Pumpkin Swirl Cheesecake

This recipe is from my mom.

Ingredients:
Crust--
1 1/2 cups crushed ginger snaps [about 32 cookies]
1/3 cup melted butter
1 Tbsp all purpose flour
Filling--
2 8-oz packages of cream cheese, softened
2/3 cup sugar
3Tbsp all purpose flour
2 tsp grated fresh ginger or 1/2 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp vanilla
4 eggs
2 Tbsp milk
2/3 cup pureed pumpkin
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg

Directions:
Crust--
In a food processor, turn approximately 32 store-bought gingersnap cookies into crumbs.  Combine with butter and flour, then press into the bottom and up the sides of a spring form pan.  My pan is 9 inches, but you can really use any size.  Refrigerate this while you're working on the filling.
Filling--
Beat the cream cheese until smooth.  Add sugar, flour, ginger, and vanilla and continue mixing.  Mix in all 4 eggs at once until combined, then stir in the milk.  If you feel like it's lumpy, you can run it through a sieve before moving on to the next step.  However, as long as the cream cheese is at room temperature it shouldn't be lumpy.  Remove 2 cups of the initial filling mixture and pour it into the crust.  To the remaining filling, add pumpkin, brown sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg.  Careful spoon pumpkin mixture on top of the plain filling that you've already put in the pan.  Swirl with a knife, being careful not to touch the crust.  Tap out the air bubbles.  Place pan on a cookie sheet and bake until set, about 1 hour.  Cool for 30 minutes and then chill for at least 4 hours or overnight.
Fancy!

Sweet, Sweet Caramel

If you're like me, you're well into the holiday baking season.  If not, it's time to get your butt in gear!  I have the perfect recipe to get you started.  Caramel is versatile and although it seems kind of scary, try it!  I don't know about you, but I stay away from anything too involved when it comes to cooking.  Candy thermometers?  Count me out.  I discovered that making my own caramel is actually pretty darn easy, and you don't even need a candy thermometer.

First you'll add 1/2 cup white sugar and 2 Tbsp of water into a sauce pan.  Heating on medium heat, you want it to get violently bubbly just like this.  Do not stir it.

Since what we're doing is burning the sugar, you want to let it get kind of an amber color.  At this point, you can gently swirl the sugar around in the pot.  Then, go ahead and take it off the heat.

If it gets this dark, throw it out and start over.  You heard me.  I went through with it and it was bitter and completely ruined.  Just play it safe and stick with the lightly burnt sugar.

When you take the sugar off the heat, whisk in 3 Tbsp of butter and 1/2 cup of heavy cream.  Yes, heavy cream [not milk].  Whisk it until it's all disolved. 

Smooth, right?  It's thin, but it will thicken as it sets.  A couple of important hints: First, make sure you have all the ingredients ready before you start making it.   Once the sugar starts to turn golden, it will all happen pretty fast.  Another helpful thing to do is warm the cream for 20 seconds or so in the microwave so that it doesn't seize when it hits the boiling sugar. 
Now...what should you do with this caramel?  You can put it in a nice jar, tie it with a ribbon, and give it as a gift.  Put it on ice cream or cheesecake.  I like to add it in my hot chocolate for a much cheaper version of Starbucks' salted caramel cocoa.  Or, you can do this [my favorite Christmas cookie]:

Shortbread cookies topped with caramel and sea salt.  Oh. my. stars. 

Before you put the shortbread cookies in the oven, poke a pretty deep hole in them.  You may have to mold the sides a little because shortbread is pretty delicate, but it's worth it.  As soon as the come out of the oven, use the end of a spatula to form the holes more cleanly.  Then fill with caramel and 3 or 4 granules of sea salt. 

You will win friends and influence enemies.

My Comfort Food

I should probably preface this by saying that all food, to me, is comforting.  I am, admittedly, an emotional eater.  Not in the sense that I eat all the time, no, but I like to eat because of the feeling it gives me.  After working hard to prepare a fresh meal for my family, I enjoy the satisfaction of sitting down and eating it together.  The most comforting foods are often the simplest.
Whenever I feel under the weather [such as today] I just want to eat eggs.  Weird, huh?  I'm notorious for always screwing up the eggs so my husband is the designated egg cooker in our house.  However, it never fails that when I feel sick he isn't home.  I've learned to manage scrambling the eggs, but tonight I wanted something different.  I decided to try poaching.  What follows is a photo journey of my attempt at poaching eggs freestyle [read: I don't have a poaching pan].  It is by no means a tutorial because I'm pretty sure no one else would want to eat them. 

So, from what I read from Alton Brown and remember from the movie Julie and Julia, I filled a [cast iron] skillet with 1 1/2 inches of water.  I added in 1 tablespoon of vinegar as well.  When it started to steam, I began swirling the water, which I think I saw on tv but I'm not sure if it's necessary.

I put each egg in a custard cup.  Holding the cup as close to the water as possible, I slowly dropped the eggs into the swirling water.

Yikes.  I'm glad Alton wasn't here.  [Have I mentioned that I used to go to church with him, and that he once almost ran over me in his Volvo?]  This looks kind of gross.  Even grosser now, actually, looking at the picture than I had realized.  If you want to stop reading, I understand.  But I want to encourage you to be brave when it comes to cooking.  And if you'll stick with me, you'll see that even though it looks kind of hairy right now, it turned out ok.  There are more appetizing photos to come.

This is not one of them.  You'll notice, first of all, that the egg yolks are cooked.  I think with traditional poaching the yolks are left completely runny.  Yuck, I say, yuck!  I decided to be brave and undercook them slightly, though.  I wanted to show you this picture because Alton Brown says that after you remove the eggs [with a slotted spoon] you should place them on a tea towell to absorb excess water.  Anything you say, Mr. B!

So what to do with these eggs?  A variation on bacon and toast.  Ciabatta with a drizzle of olive oil and a sprinkle of salt, and 2 slices of smoked ham.  Please ignore the foil on the baking sheet.  I'm a lazy cook; have I mentioned that?  I just baked them in the oven until it got kind of crispy.

Looks good, right?  Well, I know the eggs look kind of wonky but you could trim up the edges if you care about that stuff.  When it's just me, my plate, my pjs, and my couch, I don't care about aesthetics. 

About the runny yolks...I kinda liked it.  That's all for now, folks.  I'm going to finish watching the past couple episodes of Sarah Palin's Alaska.  Politics, schmolitics.  I think she's fascinating. 

Gingerbread Pancakes

from The Gourmet Cookbook

Ingredients:
1 cup AP flour [or split with whole wheat]
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp ground cloves
3 Tbsp regular molasses
1 large egg
1 cup sour cream
3 Tbsp whole milk
2 Tbsp melted butter
*Note: I didn't think it was quite sweet enough with just molasses so I added 1/4 cup of brown sugar to the dry mixture

Directions:
Mix together all of the dry ingredients in a small bowl.  In a larger bowl, mix together all of the wet ingredients.  Then add the dry to the wet and mix until just combined.  Cook your pancakes like you normally do.  I recommend a cast iron skillet/griddle for the perfect texture, and of course using butter to coat the pan.  If you need a tutorial on making pancakes, let me know.  Mine don't always turn on perfectly, but they taste good all the same. 
For the syrup, I like warming some maple syrup, a tablespoon or two of butter, and a shake of cinnamon.  Another option is powdered sugar that has been sifted gently atop your perfect pillows of delight, landing like snow on a winter's morn.  But I digress.  Either one makes a perfect topping!

Cinnamon Sugar Pretzels

This will blow the skirt right up on your holiday snack mix.  Who needs chex mix? 

Last night I was really jonesin' for a cinnamon sugar pretzel from one of those places in the mall.  Now, the mall isn't remotely near my house, and even if it were I simply can't eat one of those carbo-sugar-loaded pretzels.  So here's what you need to do make these cinnamon sugar pretzels.
Melt 1 stick of butter.  It probably doesn't matter if it's salted or not, but I used unsalted.  Plus the pretzels are already salty.
Once the butter is melted, add about 4 tablespoons of sugar [I used white but you can use brown] and 1 1/2 teaspoons of cinnamon.  Stir together nicely and then stir in the pretzels.  I did this in batches to make it easier.   I used a 16-oz bag of regular pretzels.  In a single layer, bake the pretzels at 250 for about 15 minutes, just to get the cinnamon-sugar to stick. That is, if you don't eat all the pretzels before you bake them.  Before I put them in the oven I sprinkled extra sugar on top.
Maybe that was rude what I said about the chex mix.  I think you could add these to it and give it some interest.  Happy holiday eating!

Intervention [aka: Pie Crust]

We need to have a talk. 

You might want to sit down.

Ok, here goes.  I know about those store-bought pie crusts you've got lurking in your refrigerator. 

Don't act like you don't know what I'm talking about.  The ones in the--ahem--red box with the chubby little dough-boy?  The ones that are so "easy" that you can just fit into a pie plate and fill with whatever your little heart desires? 

I don't understand the drama that surrounds pie crust.  Store-bought,while only about $3, is still more expensive than making it from the pantry staples that you already have.  Homemade pastry crust has about 7 [or less] ingredients, depending on your method, whereas store-bought has about a bagillion ingredients---most of which are unrecognizable. 

Making your own pie crust is actually really easy.  And I'm going to teach you to conquer this pastry dragon. Save the drama for something serious, like boning a duck.

I should tell you that there are many different pie crust recipes.  They all start with flour, a little sugar and salt, and a fat.  The fat may be butter, shortening, or a combination of both.  Some call for ice water and others for milk and/or an egg.  The important thing to remember is that the fat needs to be cold.  Having cold fat results in the fat being evenly distributed, creating a flaky crust. 

I don't always use the same pie crust recipe.  It just depends on what I need the crust for.  For instance, last night I was making homemade pop tarts, so I went with an all butter recipe because I find that using all shortening yields a more delicate crust.  I like the durability and flavor of an all butter crust, more often than not. 

[from King Arthur Flour]

Yes, that is a lot of butter.  Eight ounces or 2 sticks, same difference.  It needs to be cubed and very cold.  You should cut it up into half inch or so cubes and then place them in the freezer to get really chilly.  Remember, cold fat is key to a great crust!

You can do this all by hand, but I recommend using your food processor.  If you don't have a food processor, don't stop reading!  Use a pastry blender, a fork, or even your hands.  I've done that plenty of times and it works just fine.  Whirl together 2 cups of all-purpose flour, 1 Tbsp sugar, and 1 tsp of salt.

Then you'll add in the butter and pluse until it starts to look kind of like clumpy sand.  If it holds together in your hands, you know it's ready. 

Seperately, whisk together 2 Tbsp of cream or milk, and one egg.

Add the egg/milk mixture into the food processor and turn it on low.  It will quickly turn into a ball and that's when it's ready!

Turn the dough onto a lightly floured work surface and just need it until it comes together.  Don't over work it; you'll be able to feel the smoothness and know that it's ready.

Split the dough in half, and wrap in plastic.  Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before rolling out.  You can even leave them in the refrigerator even for a couple days, or freeze it.  From start to finish, the whole process takes less than 10 minutes.  SCORE!

How hard was that?  Let's review.
2 cups All Purpose flour
1 Tbsp sugar
1 Tsp salt
*Pulse in food processor
8 oz. cubed, very cold butter.
*Add in flour mixture
Whisk together 2 Tbsp cream/milk and 1 egg.
*Add in flour mixture and pulse until it turns into a ball.  Turn it onto a lightly floured surface and knead until it just comes together and is smooth.  Divide in half, refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before using.

I hope I have given you hope that it's not too late to make homemade pastry crust for your Thanksgiving pies.  If you've already bought the kind in a box, save it for a rainy day.  It makes a great item for kids to play with, just make sure they don't eat [too much of] it.  You're creative, you'll think of a way to use it up.  And please, if you're making pecan pie, please refrain from using all that corn syrup.  Agave syrup, honey, maple syrup, or any combination of the 3 make a great and natural substitute.  But my thoughts on corn syrup are a subject for another intervention...

Here are a few links that you may find helpful:
Homemade Pumpkin Pie Pop Tarts
Pumpkin Cream Pie [This one doesn't actually use a pastry crust, but you should look into it anyway.  You could even go crustless if you have wheat/gluten allergies!]
How to make a double crusted pie [video!]
Easy NO ROLL pie crust
Pumpkin/CreamCheese/Streusel Pie[This is what I'm making for Thanksgiving!]

HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO YOU AND YOURS! 
"Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change..."  James 1:17

How to make your own pumpkin puree

Ain't nothin' wrong with Libby's, but ya'll should try this some time. 

Hello little sweeties.  You looked great on my front porch for awhile, but I've got other plans for you.

Begin by slicing off the top of the pumpkin, just as you would if you were carving it.
You'll want to use a very sharp knife and be very careful.

And here we see the triumph of the knife.  Even with this really sharp knife, I had a hard time removing the tops.  The pumpkins were very resistant.

Next, you'll want to cut the pumpkins in half, revealing all of their seeds.  I don't think it matters which way you halve them, but I cut from top to bottom simply because I had more knife control.
 
I like to use an ice cream scoop to get out all of the seeds.  Don't worry about getting all the pulp; you can get the pesky parts out easier after it's roasted.

Don't throw the seeds away.  You can make a nice and healthy snack with those later.
Quarter the pumpkins and place them on a foil-lined baking sheet.  Some people add a little oil and salt, but I'm a pumpkin purist.  I left them naked and placed them into a preheated 350 degree oven.

Here's what they look like when they're done: the same, with fork marks.  The roasting time depends on the thickness of your pumpkins, but it will take at least 45 minutes.  You'll want them to be fork tender.  Mine took almost an hour.

After they've cooled for a few minutes but are still warm, you can easily remove the skin from the meat of the pumpkin.  Place chunks of the pumpkin in your food processor.

Then just whirl away!  You'll probably need to add a couple ounces of water to help smooth it out while it processes.  I recommend doing this in batches so as to not overcrowd your machine.

You can see that from my first batch I got a little over 3 cups of puree.

I measured out 2 cups per freezer bag.  I ended up with just under 6 cups of puree altogether.  Economically speaking, it's probably not any different to buy canned or make your own.  It depends on how much you pay for your little pie pumpkins.  It is definitely more economic if you grow your own, though.
It's important to note that you probably don't want to do this with big carving pumpkins.  I've heard of people doing it, but it's a different flavor and texture altogether.  I'm always an advocate of doing things yourself if for no other reason than to feel more connected to what you're eating.  Anything you make at home is still going to be healthier than something processed in a big factory.  Besides, this was a lot of fun and not that messy.  It would be a great activity to try with your kids.  I can't wait to try it in some pies next week!