Bourbon Balls for Mama Jill

So, if you live in Kentucky, it is a MUST that you have tasted Bourbon Balls! What better way to taste then to make them yourself? You can put them on top of a cheesecake as my mom requested for her birthday. Or... my husband requests a giant Bourbon Ball to be his birthday cake in February... We have some obsessed ppl here. Good reason. They are delicious!

2Bit wanted to get these absolutely perfect since it is for a Birthday! So in my research, some major distinctions were discovered from quite the snobby, bourbon ball purists. 2Bit found that some Kentuckians are quite particular about Kentucky Bourbon Balls being made ONLY one certain way. Well, some things 2Bit loves to be pure about, but not about FAT. The "one and only way " to make Kentucky Bourbon Balls happens to add pure fat to 2Bit's booty. So, I decided to try both the common recipes and see if there was any remarkable difference between the renowned, traditional recipe and the less fattening one. (But I halved both recipes)They are both featured on the cheesecake. For the record, our handsome guinea pig, Aj, actually liked the less fattening one.

Less Fattening and JUST as Delish: 1 c. chopped pecans 2 c. crushed Vanilla wafers  1 c. powdered sugar 2 tbsp cocoa powder( 2Bit omitted from this recipe) 1/2 c. bourbon  2 tbsp. alaga syrup (or corn syrup) 18 oz semi-sweet chocolate chips (Adapted from http://southernfood.about.com/od/bourbonballs/r/bl81212f.htm) -Mix the powdered sugar, ground wafers, chopped nuts.  Add the alaga syrup and bourbon. Mix well. Add more bourbon if necessary...(always necessary).. jk  OR  Kentucky Bourbon Ball recipe: 1 cup chopped nuts 5 tablespoons Kentucky bourbon 1/2 cup butter, softened 1 (16 ounce) package confectioners' sugar 18 oz semisweet chocolate (adapted from http://allrecipes.com//Recipe/kentucky-bourbon-balls/Detail.aspx)

-Mix the butter and sugar and chopped nuts. The recipe suggests soaking the chopped nuts in bourbon overnight before adding them to the mix. 2Bit did not, however.

Mix well and if need be, add more bourbon. If you add too much, just add more powdered sugar.

Perfect consistency. Put the bowl in the fridge so it will firm up.

-Once the inside has cooled enough to mold without disintegrating, form in 3/4" balls and you can refrigerate for a couple more hours so they are REALLY firm for dipping. 2Bit is too impatient to wait for a second refrigerating. But they were still plenty cold to dip. 

-Melt the chocolate chips however you want, whether it's in the microwave or in the double boiler on the stove. Regardless of what recipe you choose for the inside of the bourbon ball, the outsides is pretty standard. Stab the balls with a small knife and dip in the chocolate. 

-Once you have dipped the bourbon balls in the chocolate, use the fork slot to pull it off of the knife, onto the wax paper.

-Set each ball on wax paper and before it has cooled, gently press the pecan on top.

-In the white bowl is the less fattening version. :) It's brown b/c of the vanilla wafers and more nuts.

Caramel Apple Cheesecake

Oh baby baby. All of you 2bits are in for a treat today! If you want a taste of heaven, well first you need to accept Jesus as your savior, but if you want a taste of heaven while here on earth, still accept Jesus as your savior and then make this cheesecake! Mmm mmmm.

2Bit had a VIP's birthday to celebrate, her super amazing sister and favorite person in the world, Bonnie. Bonnie requested cheesecake as her birthday cake, and 2bit went to work looking for the best cheesecake money could buy- not really it just sounded good. I was a little bit nervous because I have never made a cheesecake before, which is pretty ridonculous because it has been my favorite form of dessert since I was a wee one. But mama 2bit makes a delicious cheesecake; so there was never a need for me to dabble in the fine art of cheesecake making. Any hoo... as I scoured the internet to find an appealing recipe, I saw the beautiful words- caramel, apple, cheesecake. I was sold.. Mmm mmm mmm. I can't emphasize the mmmm enough.

My main problem with this cheesecake is all of the butter, in total around 1 1/2 sticks. I tried to decrease where possible, but my rule for birthday cakes is that I would rather it taste good than experiment with the fat content because when it comes down to it, you need the fatty stuff to make it taste good. BUT next time I will definitely skimp a little more to see what I can get away with. I don't think you can skimp on the crust, but I did try to skimp any where else butter was called for. Next time friends, I skimp even more...

Adapted from Annie's Eats: http://www.stumbleupon.com/su/2tYgAA/annies-eats.com/2009/10/26/caramel-apple-cheescake-pie/

Caramel Apple Cheesecake:

First, get a 9 inch springform pan and place doubled aluminum foil on the bottom. Don't be intimidated by its circular or springy nature, it is not difficult to use. The aluminum foil will keep any water from leaking into the pan when you bake the cake.

FOR THE CRUST:

1½ cups graham cracker crumbs (about 8.5 sheets o' grahams)2 ½  tbsp. sugar
½ tsp. cinnamon
5 1/3 tbsp. unsalted butter, melted

½ cup chopped pecans (optional) 

FOR THE CHEESECAKE FILLING:
3 8oz. cream cheese

~1 cup sugar
3 tsp. vanilla extract
3 large egg
3 tbsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice

FOR THE APPLE FILLING:
3 tbsp. unsalted butter
½ cup light brown sugar, tightly packed
¼ tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon

1 tsp -1 tbl of almond milk
5-6 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored and thinly sliced

FOR THE CARAMEL SAUCE:

½ c heavy whipping cream (next time will do ¼ heavy cream and ¼ almond milk)

½ c packed light brown sugar

4 tbl butter

Dash vanilla (1/2 – 1 tsp)

Light dash of salt (not even ¼ tsp)

½ tsp corn starch (optional)

Directions:
To make the crust, preheat the oven to 375° F.  Grease the bottom and sides of the springform pan. Place the springform pan into a baking sheet with raised edges (you will be adding water to it later). In a medium mixing bowl, combine the graham cracker crumbs, sugar, cinnamon and melted butter. Toss with a fork until all the crumbs are moistened and the ingredients are evenly mixed.  Transfer the mixture to the prepared springform pan and press the crumbs in an even layer over the pan bottom and as much as you can up the sides of the pan.  Bake for 6-8 minutes, until golden in color.  Let cool for about 10 minutes. Sprinkle evenly with the chopped pecans.  Refrigerate the crust while you prepare the filling.

I tried to do skimp on the butter here, but you need the crust to have enough butter so that it sticks together and sticks to the pan. But I did skimp on the sugar a tad since I knew that the party is in the caramel and the filling, both of which have plenty of sugar to make up for any lack in the crust.

Look at that delicious golden brown color..

I put pecans on only 1/2 of the crust in case someone was allergic to nuts. However, I had no way of telling which side had the pecans on it and which side didn't; so luckily no one had allergies.

Next, make the apple filling (it takes a little time), melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. (You can skimp on the butter even more than I already have here if you so choose because the apples don't really need that much).  Mix in the brown sugar, salt and cinnamon and cook for 1 minute, until bubbling.  Mix in the apple slices and toss well to coat.  Cook over medium to medium-high heat until tender and most of the liquid has been reduced, about 15-20 minutes. This will smell oooooh soooo yummy. Remove from the stove and let cool.

I used 4 apples because it seemed like a lot of apples and I didn't want it to overwhelm the cream cheese filling, which is my favorite part. But the apples really do reduce a lot in size once the water is brought out of them through this boiling process. Next time I would add 5 apples, or maybe even 6 if I am feeling extra appley.

Waft your hands toward this picture and you can potentially smell the deliciousness.

While the apples are cooking, let's make the cheesecake filling! Hoorah for cheesecake filling. It deserves many a hoorah, especially when it's smooth and creamy, like this one. Combine the cream cheese and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer and beat on medium speed until smooth, about 1 minute. Mix in the vanilla, egg and lemon juice until well blended.  Spread the cheesecake filling into an even layer over the top of the crust. 

The filling is so easy and a winner. It's exactly what you want in a cheesecake filling- creamy and thick. 2bit doesn't like when it's fluffy. Fluffy filling is baby's play, and 2bit is a woman :)

Take the apple mixture and spoon evenly onto the top of the cream cheese mixture. Try to think of the apple mixture as a blanket and the cream cheese filling as a cold child, you want to cover the cold child up with the warm blanket! No white spaces,. 2bit knows you liked that creepy analogy. 

Oh look at that warm cheesecake child.

Place a little bit of water into the baking sheet, enough to keep it moist while cooking. Cook in the oven at 350 for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes turn down the oven to 250 degrees and bake for another two and a half hours.

2Bit thinks it's time that you were all made aware of what 2Bit Joy has to work with when she cooks and what she means when she describes her oven as a fiery furnace (salted caramel cake).

This is the inside, it looks kinda old school, right?

You would be incorrect, it IS VERY old school. Please ignore the mess atop the stove.

It's almost unfortunate that it's so sturdy. I can't say I haven't wished it would break so that we would be forced to get a new one. 

But then I realize that it is actually kind of awesome. I mean, it has an outlet on top, a clock that looks like a speedometer, and you push the buttons to turn the burners on. You won't find these feature in the fancy new appliances out there.

 While the cheesecake is baking, it's time to make the caramel!! Combine the butter, heavy whipping cream, almond milk (if you don't have almond milk, just use whatever milk product you use because it will be much less fatty than whipping cream) and brown sugar in a saucepan. Stir together and add the vanilla and salt. Bring to a boil over medium to high heat. Once boiling turn to medium heat and keep low boil until it thickens, around 8 minutes. You can add the cornstarch if you fear it is not thickening enough. Once it cools, it will thicken; so don't be discouraged if at first it seems runny.Remove from burner and cool. Refrigerate until you are ready to pour over the cheesecake, which you should do the day of serving the cheesecake. 

The cheesecake is done when the outer part is firm and the center is slightly soft. Take out of the oven and let it cool on a rack. Once cooled you can cover and refrigerate. Once cooled, pour cooled caramel on top. Serve with a smile and give to your beautiful sister.

We all thought it smelled pretty yummy.

Bonnie kept trying to get us to smell the lid since "it smelled so good." I am pretty sure she was just smelling the cake.

Don't forget to make a wish, Bo Bo! Your wish comes true if you blow out all of the imaginary candles!

2Bit Cara says booyah dance dance revolution.

Tofu Tacos

Tofu is high in protein, low in fat and something everyone should experience, unless you are allergic to soy...

Don't freak out when you read, "tofu." Tofu is exciting, ok?!! Firstly, if you are imagining meat when you bite into it, you may be a little disappointed. Secondly, tofu is "exciting" because it can be described as a "blank canvas just waiting for the application of a variety of texture and color." As corny as it sounds, it's true. So, explore your tofu world.

What You'll Need:

-1 14 oz. package extra firm tofu

-Whole grain taco shells

-1/2 onion, diced

-2 tbsp garlic

-2-3 tbsp olive oil

-1/2 can black beans, rinsed

-1 packet of taco seasoning (low sodium)

-1 tsp cayenne

-1 tsp chili powder

For garnishing:

-shredded pepper-jack cheese

-avacado

-salsa

2Bit prefers "extra firm" tofu because it holds shape better. But always try to use whatever  the recipe suggests. 

Tofu is stored in water, so you have to soak up a lot of excess water by patting it dry with paper towels before cooking. The more dry it is, the less it will disintegrate when cooked.

Mash the tofu with a potato masher... 

...so that it breaks apart to simulate ground meat. Leave pretty big chunks though, so that it does not crumble apart too much when sauteeing.


Sautee onion, garlic, olive oil and taco seasoning for a couple minutes before adding tofu.

Meanwhile put taco shells in oven for 3-5 minutes and flip shells half way into baking time.

Add black beans and if you have time to cook rice, you could add that too. 2Bit added some left over tomato sauce, but would not recommend doing that as the moisture kinda crumbled the tofu more than preferred. Still yummy though!!

They turned out delicious! You don't trust 2Bit? Well, Aj, our male guinea pig ate three, and he even said just last week, verbatim, "I will never like tofu." So, I have made it my goal to make tofu dishes that even he will like! (Love you, honey bun!) Top with cheese, salsa, avocado, sour cream -whatever you like! 

Granola

This is a healthy version of granola but STILL addicting!! So...give most of it away as gifts, or else you will consume it all within the first 24 hours! Whether you snack on it or have it as cereal (2Bit's fav), we guarantee you will love it.

What You'll Need:

-5 c. oats

-1/2 c. whole wheat flour

-1 tsp cinnamon

-1/3 c honey

-1/2 c. natural peanut butter

-1/2 c. safflower/vegetable oil

-1 tsp vanilla extract

-2 tbsp molasses (not in pic)

-1/4 c. alaga syrup (also not shown...my BAD)

-1/2 c. semi-sweet choc. chips

-1/4 c. each of raisins, dried apricots(chopped) and/or dried cherries

-1/4 c. coconut

(Recipe adapted from Wycliffe International Cookbook)

 Granola is one of those things where you can be creative and add what YOU like... I have made it again since this time and I added flax seeds and pecans...just as delish!

Chop the nuts to your preference.

Or crush them, like with a mortar and pestle... You want one; you need one- oh baby, oh baby! 

Measure out your dry ingredients and combine.

 

Nuts, flour, oats, cinnamon, coconut... If you want, you can wait to add the coconut with the dried fruit half way into the baking, to ensure it doesn't burn.

2Bit does less oil so that more peanut butter can be added. We heart the beloved PB!

Whisk yo wet ingredients together.

Combine the two.

Now it's ready to bake for 30 minutes at 350. Stir occasionally. The recipe suggests adding the dried fruit after the granola has baked, but 2Bit loves when the fruit is nice and chewy, so 15 minutes into the baking, add the dried fruit. And at the end add the chocolate chips.

Deep cookie sheets are best, but 2Bit is in dire need of some good cookie sheets, so these aluminum pans worked just fine...Enjoy!