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Birthday Raspberry Cheesecake

Posted on April 8, 2014 by Renee Spindle

We had THE best raspberry cheesecake last month. My daughter, Hilary requested a cheesecake for her birthday celebration. Yes, I still take special requests for cakes, etc. on the birthday persons special day. More importantly Hilary asked if the cheesecake could be swirled with a raspberry sauce.

So being the dutiful mother that I am I went on an internet quest to find a great recipe that included raspberry sauce. The recipe for the raspberry cheesecake that I chose is posted at Just a Pinch Recipes.

This was the first time that I had made cheesecake with a homemade sauce to go along with it. The results were fantastic and there were raves and compliments all around the room. The cheesecake disappeared in a flash. If you want to try this cheesecake on your own here’s what you need to do.

Ingredients-

Crust:

1 cup graham cracker crumbs (about 1 package, finely ground in a food processor)

2 Tbsp. unsalted butter, melted

2 Tbsp. sugar

Raspberry Sauce:

2 Tbsp. sugar

6 oz. fresh raspberries

Filling:

32 oz. cream cheese, room temperature

1-1/2 cups sugar

pinch of salt

1 tsp. pure vanilla extract

4 large eggs, room temperature

Topping:

6 oz. fresh raspberries, for topping (optional)

powdered sugar, for dusting (optional

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Wrap exterior of a 9-inch springform pan (including base) in a double layer of foil; set aside.

2. Stir together cracker crumbs, melted butter, and 2 tablespoons sugar in a medium bowl. Press crumb mixture firmly onto bottom of pan.

3. Bake until set, about 10 minutes. Let cool in pan on a wire rack. Reduce oven temperature to 325 F.

4. While the crust is baking you can get started on your raspberry sauce. Process raspberries in a food processor until smooth, about 30 seconds. Pass puree through a fine sieve into a small bowl; discard solids. Whisk in 2 tablespoons sugar, and set aside.

5. Put the cream cheese in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment; mix on medium speed until fluffy, about 3 minutes.

6. With mixer on low-speed, add remaining 1-1/2 cups sugar in a slow, steady stream. Add salt and vanilla; mix until well combined.

7. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing each until just combined (do not over mix). Pour cream cheese filling over crust.

8. Drop raspberry sauce by the teaspoon on top. With a wooden skewer or toothpick, swirl sauce into filling. Keep swirling until you get a pattern/design that you are pleased with.

9. Bake the cake until it is set but still slightly wobbly in center, 60 to 65 minutes. (The recipe on Just a Pinch calls for the cake pan to be set in water for baking. I did not do this.)

10. Transfer cake pan to rack; let cake cool completely. Refrigerate, uncovered, 6 hours or overnight. Before unmolding, run a knife around edge of cake.

This recipe makes (1) 9-inch round cheesecake. You can garnish with fresh raspberries around the top of the cake if you like.

If you’ve never made a homemade cheesecake this recipe can seem a little daunting at first. But just get busy and have fun making a delicious dessert. My birthday girl was extremely happy with the results, and I’m sure this cheesecake will make an appearance at one of our family parties again very soon.

2 comments Posted in Food, Recipes

Flying Solo

Posted on March 24, 2014 by Renee Spindle

Yesterday was a fun day. Travel Man arranged for me to fly up to meet him in Oakland, California so we can spend some much needed time together this week. He’s a great guy.
You see normally when we are traveling together we’re most often taking a mini-vacation (I define this as 4 days or less). When we do travel together I really don’t think about much except packing my clothes and following him to the airport. Yesterday was a bit different though.

For this trip I will be with Travel Man for a few days while he is working in Northern California. So here’s how my morning went to get the travel day started. I drove myself to the airport, parked in long term parking, checked my bag curbside (always better to check a bag than carry on!), got through security fairly quickly without using the preferred frequent flyer lane (because I’m not with Travel Man), and got my iced tea and a magazine. Phew!! I know I can do this on my own, it’s just a good reminder for me when I do. We most often fly on Southwest Airlines for the great reward perks. If you are at all familiar with Southwest’s seating you know that there is no assigned seating, just assigned boarding designations. So, my Travel Man was not with me to get on the plane ahead of me and save us our seats together. I would be picking my own seat. This part of my trip is a new experience for me. I got a window seat of course as it’s always my favorite thing to look out the window when travelling. I was the kid on family vacations that never slept in the car. Always watching out the window and taking in the sights, and I’m still that way.

Travel Man was flying into Oakland from Buffalo, NY via Chicago. My flight was a short “up/down” (defined by me as less than two hours of fly time), Ontario to Oakland. I am pleased to report that there were no glitches in the travel matrix yesterday, and our meeting in Oakland was pulled off successfully. We were able to take the short drive to San Francisco and see both the Golden Gate Bridge and the Oakland Bay Bridge. It was a bit of a stressful drive through the city, but a beautiful day for taking in the sights.

I’m a lucky, lucky girl that I am able to travel to where my husband will be working for the week. His schedule’s a little crazy right now and any extra time we can glean together is a blessing. I keep reminding myself that it’s definitely a bit of a different lifestyle. My Travel Mans’ mode of commuting from city to city is an airplane (or as we jokingly say a “flying tube”). It’s a different kind of life, but it’s our life. It’s important for us to make the best of it, and our precious time together. That’s my life lesson for the day.

No comments Posted in Travel Man, Travels

It’s a Baseball Kind of Thing

Posted on March 21, 2014 by Renee Spindle

Happy, Happy Spring to one and all. For all of our friends and family just chomping at the bit to see more green we’re sending you sunshine and warmth from sunny, Southern California.

Today is the beginning of a great 10 day countdown. It’s only 10 days until baseball’s opening day. Yay! I’m presently doing my happy dance. I love the game of baseball. Love to watch, love to cheer for our hometown team,(the Angels), love to gain some knowledge about the history of the game, and love to go to a live game every now and then.

In my younger, growing up years, I did not really pay attention to baseball, or have the love for the sport that I have now. I suppose that all changed when my kids started playing baseball and softball. Every spring baseball or softball would start and we’d be at practices and games from February or March until July. It’s one of those life thingy’s about a sport becoming part of your soul. If you followed your kids through any sports, for any number of seasons you know what I’m talking about.

During our hectic spring schedules family members would join us as their schedules allowed to watch the kids play ball. There were many, many years of supporting the love of baseball for my oldest son, Bryan. Bryan started playing ball when he was 5 (the t-ball era) and played right through his senior year of high school. He never stopped playing or learning about the game. As a matter of fact that’s how we were able to get Bryan interested in reading. Bryan learned how to read the team stats in the newspaper when he was 5 or 6. That lead to reading the articles about his favorite players or our beloved Angels.

My collection of baseball buttons through the years.

Bryan’s last time pitching senior year of high school

These days Bryan is the family’s baseball statistician. He has a great knowledge of the game, and can recall stats and details of the history of baseball that never cease to amaze me. Whenever we get a chance we watch a game together, and compare notes on our favorite players. We (Bryan and I) have decided that on the 31st of March we’ll hang our Angels flag out on the front of the house to celebrate baseball’s opening day.

One last baseball thought for the day from the movie The Sandlot– The Babe said, “Remember kid, there’s heroes and there’s legends. Heroes get remembered but legends never die, follow your heart kid, and you’ll never go wrong.”

No comments Posted in Family

Remembering the Wintry Ways

Posted on February 28, 2014 by Renee Spindle

A few weeks ago I had a chance to tag along with Travel Man to the icy cold weather in Indiana, while he was on assignment. I grew up in northern Illinois and moved to California when I was 16. Travel Man is a Southern California native, but has travelled all over the world. Needless to say I had forgotten how much work it can be to live, and go and do and be in the harsh, cold winter weather. It made me realize how lucky I am to be living in the Southwest. And it also reminded me of a few things that I don’t have to worry about living in a warmer climate. So, here’s my list of the top ten things that I recognize are so different for me not living in the winter sphere.

1) I must wear socks. Your feet can get blooming cold here in the snow and land of winter. This is not a daily event for me at home in So Cal. I love to go barefoot.

2) The cars are so salty and dirty from the snow. It’s so strange to see all of the layers of dirt and salt on the cars. Why get your car washed when you’ll just be left with icicles hanging off of the bumpers!!

3) And then there’s the hugeness of the icicles themselves. They’re hanging off of the eaves on the houses everywhere. And then we saw so many long, huge icicles on the sides of the buildings. Aren’t those a safety hazard. They look like huge daggers!

4) Finessing the scarf, hat and gloves. Every time you go out in this subzero cold it’s hat gloves, scarf, hat, gloves, scarf. I forgot how much static can build up in your hair from the hats constantly going on and off of your head!! Coats on, coats off; hats on, hats off; gloves on, gloves off; boots on, boots off.

5) The sound of the snow crunching under your shoes when your walking to and from the car or store. Oh and watch out for patches of ice and black ice that is barely visible.

6) The enormous pothole population. Wow! We were on Cicero Street near Midway Airport and the potholes looked like freckles on the roadway. Quite a bumpy ride. The potholes were not to be avoided. This is not a sight we see in springtime here in California.

7) When you’re in the cold and snowy weather it’s a soulful comfort to wrap your chilly hands around a warm cup of coffee or tea. And of course drinking it warms you right down to your toes.

8) Isn’t is a wonder how much of a comfort soup can be in the cold weather? Don’t get me wrong I love to make a good pot of homemade broccoli cheddar soup . But nothing’s quite as satisfying as a warm bowl of soup on a cold winters night!

9) How do you see around the piles and piles of snow? Don’t you feel like a mouse in a maze? The closest we come to this feeling in California might be looking for a parking spot at your favorite beach along the coast.

10) You forget how the snow is not always pristine and pretty and just white and sparkling. Especially when explaining the sight of a new fallen snow to your California kids who have not experienced a Midwestern winter. After the snow has been plowed and all of the cars have been driving by the snow gets a little gray and down right slushy and ugly. This is the contrast that you forget about:

Most of all after spending just a week in the throes of the cold and snow I am endlessly amazed at the hardiness of the Midwestners’ spirit. Everyone we talked to while travelling said they are ready for winter to be over with. In my opinion if you can make it through a tough cold, snowy winter and coming out smiling at the beginning of March you can live anywhere. Hat’s off to all of you surviving the long, harsh winter. Sending you all some sunshine and warmth from Southern California.

5 comments Posted in Travels

One of the Happiest Places on Earth

Posted on February 24, 2014 by Renee Spindle

As you may or may not know my husband is a Travel Man/Road Warrior/Lives out of his Suitcase kind of guy. He travels frequently for his job, and his mode of commuting is usually an airplane and a rental car. My job is to make sure Travel Man gets to the airport on time, and I am usually the one picking him up when he returns home.

Some months we’re driving back and forth to the airport so often it feels like we can do it with our eyes closed. I do have to admit that I have learned to time my drive to the airport to pick Travel Man up to perfection. I’m always tracking his travel home on an app for the iPhone called FlightAware. Once the flight tracker shows his flight at 23 minutes until arrival I head for the airport. I have yet to get my pick up timed to the point where as I drive up the road to make that left turn into the airport, Travel Man’s plane is flying over my head to land. That time will come soon enough.

Since Travel Man is on the road so much when he lands at the airport home from work, I want my face to be the first one he recognizes when he is riding down the escalator to baggage claim. So, I always park the car and I always walk in to meet my hard-working husband.

Usually while I’m in waiting mode between the escalator and baggage claim there are many, many happy moments to be noticed. This is one of those places where the happiness is happening for a multitude of reasons. The grandparents meeting their grand-baby for the first time. The military dad coming home for the holidays greeted by his 4-year-old daughter. (This one was a tear-jerker.) The crowd actually parted to make a path for this sweet little girl to run up and meet her Dad. The missionaries greeted by their families and friends after two years away in Chili. Two big groups of family and friends. That was an amazing sight. The dad and his kids greeting mom after a trip away for whatever the reason. Smiles all around. The college kids coming home for the holidays or for summer break. Dad coming home from a business trip greeted by his young sons, and his wife. The sons just leapt into his arms for a big hug.

Hugs are all around, and the happiness is infectious. You cannot help but smile, and feel just a little bit cheerier when there is all of this happiness going on around you. I’m getting a little carried away with my happy words, but it’s the best way to describe the situation to you.

Then the happiness turns to me, and it’s my turn. There’s my Travel Man riding down the escalator. When we see each other for the first time we give a little wave, maybe I blow him a kiss, and then it’s our turn to hug. The airport baggage claim. One of the happiest places on earth, in my opinion of course.