DB challenge: Cheesecake Pops

All I can say for April DB challenge is: This was really fun! And the measurements from the recipe make enormous quantities of cheesecake pops so we were eating thought all April! Great! Love it! Will definitely make more and again!

I couldn't find popsticks so I had to improvise with edible chocolate sticks but I think that made my pops even better!

Cheesecake Pops

Makes 30 – 40 Pops

5 8-oz. packages cream cheese at room temperature

2 cups sugar

¼ cup all-purpose flour

¼ teaspoon salt

5 large eggs

2 egg yolks

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

¼ cup heavy cream

Boiling water as needed

Thirty to forty 8-inch lollipop sticks

1 pound chocolate, finely chopped – you can use all one kind or half and half of dark, milk, or white (Alternately, you can use 1 pound of flavored coatings, also known as summer coating, confectionary coating or wafer chocolate – candy supply stores carry colors, as well as the three kinds of chocolate.)

2 tablespoons vegetable shortening

(Note: White chocolate is harder to use this way, but not impossible)

Assorted decorations such as chopped nuts, colored jimmies, crushed peppermints, mini chocolate chips, sanding sugars, dragees) - Optional

Position oven rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 325 degrees F. Set some water to boil.

In a large bowl, beat together the cream cheese, sugar, flour, and salt until smooth. If using a mixer, mix on low speed. Add the whole eggs and the egg yolks, one at a time, beating well (but still at low speed) after each addition. Beat in the vanilla and cream.

Grease a 10-inch cake pan (not a springform pan), and pour the batter into the cake pan. Place the pan in a larger roasting pan. Fill the roasting pan with the boiling water until it reaches halfway up the sides of the cake pan. Bake until the cheesecake is firm and slightly golden on top, 35 to 45 minutes.

Remove the cheesecake from the water bath and cool to room temperature. Cover the cheesecake with plastic wrap and refrigerate until very cold, at least 3 hours or up to overnight.

When the cheesecake is cold and very firm, scoop the cheesecake into 2-ounce balls and place on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Carefully insert a lollipop stick into each cheesecake ball. Freeze the cheesecake pops, uncovered, until very hard, at least 1 – 2 hours.

When the cheesecake pops are frozen and ready for dipping, prepare the chocolate. In the top of a double boiler, set over simmering water, or in a heatproof bowl set over a pot of simmering water, heat half the chocolate and half the shortening, stirring often, until chocolate is melted and chocolate and shortening are combined. Stir until completely smooth. Do not heat the chocolate too much or your chocolate will lose it’s shine after it has dried. Save the rest of the chocolate and shortening for later dipping, or use another type of chocolate for variety.

Alternately, you can microwave the same amount of chocolate coating pieces on high at 30 second intervals, stirring until smooth.

Quickly dip a frozen cheesecake pop in the melted chocolate, swirling quickly to coat it completely. Shake off any excess into the melted chocolate. If you like, you can now roll the pops quickly in optional decorations. You can also drizzle them with a contrasting color of melted chocolate (dark chocolate drizzled over milk chocolate or white chocolate over dark chocolate, etc.) Place the pop on a clean parchment paper-lined baking sheet to set. Repeat with remaining pops, melting more chocolate and shortening (or confectionary chocolate pieces) as needed.

Refrigerate the pops for up to 24 hours, until ready to serve.

Challenge host were: FeedingMyEnthusiasms and Taste and Tell

Daring Bakers: French Bread

For February Daring Bakers challenge Mary of The Sour Dough and Sara of I like to cook picked the French bread recipe from Julia Child's "Mastering the Art of French Cooking Volume 2". According to Mary and Sara the original recipe from Julia Child cookbook takes up to 18 pages. That made me nervous.

I'm quite proud of my bread baking skills, but till now I never made French bread. I usually bake with whole corn or rye flour and the process is in general much simpler than the process described in DB / Julia Child recipe. And I do not have the strict recipe that I fallow. I know in general what is needed to make a bread, but I usually do something different, always adding something like olives, capers, caramelized onion...

At the first I was overwhelm with the length and the precisions of the DB recipe. And I was sure it will be to complicated for me. Especially the part of the recipe that describes the kneading, rupture and all then hard "hand working" that I couldn't quite visualize.

Luckily for me, and all of you who need AV assistance when cooking something for the first time, I found a great video from PBS with Julia Child and Danielle Forestier that helped me understand what I'm supposed to do!

The process in video was a bit different from DB recipe and since DB rules request to follow the recipe I had no option but to follow the DB recipe and to use video only to help me with kneading and other technics.

From the very beginning I felt something was wrong. The dough was to hard to knead. I suppose I didn't add enough water, so for the next time I'll be sure to add more water. That was more or less the only problem, but it followed me trough whole process... dough couldn't rise enough, it was hard to knead and rupture...

I realized very soon that it needed more water but I was not sure could I just add it after the first rise. Well, next time I'll know better at the beginning.

The final result was excellent, no matter the problem I had during the process. Maybe it would be better if bread was little bit more "spongy", with more holes... I suppose it is connected with the lack of water... but it tasted great!

So, all I can say to all of you who are afraid of 18 pages long recipe is: "Do not fear!" Take one step at the time and just follow the recipe... it will take you there... "Let the force be with you!"

My Very First Daring Bakers Challenge: Lemon Meringue Pie

I've been stoking Daring Bakers for a while, but never felt brave enough to join them. Is not that I'm bad baker in general, but only when it comes to bake a pastry, cakes... It takes discipline, precision, patients that I simply do not have. With cooking you can always improvise, but with cakes... it still quantum physics for me...

Nevertheless, last December something strange happened to me and I joined DB. Well, not exactly. I got ill and I couldn't participate at December challenge. I felt like it was a message from "above" that baking is not for me. That pissed me off and I decided that nothing could stop me of participating in January challenge, not even me being ill again!

So last Saturday, although I had temperature and feeling slightly weak, I gathered all my strength and confronted the evil three: the Lemon, the Meringue and the Pie!

As DB rules request I followed the recipe without any complain, I didn't ask "Why this?", I didn't think of giving up, not even in the most painful moments when dough seemed stronger then me... I continued... not even the extreme mess (that somehow just happened in my kitchen) couldn't stop me... the flour was flaying around, lemon juice flow from counter top, sugar rolled over the floor... but after that tough battle... here it is... my very first Daring Bakers challenge finished!

Ladies and gentleman, let me introduce you... Lemon Meringue Pie!

Lemon Meringue Pie

Makes one 10-inch (25 cm) pie

For the Crust:

¾ cup (180 mL) cold butter; cut into ½-inch (1.2 cm) pieces

2 cups (475 mL) all-purpose flour

¼ cup (60 mL) granulated sugar

¼ tsp (1.2 mL) salt

⅓ cup (80 mL) ice water

For the Filling:

2 cups (475 mL) water

1 cup (240 mL) granulated sugar

½ cup (120 mL) cornstarch

5 egg yolks, beaten

¼ cup (60 mL) butter

¾ cup (180 mL) fresh lemon juice

1 tbsp (15 mL) lemon zest

1 tsp (5 mL) vanilla extract

For the Meringue:

5 egg whites, room temperature

½ tsp (2.5 mL) cream of tartar

¼ tsp (1.2 mL) salt

½ tsp (2.5 mL) vanilla extract

¾ cup (180 mL) granulated sugar

For the Crust: Make sure all ingredients are as cold as possible. Using a food processor or pastry cutter and a large bowl, combine the butter, flour, sugar and salt. Process or cut in until the mixture resembles coarse meal and begins to clump together. Sprinkle with water, let rest 30 seconds and then either process very briefly or cut in with about 15 strokes of the pastry cutter, just until the dough begins to stick together and come away from the sides of the bowl. Turn onto a lightly floured work surface and press together to form a disk. Wrap in plastic and chill for at least 20 minutes.

Allow the dough to warm slightly to room temperature if it is too hard to roll. On a lightly floured board (or countertop) roll the disk to a thickness of ⅛ inch (.3 cm). Cut a circle about 2 inches (5 cm) larger than the pie plate and transfer the pastry into the plate by folding it in half or by rolling it onto the rolling pin. Turn the pastry under, leaving an edge that hangs over the plate about ½ inch (1.2 cm). Flute decoratively. Chill for 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 350ºF (180ºC). Line the crust with foil and fill with metal pie weights or dried beans. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes. Carefully remove the foil and continue baking for 10 to 15 minutes, until golden. Cool completely before filling.

For the Filling: Bring the water to a boil in a large, heavy saucepan. Remove from the heat and let rest 5 minutes. Whisk the sugar and cornstarch together. Add the mixture gradually to the hot water, whisking until completely incorporated.

Return to the heat and cook over medium heat, whisking constantly until the mixture comes to a boil. The mixture will be very thick. Add about 1 cup (240 mL) of the hot mixture to the beaten egg yolks, whisking until smooth. Whisking vigorously, add the warmed yolks to the pot and continue cooking, stirring constantly, until mixture comes to a boil. Remove from the heat and stir in butter until incorporated. Add the lemon juice, zest and vanilla, stirring until combined. Pour into the prepared crust. Cover with plastic wrap to prevent a skin from forming on the surface, and cool to room temperature.

For the Meringue: Preheat the oven to 375ºF (190ºC). Using an electric mixer beat the egg whites with the cream of tartar, salt and vanilla extract until soft peaks form. Add the sugar gradually, beating until it forms stiff, glossy peaks. Pile onto the cooled pie, bringing the meringue all the way over to the edge of the crust to seal it completely. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until golden. Cool on a rack. Serve within 6 hours to avoid a soggy crust.