Pumpkin Cheesecake

After my disappointment with the apple fritters, I felt a need to redeem myself. I was ready to bake something that I had more confidence would at least be edible. 

I have baked with pumpkin in the past and have also made many successful cheesecakes, so I figured that a pumpkin cheesecake was probably a safe bet.  My main goal for this cheesecake was to try a few techniques with hopes of yielding a crack-free cheesecake. This is something I have not previously had much luck with here in Colorado.   

To start, I made a simple graham cracker and walnut crust for my autumn-themed cheesecake.

When it came to mixing the ingredients for the filling, I did not follow the JOC’s directions. Irma suggests that you beat the dry ingredients and the cream cheese together, and then add the eggs and egg yolks one at a time, lastly adding the pumpkin to the mixture.   

I added all of the ingredients at the same time and then blended well with a whisk. This method worked very well. I think that it would be equally as easy to mix all of the ingredients at the same time if you were to use an electric mixer for this step. 

The JOC suggests using a water bath to help the cake cook more evenly and retain its moisture. I did take the advice on this step and it worked beautifully! I am a water bath convert and will probably never bake another cheesecake in Colorado without one.

For a successful water bath, you should use a large pan that is at least 2 or 3 inches larger than your spring form pan on all sides and at least an inch and a half deep. After pouring the batter into the crust, you wrap the bottom of your spring form pan with foil to keep the water from seeping into your cake. You may even use two layers, just in case. Check your foil for cuts or holes. 

Once the oven is preheated, place the large pan in the oven, with your spring form in the middle of it. Boil a large amount of water and then carefully pour the water into the larger pan, until it is about an inch deep. Be careful not to slosh the water when pushing the oven rack back into the oven.

*The JOC also suggests that you add a pan of water to the oven while it is pre-heating to add moisture to the oven.

Here is the full recipe, relatively quick and easy. I highly recommend it! Try it for yourself.

Pumpkin Cheesecake

Preheat the oven to 350°F

Crust:

1 ½ cups of fine graham cracker crumbs

¼ cup of finely chopped walnuts

¼ cup of sugar

1 teaspoon of pumpkin pie spice mix (equal mixture of cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, and ginger)

6 tablespoons of melted butter

Mix all of the ingredients together and then press into a 9 inch spring form pan.

Bake at 350°F for 10-12 minutes.

Filling:

Combine the following ingredients and mix until well blended:

2/3 cup of brown sugar

2 teaspoons of pumpkin pie spice mix

1 pound (two 8oz packages) of cream cheese (softened)

2 eggs

2 egg yolks

1 cup of canned or cooked pumpkin

Pour the filling into the crust and prepare the water bath as I described above.

Bake at 350°F for 30 minutes; reduce the heat to 325°F and bake for an additional 10-15 minutes. (until the middle of the cake still juggle slightly when tapped)

Remove from the oven and water bath. Let cool completely. (at least an hour)

Once the cake has completely cooled, cover and chill in the fridge until ready to serve.

Using the water bath helped the cheesecake cook much more evenly than I have previously experienced. The texture of the cake was very smooth and much less dense than I am used to. No cracks either! I was very pleased with the result-a beautiful, rich, and tasty fall dessert!  If you want to add a little extra something to your pumpkin cheesecake, I would suggest garnishing with toasted walnuts or whipped cream.    

Enjoy!

Thanks again to Orin for the awesome photos!

Apple Fritters

Last week’s kitchen project didn’t involve any actual baking, but it was a true learning experience for me. I decided to take advantage of the in-season apples and try something totally different.



I was sure that apple fritters would be a challenge and I was not wrong in this assumption. I think it is safe to say that they were a real flop! I had fun though, and learned quite a lot in the process.

After a lengthy study of the instructions and recipe, I realized that making the apple fritters was going to involve a few unique culinary techniques including: whipping egg whites, folding egg whites into a delicate batter, and *gasp* deep frying. Maneuvering the egg whites and batter turned out to be the easy part. Attempting to deep fry over a gas stove was not so simple.

I began by marinating the apples in a mixture of cinnamon and chardonnay.  This flavor combination was excellent!

The batter is pretty basic to mix prior to adding the egg whites.  

The simplest way to separate an egg is to crack the shell in half on the edge of a bowl, then carefully transfer the yoke back and forth between the two shell halves, allowing the egg white to drop into a cup or bowl below.

You then use a whisk to quickly beat air into the whites. When whisking by hand, it may take a while. 

You want to whisk until the whites start to form “stiff peaks”.

Here is a picture of what “stiff peaks” look like.

To “fold” the whites into the batter, you want to scrape the whites into the bowl containing the batter and use a spoon or spatula to gently lift the batter over the whites from the edges of the bowl. You do not want to use the same circular motion you use to mix most batters.

Once the batter is complete, it is supposed to rest in the refrigerator prior to frying the fritters.

I would highly recommend using a designated deep fryer with a built in thermometer and temperature regulator if you want to try this at home. I found it very difficult to keep the oil a consistent temperature over the stove. I tried to use a thermometer to keep track of the oil temperature, but my oil got too hot and did not cook my fritters evenly. What resulted were fritters that looked almost overdone on the outside, but still contained raw dough on the inside.

I’ll pass on my adapted recipe for those brave souls who would like to experiment with deep frying pastries on their own. Much luck to you!

Autumn Apple Fritters

Marinade 2 cups of apples (cut into ¼ to ½ inch pieces and sprinkled with 1 teaspoon of cinnamon) in 1 cup of chardonnay.

Whisk together the following dry ingredients until well blended:

½ cup of all purpose flour

½ cup of whole wheat flour

2 tablespoons of sugar

1 ½ teaspoon of baking powder

¼ teaspoon of salt

Add the following wet ingredients and whisk until the batter is smooth:

2/3 cup of milk

1 egg yoke

1 tablespoon of melted butter

¼ cup of chardonnay

-Beat 2 egg whites until stiff peaks form and gently fold into the batter as described above

-Cover the batter let rest in the refrigerator for 2 hours.

-Remove the batter from the fridge and gently beat until it is smooth.

-Drain the apples and dry on a towel. Sprinkle with powdered sugar.

Add the apples to the batter.

Heat vegetable oil to 365°F

Prior to frying, you will want to dip your large serving spoon in the oil. Coating the spoon helps the batter not stick to your spoon as much.

Carefully spoon approximately ½ cup of the batter and apple mixture at a time into the oil.


Let cook for about a minute and a half on each side. Use extreme caution when turning the fritters so that you do not splash hot oil.  


After a total of 3 minutes, the fritters should be a golden brown and should be cooked all the way through.


Use a slotted spoon to remove them from the oil and place on a surface lined with paper towels. 


Only cook one or two fritters at a time. This helps the oil stay at a more consistent temperature. Carefully monitor the oil temperature. Let the fritter cool completely and check to make sure that they are cooked thoroughly before eating. You can sprinkle a little cinnamon and sugar mixture on top of them before eating as well.

Although my finished product was not a success, the experience was a good one that taught me a lot and made me laugh at the same time. I look forward to another attempt…just as soon as I can borrow someone’s deep fryer!

Thank you Orin for your lovely photos, your help, and encouragement. Thanks for actually eating a few of the fritters as well!

  

Zucchini Bread

This week I went with a tasty, seasonal treat that is really quick and easy. Like most fruit and veggie “breads”, zucchini bread is actually much more like cake than bread. You don’t add yeast and the mixture is much more a batter than it is a dough. So, it really is as simple as mixing up all of the ingredients, pouring into a pan, and baking.

You start by mixing your dry ingredients in one bowl and the wet ingredients into a separate bowl. Once again, I used half white flour and half wheat flour.



For me, the fun part of making zucchini bread is grating the zucchini. I think it is a combination of the oddity and the texture of the zucchini in comparison to most things often grated.



The recipe in the JOC calls for pecans or walnuts, but I chose to add a mixture of pecans, walnuts, and almonds to my batter.

Here is my modified recipe so that you can try it for yourself.

Zucchini Bread

Preheat your oven to 350°F
Grease a 9-5 inch loaf pan.

Stir together the dry ingredients:
1 ½ cup of all purpose or wheat flour
1 teaspoon of baking soda
1 teaspoon of baking powder
1 teaspoon of cinnamon

In a separate bowl, stir together the “wet” ingredients:
¾ cup of sugar or brown sugar
2 eggs (beaten)
½ cup of vegetable oil
1 teaspoon of vanilla
½ teaspoon of salt

Combine the contents of both bowls into one. Stir well, the batter will be thick at this point.





Add 2 cups of grated zucchini. (You will want to squeeze some of the excess moisture out of the zucchini first.)



Stir in 1 ½ cups of chopped nuts (pecan, walnuts, almonds, or any combo of the three)



Spread the batter into the greased loaf pan and bake at 350°F for 45 minutes or until the loaf starts to pull away from the sides of the pan.



Cool for 10 minutes before slicing. This recipe yields a yummy and moist bread that will crumble and fall apart as you cut it. Enjoy!

Thank you, Orin, for capturing beautiful images of my baking experience!