Fresh Lemon Cheesecake

It's now officially summer as of Friday. How'd that happen? My blog is stuck in winter still!

So, whatcha think? Fresh lemon cheesecake sound good?

One of my sisters has been asking for some kind of lime pie or cheesecake. We were out of limes, but she said lemon would do ;). With lemons on the counter and homemade goat cream cheese in the fridge, I was set to get creating!

Normally when I make cheesecake I don't really follow the rules - in other words, basically just throw everything together and bake it. It turns out good that way, but it's way better if you take a some extra steps.

1. Bring your ingredients to room temperature.
2. Beat very well (I used an electric mixture) so that it's nice smooth. I beat the cream cheese first, then add the other ingredients and beat more.
3. Bake it in a water bath. This ensures slow, even cooking.
4. Do not over-bake. When it is mostly set but still jiggly in the middle, it is done.
5. Turn off the oven and leave the cheesecake in the oven for 1 hour after it is done baking. I was unable to do this this time because there were other things in the oven, but I did leave it in the water bath so that it cooled slower.
6. Run a knife around the edge of the pan to prevent cracking.
7. Chill WELL before serving, overnight is recommended.
8. To slice, dip your knife in warm water and wipe dry before cutting each slice.

I was told by my friends and family that this was the best cheesecake I've ever made. So ya, it was a hit :).

Fresh Lemon Cheesecake
Recipe created by Hanunyah Fish
gluten-free, cow dairy-free, corn-free

3 cups (24 oz) homemade goat cream cheese, room temperature
1 cup sugar
4 eggs, room temperature
3 tablespoons GF flour (I used rice)
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
rind of 2 lemons, grated
your favorite pie crust, baked

Beat the cream cheese. Add the remaining ingredients and beat well. Pour into prepared pie crust and bake for 20-30 minutes, until mostly set but jiggly in the middle. Run a knife around the edge of the pan to prevent cracking. Turn off the oven and leave to cool for 1 hour. Remove from oven to refrigerator to cool completely. Dip a knife in warm water and wipe dry before slicing.

~ Hanunyah

Linked to Gluten-Free Wednesdays by The Gluten-Free Homemaker

Homemade Cereal Time!

Happy June! The weather is getting warm here, but with a few cool and rainy days still.

Yesterday my sister and I made some cereal. We don't buy it from the store, so we thought it'd be nice to make some and stock up. She made some granola and Cinnamon Squares.

That reminded me why I like to have a blog . . . I may have lost that cinnamon cereal recipe had I not put it on here. I created it over a year ago, and even though it was very good, I just . . . forgot about it for whatever reason. So, that poor recipe is now revived ;). We used all rice flour since we're out of the buckwheat.

I also made a variation of Nicole Hunn's Mini 'Nilla Wafer Cereal from her blog, Gluten Free On A Shoestring. They are just so cute :)! I did change it around a bit - first, I doubled the recipe because I just knew I should. We were out of vanilla . . . yes, vanilla, the key flavor in the little cookies. I used about 1/2 cup cream cheese for the double batch, just to help give it a little flavor. They turned out great, and were a hit (they are all gone). They were pretty soft (not a bad thing), which I'm sure is because I added cream cheese. They weren't as uniform as Nicole's . . . I need some work there :).

Here's some cute kids to brighten your day!

Hilarious little gal! Just taking a nap on mama.

Naptime on mom is the best! LOL.

Handsome boy.

Pretty doeling.

Peace,
~ Hanunyah

31 for 21: Cheesecake

In the summer when the goats were in high production (We have milk goats so little O can have milk), my sister Suriyah made (goat) cream cheese everyday for a little while. I made a cheesecake a day, different variations, for about a week.

Here's the base recipe I made, a simple cheesecake.

Cheesecake (Gluten-free, Cow Dairy-free)
Hanunyah Creation

2 cups goat cream cheese
2/3 cup sugar
3 eggs
2 tablespoons rice flour
1 teaspoon vanilla
gluten-free pie crust of your choice, baked and cooled

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

2. Mix all ingredients (besides crust) together well, but do no over mix. Pour into the pie shell.

3. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes. Cool well. Overnight in the refrigerator works best.


~ Hanunyah

31 for 21 is a blog challenge to raise Down Syndrome awareness 1 blog at a time. The challenge is to blog everyday the whole month of October (31 days) to raise awareness for Down Syndrome (aka Trisomy 21). This is the 6th Annual 31 for 21 Challenge.

Fruit & Carrot Spice Cake

This is why I named this blog what I did. This cake is a creation . . . . fruit, carrots and spices, topped with a cream cheese frosting, flax and poppyseeds seeds. After I baked it, I realized that I forgot to put sugar in it! It really doesn't need it anyway, with 3 cups of fruit.

    Since there are only a few things that aren't GAPS-legal in it I might make it again using almond flour.

Not everybody tasted this yet, but those who did liked it.

Fruit and Carrot Spice Cake (Gluten-free, Dairy-free, Corn-free, Sugar-free)

Hanunyah Creation

2 1/2 cups carrots, boiled and pureed*

3 cups fruit, pureed**

1/2 cup flaked coconut

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon almond extract

1 teaspoon lemon extract

1/2 cup lard

4 eggs

3 cups rice flour

2 teaspoons baking soda

1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Mix together the carrots, fruit, coconut, spices, extracts, lard and eggs. Add the flour and baking soda. Pour the vinegar over the baking soda. Beat well.

2. Pour into two greased 11 inch round baking pans, and bake at 350F for 20 to 25 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Notes:
*For the carrots - I used about 5 carrots. Cut both ends off of the carrots, and cut into thirds. Put in a pot and cover with water. Cover and bring to a boil on high heat. Boil until you can stick a fork all the way through. Strain and puree the carrots in the food processor. You may need to add some water to get it going.
**For the 3 cups fruit - I used 1 large apple, 1 large peach, 1 banana and 2 plums. I peeled the fruit, but I'm sure you could leave the skin on. Cut into chunks and puree in the food processor.

This was easy to make, and these were the only dishes I used (below).

~ Hanunyah

Featured on - Gluten-Free Wednesdays (by The Gluten-Free Homemaker)

Ricotta Cookies

These were a big hit today. I baked about 1/2 the batch, and put them on a plate on the table, and they disappeared!

Ricotta Cookies (Gluten-free, Cow Dairy-free, Corn-free)
Adapted from: Better Homes and Gardens Dessert Cookbook


2 cups sugar
1 cup lard
2 teaspoons extract (I used lemon)
3 eggs
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
4 cups rice flour
2 cups goat ricotta cheese
cream cheese, for frosting (optional)


1. Preheat oven to 350F. Combine the sugar and lard. Add the eggs and flavoring, and beat until creamy. Add the salt, baking soda and half of the flour. Add the remaining flour and the ricotta.

2. Drop the dough by tablespoons on lightly greased cookie sheets. Bake in the preheated oven for about 10 minutes, until lightly browned.


~ Hanunyah