Tuesday, September 10, 2013

Lava Cake


I can't help myself sometimes- whenever my sister is over my house, I feel obligated to make her something (unfortunately, she doesn't feel the same obligations).

That something  usually manifests into my go-to quick dessert, Lava Cake.

Lava Cake is one of those desserts that people are hesitant about trying for whatever reason, but once they do, they realize how easy it really is.

My recipe for Lava Cake is pretty straight forward, and will make 5-7 Lava Cakes, depending on the size of your ramekins:


Lava Cake:

2 eggs
2 egg yolks
5 tbs. butter
3 tbs. sugar
4 oz dark chocolate (And no, you can't use milk or white. Trust me)
3 tbs. flour
4 tsp. cocoa powder
pinch of salt
vanilla to taste

Directions:


Preheat your oven to 425. Hot, I know. Don't get scared. 


1. Melt your chocolate and butter in a double boiler.


2. Mix your eggs/yolks together with your sugar (use a handheld mixer). Once that is thoroughly mixed, add your melted chocolate/butter mixture. To this, add vanilla. If you're not a vanilla fan, its OK. Its not a necessity.  I am a vanilla fanatic, so I usually as about two tsp or more, depending on how I'm feeling that day. 


3. In a separate bowl, blend together the flour, cocoa, and salt. Make sure the flour and cocoa has no lumps in it. If it does, give it a quick sifting. 


4. Add the dry ingredients slowly into the melted chocolate mixture. I've read that some people tell you not to mix it with a mixer, but I've noticed that if I use the lowest setting I have absolutely no ill effects except perfectly mixed lava cake batter.


5. Take a little piece of cold butter and slather the insides of your ramekins with it. Its really important that the Lava Cake doesn't stick to the sides, or it will fall apart when you're going to try to take it out.


6. Bake for about 8-15 min. This is, hands down, the most difficult part of making Lava Cake. Remember, your goal is that the outside is cooked, while the inside is not, resulting in that "lava" that we are all craving. Usually, I start paying attention after they have been in the oven around 9 min. Once I see that the top is cooked, I see if a toothpick inserted into the very edge comes out clean. If it does, that means the sides are cooked and ready. If the toothpick comes out chocolaty  then I pop them back in, usually for one minute intervals. Remember: baking times might vary on your oven, so pay attention! 


7. And...you're done! Feel free to invert them on a plate and garnish, or just eat them straight out of the ramekins. We usually eat ours with vanilla ice cream and milk. 



Now, if you've over-baked your Lava Cakes, don't despair- you just made really tasty chocolate cake. Next time, just bake them a tiny bit less.


Also, remember that since the ramekins and cakes themselves are very hot, they will continue to cook even after you take them out of the oven. So, devour immediately!



Happy Baking!


-Oksana

Chocolate Espresso Cake


If you're one of those people that needs their chocolate fix once in a while in order to function, then this is a great way to get it.

This is definitely a chocolate overload, and very filling- if you're not much of a chocolate fan, this might not be a dessert for you.

I made this cake in a 9 inch quiche pan, but any other appropriately sized vessel will be fine.

Ingredients:

¾ cup flour
½ cup of cocoa powder
3 tbs instant espresso power 
¼ tsp baking powder
¼ tsp salt
½ cup butter, chopped into pieces
2 oz chocolate, chopped
2 large eggs
1 cup brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract

For the glaze:

¼ cup heavy cream
1 tsp instant espresso power
4 oz chocolate, chopped
pinch of salt

Directions: 

1. In a double boiler, met the chocolate and butter.

2. While the chocolate is melting, sift the flour, cocoa powder, espresso powder, baking powder, and salt together in a bowl; set aside.

3. In another bowl, whisk together the eggs and brown sugar until blended. Slowly stir in the melted chocolate and vanilla. 

4. Add the flour mixture a couple of spoons at a time until everything is incorporated.

5.  Pour the batter into your pan, spread evenly, and put into the oven at 350 degrees. 

6. Bake for around 25 minutes, until the sides of the cake are pulling away from the pan. Right here is where it can all go wrong. As with the lava cake, over-baking this is very, very easy. As soon the the center of your cake isn't raw, take it out. It doesn't need "just one more minute".

7. While your cake is baking, make the glaze. In your double boiler, combine the heavy cream and espresso powder. Once the powder is fully incorporated, add the chocolate and salt. Remember to stir often!

8.  Pour glaze over cake, spreading it out with a spatula if necessary.


Let your cake cool in the refrigerator a few hours before eating, and you're done! This little cake is simple and perfect for getting your chocolate fix. 

-Oksana

Monday, September 9, 2013

Tiramisu Cheesecake


This recipe combines two dessert classics - cheesecake and tiramisu. It's cooked just like a cheesecake, but using classic tiramisu ingredients like mascarpone cheese, lady fingers, and espresso. 

Ingredients:


7 oz ladyfingers

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1 tablespoon instant espresso powder
1/lbs of cream cheese, at room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 cup mascarpone cheese, at room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla exctract
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 large eggs
1/4 cups mini semisweet chocolate chips

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350⁰. Wrap the outside of a 9 inch spring form pan with foil. This will prevent the sides of the cheesecake from burning. 


2. Use a food processor to grind the lady fingers into fine crumbs. Mix with melted butter and espresso power. Transfer the crumb mixture to the prepared pan and press evenly along the bottom and sides of the pan. Often, I do not even bother putting crust along the sides. It's just as attractive and delicious without it and you will save yourself some time. In that case, it's very important to make sure you cover the sides with foil because the delicate cheesecake filling can burn very easily and you will end up with with burnt edges. 


3. Bake cheesecake crust for 10 minutes and set aside; lower oven temperature to 300⁰.


4. Using a stand mixer, beat the cream cheese until fluffy, about two minutes. Gradually beat in the sugar until smooth. Then, beat in the mascarpone, vanilla, and salt. Add the eggs one at a time. Stir in 1/ a cup of chocolate chips. 


5. Bake until the center in set but still slightly jiggly. Honestly, the baking time can vary significantly, and I have never seen a recipe that got it right. An unbaked cheesecake has the consistency of kefir, and once it thickens and tightens up like a cooked cheesecake should look, you will know it's done. The edges will puff up at first, and when you shake the pan slightly and see that middle is almost tight - it's done. Don't wait until it's completely immovable when shaken, because cheesecakes do continue cooking once out of the oven. An over-cooked cheesecake will be grainy. 


6. Once the center is set but still jiggly, I like to take my cheesecake out of the oven and top it off with a sour cream topping. It's an idea I got from one of the cheesecake recipes from my favorite Williams-Sonoma cookbook, and now I do this for every cheesecake I make. Whisk a little over a cup of sour cream with 1/4 cup of sugar and pour over cheesecake. Bake until set for another 10 minutes. This is optional, so I didn't include this in the ingredients list. I like this trick because my cheesecakes always crack and the sour cream topping is not only delicious, but it gives me a smooth finish and masks a huge crack in the middle (hehe). I know that to prevent a cheesecake from cracking you must bake it halfway and then turn off the oven and let it sit for another hour or so, allowing it to cook and cool gradually. However, it's much too time consuming and I haven't yet mastered the timing with that method. I am always nervous the cheesecake will overcook if I leave it in for too long, or crack anyway if I take it out too fast. Maybe cheesecake master Oksana can post a fool-proof method to prevent cracking cheesecakes. 


7. Let cheesecake cool to room temperature. After it cools, I like to wrap my cheesecakes in foil, place it it a couple of plastic bags to prevent possible freezer burn (better safe than sorry!) and freeze. Once it's rock solid, it's much easier to remove from the spring form pan. In fact, I think it's pretty much impossible to remove unto a serving plate neatly if the cheesecake is at room temperature, or even refrigerated.  I have done it once before and it was a huge fail. 


8. Once it's standing on the cake stand or serving plate, you can melt the remaining chocolate chips, place melted chocolate in resealable plastic bag, snip a corner off the bag, and drizzle chocolate in a decorative pattern all over the cheesecake. 


Wow, those directions turned out longer than I thought. And I still haven't said everything I wanted to say about cheesecakes. There will be many more cheesecake posts (cheesecakes are our favorite desserts) and plenty of opportunities to discuss all my cheesecake tricks and ideas. 


Recipe by Every Day with Rachel Ray
                                                                                                
- Yana 

Chocolate Soufflé


Souffles have a reputation for being very tricky to execute, but after making it several times, I can say that it's really not as complicated as it looks. Maybe it's beginners luck, but Oksana and I made it several times and it turned out great every time. I have had a lot more trouble with other seemingly simple desserts - like pies. The main concern is not to overcook it. I like my souffles gooey in the middle, with a generous dollop of ice cream on top. 

Ingredients:


11 oz (250 g) bittersweet or semisweet (plain) chocolate

8 room temperature large eggs, separated
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Whipped cream


1. Preheat oven to 375⁰ for a large 2 quart souffle dish, or 400⁰ for individual 1-cup ramekins. 

2. Butter souffle dish or ramekins and dust with powdered sugar. 

3. Melt chocolate over a double boiler. Set aside. 

4. In a large bowl, whisk together the egg whites, salt, and cream of tartar until soft peaks form. Slowly add 1/4 cup sugar and whisk until stiff peak form. 

5. In another bowl, whisk egg yolks until thick and pale in color. Whisk in the remaining 1/2 cup sugar and the vanilla. 

6. Use a rubber spatula to fold the melted chocolate into the egg yolk mixture (Depending on how long it took to complete steps 4-6, the melted chocolate may have solidified just a bit while it was standing there. It's a good idea to set it back over a low flame for a few seconds if it seems like it has thickened. One time, Oksana and I used melted chocolate that has been sitting there for quite some time, and added it to cold straight-out of the fridge eggs. The mixture turned out clumpy and we had to do some heavy duty whisking to get the clumps out. You really do not want to have to do any more whisking at this point, just folding, so as to not over-beat the eggs).

7. Gently fold in the egg whites into the resulting chocolate mixture until no white streaks remain. 

8. Spoon souffle mixture into prepared dishes. 

9. Bake until the souffle is set and puffed, but the center still jiggles when slightly shaken, between 30-45 minutes (wide range...I know...) for the large souffle, and around 10 minutes for the individual souffles. I am not exactly sure about the times because I last made this a while ago. When I make it again, I will post more precise cook times.  

10. Serve immediately with whipped cream or ice cream.

Original recipe comes from this William's Sonoma baking book

-Yana