Mini Pumpkin Cheesecakes

Posted by Lindsey @ Baking Bytes in Baking, Celebration/Holiday, Cheesecake, Dessert and tagged with Halloween, Mini, Pumpkin, Thanksgiving 25 November 2013

Fair warning, I never tire of pumpkin. I’ve already made my 2nd pumpkin pie of the season and I’m sure there will be a 3rd involved at Thanksgiving. As pumpkin pie is equally good for breakfast as it is for dessert, I don’t mind having a whole one to myself and happily eat it for several days in a row. I greatly look forward to Operation: Eat Everything Pumpkin! (which takes place annually between October and December) and do my best to mix in some new recipes along with my old favorites. If you’re looking for a slightly less traditional pumpkin dessert to serve this Thanksgiving, look no further.

Traditional pumpkin and classic cheesecake come together in a wonderful dessert sure to please pumpkin lovers and cheesecakes fans alike. Even my boyfriend, who isn’t a huge fan of pumpkin, thinks these are pretty delicious. Smooth, creamy, and rich, it could very well become a new annual favorite. Even better, the mini size makes for ready to go individual servings and lets you enjoy the evening instead of attempting perfect slices with all eyes on you. These pop perfectly from the pan, and are excellent plain or with a swirl of whipped cream.

This recipe does require a specialty pan, of course, but if you have room in your cupboards you surely won’t regret the purchase. Mini cheesecakes are great for potlucks, large dinners, and dessert parties because they’re easy to transport, quick to serve, and require no utensils to eat (although I do prefer a fork, myself.) However, if all you have is a regular cheesecake pan, head over to the original recipe to see instructions for a standard 9″ cheesecake. I’ve not made the full version [yet], but I’m sure it’s equally amazing.

So whether you try some new recipes or stick with the tried and true favorites, have a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend. (Or a wonderful regular weekend, for my foreign readers.)

Mini Pumpkin Cheesecakes

Adapted from Glorious Eats
Makes 12 mini cheesecakes

Ingredients

Crust
3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs¹1 Tbsp light brown sugar
1/4 tsp cinnamon
2 Tbsp butter, melted

Filling
8 oz cream cheese, at room temp
1/2 cup plus 1 Tbsp canned pumpkin puree
1 egg
2 Tbsp sour cream
1/2 cup white sugar
1/8 tsp ground nutmeg²
pinch of ground cloves

1 Tbsp flour
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and lightly spray a mini cheesecake pan.
Using a fork or pastry blender, mix the crust ingredients in a small bowl.
Add a rounded tablespoon of the mix to each well in the pan, and press firmly to form a crust, sealing the edges well.³
Using an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese until fluffy and smooth.
Beat in pumpkin, eggs, sour cream, sugar and spices, then add flour and vanilla and beat until completely combined.
Divide batter among the wells, about 3 Tbsp of filling atop each crust.
Bake for 20 minutes, remove from oven, and cool 15 minutes on the counter.
Cover lightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate 2 hours or until ready to eat.
Top with whipped cream and a sprinkle of cinnamon, if desired, and serve to adoring fans.

Notes

¹About 6 graham crackers.
²The original recipe calls for fresh, but dried works just fine.
³A flat-bottomed shot glass works nicely for this, but use your fingers to make sure the edges are well sealed.
⁴The cheesecakes keep well in the fridge for several days, or in the freezer for up to two months. They’re a great dessert to have on hand! Store in an airtight container.

Cinnamon Glazed Pumpkin Donuts {and Halloween}

Posted by Lindsey @ Baking Bytes in Baking, Breakfast, Celebration/Holiday, Dessert, Pastries, Quickbread, Sauces and Frostings and tagged with Donut, Halloween, Pumpkin 28 October 2013

Much like the rest of the 20-something white girl population, pumpkin is my favorite fall flavor. October is a highly anticipated month as I count the days towards what I officially call “Pumpkin Season.” Granted, this date is completely arbitrary, but since Bozeman summer generally extends well into September anyway, October 1st seemed a good choice.

IMG_1968Cinnamon Glazed Pumpkin Donuts >> Baking Bytes

Since I’ve already posted my favorite pumpkin bread, pumpkin pie, pumpkin cupcakes, and pumpkin milkshake, I sought a new recipe to share this year. A Pinterest post led me to these donuts, which I ever so slightly adapted to fit my preferences. A moist and pleasantly spiced pumpkin donut topped with a cinnamon glaze is the perfect start to a fall morning. As this is a baked donut recipe, it does require a donut pan, but I promise you won’t regret the purchase. My one complaint about my pan is that it only holds six donuts, when all recipes make twelve. (First world problems, haha.)

These would be a great way to kick off Halloween morning, sharing them with family, friends, or coworkers. Like many of you (I’m guessing), I already attended a Halloween party this past weekend, but maybe there’s a day-of party happening Thursday, or you just want to make something easy this fall. Whatever the occasion, these donuts are an easy way to bring the pumpkin flavor to breakfast.

Did you have a costume this year? I dressed up as Donatello (the Ninja Turtle, not the Renaissance artist), using a costume my mom made my older brother when he was five. That makes this costume almost as old as me, but still amazingly awesome.

I hope you hum the theme song for the rest of the day.

Heroes in a half shell – Turtle Power!

Cinnamon Glazed Pumpkin Donuts

Barely adapted from Taste and Tell
Makes 12 donuts

Ingredients

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp ginger

1/2 cup brown sugar (not packed)
1/4 cup butter, room temperature
1 cup pumpkin puree
2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla
2 Tbsp milk

1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp cinnamon
2 Tbsp milk

Directions

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Butter a donut pan and set aside.
In a small bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger.
Using an electric mixer on medium speed, beat together brown sugar, butter, and pumpkin until thoroughly combined.
Add eggs, mixing well, and then stir in milk and vanilla until completely incorporated.
Stir in the dry ingredients, mixing until just combined.
Spoon batter into a large Ziploc or pastry bag, cut off the tip, and pipe into the buttered donut wells.
Bake for 10 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool in the pan five minutes, then remove to a wire rack to cool completely.
For the glaze, whisk together the remaining ingredients in a small bowl.
Dip cooled donuts in the glaze and return to the wire rack to set.
Enjoy with a glass of milk or a mug of coffee, and a few friends to help you eat them.

Notes

¹These taste great made a day in advance, but the glaze tends to soak into the donut. If you can, glaze them on the day you intend to serve them so they’ll stay nice and pretty.

Easy Cream Cheese Danishes

Posted by Lindsey @ Baking Bytes in Baking, Breakfast, Pastries and tagged with Cherry 14 October 2013

[Here from Pinterest? Welcome! After you make these danishes, make sure to check out my other Pillsbury recipe: Easy Cinnamon Roll Wreath]

For those of us that are ~~doomed to work in an office~~ lucky enough to have a stable job, we know that the best days often involve surprise homemade treats that a coworker decided to bring in. You, too, can be that coworker. While muffins, cookies or donuts are always a welcome option, this super easy Danish recipe is a great way to switch it up a little. Better yet, they can easily be made the night before, letting you keep to your normal sleeping schedule.

Although I don’t typically work from recipes that call for “pre-fab” food, the ones I do like generally involve a Pillsbury product. Pillsbury crescent rolls are incredibly versatile and can be used for everything from breakfast to dessert, or my favorite, a dessert-y breakfast. These Danishes are super easy, super delicious, and make enough to feed a crowd. I brought mine to work and had no trouble giving them all away.

I made mine with cherry pie filling (my favorite), but feel free to substitute any pie filling, preserves or thick jam that you prefer, or leave the fruity part out completely. If you’re a Nutella person (I am not, bleh), I’m sure that would also work nicely alongside the cream cheese filling. If you’re feeling inspired, a quick sauce from fresh fruit would be even more amazing.

So next time you want to surprise your coworkers, skip the muffins and pick up some cream cheese and crescent rolls; you’ll be the new office favorite in no time.

If you’re struggling to print this recipe, a PDF copy is available here: Easy Cream Cheese Danishes | Baking Bytes

Easy Cream Cheese Danishes

Makes 24 pastries

Ingredients

2 cans Pillsbury Grands Crescent Rolls (big & flaky)
1 can pie filling (I like cherry)

8 oz cream cheese
1 tsp vanilla
1/3 cup sugar

powdered sugar
milk

Directions

Place crescent roll cans in the freezer for about 30 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and line baking sheets with silicon mats or parchment paper.
Beat cream cheese, vanilla and sugar with an electric mixer until smooth and fluffy.
Open the cans and slice each into 12 pieces, approximately 1/2″ slices. (Don’t unroll them, pretend they’re slice and bake cookies.)
Place six slices on a cookie sheet, flattening the centers to create an indent. (I used a large spice container dipped in flour, plus my fingers for a little extra flattening in the middle.)^²
Fill the indent half with the cream cheese mixture and half with the pie filling.
Bake until edges are golden brown, about 15 minutes.
Cool completely on a wire rack.
In a small bowl, mix a large spoonful of powdered sugar with a little milk until liquid but still thick. Spoon into a pastry bag or Ziploc, cut off the tip, and drizzle over the pastries.
Enjoy one (or three, I don’t judge) with a cup of coffee or a tall glass of milk.

Notes

¹ I actually think these are best the next day. Bake, cool, frost, and put in airtight containers overnight. For me, they’re always more moist and pastry-like the next morning. (Although they are also fabulous straight out of the oven… but don’t burn your mouth.)
² These spread a lot during baking, so don’t try to squeeze too many on a pan. Start with 6 and see if you have room for more after the first batch is baked.

Sweet & Spicy Honey Baked Chicken

Posted by Lindsey @ Baking Bytes in Baking, Entrée and tagged with Chicken 30 September 2013

M and I don’t normally eat a lot of chicken, mainly because our freezers (yes, plural) are always full of elk and venison. While I love having lean, wild meat at my disposal, every once in a while chicken just sounds perfect. To satiate my most recent craving, I pulled out a recipe I hadn’t made since 2009, during my exchange in Scotland. I figured if 2009-Lindsey could handle it, 2013-Lindsey definitely could. (The 2009 version was substantially less domestically inclined.)

2009-Lindsey had mad skills. And ugly plates.

I love this recipe because in addition to being ridiculously easy and super delicious, I always have everything on hand (except maybe chicken.) Honey, mustard, and curry powder come together in a delightful sauce in which chicken breasts are baked to perfection. It goes perfectly with rice and a side of vegetables. Whether there is any chicken leftover or not, extra sauce and rice heat up well for a quick and tasty lunch the next day.

Boneless, skinless chicken breasts from the boneless, skinless chicken breast farm (joking) are my preferred cut of choice, but it should work with thighs or whatever is more your style; you might just have to adjust the cooking time a little bit.

Although the baking duration doesn’t make this a quick dinner, there’s not a lot of active cooking time. It also works really well to prepare everything in the morning (or the night before), stick it in the fridge, and throw the dish in the oven whenever you get home. This doesn’t save a ton of time, but if, like me, you don’t like to do a lot of dinner preparation after you get home from work, it gives you more time to relax without resorting to cold cereal for dinner. (This is something I may or may not do on a semi-regular basis…)

If you’re feeling the sweet & spicy flavor, throw this recipe together and let me know how it goes. Be sure to taste the sauce and adjust it to your preferences. I have a super low spice tolerance so maybe you want to up the curry powder. Maybe you don’t love sugar as much as I do and you want to decrease the honey. Or maybe you’re in a sugary mood and you want to up the honey. Play with it: I don’t think you can mess it up. (That is not a challenge.)

Sweet & Spicy Honey Baked Chicken

Adapted from Gretchen
Makes 4 chicken breasts and lots of sauce

Ingredients

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

8 Tbsp (1 stick) butter, melted¹3/4 cup honey
1/2 cup mustard (I like Dijon)
1 tsp salt
1 – 1.5 tsp curry powder

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
In a small bowl, whisk remaining ingredients until thoroughly combined.
Pour a small amount of the sauce in an 8″x8″ or 9″x9″ baking dish and squeeze in your chicken on top; cover with remaining sauce.
Bake for 50-60 minutes, or until chicken reaches 165 degrees internally.
Let cool for a few minutes, then serve with rice and a green vegetable.²

Notes

¹ You could easily cut back the butter on this recipe, probably to 1/2 a stick (1/4 cup). I plan to do so next time I make it.
²I think this recipe would also be great with noodles. I’d probably cut up the chicken into bite-sized pieces and mix everything together before serving.

Fresh Peach Pie

Posted by Lindsey @ Baking Bytes in Baking, Dessert, Pie and tagged with Peach 16 September 2013

Despite the huge amount of effort involved, peach pie is one of my favorites. It’s a summery flavor that’s delicious all year round, and is a great way to use those large trays of peaches I can’t seem to help buying from Costco. The hint of cinnamon present is always a welcome flavor in my book, and a dash of nutmeg adds a little something. As one of the sweeter pies, it’s definitely a dessert pie to me, but I’d never turn it down for breakfast.

Fresh peaches are admittedly a pain to work with, but it’s oh so worth it in the end. If you’re on top of things, peel and slice enough peaches for several pies and freeze them in pie quantities for later use. Just make sure you let them thaw before you use them, and maybe add a little extra flour.

Never peeled peaches before? You’re in luck – there’s an easy way! Set a large pot of water to boil (not a rolling boil, more like a strong simmer) on the stove, and place a bowl of ice water nearby. I like to put a colander in the sink as well but that’s up to you. For each peach, submerge in the boiling water for about 30 seconds, then immediately dunk in the ice water for another 20 seconds. With a paring knife, cut the peach (around the pit!) into 8-10 sections. The skin should just slide off the fruit during this process, but if it’s still sticking you can redo the boiling/ice water baths. Keep in mind, however, this will only work if your peaches are ripe enough. Throw the slices in the colander, the skins in the disposal, and the pit in the trash, and you’re good to go! Repeat for all your vast trays of peaches as you revel in how easy it is while wasting no delicious peach. You can definitely take the skin off before slicing the peach, but skinned peaches are ridiculous slippery, so I prefer the extra grip while I hold it.

As summer winds down, this is a wonderful pie for a “last hurrah”; saying farewell to summer with fresh peaches, and welcoming fall with that hint of cinnamon.

Fresh Peach Pie

Adapted from Better Homes & Gardens
Makes one 9″ pie

Ingredients

Pastry for a double-crust pie

6-8 large peaches, peeled and thinly sliced
1 Tbsp lemon juice

1/2 – 3/4 cup sugar (I usually use the lesser amount)
1/3 cup flour
1/2 tsp cinnamon
a sprinkle of nutmeg (optional)

Directions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
Layer the bottom crust in the pie plate, and trim the edges to 1″ larger than the rim.
Gently toss the peaches with the lemon juice, and set aside.
Whisk dry ingredients in a large bowl until well combined, and gently fold in the peaches.
Layer the peach mixture in the pie plate, and cover with the second crust, either with a lattice top or cutting vents for steam to escape. Seal the edges and crimp as desired.
Bake until the crust is golden brown and the juices are bubbling, about 50 minutes.
Let cool completely before enjoying with whipped cream, vanilla ice cream, or both.

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Category Archives: Baking

Mini Pumpkin Cheesecakes

Cinnamon Glazed Pumpkin Donuts {and Halloween}

Easy Cream Cheese Danishes

Sweet & Spicy Honey Baked Chicken

Fresh Peach Pie