Cheesecake with Crumble Topping

In Israel we have a holiday that is being traditionally celebrated by serving dairy foods. I call it the Cheesecake holiday,whereas the official name is Shavuot. I’m really not into religious at all, so I’ll spare you the story behind this holiday. If you really want to know what it’s about, you can always waste your time reading the wikipedia article. I’m more into the foods, and if there’s a cheesecake holiday, then hey, I’m in! Even if the explanation for it is too religious. Also, being able to say “In Israel we have a cheese cake holiday” sounds pretty cool for a middle eastern country.

I’ve been wanting to make this cake for a while now, but never really got to it. Now that Shavuot is approaching, I figured it’s time!  It literally takes a few minutes to prepare the base and crumbs (plus 15 minutes baking), and a couple more to assemble the filling ingredients and whip the cream. So don’t feel intimidated by the relatively lengthy looking instructions.

Some tips before you start:

• The most efficient way to line the dough in the tin: I suggest you line the tin in baking paper, plce the dough on top of it, cover with another baking paper and roll into the tin shape using a rolling pin
• Full fat cream cheese should have 20-30% fats; Low fat cream cheese should have up to 6% fats.
• Using icing sugar while whipping the cream will thicken the whipped cream even more. I would highly recommend not to substitute it with a normal sugar.
• Before spreading the filling, attach stripe(s) of baking paper to the rim of the tin, so the mixture won’t attach to the it. This might destroy the perfect edges of your cake, though I guarantee it will taste the same. The hight of the stripe(s) should be the hight of the tin rim, and in order to attach it to the rim, just wet your hand, move them over the inside of the rim. The the baking paper will then stick to the rim with the help of the water.
• The cake has to stabilize overnight in your fridge. You could also freeze it, but you will have to transfer it to the fridge 3-4 hours before serving. Alternatively, you could leave it on the kitchen counter for 2 hours if the weather allows. It is not recommended for summer days, though.
• Once the crumble has cooled completely, it is advised to keep it in an airtight container and scatter it right before serving. That way the crumble won’t become moisty from the fridge. However, having the leftovers in my fridge for 2 more night didn’t seem to have a negative effect on its freshness.

Happy Cheesecake Holiday!

You’ll need:

• 23cm springform tin

For the base and crumble:

• 200g flour
• 120g butter, chilled and diced
• 90g icing sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 tbsp rum

For the filling:

• 375g full fat cream cheese
• 200g low fat cream cheese
• 200g sour cream
• 500ml whipping cream
• 150g icing sugar
• 80g custard powder
• 1tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tsp rum
• lemon zest from 1 lemon

How to:

The base and crumble:

(1) Preheat the oven to 175c

(2) Place the flour, butter and sugar in a food processor and process until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs

(3) Add the egg and rum and process until a ball is formed

(4) Roll the pastry dough out and divide in two (one part for the base, the other for the crumbs)

(5) Line one of the dough on the tin, then chill in the fridge for 30 minutes

(6) Shape a disc of the second dough and chill until ready to bake

(7) Bake the base for 15 minutes until golden brown

(7) Remove the tin from the oven and allow to cool

(8) Bake the second dough for 15 minutes or until golden brown

(9) Allow the second dough to cool for 5-10 minutes, then crumble it using a fork

The Filling:

(1) In a bowl, mix the cheeses, sour cream, lemon zest and rum

(2) In a separate bowl whip the cream together with the custard powder, icing sugar and vanilla

(3) Gently fold the cheese mix into the cream

Assemble the cake:

(1) Spread the cheese-cream mixture evenly over the base once it has cooled

(2) Chill the cake overnight

(3) Before serving – scatter the crumble over the cake

Best Muffin Recipe

No, this is not just a catchy headline, these muffins really turned to be the best I’ve ever baked.

The credentials for this recipe and tips go to Natalie Levin, a pastry chef. As a big fan (well, and a muffin lover, too) I decided to give this recipe a try and since I just loved these fabulous muffins, I must share!

Some muffins tips before you go and bake these little wonders:

• The following recipe will make 12 normal sized muffins and will require 5cm bottom diameter muffin paper cases.
• This can be a great basic muffin recipe, and blueberries can be replaced with almost any other berry or fruit of your choice (raspberries, apricots, nectarines etc).
• When stirring, use a wooden spoon and mix only until all ingredients blend together. Don’t over-mix, and this will give your muffins the right, dense texture that
• Bake the muffins immediately. The longer the mixture sits, it’ll contain less leavening power.
• Bake the muffins until a skewer inserted in to the centre comes out with moisty crumbs, not totally clean. That will keep them soft for few more days.
• If necessary, these muffins can be freeze up to a month.

You’ll need:

• 12 hole muffin tin lined with muffin cases

• 280g flour
• 1 tbsp baking powder
• 2 medium eggs
• 150g sugar
• 70g butter, melted and cooled
• 200ml sour cream
• pinch of salt
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 100g white chocolate, melted (optional: chop 20g of the 100, to sprinkle – see step 6)
• 150g blueberries

How to:

(1) Preheat oven to 160c

(2) Sift flour and baking powder into a large bowl

(3) Add the eggs, sugar, melted butter, sour cream, salt and vanilla, and stir only enough to blend all ingredients

(4) Gently fold in the melted chocolate and raspberries

(5) Spoon the mixture into the paper cases

(6) Optional: sprinkle some chopped white chocolate on top of each muffin

(7) Bake the muffins for 20-25 minutes, until well risen and a skewer inserted in to the centre comes out with moisty crumbs

(8) Transfer the muffins to a wire rack to cool a little before serving

(9) Grab one muffin (or more) and enjoy every bite!

Vanilla Raspberry Roulade

This is a cake my mom used to make during my childhood.  She always made two of them at the same time – one filled with vanilla cream and the other was chocolate. And they were pretty simple, there was the base and the cream, nothing else. Honestly, back then it was more than enough, especially since my mom never baked creamy cakes, so it felt like a special occasion when she decided to prepare the roulades!

When I started preparing the roulade myself (one at a time, since I have only 1 oven tin, while my mom used to have two!), I realized how simple it is to make. Much simpler than the cheesecake and sponge cake she was baking on (almost) a weekly basis. Yes, I really mean it. Actually, it’ll even take you longer to read through the recipe then prepare it.

Since I like berries so much, I added raspberries to the original vanilla filling. These can be replaced with any other berry of your choice. If you choose to fill with strawberries, you should slice or dice them first. You can even spread raspberry jam (or any other jam) or berries purée instead of the raspberries.

And if you prefer to keep it classic – base and cream, I say – go fo it!

I hope you’d enjoy it as much as we did!

You’ll need:

For the base:

• Your oven tin (30*35cm), covered with buttered baking paper

• 100g sugar
• 3 medium eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 100g plain flour
• 0.5 tsp baking powder
• lemon zest of half a lemon
• pinch of salt

For the filling:

• 50g Frozen raspberries (halve the big ones)
• 2 tsp lemon juice
• 1 tsp icing sugar

• 250ml cream
• 60ml milk
• 3 tbsp custard powder
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 3 tbsp sugar

The base:

(1) Preheat the oven to 180c

(2) Whip the eggs (yes, whites and yolks together) and vanilla using a mixer, and gradually add the sugar. Mix until foamy, approx 3 minutes (it should remain liquidy)

(3) Fold in the rest of the ingredients – flour, baking powder, lemon zest and salt

(4) Spread the mixture on the oven tin (it doesn’t have to cover it all, though)

(5) bake for 6-8 minutes, until the base turns lightly golden and spongy to touch.

(6) Remove from the oven and let cool before spreading the filling

The filling:

(1) Toss the raspberries, lemon juice and icing sugar in a small bowl, and set aside

(2) Whip the cream, custard powder, vanilla and sugar

(3) Separate the base from the baking paper, and spread the cream on the rougher side of it

(4) Scatter the raspberries on top of it

(5) Roll tightly into a roulade

The roulade tastes best after chilling in the fridge for several hours or even overnight. This will allow the roulade to soak some of the filling flavour.

Serving:

Dust with some icing sugar before serving. You can also serve with fresh berries on the side.

If you would like to cover your roulade with extra cream, you can whip 250ml of cream, 1 tbsp custard powder, 1 tsp vanilla extract and 2 tbsp sugar together. Then spread over the roulade.

Chocolate Muffins

This recipe is courtesy of Marta A (yes, Marta without h), the most talented food photographer I know. These were baked in her kitchen one afternoon, and while baked, and enjoying the new set and accessories of that particular photography location and the lighting at her apartment, which is much better than in mine. So I was trying to make the most out of it.

As I already mentioned, muffins are one of the easiest and quickest desserts ever, and everybody just love ‘em! And please, feel free to correct me if I’m wrong!

So how easy is the art of preparing the muffin batter? So easy, that I can put it together in one sentence: mix the dry ingredients in one bowl, the wet in another, then pour the mixed wet ingredients in the mixed dry ones and mix until just incorporated.

The rest – spooning into the cases is just too much fun (especially the finger licking part) to be considered as part of the no too much time consuming process.

The pictured muffins are drizzled with some Irish cream frosting, and here’s how it’s done: Mix Irish cream and icing sugar in a 1:3 proportions (for example: 1 tbsp Irish cream, 3 tbsp icing sugar), and allow to rest for 15-20 minutes. Then mix again and pour over the muffins. that’s it.

For 12 muffins, you’ll need:

• 12 hole muffin tin or 2×6 hole muffin tins, lined with muffin cases

• 225g plain flour
• 60g cocoa powder
• 2tsp baking powder
• Pinch of salt
• 115g brown sugar
• 250ml buttermilk
• 100g chocolate chips (or chocolate bar, broken into chocolate chips-size pieces)
• 80ml vegetable oil (I prefer rape seed oil)
• 1tsp vanilla extract
• 2 eggs

How to:

(1) Preheat the oven to 200c

(2) Sift the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt into a bowl, then add sugar and chocolate chips

(3) In another bowl, mix the buttermilk, eggs, oil and vanilla.

(4) Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients bowl, and pour the wet ingredients in

(5) Mix until just combined

(6) Fill 3/4 of each of the muffin cases with the muffin mixture

(7) Bake for 15 minutes or until firm

(8) Allow the muffin to cool a little on a wire rack before consuming

Lemon Berry Cake

Remember my berries obsession? I didn’t bake with berries for a while, and today I bought some frozen berries, which means I’m the proud owner of 1kg of frozen berries. Berries to bake with! And perhaps snack the blackcurrants while I bake, because they are such a great snack when they are frozen or semi-frozen (not when thawed, though..)

What makes this cake so special is the combined flavours of the lemon and berries. If there’s one thing I learned since I started baking (for the sake of argument, right?), it is that the flavours of berries and lemon go so well together. Even when I prepare a home made berries yogurt (with store-bought natural yogurt!), I add some freshly squeezed lemon or lime juice. It blend so well together and the lemon enriches and strengthens the berries flavour.

A few notes regarding the ingredients:

• I actually prefer to use limes (zest and juice) instead of lemon just because I think the cake looks more interesting with the tiny greenish hints in it. If you decide to replace the lemon, make sure you use two limes, because in baking, size (and measurements) matters!
• Frozen berries are perfectly fine for this cake. I think fresh berries should be used only when they suppose to keep their original shape and when they are not supposed to be baked. A good example is berry tarts or tartlets.
• In my opinion, the best berry-mix for this cake is raspberries, blackberries, blackcurrants and redcurrants. Though once I had a mix that contained cherries as well, and I discovered they can go pretty well in this cake, too. If you prefer, you can omit the blackberries, which are (relatively) the sweetest (or less sour) berry in this mix.

You’ll need:

• 23cm springform tin

• 200g unsalted butter
• 200g sugar
• 4 medium sized eggs, beaten
• 200g self-raising flour
• 0.5tsp baking powder
• 60g ground almonds
• finely grated zest of 1 lemon
• juice of 1 lemon
• 200g mixed berries

For the lemon drizzle:

• finely grated zest and juice of 2 lemons
• 100g caster sugar

How to:

(1) Preheat the oven to 150c
(2) Cream the butter and sugar together until pale and fluffy
(3) Gradually add the eggs
(4) Fold in the flour, baking powder and ground almonds
(5) Fold in the zest and juice of the limes
(6) Gently fold in half the fruit (we want the mixture to stay yellowish)
(7) Place the mixture in the tin
(8) Top with the remaining berries
(9) Place the tin in the oven and bake for 50-60 minutes

The lemon drizzle:

(1) Combine the lemon zest and juice together with the sugar in a small saucepan
(2) Cook over low-medium heat, until the sugar is dissolved
(3) Pour over the cake while the cake is still hot (seeps in better)

Serving: with fresh berries on top or aside the slice or berries purée

Lemon Meringue Roulade

Also in this article: how to beat egg whites

Do you also have too many egg whites in your fridge or freezer? A few days ago, when freezing another egg white I realized I had too many jars, full of them. I then decided I must do something about it. I figured a meringue roulade is a great solution. When I think of meringue, I have the crunchy type of meringue in mind, from the time I was a little girl, when a cute coloured meringue swirl was called “A kiss”. This roulade has a different texture, a very soft, spongy meringue that almost melts in the mouth. An absolute yum!

The filling: I chose to fill my meringue roulade with lemon cream. If you prefer, you can fill yours with any other cream of your choice: vanilla, chocolate, berries (add some smooth berry purée of your choice to the whipped cream) etc.

It is also gluten free, so suitable for those who are allergic (coeliac/celiac disease). I think of those things because of my mom, so whenever I find a recipe suitable for her, I immediately call her, expecting her to try it the next day, if not immediately (though it never works that way..)

But before you go on and try the recipe, here are some beating egg whites tips:

• For best results, bring the egg white to room temperature before beating them. This will ensure your foamed egg whites will get into the highest possible volume.
• It is recommended to beat egg whites for meringue with a mixer. If you don’t have one, a hand mixer can do the job as well. However, it might take 2-3 more minutes to get similar result.
• When you start beating the egg whites, start at a slow speed and gradually move into higher speed.
• You should beat your egg whites until they are well firmed and fluffed (stiff peaks). At that point, you should stop! The texture should be smooth and look glossy and shiny. Another way to know your foam reached it’s max volume is to tilt the bowl, and the beaten egg white will not flow. Even if you overturn the bowl in the air (carefully!), the foam will remain in the bowl in the same shape. I never dare to do that, but I think rolling the bowl to it’s side is good enough.
• If you overbeat the egg whites, the texture will look dry and granular and it will liquify again.
• Use the beaten egg whites immediately

You’ll need:

• Your oven tin

For the base:

• 5 egg whites
• 200g caster sugar
• 1 tbsp cornflour
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

For the filling:

• 250ml whipping cream
• 2 tbsp sugar
• 2 tbsp lemon curd

How to:

Prepare the base:

(1) Preheat oven to 180c and line the tin with a baking paper, lightly greased with butter

(2) Place the egg whites in a bowl, and beat with a (hand) mixer, while gradually adding the sugar, until stiff peaks are formed

(3) Gently fold in the cornflour and vanilla

(4) Spread the mixture evenly in the tin (approx 1.5 cm thick) and bake for 15 minutes

(5) Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely

Prepare the filling:

(1) Whisk the cream, and gradually add the sugar, until it thickens and forms small, soft peaks

(2) Fold in the lemon curd until just combined

Prepare the roulade:

(1) Turn the cooled base onto a clean baking paper

(2) Spread the lemon cream evenly over the base

(3) Roll the cream coated base into a roulade and keep refrigerated until served

Lime Pie

How to describe this pie in one word: Sensational!

A simple American dessert, requires very few ingredients and little effort. Also known as Key Lime Pie, when using limes from the Florida keys. As of 2006, it is the Florida state pie.

The filling should be slightly yellowish, since the lime juice is more yellow rather than green, but also due to the egg yolks. Mine is slightly more greenish, due to the added lime zest, and it can be noticed. If you happen to find a greenish lime pie but no visible zest, it most probably contains food colouring. I would keep my distance from such pie.

An interesting fact: early lime pies weren’t baked at all, due to a chemical reaction between the condensed milk and the lime juice when combined, which causes the filling mixture to thicken without baking. These days, however, the consumption of raw eggs is not recommended. Therefore, the pie is being baked for a short time, just enough to cook them, but it also thickens the filling more than the chemical reaction alone.

You’ll need:

• 23cm loosed bottom flan tin

For the crust:

• 125g unsalted butter
• 275g crushed digestive biscuits

For the filling:

• 5 limes
• 3 large egg yolks
• 400g condensed milk (1 can in most places)

Decoration (optional):

• 1 extra line, cut into thin slices

How to:

Prepare the crust:

(1) Preheat oven to 180c

(2) In a small saucepan over a low heat, melt the butter

(3) Add the crushed digestives and stir until well combined

(4) Press the mixture evenly into the tin (base and sides)

(5) Bake for 8-10 minutes

(6) Remove the tin from the oven and allow to cool slightly

Prepare the filling:

(1) grate the zest of 2 of the limes, and juice all 5

(2) In a large bowl, combine the egg yolks and lime zest, and whisk (using a hand whisk) until the egg has thickened

(3) Add the condensed milk and keep whisking for approximately 5 minutes (whisk for further 2 minutes if using a hand whisk)

(4) Add the lime juice and mix until well combined

(5) Pour the filling into the tin and bake until set, 15-20 minutes

(6) Remove from the oven, and allow to cool completely before serving

Serving: decorate with the lime slices before serving. Good with vanilla cream or custard, whipped cream.

Banana Bread

• 25cm loaf tin

• 175g flour
• 180g brown sugar
• 2 eggs
• 2.5 mashed ripe bananas (depends on how ripe you like your bananas)
• 125ml canola oil
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 0.5 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• Pinch of salt

How to:

(1) Preheat the oven to 175c

(2) Mix well all ingredients in a bowl

(3) Pour the mixture into the tin

(4) Place the tin in the oven and bake for 40-45 minutes

Vanilla Puff Pastry Cases

Here’s another idea for a quick treat for a cold, wintry weekend.

I prepared these treats as personal cases. If unavailable, can be replaced by a 23cm loosed bottom flan tin, though not too recommended, because when you’ll divide into individual slices, they might not hold the filling. But hey, it tastes exactly the same, and besides, that’s what I used to do until I bought those useful babies!

Hope you’ll enjoy it as much as we did!

For 6 vanilla cases, you’ll need:

• 6 x 10cm loosed bottom flan tins

• 250g puff pastry, rolled
• 1 quantity of crème pâtissière
• 200ml cream, whipped
• 20-30 frozen raspberries (approx)

(1) Preheat the oven for 180c

(2) Cut the puff pastry into 6 even squares or discs and line the tins

(3) Spread a thin layer (0.5 cm) of the creme patissiere on top of the pastry

(3) Bake for 10  minutes, then remove from the oven and scatter several raspberries in each case

(4) Bake for further 10 minutes, until the pastry is golden brown

(5) Remove from the oven and let cool for few minutes

(6) To prepare the vanilla filling: fold the whipped cream into the creme patissiere

(7) Spoon the vanilla cream evenly into the cases, hiding the raspberry surprise

(8) Serve while the cases are still relatively warm.

There’s nothing better than beating an urge for a home-made treat, with muffins. Very easy to prepare and it has a relatively short baking time. Basically, this recipe can be used for many muffin variation, just replace the berries with almost any addition of your choice. I’ll keep posting different muffin variations from time to time and even present a healthier version as well.

If you prefer, the following batter can be baked as a cake. Just place in the right tin and bake for 45-50 minutes.

For 8 large muffins you’ll need:

Muffin tin (plus muffin cases, preferably)

• 200g self-raising flour
• 120g caster sugar
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1tsp vanilla extract
• 100ml milk
• 100g unsalted butter
• 1 egg, beaten
• 200g berries (I prefer this berry mix: raspberries, blackberries, blackcurrant and redcurrant)

How to:

(1) Preheat the oven to 180c

(2) In a bowl, mix the flour, sugar and baking powder together

(3) Place the milk and butter together in a small saucepan and heat until the butter melts. Remove from the heat and allow to cool

(4) Add the milk and butter to the dry mixture

(5) Add the egg and vanilla and mix well until the mixture is smooth

(6) Gently fold in the berries (we want the mixture to stay as pale as possible)

(7) Spoon the mixture into the muffin cases and place them in the muffin tin

(8) Place the tin in the oven and bake for 20 minutes

Serving: the good thing with muffins is they look so gorgeous in their sofisticated mushroom shape. If you really insist, you can always have it with vanilla ice cream (did I mention we like to experiment almost every dessert with vanilla ice cream?)