Reindeer Food (Luxury Granola) recipe

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Luxury Granola (aka reindeer food)

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups porridge oats

½ cup flaked almonds

1/2 cup desiccated coconut

1 teaspoons cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup maple syrup

3 tablespoons melted butter (margerine)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

3 tablespoons light brown sugar

¼ cup raisins

¼ cup dried cranberries (sweetened)

3/4 cup plain chocolate chips (optional)

Pre-heat the oven to 300F (150 C)

Combine all the ingredients in a large bowl, mix thoroughly and place in a single layer on a non-stick baking try ( if you don’t have non-stick then you will need to grease the baking tray with butter or oil).

Place in the oven for 25 minutes or until golden brown.

Every 5 minutes you will need to open the oven door and stir the granola mixture.

Cool completely and add the raisins, dried cranberries and chocolate.

The granola can be eaten on its own, or with milk for breakfast, sprinkled over yogurt or ice-cream, and of course left out on a dish for Santa’s reindeer on Christmas Eve.

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A little help for those who don't use cups as measurements. Oh and for the record I just use normal everyday teaspoon and tablespoons for measurements, less hassle than attempting to locate the measuring ones. Which I think have migrated to H's toy box.

U.S. to Metric Conversion Table
1/5 teaspoon = 1 ml
1 teaspoon = 5 ml
1 tablespoon = 15 ml
1 fluid oz. = 30 ml
1/5 cup = 50 ml
1/4 cup = 60 ml
1/2 cup = 120 ml
1 cup = 240 ml
2 cups (1 pint) = 470 ml
4 cups (1 quart) = .95 liter
4 quarts (1 gal.) = 3.8 liters

Cooks Notes: later today H and I will be baking this recipe so it will be ready to place in a little dish for Rudolph next to cookies and milk for Santa. Tomorrow we shall have it for breakfast too. It is also a great topping for yogurt or ice cream. Merry Christmas everyone! Sorry I have been such a bad blogger but hopefully with the New Year it will see a return to my craft blogging, some tutorials and bunches of geekery.

Blue Skies Coconut Ice

Blue Skies (coconut ice squares)

Ingredients:

2 cups desiccated coconut

½ cup caster sugar or icing sugar*

¾ cup condensed milk

Blue food colouring

Instructions:

Line a square pan with baking/greaseproof paper.

Mix the sugar, dried coconut, and condensed milk together in a large mixing bowl. The Mixture will be quite stiff once thoroughly mixed.

Add a small amount of blue food colouring to the mixture, mix until you achieve an even colour.**

Press the mixture into the pan gently then top and press with the other mixture.

Place in the fridge to set for 30 minutes then cut into small bars with a sharp knife.

Wrap the coconut ice with waxed or greaseproof paper and store in the fridge in an airtight container.

*I used caster sugar as I didn’t have any icing sugar in the house. I like the gritty texture the sugar adds but Matt says I’m weird.

**I used blue food colouring but If you prefer a more traditional looking coconut ice then divide the mixture in half and add red food colouring to one half of the mix to make it pink. Press the white half of the mixture into the pan before pressing the pink on top.

cook's notes: It's a super simple no cooking/baking recipe that I slapped together after reading through several different variations of recipes. In the end I threw everything together and took notes all the while. I may also have got food colouring all over my hands and on my chin... I'm a total klutz. I think there is a room to add a bit more of this or that to alter the consistency of the coconut ice, it is a sticky mixture but by keeping in the fridge it keeps it from falling apart... and it can be hidden behind the lettuce.

Why blue skies? Ever watch Dollhouse? If not you should, It's a reference to something Echo says as Taffy the thief. Yeah I'm a geek, but you probably knew that already.

Dollhouse

Molasses Rye Bread Recipe

Molasses Rye Bread Recipe

Ingredients:

2 packages dry yeast

1/2 cup warm water

1 tablespoon sugar

1 cup warm water

1/2 cup dark molasses

1 tablespoon salt

2 tablespoons oil

3 cups rye flour

1 1/2 -2 cups bread flour/plain flour

1/2 cup cornmeal (semolina)

Directions:

Soften yeast in 1/2 cup warm water.

Stir in the sugar and let stand until frothy and bubbly.

In large mixing bowl combine the yeast/water with 1 cup warm water with molasses, salt, oil and rye flour. Mix in the plain (bread) flour until the dough is smooth and elastic.

Knead the dough and then let it rise in a covered greased bowl until it’s doubled in size.

Punch the dough down and shape into 2 large round loaves or 6-8 small rolls.

Placed the loaves a few inches apart on a greased and cornmeal dusted cookie sheet. Sprinkle a bit of the cornmeal over the top of the loaves as well.

Let loaves rise in a warm place until doubled.

Bake loaves at 190C (375F) for about 30 minutes (20 minutes for small rolls) The crust will make a hollow sound when tapped lightly.

Serve warm with plenty of butter.

Cook’s notes: my recipe is the combination of a few different recipes from food.com and a clone recipe for Outback Steakhouse’s bread. I would have used the recipes I found exactly but I only had a cup and a half of plain flour to add to the bag of dark rye flour I bought from Caudwell’s mill. I’ve not strayed too far from the recipes other than I used Billington’s natural molasses sugar (a very dark brown sugar as I had no molasses).

I’ve heard that the bread will freeze very well but we ate it all up before there was a chance to freeze it.

Tangerine Sweet Rolls

Tangerine Sweet Rolls

Ingredients:

Rolls:
1 1/4 oz. pckg. Yeast
1 c. warm milk
1/2 c. granulated sugar
1/3 c. melted butter
1 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
4 c. all-purpose flour

Filling:
1/2 cup butter softened
1 cup sugar
2-3 tablespoons tangerine juice

grated tangerine zest

Icing:
7 tbs. butter, softened
1 1/2 cups icing sugar
1/4 cup (2 oz.) cream cheese
1/2 teaspoon tangerine zest

2-3 tablespoons tangerine juice


Directions:

Disolve yeast in milk. Mix in sugar, butter, salt, eggs, flour. Mix well.

Turn dough out onto lightly floured surface. Knead into a large ball (the dough is a very wet dough and very sticky and messy). Cover; let rise 1 hour.

Roll dough into a 21 x 16 wide rectangle.

Mix the filling ingredients together and spread over the dough rectangle. I just use my fingers to spread it generously over the dough.

Carefully roll up the dough. Using very sharp knife cut into 1 inch wide rolls, making sixteen. (If you want fewer, bigger rolls, cut them wider.)

Grease (butter) your preferred baking pan (11x 15 pan.) or use grease-proof baking paper as I did. . Let the rolls rise for at least 30 minutes (they will double in size).

Preheat oven to 400F (205 C)

Bake until the rolls are golden brown. .

Remove the rolls from the oven and let them cool slightly before covering them in icing*.

*Icing: Cream together butter, icing sugar, cream cheese, tangerine zest and juice with an electric mixer. Spread onto the warm rolls. They can be eaten warm but I think they taste better once completely cooled.

Cooks notes: I had been wanting to make some orange sweet rolls since I first had one at the Blackbird Bakery on Bainbridge Island off of Seattle. We visited there again in April and I had another Orange Baby Roll and knew that I would have to bake my own once I was home again and in a baking mood. I used tangerine instead of orange as I knew I wouldn't get any argument from the peanut gallery about them being too zesty. I researched recipes then went with the same dough I use for cinnamon rolls (I like the recipe and I wasn't about to start fiddling about with lard). I zested 5 tangerines and Boy helped squeeze the juice out and drank the few tablespoons left after I used what was needed for the rolls. I Also pressed the rolls down once in the pan so they were more flat to spread out instead of up.

black bean and cheese enchiladas

Ingredients for the Enchilada sauce:

two bell peppers chopped (any colour will do)

1x chilli pepper (red or green)

two cloves garlic (sliced)

1/2 a large onion

3 tablespoons oil

one teaspoon cumin

salt and pepper to taste

1 teaspoon oregano

2 tablespoons flour (to create a roux or use cornstarch to thicken the sauce, or cheat and use onion gravy mix)

2 1/2 tablespoons butter

2 cups water

fresh cilantro(Coriander) about a good handful of washed leaves and stalks

to make the bean and cheese enchiladas you will need:

wraps (I used coriander and garlic flavoured wraps but any will do this is a quick recipe)

a can of black beans (drained)

2 cups grated cheddar cheese

sour cream or creme fraiche

Instructions:

heat the oil a large frying pan. Add the garlic, onion, peppers and chilli and fry until nicely coloured.

In a sauce pan melt the butter and add the flour to create a thick roux. (ignore this step if you are being lazy and using cornstarch or onion gravy mix *ahem* which you will add with the water)

Add the onion, garlic, peppers and chilli to the pot with two cups water, cumin, salt, pepper, and oregano. Bring just to the boil and switch off.

Add the fresh cilantro (coriander) and blend the sauce using a blending wand (stick whatever you call it, or an actual blender).

Set the sauce aside while you prepare the rest of the dish.

Preheat oven at 180c (356F)

Open the package of wraps (tortillas) and place a few spoons of black beans and a few spoons of grated cheese. roll up the wrap and place it in a 9x13 baking dish. Repeat until the dish is full of wraps (I left mine open on the ends but you can wrap them like a small burrito if you prefer.

Pour the sauce evenly over the wraps/enchiladas.

Sprinkle more cheese on top.

Pop the dish in the oven until the cheese is golden brown on top and the sauce is bubbling on the sides.

Serve with a dollop of sour cream.

cook's notes: This is a quick down and dirty recipe. I have made plenty of chicken enchiladas and sauce before so I knew the basics but as it was getting late I decided to mod what I normally do to adapt it for time and laziness. The sauce isn't that spicy as H was eating with us but has just enough bite that we were all happy. Because the sauce was quickly made it tasted very fresh and zesty. If I had had some lime I would have added a few squeezes to the sauce. I know the basics of making a roux but really could not be assed to make it so thickened the sauce with a few spoons of caramelized onion gravy. Everyone loved dinner and there is still half a pan to reheat for lunch today.

sugar cookie dough truffles

Sugar cookie dough truffles

Ingredients:

· 1/2 cup butter, softened

· 3/4 cup caster/white sugar

· 2 cups flour (I used self-raising/all-purpose)

· 1-2 teaspoon vanilla extract

· Sprinkles or edible glitter.

· 1 1/2 cups semi-sweet chocolate, chopped

Directions:

In a medium sized mixing bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.

Add the flour, milk and vanilla. Mix well. You may add coloured sprinkles to the ‘dough’ as I did.

Shape into 1 inch balls by rolling teaspoons of dough in the palm of your hand. Place the dough

balls on waxed paper-lined baking sheets and pop the tray into the freezer for 10 to 15 minutes until firm.

In a microwave safe bowl, melt the chocolate by microwaving it for a few seconds at a time stirring until smooth.

Dip the dough balls into the chocolate; place on waxed paper-lined baking sheets. Sprinkle with edible glitter, sprinkles or more chocolate.

Refrigerate until firm, about 15 minutes.

Cook’s notes: I had intended to make cake batter truffles but when I researched recipes most of them called for readymade cake mix, which I don’t have as I never use the stuff. I then researched cookie dough truffles. Most of the recipes called for condensed milk, which I rarely ever have in the cupboard as Matt has a tendency to eat it all, I ignored this and decided to play with what I did have (the ingredients to bake a cake minus the egg of course). They were fun, very sweet and easy to make, H only ate the ones not tainted by dark chocolate and asked to make them again so I take this as high praise indeed and made sure to scribble down my recipe as such.

Idaho Baked Potato Soup

Idaho Baked Potato Soup

ingredients:

4 large baking potatoes (or 6 medium sized potatoes)

1/3 cup butter

salt and pepper

6 cups milk (I used 1 cup water and 5 cups of milk)

1 onion

1 clove garlic (minced)

1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

1 cup sour(ed) cream

1 cup strong/sharp cheddar cheese

10 slices of (streaky) bacon (cooked and crumbled) optional

green onion

Directions:

Bake the potatoes then let cool completely before scooping out the middle, and roughly chopping all of the potato and half of the potato skin (discard the other half of the potato skins or bake them in the oven topped with cheese).

In a large pan fry the onion and garlic in the butter and balsamic vinegar.

Add 3/4ths potato, chopped potato skin, milk, water, sour cream, cheddar cheese, salt and pepper.

Use a hand/stick blender to blitz up the soup.

Add the remainder of the chopped up potato. Stir gently and bring just to the boil.

Serve hot with a sprinkle of cheese, crumbled bacon (optional) and green onions.

cook's notes: It's a simple soup and there are many ways to prepare it, this is just my simple way. There is no messing about making a roux out of flower when the potato is thick enough. You may need to add more milk or water to the soup as it has a tendency towards the thick side. It's one of my favourite winter warmers... or for freezing cold spring days.

dark chocolate torte

mmmmm

Dark Chocolate Torte

Ingredients:

2 cups extra thick double cream ( whipping cream will work too)

3 tablespoons caster/white sugar

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

2 cups (1lb of chocolate= 455g) of dark chocolate (60-70 % cocoa solids) chopped into chunks.*

5 tablespoons milk

cocoa or icing sugar for decoration (optional)

For the base:

1½ cups of biscuit/cookie crumbs (I used chocolate covered digestives as that's what I had .)
2 tablespoons melted butter

Mix the biscuit/cookie crumbs and the melted butter. Mix well and press firmly into a lightly greased 8-inch spring form pan and place into the refrigerator.

instructions for the filling:

Put the double cream and sugar into a sauce pan over medium heat and bring to the boil.

Remove the pan from the heat and add the butter and chocolate chunks and stir until the chocolate has melted. (you may need to sample the mixture too see if you need to add any more sugar to you taste. or that's the excuse you will need to use)

Let the mixture cool slightly before adding the milk and mixing until smooth.

Pour the mixture over the biscuit/cookie base. Let cool at room temperature for 30 minute before chilling for an hour in the refrigerator.

sparklers optional

Cook's notes: I have no idea what the difference between a torte and a tart are if you want to get persnickety. I just know the recipe works for me, it's simple and tastes good and I have been making it for years. Matthew requested it for his birthday the other week so that's what I made. It makes a very rich slice of chocolate heaven so suggest you slice it in small pieces and hoard the rest away in the fridge.

served with a dollop of lightly whipped cream

* the chocolate is more or less two cups worth as it depends on who is stealing..er helping make the torte by tasting the chocolate. Very important to taste the chocolate.

geeky browncoat card I made for Matt's Birthday.

I love Wash... don't tell Matt!

popovers recipe

Ingredients:

1 cup flour

1 cup milk

2 large eggs

1/4 teaspoon salt

butter to grease the muffin tin

Directions:

1. In a medium sized bowl or jug mix together flour, milk, eggs, salt. Mix well, the batter may be slightly lumpy. Let the batter rest for about 30 minutes before you continue.

2. grease 6 cups of a muffin tin (or popover tin if you are lucky enough to own one.)

3. pour the batter into the muffin tins filling them three-quarters full.

4. place the tin into a cold oven.

5. Set the oven temperature to 200C (450F) bake for 20-30 minutes until browned and crusty. Do not open the oven until cooking time is finished.

6. Remove the popovers from the oven and transfer them to a cooling rack. Pierce each popover with a knife to vent steam and serve immediately with butter, jam, syrup and fresh fruit.

cook's notes: I had been wanting to make these for awhile but never got around to it until this morning. Muffins are my usual go to freshly baked breakfast but the popovers were easy to make and everyone enjoyed them. Matt and I had butter and raspberry jam on ours and Harrison covered his popovers with maple syrup. I would have liked to have served them with some fresh berries and bananas but the shopping wont be done until tomorrow. I read through many different recipes on Food.com and Martha Stewart's Perfect Popovers, then as per my usual style I winged it and went with the simplest easiest way.

I best go get some housework, writing and typing done. But first I must share with you a picture I took on the way into Derby this morning. A very creepy skip lorry... I'm convinced it's Reavers. (sorry couldn't not have this little Firefly reference)

there are gorram Reavers in Derbyshire.

I am such a geek.

basic muffin recipe

basic muffins (these have cherries* in them)

ingredients:

• 2 cups plain flour
• ½ cup melted butter (unsalted/sweetcream)
• 1 cup milk (any)
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

• 1 cup sugar

• 1 cup fruit or chocolate

• 1-2 teaspoons vanilla

Directions:
add flour, butter, sugar, eggs, vanilla, salt, baking powder to a mid sized bowl and mix well. It's as easy as that.

add your choice of fruit/chocolate/butterscotch chips and fold in gently.

spoon into muffin pans between 1/2 - 3/4 full .

Bake in preheated 375F (180C) oven 15-20 minutes until golden brown.

* the cherries were from a jar of cocktail cherries that I chopped up. I seem to be short on fruit other than the green bananas in the bowl and the apples that Harrison has claimed as his and his alone.

cook's notes: This is the basic recipe I use for nearly all my sweet muffins... to make savoury you leave out the vanilla and all but 2 tablespoons sugar. I've written up this recipe for a twitter baking challenge. So if you are looking for it on twitter look for the hash tag #michelebakes . Any questions please leave a comment here or on twitter and I will get back to you.

Sour Cream Cherry Cake

Sour Cream Cherry Cake

Ingredients:

2 cups self raising flour

1 ¼ cups caster sugar

1 cup sour cream ( soured cream if you are in the UK)

2 tsp vanilla

2 large eggs

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup cherries (pitted and sliced in half)

Directions:

mix the dried ingredients in a bowl.

In a separate bowl mix the sour cream vanilla and eggs. Add the dry ingredients to the wet and mix thoroughly .

fold in the cherries.

spook the mix into a cake pan (grease and flour if needed. I used a non-stick pan)

bake for 40 - 50 min at 350 F (180 C )

cook's notes: the cake turned out great for being a lazy stir in sort of cake... by lazy I mean that it was cold out and I was out of butter and I have made muffins before with yogurt/sour cream so I googled around to find some recipes to read through then did my own thing. I do that rather a lot. Everyone enjoyed the cake so it worked out great... but I'm really going to have to do the shopping today. The cherries did sink but that didn't bother me or anyone else that had a slice. :o)

I best go get some house cleaning done before lunch and cooking Thanksgiving dinner... its a chicken this year as it was lurking in the freezer as we are having a low key holiday season this year... its been a long year and everyone needs a break.

Coconut and Almond Bark

Coconut and Almond Bark

Ingredients:

2x bars dark chocolate (150g bars )

1 cup almonds (toasted)

1 1/2 cups dessicated coconut

2 tablespoons light brown sugar

1 teaspoon butter (or marg)

Directions:

line a baking sheet with parchment/baking paper

1. melt the chocolate, sugar and butter over a low heat.

2. add the almonds and 1 cup of coconut to the melted chocolate and stir gently.

3. Pour the mixture onto the baking paper lined cookie sheet and spread evenly with a spatula.

4. Sprinkle the remaining 1/2 cup of coconut over the cooling mixture.

5. Refrigerate the bark for 1-2 hours or until set then cut into squares or break gently.

cook's notes: While we were in the states Harrison was introduced to Almond Joy bars ( a Bounty bar with almonds for those in the UK ) he was addicted. So yesterday I got it in my head to make some coconut candy and add almonds to them... but that was more work than I had time for so I decided to make bark instead which I suppose is basically a thinner version of rocky road and all I needed to do was melt the chocolate and stir everything up. Easy peasy. There is a little bit of the bark left hidden behind some vegetables in the fridge all the rest has been nibbled up, so that must mean its good stuff no? I think so anyway. I may tinker with the recipe a bit when I make it next time to perfect it... it doesn't really need the sugar and butter but the cocolate was very dark and that would have lead to rebellion...although I would have been happy.

Eye of Bat Flapjack

Eye of Bat Flapjack
(maple pecan flapjack/granola bars)

2 cups porridge oats
3 tablespoons demerara sugar
3 tablespoons maple syrup
1/2 cup butter
pinch of salt
1 cup pecans ( or any nut)
glace cherries (for the bat's eyes)

set the oven to 180°C/350°F/Gas Mark 4

I made a little bat tag for them as they were a gift

instructions:

Very lightly grease a muffin pan (unless you have silicone..tins not tits..minds out of the gutter people).
Put the butter, maple syrup and sugar into a medium sized saucepan and melt together over a very low heat, stirring with a wooden spoon. Do not let the mixture boil.

Take the pan off the heat and stir in the oats, salt, and pecans.

Spoon the mixture into the muffin tin and press down with the back of a spoon or a small glass jar.

Place half a glace/candied cherry on top of the flapjacks.

Bake in the centre of the oven for 12- 20 minutes until golden brown.

Remove the tin from the oven and allow to cool for 15 minutes. leave in the tin until completely cool before carefully removing from the tin with a butter knife...if you do not wait it will fall apart and you will have to sprinkle it over some ice cream insteal.

cook's notes: a couple of them crumbled to bits as I tried to take them out of the oven too soon but the rest held together once cooled and everyone happily nibbled on them and there are only a few left in a much smaller jar.

Cheddar and Ham Muffin Recipe

Cheddar and Ham Muffins

Ingredients:
• 1 cup grated cheddar cheese
• ¼ cup finely grated parmesan cheese
• 2 cups plain flour
• ½ cup melted butter
• 1 cup crème fraiche *
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• Black Pepper to taste
• 3/4 cup ham, chopped fine
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano

Directions:
Mix dry ingredients together.

Add crème fraiche, butter, eggs and mix.

Add the grated cheese and chopped ham.

Mix well and spoon into muffin pans 1/2 full.

Bake in preheated 400F (180C) oven 15-20 minutes until golden brown.

*Alternatively use plain yogurt or sour cream or ¾ cup milk.

Cook’s note: there are a number of different recipes for ham and cheese muffins out there, I read quite a few then winged it to create this recipe, they turned out great but I will probably tinker with the recipe a bit more the next time I make them, perhaps adding bacon instead of ham, or including some sautéed onion for a richer flavour. My taste testers Matt and Harrison loved it, oh and so did Frizbe too! I used the crème fraiche because that’s what I had on hand that needed using up, I also used thinly sliced sandwich style ham for the same reason though a thicker cut would probably work better.

Sweet Vanilla Popcorn

Sweet Vanilla Popcorn (Rainbow Popcorn)

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup milk
• 2 cup white/caster sugar
• 1-2 teaspoon vanilla extract/flavouring
• ½ cup popcorn kernels (or 8 cups popped popcorn)
• 2-3 tablespoons vegetable oil (for popping)
• food colouring

Directions

Coat the bottom of a large pan (one that has a lid) with a few tablespoons vegetable oil.

Add 1/2 cup popcorn kernels.

Cover pan.

Turn stovetop burner to medium or medium-high heat.

Let kernels cook, shaking occasionally to prevent burning.

When the popping slows to 3 to 5 seconds between pops, remove pan from burner.

Allow to cool a minute or two.

Pour popcorn into a bowl.

pinkish red popcorn

For the Vanilla Syrup

Mix milk and sugar in a sauce pan and on medium heat bring to a boil.

Careful not to let it burn and do not scrape the sides of the pan or the sugar will crystallize.

Add vanilla extract (or any other flavouring) and your choice of food colouring (we used blue and red as I got vetoed on the black food colouring *sulk* I have two bottles of the crap to use up) and mix well.

Place the popcorn in a large bowl then pour the hot liquid over it and coat as evenly as you can, you can put as much or as little syrup over the popcorn as you like.

Spread baking paper to dry. You can place the baking paper onto baking trays and place in a low oven (200°F or 100°Cfor 10-15 minutes to help dry out (harden) the popcorn.

vaguely teal-ish blue popcorn

cook’s notes: the recipe has been lurking in my big blue folder of random recipes that hides behind the bowls in the cupboard, I have no idea where I wrote it down from but my guess is that there will be hundreds of diffrent versions on the interwebs to play with. It was fun to make though I don’t think I used half the syrup that the recipe makes, so next time I think I will halve the amount of syrup and see how that goes. H picked the colours red and blue, though I was rather low on blue food colouring so it came out a rather nice shade of teal, and the red is more a very dark pink than a true red. It tasted lovely with the vanilla, and H and his little friend J thought it was great fun to help make, and more fun to eat of course.

today's post was brought to you by the letter P

P for popcorn

p for popcorn on my carped

and p for being p'd off at blogger messing about while I try to blog this.

Tiramisu (the cheat's recipe)

Tiramisu

ingredients:
1 tub Mascarpone cheese (or 1 1/2 packages cream cheese)
1 package lady fingers (trifle sponges ect)
½ cup caster (white ) sugar (or confectioners powdered sugar)
2 tablespoons Tia Maria (brandy or coffee liqueur)
3 tablespoons cream
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 shots espresso (or roughly ½ cup very strong instant coffee)
Dark chocolate for grating (or you can use cocoa powder)

6 small glass ramekins for individual servings

First make the coffee and let it cool in a small bowl. Add the Tia Maria (or other liqueur) when cool .

Open the package of sponges and tear them up into pieces to line the bottom of the ramekin dishes. Drizzle the cake with the coffee and liqueur mixture and set aside.

In a medium bowl beat the cream, mascarpone cheese (cream cheese), vanilla and sugar.

Spoon the mascarpone mixture over the drizzled cake. Smooth over the top and then grate the dark chocolate over to top. Refrigerate until serving.

For a fluffier cheese mixture, use ½ cup whipping cream, beat it in the bowl until whipped and fold in the mascarpone and sugar mixture.

Cook’s notes: I have made this several times and each time I have varied the amounts of coffee and alcohol to taste. it’s a very quick and simple recipe without having to mess around with eggs. This recipe took roughly ten minutes to make.

Many tiramisu recipes ask you to dip the cake fingers into the bowl of coffee mixture, I find this unnecessary, messy and more work than you really need to do (plus I'm lazy). Its easier to just drizzle the mixture over the cake until you have as much as you desire in the individual ramekin dishes. Even Harrison liked the tiramisu, and scoffed his own little ramekin’s worth (I did put less of the coffee and liquor mixture in his so don't worry).

I'm re-blogging this recipe as a dear friend of mine used my recipe for a dinner party and said that everyone raved about it and not a speck of tiramisu was left. :o) I think I may need to make this tomorrow...purely for medicinal reasons. Right? You believe me don't you?

Strawberry and Lime Mini Cheesecakes Recipe

Strawberry and Lime Mini Cheesecakes
a Cinco De Mayo inspired recipe

Ingredients:

2 pkg. (8 oz. each) Cream Cheese, softened
1 pkg. mascarpone cheese
1/2 cup caster/white sugar
1 tsp. grated lemon zest (2 limes)
juice of 2 limes
1 cup sliced and hulled strawberries
1-2 tablespoons of caster/white sugar

for the base:
12 biscuits (makes roughly 1½ cups crumbs)
2 tablespoons melted butter
1 tablespoon caster/white sugar
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon (optional)

6 glass ramekin dishes.

Crush the biscuits and add the melted butter and cinnamon (optional). Mix well and press firmly into the ramekin dishes (alternatively for a larger cheesecake us an 8-inch pie pan). Pat down using the back of a tablespoon. Place in fridge for 30mins to set.

While base is setting. Mix together cream cheese, mascarpone, lime zest, lime juice (I normally put the lime juice in to taste roughly about 2 limes worth but if you would prefer a zestier cheesecake add 1 more) sugar, using a wooden spoon or electric mixer. Pour the cheese mixture over the base and spread evenly. Put cheesecakes in the fridge for at least 1 hour to set, (if making a large cheesecake it will need at least 4 hours to set, preferably overnight).

While the cheesecakes are setting, slice the strawberries and sprinkle with a generous amount of sugar (1 to 2 tablespoons). Just before serving spoon the sliced strawberries and juice over the mini cheesecakes.

cook's notes: I have made these cheesecakes many times and they are always dissapear quickly... I will be making them again next week for Cinco De Mayo to go along with burritos, nachos, and possibly some cinnamon tortilla crisps too.