Caramel Brownie Cheesecake

Labor Day Weekend I made this dessert. I meant to post the recipe and never really got around to it. Now seemed like a good time :) It was definitely enjoyed.

 

Caramel Brownie Cheesecake

 

Ingredients:
1 box brownie mix, baked according to package directions and cooled completely
 

Chocolate Crust:

45 vanilla wafers

1/3 c. cocoa powder

1/3 c. powdered sugar

1 stick butter, melted

 

Cheesecake:

4 8oz. packages cream cheese, softened to room temperature

1 c. sugar

4 eggs, lightly beaten

1 tsp. vanilla

1 jar caramel sauce

Make the crust: Preheat the oven to 350. In your food processor with the blade attachment, crush the cookies and pulse in the sugar and cocoa powder until well-combined. Drizzle in the melted butter while the processor is running and combine. Dump the crumb mixture into a 9" springform pan and push the crumbs firmly into the bottom and 1-2 inches up the sides. Bake at 350 for 8 minutes and allow to cool while you are making the cheesecake filling.

In a mixer bowl, add the cream cheese and the sugar and beat until fluffy and well-combined. Add eggs one at a time, then add in the vanilla. Pour the mixture into the cooled crust. 

Cut 1/2 of the pan of brownies into small pieces and place them on top of the cheesecake mixture, pushing them down into the filling. Drizzle about 1/2 - 1 cup of caramel sauce over the top of the cheesecake. Bake in a 350 oven for 1 hour or until completely cooked. Remove from the oven and allow to cool about 30 minutes. Loosen the cheesecake from the pan by running a sharp knife around the edge. Let it finish cooling to room temperature before covering in plastic wrap and putting in the refrigerator for at least 12 hours.

I may get around to another post tonight. I am making a yummy chicken dish. Don't forget to check out the soup I posted yesterday!! It's that time of year again!

Until next time, stay warm and filled, my friends!!

Andrew's Fudgies - School Lunch memories

I grew up in New England - contrary to some (cough cough, Emilie), it is not a foreign country :) I had the joy of attending the local public schools. In those days they were small - not quite one room schoolhouses, but small - Memorial School housed 1st and 2nd grade and then I was in the first 3rd grade class at the brand new Peter Woodbury Elementary. It housed 3rd and 4th grades. Middle School was at McKelvie Middle School - all in Bedford, New Hampshire. I think all of the schools are still there, but I am not sure how they are being used. I do remember school lunches... Hot lunches were .40 or $2 a week. I remember milk being .05 and when I was really little, it came in glass bottles with paper stoppers. We drank it through red and white paper straws. We would get two straws because they did become soggy midway through lunch. I even worked in the cafeteria for a while in middle school. I don't remember why I did it, but I remember serving jello and bread and cake - and a wonderful dessert called Andrew's Fudgies. In the 70s, when I was a youngin', I recall Fridays being fish (or meatless) days - since the majority of the population was Catholic, that is not surprising. I also remember the government allotments of soybeans and peanut butter often found their way onto our lunch trays. It wasn't all that bad; in fact, today's school cafeterias might want to take a step back into the 70s for a lesson in healthy meals. Pizza was rare, fries were non-existent, and there were vegetables every day. Granted they were from a can, but still, they were there none-the-less!

But back to dessert - one of the most memorable items on the tray - a favorite was Andrew's Fudgies. I think it is a New England recipe. I looked it up online to see if I could find its origin and found some links to an old radio show host and some other things. All of the posts mentioned it being from New England, so that's my story and I'm sticking to it. Apparently it is also Portuguese - who knew? I found a "Provincetown [Massachusetts] Portuguese Cookbook" with the following history:
"Andrew's Fudgies
Rachel Silva White
Rachel White's friend Mary Anastasi, who was born in Portugal, obtained this recipe as a gift for her husband Andrew from a baker in Fatima. Hence the name Andrew's Fudgies. In exchange for the recipe, Mary had to give the baker all of her silk stockings as a gift for his wife, including the pair she was wearing. She flew home happy, but bare legged.
The baker told Mary that the original recipe called for one cup of oil and two or three squares of solid chocolate. He was forced to substitute cocoa and increase the oil because solid chocolate was not available in Portugal in the 1960's."
http://www.iamprovincetown.com/Cookbook/sweets/fudgies.html

My recipe card for this is old, stained, and folded in several places, so I figured I would make a more permanent copy here on the blog. Mine seems to be almost exactly the same as Mary's recipe. I hope you enjoy it!

ANDREW'S FUDGIES

2/3 c. plus 1/4 c. cooking oil
3/4 c. cocoa
2 eggs
2 c. plus 3 T sugar
2 1/2 c. flour
1 t. soda
1 t. salt
1 t. vanilla
1 1/2 c. cold water
1 c. chocolate chips
1 c. nuts (pecans or walnuts)

Preheat oven to 350'. Beat all ingredients, except for the chocolate chips, nuts and 3 T. sugar. Place mixture in UNGREASED 9x13 or 11x17 pan (the bigger the pan, the thinner the fudgies). Sprinkle with chocolate chips, nut and last the sugar. Bake at 350' for 45 minutes.

There is your chocolate fix for now! We are expecting more snow tomorrow afternoon. Yeesh! This Yankee is DONE with winter!! Until next time stay WARM and loved!!

My "Apparently Big Football Game That I Didn't Watch" Party Recipes

I am not a fan of football... so shoot me. Fortunately for me I did not marry a football fanatic. He watches the games, but I don't think he has ever owned a jersey or called a team "his". The kids also are not big sports fans. My dad watched sports. I remember even watching bowling on Saturdays, listening to the Red Sox on the car radio on the way home from somewhere... church, the Shuler's house, somewhere obviously less memorable... I remember him yelling at the TV, but somehow those genes were not passed along to me. I really could care less, don't understand the game, and don't have any allegiance, other than to the Patriots because, let's face it, New England really is The Promised Land :) I have watched very few football games in my life. Until a year and a half ago I could honestly say that I had never even watched on. Joey Keefe at church looked at me with such shock and horrified amazement when he found out that little tidbit of trivia that I thought I must really be missing something and decided that I would be come a fan. I watched a few games, even watched the BIG ONE last year. I tried, honestly I did. It didn't take. This year I was positioned so I could barely see the screen. I didn't mind a bit. I would rather talk than watch... except for the commercials and half-time.

This year I listened in horror as Christina Aguilera (or however you spell her name) totally botched our National Anthem. Really... they should have to sign a contract and pass a couple of memorization tests before they are allowed to sing that song. How can you mess it up? It really is not that long... apparently she likes the line, "What so proudly we hail at the twilight's last gleaming" more than "Or the ramparts we watch were so gallantly streaming" since she sang that twice. I guess I shouldn't knock it. I am not the one singing it in front of billions of people. I would be under the stage in a fetal position...not that they'd ever ask me to sing it, I'm just sayin'. The Black Eyed Peas were not that great either, disappointing in fact. I thought Fergie was the singer of the bunch, not the screamer. She should stick to singing.

What I do love, is the fellowship and the snacking. I made some delicious Oreo truffles and a pizza fondue. I thought I would share those recipes with you. One comes straight from Nabisco, the other from my own head, and what I can remember of the recipe that was in my crockpot's cookbook from 22 years ago, now long gone. Don't be chintzy with the cookies. Buy the real thing.

OREO TRUFFLES

1 1b. pkg. Oreos
1 8oz. block of cream cheese
16 oz. white or chocolate almond bark

In food processor, reduce the entire package of cookies to crumbs. Add in block of softened cream cheese and process until thoroughly combines. You will have a nice scoopable dough. Make this into balls. I use a small scoop, but you could use teaspoons. The point is to make them bite-sized. You should get about 48 of them. Cut up the chocolate and melt it in the microwave according to the package directions. Dip the balls into the chocolate and place on parchment or wax paper to harden. Store in airtight container in the fridge. I recommend putting a motion sensor alarm on them, too, if you want them to make it to game day :)

For the fondue, feel free to add whatever "toppings" you like and leave out what you do not like. It is very versatile. It is everything you would put on a pizza without the crust.

PIZZA FONDUE

1 lb. Italian sausage, browned
1 pkg. pepperoni, diced
1 small onion, diced
1 green pepper, diced
1 pkg. mushroom, chopped
2 28 oz. cans crushed tomatoes
1 28 oz. can tomato puree
1 t. garlic powder/granulated garlic
2 t. oregano
2 t. basil
2 t. salt
1/2 t. black pepper
1 T. sugar
1 c. freshly shredded Parmesan
1 1/2 c. shredded mozzarella

Brown the sausage, put all ingredients into the crock pot, except for the cheese. Allow it to cook for 2-3 hours on high so it is really hot and the flavors meld together. About 30 minutes before serving, first stir in the Parmesan cheese, about 1/3 c. at a time. Then stir in the cheese about 1/2 c. at a time. Serve with tortilla chips or chunks of Italian bread for dipping.

I have some leftover that is going on pasta tonight with melted mozzarella on top :) Should be yummy!!

Until next time, stay warm and loved, my friends!

Chocolate Lover's Muffins for Tea Time!

Two posts in one day! Shoot me now! I just couldn't wait to send this muffin recipe and I had the perfect light for this shot. Check out the steam on the tea. Am I good, or what? I made these muffins yesterday and they are still amazingly good and moist! Ali works at Starbucks and brings home Tazo tea, which is a full-leaf tea. My favorite is Passion because it is herbal and I can drink it at night. I never really liked tea until she introduced me to this stuff and now I love it. I still need my morning coffee, but a cup of tea in the afternoon or evening is perfect. This afternoon I am giving Earl Grey a shot. It smells of lavender, which is relaxing and perfect for this afternoon before I get going on dinner.

So here is the recipe for the muffins. I'll probably send along the dinner recipes tomorrow: roasted green tomatillo sauce and black bean and corn salsa.

CHOCOLATE LOVER'S MUFFINS

2 c. all-purpose flour
1 c. sugar
3/4 c. baking cocoa
3 t. baking powder
1 t. salt
1 egg
1/2 c. butter, melted
1/2 c. milk
1/2 c. sour cream
1 t. vanilla
1 c. chocolate chips (semi-sweet or milk)
1/2 c. heath bar/toffee pieces

Preheat oven to 350'. In bowl of mixer combine the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking powder and salt. Stir to combine. In a separate bowl whisk the egg, milk, sour cream, and vanilla. Melt butter and whisk into wet ingredients and then combine with dry ingredients just until combined. Gently stir in the chocolate chips and heath pieces. Line muffin cups with paper liners or spray well. Spoon mixture into the cups (I use a mechanical ice cream scoop for perfect portions). It should make about 15-18 muffins. Bake them for 20 minutes and allow to cool on a wire rack.

Until next time... stay warm and loved!

Almond Roca...or Homemade Heath Bars

It's the day after Christmas - Happy Boxing Day to my Canadian friends. Remember, only 364 shopping days left until Christmas! I swear this year I am going to start shopping early - putting things away for next year so that maybe, just maybe, I don't have to do any big shopping trips in December. I might have to set a few "reminders" in my phone calendar just to make sure I do this. We'll see :)

It has been snowing since Friday night. Nate took this picture of the backyard from his bedroom window this morning. He doesn't know that I know he is up, but when he posts a picture on facebook, he forgets I can see that, lol. Not much accumulation in Pleasant View, Tennessee. You can still see a little bit of the tips of the grass in some places. In others it seems like there are four inches on the ground. Not much compared to the foot of snow predicted for my sister Marcy in Brooklyn, but it's enough to make the roads slippery and keep us home for now. We did have a lovely day yesterday. Spent it with David's sister and family in Nashville. Sandy lives there with her husband David and their son Matthew. Their son Daniel and his wife Christina came in from Washington, DC and his sister Karen and her family drove in from South Carolina, so we had a nice big crew - ate lasagna, manicotti, alfredo, zucchini and a HUGE antipasto platter that Ali, Kami and I put together with all kinds of goodies on it along with a homemade pomegranate-red wine vinegar dressing. Of course there were sweets of all kinds sitting around. No one went to bed hungry... except maybe Kami who decided she needed to eat at 10:00 last night and apparently we had NOTHING in the house to eat! Whatever!

I learned this candy recipe from a friend, Sandi, in Seattle. I love it because it does not require a candy thermometer. I have gone through several, but they are glass and for some reason they keep breaking in the utensil drawer - perhaps it needs to be organized better? Anyway, this recipe is timed and it works every time. If you like Heath or Skor bars, toffee of any kind or Almond Roca, you will love this recipe. Use a big pot and wear oven mitts on both hands and long sleeves because the sugar does pop a bit and sugar burns are some of the worst! It is easy and I save the little crumbly bits to put on ice cream - It keeps forever in the freezer, if it last that long.

Almond Roca

1/2 lb. almonds, blanced and split (slivered not sliced)
4 T water
2 C butter (not margerine!)
2 1/2 C sugar
2 1/2 C milk chocolate chips (I do use semi-sweet sometimes)
ground pecans or walnuts (your choice)

In a heavy bottomed pot, heat butter until bubbly, but not brown. Add sugar, water and almonds. Cook over high heat, stirring constantly for 9 minutes (yes, your arm will get a bit tired). Set a timer!! Pour it quickly onto a buttered sheet pan and cool well. Melt half of the chocolate chips and spread over one side. You can also have the oven warm, sprinkle the chips on and pop the pan in the over for just a couple of minutes to warm the chocolate chips and then spread them - just keep a close eye on it. That way you don't burn the chocolate in the microwave. While the chocolate is still soft, sprinkle with ground nuts and press them in gently. Allow to harden (I pop it in the fridge), the flip it over and repeat with the chocolate and nuts on the other side. When it is hard, chop it into pieces. You can do this on one large (1/2 sheet pan size) or 2 smaller ones.

Enjoy!