Raspberry Swirl Cheesecake

It all started many years ago when I determined my then-boyfriend should make me a fancy dessert, something like a raspberry cheesecake. He promised to make me this fabulous dessert ... at least that's how I remember the story. So, for the past six, seven, eight or somewhere in there years, I've brought up this infamous dessert to my boyfriend, who became my fiance, who is now my husband.

Two years ago, after a weekend reconnecting with my high school friends, I came home to my husband smiling. To my surprise, my wonderful husband made me the best raspberry swirl cheesecake I've ever eaten to celebrate our fourth year of marriage. Trust me ... it was definitely worth the wait.
Even though I've never prepared this recipe, I'll vouch for it on behalf of my husband's baking skills. It's amazing! (I think he might have started an anniversary tradition!)

Raspberry Swirl Cheesecake
1 cup Oreo cookie crumbs (approximately 2 rows from the package)
2 Tbsp. butter, melted
1 3/4 cup sugar
8 oz. raspberries
32 oz. cream cheese, room temperature
Pinch of salt
1 tsp. vanilla extract
4 large eggs, room temperature

Preheat oven to 350ºF. Stir together cookie crumbs, melted butter and 2 Tbsp. sugar in a medium bowl. Press crumb mixture firmly onto bottom of 9-inch springform pan (line pan with double layer of aluminum foil first). Bake until set, about 10 minutes. Let cool in pan on wire rack. Reduce oven temperature to 325ºF.

Process raspberries in food processor until smooth, about 30 seconds. Pass puree through a fine sieve into a small bowl, and discard the solids. Whisk in 2 Tbsp. sugar and set aside.

In large mixing bowl, beat cream cheese until fluffy, about 3 minutes. On low speed, beat in remaining sugar, adding sugar in a slow, steady stream. Beat in salt and vanilla until well combined. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing until just combined.

Pour cream cheese filling over crust. Drop raspberry sauce by the teaspoon on top of cheesecake batter. With a toothpick, swirl the sauce into the batter.

Place cheesecake pan carefully into a shallow roasting pan. Carefully ladle boiling water into the roasting pan to reach halfway up the cheesecake pan. Place in oven, and bake until set but slightly wobbly in center, 60 to 65 minutes.

Transfer cake pan to rack, and let cool completely. Refrigerate uncovered 6 hours or overnight. Before unmolding, run a knife around the edges of the cheesecake. Serve with additional raspberry sauce and fresh raspberries.

Lapacek’s Orchard is teaming up with the Poynette Area Public Library to bring you…

The Apple-Azing Race

What:  A scavenger hunt race full of physical, edible, creative challenges and more!  Just think ‘Amazing Race’ but in the beautiful setting of rural Poynette.
FAQ Post

When:  Saturday, September 22nd Registration at 9am, Race starts at 9:30am and goes until you finish all the challenges (approximately 4 to 6 hours…)

Who:  Teams of at least 2 need to PRE-REGISTER to compete in the races – one of these two need to be able to drive and have a vehicle.  Registration details below.

Why:  We wanted to bring you a new, fun and exciting event this season at the apple orchard.  Our local library is working really hard to raise funds to expand the current children’s area of the library and we’d love to help them reach their goal.  We’re happy to donate a portion of our proceeds for this great cause. 

To Register:

Either email: 
lapaceksorchard {at} gmail {dot} com
OR mail:
Kim Lapacek
N1959 Kroncke Road
Poynette, WI 53955


Name of team members:
Team Name (you can always decide on this later):
T-Shirt Size Request for each member (Unisex T-Shirts from Youth Small to Adult XL.  For Adult XXL or XXXL please add $2 to your registration fees): 
Cost -
$50/team of 2 – includes a t-shirt for each member
Any additional members over 2 cost $20/member and includes a t-shirt.  There is no limit to the size of a team but at each ‘challenge’ you will have to decide which of your members will complete the mission.
The fees are due at the time of registration – you can either mail me a check made out to ‘Lapacek’s’ or I can send you a bill via paypal. 

Teams must be registered by Wednesday, August 29th.  This will ensure everyone gets a t-shirt and everything runs smoothly for this great new event!  Thanks so much!  Registration is CLOSED.  It's going to be a great event though - 17 teams!

Great prizes for the winners of the race!  Check out the post HERE!



For just $100 you or your business can sponsor this event and get your name on the back of the t-shirt.  Either email me if you’re interested in this or mail a check to the address above and the name you want on the shirt.  Thanks for all your support!


A BIG Thanks goes out to the following for Sponsoring and/or Contributing to this FUN event:

• A Growing Place Preschool, on Facebook
• Arlington BP
• Arlington Mutual Insurance
• Bank of Poynette
• Bare Tree Apparel, on Facebook
• Creek Bed Country Farmacy, on Facebook
• Elsing Oil Company Inc
• Erin Johnson - American Family Insurance
• Hall Family Chiropractic, on Facebook
• Hydro Street Brewing Company, on Facebook
• Michelle Cross Photography, on Facebook
• Persimon Dreams, on Facebook
• Poynette Auto Body, LLC
• Poynette BP
• Sassy Cow Creamery, on Facebook
• Subway, Poynette
• Brit Schoeneberg - Independent Shaklee Distributor
• The Bookish Life, on Facebook
• Windsor Breads, on Facebook

I feel like I just sound repetitive but we did have yet another great week with the ‘Kids in the Garden’ program.  It was a bit warm but the kids held out just fine as did the adults.

Ashley Hagenow was our fantastic photographer once again this week.

We had to start by measuring how much the sunflowers have grown.  Just a few of the kids headed into the field because – I know, this may shock you all – it was muddy!  There was rain!  In fact, our little gnome buddy hat 4.2-inches of rain!  Woo Hoo!   Anyway – the sunflowers measured on average around 55 inches – 14 inches since last weeks measurement!Next we headed out to check out the gardens.  Along the way we made sure to collect some veggies that were ready so we could let the kids sample during our ‘snack’ time. We decided that we didn’t just want round pumpkins at the orchard this year.  We’re going to see if we can grow a triangular one… And a square one!  I think it’s going to be fun to see what happens as they grow and I know the kids are excited too! Our little ‘Duck Race’ Garden is growing like crazy.  The tomato plants seem to be overtaking the peppers a bit…oh well!

Once the kids checked out all the gardens, did a little weeding, and helped collect the ripe veggies we headed to the shady lean to do a little sampling.

First – the kids all got to try a few slices of apples.  There are just a few ready and later when we did the poll all the kids liked the apple they ate!  (I’ll admit…the Paula Red was too tart for me…)

Next, Diane prepared a quick little recipe:

Wilted Swiss Chard with Fresh Basil

Serves 2

30 minutes or fewer

This makes a lively and colorful vegetable side dish.

2 Tbs. olive oil
1 clove garlic, minced
6 to 7 large Swiss chard leaves, rinsed and coarsely chopped
¼ cup chopped fresh basil plus whole leaves for garnish, optional
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Fresh lemon juice to taste

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the garlic, chard and basil, and
cook just until the chard begins to wilt, for about 5 minutes. Add salt, pepper and lemon juice.

Garnish with basil, if using, and serve warm.

 

Of the kids that tried the Wilted Swiss Chard with Fresh Basil – ALL of them liked it!  (we had a few kids late coming so they didn’t have a chance to try it…I’m sure they would have liked it too).

Unfortunately, we didn’t have the same results with the pepper and onion taste tests as we did the apples and Swiss Chard.  The biggest problem was getting the kids to even try these vegetables.  We found that at least one child in the group liked the onion and pepper and one other at least tried them.  Next week we have to come up with some sort of reward or incentive to at least ‘try’ the veggies.  To be a good example for my daughters, I even tried the onion and peppers.  Don’t tell Jared…but the onion wasn’t too too bad…a  bit strong but better than I thought it would be!

Pip took an early nap on Thursday so we had the joy of having her join us on our journey through the gardens.  Ashley tried to get a great picture of her and I think this one is pretty cute!  Pip LOVES apples…in fact…she may take after her grandma van because when she’s done there is pretty much just some seeds left!

The final ‘lesson’ of our ‘Kids in the Garden’ day was to meet our newest addition – bunny Pongo. 

photo by Friends in Photography

It's time!  The raspberries are really starting to ripen!  We are going to be opening up this weekend for Pick Your Own Raspberries.  I want to warn you - they are still in early stages so the picking isn't quite as nice as it will be in even a week but they are definitely out there, and they are big and they are delicious! 

photo by Friends in Photography

The store will be open:

Saturday, July 28th from 9am to 2pm

Sunday, July 29th from 10am to 2pm

photo by Friends in Photography 

This is about 3 weeks earlier than normal so please keep in mind that we're still getting set up for apple season.  Also there is no port-a-potty here yet but we do have a bathroom in our house. 

If you can't make it this weekend but would like to pick during the week please call me 608-635-4780and we'll figure out a time that will work for everyone. 

 

See you at the orchard!

It was an unusual week for kids in the garden. Kids said they were COLD!!! The 70 degree temperature was a huge change from the previous weeks. So there were NO SPRINKLERS. I know, the sprinklers were fun, but we had fun anyway. We started by measuring the sunflowers.

 The average height this week was 41 inches. It is so amazing that the sunflowers have continued to grow so well without any irrigation. We should get amazing growth next week with the rain. Some of the sunflowers are starting to bloom.
 

 We went by the canning tomato garden and saw some of the damage that was done by tomato hornworms. Since the worms like to hide during the day, we didn't actually see the worms. Next we checked out the winter squash. Everyone pulled a few weeds and looked for squash on the vines.
 
 We found butternut.

   

And spaghetti squash. Also acorn and carnival. Then we headed back to the garden by the wood stove to look for something to harvest. Then melons we growing well, but not ready yet.

 

 But the summer squash was ready. We picked zucchini, gold zucchini, pattypan and yellow crookneck, then headed for the herb garden to pick some garlic chives, lemon basil, oregano, chives, parsley and dill weed. We sliced up the summer squash (Diane's job) and snipped the herbs (kids job) then made:

Marinated Zucchini Salad
2 T extra virgin olive oil
4 T red wine vinegar
4 tsp sugar
1 tsp garlic chives
1 tsp lemon basil
1/2 tsp oregano
 Mix all together, then add thinly sliced summer squash (we used all the kinds, but you can use just one if you want). Mix well.

 While this was marinating, we made up some dill dip.
Dill Dip
1 c sour cream
1 c mayonnaise
1 T minced chives
1 T minced parsley
1 T chopped dill weed
3/4 c seasoned salt
Mix all together.

We used creamy peanut butter as another dip. Ranch dressing is also a great choice. Afterwards, we created human graphs to see who liked what. It took awhile because lots of kids were busy having seconds. I really HATE to interfere with kids eating vegetables, so this was time well spent....


Dill Dip 7 yes 5 no
Marinated Zucchini Salad 9 yes 3 no
peanut butter 11 yes 2 no

I thought those results were pretty amazing. Almost everybody liked summer squash at least one of the ways we served it.  It can also be cooked.  I saute it in a little olive oil.  Add some herbs,  I like basil, chives and a little oregano.  Then sprinkle with a little Parmesan cheese just before it's done. (Saute it quickly so it stays crispy.)

So we were off to the pumpkin patch. We looked for (and found) the pumpkins that had been marked last week. The vines had really grown, so this was snot easy. We measured a couple of the pumpkins.

black tape 23 inches
red tape 24 inches 

At this point we had already managed to break both of these pumpkins from the vine. And adults were involved with both, so we decided we'd just look at the pumpkins from here on in to see how they've grown. No more measuring. We brought the 2 pumpkins that had broken off back with us. They aren't ripe yet, so they will rot. We'll keep them around to see how long that will take.

Since Cedi and Capri left for vacation without eating all the ripe strawberries, we all got to sample a couple. YUM!!!

Time to go by the Duck Pond Garden. Everything is growing wildly. We're hoping for baby tomatoes next week. The Rain Gauge Gnome had 2 1/4 inches of rain. YEAH!!!! We didn't need to do any watering today.

 

The beets are doing well and we'll probably harvest some Swiss chard next week and maybe some beans from the jungle gym. We checked on the worms, but this has been a really tough year for the worm farm. It is too HOT. Hopefully they will do a little better in the cooler weather and come up where we can see them better.

 

We ended with quick visit to the Fairy Garden where we saw the hen and chick plants and their babies.

Another great week for kids in the garden. See you all next week.

To see more pictures be sure to check out the ‘Kids in the Garden’ flickr group I started HERE.  If you’re participating in our little program please feel free to upload your pictures to the group as well!

It was another hot one out there this week but we had A LOT to visit.  With the amazing job that Frank and Diane has done watering quite a bit has grown and I needed the kids help checking it out and of course, keeping it watered.

Before I get too far into what happened that day I want to make sure you all saw that ‘Kids in the Garden’ made the news!  A really nice article was in the Poynette Press last week.  Click HERE to read it!

To see more pictures be sure to check out the ‘Kids in the Garden’ flickr group I started HERE.  If you’re participating in our little program please feel free to upload your pictures to the group as well!

Frank and Diane were on vacation for this weeks ‘Kids in the Garden’ so that left Lisa and I to run the show – I think it went well (I hope at least). 

Lisa’s daughter, Ashley, was a great help and was our photographer for the day.  She did a great job! 

We started at the duck race garden and checked our little rain gauge gnome. Can you guess what we found – yup – no water, 0 inches, still.  So, all the kids got some cups of water and started to water our lusciously growing garden…which is only luscious because it’s being watered.  We also took a closer look and saw that our tomato plants have started to grow some tomatoes!  They’re still really green but I’m guessing it won’t be too long before we have tomatoes for our snack! {water break}

Next we headed to the jungle gym to see what was growing – looks like beans and gourds to us!  They’re really starting to climb! Again – the kids got their cups of water and helped with some of the watering for these beautiful plants.  Once we had a water break it was time to head out to the pumpkin patch.  We hadn’t visited this patch yet so it was definitely time.  I love the picture Ashley got of the kids on the search for pumpkins. 

They were delighted to find LOTS of pumpkins in all shapes, sizes and stages.  We picked four pumpkins that we’re going to keep track of their circumference as they grow.

Survey ribbons were tied to the stems of the pumpkins we’re measuring so we can find the same ones again in the weeks to follow.

• Yellow Ribbon: 12” circumference
• Red Ribbon: 24” circumference
• Blue/Black Striped Ribbon: 27” circumference
• Black Ribbon: 20” circumference

I can’t wait to see how much they grow before next weeks class!

On our trek back from the pumpkins we had our snack for the day – Blueberry Stuffed Raspberries.  A delicious creations that one of our kids came up with actually last season.  See how to make this wonderful treat HERE.   {water break}

Next we went to visit the garden by the wood stove.  The kids found some weeds and helped me pull them.  Then we looked to see if anything was growing.  YES!  We found watermelon, cantaloupe, honey dew, yellow crooked neck summer squash, zucchini, cucumbers, patty pans and yellow zucchini.  This garden is really starting to produce some fun things!

With the heat, water is SO IMPORTANT, so once again, the kids grabbed their cups and they got our garden watered.  We had three more gardens to visit.  We headed by the goats and chickens to check out the garden back there.  {water break} I’m excited to report that we were able to see peppers growing, onions, a flourishing tomatillo plant, ground cherries, chocolate cherry tomatoes and so much more.  This garden is going to really help us make some tasty salsa when things are ready! In the picture at the very top of the page you can see one of our kiddo’s, Jason, with his two onions – one for him and one for his dad.  I guess he REALLY likes onions (too cute!) – and we’re going to support that as much we can!  I hope they enjoyed them!  In the midst of visiting the ‘Garden by the Goats’ Lisa’s other daughter, Sarah, our chicken whisperer, helped get a loose chicken back in the pen. (We are now penning them with the goats…they like to eat all the berries and veggies too much this time of year.)  I’m very glad she was there because as I’m sure most of you know – I’m not super good with animals.  When the emus escaped last year the first thing I did was grab the camera…

{water break}

After the chicken was safely back in the pen and the kids were happy with what they saw at the ‘Garden by the Goats’ we headed out to measure our sunflowers.  This is one of the gardens that we are NOT irrigating or watering.  We’re just going to see what happens (you can only do so much…) with this one and we’ll take whatever we get.  Amazingly, the sunflowers have grown quite a bit.  We measured three and took the average so our sunflower’s are at about 26-inches tall on average!  AND, seeds that were planted AFTER the last rainfall are actually starting to grow…no idea how it’s happening but we’ll take it!Before heading back to the sheds to cool off I couldn’t resist bringing the kids to our tomato patch.  It is GORGEOUS!  Deep, dark, luscious green leaves and LOTS of green tomatoes are growing.  You can see Amy and Savannah above taking a closer look while the others take a little walk through the patch.   {water break} {water break} {water break} {water break} {water break} {water break}

It was time for our final {water break} .  The kids ran around, played on the playground and in the sprinkler we had set up.  The mom’s cooled off in the shade.  It was another HOT day but a successful, fun hot day.  I can’t believe we’re already half way through the program.  I’m excited for the things we and the gardens still have in store for the kids!And…a picture of my bounty of the day.  One Crooked Neck yellow squash, a green zucchini and three cucumbers.  I forgot to pick the patty pans but I snagged them the next day.  My bounty of fresh veggies keeps getting bigger!

Stop by again net week so see how Week 5 goes! (Diane will have to report…I’m missing next week…)

 

Take a look back at earlier this summer:

• Week 1
• Week 2
• Week 3
• Week – Fourth of July

Hi everyone!  We didn’t have a Kids in the Garden program this week due to the holiday.  I hope everyone enjoyed their sweltering hot fourth of July.  I would love to hear how the fireworks were!  We didn’t go to any – way too hot for little Pip, especially since she’s just starting to feel better from her fever and ear infection.

So, I ventured out to the gardens early this morning to I could give you all a quick report of some of what’s happening out there.  Frank and Diane have been diligently and relentlessly watering the gardens.  With this crazy heat they even had to water things twice yesterday since it all looked so terrible.  Thank goodness the forecast says we’re going to cool down a bit starting tomorrow.  Anyone else feel trapped?

My first stop was the sunflower field.  Since we are growing these just for fun and not for eating we have not irrigated the field. 

 

The tallest sunflower measured about 19-inches but most were measuring around 12” – just one inch taller than last week.  I’m sure that has to do with the heat and lack of rain.

 

My next stop was to miscellaneous patch behind the wood stove.  Here, Diane told me I would find a zucchini to pick – and I did! 

 

Then – I wanted to see how the Fairy Garden was looking…

 

BEAUTIFUL!  I have some fun new things in store for the fairy garden this weekend (as long as it really does cool down at least some – then I’ll go outside again…) so be sure to have you and your kiddo’s stop by on Thursday. 

 

I wanted to see how our mascot – the Rain Gauge Gnome was doing.  He still looks pretty happy and relaxed but sadly there is still no water in his gauge. 

BUT, Frank and Diane have been doing an awesome job on watering our gardens.  See the little tomatoes starting!?

And the barrel is looking fabulous!

 

The beans are growing nicely.

 

I stopped by the girls’ strawberry patch before I headed in to my cool house.  Here’s my take from this morning – a zucchini and a handful of strawberries (I’ll have to pick more later but my hands were already full!).

I think next week is definitely going to be a good one for the kiddo’s to see all that has started to grow and produce vegetables.  I’m excited to see the progress myself!

And I do have to give a BIG THANKS to Frank and Diane for keeping our gardens flourishing in this time of draught and heat!