Monday, November 11, 2013

Mini Pumpkin Cheesecake


It's November which means Thanksgiving which means Pumpkin Pie.. right? Right! But, I'm not really fond of Pumpkin Pie. Cheesecake tho, I love cheesecake! So I thought, hmm why not pumpkin cheesecake?! And do here it is...


First, behead and de-bottom your pumpkins.



Next, cut them in half and remove the seeds. Cut them in half a couple more times and then place them either skin up or down a cookie sheet. (It was late at night and I forgot pictures, I'm not sure why, but forgive me!) Cook them for about an hour, until they're light brown and soft.


Next, use a fork to skin the pumpkins. If they have been cooked long enough it should come off very easy.


Put the pumpkin pieces in a large mixing bowl.


Use an immersion blender to puree the pumpkin.




For the crust you'll need butter, sugar, and graham crackers.


Next, take your graham crackers and your roller and break them into crumbs.


Next, add sugar and stir.


Then add the melted butter and stir until well mixed.


It should look somewhat like this. 


Press the crust into the cupcake pan.


Bake the crust for about 7-8 minutes. 


Start the filling by whipping the cream cheese until fluffy. Add the sugar and mix.


Then add cinnamon, nutmeg, ground cloves, and ground ginger. 



Add fresh pumpkin puree. 



Mix until well incorporated. 



Add the heavy cream and eggs, mix well.


Fill the crusts with the filling.



Bake for 20-25 minutes until cheesecake no longer looks soupy.



Chill for 3-4 hours before eating.

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Pumpkin Cheesecake

Ingredients

Filling:
32 oz. cream cheese
1 ½ cup sugar
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. ground ginger
1/8 tsp. ground cloves
1/8 tsp. ground nutmeg
1 cup pumpkin puree
4 eggs
2 tbsp. heavy cream

Crust:
12 full graham crackers
1/3 cup sugar
6 tbsp. melted butter

Directions

Filling:
1.     Add cream cheese to mixing bowl and beat until fluffy, add sugar and beat until light and fluffy.
2.     Add cinnamon, ginger, cloves, nutmeg, and pumpkin puree and beat until well mixed.
3.     Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well between each egg.
4.     Add heavy cream and mix until combined.

Crust:
1.     Heat oven to 350ยบ
2.     Crush graham crackers into crumbs
3.     Add sugar and stir
4.     Add melted butter and mix well
5.     Press into cupcake pan and bake for 8-9 minutes.



Saturday, November 9, 2013

The Most Delicious Way to Cook Green Beans


There are always tons of green beans at the farmers market and they're usually really cheap but we never really knew what to do with them so we wouldn't buy them very often… and then one day we just decided to try them and see what happens. I scoured the internet for recipes and then decided to combine what I liked about all the recipes I found and now I have developed, what I am certain, is the most delicious way to cook green beans! 



First cut the ends off the green beans and chop up some garlic.



I use butter, olive oil, and chicken broth to cook them. So easy and so delicious!



Drizzle 2-3 tablespoons of olive oil in the pan and melt 3-4 tablespoons of butter over medium high heat.



Wait for all the butter to melt and look foamy.



Next, add the chopped garlic.



Let the garlic cook for 2-3 minutes and then add the green beans.



Stir them around and get them as flat as possible in the pan. Cook them until they turn bright green.




Then add some salt and pepper.





And cook for a couple more minutess, stirring occasionally.



Next, add enough chicken broth to cover them and stir.





Let it come to a rapid boil.





Next, cover them and turn the heat to medium low, venting the pan so steam can escape. Cook for 15-20 minutes or until most of the chicken broth has cooked out. Serve warm.


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Green Beans

Ingredients:
1 lb. fresh green beans
3-4 cloves of garlic
2-3 tbsp. olive oil
2-3 cups of chicken broth
3-4 tbsp. butter
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1.    Drizzle 2-3 tablespoons of olive oil in the pan and melt 3-4 tablespoons of butter over medium high heat.
2.    Wait for all the butter to melt and look foamy.
3.    Next, add the chopped garlic.
4.    Let the garlic cook for 2-3 minutes and then add the green beans.
5.    Stir them around and get them as flat as possible in the pan. Cooke them until they turn bright green.
6.    Then add some salt and pepper.
7.    And cook for a couple more minutes, stirring occasionally.
8.    Next add enough chicken broth to cover them and stir.
9.    Let it come to a rapid boil.

10.         Next, cover them and turn the heat to medium low, venting the pan so steam can escape. Cook for 15-20 minutes or until most of the chicken broth has cooked out. Serve warm.