jack's cheesecake

My brother Jack loves cheesecake and I used to make cheesecake.  Until my kids started settling in the big city Jack's house was where I stayed when I needed to be in the city overnight.  One year when I was staying with him I brought him a portable mixer, a mixing bowl and a springform pan and my recipe for cheesecake.  I taught him how to make cheesecake and now when we get together for Christmas he brings cheesecake.  He makes a great cheesecake.  He is better at it than I am.  I still make cheesecake once in a while but it has become Jack's cheesecake now.

Jack's cheesecake is a New York style cheesecake with 32 ounces of cream cheese in it.  He prefers it unadorned but it is pretty good with a little caramel and chocolate syrup and a few nuts to make a turtle cheesecake or some fruit topping if that is what you prefer.

Jack's cheesecake

I cup graham cracker crumbs

3 Tbsp sugar

3 Tbsp butter melted

4 8 oz packages cream cheese, softened

1 cup sugar

3 Tbsp flour

4 eggs

1 cup sour cream

1 Tbsp vanilla

Crust:  Combine cracker crumbs, 3 Tbsp sugar and melted butter.  Press into bottom of springform pan.  Bake at 325° for 10 minutes.  Cool. 

Filling: Combine cream cheese, 1 cup sugar and and flour mixing on medium speed with electric mixer until well blended.  Add eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition.  Blend in the sour cream and the vanilla.  Pour over crust.  Bake at 450° for 10 minutes.  Reduce oven temperature to 250° and continue baking for 1 hour more.  Loosen cake from the rim of the pan .  Cool before removing the rim of the pan.  Top with can of cherry pie filling if desired.

Joining Foodie Friday

chocolate truffle tart with mascarpone topping

 

Chocolate Truffle Tart with

Whipped Vanilla Mascarpone Topping

For the crust:

1 cup finely ground cookies (25 choc wafers, 8 whole graham crackers or 35 Nilla wafers

2 Tbsp sugar

3 Tbsp melted butter.

Combine crumbs and sugar with fork, drizzle melted butter over and mix with fork until evenly moist, press into tart pan.
Bake 350° for 10 minutes. Cool

For the filling:

12 oz bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped

1 cup whole milk

¼ cup unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces

1 tsp vanilla extract

¼ tsp table salt

Melt the chocolate, milk and butter in microwave or double boiler. Add Vanilla and salt and then whisk until well blended and smooth. Set aside, whisking occasionally until room temperature and slightly thickened, about 1 hour. Spread filling over the crust taking care not to disturb the crust and cool completely. Cover and refrigerate until filling is set. (4 hours)

For the topping:

½ cup Mascarpone cheese, at room temperature

¾ cup heavy cream

¼ cup granulated sugar

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Combine Mascarpone, cream, sugar and vanilla and beat on low with electric mixer until almost smooth, 30-60 seconds. Increase speed to medium high and beat until mixture is thick and holds stiff peaks, another 30-60 seconds. Don't over beat.

Spread topping over filling leaving lots of swirls and peaks and leaving a little of the chocolate showing next to the crust. Serve right away or refrigerate up to four hours.

Homemade Mascarpone 

2 cups heavy cream

1 Tbsp lemon juice

Heat cream in a heavy saucepan to 190 on a candy thermometer.  The cream should be at a simmer.  Add lemon juice and continue heating at 190 for 5 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to cool to room temperature.  Put cheese in a strainer that has been lined with cheesecloth.  Use a bowl under the strainer to collect the whey that will drain away.  Cover with plastic wrap  and allow to strain in the refrigerator.  Store covered in the refrigerator.

chocolate pecan torte

A couple of years ago I bought a couple of small white cake stands.   I collect white dishes and serving pieces and these were too cute to pass up but I was limited as to what I could serve on them as they were only eight inches across.

So my next purchase was a couple--well three--six inch layer pans so that I could make small round cakes that would fit on the pedestals.

When I found this recipe for a chocolate pecan torte I decided it would the perfect recipe to try halving in order to used my little layer pans.  This recipe calls for making two 9 inch layers that are sliced in half to make four layers with frosting between and a glaze over the top.   

Chocolate pecan torte

2 large eggs, separated

1/4 cup sugar

1/3 cup flour

1/4 tsp baking soda

1/8 tsp salt

3/8 cup ground pecans

1/6 cup ground pecans

1/8   cup water

1 tsp vanilla

1/8 cup sugar

Chocolate frosting

3/8 cup chopped pecans, toasted

Rich chocolate glaze

Grease bottoms of two six inch cake pans,. line bottoms of pans with parchment circles and grease parchment.   Set pans aside.

Beat egg yolks at high speed.  Gradually add 1/4 cup sugar beating until mixture is thick and pale.  Combine flour and next four ingredients.  Add ;to yolk mixture alternating with water beginning and ending with flour mixure.  Stir in vanilla.

Beat egg whites at high speed until foamy.  Gradually add 1/8 cup sugar beating until stiff peaks form. Fold into batter.  Pour batter into prepared pans.

Bake 375°  for 16-18  minutes.  Cool ten minutes in pans then tip out.  Peel parchment from bottoms and cool completely.

Chocolate frosting

1/3 cup sifted confectioners sugar

1/6 cup cocoa

1 cup whipping cream

3/4 tsp vanilla extract

Combine sugar and cocoa.  Gradually stir in cream and vanilla.  Beat on low speed until combined and then on high speed until stiff peaks form.

Rich Chocolate glaze

1 Tbsp cocoa

1 Tbsp water  

1/2 Tbsp butter

1/2 cup sifted confectioners sugar

1/8 tsp vanilla

Combine first three ingredients in a small saucepan and cook over medium heat until mixture thickens. Remove from heat and stir in confectioners sugar and vanilla.

To assemble torte:

split the cake layers in half horizontally forming four equal layers.  Place one layer on the serving plate and apply a layer of frosting.  Add second cake layer, more frosting, third cake layer, more frosting and top with fourth cake layer. 

Cover the sides of the stacked layers with chocolate frosting and press pecans into the frosting.  I did not do this but I think next time I will pipe a ring of frosting at the edge of the top layer or bring the frosting of the sides up a little to contain the glaze on top until it sets.

Spread rich chocolate glaze over the top.

Source: Southern Living Christmas Cookbook