Deportation Party

Friday -- Loafed around a bunch, but then made a Dulce de Leche Cheesecake for Eepie's deportation party. Ventured off to Wegman's to find some of the ingredients I needed and ended up having to wander around and ask a handful of employees where to find Dulce de Leche stuff. Some of the people had heard of it, some hadn't, so I had hope that they had it in the store somewhere. I just had to keep asking until I found the one person who would know. Eventually, it turned out that I had walked right past it like 3 times because it was half-hidden behind a display. Once I found my key ingredient (International aisle, Latin American section), I was off!

Baked up the cheesecake. Freaked out a little because I had no idea how to tell if it was done. I didn't know if non-jiggly meant it was set or if a toothpick inserted in the center would indicate anything. Turns out, when the whole cake rises, it's done. So, I ended up baking it for about 75 minutes, taking it out 3 times to check it.

Let that cool/refrigerate for a while and read/napped. Then, walked over to the HOY for more lounging. Read for a while and waited for the Asian Express to arrive. Adventures at Malibu Grill, then back to the HOY where there were way too many people to keep track of. Excellent turnout for Eepie's farewell. Lots of shiny new toys for her. Played video games, ate desserts, met new people... After the crowd thinned out, we headed out for some questionable activities, back for more video games, then home.

Saturday -- Breakfast with Ian and SPJ, then back to Wegman's for Peanut Chewies ingredients. Yeah, I probably should have planned ahead and gotten everything on Friday. But to be fair, I had enough stuff for one batch (except for the right kind of cereal). I just needed extra ingredients to make a double batch. Anyway, got stuff, made stuff, ate stuff.

Went with Ian to Mindless's going-away shindig. Overwhelming number of people there. It was a joint going away party, in addition to them having multiple groups of friends they were mixing. So, it was a pretty lively bunch. I ended up standing around with a small TJ clique and meeting some stragglers wandering about. Headed out of there relatively early and went to the HOY to meet up with people when they got back from their outing. Ian and I ended up hanging out with the dog and playing video games for a while before deciding to take a nap. Woke up when the gang returned and chatted for a little while before heading out.

Sunday -- slept away the better part of the day. Got some boots, visited ferrets, went with Ian to get his hair cut, and then family dinner time. Heard from scholarship winner. She will be moving in this week! That's about it for now. :) -j.

QOTD: "Friends don't let friends drive drunk."

LOTD: Gossip circulates crucial information...

After all, scuttlebutt is the most highly valued social currency there is.
...
"We all know people who are not calibrated to the social world at all, who if they participated in gossip sessions would learn a whole lot of stuff they need to know and can't learn anywhere else, like how reliable people are, how trustworthy," said Sarah Wert, a psychologist at Yale. "Not participating in gossip at some level can be unhealthy, and abnormal."

Dulce de Leche Cheesecake

INGREDIENTS:
Crust
* 1 cup graham cracker crumbs*
* 3 tablespoons butter, melted

Filling
* 3 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese
* 1 cup sugar
* 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
* 2 teaspoons vanilla
* 3 eggs
* 1/3 cup milk
* 1/2 cup NESTLE® La Lechera Dulce de Leche**

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
2. Mix crust ingredients together, and press into a 9-inch springform pan. Place pan on a baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and cool to room temperature.
3. Reset oven temperature to 325 degrees F.
4. Beat cream cheese, sugar and flour together until well mixed and smooth. Add vanilla and mix until smooth. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Mix until smooth. Add milk and mix until well blended.
5. Measure 1/2 cup of the cheesecake batter and pour into a small bowl. Add Dulce de Leche and stir until well combined.
6. Pour plain batter over crust. Top with Dulce de Leche batter by placing rounded spoonfuls over the cheesecake batter and gently swirl into plain batter with the tip of knife or spatula.
7. Bake 45-55 minutes or until center is almost set. Remove from oven and gently run metal spatula around rim of pan to loosen cheesecake (this helps prevent cracking). Let cool 20-25 minutes before covering and placing in the refrigerator. Refrigerate 4- 6 hours or overnight before serving.

*Graham cracker crumbs can be replaced with crushed vanilla wafers.
**Other brands may be used. This is the most commonly available brand.
Note: Can need as long as 65 minutes. Just leave it in until the center rises. Cover edges with foil if it begins to brown.


Peanut Chewies
INGREDIENTS:

* 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
* 2/3 cup packed brown sugar
* 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
* 1/2 cup butter, softened
* 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
* 2 egg yolks
* 3 cups miniature marshmallows

* 2/3 cup corn syrup
* 1/4 cup butter
* 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
* 2 cups peanut butter chips
* 2 cups crisp rice cereal
* 2 cups salted peanuts (optional)

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. In a large bowl, combine flour, brown sugar, baking powder, salt, baking soda, 1/2 cup butter or margarine, 1 teaspoon vanilla and egg yolks. Mix on low speed with an electric mixer until crumbly.
3. Press firmly into bottom of 13 x 9 inch pan. Bake 12- 15 minutes until golden brown.
4. Immediately sprinkle marshmallows over top and return to oven for 2 - 2 1/2 minutes. Let cool while preparing topping.
5. To Make Topping: In a large saucepan over low heat combine corn syrup, 1/4 cup butter or margarine, 2 teaspoons vanilla and peanut butter chips until smoothly melted, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and stir in cereal and nuts. Immediately spoon over marshmallows, spreading to cover. Refrigerate until firm. Cut into 36 bars.

Note: Suggestions were made for changing the kind of nuts to walnuts or cashews, other flavor chips, caramel instead of corn syrup, etc.

Grr

Hostonce is being flakey. Can't access the database doober for wordpress again... We'll see how this goes... -j.