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

Lemon angel food cake with lemon glaze and pistachios

This recipe should come with a warning: besides being delicious - no surprise here since we're talking about a lemon cake - its texture is so light, so feathery, that without noticing you'll be going back to the kitchen for seconds, thirds... (yes, I am writing from experience). :)

If you don't have pistachios on hand I am sure that almonds would work wonderfully here, too.

Lemon angel food cake with lemon glaze and pistachios
slightly adapted from Bon Appétit

Cake:
1 cup (120g) cake flour (homemade: 100g all purpose flour + 20g corn starch)
1 cup (200g) granulated sugar, divided
1/8 teaspoon salt
10 large egg whites (280g), room temperature
finely grated zest of 2 large lemons
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon cream of tartar

Lemon syrup and glaze:
½ cup (100g) granulated sugar
4 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, divided
½ cup (65g) unsalted pistachios, lightly toasted and cooled, finely chopped
½ cup (70g) powdered sugar

For cake: position rack in center of oven and preheat to 180°C/350°F. Have ready a 25cm (10in) diameter angel food cake pan with 10cm (4in) high sides and removable bottom (do not use a nonstick pan)*.
Sift flour, ½ cup (100g) sugar and salt into medium bowl; repeat sifting 3 times. Using electric mixer, beat egg whites, lemon zest, and vanilla on medium speed in large bowl until frothy (mixture may turn bright yellow but color will change when remaining ingredients are added). Add cream of tartar; increase speed to high and beat until soft peaks form. Gradually add remaining 1 cup (100g) sugar, 2 tablespoons at a time, beating until stiff peaks form. Sprinkle 1/3 of flour mixture over whites and gently fold in until incorporated. Fold in remaining flour mixture in 2 more additions just until incorporated. Transfer to cake pan and smooth the top.
Bake cake until pale golden and tester inserted near center comes out clean, about 38 minutes. Immediately invert cake onto work surface if pan has feet, or invert center tube of pan onto neck of bottle or metal funnel and cool cake completely.
Using long thin knife, cut around cake sides and center tube to loosen. Lift out center tube with cake still attached; run knife between cake and bottom of pan to loosen. Invert cake onto rack, then turn cake over, rounded side up, onto serving plate.

Lemon syrup and glaze: combine the granulated sugar and 3 tablespoons lemon juice in small saucepan; stir over medium heat until sugar dissolves. Brush syrup all over top and sides of cake. Immediately press pistachios onto top and sides of cake, pressing to adhere.
Stir powdered sugar with remaining 1 tablespoon lemon juice in small bowl until smooth. Drizzle glaze over top of cake. Let stand until glaze sets, about 10 minutes.
Cake can be made up to 1 day ahead – cover with cake dome and store at room temperature.

* I used a nonstick pan because it’s the one I have; the cake did not raise as much as the one on the photo of the original recipe but it tasted delicious and had a very light, feathery texture

Serves 10-12

Spinach casserole with orecchiette and cheeses

Talking to a coworker who has lost several pounds, I found out that the on the diet she’s been on gluten and dairy are forbidden. I must say that as much as I would love to lose a couple of pounds, I would never be able to follow that kind of diet: I cannot survive without bread and cheese; I know there are ways of replacing wheat flour for other kinds of flour – the spelt muffins I made a while ago were pretty decent – but the thought alone of not eating cheese makes me moody already. :)

This cheeseaholic loved Amanda Hesser’s pasta dish not only because there are two types of cheese involved, but also because it’s delicious, hearty even without any kind of meat and perfect for the cold days we’ve been having here.

Spinach casserole with orecchiette and cheeses
slightly adapted from Amanda Hesser’s wonderful recipe bible

300g spinach
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 large onion, finely chopped
2 fat garlic cloves, minced
1 ½ cups finely chopped canned plum tomatoes
225g (½ pound) orecchiette
½ cup crumbled goat cheese
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
salt and freshly ground black pepper

Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F. Have ready a 6-cup capacity casserole or baking dish.
Rinse the spinach and remove the stems. Gather all the leaves and roll them together like a cigar then finely slice.
Heat the olive oil in a large, heavy skillet. Add the onion, sauté over medium heat until tender but not brown, then stir in the garlic. Add the tomatoes, then add the spinach. Cook for about 5 minutes, until the spinach has wilted.
Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil for the pasta. Cook the orecchiette until al dente. Remove the sauce from the heat, stir in the goat cheese and half the parmesan. Season with salt and pepper.
Drain the pasta and toss with the sauce, then transfer to the casserole. Sprinkle the remaining parmesan on top. Bake for about 15 minutes or until heated through. Serve at once.

Serves 2

Chocolate chip brownie double-deckers

Being someone who always has trouble choosing what to prepare, these double deckers were the perfect solution to my baking conundrum: two different layers, two delicious baked goods in one. To make things even better, the recipe is easy to put together and yields a lot, being great for sharing – they disappeared from the office quite fast the other day... :)

The recipe comes from a cookbook I bought on a day I was feeling bored to my bones and needed a little retail therapy – since I’m not into shoes and bags as apparently all the other girls are (or feel obligated to be as to feel they belong to a certain group of people), I bought a couple of books and Abigail Johnson Dodge’s "The Weekend Baker" turned out to be a very pleasant surprise: I have baked a handful of recipes from it and everything turned out delicious.

Chocolate chip brownie double-deckers
from the delicious The Weekend Baker

Chocolate chip layer:
¾ cup (170g) unsalted butter
1 ¼ cups (218g) firmly packed light brown sugar
1 1/3 cups (187g) all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon salt
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup (180g) semi-sweet chocolate chips

Brownie layer:
¾ cup (170g) unsalted butter, chopped
¾ cup (68g) unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder, sifted if lumpy
1 ½ cups + 3 tablespoons (336g) granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
1 ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
¾ cup (105g) all-purpose flour

Position the oven rack in the middle of the oven. Preheat the oven to 160°C/325°F*.
Line a 32x22cm (9x13in) baking pan with foil, leaving an overhang in two opposite sides. Butter the foil.
Chocolate chip layer: in a medium saucepan over medium heat melt the butter. Slide the pan from the heat and add the brown sugar. Whisk until no lumps remain. Set the butter mix aside to cool while making the brownie layer.

Brownie layer: in a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter. Slide the pan from the heat and add the cocoa powder. Whisk until the mixture is smooth. Add the sugar and salt and whisk until blended. Add the eggs, one at a time, whisking after each addition just until blended. Whisk in the vanilla with the second egg. Sprinkle the flour over the chocolate mixture and stir with a rubber spatula just until the ingredients are blended. Scrape the batter into the prepared baking dish and spread it evenly with an offset or rubber spatula. Set it aside while you finish the chocolate chip layer.

To finish the chocolate chip layer: in a small bowl, combine the flour, baking soda and salt. Whisk until it's well-blended. Once the butter mixture has cooled, add the egg and vanilla to it and whisk until blended. Pour in the flour mixture and stir with a rubber spatula until the ingredients are blended. Stir in the chocolate chips.
Drop the dough over the brownie batter in large scoops and spread it evenly with an offset or rubber spatula. Bake until a wooden pick or cake tester inserted in the center comes out with small, gooey clumps of brownie sticking to it, about 40 minutes. Don't over-bake or the brownies won't be fudgy. Transfer the baking pan to a rack to cool completely.

Cut the brownies into small squares measuring about 5cm (2in) each.

* Out of distraction I baked the bars at 180°C/350°F (and they worked out fine)

Makes 24 – I made the exact recipe above using a 20x30cm (8x12in) baking pan; I found the bars really rich, therefore I cut each square in half to make smaller bars

Lemon and cardamom cake + "50/50"

I am always interested in great performances, especially when they’re delivered by actors and actresses I adore; that is the reason why I wanted to watch "50/50": Joseph Gordon-Levitt is absolutely amazing in this movie and Seth Rogen surprised the hell out of me too, I have to admit it.

*spoilers*

Cancer is not a subject I deal very well with and even though the movie made me cry in several moments it didn’t feel heavy, much to the contrary: it has a very optimistic feel. Several scenes made me think of my mom, especially the one when Levitt’s character finds out he has cancer: I can’t imagine what she must have felt hearing the news, being 28 and having two kids at home (my brother was 1 and I was 3). I felt so much sorrow deep inside my heart and thought of stopping watching the movie right then and there, but I’m glad I did not: knowing that on a daily basis people survive this awful disease brings me a sense of joy and hope.

Besides Levitt and Rogen, I loved, loved, loved Anjelica Houston as the mother: she’s not on screen much, but when she is... There is a ton of love and worry and pain coming from her character, which to me is really hard to pull off without going sappy and yet she does it so brilliantly, the way that only amazing actresses can (the green tea scene made me cry like a baby).

I’d never thought a movie about cancer would have such positive effect on me.

* end of spoilers*

I thought that a movie with that kind of connection with things I’ve been through should be paired with my favorite kind of cake: lemon. I had no idea cardamom worked so well with lemon as it does with orange.

Lemon and cardamom cake
slightly adapted from the absolutely wonderful Good Things to Eat (mine was bought here)

1 ¼ cups (175g) all purpose flour
2 ¼ teaspoons baking powder
pinch of salt
175g unsalted butter, softened
¾ cup + 2 tablespoons (175g) demerara sugar
finely grated zest and juice of 2 large lemons
1 teaspoon freshly ground cardamom
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
¼ cup (50g) granulated sugar

Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F. Butter a 21x10cm (8¼x4in) loaf pan, line it with baking paper and butter the paper as well.
Sift the flour, baking powder and salt into a medium bowl. Set aside.
In the large bowl of an electric mixer, beat butter, demerara sugar, zest and cardamom until light and fluffy, scraping the sides of the bowl occasionally. Beat in the eggs, one at a time – mixture may curdle, do not worry. Beat in the vanilla.
Fold in the sifted ingredients, mixing just until absorbed, then quickly beat in half the lemon juice. Spread the batter into the prepared pan, smooth the top and bake for about 40 minutes or until risen, golden and a skewer inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean.
While the cake is still hot (still inside the pan, over a wire rack), pierce it all over with a toothpick. In a small bowl, mix together the remaining lemon juice with the granulated sugar, without letting it dissolve too much, and spoon over the cake. Cool completely in the pan.

Serves 6-8