Chocolate swirl cheesecake

I went home to visit my parents for two weeks and I decided to use the chance to do some serious baking and cooking - it is so much easier to cook for many people and I didn't have to worry about cakes going off because to be honest, eating a cake just between the two of us before it goes off is a bit tricky, especially if you don't want to have cake for all three meals of the day.

My mum is a huge cheesecake fan (who isn't?) and as my dad likes them as well, because they are quite fresh and not sweet, I decided to try out a new cake. And it turned out so nice that I made if for my cousin's 18th birthday as well - and everyone loved it.

I've made quite a few different cheesecakes over the years and I have to admit that this one is by far the easiest and the quickest I've made. It takes just 15-20 minutes to put everything together and then all you need to do is to chill it for at least 5 hours (or preferably overnight). I love how the dark chocolate gives a little twist to the creamy and moist cheesecake. I'm in love with this cheesecake and have already come up with an idea how to vary it and obviously will keep you updated as to how that goes.

Ingredients
(Serves 9-12, depends on the size of the slices)
- 175g caster sugar (or normal white sugar)
- 450g Philadelphia cheese (I used a mixture or low fat and full fat)
- 1 vanilla pod (can be substituted with 1 tsp vanilla sugar)
- Juice of 1 lemon
- 175g creme fraiche (or 10% sour cream)
- 475ml double cream

- 150g good quality dark chocolate
- 125ml double cream

- 8 digestive biscuits
- 25g butter, melted

Directions
First, line a 22cm springform tin with baking paper and then prepare the chocolate swirl. For that, cut the chocolate into small pieces and place in a bowl together with 125ml double cream and place the bowl over hot (or even simmering) water and let it melt. When it all has melted, take the bowl off the hot water and set aside to let it cool a bit.

To prepare the base, crush 8 digestive biscuits and mix the crumbs with 25g melted butter. Feel free to double to biscuit and butter quantity if you prefer a bit thicker base, but I prefer the thinner base version (I've tried both). When all the crumbs are evenly covered with the butter, put the mixture into the cake tin and press down firmly.

Lastly, prepare the filling itself. For that take two bowls. In one mix together the sugar, Philadelphia cheese and the seeds from the vanilla pod, then set aside. In another bowl (a bigger one) whist together lemon juice, cream and creme fraiche (10% sour cream) until it forms soft peaks. Then add the cream cheese mixture to the double cream mixture and mix well.

To finish the cake, spoon a layer of the cream cheese mixture on the biscuit base, then swirl 1/3 of the chocolate and repeat this three times so you end up with three layers of chocolate and three layers of cream cheese mixture. And to create the swirl stick a knife blade into the cheesecake and swirl the cheesecake. Just don't try to smooth the surface as that would create a muddy effect.

What I did for my cousin's birthday was that I just created two layers of chocolate and three layers of cream cheese and then swirled the mixture. After that I piped his name and some decorations on the cake with the leftover 1/3 chocolate mixture.

When everything is ready, chill the cake for at least 5 hours (preferably overnight) and keep chilled until you need to cut it. I've also discovered that if you place the cheesecake in the freezer for like 15-20 minutes before serving it is a lot easier to take it out of the springform tin and the chances that the biscuit base will break are reduced.

Recipe adapted from Gordon's cheesecake recipe on BBC Good Food 

 

Christmas flavoured cookies

With Christmas coming closer every day I though of sharing something a bit different with you. I know how difficult it is to come up with Christmas presents and frankly, store bought cookies and sweets just won't do the trick. And as home-made presents are in this holiday season I decided to make a huge batch of Christmas flavoured cookies and give them as presents. Trying to make the cookies taste of Christmas, I made white chocolate and cranberry cookies, dark chocolate and orange cookies and dark chocolate and mint cookies. So far all the feedback I've received has been positive. I have to admit that I did munch on quite a few cookies before wrapping them up and they honestly were delicious and most of all they made me feel very Christmassy. Of course, they are also perfect to be enjoyed with a nice cup of tea or coffee and they make a great snack. 


Obviously, feel free to play around with different tastes - try different flavoured chocolates or add nuts to the cookies. Also, the quantities here are not fixed, I just noted down what I added to my Christmas flavoured cookies. And when it comes to presents and baking in general don't forget the magic ingredient - make them with love, because it does make a difference. I wrapped them up in a see-through wrapping paper but there are amazing biscuit tins and jars and gift bags out there, which means that each and every present can be unique.

Ingredients

(Makes approximately 40 cookies)

- 950ml flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp salt- 150g unsalted butter, melted and cooled down
- 480ml packed light brown sugar
- 240ml white sugar
- 2 egg
- 1 egg yolk
- 2 tbsp vanilla extract

- 1/2 orange zest, grated

- 100g white chocolate, chopped (or   use chips)

- 100g good quality dark chocolate, chopped (or use chips)

- 30g cranberries 

- 100g After Eight, chopped 

Directions
Preheat the oven to 160C. Line a baking tray with baking parchment.

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda and salt. In a bigger bowl mix the melted butter, brown and white sugar. Then beat in the egg and egg yolk and lastly add the vanilla. Gradually add the flour mixture to the sugar mixture until evenly moistened. Divide the dough into three and place in different bowls. Add white chocolate chips and cranberries to one bowl, dark chocolate and orange zest to another bowl and after eight pieces into the third bowl. Mix well until well combined



Roll the dough into balls and press down the cookies on the baking tray with your palm to make them flat.

Then bake them for 5-7 minutes for smaller cookies or 12-15 minutes for larger ones or until the edge looks golden brown and the middles don't look quite set. Bake them for a bit longer if you prefer your cookies crunchier (I like mine a bit soft inside so I take them out a bit sooner).

 

Salmon with quinoa & butternut squash

Generally, when people talk about healthy food, the first thing that crosses their minds is something green and without any taste. But healthy does not always have to equate with not tasty or not filling. As you already know I am a huge fan of salmon and ever since I found the place to buy fresh salmon here in Singapore, I've been having it once or twice a week. Salmon, in my opinion, is one of those healthy foods that tastes absolutely divine and with all those good Omega-3 fats it should find its way to our plates more often. Also, I have rediscovered quinoa. I had this super-food when I did a weeklong detox with my best friends during spring and hadn't made it ever since, but I am sure that from now on it will be a regular in my menu - be it as a side dish or a salad base. This small seed is high in protein, calcium, iron, dietary fibre and it works great as a substitute for rice. With all these super-foods I decided to add some vegetable to finish the dish off. And the result? Incredibly filling, tasty and healthy meal that will keep you full for a long time. And the bonus is that it is nice and hot so its perfect for those dark cold winter nights when you want something warm and hearty.

Ingredients
(Serves 1)
- 40g quinoa
- 125-150 ml water
- 150g salmon
- 200g butternut squash
- 1 tsp mixed herbs
- Salt
- 1/2 tbsp olive oil
- Lemon, to serve

Directions
First, preheat the oven to 200C. Then soak the quinoa for about 5 minutes and then rinse. While the quinoa is soaking, prepare the butternut squash. Peel the squash, chop it into small cubes and place in a bowl. Sprinkle with olive oil, herbs and some salt and mix well. Place into an ovenproof dish and bake for around 20-25 minutes.

To prepare the quinoa, bring the water to boil in a small pan and add the quinoa. Boil for around 15-20 minutes until soft. Make sure it doesn't burn and if necessary add some more water (cooking a small quantity is a bit trickier than large quantity of quinoa).

Start preparing the salmon when you've got 10-12 minutes left until quinoa and squash are ready. Pour hot water in the pot, insert a steamer and place the salmon on top (skin down). Sprinkle with some salt and pepper and steam for around 10-12 minutes.

To serve, place the quinoa, butternut squash and salmon on a plate, decorate with some herbs and a slice of lemon.

Gingerbread cookies

I know that it is not December yet, but few days ago I got the urge to bake gingerbread cookies. I'm back home in London for a week and the chilly weather really made me want to fill the flat with the smell of freshly baked gingerbread cookies.

I can't remember a single year in my life when I did not bake gingerbread for Christmas. For as long as I can remember it was something I really looked forward to. Until I moved to London I always used the gingerbread dough that my great aunt had prepared for us and very rarely resorted to the store bought versions and I can say that nothing beats the homemade stuff. However, with moving to London it was a bit difficult to get hold of my great aunt's gingerbread dough and I really haven't seen ready made doughs in shops over here, so the only option I was left with was to prepare the dough myself. As it was something I had never seen how it was made I was a bit scared in the beginning as I though that it would be incredibly difficult and time-consuming. Fortunately, I was proven wrong and this recipe is probably one of the easiest cookie recipes that I have made.

As I have given you the recipe way before Christmas there is no excuse whatsoever to resort to the store bought versions of gingerbread men and in addition to getting the most delicious and crunchy home-made cookies, your home will be filled with the amazing smell of freshly baked gingerbread. They are great for nibbling or even giving as gifts, especially as home-made presents are gaining popularity right now.

Ingredients
(Makes approximately 100 small cookies)
- 350g plain flour
- 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
- 2 tsp ground ginger (or more if you wish)
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon (or more if you wish)
- 125g butter, room temperature
- 175g light soft brown sugar
- 1 egg
- 4 tbsp golden syrup

- Various cake decorations or icing to decorate

Directions
Sift together the flour, soda, ginger and cinnamon and pour the mixture into food processor. Add the butter and blend until the mixture looks like breadcrumbs, then stir in the sugar. In another bowl, lightly beat the egg and golden syrup together and add to the food processor and pulse until the mixture clumps together. Take the dough out and knead until smooth, wrap it in clingfilm and place in the fridge for around 15 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 180C and line baking trays with baking parchment. Roll the dough out on a floured surface and use cookie cutters to cut out different shapes. For some cake decorations, you can put them on the gingerbread cookies before putting them into the oven, but for others you can't.  Depending on the size of your cookies, bake them between 7-15 minutes and make sure that they don't burn. When they have cooled down decorate them with icing and cake decorations.

Recipe from BBC Food

 

 

Chicken & vegetable parcels

One problem with cooking chicken is that if you overcook the chicken breast it becomes incredibly dry and tasteless and to be honest I've had my fair share of dry chicken breasts. Frying chicken breast is easy compared to cooking it in the oven and there was a point where I though that unless I choose chicken with bone in or at least skin on there is no other way I could cook a juicy chicken in the oven. After spending a considerable amount of time trying to find an answer to my problem on the internet (and failing miserably at it), it finally hit me - all I have to do is to ensure that the moisture does not escape from the chicken. Obviously one way to do that is to wrap the chicken breast into a nice slice of bacon or Parma ham or stuff it with some cream cheese, but that would defeat the purpose of having skinless chicken breast in the first place. So, after countless times of trying to cook moist chicken I finally found the answer - all I had to do was to place the chicken in a foil parcel and voila - no more dry chicken breasts!

This dish gets ready incredibly quick and can be easily made a day ahead and all you have to do is to chuck it in the oven and you'll end up with a perfect mid-week dinner. It's one of the quick, easy and healthy dishes that has become one of our favourite. The beauty is in the fact that it is so easily adjustable - you can add whatever vegetables you have at home into the parcel and it will come out as delicious. Serve the parcel on its own or with some rice or potatoes - it's delicious either way.

Ingredients
(Makes 2)
- 2 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
- 1/2 red pepper
- 75g snow peas (or sugar snap peas)
- 100g bok choy
- 1 carrot, sliced into thin strips
- 1 lemon slice
- Salt
- Pepper

Directions
Preheat the oven to 200C and cut out two large pieces of foil. Wash and dry the vegetables. Place the bok choy in the middle of the foil, top that with carrot sticks, snow peas and red pepper. Finally place the chicken breast on top of the vegetables and top the chicken off with a half a slice of lemon. Sprinkle with some salt and pepper and fold the foil together so that it would not touch the chicken. Place in the oven and cook for around 20 minutes (or until chicken is ready). Serve immediately just on its own or with some rice.

Simple steamed salmon

I love trying out new recipes and over time I've gotten the courage to try out some where the list of ingredients is hundreds of meters long and which take ages to cook. To be fair, there haven't been many occasions like that as I prefer to have my meal on the table quite quickly, especially when coming home  hungry after university or when I don't have time to spare to spend in the kitchen because the courseworks need writing and revision needs doing. Despite all the time constraints I have been very careful not to go down to the take-away places or just grabbing something to eat on the go and so far I've succeeded.

Although this recipe is not some sort of culinary masterpiece and does not involve lot of skill nor lot of ingredients for that matter, steamed salmon makes perfect mid-week meal. It's quick and dead easy to make and on top of that it is healthy and filling as well. In addition, steamed salmon makes a perfect base for a more sophisticated meal and it can be served with absolutely anything, starting from vegetables to mashed potatoes to rice, quinoa or just simple leafy salad. And because it is so universal I thought of sharing it with you. If you fancy dress it up with a nice horseradich-crème fraîche sauce or just serve it with some natural yogurt or sour cream or do what most people do - just serve it with a squeeze of lemon. I assure you that no matter what you serve it with or how you serve it the result will always be amazing - a quick, juicy, filling and healthy meal. Bon appétit!

Ingredients
(Serves 1)
- 150g salmon
- 150g French beans
- Salt
- Pepper

Directions
Bring water to boil, place the steamer in the pot and lay the salmon there skin side down. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and steam for 10-12 minutes until ready. To prepare the beans (or any other vegetable of your choice) boil or steam them until ready. Serve immediately.

Chicken & pesto penne

I know I promised to be healthy with my posts, but in all honesty pasta can be considered relatively healthy if you have wholegrain pasta and don't serve it with loads of cream. And as this tastes really good I just had to share it - especially as I improvised all the way. I came up with this dish one day after coming home late after lectures and as all the shops had already closed I could not pick up anything. To add to that, I honestly had no idea what I had in the fridge. My choice was either go home and make something up as I go along or have a take away. Thankfully I decided to give it a go at home.

To my luck I had some pasta, chicken and pesto at home. Surprisingly, the result of my improvised dinner was so good that I decided to share it. It's quick to make and has everything you want in your pasta dish without the unhealthiness - lean chicken, tomatoes to count towards your 5-a-day, crème fraîche instead of the cream for the creaminess and pesto to top it all off. And as always, no pasta dish is perfect without some, or in my case a generous sprinkle, cheese on top. It is quick, really nice and filling, but at the same time not too heavy - it could be nicely served for a dinner during the summer. For a more sophisticated take on the dish add some pine nuts to the pasta and serve with a nice glass of chilled white wine.


Ingredients
(Serves 1)
- 100g wholewheat penne
- 110g chicken fillets
- 50g cherry tomatoes, halved
- 1 tsp crème fraîche
- 1 tbsp pesto
- Parmesan to serve

Directions
Put the pasta to boil. In the meantime chop up the chicken fillets to small cubes. Fry them in some olive oil until nearly done, then add the cherry tomatoes to the pan and fry stirring until the chicken is ready. Then put the crème fraîche and pesto on top and mix well to cover the tomatoes and the chicken. When the pasta is done, drain it and place back into the pot. Add the chicken and pesto and mix well over some heat. Place the pasta in a bowl and serve with a generous sprinkle of Parmesan cheese.

Steamed wild snapper & cabbage

I just realised that instead of being a food blog with a good selection of different meals (and emphasis on the healthy note, of course), my blog has basically turned into a baking blog. Fortunately, it is not too late to fix this and from now on I will try to emphasise the main courses and salads and soups a lot more than I do baking (or I'll at least try to balance them out). So, after so many cakes and muffins, I decided to get myself together and start preparing healthy meals again. I've already made a quite impressive list of all the meals I will prepare so I'm sure that I won't get off the track this time (but no need to worry - I'll still post something sweet every once in a while).

And on that healthy note the first dish in this pursuit for more healthy food is the steamed wild snapper with cabbage. Ever since trying out steaming I've loved it. It is healthy and incredibly quick way to cook things. However, up until now I've only steamed vegetables and mainly salmon and thus I decided to try out some other fish. I was a bit sceptical at first as this recipe seemed too simple to be good, but it came out delicious. The tender fish with the crispy garlic bits and little chilli result in a very tastebud tingling combination - even my other half said it was amazing. Therefore it must be good and it's not just me going that it tastes great, for a healthy dish. Takes just 15minutes to make and you end up with a healthy, filling and incredibly flavourful meal.

Ingredients
(Serves 2)
- 2 wild snapper (or other white fish) fillets
- 1 tsp grated fresh root ginger
- 300g green cabbages, finely shredded
- 2 tsp sunflower oil
- 1 tsp sesame oil
- 1 tsp chopped chillies
- 2 tsp soy sauce

Directions
Shred the cabbage and place on a steamer and steam for 5 minutes. In the meanwhile prepare the fish by sprinkling it with chopped chilli, ginger and a bit of salt. Place on top of the cabbage and steam for 5 further minutes until cooked through.

Meanwhile, slice the garlic thinly and heat the oils in a small pan. Add the garlic and cook stirring until the garlic is lightly browned.

To serve, transfer the cabbage to serving plates, place the fish on top of it and top each fish off with 1 teaspoon of soy sauce and the garlicky oil. Serve immediately.

Recipe from BBC Good Food

Parma ham & melon

Every now and then I feel like eating something simple and tasty. Something that does not take hours to prepare and does not need a long list of ingredients. Sure, sophisticated or a bit more special food is great - I am a big fan of trying new things and experimenting with ingredients which I have to google to find out what they are and how do they look like. However, sometimes simplicity is the key to food. And this brings me to todays recipe. I even don't know whether it is correct to call it a recipe as it basically involves eating two ingredients together... Nevertheless it is undoubtedly one of my all time favourites. It is one of those universal recipes that you can have any time of the day just by yourself or serve it as canapés or a starter at a dinner party - just organise the melon and ham in a fancy way and voila! It has always been a big crowd pleaser so you can't go wrong with serving this. Also, there are endless ways of serving this dish - melon wedges, cubes, slices and the bit lazy ones amongst us (or ones under time constraints) can even buy ready-to-eat melon pieces and serve it up with the ham.

I am still amazed how good this combination of sweet melon and salty Parma tastes like. It's perfect combination for a refreshing summer dish and adds a nice dose of sun into my day whenever I have it. For a more sophisticated take on the recipe, drizzle with some good quality balsamic vinegar and for a more filling dish, serve rocket on the side and increase the quantities.

Ingredients
(Serves 1)
- 200g melon, sliced
- 90g Parma ham
- Fresh black pepper to serve
- Balsamic vinegar, to serve (optional)
- Olive oil, to serve (optional)

Directions
Peel the melon and slice into pieces. Place the melon slices onto a plate and top them off with Parma ham. Drizzle some balsamic vinegar and olive oil on top if you wish and serve with freshly ground pepper.

Pumpkin cake with spiced crème fraîche

At first I thought I'd wait until Halloween to post this recipe, but thankfully I realised that someone might actually want to bake a pumpkin cake for the occasion and in order to do so I'd need to post the recipe a bit before the day itself.

Until recently, I had never though much of Halloween as to me it was a foreign (I'd even say a very US) thing to celebrate. But after trying pumpkin cake in one of my classes at school 6 years ago the whole concept of Halloween became a bit more familiar. I wouldn't say that I'm fascinated with Halloween now, but being allowed to dress up one night a year and then going out with friends is a lot of fun...

But, back to the cake now. I got the recipe from my English teacher who allowed me to post it on my blog. I fell in love with the cake the moment I tried it and I've made it for four past Halloweens and plan on carrying baking it for years to come. If you like carrot cake you are absolutely going to love this pumpkin cake - it is moist, soft and just melts in your mouth. And in addition it fills your kitchen with an amazing cinnamon smell. I do have to admit that grating the pumpkin is a tedious and time-consuming task, but the result is so worth it. And to add a little twist to the cake, I served it with a dollop of spiced crème fraîche, but trust me - the cake is incredibly delicious even without the crème fraîche on its side.

For past years I have made the cake using a different sized class and therefore the quantities here are just an indication of how much of what went into my cake this time. I'd suggest you take a normal 200-250ml glass and use that to measure the quantities (or even better, rely on you 'gut feeling' to determine the exact amount of ingredients needed).

Ingredients
-  1 glass of grated pumpkin (300g)
- 1 glass of sour cream (200ml)
- 100-150g butter, melted
- 1-2 glasses of sugar (300g)
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 eggs
- Lots of cinnamon (you can never have enough of it)
- 2 tsp baking powder
- flour (5tbsp)

- Crème fraîche
- Sugar
- Cinnamon

Directions
Heat the oven to 180C. Melt the butter and mix in the sugar and allow it to cool. In the meantime grate the pumpkin. When the butter and sugar mixture has cooled down add eggs, pumpkin and sour cream and mix. Then add flour with baking powder, cinnamon and salt and mix. Add more flour if necessary - make sure that the batter is not too thick nor too liquid. Pour the batter into a baking tin (lines with baking parchment) and cook for around 20-30 minutes (or until nicely cooked). Cooking time depends on the consistency of the cake you prefer (a bit gooey or well done) as well as the size of the baking tin you're using.

For the crème fraîche topping, mix crème fraîche with good amount of cinnamon and sugar and then place on top of the cake to serve. Your can serve it either warm or cold - its delicious both ways. And as there can never be enough cinnamon, I sprinkled some on top of the crème fraîche and on the plate.

 

 

Individual classic cheesecakes

I know I shouldn't say this but I think that this is the best dessert I have ever made so far. I love cheesecakes, as you already know by now, and this time I fiddled around with my favourite cheesecake filling and decided to make it in individual portions, rather than as a cake and instead of normal base use the digestive biscuits. Needless to say that I became hooked from the first bite.

And as usual, I couldn't wait for the cakes to cool down and had one fresh out of the oven. I usually don't do it to cheesecakes, but trust me I have muffins and cookies the moment I take them out. To my pleasant surprise it tasted amazing and reminded me of the cheesecake I ate as a kid back home and I haven't had it, or anything close to it, since they took the cake off production. My mum used to buy it as a treat and then we microwaved it hot and ate - one of the most delicious things I had had at that point. However, although they are delicious when they are hot, they are absolutely divine when they have cooled down properly in the fridge. The amazingly silky smooth filling and the crunchy base really make you feel like you're in cheesecake heaven - and there's no way you want to come back down from there.

Perfect recipe to treat yourself or the loved ones, serve at a dinner party or just have for breakfast with your morning coffee. Every time of the day and every occasion is suitable for eating cheesecake... Serve with ice-cream, with melted chocolate, fresh berries, some strawberry jam or enjoy them just on their own - they are delicious either way.

These muffins actually freeze well, so you can make a batch and put some in the freezer for future consumption (cause if you eat them all in one go your waistline is not going to be very happy). Just remember to take them out half a day before and defrost them in the fridge (to keep the smooth consistency). Although they are the best without being frozen, they are still really-really good after that as well.

Ingredients
(Makes 10-12)
For the base:
- 150g digestive biscuits, crushed
- 75g butter, melted

For the filling:
- 150ml sugar
- 1 tbsp flour
- 400g Philadelphia cheese
- 1 egg
- 1/2 tsp vanilla sugar
- 150ml cream

Directions
Line a 12 hole muffin pan with muffin liners. Mix the melted butter with the crushed biscuits and divide evenly between the muffin holes. Press the mixture hard to form a solid base for the muffins and place the muffin pan into the fridge for 30 minutes or so.

Preheat the oven to 150C. To make the filling, put all the ingredients in a large bowl and whisk until the mixture is smooth and even. Divide it between the muffin holes and bake for around 20 to 25 minutes. Leave them out to cool down and then put in the fridge (or freezer if freezing them) until they have completely chilled.