Monday, June 25, 2012

Cheesecake


Hi WEEC Listeners,


This is the cheesecake recipe I mentioned in today's 'Confectionately Yours' Segment.  


This is the recipe in my cookbook, Baking A Memory .  
Of course, I change the toppings to whatever I feel is appropriate for the season.  Feel free to top with fresh strawberries, peaches, kiwi, canned pie filling, etc.



CHERRY CHEESECAKE

Graham cracker crust
1-3/4 c. graham cracker crumbs 
1 T. brown sugar
6 T. butter, melted 
1 tsp. cinnamon
Melt butter and mix graham cracker crumbs, brown sugar, and cinnamon. Press into a 9" springform pan.


Cheesecake filling
3 (8-oz.) pkg. cream cheese, softened to room temp
1 c. sour cream
4 eggs
1 c. sugar 
3 tsp. vanilla
1 T. cornstarch 
1 can cherry pie filling


Beat cream cheese until smooth. Add sugar and beat, scrape down sides and beat again. Beat in sour cream, and cornstarch. 


Add eggs, one at a time, until incorporated,
then vanilla. Pour into crust. Bake in a preheated 350° oven for 1 hour or until center is set. 


Remove from oven and cool on rack until lukewarm. Chill for several hours or freeze for easy removal from pan to a serving plate. 


If frozen, run a sharp slender knife between the crust and bottom of pan, loosening the entire cake.


Support cheesecake with a spatula and slide it onto a serving plate. If the cake is not frozen, it's best to leave it on the bottom of the springform pan and place it on the serving platter. Top with cherry pie filling when ready to serve. 


Yield: 12-15 servings from 9" pan, 8-9 cakes from the mini cheesecake pans 4-5" in diameter. Bake mini cheesecakes for 25-30 minutes until they look firm on top. Cupcake size in foil liners may also made, but the oven temp should be 275-300° for 12 to 15 minutes. The higher temp will cause them to rise quickly, then the centers will fall. Extra crust
ingredients my be required to make the 25 cupcake size desserts yielded from this
recipe.


Note: Don't be intimidated by cheesecakes. They are easy to make and can be frozen 2-3 months. You do need to have a springform pan. It's a small expense for a big reward!! I have several of the mini pans, bake and freeze 2-3 varieties of cheesecake, then wow my guests with an assortment of bite size delectable's.



                                         Confectionately  Yours,

Sue

Thursday, June 21, 2012

Camping Fish Recipe



This is the promised recipe from my friend Christiana, in her own words.   :-)  She is an avid gardener, and is one of the few women I know that hunts & fishes with enthusiasm.  

I love how we can find common ground as believers in Christ, but how we are as different as night & day, enjoying & celebrating those differences in each other.

Christiana........


Okay, this is one of my 'camping' fish recipes. I swallowed a fish bone last year, so I only use skinned/filleted fish now.

Vegetable oil (expect to spend $3-$5 for a small bottle at a typical bait-shop store)
1-3 fresh fish fillets, cut into 1 inch strips
Flour (1-2 cups or about 4 handsful)
1 lemon (best to pack a sack of lemons to take)
1 egg, beaten
Salt/Pepper
Paper plates
Paper towels
Frying pan
Tongs
Stove (or electric hot plate)

Line up four paper plates in a row. Place fish on 1st plate, flour on 2nd plate, beaten eggs on 3rd plate, and more flour on 4th plate. Cut lemon into good sized wedges and squeeze juice over both sides of fish. Sprinkle fish with salt and pepper. Dredge fish in flour on 2nd plate, roll fish in beaten egg on 3rd plate, and carefully place fish on flour in 4th plate. Sprinkle flour over both sides of fish, carefully so you don't rub off all the good stuff. Repeat steps until all the fish is coated. I usually just leave the fish on the 4th plate until it's all ready to fry.

Wipe hands on paper towel (trust me, you can't skip this step).

Heat frying pan and about 1/4 to 1/2 inch of oil until it's hot. Add prepared fish and fry, turning once, until browned on each side (usually a few minutes per side).

When done, put fish on a paper towel-lined plate or two. Enjoy!

Monday, June 18, 2012

Good Morning WEEC listeners!!  


I haven't yet obtained the recipe from Christiana mentioned on today's segment. (We had VBS last week & it was nuts!!)  Plus I forgot to ask her.  (feeling sheepish now)


Please check back later in the week.  God bless!!


Confectionately Yours,


Sue

Monday, June 11, 2012

Strawberry Salad




Hi WEEC Listeners,


Here is today's recipe.  Hope you enjoy it!!




STRAWBERRY SALAD
1 (6-oz.) pkg. strawberry gelatin 
1 (20-oz.) can crushed pineapple
1 c. boiling water 
2 c. sour cream
3 med. bananas, chopped
2 (10-oz.) pkgs. frozen sliced strawberries, in syrup


In a medium bowl, combine gelatin and boiling water. Stir until completely dissolved.


Add undrained pineapple, strawberries, and chopped bananas stirring to combine.


Divide in half. Pour half of the gelatin mixture into a 9 x 13 dish. Leave the rest of the gelatin at room temp. Refrigerate until set, about 1 hour. 


Spread sour cream over the set gelatin and spoon the rest of the gelatin over the sour cream. Cover and return to refrigerator until set, about 90 minutes. Yield: 12-15 servings.


Note: Sugar free gelatin (6 serving size) and plain frozen strawberries with the addition of sugar free sweetener may be substituted to lower sugar for those who need to watch their intake for health reasons. I like to make this in individual footed dishes and garnish with whipped cream, mint leaves and fresh strawberries.



Confectionately  Yours,

Sue

Monday, June 4, 2012

Pecan Tarts


Good morning WEEC listeners!!


I've yet to obtain Sandy's Green Bean Recipe. I will try to post it this week, but here is the Pecan Tart recipe mentioned in today's segment.




PECAN TARTS


Crust:
1/2 c. margarine 
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 (3-oz.) pkg. cream cheese 
1 c. all purpose flour


Filling:
2 T. margarine, melted
1/4 tsp. salt
1 egg 
1 c. brown sugar
1 c. chopped pecans
Combine 1/2 cup margarine, cream cheese, and flour. Mix well and shape into 24
balls. Press balls into mini muffin pans to form crust. 


Combine remaining ingredients, except nuts. Divide nuts into the 24 tarts. Pour filling ingredients into a zip top plastic bag and seal. Snip the bottom of the bag and squirt the filling into the tart shells.  Pinch the bottom of the bag between each tart to prevent drips. You can also just spoon the filling, but the bag method makes it a bit easier.


Bake at 350° for 20-25 minutes. Tarts are done when crust is golden brown. Cool for a few minutes before removing from pan. 


Run the tip of a knife around the edge immediately after taking out of oven to ease removal of tarts when they have cooled a bit. Yield: 2 dozen
.
Note: These little pecan pies may be frozen for 2-3 months but they are delicious frozen, so they will not stay there that long!!


I've also made these in larger muffin tins and/or tart pans.  Baking time is about the same.