Chocoholics Anonymous-White Chocolate Cheesecake

Look at that beauty, drool with me now, and yes, you have my permission to be green with envy because this is the most wonderful tasting, satisfying cheesecake you will ever devour! Every year for my little sister's birthday I make this White Chocolate Cheesecake from a recipe book I would cry if I lost. Death by Chocolate by Marcel Desaulniers was a present from my honey many, many, many year ago. I think it could have been our first Christmas together. I love this cookbook, not that I make a lot of recipes from it, but that the pictures alone are scrumptious, and of course this recipe is worth it weight in gold.

Duane and I dubbed this cheesecake, 2 a.m. cheesecake because that was the approximate time the cheesecake would finally make it into the fridge. I've always been a late night baker, kids are going to bed, time to bake! Well when the process to make this baby takes around seven hours from start to finish starting to bake at 7 at night is not the best idea. But year after year I would fall into the same trap. Fortunately I had a fantastic husband who would get up at 1 in the morning to put the cheesecake in the fridge or worse, one year it was 3! I tell you these facts not to scare you off just to help you not fall into the same trap as myself. It really is worth the time. I hope you give it a whirl, I promise your family will sing your praises.

White Chocolate Cheesecake

Chocolate Cooke Crust

3 T melted butter

2 1/2 c chocolate cookie crumbs*

White Chocolate Cheesecake

18 oz white chocolate, broken into 1/2 inch pieces

1/2 c heavy cream

1 3/4 lbs cream cheese, softened

1 c sugar

1 t salt

6 eggs

1 t vanilla extract

Chocolate Ganache

1/3 c heavy cream

1 T butter

1 T sugar

3 oz semisweet chocolate, broken into 1/2 inch pieces

Preheat oven to 325. Butter the inside of a 9x3 inch springform pan. Mix the cookie crumbs* and the melted butter together and press into the bottom and half way up sides of the pan. Place the pan into the freezer for at least 15 minutes.

Using a double boiler on medium high heat, melt together the broken pieces of white chocolate and 1/2 c heavy cream. Should take about 10 minutes to melt. Remove from heat and stir until smooth. Set aside.

Place the cream cheese, 1 c sugar, and the salt in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle. Beat on low for 1 min, on medium for 1 min, and on high for 1 min. Scrape down the bowl, then beat on high for and additional minute. Scrape down the bowl. Add the eggs, 2 at a time, beating on medium for 15 seconds after adding, and scrape down the bowl after each addition. Add the vanilla extract and the melted chocolate mixture, then beat on medium for 15 seconds. Remove the bowl from the mixer. Use a rubber spatula to finish mixing the batter until it is smooth and thoroughly combined. Pour the cheesecake mixture into the prepared springform pan, spreading evenly.

Place a pan partially filled with 4 c of hot water on the bottom rack of the oven( at least 3 inches below the center rack). Place the springform pan on the center rack of the oven and bake for 15 min. Lower the temp to 250 degrees and bake for 15 min. Lower the temp to 225 degrees and bake for 15 min. Then lower the temp to 200 degrees, and bake the cheesecake about 2 hours and 45 min. Turn off the oven and allow the cheesecake to remain in the oven undisturbed for an additional 2 hours. Remove from the oven and cool at room temp for 1 hour. Refrigerate the cheesecake for 12 hours (leave in the springform pan).

After the cheesecake has been refrigerated for 12 hours, prepare the chocolate ganache. Heat 1/3 c heavy cream, 1 T butter, and 1 T sugar in a 1 1/2 quart saucepan over medium high heat. Bring to a boil. Place the semisweet chocolate in a bowl. Pour the boiling cream over the chocolate and allow to stand for 3-4 min. Stir until smooth. Pour over the top of the chilled cheesecake. Use a rubber spatula to spread the ganache evenly over the top. Refrigerate for 30 min. To serve take a warm damp towel and wrap it around the sides of the springform pan. The heat should loosen the sides of the cheesecake enough that it releases perfectly. Serve the cheesecake with a puree of raspberries.

*I use 2 ready made oreo pie crusts that I smush into crumbs. You can make chocolate cookies and make crumbs out of them or just use chocolate graham crackers too.

Well worth the effort, time, and calories! And now you know why I call it 2 a.m. Cheesecake!!

Happy Birthday Katie Rose!

Today is Katie's 11th birthday and to honor my 3rd monkey here are 11 facts about my little girl.

1. She has an irrational fear of aliens. The aluminum foil is example of her trying to keep the aliens out of her brain. Just add a few glasses of water around the house and we are now living the movie Signs.

2. Katie is a hopeless romantic at heart in training. She will giggle at the first thought of romance in anything, cartoons, movies, and especially her siblings lives. Molly REFUSES to unlock her lips to who she crushes on because of the "giggle factor".

3. When Katie was little she had this cool, funky pair of sunglasses. We called her "Hollywood", not just because she looked like a starlet, but that she acted like one whenever she wore them. Fast forward a few years and introduce Rock band into Katie's life and we have now confirmed her nickname "Hollywood" to be even more appropriate.


4. Katie dreaded being the middle child! When Emma was born she was thrilled beyond belief that she no longer held the spot of middle child. Poor Jack.

5. Katie was cooked on cupcakes, donuts, and cookies, that's how I explain to her why she has such an incredible sweet tooth. Krispy Kreme could be the staple to her diet and she would never tire of it's doughy goodness.

6. Wizards of Waverly Place is her favorite TV show so she tells me, but I have to say she is a 100% Doctor Who junkie! She even took a picture of the new Doctor and the current Doctor to show her teacher. What a great sport Mrs. Bennett was, she listen to that silly girl gush over her favorite Doctor.

7. Katie just oozes cheerleader, ballerina, actress, life of the party. What ever that girl want to do she accomplishes, now if I could only get her to desire a clean room.

8. Look at those freckles, I love them to pieces! Katie inherited her Daddy's freckles, his nose and that one crooked tooth, all things that she loves to have of Daddy.

9. This past summer I became known as "Not the Katie, not the Katie!" Do you remember the TV show The Dinosaurs? Emma loves, I should say adores her Katie, and I might add, so do I!

10. Katie is an excellent student, always well behaved and respectful. Despite the hardship our family went through this past fall, she still pulled off straight A's, I was so proud and I know that Duane would have been super proud.

11. Katie Rose was named for Duane's great Grandma Katie Rose. We knew that her named fit perfectly a few hours after she was born. We looked at her perfect, honestly and truly, little round face and noticed the most beautiful rose complexion. She was our Rosie.

Happy Birthday my baby girl, Momma loves you.

Chocoholics Anonymous-My life savers

Have I ever shared with you a great talent of mine? It's a great one, I'm extremely proud. I have the ability to spend years and years believing, thinking and miss understanding what someone says or sings and then make a fool of myself in front of tons of people by stating what I think to be the true name or lyrics. Yes, yes, I know you're completely jealous. Just contain yourself.

Growing up and well into my adult life, until Duane so graciously corrected me, oh who am I trying to fool, he had a hoot at my expense, believing that Light Sabers, the light wielding swords of Luke and Vader were really called.....

these! Lifesavers! Well they can save your life, made sense to me. So after my chocolate fiasco I turned to my life saver, not Luke's sword or a cherry confection.

Not even the kind that would really save your life, but the kind that would save a chocoholics soul.

A simple box of Dove chocolate and a yummy chocolate chip cookie recipe, loaded with 3 types of chocolate.

First, after burning 2 batches of goodies I needed a little pick me up, my old standby, my emergency chocolate Dove kit. Every true chocoholic should have one. Mine was a gift from my sweet Duane, he knew the inner desires of my heart.

Second, after burning chocolate chip cookies I was determined to jump right back into the game and bake another batch, which had to be good, they were for a baby shower. I visited my cookie guru, Katrina at Baking and Boys! for a yummy cookie recipe. I did alter the recipe and add mini chocolate chips, 60% dark chocolate chips and milk chocolate chips. It was a very decadent combination, lovin' it!

The Ultimate Chewy and Soft Chocolate Chunk Cookies

1 cup unsalted butter at room temp

1 cup tightly packed light brown sugar

1/2 cup granulated sugar

2 large eggs

1 1/2 tsps. pure vanilla extract

3 cups plus 2 tbsp. all-purpose flour

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

16 oz. flavorful bitter or semi-sweet chocolate, coarsely chopped

1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper, or lightly butter them, and set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer, or stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment, or a large bowl if mixing by hand, cream the butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well and scraping down the sides of the bowl after each addition. Beat in the vanilla. 2. Sift the flour, baking soda and salt together in a small bowl. Add the dry ingredients to the butter-sugar mixture, and mix until just combined. Fold in the chocolate chunks. 3. Using your hands (I used my cookie scoop), shape knobs of dough about the size of a large walnut and place them 2 inches apart on the baking sheets. Stagger the rows of cookies to ensure even baking. Bake 12-15 for smaller cookies (I found that 10-11 minutes was perfect), 14-17 for larger ones or until the tops are a light golden brown. If the cookies are neither firm nor dark when they are removed from the oven, they will cool chewy and soft. Cool the cookies on the sheets for 5 minutes, then transfer to wire racks to cool completely.

Thanks for the recipe Katrina!

Give me a break!

It's a Dog! It poops outside, licks it's butt and sniffs other peoples butts! Give me a break! Not the day to read a lame article like this:

Fla. couple pick up their cloned yellow lab puppy 01/28/2009 02:45 PM MST Associated Press Writer

MIAMI -- A Boca Raton couple got a new dog, and it's just like their old dog. Not just the same breed and gender, but the same DNA. Nina and Edgar Otto picked up their cloned yellow lab puppy at the Miami International Airport Monday night. Lancelot Encore was cloned from the DNA of the Ottos' late dog Lancelot, which died of cancer in January 2008.
Guessing that pet cloning would one day be possible, the Ottos had DNA samples of their dog frozen five years ago.
The Ottos paid $155,000 in a San Francisco biotech firm's dog-cloning auction last July.
BioArts International created Lancelot Encore in South Korea, where he was born 10 weeks ago. The Ottos say he's the first single-birth, commercially cloned puppy in the United States.
___
Information from: The Miami Herald, http://www.herald.com

Bad Combination

Dear Chocolate,

Hello yummies! You are so good and delicious, yes I dream about you, drool over you, yes basically I'm addicted. But dear sweet turtle bars, dear sweet best ever chocolate chip cookies I have created a bad combination and I'm sorry to say have ruined you today.

Baking + Anger = Burnt Chocolate

Today started out with sadness, then quickly changed to just being plan old p.o.'d. My poor children, they've been hearing a lot of grouchiness comin' from this momma. So in attempt to mellow my mood I decided to bake the yumminess that I love to eat. Bad combination, everything I have baked has been over done, maybe even qualified as burnt. So I give up! I can't ruin my lovies any more. Harness me, tie me up don't let me bake another morsel when I'm angry, I can't burn you anymore.

Love,

Your Devoted Chocoholic

P.S. Playing Disney Scene It adds to frustration when you realize just how much you know on the Disney Chanel. I should not be a Zack and Cody efficienato!

Needing a John Walsh intervention

Everyone please tell me that you've had stupid moments like this, and even if you haven't just lie to me.

Look at that sweet freckly face. Now before you finish this sentence go look up John Walsh's number and schedule an intervention for me please. Did you do it? Oh well, I warned you, anyway...

Last night the doorbell rang. The monkeys go scurrying to the door(because they have never seen another human being before) and when no one opens it I realize it's a stranger and come to the door. When I open the door this kind looking man looks down at Copper and says "Oh, ok he's not yours" and then proceeds to tell me about a lost dog he found while jogging. Are you getting the jest of my story yet? When he describes the dog, which does sound like a golden retriever, I then loose all brain cells and motherly instincts and say to Katie, that cute freckly faced girl, "Go out and see if that's Laura lee's dog". Every lecture about not falling for the "lost dog" trick or walking up to a strangers car flew out of my naive, trusting mind! Can you believe it? I am too dang trusting, and just a tad bit dingy.

Of course I instantly changed my mind and went out with her, still stupid. What was funny, not until he opened his car door to show us the dog did it dawn on me what I had done, or what we could have just walked into. Have you called John Walsh yet? Then for the next hour and a half I balled my eyes out because I had just won the crappiest mother of the year award, not one I wanted to win. Let us all pray now for the safety of my children!

Duct Tape Use #371

Use #371- Keeping diapers on Emma, a.k.a. "The Stripper".

In the beginning her little strip tease was amusing, shall we dare to say, funny. Nothing is cuter than a naked baby, those little bum cheeks are just so dang squeezable. Even the occasional tinkle on the tile was funny. But dear, sweet Emma you have crossed the line. Whipping off a poopy diaper TWICE drew a line in the sand.

Thank you duct tape inventor, you are my hero!

Chocoholics Anonymous-Shhh! It's a Secret Brownies

This is how I want to eat my chocolate this week, or should I say bath in my chocolate. How I envy Emma, AAAHHHHH! Why is chocolate so dang gum addictive and delicious?
So far so good on weight watchers, but seriously how many days have I ventured into this "new" lifestyle? When I read/drooled over my blog friends Katrina's recipe for low fat brownies I knew it had to be this weeks Chocoholics Anonymous recipe. Brownies made with black beans! Yes friends, beans, beans that musical fruit, the more you eat the more you .... anyway made with black beans. I have to confess, my brownies were a little drier than I like them, probably the ovens fault ;), so watch your baking time, but as a whole very yummy for a low fat brownie. Just think of all the fiber and protein that is now added to your chocolate, an even better excuse to devour, I mean reasonably consume your brownie. Enjoy!

Black Bean Brownies

1 c flour
1 t baking soda
1/2 t salt
1/3 c cocoa
2/3 c brown sugar
2/3 c sugar
1/2 c chocolate chips
1/2 nuts
3 eggs
1 t vanilla
2 T oil + 2/3 c black bean puree(1 can black beans, liquid and all, pureed in a blender)

Stir the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix until combined. Spread into a 9x13 pan and bake at 350 for about 22 minutes.


Just because! Isn't she a stinker. Emma's popeye impersonation, "What squinkie eye?"

Oh, to be a dog

This week I started Weight Watchers. Yes I've reached a point of personal disgust(mine just happens to be on a lower scale of standards than others) and a need to keep up with my children better. It's tough! I love to eat, nibble, munch and crunch anything yummy and delicious(carrots and celery not included).

On the same day I started my "new way of eating" my big oaf Copper went to the vet for a butt boo boo. Now everybody knows about my carb junkie dog, he and I were cut from the same cloth, just different species. He loves all things cakes, pies, donuts, a real Homer Simpson of the Golden Retriever world. Copper also was discovered to have a thyroid problem, maybe part of the reason he topped out at 135 pounds. Since starting on his thyroid pill big guy has lost about 20 pounds, with just a pill!! Sickening huh? Makes one think how sweet life would be if you were a dog.
Seriously got me thinking. If I were Copper I could eat a whole loaf of bread, people would laugh and say "what a cute fat girl, that Becky!" Or how about laying around the house all day long, only getting up to eat, poop, and get an occasional scratch and a "who's a good girl, you are, you are!". Quite the life.

But then again, I take all that back. When I have a butt boo boo I wouldn't want to be caught dead in this cone head contraption.

The Return of an Old Friend-Chocoholics Anonymous!

It's been such a long time since I posted a Chocoholics Anonymous recipe that I almost forgot about my love/obsession for the deliciously smooth and creamy confection called chocolate! I've been drooling over this Paula Deen recipe for over a month now and am almost giddy to have made it, and of course devour several. It couldn't have been more simple, really, premade cookie dough, caramel sauce, how easy breezy can you get. I had a little help, Hannah(my chocoholic-in-training) wanted to cook with mommy; she did a GREAT job!

Chocolate Chip Turtle Bars

(a.k.a. goo bars because this chocoholic couldn't wait long enough for them to cool properly and they are ooey gooey when warm!)

1 (16.5 oz) roll refrigerated chocolate chip cookie dough

1 c butterscotch morsels

1 c chopped pecans

1/2 c butter

1/2 c packed brown sugar

1 (12.25 oz) jar caramel ice-cream topping

1 c quick oats

1 c semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350. Line a 13x9 pan with aluminum foil, letting edges of foil hand over sides of pan. Spray foil with nonstick spray. Press cookie dough evenly into bottom of prepared pan, completely covering foil. Sprinkle evenly with butterscotch chips and pecans. In a small saucepan, melt butter over medium-low heat. Stir in brown sugar and caramel. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat; boil for I minute. Remove from heat; stir in oats. Pour butter mixtures evenly over pecans. Sprinkle with chocolate chips. Bake for 25-28 minutes, or until edges are golden brown; cool completely. Cut into bars and enjoy!

Please Read

I'm not sure how many of you pop over to my other blog, My Superman's Kryptonite, but please click on the large thank you to read the much deserved thank yous for so many family, friends, strangers, anyone who helped me and my monkeys during these first 2 months of our new life without Duane. Caution, it is a big long and void of pictures of Ben looking like a dork, but it is straight from my heart.

My Seven Super Summers Holiday Hilarities

Let the seven super summers now entertain you with there version of the classic Sesame Street Christmas pageant. Do you remember this all you children of the '70's? I loved it and have passed this love on to my nut heads. Poor Hannah, definitely feeling the part, channeling Bert quite well.

Bert(Hannah): Oh, wow. Oo oo, what do I play, Ernie? Santa Claus. No, no, an angel. The spirit of Christmas past, right? Well, who, who, who, who?

Ernie(Katie): A tree.

Bert(Hannah): I knew it.

Ernie(Katie): You just stand here and hold your arms out, sort of tree like. Hold out your arms there, Bert.

Bert(Hannah): I knew it.

Ernie(Katie): Oh, that’s good. Um hm. Now don’t move, Bert. Keep your arms out and try to think like a tree.

Bert(Hannah): Ernie.

Christmas Eve brought matching jammies and lots and lots of laughter, oh it was a hoot. This is what happens when my voice of reason, a.k.a. Duane is gone, the summers children all look like Santa's elves. Ben was tempted to glue his ears together(thanks Anderson Family!) to play the role even better.

These moments have been the lifeline of my entire holiday season, could not have made it with out wacky moments like The Year Mother Went Off Her Rocker And Bought Us Matching Jammies, as it shall now be known.

Awesome! Black mail at it's finest.

Could Santa's helpers be any cuter, I think not!

New Years Eve + Rock band + Apples to Apples + Spoons = A ton of fun, bad singing, stinky rhythm, sore knuckles and some pretty funky pictures of Katie!

Ringo Starr, just watch out, Helga the Horrible is taking over the drumming world.

Did you know that clay was energetic, according to grammy, and that if Martin Luther King Jr. is chosen over Texas Ben will cry? Aaahhh, nothing like playing games at 11:30 at night. As much fun as we had I have to say that by the end of the night all 5 big kids(Hannah and Emma are automatic criers) cried about loosing one game or another. Tell me what I've done wrong? When the last child had cried it was hilarious, they of course did not find the humor in it, evil I guess to laugh at their tears.

One down 49 more to go. That's the new phrase my mom came up with to count down the holiday seasons until I will be with Duane again. Sorry to plug in some sorrow, it was hard to make it through this holiday. You never know how much a person does until they're gone, Christmas and New Years were just not the same without my love.

Enjoy your families, kiss your babies, cherish all you have, and have a wonderful 2009.

The Key to My Heart

First of all, Hi! Blogging has been difficult lately and I miss it like I would miss peanut butter and chocolate ice cream if they took it off the market. So many sad happy moments have occurred in the Summers home that I have failed to blog, but I'm sure it's not the end of the world.

When my little sister Megan was 16 she had a tumor removed from her brain, it was a difficult time in our family. She now is healthy, married and expecting her first baby in March. Since the surgery she has experienced some side effects, one of them being the lack of remembering dreams. Weird huh? Although I would love to forget many a dream I have had, namely any involving snakes or the boogie man.

A few weeks ago Meg had a dream that she remembered, this dream has led to being the best present I could have received this Christmas. In her dream Duane came to her and handed her a huge wade of cash. He told her to go to James Avery(jewelry store) and buy the Key To My Heart. When she woke up the next morning she was 1. amazed that she had remembered a dream and 2. not quite sure what the Key To My Heart at James Avery was. That day she received her James Avery catalog, being an avid charm bracelet lover, flipped to the charm section first. And there in the catalog was a charm, this very charm at the top of the screen, and the one present this year that has made me cry tears of joy and sorrow.

The Key To My Heart! I held the key to Duane's heart, that was spoken to me loud and clear, thanks to my little sister's dream, not just any dream, a visit from my love. To solidify even more the reality of this present, that very day, according to my mom I was doubting(yes, I know, how could I) Duane's love for me. I was being a silly billy, worrying that when he had his eyes opened he would realize how one sided our marriage was, well at least that's what I worried. He did so much for me, more than I really thought, and now that he was gone I was so regretful of not thanking him more. I worried that he would think "Man was I duped by that woman.", so that night Megan had her dream, my mom bought the charm for Duane, and I now hold the key to Duane's heart.

This Christmas will be memorable for some good and sad reasons, and I have to admit the good were great! I love you Duane, I love you all!

Random Smiles With Miss Em

You know, I'm not EVEN going to pretend that smiling and having fun is at the top of my list lately, for some odd reason it's actually been an effort to squeeze a chuckle or crack a smile(that sounds a little like 12 year old boy humor, sorry). Emma has made made it a tad bit easier to smile that frown away.

Example number one, her strong desire as of late to go into the sanitation industry. She has a fascination for the trash, playing in it, eating from it(yes Emma adjacent to trash is still trash), and her new career choice, carting it around like the trash woman she longs to be. So proud Em, so proud!

Examples number two and three, Captain Underpants!

Sorry Danielle, I think Emma is now the new Fashionista. She loves to get dressed and undressed, well undressed definitely comes before dressed. The girl would be naked 24/7 if her mother would let her. Panties over her clothes is her new fashion statement, and she wears it like that often. Dear sweet Emma, thanks for the chuckles and smiles, it feels good.

To Be Or Not To Be.....Thankful That Is

Lately my youngest children have become the squishy tushy squad or other words a bunch of bum squeezing little preverts! At first is was funny, well actually really funny. They, and I guess I should clarify, they does include 5 children at one point or another that has squished a tush (my bookend children are completely Innocent), they are completely running ramped now. An intervention is now underway. But my point was that I told myself this was the one time in there life that they could pinch Mrs. Fell's bum and get away with it. They were grieving, acting strange, just not themselves. And yes, I have to say I still know that this is the main reason for the prevert flare-up.

So I was thinking about Thanksgiving. To be or not to be the old widow Summers, bitter to the world for the lot she had been given. Grouchy, crotchety, walking around with a cane whacking little children upside the head with it(hmmm, I do like that idea!). This was my one year that I could get away with having the widow Summers take over and no one would really even bat an eye lash, except my children who would be suffering from blunt force trauma. I could do it. I should do it. Well, no actually I couldn't, I won't, and the immortal words of Hannah "I shan't!" I love my family way to darn stinkin' much to do that to them.

I am so Thankful, yes, I am so Thankful for the so many little someones I have in my life. Each one of my babies have been a blessing from my Father in Heaven. They save me every single day, and I relish those moments that they need a little saving themselves.

I am so Thankful for the 15 years of marriage that Duane and I had, the love that we shared, the best friend that he was.

I am so Thankful for my Savior Jesus Christ and the comfort and peace he has granted me these first few weeks of my new life without Duane.

I am so Thankful for my family for the support they have given me and the children, even though they are mourning just as much, they have been selfless, thank you!

I am so Thankful to all my friends and church family for tirelessly coming to our aid whenever we need help.

Happy Thanksgiving, I love you all!