rhubarb cheesecake bars with gingersnap crust

Can you tell it's rhubarb season around here?  I discovered this recipe from the Cookin' Canuck food blog and knew exactly what to do with all the rhubarb from my mom's garden.  I had it all planned out.  I was going to go for a run on Monday morning, come home and get started on the recipe so it would be ready for when our friends came for supper.  When I arrived home from my run, I found two buckets full of cut rhubarb.  Nathaniel had found our small, measly plants and cut all of the rhubarb for me.  He was so excited for me to use it.

So after cutting off the tops, this is what I was left with.  I think Nathaniel was a bit let down.  Two buckets of rhubarb plants made that?  He was so sweet to pick me rhubarb.  He also drilled in my head that I must move my rhubarb out of the middle of the shady lawn and into a proper, sunny garden bed.  Then it will have a chance to flourish into the mound of lovely rhubarb in my mom's garden.  Think of all the rhubarb recipes I can share next spring season.

So after trying this recipe I totally fell in love with this cheesecake.  I love the spiced cooked rhubarb and how it is swirled into the cheesecake.  An extra spoonful (or two) of the rhubarb over the cheesecake is perfect!  And a side note.  There is also a Reese's peanut butter and chocolate adaptation of the recipe that I am SO trying the next time we are invited over to someone's house.  (Hint hint!)

Rhubarb Cheesecake Bars with Gingersnap Crust
from the Cookin' Canuck
Crust:
3 whole graham crackers, broken into 1-inch pieces
12 gingersnap cookies, broken into 1-inch pieces
6 tbsp (3/4 stick) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
3 tbsp brown sugar
2 tbsp all-purpose flour
1/8 tsp salt

Filling:
2 (8 oz. each) packages cream cheese, softened
2/3 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1/4 cup sour cream
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup water
1 lb. rhubarb, trimmed and sliced into 1/4-inch pieces
1 1-inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

Prepare a 8-inch square baking pan by lining the pan with aluminum foil, leaving 3-4 inches of foil draping over the sides of the pan.

The Crust:
Place graham crackers and gingersnaps into the bowl of a food processor and pulse until the crackers form fine crumbs, about 30 seconds. To the crumbs, add butter, brown sugar, flour, and salt. Pulse until the ingredients are fully combined. Using the bottom of a measuring cup or your fingers, press the crumbs into the bottom of the prepared pan.

Bake until the crust is beginning to brown, 12 to 15 minutes. Let the crust cool on a cooling rack for about 30 minutes.

The filling:
In a large bowl, beat cream cheese until it is very smooth, about 3 minutes. Scrape the beaters and sides of bowl frequently. Gradually beat in granulated sugar until the mixture is combined, about 1 minute. Beat in eggs, one a time, making sure that each is fully incorporated. Beat in sour cream and vanilla extract until fully combined, about 30 seconds. Scrape the cream cheese mixture into the baking pan, over top of the cooled crust. Spread evenly.

In a medium saucepan, combine 1/2 cup granulated sugar and 1/2 cup water. Simmer, stirring frequently, until the sugar dissolves. Add it rhubarb and ginger to the water and sugar syrup. SImmer, stirring occasionally, until the rhubarb is very soft and falling apart, 7 to 10 minutes. Remove and discard the piece of ginger. Cool for about 10 minutes.

Using a teaspoon, spoon 1/2 cup of the rhubarb mixture gently onto random places over the surface of the cheesecake. Using a small knife, gently swirl the rhubarb mixture into the cream cheese mixture.

Bake until the edges are set but the middle still jiggles slightly when the pan is shaken slightly, 35 to 40 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through baking.

Place the pan on a cooling rack and allow the bars to cool for 2 hours. Cover with aluminum foil and refrigerate for at least 3 hours, and up to 24 hours.

Using the overhanging foil, lift the bars from the pan. Gently remove the foil and cut into 16 bars.

Top the bars with the remaining rhubarb sauce immediately before serving.
Makes 16 bars.

sun, dirt and water

It is hot here in Southern Ontario.  30 degrees C. to be exact.  The boys weren't effected by the heat this morning so we enjoyed the weather until lunchtime.  Nathaniel started by making a hockey rink in our backyard.  He got out the chalk and drew 2 goals and centre ice.  We took turns playing goalie and utilizing the shade from our maple tree.  As Nathaniel stood in goal, I tried to take advantage of him standing still.  He doesn't like getting his picture taken and pulls out the cheesy grin when he does agree to stand and look at the camera.

I got these 2 shots in between the forced smile.

The sun was ridiculously strong, but I tried to shade Jesse from the sun.

Here's the result.

The boys played in the sandbox for a while and decided to make some mud pies.  They both got pretty dirty. As Nathaniel slathered mud on his legs and arms he shouted "Look at us, we're hippos!"  

It was then time for washing off the dirt.

This one is my favorites.

I had to be careful where I stood during all the water time.  I hid behind a tree, ducked behind bushes and stood on the deck.  The boys were soaked, cooled off and ready for lunch.  And despite their attempts, I pretty much stayed dry.

lemon buttermilk rhubarb bundt cake

Okay, now that we have met our daily fruit requirement (see previous post), it is time for cake.  And what a yummy rhubarb cake it is!  I made this yesterday afternoon while my boys played outside my kitchen window.  As I chopped rhubarb and creamed the butter and sugar, they were busy pounding and sawing with their play tools.  It was a win/win all around.   I discovered this recipe on a new food blog, Honey & Jam.  Beautiful recipes and stunning photographs.  All coming from a 19 year old woman.  I'm amazed at her talent and focus at such a young age.

So, if you can find a rhubarb plant in the garden or visit the local market (I just saw fresh rhubarb at our local Waterloo market this morning) give this one a try.

Lemon Buttermilk Rhubarb Bundt Cake
from Rustic Fruit Desserts

Cake

2 1/2 cups plus 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
1 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
1 cup unsalted butter
1 3/4 cups granulated sugar
zest of 1 lemon
3 eggs
1/2 teaspoon lemon oil (i used lemon extract)
3/4 cup buttermilk
1 pound rhubarb, trimmed and very thinly sliced (3 cups prepped)

Lemon Glaze

2 cups confectioners sugar, more as needed
Juice of 1 lemon
1 tablespoon nearly melted butter

Preheat oven to 350. Butter a 10-cup bundt pan.

To make the cake, sift the 2 1/2 cups flour, the baking powder and salt together in a bowl. Using a handheld mixer with beaters or a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, cream the butter, sugar and lemon zest together on medium-high speed for 3 to 5 minutes, until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl after each addition, then stir in the lemon oil. Stir in the flour mixture in three additions alternating with the buttermilk in two additions, beginning and ending with the flour mixture and scraping down the sides of the bowl occasionally. The batter will be very thick.

Toss the rhubarb with the 2 tablespoons of flour and fold half into the batter. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and sprinkle the remaining rhubarb on top.

Bake for 30 minutes, then rotate the pan and cook for an additional 30 minutes, or until the center springs back when lightly touched. (I had to add an extra 10-15 minutes to the baking time.) Cool the cake in its pan on the wire rack for 30 minutes before inverting and removing the pan.

To make the lemon glaze, whisk the confectioners sugar, lemon juice and butter together. The mixture should be thick. If it’s not, whisk in another tablespoon or two of the sugar. Spread the glaze over the cake as soon as you remove it from the pan.  (The glaze adds a wonderful citrus pop to this cake.  But it was very thick.  I was forced to spread the glaze on the cake before it had cooled in the pan 30 minutes.  The cake was still very tender and broke in places.  Next time I would be sure to carefully spread it on allowing the heat of the cake to melt the glaze.  By melting, the glaze will spread easier and hopefully not damage the cake.  Of course this doesn't really matter if you aren't taking a picture of it.)

fruit salsa with baked cinnamon chips

I'm very appreciative that nobody has commented on the number of "unhealthy" recipes I post here on my blog.  You're probably thinking to yourself that you would never do such a thing.  But it happens.  I am witness to complete strangers leaving concerning comments on other food blogs.  Thank you dear friends for appreciating my sweet tooth and need to document it here.  While I am certainly still loving yummy baked treats, I thought I would offer this wonderful fruit salsa recipe today.  With summer coming soon, there will be plenty of opportunity to whip this up with some wonderful local fruit.  Sadly, this combination of fruit is completely the opposite of local.  So, with my head hanging in shame, I will continue with my recipe.  (Okay, I'm over my guilt now.)

You can start out by making some yummy baked cinnamon chips.

Here's what you need:

Flour tortillas (I bought the smaller size)
melted butter (I used 1/4 cup)
cinnamon sugar (3/4 cup sugar mixed with 4 tsp. cinnamon) - I did have a lot left over but you can use it in other yummy ways

Lightly brush one side of tortilla with melted butter.

Sprinkle on some cinnamon sugar.  I used a spoon and was quite generous.

Cut the tortillas into 8 pieces using a pizza cutter.  Place them on an ungreased cookie sheet and bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 10-12 minutes or until they crisp up.  Cool on a cooling rack.

Now for the fruit salsa...

Choose your fruit.  I think an assortment of colours looks the prettiest.  Today I chose kiwi, fresh pineapple, strawberries, asian pear and blackberries.  You could also try mango, blueberries, different melons, peaches, oranges...just use what is available to you.  Make sure you cut up your fruit in small pieces.  I chopped the blackberries in half because they were so big.  (If you're using any kind of berries, make sure to add them right before serving so they won't dye the whole salsa.)

Next, add a sweetener.  You can tell that this recipe is pretty flexible so you can choose what sweetener and how much based on your preference.  You could use honey, agave nectar, plain sugar or icing sugar.  I had a lot of cinnamon sugar left over, so I just sprinkled a bit of that on the fruit.  I didn't add a lot because the cinnamon chips are already sweet.

Feel free to add some extra flavour too.  I added 2 squeezes of fresh lime juice.  You could experiment with fresh mint, toasted coconut or even some freshly grated ginger.  Experiment.  Have fun!

Once you have combined your fruit salsa, chill in the fridge before serving.  Serve with baked cinnamon chips.

Enjoy!

Recipe from Our Best Bites.

few weekend favs

Beginning the difficult task of reviewing all the pictures I took from the weekend.  Our church held its 2nd annual church retreat.  You can go here to see pics from last year.   Here is one of my favorites of Abigail.  This was taken this morning when the weather was sunny, warm and perfect for playing in the water.

This picture was taken yesterday.  Jesse and I were pretty much buddies the whole weekend (with some moments for me to organize all our stuff) and he needed to stand by the door while I did a quick run down to the field to get something.

And I had the hardest time finding a picture of Nathaniel.  I hardly saw the kid the whole weekend.  So, I chose this one because of the action and the fact that I mostly saw the back of him following the older boys.  He is also not a very cooperative subject when I do try and take more portrait style photos.  I'm pretty much stuck with candids with this guy.

chocolate jelly roll

Ah, the saga of the jelly rolls.  I hinted a few days ago that the making of my dessert last Saturday was a bit of a production.  I volunteered to make desserts (I often get my first dibs in on this one) and must have been feeling some kind of retro vibe to choose jelly rolls.  I mean, do people actually make these anymore?  Besides me that is.  Perhaps it will be like the fondue party and have its own little resurgence.  Who knows.

I got my first hint of inspiration from this particular recipe and just went with the theme and created 3 different jelly rolls for dessert.  The point of inspiration is the chocolate version, which I will mostly share about here.  I also created a strawberry and mango version that combined white cake, whipping cream and fruit.  These cakes were much easier to handle despite needing a few hands to transfer to the serving plate.  I started with the chocolate one, which was by far the most temperamental of the 3.  It was a good thing that I had supportive people around me as I worked with a very tender and cracked cake.  The spreading and rolling weren't too difficult, it was moving it from the counter to the serving dish that was the biggest challenge.

Just make sure you are not doing this alone people.  I don't want to feel responsible for any weeping over the broken jelly roll on the kitchen floor.  This strawberry version went very smoothly.

After two attempts, I knew exactly how much whipping cream to put on and to make sure there wasn't too much cream or fruit at the end of the roll.  It has no where else to go but onto the towel.

Here they are.  Aren't they pretty?  The white cake with cream and fruit were good but the hands down winner for me was the chocolate.  I really should have made 2 of them.  So, what was the difference besides the chocolate vs. vanilla?  The chocolate roll contains no flour (gluten free) and I switched out the boring whipped cream with white chocolate whipped cream.  Oh, people.  You don't know what you are missing.  I am not a fan of white chocolate, but in this whipped cream it is crazy good.  Just be sure to give yourself enough time to prepare it.  (see below)  And don't blame me when this white chocolate cream starts finding itself on every dessert you make from now on.  Just make sure to save me some.

So, be warned that this cake cracks easily, sticks to everything and is a bit of a pain to transfer to a serving dish.  But it is worth it.  Trust me.  And for those few places that crack or may not be perfect.  Two words - icing sugar.

CHOCOLATE JELLY ROLL - from Company's Coming Desserts

6 egg whites, room temperature
1/4 cup granulated sugar
6 egg yolks
1/2 cup granulated sugar
6 tbsp. cocoa
1/2 tsp. vanilla
Icing sugar

Line greased 10 x 15 inch (25 x 38 cm) jelly roll pan with parchment paper.

Beat egg whites until soft peaks form.  Add sugar and beat until stiff.

Beat egg yolks with sugar until lemon coloured and light.  Beat in cocoa and vanilla.  Fold into egg whites.  Spread into prepared pan.  Bake in 350 degree F. oven for 15 to 20 minutes until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.  Sift icing sugar over a tea towel.  Turn cake out on top of towel.  Peel off paper.  Starting at narrow end, roll towel and cake up together to cool.  When cool, unroll and spread filling.

Filling
2/3 cup semisweet chocolate chips
2 tbsp. water

Melt chips and water together over hot water.  (I did this in the microwave and watched very carefully).  Spread over cake.  (At first I thought this mixture was too runny, but it worked out fine.

White Chocolate Cream - adapted from Smitten Kitchen

1 1/2 cups whipping cream
6 oz. white chocolate, chopped

Place the white chocolate in a bowl.  Bring the cream to a simmer, pour it over the chocolate and let it sit for a minute to melt the chocolate.  Whisk well.  Lay a piece of plastic wrap over the surface of the cream (to prevent a skin).  Chill until very cold, about 2 hours.  Remove from fridge and beat cream with electric beaters until stiff.  Spread over chocolate layer.  Roll.  Dust with icing sugar.

sunday

My favorite photo from Mother's Day.  It isn't often that we are able to get a picture of just the five of us.  But being the persistent photographer that I am, we all piled on the couch and got this great photo.  So, there's my dad, me, my mom, my brother Dan and my sister Christine.  My brother lives in BC and is able to visit around once a year or so.  So, we definitely needed to capture this moment with the camera.

The day started with the cousins catching up on the latest happenings.  Here Abigail is asking Marlana all about her experience of getting her ears pierced.  I'm guessing Abigail is talking about hoop earrings, which she desperately wants when she gets her ears pierced.

The whole gang at lunch.

We were getting ready to open presents when the boys started sporting their new Silver Lake ball caps.

Love love love this photo of my niece Evelyn.  It was surprisingly dark in the living room (like always) but facing the window and using a lens for indoor shots made this one possible.  Another one of my favorites from the day.

Love seeing this guy (my brother) at our family get together.

A bit of pick up sticks after lunch.

The kids couldn't wait to play with Uncle Dan.

Okay, this is another favorite.  My mom with her 3 children.

Jesse chose to spend some time inside while everyone else enjoyed the sunny and cool weather outside.  Smart boy.  He got Grandpa all to him self.

This is one of two shots I got from outside.  It was freezing!  I don't know how the kids manage in shorts and t-shirts.  I must be a wuss.

And the birthday girls blowing out their candles.  That's a wrap of our Mother's Day weekend.

saturday

Mother's Day weekend.  It's always super busy and super fun!  Here's how we spent Saturday.

The kids brought me breakfast in bed.  This worked much better than fitting it into our hectic Sunday morning schedule of getting ready for church.  Nathaniel had the brilliant idea of putting everything (tea, toast with Nutella and fruit salad) on a cookie sheet.  No crumbs in bed.  I may not look particularly impressed, but I am loving my nutella!

We were off to St. Catharines after lunch and the kids were greeted with the crokinole (no idea how to spell this) board.

After supper, it was time to break out the desserts and sing happy birthday to our April and May birthday people.

Jesse pondering his birthday wish perhaps?

I will post another day on these jelly rolls.  This was my contribution to the day and quite the production.  

After dessert it was time for presents.  It would have been lovely to have beautiful outside shots, but last weekend was freezing.  So, I am putting up with mediocre shots this time round.

Jesse received an excavator for the sandbox.

He was excited about his gift until he realized there was nothing to scoop.  He hid the truck under the table and refused to play with it.  Let's give the guy a break.  He was over tired, over sugared and was in immediate need of a sandbox to play in.

Abigail has been asking for her own stereo for her room.  It took her a little while to figure out what this gift was, but she certainly has been making good use of it in her room.  She is wanting to share her new gift with all the neighbours by inviting them into her room to listen to her own music.  Just another sign that my girl is growing up.

I'll post Sunday's pictures soon.