Challenging Myself - 2014 Dessert Challenge

So I have noticed that I'm still terrible about blogging. Here's the thing though... I'm trying new recipes all the time still! So here's to my goal to get back into putting the stories of my successes/failures on the blog. I decided the best way to do this is to institute a challenge again. I liked the Cheesecake Challenge. I royally sucked at it after my son was born, but it was FUN.

In an effort to make this a productive endeavor, though (and because I'm actually in the process of losing that 15 pounds--halfway and trying to maintain...), I'm going to make a more flexible "Dessert Challenge." I know,  it doesn't sound as cool, at all. But it's probably more practical, since I avoid cheesecake like the plague (it's too good to give away and too fattening to eat all the time!).

So I've decided to make my own "Baker's Challenge." The goal is to make one of these desserts a month, on average (at least). I have 7 desserts here, enough for one a month from June-December. I even selected a wide variety of treats to suit all sorts of occasions. Let's see if I can manage it!

1. Chocolate Chess Pie



2. Tiramisu Sandwich Cookies



3. German Dark Rye Bread



4. No-Bake Nutella Cheesecakes



5. Cannoli Cupcakes



6.  Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Oatmeal Skillet Cookie



7. Chocolate Peanut Butter Pie

Chocolate Chip Bars

I already have myself a go-to chocolate chip bar, and this is a slight variation on that, but it was a recipe I decided to try. And I did... it was pretty good, although I'll confess that I think it is much better right out of the oven. However, I do live in a very dry climate and things dry out easily (it was too dry for me on day 2... maybe if I had done a better job wrapping it?).

Anyway, these are yummy and chewy right out of the oven, and you'll eat more than you should!

Recipe:

Chocolate Chip Bars
adapted from Mel's Kitchen Cafe

Ingredients:
2 1/8 cups Flour
1/2 tsp. Baking Soda
12 Tbsp. Butter, melted and cooled slightly
1 cup Brown Sugar
1/2 cup Sugar
1 Egg
1 Egg Yolk
2 tsp. Vanilla
2 1/4 cups Flour
2 cups Chocolate Chips

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 325. Line pan with foil or spray.
2. Whisk together melted butter and sugars until combined, and then add egg and yolk.
3. Add vanilla and baking soda. Fold in flour until just combined (do not over mix).
4. Fold in chocolate chips and smooth into pan.
5. Bake for 24-28 minutes. Cool to room temperature (or eat them hot, how I like them).

Back in the Kitchen

I found this amazing website today called "The Daring Kitchen." It's just a group of bakers/cooks that each month take on a challenge. I love the concept! And I want to do it... but I am going to try to ease back into my blog, first.

So, life happened. I was writing up until late summer of 2012. At the end of 2012, my son was born. Let me just say, adjusting to two was a challenge for me! The last thing I had time for was blogging/baking/trying new things.

But now my little guy is over a year and I think we have our rhythm. Moreover, I'm getting back into meal planning and trying new recipes. Unfortunately, I'm STILL trying to lose 15 pounds. That hadn't changed since the inception of this blog. However, I am already 5 pounds against my goal, so it's going well! Which means, of course, I can't bake too much or too often. Although my coworkers like my diet--it means they get quite a bit of my left overs.

So here's to a new beginning. I'm not going to take on the Cheesecake Challenge again, yet. I even tried a few of those other recipes and didn't blog about them. But right now, it's baby steps into blogging. If I get going, I'll set a challenge. My goal is to join the Daring Bakers, but I need to make sure I can handle it, first!

Here we go!

Chocolate Truffle Cookies

These are amazing. Amazing. They are like chocolate truffles. I know, that's what they're called. But seriously, they are! So soft and smooth... so chocolaty....

From Mel's Kitchen Cafe

They are delish. That's all I have to say.

Recipe:


Chocolate Truffle Cookies
from Mel's Kitchen Cafe

Ingredients:
1 1/4 cup Butter, room temperature
2 cups Powdered Sugar
1/3 cup Cocoa
1/4 tsp. Salt
1/4 cup Sour Cream
1 tsp. Vanilla
2 1/4 cups Flour
2 cups Chocolate Chips
1/3 cup Cocoa for rolling
1/3 cup Powdered Sugar for Sprinkling

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 325. Line pans with parchment paper.
2. Cream the butter and sugar. Strain in the cocoa and salt into the butter mixture.
3. Beat in sour cream and vanilla. Blend in flour and add chocolate chips.
4. Shape into 1 inch balls (may need to refrigerate first) and roll in cocoa before placing on the pan. Do not flatten.
5. Bake for 10 minutes - DO NOT OVER BAKE. Cool on the baking sheet 3-5 minutes. Once completely cooled, sprinkle with powdered sugar.

Cheesecake Challenge #11: Japanese Cheesecake

Yum! This is a weird kind of cheesecake. It's super light and fluffy. But it's really yummy! Here was the inspiration--see how beautiful it is?

From Green Cilantro

My picture is definitely not a beautiful. I have to confess, actually, the cake was really not attractive. But I made a partial recipe and it's with European measurements, so I had to convert... it was all very experimental. I think it could be beautiful... if I did it better.

It's not chocolate, but it's unique. And the husband says it's the best cheesecake I've made yet. So it's getting 5 stars.

Again, the recipe is converted from European measurements, so it's a little funky.

Japanese Cheesecake
from Green Cilantro

Ingredients:
10.5 oz. Cream Cheese, room temperature
3 Tbsp. Unsalted Butter
3 Large Eggs, separated
1 1/2 Tbsp. Sugar
2 1/2 Tbsp. Cornstarch
2/3 cup Milk
1/4 cup Sugar

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350. Line the bottom and sides of a fixed bottom pan with parchment. Put egg whites in freezer until just freezing around the edges. Sift the cornstarch.
2. Melt butter over double boiler. Add cream cheese and whisk.
3. In separate bowl, combine egg yolks and 1 1/2 Tbsp sugar. Add cornstarch.
4. Heat milk to a boil and add egg yolk mixture. Whisk until thickened over a double boiler. Add cream cheese and mix well.
5. Slowly add 1/4 cup sugar to egg whites and beat into a soft meringue. Add 1/4 cup of the meringue to the batter and then fold the rest in.
6. Place cake in water bath and bake 15 minutes. Reduce the temperature to 300 and bake another 25. Let sit in oven (off) for 40 minutes to an hour. Cool before chilling, overnight.

Cheesecake Challenge #10: Triple Chocolate Cheesecake

This one I do have a picture of, although I confess that I didn't remember to take a picture until we were in the car on the way to the family event I was taking it to! So I also included a picture from the source, not taken with an iPhone in the car.

From What the Fruitcake?!

This one was a lot of fun to make, and I really like the garnish as well. Something to remember for the future, no matter what's beneath it.

This one was yummy. Very good. But not quite the exceptional-ness that was the Cafe de Leche Cheesecake, so I gave it 4.5 stars.

Here is the recipe, no variations made. It is, unfortunately, a worldly recipe and thus I had to convert from grams, etc, so a lot of ounce measurements:


Triple Chocolate Cheesecake
from What the Fruitcake?!

Ingredients:

Crust:
7 oz. Graham cracker crumbs
1/4 cup Brown Sugar
4 oz. Melted, unsalted Butter
2 Tbsp. Cocoa

Cheesecake:
32 oz. Cream Cheese, room temperature
4 Eggs, room temperature
1 1/4 cup Sugar
1 cup Heavy Cream, room temperature
1 Tbsp. Lemon Juice
1 tsp. Vanilla
3.5 oz. 70% Dark Chocolate
3.5 oz. Milk Chocolate
3.5 oz. White Chocolate
1/2 tsp. Salt
Dark, Milk and White Chocolate for Garnish

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350. Mix together crust ingredients and press into a 9" spring-form pan.
2. Combine cream cheese and sugar, beating until blended. Add eggs, one at a time. Add cream, lemon juice, vanilla, and salt.
3. Divide equally into 3 bowls. Melt the 3 types of chocolate separately and mix one each into each of the 3 cheesecake batters.
4. Pour about 1 cup of the dark chocolate mixture into the pan, followed by 1 cup of the milk chocolate and 1 cup of the white chocolate. Repeat the pattern until all the batter is in the pan.
5. Place in water bath and bake 75-90 minutes or until almost done. Turn off the oven and leave resting for an hour. Cool completely on counter and refrigerate overnight before serving.
6. Garnish by using a potato peeler to make flakes of the three types of chocolate and sprinkling over the cake.

Cheesecake Challenge #9: Turtle Cheesecake

For a nice family event this summer, I made this Turtle Cheesecake. It was a fairly straightforward recipe. I have to say, I thought it was pretty good, but nothing stellar. The reviews from my tasters, though (family), was that it was excellent. So even if it's not my favorite recipe, it's a hit. And don't get me wrong, it was yummy!

I didn't take a picture, of course. I need to work on that. So I'm just going to reference the original, which it strongly resembled:

From The Girl Who Ate Everything

I'd probably rate this a 4-star, but with all the rave reviews I got with it, I'm bumping it up half a star.

I made a few changes; I used my personal fudge sauce recipe instead of cheap Hershey's syrup (yuck!) and I didn't have lime juice so I went with lemon. And here is the recipe:


Turtle Cheesecake
from The Girl Who Ate Everything

Ingredients:
1 3/4 cups Chocolate graham cracker crumbs
1/3 cup Melted, unsalted Butter
24 oz. Cream Cheese, room temperature
14 oz. Sweetened Condensed Milk
1/2 cup Sugar
3 large Eggs
3 Tbsp. Lime Juice
1 Tbsp. Vanilla
3/4 cup Chocolate Chips
2 Tbsp. Chocolate Syrup or Fudge Sauce
2 Tbsp. Caramel Syrup or Ice Cream Topping
1/2 cup Chopped Pecans
1/4 cup Mini Chocolate Chips

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 300. Mix together crumbs and butter and press into a 9" spring-form pan.
2. Combine cream cheese and sweetened condensed milk, beating until blended. Add sugar, eggs, lime juice, and vanilla. Beat until combined.
3. Set 1 cup of filling aside. Melt chocolate chips and mix into 1 cup of reserved filling.
4. Pour half of the white filling into the crust, then the chocolate, then the last half of the white. Take a knife and gently swirl.
5. Bake 70-75 minutes or until almost done. Turn off the oven and leave resting. When cooled completely, drizzle with chocolate and caramel, then sprinkle with pecans and mini-chocolate chips. Refrigerate overnight before serving.