Pumpkin Swirl Cheesecake

This recipe is surely going to make you a crowd pleaser! Substitute this dessert for your traditional Thanksgiving pumpkin pie and no one will mind!



Crust

Ingredients

• 1/3 cup butter
• 1 1/3 cup Christie Honey Maid Graham Crumbs
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar
  

Directions

• Melt the butter
• Pour the crumbs and sugar into your 9 inch pie plate. Pour the melted butter on top, mix together and press into the bottom of the plate.
• Optionally, you can bake at 375°F for 8 minutes.

Hints

• For a twist to this crust mix, why not grind up some Oreo cookies? If you use Oreo cookies, then don't worry about adding sugar or butter!
  

Cheesecake Filling

Ingredients

• 2 (8 ounce) packages of Cream Cheese (Kraft's Philadelphia works best)
  
• 1 1/4 cups sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 3 large eggs
• 1 cup canned puree pumpkin
• 1/2 tsp nutmeg
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp ginger
  
• 1/4 tsp ground cloves
  

Directions

• preheat oven to 250° F
• In a large bowl, combine cream cheese, 1/2 cup of sugar and vanilla; mix at medium speed with an electric mixer until well blended.
• Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Put aside one cup of this cream cheese mixture (for swirling). To the remainder of the mixture, add the pumpkin puree, remaining 3/4 cup sugar, nutmeg, cinnamon, ginger, and cloves. Mix well.
• Pour the cream cheese mixture over the crust. Then pour the remaining cream cheese mixture that we put aside onto the top of the mixture we just added. Using a butter knife, swirl the batter several times without touching the crust for a marbled effect.
• Bake for 75 minutes or until set.

Hints:

• You can substitute spiced pumpkin pie puree for the pumpkin, nutmeg, cinnamon, ginger, and cloves.
• When making this dessert, I tend to make it the day before so that I can leave it covered in the fridge overnight. This gives the cake a good consistency.
• Use a circular 9 inch springform pan (I use this one from Paderno).
  

Poached Eggs with Salmon and Avocado

This recipe makes a great, protein-rich breakfast... if you can afford the time first thing in the morning! (That's not to say it takes a long time, just more than pouring a bowl of cereal!) My taste-tester had her doubts when I told her, but was quickly convinced that this recipe deserves to be made again (and again).

Ingredients

• 1 small red onion
• 1 avocado
• 1 large piece of smoked salmon tip
• 4 eggs
• 4 slices of bread
• Fresh chopped green onions

Sauce

• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1/8 cup olive oil
• Juice from half a lemon
• 1 tbsp chives
• 1/2 tsp salt
• Pepper, to taste

Equipment

• Egg poachers
• Knife
• Pot or frying pan to boil water for poaching eggs.

Steps

1. First, set a pan or pot with water to boil at a nice rolling boil speed (so you don't have to wait later for it!)
2. Next, make the sauce. Add the components of the sauce together in a small mixing bowl, and mix until it is thoroughly blended. Set aside for later.
3. When the water is ready at a slow boil, break the eggs into lightly oiled egg poachers, and set them in the water. Cover, and cook for approximately 4 minutes. This should cook the whites of the eggs, while leaving the yolk mostly runny. Cook longer if you prefer it more hard-boiled. Remove the poachers from the water when the time is up. In the meantime...
   
4. Toast 4 pieces of bread.
5. Cut the avocado into 4 pieces, and remove the rind and seed. Cut each quarter into several slices, and lay the slices from each quarter on to each of the 4 pieces of toast.
6. Chop the red onion into small, thin slices, and lay as many slices are you wish on the top of the avocado layer.
7. Next to add is the salmon. I prefer to buy a single large piece from the supermarket, and I break it into 4 quarters and crumble the quarters over the avocado and onions. (See my note below for a variation.)
8. Spoon a tablespoon or two of the sauce over the salmon. Again, add as much as your taste desires.
9. Remove the poached eggs from the poachers by using a knife to loosen the edges and then flipping the whole thing upside down over the salmon. The eggs should fall out easily.
10. Finally top the whole thing with a sprinkle of fresh green onions, and salt and pepper to taste.

For a more complex and fancy variation, try purchasing larger filets of smoked salmon. Instead of crumbling it over the avocado, use a medium-sized piece to wrap the poached egg, and place the whole thing over the rest.

Also, if you don't have egg poachers, you can poach the eggs directly in the boiling water. The trick is to not have it rapidly boiling, and to add a splash of white vinegar to the water. The vinegar ensures that the egg whites don't just spread out everywhere in the water, but rather that they coagulate as a whole piece. For the same reason, a minimum amount of boiling helps as well... you need it hot enough to cook, but not so rapidly boiling that the bubbles destroy the eggs to bits! (Unfortunately, I know this from experience!)

Homemade Lemon Curd

This excellent recipe for lemon curd makes a great dessert topping. My mom prepares several batches every year around Christmas. It is best served in mini tart shells, but in our family it has been known to top bread/toast in mornings as well. Surprisingly, I have found that several people have not known about this type of food creation, so for the curious, check out the wiki page here. For the rest, here's how you make it. :)

Ingredients

• 1/4 lb butter
• 2 + 1/4 cups sugar
• 6 eggs
• Grated lemon rind from 2 lemons
• Juice from 3 lemons

Equipment

• Double boiler
• Medium bowl
  
• Fork or whisk
• Jam jars
  

Steps

1. Whisk the eggs in the bowl until they are mixed well.
2. Add the sugar, lemon rind and juice and mix some more.
3. Add the butter to the mixture, and mix it again.
4. Transfer the whole mixture to a double boiler. Periodically stir the mixture, and cook it until the butter has melted and it has achieved a nice, thick consistency.
5. Remove from the heat, and transfer to jam jars to store it, if you wish.

From experience, it is best to do all of the mixing ahead of transferring to the double boiler. Nothing ruins the batch more than bits of cooked egg white floating around (though it still tastes good... just looks a bit weird). Try the recipe out, and let us know what you think! We hope you enjoy it.

Grandma's Peanut Butter Cookies

For as long as I can remember, my Grandma has ALWAYS had her cookie jar filled with these cookies whenever I have gone looking for them. For me, I have never tasted a better cookie, peanut butter or otherwise. I hope you like them as much as I do!

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup margarine
• 1/2 cup peanut butter (eg. Kraft Smooth)
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup brown sugar (try Roger's Golden Sugar!)
• 1 egg
• 1/2 tsp vanilla
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 cup flour (eg. Robin Hood All-purpose)

Equipment

• Medium bowl
• Cookie sheets
• Fork, knife, spoon

Steps

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F
2. Cream together the margarine and peanut butter using a fork.
3. Add the granulated and brown sugars to the creamed mix, and mix well.
4. Stir in the egg, vanilla, flour, and baking soda. Mix well. Don't be scared to get in there with your hands and mash it up really well!
5. Take small amounts of dough (maybe 1 tbsp) and roll into small balls and drop them on to the cookie sheets. (You shouldn't need to worry about greasing the sheets.)
6. Press the dough balls flat using a floured fork. This will also make the nice ridges in the cookie that make them so easily identifiable!
7. Bake at 350 F for 10 minutes.
8. Remove from the sheets immediately and place them on a cooling rack. They will be quite soft at first, but they will cool into a deliciously soft cookie.

This recipe will make up to 5 dozen cookies, depending on the sizes that you make. Once you try them, I'm sure you will agree that 5 dozen isn't enough!

Black Forest Brownies

Topping:

• 500 ml cherry pie filling
• 1 teaspoon almond extract

Batter:

• 1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 Tablespoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2/3 cup butter
• 5 (1-ounce) squares unsweetened chocolate
• 2 cups sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 4 large eggs
• 3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Topping:

1. Place cherries and extract in a bowl.

Batter:

1. Combine flour, baking powder, and salt. This is the flour mixture!
   
2. In a large saucepan melt butter and chocolate over low heat, stirring until smooth. Remove from heat and stir in sugar. Stir in eggs, one at a time. Stir in vanilla.
   
3. Add flour mixture to chocolate mixture and mix until smooth.
   
4. Fold in chocolate chips.
   
5. Spread batter in greased 15x10-inch jelly roll pan.
6. Drop heaping tablespoons of cherry topping on batter, spacing them evenly in rows -- 3 spoonfuls across and 4 lengthwise.
   

Bake at 350°F for 25 to 30 minutes.

Easy Greek Salad

Ingredients

You can change the amount of the vegetables or cheese to whatever your preferences are. I usually add extra feta and olives. :)

• 1 cup tomatoes (I prefer vine or Roma tomatoes)
  
• 1 cup cucumbers
  
• 1/4 cup diced red onion
• 1/2 cup crumpled feta cheese
  
• stuffed or kalmata olives (as many as you like)
  
• 2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 tbsp red wine vinegar
• 1 tsp oregano
• 1 tsp dried parsley

Equipment

• Small bowl
• Medium bowl
  

Steps

1. Dice the tomatoes and cucumbers and add them to a medium sized mixing bowl.
2. Dice the red onion into small pieces, and add them to the salad.
3. Crumple the feta cheese into the salad, and mix it all up. You can also add olives at this point, or choose to add them to the top of the salad as a garnish.
   
4. In a small bowl, combine the olive oil, vinegar, parsley and oregano, and mix it up really well.
5. Pour the dressing over the vegetable mix, and toss to coat everything.
6. Chill for 10 minutes, and serve. If desired, top off the serving with a few olives.

This recipe makes plenty for 2-3 people. For a variation, you can also add to the salad red or green peppers, or add crushed garlic to the dressing. Try it out and let us know what works for you!

Apple Pancake / Breakfast Pie

Filling:

1/4 cup Brown sugar
1 tsp Cinnamon
2 tbsp. Butter
3 Apples peeled and sliced

• Preheat oven 400° F
• In 9" pie plate melt butter and sprinkle in sugar and cinnamon, add apples and bake for 10 minutes.

Batter:

1/3 cup Flour
1/2 tsp Baking powder
2 Egg yolks
1/3 cup Milk
2 Egg whites
1/3 cup White sugar

• Combine flour and baking powder; blend in egg yolks, and milk.
  
• In large bowl beat egg whites until soft peaks form, add sugar and beat till stiff. Fold into batter, spread on baked apple slices.
• Bake 15-20 min

Dutch Apple Pie

This is not your typical apple pie. Instead of a doughy crust covering your pie, we have a scrumptious brown sugar topping that is wonderful on the lips.

1 Tenderflake pie flaky pie crust (or equivalent)
5 apples
1/4 cup whipping cream
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
2 tbsp all-purpose flour
3 tbsp cold butter
1/2 tsp cinnamon

• Before beginning, preheat your oven to 450°F (230°C)a
  
  
• Peel and core apples; cut each apple into six or more wedges. Arrange wedges snugly in single layer in pie shell; drizzle with half the cream.
  
  
• In a small bowl, combine sugar and flour; cut in butter until crumbly. Sprinkle over apples; dust with cinnamon and drizzle remaining cream.
  
  
• Bake in oven at 450°F (230°C) for 15 minutes, then reduce to 350°F (180°C) and bake for 30-35 minutes or until apples are tender.

That is all that there is to making this pie. If you have any comments, suggestions or general feedback, please feel free to leave them below!

We hope to have a picture for it up soon, but if you have one that we can use, please send it to us at allstarrecipes@gmail.com

Guacamole

Ingredients

• 2 ripe avocados
• 1/2 cup chopped onion (I used red, but others should work)
• 1 clove garlic, finely chopped
  
• 1 medium vine tomato
• 2 tsp freshly ground coriander
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1 tsp juice from a lime (~1 slice of lime, squeezed)
• 1/2 tbsp dried cilantro

Equipment

• Medium bowl
• Fork, knife, spoon
• Small serving bowl
  

Steps

1. Cut the 2 avocados in half, remove the seeds, and scoop out the flesh. Dice the avocado into small cubes and add them to the bowl. Mash them up really well using a fork until you have a creamy green paste with few lumps. (Tip: Bigger bowls are better for this, since a small bowl will mean you end up with the ingredients all over the counter!)
2. Chop up the onion into fine pieces, and add it to the avocado. Mix.
   
3. Chop up the garlic and add to the bowl and mix. (Tip: Crushing the clove with the flat side of a large knife or a meat tenderizer works really well, and then cut it a few times with a sharp knife.)
4. Dice the tomato into small cubes, and mix that in.
5. Add the lime juice, salt, coriander, cumin, and cilantro, and mix well.
6. Transfer to the smaller serving bowl, and dig in!
   

This recipe will make about 1/2 to 2 cups of guacamole, depending on the size of the tomato and avocados. For a variation, you can try adding a scoop or two of sour cream to the mix, but I've been told it's great without it.

If you're adventurous and like things spicy, chop up a few chiles and add that to the mix. Add as much heat as you can handle!