Intense Chocolate Cheesecake

 Chloe's choice of cake for her birthday- cheesecake

Baker By Nature

For the Crust:

• 1 and 1/2 cups (24 chocolate cookies) like oreos
• 1/4 cup (57g/2 ounces) unsalted butter, melted

For the Ultimate Chocolate Cheesecake:

• 2 cups (340g/12 ounces) bittersweet dark chocolate chips (A)
• 1 and 1/2 pounds (680g/24 ounces) full-fat cream cheese, at room temperature
• 1 cup (198g/7 ounces) granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup (53g/1 and 7/8 ounces) light brown sugar, packed
• 3 Tablespoons unsweetened natural cocoa powder
• 4 large eggs plus 2 egg yolks, at room temperature
• 3/4 cup (170g/6 ounces) heavy cream, at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the Chocolate Ganache:

• 1 and 1/3 cups (226g/8 ounces) semi-sweet chocolate, finely chopped
• 1 and 1/4 cups (12 ounces) heavy cream
• 1/4 cup (57g/2 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature, cut into cubes

Instructions

 

For the Crust:

• Preheat oven to 325°F (163°C). Grease the bottom and sides of a 9-inch springform pan. Wrap the outside of the pan in layers of heavy duty aluminum foil. You’ll be placing this pan in a water bath, so be sure the pan has been wrapped from every angle.
• In a medium mixing bowl, combine the chocolate wafer crumbs and melted butter. Pat the mixture firmly into the bottom of the prepared pan. Bake the crust for 10 minutes. Set the pan on a wire rack and cool the crust completely. Leave the oven on.

  For the Ultimate Chocolate Cheesecake:

  • Fill a medium pot one-third full with water and bring it to a low simmer over medium heat.
  • Place a heatproof bowl that will fit on top of the pan snugly, but will not touch the simmering water, on top of the pan. Reduce the heat to low and add the chopped chocolate into the bowl over the pot. Heat until the chocolate is completely melted, stirring occasionally with a silicon spatula. Remove the pot from the heat, leaving the bowl of chocolate over the hot water. Set aside until needed.
  • In the bowl of a food processor (or high-powered blender), pulse the cream cheese until completely smooth, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed, about 2 minutes. Add in both sugars and cocoa powder and beat smooth. Add in the eggs, egg yolks, and heavy cream and mix until just combined, about 20 seconds. Fold in the chocolate. Finally add in the vanilla and pulse for another 20 seconds.
  • Remove the bowl from the food processor and, using a rubber spatula, stir the filling several times to ensure it’s evenly blended.
  • Scrape the filling over the partially baked crust in the prepared pan.
  • (B) Place the springform pan in a roasting pan or large baking pan. Place the roasting pan in the preheated oven and pour enough hot water into the pan to come 1-inch up the sides of the springform pan.
  • Bake the cheesecake in the water bath for 1 hour and 30-40 minutes, or until the center of the cake is set but still slightly jiggly. The cake will set completely as it cools.
  • Remove the cake from the water bath and  place the pan on a wire rack. Carefully loosen the foil, then immediately run the tip of a knife around the sides of the pan, to prevent the top from cracking. Cool completely (in the pan), then transfer cheesecake to the refrigerator to chill for at least 6 hours before removing from the pan and slicing. 

  For the Chocolate Ganache:

  • Add chopped chocolate to a medium bowl; set aside.
  • In a small saucepan over medium-heat, bring the cream to a low simmer. Pour half of the cream on top of the chocolate pieces and set aside for 1 minute. With a whisk, begin to incorporate the melted chocolate into the cream. Slowly add the remaining cream and continue carefully whisking until smooth and glossy.
  • Add in the butter and use a spatula to stir until the butter is completely melted. The mixture will be dark and glossy. Set aside, at room temperature, until needed.
  • Pour ganache over cooled cheesecake. Set aside until ganache is set, about 1 hour.
  • To serve, slice the cheesecake with a thin-bladed sharp knife, wiping the knife clean between each cut.
  • Store, loosely covered, in the refrigerator, for up to 5 days. 

  (A) I used one 10oz bag of dark chocolate chips. I turned on the stove to cook the cookie crumb crust and I put the new bag of chocolate chips right where the oven emits heat so the oven would melt the chocolate chips so I wouldnt need to do a double boiler or melt the chocolate chips in the mirco.

(B) I did wrap the cheesecake springform pan with a crockpot plastic liner so the cheesecake wouldn't get wet by the water bath. it worked out perfect

Chloe's Chicken Alfredo

Homemade Alfredo Sauce

1/2 Cup Butter
 1/2 Cups Heavy Whipping Cream
2 Teaspoons Garlic Minced (2garlic cloves)
1/2 Teaspoon Italian Seasoning
1/2 Teaspoon Salt
1/4 Teaspoon Pepper
2 Cups  Parmesan Cheese

Instructions 

• Add the butter and cream to a large skillet.
• Simmer over low heat for 2 minutes.
• Whisk in the garlic, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper for one minute.
• Whisk in the parmesan cheese until melted.
• Serve immediately.

Creamy Chicken Casserole- chloe chose to serve the sauce and pasta separate

1 (6 oz.) package fresh baby spinach, chopped

⅓ cup refrigerated pesto sauce

1 (15 oz.) jar Alfredo sauce (the homemade recipe above)

¼ cup chicken broth

16 ounces uncooked penne pasta, cooked according to package directions

2 ½ cups chopped rotisserie chicken

4 ounces pre-shredded low-moisture part-skim mozzarella cheese (about 1 cup)

2 tablespoons thinly sliced fresh basil

¼ teaspoon paprika

Directions

Preheat oven to 375°F. Toss together spinach and pesto in a medium bowl.
Stir together Alfredo sauce and chicken broth in another bowl. Spread one-third of Alfredo mixture (about ½ cup) into a lightly greased 11- x 7-inch baking dish. Top with half of spinach mixture.
Stir together cooked pasta, chicken, and remaining Alfredo mixture; spoon half of chicken mixture over spinach mixture. Repeat layers once with remaining spinach mixture and chicken mixture.
Bake in preheated oven 30 minutes. Remove from oven, and sprinkle with cheese. Return to oven, and bake until hot and bubbly, about 5 minutes. Top with basil and paprika.

Served with Brussel Sprouts

2 lb Bag of brussel sprouts (cut each in half)

salt, pepper, olive oil, garlic powder or minced garlic

450 degrees 20 min

Chloe makes dinner

 Chloe made chicken salad without the onions

Sugar Spun Run

Chloe's Waffles

 All Recipes

Chloe's Cheescake

 Sugar Spun Run

I made and cooked this  recipe on a sunday and had it sit in the fridge till chloe's bday on a Wednesday.

Graham Cracker Crust¹

• ▢1 ½ cups graham cracker crumbs (170g)
• ▢2 Tablespoons sugar
• ▢1 Tablespoon brown sugar (can substitute white)
• ▢7 Tablespoons butter melted

Cheesecake

• ▢32 oz cream cheese² (4pkgs) softened to room temperature (910g)
• ▢1 cup sugar (200g)
• ▢⅔ cups sour cream (160g)
• ▢1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
• ▢⅛ teaspoon salt
• ▢4 large eggs room temperature, lightly beaten

Recommended Equipment

• ▢
  9" Springform pan
• ▢
  Mixing bowls
• Amy's thoughts........... (I did end up putting the Springform pan in an oven proof crockpot bag and then i put the springform pan
• in a 9x13 pan full of water. Looks like is wasn't necessary, but my friend Dayna strongly recommeded it.  The cheesecake took forever to cook. It said cook 75 min, but I'm sure I cooked it for at least 1 and 1/2 hours, possibly close to 2 hours. It kept being so jiggily. Finally I looked up another opinion and one chef said with a thermometer check the internal temperature it should be 150 degrees. B/c I cooked it so long the whole top was golden brown, Id rather have golden brown color than food poisioning. It turned out suprisingly super duper delicious. I definitely will use this recipe again.)
• Next time I want to get 10 or so strips of aluminum foil and  place them in the springform pan first  (to help the whole cheesecake come out easily when its all done and cooked)
• I Used a 8'' springform pan b/c thats all i had available to use and i filled the cheesecake to the brim top and I poured the leftover batter into a glass measuring cup and let it cook and we ate that too.)

• Instructions

• Preheat oven to 325F (160C).
• Prepare Graham Cracker crust first by combining graham cracker crumbs, sugar, and brown sugar, and stirring well. Add melted butter and use a fork to combine ingredients well.
• Pour crumbs into a 9” Springform pan and press firmly into the bottom and up the sides of your pan. Set aside.

Cheesecake

• In the bowl of a stand mixer or in a large bowl (using a hand mixer) add cream cheese and stir until smooth and creamy (don’t over-beat or you’ll incorporate too much air).
• Add sugar and stir again until creamy.
• Add sour cream, vanilla extract, and salt, and stir until well-combined. If using a stand mixer, make sure you pause periodically to scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl with a spatula so that all ingredients are evenly incorporated.
• With mixer on low speed, gradually add lightly beaten eggs, one at a time, stirring just until each egg is just incorporated. Once all eggs have been added, use a spatula to scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl again and make sure all ingredients are well combined.
• Pour cheesecake batter into prepared springform pan. To insure against leaks, place pan on a cookie sheet that’s been lined with foil.
• Transfer to the center rack of your oven and bake on 325F (160C) for about 75 minutes. Edges will likely have slightly puffed and may have just begun to turn a light golden brown and the center should spring back to the touch but will still be Jello-jiggly. Don't over-bake or the texture will suffer, which means we all suffer.
• Remove from oven and allow to cool on top of the oven³ for 10 minutes. Once 10 minutes has passed, use a knife to gently loosen the crust from the inside of the springform pan (this will help prevent cracks as your cheesecake cools and shrinks). Do not remove the ring of the springform pan.
• Allow cheesecake to cool another 1-2 hours or until near room temperature before transferring to refrigerator and allowing to cool overnight or at least 6 hours. I remove the ring of the springform pan just before serving then return it to the pan to store. Enjoy!

Halloween dinner

 Buy orange dyed Pumpkin soup bowls from Lee's

Make a soup

Make Cake Mix spice Cupcakes and decorate with icing and sprinkles and candy

Icing- white, purple, black, orange, green, yellow, white, red

Buy candy bones, candy eyes eyes

Mummies 

20 portions

DBL-      Original recipe- 12 portions-

4.5 t      2 1/4 teaspoon dry active yeast
2c         1 cup warm water
4T         2 tablespoon granulated sugar
4T         2 tablespoon oil (I used olive oil)
4-6c       2  1/2 – 3 cups all-purpose flour
4t           2 teaspoon salt

12 hot dogs
1 egg
1 tablespoon milk

1. In the bowl with a whisk, combine yeast, sugar, and warm water.  When the yeast becomes foamy, add  oil, 2-4 cups of the flour, and salt.  mix until combined.  Knead  for about 7 minutes, stopping to add flour (up to one cup more).  The dough should stick to the bottom of the bowl but not to the sides.  It should be slightly sticky with no visible flour.
2. Remove the dough from the bowl, oil the bowl, and place the dough back into the bowl.  Cover and let rise for one hour or until doubled in size.
3. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  Punch the dough down and roll into a log.  Cut the dough into 12 equal portions.  Roll each portion into eight-inch pieces, and twist around the hot dogs.  Place them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
4. To make the egg wash, whisk one egg with one tablespoon of milk.  Brush the top of each dough wrapped hot dog, and sprinkle with sesame seeds.
5. Bake at 400 degrees for about 15 minutes, or until golden brown.

9/24/24 one time i added 2 c of dry regular oats to the blender and added that to the roll mixture, then added 3-4 c of white flour.