Ounces and Grams

Black Bean Burgers

Flipping Frying Patties! February’s Daring Cooks Challenge gave me the opportunity to make Black Bean Burgers. Not that I couldn’t have made them otherwise, I just get a bit lazy sometimes when it comes to a new recipe. If no one else will eat it, it’s difficult that I will make it and at the mention of Black Bean Burgers, Lefti started gagging. I had to convince him he would be eating beef burgers. Sam, on the other hand, was more than happy to join me for lunch and we both had seconds. 

Black Bean Burgers

• 2 x 400g/14 oz cans black beans
• 1 egg
• 1/4 cup  plain breadcrumbs
• 2 tsp cumin
• 1 tsp onion powder
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1/4 cup fresh cilantro
• 3 tbsp olive oil

I can’t say I didn’t miss the meat. It was tasty though and I would probably do it again but not as a substitute for a hamburger. Maybe for something more Tex Mex!

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Peanut Butter Cup Caramel Cheesecake Chocolate Cake

When I asked my boyfriend which cake he wanted for his birthday, he chose this Peanut Butter Cup Chocolate Cake Cheesecake. Greaaaat. Anything else? How about a light saber?? Oh, wait; he got one of those too. I read through the recipe several times, I made sure I had everything I needed and bought all my ingredients. I don’t even know how many times Sam and went to the supermarket having forgotten something the previous time. It took three days to make this cake but it was relatively “easy”.

I had lost Sprinkle Bakes’ recipe when I needed it and started to look through Foodgawker hoping to find it again and found this recipe which is based on Sprinkle Bakes’ and linked back to it. Making Life Delicious has used SB’s post as a base but made changes to the individual recipes. This gave me options and I used the cheesecakes and caramel from MLD and kinda went back and forth between both for the rest. At some point, I forgot whose recipe I was using. Thanks to both, it was a great cake. Epic.

This picture is of the cake right out of the freezer - hence the frost. :D

Oh, I had to make the peanut butter “cups”. I have made them before and since they were meant to be cut into quarters I just poured chocolate into a pan, covered with the peanut butter filling and left it at that! If you plan to do the same, just cut them into 2,5cm/1inch squares and use according to the recipe.  

Peanut Butter Cup Caramel Cheesecake Chocolate Cake

For the crustless cheesecake layers:

• 40 peanut butter cups
• 900g/32 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
• 1 3/4 cups sugar
• 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
• 1 tbsp vanilla extract
• pinch of salt
• 3 tablespoons all purpose flour
• 5 large eggs, room temperature

For the caramel sauce:

• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 cup heavy cream
• pinch of salt
• 1/2 tsp vanilla
• 1 1/2 cup salted peanuts

For the chocolate cake layers

• 1 3/4 cup all purpose flour
• 2 cups sugar
• 3/4 cups cocoa powder, unsweetened
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 cup of hot coffee

For the chocolate ganache frosting

• 370g semisweet chocolate
• 1 1/2 cups heavy cream
• 1/2 tbsp corn syrup

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Mini Cheesecake Bites

If you love cheesecake, you will love these little gems. It was a lot easier than I expected. Honestly, I thought it would be a pain in backside but I may say this was easier than making a cheesecake. Also, these are easier to share and tote along. However, I did miss the big bite of filling but if you like crust, the ratio in these little suckers will be perfect. It is basically a smaller version of this cheesecake recipe and I used my silicone mini cupcake tray. For cheesecake, this tray was excellent. No fuss with liners and they came right out; I would say only 2 or 3 out of 24 didn’t come out as easily as the rest. I have seen other posts with liners but I don’t have the patience. If you do then props! They probably look even cuter! 

Mini Cheesecake Bites

For the crust:

• 70g cookie crumbs (I use either Disgestive, petit beurre or speculoos)
• 1-2 tsp sunflower oil (or other light tasting oil)

For the cheesecake:

• 300g cream cheese 
  
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1 large egg (or 1 and a half egg) 
  
• 1/3 cup Greek yogurt (or sour cream)
  
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1tbsp + 1 tsp flour

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Chocolate Quake Cake

Chocolate cake covered with chocolate frosting and then covered with more chocolate cake? I’m in. Yes, please. I will take two servings. Jokes aside, this cake recipe is fab. As I mentioned here, it’s the right kind of chocolatey being decadent yet not too rich. The cake is uber soft, in fact, the cake is so soft that each time I have made this cake at least one of the cake layers has fallen apart. Either there is a trick I am missing, or it’s just that darned fluffeh. The frosting is thick and delicious, which compliments the cake amazingly. Make it for a party and everyone will love you for it!

Chocolate Quake Cake

Makes about 14 servings

For the frosting:

• 2 cups heavy whipping cream
• 62.5g/4 tbsp butter
• 2 cups sugar
• 2 cups unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/4 cup glucose syrup
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

For the cake:

• 250g/1 cup butter
• 2 cups water
• 1 cup vegetable oil, or other light tasting oil
• 4 cups sugar
• 1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 4 cups flour
• 4 large eggs
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 1 tbsp vanilla extract
• 1 tbsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt

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Cherry Almond Cupcakes

Cupcakes - fussier than cake because there are several little cakes to fiddle with. But.. somehow.. more fun. So, when I saw this recipe, I knew it had to be in cupcake form since otherwise I would not be able to easily share it with coworkers, etc. Oh, Sam, my dear little sister, I love when you handle spooning the cupcake batter into the liners. It’s my worst! We get along great in the kitchen. I hadn’t realized we had such great chemistry until I tried to bake with someone else. The only thing is, Sam tends not the read through the entire recipe and sometimes tells it to me incorrectly. We have gotten better at that though; probably because recipes are on my phone due to the lack of internet for our laptops so I read them myself… But still. Great chemistry. Pretty good anyway. When making these cupcakes, Sam was actually shooting the wine photos, which is probably why I got to the end and thought, “what is wrong with this recipe!?” only to realize I had yet to add the eggs which she was able to point out. This was okay though, since they come in last. What would I do without her? 

Cherry Almond Cupcakes

• 1/2 cup unsalted butter
• 1 1/3 cups sugar
• 2 1/4 cups flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tbsp baking powder
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1/2 cup maraschino cherry juice (I used sour cherry juice)
• 2 tsp almond extract
• 2 tbsp flour for sprinkling over diced cherries
• 10 oz. bottle of maraschino cherries
• 4 egg whites, beaten to stiff peaks
• 2 drops pink food coloring (optional)

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National Drink Wine Day

There is a national day for drinking wine… Like I needed an excuse! To top it off, there are no excuses now with my fancy wine aerator which Sam got me for my birthday. According to Wikihow, if you’re drinking a bottle of tannic red wine that is under 8 years old, chances are that letting it breathe, or aerate, will improve its taste. Tannins are the chemicals that make wine astringent; they are what make your mouth pucker and feel dry after taking a sip. In older vintages, tannins break down in the bottle as the wine’s bouquet evolves. In young, full-bodied reds, however, tannins can overwhelm some of a wine’s more delicate flavors. Aerating wine lessens its astringency; as it is exposed to air, a wine’s tannins break down and its bouquet opens up. You can read more about decanting or aerating wine here, or here, even here. 

I’m not the wealthiest of girls, in fact, it’s a hard-knock life, therefore cheap wine is usually what I’ll buy. Not the cartons (not that I would rule them out), just a more economical bottle and having a fast and easy way to decant the wine makes it all the better. Invest in one today! 

New York Cheesecake

We don’t celebrate Valentine’s Day but we don’t not celebrate it.. Like Valentine Agnostics. It’s kinda up in the air, we are going to make this and maybe this in cupcake form… Or this. We have yet to decide. You, on the other hand, should make a New York cheesecake if you have never done so before. 

I was always afraid of making cheesecake; cracking, water baths, leaving it in the oven for hours.. But it was about time to give it a try, so a couple months ago I looked for a New York cheesecake recipe. Foodgawker was where I went to look and chose one based on the picture and this one was the one that grabbed my attention. Crustabakes actually links to The Repressed Pastry Chef and her fool-proof recipe so that’s the one I chose! I didn’t know how accurate “12 graham crackers” was so I used the crust from Joy of Baking for her New York cheesecake. 

I learned a few key points to a successful cheesecake which are that all wet ingredients should be at room temperature, you do not over-mix the batter, have time set aside for it to be left in the oven after baking and time to set in the fridge after that. The results are absolutely worth it; this cheesecake is creamy, smooth and rich without being too sweet.

New York Cheesecake

For the crust:

• 200g cookie crumbs (I use either Disgestive, petit beurre or speculoos)
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 114g melted butter

For the cheesecake:

• 900g cream cheese
  
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 3/4 cup milk
• 4 eggs
  
• 1 cup Greek yogurt (or sour cream)
  
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup flour

Make sure you have a roasting pan bigger than your spring-form pan.

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Mushroom Soup with Noodles and Chicken

You know how most people eat much more than the recommended serving size? Okay, Sam eats half of that. Sam’s stomach is the size of a marble and she doesn’t tend to eat anymore than a handful of food. So, when she ever so charmingly brings me lunch to work, it’s a nice small serving. One that for me is gone in a few bites. Great for my waistline, not so much for my grumbling tummy. Remember the Fetuccini Alfredo we made the other day? As splendid of a meal as it was, we had leftovers because of this. Left overs never go over well in our home, we get tired of the same meal very quickly so it needed a transformation. I’ve been dreaming of mushroom soup for days now so here was Alfredo’s chance to have a makeover. 

Mushroom Soup with Noodles and Chicken

Makes about 2-3 large servings

• 4 tbsp butter
• 1 white onion
• 3-4 cloves garlic
• 750g button mushrooms
• 3/4 cup white wine 
• 2 cups vegetable broth
• Leftover Fetuccini Alfredo or any pasta or noodles (about 2 cups)
• Shredded rotisserie chicken (about 1 cup) optional

Start by cleaning and slicing your mushrooms thinly and dicing the onion and garlic. Set aside. Over medium heat, melt the butter in a large saucepan until it is bubbling and add the onions and garlic. Sauté for about 10 minute until translucent and soft, then deglaze the pan by pouring in the white wine and stirring up all the brown pits in the pan, cook for 5 minutes. Add the mushrooms and allow to cook until they have cooked down and released all their juices, about 10-15 minutes, check to make sure they are tender. 

Using an immersion blender, or in batches in a food processor, blend the soup until thick and creamy. Return to heat, add the fetuccini or other cooked noodles of choice. If you do want to cook the noodles in the mushroom soup, add another cup of vegetable broth or water. Add chicken and simmer for a few minutes to heat through. Serve hot. 

 

Sugar Donuts

Let’s go nuts for donuts! I haven’t had a donut in a long time and I hardly remember their texture. I would like to say these donuts were like American donuts but they tasted like the Greek bakery style; not that I recall the difference, I just think American style are fluffier. These were a little dense though that could be because the dough didn’t rise very much. The recipe doesn’t mention oil temperature so I looked at other recipes who noted the oil should be about 182c/360f which caused my donuts to burn just seconds after hitting the oil. I started over but this time put in a little ball of extra dough and let it sit in the oil over medium-low heat until it began to sizzle. I assumed it was ready to use as the dough turned a golden color. I had Sam then shake them around in some sugar after having drained and cooled a bit on paper towels. Overall the donuts were soft and a little chewy (the good bread kind of chewy), little sugary hugs. :D 

Donuts

• 3 cups flour
• 1/2tsp salt
• 2tbsp sugar
• 1 egg
• 3tbsp butter
• 1tsp vanilla
• 7gr yeast 
• 2tbsp slightly warm water
• 3/4 cup of milk

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Fetuccini Alfredo

Happy Fetuccini Alfredo Day!! I’m not really sure how to celebrate a food holiday but I’m guessing that making the dish and eating it too is a good start. I have heard about Fetuccini Alfredo but never knew what it was. According to Wikipedia, Fettuccine Alfredo is a pasta dish made from fettuccine pasta tossed with Parmesan cheese and butter. As the cheese melts, it emulsifies the liquids to form a smooth and rich coating on the pasta. It was named by an Italian restaurateur at his restaurant Alfredo on the Via della Scrofa in Rome in 1914. Pretty cool. Pretty. Cool. As tempted as I was by other recipes with cream, yogurt, cottage cheese and the works, I kept it original. Enjoy!

Fetuccini Alfredo

Makes about 3 servings

For the fetuccini pasta:

• 2 cups flour
• 3 eggs, room temperature
• 1 pinch of salt
• 1-2 tbsp olive oil

For the Alfredo sauce:

• 3/4 - 1 cup reserved pasta water
• 120g butter
• 120g grated Parmesan cheese

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