CHEESECAKE!!!!!! :D
Good evening all and Happy St Patrick's Day!
In honour of today, I'm typing up this blog post in green. I couldn't make it a more vibrant green or you wouldn't have been able to read this.
I need to say this now. I hate writer's block. This is something that comes to me frequently. When you know what you want to say, but you don't, but you actually do and what is being blocked is the way in which to convey what you want to say. Make sense?
Last night, I was sitting on the sofa with the dog. We were watching television; some dog show. This of course awakened Toffee's wilder side and she started growling and mumbling at the television. Which made me wonder. You know when people say that when their dog's are barking, especially at each other, that they are actually talking to each other, but in dog language? (Not sure that needed clarification?) Well, this made me wonder, and not in a thick, get you act together way, but when dog's bark at each other, are they really talking to each other in dog language or are they just as confused as we are? Does it really sound the same to them as it does to us- strange noises and sounds?
D'you know what else I wonder about? Why is it called cheesecake? I mean sure, it has cheese in it; most likely mascarpone or cream cheese. Though to me, to justify calling it a cheese cake it needs to have a whole lot more of the stuff. My version of a cheesecake would be something like this:
Cake board: Made out of a giant Parmesan disc, baked until crispy.
Cake: In a cake tin, layer a thin base of Cheddar shavings. This will stop the other cheeses from seeping out. Stilton and Blue cheese would form the middle of the cake. Dribble over some melted Gorgonzola. Then top with Mozzarella. Finish the cake off right. Mozzarella is the queen of cheeses to me. It is utterly perfect. It's stringy, ooey and gooey and most importantly for me, not too strong in the cheese flavour.
So, its been a few hours since I first started writing this and guess what, still nothing. Writer's block to the extreme, or should I say blogger's block? I went out for a long walk to try and you now, get those creative juices flowing. I love being around nature, well not so much nature as leaves and fresh air. I am so lucky to live near so much greenery, fresh air and various parks. I find that when I am stressed out, walking helps. Today was so lovely, all sunny, warm-ish, and beautifully full of bright, blue skies!
I took the dog out and five minutes into our walk, I realised that i'd forgot my phone. So back to the car we went and I harnessed the very angry dog in and we drove home. I then got my phone and a treat for the very disgruntled pooch. She refused the treat, little rat. I then drove back to our walking destination and we went for a proper walk. I'm not gonna lie, it took a little while for the dog to believe that we weren't just going to go home after five minutes into the walk again. #TrustIssues
I then came home, procrastinated for a little while about writing this post as I knew I would struggle to think of what to write. It's like this, I spend a lot of time procrastinating over what I am going to write and then when I start writing, it is slow. Then all of a sudden it clicks. The little Ciara inside of my brain blooms and starts pollinating its weird thoughts, uniqueness and a lot of waffling.
This cheesecake is simplistically sensational! I mean it, it is zingy. It is zangy. It is wonderfully full of lemony goodness! It is the perfect ending to any meal- breakfast, lunch and dinner. I had a slice of it for breakfast this morning. You might be saying to yourself, 'hm, that doesn't sound like the healthiest idea'... well it made me happy and in my book, that makes for a great start to the day! It is so light, creamy and crumbly. Not heavy or gloppy at all! Now that's a cheesecake.
I was going to make it a vanilla cheesecake, this was until my mother said and I quote,
Aine: '...(paused after I said what I was going to make) 'Or you could make it a lemon cheesecake- yum!'
Ciara: 'Why not vanilla?'
Aine: 'I don't like vanilla and lemon is so lovely'
Ciara: 'Sure.' (Bitter on the inside, but looking completely sweet and cool with the change on the outside. Which is funny because I was acting exactly like a lemon. All sour on the inside, but appears lovely and sweet on the outside) I'm not actually bitter, lol.
I then went out to the shops, after a beaut walk at another wonderful walking location, although the name has slipped me. I bought the ingredients that I would need, but left out the ones I saw no need for. I will now go through the ingredients that you'll need and the method in which to make this, according to me. I didn't follow the recipe, as it is cheesecake. Cheesecake isn't like Macaron. If you stray from the recipe method for Macaron, you can kiss those delicacies goodbye. One false move and your Macaron are going to look like sad little pancakes.
This is a BBC Food recipe
Ingredients:
Some of these ingredients are perishable, so be sure that you have somewhere cool or chilled for them to sit. This cheesecake, is the best of cheesecakes to me. It is a no-bake one.
A proper, traditional cheesecake to me is one that is delicious and simple and only needs to sit in the fridge to chill and be eaten. I prefer those cheesecakes that are simple as in they have one main ingredient to carry the flavour of the cheesecake, as that means there is nothing to hide behind.
I hate when cheesecakes are served with coulis and all that fluffy stuff. It distracts the pallet from what you have ordered. You didn't order a coulis with a side of cheesecake. No, you ordered what you wanted, cheesecake. Therefore, I hate when it comes with all this fruit, coulis and 'fluffy stuff' to make it more 'fancy?' Cheesecake is loved for its simpleness and ability to be delicious with only a few humble ingredients. Plus, quite often I find that the coulis is way too tart and strong, that it ruins the flavour of the cheesecake. It is so strong that it stumps on all the cheesecake itself has to offer.
I should probably stop ranting about cheesecake now, huh?
Biscuit Base:
- 250g of good quality Digestive biscuits, crushed into a fine powder type crumb.
- 25g Butter, softened and melted.
- The recipe said to add 20g of brown sugar, but I saw no need for this.
I have to say this now before I forget. There is nothing on this earth better than the smell and taste of melted butter and digestive biscuits. I know, I know, they already have enough butter in them, but this is like magic sand. It is way too good to be true, except it is!!
Cheesecake Mixture:
- 500g of good quality Mascarpone. The recipe said cream cheese, but this is a Ciara addition, and therefore making it more my own. Mascarpone has a nicer flavour, is silky and smooth and has less water I think contained within it, opposed to cream cheese. Plus it just tastes of a higher quality and therefore your cheesecake will taste better too.
- 100g of Icing sugar
- 200ml Double cream, whipped up until it forms a smooth, slightly thick, but not runny consistency.
- 1 Lemon, zest and juice
Method:
The hardest part of this cheesecake is cutting the baking paper to the precise and exact shape needed for the tin you are using.
Get out a 20cm (8 inch) pastry/ tart tin and cut out a disc of baking paper that will fit neatly and all snug on the base of the tin.
Weigh out all the ingredients and set them aside.
Using a food processor or a bowl and the end of a rolling pin, crush the digestive biscuits until they are all finely crumbled up and looking delicious already.
Melt the butter and add this to the biscuits. Mix until they are all coated and have gone a slightly deeper colour.
Tip these into the lined tart tin and using a spatula, manipulate the crumbs to cover the whole base and then up the sides a little. Press them down firmly enough so that when they are chilled they will bind together and become more stable.
If you don't add enough butter, the base will fall apart. If you don't press it down enough, the base will fall apart. Lesson: don't be stingy on the butter and use the base as a therapeutic activity. Squish those crumbs down, whilst imagining your stresses. Squish every crumb.
Making sure that they are packed tightly ensures that the biscuit base will stay as one, level base and not some flimsy concoction that is falling apart.
Pop this into the fridge to set while you are making the cheesecake mixture.
In a clean bowl, whisk or beat up the mascarpone until it is smooth and silky.
Beats the gym and promises something yummy at the end of it. Then again, this might be slightly counterproductive, whisking for 2 minutes and then eating. Walking and moving around as well is definitely better.
Add the cream to the mascarpone and gently whisk them together until fully combined and fluffy looking. Add in the icing sugar to sweeten it up a little and mix in, along with the zest and lemon juice. Then the mix is done.
Take the biscuit base out of the fridge and place on a stable surface.
Plop the cheesecake mixture onto the biscuit base and using a palette knife, swish it back and forth, side to side, to maneuver it into all those little corners and spaces. Once you have it all spread, use the edge of the knife to create an even and level finish that is aesthetically pleasing and pretty looking.
Zest some lemon on top and then put into the fridge and allow to chill and set overnight before slicing.
The baking paper will make this super easy and clean. It'll just slide off the base of the tin. Then slice up and eat! Yum.
This has been a new bake for me and it was so great! This is such a versatile little dessert. You don't like lemon, no worries. Add some chocolate, coffee, or fruit in place of the lemon. Make it your own.
Chocolate Cheesecake: I'd actually add a ganache instead of just the chocolate, as I think it makes it smoother and a nicer texture. For this, add 300ml of heated double cream to 300g of dark chocolate and mix until smooth. Allow to cool and then add to the cheese and cream mix.
Then you could reserve a little of the ganache for the decoration.
Place the cheese cake on a turn table or lazy susan and slowly turn it. Pipe the ganache onto the cheesecake, starting from the middle out. This will create a swirl. You could then use a tooth pick or the back of a dinner knife to blend the lines in together. Layer some chocolate shavings on the outer rim and that is one variation.
Coffee Cheesecake: Add some coffee powder to a bowl and mix in some water; making an espresso. Add this, once cooled to the cheese and cream mix. Then dust some coffee powder on top of the cheesecake for decoration. Or, if you want to get really fancy about it, add some coffee beans to the rim of the cheesecake and serve.
Fruit Cheesecake: Add some fresh fruit to the cheese and cream mix. Whisk until the fruit is all broken up and mixed together. Decorate the surface with an array of fruit and mint leaves to echo the freshness of the cheesecake throughout.
That's the post done for today! Back soon folks!
Ciara
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