Frozen Peanut Butter Pie

I have had many requests for this recipe.  Here it is:

 Crust:

•  12 Oreo cookies
• 2 Tbsp butter, melted

Crush Oreos, then mix with the butter, and press into your pie dish.  Refrigerate for about an hour before you add the filling.

 Filling:

• 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
• 1 cup creamy peanut butter
• 1 8-ounce package cream cheese, room temperature
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup Cool Whip
• 1 cup chilled whipping cream

 

Blend powdered sugar, peanut butter, cream cheese and vanilla in processor until smooth, occasionally scraping down sides of work bowl. Transfer mixture to large bowl. Beat cream in medium bowl to soft peaks. Fold cream into peanut butter mixture in 2 additions. Mix in the Cool Whip. Spoon peanut butter filling into crust and smooth top. 

Decorate any way you wish - pipe on extra Cool Whip, sprinkle with chopped, toasted peanuts and pistachios.  Add Toffifay chocolates or peanut butter cups.  Freeze pie until filling is firm, at least 3 hours. (Can be prepared 1 week ahead. Cover and keep frozen. Let stand room temperature 60 minutes before serving.)

Lemon Curd Marbled Cheesecake

Gourmet  | July 2006

Ingredients

For lemon curd:

• 1 teaspoon finely grated fresh lemon zest
• 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 3 large eggs
• 1/2 stick (1/4 cup) unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

For crust:

• 1 1/3 cups finely ground graham cracker crumbs (5 oz)
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 5 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

For filling:

• 3 (8-oz) packages cream cheese, softened
• 1 cup sugar
• 3 large eggs
• 3/4 cup sour cream
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• Special equipment: a 9- to 91/2-inch (24-cm) springform pan
• Accompaniment: blueberries

Make lemon curd:

Whisk together zest, juice, sugar, and eggs in a 2-quart heavy saucepan. Add butter and cook over moderately low heat, whisking frequently, until curd is thick enough to hold marks of whisk and first bubbles appear on surface, about 6 minutes.

Force lemon curd through a fine-mesh sieve into a wide shallow dish, scraping bottom of sieve, then cover surface with wax paper. Cool completely, stirring occasionally, about 30 minutes. 

Make and bake crust:

Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 350°F. Invert bottom of springform pan (to make it easier to slide cake off bottom), then lock on side. 3Stir together crust ingredients in a bowl, then press onto bottom and 1 inch up side of springform pan. Place springform pan in a shallow baking pan and bake 10 minutes, then cool crust completely in springform pan on a rack. 

 

Make filling and bake cheesecake:

Reduce oven temperature to 300°F.

Beat together cream cheese and sugar in a bowl with an electric mixer at medium speed until smooth, 1 to 2 minutes. Reduce speed to low and add eggs 1 at a time, beating until incorporated. Beat in sour cream and vanilla until combined.

Pour two thirds of cream cheese filling into crust, then spoon half of lemon curd over filling and swirl curd into filling with a small knife. (Avoid touching crust with knife to prevent crumbs getting into filling.) Repeat with remaining filling and curd.

Bake cheesecake until set 1 1/2 inches from edge but center trembles when pan is gently shaken, about 45 minutes. (Center of cake will appear very loose but will continue to set as it cools.) Transfer springform pan to a rack and immediately run a knife around top edge of cake to loosen. Cool completely, about 2 hours, then chill, uncovered, at least 4 hours. Remove side of springform pan before serving.

Cooks' Notes: ·Lemon curd can be made 1 week ahead and chilled, covered.
·Crust (without filling) can be made 1 day ahead and kept, covered, at room temperature.
·Cheesecake can be chilled, loosely covered, up to 2 days. Cheesecake must be completely chilled before covering to prevent condensation on its surface.

This is truly a wonderful cheesecake.

No Knead Rosemary Bread
3 cups bread flour
2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp active yeast, dissolved in 2 tsp water
1 1/2 cups water
2 Tbsp fresh rosemary

Mix flour and salt thoroughly, then add the yeast, the water, and the rosemary.  Mix with a spoon until combined.  Cover bowl with Saran Wrap and let rest 12 to 18 hours.

Turn dough over by hand, then let rest another 2 hours.
Take a Pyrex bowl with a lid and put in oven.  Turn oven temperature to 450 degrees F.

When the oven has reached 450 degrees, carefully remove the bowl.  Put dough into the (very hot) bowl and cover with the lid.  Bake for 30 minutes. Remove lid, and bake another 10 to 15 minutes until the bread is a nice golden brown.  Remove from oven and let cool.  It's delicious.