Rum raisin chocolate truffles

I really like truffles and after making the orange truffles a while back I have been wanting to make many other variations. I need to make coffee truffles ASAP!!

One thing I do when I make truffles is double or triple the batch and keep the chocolate mixture in the fridge. Then when I need to go to friends houses or give some goodies away I go to my truffle chocolate stash and roll away. Even if I keep the mixture in the fridge for a couple of months they still taste perfectly fine :-)

Just let the mixture sit at room temperature until able to roll.

Now, I do always use chocolate chips, I know that with truffles you are suppose to use best chocolate you can find, but so far it has worked for me and I haven't had any complaints!

Truffles are super easy to make if you are not doing fancy coatings and such so I suggest you try them. Truffles are also very versatile so use any flavors you may like.

Enjoy!!

This is how the chocolate mixture looks like when mixing in all of the ingredients. Not that you can see very good but I thought it may help. The little chunks are the raisins.

Ingredients
Yields 30 truffles

1 tablespoon of butter
1/2 cup heavy cream
12 oz chocolate chips, bag dark chocolate, semi sweet, or milk chocolate chips
1/4 cup rum
1/2 cup raisins

Coating:

1 cup walnuts, chopped (you can use cocoa powder or shredded unsweetened coconut)

In a bowl place the raisins and rum and let it sit at room temperature for 30 minutes.

Place the raisins and rum in the bowl of a mini food processor and process until the raisins are finely minced.

Heat the heavy cream and pour hot cream over chocolate and butter. Let it sit for 30 seconds and then whisk until chocolate is melted. (If you find that the chocolate doesn't melt place bowl over a double boiler until it does, I sometimes have to do this :-)

Stir in the raisin mixture and store it in the fridge until soft enough to roll.

With a spoon take small pieces of the chocolate mixture and roll them round. Deep the truffles in the chopped walnuts and store in the fridge until time to serve.

Before serving let the truffles sit at room temperature for about 30 minutes.

Nutrition facts calculated based on the recipe giving 30 truffles. It includes the walnut coating.

Healthier Ghost sugar cookies

I just made these cookies for my kids. I actually used my old basic sugar cookie recipe I made a while back and it worked pretty good.

Next time I make this cookies I would like to use unrefined sugar and see how that works but because the unrefined sugar is a bit more coarse and has a brown color to it I think the cookies may look a bit different. Will see how it goes.

For decorating the cookies I just used some powdered sugar and soy milk, but you can use water, regular milk, lemon....what ever you may like. I really didn't measure the frosting ingredients I used for over the cookies, I just made sure I obtained a kind of thicker consistency spreadable paste and that was it pretty much.

I would try the frosting over the cookie and if I found that it was a bit to runny I would just add a bit more sugar, that was my method. Not a very practical one but that is how I did it and it worked for me :-)

For the writing over the cookies I use dark chocolate chips. I melted them in the microwave and used a pampered chef decorator plastic bottle.

Anyhow, you can make these as many shapes as you want and decorate how ever you may please. I think these are just a slightly better alternative than the regular version with much more butter, sugar and all purpose flour.

Enjoy!!

 Right before placin the cookies in the oven.

Cookies right after coming out of the oven. Just a slight brown color around the edges. It took about 10-11 minutes.

First step. Putting the frosting on each cookie. The ones without it are for my little girl..... Just a little bit less sugar.

.....and more pictures :-)

I had the cookie batter in the fridge for over a week before I used it. I made a double batch the previous week and saved half of it wrapped in plastic wrap for these cookies.

Ingredients

Yields 16-18 cookies depending on cookie cutter size.

2 cups whole wheat pastry flour, next time I will try to add some shredded coconut to the mix
1 stick of butter, at room temperature
1/4 cup olive oil
1 cup sugar, next time I will use just 3/4 cup of sugar
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon baking powder

Beat butter and sugar until fluffy, about 2-3 minutes. Beat in egg, oil and vanilla. Add flours, and baking powder.

Divide dough into two and with a rolling pin flatten them out in between plastic wrap. Chill dough for at least 2 hours. I did over night.

Preheat oven to 350F and line a two baking cookie sheets with parchment paper.

Roll out the dough to about 1/4 inch thick and stamp out rounds using a cookie cutter (I roll out the dough in between plastic wrap which I find very easy to do. You can use any other cookie cutter shape you like as well).

Bake cookies for 14-17 minutes. Cool on sheets for 2-3 minutes and transfer them to a wire rack and cool. Decorate as desired or eat as is.

Tip: Dough can be chilled for up to 5 days or frozen wrapped in a double layer of plastic wrap for up to 1 month. If frozen, thaw dough in the fridge before using.

Apple muffins with pecan strudle topping

I find myself wanting to bake many different things and not having enough time. I wish I could just bake for days and be in the kitchen......I LOVE IT!! but for now I just have to try and make easy, and fast things like these muffins.

These muffins are really good. You can have these in not time especially if you just want to skip the strudel topping and just add some unrefined brown sugar over the top on each muffin before baking.

The next time around I might just do that and also add some more chopped apples over the top of each muffin as well besides having some in the batter.

You can also double the strudel ingredients if you really want a lot of strudel over the muffins. I just added a little bit as you can see and that was enough for us.

Anyhow until my next entry...

Enjoy!!

Left picture is the strudel topping...not to attractive looking and the right picture is the batter right before folding in the apples.

Right before placing the strudel topping on top of the muffins and before baking.

As you can see I could have place tons more strudel over each muffin. You can do that but for us it was enough :-)

Ingredientshttp://eatgood4life.blogspot.com/2012/04/raspberry-and-orange-sweet-rolls.html#more
Yields 20 muffins

3/4 cup olive oil
1 cup low fat milk, I used soy milk
2 eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla
2 1/4 cup whole wheat pastry flour, any other flour may also work
1/2 cup oat bran, wheat germ will also work
1 1/3 cup unrefined sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 to 2 teaspoons cinnamon
3 apples, peeled and chopped

Strudel topping

1/2 cup pecans, chopped
1/3 cup unrefined sugar
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/4 cup whole wheat pastry flour
3 tablespoons butter, melted

Preheat oven to 350 F. Line muffin pan with cupcake liners and set aside.

In a bowl mix strudel ingredients and set aside.

In a bowl mix oil, sugar, milk, eggs and vanilla. Add flour, oat bran, cinnamon, baking powder and soda and combine. I always use a wire whisk, no fancy equipment in my kitchen, and I never sift flour :-). Fold in the chopped apples.

Fill muffins liners with 3/4 of the batter and top with about 1/2 tablespoon of strudel topping. More if you like but you may have to double the strudel batch.

Bake for 22-25 minutes or until a tester comes out clean. Remove from pan and let cool in a wire rack.

Candy corn cookies

Yesterday was the day that I made these fun cookies. My son was over the moon about them and I actually let him have 3 the minute the where done....oh well just this one time :-(

I actually used my basic butter cookie recipe. I divided the dough in three and add it the necessary food colors to make the candy corn theme cookie.

I must say it was a challenge shaping these cookies. They don't look to professional but I think you can see that they are candy corn cookies. You can decorate them with different sugar colors or how ever you wish. I thought they were sweet enough and they didn't need any more sweetness :-)

These are fun to make with your kids so....

Enjoy!!

Right after taking the dough out of the fridge you may notice it is a bit stiff but just unwrap it a roll it up a bit. It will be fine, just like the right picture :-)

I used plastic wrap to roll the cookies but you can also use parchment paper. Use a knife to cut the cookies into triangles. They don't look perfect but the kids knew what they were :-) A bit rustic looking.....

Some of the  cookies look a bit more done on the edges. I tried to make them the same size but some turned out a bit smaller than I would had hoped for.

.....and these is how they looked right after coming out of the oven.....NOT BAD :-)

Ingredients

2 cups whole wheat pastry flour, next time I will try to add some shredded coconut to the mix
1 stick of butter, at room temperature
1/4 cup olive oil
1 cup sugar, next time I will use just 3/4 cup of sugar
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon yellow food cooloring
1/4 teaspoon orange food cooloring

Beat butter and sugar until fluffy, about 2-3 minutes. Beat in egg, oil and vanilla. Add flour, and baking powder.

Divide dough into three sections and add the orange and yellow food cooloring to two of the parts. Roll each piece of each color into a long rope and wrap in plastic. Chill dough for at least 4 hours. I did over night.

When you are ready to bake cookies preheat oven to 350F and line baking cookie sheets with parchment paper.

Transfer dough ropes to a lightly floured work surface, side by side and lengthwise with the orange rope in the midle, like in the pictures. You can place parchment paper of plastic wrap and gletly roll into a rectangle. Remove parhment paper and using a knife cut dough into triangles.

Place triangle cookies 1 inch apart to cookie sheet and bake for 9-11 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool in the cookie sheet for 5-7 minutes before transfering to a cooling cookie wrack.

Tip: Dough can be chilled for up to 5 days or frozen wrapped in a double layer of plastic wrap for up to 1 month. If frozen, thaw dough in the fridge before using.

Cream cheese pumpkin muffins

It is fall season so what better than to use pumpkin, cinnamon and nutmeg flavors?

I have just finished baking these muffins and they were awesome. I kept the sugar on the low end since I don't like desserts to sweet, I like to taste the other flavors involved.

These muffins are pretty much straight forward. If you like you can skip the cream cheese filling and you will be done making these in no time however I suggest not skipping this step. The cream cheese filling adds a nice touch!

Well, nothing much I can say about these muffins so...

Enjoy!!

Here you can see how I placed the cream cheese inside the muffins and then had them sprinkled with the cinnamon sugar and pumpkin seeds :-)

Right after been baked. They were awesome!!

Here you can see the cream cheese layer.....just devine :-)

Ingredients
Makes 12 muffins

2 eggs
1 cup unrefined sugar, I used 3/4 cup. You can use regular sugar as well
1 cup pumpkin puree
1/4 cup milk, I used soy milk
1/2 cup olive oil
1 1/2 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground clove

Topping

2-3 tablespoons pumpkin seeds
2 tablespoons brown sugar mixed with 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Filling

4 ounces cream cheese, I used 1/3 less fat, room temperature
1/3 cup confectioners sugar

Preheat oven to 350 F. Line muffin pan with muffin liners.

In a bowl mix filling ingredients and set aside. I used a hand mixer to do this.

In another bowl beat eggs, sugar, pumpkin puree, milk and oil until well incorporated. Add the the rest of the ingredients and combine.

Next fill each muffin with about a tablespoon or so of batter, just enough to cover the bottom of the liner. Place a little bit of the cream cheese mixture on top of each muffin. Divide the remaining pumpkin batter among the muffin cups, placing on top of the cream cheese to cover completely.

Sprinkle a small amount of the topping mixture over each of the muffins and bake for 20-25 minutes. Let muffins cool for about 2-3 minutes in the muffin pan, then remove muffins from the muffin pan and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

No bake Key lime pie

The only thing I can say about this pie is WOW.....

Lately I am loving the no bake part of making desserts and since I just found the perfect consistency to making no bake cheesecake I can actually obtain endless variations. Loving that....

Again, this one is super simple and very refreshing. I made it for a lunch date I had with one of my girlfriends after having some spicy Indian food. It was just the perfect end to our meal.

You can use any pan you wish. In this case I used a 9 inch tart pan with removable bottom but you can use either a cheesecake pan with removable bottom of any size you prefer or a springform pan.

I am planning on making a raspberry and cappuccino no bake cheesecake. I am super excited. I just hope they turn out ok so that I can post the recipe. Until then....

Enjoy!!

You can perfectly make this pie in any other pan you may prefer. A springform or a cheesecan pan with removable bottom will work well.

Ingredients  Miryam's original recipe
yields 8-10 servings

8 oz cream cheese, 1/3 less fat
1 cup heavy cream
3/4 cup confectioner's sugar
Juice of 3-4 key limes, regular limes will also work

Crust

1 1/2 cup oats
1 1/2 cup honey nut cheerios, I used multigrain cheerios from TJoes
1 stick butter, melted

In a food processor pulverize the oats and cheerios. Transfer to a 9 inch tart pan with removable bottom and add the melted butter. Combine and press down onto the base and sides of the cake pan.You can also use a sprinform pan or a cheesecake pan with removable bottom.

In a bowl combine the cream cheese, sugar and lime juice. In another bowl whipped the heavy cream. Fold the whipped cream into the lime cream cheese mixture.

Add the cream cheese mixture over the crust and decorate as desired. Refrigerate over night.

Click here for a healthier revised no bake key lime pie recipe

 Nutrition facts calculated based on the recipe giving 8 servings

Peanut butter cheesecake with caramel sauce

I have been developing a no bake peanut butter cheesecake for quite sometime and after much failure I decided that baking one would be easier, but that was just up until a few days ago when I made the no bake peanut butter cheesecake for the third time that finally became a success. Finally the consistency was right!!

Anyhow, this cheesecake is also super easy, delicious and simple. I add it some chopped peanuts to the crust and I think it was awesome. It gave it a little crunchy feel to it. I also use my cinnamon caramel sauce, which was a nice addition.

For the cheesecake batter I used a kind of peanut butter that contained flax seeds but you can use any peanut butter of your liking, smooth or crunchy.

Anyhow, my cheesecake was a bit on the over baked side so I have decrease the amount of baking so you don't over bake yours!

Enjoy!!



 

On the left picture you  can see that my cheesecake is slightly over baked so I have decreased the amount of baking time so that you won't over baked yours :-) Also, I used a 6 inch cheesecake pan with removable bottom.

Ingredients

2 8 oz 1/3 less fat cream cheese
1/2 cup sugar, if you are not using the caramel do 3/4 cup sugar
1/2 -3/4 cup crunchy or smooth peanut butter
2 eggs

Crust

1/2 cup oatmeal
1/4 cup unsalted peanuts, chopped
1/2 cup cheerios, you can also use graham crackers or cookies, I used multi grain cheerios from Trader Joe's
3-4 tablespoons butter, melted

Preheat oven to 325F.

In a food processor add oatmeal and cheerios and pulse until pulverized.

Add this mixture to the 6 inch cheesecake pan with removable bottom and incorporate the peanuts and melted butter. Mix thoroughly and press down onto the pan.

In a bowl beat cream cheese until smooth. Beat in the sugar, and peanut butter and combine. At low speed incorporate the eggs. Blend until smooth.


Pour cheesecake batter over the crust and bake for 25-30 minutes or until set. Turn oven off and let cheesecake set for about 20-30 minutes before placing in the fridge.

Refrigerate cheesecake for at least 4-6 hours before serving. If using caramel sauce pour caramel over entire cake or to individual pieces.

No bake peanut butter cheesecake

I couldn't help and wait to post this no bake amazing cheesecake. I have never made a no bake cheesecake before and for sure this one won't be the last time.

This was actually my third try making this believe it or not. I just had much trouble with the consistency. The flavor was all there but it always turned out very runny. I think it was the fact that I was using condense milk and now I am not :-)

I actually used chopped unsalted peanuts on the crust, which was a really clever idea I must add. I also used cheerios and oatmeal but you can use the conventional graham crackers, cookies or what ever you may like for the crust, I just like my combination, a bit healthier.

I am thinking of making this cheesecake for thanksgiving since it is so simple to make yet really yummy. I am also thinking that next time I am going to try a raspberry or strawberry variation. Will see....so much I want to bake I don't know where to begin :-)

Enjoy!

I put chopped peanuts in the crust which gave the cheesecake a really nice addition.

I made the cake on a 6 inch cheesecake pan with a removable bottom. Next time I will make it on a regular 9 inch cheesecake pan and double the ingredients :-) It was gone way to quickly....

Ingredients

Yields 6 servings

8 oz cream cheese, 1/3 less fat
1 cup heavy cream
1 cup peanut butter, I used crunchy peanut butter
3/4 cup confectioner's sugar

Crust

1/2 cup oats
1/2 cup honey nut cheerios
4 tablespoons butter, melted
1/4 cup unsalted peanuts, chopped

In a food processor pulverize the oats and cheerios. Transfer to the 6 inch cheesecake pan with removable bottom and add the chopped peanuts and melted butter. Combine and press down onto the base of the cake pan.

In a bowl combine the cream cheese, sugar and peanut butter and set aside. In another bowl whipped the heavy cream. Fold the whipped cream into the peanut butter mixture.

Add the cream cheese mixture over the crust and refrigerate over night.

TIP: If you like you can add some whipped heavy cream with a tablespoon of sugar and chopped peanuts to decorate the cheesecake with. That is what I did :-)

Nutrition facts calculated based on the recipe giving 6 servings.