balsamic strawberry no bake cheesecake

 

happy canada 150!!!! i can only imagine the celebrations happening across the country tonight both big & small. there will be fireworks in my town & even more fireworks over the falls. i wanted to leave you with a perfect summer recipe incase you need a last minute dessert for a bbq tonight or for a fourth of july gathering! no bake cheesecakes are PERFECT for the hottest of summer days because they involve no heat element. it is for those days where it gets so hot you can't even think about turning on a stove top or oven. i love balsamic strawberries as a snack or topping on ice cream so i thought it would work well as a topping on this cheesecake too... it did! the balsaimc is very sublte, a little goes a long way. plus the sugar really offsets the bitterness of the vinegar. i think it would work well with peaches too. anyways i am starting my long weekend celebrations the second i hit post:)

happy canada day!

happy fourth of july!

happy long weekend!

xo

ingredients

for the graham cracker crust

  • 2 cups graham cracker crumbs
  • 1/3 cup white sugar
  • 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
  • 1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

for the balsamic strawberries

  • 2 cups fresh strawberries, quartered
  • 2-3 tablespoons white sugar (depending on sweetness of berries)
  • 1 teaspon pure vanilla extract
  • 1/2 tablespoon quality balsamic vinegar

for the cheesecake

  • 16 oz full fat cream cheese ( two 8oz bars)
  • 1/3 cup + 1/3 cup white sugar
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream

directions

for the graham cracker crust

  • in a large mixing bowl toss together the graham cracker crumbs, sugar and sea salt.
  • add the butter & vanilla, stir well.
  • pour mixture into a pie dish or skillet & shape crumbs into a crust with a one inch high edge.
  • place crust in the fridge to chill while you prepare the filling & strawberries.

for the balsamic strawberries

  • in a mixing bowl toss together the strawberries, sugar, vanilla and balsamic. let flavours mend while you prepare the filling. cover & refrigerate.

for the cheesecake

  • in the bowl of a standmixer (or hand mixer) beat together the cream cheese, 1/3 cup sugar & vanilla until fluffy.
  • in a separate bowl whip the whipping cream until stiff peaks are formed. add in the remaining sugar.
  • fold whipped cream into the cheesecake ensuring not to deflate the whipped cream.
  • pour filling over crust & let rest in the fridge to set for 2-4 hours covered.
  • when ready to serve, top with the marinated balsamic strawberries.

p.s. skillet is by lodge cast iron & black mixing bowls are by falcon enamelware! xo

zucchini fritters

 

my zucchini plant is starting to bloom flowers & i know this means home grown zucchinis are on the way! we didn't plant a big garden this year as we had a lot of other landscaping to take care of first, but i am excited for what is to come in late july & august. my favourite thing to make with fresh zucchini is fried fritters! my mom made them growing up & now each summer we fry up several batches of them together. my friends & family give us batches of fritters too. i love seeing everyones twist on these because no two fritters ever taste the same. some incorporate the zucchini flower, some incorporate cheese & so on (FYI i am a cheese person). this year to lighten mine up, i added a black pepper harvest snap twist in replacement of some of the flour. harvest snaps snapea crisp are light, airy & crisp so they add a great texture to the mix. i am so excited to finally share these to the blog as i was always worried the photos wouldn't do them justice! but seeing these images makes me want to dive in & eat the whole batch to myself... wait, i already did:) what about you?

xo

ingredients

  • 1 cup zucchini, grated
  • 1 tablespoon basil, roughly chopped
  • 1 clove garlic, grated
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1/2 cup romano or parmesan, grated
  • 1/4 cup whole milk
  • 1/2 cup all purpose flour
  • 1/2 cup black pepper harvest snaps, crushed
  • salt & pepper, to taste
  • canola oil, for frying

directions

  • sprinkle the zucchini with salt & strain out as much of the liquid as you can. it is important for the water to be drained as much as possible so the fritters don't end up soggy.
  • in a mixing bowl add the zuchinni, basil, garlic, eggs, cheese & milk. mix well.
  • sift in the flour, black pepper harvest snaps, salt & pepper.
  • heat a skillet over medium heat & generously coat it in oil (about 1/4 to 1/2 inch deep)
  • scoop a spoonful of the dumpling mixture and fry on each side for 60 seconds. if the dumplings are thick, bake them in the oven for an additional 5 minutes.
  • season with salt & enjoy!

blackberry orange sangria

 

hi friends!!! sorry it has been a little while since my last blog post. i took a little break from the blog to prepare all the fun summer recipes i have coming your way. first up.. sangria! because there is nothing better then sitting on a patio & sipping on a cold glass of sangria. this one is a blackberry orange flavoured sangria filled with red wine, fresh fruit, orange juice & zevia's blackberry sparkling water. it is lightly sweetened with stevia which i absolutely love because i don't like my drinks filled with a lot of sugar. the orange juice brings enough natural sweetener to the mix that you won't miss out on any sweetness.

on another note our blackberry bush has its first blackberry!!!! it isn't ripe yet, but i am so excited so see the plant has taken & by next summer we should have plenty to pick. i also went strawberry picking last week which was so much fun. i came home with two large baskets full of the sweetest little strawberries that i haven't stopped baking with. i think i will be back next week to pick two more baskets full.. or three!

ingredients

  • 3 cups red wine
  • 1/2 cup orange juice
  • 1/2 cup brandy
  • 1 1/2 cups zevia blackberry sparkling water
  • 1 apple, thinly sliced
  • 1 orange, thinly sliced
  • 1 cup blackerries
  • 1 cup raspberries

directions

  • in a large pitcher pour in the wine, orange juice, brandy & zevia. stir well.
  • add the apple slices, orange slices, blackberries & raspberries. fill remaining pitcher with ice.
  • serve immediately!