At Home Italian Cooking by JoElaine

Mom's Homemade Cheesecake by JoElaine (Balsamo) Quinn

1 9-inch springform pan

Ingredients:

Graham Cracker Crust
6 Tbsps of unsalted butter, melted
26 graham crackers, finely crushed
6 Tbsps of granulated sugar
¾ tsp of ground cinnamon
Cheesecake Layer
3 (8-ounce) packages pf cream cheese, at room temperature
1 cup of granulated sugar
4 large eggs, well beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Sour Cream Topping
2 cups sour cream
3-4 Tablespoons granulated sugar, or powdered sugar (more to taste)
¾ teaspoon vanilla extract
Optional toppings: Cherry pie filling, fresh berries, or drizzled ganache

Instructions:
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Crush 26 graham crackers into fine crumbs.

Graham Cracker Crust
2. In a medium bowl, mix together graham cracker crumbs, 6 Tablespoons butter, 6 Tablespoons sugar, and 3/4 teaspoon cinnamon until well combined. The crust will still look sandy
3. Using the flat bottom of a small measuring cup, press the crust in an even layer into the bottom of a 9-inch springform pan. Bake 5 minutes and let cool.

Cheesecake Layer
4. Using an electric mixer or a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat together 3, 8-ounce packages softened cream cheese with 1 cup sugar on medium speed until smooth. Stir in 4 eggs and 1 teaspoon vanilla and beat 2 minutes, or until smooth and creamy.
5. Pour over cooled crust. Tap on the counter to make it even.
Bake 35 to 40 minutes, or until the edges have puffed slightly and barely starting to brown. The center should be baked to the tough but still wiggle a bit.
6. Let the cheesecake cool in the oven with the door cracked open 1 hour and 30 minutes
7. When cooled use a knife to run along the inside of the pan to loosen the crust. Do not remove the ring from the pan.

Sour Cream Topping
8. Preheat the oven to 475 degrees
9. In a medium bowl, whisk together 2 cups of sour cream, 3-4 Tablespoons sugar, and 3/4 teaspoon vanilla until smooth. Spread over cooled cheesecake. Bake 5 minutes.
10. Cool 30 minutes before transferring to the fridge to chill overnight
11.Top with your favorite toppings.

              Enjoy!

Nanny's Christmas Cranberry Cake by JoElaine (Balsamo) Quinn

Ingredients:
1 cup granulated sugar + 1 Tablespoon for sprinkling
1 Tablespoon orange zest (about 1 medium orange)
12 oz bag of fresh cranberries (about 1 1/2 cups)
2 cups all-purpose flour + 2 tablespoons for coating the cranberries
2 teaspoons baking Powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (that's 1 stick) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
1 room temperature egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup well-shaken buttermilk

Process,
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Grease a 9-inch springform pan. Line the bottom with parchment paper, grease the parchment and then lightly flour the entire pan. Gently tap out any excess.
3. In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine 1 cup of sugar with the orange zest.
4. In a separate large bowl, toss the cranberries with 2 tablespoons of flour until evenly coated; Set aside.
5. In yet another large bowl, whisk together the 2 cups of flour, baking powder, and salt; Set aside.
6. Add the butter to the stand mixer bowl with the orange/sugar mixture. Using the paddle

attachment, beat until light and fluffy, about 3-5 minutes on med-high speed. Scrape down the

sides of the

bowl. Add the egg and vanilla and beat until well-combined, scraping down the sides of the bowl as

needed.
7. On low speed, alternate between the flour mixture and the buttermilk, beginning and ending

with the flour and only mixing until each addition has been incorporated.
8. Use a large rubber spatula to gently fold in the cranberries.
9. Scrape the batter into prepared pan, using an off-set spatula to smooth out the top. Sprinkle

with the remaining 1 Tablespoon of sugar. Note: Feel free to use more sugar!
10. Bake for 45-55 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Note: Check for doneness at the 45-minute mark. Some ovens vary in temp.
11. Remove the pan from the oven and onto a cooling rack. Cool for at least 30 minutes.
 

             Enjoy!

Homemade Lemon Bundt Cake made by JoElaine (Balsamo) Quinn recipe by King Arthur

Ingredients:
16 Tbsps of unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 cups of granulated sugar
1 tsp of salt
4 large eggs, at room temperature
2 tsps of baking powder
3 cups of King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
1 cup of whole milk, at room temperature
finely grated rind of 2 medium lemons

Glaze

1/3 cup of freshly squeezed lemon juice, the juice of about 1 1/2 juicy lemons
3/4 cup of granulated sugar

Icing

1 1/2 cups of confectioners' sugar, sifted
pinch of salt
2 to 3 Tbsps of freshly squeezed lemon juice

Process,

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
2. Beat together the butter, sugar, and salt, first until combined, then until fluffy and lightened in color.
3. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl once all the eggs have been added and beat briefly to re-combine any residue.
4. Measure the flour by gently spooning it into a cup, then sweeping off any excess. Whisk the baking powder into the flour. Add the flour mixture to the batter in three parts alternately with the milk, starting and ending with the flour. The batter may look slightly curdled when you add the milk. That's OK; it'll smooth out as you add the flour. Mix until everything is well combined; the batter will look a bit rough but shouldn't have any large lumps. Stir in the grated lemon rind.
5. Thoroughly grease a 10- to 12-cup Bundt pan. Spoon the batter into the prepared pan, leveling it and smoothing the top with a spatula.
6. Bake the cake for 45 to 60 minutes, or until a cake tester or toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. A pan with a dark interior will bake cake more quickly; start checking at 40
7. While the cake is baking, make the glaze by stirring together the lemon juice and sugar. Microwave or heat over a burner briefly, stirring to dissolve the sugar. You don’t want to cook the lemon juice, so microwave just until very warm, but not uncomfortably hot — less than 1 minute should do it. Set the glaze aside.
8. Remove the cake from the oven and carefully run a knife between cake and pan all around the edge. Place the pan upside down on a cooling rack. If the cake drops out of the pan onto the rack, remove the pan. If the cake doesn’t drop onto the rack, let it rest for 5 minutes, then carefully lift the pan off the cake. If the cake still feels like it's sticking, give it another 5 minutes upside down, then very gently shake the pan back and forth to loosen and remove it.
9. Brush the glaze all over the hot cake, both top and sides. Let it sink in, then brush on more glaze, continuing until all the glaze is finished.
10. Allow the cake to cool completely before icing and serving.
11. To ice the cake, mix the sugar and salt, then mix in 2 tablespoons of the lemon juice, adding just enough additional juice to create a thick glaze, one that's just barely pourable. Drizzle it artfully over the completely cool cake.

            Enjoy!

Walnut Sour Cream Coffee Cake made by JoElaine (Balsamo) Quinn recipe by King Author Flour

Ingredients:
Cake
1/2 cup of unsalted butter, softened
1 cup of, sugar
2 large eggs, at room temperature
2 cups of King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
1 tsp of baking powder
1/4 tsp of baking soda
1/2 tdp of salt
1 cup of sour cream or yogurt, at room temperature

Topping
1/2 cup of sugar
2 tsps of ground cinnamon
2 tsps of vanilla extract
1/2 cup of chopped walnuts or pecans,

Process,

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease and flour a 9 1/2" tube pan, or a 9" x 9" pan.
2. To make the cake: Beat together the butter, sugar, and eggs. In a separate bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
3. Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture alternately with the sour cream or yogurt, stirring after each addition.
To make the topping:
4. Combine all of the topping ingredients, stirring until evenly crumbly.
5. Spread half the batter in the pan, and sprinkle with half the topping mixture. Repeat with the remaining batter and topping.
6. Bake the coffeecake for 30 to 40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, or with just a few moist crumbs sticking to it. Glass pans may take an additional 5 to 10 minutes to bake through completely.
7. Remove the cake from the oven; if you've baked it in a tube pan, wait 10 minutes, loosen the edges, and carefully turn it out of the pan. Place the cake right-side up (topping up) on a plate to serve. If you've baked the cake in a 9" x 9" pan, just serve it right from the pan.
10. Serve the cake warm or at room temperature. Wrap the completely cooled cake airtight, and store at room temperature for several days; freeze for longer storage.
   

            Enjoy!

Italian Lemon Cream Cake by JoElaine (Balsamo) Quinn

Ingredients:
7 Tbsps of butter, melted
2 cups + 1 Tbsp of all-purpose flour
2 tsps of baking powder
pinch of salt
3 whole eggs, large
1 egg yolk, large
1 3/4 cups of powdered sugar
2/3 cup of heavy whipping cream
1 zest of one lemon
1 tsp of vanilla
1 Tbsp of fresh

Process,
1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease and flour a 9 1/2-inch bundt cake pan or a 9-inch round pan.
2. Melt butter and let cool completely.
In a medium bowl whisk together flour, baking powder and salt set aside.
3. In a large bowl of a standard mixer with a paddle attachment beat on medium speed eggs and sugar until light and fluffy,
4. On low speed add flour mixture, alternating with the cream into the egg mixture, keep mixing until mixture is completely combined, then mix in the lemon zest, vanilla, melted butter and lemon juice.
5. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for approximately 35-40 minutes. Let cool completely, then dust with powdered/icing sugar.
 

              Enjoy!

Flourless Chocolate Espresso Cake with Chocolate Glaze made JoElaine (Balsamo) Quinn recipe by King Author Flour

Ingredients:
1 cup of semisweet or bittersweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup of unsalted butter
3/4 cup of granulated sugar
1/4 tsp of salt
1 to 2 tsps of espresso powder, optional
1 tsp of vanilla extract
3 large eggs
1/2 cup of cocoa powder
Glaze
1 cup of semisweet or bittersweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup of heavy cream

Process,
1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
Lightly grease a metal 8" round cake pan; cut a piece of parchment to fit, grease it, and lay it in the bottom of the pan.
2. To make the cake: Put the chocolate and butter in a microwave-safe bowl, and heat until the butter is melted and the chips are soft. Stir until the chips melt, reheating briefly if necessary. You can also do this over a burner set at very low heat. Transfer the melted chocolate/butter to a mixing bowl.
3. Stir in the sugar, salt, espresso powder, and vanilla. Espresso enhances chocolate's flavor much as vanilla does; using 1 teaspoon will simply enhance the flavor, while 2 teaspoons will lend a hint of mocha to the cake.
4. Add the eggs, beating briefly until smooth. Add the cocoa powder and mix just to combine.
5. Spoon the batter into the prepared pan. Bake the cake for 25 minutes; the top will have formed a thin crust. Remove it from the oven and cool it in the pan for 5 minutes.
6. Loosen the edges of the pan with a table knife or nylon spreader and turn it out onto a serving plate. The top will now be on the bottom; that's fine. Also, the edges will crumble a bit, which is also fine. Allow the cake to cool completely before glazing.

To Make The Glaze:
7. Place the chocolate in a heatproof bowl. Heat the cream until it's not quite at a simmer but showing fine bubbles around the edge. Pour the cream over the chocolate, stir very briefly to combine, and let rest for 5 minutes. Stir again — at first slowly, then more vigorously — until the chocolate is completely melted and the glaze is smooth. If any bits of chocolate remain, reheat briefly in the microwave or over a burner, then stir until smooth.
8. Spoon the glaze over the cake, spreading it to drip over the sides a bit. Allow the glaze to set for several hours before serving the cake.
 

            Enjoy!