Mini Oreo Cheesecakes

I have a very fuzzy memory of having mini cheesecakes like this when I was a kid. Maybe not Oreo's, but with a Vanilla Wafer or Nilla Wafers as the crust and a raspberry or strawberry topping. Either way when requested to have cheesecake for dessert I obliged.

Cheesecake is great! But, and there is a but, it is super rich and sometimes a bit much to take on as a dessert. Therefore these "cupcake" cheesecakes are a great way to serve it without having to try and cut the perfect slice. Plus, one whole cookie acts as the base and saves loads of time and effort! Gotta love short cuts! 

Since Kraft have taken over Cadbury they have made Oreo Cadbury chocolate bars and at Easter we get Oreo Eggs - since it's that time of year I added these on top as a decoration! If it's not Easter add on a mini Oreo! Remember any sandwich cookie/biscuit would do as a base and the cheesecake flavors are endless! So, be creative and bake your favorite mini cheesecake, but to start this is how I made these! 

Mini Oreo Cheesecakes

makes 15

21 Chocolate Creme Cookies

455g full fat cream cheese

200g sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

4 large eggs, room temp

250ml sour cream

pinch of salt 

Heat the oven to 135C/275F and line a muffin tin with liners and place a whole cookie at the bottom of each liner. Beat the cream cheese until soft before gradually adding the sugar. Once combined add the vanilla and mix. Gently beat the eggs together in a bowl before gradually adding to the cream cheese mixture, scraping down the bowl as needed. Then add the sour cream and salt and beat. Chop up the remaining cookies, which should be 6 cookies, fold into the cream cheese mixture. Using a medium sized ice cream scoop fill the muffin liners with the cheesecake mixture. Bake for 22 minutes rotating the tins half way through baking. Filling will still be a bit wobbly, but should be slightly firm and colored on top. Leave to cool completely before placing in the fridge over night or for a minimum of 4 hours. 

Chocolate Glaze (optional)

170g of chocolate, mix of milk and dark or one or the other, broken up 

140ml double cream 

In a double broiler melt the chocolate, stirring occasionally. When the chocolate is almost melted remove from the heat and slowly add the double cream mixing in quick small circles with a whisk, until the mixture comes together and is smooth and shiny.

To Finish: Top the chilled cheesecakes with a tablespoon of the glaze and gently spread with the back of the spoon. Top with chocolate eggs or cookie or nothing and serve! 

Cookies and Cream is not just an ice cream flavor! These mini cheesecakes are just the right portion size and the cookie gives a nice texture to the creamy cheesecake, great for dessert or afternoon treat! 

* This is NOT a sponsored post. All views and opinions are my own. Please see my contact/policy page above for more information. Recipe adapted from Martha Stewart. 

* I linked this post up with Treat Petite hosted by The Baking Explorer and Cakeyboi 

Mini Chocolate Egg Cookies

Easter candy here in the UK is boring. I’m not saying this to pick a fight or be rude. It’s just all chocolate. Jelly beans aren’t a thing so no big bags of Brach’s jelly beans or Starburst of Jolly Rancher flavoured jelly beans.

Peeps aren’t a thing, I mean I understand why because Peeps are pretty gross. Unless they are like a couple days old and a bit chewy. Even though they aren’t my favorite they are at least something different! The American in me needs variety!

All the UK has is chocolate. Numerous different variations on a plain hollow chocolate egg. Boring. I lie there are hollow chocolate bunnies too. Don’t even get me started on how over hyped and sickly Cadbury Creme Eggs are.

Now that I got that all out of my system I can confess that my one secret Easter indulgence is the mini egg. A solid chocolate egg covered in a candy shell.

It was when I was browsing the seasonal shelfs at my local grocery store chain that I came across micro chocolate eggs. Of course I bought two bags to put into cookies. If you can’t find micro mini eggs then I’d buy the regular ones and bust them up. Busting them up might help take the edge off of the disappointment in the lack of variety of Easter treats.

With added white chocolate chunks, I thought it would complement the pastel colors of the candy coating on the chocolate eggs.

Mini Chocolate Egg Cookies
150g soft unsalted butter
125g soft light brown sugar
100g caster sugar
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 egg, fridge cold
1 egg yolk, fridge cold
300g flour
½ tsp bicarb of soda
100g white chocolate chunks
200g mini/micro chocolate eggs

Heat the oven to 170C/gas mark 3 and line a baking sheet. Melt the butter and leave to cool while you weigh out the sugars in a big mixing bowl. Then add the melted butter and beat until combined, followed by the vanilla, egg and egg yolk, beat until light and creamy. Add the bicarb to the flour before gently mix in the flour in 3 or 4 parts until just combined. Fold in the white chocolate chunks and mini/micro eggs.
Using an medium ice cream scoop or 1/4 measuring cup scoop out the cookie batter and place on the baking sheet a few inches apart. (keep the batter in the fridge between batches) Bake for 15-17 minutes depending on how chewy you want them to be! They should be a very light brown on top! Cool for a few minutes before eating!

notes: recipe adapted from Nigella’s Kitchen - I entered these cookies into the monthly blogger challenge Treat Petite hosted by The Baking Explorer and Cakeyboi.

Treat Petite February

This isn't Cakeyboi or The Baking Explorer, but it is Treat Petite! I'm super excited to be guest hosting this month as Cakeyboi settles into his new accommodation. 

If you are new to this blogging challenge it's pretty straight forward - any sweet treat that is little or petite. So, no cakes or pies and such - only little things like cupcakes, truffles, macarons, cookies, cake pops and so on! If you have any questions regarding this ask any of us and for inspiration check out last month's round up over on The Baking Explorer! 

The theme is: Like It, Love It, Gotta Have It. 

Basically something that you like, love, and just have to have! For example: I like peanut butter, I love peanut butter cups, and I just gotta have one! (I just gave myself a brilliant idea!) Basically anything that you like or love or gotta have! 

Here are the rules/requirements to enter:

• Add your petite treat to the Linky at the bottom of this post by the 25th of the month, midnight at the latest.
• Post your bake onto your blog and link back to Cakeyboi and The Baking Explorer, and me United Cakedom just for this month, stating who is hosting this month.
• Follow Cakeyboi and The Baking Explorer blogs on Google + (see sidebar links), if you haven’t already.
• If you tweet use  #treatpetite and mention @MrCakeyboi and @BakingExplorer and me too! @unitedcakedom – we will retweet 
• Add the new challenge logo to the post and ‘Treat Petite’ as a label to the post
• Use any recipe as long as the source is noted
• If you like, add your photo to the ‘Treat Petite’ Pinterest board (request access from me – Cakeyboi)
• Feel free to enter old posts as long as you update the post and meet all the requirements above!
• If you have any questions at all, please email Cakeyboi or The Baking Explorer.

Link-Up closed

An InLinkz Link-up

Pistachio & Cardamom Madeleines (inspired by The Hundred Foot Journey)

It’s funny how in life just one journey, wether it’s 100 foot or 23,321,760 foot, can change your life forever. The first step is what really matters though. Without the first step the journey cannot begin. Do you have a moment ingrained in your memory as the start of something new. That perhaps you didn’t know it at the time, but looking back you’re like that one decision, that one choice, that one step lead you to where you are now?

That’s what this story is about. The story does start at the beginning with a tragedy in Hassan Haji's youth that changed everything, but that's not where it really starts. It really starts when Hassan makes the choice to walk those 100 feet and start something new.

It’s the tragedy that takes his family first to England, then to France where they decide to make a new home. Once in France they move to a small town across the street from a classic French restaurant run by one Madame Mallory. She discovers that Hassan has a natural ability when it comes to cooking. Learning under the scrutiny of  Madame Mallory will he have what it takes to make it in Paris as a chef? You will need to read the book to find out!

There is a scene in the book where Hassan is having tea with Madame Mallory and he talks about the pistachio madeline’s they are enjoying with said tea. Having only used my madeline tin twice I thought it was about time I dragged it out to use again! Instead of just pistachio madeline’s I added cardamon as well to represent the different cultures that are brought together in this book. I also dipped mine in some melted white chocolate and chopped pistachio nuts!

They turned out good, the perfect balance of salty and sweet. If you’d like to try making these for yourself to eat with a cup of tea (or coffee) while reading this amazing book here’s how I made them!

Pistachio & Cardamom Madeleines

1 large egg
60g caster sugar
60g plain flour, sifted
40g pistachios, ground to a powder
60g butter, melted
3-4 cardamom pods, spilt open and seeds ground up
75g white chocolate, melted
40g pistachios, roughly chopped

Grease a plastic pipping bag with butter, leave to the side. Beat the egg and sugar together with the whisk attachment in a free standing mixer or a hand mixer until it’s tripled and has reached ribbon stage, the batter dripping from the whisk should remain on the surface for a minimum of 3 seconds. Gently fold in the flour and ground pistachios until just combined before adding the cooled melted butter. Again gently fold it in being careful not to knock any of the air out! Place the batter into your prepared piping bag and leave in the fridge for a minimum of 2 hours, but ideally 4 hours.
When you are ready to bake heat the oven to 210C. Grease the madeline tin with warm butter and sprinkle with flour, knock off any extra flour (over the sink) and pipe the madeline batter into each mould. Bake in the heated oven for 7-9 minutes. They should spring back when pressed gently with your thumb. These you do not want sitting around in the tin! Wearing oven mitts give it a sharp rap on the counter to release the madeleines. Leave to cool on a wire rack.

Once cool to the touch dip in the melted white chocolate and then dip in the chopped pistachios. Enjoy!

notes: This post is part of my #storybookbakes series. 4,417 miles is approximately the distance between The United States and The United Kingdom. I borrowed The Hundred Foot Journey by Richard C. Morais by a friend before obtaining my own copy. All opinions are my own please see my contact/policy page above for more information. Recipe is adapted from John Whaite’s Pistachio and Cardamom Madeline’s found here. The recipe is missing the amount of butter so I made an educated guess and it as far as I am concerned turned out okay! I am entering these madeline’s into this month’s Treat Petite hosted by Cakeyboi & The Baking Explorer. These madeleines are also being entered into the Perfecting Patisserie blogging challenge hosted by The Baking Queen!

Fruity Cookie Cups

It’s like I’m a grown up now. When I was younger if something didn’t work out I’d just move on to the next thing. I didn’t really care nor want to know why it didn’t. If felt easier to just move forward then trying to stay put. 

Now I am more curious to why something didn’t work and how do you fix it. Sometimes it’s something simple sometimes it’s a combination of things and that starts the trial and error. 

I bought this novelty cookie pan thinking how great it was going to be to make cookie cups for everything for the rest of my life. Of course it sat on the shelf for ages before I finally got around to using it. I thought right away that I would try the recipe on the packaging as they should know what they are talking about. 

However, they failed and when I say failed I mean they didn’t turn out at all! So, the trial and error began. I tried keeping the dough in the fridge I tried greasing and flouring the pan, but at the end the dough was just not right. I have read that American butter has more water in it and that European butter has more fat and that can cause issues when baking. As the pan hails from American then I have to assume the recipe was tested in America…that and it is in cups and stuff. 

So, I tried the sugar cookie recipe you see below and I managed to get results, but not after changing the method as well. Instead of making balls and squishing them down I ended up rolling the dough out and cutting out circles and making sure the pan was greased properly I succeeded in making cookie cups filled with whipped cream cheese and topped with fruit. 

After all that here is officially how I finally made these super tasty fruit cookie cups! I am glad I didn’t just move on, the effort was worth it! See, I’ve grown up a bit. Also if you don’t have one of these fancy pants novelty cookie pans then just cut your cookies into circles and follow the instructions below!

Fruity Cookie Cups

cookie cups
200g unsalted butter
280g golden caster sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 medium egg
400g plain flour
salt
1/2 tsp cream of tartar

Beat the butter and sugar together light and fluffy. Mix in the egg until combined. Add the flour, salt, and cream of tartar and mix well! Separate into two parts and wrap in cling wrap and place in the fridge for at least 30minutes or so. This is when I heat the oven to 170C/325F/gas3.

Grease your novelty cookie cup pan with butter, if you don't have one turn your muffin pan upside down and grease the the outside cups. Roll out half of the cookie dough and cut out circles that match whatever pan you're using and place on the greased pan. Bake for 10 minutes. The cookies should only be slightly brown on the edges. Take off the pan as soon as you can touch them, otherwise even though properly greased they may stick as they cool. 

filling:

280g cream cheese 

2 tablespoons of sugar

various fruits, chopped

Whip it up together. Put in a piping bag and pipe into your cookie cups. Top with your chopped up fruits! 

notes: recipe is adapted from the hummingbird bakery cookbook - the novelty bake tin can be seen in this Five on Friday post. Check out my instagram (@unitedcakedom) for all the failed attempts! 

challenges: Treat Petite hosted by The Baking Explorer with Cakeyboi 

Coconut Roll Biscuits or Kókusztekercs három színben

Since 1956 Eurovision has been a source of entertainment to all of Europe and apparently Australia? As an American ExPat I never really got into Eurovision, in fact if it hadn't been the theme for Treat Petite (blogger challenge) this month it probably would have passed me by again this year.

I thought it was a great theme for the challenge and it had me researching a couple of the countries I find interesting. The research now has me following an amazing Icelandic food blog, which is completely unrelated to the rest of this post! In the end I went with the best sort source one could find, I asked someone.

More specifically I asked my neighbor and friend Niki who happens to be Hungarian. Last Friday she came over and helped me make these super fun no bake Coconut Rolls. The base is made from digestive biscuits, sugar, cocoa powder, butter, almond extract, and apricot jam.

This combination is also used to make a truffle like treat. Instead of rolling out the dough, like you do in the instructions, they are rolled into balls before being coated in coconut. Also rum is used in place of the extract. Sometimes it’s even wrapped around a cherry to make it even more special.

However these rolls are the most popular with children and I can see why. The fun colors of the buttercream filling are very eye catching! You can use whatever colors you want really. These are pretty versatile treat!

Niki has made these so many times she was just pouring things in and adding a little more of this or that. I did take notes so here is how we made these delicious coconut rolls. Trust me when I say you won’t be able to resist them.

Coconut Rolls:

900g digestive biscuits

250g golden caster sugar

60g cocoa powder

1 bag desiccated coconut

250g unsalted butter, very soft

1-2 teaspoons almond extract to taste

½ jar of apricot jam

milk, as needed

buttercream (recipe follows)

Blitz all of the digestive biscuits in a food processor until they are tiny crumbs. Mix in the sugar, cocoa powder, and about ½ of the bag of coconut. Add the butter, extract, and jam – mix using your hands until you get a soft sticky like dough. Add either more jam or milk if it’s too dry. It is easier to add more jam or milk if the mixture is dry then to add more biscuit crumbs if the mixture is too wet, so be careful.

Once the mixture is completely combined it will be a bit sticky, but you should be able to handle. Divide it into 3 portions as evenly as possible. Take 1/3 of the dough and place it on a big sheet of cling film – enough to fold over the mixture and gently roll it out to a rectangle shape approximately 20x31cm or 8 ½ x12 inches. Spread one color/portion of the buttercream over the dough leaving a small boarder around the edges.

On one of the shorter ends gently start to the dough up by tucking the edge in. Keep it as tight as possible using the cling film to help it along. Once rolled leave to the side and repeat two more times with the remaining dough and other colors of buttercream. Then sprinkle the rest of the coconut out on the work surface and very gently roll each roll in the coconut. You may have to help it stick in places by gently pressing down.

Leave in the fridge for at least an hour before slicing. I was told I cut mine a little too thick, but not sure it matters much, as they won’t last long.

butter cream:

250g unsalted butter, soft

250g golden caster sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract 

3 different food color pastes

Beat the butter, sugar, and vanilla together until combined and soft. Divide as evenly as possible into 3 separate bowls making each one a different color. Follow instructions above.

Thank you Niki for spending the afternoon with me and sharing this treat from your home country! And good luck to Hungary in the Eurovision finals! 

notes: this is my entry for the Treat Petite Blogger Challenge hosted by Cakeyboi and The Baking Explorer there is still time to get your entry in! 

Double Chocolate Strawberry Mini Tarts

This month’s Pastry Challenge is chocolate! The possibilities of a chocolate and pastry combination are endless! When faced with a lot of different choices the only way to narrow it down is to figure out what it is you want.

First I knew I wanted a chocolate pastry and a fresh fruit. So, I started looking through blogs and books for different options.

Then the chocolate and cherry tart I made in February kept coming to mind…but it was too dark for the beautiful weather we've been having. Then I knew I wanted something light and springy!

That’s why this chocolate short crust pastry with a white chocolate ganache and fresh strawberries came to exist. Since chocolate can be so rich it made sense to make these tarts little or mini. It makes the perfect chocolaty bite, without being too rich and sickly. We all love chocolate, but let’s be honest it can too much sometimes!

These would make a great spring teatime treat! So, let’s get baking…

Chocolate Short Crust Pastry

200g flour

25g cocoa powder

50g icing sugar

350g unsalted butter, cold & cubed

3 egg yolks

1 tsp vanilla extract

Sift the flour, cocoa, and sugar together and gently rub in the butter so that the mixture looks like breadcrumbs. Try not to touch it too much because you want to keep the butter from melting. Add the egg yolks and vanilla; mix together until you get a soft dough. Form into a ball and smoosh it down a little so it’s disk like. Then rest in the fridge for at least 30 minutes or over night.

Just before you take out of the fridge grease your mini tart pan or tart tins with soft butter. Sprinkle a little flour on the counter before rolling out the pastry - rotate every other roll to get a nice circle. You don’t want it too thin or too thick, but use your own judgment based on your tart tins. Then cut out circles somewhat bigger then your tart tins, you want the over hang. Presses gently into your pan/tin getting the pastry down into the corners, and carefully trim the excess dough off.

*If you are making little ones like these you will have extra pastry. There are two options either freezing it for a couple of months or make a double batch! Cover with cling film and rest in the fridge for at least 15 minutes. I left them in for about 45 minutes.

Heat the oven to 180C. Once it’s at temperature take the pan/tin out of the fridge. Using a fork put holes in pastry. Place a piece of grease proof paper in each, I cut out individual circles, and fill with baking beads press down to make sure they are holding the pastry down. Bake for 8-10 minutes, then remove the baking beads and bake for a further 5-8 minutes or until it looks dried out. I don’t know how else to describe it, because with chocolate pastry it won’t be brown. Cool for a few minutes before filling with the ganache and strawberry!

White Chocolate Ganache

50-100g white chocolate, broken up

50-100g double cream

20 or more fresh strawberries

The varied amount is due to your tart tin/pan size. You might need more or less. These ones used only about 50g of each. Place an equal amount of both ingredients in a heatproof bowl over a simmering pan of water. Stir until melted. Fill each tart case and top with a fresh strawberry!

notes: chocolate pastry recipe is adapted from Eric Lanlard’s Tart it Up! and can also be found online on The Telegraph’s website. Use up the egg whites making meringues!

These tarts were entered into these challenges:

The Pastry Challenge (theme chocolate) hosted by myself with Jen's Food 

Tea Time Treats (theme chocolate) hosted by Lavender and Lovage with The Hedge Combers 

Treat Petite (theme spring time) hosted by The Baking Explorer with Cakeyboi 

A Holiday of Love {Oreo Truffles}

I have written in the past about how I’m not overly big on holidays. There are parts of holidays that I do enjoy and others I don’t.

It’s very conflicting actually. 

For instance, Valentine’s Day (today) I think it is an incredibly stupid holiday and probably the best of all the holidays.

I think it’s stupid that there is so much pressure put on couples to celebrate the holiday to prove that they are in love. Then it completely ostracizes those who are not coupled up and in love.

There are so many people in my life that I love. Why should it focus mostly on couples? Which is why I like the holiday. A day that celebrates love is a good day in my books!

I made these truffles for the two little people who I love more then anyone or anything in the whole world. It is for them that I celebrate this holiday of love. 

Oreo Truffles:

200g oreos or other sandwich cookies, crushed

100g cream cheese

283g (10oz/1pkg) of white candy melts

Mix the Oreo crumbs and cream cheese together, until completely combined. It will be sticky, but roll the mixture into about 12 one-inch balls. Place in the fridge for at least an hour; they can stay in for longer if need be.

When they are ready, but before you take them out melt the candy melts according to the instructions on the package.

Once it’s all melted, stick a fork into the candy melts before using it to pick up an Oreo truffle and dip into the melted candy melts, gently rock back and forth until covered. Very gently pull them out and let drip until smooth. Don’t worry too much about them being perfectly smooth if you are covering them in sprinkles.

Then set in a cupcake case or on a sheet of grease-proof paper. Cover with sprinkles right away because candy melts set fast. Repeat until they are all done!

notes: These were all over the internet a year or two ago, so it’s nothing new. However they are delicious. It’s the cookies and cream flavor covered in chocolate or candy melts that makes them a gorgeous treat! They also make great gifts and are really versatile! Decorate for any holiday, sports team, or special event!

I forgot to add that these are my entry for this month's Treat Petite, a monthly blogging challenge hosted by The Baking Explorer and Cakeyboi, this month's host. The theme is "Loved Ones" and I think these fit that theme perfectly! There is still time to enter so, head over to his site to find out more!

You Can Take the Girl out of America, but...

Recently I have been told that I occasionally sound British. More specifically strangers have said to me that they weren't sure about my accent as I said something that sounded American, but then I sounded British.

I’m not sure what that means. Nor am I really sure how I’m suppose to feel about that?

Maybe that’s why I get mistaken as Irish sometimes. An American accent with a British accent twang perhaps? American accents are actually closer related to the Irish/English then the English/English.

I don’t actually know if that is true, I was just told that by a fellow American Expat. She has been mistaken as Irish before too. One very nice Irish twitter friend I tweet occasionally told me she gets mistaken as American.

Crazy. I suppose I should have expected after 8+ years that I would pick up on the British ways of saying things. It’s not a bad thing, but I like sounding like an American. It’s a part of me, ya know?

I will get used to it, just like I had to get used to my last name when I married.

However just because the girl has been taken out of America does not mean the America has been taken out of the girl! Here are some Peanut Butter Thumbprint cookies filled with a raspberry jelly!

And yes I used cups!! You know what else? I use an American laptop because I can’t type on a British keyboard! You didn't need to know that random fact, but I felt it’s about time I confessed.

Don't be put off by the cups because these cookies are yummy! They are great as an after school snack or just because you like peanut butter and jelly!

Peanut Butter & Jelly Thumbprint Cookies

1 1/3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour (plain flour)

½ tsp baking soda (baking powder)

1 tsp flaky sea salt or ¾ tsp fine sea salt

8 tbsp (1 stick (114g)) unsalted butter, melted

½ cup packed light brown sugar

½ cup golden granulated sugar

1 large egg

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

1 cup natural smooth peanut butter (stir well to blend the oil before measuring)

Mix the flour, baking soda, salt and then set aside. In another bowl mix the sugar and melted butter, before whisking in the egg, vanilla, and peanut butter. Fold in the flour mixture until just combined. Cover the cookie dough and refrigerate for an hour. Don’t worry if you need to leave it for longer, you can leave it over night if you must!

Preheat the oven to 325F/160C/gas3 and prepare two baking sheets. The recipe makes about 4-dozen cookies.

Shape the dough into 1-inch balls and place on the prepared baking sheets about 2 inches apart. Bake the cookies for 15-18 minutes, until lightly colored on top and underneath, one cookie will need to be sacrificed to check the bottom. Because the cookies are soft to the touch as they come out of the oven when you turn one over it will most likely crumble.

Which is okay as they firm up while they cool. Which is why when they come out of the oven you need to put the “thumbprint” in the cookies before they cool. I used the bottom of my silicone pastry brush to make a hole in the middle to hold the jelly a bit better. When making the “thumbprint” you need to be very gentle as the cookies are sensitive.

to finish

3-5 tbsp Jelly/Jam of any flavor 

Before serving fill the “thumbprints” with jelly! Then Enjoy!

notes: I did try to hunt down some Grape Jelly as is traditional in PB & J, however I didn't want to pay the extortionate shipping fees for one jar of jelly! Natural Peanut Butter & Co. comes in 340g(12oz) tubs that equals one cup. I bought all the ingredients for this recipe. When I say I can’t type on a British keyboard I mean I won’t. I get really frustrated without my American keyboard! O_o Recipe is slightly changed from Alice Medrich's recipe in Chewy Gooey Crispy Crunchy Melt-in-your-Mouth Cookies.

I made these for Treat Petite Baking Blogging Challenge hosted by The Baking Explorer (this month's host) and CakeyBoi! This month’s theme was America! Can’t wait to see what next month’s theme is!