Oma's cheesecake

My youngest child had to do a project about a traditional family recipe that we usr im our family, so I decided I'll use the opportunity as a blpg post.

My grandmother is from Berlin, Germany and her favorite thing to make for any occasion is cheesecake. When I was preparing for this project I decided to google German cheesecakes and realized my Oma's recipe is unlike the others I found. For one she uses full fat Philadelphia cream cheese instead of the lowfat version which is neufchatel cheese. It's always been my favorite desert and I'm thrilled to pass it down to my childre. I'm including the recipe and directions below. If you choose to try it I hope you enjoy it as much as we do.

Oma's Cheesecake

Preheat oven to 400°

Ingredients:

CRUST:

2 cups flour
2/3 cup sugar
1 stick of softened butter (if you use unsalted butter add a teaspoon of salt)
1 egg
.25 oz single acting baking powder*
1/2 package Vanilla Sugar**

FILLING:
4- 8oz packages of softened Philadelphia cream cheese
1 cup sugar
3 eggs
.25 oz single-acting baking powder*
1/2 package vanilla sugar**

** I use Dr. Oetker brand vanilla sugar. Each packet is .32oz and you use just ome package for the cheesecake. Half for the crust, half for the filling.

* for the baking powder I usually use Dr. Oetker brand baking powder in the same way i use the vanilla sugar packs, but I was out of it so I mixed together 1 tablespoon of cream of tartar and 1/2 tablespoon of bakimg soda to make my own single-acting baking powder. I used half for the crustand the other half for the filling.

Directions:

-Grease a 9 inchspring form pan with butter and set aside.

- To make the crust add the flour, sugar, softened butter, egg, baking powder and vanilla sugar to a medium sized bowl and mix together. I usually start with a fork and finish with my hands. You'll get a very crumbly dough.

- Once the dough is mixed together press it into the spring for pan. I use most of the dough on the bottom, but I do build up thr sides a little bit.

- For the filling  add the cream cheese, sugar, eggs, baking powder and vanilla sugar to a large bowl and use an electric mixer to blend. I start at a low speed and increase it wants the ingredients are combined. You'll get a cake like batter.

- Pour the batter onto the crust and smooth the top

-Bake for 50 minutes and 400°

- Let cool 2 hours and serve. I think it tastes best after being refrigerated.

My Oma says that when it's  done there should be a crack in the top of it. Keep in mind this isn't a standard cheese cake, it comes out with a darker top and a lighter filling then most cakes you'll find in the store.

I've included some photos for reference, but I do want to mention that I forgot to set the timer, so it spent a little longer in the oven and came out slightly darker than normal.

New beginnings

It's been quite awhile since my last post, which is a shame. I am determined to get the hang of blogging regularly, even if no one is reading it. I always feel better after I've had a chance to write something, but I rarely take opportunities to do so. 

With the obligatory 'it's been awhile' comment out of the way, I can now get back to business. My children are now all in school. The oldest is in 4th, my second born is in second grade, and my youngest is in kindergarten. With them all in school fro almost the whole day (the kindergartener gets out 45 minutes earlier than the others,) I've found I have slightly more time to get things done and to make new goals. I've decided that with this time I will start a couple of home businesses, so I have signed up with Scentsy and Avon. I've sold Avon before when my children were all 4 and under, but I didn't put the time and dedication into it to make it successful. This time around I am trying much harder to be proactive about my businesses and actually going up to strangers and introducing myself and telling them about my businesses. The last time I relied on friends and friends of friends, which really limits the customers you can have, especially since people really only need so much lotion and eye liner.

I picked these two companies because they are both companies I shop with. I love the Scentsy wickless warmers and have quite a few around my house. Prior to having children I was obsessed with candles and owned hundreds, but after having children the idea of having fire around on a regular basis frightened me. Scentsy products allow me to have the scent and ambiance (minus the flicker) of actual candles, without the fear of burning my house down.

Avon has been around for over 125 years and has just been a constant presence in my life. Many of my family members used Avon products while I was growing up and it was the first thing that came to my mind when I decided to start that business several years ago. I regularly use their eyeliner and eye shadows and felt comfortable in suggesting it to other people.  


In other news, we have recently moved into a rental home just outside of El Paso that we were incredibly excited about. Unfortunately, the excitement wore off when we found out that the home, while aesthetically pleasing, is actually falling apart. In the less than 2 months that we have lived here the AC has broken down twice, the refrigerator stopped working (ON THE FIRST DAY!) there are several leaks, and this home seems to be a haven for spiders. Dealing with these issues gets incredibly frustrating, but I'm trying to look on the bright side. We have a roof over our heads, we are able to cook meals, and it's only temporary. I'm trying to be grateful for what we have, but it does get a little difficult when the children are unable to sleep because they are so hot. This home was built with the intention of having working ac, so many of the windows don't actually open and it's hard to get a breeze going. Another positive to the issues we've had with this house is that it has encouraged my husband and I to start the home buying process. Some of the builders that we have talked to have offered to buy out our lease so that we can move sooner than we had expected to.

Another bonus to where we live now is the school my children go to. We had a bit of a rough start due to a bully situation, but that was handled within a week and now my kids really enjoy their teachers and their classes. My oldest in particular has a great teacher who seems to take my daughters personality and learning style into account. It makes me feel confident about buying a home in this school district and knowing my children are going to get a good education.

If you've read this far, thank you for sticking around. I know it wasn't the most exciting blog, but hey, the majority of life isn't overly exciting. If anyone has ideas on how to boost home businesses, I would really appreciate it.