This cheesecake is creamy and moist and is very easy to cook. It doesn’t require a lot of cooking time and efforts.

I invented it many years ago and it’s my favorite, although I do love New York Juniors cheesecake as well.

For this recipe you don’t necessary need a spring form.

Cooking time: 40 minutes

Preparation time 30 minutes (not taking into the account the time in the freezer 2h optional, but not a must)

Serves 8 people

Ingredients:

Dough:

1.5 cup of self rising flour (sifted)

1/2 cups of sugar

1/2 stick of butter

1/2 cup of cooking oil

1 tablespoon of vanilla sugar or vanilla extract (3-4 drops)

1 tablespoon of baking powder

3 egg yolks

1 tablespoon of water

1 tablespoon of mayo

Filling

1.5 packages of cream cheese

3 egg whites

1/2 cup of sugar

1 cup of pumpkin (preferably boiled for 3 -5 minutes, then peeled and shredded, not pumpkin filling)

Preparation:

Take the cream cheese packets out of the fridge and set aside.

In a bowl, pour the sugar, 1 cup of flour and  cut 1/2 stick of butter. Mix everything with fork, trying to rub the butter with sugar and flour. Add vanilla sugar, baking powder and the rest of the flour (0.5 cup). Mix everything again very well. Add the cooking oil (I use the vegetable oil)

Separate the egg yolks from the egg whites . In a separate cup mix: the egg yolks with water and 1 tablespoon of mayo. Pour into the dough mixture and  mix all the ingredients with a fork, then with a hand, shaping a ball.

Put the dough ball in a freezer for 15 minutes.

Meanwhile prepare the filling:

Mix the egg whites with sugar and pulse it with mixer for 1 minute.

Cut the cream cheese and put it in a bowl with egg whites and sugar.

Mix everything very well with mixer for 3 minutes.

Add the shredded pumpkin that was precooked for 3 minutes, peeled and shredded.

Mix everything with mixer very well.

Baking

Take the dough out of the freezer.

Roll it out slightly, (not to the full shape), put the layer into the baking dish or spring form. (The form should be very well greased before putting the dough in it). Spread the dough with your hands around the form and extend the dough to the wall, thus forming the dough bowl for the cheese mixture.

Pour your cream cheese mixture inside and bake for 35 to 40 minutes at 350 F.

After the cheesecake is cooked, turn the heat off and leave it in the oven for additional 5-10 minutes so that it would cool off with the oven and not fall (because it should raise pretty well)

TAke the cheese cake out of the oven let it rest for some time and then take it out of the form.

I let the cake rest for another 10 minutes and then just turn the dish over an put it on the plate with cheese facing down. Then I take another plate and  cover the bottom of the cake and turn it around on another plate. (but you can use the spring form it’s simpler)

Decorating.

You may use whipping cream to decorate. or I used 3 egg yolks and 1/2 cup of sugar to make a cream and just pour it on the cake when serving.

Egg whites and sugar cream.

Take 3 egg whites add 1/2/ cup of sugar beat it up with a hand mixer for 2-3 minutes.

Freezing, freeze your cake or 2-3 hours (optional, but not necessary). it tastes good even without freezing.Keep it in a fridge or freezer!

Enjoy.

This is the simplest recipe of rolls in the world. The dough is very easy to cook and it’s very tender, almost melting in the mouth. This is also a very good dough for cookies.

For the dough:

1 stick of butter

1 cup of sugar

1.5 cups of flour (sifted, self-rising)

1 teaspoon of baking powder 

1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

1 egg

1 tablespoon of sour cream

2 tablespoons of water

For the filling:

3-4 apples

1 teaspoon cinnamon powder

1 tablespoon of sugar

½ cup of chopped walnuts

The dough:

Cut 1 stick of butter (or shred), mix it with 1 cup of sugar and  mash the butter with a fork or knife until it will turn into butter crumbs.

Add 1.5 cup of flour, mix very well with butter and sugar.

In a cup mix: 1 egg, 2 tablespoons of water +1 tablespoon of sour cream. Pour into the butter-sugar-flour mixture and knead the dough. The dough will be very tender and fragile. Form out of the dough two balls and put the dough into the freezer for 10 minutes.

Filling:

Wash, peel and chop the apples into the midsized chunks, add sugar, cinnamon and walnuts.

Set aside.

Forming the rolls:

Take out the dough. Take one ball and gently (!) roll it out with the dough roller. Don’t press too hard this dough is fragile. Cut the dough layer into two halves. (This will be your two big rolls that you will cut into the small bite size rolls) on one half of the dough put the apple filling. Put not too much of the filling and put it in a row. Then roll the layer with filling in and cut into the small bite size rolls crosswise.

Put the small rolls roses on a baking dish 4-5 inches away from each other as they will become bigger while baking.

Repeat the same procedure with the second half of your rolled out dough and with the second ball of dough.

 ***Tip from Helen*** I used for the second dough ball cream cheese filling. The filling is very simple to make ¾ of a cream cheese pack and 2-3 tablespoons of sugar mixed. When you mux the cream cheese and sugar spread it on each dough layer and roll it in as I wrote before. The rest of the procedure is the same.***

Baking:

Bake at 350 F for 20 minutes or until golden brown.

Which version to choose?

I honestly can’t decide which rolls are more delicious: with apples and cinnamon and walnuts or with cream cheese. So bake the two versions usually.

It’s very delicious, simple and warm fall dessert.

Enjoy!

I love puff pastry, do you? You can create literally hundreds of recipes with it and it’s ready in 15 minutes: Apple strudel, croissants, puff pastry baskets and puff pastry fish pie and much more. The recipe of this dough will help you create a lot of awesomely delicious dishes in minutes.

For the dough you’ll need:

2 sticks of frozen butter (unsalted), no margarine.

 1 cup of water

3 cups of flour

1 teaspoon vanilla sugar

For the filling:

2-3 apples

½ cup of sugar

1 teaspoon of cinnamon (optional)

½ cup of finely chopped walnuts (optional)

The batter prep takes some time and effort, but then you’ll be able to freeze it and use for 2-3 weeks easy.

So, Take your butter, cut the sticks in halves and put in the freezer for 15 min.

Mix: water, flour and vanilla sugar.

Put the batter in a freezer for 10 min.

Take out of the freezer ½ stick of butter and the batter.

Put the clear wrap on the surface you are gonna work on, using the dough roller roll the dough out until 1 inch thick. Shred the butter on the rolled out dough and fold in triangle. Put in a freezer for 10-15 minutes (cover it with clear wrap when putting in the freezer). In 15 minutes take another ½ stick of butter, take out the dough, and put the clear wrap on the working surface (the same you used before or new one). Roll out the dough until 1 inch thick; shred the butter, fold in triangle, put for 15 min in the freezer (cover with clear wrap). Repeat the same procedure with the rest 2 halves of the butter sticks. This dough takes some time and effort, but it really is delicious and the best. But, if you don’t have no time for messing with this dough, just buy the ready puff pastry dough. I normally cook this dough over the weekend, because then I can relax roll out my dough go watch TV then repeat, you know… just enjoy this dough preparation procedure…:-))

The dough is ready, when you shred the last 1/2 stick of butter and put it for 15 minutes in the fridge: take it out cut in 3-4 pieces. Use one piece to roll out your dough for the strudel , the other two you can use for the croissants:-) Keep the other parts of the dough in a freeser for as long as you ned. It’s a great dough to fix quick dessert or pie, or cakes, or roll…

But strudel is my favorite. Ususally it doesn’t live for more than 3 hours in my house, croissants may last for 24 h the most.

Enjoy and share with me your ways of using this recipe of dough.

         This recipe is my Mom’s recipe; she invented it when we lived in Russian Far East. She had that awesome spiral potato cutter, so she was cutting potato and using it in two dishes, spirally cut potatoes from  the middle of potato were fried (Yummm) and the rest of the potato, (it looked like an empty potato when it was cut) was stuffed with minced meat.

       I was looking for this spiral cutter for quite some time, at last I found it on Ebay, so I hope to get it by mail soon:-)

       When preparing this dish, I was cutting potatoes without it. In order to get the potato shells, where you can put meat you have to cut out the potato inside, thus it will look like an empty shell. It’s a hard work, I shall say. So if you have this spiral potato cutter or if you will decide to be brave and cook this dish without it, this recipe is for you:

Ingredients:

12 medium potatoes

½ lb. minced beef (or pork)

1 medium carrot

1 egg

1 medium onion

1 teaspoon of salt

1 teaspoon of black pepper

2 tablespoons of sour cream

Serves: 3 people

Step 1: Peel the potatoes

Step 2: Cut out the potato from inside, so that it would look like an empty shell. (It’s better to have spiral potato cutter) see the picture.

Step 3: Prepare your minced meat. Peel, wash and chop the onion, peel, shred and add carrots, add the egg, onion ( ½ of the onion you chopped) and season well.

Step 4:  Stuff the potato.

Step 5: Put the potato in a saucepan, add some water (1/3 of the saucepan, so that your potato wouldn’t drown). Simmer for 20 minutes.

Step 5: Braise your onion with sour-cream and add to the saucepan with potato.

Step 6: Simmer everything for 10 more minutes.

***Note from Helen*** Notice I don’t season the potato before stuffing it, because I like food with less salt. If you like your food to be very well salted, add salt when simmering your potato and/or season the raw potato before stuffing it.***

Serve the dish warm. I like to serve it with steamed broccoli and covered with cheese.

Enjoy!

It’s a very nice, comfort dish. It takes some effort to cook it, but if you have the potato cutter - life is easier. Plus you can stuff this potato with cottage cheese and herbs it should be nice. tell me what you think?

Ukrainian dumplings or pierogi with mashed potato

Ukrainian dumplings are prepared in every region of Ukraine and
even in Russia, Poland, and Belarus etc.

The stuffing of Ukrainian dumplings or pierogi is traditionally:
mashed potato, fried cabbage or tarts and even cream cheese.

I am cooking traditionally dumplings with mashed potato, although
my family loves all kinds of them. It takes time to cook them, BUT: if you cook
them a lot you can freeze some and have a fast dinner lunch (or breakfast) for
your family.

So, to cook approx. 40-45 dumplings you will need:

Dough:

2/3 cup of water;

2-3 cups of flour;

½ teaspoon of salt;

Stuffing:

2-3 potatoes (big) or you need the two-thirds of a soup plate of
mashed potatoes, go figure how much oz. /grams it is;

2-4 oz. of butter;

¼ cup of milk (or water);

1 onion;

1 tablespoon of salt, ½ tablespoons freshly ground pepper

For the ready product:

½ cup of Parsley /dill finely chopped for decoration and aroma

2-4 oz. of butter;

Sour cream;

40-45 mid-sized dumplings aren’t that much. One person can easily
eat 15-20 dumplings, so it’s literally for 2 -3 people to eat once. If you have
4 people just double the ingredients’ amount.

At first cook the potato:

1)      Peel, wash and put to boil.

2)     As soon as cooked (in 20-25
min) drain the water;

3)     Add salt, pepper, butter and
milk (water) and mash the potato;

4)     Fry the onion and add the
golden fried onion (do not burn it) to your mashed potatoes.

5)     Set aside to cool;

Cooking the dough:

1)      Mix water, salt and add step
by step flour. (Stir the mixture with the big spoon when adding the flour, not
the whisk it’s inconvenient and your dough will stick to whisk)

2)     As soon as the mixture
starting turn into dough pour all the flour and start working with it with your
hands or put in the dough/or bread machine/ I prefer working with hands. (try
not to add too much flour, as the stiff dough will make your dumplings heavy )
The dough should be enough soft and elastic, so that you could easily work with
it, but it shouldn’t be too soft and sticky.

3)     Cut the dough in halves or
even in three parts( it depends how much space to work with the dough you have,
how big the dough roller, how convenient for you it will be working with big
piece of dough, if you are working with hands)

4)     Use the dough roller to
create the thin layer of dough (as shown in the pic).

5)     Cut the dough in squares and
put the filling in the squares and fold it, so that a dumpling would shape a
triangle (see the pic), use index finger and thumb to bring the sides together.
(At first do this on one side of a triangle, than repeat on the). So now you
have your first triangle-shaped dumpling

6)     Repeat this with all your
dumplings, until all the dough is used (yeah it takes some time;-)

7)     You can put the ready
dumplings on the paper towel/ plastic cover or on the cutting desk, BUT: don’t forget to add a little flour on the surface , so that it wouldn’t stick.

8) As soon as you are done with forming of all you dumplings,- boil water in 4-8 quart saucepan (depending on
how much dumplings you did prepare). As soon as the water started to boil, add
some salt (1-2 teaspoons will be enough, but that’s up to you) and through your
dumplings in the saucepan. Carefully stir, so that they wouldn’t stick, but
also try not to break the shapes, so be careful and have enough water in a pan
(so that your dumplings could stay on the water surface, not on the bottom of
the saucepan).

9)     Finally, drain the water when                                             
you see the dumplings are cooked (they will be on the surface, try the edge on
one and if the dough is cooked you are done , it’s like cooking pasta)

10)  Drain the water, add butter, cover the
saucepan with the cover and carefully shake the saucepan so that the dumplings
would all get covered with butter. (You can repeat it couple of times, when you
stir the dumplings with the spoon, you can damage them).

11)  Your dumplings are ready! You
can add some herbs for the aroma and decoration. Serve the dumplings with sour
cream or garlic sauce.

Profiteroles with cream-cheese cream and strawberry jam

1 cup milk

1/4 pound (1 stick) unsalted butter

1/4 teaspoon of salt

1 cup all-purpose flour

4 large eggs

Cream:

Cream-cheese

Chocolate chips                       [twitter-follow screen_name='helenscooking']

At the minimum gas preheat 1 cup of milk, gradually add butter, cut into thin slices (don’t let the mixture boil) add salt and wait until the butter will melt and will mix with milk.

To the mixture add gradually 1 cup of flour, don’t pour all the flour at the same time. Carefully beat up all the ingredients, so that the dough would form.

Put the mixture into the food processor and add 4 eggs. Pulse the dough until you will see it becomes puffy.

Preheat the oven to 450 F.

Now put the mixture in a pastry bag with a large plain tip or you can form the puffs with the spoon, carefully form round shaped profiteroles or with pastry bag form 20-25 swirls.

Don’t forget before forming your swirls to oil the baking sheet, so that they wouldn’t stick.

Bake them into the oven for 20 minutes and after they became golden and puffy, turn the gas off and let your pastry stay there for additional 15 minutes.

After that take out your almost ready profiteroles, let them a little bit too cool off and then half cut them, as shown in the picture.

For cream: You can take ready cream-cheese cream or you can mix cream-cheese with sweetened-condensed milk. It’s very simple: you can take 1/2 of the pack of cream-cheese and 1/2 of the condensed milk can.

Mix them carefully, even if the mixture won’t be very   consistent it will be more delicious in your profiteroles.

For chocolate:

You can melt 1/3 of the bag of chocolate chips (use minimum heat) or you can use Hersey’s chocolate in bottle if you don’t have chocolate chips.

You can also use for the cream any jam or ice-cream.

In Ukraine and Russia we use either butter cream or condensed milk as the stuffing.

Serve your profiteroles covered with warm chocolate or warm jam, however you like.

Enjoy! [twitter-follow screen_name='helenscooking'] VD8JAJK4D9BW

Pancakes are a traditional dish for Ukrainians and all Slavic nations.
 Pancakes are very easy to cook and they are good with any stuffing, as well as just with honey or maple syrup.

For 1 stack of thin pancakes (12-15 thin pancakes) you will need
1-2 eggs;
0.5 cup of water and 0.5 cup of milk (1 cup of water);
2-3 drops of vanilla extract;
2-3 tablespoons of sugar;
0.5 cup of flour;
Salt on the tip of the knife;
2-3 tablespoons of sunflower/corn oil;

Mix properly all the ingredients. You can start with mixing egg(s) and water/milk, then gradually add sugar, flour and salt/ sugar. The dough shouldn’t be thick or thin. It should resemble the consistency of crème-soup.
After you have mixed everything add 2-3 tablespoons of corn/sunflower oil.

Preheat the frying pan 2-3 min at the highest heat, and then reduce to medium. Pour a little bit of oil on the frying pan, then take the soup ladle and pour one soup ladle full of dough on the frying pan.

Fry until you will see golden edges around the dough, turn the pancake over and fry another side.

*My Secret Trick*: when you take the ready pancake off the pan, cut a thin slice of butter and smear it on a hot pancake. It will melt and your pancake won’t be dry?*My Secret Trick*

When you have fried all the pancakes let them cool off then cut them in half and stuff with the cream cheese. Just cut one slice of the cream cheese, then cut this slice in 4 pieces, Put each quarter of cheese into your pancake half and then roll it up. Put the rolled up pancakes into the frying pan that you used to prepare you pancakes. Stew your pancakes on the lowest heat, so that the cream cheese could melt and the pancakes could get a golden crust:-P

Take one serving of warm pancakes, cover it with the scoop of ice-cream and enjoy!

[twitter-follow screen_name='helenscooking']

Sweet lasagna with berries, cream cheese and ricotta.
6-8 lasagna sheets

1 packet of Cream cheese

2/3 cup of Ricotta
1 Egg
0,5 lb. of berries raspberries, blueberries
1 1/2 cup of Sugar
1 teaspoon of Vanilla

Lasagna with cream cheese and ricotta appeared as a sweet morning treat to my family during the busy week mornings.
It’s not an original Italian recipe, where meat and tomato sauce should be present, contrary it’s our family variation of lasagna: sweet and with berries:) Forgive us Italian mothers, we love it this way:)

Active cooking time : 30 mins
Total cooking time: 1h 20 mins

Preheat water in 6-8 quart saucepan, put 6-8 sheets of lasagna noodle and boil on a small heat until tenderly cooked (10-15 minutes).
Take out of the boiling water, drain the water and put the lasagna noodles on the cooking pan to let it cool off.

Meanwhile take your cream cheese , cut it in thin 0.5 inch pieces.

Prepare the form, oil it Put the first layer of your lasagna sheets 3 or 4 (depending on form),

cover it with your cream cheese pieces, cover your cream cheese

with berries -and top it with sugar.

Put the next layer of lasagna sheets.
Take your ricotta: beat up an egg with 2/3 cup of ricotta, 1 cup of sugar and add 1 tbs of vanilla. Cover your top lasagna layer with ricotta-sugar mixture.

Preheat the stove at 400 F. Bake your lasagna at 400F for 30 minutes and then lower the heat to 150F, take lasagna out for a second and decorate it with berries and return it sit in the stove for 20 more minutes. Take it out and let it cool, as it’ s hot!
Enjoy your sweet lasagna!