Creme Brulee Cheesecake

I love all things Creme Brulee. I mean who doesn't love that crispy brown topping? The cracking sound it makes when your spoon taps it slightly to unveil the yellow creaminess underneath?! It is heaven on earth in terms of desserts in my book. The topping's you can place on it are endless, the flavors you can create are mouth watering. It is simply just divine. 

I was recently browsing pinterest one evening and I stumbled across this recipe for creme brulee cheescake bars (www.cookingclassy.com). One can only guess that my next move was to see if we had all the ingredients. Well as it turns out (because of our big upcoming move) I did not, so I was off to the store to gather what I would need to make this amazing treat.

Crust
• 1 1/4 cups finely crushed graham cracker crumbs (from 9 sheets)
• 2 Tbsp granulated sugar
• 6 Tbsp butter, melted (preferably salted)
Cheesecake filling
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1 1/2 Tbsp all-purpose flour
• 2 (8 oz) pkgs cream cheese, softened
• 3 large eggs
• 3 Tbsp heavy cream
• 3 Tbsp sour cream
• 1 tsp vanilla extract 

For the brulee topping, sprinkle sugar to your liking and torch it.

Directions

• For the crust:
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Generously butter an 8 by 8-inch baking dish. In a mixing bowl, whisk together graham cracker crumbs and sugar. Pour in butter and use a fork to mix until evenly moistened. Press mixture into an even layer in prepared baking dish and bake in preheated oven for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool while preparing filling. Reduce oven temperature to 325 degrees.
• For the filling:
• In a mixing bowl, whisk together 3/4 cup granulated sugar with the flour. Add cream cheese to mixing bowl and using an electric hand mixer set on low speed, blend together cream cheese and granulated sugar mixture just until smooth, about 1 minute. Add in eggs one at a time and mix just until combined after each addition. Add heavy cream, sour cream and vanilla and blend just until combined. Tap bowl forcefully against countertop about 30 times to release air bubbles. Butter the side of the baking dish and pour filling over crust. Set the 8 by 8-inch baking dish into a 13 by 9-inch baking dish (a roasting pan would be fine too) and pour about 3 cups of hot water into the 13 by 9-inch baking dish (or enough water to make the water level reach halfway up the sides of the 8 by 8-inch dish. You are only pouring the water into the pan without the cheesecake in it, simply to create a water bath which will help the cheesecake cook more evenly and reduce the possibility of cracking). Bake in preheated oven until cheesecake is fairly jiggly, about 42 - 45 minutes, then turn oven off and allow cheesecake to rest in warm oven with door closed about 10 minutes longer or until center only slightly jiggles. Remove from oven and allow to cool on a wire rack at room temperature 1 hour, then cover and chill 4 hours.
• For the topping:
• Cut bars into squares. Sprinkle each square with an even layer of sugar and melt sugar with a culinary torch (it will melt into beads then bubble, then caramelize and turn to a smooth surface). Allow topping to cool then pipe or spoon a small dollop of whipped cream over top, then add a raspberry and garnish with mint (garnish just before serving and melt sugar within several hours of serving for best results). Store in refrigerator in an airtight container. 

This turned out divine! If you are going to be serving this for guests I suggest pairing it with one of two options. One being a sparkling wine, I prefer Cass Brut Sparkling Grenache Noir from Paso Robles, CA. Option two being a dessert wine, I am partial with this to Opolo Vineyards Late Harvest Zinfandel also from Paso Robles, CA.

Cinnamon Rolls

Who can resist a hot, fresh from the oven cinnamon roll? I know it is one of the few things that I cannot resist eating especially if they are home made. Ever since I can remember my mother used to make cinnamon rolls for Christmas morning. However these were the out of the foil rolled tin and make by Pillsbury! My Mom was not the baker in the family, we are still trying to figure out where I got the talent from. My family has continued the tradition however we make them from scratch! I hope you enjoy these as much as we do. I highly suggest pairing them with a great mimosa!

Whenever you are baking you want to make sure that all your ingredients are at room temperature, this allows for the ingredients to come together much easier.

Sweet Roll Dough

2 1/4 tsp active dry yeast
3 TBS butter
1/2 cup sugar
3 1/2 cups flour
1 cup hot water
1 egg beaten
1/2 TBS salt

1 cup softened butter
1 cup brown sugar
3 tsp cinnamon

Combine your yeast, water and a sprinkling of sugar in your mixer. Allow to stand for 10 minutes until it begins to foam. Add the flour, salt, sugar, and egg into the mixer and mix on low speed until all the ingredients are combined. Turn the speed up and allow to mix until the bowl is clean. Allow to proof until the dough has doubled in size.

Roll the dough into a rectangle and spread the butter evenly throughout the dough. Sprinkle the dough with the cinnamon and sugar making sure to leave a one inch space at the top of your dough as your seam. Once everything is spread evenly begin to roll your dough up, make sure to pinch your seam closed and place seam side down before slicing your cinnamon roll log. Using a bench knife or a very sharp chef's knife slice your cinnamon rolls into 1 1/2 inch sections. Place on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet, be sure there is an inch space between to allow for room to rise.

Let your rolls rise until double in size. At this point you can prepare your frosting.

1/2 stick unsalted butter
1-2 cups powdered sugar
2-4 TBS milk

Whisk together until desired texture is reached.

Bake your cinnamon rolls at 400 for 15-18 minutes. Always start your time on the lower end as you can always add time to baking but you cannot take time back.

Crispy Chicken Fingers

These chicken fingers are the perfect finger food for a party or a weeknight kid friendly dinner. If you are hosting a party I would suggest making a few different dipping sauces for your guests to enjoy. I suggest pairing these with a crisp white wine such as a Viognier or a Sauvignon Blanc. The crispness from these wines pairs nicely with the different dipping sauces.

Recipe:

2 large chicken breasts cut into strips about 2 inches in length
3 large eggs
1/4 cup milk
1 cup Italian bread crumbs
1 1/2 cups panko crumbs
1 cup flour
Coconut oil, Olive oil for frying (enough to fill the pan one inch up the side)

Dipping Sauce:
Honey Mustard

3 TBS Mayonaise
1 tsp yellow mustard
1/4 tsp crushed garlic
2 tsp honey
lemon juice to taste
horseradish to taste

In a large skillet combine frying oils and turn heat on medium. Combine bread crumbs and panko crumbs together and mix well. Beat eggs and milk together in separate bowl and place flour in its own bowl.
Toss the chicken pieces in the flour until they are well coated. Next move them to the egg mixture and coat well. Toss 5-6 pieces at a time into the crumbs and coat well. Place them on a plate ready to fry. Continue this whole process until all your chicken is coated. Place 6-8 pieces in the oil at a time for a minute or so on each side until the are a nice golden brown. Make sure to allow the oil to have a minute to come back to temperature before placing your next batch of chicken in the oil. This will ensure even cooking and browning on all your pieces.
While your chicken is cooking mix your dipping sauce ingredients together and allow to chill in the fridge until you are done.

Once you are finished enjoy your chicken with a fabulous glass of wine!

Eggs Benedict

Good Morning! During my time managing a bed and breakfast in Paso Robles I was introduced to this amazing creation called Eggs Benedict. Now as a foodie one would think that I had tried this mouth watering recipe before. However I had never had it! I quickly became obsessed with eating this and trying all kinds of different variations.A traditional Eggs Benedict is very simple, it consists of an english muffin (slightly toasted), canadian bacon, a poached egg and hollandaise sauce. You can add everything from sauteed spinach and mushrooms (Opolo style as I like to call it) to real bacon or tomatoes and fresh basil. The picture below has just steamed spinach as an addition. Feel free to try new variations and let us know what your favorite is! Recipe: Makes two servings 2 English Muffins slightly toasted 4 Poached eggs 4 Slices of Canadian Bacon grilled 2 Handfuls of fresh spinach 1 Cup sliced mushrooms 4 Eggs yolks 1 Pinch of salt 1 Pinch of Cayenne pepper (to taste a little goes a long way, it can get spicey) 1/2 Lemon juiced (again to taste the more lemon the more tart your sauce) 3 TBS Butter melted 2 TBS+/- of boiling water 1. Begin by poaching your eggs, I have an egg poacher that I use and enjoy because the eggs come out in a perfect circle to fit on your english muffin. 2. While your eggs are cooking, grill your canadian bacon, saute your spinach and mushrooms and get a double boiler going. 3. For your double boiler you are going to want to use a metal mixing bowl on top of the water to create your sauce. Before placing the bowl on top of the boiling water you will want to mix the yolk, the lemon juice,butter, salt and pepper and whisk it together. 4. Place your english muffins in the toaster. 5. Place metal mixing bowl on top of the boiling water and whisk constantly. If you stop the yolks will cook and you will end up with scrambles instead of sauce. Whisk until the sauce begins to thicken. As soon as it starts to thicken add a TBS of the boiling water and whisk together, add one more TBS of the boiling water until it becomes a sauce and the consistency that you desire. The more water the runnier your sauce will be. 6. Place your english muffins side by side, then top with canadian bacon, spinach and mushrooms, place your egg one on each one, and then top with your sauce. Sprinkle with a tiny bit of the cayenne pepper and serve!