PUMPKIN CHEESECAKE, Streusel-topped

Streusel-topped Pumpkin Cheesecake

Twelve Servings

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees

The Ginger-Pecan Crust:

1 1/4 c gluten-free gingersnap cookies

1/4 c granulated sugar

½ c finely chopped pecans

4 T unsalted butter, melted

Mix all four ingredients well and pour into the bottom of a nine-inch, non-stick spring-form pan.  Using the back of a tablespoon, pat the crust down firmly.  Bake for ten minutes. Remove the pan and place it on a cookie tray.  Leave the oven on.

The Pumpkin Cheesecake Filling:

4 pkgs. 8oz. Philadelphia-brand bar cream cheese, leave out of the refrigerator to soften

1 1/4 c granulated sugar

3 T Bob’s Red Mill gluten-free all purpose flout

1 c canned pumpkin puree

½ t each ground nutmeg
 and ground cinnamon

¼  t each ground cloves and powdered ginger

1 T gluten-free vanilla extract

½ t salt

4 large eggs at room temperature

Beat the cream cheese and sugar on the lowest setting of an electric mixer until the mixture is smooth.  Slowly incorporate the flour being careful not to over do it.  Add the puree, spices, vanilla and salt and mix gently until smooth.  Incorporate the eggs one at a time.

Pour the cheesecake mixture into the pan on top of the crust.  Place in the center of the oven on the cookie tray and reduce the heat to 300 degrees after you close the oven door.  Do not open the oven after this until the cheesecake is done.  Bake for 45 minutes at 300 degrees and then turn off the oven, leaving the cake in it for two hours. Again, be sure not to open the oven.

After two hours, remove the cheesecake from the oven and allow it to cool complete.  When it is completely cool, cover it with plastic wrap and refrigerate until cold, at least four-to-five hours, but overnight is best. When ready to serve prepare the streusel.

The Streusel Topping:

1 ½ c finely chopped pecans

6 T ice cold butter

¼ t each cinnamon and powdered ginger

Put the sugar and butter in a bowl and with a fork mash it working it until it looks like meal.  Add the pecans and toss.  Add the cinnamon and ginger and toss.  To serve, remove the outer ring of the spring-from the cheesecake.  Gently spread the streusel over the top.

Optional:  Create a decorative edge with home-made whipped cream and, about an inch apart, place pecan halves, plain or sugared. (As an alternative to home-made whipped cream, there is a soy whipped cream with a corn-based malto dextrin that would be okay for people with Celiac Disease.  As always, read the label.)

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

… AND FOR THOSE WHO DON’T CELEBRATE, MAY YOU STILL HAVE MUCH FOR WHICH TO BE GRATEFUL.

A gluten-free holiday recipe.

Actual product ingredients may be other than that which is shown or suggested on this blog. Please remember that you should not rely solely on the information presented here or anywhere online and that you always read package labels, warnings, and directions before purchasing and consuming a product. 

AN ANTIQUE PERSIMMON RECIPE

Public domain illustration of the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Recipes are good-will ambassadors." Mrs. Cordell Hull as quoted in Pioneer "Vittals"

Everyone finds their way to Brooklyn, it would seem. Then their books find their way onto the shelves of second-hand bookstores and into our family library. This post was inspired by one such find.

The glorious gold-orange globes of hachiya persimmons arrive in the market along with the autumn chill. There are several kinds of persimmons, but the ones generally available to US are the hachiya. These must be very ripe to eat raw or use in cooking.  They have high tannin levels, which makes them bitter when unripe. When the persimmons become as soft as a ripe tomato, you can cut them in half, scoop out the flesh with a spoon, and eat them raw.  Or you can use the pulp for breads, cakes, and puddings.
we found the recipe below, which we offer for historical interest, in a charming booklet compiled by Sarah Dougherty of Russellville, Tennessee.  There's no date on the book and no copyright to give us a hint.  It would appear that Mrs. Dougherty lovingly collected old Tennessee recipes and probably self-published this tiny, three-by-five, brown-covered gem.  According to the booklet, this recipe is from the mountains of East Tennessee and dates back to the 1800s.

Persimmon Pudding

• 3 eggs
• 1 cup brown sugar, packed
• 1 cup seeded persimmons
• 1/2 cup buttermilk
• Pinch salt
• 1 teaspoon soda dissolved in buttermilk
• 1 cup four [substitute gluten-free all-purpose flour, exchangeable one-for-one in a recipe]
• butter, the size of an egg [3/4 stick of sweet butter or Earth Balance Vegan Buttery Sticks]
• 1/2 teaspoon each of spice, cinnamon and nutmeg

Mix all together and bake in moderate oven until done.
Serve with whipped cream.

***

EARTH BALANCE VEGAN BUTTER STICKS

Earth Balance Buttery sticks works just fine in baking. The spread is suitable as a spread or for cooking but not for baking, frosting, or candy-making.

Kosher.
Gluten Free.
Dairy Free.

Ingredients: Expeller-Pressed Natural Oil Blend (Soybean, Palm Fruit, Canola Seed And Olive Oils), Filtered Water, Pure Salt, Natural Flavor (Derived From Corn, Not MSG, No Alcohol, No Gluten), Soy Protein, Soy Lecithin, Lactic Acid (Non-Dairy, Derived From Sugar Beets), And Beta Carotene Color (From Natural Source).

Actual product ingredients may be other than that which is shown or suggested on this blog. Please remember that you should not rely solely on the information presented here or anywhere online and that you always read package labels, warnings, and directions before purchasing and consuming a product. 

PUMPKIN CHEESECAKE with cinnamon-streusel topping

On some Thanksgivings through the years, we would make Pumpkin Cheesecake instead of Pumpkin Pie for Thanksgiving.  A nice change of pace, and we New Yorkers love our cheesecake. This one combines the best of cheesecake with the best of pumpkin pie.  Be prepared though, making cheese cake is expensive and bit labor intensive. Plan ahead. You can't make it at the last minute. You must do it at least a day ahead of when you want it.

Streusel-topped Pumpkin Cheesecake

Twelve Servings

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees

The Ginger-Pecan Crust:

• 1 1/4 c crushed Mi-Del Ginger Snaps
• 1/4 c granulated sugar
• ½ c finely chopped pecans
• 4 T unsalted butter, melted

Mix all four ingredients well and pour into the bottom of a nine-inch, non-stick spring-form pan.  Using the back of a tablespoon, pat the crust down firmly.  Bake for ten minutes. Remove the pan and place it on a cookie tray.  Leave the oven on.

The Pumpkin Cheesecake Filling:

• 4 pkgs. 8oz. Philadelphia cream cheese, leave out of the refrigerator to soften
• 1 1/4 c granulated sugar
• 3 T Bob’s Red Mill gluten-free all purpose flour
• 1 c canned pumpkin puree
• ½ t each ground nutmeg
 and ground cinnamon
• ¼  t each ground cloves and powdered ginger
• 1 T gluten-free vanilla extract
• ½ t salt
• 4 large omega-3 eggs at room temperature

Beat the cream cheese and sugar on the lowest setting of an electric mixer until the mixture is smooth.  Slowly incorporate the flour being careful not to over do it.  Add the puree, spices, vanilla and salt and mix gently until smooth.  Incorporate the eggs one at a time.

Pour the cheesecake mixture into the pan on top of the crust.  Place in the center of the oven on the cookie tray and reduce the heat to 300 degrees after you close the oven door.  Do not open the oven after this until the cheesecake is done.  Bake for 45 minutes at 300 degrees and then turn off the oven, leaving the cake in it for two hours. Again, be sure not to open the oven.

After two hours, remove the cheesecake from the oven and allow it to cool complete.  When it is completely cool, cover it with plastic wrap and refrigerate until cold, at least four-to-five hours, but overnight is best. When ready to serve prepare the streusel.

The Streusel Topping:

• 1 ½ c finely chopped pecans
• 6 T ice cold butter
• ¼ t each cinnamon and powdered ginger

Put the sugar and butter in a bowl and with a fork mash it working it until it looks like meal.  Add the pecans and toss.  Add the cinnamon and ginger and toss.  To serve, remove the outer ring of the spring-from the cheesecake.  Gently spread the streusel over the top.

Optional:  Create a decorative edge with home-made whipped cream and, about an inch apart on the outer circumfrance of the cake, place pecan halves, plain or sugared. 


Gluten-free Mi-Del Ginger Snaps:

The Mi-Del company has a line of gluten-free cookies. The only ones we've tried are the ginger snaps. They're pretty flavorful, and nice and crispy. They make for a pleasant snack and are dunkable. We crush them for cookie crusts in a number of dessert recipes.  Among the advantages are that they are dairy free.  They are not, however, free of potato flour nor are they processed in a dedicated facility. They are not organic.

Actual product ingredients may be other than that which is shown or suggested on this blog. Please remember that you should not rely solely on the information presented here or anywhere online and that you always read package labels, warnings, and directions before purchasing and consuming a product. 

PUTTING THE NY SPIN ON BROWNIES

PDphoto.org

There are few things more New York than coffee and a cannoli . . . so forget dinner . . . How about a good, hot Cafe Americano and a luscious gluten-free chocolate brownie topped with snow-white cannoli cream and slivers of red-ripe strawberries macerated in golden rum?  Are you smiling yet? Drooling? Making gluten-free cannoli shells is a bit of a project and doesn't lend itself to spontaneity. I've taken to topping brownies or filling figs with cannoli cream and that does it for me.


Cafe Americano
1 espresso added to six ounces of hot water

Chocolate Brownie with Cannoli Cream and Macerated Strawberries
BROWNIE RECIPE - Note: The brownie recipe is adapted from the highly recommended The Gluten-Free Kitchen by Roben Ryberg.


Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees fahrenheit

• 1 1/3 cups of organic granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup gluten-free, trans-fat free shortening, Spectrum
• 3 omega-3 eggs
• 1 tablespoon Singing Dog Organic Vanilla Extract
• 1 tablespoon white rum
• 1/2 cup potato starch
• 3/4 cup cornstarch
• 3/4 cup Dagoba Organic Chocolate, pure cacao powder
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 3 teaspoons guar gum
• 1 cup Unsweetened Chocolate Almond Milk
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

Grease a 9" x 13" glass baking pan with some Spectrum and dust with Bob's Red Mill Gluten-free All-purpose Flour

Cream the sugar and Spectrum together.  Lightly beat the eggs and add along with the vanilla and rum to the creamed sugar mixture. Mix well and add the remaining ingredients.  Make sure the batter is lump-free.  An old-fashioned hand-held mixer or an immersion blender work well for this. Bake 18 - 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle of the pan comes out clean. Allow the brownies to cool on a rack before cutting and removing to serving dishes.

Top each serving with Cannoli Cream and Macerated Strawberries (below).  Serve with a hot Cafe Americano.

Cannoli Cream
When I found out I had Celiac Disease and would have to make wheat-and-gluten-free cannoli shells from scratch all the time, I realized that the outside of the cannoli wasn't as important to me as the cannoli cream filling.  I found other ways to use the filling when there is not enough time or energy to make the shells.

Traditionally, cannoli cream is made with goat's milk ricotta cheese, which is not readily available. Some clever person came up with the idea of adding goat's milk cheese to the ricotta for a more authentic taste.  Should you prefer to do without the goat's milk cheese, it is optional. The result will still be delicious.  Just add a bit more ricotta.  I have left out the candied fruits and cinnamon since in this dessert the Cream is pared with fruit and brownies, quite rich enough without those additions. This is a favorite at my house.  I'm sure it will be at yours as well.

CANNOLI CREAM RECIPE:

• 1 pound fresh whole-milk ricotta
• 2 ounces soft and mild goat's milk cheese
• 1/4 cup confectioner's sugar

Combine all ingredients in one bowl and mix well.

MACERATED STRAWBERRIES
You can prepare these while the brownies are baking so that they can macerated at room temperature for a while before you serve them.

• 2 small baskets of strawberries, washed, hulled and sliced thin
• 3 tablespoons organic granulated sugar
• 2 tablespoons white rum

Combine in one bowl and mix well.

Actual product ingredients may be other than that which is shown or suggested on this blog. Please remember that you should not rely solely on the information presented here or anywhere online and that you always read package labels, warnings, and directions before purchasing and consuming a product. 

GIANDUIA CHEESECAKE, Chocolate and Hazelnut

Cheesecakes are generally baked in springform pans, which allow for the removal of the pan wall without tipping out the cake. 


Photographs courtesy of Wikipedia under GNU Free Documentation license.


At the time of this writing, Organic Valley lists the following Cream Cheese products as gluten-free.

• Cream Cheese, 8 oz. bar
• Cream Cheese, 8 oz. tub
• Neufchatel, 8 oz. bar
• Neufchatel, 8 oz. tub

Gianduia Cheesecake
The recipe, Serves twelve


Crust:

• 1 1/2 tablespoons unsweetened organic butter, softened
• 6 ounces MiDel Chocolate Snaps
• 2 tablespoons organic granulated sugar
• 3 tablespoons unsweetened organic butter, melted

Crust preparation:Adjust your oven rack to the center position and heat your oven to 350 degrees fahrenheit. Using the softened butter, generously coat the bottom and sides of a nine-inch springform pan.  Insert  a metal blade in your food processor and put in the cookies and the sugar and process until the cookies are crumbs.  Keep the machine running and slowly add the melted butter. Process for about 15 minutes or until the crumbs glisten from the butter coating. Process another five seconds.  Then empty the chocolate crumbs into the springform pan and press them down on the bottom and along the sides.


Filling:

• 1/2 pound hazelnuts
• 8 ounces Dagoba semi-sweet chocolate, broken into 1/2 inch pieces
• 8 ounces Dagoba milk chocolate, broken into 1/2 inch pieces
• 2 1/2 pounds of Organic Valley Cream Cheese, softened and cubed
• 1 1/2 cups organic granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup Organic Valley whipping cream
• 1/4 cup Organic Valley sour cream
• 1/2 teaspoon  Singing Dog Organic Vanilla Extract
• 1/2 cup Frangelico Liqueur
• 5 large omega-three eggs, lightly beaten

Prepare the hazelnuts: Spread the nuts on a baking pan and place them in the pre-heated oven to toast for about ten-to-fifteen minutes.  The skins will blister.  Remove from the oven and put the nuts in a dry dish towel and rub the skins off.  Leave them to cool and then grind them in your food processor. This will take about five-to-ten seconds. Set aside for the filling.


Prepare the chocolate: Place all the milk chocolate and half the semisweet chocolate into your food processor. Drop the remaining chocolate into the chute and continue the process until all the chocolate is ground to the consistency of tiny beads. Transfer the chocolate to a double-boiler or a metal mixing bowl over a pot of boiling water and stir until melted.  Careful not to over heat it.  Set aside for the filling.


Prepare the filling: Place the cream cheese, the whipping cream, the sour cream, vanilla and Frangelico into the processor and process once or twice for fifteen seconds, pushing the mixture down the sides if necessary to be sure it all combines well. As the cheese begins to move, continue to process for another thirty-five seconds and scrap the filling down as it rises up the sides.  It should become a smooth whirlpool.  Keep the machine running and add the beaten eggs through the chute, processing for about twenty seconds.
Stop the processing and stir the cheese mixture into the melted chocolate, blend well and mashing any stray lumps of cheese that may appear. Stir in the ground hazelnuts.


Assemble and Bake:
Pour the filling into the prepared springform pan. Lower the oven temperature to 325 degrees Fahrenheit. Bake an hour to an hour-and-a-quarter, until the center is set.  Do not open the oven before one hour.
Remove the pan to a cooling rack and allow to cool to room temperature. Refrigerate at least six hours, preferably overnight. Do not remove the springform pan wall until the cheesecake has cooled.


Actual product ingredients may contain more and different information than that which is shown or suggested on this blog. Please remember that you should not rely solely on the information presented here or anywhere online and that you always read labels, warnings, and directions before purchasing and consuming a product. 

A SIMPLE ORANGE DESSERT, naturally wheat-and-gluten free

Shari Weinsheimer, Public Domain Pictures.net.

Even though oranges are a late-season fruit, have you noticed how beautiful they are in the stores now? Bright. Plump. Juicy.  The truth is that for all the fancy, sugared, complicated desserts there are, there is nothing more pleasing to an unjaded palate than simple fresh fruit. Orange slices with cinnamon is very Middle Eastern, very simple, and absolutely refreshing. Moreover, it's a dessert that's naturally gluten-free.

For four people, just peel and slice three oranges into rounds.  Arrange in an attractive pattern on a serving plate. Dust lightly with cinnamon and serve.

I'm just about to indulge in mine along with a cup of Sadaf tea, a wonderful Lebanese tea made from a blend of black teas and cardamom.  Add a little honey. More simple perfection . . . Highly recommended.

Actual product ingredients may differ from than that which is shown or suggested on this blog. Please remember that you should not rely solely on the information presented here or anywhere online and that you always read labels, warnings, and directions before purchasing and consuming a product. 

NY CHEESECAKE a la JUNIOR'S...made GF

 The World-Famous Junior's at Dusk

The traditional Juniors recipe calls for a sponge cake base. For this gluten-free version, I do a cookie and nut crust, which is my preference. The recommended products are wheat-and-gluten free at the time of this writing. However, if you have celiac disease, you should always double-check when making a purchase. Product formulations change frequently and without warning. No assumptions please.

The recipe

Serves 12

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees

Prepare the cookie crust:

• 1 1/4 c gluten-free pecan shorties, or other gluten-free packaged or homemade cookie of your choice, made into crumbs
• 1/4 c granulated sugar
• ½ c finely chopped pecans
• 4 T unsalted butter, melted

Mix all four ingredients well and pour into the bottom of a nine-inch, non-stick spring-form pan.  Using the back of a tablespoon, pat the crust down firmly.  Bake for ten minutes. Remove the pan.  Wrap the bottom with foil. Place the pan on a cookie tray.  Leave the oven on.

The filling:

• Four 8 oz. pkgs. Organic Valley cream cheese, room temperature
• 2/3 cups sugar
• 1/4 cup Bob’s Red Mill corn starch
• 1 tablespoon Singing Dog Organic Vanilla Extract (gluten-free)
• 2 extra-large Omega-3 eggs, beaten
• 3/4 cup heavy whipping cream

Mix, assemble, bake, and chill:

Put one 8-ounce package of the cream cheese, half of the sugar and the starch in a large mixing bowl. Beat at the lowest speed on your mixing, scraping the bowl from time to time to make sure that the ingredients mix well.  Beat in the remaining three package of cheese and the remaining sugar in increments.  Blend in the vanilla. Add the eggs in two increments.  Beat at high-speed for 2 minutes. Add the heavy cream, beating at low until just blended, taking care not to over mix the filling. 


Spoon the filling into the pan, gently. Place the spring-form pan in a bain Marie, a large shallow pan with enough hot water to come up one-inch on the spring-form pan.

Bake the cheesecake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit about 1 hour and 10 minutes. Cool the cake on a wire rack for 1 hour/10 minutes. Do not open the oven when the cake is baking.  At the end of the baking time, the cheesecake should be firm around the edges and have a slight jiggle in the middle.  Remove it from the oven. Cool on a wire rack. Then cover the cake with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.

Once chilled, remove the sides of the spring-form pan. You can leave the cake on the spring-form bottom and just place it on an attractive serving dish. Refrigerate left-overs . . . if there are any!

RETRO DESSERT RECIPE

Library of Congress photograph of Mamie Eisenhower.

Gelatin has been around for almost forever and used in both sweet and savory dishes. Apparently, though, the ubiquitous, jiggly dessert we now know, is relatively new culinary treat. When I was growing up, it was popular because it was sweet, cheap, and easy to make. Non-cooks like my mother loved it.
Apparently so did such prestigious homemakers as Mrs. Dwight Eisenhower. When the first lady’s recipe for “Frosted Mint Delight” was published in one of the women’s magazines, my mother decided that this pedestrian dessert was, in fact, quite elitist. By God, if it was good enough for Mamie, it was good enough for us.
So, that Christmas, we had Mamie's Frosted Mint Delight. Can you imagine? We were living on 90th and Fort Hamilton Parkway in Bay Ridge then, just one-half block from Louisa's Italian Restaurant and Louisa's fabulous Biscuit Tortoni. A short train-ride would have taken us to Junior's and N.Y. Cheesecake.  We were a twenty-minute walk from the Syrian Grocery and the honey-sweet delight of fresh baklava. But we had jello for Christmas dessert.
Mom was irritated when the recipe went missing and she was unable to make it ever again.  Well, she just didn’t look far enough for it.  It was in my junk box, which is why I can share it with you today. Sorry, Mom!
Click here for Mrs. Eisenhower’s so-called “Red Scare” Jello Dessert and background info. It’s a funny, but it does go to prove Mamie was famous for gelatin desserts.
If this old-time recipe appeals and you need to go gluten-free, you know the drill. Be sure to find the brands that are wheat-and-gluten free.

Mrs. Dwight D. Eisenhower’s Frosted Mint Delight
The recipe
Serves 10-12

• 2 1-lbs. cans of crushed pineapple
• 3/4 cup mint flavored apple jelly
• 1 pint whipping cream
• 2 teaspoons confection’s sugar
• 1 package unflavored gelatin

Have all the ingredients chilled.  Melt the jelly and mix the crushed pineapple into it. Dissolve the package of gelatin in one cup of the juice from the pineapple.  Mix the gelatin mixture into the jelly mixture.  Whip the cream, sweeten it with the sugar, and fold it into the mixture.  Put it into the freezer until firm.  Do not freeze solid.