friday links

Happy Friday!


How is your summer going?
Mine is going great.  LOL
Above: cake batter ice cream with chocolate cake chunk swirls. Yeah, it was life-moving tasty.

Next time your in Whole Foods, do me a favor?
Try this almond milk  iced coffee from Califia Farms.
Heavenly.  So so good.  Make sure to put it on ice!

And move over Blue Print Cleanse, we have a cheaper version on board.
Thank goodness!
And it's good!
Suja Organic Juices.  I've tried the green supreme and purify.
The purify has beets in it which I love because of the iron (I'm always low in iron).

I was completely blown away at how tasty these Oh Nuts were.
You know why?
Because when they said it was "raw" I said no way. And gave it a go anyways.
I always assume raw means yuck and iffy.
Or as Mirada from Sex & The City says "I'm going to need a pizza after this".
These have really unique, tasty, all natural flavorings.
I was literally licking the bottom of the bag.  Can't wait to get more.
Flavors include: thai & curry cashews, sesame & teriyaki almonds/cashews, mesquite pod maple
walnuts, white chocolate cashews, rosemary-garlic pistachios, and many more!

Summer tomatoes.  Isn't it great? What are you doing with your summer tomatoes?

Aren't grilled hot dogs the bomb?
I love summer.

Our local Dairy Queen has the best signs this summer.

from around the web:
how about peanut butter & jelly parfaits?
take ordinary caprese stacks and turn them into fried ravioli stacks
the city of boston has the best mayor: tom menino letter to rolling stone
hot fudge sundae now in cake form
schoep, the arthritic dog, made famous by his owner taking him swimming has passed. rip buddy.
study: turmeric more effective than prozac
5 creative writing tips from carl hiaasen
raw recipe find: chocolate-hazelnut cheesecake
the secret language of birthdays now has a website! you MUST go there...now.  GO! Click!
10 ways to use kale in less sucky ways
whole wheat puff pastry! yes, it can be done!
another coffee study?! Sure why not. Coffee drinking tied to lower risk of suicide.
how to deal with people who drain the life force out of you
cinnamon crunch ice cream!
strengthen your back with these 5 easy tips (AND these make sense, no gimmicks)
all this hoopla around the latest news that fish oil might cause prostate cancer in men.
Dr. Weil, breaks it down for us.
kate middleton unabashed baby belly busts the latest taboo of pregnancy. Good for her!
16 ways to detox everyday
how about a margarita pie? perfect for summer parties.
I demand MOREOS be made!
summertime strawberry & candied bacon pizza.
cancer breakthrough: probiotics may save patients from deadly chemotherapy (excellent news)
oddity of the week: white chocolate baby heads (it's a sculpture)
moroccan grilled chicken kabobs (make extra as the leftovers are perfect in rollups!)
ann wigmore: creator/founder of the positive benefits of wheatgrass juice
how to make bunting! who knew?  I didn't.
how kathleen king aka Tate's Cookies, built her cookie empire.
chipotle gazpacho
hash brown wrapped eggs!
as if crumb bars couldn't get any better? I find these strawberry-vanilla jam crumb bars.
cookies & cream snack cake. don't you love that term "snack cake"?  I do.
10 veggies high in protein? Ok.
weight loss fact & fiction, written by mark hyman, MD-- so it isn't all BS.
does practicing yoga really help get you in shape? (it does--shocker)
5 foods that can helps reduce those nasty stress hormones
"fat shaming" don't do it, don't even think about doing it!
benefits of talking about ourselves?

Have a wonderful weekend kids!

peanut butter cheesecake with chocolate chip cookie crust

Have you heard of my obsession with cheesecakes?
I should re-phrase that: my obsession with kicked up cheesecakes.
Cheesecake is my comfort food.
Why do I create so many cheesecakes?
It stems from having one really bad cheesecake.
Baby Watson Cheesecakes.
Remember those?
I hated that cheesecake.  I was like "where's the crust?"
That was all cake, no crust, no add in's, nada.
Like, what's the point of having all those calories?
If I'm going to ingest all that fat, calories, and flavor there should be crust, a little bit of texture, maybe some fruit, or other add in.
It's like my argument on soft serve ice cream: too plain, too boring for me; I need something with all that plainness to jazz it up, unless I have the flu or stomach bug and have to eat soft foods.  LOL.
Get to the cheesecake already!
OK, so the latest cheesecake invention involves peanut butter, but I didn't just want another graham or chocolate crust, I wanted to see if crushed chocolate chip cookies would "crust".
And they did.  Perfectly actually.
You must give this crust a go.



The perfect bite: cheesecake, peanut butter and chocolate chip cookies.



Do you like crust on your cheesecake?
Thick or thin crust?

peanut butter swirl cheesecake with chocolate chip cookie crust

print recipe

crust:

2 cups of crushed (fine) chocolate chip cookies (choose a hard/crisp cookie—I used Trader Joe’s mini crispy chocolate chip cookies)

1 stick unsalted butter, melted

Generous pinch of sea salt

cheesecake filling:

4 - 8 oz. packages of cream cheese, room temp

½ cup granulated sugar

¼ cup heavy cream

3 large eggs AND 2 large egg yolks

peanut butter swirl:

½ - ¾ cup peanut butter (creamy or chunky)

cook notes: This makes a nice thick crust.  If you don’t like a thick crust then use less. To make peanut butter swirl easily, just warm it up in the microwave a bit.

It really helps to have a chopstick or other narrow stick to make the peanut butter swirls in the cheesecake.

Preheat your oven to 350°F.

In a measuring cup, crack open the eggs and egg yolks, set aside until ready to use.

Spray a 9 or 10-inch springform pan with non stick spray.

In a food processor grind up the cookies into a fine crumb. In a bowl, combine the cookies, a pinch of salt, and the melted butter. Mix, then press into the bottom and partially up the sides of the springform pan. (I use a flat bottomed glass to press it in evenly). Recipe by vanillasugarblog.com

Bake for 10-15 minutes or until crust is just lightly brown around the edges, set aside and let cool. Reduce the oven heat to 300°F.

In a food processor or mixer, mix the cream cheese, with the eggs, eggs yolks, sugar and heavy cream.  Mix until you have a nice custard-like consistency and no lumps are visible.

Pour cheesecake batter into cooled crust pan.  Take your peanut butter, and GENTLY place down three or four glops/piles, spaced evenly, around the batter. 

Using a chopstick (or other small, pointed stick) gently swirl the cookie butter around until you have a nice array of swirls.

baking:

Most people like to do a water bath for their cheesecake. I never do, I find all too annoying. But if you want to do this feel free; it’s best to bake your cheesecake how ever you feel most comfortable.

I baked this cheesecake at 300°F for 50-55 minutes; turned off oven and left it alone for a couple hours.  You know the cheesecake is done when there is no jiggle in the middle and the middle batter has set up.

Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely, and then you need to cover and refrigerate for at least 6 hours or overnight.

When ready to serve, slice with a wet knife and serve with fresh whipped cream.

chocolate-cherry protein smoothie

In an effort to NOT turn the stove on AND to try and get more creative with smoothies---my latest experiment gone successful is the chocolate-cherry smoothie.
Healthy too.
Loving the abundance of fresh cherries at whole foods this year, and wanting to use them in a ice cold drink during the heatwave--I came up with cherry smoothie, but then thought why not add cocoa powder to it?
Dark cocoa powder is actually good for you.
I kept this healthy by not adding any sugar, using protein powder, banana, and lowfat milk (or almond milk).

You could easily swap out protein powder and use greek yogurt.
Adding toasted coconut sounds good too.
Endless combinations really.
Just make sure to add ice.

chocolate-cherry protein smoothie
print recipe

1/2 - 3/4 cup of chopped fresh cherries (minus the pits)
1 scoop of your favorite protein powder (I used plain or vanilla flavored)
1 TB dark chocolate unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 banana (or whole)
1/2 cup (or more) of cold milk (or almond milk)
about 1/2 cup of crushed ice

Blend all in a blender until smooth.
This make one smoothie.
Just double up ingredients for 2 or more servings.

friday links + summer recipe roundup

I am so guilty of not baking anything this whole week.
I think it's the longest I've gone without turning on the oven.
Or maybe that was the winter blizzard?
Anyone else not in the mood to bake?
Grilling I can understand, but you literally have to wait till the sun goes down in order to grill
comfortably outside without needing massive amounts of Gatorade.

With all the wonderful summer produce around I thought I'd share some past recipes of mine, in case
you are, (unlike me), in the mood to bake.


Next time you make chocolate dipped strawberries, add some sprinkles (or nuts!).

Crisp, clean, sweet, tangy lemon crunch bars.
Oh what a treat these are.

Starbucks chocolate-banana smoothie copycat recipe.
I added some coconut too.

Blackberry coulis ice cream with salty white chocolate-cream cheese swirls.

Lemon & vanilla Oreo ice cream

Lemon cheesecake with raspberry-white chocolate ganache.

Simple and tasty blueberry cake.

My all time favorite summer eats (next to lobster rolls) is this blueberry shortcake.
You simply must make this at least once in your life. Heavenly!

Peach & creme fraiche pie!

Blueberry & toasted coconut pie.

Raspberry-cheddar hand pies.

And of course summer wouldn't be summer without my infamous tomato pie
This one has panko in it; nice little addition.

Around the web:
avocado salsa made with olives from whole foods recipe collection
peanut butter oat sandwich cookies made with salted honey buttercream
sour milk bread--which I've never heard of but sounds good
cassava patties from tastes like home
raspberry jam thumbprint cookies
easy cannoli cups (so cute)
oreo ice cream sandwiches
strawberry-buttermilk ice cream with candied peppercorns
gluten free goldfish crackers
greatest hot dog ever created?
fried tomato hoagie! yes please!
frozen smores!!!
one hour skillet focaccia
find inspiration in others from gabby & laird
boston mayor tom menino disgrace at Rolling Stone Magazine
jamie oliver is at it again, thankfully. campaign makes McDonalds change recipe
the best way to blind bake a pie--excellent video!
autoimmune disorders and sleep problems
12 foods to fight inflammation
hot fudge sundae cake

Have a wonderful weekend!

mini peach cheesecake tarts

Even in the dead heat of summer I crave cheesecake.
That tart, cold cheesecake batter paired with a nice salty, buttery crust and sweet fresh fruits.
Oh yes please!
But the last thing I want to do is bake a cheesecake for an hour or longer let alone turn on the oven for a long period of time.
AND who wants to wait for a giant cheesecake to cool in this heat?
Why not make mini's?
They require far less baking time, you don't need as much cheesecake batter, and the cooling time is a lot less which means you can eat them sooner (ok that last part is important to me).
Plus you can dress them up with any of the wonderful seasonal summer fruits.
I haven't done a peach cheesecake, so it was time.
But as luck would have it, in the middle of making the cheesecake I realized I had no sour cream,
and no greek yogurt.
I did have a Siggi's yogurt which is pretty much just like greek yogurt only thicker and far less sugar.
It was one of the best last-minute substitutions I've ever had.
This cheesecake recipe is a keeper for me--I loved the flavor this yogurt added to the cheesecake.
These mini cheesecakes literally took 5 minutes to put together, no pre-baking the crust, and then 15 minutes to bake.
So easy right?

Please give this cheesecake recipe a go, you can add in any type of fruit you wish: cherries, pineapple,
plums...
If you can't find the Siggi's yogurt use a greek style yogurt--a thick yogurt or just use sour cream (sour cream is thinner in consistency so only use about 3 TB).



Secret, tasty ingredient.

It's ok to fill these to the almost top, they don't rise much.
But they do bake up fast, so at the 15-minute mark make sure to check on them.


If you don't have tart pans, you can use cupcake tins, but make sure to really grease up the tins and/or
use liners.

Mini Peach Cheesecakes

print recipe

Crust

1 ½ cups graham cracker crumbs

a pinch sea salt

1 TB dark brown sugar

9 TB unsalted butter, melted

Cheesecake

8-oz cream cheese, softened

4 ounces (1 single container) of Siggi’s Icelandic peach yogurt (or 3 TB sour cream)

½ cup powdered sugar

1 large egg + 1 egg yolk

¼ cup chopped peaches, small chop

extra chopped peaches for garnish, optional

Cook Notes:

Make sure to dry the peaches with paper towels and get as much moisture out as possible. If you can’t find Iggy’s yogurt, choose a thick style yogurt.

Iggy’s does NOT have sugar in it; so if you do use another yogurt make sure to adjust sugar in the recipe.

I would not use a Yoplait yogurt as it is too watery—look for a thick style yogurt instead.

I used tart pans for this recipe. If you don’t have tart pans, then use cupcakes, but make sure to line the tins with cupcake liners and/or non-stick spray.

Preheat oven to 350F.

In a medium bowl, make the graham cracker crust.

Mix together graham cracker crumbs, brown sugar and salt and stir to combine.

Add in the melted butter and stir well.

Evenly divide the crumbs among the tart pans or cupcakes tins.

Make sure to press down the crumbs to make an even layer.

For the cheesecake:

Cream the cream cheese, yogurt and sugar until smooth, add in the egg and egg yolk and mix well.  Then add in the chopped peaches.

Fill the tart pan or cupcake tins with cheesecake mixture to almost the top. The cheesecake will rise a bit during baking, so don’t overfill the pans with batter.

These bake up fast! 

Bake for 16-20 minutes, until cheesecakes are set and no longer jiggly in the middle.

Allow to cool for at least 15 minutes, then carefully transfer cheesecakes to a cooling rack to cool completely before refrigerating.