I had sharing time earlier this month in Primary, and briefly talked about talents. I explained to the kids that even if we're not great at something it can still be a talent. Maybe it's something we enjoy doing, try it or practice it often, aren't necessarily great at, but we're making steady improvement or attempts at improvement.
Anyhow .... I brought up baking as one of those things for me. Very often when I bake, my attempt falls FLAT! But, I think it's so much fun that I keep doing it. Occasionally I'll run across something that just WORKS. That's my favorite part.
In December, Matt and I found a cheesecake recipe book at Spoons 'n Spice. There were colored pictures of each cheesecake creation! I was especially inspired by the pomegranite cheesecake (darn, they're already not in the grocery store!) ...
So, now that the crazy holidays are over and there's nothing pleasant to do in the freezing outdoors (no, I don't want to try winter camping), it was the perfect time to start working through my cheesecake book!
I got these really fun springform pans (also from Spoons 'n Spice - love that place) that are 5" round instead of the large 8". They're great because I can split the cheesecake recipe in half and have two cute little ones instead of one over-the-top large one.
We got a new stove last fall, with the convection oven, and I'm still working through the up's and down's of that little development. I love that it gets the center of the cheesecake cooked, I think the fan takes some of the "moist" out .... hmmm. Thoughts anyone?
Anyhow - it's been fun. I made a Black Forrest cheesecake, which is plain cheesecake, chocolate cheesecake, cherries, and a vanilla wafer crust. I also did a Banana Lime cheesecake with a ginger snap crust. That was interesting. (Thanks to all my neighborhood buddies who helped me taste-test. Hope they weren't too bad!) Next I'll be trying a kumquat cheesecake with ricotta cheese instead of cream cheese. And also a buttermilk cheesecake, which uses ricotta cheese and yogurt.
I'm still pretty bummed that pomegranates are out of season! Darn! Next year ....
2 comments:
You are a cheesecake expert! I love it!
P.S. You are a lot more advanced than I am in the world of ovens! :-) I'm just happy to not have a 1" oven anymore. Heehee.
Yum! I love Spoons and Spice, too, but haven't been there for a long time. I was reading about a new natural foods store on State and 64th going into the old Incredible Electronics building. Is it just wishful thinking to wonder if pomegranates might soon be in season "down under" or something and a place like that new store might get some in? Probably, but I agree that pomegranate cheesecake sounds so delicious and exotic!
Post a Comment