Better than Robert Redford Cake

I bet you are intrigued by the title. Before we get to that, Happy October. September flew by as has all these months and weeks, haha.

This week we’re trying a new recipe. My mom found it in her recipe box. She first made this about 20 years ago and it is a recipe of my grandmother. We are making Better than Robert Redford cake. This cake involves pudding, chocolate, and whipped cream. It also has five layers of goodness.

I’m making this cake a little differently. It does take a little while as there are a few steps so I started yesterday and will show you what I have so far and then share with you the rest and the finished product next week. I want to have the cake ready for Friday so two days in advance is pretty good for timing.

So here we go…

For the crust part of the cake you will need…

1 cup of flour

1 cup of crumbled graham wafer crumbs or chopped walnuts (your choice; we have a nut allergy)

½ cup of melted butter

Mix all these things together and then press in a buttered 13x9 pan and bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes.

                                                         

Allow to cool and cover before refrigerating.

I also did the pudding in advance. It is instant pudding that you have to use but I always worry about things setting.

So you’re not going to quite follow the box instructions.

Make the puddings in two plastic sealable containers.

                                                      

For the vanilla, use two of the big 153 gram boxes and add two cups of milk. Whisk for two minutes then put in the fridge.

                                   

                                             

The chocolate pudding comes in a 170 gram box so use two of those and add the same amount of milk and whisk and put that in the fridge as well.

                                              

That’s part one. Come back next week to see the finished product. 

Sweetheart Cheesecake

I can’t believe that another month has already flown by. It’s June in a few days! All the days have really been blending together and now with the kitchen being worked on, it seems like it has been a very long time since I last baked anything or had a kitchen to use.

A little while back, I think it was for Easter, I made my chocolate cheesecake, or Sweetheart cheesecake. I hadn’t made it in ages but I had a craving and I thought it might be a yummy dessert for an isolating Easter dinner and it definitely was. It was so good, yet another cake that I could eat for breakfast, haha. So take a look below and see how I made Sweetheart cheesecake and try one out while you isolate and to ring in the month of June!  

Sweetheart Cheesecake Recipe

Crust:

1 cup of graham wafers

3-3  ½ tsp. of cocoa powder

2 tbsp. of sugar

3-3 ½ tsp. of melted butter

Filling:

3 pkgs. (250g) of cream cheese

1 cup of sugar

3eggs

½ cup of cocoa powder

Whipping cream for the top

Combine the crumbs along with the sugar, butter, and cocoa. 

Mix well and press into 1.5 l spring form pan. I suggest lining the bottom with parchment paper first.

Now in your mixer, beat the cream cheese until smooth. Then beat in the sugar gradually.

Now add in the eggs one at a time at a low speed.

Add in cocoa and beat until smooth.

Pour into the prepared pan and bake at 325 degrees for about 40 minutes. It usually take a few minutes longer. You want it to be moist-ish but not dry and cracked. Mine does always tend to crack but I hide it with whipped cream and it’s fine.

Allow it to cool. I like to make this the day before. This cake is best served nice and cold. You can top it with whipped cream and berries (strawberries and raspberries are the best). I also added on some white chocolate shavings for an extra added touch.

Caramel Apple Slices

Today is Halloween and our last apple post as well. Our final apple post is a yummy one, we’re doing a variation of the caramel apple which is quite fitting as caramel apples remind me of Halloween. We’ve tried a sliced dipped apple with toppings that you can dip your apple in. You can try so many different variations and toppings. Check out our apple dipping Friday night...

First of all we sliced up some Granny Smith apples in some good bite sized slices.

We got some bamboo skewers; you can also just dip or use a fork as well.

We found some toppings and for fun we put them in muffin wrappers in a muffin tin. You can also put the toppings in little bowls or ramekins as well.

For toppings we decided on chocolate chips, mini marshmallows, ground Graham crackers, crushed pretzels, sprinkles, and crushed Oreos. We also melted some white chocolate and made some caramel sauce and went to town! 

Thanksgiving Dessert - Pumpkin Pie Cheesecake Bars

Thanksgiving dinner is right around the corner and if you have a big dinner to attend and need a dessert to bring along, then we have something so yummy for you to try.

Pumpkin is a typical ingredient to have in Thanksgiving dinner dessert. Whether you make a pie of some sort, cookies, or even a cake that flavour, it is usually present. We found a really delicious sounding pumpkin pie cheese cake bar recipe. There’s a little more time that goes into this so you want to make it when you have time to spare and to properly focus on making the different layers. We made the bars into cake size as they were quite thick and more like a piece of cake. We know this one was a hit as people who aren’t huge pumpkin fans even enjoyed it and asked for more.

Pumpkin Pie Cheesecake Bars

You will need...

Crust:

1 ½ cups of graham wafer crumbs

3 Tbsp. of sugar

5 Tbsp. of melted butter

For the crust mix the graham wafer crumbs with the sugar and the butter and coat evenly. Press into an 8x8 inch foil lined pan. Set aside.

Cheesecake Layer:

1 brick of cream cheese (8 oz.)

¼ cup of sour cream

1/3 cup of sugar

½ tsp. of vanilla

2 eggs

For this layer you will need to pull out your mixer.

Beat the softened cream cheese, sour cream, sugar, and the vanilla until smooth.

Add in the eggs one at a time until mixed.

Pour this layer over the crust and bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes. We kept it in for the full amount of time and then some because the cream cheese layer wasn’t setting as it should.

After it’s all set and cooked, allow it to cool and then you can either refrigerate overnight or you can make your next layer right away. We opted to allow it to cool in the fridge overnight and then when we had more time the next day, we made out next layer and completed the dessert.

Pumpkin Layer:

3 egg yolks

15 oz. (just under 2 cups) of pureed pumpkin

½ cup of packed brown sugar

½ cup of milk

½ tsp. of salt

2 tsp. of cinnamon

½ tsp. of vanilla

1 envelope of unflavoured gelatin

¼ cup of cold water

¼ cup of sugar

3 egg whites

Pinch of cream of tartar

This layer requires a bit more time.

First of all, separate the 3 eggs. Combine the yolks, pumpkin, brown sugar, milk, salt, and cinnamon in a medium saucepan. Cook on medium heat, whisking every few minutes. Do this for 10 minutes or if you have a thermometer, until it reaches 160 degrees. Remove from the heat and whisk in the vanilla.

In a microwave safe bowl or measuring cup, sprinkle the packet of gelatin over the cold water. Allow it to stand for a minute and then put in the microwave for 30 seconds or until the gelatin has dissolved. I had to put ours in for an extra 30 seconds. Stir it into the pumpkin mixture and set aside.

Now for the next step. Prepare a double boiler. Bring a medium sized pot to a boil. In the metal mixing bowl of your mixer, combine the sugar, egg whites, and cream of tartar. Beat it for 30 seconds. Now take the bowl and place it on the top of the pot of boiling water to make your double boiler. Make sure the bowl doesn’t touch the water. Whisk constantly (you can use an electric hand mixer if you have one) for 7-9 minutes or until it’s stiff and glossy. Remove it from the heat and continue to beat for another 1-2 minutes.

Finally fold the egg white mixture into the pumpkin mixture and spread evenly over the cooled/cold cheesecake layer. Put in the fridge uncovered for 1 hour and then cover for another 3 hours after that or until you see that it’s firm.

Slice and garnish with whipped cream and a sprinkle of cinnamon if you like and enjoy the yummy pumpkin cheesecake goodness!