Yogurt lime cheesecake bars

Every time I discover something nice I like to share it with you, being related to food or not – and what makes me happy is that many of you feel the same, and I can ask you about something as far from the kitchen subject as a good product suggestion for frizzy hair that I get many answers – so, thank you. <3

Frizzy hair crisis almost averted – with the help of my Brazilian readers over on Facebook – now it’s my turn to share something special with you: one of my favorite food magazines, one that I use over and over again for both recipes and inspiration has now launched a beautiful website, packed with lots of delicious recipes and stunning photos – I hope you enjoy it!

Even though I rely on Delicious Australia very often, most of the times I tweak the recipes here and there, and this cheesecake slice is no exception: 200g of cookies would be swimming in 175g of butter, so I changed the recipe slightly and was very pleased with the result.

Yogurt lime cheesecake bars
slightly adapted from the wonderful Delicious Australia

Base:
200g digestive cookies
85g unsalted butter, softened

Topping:
½ cup + 2 tablespoons (125g) granulated sugar
finely grated zest of 2 limes
300g thick Greek-style yogurt
300g cream cheese, room temperature
3 eggs
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
pinch of salt
icing sugar, for dusting

Preheat oven to 180°C/350°F. Lightly butter a 20x30cm (8x12in) baking pan, line it with foil leaving an overhang in two opposite sides and butter it as well.

Place the cookies in a bowl of a food processor and blitz until finely crushed. Add the butter and pulse until mixture resembles wet sand. Press firmly into base of pan. Chill for 15 minutes.

In a large bowl, rub sugar and lime zest with your fingerprints until sugar is fragrant. Add the yogurt and cream cheese and whisk to combine. Whisk in the eggs, one at a time, until smooth. Stir in the vanilla and salt, then pour over base. Bake for 20-25 minutes until set and slightly golden around edges. Cool, then chill until set. Dust with icing sugar and cut into bars to serve.

Makes 24

White chocolate cheesecake with passion fruit sauce

The sour² cake I published the other day was just the beginning of a passion fruit frenzy: not only because I love the fruit but also because I got hypnotized by its amazing smell and brought home too many at once. :D

I’m always inclined to mix white chocolate with citrus flavors because the acidity seems to cut through the sweetness like no other flavors do – that is why I could not resist Valli Little’s gorgeous cheesecake, but me being me, I slightly adapted the recipe to make mini versions of it. :D

White chocolate cheesecake with passion fruit sauce
slightly adapted from the always amazing Delicious - Australia

100g shortbread biscuits
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
75g white chocolate
2 gelatin leaves
2 tablespoons whole milk
250g cream cheese, softened
½ can (198g) sweetened condensed milk
2/3 cup (160ml) heavy cream
1/3 cup passion fruit pulp
1/3 cup (66g) granulated sugar
¼ cup (60ml) water

Lightly butter four 1-cup capacity mini cake pans with removable bottoms.
For the base, place the cookies in a food processor and blitz until ground. Add the butter, pulse to combine, then press into the base of the cake pans. Chill for 30 minutes.
Filling: place chocolate in a bowl set over a pan of simmering water (don’t let the bowl touch the water), stirring until melted and smooth. Cool to room temperature.
Soak the gelatin leaves in cold water for 5 minutes. Meanwhile, heat milk in a small saucepan over medium-high heat until just below boiling point then remove from the heat. Squeeze excess water from the gelatin leaves and add leaves to the hot milk, stirring until dissolved. Set aside.
Whiz cream cheese, condensed milk and milk mixture in a food processor until smooth. Add chocolate and pulse to combine. Whisk cream to soft peaks, then fold into chocolate mixture. Pour over cookie base. Chill for 6 hours or overnight.
Syrup: pulse the passion fruit pulp in a food processor a few times to separate the pulp from the seeds. Strain, reserving seeds and juice. Set aside.
Place sugar and water in a small saucepan over low heat, stirring to dissolve sugar. Increase heat to medium-low and cook, swirling the pan occasionally and brushing down the sides with a damp pastry brush, for3-4 minutes until a golden caramel. Add passion fruit juice and 2 tablespoons cold water (be careful as it may spit), reduce heat to low and stir until smooth and syrupy. Cool slightly, then stir in some of the reserved seeds (to taste). Chill until ready to serve.
Serve the cheesecake drizzled with passion fruit sauce.

Makes 4

Chocolate peanut butter cheesecake bars + "Man of Steel"

I've just had a delightful surprise during my daily visit to "Awards Daily": the lovely Sasha Stone posted not one, but two versions of the "Man of Steel" teaser, one voiced over by Kevin Costner (Jonathan Kent) and the other by the always amazing Russel Crowe, who will be playing Jor-El - if that isn't reason enough to anxiously wait for that movie I do not know what is. :)

The beautiful teaser comes with some cheesecake, a delicious peanut butter version by the always amazing Nigella Lawson.
To me, the chocolate glaze was unnecessary on the dulce de leche cheesecake bars I made a while ago, but here it’s perfect: the peanut butter has a slightly salty flavor and the milk chocolate compliments it beautifully.

Chocolate peanut butter cheesecake bars
adapted from the magnificent Nigella Kitchen: Recipes from the Heart of the Home

Base:
140g digestive biscuits
2 ½ tablespoons (35g) unsalted butter, softened

Filling:
300g cream cheese
2 eggs
2 egg yolks
2/3 cup (133g) granulated sugar
1/3 cup (80ml) sour cream*
2/3 cup smooth peanut butter

Topping:
2/3 cup (160ml) sour cream
2/3 cup (120g) milk chocolate chips
1 ½ tablespoons brown sugar

Preheat the oven to 160°C/325°F. Lightly butter a 20cm (8in) square baking pan then line the bottom and sides with 2 pieces of foil, leaving a 5cm (2in) overhang on two opposite sides. Butter the foil as well.
Base: process the biscuits until ground then add the butter; process again until mixture resembles wet sand. Turn it out into the prepared pan and press into the bottom to make the crust. Put in the fridge while you make the filling.
Filing: place the cream cheese, eggs, egg yolks, sugar, sour cream, peanut butter and vanilla in the clean bowl of the food processor and process until very smooth. Pour into the base bake for 1 hour, though check after 50 minutes: the top – only – should feel set and dry.
Take the cheesecake out of the oven while you make the topping.
Warm the sour cream and chocolate with the brown sugar gently in a small saucepan over a low heat, whisking to blend in the chocolate as it melts, and then take off the heat. Spoon and spread the topping very gently over the top of the cheesecake, then put it back in the oven for a final 10 minutes**.
Once out of the oven, let the cheesecake cool completely in the pan over a wire rack, then cover and refrigerate overnight.
Carefully lift cheesecake from pan using foil overhangs and cut into 16 squares.

* homemade sour cream: to make 1 cup of sour cream, mix 1 cup (240ml) heavy cream with 2-3 teaspoons lemon juice in a bowl. Whisk until it starts to thicken. Cover with plastic wrap and leave at room temperature for 1 hour or until thicker (I usually leave mine on the counter overnight – except on very warm nights – and it turns out thick and silky in the following morning; refrigerate for a creamier texture)

** mine looked exactly the same after 10 minutes, so I baked it for 22 (until matte and firmer)

Makes 16

Dulce de leche cheesecake squares + some great villains

I’ve already told you how much I adore Christian Bale and I think he’s a perfect Batman but after watching the trailers for “The Dark Knight Rises” – cannot wait for July to come! – I have the feeling that he’ll be eclipsed by Tom Hardy on the movie just as he was eclipsed by Cillian Murphy and Heath Ledger on “Batman Begins” and “The Dark Knight”, respectively. I love it when great actors are cast for great characters – that’s how it should always be – and Christopher Nolan has been doing a wonderful job in his movies, with just a few exceptions (Carrie Ann Moss, Al Pacino), but I feel sorry for Bale, poor thing. :)

The original recipe for these super delicious cheesecake squares called for a chocolate glaze but I did not want it to eclipse the dulce de leche flavor; after having one square I felt that omitting the glaze had been the right decision: the cheesecake tasted wonderful and very rich, it did not need any embellishments.

Dulce de leche cheesecake squares
slightly adapted from the wonderful Gourmet Today: More than 1000 All-New Recipes for the Contemporary Kitchen

Crust:
100g (3½oz) digestive biscuits
2 tablespoons sugar
pinch of salt
3 tablespoons (42g) unsalted butter, melted

Filling:
1 teaspoon unflavored gelatin
¼ cup (60ml) whole milk
225g (8oz) cream cheese, softened
2 large eggs
¼ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup (350g/12½oz) dulce de leche

Crust: put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 160°C/325°F. Lightly butter a 20cm (8in) square baking pan then line the bottom and sides with 2 pieces of foil, leaving a 5cm (2in) overhang on two opposite sides. Butter the foil as well.
Finely grind cookies with sugar and salt in a food processor. With motor running, add butter, blending until combined. Press mixture evenly onto bottom of baking pan. Bake 10 minutes, then cool in pan on a rack 5 minutes.
Filling: sprinkle gelatin over milk in a small bowl and let stand 2 minutes to soften. In an electric mixer, with the wire attachment, beat together cream cheese, eggs, salt, gelatin mixture and vanilla until well combined, about 2 minutes, then stir in dulce de leche gently but thoroughly. Pour filling over crust, smoothing top, then bake in a hot water bath in oven until center is just set, about 45 minutes. Cool cheesecake completely in pan on rack, about 2 hours. Chill, covered, at least 6 hours.

Carefully lift cheesecake from pan using foil overhang and cut into 16 squares.

Makes 16

Vanilla bean and blueberry mini cheesecakes

My initial idea was to make Nigella’s peanut butter cheesecake – that was why I bought several packages of cream cheese after all. Peanut butter cheesecake with a milk chocolate glaze... Yum, yum. But I had a surprise after opening the peanut butter jar: it was almost empty; I was furious for a couple of seconds then remembered that I’d had several spoonfuls of peanut butter lately. Too many, I guess. So I went after another cheesecake recipe and found one on my currently favorite dessert bible. The blueberries were the icing on the cake (I apologize for the lame pun – I just couldn’t help it). ;)

Vanilla bean and blueberry mini cheesecakes
adapted from the wonderful Bon Appetit Desserts: The Cookbook for All Things Sweet and Wonderful

Crust:
1 cup (100g) graham cracker or digestive cookies crumbs
2 tablespoons sugar
¼ cup (56g) unsalted butter, melted

Filling:
300g cream cheese, room temperature
½ cup (100g) sugar
1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise, seeds removed with the back of the knife
2 large eggs
½ cup (120ml) sour cream*
generous ½ cup fresh blueberries

Start by making the crust: preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F. Butter four 1-cup (240ml) capacity mini cake pans (mine have removable bottoms).
Mix graham cracker crumbs and sugar in processor. Add melted butter; process until crumbs are evenly moistened. Press crumb mixture onto bottom (not sides) of prepared pans. Place pans onto a baking sheet and bake until crust is set and deep golden, 6-8 minutes. Cool crust while making filling. Maintain oven temperature.
Now, the filling: place the cream cheese, sugar, vanilla seeds, eggs and sour cream in the bowl of a food processor and process until smooth. Divide the filling evenly among pans. Sprinkle the filling with the blueberries. Bake until set around edges, and center moves slightly when pan is gently shaken, 25-30 minutes. Cool completely over a wire rack then refrigerate uncovered for 3-4 hour or overnight. Carefully unmold and serve.

* homemade sour cream: to make 1 cup of sour cream, mix 1 cup (240ml) heavy cream with 2-3 teaspoons lemon juice in a bowl. Whisk until it starts to thicken. Cover with plastic wrap and leave at room temperature for 1 hour or until thicker (I left mine on the counter overnight – on a cold night – and it was beautifully thick and silky the next morning)

Makes 4

Chocolate lime pie + popsicles on the side

A couple of days after talking to you about intuition I had an insight while making this pie: since the tart pan I was using was a bit smaller than the one called for on the recipe, there was some filling left. I stared at the velvety cream and thought it would taste amazing as some sort of frozen dessert – I immediately poured the cream into my popsicle molds and ended up with totally addictive treats; I think they were even better than the tart itself, but please do not tell Ms. Lawson I said so. ;)

Chocolate lime pie
again from the wonderful Nigella Kitchen

Base:
3 cups Graham-crackers or digestive cookies crumbs
1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
4 tablespoons (56g) unsalted butter, softened
¼ cup bittersweet chocolate chips

Filling:
1 x 395g (14oz) can sweetened condensed milk, better if chilled
4-5 limes, to give approximately 2 tablespoons finely grated zest + ¾ cup (180ml) juice
1 ¼ cups (300ml) heavy cream
1 square bittersweet chocolate

Lightly butter a 23cm (9in) fluted tart pan, 5cm (2in) deep, with a removable bottom.
Put the crackers, cocoa powder, butter and chocolate chips in the bowl of a food processor and process until a sandy mixture forms. Transfer to the prepared tart pan and press onto the base and sides. Refrigerate while you make the filling.
Pour the condensed milk into the large bowl of an electric mixer. Zest the limes into a bowl, tightly cover with plastic wrap and set aside for decorating the tart later. Squeeze the juice of the limes until you get the required amount. Add the juice to the condensed milk and mix to combine.
Pour the heavy cream into the mixture and whisk in medium-high speed until thick. Spread over the tart base and refrigerate again for 4 hours or until filling is very firm (refrigerate for longer if your condensed milk was not chilled).
Before serving, grate the chocolate over the filling and sprinkle with the lime zest. Serve immediately – do not keep the pie out of the refrigerator for long.

Serves 6-8 – my tart pan wasn’t very deep, so there was some filling left; I made popsicles with it and they turned out delicious. :D

Vanilla cheesecake with blueberry lemon sauce

I told you I had an addiction – if you did not believe me then, you might start believing me now. :D

There is one thing different, however: this time I went for blueberries instead of blackberries, as in Natalie’s recipe. Just don’t ask me which one I like more – you know I have trouble picking favorites. :D

Vanilla cheesecake with blueberry lemon sauce
from Donna Hay magazine and here

Base:
125g digestive/shortbread cookies – I used these, Ana’s suggestion
½ cup (50g) almond meal (ground almonds)
3 tablespoons (42g) unsalted butter, melted

Cheesecake:
370g ricotta
370g cream cheese
1 1/3 cups (267g) caster sugar
3 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Blueberry lemon syrup:
1 cup blueberries, fresh or frozen
¾ cup (150g) caster sugar
1 tablespoon lemon zest
3 tablespoons lemon juice
¼ cup (60ml) water
1 tablespoon corn starch

Preheat the oven to 140°C/285°F.
Make the base: process cookies in a food processor until crushed. Add the almond meal and butter and process until combined. Grease a round 22cm springform pan*. Press the crumb mix over the base and refrigerate.
Place the ricotta and cream cheese in a food processor and process until smooth. Add the sugar, eggs and vanilla and process until combined and smooth. Pour the mixture over the base and bake for 55-60 minutes or until set.
In the meantime, make the sauce: combine the blueberries, sugar, lemon zest and juice in a non-reactive saucepan. Whisk together the water and cornstarch in a small bowl and add to the saucepan. Turn the heat on to medium and let simmer until thickened, about 10 – 12 minutes – while the mixture is simmering, squash the berries with a fork. Let cool completely.
Remove the cheesecake from the oven and allow to cool in the pan. Serve with the sauce.

* I made 2/3 of the recipe above (for the base and cheesecake) and used a loose-bottomed 20cm (8in) round cake pan

Serves 8-10

Lemon coconut mini cheesecakes

I’ve read that “Monk” is about to end – its last season is about to start here in Brazil. Can’t say I’m sad – I’ve tried watching the show several times, but it’s really not my cup of tea; I don’t see what all the fuss is about – or all the awards, for that matter.

I used to feel the same way about cheesecakes, until I made this recipe – now I want to try each and every cheesecake flavor out there. :)

Lemon coconut mini cheesecakes
adapted from Donna Hay magazine

Base:
75g digestive cookies
1/3 cup (30g) unsweetened desiccated coconut
2 tablespoons (28g) unsalted butter, melted

Filling:
175g ricotta
175g cream cheese
¾ cup + 1 tablespoon (162g) caster sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
finely grated zest of 2 lemons
1 tablespoon lemon juice

Preheat the oven to 160°C/300°F.
To make the base, process the cookies in a food processor until finely crushed. Add the coconut and butter and process until combined.
Butter fourteen 1/3 cup (80ml) capacity mini cheesecake pans (with removable bottoms). Press the mixture over the base of each pan and refrigerate.
Process the ricotta and cream cheese until smooth. Add the sugar, eggs, vanilla, lemon zest and juice and process until combined. Pour the mixture over the bases and bake for 15-20 minutes or until set.
Allow to cool, then refrigerate. Carefully remove from the pans and top with coconut curls to serve.

Makes 14