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Mini Frozen Key Lime Cheesecakes

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Adapted from an Epicurious Recipe by Katherine Sacks
Mini Frozen Key Lime Cheesecakes

Mini Frozen Key Lime Cheesecakes

Makes approx. 24 mini muffin pans and 20 mini dessert cups

Mise En Place

  • 5 tablespoons salted butter
  • 1 tablespoon honey
  • 1 cup graham cracker crumbs
  • 1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
  • 1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
  • 3 tablespoons finely grated lime zest, divided
  • ⅓ cup fresh lime juice or key lime juice
  • 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
  • ¾ cup chilled heavy cream
  • 2 tablespoons powdered sugar
  • 1 package of Whip It® stabilizer or 1 Tablespoon of Non-Fat Skim milk powder
Special Equipment

Mini 12-cup muffin pans and/or 20 mini dessert/wine glasses

Mini Frozen Key Lime Cheesecakes

Melt butter and honey in a small saucepan over medium heat or in a microwave-safe bowl. Place cracker crumbs into a small bowl and drizzle in butter-honey mixture over top graham cracker crumbs stir in until well combined; set aside.

Using an electric mixer on high speed, beat cream cheese in a large bowl until creamy, about 3 minutes. Add condensed milk and beat until smooth. Add lime juice and lemon juice and beat to combine. Beat in 2 Tbsp. lime zest.

Using a whisk or electric mixer on medium-high speed, whip cream in another medium bowl to very soft peaks. Sprinkle powdered sugar over cream and Whip It® and continue to whip until it holds stiff peaks. Gently fold ½ of the whipped cream into the lime mixture; cover remaining cream and chill.

Line mini muffin pans with paper liners. Pour key lime mixture into a pastry bag or plastic bag with the corner snipped off and pipe batter evenly into tins. Top each with approx. 1 ½ Tbsp. cracker crumb mixture, breaking up crumbs to completely cover, then press down gently to adhere. Cover with plastic wrap and freeze until set, at least 3 hours.

Remove pies from molds, turn upside down, and remove paper liners. Spread or pipe reserved cream over pies and sprinkle the tops with evenly with the remaining key lime zest.

Please note that the desserts in this form thaw very quickly.

So for a recent “Nuit Blanche” outdoor dinner party, I made the dessert in the mini plastic wine glasses picture below. I layered the ingredients in the wine glasses and froze. In the glasses, the dessert did not thaw as quickly and was very elegant to pass around at the party. It was a HUGE hit and I would definitely make again.

Mini Frozen Key Lime Cheesecake in Dessert Cup

Mini Frozen Key Lime Cheesecake in Dessert Cup

Mini Frozen Key Lime Cheesecakes

Mini Frozen Key Lime Cheesecakes

Tip: Do Ahead the Mini Cheesecakes (without topping) can be made 2 weeks ahead; cover and freeze.

Instagram picture from Nuit Blanche of Mini Frozen Key Lime Cheesecakes

Elegant Dessert for Summer Dinner Party

Thanks to my friend and fabulous photographer @lanakanis for always being there with tips and tricks for my pictures.

Circulon® Double Non-Stick Roaster

Circulon® Roaster Pan Review and Giveaway

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Roasting pans have been my nemesis in the past so when Ethan from Food Bloggers of Canada approached me to review a Circulon® Roaster was a little leery.

WHY was I leery? Early on in my 20-year marriage, I received a hand-me-down midnight blue enamel-roasting pan. You know THAT pan! And the experience was horrible. From the uneven cooking, foreign burnt bits and the clean up. No matter how much I washed this roasting pan, it just never seemed to be cleaned.

After many frustrating experiences…it was donated to someone else to love or hate! 😜

In My Best Roast Turkey for Thanksgiving Dinner post I swear by the disposable aluminum roasting pans that will only set you back a few dollars. Easy clean up…recycling bin.

This is a great opportunity for readers and myself (hint: giveaway) and it would be foolish to pass it up. Circulon®, is a global leader and innovator in the hard anodized non-stick cookware segment since 1985. This is made possible by Circulon’s Total nonstick system, a patented hi-low circular groove technology that enhances non-stick durability. The system promotes a healthy lifestyle by delivering high performance food release without the need to cook with oils and fats.

I was given the choice between two different roasting pans. Both were non-stick. One included a roasting rack and the other was bright red and two pans. I decided to review the Circulon® Double Non-Stick Red Roaster.

A large package arrived but it was super light for the size. I was worried that the roasting pans would be “cheap”. DEAD WRONG!

It is beautifully constructed with sturdy handles, non-stick with these interesting ridges built into the bottom of each pan. One pan is deeper than the other and the ridges are different configurations in each pan.

This unique cooking surface protects three layers of top quality DuPont Autograph® non-stick by reducing surface abrasion from cooking utensils, guaranteeing long-lasting nonstick that won’t scratch, stain or chip. Roaster pan is induction cooktop suitable, oven and dishwasher safe, and comes with a lifetime guarantee.

Look at how PRETTY it is!

Circulon® Double Non-Stick Roaster
Circulon® Double Non-Stick Roaster View of Interior Ridges
Circulon® Double Non-Stick Roaster Interior View of Ridges and Sturdy Handles
Circulon® Double Non-Stick Roaster Deeper Pan
Circulon® Double Non-Stick Roaster

Circulon® Double Non-Stick Roaster

FEATURES
  • Total Non-Stick System
  • Carbon Steel Construction
  • Oven Safe to 450°F/230°C
  • Lid Doubles as a Second Roaster
  • PFOA, Lead and Cadmium Free
  • Red Exterior Finish
  • 18 in. (45 cm)

Since the pan arrived so close to Thanksgiving, I decided to jump feet first and use the deeper Circulon® roaster pan for our turkey dinner. Risky! I also decided not to use a roasting rack because the ridges in the bottom of the pan are for that and who wants another thing to wash after a long day of cooking. I placed my mirepoix for my gravy in the bottom of the pan and the bird on top.

Results were amazing. It definitely reduced my cooking time, as the constant heat from a “real” pan was much better than my alternative choice of an aluminum pan.

The best part was that all the brown bits, drippings and turkey goodness that were in the bottom of this amazing pan. And the non-stick coating was truly non-stick. Although it is not recommended, I did place the roasting pan at a medium-low setting on my gas burners and made my gravy. Clean up was a breeze.

The Circulon® Roaster pan has been in full use in my kitchen. Here are some pictures of the recent dinners using the shallower Circulon® Roaster.

Stuffed Chicken breast with Roasted Potatoes and Shallots.
Mini Potatoes, Shallots and Rosemary in Circulon® Roaster
Stuffed Chicken Breast with Roasted Mini Potatoes and Shallots in Circulon® Roaster
Stuffed Chicken Breasts with Mini Roasted Potatoes and Shallots
Chicken Paprikash with Red Peppers and Mini Potatoes.
Mini Potatoes, Red Peppers and Onions in Circulon® Roaster
Roasted Chicken Breasts with Mini Potatoes, Red Peppers and Onions in Circulon® Roaster
Roasted Chicken Paprikash with Mini Potatoes, Red Peppers, Zucchini and Onions
Meat and Vegetarian Stuffed Peppers.
Meat and Vegetarian Stuffed Peppers in Circulon® Roaster
Meat and Vegetarian Stuffed Peppers in Circulon® Roaster
Meat and Vegetarian Stuffed Peppers in Circulon® Roaster
Meat and Vegetarian Stuffed Peppers
Roasted Beef Bones for Beef Stock.
Beef Bones in Circulon® Roaster

Roasted Beef Bones for Beef Stock in Circulon® Roaster

PROS

  • Two Pans in different depths
  • Non-Stick coated pan
  • Ridged Bottom
  • Strong Well Constructed Pan with Sturdy Handles
  • Great Deep Size for Roasting a Large Bird or Beef
  • Easy Clean Up

CONS

  • Size is very large which is great for a large bird or roast, it would be great if Circulon® develop a smaller roaster for little birds 😉Hint hint
  • Not recommended for open flame

Would I recommend the Circulon® Double Non-Stick Roaster pan? Definitely YES!

Circulon Double Non-Stick Roaster Pan is available at Canadian Tire Stores and the double roaster is $169.99 but it is 70% off this week. BONUS! It would be the perfect purchase for your festive Christmas dinner to cook your roast or turkey.

Disclosure: This blog post is sponsored by Circulon®. I was compensated with the product. All opinions and experiences are my own.

A Circulon® Skillet GIVEAWAY!

My first giveaway on my blog WooHoo!

This giveaway is open to all legal residents of Canada who have reached the age of majority at the time of the contest in the province or territory in which they reside (void where prohibited) No purchase necessary to enter. Odds of winning depend on the number of entries received.

Giveaway will run from Thursday December 3, 2015 at 12:01am to Thursday December 17, 2015 at 12:01am. Winner will be contacted via email and his/her name will be displayed on the Rafflecopter widget. Your email address will only be used to contact you if you win.

Please read the full terms and conditions in Rafflecopter widget. Entry in this giveaway constitutes your acceptance of these rules. Thanks to Circulon® for sponsoring the skillet prize for this giveaway!

A Circulon Skillet giveaway is now closed!

Thanks to all the participants

The winner of the Circulon® Skillet is….

CONGRATS TO

Darlene D. from My Little House of Treasures 

I hope that you enjoy your new Skillet from Circulon® !

Let’s Cook Chicken in Milk! Really?

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As I spent the weekend browsing through the food blogs and Instagram accounts that I follow, I came across the mention of Jamie Oliver’s infamous recipe for “Chicken in Milk” as the best chicken dish they had ever tasted.

Chicken cooked in Milk!? Really?

When you look at the components of the recipe it is quite a peculiar combination. Lemons, cinnamon, sage and milk.

OK Lets do this….

Chicken in Milk Recipe

Prep: approx. 15 min
Cook: 1 hr 40 min

Adapted from Chicken in Milk | Chicken Recipes | Jamie Oliver Recipes
Chicken in Milk served with mashed potatoes and sautéed spinach

Chicken in Milk served with mashed potatoes and sautéed spinach

Ingredients

Assembling the ingredients

Assembling the ingredients

  • 1 (3 pound/ 1.5 kilogram) whole chicken
  • Salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 1/4 cup of  butter or 4 tbsp of EV olive oil
  • 1/2 of chopped Sweet Vidalia onion
  • 1-2 cinnamon sticks
  • 1 good handful fresh sage, leaves picked
  • zest of 2 lemons
  • 10+ garlic cloves, peeled
  • 2 1/2 cups of skim milk

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F, and find a snug-fitting covered pot for the chicken. (I used my Oval French Oven | Le Creuset Canada )

Season the chicken very generously all over with salt and pepper, and fry it in the butter/olive oil, turning it to get an even colour all over, until golden.

The tasty goodness at the bottom of the pan can be used to lightly saute the onions.

Add the remaining ingredients and place your chicken back in the pot, and cook covered in the preheated oven for 1 hour.

Braised Chicken

Braised Chicken

Baste with the cooking juice when you remember. Cook under covered for the last 40 minutes of cooking.

The lemon zest will sort of split the milk, leaving little curds bathed in chicken juices, and not homogenized; this appearance is less appealing. Remove the cinnamon sticks, and used an immersion hand blender to make sauce infused with lemon and balanced with an aromatic flavour from the cinnamon and sage.

To serve, pull the meat off the bones and divide it on to your plates. Spoon over plenty of the lemony sauce over the chicken.

Serve with wilted spinach and some mashed potatoes. And a crusty baguette would be great to sop up the delicious sauce.

 

 

 

Chicken in Milk with sauteed Spinach, grilled Asparagus, smashed potatoes in a Lemony Corn Sauce

Chicken in Milk with sauteed Spinach, grilled Asparagus, smashed potatoes in a Lemony Corn Sauce

Tip: Make sure that you season the chicken very generously. Any extra time that you take to brown the chicken on ALL sides will embark more flavour in the end product. Try to achieve a deep golden colour on the skin.

The next time I make this I will also add the juice of 1 lemon for an added kick. 😉