Oreo Cheescake Cookies

Christmas is just around the corner! WOOOOOT!

That means I get to spend more time in the kitchen. LOL. Nothing beats baking and making money out of it. 

One of my best sellers are Oreo Cheesecake Cookies. I've found a good recipe on the internet but I've tweaked it a bit to suit my taste and my market. What I'll be sharing is the original recipe I found. Feel free to adjust/change according to your preference.


Oreo Cheesecake Cookies (yields 12-15 cookies)

Ingredients
1/2 cup unsalted butter at room temperature
3.5 oz cream cheese at room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup flour
1/2 cup mini chocolate chips
10 pieces Oreo cookies, crushed

Procedure

1. Preheat oven to 375F. Line baking sheet with parchment paper or silicon mat.
2. Crush Oreo cookies into fine crumbs using a food processor. 
3. In a bowl of a stand mixer fit with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and cream cheese until combined.
4. Add sugar and vanilla extract and mix until well incorporated.
5. Gradually mix in the flour. Stir in the chocolate chips.
6. Using a medium sized cookie scoop, scoop dough and form a ball with your hands.Roll on crushed
Oreo cookies.
7. Place on cookie sheet, 1 inch apart.
8. Bake for 12-15 minutes. When you see the edges starting to brown, it's time to take them out.
9. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes then transfer them to a wire rack.
10. Store in an airtight container for up to 5 days.


There. It takes about 35 minutes to get a batch done. I suggest you make double or even triple of the batch. One batch usually doesn't last long. Enjoy! :)

Jasmine Creme Caramel

Leche flan will always have a spot in my heart. Or tummy. Creamy, sweet goodness that I'll never get tired off. On one of those days when I impulse buy my baking stuff, I find myself craving for leche flan. So I made one. With a twist using my favorite jasmine tea. Here's the recipe for this light and delicate dessert. :)

Jasmine Creme Caramel
(Serves 6)

Custard Creme
1 cup milk
2 cups cream
2 bags jasmine green tea (you can substitute with whatever tea you like - I'd give earl grey a try next time)
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup sugar
3 egg yolks
2 eggs

Caramel
1/2 cup sugar
3 tablespoons water

First preheat your oven to 325 F.

Make the custard creme:

• Combine milk, cream, and tea bags in a medium saucepan and bring to a simmer. 
• Remove from heat and add vanilla; continue to steep for 5 to 10 minutes or until desired tea flavor is achieved.
• In a large bowl, whisk sugar, egg yolks, and eggs to blend. 
• Gradually whisk in hot milk mixture into egg mixture, taking care not to cook the eggs. (What I learned in the Maya Kitchen to avoid getting scrambled eggs: add about half of the hot liquid slowly, mix, then add the rest.)
• Using a fine sieve, strain into a pitcher or measuring cup. Set aside.

Make the caramel (please see note below):

• Place sugar and water in a saucepan over high heat. Bring mixture to a boil and let sugar dissolve without touching the mixture. (Don't be scared of the bubbles like I did. That's just the sugar dissolving.)
• Once mixture starts to turn pale golden, swirl the pan. Continue cooking until golden.
• Immediately remove from heat and portion on individual ramekins.

Preparing to bake:

• Pour custard creme into ramekins then put the ramekins in a large and deep baking pan.
• Make a bain-marie: Pour boiling water into the pan until it reaches halfway up the sides of the ramekins.
• Cover with aluminum foil. (Do not, I repeat, DO NOT MISS THIS. The steam will make your custard watery when you take it out.)
• Bake in a preheated 325ºF oven for about 20 to 30 minutes or just until custards are set. Remove, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 2 hours or up to 2 days.

Enjoy! :)

Note:

• If you are doing this in traditional llaneras, you can portion the sugar and water in the llaneras before heating.
• If you have ramekins, you can serve it as is. If you are using llaneras (or other baking pans like I did), run a knife on its sides and turn it upside down on a plate or serving dish.

Patricia Cooks: Goma (Sesame) Dressing

It's a rare occasion when I see people munching on salad a lot. In my opinion, people who have dined at Yabu are addicted to the Goma dressing. Yes, that creamy sesame dressing you top on your unlimited cabbage. Hence, people who don't even like to eat vegetables (Hi Eunice!) are actually eating a lot of cabbage because of the highly-addicting Goma dressing.

Seeing that my co-workers are actually marinating their cabbage in the dressing, I think it is safe to say that it is a good one. On a typical lunch out made up of four or five people, we can consume the whole bottle and even ask for more. I'd personally pass up on rice and trade it for cabbage. (I hope it doesn't cause any uric acid-related problems though.)

It fascinates me how a simple vegetable complements a full Japanese meal well. I have tried different Katsu sets from Yabu as well as their Katsudon and their cabbage and goma dressing combo has never failed me yet. The best thing about it is that it's refillable! And thankfully, cabbage is quite cheap in the local markets which is why I have taken a few of my kitchen ingredients and made my own Goma dressing!

The Goma dressing is actually easy to make and it has less than ten ingredients. This usually lasts about a week or two in the fridge, but I doubt you'd make it stay in there that long. :) This recipe is quite tangy, you can adjust it to be more creamy (increase mayonnaise).

Goma dressing goes with any veggie, but I prefer to eat it with cabbage, Yabu style, with Katsudon.

Goma Dressing (Toasted Sesame Dressing)

Ingredients:
2 Tbsp + 1 tsp toasted sesame seeds
2 Tbsp Japanese Mayonaise 
2 Tbsp Rice vinegar (if you can't find rice vinegar, cane vinegar works well too)
1 1/2 Tbsp soy sauce (I used low-sodium, like Kikkoman)
1 Tsp sugar (adjust if you like it sweet)
1/2 tsp mirin (or rice wine or you can just take it away from the recipe)
1/2 tsp sesame oil

Procedure:
1. Toast the sesame seeds. Watch here to learn when to tell it's done.
2. Using a mortar and pestle, grind the toasted sesame until smooth.
3. Combine all remaining ingredients in a bowl or a clean ketchup bottle. The dressing will last in the refrigerator for a week. Enjoy!

Isn't that easy? But you know what's easier? Buy ready made Kewpie roasted sesame dressing at the supermarket. Haha!