Recipe - White Chocolate and Cherry Cheesecake - Whole cake or individual serves

The below recipe is for the full cheesecake. 

However, if you'd like to do individual serves, simply halve the recipe and used individual moulds (and decreased the cooking time). It will make 6 or 7. Adding a simple cherry coulis is also a nice touch.

Ingredients:

-            Melted Butter for greasing

-            220g white cooking chocolate

-            3 tbsp Baileys

-            1000g cream cheese

-            1 1/3 cups caster sugar

-            4 eggs

-            120g  tiny teddies crushed

-            400g frozen cherries

-            ¼ cup pure icing sugar, sifted

-            1 tsp ground cinnamon

Ingredients:

1.      Thoroughly defrost the cherries

2.      Preheat oven to 160 degrees.

3.      Brush a 24cm spring form tin with melted butter and line the base and sides with baking paper.

4.      Roughly chop the chocolate and put in heatproof basin. Sit the basin over simmering water and stir occasionally until the chocolate is melted and smooth. Remove the basin from the simmering water and set aside for the chocolate to cool to lukewarm

5.      Remove the cream cheese from the packaging, roughly chop and put in a large mixing bowl.

6.      Beat cream cheese until smooth then add the caster sugar and beat for 1 – 2 minutes.

7.      Lightly beat the eggs and add to the bowl with the Baileys and cooled chocolate, beat for 1 -2 minutes or until well combined. Spoon half the cream cheese mixture into the prepared tin. Smooth the top and sprinkle with the crushed tiny teddies.

8.      Scatter the cherries evenly over the layer of crushed biscuits.

9.      Carefully spoon the remaining cream cheese mixture over the cherries.

10.   Smooth the top using a spatula.

11.   Sit the tin on a baking tray and bake for 40 – 50 mins or until just set.

12.   Remove tin from the oven and stand on a wire rack to cool.

13.   When cool refrigerate for several hours or overnight.

14.   Dust the cheesecake with icing sugar and cinnamon just before serving

Dinner For Phoebe and Adrian - Fish with Fennell and Seafood

Ingredients

-     Olive oil

-     Tbsp chopped Rosemary

-     2 sml fennel bulbs

-     2 Spanish onions

-     1 clove garlic

-     1 small chilli

-     1 can diced tomatoes

-     Saffron

-     ¼ cup parsley

-     1 tsp sherry vinegar

-     1 cup fish stock

-     a dozen prawns or muscles

-       4 pieces of thick fish

Method

1.    Sauté Olive oil, Rosemary, fennel, Spanish onions,  garlic and chilli

2.    Add tomatoes, Saffro, parsley, sherry vinegar, fish stock

3.    Simmer then add prawns/muscles and fish

4.    Place lid on a  turn down

5.    Take seafood out as it becomes ready

Serve

-     Sauce on bottom

-     Prawns/Muscles round the edge

-     Fish in centre

-    Sprinkle with parsley

-    Serve with rice

Dinner For Phoebe and Adrian - Stuffed Capsicums

When using the below quantities it stuffs 8 whole capsicums but I modified this recipe to make it an entree. I served the dish in halves vs wholes.

Ingredients:

-        500 gm chicken breast. cut into 2cm pieces

-        2 tbsp balsamic vinegar

-        60 ml (1/4 cup) extra-virgin olive oil

-        4 cloves of garlic. thinly sliced

-        2 tbsp marjoram leaves

-        2 tbsp salted baby capers. rinsed

-        8 baby red capsicum

Method:

1.         In a large nonreactive container combine chicken, balsamic vinegar, 2 tbsp olive air. Garlic. Marjoram leaves and capers. Season to taste with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, cover and refrigerate for at least 24 hours.

2.         Place capsicum on an oven tray and cook at 180C for 15 minutes or until skin wrinkles and just starts to colour. Remove capsicum to a plastic bag and seal. Stand for 10 minutes, then peel skin and remove seeds.

3.         Heat 1 tbsp olive oil in a large frying pan, add half the marinated chicken and sauté over medium-high heat for 3 minutes or until just cooked through. Remove. Cool and repeat with remaining chicken. Process cooled chicken in a food processor until finely chopped and season to taste.

4.         Spoon chicken mixture into capsicum cavities and place in a greased roasting pan. Cook at 180C for 8-10 minutes or until warmed through. Serve immediately, drizzled with extra virgin olive oil.

Dinner For Phoebe and Adrian - Salad With Sundried Tomato Dressing

Off memory I saw this salad on Huey's Cooking? And, I love love LOVE it!!!!

Salad

-    Baby spinach leaves

-    Whole cucumber

-    Mint leaves

-    Toasted pine nuts

-    Shaved Parmesan

-    Squeeze over half a lemon

Dressing

-    3 tbsp olive oil

-    1 tbsp balsamic vinegar

-    5-6 sun dried tomatoes

Dinner For Phoebe and Adrian - White Sangria

White Sangria

·      1 btl Sauvignon Blanc

·      300 ml lemonade

·      300ml Apple Juice

·      Vodka to taste

·      fruits 

Prawn Saganaki

Prawn Saganaki

·         2 tbsp olive oil

·         1 Spanish onion, thinly sliced

·         4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced

·         4 small tomatoes, coarsely chopped

·         Sprinkle of chilli

·         ½ cup dry white wine

·         1 tbsp thyme

·         2 fresh bay leaf

·         60 gm Greek feta

·         200g prawns, peeled, cleaned

1.       Preheat oven to 220C.

2.       Heat oil in an oven safe frypan over medium-high heat,

3.       add onion and garlic and sauté until starting to soften (2-3 minutes),

4.       Add tomato and chilli and sauté until starting to soften (2-3 minutes).

5.       Add wine and herbs and reduce until slightly thickened (1-2 minutes).

6.       Crumble feta over top, transfer fry pan to oven and roast until sauce thickens and feta begins to melt (15 minutes).

7.       Remove from oven, gently push prawns into sauce, return to oven and roast until prawns are cooked through (3-5 minutes).

8.        Serve hot with crusty white bread and green salad, if desired.