Modern Wife

Tag: vanilla

  • Cranberry Cheesecake

    Cranberry Cheesecake

    From the moment I took my first ever bite of a cheesecake, I was hooked for life. For the longest time, though, I always bought it, never made it from scratch here at home. It took a friend coming over and making one right in my kitchen before I realized how easy it is. Back then I didn’t even have a KitchenAid Mixer . It was all made with elbow grease. (The trick is to make sure the cream cheese is completely soft.)

    Now that my dear husband bought me one, it’s even easier. Faster. Well, at least the prep is. So tempt your family with this cheesecake recipe if you want them to get you a KitchenAid Mixer for Christmas. It will be worth it, I promise.

    Cranberry Cheesecake

    Ingredients for Cheesecake:
    (Get certified organic ingredients when possible.)
    15 graham crackers, ground
    3 tablespoons butter, melted
    4 packages cream cheese (8 oz each)
    1 1/2 cups sugar
    3/4 cup almond milk
    4 eggs
    1 cup sour cream
    1 tablespoon vanilla
    1/4 cup all-purpose flour

    Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit (175 degrees Celsius). Grease a 9 inch springform pan. Thrifty Tip: I save the wax paper from sticks of butter in the freezer. I use it to grease any and all baking pans.

    In a medium bowl, mix graham cracker crumbs with melted butter and press onto the bottom of the springform pan.

    In the KitchenAid Mixer bowl (or a large bowl), mix cream cheese with sugar until smooth. Add almond milk, eggs one at a time, sour cream, vanilla, and flour. Mix until smooth. Pour this cream cheese mix into springform pan, on top of the graham cracker crust.

    Bake for 1 hour. Turn the oven down to 300 degrees Fahrenheit for the next 30 minutes, then to 250 for another 30 minutes. Turn the oven off but let the cheesecake stand in the oven. Do not take the cheesecake out. Keep the oven door closed while it cools, approximately 5 hours. Once the oven and the cheesecake is cooled completely, take the cheesecake out of the oven and chill in the refrigerator.

    For cranberry topping, use my Maple Cranberry Sauce recipe.

    Cheers to you on this holiday season!

  • Vanilla Ice Cream Recipe

    Vanilla Ice Cream Recipe

    July is National Ice Cream Month! I’m going to start things off with the simplest and surprisingly most popular ice cream flavor in the world, Vanilla. Here’s the recipe:

    Ingredients:
    2 cups of raw milk
    1 cup of raw cream
    4 egg yolks
    3/4 cup sugar
    1 teaspoon vanilla extract

    Combine milk and cream in a medium saucepan over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally so a skin doesn’t form until tiny bubbles form around the edge and the mixture reaches 170 degrees Fahrenheit.

    In the meantime, whisk egg yolks until smooth. Slowly whisk in sugar until well incorporated into a thick pale yellow paste. Slowly pour in the hot milk mixture while whisking continuously. This is important: The milk should not be poured into the egg mixture quickly or you will get scrambled eggs.

    Return the egg and milk custard to the saucepan and cook over low heat. Stir frequently with a wooden spoon until the custard is thick enough to coat the back of the spoon. Temperature of the custard should reach 185 degrees Fahrenheit. Do not allow the custard to boil.

    Ice Cream Custard

    Pour the custard through a fine mesh strainer into a clean bowl and let it cool to room temperature. Stir the custard every five minutes until cooled completely. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

    Prepare ice cream maker according to manufacturer’s instructions. Whisk vanilla into the custard and churn until thickened into a soft serve consistency. Transfer to an airtight container and freeze until firm.

    Delicious!