Spork or Foon?

Vanilla Bean Cheesecake with Mixed Berry Compote

Ok, OK, I know we all want to be healthy right now, but would you look at that? And Valentine's Day is a few weeks away, so we all know we're just going to start indulging again, so let's start now. 

Man, I am the worst influence ever. 

I love me some cheesecake. Smooth, creamy, sumptuous. I know that berries are out of season, but I brought them back into season by putting a pinch of all-spice in the compote, making these feel nice and wintery. 

Oh man. Would you look at that? I don't mean to toot my own horn, but wow. My mouth is watering just thinking about the wonders of this cheesecake. 

Obviously, this isn't supposed to happen. It looks more like a souffle than a cheesecake. It still makes me want to faceplant right into this. 

Is it time to break our New Years diets yet? No? Too soon?

Vanilla Bean Cheesecake with Spiced Berry Compote

Vanilla bean Cheesecake Recipe adapted from Joy of Baking

Filling:

32 ounces cream cheese, room temperature(use full fat, not reduced or fat free cream cheese)

1 cup granulated white sugar

3 tablespoons all purpose flour

5 large eggs, room temperature

1/3 cup (80 ml) heavy whipping cream (double cream)

1 tablespoon lemon zest

2 vanilla beans

Crust:

2 cups graham cracker crumbs 

 1/4 cup granulated white sugar

1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted

2 tsp cinnamon

Grease, or spray with Pam, a 9 inch (23 cm) springform pan. Wrap the outside of the pan with aluminum foil. Place the springform pan on a larger baking pan to catch any leakage while the cheesecake is baking. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (177 degrees C) with rack in center of oven.

For Crust: In a medium sized bowl combine the graham cracker crumbs, sugar, and melted butter. Press the crumbs evenly over the bottom and about 1 inch (2.5 cm) up the sides of the springform pan, Cover and refrigerate while you make the filling

For Filling: In bowl of your electric mixer place the cream cheese, sugar, and flour. Beat on medium speed until smooth (about 2 minutes), scraping down the bowl as needed. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well (about 30 seconds) after each addition.Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add the whipping cream, lemon zest, and beat until incorporated. Split open your vanilla beans and scrape out the seeds and guts inside the bean. lRemove the crust from the refrigerator and pour in the filling. Place the cheesecake pan a larger baking pan and place in the oven.

Bake for 15 minutes and then lower the oven temperature to 250 degrees F (120 degrees C) and continue to bake for about another 60 -90 minutesor until firm and only the center of the cheesecake looks a little wet and wobbly. (The baking time can vary due to the differences in ovens, so make sure to check that the cheesecake is firm with only the center being a little wet and wobbly.) Remove from oven and place on a wire rack.

Meanwhile, in a small bowl combine the sour cream, sugar, and vanilla extract. Spread the topping over the warm cheesecake and return to oven to bake for 15 more minutes.  Remove from oven and carefully run a knife or spatula around the inside edge of pan to loosen the cheesecake (helps prevent the surface from cracking as it cools).

Let cool completely before covering with plastic wrap. Refrigerate several hours, preferably overnight. Top with compote

Spiced Berry Compote

1 cup blueberries

1 cup raspberries

1 cup blackberries

1 lemon

Select about 1/2 cup of the a mixture of the berries  and set aside. These will be added raw to the cooked compote; set aside.

Place the remaining berries in  a medium saucepan.

Use a fine grater or a Microplane to zest the lemon. Add 1 teaspoon of the zest to the pan. Squeeze 1 tablespoon of juice from the lemon and add to the pan. Add the sugar and stir to coat the fruit.

Place the pan over medium-high heat and cook, stirring often to dissolve the sugar. By the time the sugar has dissolved, the fruit will have released a lot of juice. Boil for about 4 minutes to reduce the liquid somewhat, then reduce the heat and simmer for another 2 minutes, or until the rhubarb is soft. Don’t worry if some of the rhubarb falls apart.

Remove from the heat and stir in the reserved berries. Cool to room temperature, then refrigerate in a covered container until cold. (This makes about 4 cups of compote, but the extra will keep for a couple of weeks and is delicious for breakfast with some greek yogurt.

Get more deliciousness at Almond Cake with Strawberry-Rhubarb Compote Recipe | Leite's Culinaria

 

Chocolate Cake with Toasted Marshmallow and Malted Chocolate Frostings

I haven't had much time to write, and I have to keep this one short, but I couldn't hold this one back anymore - this cake, also known as a Campfire Cake from Sweetapolita, is RIDONCULOUS.  And it is by far the best looking cake I have ever made.

Soft, incredibly light layers of chocolate cake are layered with a toasted marshmallow frosting (yes, you read that correctly) and then the outside of the cake is frosted with a delicious malted chocolate frosting.

Are you drooling yet?

I had to make some adjustments to the original recipe, adding a bit more powdered sugar to the toasted marshmallow frosting and minimizing the amount of marshmallow fluff that I used on the inside layers. I also made this cake a three-layer cake as opposed to a six-layer cake, because, let's face it, I just don't have enough patience to make a six-layer cake. Especially on Thanksgiving morning, when I made this cake.

This cake is a for reals party stopper. For reals, for reals. 

And as I re-read that sentence, I realize that the term is "show-stopper", not "party stopper".  Who would want a party stopping cake? That would be a pretty crappy cake. 

If you want to check out the cake in all of it's glory, head over to Sweetapolita.  And have some fun around that site - she is unbelievable. 

Chocolate Cake with Toasted Marshmallow and Malted Chocolate Frostings (AKA Campfire Cake) - adapted from Sweetapolita

Rich Chocolate Cake Ingredients: 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour 2 cups granulated sugar 3/4 cup premium Cocoa Powder 2 teaspoons baking soda 1 teaspoon baking powder 1 teaspoon salt 2 eggs 1 cup strong black coffee 1 cup buttermilk, room temperature 1/2 cup vegetable oil 1.tablespooon pure vanilla extract Method: Preheat oven to 350 F. Prepare 3 x 8" cake pans with butter and flour or parchment paper. In bowl of electric mixer, sift all dry ingredients. Add all remaning ingredients to bowl with the dry ingredients and with paddle attachment on mixer, mix for 2 minutes on medium speed (you may need the plastic splashguard that comes with mixer) and pour into prepared pans. Batter will be liquidy. Bake for 20 minutes and rotate pans in oven. Cakes are done when toothpick or skewer comes clean--approximately 35 minutes. Try not to over bake. Cool on wire racks for 20 minutes then gently invert onto racks until completely cool. Malted Belgian Chocolate Frosting          Ingredients: 1 lb butter (4 sticks or 2 cups) at room temperature 4 cups icing sugar (confectioners’ or powdered) 3 teaspoons pure vanilla extract 3/4 cup Ovaltine Classic  8 oz premium bittersweet chocolate chocolate, chopped  1/2 cup heavy cream Method: Place chopped chocolate in a heat proof bowl. Heat heavy cream over medium high heat until it comes to a simmer.  Immediately pour over chopped chocolate and let sit for 30 seconds.  With a rubber spatula or wooden spoon, mix heavy cream and chopped chocolate until the chocolate is fully melted.  Set aside to cool  In a bowl of stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment, combine the icing sugar and butter and beat on low speed for about 1 minute. Add vanilla and malt powder, and beat on low until well combined. Add the melted chocolate and beat on medium speed until smooth (about 2 minutes).  Best used right away. Toasted-Marshmallow Frosting           Ingredients: 16 large white marshmallows 1 1/2 cup icing sugar (confectioners’ or powdered) 1/2 lb butter (2 sticks, or 1 cup) at room temperature 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract 7.5 oz Marshmallow Fluff Method: Place marshmallows on cookie sheet lined with parchment paper and sprayed with nonstick cooking spray. Place on lower rack of oven, and broil marshmallows until nice and brown on top, between 30-60 seconds. Remove pan from oven and gently turn the marshmallows over, and broil until they are golden brown. Be sure to keep an eye on them–they burn very, very quickly. Combine butter and icing sugar in electric mixer fitted with paddle attachment, on low until blended (about 1 minute). Add vanilla and mix on high for about 3 minutes. Add marshmallow cream and toasted marshmallows, and mix on lowest setting for about 1 minute. To Assemble Place one layer of chocolate cake on a turntable or flat plate and spoon toasted marshmallow frosting on top. Spread evenly to cover layer. Repeat with remaining layers.  Frost with Malted Chocolate Frosting.

 

Funfetti Cake

I don't know if all of the other bloggers out there deal with the same thing I do, but whenever someone is tasked with picking out a cake for my birthday, they always try to pick out some fancy, gourmet cake with fruit or some strange flavor combination, when all I really want is a good, Carvel Ice Cream Cake. Extra crunchies.  

My friends and I at my last job would always find a reason to order ice cream cake. National Middle Child Day? Ice Cream Cake.  Martin Luther King Jr. Day? Ice Cream Cake (complete with photoshopped Birthday Hat on MLK and his speech playing in the background). National Speak Like a Pirate Day? Well... we actually didn't have time to get the cake that day, but we wanted to, complete with asking the person at the counter to write "Arrrrrrrr" on the cake. 

Needless to say, I miss those days of wreckless ice cream cake eating. 

A few months back, one of the members of our Carvel Cake Clan (I just made that up), got a new job, and for her goodbye party, we of course got ice cream cake, but then we needed something else. So I offered to make this funfetti cake. 

For some reason, I was very nervous about making this cake. You see, there is a reason why the Funfetti cake box mix is so popular. Because it's freaking AWESOME. Why reinvent the wheel when something is so perfect?

But I wanted to be different. I typically don't ever use box mixes for anything (unless they are cake balls - it allows me to eat them faster) so I didn't want to use a box mix for this. 

I used my go to white cake recipe and then threw a ton of sprinkles in it. Most recipes call for 2 or 3 tbsp, but I went big and doubled that. I knew that was probably a bad idea... but I just couldn't stop myself. I love sprinkles.

I popped the cake in the oven and allowed it to bake.  The smell of sugary sprinkles baking filled the air. I started to get nervous. I've never smelled sprinkles before. I flicked on the oven light and saw a tie dye of rainbow sprinkles atop the top of the cake.  I got nervous that the sprinkles were caramelizing and melting into the cake, but I let the cake finish baking. 

Luckily, although the top of the cake was somewhat frightful, the rest of the cake was wonderful. Light, airy, and speckled with a colorful rainbow of wonderfully bright jimmies. 

Topped with some vanilla frosting, decorated with more sprinkles, and then grab your party hats people, it's cake time. 

I didn't get any cut shots of the cake, because I was worried that people would judge me if I was taking photos of my own cake in the conference room, but let me just tell you, it was beautiful. 

And you know what's amazing? Funfetti cake topped with Carvel Ice Cream Cake. Watch out now. Now it's a real party. 

Funfetti Cake 

Cake recipe adapted from Cooks Illustrated (I also made a 3-layer cake, but this recipe is for a 2-layer cake.  To add the 3rd layer, increase ingredients by 1/2)

2 1/4 cups cake flour (9 ounces), plus more for dusting the pans 

1 cup whole milk, at room temperature 

6 large egg whites (3/4 cup), at room temperature 

1 teaspoon vanilla extract 

1 3/4 cups granulated sugar (12 1/4 ounces) 

4 teaspoons baking powder 

6 tablespoons rainbow sprinkles

1 teaspoon table salt 

12 tablespoons unsalted butter (1 1/2 sticks), softened but still cool

Set oven rack in middle position. (If oven is too small to cook both layers on a single rack, set racks in upper-middle and lower-middle positions.) Heat oven to 350 degrees. Spray two 9-inch round cake pans with nonstick cooking spray; line the bottoms with parchment or waxed paper rounds. Spray the paper rounds, dust the pans with flour, and invert pans and rap sharply to remove excess flour. 

Pour milk, egg whites, and extract into 2-cup glass measure, and mix with fork until blended. 

Mix cake flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in bowl of electric mixer at slow speed. Add butter; continue beating at slow speed until mixture resembles moist crumbs, with no powdery streaks remaining. 

Add all but 1/2 cup of milk mixture to crumbs and beat at medium speed (or high speed if using handheld mixer) for 1 1/2 minutes. Add remaining 1/2 cup of milk mixture and beat 30 seconds more. Stop mixer and scrape sides of bowl. Add sprinkles. Return mixer to medium (or high) speed and beat 20 seconds longer. 

Divide batter evenly between two prepared cake pans; using rubber spatula, spread batter to pan walls and smooth tops. Arrange pans at least 3 inches from the oven walls and 3 inches apart. (If oven is small, place pans on separate racks in staggered fashion to allow for air circulation.) Bake until thin skewer or toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 23 to 25 minutes. 

Let cakes rest in pans for 3 minutes. Loosen from sides of pans with a knife, if necessary, and invert onto wire racks. Reinvert onto additional wire racks. Let cool completely, about 1 1/2 hours.

Layer cakes with vanilla frosting, frost outside and decorate as you wish! 

Vanilla Frosting Recipe

1 cup butter, softened

3 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar

1 teaspoon milk

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/8 teaspoon salt

In a bowl combine butter, sugar and salt. Beat till blended.

Add the milk and vanilla and beat for an additional 3 to 5 minutes or until smooth and creamy.

Caramel Lemon Meringue Cake

I made this cake so long ago, that I can hardly remember anyhting about it besides that fact that it is TOTALLY FREAKING AWESOME.

Like, super awesome. 

Yes, it's time consuming. But man, is it totally worth the work.

I have nothing funny to say about this cake... because I can't remember my experience with it. I do remember that I made it with the full intention of bringing it to work, but for some reason I didn't, which meant that I had this bad boy in my fridge for a few days, which was so bad, because I just kept taking slivers.  That's what I do. I take tiny slivers. So then, for me, it doesn't count in my calories. It makes me feel better about myself. But sometimes, I lose my willpower and instead of taking one sliver, I take 5. (See: Funfetti Cake Balls). But this cake REQUIRES you to cheat. Because it is damn delicious.

I never thought to combine lemon and caramel in a cake, but it totally makes sense.  Creamy lemon curd, complex, sweet rich caramel nestled in between fluffy layers of chiffon cake and a luscious meringue topping that wows. This cake is a total showstopper. 

The best part is torching it with a creme brulee torch. People love that stuff. It's like Beavis and Butthead "Fire, Fire... heh heh... Fire".

Ugh... can we just talk about Beavis and Butthead? I hated it in the 90s and I hate it now. Why must they be back in my life???

 

Check out this great step by step on Crumbly Cookie

Lemon Meringue Cake (from Tartine, by Elisabeth Pruett and Chad Robertson)

Makes a 10-inch round cake

I made ⅓ of this recipe and divided the batter between two 6-inch pans. I cut each layer in half to create 4 even layers. Mark has the recipe amounts for an 8-inch cake.

Chiffon Cake:
2¼ cups (11.25 ounces) all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1½ cups (10.5 ounces) sugar
¾ teaspoon salt
½ cup vegetable oil
6 large egg yolks, at room temperature
½ cup water
¼ cup lemon juice
1½ teaspoon grated lemon zest
10 large egg whites, at room temperature
¼ teaspoon cream of tartar

Preheat the oven to 325F. Line the bottom of a 10-inch cake or springform pan with 3-inch sides with parchment paper cut to fit exactly; don’t grease the pan.

Sift together the flour and baking powder into a large mixing bowl. Add 1¼ cups (8.75 ounces) of the sugar and the salt and whisk to combine. In a small bowl, whisk together the oil, egg yolks, water, lemon juice, and lemon zest. Make a well in the flour, add the yolk mixture, and then whisk thoroughly and quickly for about 1 minutes until very smooth.

In another large mixing bowl, beat the egg whites until frothy, then add the cream of tartar and beat on medium-high speed until it holds soft peaks. Add the remaining ¼ cup (1.75 ounces) sugar slowly while beating on medium-high speed until the whites hold firm, shiny peaks. Add a third of the egg whites and fold into the yolk mixture to lighten, then fold in the rest of the whites until just combined.

Pour the batter into the pan, smoothing the top if necessary. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 45-55 minutes. Let cool in the pan on a wire rack. Once completely cool, run a thin knife around the sides of the pan to loosen the cake an then release and lift off the pan sides. Invert the cake and peel off the parchment.

Caramel:
⅔ cup heavy cream
¼ vanilla bean
1¼ cup (8.5 ounces) sugar
¼ cup water
¼ teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons light corn syrup
¾ teaspoon lemon juice
4 tablespoons unsalted butter

Pour the cream into a small, heavy saucepan. Split the vanilla bean in half lengthwise and use the tip of a sharp knife to scrape the seeds from the pod halves into the milk. Place over medium-high heat and bring to just under a boil, stirring occasionally. Reduce the heat to low to keep the cream warm.

In a medium, heavy saucepan, combine the sugar, water, salt, and corn syrup. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Then cook, without stirring, until the mixture is amber colored, 5 to 8 minutes. Remove from the heat.

The mixture will continue to cook off the heat and become darker, so make sure to have your cream close by. Carefully and slowly add the cream to the sugar syrup. The mixture will boil vigorously at first. Let the mixture simmer down, and then whisk until smooth. Add the lemon juice. Let cool for about 10 minutes.

Cut the butter into 1-inch chunks and add to the caramel one at a time, whisking constantly after each addition. Then whisk the caramel periodically as it continues to cool.

Lemon Cream:
½ cup + 2 tablespoons lemon juice
3 large eggs
1 egg yolk
¾ cup (6 ounces) sugar
pinch salt
16 tablespoons (8 ounces) unsalted butter

In a heatproof bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water, combine the lemon juice, eggs, yolk, sugar, and salt (make sure the bottom of the bowl doesn’t touch the water). Whisk them together constantly until very thick, or 80°C (180°F) on an instant-read thermometer. Remove from the heat and let it cool down until warm to touch (60°C or 140°F on a thermometer). Place the lemon cream in a blender and with the motor running, add the butter in small pieces. Allow to cool completely. (You may refrigerate it, but allow to come to cool room temperature before using.)

Lemon Syrup:
⅓ cup water
⅓ cup (2.5 ouncs) sugar
⅓ cup lemon juice

In a nonreactive saucepan, combine the sugar and water and bring to a boil over medium heat. Transfer to a cool bowl, let cool for a bit, then chill for half an hour. Stir in the lemon juice.

Assembly:
Split the chiffon cake horizontally into four equal layers. Place one layer on your serving plate (which I lined with wax paper around to cake) and moisten evenly with ¼ of the lemon syrup. Spread ⅓ of the caramel over the cake, then ⅓ of the lemon cream. Repeat with 2 more layers, using up the remaining caramel and lemon cream. Top with the fourth cake layer and moisten with the remaining lemon syrup. Cover the cake completely with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least four hours or overnight.

Swiss Meringue:
7 egg whites
1¾ cup (12.25 ounces) sugar
pinch of salt

In a heatproof bowl over a pan of simmering water, combine the egg whites, sugar, and salt and whisk until the whites are hot to the touch, about 120F, about 5 minutes. Beat on high speed until the mixture is very thick and holds stiff, glossy peaks.

Unmold the cake and spread the meringue all over. Use a spatula or a spoon to create dramatic swirls. Using a propane torch if available, scorch the meringue, blackening the tips and swirls.

 

Halloween Funfetti Cake Balls! Spooky Scary!

It's Halloween (and today I'm dressed up as Captain Obvious).

I decided to make some funfetti cake balls for a Halloween party that I was supposed to attend on Saturday night. Unfortunately, Jack got sick, and I, like the loving fiancee that I am, stayed home to take care of him and ended up watching scary movies all night. The Exorcist and The Shining, neither of which I've seen. SO SCARY. I screamed a lot. Then I watched Poltergeist right afterwards, a movie I have seen and for years I always kept my closet door closed because my cousin, Desi, told me that if you keep your closet door open, a Poltergeist was going to come into your room. Every night, until I was 26 years old, I did this. I'm not kidding.  And I'm only 29 (and 358 days) old.

To digress for just a short moment, have you ever seen this preview for The Shining, where someone makes it out to look like it's a lighthearted family comedy? It's amazing.

 

The thing that I love about these cake balls is that they are so easy to make, and are so delicious. The thing I hate about these cake balls are that they are so easy to make and are so delicious.  When I make these cake balls, I end up eating about 10-15 of them. No joke. It's really disgusting.  But I'm like, hey, they're small, so they're not too many calories.  5 cake balls later, I'm feeling naseous, but still just can't stop. And I haven't even coated them with chocolate yet. So I coat them with chocolate, let them set, and then eat another. You know, because I have to taste it when it's coated with chocolate.  But what I love so much is actually when they are in the fridge, and you eat them straight from the fridge, and you hear that "crunch" as you bite through the crisp outer chocolate layer and then get to the smooth cake layer inside.  So I need to eat one after I put it in the fridge.  10 cake balls later, I'm feeling sick, contemplating a second trip to the gym, yet still secretly want another. 

This is what happened to me yesterday. I didn't eat 10 cake balls... at least I don't think I did, but it was close. I went to bed feeling ashamed of myself. 

And what did I do the first thing when I woke up.

I ate a cake ball.

Don't judge.  I'm signed up for a spin class later. And tomorrow morning.  

The sad thing is, since I couldn't bring them to the party, I wanted to bring them to work. Well, who's got two thumbs and forgot to bring these to work?

This girl.

So now I've got 30 more little funfetti cake balls awaiting me at home. 

Spooky scary indeed. 

LOOK AT THAT! How you can you not eat 100 of these?!

Funfetti Cake Balls

1 Box of Funfetti Cake Mix

1 jar of vanilla frosting

White Chocolate Candy Melts (you can buy these at Michaels or any cake decorating store) in white, orange, green and purple

1/3 cup canola oil

2 eggs

Two 9" cake pans

Bake cakes according to directions on the box. Once baking is completed, allow to cool completely on a wire rack. 

After cake is cooked and cooled completely, crumble into large bowl.

Mix thoroughly with 3/4 can frosting. 

Roll mixture into quarter size balls and lay on cookie sheet. This will be messy, but they will come together. Resist the urge to eat 5 cake balls.

Chill for several hours. (You can speed this up by putting in the freezer.)

Melt chocolate in microwave per directions on package.

Roll balls in chocolate and lay on wax paper until firm. (Use a fork to dip and roll in chocolate - be careful not to pierce the ball - and then tap off extra.)

Drizzle with different colored chocolate.

Junior's Tiramisu Cheesecake, Dr. Death, DDR. and my 400th Post!

 

This is my 400th post! That's crazy!!!

I had my wisdom teeth pulled this past Thursday. I hemmed and hawed, whined and moaned to coworkers. I was scared.  I was convinced – convinced I tell you! – that I was going to wake up during the surgery and discover the evil oral surgeon perched over me with the metal shears of death waiting to rip each tooth out from my mouth slowly as his eyes burned with fire and the dental hygienist cackled in the background.

I know. I’m a huge baby. And a drama queen.

But you see, I had a horrible experience at the dentist.  Take a trip down memory lane with me, shall we?

It was 2001. I was studying in London during my fall semester of Junior year.  My best friend, Tara, and I had taken a weekend jaunt to Amsterdam and were slowly wandering around the Van Gogh museum. I was enjoying a Nip hard candy and Starry Night when all of a sudden I felt a crack. Somehow, my tooth had chipped. I thought, either I have really weak teeth or this is the strongest Nip on the face of the planet.

Unfortunately for me, I couldn’t get a dentist appointment to save my life, so I lived the four months in London with a chipped tooth. When I returned to The States, it was no surprise that I needed to have a root canal. From my evil dentist whom I hated.

He was a dentist who I had been going to for years and he was mean. Just straight up mean. I think he had a drinking problem as well (no joke). But I never tried to change dentists, because I was still under the impression that all dentists were evil.   

He was a round, middle aged man, who stood no higher than 5’8”.  His meaty, clumsy hands always fumbled when picking up the equipment.  I still remember the sound of his labored breathing as he worked on my mouth, no doubt causing greater damage on my teeth rather than fixing them (no joke. I’ve learned I need another root canal because he drilled too close to the nerve on a cavity he filled years back. Dr. Death, DDR.

 So I sat in the chair of his dim blue office with chipping paint walls as I gazed up in terror at the fluorescent lights.  He gave me a few shots of Novocain and picked up an instrument. Wait! I thought. Isn’t he supposed to let it set? Nope. Not Dr. Death, DDR. He went straight to work. I winced in pain and made a feeble sound, letting him know I wasn’t comfortable.

“I can still feel it.” I mumbled in my garbled speak that only dentists can understand.

He huffed as if it were the most ridiculous thing in the world that I could still feel it.  He gave me a few more shots of Novocain and waited five minutes, clearly annoyed that I was inconveniencing him because I could feel the drilling IN MY BRAIN.

I’ll spare you the details, but after an hour of screaming and 8 shots of Novocain later, I left his office looking like someone had hit me in the face repeatedly with a baseball bat, or just stuck a softball in my mouth with tears streaming down my face.

So now, whenever I sit in a dentist chair, I start shaking, become short of breath, and tear up a little bit when I think of Dr. Death, DDR.

However, this oral surgeon was anything but.  He was young, handsome, and extremely charismatic. I immediately was shuffled into a back room and received a cat scan. I was confused as they strapped my head to the chair and asked me to close my eyes as the machine whirled around my face. It was the chamber of death and I was going to die by wisdom tooth extraction.  I prayed that it would be a quick end as the anesthesia pulsed through my body and lulled me to sleep.

An hour later, I awoke to my boyfriend entering the room and lightly kissing me on the forehead.

“Did they start yet?” I asked.

He laughed. “Yes, you’re done.” 

We went home and I surprisingly had no pain. I leered a little bit at the sight of my chipmunk cheeks, but otherwise, I was fine. No pain. No aching. Nothing. But I was instructed to take it easy to not aggravate my mouth.

Well, by the weekend, I was going totally stir crazy and I wanted to eat something good. I was sick of jello. I wanted something delicious. I’ve been eyeing this tiramisu cheesecake recipe for weeks now, and I thought this would be the perfect time. Since I bored you with my dentist story, I’ll keep the cheesecake part short. You know, because this is a blog about dentists, not food.

 
I don't know how many of you have ever visited or heard of Junior's Cheesecake, a New York City historical icon in terms of dessert. They have a cookbook out featuring recipes for many of their famous cheesecakes, and this one just popped out of me. Tiramisu. Cheesecake. Two of my favorite things.  But would it be as delicious as it sounds?

YES.

This cheesecake is OUTRAGEOUS. Perfect for any cheesecake lover.  The creamy, coffee cheesecake layer is pure heaven and is topped with a layer of deliciously soft lady fingers that were soaked in a sweet tiramisu syrup made of coffee, rum, and water. The cheesecake is then encircled with more tiramisu syrup-soaked ladyfingers and finally, the entire cheesecake is topped with the most delicious, billowy, sweet mascarpone cream.

OUT. RA. GEOUS. I could have eaten the whole thing. But then I ate an entire pint of Hagen Daaz Dulce De Leche Frozen yogurt, so I couldn’t justify more than a tiny sliver of cheesecake.

Who’s got two thumbs and gains weight when she can’t eat after wisdom tooth surgery? This girl.

 

 
 

Tiramisu Cheesecake – Adapted from Junior’s Cheesecake cookbook

1 tablespoon hot water

1 tablespoon instant freeze-dried espresso or coffee

Three 8-ounce packages cream cheese (use only full fat),at room temperature

1 1/3 cups sugar

1/4 cornstarch

1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract

2 extra-large eggs

2/3 cup heavy or whipping cream

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Generously butter the bottom and sides of a 9-inch springform pan. Wrap the outside of the pan will aluminum foil,covering the bottom and extending all the way up the sides.

Stir the water and espresso together in a small cup until dissolved. Put one package of the cream cheese, 1/3 cup of the sugar, and the cornstrach in a large bowl. Beat with an electric mixer on low intil creamy, about 3 minutes, scraping the bowl down a couple of times. Blend in the remaining cream cheese, one package at a time, scraping down the bowl after each one. Increase the mixer speed to medium and beat in the remaining 1 cup sugar, then the vanilla. Add coffee into the cream, add to the cream cheese mixture, and beat just until it's completely blended. Be careful not to overmix! Gently spoon the batter into the springform.

Place in a large shallow pan containing hot water that comes about 1 inch up the sides of the springform. Bake until the edges are light brown and the top is light tan, about 1 1/4 hours. Remove the cake from the water bath, transfer to a wire rack, and let cool in the pan on a wire rack for 2 hours. Then cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until completely cold, preferably overnight or for at least 4 hours.

For the Tiramisu Syrup and Ladyfinger Layer:

1 cup hot water

2 tablespoon instant freeze-dried aspresso or coffee

¼ sugar

¼ cup Rum

At least 22 ladyfingers (9 for the layering and 13 for the ring around the edge – I’m sure I used more, though.)

Make the tiramisu syrup. Combine the water and espresso in a small sauce-pan until dissolved. Add the sugar and Kahlua or Rum, bring to a boil over medium-high heat, reduce the heat to medium, and let simmer, uncovered for 3 minutes, stirring a few times. Top the cold cheesecake (still in the pan) with a layer of ladyfingers,. Transfer the cake to the freezer until completely frozen, at least overnight and/or until ready to assemble.

For the Mascarpone Cream

1 1/2 teaspoons unflavored granulated gelatin

1 tablespoon cold water

1 1/2 cups cold heavy or whipping cream

2 tablespoons sugar

1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract

2 tbsp rum

One 8- to 10-ounce carton mascarpone cheese

When you're ready to assemble the cake, make the mascarpone cream. Place the gelatin in a heatproof measuring cup, stir in the cold water, and let stand until it swells and thickens. Cook in the microwave on high about 30 seconds or over a pan of simmering water for about 1 minute, until clear and completely melted. In a medium-size bowl, whip the cream with the mixer on high until it thickens and soft peaks just begin to form. With the mixer still running, add the sugar and beat just until the cream stands up in peaks (don't over-mix or the cream will curdle). Beat in the vanilla and rum. Add the melted gelatin all at once and beat until thoroughly incorporated. Gently fold in the mascarpone with a rubber spatula.

Remove the cake from the freezer and let it stand at room temperature about 10 minutes. Release and remove the sides of the springform, then remove the cheesecake from the bottom of the pan. Transfer to a cake plate. To attach the remaining ladyfingers (26 halves) to the outside of the cake, spread a thin layer of the mascarpone cream over the flat split sides of the ladyfingers. Stand them up around the edge of the cake, rounded-side out pressing each one gently in place. Spoon the remaining mascarpone on top of the cake and gently even out with a metal spatula; it will come up almost to the top of the ladyfingers. Since the cheesecake is still very cold, the mascarpone cream will set fast.

For The Topping:

4 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate made into Chocolate Curls

1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa  powder

To decorate, cover the top of the cake with the chocolate curls, then sprinkle evenly with the cocoa. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours, until the mascarpone layer is cold and set and the cheesecake layer has defrosted enough to slice easily. Slice with a sharp straight-edge knife, not a serrated one. Cover any leftover cake and refrigerate or wrap and freeze for up to 1 month.

 

Rum Drenched Vanilla Cake with Mixed Berry Compote

 

I've been an enormous slacker on TWD and for that, I apologize to all memebers, especially our fearless leader, Laurie! But now I am back in the game and have some SERIOUS catching up to do.

Wendy, of Pink Stripes, chose the Rum-Drenched Vanilla Cake and for that, I want to hug her. I can't say it enough - Alcohol in desserts is a-ok by me.  I just love the unexpected flavor that pops from spirits.  And now, I'll stop talking about how much I love the combination, for fear that all of my readers will think I actually do have a problem and will hold a virtual intervention.

I made these vanilla cakes one night when Jack and I were hosting several friends for a dinner party. Every so often, we and a few of Jack's college friends and their girlfriends/wives, whom I now consider my own friends and who I love so much, get together and have dinner or do some other fun event together (like our most recent trip to LBI).  I had decided to make several canapes - Shrimp toast, Filet Mignon with a tomato creme fraiche on water crackers, lemon-taragon meatballs with a sweet tomato glaze, and something else that is escaping me - and two desserts - a lemon tart and these rum drenched vanilla cakes.

Everything went off without a hitch, and of course, I did not take any pictures of anything because I was pressed for time and the sun was setting and I refuse - REFUSE - to take photos of my food with flash, no matter how much Jack tells me I am being ridiculous (food bloggers, you understand). The only thing that I didn't work for me were these cakes. I don't know what went wrong, but I blame the perils of New York City kitchens. My stove is the size of half a stove, and it burns at whatever temperature it feels like. Right now, it is burning at about 25 degrees higher than it should be. Items on the lower rack cook well, but items on the top rack really brown quickly, and these were no exception. I tried to rotate the pans from the top to the bottom, and I was rewarded for my efforts of moving the loaf pans with sunken, dense middles.

I decided to quickly make some rum whipped cream and a mixed berry compote, hoping that would easy the disaster that these cakes turned into. Luckily, it did. But I was still not proud of the dish and did not want to serve it to guests. As they started to arrive, I quickly hid the cakes atop my dresser in my bedroom (I live in Manhattan - I don't have much space) and forgot about it.

Hours later, after our bellys were full and we were happily drinking some summery sangria, a friend of walked out of our bedroom after using the bathroom (we have one bathroom in our apartment and it is in our bedroom - Manhattan living at its finest) and exclaimed - do you have a cake on your dresser?!

Good times, indeed.

Needless to say, I think this cake would have been phenomenal if it were not for my missteps.  Thanks to Wendy for an awesome pick!

Click here for the recipe!

Dulce de Leche Cake with Dulce De Leche Whipped Cream. Revised for Cinco De Mayo.

 

Actually, this cake wasn't revised FOR Cinco De Mayo, per se, but I just happened to make this cake on Cinco De Mayo, so I'm just going to run with it.  I really should call this a Cajeta Cake, as that is what dulce de leche is called in Mexico. 

Cajeta! 

Remember last time I made this cake, I felt that the frosting was way too sweet for the cake?  Frankly, I should have known, as it was a Paula Deen recipe, and her recipes are either meant to clog your arteries or give you a spike in natural insulin.

This time around, I looked at the frosting for the Dulce de Leche cake in Sky High Cakes.  I wanted something lighter to compliment the rich dulce de leche filling, and this frosting is a dulce de leche whipped cream frosting. 

How good does that sound?

I didn't feel like making the dulce de leche from scratch, so I just bought some homemade dulce de leche, made some homemade whipped cream, and folded in the dulce de leche and tossed in some cinnamon for good measure.

And I basically couldn't stop eating little spoonfuls of this whipped cream. At 6:30 in the morning.  Needless to say, sitting here at 8:10 am right about to go to work, I feel like crap because I just ate 1/4 a cup of dulce de leche whipped cream for breakfast.  And a tiny bit of this cake.

So let's talk about the cake, shall we?  

We all know I loved the Cooks Illustrated White Cake recipe. I love the Cooks Illustrated White Cake recipe with dulce de leche oozing from the layers.  And now, I love the Cooks Illustrated White Cake recipe with dulce de leche oozing from the layers topped with dulce de leche whipped cream frosting.  Oh yes. This cake is pure perfection. 

However, I did refrigerate the cake, to firm up the dulce de leche filling (which, when I say oozing, I mean, it OOZED. Right out of the cake layers.  I guess I should have realized that dulce de leche "sauce" is not the same as dulce de leche.). So now the cake tastes like a cake that has been refrigerated.  I'm really hoping that it regains its normal texture by the time I put this cake out to be consumed at work around noon. 

Also, I tried to put a pretty design in the side of the whipped cream, but I failed miserably, as you can tell by the photo below.  This cake may not be as pretty as the original, but I'd take this one any day. 

Old Cake:  So pretty.

   

New cake.  Well.  I was in a rush. 


 

Oh, and I topped it off with some Lindt Chili Chocolate shards. You know. For Cinco De Mayo. And of course, when Jack saw the cake, he said:

Oh, the Stegosaurus cake.

Thanks, Jack.  

Dulce de Leche Cake with Dulce De Leche Whipped Cream

• Cake recipe adapted from Cooks Illustrated (I also made a 3-layer cake, but this recipe is for a 2-layer cake.  To add the 3rd layer, increase ingredients by 1/2)
• 2 1/4 cups cake flour (9 ounces), plus more for dusting the pans 
  1 cup whole milk, at room temperature 
  6 large egg whites (3/4 cup), at room temperature 
  1 teaspoon vanilla extract 
  1 3/4 cups granulated sugar (12 1/4 ounces) 
  4 teaspoons baking powder 
  1 teaspoon table salt 
  12 tablespoons unsalted butter (1 1/2 sticks), softened but still cool
• Caramel Frosting

Dulce De Leche (storebought or homemade)

• 
  
• Set oven rack in middle position. (If oven is too small to cook both layers on a single rack, set racks in upper-middle and lower-middle positions.) Heat oven to 350 degrees. Spray two 9-inch round cake pans with nonstick cooking spray; line the bottoms with parchment or waxed paper rounds. Spray the paper rounds, dust the pans with flour, and invert pans and rap sharply to remove excess flour. 
• 
  
• Pour milk, egg whites, and extract into 2-cup glass measure, and mix with fork until blended. 
• Mix cake flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in bowl of electric mixer at slow speed. Add butter; continue beating at slow speed until mixture resembles moist crumbs, with no powdery streaks remaining. 
• 
  
• Add all but 1/2 cup of milk mixture to crumbs and beat at medium speed (or high speed if using handheld mixer) for 1 1/2 minutes. Add remaining 1/2 cup of milk mixture and beat 30 seconds more. Stop mixer and scrape sides of bowl. Return mixer to medium (or high) speed and beat 20 seconds longer. 
• 
  
• Divide batter evenly between two prepared cake pans; using rubber spatula, spread batter to pan walls and smooth tops. Arrange pans at least 3 inches from the oven walls and 3 inches apart. (If oven is small, place pans on separate racks in staggered fashion to allow for air circulation.) Bake until thin skewer or toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 23 to 25 minutes. 
• 
  
• Let cakes rest in pans for 3 minutes. Loosen from sides of pans with a knife, if necessary, and invert onto wire racks. Reinvert onto additional wire racks. Let cool completely, about 1 1/2 hours.
• 
  
• Layer cakes with dulce de leche, frost with caramel buttercream and decorate as you wish! 

Dulce De Leche Whipped Cream

1 pint heavy cream

1 tsp vanilla

1/4 cup confectioner's sugar

1/2 cup dulce de leche

1 tsp cinnamon

In a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, or using a hand mixure, mix heavy cream, cinnamon and confectioners sugar until cream holds stiff peaks.  Fold in dulce de leche until incorporated and there are no streaks remaining. Refrigerate until ready to use. 

TWD: Swedish Visiting Cake

 OK So I know these aren't the biscuits that were assigned for this week and, instead, this is last week's assignment, the Swedish Visiting Cake chosen by Nancy of Dogs Eat the Crumbs.  I finally made this dish and now must apologize Melissa of A Love at First Bite to for not completing the Sweet Cream biscuits (which I am actually going to make tonight and hopefully post tomorrow.  I hope. Oh, how I hope.)

I totally feel like the class slacker. It's almost as if I'm suffering from a bad case of senioritis and I'm spending all of my time doing make-up assignments in order to grauate.  Except I'm not graduating from anything. So this is just depressing.

Also, I have so many posts to catch up on and read, which I have started attacking, but I am nowhere near close. I've got many more delicious posts from my favorite bloggers (all of you!) that I am chugging through.  But please, if you do take one note of advice from ever reading this blog, let it be this: Don't read blogs while hungry right before you have to go to a meeting.  Your stomach will growl. You will be embarrased. That is all.
 

I feel even worse slacking on making this recipe because it takes, oh, all of about 5 minutes to put together. No joke.  Five minutes, one bowl, great, GREAT taste. Remember that Thomas Keller Almond Cake I posted about last week?  That took 30 minutes to make and needed to be made with care.  Dorie's cake? Add zest to sugar, whisk in some eggs and extract, add melted butter and flour. Combine. Put in oven. Done.

A comparison? Well, these are pretty much EXACTLY THE SAME CAKE.  The textures are slightly different, with Keller's being slightly more delicate, but overall?  If you need to make a cake in a pinch that people will love you for? All Dorie, all the time my friends.  It's a lesson we all need to learn.

Thanks to Nancy for this great choice! Click here for the recipe, and check out the rest of the TWD non-slackers in the universe! 

Chocolate Mousse Cheesecake

  

Rich. Intense. Indulgent. 

No, I'm not talking about Martin Jerry Bruckheimer. I'm talking about this cake. 

I saw this cake on Doughmesstic and it immediately caught my eye (along with a million other things, but that is for another post).  Bright red strawberries drizzled with a rich dark chocolate atop more and more chocolate. 

Heaven?

Yes, indeed.

This cake may take a bit of time (two days for me, to be exact), but it is well worth the time and effort. Susan, the genius baker/cook/writer, from Doughmesstic adapted the Iconic Junior's Vanilla Cheesecake Recipe and then topped it with a rich chocolate mousse, tossed the whole thing in the freezer, and then frosted it with chocolate ganache.

"How does someone even think of that?" you may ask.

Innovation, I say. And pure brilliance.  I'd like to step into her mind for a few minutes to get some ideas. It would be delicious.

I will warn you, however, not to eat before you eat this cake. For, like, 3 days.  Because it is RICH.  And, of course, I brought this to Easter dinner, where we all stuffed our faces with a delicious shmorgasboard (I just invented my own way of spelling that word and am too lazy to Google it) of lamb, briscuit, rice and peas, macaroni and cheese, various salads, and breads.  And then, of course, I whip out this cake.  After hours and hours of eating.  My stomach was about to implode, so I didn't have any, but everyone else tried the cake and loved it. I mean, LOVED. Excitement filled the air. There were lots of "Mmms" and "Oh WOWs" to be had. This is the cake that dreams are made of, people.  I didn't get a chance to photograph a slice, but let me paint a little picture for you.

Imagine a fluffy cheesecake that looks light as air, flecked with fragrant vanilla beans.  Then, picture a pillowy chocolate mousse resting atop that cheesecake.  Finally, imagine a ribbon of chocolate ganache tugging the outside of that cake, and, if you're lucky, a chocolate covered strawberry adorning the top of that slice. 

Susan,  I heart you. Click here for the recipe.  Then spend some time clicking around the site if you haven't been there already.  You'll be glad you did.