Cookie Dough Cheesecake

Cookie Dough Cheesecake

Crust:
190g / 1 1/2 cups graham crackers crumbs
95g / 7 tbsp butter, melted

Cookie Dough:
113g / 8 tbsp unsalted butter, softened
100g / 1/2 cup soft light brown sugar
50g / 1/4 cup white sugar 
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla
125g / 1 cup flour
2 tbsp milk
90g / 1/2 cup chocolate chips

Cheesecake: 
750g / 26 oz cream cheese, room temperature
150g / 3/4 cup white sugar
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 tsp vanilla

1) To make the crust, mix together graham cracker crumbs and butter. Press into a 8 or 9 inch springform pan and bake in a 160C / 325F preheated oven for 5 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool. Do not turn off the oven.

2) Make the cookie dough: In a large bowl, beat together butter, sugars, salt and vanilla. Beat until smooth. Add milk, mix until incorporated. Finally, stir in the flour and mix just until combined. Add chocolate chips. Place the cookie dough in the fridge while you prepare the filling. (You could also make this ahead of time and leave in the fridge for a few hours or overnight.) When the cookie dough is firm enough, remove from the fridge and form little balls. Set aside.

3) To make the filling, beat together cream cheese, white sugar, eggs and vanilla until smooth.

4) Pour the filling over the graham cracker crust and arrange cookie dough pieces on the top of the surface, slightly pressing them down. Bake for 45 minutes or until firm to the touch. Let cool completely before serving, preferably overnight.

Recipe by collecting memories

White Chocolate Blondies

White Chocolate Blondies

113g (1/2 cup) butter
150g (5.3 oz) white chocolate, chopped
150g (3/4 cup) white granulated sugar
1 large egg, lightly whisked
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/3 tsp salt
125g (1 cup) flour

Icing:
1 tbsp butter (optional)
50g white chocolate (optional)

1) Preheat oven to 180C / 350F.

2) In a small saucepan, melt the butter over low heat. Add white chocolate and sugar and cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring constantly, until the sugar has melted and the mixture looks smooth. Remove from heat and let cool a little bit.

3) Stir in the egg, vanilla extract and salt. Add flour and stir just until combined. Spread the mixture into the baking pan and bake for 25-30 minutes. Cool completely before cutting into squares. 

4) If you are making the icing, melt 1 tablespoon of butter in a small saucepan, turn off the heat and add the chopped chocolate. Let sit for 2 minutes or until melted and mix until smooth. Alternatively, you could melt butter and chocolate in a microwave. Drizzle over the blondies and serve.

Recipe by collecting memories

Coconut Cashew Cheesecake

No, I'm not vegan and I'm not going to become vegan. But the more vegan desserts I make, the more I fall in love with this kind of food. It feels so good when you know that what you eat is good for you and every ingredient has important nutrients. I LOVED this cashew cheesecake! It doesn't taste like a traditional cheesecake, I'd say it tastes like a coconut ice-cream pie. Doesn't that sound good?? 
Just use unrefined coconut oil. Trust me, don't use refined stuff here.
It's best to serve it frozen. Keep it in the freezer and let thaw at room temperature for 5-10 minutes before serving. If you keep it in the fridge, it will have a mousse-like texture which is yummy too, but I prefer it frozen. Then it really tastes like ice cream. It Melts in your mouth! 

Coconut Cashew Cheesecake

Base:
50g dried coconut flakes
50g ground cashews
90g raisins

Filling:
2 1/2 cup (350g) cashews, soaked for 6-8 hours, drained
1/4 cup (60ml) unrefined coconut oil, melted
1/2 cup (150g) agave nectar
3/4 cup (180ml) coconut milk
1 tsp vanilla extract

1) To make the base, grind coconut, cashews and raisins in your food processor until the mixture looks sticky and comes into a ball. Press it into the bottom of a round baking pan (I used a 23cm pan with a removable bottom).

2) To make the filling, grind cashews in your food processor until you get a smooth creamy paste. Add the rest of the ingredients and blend until smooth. Pour onto the crust and freeze overnight.

3) Thaw at room temperature for 5-10 minutes and slice!

Recipe by collecting memories

Vanilla Cupcakes

 

Basic recipe for sky-high frosted vanilla cupcakes. Light, soft and spongy cupcakes topped with a sweet, creamy buttercream! The recipe makes a lot of frosting so if you are worried about your waistline feel free to make less (I still haven't learned to frost cupcakes properly. I do need to practise more)

Vanilla Cupcakes

Cupcakes:
113g/1/2 cup butter, room temperature
225g/1 cup sugar
1 large egg, room temperature
1 egg yolk, room temperature
190g/1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
Pinch salt
150ml buttermilk, room temperature
1 tsp vanilla extract

1) Preheat oven to 180C/350F.

2) With a mixer on high speed, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add egg and egg yolk, with the mixer still on high. 

3) In a bowl, mix together flour, baking powder, salt and baking soda.

4) Add 1/3 of the flour mixture to the butter mixture and beat on low until combined. Add ½ of the buttermilk. Continue to alternate the flour and buttermilk, ending with the flour.

5) Divide the batter among the cupcake cups. Bake for 18-20 minutes. Cool completely before frosting.

Frosting:
113g/1/2 cup butter, softened

220g/1 3/4 cups powdered sugar
2-4 tbsp milk
1/2 tsp vanilla extract 

Pinch salt

1) Beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy. 

2) Add milk and vanilla and beat until you get desired consistency.

Chocolate Chip Skillet Cookie with Homemade Vanilla Ice Cream

Imagine a giant, warm, chewy, gooey cookie topped with melting homemade vanilla ice cream. This Chocolate Chip Skillet Cookie is the one. A dreamy cookie pie with chunks of chocolate. And a dollop of vanilla ice cream which starts to melt and creates a creamy vanilla sauce. The cookie pie soaks in the sauce and slightly cools down. And then you take a bite, dip it into ice cream and go to heaven.

This cookie pie is a rich, perfect dessert when you crave something sweet. With its chewy texture it is reminiscent of a blondie. If you like blondies and brownies, you definitely have to try this. Ecpecially when it takes just a few minutes to prepare it. You don't even need to wash tons of bowls after all! Just mix everything in the skillet, pop into the oven and enjoy.

Chocolate Chip Skillet Cookie with Homemade Vanilla Ice Cream

110g unsalted butter
150g granulated sugar
50g light brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 egg, beaten
185g all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
100g chocolate chunks (I used milk)
Vanilla ice cream, to serve.

1) Preheat oven to 180 degrees C. 

2) In an 20cm/8inch cast iron skillet, melt 110g of butter over medium heat. When butter is melted, add the granulated sugar and brown sugar, and stir to combine. Remove from heat and allow to sit for 5 minutes. 

2) In a small bowl, beat the egg, and add two tablespoons of the melted sugar/butter mixture to the egg (to temper it) and whisk to combine. 

3) Pour egg mixture back into the skillet, and stir until completely combined. 

4) Add flour, baking soda and salt. Stir until very well combined. Add vanilla and chocolate, and stir to combine.

5) Bake in preheated oven for 15-20 minutes or until edges are golden brown. 

Serve warm topped with vanilla ice cream.

Enjoy!

Recipe adapted from here.

Homemade Vanilla Ice Cream

Making ice cream without an ice cream maker might be a challenge. After you mix all the ingredients and place it into freezer, you have to stir your ice cream mixture very often to prevent it from getting icy. So when you decide to make it, make sure you don't have to go anywhere - you will have to devote your time for this yummy treat. But the results are totally worth it. You can enjoy homemade, delicious ice cream which do not contain any suspicious ingredients.

A good way to prevent ice cream from freezing too much is adding some alcohol. Don't be afraid to add a teaspoon or two - your ice cream will not freeze that much and will be more creamy. Imagine! After I finished making this and it was already in the freezer I remembered that last time I added some vodka and this time I forgot to do it. (It wasn't written in the recipe). I also did not stir the mixture as frequently as I had to. That's why I encourage you not to do the same mistake - follow the directions! In the photo my ice cream looks quite icy, but this is just because I did not let it thaw at all before photographing (yes, I'm very impatient when I deal with food).

So if you don't have an ice cream maker, don't think you can't make ice cream at home. But make sure you work as much as ice cream machine and stir your ice cream every 10-15 minutes!

Homemade Vanilla Ice Cream

110g/1/2 cup sugar
1/4 tsp salt
240ml/1 cup full-fat milk
3 egg yolks, beaten
1 tbsp vanilla extract
480ml/2 cups whipping cream, chilled
1-2 tsp alcohol (optional, but recommended)

1) In a heavy saucepan, combine together sugar, salt and milk. Add egg yolks and beat until well incorporated. Set over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, about 3 minutes until bubbles appear around the edges. Remove from heat. Let cool to room temperature. Stir in vanilla.

2) Place the mixture into a freezable bowl and freeze about 45 minutes, or until icy.

3) Meanwhile, chill two large bowls in the fridge.

4) In one of chilled bowls, whip heavy cream with an electric mixer until soft peaks form.

5) Scoop your icy egg mixture into the other cold bowl. Beat with electric mixer until smooth. Fold in the whipped cream.

6) Divide the ice cream mixture into two containers. Cover top with waxed paper.
Freeze ice cream until firm. During the first hour stir the ice cream every 10-15 minutes. Don't skip this step or it will get too icy!

Recipe adapted from here.

Sugar Pretzels

We all know the feeling when you suddenly crave for something sweet and there's nothing around to grab. The solution is simple. Always have a simple no-fuss recipe which can be made from scratch. Guess what? I have one for you. A super easy recipe of buttery, crispy, sugary, sweet and melt-in-your-mouth pretzels. These are perfect for a tea-time snack or breakfast. The only difficulty you may experience is shaping these goodies. But after two or three attempts you'll find yourself expert in this. So don't waste your time, go ahead and make yourself a batch of these. Enjoy!

Sugar Pretzels

125g butter, softened
100g white sugar
1 egg
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
200g all-purpose flour (or more)
1/2 tsp baking powder
sugar, for sprinkling the tops

1) Preheat oven to 180C. Prepare two baking trays with parchment paper

2) Cream butter with sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs, mixing well until incorporated. Beat in vanilla extract.

3)  Mix flour with baking powder and add it to the butter mixture. Stir until smooth using your hands, if needed. If the mixture is too sticky, you may add more flour. Place the dough in the fridge for 30 minutes.

4) Divide the batter into small balls and roll each of them into a log. Shape into pretzels (as shown in the pictures) and sprinkle with sugar. Bake for 8-10 minutes or until lightly golden around the edges. Cool completely.

Recipe by collecting memories