Dessert

Plain Cheesecake

A 9" cheesecake. You must make it the day before so it has time to set up -- but it's a nice dense cheesecake in the Eli's style.

The tricks to non-cracking cheesecake: use room temperature ingredients, introduce minimal air, don't overbeat your eggs, keep a stable oven temperature (no peeking!), free the crust from the pan, and cool the cheesecake slowly.

Springform pans will work, but they may leak -- you may want a dedicated cheesecake pan if you make this often.

Ingredients	Step
32 oz (4 containers) cream cheese ⅔ c. sour cream 4 large eggs	Pull out and let rise to room temperature.
	Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Ensure the rack is in the center of the oven.
1½ c. graham cracker crumbs (1 package) 2 T. white sugar 1 T. brown sugar 7 T. melted butter	Combine (probably in the food processor), then press into a 9" round pan. Place the pan on a cookie sheet lined with foil (just in case).
32 oz cream cheese	Stir gently until smooth and creamy, scraping as needed.
1 c. sugar	Stir gently again until creamy, scraping as needed.
⅔ c. sour cream 1½ t. vanilla ⅛ t. salt	Stir until well-combined, scraping as needed.
4 eggs	One at a time, lightly beat each egg and then gently stir into the cream cheese mixture. Do not over-mix. Scrape sides as needed.
	Tap the cheesecake batter against the counter until you're satisfied that you've eliminated most of the air bubbles you introduced during mixing.
	Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake at 325 for 50-75 minutes, until the edges are slightly puffed and possibly turning light golden brown, and the center is still jiggly like Jell-O.
	Turn off the oven and open it, letting it cool for 10 minutes. After ten minutes, use a knife to gently loosen the crust from the pan -- but leave the ring attached.
	Let the cheesecake cool until it is near room temperature (1-2 hours), then refrigerate the cheesecake overnight before serving.

Source: Sam Merritt

Tapioca Pudding

A decent amount of hands-on work, but delightful warm or cold. The milk can be replaced with dairy-free alternatives (up to ⅔ coconut milk). Makes 3½ cups.

Ingredients	Step
⅓ c. small pearl tapioca ¾ c. water	Soak in a saucepan for 30 minutes. Do not drain if there is remaining water.
2¼ c. milk ¼ c. sugar 2 egg yolks ¼ t. salt	Add to saucepan. Stir over medium heat until boiling, then simmer uncovered for 10-15, stirring often.
2 egg whites ¼ c. sugar	Beat together until soft peaks form, maybe 5 minutes. (The egg whites should quickly curl and fall into themselves, not holding their shape.)
OPTIONAL ADD-INS 2 T. unsweetened cocoa powder PLUS 2 T. sugar 1 oz. dark chocolate pieces ⅔ c. finely chopped fruit (dry or fresh)	Stir in to hot tapioca mixture. Let cook ~1 minute.
	Temper the egg whites with the hot tapioca (transfer at least ¾ c. tapioca). Then gently fold the warmed egg whites into the hot tapioca mixture in the saucepan.
	Stir and cook pudding over low heat for another ~3 minutes.
½ t. vanilla	Cool 15 minutes, then add vanilla.

Source: Bob's Red Mill

Hamentaschen

A nice hamentaschen dough recipe. Each batch makes 36 circles.

Ingredients	Step
	Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
½ c. butter 1 c. sugar	Cream together. Beat until fluffy.
1 t. milk 1 t. vanilla	Add. Beat well.
1 egg	Add. Beat well.
2 c. flour 2 t. baking powder pinch salt	Sift together. Stir to make a soft dough. Chill in fridge for 20 minutes.
⅓ c. filling (e.g., cherry, apricot, prune, poppy seed, mini chocolate chips, raspberry)	Roll out dough on a lightly floured board to ⅛" thick. Cut out circles. Add jelly to center and then pinch or fold three corners.
	Bake on an ungreased cookie sheet at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes.

Source: Barb

Chocolate Crinkles

This recipe must chill overnight, so plan ahead. It makes roughly 4 dozen small cookies.

If you substitute butter for shortening, use ¼ c. milk instead of ⅓ c.

Ingredients	Step
½ c. shortening 1⅔ c. sugar	Cream together.
2 t. vanilla 2 eggs, beaten 2 oz. unsweetened Baker's chocolate, melted	Add & beat.
2 c. flour, sifted 2 t. baking powder ½ t. salt	Sift together.
⅓ c. milk (or ¼ c. if using butter)	Add to the mixer alternately with dry ingredients.
½ c. walnuts, chopped	Stir in.
	Scrape down bowl, cover, and chill overnight.
powdered sugar	Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease cookie sheets. Form dough into 1-inch balls. Roll in confectioner's sugar. Bake at 350 degrees for about 15 minutes.

Source: my grandma

Toto Cookies

Made for Sarah's birthday in 2023. Makes 3½ dozen.

Ingredients	Step
	Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease 2 cookie sheets.
3¼ c. flour 1½ c. sugar 1 T. baking powder ¼ c. cocoa powder 1¼ t. black pepper, fresh ground 1½ t. cinnamon ¼ t. clove ½ t. salt	Sift together.
¾ c. shortening	Work in the shortening (aim for coarse cornmeal texture).
½+ c. milk ⅔ c. walnuts, chopped	Add milk and nuts. Mix by hand until well-blended. If necessary, add a bit more milk so the dough holds together.
	Pinch off 1-inch pieces of dough and roll them into balls. Place 1-inch apart on cookie sheets. Bake 15-20 minutes, or until firm.
1½ c. powdered sugar, sifted 3 T. milk 1 t. rum extract	Beat until smooth for a thin frosting (while the cookies bake). Add a wee bit more milk if necessary.
sprinkles	Let cookies cool on racks only until warm. Dip tops into icing, then sprinkle with colored sprinkles. Let the frosting dry completely, then layer the cookies between wax paper to store.

Source: ciaoitalia.com (Mrs. Tigani's Chocolate and Black Pepper Cookies)

Pamela Toman

Plain Cheesecake

Tapioca Pudding

Hamentaschen

Chocolate Crinkles

Toto Cookies

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