Tiny Cakes

Tiny Cheesecakes!

For Christmas last year, my mother bought me a couple of jumbo cupcake tins. I enjoy making muffins and cupcakes with them but wanted to put my extra cheesecake batter to use.

I made a 10 inch cheesecake tonight. It's a big pan for just 1 cheesecake recipe, so I used 1.5x the recipe instead of doubling it so I wouldn't have so much left over. It worked out perfectly.

I made my usual shortbread crust. I love making shortbread crusts for my cheesecake because they turn out light and simple. This shortbread recipe could work out great if you wanted to make shortbread cookies as well.

Basic Shortbread

1 pound butter (whipped 'til it yelps, or about 5 minutes)

1 cup powdered sugar

3 1/2 cups flour

a dash of cinnamon

3 tbsp vanilla

Whip the butter. Add the powdered sugar slowly to the butter. Add the rest of the ingredients and whip until incorporated. Spread over the bottom of a springform pan lined with parchment paper. If you'd like to make cookies, simply drop a spoonful onto an ungreased pan. If you'd like, put a nut or piece of chocolate on top. Bake until golden brown.

After my shortbread crust is over the springform pan, I make my cheesecake.

Tonight, since I had quite a bit shortbread and cheesecake batter left over, I grabbed those jumbo muffin tins and got to work. I put a large spoonful of shortbread into the bottom of the liners, smooshed it flat, and then added a few dollops of batter on top. I only filled the cups a tad over halfway full. I have yet to bake them-- I am baking my large cheesecake for 40 minutes, then I will add my tiny cakes, and let them both cook for an additional 20 minutes before turning the oven off and letting them cool there.

I have found that one place offers a great deal on individual cream cheese packages--- The Commissary. They offer Cooper Brand Cream Cheese for $0.99. Usually, Walmart or Safeway offers Philadelphia Cream Cheese for only $1.50 on a good day. I could of course go to Costco or Sam's Club to purchase the 3 pound blocks of cream cheese for $5.00. Only saving a buck, but hey, it's a buck.

Do I tire of making my cheesecakes? No. Sometimes I feel silly buying 8-16 packages of cream cheese at a time. " Making a large cheeseball?" you ask? Sort of. :)

I found another job--- which is wonderful financially. That avenue will be good upon which to continue testing my recipes and promoting the restaurant. I'll still bake my goodies for the restaurant. I just wish we could bring in a tad more business to give us some breathing room to really explode with new recipes and dishes.

On a side note, I made that chocolate cake again but this time with a mixer. The results were not as good as when I mixed it by hand. No, it wasn't that the cake tasted amazing the first time because I poured my heart and soul into whisking and stirring that heavy batter! Literally, the cake was less flavorful and not as fluffy as the original. I didn't switch out ingredients or anything. Interesting...eh?

Hope you are well!

Quick Chili

I don't know about you, but I've never been a fan of "canned" meals---canned spaghetti sauce, canned chili, etc. I think I have bought maybe one or two cans of said 'fake foods' because I feel that by purchasing them I support a cheating lifestyle. Yes. Using either jarred spaghetti sauce or chili mixes endorse an unfaithful lifestyle---at least when it comes to cooking.

Here's my quick chili recipe. This recipe makes enough for about 10 bowls (plenty to take for lunches for the next few days or chili dogs in the evening)!

Jenna's Chili

2 lbs ground beef

1 red pepper

1 onion

2 garlic cloves (or at least 3 tbsp garlic powder if not more)

6 slices of jalapeno (more or less depending on your heat tolerance. 6 slices will get you nowhere)

3 cans tomato sauce (regular size)

1 can diced tomatoes (regular size)

1/2C to 1C brown sugar

3 tbsp apple cider vinegar

chili powder (to taste)

Optional (to taste)

chives

ground mustard

salt

Brown ground beef and chop into bite size bits. Drain juice.

Chop onion, jalapeños, and pepper into small bits. Add garlic and chili powder (and other spices) and stir fry for about 2 minutes.

Pour all the tomato ingredients, vinegar, and sugar into a large stockpot.

Mix the ground beef into the stockpot. Add the onion/pepper mix. Stir well. Cook over medium heat until bubbly and then turn to low.

Let cook on low until you are ready to eat if you are planning on eating it within an hour. If you want to prep this in advance, transfer it all into a crockpot and adjust settings to "keep warm." I see no need to even turn the crockpot on low or high---it's already cooked, now you are letting the flavors set in. Chili gets better with age until a certain point where there is no return...Make a day ahead!

This chili is mild. It has plenty of spice yet a sweetness that offsets the tomato. If you are feeling frisky, add a bit more garlic or some chili's to the mix. I'm sure you could add beans as well, but that's just not my thing. :)

Life is good. Some things change, some things don't. I am thankful above all that I have my God who still believes in me, my husband who stands by my side, my family who puts up with me, and my friends who laugh with me. Amidst life's pain, trouble, unforeseen circumstances and events, one can be thankful for breath and life.

Things aren't always what they seem and sometimes things seem bad. At one moment, life as you know it ceases to function at the news of a tragedy or a heartbreak. Within minutes or hours the wheels start turning again and you remember that the world never did stop turning, as you did. Life goes on. Life is good.

Be well. Until next time!

Chocolate Cake Take 2

My lovely friends invited Sam and I over for dinner last night. We had a delicious meal with fantastic company. Afterwards, the boys wanted to watch Monty Python and the Holy Grail. The ladies in the house did not want to watch that movie... so we baked!

We made cupcakes from that chocolate cake recipe I recently posted. We even made the cupcakes in ZEBRA print cupcake liners! HOW fun is that?

Upon tasting the cupcakes, I realized that this really is the greatest chocolate cake recipe ever. The cake is mild and not heavy or thick with chocolate. Leave it up to the frosting to remedy that.

What new recipes shall be coming up? Only time will tell!