it the night before I want to serve it and let it refrigerate overnight.

I served this cheesecake with mixed berries that I sprinkled with sugar and a spoon full of the Grand Marnier, but the cake is so rich and delicious that it can be enjoyed by itself too. Happy Holidays!

Cheesecake Crust:

25-30 Graham Cracker Squares

3 tbsp sugar

1/2 stick of butter, melted

Cheesecake Filling:

• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 2 eggs, at room temperature
• 3 yolks, at room temperature
• 1/3 cup heavy cream, at room temperature
• • 20 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
  • 1 1/4 cups sour cream, at room temperature
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 3 tbs. Grand Marnier
  • Zest of 1 orange

To make the crust: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a food processor, grind graham crackers and sugar. Add the butter and pulse until moist; the mixture should look like wet sand. Then press it into the bottom of a spring form pan and bake for 20 minutes. Set it on the stove to cool while you prepare the cheesecake filling.

To make the filling: Reduce the oven temperature to 275 degrees. In a medium sized bowl whisk together your liquid ingredients: vanilla, eggs, egg yolks and heavy cream and set aside. Then, using an electric mixer with a paddle attachment, mix the sour cream for 1 min. Then, add the cream cheese, a few chunks at a time and mix until combined and smooth. Next, add the sugar and mix until well combined (about 2 minutes). Now it is time to pour in the liquid ingredients a little at a time; pour in a little, let mix until combined and then pour in some more. Once everything has blended, stop the mixer and add the orange zest and Grand Marnier. Turn the mixer back on for about 30 seconds or so, to let that citrus flavor incorporate. Then, pour the batter into the spring form pan on top of the graham cracker crust. Place pan into a large roasting pan and pour hot water around it. (See picture below. I usually use an entire tea kettle full of hot water). Put the cheesecake into the 275 degree oven and let it bake for 90 minutes. Now ovens are different so what you are looking for is the cheesecake to not giggle at all when you gently shake the pan. If it giggles in the center let bake for another 10-15 minutes.

Once it's done, refrigerate for at least 6 hours or overnight. Then slice and enjoy!

Tortellini Soup

It's officially fall! For some, this time of year represents impending doom; the hint that winter is on it's way. But for me, fall is my favorite time of year. The temperature changes from hot to cool, you've got football, Halloween, and Thanksgiving. Fall to me is always the season for family, fun, and of course FOOD!

And there is no food that is more enjoyable in the fall than a hearty, hot bowl of soup. Now, let me be clear, I can make and eat soup year round. But it's during the fall and winter that simmering a big pot of soup all day and having your house smell amazing feels the most comforting. Well, this soup recipe will do the trick, but it does not take all day. In fact, it can be made in under 30 minutes so it's a perfect weeknight meal when you are in the mood for warm soup. Enjoy!

1-2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil

1 small onion, chopped

1 clove garlic, minced

1 large handful of shredded carrots or 2-3 carrots, cleaned and chopped

Salt & Pepper

2 quarts chicken or vegetable stock

1-2 handfuls of frozen peas

1 pkg. (9oz.) cheese filled tortellini (I used Buitoni Three Cheese)

chopped flat leaf parsley for garnish

Heat olive oil in a soup pot over med. to high heat. Add onion and sauté for 3-4 minutes, then add garlic, followed by the carrots.  Add salt and pepper to taste and sauté for another 5 minutes or until carrots are soft.  Next, pour in the two containers of stock and bring to a boil. Add tortellini, peas, check the seasonings and add additional salt and pepper if necessary. Boil for approximately 5 more minutes or until all the tortellini are floating at the top.  Turn off heat, stir and ladle into bowls. Top with a couple pinches of flat leaf parsley.

THE ULTIMATE Red Velvet Cheesecake

Yes, the rumors are true! I have mastered the infamous Red Velvet Cheesecake. Inspired by The Cheesecake Factory but created with my own personal flair, my version of Red Velvet Cheesecake is rich and sweet perfection. It is a layer of plain cheesecake topped with a layer of red velvet cake and finished with white chocolate cream cheese frosting.

It is a vision to see but the pictures will never live up to the taste. So until you can taste it, here are my best pictures to showcase one of the best things I have created in the kitchen. And from the pictures you can get a pretty good idea of how I make it.

Oh and I am sure Tyler Florence has copyrighted "the ultimate" title. But I have to borrow it for this. If there was any cake that deserved to be the "the ultimate" cake to me, it's this one!

Healthy Alternative to The Green Bean Casserole

So my mom and I are in our 3rd week of weight watchers. This is somewhat embarrassing to admit but not as embarrassing as putting on my clothes and finding that none of them fit anymore!

Those of you who are familiar with Weight Watchers knows that the program assigns points to all food and each person gets a certain amount of points per day. 22 is my magic number and in a recent weight watchers meeting we calculated how many points is in our traditional Thanksgiving dinner. I guessed about 20-25 but I discovered that our family's usual Thanksgiving, including appetizers, dinner, and dessert, is 40 points! And guess what that does not include...WINE! :)

So my mom and I worked hard to shave off the points and calories by replacing traditional, aka fattening, Thanksgiving dishes with healthier options. Instead of green bean casserole (a whopping 4 points for every 3/4 cup) we will be having a delicious green bean saute with mushrooms and pearl onions. Still festive, still delicious but only a quarter of the fat and calories. One serving = 1 weight watcher's point! Make it right before you want to serve it.

Sauteed Green Beans, Mushrooms, and Pearl Onions

Makes 8-10 servings

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

1 bag pearl onions (frozen and thawed slightly)

1 small container sliced button mushrooms

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 lbs green beans

Directions: Place a medium sized saute pan over medium-high heat. Add the butter and once it begins to melt add the olive oil (measure it out! eye balling will increase the fat & calories!). Once the butter has melted with the olive oil and they are almost smoking, add the pearl onions. Increase the heat to high and cook the onions until they begin to caramelize (about 5 minutes) and then add the mushrooms and garlic. Stir everything together and cook until the mushrooms soften, about 4-5 more minutes. Finally, stir in your green beans and allow to cook until desired doneness. I like mine soft but with color, which will probably take 5 more minutes but if you like yours crisp, only saute about 3 more minutes.

Pour everything into a serving bowl and enjoy!

Crispy Fingerling Potatoes w/ Lemon & Garlic Aioli

Recently I pulled a Rachel Ray when I decided to recreate one of my favorite dishes from one of my favorite restaurants at home. Anyone who watches RR knows what I mean. Almost every episode she is yapping about how something she ate at some restaurant was so good that it inspired her to make her 30 min meal. I would listen to her and kind of think that it was a cop out. I mean...come up with your own dishes Rachel!

But now my attitude has changed being that I have moved and can no longer eat at some of my favorite NYC restaurants. One of my favorite places in Harlem (which will remain nameless for fear of a law suit) had this fingerling potato appetizer that I absolutely loved and I have been craving them so much that I decided to go ahead and make them myself! Which actually wasn't that hard because every time I ordered and ate them, I would sit and marvel at their delicious simplicity and tell myself, or my friend Melissa who I always went to this place with, that I could make these!

So here is my first successful attempt at recreating a favorite dish and even putting my own little spin on it. Serve them as a satisfying starter! Anyone can make french fries but this takes them to the next level.

Crispy Fingerling Potatoes w/ Lemon & Garlic Aioli

1 Bag of Fingerling Potatoes

Salt & Pepper

1 cup mayonnaise

2 tablespoons parsley, plus 1 tablespoon for garnish (finely chopped)

1 small clove garlic (grated or minced)

juice of 1/2 a lemon

zest of 1/2 a lemon

3-4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Directions: Put the fingerling potatoes in a medium sized pot, add about a tablespoon

of salt, and fill the pot with cold water. Put the pot over high heat and once the water

has come to a boil, allow the potatoes to cook for 10 minutes (or until fork tender).

While the potatoes are cooking you can make the aioli. Mix the mayo, parsley, garlic,

lemon juice and zest together in a small bowl. Season with salt and pepper to taste and

set aside.*

After the potatoes have boiled, drain and run cold water over

them. Once they have cooled enough for you to handle, slice

each fingerling potato in half lengthwise. Then, heat about 3-

4 tablespoons of olive oil in a non-stick frying pan. You want

the pan to be very hot, but be careful not to burn the oil. Next,

place each fingerling flesh side down in the pan and allow to

pan fry for 3-5 minutes or until they turn golden brown.

(you may have to do this in 2-3 batches)

After the potatoes have turned golden brown, remove them

from the pan and place them on a paper towel lined plate.

Season liberally with salt and sprinkle with parsley. Arrange

potatoes on a plate and serve with the aioli as a dipping sauce.

Enjoy!

*Time Saving Note: You can make the aioli ahead of time

because it gets better as it sits. Just cover with saran wrap

and refrigerate.

Puff Pastry: Advice From A Novice

As promised, I am making a post about puff pastry. I know...yawn! However, my recipe for Chicken a la King is best served over puff pastry cups and because there was already so much going on with that recipe, I decided to talk about it separately.

Pepperidge Farm makes two types of puff pastry available in most grocery store freezers: shells and sheets. (click here to go to their website to learn more) Ideally, puff pastry shells are what would work perfectly for the Chicken a la King so if you find those, absolutely buy them and follow the directions on the box. But if you are like me and cannot find puff pastry shells in your store and have to travel 90 blocks to only find the puff pastry sheets, go to this website to learn how to make puff pastry shells from the sheets: Puff Pastry How To

I found this on cooksillustrated.com (my new obsession) and because all of the directions are there under "Puff Pastry Cups" there is no need to repeat them. But if you think that puff pastry is fancy and hard to work with, just know that I improvised and used a wine bottle as my rolling pin and a glass top as my cookie cutter. I posted the pictures of my first batch above to show that my cups did not turn out perfect but it did not matter once they were covered with creamy chicken goodness!

Recipe # 2: Chicken a la King

Chicken a la King

I had to make this dish 3 TIMES to get to this recipie! My grandafther’s recipie that I found just didn’t work for me (or my taste tester), so after talking to my grandma and mom at nauseum about chicken a la king, I am confident that this is the way it is meant to be enjoyed. A creamy, flavorful chicken sauce poured over puff pastry cups!

Now, judging from the ingredients, this dish may seem complicated but it really isn’t if you have everything prepped and ready to go. I suggest roasting the chicken and making the puff pastry ahead of time. And about 20 minutes before you want to serve this dish, chop up all the veggies and make sure you have all the other ingredients on hand. Once you turn on that burner, this comes together in literally 12-15 minutes.

Ingredients (Makes about 5 servings)

2 large chicken breasts (bone-in w/ ribs)

extra virgin olive oil

salt & pepper

4-5 oz container of white button mushrooms

½ medium yellow onion

¼ cup pimentos (roasted red pepper works too)

1 clove garlic

3 tbsp unsalted butter

2 tbsp all-purpose flour

½ cup dry sherry or white wine

1 cup half and half (warmed in microwave)

½ cup chicken stock or broth

½ cup frozen peas

1 tbsp chopped fresh sage

1 tbsp chopped fresh parsley

Juice of ½ a lemon

5-6 puff pastry shells (see next blog post for instructions)

paprika (for garnish)

Directions For Roasting Chicken Breasts

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. Arrange chicken on an aluminum foil lined baking pan. Brush or rub 1-2 tablespoons of evoo on the chicken and then season each piece liberally with salt and pepper. Once the oven has pre-heated, put chicken in to roast for 25 minutes. Once finished, take the chicken out and let it cool for at least 20 minutes. Then, remove and discard the skin and separate the breast meat from the bone (either with your hands or with a knife) Finally, dice the breast meat into 1 inch cubes and set aside.

Directions for Chicken a la King

While the chicken cooks, you can chop the veggies. Slice the mushrooms lengthwise (or buy the ones already sliced!) and then dice the yellow onion. Next roughly chop the pimentos, garlic, sage and parsley but keep them separate on the cutting board.

In a large skillet, melt the butter over medium high heat and then add the mushrooms and onions. Sautee until the onions are clear and the mushrooms have given off all of their liquid, about 5 minutes. Then add the pimentos and garlic and cook for 1 more minute. Next, sprinkle the flour over the veggies and stir until the flour soaks up all the liquid and then add the sherry or wine and let that cook until the alcohol has almost completely evaporated, about 1 minute. Next, stir in the warmed half and half and the chicken stock, season with salt and pepper and let the sauce boil for about 3 minutes. Once the sauce has thickened a bit, fold in the cooked chicken, peas, and sage and let them warm through for about 3-5 more minutes. Finally, turn off the burner and stir in the parsely and lemon juice.

To serve, pour about one cup of the creamy chicken mixture over one puff pastry cup and sprinkle the top with paprika.