Stilton Noodles

Stilton is a blue veined cheese originating from the village of Stilton, England in the late 1700s.  There are only six dairies in the world licensed to produce cheese with the legally protected name, Stilton.

It is definitely a blue cheese with the associated strong smell.  Keep that in mind, if you're not a fan of blue cheese, you might want to substitute another cheese for the Stilton. 

I was tempted to buy a small crock of the cheese on a recent trip to England.  My daughter bought one too, so another Stilton recipe can't be far behind. 


Adapted from: Stilton Cheese Website

Ingredients

8 ounces (225g) egg noodles
4 ounces (113g) Stilton blue cheese with port, crumbled
1 cup (250ml) sour cream
1 egg, lightly beaten
pepper, to taste
parsley, for garnish

Directions

• Cook noodles in salted water according to package directions; drain.
• Return to pan and toss with cheese, sour cream, egg, and pepper.  
• Cook over low hear until the egg is cooked.
• Garnish with parsley before serving.
• Add additional sour cream if the noodles seem a little dry.

Cranberry Crown Cheesecake

Heavenly Cake Baker Submission #32

I made this cake a week ago Thursday.  My friend, Linda, took it to the Interfaith Community Services (my favorite charity) staff Christmas party, and I understand that it was well received.  I left the ladyfingers a bit too long, so they really wrapped around the filing.  After I'd delivered the cake, I wished that I'd piped whipped cream along the overhang. 

I had to make the ladyfingers twice.  I couldn't understand why the first batch was so flat when they came out of the oven - then I remembered that I hadn't added the flour.  I toyed with the idea of late night store run to buy ladyfingers, but decided making a second batch would be faster.

After two batches of ladyfingers, the cheesecake itself was a snap to put together - a little cream cheese and a lot of sour cream.  Linda did save me a slice of the cake, but we didn't see each other until Monday, so I can only describe the four-day old version of the cake.  The ladyfingers played a lovely supporting role, other than visually, they were barely noticeable, contributing little to the texture and flavor.  The filing was very cheesy considering that the cheese to sour cream ratio was 2:3.  The texture was not as creamy as I had hoped for, but I suspect that it was because of the age. 


Unlike my other blog posts, as part of the Heavenly Cake Bakers, I don't post recipes from this book on the Internet. One of the reasons for this baking group is to encourage readers to purchase the cookbook. That strategy worked on me! After follow the group's baking adventures for a couple of months, I ordered a copy from Amazon because I wanted join in.

Apricot Brandy Slush

Not my best photo - I forgot that the timer was still on from the night before, and the battery was too low to keep trying. 

My niece, Lesley, mentioned Apricot Brandy Slush and that planted the thought.  Apricot Brandy is one of the many liqueurs that I've picked up because of my participation in the Heaven Cake Bakers.  I'm so glad to have a use that involves more than a tablespoon or two at a time.

This festive drink would be a welcome addition to any party, winter or summer. 

Ingredients

2 cups water, boiling
2 tea bags
2 cups sugar
7 cups water, boiling
12 ounce can frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed
12 ounce can frozen lemonade concentrate, thawed
2 cups apricot brandy
2 liters ginger ale

Directions

• In a large bowl, steep tea in 2 cups boiling water for 5 minutes.  
• Add sugar to remaining boiling water and stir until sugar is dissolved, add to tea.
• Add orange juice and lemonade concentrates.
• Add apricot brandy.
• Cool and pour into a gallon freezer bag and freeze.
• Allow frozen mixture to warm-up for 15 to 20 minutes before serving in punch bowl.  Stir in ginger ale.  

Note: if you want to make individual servings rather than a punch bowl full, spoon frozen slush into  glasses and top with ginger ale.  You may also freeze the mixture in ice cube trays to make individual servings easier. 

Fruitcake Wreath - Free Choice

Heavenly Cake Baker Submission #31 

 

I'm running late with this post. Monday evening after work, my husband and I took our first of four dance lessons - thanks to Groupon, and Tuesday morning, I had outpatient surgery.  Let me get this up quickly as I weigh whether to proceed with ibuprofen or the Rx for pain.  So if my words are wacky, I'm blaming it on the meds. 

I haven't eaten fruitcake since I was a child, and my memories  mainly involve disappointment.  Shouldn't a cake have frosting?  And even in its candied version, I couldn't understand why anyone would eat citrus peel. 

I know that my tastes have changed over the years, and so many of my HCB buddies were raving about this cake, so I thought I'd give it a try.

At Vicki's suggestion, I hunted down glaceed fruit in Poland.  I brought back 900g, which turned out to be about twice what I needed, so there may be little fruitcakes for sharing soon. 

I baked the cake in a tube pan; it was so chocked full of stuff, mainly toasted walnuts and pecans, that it seemed like there was barely enough batter to hold it together.  That's not a problem flavor-wise, but it does make the cake difficult to slice. 

My opinion on fruitcake has definitely changed.  I've been having a slice for breakfast every morning. 

Unlike my other blog posts, as part of the Heavenly Cake Bakers, I don't post recipes from this book on the Internet. One of the reasons for this baking group is to encourage readers to purchase the cookbook. That strategy worked on me! After follow the group's baking adventures for a couple of months, I ordered a copy from Amazon because I wanted join in.

Financier-Style Vanilla Bean Pound Cakes

Heavenly Cake Baker Submission #30

These little cakes were so easy that I've just whipped them up in the wee hours of the morning - before the sun is even up.  If you can tackle a recipe before you're really awake, how hard can it be?

The most time consuming aspect was probably the first step, scraping the seeds from half of a vanilla bean and mixing them with superfine sugar.  With both vanilla bean seeds and vanilla extract in the batter, the aroma is heavenly. 

Next, egg whites, milk, and vanilla extract are whisked together.

The cake flour, baking powder and salt are combined in a separate bowl.  As all these pieces come together, you through in a little butter.  Voilà - Financier-Style Vanilla Bean Pound Cakes. 

You will find some blogs that have posted this recipe, but unlike my other blog posts, as part of the Heavenly Cake Bakers, I don't post recipes from this book on the Internet. One of the reasons for this baking group is to encourage readers to purchase the cookbook. That strategy worked on me! After follow the group's baking adventures for a couple of months, I ordered a copy from Amazon because I wanted join in.

Butternut Squash Galette

Galette is a French term, used for a flat, free-form, crusty cake whether sweet or savory.  I have been drooling over this galette ever since my friend, Lori, posted a photo of the one she'd made on facebook.  The recipe is from epicurious.  You may someday get a chance to know Lori too.  She has auditioned for Gordon Ramsey's MasterChef.

Tonight, was my office (church staff) Christmas party, and I needed a dish to take.  This seemed like the perfect choice because my daughter, a vegetarian, was coming with me.  In some situations, her choices are so limited that I always like to bring along a meatless dish.

The galette was popular, as were all of the other dishes.  I love potluck dinners!

The crust was so easy to roll out; it has a wonderful texture - no splitting or cracking.  I may add a little more fresh sage to the crust next time; its flavor was very subtle.

This may be the first time I've used leeks.  Caramelized as they were, they added a sweetness and a savory warmth.  The one suggestion my daughter made was to use more or a sharper goat cheese next time.  I intentionally chose a very soft, mild goat cheese because I was worried that it might be overpowering.  She's a fan of the flavor and was disappointed that it wasn't more pronounced.  So proceed according to your own tastes and feelings about goat cheese.  

Ingredients

For the pastry:
1 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
1 tablespoon chopped sage leaves
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
4 to 8 tablespoons cold water
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon canola oil

For the filing:
1 small (2 pound) butternut squash, peeled, seeded, cut into 2 x 1/4 inch slices (should yield about 4 cups)
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
2 leeks, the white and light green parts only, thinly sliced
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
6 ounces soft, mild goat cheese, crumbled

Directions

• To make the dough, pulse the flour, butter, sage, and salt in a food processor until it has the texture of a coarse meal.  (I'm not intimidated by making pie crust, so I usually don't bother with using the food processor - too many parts to wash, but in this case, it seemed like the best way to insure the sage was finely chopped and evenly distributed.)
• While pulsing, slowly add ice water, using just enough for the dough to form a ball.  Don't overwork it.  
• Shape the dough into a 5 inch disk, wrap in plastic, and chill at least one hour.
• Preheat the oven to 500 degrees.
• Toss the squash with 1 tablespoon olive oil and salt.
• Spread squash over a baking sheet and roast for 20 to 30 minutes, until the edges and undersides are golden brown. Turn once during the roasting (exercise EXTREME caution when opening the oven door to do this.  The blast of steam that hit me in the face was frightening.)
• Remove squash from the oven and reduce temperature to 375.
• While the squash is cooking, saute the leeks in the remaining olive oil, with a sprinkle of sea salt, over medium high heat loosely covered for 10 to 15 minutes.
• Transfer leeks to a large bowl and mix with goat cheese, pepper and squash.  (Both the dough and the filing can be prepared a day in advance and refrigerated.  I lined a 9 inch cake pan with plastic wrap and spread the filing around the pan, bringing the wrap around the top of the filing before refrigerating.  That way my squash mixture is the right size to plop in the middle of my pie crust.)
• Roll dough into a 13 to 14 inch circle.  
• Put filing in the center of the dough leaving a 2 to 3 inch margin all around the filing.
• Fold the edges of the dough up to cover the filing, pleating as necessary.
• Whisk the oil into the beaten egg and brush the pastry with the egg mixture and bake until golden, 35 to 40 minutes.  Cool 10 minutes before serving.

Serves 6 as a main dish, 8 as a side dish.

Chocolate Velvet Fudge Cake

Heavenly Cake Baker Submission #29

Another cake created in our little Polish kitchen.  The silicon bundt pan I brought along is only 5 cups, and Rose recommends a 10-cup pan, so I made half a recipe.

That worked out well, since I only had two eggs left after making ladyfingers yesterday.

The ladyfingers also used the last of the vanilla (aromat waniliowy), so I substituted almond (migdałów aromatycznych) - a flavor (or maybe it's the aromatic-ness) that  I find addictive. 

Glühwein optional

To give you a feel for the process:

• Cocoa is combined with boiling water.  
• Then eggs, water, and extract are combined.
• The dry ingredients are mixed in another bowl, with the butter and cocoa mixture added.
• The egg mixture is added in two steps, then the whole thing is spread into the prepared bundt pan.
• I baked for about 20 minutes at 350 F or 175 C.  You may recall that I suspected and Butter Yum's European friend confirmed that parts of the symbols on my oven dial have been worn off.  My best guess (with the aide of an owner's manual found online, that's not a perfect match) is that I was using both the upper and lower heating and the fan, a setting that sees to work well for cakes. 

Our daughter had this to say about the cake:  The almond flavor is better than vanilla would have been, but the cake needs more chocolate.  I thought velvet was a perfect word for the name of this cake, very soft and tender. 

Unlike my other blog posts, as part of the Heavenly Cake Bakers, I don't post recipes from this book on the Internet. One of the reasons for this baking group is to encourage readers to purchase the cookbook. That strategy worked on me! After follow the group's baking adventures for a couple of months, I ordered a copy from Amazon because I wanted join in.

Gluhwein (Mulled Wine)

Gluhwein is a great way to warm up on a cold winter day.  It's been freaky cold, so in the past week, I've had hot mulled wine in London, Berlin, and Poznań but none better than this recipe from the 612th Cookbook.

How wonderful to find an inviting way to welcome guests into your home, and it couldn't be easier!

Ingredients

1 bottle red wine (Gallo Ruby Red Port is the best)
1 bottle water
2 sticks cinnamon
3 whole cloves
1/2 lemon (sliced)
10 teaspoons granulated sugar


Directions

• Combine ingredients in large saucepan and simmer 90 minutes to 2 hours. 
• Serve hot. 

Fills about 10 punch glasses.