Tuesday, March 17, 2009

'SPIRITED' CELEBRATION ~ BAILEYS IRISH CREAM CHEESECAKE / IRISH COFFEE

"Life's too short not to be Irish!"
~ an Irish saying

~ Irish Blessing on Waterford crystal shamrock

______
"May the road rise to meet you,

May the wind be always at your back.

May the sun shine warm upon your face,

The rains fall soft upon your fields.

And until we meet again,

May God hold you in the palm of his hand."

~ Irish Blessing

____


BAILEYS IRISH CREAM CHEESECAKE

~ Trust me ... favorite St. Patrick's Day treat adapted from tattered Bon Appetit (1989)
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Crust:
2 cups crushed Oreo cookies
(or Nabisco Famous Chocolate Wafers)
1/4 cup sugar
6 Tbsp. melted unsalted butter
Filling:
2 1/4 lbs. room temperature cream cheese
1 2/3 cup sugar
5 room temperature organic eggs
1 cup Baileys Original Irish Cream
1 Tbsp. pure vanilla extract
1 cup premium semisweet chocolate chips
Coffee Cream:
1 cup chilled whipping cream
2 Tbsp. sugar
1 tsp. instant coffee powder
Chocolate curls or English toffee bits
  • For crust: Preheat oven to 325-degrees. Coat 9-inch springform pan with nonstick spray. Combine crumbs and sugar. Stir in melted butter. Press mixture into bottom and 1-inch up sides of pan. Bake until light brown, about 7 minutes.
  • For filling: Beat cream cheese until smooth. Gradually mix in sugar. Beat in eggs 1 at a time. Blend in Baileys and vanilla. Sprinkle half of chocolate chips over crust. Spoon in filling. Sprinkle with remaining chocolate chips. Bake cheesecake until puffed, springy in center and golden brown, about 1 hour 20 minutes. Cool cake completely.
  • For cream: Beat cream, sugar and coffee powder until still peaks form. Spread mixture over cooled cake. Garnish cheesecake with chocolate curls or English toffee bits. Cut into thin slices to serve.

MURPHY'S IRISH COFFEE
~ a healthy jigger of Brandy
(Brian's claim to smoothness instead of Irish whiskey)
___
freshly brewed rich black coffee
1 healthy tsp. brown sugar
1 healthy jigger Brandy (or Irish whiskey)
fresh whipping cream
1 Tbsp. powdered sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
freshly grated nutmeg, chocolate, or cinnamon
  • In chilled bowl, whip cream until soft peaks form. Add powdered sugar & vanilla. Continue whipping until medium-firm peaks forms.
  • Warm Irish coffee glass in hot water. Wipe dry. Pour brandy (or Irish whiskey) & brown sugar into the glass and stir. Slowly pour fresh coffee filling the glass to within half an inch or so from top of glass. Carefully top with whipped cream. Garnish with grated fresh nutmeg, chocolate shavings or cinnamon.

Important Note: Toast loved ones while sipping through the rich cream.

(In Memory: Thanks Brian!)

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"Only Irish coffee provides in a single glass all four essential food groups: alcohol, caffeine, sugar and fat."

~ Alex Levin

18 comments:

Kerri said...

You always make me hungry with your delicious recipes! That cheesecake sounds scrumptious.
Happy St.Pattys Day to you dear Joey :)
Love the Irish blessing.
Yes, spring is springing!!

marmee said...

happy st patty's day to you joey!
raising a glass of the irish coffee sounds like my cup o' tea.

Shady Gardener said...

Happy St. Patrick's Day, Joey! :-) I'm hosting a Ladies' Movie Night this Friday night... wonder if anyone would like to sample these?
You are so artistic about your offerings. Thank you!

F Cameron said...

Happy Saint Patrick's Day!

Cameron

Roses and Lilacs said...

Everything's better with Baileys;) I have my bottle ready to go for our celebration tonight. Hope you have a wonderful St Patrick's Day.
Marnie

Rose said...

Joey, could you possibly entice me any more?:) I'm not a drinker, but I do enjoy a Bailey's occasionally. Combine that with one of my favorite foods--cheesecake--and you have the perfect dessert. This recipe is a keeper!

Happy St. Patrick's Day, Joey, and I extend the same Irish blessing to you.

Monica the Garden Faerie said...

Ooh, the cheesecake sounds really yummy! Shall I email you directions to my house--ha ha!?!?!

joey said...

Hi Kerry! On my way outside on this delightful 65-degree day. Yipee and Happy St. Patrick's Day!

And a Happy St. Paddy's Day to you, Marmee. Actually, this Irish Coffee is very special. Murph was a dear friend that we honor each time we toast him with his recipe!

Thanks Shady ~ Sounds like a delightful evening. Give them a try ... both are yummy!

And top o' the mornin' to ya, Cameron. Oh happy Day!

Enjoy, dear Marnie! Today is a fun day for all to be a bit Irish (I'm the only one in my family who really isn't).

Come on over, Monica! I made this for garden club last Wed and still have some in the freezer! Enjoy this glorious 65-degree day :)

joey said...

Thanks Rose ... do hope you enjoy both this fun day and the cheesecake recipe; each forkful imparts delighful Baileys flavor.

Naturegirl said...

Now who doesn't like Irish cream!! ...and chessecake even better!! Top of the mornin to ya!!

TYRA Hallsénius Lindhe said...

Sound delicious! Yummie
Very tempting stuff for this green day.
Happy St.Patrick's Joey.

Hugs Tyra

Gail said...

Joey, My lunch of salad pales in comparison to this offering! Happy St Pat's day from a girl with Irish ancestry!

gail

joey said...

... and Happy St. Patrick's Day to you, Naturegirl! Do hope your day is as lovely as ours.

Happy St. Patrick's Day, dear Tyra! Good smells here, my corned beef is in the oven and braised red cabbage on the stove!

Gail ~ I can't stop thinking about your post and the Domino Effect. Our house is 70 years old and all ceder, including roof. Years ago, before replacing the last roof, my H. told the builder to replace any rotted wood before we repainted. He arrived home from work, stunned, to find the entire sunporch gutted, plus the entire front of the attached garage :) And we have many more stories after living here for over 30 years! Happy St. Patrick's Day, dear lass!

Anna said...

That Baileys cheesecake sounds oh so naughty but oh so nice :)

joey said...

And indeed it is, Anna :) Thanks for stopping by and saying hello.

beckie said...

Joey, recipes after my heart! Hope your St. Pat's day was fun. It was beautiful weather here and I so enjoyed it. I have admired all of your 'Irish' items the last couple of posts. So pretty. Thanks for sharing them with us.

marmee said...

joey,
we made the coffee tonight and drank it on the back patio at our daughters house. everyone loved it. thanks for sharing.

joey said...

Thanks Beckie ... our day was delightful as I hope yours was. And today is even better ... the grandboys are here :)

Delighted you enjoyed the Irish coffee, Marmee ... always a treat for us also.