Shabbat Shalom!

Jerusalem Cheesecake with Couscous



After stumbling upon this recipe from AlmondConer (.blogspot), I have to admit I was puzzled, intrigued and a little grossed out all at once. Couscous in a cheesecake? That just seems wrong.

After the recipe, scribbled on the back of a grocery receit, sat next to my computer for a few months, I decided it was time to give it a shot- with a few tweeks here and there.



Instead of one large custard, I opted to put my tart pan to good use and make a few miniature ones instead. They turned out pretty well, If I may say so myself.
Two of them were topped with a couscous-honey-crushed almond mixture ( as specified in Almond's recipe) and the other two I spread with homemade, homegrown blackberry jam. Honestly, I preferred the jam to the couscous- but hey, that's just me.

put 'em in the toaster, that's the way you're sposter

Fig Pop Tarts w/ Ginger Frosting & Classic Chocolate Fudge


Ever since I was a child, I have loved pop-tarts

For years and years breakfast meant... pop- tarts.
And, well, pop-tarts meant a whole lot more than breakfast; they were delicious at all hours of the day, particularly 2am.
I was always fond the of chocolate fudge and frosted strawberry variety


Having said that, I should note that up until this morning I've been clean for over two years, no contact with toaster pastries whatsoever. As you can imagine, I had high hopes for what my first venture back into pop-tartdem would be like.
Unfortunately, I was rather dissapointed; it wasn't half the tart I remember it being.


So I decided, with the help of Mr. Alton Brown, to bring back the toaster pastry in style... and without all those weird chemicals.
Don't call it a comeback:

Alton's Pastry Recipe
::I should note that I used 1/2 whole wheat flour, 1/2 AP flour::

The ginger icing consisted solely of powdered sugar, apricot nectar, and powdered ginger.

lemonade meringue pie

This is, to say the least, a bit of an experiment.
My brother, lemon meringue pie enthusiast, is in town for a few days. For as long as I can remember, visits from my brother have been synomymous with some sort of lemon creation.
This time, I decided to change things up a bit, stray from mom's trusty lemon recipe and give a lemonade version a try.
Despite a few bumps, lumps, what have you, in the road- I think it's rather successful.


I adapted the recipe from a Taste of Home magazine I received in the mail.

3 eggs, separated I used jumbo
1 pkg (4.6oz) vanilla pudding mix
1 1/4 c. milk
1 c. sour cream I used 1/2 s. cream, 1/2 plain yogurt
1/3 lemonade concentrate
1 tsp. lemon juice
1/4 tsp. cream of tartar
6 tbsp. sugar
1 pastry shell, baked

Place egg whites in a small mixing bowl; let stand at room temp. for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, in a large saucepan, combine pudding mix, milk, and sour cream- cook and stir over medium until thickened and bubbly, about 5 minutes. Reduce heat, cook 2 minutes longer.
Remove from heat and gradually whisk 1 cup hot filling into yolks; return all to pan. Bring to a gentle boil; cook and stir 2 minutes. Remove from heat, gently stir in lemonade concentrate; keep warm.

*Note: This is where it all went horribly wrong for me. Instead of adding 1/3 cup lemonade- I poured the whole 12 ounces in. Fortunately, with the addition of a few obscenities and a couple tablespoons of Bird's Vanilla Custard Powder, I was able to turn my lemon soup back into some form of pudding.

Add lemon juice and cream of tartar to egg whites; beat on medium until soft peaks form. Gradually beat in sugar 1 tablespoon at a time, on high until stiff glossy peaks form and sugar is disolved.

Pour warm filling into pastry; spread meringue over filling, sealing edges to pastry. Bake at 350 15 minutes or until meringue is golden brown. Cool, then refrigerate at least 3 hours.





The Verdict: A success! Turns out overdoing the lemonade element really worked for the overall taste, it added a certain freshness/tartness to the pie. Though, I will say this is not a lemon meringue for the weak of heart.