New York Cheesecake With Oreo Cookie Crust and Salt Caramel - Digital Pressure Cooker Recipe

Yesterday, I made a baked New York style cheesecake in my digital pressure cooker.

Don't believe me ? I swear - this was one of the tastiest and easiest cheesecakes I've ever made and it didn't even go near my oven. I've been using my electric pressure cooker more and more for all sorts of things.... From curries to soups, one pot meals, pasta, rice, puddings. It's such a handy appliance that I'd be lost without it. 

This cheesecake was made in a 6" dia x 3" deep loose bottomed tin. I do not have a trivet for my pressure cooker, so I folded a length of foil over 3 or 4 times to make a pad to go on the bottom. 

RECIPE

(adapted from Pressure Cooking Today)

All ingredients should be room temperature before you start.

1 x 154g packet of Oreos (minus 3 cookies) - filling removed

25g salted butter (melted)

400g of full fat cream cheese
80g of double cream
80g of greek yogurt
160g of caster sugar
3 tsp vanilla extract
3 eggs
2 tablespoons of flour

Prep your baking tin by greasing the inside with butter or spray with cake release.

Crush the oreo cookies and mix with the melted butter. Don't use the whole packet (you will have three left) - or there will be too much mix for the tin Pack the crumbs into the bottom of a 6" x 3" high loose ring base or springform tin using something with a flat base - such as a glass or mug.

Chill in the fridge whilst you make the filling.

Cream together the cream cheese and sugar until smooth. Beat in cream, yogurt and vanilla - followed by sifted flour. Add eggs last, one at a time and beat as little as is required to get them to blend in.

Remove tin from fridge. Put a piece of foil over base and up sides.

Pour in mix.....

 

Take another piece of foil and grease the underside or spray with cake release. Put a pleat in the middle and then put this over the top of your cake tin with the cheesecake mix.

Put a trivet (if you have one) in the bottom of your electric pressure cooker with 2 cups of water. If you do not have one, a pad of folded foil or a folded tea towel will work perfectly as a substitute.

You may wish to use a sling made from tin foil to lower your tin into the pressure cooker. Leave the sling in place and it will make for easy removal after cooking.

Cook at pressure for 35mins and then wait 10 minutes more for natural pressure release.

Remove from oven and allow to cool before refrigerating overnight.

I decorated the top with drizzled salt caramel (recipe on blog here), fudge chunks and grated chocolate.

This cheesecake is very deep and very rich. Although only 6" diameter, it will easily serve 6 to 8 people.

Sarah-Jane Nash - www.siliconemoulds.com - May 2015

Ale and Cheese Easy Bread (no knead !)

This recipe is adapted from Guinness and Irish Cheddar Easy Loaf - from the March 2010 edition of the Country Kitchen Magazine

I did make the original - but Guinness is too strong for my liking and I changed the flours too.

Makes one 20cm (8") round loaf. Next time, I'll double the recipe and make in a 10" round silicone mould. It's EXTREMELLY good and so so so easy to make. I've brought 1/2 of it (left from last night) in today and it's been demolished and given a big thumbs up :-) I'm sure if you make it, you'll enjoy it too.

250ml Newcastle Brown Ale

250g self raising flour

100g wholemeal flour

1tsp of baking powder

60g caster sugar

100g strong, mature cheddar

2 tbsp of butter

Preheat oven to 180deg (350deg F)

Put all ingredients except the butter in a bowl and combine well with a spoon. It looks a bit like cooked porridge !

Scrape into an 8" round silicone bakeware mould with no need to grease (we've got these coming in May) or into a buttered, non-stick tin. Leave in a warm place for 30mins.

Original recipe says to bake for 35mins, drizzle with butter and return to oven for 10mins. My bread was totally cooked after 35 mins and I rubbed the solid butter over the top.

It had a lovely crispy and chewy outer. It's quite a dense bread and slightly sweet. Lovely warm or cold simply with butter - or the lads had the remains today with cheese

Sarah-Jane Nash, Flexible Silicone Bakeware Moulds - http://www.siliconemoulds.com/

Halogen Oven Recipe - Baked Apples

Baked Apples - so simple, so easy - and now also very very quick.

INGREDIENTS

1 x medium sized Bramley or large size dessert apple per person.

cinnamon
soft brown or soft ligh brown sugar

raisins or other dried fruit

pecan nuts (optional)

1 x teaspoon butter (or two - per apple)

Leave the apple whole, but cut out the core. This is easier (but not essential) if you have an apple corer. Remove 1/3 of the peel from around the top of the apple. Also, score the skin round the middle of the apple. This helps prevent splitting as the apple cooks.

Next, put some raisins or other dried fruit in the bottom of the cored apple, Sprinkle in some cinnamon. Add a teaspoon of the sugar, some cinnamon, more raisins and nuts if desired.

Top with a teaspoon of butter. These are now ready to go in the halogen oven at 180deg for 10 > 15mins. Preheating is not required.

For conventional ovens, cooking time will be 35 > 45 mins.

Put the low grill in the oven and place the apples in baking tray on top. Add one tablespoon of water for each apple to the tray. This will make a sauce as the butter and juices are released.

Serve hot, drizzled with the baking juices and a scoop of vanilla ice cream

Banana and Cinnamon Monkey Bread

A moreish sticky treat. I haven't worked out the calories and have no intention of doing so. There's no point - my maths isn't good enough to deal with than many numbers ! I'm sure this is absolutely tops of bad calorie charts.... Well - maybe not... it DOES have banana in it .. !?!

We've got a new, black silicone bundt mould just come in as part of our Daily Use Range. It's actually just the same as the blue one we already do - but a more practical colour to blend in with traditional bakeware. What better excuse to make a new treat. I took it to work yesterday, and it's life was short lived. Staff and customers soon ripped it to shreds, devouring and savouring every gooey cinnamon mouthful.

I'd seen recipes for Monkey Bread before - but never had a go. It seems to be a popular American treat and most make it with a premade dough stuff that you buy from the supermarket chiller cabinet... I don't think you can get that here in the UK, and I can't believe it's anywhere as good as a fresh homemade dough without preservatives.

Weird name - but it seems to be because you pick and pull at the balls of dough just like a monkey would. It's like a kind of tear and share bread

So - I had a go myself and created the recipe below. It's kinda like Cinnabon - but 100x better

INGREDIENTS - for the dough

500g strong bread flour
1.1/2 teaspoons sale
1 sachet of fast (breadmaker) yeast
200g (peeled weight) mashed bananas
2 tablespoons of sugar
50g of melted butter
250ml lukewarm water

For the coating

1 cup soft light brown sugar
1 cup soft brown sugar
4 teaspoons cinnamon

2 teaspoons mixed spice

125g butter - melted

Basically, put all dough ingredients in a big bowl and bring together with a fork. Turn out and knead until Gluten develops and the dough becomes silky.

As you can see from the photo below, this is a really sticky dough and a bit on the wet side. My pastry cutter from Lakeland is a god-send for sticky doughs like this as it makes it easy to scrape it back up off the work tops and get into a ball. If you really struggle with it, you could add a bit more flour... but it IS a loose dough. Alternatively, make it in a mixer with a dough hook if you have one

Once the dough is well kneaded and very pliable, put it back in the bowl and cover with clingfilm until doubled in size.

When the dough has risen, knock it back and roll it out. I cut mine into strips and then into small cubes - about 3/4" and rolled into balls.

Dunk each ball into the melted butter and then roll in the sugar and spice mix. I found it easy enough to do 6 > 8 balls in the sugar mix at the same time.

Nestle all the balls into the silicone bundt mould. It'll be a little over half full. Cover in plastic and put in a warm place for at least an hour until doubled in size.

I actually had my oven on when I was making this, so I shoved it on a rack in the top oven (switched off). It rose and rose and rose - and then rose more in the oven. About 8 of the dough balles ended up cascading over the mould as it was a little too full - but no harm was done.

Do note that the bundt mould needs to be used on a baking tray. Here is mine ready to go in the oven. My husband think it looks like brains !

Shove it in the oven at 180deg C (fan) for 30 mins. The base should be crispy.

Leave to cool for 10mins after taking out - the syrupy stuff will be ever so hot - so let it cool before turning out or you could burn yourself.

I pulled the edges of the mould away from the monkey bread to check it was free (no problem there)

Put a plate over the top of the mould and turn the whole lot upside down.

This mould was NOT greased or oiled in any way.

I gave it a little wiggle and a push and squeeze from the top. The Monkey Bread released easily

It would have been really nice as it was, but to take it to another level - I smothered in in great dollops of cream cheese icing.

Sorry - I don't have the volumes for the icing. Just 100g cream cheese plus icing sugar until a nice this consistency. I then zapped it in the microwave for 10 seconds to get a dropping consistency. If you do this, don't let it stand about for long afterwards as the icing starts to set fairly rapidly. Finished picture at the top.

Serve when still warm - though was perfectly edible the next morning :-)

Butternut Squash and Bacon Bake

Recipe for Sarah-Jane's Halogen oven - but could easily be adapted to a standard oven. This recipe should easily serve 3 adults as a main along with salad or crusty bread. It could also serve 6 as a side dish.

BUTTERNUT SQUASH AND BACON BAKE

1kg butternut squash (I used two small ones)

8 slices of back bacon, or 4 slices of thick butchers bacon

300gram tub of creme fraiche

75g gruyere (grated)

Cut the tops off the butternut squash. Cut them in half and scoop out the seeds

Score the flesh of the squash in both directions almost to the skin. Rub all over with olive oil. Season well. If desired, you can sprinkle with garlic granules, ground cumin and some chilli flakes.

Cook on the low rack in the halogen oven for approx 20mins at 180deg C until the flesh is soft. The cooking time obviously depends on the size of the squash.

Chop the bacon into approx 1cm pieces and fry until crispy.

When the squash is cooked, scoop from the skins into an oven proof dish. Add the creme fraiche, bacon bits and 1/2 the cheese and carefully combine. Top with remaining grated cheese.

Return the dish to the halogen cooker at 180deg for approx 10 > 15mins until piping hot and cheese is bubbly.

Cheats Chocolate Pots

From the minute I got my hands on these silicone shot glass moulds, I was dying to try them with chocolate. Ice ? What a waste - if like me you don't like alcohol.

Instead, I came up with the idea of a Cheats Chocolate Pot - one of the fastest desserts ever. I think it should feature in Nigella Express or Delia's Cheats .... but it's probably too simple for that !

I'll warn you now - you need a lot of chocolate. However, it makes an impressive dinner party dessert. Very easy if you want to jazz it up a bit to feel you have actually done something.

RECIPE

420g chocolate
3 x milky bar white chocolate desserts - or make your own chocolate mouse
handful of frozen summer fruits berries

Start with 420g of chocolate - milk, dark or white. I've had terrible trouble melting chocolate in the microwave - even on low setting. When it cools it goes white and mildewy looking. Most unattractive. It really is far better and easier to use the double boiler method.

Put a pan of water on the cooker and bring to the boil. Remove from the heat and sit a glass bowl on top with the chocolate in (chopped) - making sure bowl does not touch the water.

Stir as it starts to melt. Once melted, remove from the heat.

Once melted, you can spoon it into your mould. Use a teaspoon handle or similar and stir round the sides of each cell to make sure that you release any air bubbles. You don't want big holes in your chocolate cups once they've set !

Literally, that's it. Simply wait until it's set. You can cheat and shove it in the fridge for a while... But this would be best done several hours before you require it or ever a day or two before and allowed to set naturally.

When removing from the mould, do NOT touch the chocolate unless you want unattractive fingerprints on your cups ! Instead, as you push it out with one hand from the mould - put a little bit of cling film round the cup and pull out with the other hand.

Put the chocolate cup on the plate and fill with either your chocolate mouse or (as in the picture) Milky Bar white chocolate dessert. Dress with a few frozen summer fruit berries for a fresh zing and mouth cleanser.

Could it really be any easier ???

Peach and Raspberry Crumble

It's cold and snowing outside and I'm stuck at home with a poorly teething baby. He's not well enough to go to nursery and even Iggle Piggle can't keep him occupied any longer.

Oliver has decided to help Mummy with the washing ! I went to the bathroom and came back to a baby unloading dirty clothes out the washing machine. It was only AFTER I put the washing machine and turned it on that I realised it wasn't dirty washing he was removing. It was clean stuff I'd taken out the tumble drier from the basket - ready to fold and go upstairs.

What do you want when it's cold ? A nice roaring log fire and a comforting, warm pud in your tummy. Well - the stove is lit. I've got an Abbey - you can see it at http://www.naturalheating.co.uk/ - the one with the deep red chimney breast.

As for the pud - we'll - its even better as there is some store-cupboard standby stuff BEGGING to get used up before the big spring clean !

I figure my dearly beloved might like a nice hearty pudding today - so I'm making a Peach and Rasperry Crumble in my halogen oven. It's all prepared ready to pop in later.

RECIPE

You'll need :

plain flour (self raising will also do), butter, sugar, a couple of tins of tinned peaches and some frozen raspberries

I've got a 1 litre dish I use for things like this.

Put 2 tins of peaches (sliced or halves will do - just chop into chunks) into the dish and top with a good big handful of frozen raspberries.

Put in 3 or 4 tablespoon of reserved fruit juice from the peaches and sprinkle with a 1/2 dessertspoon of sugar.

Pre-heat the halogen oven for 3 > 4 minutes at 180deg C, then pop this in, uncovered for apprpx 10 mins

Whilst that's getting the fruit nice and hot, prepare the topping.

Standard crumble mix is 2 parts flour to one part butter and one part sugar

4 oz plain flour
2 oz sugar
2 oz cold butter

Rub these together until they form crumbs, then put on top of the fruit.

If you have any demerara sugar lying around in the cupboads - a sprinkling of this on the very top will give a nice crunch.

I've become a huge fan of halogen convection ovens. Everything cooks in a fraction of the time and they use so much less energy than a normal cooker. These will soon also be available on SiliconeMoulds.com and you should find all my Halogen cooker recipes and cooking times on there.

Here you can see the crumble is in the oven. I put mine in at 180deg for 20mins. Like a normal oven, you'll need oven gloves to get it out. It's hot in there !

That's it. Ready to serve !