Chris is famous for this cheesecake. People always ask her to make it for them. I actually got the recipe from a client I sold cookware to years ago. (Joe)
Instructions:
There are three steps to make this simple and amazing cheesecake.
Place the graham crackers in on the bottom of a spring form pan padded tight with your hand.
Mix the cream cheese, eggs, sugar, and vanilla really good for a couple minutes. Pour that mix over the graham cracker crust. Bake it in the oven at 375 degrees for 20 minutes. Take it out and let it cool on a cooling rack for 30 minutes.
Now, make the sour cream topping, pour that on top, and put it back in the oven at 475 degrees for 10 minutes. After that, let it cool, cover it with tin foil, and put it in the fridge until you are ready to serve.
Christine found this recipe in the Wall Street Journal – She made it for me for St. Joseph’s day and it is one of the best pasta recipes I’ve had in a long time. It has just the right amount of spice and went easy on my stomach; I’m usually pretty sensitive to spaghetti sauce.
Joe
Pasta Milanese
“I love this pasta because all the ingredients speak to Sicily,” said chef Nick Lama of Avo restaurant in New Orleans. Red pepper provides punch, while the sweet tomatoes, fragrant fennel and salty anchovies balance harmoniously. Breadcrumbs add a delightful crunch.
TOTAL TIME: 1 hour – SERVES: 6
Ingredients
¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
4 anchovy fillets, minced
1 yellow onion, finely diced
1 bulb fennel, finely diced
6 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon toasted ground fennel seed
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
¼ cup white wine
1 (28-ounce) can whole peeled San Marzano tomatoes
1 pound bucatini or spaghetti
1 cup toasted breadcrumbs
Sea salt
Directions
Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add anchovies and cook until lightly browned, 1 minute.
Add onions, fennel and garlic, and sweat until lightly golden, about 10 minutes.
Add fennel seed, black pepper, red pepper flakes and a few pinches of salt. Cook until fragrant, 1 minute.
Deglaze pan with white wine, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom, and cook until liquid reduces by one third, 3-5 minutes.
Either crush tomatoes by hand or pass through a food mill, and add to pot. Simmer sauce, stirring often, until thickened, 45 minutes. Taste and add salt as needed.
As sauce finishes cooking, boil pasta according to package instructions until al dente. Drain pasta and toss with sauce. Finish pasta with a sprinkle of toasted Italian breadcrumbs and serve.
COURSE: DESSERTCUISINE: AMERICANKEYWORD: HOT COCOA COOKIES PREP TIME: 30 MINUTESCOOK TIME: 15 MINUTESTOTAL TIME: 45 MINUTES SERVINGS: 40 CALORIES: 168KCALRich, chocolaty and delicious, these are a perfect cookie for Christmas, or any time of year!
INGREDIENTS
FOR THE COOKIES
1/2 cup unsalted butter 1 stick
12 oz semi-sweet chocolate
1 1/2 cups flour
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cups brown sugar
3 eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
25 large marshmallows approximately
FOR THE ICING
2 cups powdered sugar
4 tablespoons unsalted butter 1/2 stick, melted
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 cup hot water
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
assorted sprinkles
INSTRUCTIONS
MAKE THE COOKIES
In a medium saucepan (or in a microwave safe bowl, using 50% power), melt the butter and chocolate, stirring frequently. Once melted, set aside to cool slightly.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt.
In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the sugar, eggs and vanilla on low speed until well combined.
Add the cooled chocolate mixture and blend until just combined.
While mixing, add the flour mixture slowly and blend until just combined.
Scrape down the sides of the bowl, then cover the dough and refrigerate at least 1 hour. The dough should be firm. If making the dough a day ahead, let sit at room temperature for 30 minutes before shaping.
Preheat oven to 325*F. and line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper or a silpat type liner. Use a tablespoon (or a tablespoon sized cookie scoop) to scoop the dough, then roll the dough in your hands to create balls. Arrange the balls about 2 inches apart on your baking sheets, then flatten slightly.
Bake cookies about 12 minutes.
While the cookies bake, cut the large marshmallows in half (crosswise). When the cookies have baked, remove from oven and press one marshmallow half (cut side down) into the center of each cookie. Return the cookies to the oven and bake another 2-3 minutes. Allow the pan of cookies to cool a few minutes, then transfer cookies to cooling rack.
PREPARE COOKIE ICING
Prepare cookie icingby combining all ingredients in a medium bowl and mixing together with a whisk. Place wire cooling rack (with cookies on it) over a baking sheet (to catch any excess icing). Spoon a small amount of icing onto the top of each marshmallow, and use the back of the spoon to spread it a bit. After icing just a couple cookies, top with sprinkles before the icing dries.
Allow icing to set up about 30 minutes before serving.
NOTES
Cookies can be stored in an airtight container up to 2 days. Change the sprinkles to coordinate with various holidays.
Everyone seems to love these blueberry scones that Christine makes once in a while. She makes them for our grandchildren’s tea party each year on Valentine’s Day.
And her sauce – Everyone used to rave about my mom’s meatballs and sauce so, since I found this recipe, I figure I better add it here. Who doesn’t like Spaghetti and Meatballs!
