Creamy Garlic Potatoes

I am a big fan of potatoes.  Any type of potato dish, I'm in.  So when my housekeeper found this recipe and made it for my family, we were in high heaven and hmmm'ed pretty much throughout the whole dinner.  A salad was added to the dish to keep it simple.

There was enough left over to have it with Chicken Roast the next day (stay tuned for that recipe coming in the next day or so) and we still hmmmed and ahhhhed over it the next day too.

The recipe is straight out of Richard Bertinet's "Cook in a Class of Your Own" cookbook which thanks to my girlfriend for insisting I take it with me when I was borrowing some cooking books. 

Ingredients

8 medium potatoes (peel and cut evenly in 2mm thickness)
2 garlic cloves (crushed and finely chopped)
5 tablespoons of oil
small bunch of parsley (finely chopped)
salt & pepper
600ml double cream
Ovenproof dish approx 25 x 18cm

Method

Preheat oven to 200C.

Heat oil in heavy based pan.  Add potato and coat with oil.  Stir continuously and when they become sticky add the garlic, salt & pepper and enough cream to cover the potatoes.

Turn heat down and cook until the cream thickens a bit (approx 5 min).  Add the parsley and combine.

Pour the mixture into ovenproof dish and bake for 20-30 minutes, until top is golden and potatoes are fully cooked through. 

Tip:  Prepare dish about an hour before you want to eat it.  It tastes better warm than hot.  Even better, make the day before and just reheat in oven on 150C.

Serve with salad.

Quick Lemon Cheesecake

This is the quickest and yummiest cheesecake I've ever made.  Okay, the only version I've ever made.  But I have made it many times and each time it was successful.

The last party I made it for, I had to fight for the last piece so I wouldn't miss out.

This cheesecake is definitely not rocket science.  It requires some biscuit crushing, some refrigeration, some mixing, some juicing, some more refrigeration and that's it.  Definitely no baking required.

Without further ado...  

Ingredients

225g Marie biscuits
135g unsalted butter, melted
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
250g Philadelphia cream cheese block, room temperature
395g sweetened condensed milk
1 lemon, zest grated and then juiced (should make approx. ⅓ cup)
½ teaspoon vanilla extract  

Method

Line a pie dish with aluminium foil or cling wrap.

Crush the biscuits in a food processor and empty into a mixing bowl.  Add the melted butter and combine well. Pour into pie dish and spread out evenly.  Press the mixture firmly into the pie dish and refrigerate.

Chop up the cream cheese block into cubes and beat with an electric mixer.  When smooth start drizzling the condensed milk to it and keep mixing, then add the lemon juice gradually, vanilla extract and lemon rind.  Continue beating until creamy and well mixed.  There should be no lumpy bits.

Remove biscuit base from fridge and add filling to it.  Spread evenly and refrigerate overnight.

Serve plain or with a dollop of cream, scoop of ice cream or raspberry coulis.  My family just goes for plain as we can't be bothered with the extras.  This cheesecake stands very well on its own.

Trini "The Pirate" is showing daddy the surprise cake made for him.
Not exactly a pie dish but it's all I have at the moment.  Still does the trick.