Raspberry Cheesecake-Truffle Brownies

I know what you are thinking, raspberry and chocolate again? Yes, I could try and rationalize this decision with all of you, but truly it's more like a disease and I'll fully admit to it. Once I started with this flavor combination in my ice cream I just couldn't stop. I kept coming across all sorts of yummy recipes featuring both of these ingredients. So, I figured I could torture you all one more time and I promise (maybe) that I will stop after this recipe.

This recipe comes courtesy of Cuisine at Home which appears to be my new go-to magazine. In case you have not heard of them you are missing out. Their magazines are full of great recipes and best of all, the pages are not cluttered with advertisements. Anyway, back to the bars, how could I resist a fudge brownie layer, a smooth cream cheese layer and to top it off, raspberries. Nope, not possible, even if I tried. This bar is what dreams are made out of and I'm almost ashamed to admit that I ate more than my share of these little delights.

The bars are made pretty quickly and don't require any special skills. The brownie layer by itself is utterly amazing and is almost more reminiscent of real fudge than a brownie. It starts by melting unsweetened chocolate, butter, cocoa powder and instant espresso powder in the microwave (or a double boiler). Sugar, vanilla and salt are mixed in and then eggs are incorporated one by one. Finally flour is folded under without overmixing the batter. It gets spread in a 8-inch square pan and set aside while you get started on the cheesecake layer. Cream cheese is mixed with just a bit of sugar, lemon zest and juice, and one egg until creamy and smooth, then carefully spread over the already prepared unbaked brownie layer. The final touch is a cup of fresh or frozen raspberries that are added on top of the cheesecake before baking. The brownie bakes for 45 minutes to 1 hour or until the cream cheese layer is lightly golden and set. After that comes the hardest part of the recipe - the wait time. The brownie has to cool to room temperature and after that time is over it must then be refrigerated for at least another 8 hours or overnight, which means pure torture! Before serving you can sprinkle the bars with powdered sugar but it's certainly not a necessity, they are good as is.

The reward is seriously an amazing flavor combination of sweet, dark chocolate with a light tasting cheesecake layer and heavenly raspberries. True decadence at its best. Besides me eating more than my fair share of these brownies, my kids also went absolutely nuts over them. I think the brownies make a beautiful presentation and would be lovely served for all kinds of occasions when entertaining. I will definitely be baking these again, but first I have to kick up my workout schedule to work off the extra calories I inhaled from these!

Raspberry Cheesecake-Truffle Brownies
(adapted from Cuisine at Home)
(Printable Recipe)

Ingredients:

For the brownies:
4 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
1 stick unsalted butter, cubed
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tablespoon instant espresso powder
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 eggs
1 cup all-purpose flour

For the topping:
4 ounces cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup granulated sugar
Minced zest of 1 lemon
Juice of 1/2 lemon
Pinch of salt
1 egg
1 cup fresh or frozen raspberries
Sifted powdered sugar

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Coat an 8-inch square baking pan with nonstick spray.

Melt chocolate, butter, cocoa, and espresso powder for the brownies in a large bowl in the microwave oven on high power, stirring every 30 seconds, or in a double boiler. Remove mixture from heat when chocolate is nearly melted; stir unti it's smooth.

Stir in  the 1 1/2 cups sugar, vanilla, and the 1/4 tsp. salt. Add the 3 eggs, one at a time, blending well after each addition.

Fold in flour, mixing just until blended. Spread batter into the prepared pan; set aside.

Using a hand mixer on medium speed, beat ream cheese, the 1/4 cup sugar, zest, lemon juice, and a pinch of salt for the topping in a bowl until smooth, about 5 minutes.

Blend in the 1 egg, then spread cheesecake batter over unbaked brownie batter.

Top cheesecake layer with raspberries. Bake brownies until cheesecake is set and golden around edges, about 45 minutes to 1 hour. Cool brownies in pan on a rack to room temperature, about 45 minutes. Cover brownies with plastic wrap; chill 8 hour or overnight in the refrigerator.

Dust brownies with powdered sugar before serving, Cut brownies into small squares with a lightly oiled knife.

Light Brioche Burger Buns

I'm sold! Sold on homemade hamburger buns that is. I've tried the homemade route before with real Brioche buns but found the process much too labor intensive for the end result. So, when I found the recipe for these Light Brioche Burger Buns I figured I would give it a shot one more time and if those didn't work out either, I would forever be buying overpriced, additive ridden supermarket buns.

Well let me tell you, this recipe did not disappoint. The buns smell incredible while baking and taste even better. These rolls are hardy and don't fall apart when faced with a big, juicy burger. They feel pretty heavy when you hold them, but the inside is light and fluffy like a good bun should be. The taste is like a cross between a french bread and a buttery brioche, but unlike "real" brioche buns there is only 2 1/2 tablespoons of butter in the whole recipe compared to 1 1/2 sticks in other recipes I have tried before.

This is not a recipe you can throw together in a half an hour, you will need time, but the actual time spent working is very little as most of it will be waiting for the dough to rise. I've made these buns a couple of times now, but had to experiment with different dough ball weights to find the perfect size. The original recipe made 8 buns, this bun size was just too big for our average burger. This time around I divided the dough into 10 equal portions, and it turned out to be the perfect bun to burger ratio for us. The recipe also says it can take up to 2 hours for the dough to rise, in my case, it took less than an hour each time, but keep in mind I do live in Arizona and it is quite a bit warmer here than the rest of the country.

This is a simple yeast recipe that I believe even beginning bakers would be able to master. It is straight forward; all it takes are some well floured hands (since the dough can be sticky) and some time to plan ahead. A stand mixer with a dough hook makes this recipe fairly easy and quick to put together, but elbow grease and several minutes of kneading the dough by hand will work just as well.

My family absolutely adores these buns. In fact, I usually make a double batch so I can freeze a few of them for easy weeknight meals. These buns are perfect for any kind of burger, they are also fabulous with pulled pork or beef, or sloppy joes. Another good use would be to simply top these buns with some ham and cheese and have a bowl of soup with them for a quick dinner. I really hope you give these buns a try in your kitchen and come to love them as much as we do. I don't think I will go back to the buns that come in a plastic bag at the grocery store after tasting these (unless I'm in a terrible bind) and I love that I have found such a wonderful alternative!

Light Brioche Burger Buns
(Adapted from the New York Times and as seen on Smitten Kitchen)
(Makes 10 burger buns)
(Printable Recipe)

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons warm milk
1 cup warm water
2 teaspoons active dry yeast
2 1/2 tablespoons sugar
1 large egg
3 cups bread flour
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
2 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened

For the topping:
1 egg beaten and mixed with 1 tablespoon water
Sesame seeds (optional)

Preparation:

In a glass measuring cup, combine one cup warm water, the milk, yeast and sugar. Let stand until foamy, about five minutes. Meanwhile, whisk one egg in a small bowl.

In the bowl of a stand mixer (or large other bowl) whisk flours with salt. Add butter and rub into flour between your fingers, making crumbs. Add the egg and yeast mixture and mix with a dough hook in your stand mixer on low until combined. Continue kneading on medium speed until dough is smooth and elastic, about 6-8 minutes. Alternately (if you don't have a stand mixer) you can knead the dough by hand on a well-floured counter until smooth and elastic, for 8 to 10 minutes. The dough will be on the sticky side so it can be a bit messy, but keep in mind that the more flour you knead in, the tougher the buns will get.

Shape dough into a ball and place it into a greased bowl. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk, one to two hours.

Punch down dough and let rest for a few minutes before proceeding. Divide dough into 10  equal pieces and shape into balls. Place on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper two to three inches apart. Spray some plastic wrap with non-stick cooking spray and place over the shaped buns. Return to a warm place and continue to rise for an additional one to two hours.

Set a large shallow pan of water on oven floor. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F with rack in center. Beat remaining egg with one tablespoon water and brush some on top of buns. Sprinkle with sesame seeds, if using. Bake, turning sheet halfway through baking, until tops are golden brown, about 15 minutes. Transfer to a rack to cool completely.

Apple Pie Bars

I don't know about you, but I crave comfort food when I'm sick, and I've been sick with a bad case of a cold since the weekend. Nothing is appealing to me food wise and I'm lucky to have an amazing husband who has jumped in and prepared most meals for the family. My taste buds aren't functioning and my hunger is pretty much non-existent, but it was Labor Day weekend and with all the kids at home for three days, I knew I had to come up with something that resembled some kind of dessert.

I looked in my fridge for inspiration since a trip to the store was out of the question and found apples. Not enough apples to make a quint-essential all American apple pie, but enough to make this recipe for Apple Pie Bars. I found the recipe in another Cuisine at Home magazine and it sold me right away for its ease of preparation. The crust does double duty as the streusel topping and makes assembling the dish a snap. The recipe calls for Granny Smith apples which are usually my go-to apple for baking anyway. They hold their shape nicely without getting mushy and make for a not too sweet dessert.

Flour, brown sugar, and cinnamon are whisked together in a bowl. Some of that mixture is removed and reserved for the streusel topping. After that, you cut cold butter into the mix before pressing it into a springform pan and baking it for about 15 minutes. Apples are peeled and diced, and then mixed with sugar, heavy cream, cinnamon, vanilla, and a bit of flour. The apple mix is immediately spread onto the hot crust before being topped with the reserved streusel mix that had melted butter added to it. The bars are then baked for another 30 - 40 minutes or until golden brown. 

These bars were a huge hit in our home especially when served with a dollop of whipped cream and vanilla ice cream. I will have to take my families word on how good they were since I couldn't taste much, but considering how fast they disappeared I would say they were delicious.  This recipe is a great alternative if you don't want to go through the hassle of making a pie, and it fits the approaching fall season perfectly!

Apple Pie Bars
(adapted from Cuisine at Home)
(Printable Recipe)

Ingredients:

2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, cold
3 tablespoons milk
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
3 1/2 cups Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, diced
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup heavy cream
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Pinch of salt

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Coat a 10 inch springform pan with removable bottom with nonstick spray.

Combine 2 cups flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, and slat for the base and streusel mixtures in a bowl. Transfer 3/4 cup of the mixture to a second bowl; set aside for the streusel later.

Cut 6 tablespoons cold butter and milk into the remaining dry ingredients using a pastry blender or your fingers. Mix until clumps form.

Pat the mixture evenly into the prepared pan, using a measuring cup to "tamp" down the dough. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until set and gold at the edges.

Stir melted butter into the reserved streusel mixture until sandy; set aside.

Toss all ingredients for the filling (apples, sugar, heavy cream, flour, vanilla, cinnamon and salt) together. Arrange over the hot base, pushing apple pieces to the edges of the pan to completely cover the crust.

Sprinkle apples with the streusel topping, and bake until apples are soft and streusel is golden, 30-40 minutes. Cool bars for at least 30 minutes before removing the side of the pan and cutting into wedges. Store bars at room temperature or chill.