This had NOT turned out the way I wanted it to even though I used the same recipe from my first attempt. I couldn’t find Philadelphia cream cheese so I opted for marscapone instead. Then instead of getting Marie’s digestive biscuits, I chose some Swiss brand one which had chunks of wheat in them (bad idea – they were like mini rockbeds; tough to break, even with a spoon). The change in liquor was alright but beating the cream into soft peaks was a nightmare. Nil helped but I think it was still a bit tad runny when I mixed it into the marscapone mix.

The worst was the gelatine – they come in sheets here and while the instructions at the back stated that one sheet was the equivalent of a tablespoon, I discovered that I might actually need three to four sheets for my future attempts.

Because I didn’t have enough gelatine, my cheesecake was only hard when frozen and totally runny when in the fridge – when I tried to remove it from the springform pan, I ended up dotting the kitchen counter and floor with cheesecake filling. =.=

The picture you see above there is when it’s fresh from the freezer…hard as a rock. Definitely not satisfied with this one even though my guests and Nil were.

Frozen orange marscapone cheesecake

Ingredients

250 g digestive biscuits (actually you can use 200 g of biscuits and 50 g of cornflakes)
140 g butter (salted or otherwise)
500 g marscapone
300 ml whipped cream
Orange rind from 1 blood orange
Orange juice from 1 1/2 blood orange(s)
1/2 cup sugar
1/3 water
1 1/2 sheets of gelatin
2 tsp Cointreau (orange liquor)

Method

1. Finely crushed biscuits, add melted butter and press into a 8 inch pan (or any pan of your choice).
2. Refrigerate until base becomes hard.
3. Beat whipped cream until soft peaks form. I’d suggest this AFTER you are done with your cream cheese and such. I did it first and my whipped cream started bleeding (I got a bit of water coming out of my cream – normal if you let it sit after beating).
4. Beat marscapone, rind, juice, and sugar until the sugar has dissolved and the batter looks smooth and creamy. I added a bit (maybe a quater) of the orange pulp while squeezing out the juice. I think it gives the filling a little bit of colour and texture.
5. Fold in cream until it’s well mixed.
6. Add gelatin to the water (make sure that the water is boiled) and stir until it dissolves. Leave aside to cool. This can be done while you are busy making the cream cheese mix.
7. Spoon in Cointreau/liquor and add gelatin. Mix well.
8. Pour into the pan and freeze for at least six hours. Overnight is best.
9. Serve with either fresh fruits or as it is.

Since I arrived, Nil had been bugging me to cook this dish! So yesterday, we made a trip to the one of the two Asian stores in Neuchatel to stock up on some Asian goodies.

And it was then that I decided to churn out a variation of the rather spicy and onion-y Kung Po chicken. Back home, you can switch to other meats and even seafood instead of sticking to chicken – my favourite so far? Kung Po squid!!!!!!!!!!!! Vegetarians can opt to use tofu – it works very well too!

Kung Po turkey with cashew nuts

Ingredients

Turkey meat – cubed
10 dried chillies – less if it’s too hot (soaked and seeded)
2 onions – quartered
Oil

(A) Marinate
1 1/2 tbsp soy sauce
1 1/2 tbsp sesame oil
1 1/2 tbsp cornflour
1/2 tsp ground white pepper
1/2 tsp salt
* 2 tbsp Cointreau/brandy/cooking wine

(B) Sauce
1 1/2 tbsp dark soya sauce
1 1/2 tbsp sugar
1 tsp Cointreau/brandy/cooking wine
Pinch of salt

(C) Thickening
Cornflour
Water

Method

1. Marinate turkey meat with (A) for at least one hour.
2. Using a wok/frying pan, fry the turkey cubes until golden brown. Remove and place aside.
3. Fry onions and dried chillies until fragrant. Add the earlier fried turkey cubes and cashew nuts followed by the seasoning. If needed, thicken with cornflour and water.
4. Serve hot with rice and other side dishes.