Roasted Red Pepper Cheesecake

~Courtesy of the Food Network and Giada De Laurentiis

1/2 cup ricotta cheese (4 ounces)
1/2 cup cream cheese (4 ounces)
1/4 cup goat cheese (2 ounces)
1 tablespoon sugar
1 egg
Pinch kosher salt
1/2 cup thin strips roasted red bell peppers
4 pitas
2 tablespoons olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup apricot jam
1 to 2 teaspoons hot water
Special equipment: 1 (4 1/2-inch diameter) springform (cheesecake) pan


Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Wrap the outside of the cheesecake pan with 2 layers of heavy-duty foil. Place the ricotta, cream cheese, and goat cheese in a food processor. Pulse to mix. Add the sugar, egg, and salt and pulse a few times until well mixed. Stir in the red pepper strips.

Pour the cheese mixture into the cheesecake pan. Place the cheesecake pan in a roasting pan. Pour enough hot water in the roasting pan to come halfway up the sides of the cheesecake pan. Bake until the cheesecake is golden at the edges and the center of the cake moves slightly when the pan is gently shaken, about 45 minutes (the cake will become firm when it is cold.)

Transfer the cake to a wire rack to cool for 1 hour. Refrigerate until the cheesecake is cold, at least 3 hours and up to 2 days.

To make the pita chips, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Cut the pitas into 8 triangles each (like a pie). Drizzle the pita with olive oil, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake until crisp and golden, about 12 to 15 minutes.

To serve, combine the jam and the water in a small bowl and stir until the jam is liquefied. Remove the cheesecake from the springform pan. Place on a serving plate. Drizzle the jam mixture over the top of the cheesecake. Serve with the pita chips alongside.

*My differences are...I use part skim ricotta, 1/3 fat cream cheese, and an herbed goat cheese (not a plain). Don't use fat free products as it won't set up but the lighter versions work great. This recipe only makes one small springform pan that is 4 1/2 inches. I have quadrupled the recipe w/great success to make 4 of these suckers. Oh how I love these.

PITA Bread

This recipe is from the cookbook Artisan Bread in Five Minutes A Day.

3 cups lukewarm water
1 1/2 T granulated yeast
1 1/2 T salt
1/2 cup rye flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
5 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
cornmeal for pizza peel

Mix the yeast and salt w/the water in a 5 qt. bowl, or a lidded not airtight food container. Mix in the remaining dry ingredients without kneading, using a spoon, a 14 cup food processor w/dough attachement or a heavy duty stand mixer w/dough hook. Mix until flour is just incorporated....do not knead.

Cover, not airtight, and allow to rest at room temp until dough rises and collapses, approximately 2 hours.

Dough can be used immediately after the initial rise, though it is easier to handle when cold. Refrigerate in a lidded, not airtight, container and use over the next 14days.

This makes 1 large family-style pita or 4 individual pitas

Twenty minutes before baking preheat the over to 500 with a baking stone.

Just before baking, dust the surface of the dough w/flour and cut off a 1-lb or grapefruit size piece. Dust the piece w/more flour and quickly shape it into a ball by stretching the surface of the dough around to the bottom on all four sides, rotating the ball a quarter-turn as you go. Place the dough on a flour dusted pizza peel.

Using your hands and a rolling pin, roll the dough out into a round with a uniform thickness of 1/8 inch throughout. This is crucial, because if it's too thick, it may not puff. You'll need to sprinkle the peel lightly with the white flour as you work, occasionally flipping the bread to prevent sticking to the rolling pin or to the board. Use a dough scraper to remove the round of dough from the peel if it sticks. No rest/rise time is needed.

Slide the bread directly onto the hot stone and bake for about 5-7 minutes, until lightly browned and puffed.

For the most authentic soft-crusted result, wrap in clean cotton dish towels and set on a cooling rack when backing is complete. The pitas will deflate slightly as they cool. The space between the crusts will still be there, but may have to be nudged apart with a fork.

I rolled my pitas out on parchment paper and baked them right on the parchment paper on the stone. It worked out great. I think a smidge thicker than 1/8 works better in the thickness also....mine didn't need to be nudged apart at all....my thinner ones didn't want to come apart. You can keep the remainder of the dough refrigerated for up to 14 days and pull it out and use it as you need it in grapefruit size portions.

Espresso Brownies

Espresso Brownies...Food Network Giada De Laurentiis
Nonstick vegetable oil cooking spray
1/3 cup plus 2 tablespoons water
1/3 cup vegetable oil
2 large eggs
2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons espresso powder
1 (19.8-ounce) box brownie mix (recommended: Duncan Hines)
3/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, room temperature


Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Spray a 9 by 13-inch baking pan with nonstick spray. Whisk 1/3 cup of water, oil, eggs, and 2 tablespoons espresso powder in a large bowl to blend. Add the brownie mix. Stir until well blended. Stir in the chocolate chips. Transfer the batter to the prepared baking pan. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of the brownies comes out with a few moist crumbs attached, about 35 minutes. Cool completely.

Meanwhile, dissolve the remaining 2 teaspoons of espresso powder in the remaining 2 tablespoons of water in a medium bowl. Whisk in the vanilla. Add the powdered sugar and butter and whisk until smooth. Pour the glaze over the brownies. Refrigerate until the glaze is set. Cut into bite-size pieces. Arrange the brownies on a platter and serve.

Dulce de Leche Cheesecake

10 servings

Prep time 30 min plus cooling

Bake time 1 hr

One 10 oz box shortbread cookies, such as lorna doone or pecan sandies or walkers shortbread

1/4 c blanched almonds, toasted

2 T brown sugar

1/2 t salt

4 T unsalted butter, melted

2 8 oz. pkgs cream cheese, at room temp

3 T flour

2 large eggs plus 1 large egg yolk, room temp

1 3/4 c dulce de leche

Boiling water for baking

1. Preheat the oven to 350. Wrap the outside of a 9" springform pan with foil. Using a food processor, finely chop the cookies, nuts, brown sugar and 1/4 t salt. Add the butter and pulse until just combined. Press into the bottom of the prepeared pan and bake until set, 10-12 minutes. Transfer to a rack to cool. Lower the oven temp to 300.

2. Using a mixer, beat the cream cheese until softened, 2 minutes. Beat in the fjour and remaining 1/4 t salt on low speed. Beat in the eggs and egg yolk, 1 at a time, on medium speed. Mix in 1 cup dulce de leche.

3. Pour the batter into the crust. Loosely cover the pan with foil, set in a roasting pan and pour in enough boiling water to reach a depth of 1 inch. Bak the cheesecake until set at the edges but slightly wobbly in the center, about 55 minutes.

4. Transfer the cake to a rack; let rest for 15 minutes. Spread the remaining 3/4 c dulce de leche over the warm cake. Refrigerate until ready to serve, then remove the springform and slice the cheesecake.

I put orange zest all over the top of my cake before I cut it and it really made a difference. I don't normally like "orange" but this orange zest combined w/the dulce was out of this world. Make sure you run your knife in hot water between cuts. I would also go and get an oven thermometer if you don't have one. Taylor makes on that is great from 9-18 smackers. You really need to make sure your oven temp is accurate. I have a brand new wall oven that is convection and also regular baking and it still runs roughly 12 degrees off. I got my calphalon springform pan at Target and it works terrific.