Chilled Couscous Salad

After a month- a post is finally up and running! Unfortunately, due to first trimester pregnancy symptoms, I was unable to keep up with the blog. But, now towards the end I am feeling not only better, but hungry! Summer has been making its way into the Chicago land area so it was about time to start posting some cool, refreshing salads that make a great side or snack. 

1 3/4 c. water 

1 1/2 c. Couscous

3 large tomatoes, diced 

1 cucumber, peeled and diced 

1-2 bunches green onions, finely chopped 

1/2 c. or so fresh parsley, roughly chopped 

3 lemons, juiced 

2 tbs. extra virgin olive oil 

1/2 tsp. salt 

Fresh ground black pepper to taste 

• In a medium sized pot, bring water to a boil. Add couscous and remove from heat. 
• Cover with lid and allow to sit 5 minutes. Fluff with fork and place in large mixing bowl. 
• Add chopped vegetables and parsley to bowl with couscous and stir to combine. 
• Add lemon juice, olive oil, salt and pepper to taste. Stir to combine. 
• Chill in refrigerator 3 hours or until ready to serve. 

Buttermilk Pancakes

Buttermilk pancakes are a breakfast favorite in our house. Sure you can buy decent pancake mix at the store, but when you make your own, I find they are far tastier and fluffier. Plus, they hardly take any more time to whip together than the boxed mix! 

Helpful Hint:  If you don't have fresh buttermilk (which I often don't) simply add 1 tbs. vinegar or lemon juice to 1 c. milk and sit 5-10 minutes to sour prior to using. Or, you can also use powdered buttermilk which you can find in the baking aisle of your local grocery store. 

1 1/4 c. Buttermilk 

2 tbs. butter, melted

1 egg 

1 c. all purpose flour 

2 tbs. sugar 

2 tsp. baking powder 

1/2 tsp. baking soda 

1/2 tsp. salt 

Butter or Non-stick cooking spray

• Heat a large, non stick griddle or skillet with butter or non stick cooking spray over medium heat. 
• Meanwhile, in a small mixing bowl, whisk together buttermilk with melted butter and egg to combine. 
• In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, powder, soda and salt. 
• Once combined, whisk buttermilk mixture into flour mixture until smooth. 
• Using a ladle, pour batter onto skillet spacing mounds apart so they do not cook together. 
• Flip once bubbles appear. Remove from pan once bottom is cooked. Serve hot. 

White Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake

Please see previous post regarding cheesecake tips prior to beginning this recipe: 

http://thebitchenkitchen.blogspot.com/2010/04/perfecting-cheescake-10-tips-to-making.html

Graham Cracker Crust: 

2 packages (of 3 in a box) graham crackers

6 tbs. unsalted butter, melted 

6 tbs. white sugar 

Cheesecake Filling: 

4, 8ox. packages cream cheese, softened

1 c. white sugar 

4 eggs, seperated 

1 tbs. pure vanilla extract 

1 c. sour cream 

1/2 c. heavy cream 

6oz. white chocolate, melted 

Fresh Raspberry Sauce Topping: 

1 c. fresh or frozen raspberries 

1/4 c. white sugar 

1/4 c. water 

1 c. seedless raspberry jam 

1 tbs. Grand Marnier liqueur 

Fresh Berries for garnish 

White chocolate shavings for garnish

• Preheat oven to 350 and prepare your largest spring form pan as indicated in previous top "10 tips post.
• For crust, in a food processor, combine graham crackers with sugar and pulse until graham crackers are crumbly. 
• Add melted butter and pulse until mixture comes together. 
• Pat crust into the bottom of prepared spring form pan and bake 10-12 minutes or until crust begins to golden. 
• Meanwhile, heat chocolate in a small saucepan over low heat to melt. Stir regularly to prevent burning. Remove from heat and set aside. 
• Once crust is golden, remove crust from oven and set aside. 
• In a large bowl of an electric mixer, combine softened cream cheese with sugar until smooth. 
• Scrape down sides of mixer and add egg yolks one at a time mixing well after each addition.
• Add vanilla extract, sour cream and heavy cream. Mix until smooth. 
• Add melted white chocolate and mix to combine. 

• In a small, separate bowl, whip egg whites with an electric mixer until fluffy and peaks form. Fold egg whites into cheesecake filling. Pour filling into pan.

• Place spring form pan into roasting pan and fill pan halfway up sides with boiling water (as indicated in previous post.) 

• Bake cheesecake 1 hour and 10 minutes. Once time is up, turn off heat but do not remove cheesecake from oven. Keep cheesecake in oven for another hour but open the oven door and leave it ajar to cool gradually. 

• While cheesecake gradually cools, prepare raspberry sauce.

• In a small saucepan, heat raspberries with sugar and water over medium high heat. Bring to a boil. 

• Once boiling, reduce heat to a low and simmer 5 minutes. Remove from heat. 

• Pour raspberry mixture into a blender or food processor and pulse with jam and liqueuer until smooth. 

• Cool sauce prior to topping cheesecake. 

• Once cheesecake has sat in the oven for an hour with the oven door open, remove cheesecake from "water bath" and place on counter. Cool one more hour. 

• Prior to topping, touch sides of pan and ensure they are cool to the touch. If so....run a knife around the edges of the spring form pan prior to releasing the ring. 

• Using a rubber spatula, spread raspberry sauce over top of cheesecake in an even layer. If desired, spread a ring of fresh berries around the edges of cheesecake as pictured above. 

• Refrigerate cheesecake several hours or preferably overnight. 

• Prior to serving, garnish with white chocolate shavings if desired. 

Perfecting Cheesecake: 10 Tips to making a gourmet masterpiece

A Brief History....

If there is one dessert I can make without fail and triumph over all.... it's cheesecake. Ask anyone who's tried mine- believe me, they'll agree. Growing up, my Nana made the best cheesecake that I ever tasted. However, when she died, I never got her recipe. I was left with no choice but  to try to re-create her legacy through practice and much trial and error. But, as luck would have it, when you're that determined, not only have I re-created what I remember tasting so fondly, I  learned many tricks and tips and how to elaborate on many fun, new cheesecakes outside the New York Original. 

Tips to Perfecting Cheesecake:

1.Prepare your Springform Pan! 
Necessary Supplies: Springform pan, Aluminum Foil, Large Roasting Pan, Tea Kettle (or similar) for boiling water. 


*Before starting anything, wrap your spring form pan on all sides with aluminum foil. Then, you will want to boil a large kettle of water for later prior to baking. 


Help prevent cracking- Butter up your springform pan! 

This is a simple step that makes a world of difference! Simply rub butter all over the bottom and the sides from top to bottom of the springform pan. Why you ask? This steps not only helps ensure your crust won't stick to the bottom of the pan, but it will allow the cheesecake  to release easily from the sides of the pan as it cools and thus prevents cracks from forming. 


2. Always par-bake your cheesecake crust! 
Whether you are using a graham cracker, Oreo, vanilla wafer crust, etc. you always want to par-bake your crust prior to pouring the filling over and baking. As a general rule of thumb, bake the crust  at 350 in a pre-heated oven for 10-12 minutes or until it begins lightly golden.  
*On a side note: Crust recipes should be done in a food processor to achieve the best texture. 

3. Soften your cream cheese completely!

Your cream cheese needs to soften to the point that you can slide your finger through it easily. If necessary, microwave it in segments to soften but allow to cool prior to mixing. if your cream cheese is not softened completely, you will end up with lumpy batter and an inconsistent texture. 
*On a side note:  Philedalphia cream cheese is the best to use in regards to taste and texture. 


4. Separate your eggs!
It is a hidden secret that cheesecake recipes often don't indicate, but separating your eggs makes a big difference in cheesecake texture. Often, they can become heavy and dense- this may be due to other reasons beyond eggs, but, if you add just yolks to the mixture and then whip your egg whites separately and fold them in the batter towards the end, you can almost guarantee a lighter, fluffier end result. 
*On a side note: A general rule of thumb is: 1 egg/1, 8oz. cream cheese


5. Place foil wrapped springform pan into a "water bath."
Once crust is complete, then place springformpan into a roasting pan. Using your boiling water, pour water halfway up sides of pan. This "water bath" will continue steaming and maintain consistent temperatures and moisture for the cheesecake as it bakes. 


6. Do not under or over bake cheesecake! 
As a general rule of thumb,  any size cheesecake should bake no more than an hour-1 hour and 10 minutes. After the hour, the edges should be cooked but the center of the cheesecake should still move slightly when tapped. 


7. Do not remove cheesecake from oven after baking time!
Leave the cheesecake in the oven and turn off the heat after the baking time is up. Open the oven door so that it is slightly ajar and allow the cheesecake to cool gradually in its water bath for another hour. Why? When you remove the cheesecake from the oven too quickly, the drastic temperature changes can cause the cheesecake "stress" by cooling it too quickly and causes cracking to occur. 


8. Leave the cheesecake out to cool completely prior to refrigeration!
After the cheesecake has set in the oven with the door ajar for an hour; remove the cheesecake from the oven and its water bath. Set it on the counter by itself for another hour to cool at room temperature. After the hour, touch the sides of the spring form to ensure it has cooled completely. If it still feels warm to the touch, leave it cool longer- there is no rush to refrigerate it. 


9. Run a knife around the edges of pan prior to removing ring!
Once completely cook,  run a butter knife around the edges prior to releasing the ring of the spring form pan can help prevent cracking. 


10. If somehow you still get cracks in your cheesecake....
Decorate the cooled cheesecake with a chocolate sauce, fresh fruit sauce, chocolate shavings, etc. and no one will know the difference! 

Tortellini in Tomato Mascarpone Sauce

If you're like me, your freezer tends to get jammed pack with food. Of course it's all food to serve specific purposes overtime, but then you forget about it and it somehow falls to the back and risks freezer burn. Somewhere along the way I bought a package of tortellini and when I discovered it, I wanted to get a little creative and find a way to use it.  It was a weeknight and I wanted to whip something together quickly without making another run to the grocery store. Fortunately, I had some extra ingredients left from pizza and cheesecake making, so I threw it together and created this not so pretty, but tasty dish! 

1, 16oz. package Fresh or Frozen favorite Tortellini

Sauce:

1, 24oz. jar favorite marinara sauce 

1, 14.5 can petite diced tomatoes, drained 

4oz. Mascarpone cheese

small handful fresh basil leaves, torn (optional)

1/2 c. fresh grated Parmesan cheese

1 package shredded mozzarella cheese or 1 ball fresh mozzarella, sliced

• Preheat oven to 400 and grease a large baking pan with non stick cooking spray. 
• In a large pot of salted water, cook tortellini according to package directions. Drain. 
• Meanwhile, in a large bowl, whisk together favorite marinara sauce with Mascarpone cheese to incorporate. 
• Once mixed, stir in drained, diced tomatoes and basil leaves. 
• Pour cooked tortellini into bowl with sauce and toss gently to coat. 
• Pour coated tortellini into baking pan. 
• Sprinkle parmesan cheese over top of tortellini in an even layer. 
• Sprinkle shredded mozzarella cheese over top in an even layer or if using fresh mozzarella, lay slices over top to cover. 
• Bake 20-20 minutes or until cheese is melted and lightly browning around edges. 
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Inspired by but with variation from Giada de Laurentii's "Everyday Pasta" cookbook.