First Food Post: Apple Caramel Cheesecake & Grandma's Oatmeal Cookies

So this is my first official blog about food. I like to refer to my cooking...experiences as "food episodes." Why? I don't know; maybe because something ALMOST ALWAYS seems to go wrong when I make something in the kitchen. I emphasize "almost" because it's not a complete guarantee but a likely occurence...

First food episode report: Apple Caramel Cheesecake! Sounds delicious, doesn't it? Well, I hope it was because I didn't have a chance to try it because it was a commissioned piece from a coworker (the same one who came up with the name of my blog! Thanks Matt!). Why did he want it? Why did he want this flavor? I don't know...

Remember how I said that almost always something happens that ruins the perfection of the food episode? Well, to no fail, I had a few bumbs along the rode to apple caramel cheesecake perfection. First, I was ready to but the sponge cake crust in the oven when I realized that I had forgotten to mix in the melted unsalted butter. To fix that, I literally mixed the butter into the cake/crust after I had already poured it into the springform pan.

Secondly, when the cheesecake was ready to come out of the oven, I had a hard time determining if it was done or not. Now, the recipe book I was using (I did not get this recipe off of a non-Lia approved website, none of which are created equal) said that the edges should be a dark golden brown and the center a light golden brown. Well, there was an apple pie filling in the center of the top of the cheesecake so it was pretty much impossible to see the center of the cheesecake beyond all of the apples. So, I had to use the shake test. Cheesecakes, when properly prepared, should wiggle slightly in the center when gently shaken to test for doneness. Well, the center did wiggle a little bit but I couldn't tell if it meant the cheesecake was done. I ended up putting the cake back in the oven for 7 minutes more. Even now, when I look back, I probably should have put that thing back in the oven for a few more minutes.

Lastly, when the cheesecake was all done, including the caramel and second layer of apple topping, I had to remove the cheesecake from the springform pan to a plate so I could deliver it to my coworker. Using my "handy" long metal spatula I attempted to move the cheesecake. Well, as one might expect, it didn't work as well as I thought. I got the cheesecake onto the plate, avoiding the ultimate disaster: dropping it to the floor. The problem I had was that the cheesecake caved a little on the sides. A minor setback but overall a successful episode.

Me with a sample of the cookies (I'm still trying to figure out how my camera on my laptop works...)

My second topic/episode for this post: GRANDMAS' OATMEAL COOKIES!!!!! This recipe belonged to my maternal grandmother, Edith Warner Powers, who subsequently gave them to my mom (her daughter), Maurine. My mom and her two brothers go ape over these cookies! Both of my uncles will be visiting the Milwaukee area this coming week so my mom put me to work making a batch of the morsels. By the grace of God, nothing catastrophic happened! Wooopie!! It was an afternoon well spent!

Well, my friends, I will sign out for now. If another food episdoe occurs, with some degree of success, I"ll make sure to blog about it! So for now: MANGIA!!!!!