Cheese Muffins II

I absolutely love these muffins. Since that first post I made for them, I've been experimenting with the recipe. Some variations were better than others.

Here are two I rather liked. The Curry Variation is my favorite. The first time I made it the curry flavor wasn't intense enough. Another time it was a little to much. But I think I figured it out now.
The Pizza Variation was planed as Paprika Variation but in the end it reminded me more of pizza. That's not a bad thing even if it isn't what I wanted. I can still find the right combination for the paprika taste. So there is still more to come. YAY!

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Cheese Muffins

Base Dough

Dry ingredients:

2 1/4 cups flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
70 g parmesan
60 g gouda

1. Grate the parmesan and the gouda.
2. Combine all the dry ingredients in a big bowl.
3. Use a spatula or a wooden spoon to mix everything together.

Wet ingredients:

2 eggs
2 1/2 tbsp olive oil
1 1/4 cups buttermilk

1. Put the eggs in a small bowl and whisk them with a fork.
2. Add the remaining wet ingredients to the eggs and whisk everything together.

Egg Wash

1 egg yolk
2 tsp water

1. Combine the egg yolk with the water and whisk them together.

Curry Variation

1 cup corn, out of a can
3 scallions
1 garlic clove
1/2 tsp mustard powder
1 tsp curry
1 tsp masala

1. Put the corn in a colander to drain.
2. Wash the scallions and dab them dry. Cut them into slices.
3. Peel the garlic clove. Mince it.

Pizza Variation

1 red bell pepper
3 tbsp ajvar, hot
ca. 40 g black olives
3 scallions
2 tsp paprika powder
1/4 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp Piri-Piri spice blend

1. Wash the bell pepper and dab it dry. Cut it into small cubes.
2. Put the olives in a colander to drain. Halve the olives and cut them into slices.
3. Wash the scallions and dab them dry. Cut them into slices.

To Assemble

1 base dough
1 variation
1 egg wash

1. Pre-heat the oven to 180°C/350°F.
2. Grease a muffin pan with baking spray.
3. Add the prepared ingredients from the chosen variation to the dry ingredients of the base dough.
4. Mix everything together with a spatula or a wooden spoon.
5. Make a well in the middle and add the wet ingredients of the base dough.
6. Use the spatula or wooden spoon to thoroughly combine all the ingredients.
7. Distribute the dough in the muffin pan, it's enough for 12 muffins.
8. Smooth out the top of the muffins.
9. Brush them with the egg wash.
10. Bake the muffins for 35-40 minutes.
11. Leave the muffins in the pan for about 5 minutes to cool down.
12. Take them out and put them on a cooling rack.

Bon appétit!!

Lemon Garlic Pasta

It's been a while that I made these recipe. So I don't remember much about it. But it was obviously good or I wouldn't have put it on my "to post" pile.

So here it is.

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Lemon Garlic Pasta

150 g pasta
1/4 cup parmesan
3 garlic gloves
1/2 lemon
2 tbsp pine nuts
6-8 basil leaves
2 tsp olive oil

1. Toast the pine nuts in a skillet, without oil.
2. Skin the garlic. Mince it afterwards.
3. In a skillet heat the oil on low. Fry the garlic in it until it turns a light brown. Save it for later.
4. Cook the pasta.
5. Grate the parmesan.
6. Chiffonade the basil leaves.
7. Combine the pine nuts, the parmesan, the garlic oil and the basil in a bowl.
8. Squeeze the lemon juice into the bowl. Mix everything together.
9. Combine it with the pasta.

Bon appétit!!

Marble Cheesecake

This is one of the cakes I made for my fathers birthday. I combined three different cheesecake recipes and changed them up a lot.
I thought it was ok, but I'm generally not that big a fan of cheesecakes. But my father likes them so I made one anyway. Everyone else thought it was good, so I count it as a win. Only my mom complaind a little, because she didn't like the chocolate cheesecake. She prefers her baked good chocolate free. I don't get it.

I didn't want to make the bottom out of cookie crumbs. That's so boring and not one of my favorite pastries. I searched around a little and found this brownie bottom. It paid off. It was my favorite part.

I used a square form. Mostly because the other cake I made was round and I wanted something different. But I will write the recipe for a round form. The only difference is how you prepare the baking pan anyway.

You can't eat all that much of it. The cream cheese makes it rather heavy. But maybe it's better this way.

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Marble Cheesecake

Brownie Dough

85 g butter
85 g chocolate, bittersweet
3/4 cup sugar
2 eggs
1/4 cup milk
3/4 cup flour

1. Use a round baking pan, but leave out the bottom. Grease the sides with butter.
2. Put baking parchment on a baking sheet. Place the ring of the baking pan in the middle. Press the sides of the parchment to the outside of the ring.
3. Cut of a strip of baking parchment, it should be as high as the ring. Place it on the inside of the pan.
4. Pre-heat the oven to 175°C/350°F.
5. Put the butter and the chocolate in a sauce pan and melt it on low. Stir constantly.
6. Put the sugar in a bowl. Take the pan of the stove and add the chocolate to the sugar. Mix it together.
7. Leave it to cool down for about 5 minutes.
8. Add the milk and the eggs. Use a hand mixer on medium speed to mix everything together.
9. Stir in the flour.
10. Spreed the dough into the prepared baking pan.
11. Bake for 25 minutes.

Light Batter

880 g cream cheese, room temperature
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup flour
1/2 cup sour cream
1 tsp vanilla extract
3 eggs

1. Soften the cream cheese.
2. Add the sugar, the flour, the sour cream and the vanilla extract and mix it together.
3. Add the eggs individually and blend them in.

Chocolate Batter 

50 g chocolate, bittersweet
100 g cream cheese
1/4 cup sugar
1/8 tsp salt
1/8 sour cream
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 egg

1. Chop the chocolate roughly.
2. Melt the chocolate in a double boiler.
3. Soften the cream cheese.
4. Add the sugar and mix it in.
5. Add the salt, the sour cream and the vanilla extract and blend everything together.
6. Add the egg and mix it in with a hand mixer on low speed. Don't over mix.
7. Add the chocolate and mix it in.

To Assemble

1. Pre-heat the oven to 175°C/350°F.
2. Put blobs of the two different batters on the brownie dough.
3. Pass a fork through the batter to create a marble effect. Don't overdo it or you only get light brown batter.
4. Bake the cake for 45 minutes.
5. Reduce the heat to 165°C/325°F.
6. Bake for another 60-70 minutes.
7. Shut down the oven. Leave the cake for about 1 hour in the oven with a tilted door.
8. Put the cake on a cooling rack and leave it to cool down completely.
9. Put the it in the fridge for at least 8 hours.
10. Detach the baking pan and parchment before you serve the cheesecake.

Bon appétit!!

Chocolate Pear Turnover

A friend and I were baking cookies. I wanted something special. So I looked through my whole online bookmarks regarding Cookies. It's a long list. And I found these.
These cookies are really prestigious. And they taste great.

Some of the dough was left over. I just made some medallions. They were tasty too. Simple but still good. Because of the cacao the dough is really dark, in taste and color. As soon as I find a good filling I will make my own Oreos with these recipe.

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Chocolate Pear Turnover

Dough

125 g butter, room temperature
200 g flour
50 g cacao
1 egg
125 g sugar

1.  Use a fork to "cream" the butter.
2. Add the flour and the cacao and blend everything with your hands until it's crumbly.
3. Make a well in the middle and add the egg and the sugar. Use your hands to blend the dough until it's smooth.
4. Form a Ball out of the dough and wrap it with plastic wrap. Put it for at least one hour in the fridge.

Filling

400 g pears
1/4 cup water
20 g hazelnuts, ground

1. Peal and core the pears. Afterwards cut them into small cubes.
2. Put the pears with the water in small sauce pan and bring it to a boil.
3. Reduce the heat to low. Cover the pan with a lid and leave it to simmer for about 1 hour. Stir occasionlly.
4. Take of the lid in the last 15-20 minutes. So the water can vaporize.
5. Heat a skillet and toast the hazelnuts in it for about 2-3 minutes.
6. Use an immersion blender to blend the pears.
7. Press the pear mash through a fine sieve. You need about 125 g.
8. Add the hazelnuts and blend everything together with a fork.

To Assemble

1 Egg

1. Put baking parchment on a baking sheet.
2. Unwrap the dough. Roll it out on lightly floured surface.
3. Cut out circles with a 8-10 cm big diameter.
4. Put about 2 tsp pear mash on the circles and fold them to half moons. Use your fingers to squeeze the edges together. If some dough is left over, form small medallions.
5. Place the turnovers on the baking sheet.
6. Pre-heat the oven to 180°C/360°F.
7. Whisk the egg in a small bowl.
8. Brush the cookies with the egg wash.
9. Bake the turnover for about 15 minutes.
10. Leave the cookies on a cooling rack to cool down.

Bon appétit!!

Stuffed Puff Pastry Pears

Somehow I got the idea to make stuffed puff pastry pears. I searched for a good recipe on google and pinterest (my usual hunting grounds). But the most recipes asked for gorgonzola and I hate it. So I had no other choice then to make my own recipe.
I had a few ideas of what would go with the pears. I decided on ricotta and parmesan as base. Kind of like tortellini. 
Another ingredient that came up in my search was wulnuts. First I just wanted to put in chopped nuts. My mom owns a thermomix, so I thought I save some time and use it. But that thing really got a lot of power. A few seconds and the walnuts were already ground. But after I thought about it a little longer, I decided that it is even better to also use the ground nuts. That way the walnut taste would be even more intense.
To add a little more flavour I chose rosemary. But I didn't want to leave it whole for two reasons. First it would be rather unpleasant to bite on the leaves. And second the taste wouldn't be intense enough. Well I already knew the thermomix is strong enough to ground the rosemary to a powder, so no problem there. Except that the amount I needed was to slight. The rosemary was just thrown against the wall. The solution was to add more. In the end I ground all of my moms rosemary. Oops. Well at least I've got enough for the next time.

One of the reasons I wanted to make puff pastry pears is because I liked the look of the wrapped pears. I wanted to try my hand at it myself. I am rather satisfied with the outcome. It was easier to accomplish than I thought it would be.

All in all I have to say that the combination worked out rather well. The moist and fruity taste of the pears was a good contrast to the tart flavour of the filling.
I quite liked them and plan to do them again rather soon. I have been told that they are still good on the next day if you heat them in the oven or even over the toaster.
I believe that the pears would be great as an entree.

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Stuffed Puff Pastry Pears

Filling

200 g ricotta
5 tbsp walnuts, ground
ca. 25 g walnuts, whole
30 g parmesan
1 egg yolk
2 tsp rosemary, ground
salt
pepper

1. Chop the whole nuts.
2. Grate the parmesan.
3. Combine the ricotta, the ground and chopped walnuts, the parmesan, the egg yolk and the rosemary in a small bowl. Use a fork to mix everything together.
4. Season it with salt and pepper.
5. Cover the bowl and put it in the fridge until you need it.

Pears

4 pears

1. The pears you chose should be ripe but still firm.
2. Remove the stem of the pears. Afterwards peel them.
3. Cut the pears in half lengthwise.
4. Carefully cut out the core. If you can make the hole bigger so you can put in more filling.
5. Use a paper towel to dab of the juice. It will be easier to work with them if they are dry.

Egg Wash

1 egg yolk
2 tsp water

1. Combine the egg yolk with the water and whisk them together.

To Assemble

Water
2 sheets puff pastry, ca. 500g

1. Pre-heat the oven to 200°C/390°F.
2. Put baking parchment on a baking sheet.
3. Put some cold water in a small dish. You will need it to glue the individual puff pastry parts together.
4. Place a pear with the cut side on the puff pastry sheet. Try to place it so that you don't waste to much of the sheet. Cut directly around the pear.
5. Place the pear on another part of the sheet. Cut around it again but this time with a rim of about 1,5-2 cm (depending on how high the pear is).
6. Take the pear of the sheet and fill the hole with the filling. Smooth it out so that the bottom is even.
7. Take the second cut out in your hand and put the pear, bottom up, on it. Fold the puff pastry around the pear.
8. Dab your finger into the water and rund it over the puff pastry that is folded over the cut bottom of the pear.
9. Put the first cut out on the bottom and press it to the moistened pastry.
10. Place the wrapped pear, bottom down, on the prepared baking sheet.
11. Repeat the process with the remaining pears.
12. Cut out leaves out of the remaining puff pastry. Glue them to the pears with the water.
13. Brush the puff pastry with the egg wash. 
14. Bake the stuffed puff pastry pears for 30-35 minutes.

Bon appétit!!

Cheese Muffins

The original recipe is actually a loaf of bread. And the first two times I made it as a loaf. The first time for myself, to see if I like it, I did. And the second time for my family, they loved it.
But there where a few things I didn't like. After the loaf comes out of the oven you have to wait at least a few hours bevor you can eat it. Cause when the bread is still hot it's to heavy and to moist. You can only eat a little bit or you get a stomachache, but it is hard to stop cause it tastes great.
And another thing is that I, and the rest of my family, love bread crust, and there isn't enough of it.
To make muffins out of these recipe was my moms idea. And it solves all these problems.

Like I said my family loved the bread, even my brother and he is a picky eater. So I had to make the muffins only a few days after the bread (it was barely enough for two days). And while I was at it, I thought I could try out different ingredients. I like bread and buns with kernel and raisins, so I tried that out. They turned out pretty well. The original recipe is mediterranean and has a rather intense taste. But the kernel variation is pretty mild in comparison. It's almost neutral, but not in a negative sense. More along the lines that it goes just as well with something sweet as something hearty.

The base dough is great for all kinds of variations. I have some ideas for others, maybe something with bell pepers or cranberrys.
And of course you could also change the cheese. Instead of the gouda you could use something with a stronger taste. But I rather like gouda so I think that's not a variation I will try out.

Another thing I liked about the recipe is that it's so easy to make, you don't even need a hand mixer, a spatula or a wooden spoon suffices. And the base dough is pretty quick to make. The mediterranean varition takes some time, cause there is so much to cut. But if you make the kernel variation there is almost no extra work.

I also made the muffins for some of my extended family and some friends (on two separate occasions) and all around I only got positiv feedback.

One of my friends made the suggestion to make mini-muffins. I kind of like the idea, they would be practically bite sized. So I think I'll do that the next time.

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Cheese Muffins

Base Dough

Dry ingredients:

2 1/4 cups flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
70 g parmesan
60 g gouda

1. Grate the parmesan and the gouda.
2. Combine all the dry ingredients in a big bowl.
3. Use a spatula or a wooden spoon to mix everything together.

Wet ingredients:

2 eggs
2 1/2 tbsp olive oil
1 1/4 cups buttermilk

1. Put the eggs in a small bowl and whisk them with a fork.
2. Add the remaining wet ingredients to the eggs and whisk everything together.

Egg Wash

1 egg yolk
2 tsp water

1. Combine the egg yolk with the water and whisk them together.

Mediterranean Variation

1/2 tsp mustard flour
1/4 tsp pepper
1 tsp thyme
1/2 cup green olives
10 sundried tomatoes
2 scallions
2 tbsp parsley
thyme, for sprinkling
sea salt, for sprinkling

1. Cut the olives into thin rings and then in halves.
2. Cut the tomatoes into thin slices and then in halves.
3. Wash and dry the scallions and then cut them into thin slices.
4. Mince the parsley.

Kernel Variation

1/2 cup gold raisins
1/2 cup sunflower kernels
1/2 cup pumkin seeds

To Assemble

1 base dough
1 variation
1 egg wash

1. Pre-heat the oven to 180°C/350°F.
2. Grease a muffin pan with baking spray.
3. Add the prepared ingredients from the chosen variation to the dry ingredients of the base dough.
4. Mix everything together with a spatula or a wooden spoon.
5. Make a well in the middle and add the wet ingredients of the base dough.
6. Use the spatula or wooden spoon to thoroughly combine all the ingredients.
7. Distribute the dough in the muffin pan, it's enough for 12 muffins.
8. Smooth out the top of the muffins.
9. Brush them with the egg wash.
10. If the chosen variation includes something to sprinkle on the muffins use it now.
11. Bake the muffins for 35-40 minutes.
12. Leave the muffins in the pan for about 5 minutes to cool down.
13. Take them out and put them on a cooling rack.


If you prefer to make the loaf, you only have to change the baking time to about 50 minutes.

Bon appétit!!

Stuffed Onions

I was always a little more sensitive when it comes to onions then most. But lately it's getting ridiculous. By now I even react to scallions. It's a real shame because I love onions in my dishes.
I try to use my food processor as often as possible. It doesn't eliminate the problem but it makes it better.

While preparing the onions I had to wash out my eyes at least 8 times. Afterwards my face was bright red. And I really mean my whole face and not just around my eyes. I'm in no hurry to repeat that experience.

I like the stuffing. It's a really good combination. But you shouldn't eat more than one stuffed onion. All in all the dish contains a lot of onion. If you eat to much your throat will hurt afterwards.

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Stuffed Onions

5 spanish onions (large, mild onions)
2 red bell peppers
200 g green olives, stuffed with pepper paste
250 g feta
4 tsp oregano
olive oil
pepper
salt

1. Carefully trim the root end of the onions. Cut of the cap of the onions and skin them afterwards.
2. Hollow out the onions, be careful not to break or damage them.
3. Bring salt water to a boil in a big sauce pan.
4. Cook the onions in it for about 15 minutes. They should be soft, but not falling apart.
5. Take the onions out and let them drip off. Put them aside for later.
6. Roughly cube the onion innards.
7. Wash and dry the bell peppers. Hollow them out and cut them into fine cubes.
8. Put the olives in a colander and let them drip off. Cut them roughly into cubes.
9. Heat the oil in a skillet. Fry the cut onions and peppers for 5-7 minutes.
10. Add the olives to the rest in the last minute or two.
11. Crumble the feta or alternatively cut it into fine cubes.
12. Pre-heat the oven to 180°C/360°F.
13. Mix everything together.
14. Season with salt, pepper and oregano.
15. Stuff the onions with the mixture.
16. Grease a casserole dish with some olive oil.
17. Spread the left over mixture in the dish. Place the stuffed onions on top.
18. Bake the onions for about 45-50 minutes.

Bon appétit!!