Baked Chocolate Philadelphia Cheesecake

I got a request!

When taking the cats photos at the place my Mum works, one of her colleagues mentioned the new Cadbury's Chocolate Philadelphia, which is on offer in every supermarket at the moment because it's new. This made it a fairly cheap option for a cheesecake, and of course I couldn't turn down someone asking me for cheesecake... I've been itching to make another one since our New York Cheesecake and I'm most fascinated by the baked ones, especially as I have a vegetarian mother so gelatine is a no-no. There appeared to be only one recipe specifically using this new Philadelphia, so I did a slight mixture of that one and Smitten Kitchen's New York Cheesecake, and sugared to taste... I will do my best to remember what I did, as most of the rest of the recipe followed "AMummyToo"'s recipe fairly excatly apart from the sugar, and that was just personal preference.

Then I topped it with my first home made chocolate curls, using the method described here, minus the shortening because I didn't have any. Worked a treat still and I was pleased with the overall effect, and white chocolate was a nice contrast.

However, I did learn one very important lesson. Don't put your chocolate curls on the cheesecake until it is completely cold. They WILL melt.

Um, then it sort of never made it to Mum's work. Because my brother sampled a piece (just to check, y'know...) and declared it the "best... cheesecake... EVER." He's a tough customer sometimes so I am more chuffed with this critique than I can possibly express, especially as he's in the middle of food GCSE and I'm starting to feel a bit homegrown and hodgepodgy sometimes. I just had some in the garden, in the sun, after 2 night shifts, and I may have to agree with him. I really think it was better than our New York Cheesecake! The (comparative) thinness worked in its favour, meaning it was, as "AMummyToo" said, fudgy. And delicious.

Baked Chocolate Philadelphia Cheesecake
Quick and easy. An amalgamation of recipes, the majority of it from this recipe by "AMummyToo" and some inspiration on sugar amounts and bases taken from Smitten Kitchen's New York Cheesecake. 

For the Base
300g milk chocolate coated digestives
100g unsalted butter/margarine

Approx 50g sugar (to taste, really)

For the Filling

100ml double cream
480g chocolate (Cadbury) Philadelphia (3 standard 160g tubs)
About 100g sugar (to taste, again)
2 well beaten eggs
20g plain flour

For the Chocolate Curls
Approx 6 squares white chocolate


To make the buttery biscuit base


1. Grease a springform pan. The original recipe didn't specify a size - I used a 23cm one and ended up with a fairly thick cheesecake.  (I just realised that I'd written 23 inch when I wrote this post over a month ago... oops. I doubt anyone actually tried to get hold of a 23 inch pan...)


2. Mash up 300g of chocolate coated digestives (or any biscuit that takes your fancy) fairly finely. I used the end of a wooden rolling pin.

3. Add the sugar and mix.

4. Add the butter and mix.

5. Press down firmly into the tin with the back of a spoon until level and well packed. Cook for 5 minutes at 200C/180C Fan.

This is best done while dancing around your kitchen to this song. I cannot thank my boyfriend enough for introducing me to it (except when you have it stuck in your head... You're welcome).

Also, yes, my netbook lives with me in the kitchen now. I'm saving paper by not printing recipes out... so far I haven't got too much chocolate/water/assorted kitchen gloop on it.

To Make the Cheesecake Filling

1. Turn the oven down to 170C/150C Fan/Gas Mark 3.
2. Put the chocolate Philadelphia and sugar into the blender and start whizzing at full speed.
3. While still whizzing, pour in the eggs bit by bit, then add the flour and cream.
4. Blend until it’s lump-free. Make sure to scrape down the sides AND give it a mix with a spoon because otherwise you're likely to end up with unmixed Philadelphia, especially if you use a stand mixer.

5. Pour the mixture on top of the biscuit base and bake in the oven for 45 minutes to an hour (mine took 45 minutes in a 150C fan oven in a 23 inch springform) until it’s well-cooked at the edges and firm but slightly wobbly in the middle.
6. Turn off the oven and leave the door ajar for another 45 minutes to an hour (again, I left it for 45 minutes with the door only very slightly ajar).
7. Take out the oven, run a knife round the edges and chill in the fridge for an hour minimum. My brother had his bit about an hour after I'd put the chocolate curls on, so an hour after it was truly cool, and Mum says it was a bit runny still. After a night in the fridge it had firmed up to a perfect fudgy consistency.

To make the Chocolate Curls

1. Melt the white chocolate in a bowl
2. Spread fairly thinly on the back of a baking tray
3. Pop into the freezer for 5 minutes
4. Take it out and use a knife, sharpish spatula, potato peeler, cheese slice etc. (I used the last one) to make curls. You might want to leave it a few minutes to melt very slightly, there will be a sweet spot before it gets too melty where you get good curls.
5. MAKE SURE THE CHEESECAKE IS COMPLETELY COOL BEFORE PUTTING THE CURLS ON!!!!

Birthday Extravaganza: Welsh Cakes (Bakestones, Picau ar y maen)

We call them bakestones in our family. But they're not. They're Welsh Cakes. The bakestone is what you cook them on. 

You see, we like to think of ourselves as Welsh. Nan and Bamp (my grandparents on my Dad's side) are. But past that... Dad was born in the New Forest. I was born in Devon. We haven't been really Welsh in a while, though my Dad and brother support Wales in everything and wouldn't be seen dead rooting for England. Ever. 

But the one Welsh thing I'm very proud to do (apart from my ability to sing the first verse of the Welsh national anthem in Welsh, which I actually did in an audition for an improv comedy group...) is these Welsh cakes.

You probably don't need the bakestone. You could just use a very heavy cast-iron frying pan. It's all about getting a nice, even heat, and that takes a lot of practice. You want it slow enough so they cook right through, and that can take a lot of patience. Flip them after they're browned on the one side, though you can always flip them back, of course... and grease your bakestone liberally. Adjust the heat. Be prepared to be there a while, even when you manage to fit 8 on at once... because we made 32 with the 1lb recipe. 

And be prepared for them all the disappear in minutes when the ravenous horde of a family descends. I ate one out of the 32... warm, of course. They are best straight off the bakestone with some sugar sprinkled on, whatever people may try to tell you about buttering them. Eat them pure, eat them warm. They theoretically keep okay but don't usually hang around long enough for us to test that.

Mwynhewch! 

My Great-Gran's Recipe
1lb self raising flour
1/2 lb margarine
1/2 lb sugar
Currants
3 eggs (With large eggs, 2 is usually sufficient!)
Enough Liquid (This means use milk, but we often don't seem to need this)



ALTERNATIVE RECIPE FROM A RANDOM WELSH RECIPE BOOK

8oz plain flour (alternatively, use self raising and omit the baking powder)
4oz butter
3-4oz caster sugar
2oz currants
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 tsp mixed spice (optional, we tend not to)
2 tablespoons milk
Pinch salt
Extra sugar, for sprinkling



1. Sift the flour, baking powder, spice (if using) and salt together.
2. Rub in the butter until the mixture looks like breadcrumbs.
3. Add the sugar and fruit.
4. Beat the egg.
5. Make a well and GRADUALLY add with enough milk (might not need any) to make a firm paste.
6. Roll out on to a floured board to a thickness of 1/4 inch and cut into 2 inch rounds.
7. Grease a griddle or electric hot plate or thick frying pan.
8. Cook the cakes on the griddle over a gentle heat for three minutes on each side or until golden brown. This is a bit of an art on a proper bakestone... getting the temperature right takes practice!





9. Cool and sprinkle with caster sugar. Serve alone or with butter (we never use butter!).

Birthday Extravaganza: Nan's Classic Chocolate Birthday Cake

For the Icing

6oz self-raising flour
6oz sugar
6oz margarine
2 extra-large eggs or 3 medium or large eggs
If not liquid enough, a drop of milk
Drinking chocolate, by eye (approx 2-3 tbsp)

Mix all together at once, pour into mixer, and mix in a stand mixer or with a hand mixer for 2 minutes.

Chocolate topping


As much chocolate as required
Small amount of butter/margarine

Add the butter and chocolate to a bowl and melt in microwave in 30 second bursts, stirring regularly.

Alternative fudgy-creamy-chocolatey topping


Whip cream to medium/stiff peaks, add melted chocolate to the mixture.

Birthday Extravaganza: Iced Custard Slice

1lb flour
1/2lb margarine
2tbsp of sugar


Breadcrumb the flour and margarine, then mix in the sugar. Then add enough cold water to make it up into a dough. Roll out half into a tin, with a large amount of excess. Make very thick custard and pour in (use more custard powder and/or less milk). Roll out the other half and place it on top. MAKE SURE YOU SEAL THE TOP OR THE CUSTARD WILL BOIL OUT! Bake until nicely browned, at least half an hour on 180C. Make up thickish glace icing and spread on top when cooled.

Birthday Extravaganza: Pear Cla-fake-tis (A.K.A. Pear and Almond Tart/Sponge)

Easy as pie. Er, tart. No, clafoutis. No, wait, sponge.

It's probably closer to the latter but it seems to change names among us. A quick and easy dessert to whip up.

Pear and Almond Thingumy Cake


3oz self-raising flour
3oz caster sugar
3oz butter/margarine
1 egg
Approx 1 tsp almond essence
1 tin halved, peeled pears, approx 410g
Icing sugar, to dust
Custard or ice cream, to serve (optional)

1. Nan chucks all the ingredients into a bowl and mixes it all up. I went down the standard "cream the butter and sugar, add the egg with a little flour, fold in the rest of the flour" route. Either seems to work.

2. Arrange the pears flat side down in a glass bowl (for prettiness), though a cake tin would probably work too. Pour/spoon the mixture over the top (It's not a runny batter), including over the pears. Don't be afraid to coat them, but also don't feel bad if you don't.

3. Bake in a 200C/180C Fan for approx 10-15 minutes (I'm guessing here, I'm afraid, will check with Nan but I'd imagine that would be fairly okay...)

4. Sieve some icing sugar over the top and serve either warm or cold.

Birthday Extravaganza: Rum Truffles

Nan had a slight catastrophe with her fairy cakes because she forgot one of the eggs and they didn't rise very well (tasted lovely though!) so I took the opportunity to steal four of them and make some rum truffles using this recipe here. When I was younger, Mum used to buy a tray of rum truffles from our local shop. They were only mass market ones, in a red plastic wrapper, and... well, I loved them. I haven't had them for years and our spirits cupboard at home comprises of Jack Daniels (might be nice, but not the same)... this rum turned out to be 15 years old and belonged to my Great-Granddad. A nice family twist for Bamp's Birthday, and I can report that it aged very well...

Simple Cake Crumb Rum Truffles
I'll link back to the original when I can remember where I got it from!

5 oz chocolate cake crumb
1oz butter
1 oz cocoa
2 oz icing sugar
3 tablespoons Rum
2-3 Chocolate Flakes or Chocolate Vermicelli (sprinkles)

1. Crumble the cake into a bowl to remove any lumps
2. Sift in the cocoa powder and icing sugar (I didn't sift and it was okay, just mixed it very thoroughly)
3. Melt the butter and pour over the cake crumb mix
4. Mix lightly then add the rum and mix all together
5. Place some greaseproof paper onto a board or tray
6. Roll into balls and place on the greaseproof paper
7. Crumble the flakes into a bowl, if using, or fill a bowl with vermicelli
8. Roll the balls in a bowl full of flakes or vermicelli and then place on the
greaseproof paper

9. Refrigerate for 20 minutes minimum before serving

Birthday Extravaganza: Round-up of Baking for Bamp

Happy Birthday Bamp! Nan and I (but especially Nan) were very busy in the kitchen today, baking enough goodies for 12 hungry people. Well, after the amount of little cook's bites I've taken, I'm stuffed now! Methinks some exercise will be needed this week!

Um... anyone else thinking what I'm thinking?

(If you understand this you get cake. Promise.)

Chocolate Birthday Cake

I was responsible for the sponge using Nan's all-in food mixer method, but she decorated and filled it, and I must say it was divine! A standby that comes out very often.


Pear and Almond Cla-fake-tis


It's basically a sponge. With almond. Poured over tinned pears. With some icing sugar on top.

It's definitely greater than the sum of its parts.

I like it fresh from the oven, with custard, but Bamp says it has more flavour when cold. We'll agree to disagree.

Welsh Cakes ("Bakestones")


I learned to make these when I was 13 or 14, when Nan and Bamp got their new kitchen and thus a gas cooker that could cope with the bakestone (the huge cast iron thing you cook them on). We have a bakestone at home too but Mum and Dad say we can't use it on our halogen oven.

I do intend to try cooking them in a thick based frying pan at some point... more or less the same difference, right? There's something about using a 100 year old bakestone, though... all that heritage and one yummy cake that's lasted through the ages. Then the batch lasts all of 5 minutes.

Iced Custard Slice


I never realised, but this seems to be another Welsh staple, being popular with both sets of Great-Grandparents on my Welsh side, and now my Nan makes it too. I seem to recall that I didn't do so well when I tried to make it myself a few years ago... possibly lumpy custard. One to try again soon. Basically a shortcrust style pastry case, with a Bird's custard filling and a thin layer of glace icing on the top.

Rum Truffles


Darn, I forgot to get any pics! These were yummy too.

The Daring Bakers' March 2012 Challenge: Dutch Crunch Bread

Sara and Erica of Baking JDs were our March 2012 Daring Baker hostesses! Sara & Erica challenged us to make Dutch Crunch bread, a delicious sandwich bread with a unique, crunchy topping. Sara and Erica also challenged us to create a one of a kind sandwich with our bread!

Bread! A new field for me. I awaited this challenge eagerly and nervously - it was my first one, after all - and, going through the archives, things seemed to vary from very expensive and complicated to relatively cheap and not too impossible looking. There had been a run of the latter in the last two months and so I feared I'd be joining the ranks of the daring bakers only to have to skip out due to a bank-breaking recipe; it would just be sods law, wouldn't it? Except it wasn't expensive and didn't take 3 days or require god-like skills. It was bread. One of my favourite sorts of bread, in fact, and I was chuffed. I couldn't wait to get started, but wait I did, until a time when I knew the rolls wouldn't go to waste...


Making the rolls and the Dutch Crunch Topping

The recipe provided by the hosts used active dry yeast - and I only had instant. I know that you can convert between the two but for my first foray into bread making I figured a recipe that was meant to use instant from the get go would be a safer bet. I eventually went for this one, by King Arthur flour, partially because it used plain flour, not bread flour, and also because it seemed to be well reviewed. I also wanted a softish roll as their main use would be for the Portobello and Halloumi burgers I was making for Mum for mother's day. I know, I posted them last week! But I didn't say anything about Dutch Crunch or Daring Bakers, only that it was my first time breadmaking...

The boys wouldn't eat stuff without meat in. They had burgers in theirs, and they worked well as standard burger rolls - nice to have something a bit different, and has more of a gourmet feel, like going to GBK, let's say, than your average home burger.

Kneading is very relaxing, it turns out. The dough was wonderfully elastic and rose beautifully, then rose nicely  the second time too, though the 3 inch round the recipe called for seemed very small.

However, once in the oven I ended up with nice big rolls. Actually, maybe TOO big! Next time I'd probably stretch the recipe to 10, maybe even 12 (although they varied a lot due to the fact I'm terrible at judging quantities)...

The Dutch Crunch topping also called for active dry but this time I stuck with the challenge recipe and just used 10g of instant yeast instead of the 15g of active dry. It seemed to have turned into a huge mousse when I went over to stir it after its 15 minutes resting time! I only realised halfway through making it that it made enough topping for 12 rolls and I only had 8, so I gave them all a very thick coating.

This led to some great cracking.

However, like a lot of people, I seemed to have trouble getting them to brown nicely - last I read, the general consensus seemed to be that you needed malt extract, which I may try in the future. I tried whacking up the oven to 240C at the end just for a blast of top browning heat (well, it top browned great when we were making cheesecake...) but that just browned the edges of the cracked bits.

EDIT: Audax Artifax solved it! It appears that sugar is the answer. Read his blog post to find out more

Overall, the rolls were okay. They seemed a bit dense and, despite cooking them for slightly longer than the recommended time, they still came out slightly underdone in the middle, and were very doughy, with a strong yeasty flavour.

My gut feeling is that the 3 hours of rising time the recipe called for gave the yeast too much time, resulting in that flavour, but that's just a guess. Toasting them on the hot cross bun/crumpet rack (does it have a real name?) for a short time after they were cut open helped. I was a little narked as a lot of other people seemed to make these once and get fabulous results... guess that just means I have to practice more! It's not exactly going to be a hardship to have loads of fresh, home baked bread after a lifetime of Hovis and Warburtons.

Indonesian Spiced Fishcake and Egg Sandwich


The other part of the challenge involved making a sandwich of some sort. I racked my brain for days... what HADN'T been put in a sandwich?

I travelled to Indonesia on my gap year and became a big fan of Nasi Goreng, which is fried rice, sometimes with chicken or prawns, and, usually when bought from a street stand, a nice fried egg on the top. Despite the prospect of a carbohydrate overload, this is what I planned to make in my sandwich since I decided it was sufficiently different.

Cue the sandwich making day. I had no chicken, the only rice was boil in the bag (which would have meant enough rice for 2 full meals, not the few grains I wanted in the sandwich), and I was basically screwed on the Nasi Goreng front. But I still had the Nasi Goreng paste I had managed to find in Oxford Tesco's (it's about a fifth of the size of our Exeter one but seems to have a better selection of world foods!) and set about rooting in the freezer for some alternative fillings.

Sorry, brother, I stole some of your fishfingers.

This sandwich very quickly became quite weird but is actually something I'd happily make again.

I grilled two fishfingers until almost done, then popped them in a hot frying pan.

I mashed them fairly coarsely with a fork...

And added a teaspoon of Nasi Goreng paste.

I then fried an egg with fry light in another pan, and while this was happening I  spread the fish into a sort of fishcake on the lightly toasted rolls.

Then it was time for it to be topped with the fried egg (yolk squished)...

And eaten. Who'd have thought such a random combination could taste so darn good? (I don't think it's actually anywhere near as artery-clogging as the photo makes it look...)

So, thanks to our hosts for a challenge that was great fun and introduced me to the world of bread making! Also, I now know that if I need some stress relief at uni, I think that kneading bread might be the way to go...