No Adieus, just Au Revoir

Baby Version of the Black and Yellow Cheesecake (made from extra batter)

Just when I started blogging again, I've decided to let it go for a while. The pressures of family and responsibility have forced me to... re-evaluate my life. I look around and friends have gotten married, careers, mortgages, and children. They've moved away and/or moved on. Maybe it's time for me to let go of silly childish dreams and grow up. So this will be my last post. Just until I figure things out. In the meantime, I hope you've enjoyed all my little love bites and someday, I hope to bring you more.


I was craving a lemony cheesecake complimented by big plump blackberries so I came up with the Black and Yellow Cheesecake. This cheesecake is dedicated to my former roommate Brittani, all the good times in NYC, and all the good things that the future holds.

I began by making a lemon poppy seed shortbread for the cheesecake crust. It may seem like such a tedious task to make the cookies from scratch just to ground it all up for a crust, but I think it's totally worth it. I think the lemon shortbread adds that extra burst of flavor while the poppy seeds are so pretty, especially when the crust shows halfway up the sides of the cheesecake. I found many similar recipes for lemon poppy seed shortbread online, (I thought I came up with that!) but the one that kept coming up was from Claudia Fleming's The Last Course.


Be prepared. Bake the cheesecake in the morning in order to have it for dessert the same evening. However, cheesecake is usually best chilled overnight and enjoyed the next day. If you are short on time or patience, any old cookie crumb will do: short bread, graham cracker, vanilla wafers, etc. Some cheesecake recipes don't even call for a crust. If you're not going to make the shortbread, then skip to the next part for the cheesecake.

Lemon Poppy Seed Shortbread 
Adapted from Claudia Fleming’s The Last Course

• Ingredients
  1 cup (8 ounces) butter, softened
  3/4 cup (3 ounces) confectioner’s sugar
  1 1/2 tsp lemon juice
  1 1/2 tsp lemon zest
  2 cups (10 ounces) flour
  1 1/2 tablespoons poppy seeds
  1/2 tsp salt
  Preparations
  1. Beat butter and sugar in a mixer until creamy. 
  2. Add the lemon juice and zest and beat well.  
  3. Sift the flour, and mix in the poppy seeds and salt.  Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture and combine until it comes together (I used the dough hook for this part). 
  4. Form the dough into a disk, wrap in plastic and chill for 3 hours or overnight. (I was in a time crunch so I froze the dough for an hour; it worked pretty well.)
  5. Preheat the oven to 300 degrees. Roll out the dough out to 1/4 inch thickness. Cut into desired shapes and prick each piece with fork.  If you are making wedges, cut into an approximately 9" diameter circle and score lightly into 8 pieces. If the dough becomes too soft while you are working with it, return to the refrigerator and chill for several minutes. I found an antique wooden mold in my sister's cupboard so I tried it out for a few of the cookies.
  

  

   
  6. Place pieces on parchment-lined baking sheets and bake until pale golden and the edges are just starting to turn brown, about 23 minutes (depending on size). Cool on wire racks.  If you have made the wedges, cut along the scored lines to separate the pieces.

  
  

  For Crust:

  Break cookies into small pieces and put into food processor. Pulse until it becomes a fine to medium crumb (use about 1 cup). Press into a 9 1/2" springform pan and bake for 8-10 min. Cool and set aside. If not using a crust, butter and flour pan, and tap out excess flour.
  

  

   
  
  

  
  

  Black and Yellow Cheesecake

  Adapted quite a bit from Allrecipes.com
  

  makes one 9 1/2 inch cheesecake
  Pre-Prep:

  Preheat oven 300 degrees F

  Prepare a bain marie by finding a roasting pan large enough to fit the cheesecake and deep enough to hold water that comes halfway up the springform pan and set on the middle rack in the oven.

  
  

  ingredients:
  1 15oz ricotta cheese

  2 8 oz pkg cream cheese, softened

  2/3 cup white sugar

  1/3 cup all-purpose flour

  6 eggs, at room temperature 

  1 tablespoon finely grated lemon zest

  1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

  1 tablespoon Amaretto (optional)

  1/8 teaspoon salt

  
  

  directions:
  1. Beat together ricotta and soften cream cheese until smooth. I pressed the cheese mixture through a fine mesh sieve just to make sure there are no lumps left.
  2. On medium, blend the sugar and flour into the cheeses. 
  3. Stir in the eggs, one at a time and mix on low until fully incorporated.
  4. Slowly add the lemon zest, Amaretto and salt until blended.
  5. Pour batter into the prepared pan and place in bain marie. Bake in the center of the oven for about 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 hours, until a light golden color (mine did not brown at all). Make sure the center is fairly firm, and the point of a sharp knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack. It will sink slightly as it cools. Cover, and chill till serving time.
  6. Cut into slices and serve with topping of choice. In this case I used a lemon Amaretto glaze (recipe below) and fresh blackberries.

  Lemon Amaretto Glaze
  I happened to have some homemade lemon curd sitting in the freezer, but lemon curd should be easy to find next to the jams and preserves at most grocery stores.
  1/2 c lemon curd
  1 tablespoon Amaretto
  Mix ingredients in a small saucepan until warmed or microwave in bowl for 30-60 seconds. Spread on cooled cheesecake and arrange blackberries on top. Place cheesecake back in the refrigerator until set and cool until ready to serve.
  
  
  Lemon Blackberry Shortcake Bonus
  

  

  
  
  That night we went over to some friends' place for dinner. I had to come up with a quick dessert and luckily I had some extra shortbread cookies and blackberries. And of course, there's always some heavy whipping cream in the fridge. I added a tablespoon of powder sugar, 1/4 tsp vanilla extract, some seeds scraped from a piece of vanilla bean and whipped on high until stiff peaks formed. I placed shortbread in a small bowl, layered on a dollop of whipped cream, a smidgen of lemon curd and a handful of blackberries and it made a lovely impromptu dessert.

Strawberries and Chocolate

I had some chocolate cupcakes left over from yesterday and no more frosting so I decided to make use of the fresh strawberries I had before they went bad. I am way partial towards the European buttercreams, which contain some form of egg or other. American buttercreams, on the other hand, are just a mix of butter and powder sugar or some variation of that. I've had it before, but I don't remember ever making the American version until today. European buttercreams, whether French, Swiss, or Italian are so luxurious and smooth, and they're the ones reserved for wedding cakes or more European style bakeries. I guess for me, it definitely is about the texture, but the taste is different too. The powder sugar adds that sugary grittiness to the frosting while making it super sweet, which I prefer neither of. I feel like such a frosting snob, and I am sorry if I offend anyone :)

So back to the cupcakes. I only paired the strawberry frosting with the chocolate cupcakes just because I had to get rid of them, but it made more sense as I was putting it together. It reminded me of chocolate dipped strawberries, like the ones Godiva make... yum. I had preferred to use the strawberry buttercream with a light vanilla cupcake, but after trying this particular version of the frosting, the pairing would have been too sweet. The chocolate cake worked well with it. For the cupcakes, use the double chocolate recipe from my previous post, but leave the spices out (peppers and cinnamon). I found a basic vanilla buttercream and just added the strawberries to it last. Actually, I was too lazy to puree the berries and just cut them into little pieces. That's why the frosting looks a little chunky. Oops! Oh, and I still prefer Swiss Meringue Buttercream.

Strawberry Buttercream Frosting

Ingredients

2 sticks of Butter at room temperature

3 c Powder Sugar

2 Tbs Heavy Whipping Cream

1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract

1/2 c Pureed Strawberries

1. Beat the butter until light and fluffy
2. Slowly add powder sugar until well incorporated
3. Add cream until fully mixed
4. Add vanilla and strawberries and turn mixer on high to mix well

On a somewhat related note, I have some unexpected but exciting news- well, at least it is for me. A few months ago I sent out many job applications to many random places. Many of them were retail stores since they were hiring seasonal employees for the holidays. Just as my hours are getting cut at my current job, I was thinking about finding a second job. In the middle of posting my blog yesterday, Sur La Table calls me about the Kitchen Assistant position I totally forgot I applied for. I went in today to meet them and it was the easiest interview I ever had. The chef/program coordinator asked me to choose three items from the store and tell her why I liked them. The hardest part was picking out just three! It sounded like I already had it in the bag before they even called me. So what will I be doing? I'll be doing prep work for the cooking classes, grocery shopping, washing dishes, and assisting the chef and the students. Some of you might think I went to design school to be a kitchen assistant? I'm super excited because this job couldn't have come at a better time. Right when I was looking for a second job. Right when I became seriously obsessed with baking. I'll get all the top of the line gourmet baking supplies and ingredients I need for a bargain AND since I'm helping out in the classes, I'm pretty much getting paid to be at these cooking classes that cost $60-$100 to attend. Seriously, God has the greatest timing- ever! Oh, I chose a culinary torch, a silicone spatula, and a bottle of balsamic vinegar for my three items. Not that you were wondering or anything.

Cupcakes

So I'm contemplating setting up a new blog, focusing on my adventures in baking, or maybe just cupcakes. I'm not sure yet. We'll see. In the mean time, here's my first post on my very own cupcakes. Enjoy!

Mexican Hot Chocolate Cupcakes

How did I come up with this idea? Well, when I was living in New York, I was waiting for a table at the ever packed Max Brenner in Union Square. This is totally not related, by the way, but only go there for dessert- chocolate and dessert. It's known mostly for that anyways. The food is horrible. It's like ordering a tuna sandwich at Dunkin Donuts: just don't do it! Anyways, while I was waiting, I decided to try their Mexican Spicy Hot Chocolate: sweet, spicy, chocolate. Sounded wonderful to me! It was served in an espresso sized cup and for nearly $6, it was quite expensive. The adventurous eater that I am, I was very excited about the non-subtle spiciness that came after the first taste of the rich hot chocolate. It was very rich, indeed, that I couldn't even finish the miniature sized drinkable dessert.

It was quite a lovely concoction, but I thought it was too rich to drink. Then I wondered, was it too rich to eat? Lightbulb! Hence, there was the beginnings of my Mexican Hot Chocolate cupcake. I remembered trying a Lindt dark chocolate chili bar a while back, and I knew I had to use that in my adaptation of Miette's Double Chocolate Cake recipe. The only chili powder I had was a concoction of other spices including onion and garlic, so that was out of the question. I had Cayenne pepper, so that would do for now. I also added a dash of cinnamon. In the end, the cupcake ended having a rich dark chocolate flavor, but it lacked the kick I was looking for. The recipe below is modified to correct that. In the end, just add as little or as much as you want to suit your tastes. However, I bet it's safe to say that if you're even thinking of making this recipe, you're not afraid of a little spice. Finally, what better way to top off a Mexican inspired cupcake than some cinnamon buttercream?

Double Chocolate Cake (by Miette, spices added by me to make it a "hot" chocolate cake)
Makes two 6 in. cakes or about 24 cupcakes

Preheat Oven to 350 degrees F
Line 2 standard muffin tins with paper liners
Make sure all ingredients are room temp, except otherwise noted

Ingredients


1 1/2 c (7 1/2 oz) All Purpose Flour

1 1/4 c (4 1/2 oz) Natural Unsweetened Cocoa Powder (not Dutch processed)

1 1/2 tsp Baking Soda

1/2 tsp Baking Powder

3/4 tsp Kosher Salt

1/4 tsp Cayenne Pepper

1/4 tsp Chili Pepper (make sure it's just the chili)

1/4 tsp Nutmeg

2 oz 70% Cacao Chocolate, coursely chopped (I used Lindt's Excellence Chili Bar)

1 c Boiling Water

1 c Buttermilk

1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract

2 Large Eggs

1/2 c Vegetable Oil (I used Safflower)

2 1/4 c (16 oz) Sugar


1. Sift together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and dried spices in a bowl and set aside

2. Put the chopped chocolate in a heat proof bowl and pour the boiling water over it. Whisk until the chocolate is melted and let cool 15 min.

3. In a separate bowl, whisk buttermilk and vanilla and set aside.

4. In a bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whisk the eggs on high speed until foamy, about 2 min. Reduce the speed to low and slowly pour in the oil, whisking until combined, about 30 sec. Raise the sped to medium and whisk until fully incorporated, about 30 sec. longer.

5. Reduce speed to low and slowly pour the cooled chocolate mixture into the egg mixture. Slowly pout the buttermilk mixture. Add sugar and whisk until the batter is smooth and liquid, about 2 min.

6. Stop the mixer. Remove bowl and add the flour mixture by hand with a rubber spatula until just incorporated, lifting and folding from the bottom center. Scrape down the sides and mix briefly. It might still be lumpy but stop mixing. The batter can be poured through a medium-mesh sieve into another bowl to remove any lumps. Using the rubber spatula, push as much batter through as possible.

7. Using a large rounded measuring spoon or ice cream scoop, fill each cup about 2/3 full. Bake for 20 min. I usually check for doneness with a toothpick at about 18 min. Cool in pans on rack for 20 min. Remove and cool for another 20 min. before frosting.

Cinnamon Swiss Meringue Buttercream


8 Large Egg Whites, room temperature

1 3/4 c sugar

1 1/2 tsp Cinnamon

1 tsp Vanilla Extract

6 Sticks Unsalted Butter, room temperature, cut into pieces

1. Pour egg whites and sugar in a heat proof bowl (or metal stand mixer bowl) and whisk over hot water in a saucepan (bain marie). Make sure the bottom of the bowl does not touch the water or you'll end up with scrambled egg whites.  Heat until sugar has dissolved and you can't feel the the sugar between your fingers.

2. Transfer mixture to a stand mixer with whisk attachment and whisk on high until soft peak forms. Stop mixer and switch to the flat beater.

3. Add vanilla extract and cinnamon and mix on low until incorporated.

4. While still on low, add butter a little at a time until fully incorporated before adding more. Once all the butter is added, mix on high until smooth and thick enough to pipe.

Samson was kind enough to pose for me inbetween cupcake shots.