Strawberry cheesecake cookies

I am hesitant to post this recipe. It's kind of magical. 
I should have taken lovely pictures from when they were first baked, or frosted...er, cheesecaked. Alas, all I have are morning after pics. They were very popular.

Strawberry cookies are not all that common, as strawberries are difficult to cook with. Too wet, not enough flavor comes through. Most recipes call for strawberry jello or cake mix, all with artificial flavoring, bleh. much bleh. These cookies use powdered strawberries, nothing added to them whatsoever. No extra sugar preservatives flavors etc. Freeze dried strawberries are sold in 1.2oz bages at Trader Joes, Target, and Aldi for about $3 each. This recipes requires 2 bags, up to half a bag more, if you're feeling wild. 
Instead of a traditional frosting, I used Tosi's liquid cheesecake. Tastes like cheesecake, spreads and (supposedly) pipes like frosting! I however overcooked it by 40 minutes, so no piping, but i did manage to make it work. Kind of magical. 

Milkbar inspired Strawberry Cheesecake Cookies 

Strawberry Cookies

Makes approx 15 large or 30 small


225 g / 16 tbsp butter, at room temp
300 g / 1 1/2 cups sugar
1 egg
270 g / 1 1/2 cups + 4 tsp flour
68 g freeze-dried strawberries, 2 packages
3 g / 3/4 tsp baking powder
1.5 g / 1/4 tsp baking soda
6 g / 1 1/2 tsp kosher salt

1. Combine strawberries and flour in food processor, blend until thoroughly mix. It will be rather pink. This helps keep the strawberries from turning into a deadly airborne poison. Okay not a poison but the powder is so fine and light that it flows out of the machine and directly into your sinuses. It hurts. Then you sneeze strawberry. 

2. Combine the butter and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and cream together on medium-high for 2 to 3 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, add the egg, and beat for 7 to 8 minutes. Seems like a long time, but it helps with emulsification, gives the cookie a distinct texture.

3. Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the flour strawberry mix, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Mix just until the dough comes together, no longer than 1 minute. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.

4. Using a 1/3-cup measure for larger cookies, or a tablespoon for smaller, portion out the dough onto a parchment-lined sheet pan. Pat the tops of the cookie dough domes flat. Wrap the sheet pan tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour, or up to 1 week. Do not bake your cookies from room temperature-- they will not bake properly.

5. Heat the oven to 350°F.

6. Arrange the chilled dough a minimum of 4 inches apart for large cookies, 2 inches for smaller, on parchment or Silpat-lined sheet pans. Bake 18 minutes for large, 14 for small. The cookies will puff, crackle, and spread. After 18 minutes, they should be faintly browned on the edges, still very pink. They go from perfect to overbaked very quickly, they should not be dark or brownish.

7. Cool the cookies completely on the sheet pans before transferring to a plate or to an airtight container for storage. At room temp, the cookies will keep fresh for 5 days; in the freezer, they will keep for 1 month.


8. After they are cool, spread on or pipe liquid cheesecake.

Liquid Cheesecake 

Makes approx 3 cups

450 g / 8 oz cream cheese (2 packages)
300 g / 1 1/2 cups sugar
12 g / 1 tsp cornstarch
4 g / 1 tsp kosher salt
50 g / 2 tbsp milk
2 eggs

1. Preheat the oven to 300°F.

2. mix the cream cheese with the paddle attachment and low speed for 2 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula. add the sugar and mix for 1 to 2 minutes, until the sugar has been completely incorporated. scrape down the sides of the bowl.

3. whisk together the cornstarch and salt in a medium bowl. whisk in the milk in a slow, steady stream, then whisk in the egg until the slurry is homogeneous.

4. with the mixer on medium-low speed, stream in the egg slurry. paddle for 3 to 4 minutes, until the mixture is smooth and loose. scrape down the sides of the bowl.

5. line the bottom and sides of a 8 x 8 (or similar) baking pan with parchment, or just grease with your preferred greaser. pour the batter into pan, and bake for 15 minutes. gently shake the pan. the cheesecake should be firmer and more set toward the outer boundaries of the baking pan but still be jiggly and loose in the dead center. if the cheesecake is jiggly all over, give it 5 minutes more. and 5 minutes more if it needs it, but it’s never taken me more than 25 minutes to underbake one. if the cheesecake rises more than a ¼ inch or begins to brown, take it out of the oven immediately.  (Note: If you overbake the hell out of it, it's saveable. let it cool completely, add to bowl with paddle attachment, add 1/4 cup of milk. mix on medium until smooth. Not as nice but still tasty and spreadable.)

6. cool the cheesecake completely, to finish the baking process and allow the cheesecake to set. the final product will resemble a cheesecake, but it will be pipeable and pliable enough to easily spread or smear, while still having body and volume. once cool, the cheesecake can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up 1 week.



The base recipes is Christina Tosi's famous Corn Cookies, specifically from the cookbook Momofuku Milk Bar. Great cookbook if you really want to make something different. and complicated.

Sur la table Poached Salmon and Fennel Soup

This is not a baked good, obviously. I got this recipe at a cooking class and have not been able to find it elsewhere online. Perhaps stashed in a cookbook? No idea. My simple paper copy is worn and stained, it's a miracle it hasn't been lost or destroyed. It needs a permanent place of safety. 
I do not like salmon, generally, but this recipe takes the funk out. It's much milder, no strong salmon flavor, very simple and tasty. And healthy. Its main drawback is that it is damn expensive. These are not items I keep around, so when hit Whole Foods (because NO OTHER STORE I've found yet has seafood stock), it's generally about $20 to $25 for the ingredients. However, it's very easy, quick, and takes one pot to cook, so it's a nice splurge now and again.

Sur la Table Poached Salmon and Fennel Soup

Serves 4

1 Tbsp olive oil
2 Leeks, white and light green parts, sliced thin and rinsed
3 oz shitake mushrooms, stemmed and thinly sliced (about a cup)
1 medium fennel bulb, trimmed, cored, halved and sliced (save fronds and chop for garnish)
2 Tbsp minced ginger
1/2 cup dry white wine
1/2 tsp toasted and crushed fennel seeds (or plain, or powdered fennel)
1/4 tsp ground allspice
4 sprigs fresh thyme
4 sprigs flat-leaf parsley
1 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp ground pepper
4 cups seafood broth
1 lb salmon fillet, skin removed and cut into 1 inch pieces
2 cups spinach, stemmed and roughly chopped
lemon wedges, for serving

In a medium saucepan or Dutch oven (my preference) over medium heat, add oil. Add leeks, mushrooms, fennel, and ginger. Cook until starting to soften, about 3 minutes. Add wine and continue to cook until almost dry, about 5 more minutes. Add fennel seed, allspice, thyme, parsley, salt, pepper, and broth. Bring to a simmer and cook until the fennel is tender, about 10 minutes. Taste and adjust salt and pepper. 
Turn off heat and remove thyme and parsley sprigs with tongs. Add salmon and spinach. Poach fish until just cooked through, about 3 minutes. Use a slotted spoon to divide salmon and veggies between bowl and ladle broth over the top. Garnish with a drizzle of olive oil an fennel fronds, serve with lemon wedges.

My banana veg muffins

Yes there are MY banana veg muffins. I have adapted them to meet my needs. I have made them so often tonight I actually didn't even glance at the recipe, whipped it all together from memory. I'll post pics asap but I write when I have a free moment. 
The recipe makes approximately 24, I leave a dozen in the fridge and toss the rest in the freezer. It is a very forgiving recipe. I don't actually measure the banana veg goo, I have added chocolate chips, chia seeds, protein powder, nuts, and even extra veggies before with consistently great results.  The protein powder and chickpea flour add an additional 2 grams of protein per muffin, good for breakfast on the go.
Only warnings, strongly flavored veggies will come through, like beets and even spinach. Just use them in a mix of other veggies, you need the blander or sweet veggies to balance. Sweet potatoes especially help with the more bitter flavors. Also my version requires an immersion blender. These things are amazing, you should get one. 

 

Okay I technically over baked (most of) these. They shouldn't be so dry or browned at the bottom. Pro tip, don't let them get more than a light golden brown, which can be difficult to judge based on the veggies you use. 

Adapted from Zucchini Banana Muffins from Katrina's Kitchen

Zucchini Banana Muffins

Ingredients:

2 cups AP flour
1 cup chickpea flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt
 
4 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 scoop vanilla protein powder
1 1/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup coconut oil
1/2 cup applesauce, or similar stuff, like baby food or pouches
2 medium ripe bananas, mashed (about 1 cup)
1 1/2 cups veggies etc (options - shredded carrots, chopped squash, cooked sweet potatoes, shredded zucchini, fresh baby spinach, chopped kale, apples, roasted peeled beets, canned or fresh pumpkin)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line 2 12-cup muffins tins pans. 
2. In a large bowl combing the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. 
3. In another medium bowl combine the eggs, vanilla, protein powder, sugar, oil, applesauce, bananas, and veg mix. Blend with an immersion blender until completely liquid. 
4. Add the liquid to the flour mixture and stir until just incorporated.  
5. Pour the batter evenly into the prepared pans and bake for 18-24 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean. 
6. Remove from the pan, cool on wire rack before serving. The flavor develops as they cool, also they'll stick to the liners if too hot. Store in an airtight container or freeze.

  
I'm sure there are proper baking reasons why blending the liquids isn't good for the muffins but it works for me, makes it very fast and simple, and there are no chunks for my kids to pick out. 

Such lovely bread

I make amazing bread. Flour Water Salt Yeast by Ken Forkish is my bread bible. There aren't that many recipes in it, but they are thorough. In fact I can't even post the recipe here, as it takes probably 10 pages or more to fully explain and go through the process. There are 4 ingredients, you can probably guess what they are. This was my third attempt at the recipe, might start trying new things with it.

 Just an up close shot here... so tasty. This is the overnight white bread. I find the overnight has a bit more flavor than the one day recipe. Really compares well to local bakery bread.

Yah just one more. He says to bake until dark brown, which i have a difficult time doing. However, this crust is quite crisp yet not too thick, inside is fluffy and perfect. I've taken the bread out at different times, and the darker crust does have a more distinct flavor without tasting burnt. 
Next bread book will be A Passion for Bread  by Lionel Vatinet. 

Chocolate Beet Muffins (de-veganized)

Ah... my first post. I did all this basically to do some Daring Baking, but I don't much care for this month's challenge. Seems just wonderful, if you have the equipment. Just don't feel like winging it. 

So, I'll post this. I altered the recipe, and now I have it in my form. Neat. I post just the one picture, the very simple, lonely, singular muffin. I can't stand having to scroll through 20 pics to get to a recipes. I blame The Pioneer Woman.

Adapted from:
Minimalist Baker's Fudgey Vegan Double Chocolate Beet Muffins

 

Double Chocolate Beet Muffins 

makes 12

Ingredients

• 2 eggs
• 1 cup beet puree (boil/bake beets until soft, peel, puree)
• 1/4 cup honey
• 1/3 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 cup melted coconut oil
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 1/3 cups AP flour
• 1/4 tsp sea salt
• 1.5 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 cup chocolate chips

Instructions

1. Oven at 375.  Line tin with muffin cups.
2. Mix beet puree, honey, brown sugar, coconut oil, and milk.
3. In a separate bowl, mix cocoa powder, flour, salt, and baking soda.
4. Add the wet to the dry ingredients, stir just until mixed. It should be quite thick, think scooping not pouring.
5. Add chocolate chips, then add some more if you want. 
6. Put goo in muffin cups.
7. Bake for 17-22 minutes or until a knife inserted into the center comes out clean. Let cool for a few minutes in the pan, remove from tins and let cool on a cooling rack. 

Turned out damn tasty. A little dense for muffins but the chocolate carries the density well. You can pretend it's even healthy. I swore I'd never be the type of mom to sneak veggies in things but damn... things change. I see it more as a better dessert choice than a chocolate covered veg.