Category Archives: Birthdays

Happy Birthday

This blog recently had a birthday, and I forgot to notice. I guess I got distracted by my own birthday. I just this week turned 25. There was a flourless chocolate cake baked by Marta, and a whole week of the most gorgeous NYC spring weather I’ve ever seen. I’m feeling ready for new things this spring. You see, I like to think of my birthday as the start of a new year. It makes more sense to me than New Years does, because this is, after all, the anniversary of my actual beginning.

I thought of starting my new year by making some grand resolutions: I thought of promising that I’d be a better blogger, or that I’d actually start writing down all the recipes I create. But then I couldn’t help but wonder about, and doubt, the purpose of this little blog I started here three years ago now. Back when I started this blog it was my fun respite from a career path that had nothing to do with food. But for a while now I’ve been in this job that I actually love, where I spend every day working on a website about food. And then somehow my own little cooking blog began to feel too much like work. I never stopped cooking, and I’m dying to share everything with you all, but this sitting in front of the computer publishing things online business has become hard for me to do in my precious free time.

So I won’t make any promises for this year, but I want you to know that I’m still here, that I’m thinking about you all, and that I wish I could write more. In the meantime, you can find me on Twitter, and I’ll try my best to be back here more soon. Even though I’m a bit confused right now about what this blog should be, I still truly value this space, and I appreciate knowing that some of you, sometimes, are still stopping by to check in on me here (thank you for that). So here’s to another year, whatever it may bring!

 

Cheesecake with Hazelnut Crust

This cheesecake was really lovely for several reasons, but the most revolutionary part of it was the crust. This crust may have just changed the way I will make cheesecakes forever, and I’m so glad I stumbled upon the recipe in Fany Gerson’s cookbook My Sweet Mexico, that inspired it. I’ve always loved the buttery ginger flavor of my gluten-free ginger snap crust, and that was the recipe I always fell back on when making cheesecake, but the truth is that the texture was always a bit off. It was a little soggy, a little crumbly, and oftentimes very hard to remove from the pan. This hazelnut crust had no such issues. It was toothsome and held it’s shape wonderfully and (miracle of miracles) actually slid easily off the bottom of my springform pan so I could serve it on the cake stand instead of cutting it off the pan. Hazelnuts, butter, sugar, and flour – basically it’s cookie dough. This crust tastes and behaves very much like a nice thick hazelnut cookie, which was a good base for the fluffier than usual cheesecake filling that I scented with a hint of cinnamon, inspired by Fany Gerson’s recipe. Gerson’s cheesecake included a recipe for chile-spiced quince to use as a topping. I didn’t have any fresh quince, but I had some cranberries in my fridge I wanted to use, so I created a chili-spiced cranberry syrup to serve with the cheesecake. Unfortunately I forgot to take photos before the sauce got polished off. The tang of the cranberries and subtle spice from the chilies were an exciting counterpart to the creamy cheesecake, but as I discovered while eating the leftovers and taking these photos today, the cheesecake is just as good on its own.

Luckily, I guessed right when I choose to make cheesecake for Franca’s birthday yesterday. She beamed and whispered that she’d secretly been hoping for a cheesecake as soon as she noticed it. Eight of us ate around my table here in the kitchen last night to celebrate Franca’s birthday. We had an apple-sweetened butternut squash soup, thick and creamy (but with no actual cream) that Marta and I cooked with white wine and thyme and one little potato (for added starch) then pureed with our immersion blender (perhaps my favorite kitchen tool). Continuing with the apple theme, I baked up a batch of these amazing apple, gruyere, and sage muffins from the blog Cannelle et Vanille (if you don’t already know of this blog, please have a look – she has wonderful gluten-free recipes). The muffins were just the thing to dunk in the soup, and no one noticed that they were gluten-free. We followed our soup with a big mess of salad (not unlike this one) bursting with feta, roasted golden beets, cooked barely, French lentils, candied pecans, and a dill pesto dressing. And then of course we sang a chorus of “Happy Birthday” and dug into this cake.

Cheesecake with Hazelnut Crust and Spiced Cranberry Syrup
serves 10-12
adapted from My Sweet Mexico by Fany Gerson

Note: I used spelt flour for my version of hazelnut crust, but I think an all purpose gluten-free flour would work just fine too, or a whole wheat flour.

for the crust:
3/4 cup hazelnuts
1/4 cup light brown sugar
3/4 cup spelt flour
generous pinch of salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) cold unsalted butter, plus extra for greasing the cake pan

for the filling:
1 1/2 pounds cream cheese (3 (8 oz.) packages), at room temperature
1 cup white sugar
1 tsp vanilla
pinch of salt
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup sour cream, at room temperature
2 tsp cornstarch
4 eggs, at room temperature

for the syrup (optional):
6 oz fresh cranberries
3 pieces lemon peel
2 dried arbol chiles
1/2  cup brown sugar (plus more if needed)
3  cups orange juice (plus more if needed)

Preheat the oven to 350.

To make the cheesecake:

In a cast iron skillet over medium-high heat, heat the hazelnuts until they are fragrant and start to darken, about five minutes, then transfer to a bowl and let cool.

Generously butter a 9 by 3-inch springform pan

Combine the brown sugar, flour, and salt in the bowl of a food processor. Use your fingers to remove as much of the hazelnut skins as possible (but don’t worry about getting them all off if they’re being difficult) then add the hazelnuts to the food processor and pulverize until the hazelnuts are are coarsely ground,  about a minute. Add the butter, pulsing until the dough comes together in a ball. If the dough is not adhering, add a splash of cold water then pulse again.

Turn the dough out into the buttered pan, and press it down in an even layer, then bake until golden, about 30 minutes. Cool on a wire rack before adding the filling.

While the crust bakes, place the cream cheese in the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment and beat until smooth, about 3 minutes. Add the white sugar, vanilla, salt, cinnamon, sour cream, and cornstarch, then beat until smooth, about another 3 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing on low speed and scraping down the sides of the bowl between each addition. Make sure there are absolutely no lumps in the batter, then pour it into the crust (once it’s cooled).

Place the filled pan on top of a baking sheet to catch any drips, then bake until the filling is just set and the top of the cake golden brown, about an hour. Give the cake a good jiggle, and if it still wiggles too much in the middle, give it a bit more time in the oven. Let the cake cool completely on a wire rack; it will finish setting while it cools.

Refrigerate until ready to serve. Before serving, remove the edge of the springform pan, then run a knife around the bottom of the crust and very gently slide the cake off the bottom of the pan onto a serving plate.

To make the syrup (optional):

In a saucepan over medium heat, cook the cranberries, lemon peel, chiles, sugar, and 2 cups of the orange juice until boiling. Turn down the heat and simmer for about 15 minutes, until the mixture is thick and has reduced in volume by about half. Remove from heat, and force the mixture through a fine mesh sieve into a medium bowl, using a rubber spatula to press out as much juice as possible. Discard the skins and pulp that remains, then pour the juice back into the saucepan. Add the additional cup of orange juice, mix well, then bring the sauce to a boil again. Turn down the heat and let simmer another 10 minutes or so, until the syrup is nice and thick. Taste it, and add more sugar if needed. If the sauce gets too thick, add a bit more orange juice before serving.

Drizzle each slice of cheesecake with syrup before serving.

Two is better than one

I’m home for a visit in Keene now, and luckily I was here in time for my neighbors’ twins’ 2-year-old birthday yesterday. Our two families have almost always shared cake and a chorus of “happy birthday” for every birthday, which, between our two families, is a total of 12 birthdays and 13 cakes a year. My mom and I almost always made the cakes, though as my sisters and I are growing up, the number of cakes we all get to share each year is dwindling. Before I came home from the city this week, Grethe called to make sure I would be baking the cakes for the twins, to make sure I would let her help, and to put in her special request for “the chocolate one with the brown sparkly icing.” This cake is one of our favorite birthday cakes, and has been repeated many times over the years. It’s devastatingly rich and sweet, and I guess you could even say it sparkles. The cake recipe is from The Baker’s Dozen Cookbook, and the icing is from The Joy Of Cooking. Note that you must have a candy thermometer to make the icing. For the twins’ birthday cakes I made a recipe and a half of the cake and baked it in two deep 6 inch round spring form pans.


Rich Chocolate Cake

3 ounces unsweetened chocolate, coarsely chopped.
2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
½ tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
2 1/3 cups packed light brown sugar
1 stick unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup sour cream, at room temperature
3 large eggs, lightly beaten, at room temperature
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup water

Preheat oven to 350?F.
Butter and flour two 9×2 inch round cake pans.
In the top part of a double boiler over hot, not simmering, water, melt the chocolate, stirring occasionally, until smooth. Let cool until tepid.
Mix the flour, baking soda, salt, and brown sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer at low speed, just until combined.
Add the butter and sour cream and mix on medium-low speed to make a thick batter, about 1 minute.
Add the eggs, melted chocolate, and vanilla and increase the speed to high and beat for 2 minutes.
Stop and scrape down the bowl.
Resume beating at low speed and slowly pour in the water until thoroughly blended.
Spoon the batter equally into the prepared pans and spread it evenly.
Bake until the tops spring back when pressed lightly in the centers and a toothpick inserted into the centers comes out clean, 30 to 35 minutes.
Transfer the layers to wire cooling racks and cool for ten minutes before inverting onto the racks or plates and removing the pans. Invert again so they are right side up and cool completely before frosting.


Caramel Icing

2 cups brown sugar
1 cup heavy cream, plus extra if needed
3 Tbs. butter
1 tsp. vanilla

Pour the brown sugar and 1 cup of cream into a medium sized heavy pot and mix until combined.
Cover the pot, and cook for about 3 minutes.
Uncover the pot and affix the candy thermometer so that the tip remains in the liquid, continuing to cook over medium-high heat without stirring until the temperature reaches 238?F to 240?F.
Pour the icing into a heatproof bowl and let cool for a few minutes, and then add the vanilla and the butter, beating with a whisk until thick and creamy. If the icing becomes too heavy, thin it by beating in a bit of cream.
Note: I like to ice the cake while the icing is still hot and smooth so that it cools with a nice smooth glaze. You can also ice the cake when the frosting is cooled and thick for a more textured finish.

A Perfect Birthday Present

A few weeks ago I had a birthday, and for that birthday I received two perfect gifts. One of them was a KitchenAid Artisan Stand Mixer, and the other one was an ice cream maker attachment for it. My parents and David collaborated on these two perfect gifts, and David is already reaping in the bounty of homemade ice cream since just the other night I made my very first batch. What fun, this machine does all the stirring and the cranking for me!

I grew up with a hand cranked ice cream maker. Summertime dinners often ended with my sisters and I passing the ice cream maker around, impatiently waiting the requisite three minutes between each turn. Three sisters. Three turns of the crank each way. Three minutes to wait. I should have been practicing my multiplication tables, but instead I would sit and anxiously wait, scolding my little sisters if they tried to give the handle an extra turn. I thought that somehow if we missed a beat our ice cream would fail. I’m sure we missed a lot of beats, but we never did mess up the ice cream. No more counting turns for me now though! I’m looking forward to a summer of new ice cream flavors… but to start, here is an old favorite and a timeless classic: Vanilla Bean Ice Cream. I cut the amount of sugar down for my version, so if you like your ice cream especially sweet I would toss in a bit extra. Vanilla bean can easily be substituted with 2 tsp. of pure vanilla extract, but then you don’t get the fun little black dots in your ice cream.

Vanilla Bean Ice Cream
makes about 1 pint

2 cups heavy cream
1¼ cups whole milk
1/3 cup sugar
1 vanilla bean
pinch of salt
4 large egg yolks

In a medium saucepan, combine the cream, milk, sugar, and salt. Cut the vanilla bean in half lengthwise, and use the tip of a knife to scrape the seeds out into the mixture, then toss in the pieces of the pod. Heat the mixture over medium heat until hot but not boiling.
Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, whisk the egg yolks until just mixed.
Gradually add half of the hot cream mixture to the egg yolks, whisking constantly, then return the mixture back into the pan. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture begins to thicken slightly, about ten minutes.
Place a strainer over a medium bowl and pour the mixture through it in order to catch the pieces of the vanilla pod and any bits of egg that might have cooked.
Allow the mixture to cool, and then chill in the refrigerator, covered, for at least 3 hours and up to two days ahead of freezing it, and then freeze according to the instructions provided with your ice cream maker.