A St Patty's Day Celebration

My family, being of Irish heritage, always has a St Patty's Day celebration/ get together. This year was no different. My family is used to me always bringing a cheesecake, and while I was tempted at first to make a green colored cheesecake I resisted that urge and tried something new.

Guinness with a Chocolate Gnoche filling Cupcakes 

with a Bailey's Irish Cream Frosting

(recipe below)

 I would like to point out that nothing about these photos have been edited.....they really do just look that good.

Ok, I'll stop with the cupcake pictures. I just couldn't resist. They all looked so good.

Pretty much all of the food was either green or Irish themed. Of course we always have corned beef and hash. I LOVE corned beef. Maybe that is because I only eat it the one time a year, but regardless I love it and look forward to my family get together every year so that I can have it. 

It was also really nice because all of my brothers and sisters were there. We haven't all been together in the same room at the same time since Christmas, so that is kinda a big deal. 

This is what a family get together of mine looks like. Lots of people, sitting around, and enjoying each others company. It's a novel thing these days it seems. 

I would like to add a special thank you to my Aunt Caron for the use of her house, even though they weren't here. They were off on like a month long vacation in New Zealand? I think?

I adapted the recipe from 2 recipes so I kinda picked a chose what I wanted to do. Enjoy!

I will note that this is technically an Irish Car Bomb cupcake, but for family purposes I left out the whiskey. 

Guinness Chocolate Cupcakes

For the Cupcakes:
1 cup Guinness stout
1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
¾ cup Dutch-process cocoa powder
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups granulated sugar
1½ teaspoons baking soda
¾ teaspoons salt
2 eggs
2/3 cup sour cream

For the Chocolate Ganache Filling:
8 ounces bittersweet chocolate
2/3 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons butter, at room temperature

For the Baileys Frosting:
2 cups unsalted butter, at room temperature
5 cups powdered sugar
6 tablespoons Baileys Irish Cream

1. To Make the Cupcakes: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line 24 cupcake cups with liners. Bring the Guinness and butter to a simmer in a heavy, medium saucepan over medium heat. Remove from heat!!!! (This is very important. I learned that the hard way and had to start over because one recipe did not explain that) Add the cocoa powder and whisk until the mixture is smooth. Cool slightly.

2. Whisk the flour, sugar, baking soda and salt in a large bowl to combine. Using an electric mixer, beat the eggs and sour cream on medium speed until combined. Add the Guinness-chocolate mixture to the egg mixture and beat just to combine. Reduce the speed to low, add the flour mixture and beat briefly. Using a rubber spatula, fold the batter until completely combined. Divide the batter among the cupcake liners. Bake until a thin knife inserted into the center comes out clean, about 17 minutes. Cool the cupcakes on a rack.

3. To Make the Chocolate Ganache Filling: Finely chop the chocolate and transfer it to a heatproof bowl. Heat the cream until simmering and pour it over the chocolate. Let it sit for one minute and then, using a rubber spatula, stir it from the center outward until smooth. Add the butter and stir until combined. Let the ganache cool until thick but still soft enough to be piped.

4. To Fill the Cupcakes: Using a 1-inch round cookie cutter (or the bottom of a large decorating tip), cut the centers out of the cooled cupcakes, going about two-thirds of the way down. Transfer the ganache to a piping back with a wide tip and fill the holes in each cupcake to the top.

5. To Make the Baileys Frosting: Using the whisk attachment of a stand mixer, whip the butter on medium-high speed for 5 minutes, scraping the sides of the bowl occasionally. Reduce the speed to medium-low and gradually add the powdered sugar until all of it is incorporated. Add the Baileys, increase the speed to medium-high and whip for another 2 to 3 minutes, until it is light and fluffy.

6. Using your favorite decorating tip, or an offset spatula, frost the cupcakes and decorate with sprinkles, if desired. Store the cupcakes in an airtight container.

(Recipe from browneyedbaker.com adjusted slightly from the Perfect St Patrick's Day cake recipe from Allrecipes.com)

Prepare to become fat......and happy

Like any good daughter I asked my Dad what he wanted for Father's Day. 

Ask and he shall receive!

  This makes all of my other cheesecakes look like diet cheesecakes, so beware.

 If you like Reese's Peanut Butter Cups you will love this, because it tastes just like one!

All I had was my iPhone, so it's a little grainy. Deal with it....If the picture was any better you would be drooling.

 Chocolate Peanut Butter Cheesecake

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups Oreo cookie's (with the filling scraped out) crushed
• 3/4 stick butter, melted
• 3 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese
• 1 cup peanut butter
• 1 cup white sugar
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 eggs
• 1 egg yolk
• 1/4 cup half-and-half cream or milk. (I used 2 % milk because I had it)
• 8 oz of good chocolate (I used Ghirardelli semi-sweet baking chocolate)
• 1 cup of heavy whipping cream

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Line the outside of a 9 inch springform pan with aluminum foil.
2. To Make Crust: In a medium bowl, combine Oreo crumbs and melted butter. Press the mixture onto the bottom and sides of an ungreased 9 inch springform pan, and bake for 5 minutes at 350 degrees to set the crust. Put is aside.
3. To Make Filling: In a large mixing bowl, beat cream cheese (let it sit out for a half an hour before you use it and it will work better), sugar, peanut butter, flour, and vanilla with an electric mixer until smooth. Add eggs and egg yolk all at once, beating on low speed until combined. Stir in half-and-half or milk (depending on which one you used). If you mix the cream cheese up first and get it soft and then add the sugar next it'll help you not get lumps.
4. Pour batter into the springform pan. Bake the cheesecake in a water bath by placeing it in a large baking pan (I use a roasting pan), pour boiling water into the baking pan until it comes 1/2 way up the sides of the spring form pan. Bake in the preheated oven for 40 to 50 minutes, or until the center circle of the cheesecake is still slightly giggly when you shake it.                                         You do this because the center of the cheesecake will continue to cook even after you take it out of the oven so you want it to not be fully set.

Let cake cool on a wire wrack for an hour and half, and then wrap it in plastic wrap put it in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours before serving.                                                                                          

To make the Chocolate Ganache Topping:

Directions

1. Chop the chocolate into small pieces and place it in a large stainless steel bowl.
2. In a large, high sided saucepan, heat cream over medium high heat, stirring frequently, until it starts to boil. At this point, the cream will want to boil over, so keep an eye on it! Immediately remove from heat and pour over chopped chocolate. If you add about a tablespoon of corn syrup it will give it a shine to it.
3. Whisk until chocolate is completely melted and mixture is smooth. Cool and then pour over the top of the cheesecake. 

This is amazing tasting, by the way! This ganache would also work well for chocolate dipped strawberries or as hot fudge on ice cream. 

In case you couldn't tell, I decorated it with halved Reese's Peanut Butter Cups to make it fancier looking. It was Father's Day after all, and I felt it my duty to give my father-in-law exactly what he wanted... a chocolate peanut butter cheesecake, and if I do say so myself it was fabulous!

Death By Chocolate.....

By popular demand I decided to change things up a bit and do a different kind of blog post. You're welcome.

It all started last year. I've always wanted to make a cheesecake and had decided that Thanksgiving (2009) was the perfect time to do so.  That first one (or should I say second one since I technically dropped the first one all over my oven door) was a big hit and from then on I was tasked with job of bringing the cheesecake to the family gatherings.

We've done a few different types. Without further ado I give you the recipe that received rave reviews......

Katie's Double Chocolate Pumpkin Cheesecake

(Technically this is a lie though, it is more quadruple chocolate then anything)

Everything you're looking at is made of chocolate. Everything.

Serves: 12 (but really more then that)

Active: 45min/ Total: 2 1/2 hrs (plus 1 hr cooling in oven and at least 4 1/2 hrs chilling)

Planning Tip: Cake can be completed up to 1 week ahead. Cover and refrigerate.

Crust:
1 1/2 cups purchased chocolate cookie crumbs (I used Newman's Own Chocolate Alphabet Cookies)
1/2 stick (4 Tbsp) butter, melted

Filling:
3 bricks (8 oz each) cream cheese, softened
1 cup sugar
2 Tbsp cornstarch
3 large eggs
1/2 cup sour cream
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup (6 oz) milk-chocolate chips, melted and cooled
1 cup canned 100% pure pumpkin
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1 cup (6 oz) semisweet chocolate chips, melted and cooled

Chocolate Glaze:
3 oz bittersweet baking chocolate
2 Tbsp stick butter
1 Tbsp light corn syrup

Katie's tip: If you let the cream cheese sit on the counter to soften while you make the crust it will be easier to make the cream cheese filling, which will give you a better over-all cheesecake because it won't crack in the center.

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Coat an 8-in springform pan with nonstick spray. Have ready a roasting pan larger then the springform pan.

2. Crust: Put crumbs in a small bowl; stir in butter until evenly moistened. Press firmly over bottom of pan so that there are no holes in the layer. You can also push some of the crust up the side of the pan. Bake 8-10 minutes until set. Cool on rack. Wrap outside of pan with heavy-duty foil. Reduce oven temperature to 300 degrees.

3. Filling: Beat cream cheese, sugar and cornstarch in a large bowl with mixer on medium speed until smooth, scraping sides of bowl several times with a rubber spatula. Beat in eggs, 1 at a time, just until blended. Beat in the sour cream and vanilla to combine. Be careful not to over-beat. Only beat it till it is evenly blended and just slightly fluffy. Divide batter evenly between 3 medium bowls. Stir the melted milk chocolate into 1 of the bowls with the batter; pour into crust in an even layer. Whisk pumpkin and pumpkin pie spice into another bowl of the batter. Carefully spoon over chocolate layer to cover, then gently smooth into an even layer with an offset spatula (take care batters don't run together). Stir semisweet chocolate into the remaining batter in the third bowl. Carefully spoon over pumpkin layer; spread carefully as above.

4. Set springform pan in center of roasting pan. Place roasting pan in oven rack and add boiling water to come halfway up sides of springform pan.  Cook in the water bath.

5. Bake 1 1/2 to 1 3/4 hours until set, but center still jiggles slightly when shaken.

6. Turn off oven ( leave door closed); let cake cool in oven 1 hour (if cake hasn't pulled away from sides of pan, carefully run a thin knife around edge of pan to release cake). Remove foil. Cool cake in pan on a wire rack. Cover; refrigerate at least 4 hours or overnight.

7. Chocolate Glaze: Stir ingredients in a small saucepan over low heat until chocolate melts and mixture is smooth. Remove from heat; cool slightly.

8. Remove pan sides; place cake on serving plate. Spread glaze over top to edge ( some may drip down side of cake). Refrigerate until glaze sets.

A word to the wise......cut the slices really small. It is SUPER rich!! It takes a while to make it, but it is worth it. Enjoy :)

A special thank you to Jenny for the recipe and inspiration!

One last look at perfection:

Awww yeah. You know you want some of this.

---Katie