Vanilla Bean Creme Brulee Cheesecake

Since it has been awhile since I made a cheesecake I decided it was time to make one.  Of course I couldn't just make a basic one.  I am also a big fan of creme brulee so this dessert was a perfect combo.

Creme Brulee when done right is amazing, one day I'll invest in a torch to really do it right!  In the mean time though.....
But back to this cheesecake.

By using real vanilla beans instead of just the extract I was able to take this cheesecake up an extra notch.

Cheesecake is actually quite basic, cream cheese, eggs, sugar and vanilla.  That is all!  Using real vanilla beans can be a bit of a pin.  Most likely you will want to soak them in some water to soften up the outside before splitting them in half with a sharp knife and then using a spoon to scrape out the seeds.  One bean is equivalent to 1 tsp of vanilla.  When your cream cheese is softened, mix in sugar, eggs and vanilla until smooth and creamy.

Not sure if you can see the little black flecks or not, but that is the vanilla bean.  Since my bean was probably a little too dry and I wasn't able to get it all cleaned out I did add a tiny bit of vanilla extract.  Once that is all mixed in, pour it into your crust.

I know I can be lazy by not making one, but these are just so easy!  Pop that into the oven, I recommend having a water bath in there too.  That is just pan with some water in it.  I put it in the oven as I warmed it up.  The moisture it creates helps reduce or prevent the cheesecake from cracking.  Bake for about 35 minutes, or until the center is almost set.

Mine does have that one crack, I should have rotated it or removed it a minute or so earlier.  Let it cool completely before refrigerating at least 3 hours.
Right before serving, mix the brown sugar with some water to make a thick paste.  Spread that over top of the cheesecake.

 Put your oven rack about 6" from heat and broil for 1-2 minutes, until the topping is bubbly.  Serve immediately.  Store leftovers in the fridge.
This was the first time I attempted a creme brulee top where I combined the brown sugar with water.  Usually I have just sprinkled the brown sugar on top.  I would love to have used a torch on this.....one day!
This ended up being very good and it was a nice variation from regular cheesecake.

Vanilla Bean Creme Brulee Cheesecake

Ingredients:

2 pkg (8 oz each) cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup sugar

1 tsp vanilla

2 whole eggs

1 egg yolk

1 graham cracker crust

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 Tbls water

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Beat cream cheese, sugar and vanilla until well blended.  Add whole eggs and egg yolk, mix until blended.  Pour into crust.

2. Bake for 35 minutes or until center is almost set.  Cool completely.  Refrigerate 3 hours or overnight.

3. Just before serving, turn oven onto broil.  Combine brown sugar and water in small bowl, spread over cheesecake.  Place in oven 4-6 inches from heat for 1-2 minutes or until topping is hot and bubbly.  Serve immediately.

Lasagna Rolls with Prosciutto

So first off, I have changed the name of my blog. This is going to sound crazy, but there were times when I had trouble remembering what I had chosen to call it!  This is simpler and honestly fits me!  So from here on out, this is An Absent Minded Cook!  I love to bake and cook, but I make a lot of mistakes cause sometimes I just forget to pay close enough attention!  The recipe I am sharing today is another example of forgetting something, but fortunately I am also lucky in that it still turned out very good!

I think I have mentioned before that I love anything with lots of cheese, either on top, inside or both.  This fits the bill.  I use 4 different cheeses for this and the prosciutto that really adds good flavor.  It wasn't hard, just gotta make sure you add all the ingredients!  I actually combined 2 recipes for this but if I make it again, would slightly change it again.  But I'm getting ahead of myself.

First off I got my water boiling for my noodles.

Next I get a basic roux recipe started.  Not sure where the fancy name comes from, it could also be called a bechamel sauce, another fancy name for a basic white gravy.  It's butter, flour and then milk.  A little salt and pepper with nutmeg gives it some flavor.

You will want to watch this until it has thickened up and then keep on very low, stirring occasionally until you are ready to use it.
Next you will start working on the filling.

This is your ricotta cheese, cream cheese, egg, mozzarella cheese and some more seasonings.  At this point, hopefully your noodles are done and you are ready to start assembling.  This time around, I got some clean towels out and laid out all my lasagna noodles.

I'm sure all of you has made at least one type of recipe that involves filling or stuffing individual shells, noodles or even tortilla's.  You start filling, being skimpy so you have enough, then you think you will have plenty and go heavy on the filling, only to run out at the end!  So frustrating!  Laying out all of the noodles at once took a lot of space on my small counter, but in the long run, so worth it!  I could ensure that every noodle had filling and they were all pretty much even!
So for this version, you take the prosciutto and lay the thin pieces on each noodle.  In the future I think I will just cut it up and add it to the cheese mixture.

Those thin slices weren't that easy to work with!  Next you spread the cheese mixture on top.  Make sure to leave an edge at one of the ends.

Once again, it was so nice to do it this way!  Once you have used all of the filling, you are ready to start rolling.  Before you start though, spread about 1/2 of your white roux mixture in the bottom of the pan.  I love the extra sauce for these types of recipes so I also spread some marinara down as well.

Time to start rolling, starting with end of the noodle that has the filling.  Hopefully that makes sense!  You want to leave the end without filling at the other end so the filling has a place to go as it kinda gets smooshed out as you roll.  Place those seam side down in the pan.  Continue until done.  This recipe made 16 rolls for me, so I did have to divide it between 2 pans.  Divide sauce accordingly.

Once I had all of them rolled, I first spread the remaining roux on top.

Once again, I like these dishes saucy!  Next, take your marinara and cover the rolls.  Cover with aluminum foil and bake.  When everything is bubbly, remove and sprinkle with parmesan and mozzarella cheeses.  Return to oven and broil until cheese is melted and bubbly.  Let it sit and set up a bit before serving.

So if you like manicotti, but get frustrated filling those shells that don't like to stay together, give this one a try!

Lasagna Rolls with Prosciutto
Adapted from Amanda's Cookin'

Ingredients

Sauce:
4 Tbls butter
2 1/2  Tbls flour
2 1/2 cup milk
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/8 tsp ground nutmeg

Lasagna:
4 cups marinara sauce
16 uncooked lasagna noodles
3 cups ricotta cheese
1 cube (8 oz) cream cheese, softened
2 cups grated parmesan cheese
4 cups mozzarella cheese
2 large eggs, beaten
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
2 Tbls parsley
2 Tbls basil
16 slices of prosciutto

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. For roux sauce melt butter in medium saucepan over low heat.  Add the flour and whisk for 3 minutes.  Whisk in the milk.  Increase the heat to medium.  Whisk until sauce begins to simmer and is thick and smooth.  Whisk in salt, pepper and nutmeg.  Reduce heat to low and stir occasionally until ready to use.
2.Get a large pot of water boiling for noodles, add a couple teaspoons of salt before adding noodles.  Cook according to package directions.
3. Mix the ricotta, cream cheese, 1 cup parmesan cheese, 2 1/2 cups mozzarella cheese, eggs, salt, pepper and herbs.  (Can add prosciutto, chopped up here).  Set aside.
4. When noodles are done, drain, rinse and lay out on clean, dry towels.  Pour about 1/2 of the roux into the bottom of your baking pan(s).  I used a 9x13 and 1 qt rectangle baking dish.  Pour about 1 1/2 cups of marinara on top of that.
5. To assemble: Place 1 slice of prosciutto on each noodle.  Spread about 1/3 cup cheese mixture onto bottom 3/4 of each noodle, leaving the top uncovered.  Starting with the end with cheese, roll into the noodle, arrange seam side down in the baking dish.  Top evenly with remaining roux and marinara, covering each noodle completely.
6. Cover with aluminim foil and bake for about 40 minutes, until the sauce bubbles.  Remove and sprinkle with remaining cheese and broil until cheese is bubbly and lightly browned (don't replace foil).  Let it cool and set up for about 10 minutes before serving.

Note: This can be prepared through step 5, covered with foil and then refrigerated.  Plan on baking for around an hour or until center is heated through.  Can also be frozen.  Pull out of freezer the morning before baking to keep bake time at around an hour.

Nutella Crunch Ice Cream Cake

I am behind on posting recipes and while this isn't the oldest recipe, it surely is the best tasting!  This would actually make a great dessert to have after a summer party or BBQ so I thought I had better get this up before the weekend so as many as possible can enjoy this!  This was so easy and so surprisingly amazing!

 I mean, I knew it would be good!  It was a recipe for success with Nutella and ice cream, but this was so much more than just those 2 ingredients!

Usually when I have a lot of leftovers I take them to work so I can share, be a good co-worker and make sure I don't over indulge.  For this one, I had serious doubts about sharing.  I seriously wanted to keep this and enjoy it over the next couple of days!  The more generous side of me did prevail so I did share but I think I am going to have to make this again real soon!  This can also be adjusted slightly to serve more or less people, so yet another bonus!
So without further delay, let me show you how it's done!

So this is simple and perfect, 3 little ingredients!  Another bonus, if you live near a Winco you can buy the cereal in bulk!
To begin, place a large bowl and your spring form pan in the freezer and place your ice cream in the fridge so it can get soft.  Then combine the Nutella and cereal in a sauce pan, mix until the Nutella is soft and has completely coated the cereal.

Once done, spread that mixture on a lined cookie sheet and pop in the freezer for about 30 minutes.  It doesn't need to be frozen solid, just cold and firm.  Once that has gotten firm, remove and break into small, kinda bite sized pieces.  Now just because these are bite sized, doesn't mean you should sit and eat them all!  I did decide that this could be my new favorite snack though!

Once it is pretty much broken up, take 2-3 cups worth and set aside.  Combine the rest with the softened ice cream in your ice cold bowl.  Hopefully the ice cream is soft, without being too runny.

When that is all mixed in, put into your ice cold spring form pan.  Press it down to make sure there are no air pockets in the ice cream and then top with remaining Nutella mixture.  Press those pieces into the ice cream.  Cover that with plastic wrap and pop that into the freezer for at least 4 hours.  About 20 or so minutes before you want to serve, remove from the freezer.  Cut and serve!

I also decided that cereal coated in Nutella is a perfectly acceptable breakfast as it is A. Cereal and B. Nutella, which is advertised as going on your toast for breakfast!  So make extra and enjoy the most amazing breakfast food every!

Nutella Crunch Ice Cream Cake
As originally found on A Family Feast

Ingredients

1 gallon Vanilla ice cream
1 small container of Nutella (or any brand of hazelnut spread)
4-5 cups of crisped rice cereal

Directions

1. Place 6-8 inch spring form pan and large mixing bowl in the freezer to chill.  Place ice cream in fridge to start to soften.  In large saucepan over low heat, combine Nutella and cereal and stir until the cereal is completely coated.  Remove from heat and transfer to a lined cookie sheet.  Spread it out and place in the freezer for around 30 minutes.
2. When cereal mixture is hard, not frozen, remove and break into smaller pieces.  Remove spring form pan and large mixing bowl from the freezer and ice cream from fridge.  Combine softened ice cream and all but 2-3 cups of the cereal mixture in the large mixing bowl.  Pour that into the chilled spring form pan, packing firmly so as to remove air pockets.  Top with remaining cereal pieces and press down.  Cover with plastic and place back into the freezer for at least 4 hours.
3. About 20 minutes before serving, remove so it can start to soften. Remove outside piece and then cut and serve.

Strawberry Fluff Angel Food Cake

As you can tell, this is an eye catching dessert!  It was yummy and actually fun to frost and decorate.  I grew up in a house where my mom was baking and decorating wedding cakes on a regular basis, especially in the summer.  She always made it look SO easy, when it really isn't!  Using a little gadget I got from Walmart, I was able to make this happen!

Working with the fluff mixture, which is simply a mixture of jello and cool whip, is very forgiving and since I am not a perfectionist this was much easier than I thought it would be.  This is a 3 ingredient recipe, well 4 if you want to be picky and count water, but water really shouldn't count!
Now, if you are not a fan of store bought angel food cakes, then this will take a bit longer.  I am not picky in that regard so this came together quite easily.

First step is to get the jello made.  You don't use as much water as what the package calls for, so watch for that.  The longest stage of this recipe is waiting for the jello to be about 3/4 of the way set up.  Now, this may come as a shock to you, but with all of the baking and cooking I do, I am not very adept at making pain ole jello!  The quick method with ice kinda confuses me, so I do it the slow way and had to wait a couple of hours before moving onto the next step.

Get your cake cut in half and then mix your almost set up jello and that entire tub of cool whip!

This now becomes your filling and your frosting.  You have enough so you can be heavy handed with it as you spread it on the bottom layer of the cake.

Make sure to get the edges good and in the middle.  Once done add the top layer and continue frosting.  Since I had enough and had a little tool I added some decorative touches.  Get creative based on what you feel like!  Store in fridge until ready to serve.

It makes a striking dessert when cut and stays together pretty good.  If you are trying to watch calories and such, this would be a good option.  Not healthy per se, but still, better than others!  Plus this one can serve a lot of people.

Strawberry Fluff Angel Food Cake
Original recipe found on Cookin Food

Ingredients:

1 Angel food cake (store bought or made according to directions)
2 ~ 3 oz packages of strawberry gelatin (might be fun to try orange!)
1 ~ 16 oz container of Cool Whip

Directions:

1. Mix both packages of strawberry gelatin with 2 cups of hot water in large mixing bowl.  Stir until all of the gelatin is dissolved.  Place in fridge and allow to chill and set up until about 3/4 of the way set up.
2. Just before removing gelatin from fridge, cut your cake in half horizontally to create 2 layers.  Take the almost set up jello and mix with all of the cool whip.  Combine well.
3. Spread jello fluff frosting on bottom layer.  Replace top layer and cover entire cake with the remaining fluff.  Store in fridge.

Honey Cinnamon Roasted Chickpeas

It has been awhile since I have made anything that somewhat resembles something healthy, so here you go!

I used to make roasted chickpeas a lot, they are such a yummy snack to take care of a craving for something crunchy, either sweet or salty.

While they aren't hard, they can take a bit until they are done.  When I first made these, I followed the recipe exactly but my chickpeas never got crunchy.  They would actually start to burn on the outside before the insides got even a little crunchy.  I tried lots of different variations when it came to cooking until I found the process that works best for me.

First you want to drain and rinse, get all of that starchy liquid rinsed off.  Then they need to be dried off and the little white skins removed.  I found that rubbing them with a paper towel gets them dry and loosens up that skin to be easily pulled off.

Once they are all clean, I actually put them in my oven for an hour on 200.  This is my own personal theory, but if you immediately toss them in oil, that oil keeps any moisture on the inside from getting out, resulting in somewhat soggy chickpeas.  By drying them out before they get tossed in the seasoning mix of your choice, the chance of a crunchy chickpea goes up dramatically!

You can see they look a little dried out, which is what you want.  Then toss them in the seasoning mix.  This version, which is now my favorite, includes canola oil, cinnamon and sugar.  The great thing about these little guys, is that you can customize that mixture based on preferences and mood.  Once your mixture is ready, toss in the chickpeas and stir until coated.  Put them back on the cookie sheet and bake at 350 degrees for about 25 minutes.  Check them, toss them around a bit and sample one.  If they aren't crispy enough, put back in for 5-10 minutes.  Keep checking them so you don't burn them though!

 They should look something like this when done.  This is when you toss them in some honey and put back on the cookie sheet to cool off before eating or storing.

I made these last night and it seriously took A LOT of willpower not to polish off most of them!  They tasted so good!  The honey coating after they have baked really takes them up a notch!  I am eating them now, oh my, so good!  Finger licking good to be precise!  I am definitely making more tonight!  One can doesn't really make a lot, so might as well just double or triple the recipe right off the bat!
So I have done some research on these and cooking methods and all of them, including the source of this particular version: Two Peas & Their Pod, shows that you toss in the seasonings and bake.  Try both ways, maybe you will have better luck than me!

Honey Cinnamon Roasted Chickpeas

Ingredients:
1 can (15 oz) chickpeas or garbanzo beans
2 tsp canola oil
1 tsp cinnamon
1 Tbl granulated sugar
1 Tbl honey

Directions:

1. Drain and thoroughly rinse off beans.  Pour onto paper towel and gently rub with another paper towel to help them dry off and that will loosen up the shell type pieces.  Remove and discard those.
2. Place beans on a lined cookie sheet and bake/dry out in 200 degree oven for about an hour.  Remove and turn oven up to 325.
3. Place oil, cinnamon and sugar in bowl, mix.  Toss beans in oil mixture until coated.  Return to cookie sheet and bake for at least 25 minutes.  If they haven't reached your desired level of crispiness, return at 5 minute increments.
4. When beans are done, toss with honey until coated.  Return to cookie sheet to cool off.  Once cool place in an airtight container.  Best if eaten within the first 24 hours.

*Note: If increasing the size of the batch, make sure your cookie sheet has enough 'wiggle' room, if not it will take them longer in the oven, for both stages.

Soft and Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

I don't usually make chocolate chip cookies.  So many variables and then the time it takes to make all of the cookies, plus baking time for each cookie sheet.....forget about it!  Give me a bar recipe any day of the week!  Randomly though, I decided to make some cookies and had pinned this recipe from Sally's Baking Addiction and decided to see if they were as soft and chewy as she wrote about.

Well they were!  Her blog on these cookies has loads of advice about cookies in general so rather than try and repeat what she has said, just go there and give these a try!  I only made one minor change and added 1/2 tsp of cinnamon, otherwise I followed her steps completely!

These turned out so yummy and soft!  I froze some of the dough for another day.  Even after freezing the dough, they cookies still turned out so soft and moist.

I will definitely be making these again and I recommend you give them a try.  Hmmm, those look good enough I may have to make some this week!