German chocolate cheesecake bars

I love making cheesecakes but hardly ever remember to buy cream cheese. And there are times when I happily bring home cream cheese packets only to remember, upon arriving, that there are no cookies for the cheesecake base. That's me - I can remember lines from a movie I saw 10 years ago but can't write a proper grocery list. :)
Last week, however, I managed to buy all the necessary ingredients on the same day. I wanted a special cheesecake and I knew exactly where to look for it: the lovely "Tea with Bea" has several cheesecake recipes and they all look amazing. These bars are delicious and since they are very rich a little goes a long way: you can share them with your family and friends.

German chocolate cheesecake bars
slightly adapted from the oh, so beautiful Tea With Bea

Base:
150g digestive cookies
45g unsalted butter, melted

Filling:
400g cream cheese, room temperature
½ cup (100g) granulated sugar
1 egg
2 tablespoons corn starch
½ cup (120ml) heavy cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Topping:
½ cup (120ml) heavy cream
1 tablespoon honey
175g dark chocolate, chopped – I used one with 53% cocoa solids
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
pinch of salt
37g unsalted butter, cold, cubed
4 tablespoons sweetened shredded coconut, lightly toasted and cooled
½ cup (55g) pecans, lightly toasted, cooled and coarsely chopped
¼ cup dulce de leche

Preheat oven to 150°C/300°F. Lightly butter a 20cm (8in) square cake pan, line it with foil leaving two overhangs in opposite sides and butter the foil as well.
Crust: place the cookies in a food process and process until finely ground. Add the butter and process until the mixture resembles wet sand. Transfer to the base of the prepared pan and press it firmly with your hands. Refrigerate it while you make the filling.
In a large bowl, stir the cream cheese with a spatula to loosen it up a little. Add the sugar and mix until smooth. Add the egg, mix to combine. Sift the corn starch over the mixture and whisk until combined, removing any lumps. Stir in the heavy cream and the vanilla. Pour over the base and bake for about 35 minutes or until slightly jiggly in the center and the top doesn’t look shiny or wet anymore. Remove from the oven and cool completely in the pan over a wire rack. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight.

Topping: place the cream and honey in a small saucepan and heat over medium heat, stirring to dissolve the honey. Heat until it starts to boil, remove from the heat and immediately add the chocolate. Set aside for 1 minute, then gently stir until melted. Stir in the salt, vanilla and butter, and mix until butter is completely melted. Cool to room temperature – the mixture will thicken as it cools (do not refrigerate).
Spread the chocolate mixture over the cheesecake. Sprinkle with the coconut, then the pecans. Spread the dulce de leche on top by the spoonfuls.
Carefully remove from the pan using the foil and cut into squares or bars.

Makes 16

Apple and polenta cake + a surprise from Cannes

I must confess that reading that “Blue is the Warmest Color” had won the Palme d’Or surprised me quite a bit: not because of the film itself – I haven’t seen it yet so I can’t judge – but because I would never expect a jury presided by Steven Spielberg, a director who very seldom makes adult films, would vote for such a bold film. Maybe Ang Lee had something to do with it (he should have been chosen President of the Jury imo). And even if it was a political choice as some believe it was I’m still surprised, for Spielberg was never the controversial one. I just hope “Blue is the Warmest Color” gets distributed here in Brazil, and soon – I would not like to wait for it as much as I had to for “Drive”.

Something else surprised me weeks ago: Amber Rose’s beautiful cookbook. I don’t worry about nutrition when I bake – I think that if you’re eating a slice of cake or a brownie it’s about pleasure, leave the nutrient talk for your lunch and/or dinner - but I ended up finding Rose’s approach to baking a very interesting one. This cake, for instance, is sweetened with honey instead of sugar, and the result is excellent. Just make sure you use a variety of honey you’re fond of because the flavor is definitely noticed in the cake.

Apple and polenta cake
slightly adapted from the beautiful beyond words Love Bake Nourish (I bought mine here)

Apples:
¼ cup (56g) unsalted butter
2 ½ tablespoons honey
450g Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored and cut into 2cm dice

Cake:
1 cup (100g) almond meal
¾ cup + 1 tablespoon (115g) all purpose flour
½ cup + 2 tablespoons (110g) cornmeal
¾ teaspoon baking powder
pinch of salt
finely grated zest of 1 lemon
2 teaspoons lemon juice
150ml honey
½ cup (130g) plain yogurt
3 large eggs
140ml olive oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Prep the apples: melt the butter and honey in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Bring to the boil and bubble until it caramelizes a little. Add the apples and cook over medium-high heat until the apple pieces are golden and the syrup is sticky, about 5 minutes. Cool completely.
Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F. Lightly butter a 20cm (8in) round cake pan, line the bottom with a circle of baking paper and butter the paper as well.
In a large bowl, whisk together the almond meal, all purpose flour, cornmeal, baking powder and salt. In a medium bowl, whisk together the lemon zest, juice, honey, yogurt, eggs, olive oil and vanilla until well combined. Pour into the dry ingredients and fold until combined. Stir in the apples.
Transfer the batter to the prepared pan and bake for about 45 minutes or until risen and golden and a skewer inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. Cool completely in the pan over a wire rack, then carefully unmold. Dust with icing sugar to serve.

Serves 8-10

Guinness brownies

One of the great things of having a blog for so long is that after all these years you and I have bonded in such a nice way that I no longer feel ashamed to tell you things like my caipirinha fiasco (no judgmental comments so far). :D I like me some booze occasionally, either for drinking or for baking.

Just like the cake I posted the other day these brownies are a great way of enjoying a beer without having to deal with a headache the morning after: they are chocolatey, very fudgy – to the point of being creamy – and delicious with a scoop of vanilla ice cream on the side.

Guinness brownies
slightly adapted from the delicious and foolproof Tate's Bake Shop: Baking For Friends

5 tablespoons (70g) unsalted butter, chopped
250g milk chocolate, finely chopped
½ cup + 1 tablespoon (80g) all purpose flour
½ cup (45g) unsweetened cocoa powder – I used Dutch-processed
pinch of salt
3 large eggs
½ cup + 1 tablespoon (112g) granulated sugar
3 tablespoons (40g) brown sugar, packed
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
225ml Guinness or other stout beer
¾ cup (125g) semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 180°C. Line 20cm (8in) square baking pan with foil, pressing foil firmly against pan sides and leaving 5cm (2in) overhang. Butter the foil.
In a small saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter. Remove from the heat, add the chocolate and let stand for 1 minute. Stir until chocolate is melted and smooth, cool slightly.
In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa and salt. In the large bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the eggs, granulated sugar and brown sugar on high speed until well combined. Beat in the vanilla. On low speed, mix in the chocolate mixture and scrape the sides of the bowl. Still on low speed, mix in the dry ingredients, then the stout. Finish mixing with a spatula, then transfer to prepared pan. Smooth the top and sprinkle with the chocolate chips.
Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center of the brownies comes out with moist crumbs, about 50 minutes. Cool completely in the pan over a wire rack. Lift up the brownies using the foil and cut into squares.

Makes 16

Roasted tomato and mozzarella panzanella

I have a couple of friends and a brother who are salad haters – they simply can’t stand the sight of leaves piled up on a plate (it’s pretty much what I feel about Michael Bay’s movies, so I can relate). :) I personally love salads because I grew up eating vegetables by the bucketfuls since I was never a fan of meat, and the salads I make nowadays are packed with interesting ingredients such as fruits, nuts, eggs... There’s nothing boring about them. I believe that this panzanella, a recipe I adapted from Jennifer Perillo’s beautiful and delicious book, will please both salad haters and lovers: it was a hit with me, the girl who can’t live without cheese and bread, and the hubby, a.k.a. Mr. Picky Eater. :D

Roasted tomato and mozzarella panzanella
adapted from the wonderful Homemade with Love: Simple Scratch Cooking from In Jennie's Kitchen

300g roasted cherry tomatoes, recipe here

Parmesan croutons:
2 heaping cups cubed day-old baguette
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh parsley leaves
2 heaping tablespoons finely grated parmesan cheese
salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

For assembling the salad:
1 ½ tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
½ teaspoon Dijon mustard
½ teaspoon honey
salt and freshly ground black pepper
100g fresh mozzarella, cut in small cubes
handful of fresh oregano leaves
handful of fresh basil leaves

Croutons: place all the ingredients in a large bowl and toss until the bread cubs are coated.
Heat a large frying pan over medium heat. Add the bread and cook turning occasionally, until golden all over, about 5 minutes. Set aside.
In a large, deep bowl whisk together the oil, lemon juice, mustard, honey, salt and pepper. Adjust seasonings to taste. Add the croutons, mozzarella, tomatoes, oregano and basil and toss to combine. Let the salad sit for 5 minutes so the croutons can absorb the flavors – do not let it sit more than 15 minutes or the bread will be soggy.

Serves 2 generously

Almond madeleines with limoncello glaze

It’s no secret I adore the Internet and to the list of great things that can be done with it I’ll add planning trips – flights, hotels, restaurant reservations, everything can be done with the computer, not to mention the travel blogs out there and their precious information about the places around the world – my dear friend Tania’s blog was a fantastic source when I was planning my trip to New York, a must-read for a foodie like me.
The hubby and I have plans to go to Paris again sometime in the future and when we do I know exactly where to go for posts not only about the City of Light but also about other destinations in Europe: my lovely and dearest friend Tina’s blog. Too bad it’s just for those who read Portuguese because she’s an amazing writer and her posts are a delight even if you’re not planning any trips.

Speaking of Paris and Europe I bring you today these madeleines: a very French treat with a delicious Italian touch provided by the limoncello.

Almond madeleines with limoncello glaze
adapted from Martha’s lemon madeleines

Madeleines:
50g all purpose flour
½ cup (50g) almond meal
2 large eggs
pinch of salt
80g granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon almond extract (optional)
¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
75g unsalted butter, melted

Glaze:
¾ cup (105g) confectioners’ sugar
½ tablespoon limoncello, or more to taste – I used homemade
about 1 teaspoon water, if necessary

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour and almond meal, removing any lumps. Set aside.
In a large bowl, whisk the eggs and the salt until frothy, then whisk in the sugar. Whisk in the extracts followed by the flour mixture. Fold in the butter. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or up to overnight.
Preheat the oven to 190°C/375°F. Brush twenty-four 1-tablespoon capacity madeleines molds with melted butter and refrigerate for 5 minutes. Fill each mold ¾ of its capacity and bake for 8-10 minutes or until risen, golden and springy to touch. Remove from the oven and immediately unmold onto a wire rack. Cool completely.
Glaze: sift the confectioners’ sugar in a small bowl. Gradually add the limoncello, stirring until you have a drizzable consistency – add more limoncello or the water if necessary. Drizzle over the cooled madeleines and set aside until glaze hardens, about 15 minutes.

Makes 24