Martha Challenge #12- cookies and cream cup-cheesecakes

Cupcake Challenge #12: Oreo Cup-Cheesecakes!


It's been a while sine I've been able to bake, since we moved to Colorado! I finally got (most) of my kitchen stuff unpacked, so I was able to bake today! Today was National Cheesecake Day, and I've never made a cheesecake before, so I decided to tackle the challenge. I decided to make individual cheesecakes, in keeping with the cupcake theme, and Martha of course had the recipe for me.

These are cookies and cream mini cheesecakes, with an entire Oreo as the crust on the bottom.
These did not require a bain marie, which made it easier for me. I had no issues with altitude, since these had no leavening agent in them. They sunk a bit in the middle, which I'm guessing is due to overfilling. I wasn't sure how to tell if they were done. The recipe said to bake for 22 minutes, or until set. I checked them frequently, and they seemed ok at 22 minutes, but I probably could have let them bake a few more minutes. Then they had to cool in the fridge for 4 hours or more. My tast-tester said they were delicious, but maybe not firm enough in consistency. That's also perhaps why they sank. All in all, a good first attempt at cheesecake, and one more recipe down!

NKOTB cupcakes

So, in honor of the New Kids concert tomorrow night, I made cupcakes! I'm actually going to bring them to the concert and see if I can give them to the guys. I follow them on twitter, so maybe I can make contact! I'm also trying to use up the contents of my fridge and pantry before I move next week. So I made Choc-Guinness cupcakes with vanilla-Guinness frosting. I had leftover 2 bottles of Guinness, and tons of butter, so that's what I made. This is my recipe, not Martha's, although she does have a stout recipe in her cupcake book that I haven't tried yet.
The frosting turned out a bit too runny for my liking, hence the blobby shape of it on the cupcakes. I'm keeping these in the fridge in hopes the frosting will set better.
I tinted fondant and busted out the good ol' cookie cutters to make the shapes. It's fun to work with, but a bit messy. My fingers are now red from the food coloring. A professional would have used gloves, but this is me, after all!
So, that's all the baking from me for a while. The movers are coming next week, and then I'll have to try my recipes at a higher elevation! I'll continue with the Tania/Martha project once I have everything unpacked at the new place. Now, off to clean the kitchen!