For my Love ( Toblerone Cheesecake)

This post is for the one I love. My husband would always ask me why I am blogging? and if there is something I get or what benefits I get from doing it? I just answered him with a smile and would tell him that blogging is my way of expressing myself. My blog is my online recipe diary where I explore and showcase dishes .  Anyway, as for the benefits I guess blogging makes me happy and keeps me sane harhar. Before my only purpose was just to document and post all the recipes that I’ve tried but suddenly there were fellow bloggers and followers recognized or appreciated what I’m doing and that motivates me to never stop blogging and just keep my journey in discovering new recipes that I can share with you all 🙂

The title post says for my love it’s because this recipe is  for my husband who loves eating toblerone.  At first he tried to stop me to touch his chocolates but I insisted because my cream cheese would be out of date soon and just promised him that I will just transform his Toblerone into something delectable .:) He loves it of course!

 

Ingredients

• 150 g digestive biscuit crumbs
• 50 g butter
• 300 g Philadelphia  cream cheese
• 175 g Toblerone Milk, melted
• 200 ml whipping cream, lightly whipped
• 25 g Toblerone Milk, for shavings

Instructions

Combine the biscuit crumbs with the melted butter and press into the base of a lightly greased  springform tin. Chill

Beat the Philadelphia until smooth, quickly fold in the lightly whipped cream and melted Toblerone until well combined.

Pour onto the prepared crumb base and refrigerate for 2-3 hours or overnight. Serve topped with Toblerone shavings.

Recipe from Philadelphia.co.uk

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Luscious lemon squares…

I am always on the search for a new dessert or dish that I can try on. Luckily, as I browse the page of one of my favorite blogger she got a new post which really captures my heart. The way she describe her lemon bars is just really enticing that after reading it I want to bake it at that very moment. And so I search for more recipes and know more about this famous lemon bars. I admit I don’t know lemon bars and had never tried it.  I also found this..

A proverbial phrase used to encourage optimism and a can-do attitude in the face of adversity or misfortune.

So yeah, when life will give me lemons I would definitely make it into luscious lemon bars :). I would say this recipe is just perfect for me not that tangy and it  melts in the mouth and it’s heavenly as Heart of Mary describe it in her post.

LEMON SQUARES

Ingredients:
Note: I did some substitution on  some ingredients as it  is not available in my pantry.
For the pastry:
1 cup salted butter, cut into cubes ( I used unsalted butter and just added pinch of salt)
½ cup powdered/icing sugar
2 cups plain flour

For the filling:
½ cup plus 2 tbsp plain flour
1 ¼ tsp baking powder
½ tsp Salt
5 large eggs
1 ½ cup plus 2 tbsp granulated white sugar
1/3 cup lemon juice (about 2 large lemons)
1 tsp lemon extract( I used 1 tsp lemon zest )

zest of one lemon (optional, if you prefer it to be more tangy) I didn’t put mine more zest as I don’t like very tangy.
powdered/icing sugar for dusting

Procedure:

1.  Preheat oven to 180 deg C (350F)  Line a 9×13 baking pan with baking paper. (I use a rectangular springform pan which makes it so easy to remove the lemon squares.)
2.  In a medium bowl, mix together all the ingredients for the pastry until it forms a dough.  Gather dough into a ball.
3.  Press the dough onto your baking pan. Spread it as evenly as possible.

4.  Chill in the fridge for about 15 minutes then bake in the oven for 25 minutes.  After the pastry is baked, take it out but leave the oven on.
5.  While the pastry is baking, prepare your filling.  In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt.
6.  In a large mixing bowl, beat the eggs until foamy, starting from a low speed gradually increasing to high.
7.  Slowly add in the sugar.  Beat the mixture until it is very light yellow in colour and it has quadrupled in volume.
8.  With mixer on lowest speed, add in the lemon juice, lemon extract and zest, if using.  Lastly, add in the flour.  Mix only until everything is combined.
9.  Pour the filling on top of the warm, baked pastry.  Place pan back in the oven, lower the temperature to 160 deg C (325F) and bake for about 30-40 minutes or until the top springs back when lightly touched.  Baked filling should be very light golden brown.
10.  Move pan to a wire rack.  Let cool completely before slicing into squares.  Dust top generously with icing sugar.

Let’s get the ball rolling for 2014!

First of all I wanna greet all of you a HAPPY HAPPY NEW  YEAR!!!! May 2014 be  a year of health and happiness,a year of  wealth and wisdom, a year of peace and prosperity, a year of glee  and glow, and of course a year of LOVE & Laughter for all of us!!:)

I miss the blogging world but the last few months of last year was just too busy for me.  There are lots of parties and gathering and so my kitchen is also busy from cooking to baking:)Anyway, the first   recipe that  I  would be posting for 2014 is the one that I have baked for a the celebration of 10 years of Filipino-Irish Community here in Ireland. Eating these cupcakes gives us a nostalgic feeling, could bring back wonderful  memories of childhood. Cheese  cupcakes  has  always  been  a part of my student  years and even when I started working this has still been my favorite cupcake.

pinoy cheese cupcake

Cheese Cupcakes

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Yield: 18 Servings

Ingredients

• 1-3/4 cups flour, sifted
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 can (14 ounces) sweetened condensed milk
• 1/2 cup quick-melt cheese, shredded
• 1/2 cup cheddar cheese, shredded

Note: I used my favorite  Hochland  Gouda cheese in this recipe. It’s very creamy  and yummy just like Eden Cheese of Philippines:)

Instructions

1. In a large bowl, combine flour, baking powder and salt.
2. In a medium bowl, beat butter, sugar and eggs.
3. Beginning and ending with flour mixture, add flour mixture in thirds and 1/2 of sweetened condensed milk in between. Beat at low speed with every addition.
4. Add quick-melt cheese and stir to combine.
5. Using a scoop or spoon, fill paper-lined muffin cups to 3/4 full. Top with cheddar cheese and bake in a 350 F oven for about 20-25 minutes or until toothpick inserted comes out clean and top is golden. Allow to cool.

Thank  you  Kawaling Pinoy for sharing the  recipe 🙂

deliciously moreish♥♥♥

Yes! This cake could cause someone to  want more. It is very addictive. The sweetness is just right and the caramel icing is very creamy.

I’ve been  wanting to bake this cake for a very long time  but just too hesitant in   making the caramel icing  as I’m afraid that I could not do it right.  Finally, I decided to make it for my birthday . As expected making the caramel icing made me fluster for a while especially with the part of pouring the boiled water after caramelizing the sugar. But,don’t fret as eventually  the caramelized sugar will incorporate with the water. Just keep your eyes on your caramel mixture so you will not burn it and when it’s done (or close to done) remove from heat immediately. Although, I’ve never tasted caramel cake back home in the Philippines I’m still confident that this cake would pleased my guest and it didn’t fail me☺. This cake have put me in the pedestal for the compliments I have receive. I urge you to try it ☺.

For the complete recipe please visit Heart of Mary 🙂

Thank you Heart of Mary for being so generous in sharing your perfect recipe.♥♥♥

Just sharing my first order of Caramel Cake for a birthday ☺

my pretty fondant roses 🙂

quezo chiffon cupcakes

During one of the Filipino gatherings  I tasted this kind of dessert that really captured my taste buds. From then on I fell in love with it and tried to search for a  recipe. I tried asking the one who made it but I think she doesn’t want to share 😦 . I have found a recipe from sweetcherriepie.com and another one from HerWord.  But for now  I am sharing  the recipe from sweetcherriepie.  The cheese really goes  well with the butter icing and it really compliments the flavor of the cupcake too.It’s yummy and my Irish friend really loves it ☺

Ingredients for cupcakes

1/2 cup plus 2 Tbsp of self raising flour
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 cup caster sugar
3/4 tsp baking powder
2 eggs, separated
1/4 cup water
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
1/8 cup oil
1/4 tsp cream of tartar
2 Tbsp sugar

Butter icing
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1/2 cup icing sugar or adjust according to your preferred sweetness 

grated cheese for toppings or quezo de bola if you have one.

Procedure:

1.  Preheat the oven to 180’C and line 12 hole mini muffin pan.
2.  Place in a large bowl, flour, salt, sugar and baking powder.  Using a whisk, stir until there are no lumps.  Make a well in the center and add the egg yolks, water, vanilla and oil.  Blend till smooth.
3.  In another bowl, whisk the egg whites and cream of tartar until soft peak form.  Gradually add the 2 tbs of sugar and continue beating till stiff.
4.  Fold a third of the egg whites into the cake mixture then gently fold in the rest.  Do not over mix the batter.
5.  Fill the cupcake cups 3/4 full and bake for 10-12 minutes.  Cool completely on a wire rack.
6.  Make the butter icing by combining the butter and icing sugar in a bowl and mix till light and fluffy
7.  Once the cupcakes are cooled, spread the butter icing on top and sprinkle with the grated cheese.

Next time I’ll try HerWord recipe for comparison ☺

Soft & cheesy

It’s summertime  and happy days are here again. This is the best time to have fun in the beach . Time to go out, play outdoors and do everything that can be done under the sun.  Yes, I’ve been away from the house this past weeks so I did not have the chance to bake or cook something to share  here.  I just want to enjoy the sunny days as it won’t last. But yesterday was not a good day so I decided to try this recipe that I have been eyeing for a while now.  This kind of  bread reminds me back home and bring back some memories during my younger years. I used to buy this kind of bread in our local bakery. We call it cheese bread. I can recall the creaminess of the cheese inside the bread and that’s one I wanted to achieve in making this Cheese Rolls and it didn’t fail me. I am very happy as the bread came out soft,creamy and cheesy. 

 

INGREDIENTS:

1 tablespoon yeast
1 tablespoon sugar
1/3 cup lukewarm water

For the dough
2 eggs
4 egg yolks
1/3 cup water
1/2 cup melted butter
4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup powdered milk
1 teaspoon salt

softened butter for greasing and spreading
500 grams Cheddar cheese, sliced into 40 sticks
sugar for sprinkling

 

PROCEDURE:

1  In a small bowl, combine yeast, sugar, and lukewarm water. Let stand for 5 minutes to let bubbles form on top.

2  In a large bowl, mix together eggs, yolks, water, and butter. Pour in the yeast mixture and mix.

3  In another large bowl, mix together flour, sugar, powdered milk, and salt. Pour in the liquid mixture; mix. (Dough will be quite sticky.)

4  Grease your work area with butter. Knead the dough until smooth. (To check for the right consistency, dough should be easily stretched into a thin film without breaking.)

5  Form dough into a ball and place in a greased bowl; cover with plastic wrap. Let dough rise at room temperature until it doubles in size, about 1 1/2 to 2 hours.

6  Remove plastic and punch down dough to release air.

7  Form dough into a log and divide equally into 40 (50-gram) pieces.

8  Using a rolling pin, flatten each piece; spread with softened butter.

9  Place a cheese stick in the center of each piece; roll. Pinch ends to seal.

10  Arrange rolls on a greased baking sheet and proof until they double in size. Bake at 325ºF for 15 minutes.

11  Brush cheese rolls with butter and sprinkle with sugar.

 

Time- and energy-saving tip  Make it effortless! In Step 4, you can also use an electric mixer with the dough hook attachment to mix and knead the dough. To get a darker crust, brush top with milk before baking.

Recipe from Yummy.ph

A sweet treat

Yesterday, my son keeps telling me that he wants to eat chocolate cake apparently I ran out of milk. Then I remember brownies doesn’t need milk and  so  for being good in play school I made him this sweet treat.

moist brownies

MOIST BROWNIES

Ingredients:

2/3 cup butter, cubed
4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
1 cup granulated sugar
2 pieces eggs
1 teaspoon vanila extract
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 325F. Grease and line an 8×8 inch square pan.

2  Place butter and bittersweet chocolate in a medium bowl and set it over a pot of simmering water. Gradually melt the butter and chocolate. Stir occasionally. Remove from the heat once completely melted. Set aside.

3  In another mixing bowl, place sugar, eggs, and vanilla. Mix gradually until sugar is melted.Add the chocolate mixture and stir with a wire whisk.

4  In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa powder and salt.Gradually add the flour mixture in the egg mixture. Whisk just until combined. Do not over beat—stop mixing as soon as ingredients look well combined and no lumps are visible.

 5.Pour batter onto prepared pan. Bake for 25-30 minutes.

6. Cool completely on a wire rack before slicing.

moist brownies

Recipe from Gourmet Goodies