It's National Cheesecake Day!

You might remember in the last post how I talked about avoiding recipes with light corn syrup?  Well, the first time I tried making marshmallow fluff, I used a recipe with it as an ingredient, and lo and behold, the "fluff" was more of a sticky sickly-sweet syrup.*  Then I found a recipe that used honey instead.  So in honor of today, I made s'more cheesecake... chocolate cheesecake with a graham cracker crust and marshmallow fluff topping.

What I did wrong:
1) Used corn syrup for the marshmallow fluff.  It's in most fluff recipes, but the one without it tasted so much better.  The hint of honey went well with the graham crackers, too.**
2) Unmolded the cheesecake too soon after removing it from the oven.  This was actually a mistake I made this time and not last time, because I got impatient.  The cheesecake will (and did) fall apart if it hasn't had enough time to cool.  Its sides should be pulling away from the sides of the springform pan.
3) Overbaked the cheesecake.  Again, it's a mistake I made this time.  However, baking a cheesecake for longer than directed--as long as it isn't crumbly and dry--rarely has any adverse effect on the final texture or taste.  I'm only including this because there is an "ideal" consistency that you'd like to see when taking it out of the oven.

Here is the recipe for the cheesecake itself.  Instead of 24 chocolate wafer cookies and 1 tablespoon of sugar, I used 1 1/2 cups crumbled graham crackers and 2 tablespoons of sugar.  I used Ghirardelli 60% bittersweet cocoa chocolate chips instead of the Scharffen Berger.

First, I preheated the oven to 350°F.  I crumbled the graham crackers and mixed them with the sugar and melted butter.  You can also use a food processor to mix everything together.  I pressed that into the bottom of a springform pan and baked for ten minutes until set.  I set that aside to cool.

I turned down the oven to 300°F.  Then I beat the cream cheese, sugar, and cocoa powder together until fluffy.

I added the eggs one at a time, beating lightly after each one just until no streaks of egg remained.  After the eggs are added, the consistency should be pudding-like and wobbly.

(Shhh... I cheat and melt the chocolate in a microwave.  You can do it in a double-boiler if you want.  I just heat it in short bursts so it doesn't burn until it is all melted.)

When the chocolate cooled but was still pourable and without lumps, I added it to the other ingredients along with the vanilla and mixed until everything was just blended.

I poured the mixture into the springform pan onto the crust and smoothed out the top. I baked it at 300°F for 20 minutes, then raised the temperature to 350°F and baked for another 40 minutes.  Ideally, the edges should be puffy and cake-like with the middle still jiggling.  Because the oven was running hot, the middle of mine formed a crust on top and puffed up slightly.  Although it still wobbled when I moved it, so I didn't have to throw it out.

Now, the unmolding.  You really need to let it cool enough before unmolding; if it's cool enough, the sides of the pan should just pop right off, and you can then slide the cheesecake from the base onto a serving plate.  But like I said, I got impatient.  So the cheesecake fell apart.  But I then... remolded?... it by putting it back in the springform pan and refrigerating it for an hour and then... reunmolded... it?  So it was salvaged!  Especially because I knew I was going to put fluff on top, I wasn't too worried about the crackly appearance.***

I then put the cheesecake back in the fridge to set.  If you've made the cheesecake in the afternoon, let it set overnight.  I made it in the morning, so I let it set in the fridge until the evening, about eight hours. Before taking it out, I made the marshmallow fluff.

I beat the egg whites and cream of tartar using a whisk attachment until soft peaks formed.  Eggs whip up easier at room temperature, so if you know you'll be making the fluff, set the eggs aside on the counter earlier in the afternoon.

I combined the honey, water, and sugar in a small saucepan and clipped a candy/deep-fry thermometer to the side.  I brought that to a boil over medium heat, and then let it cook until the thermometer reached 246°F.  

I took the sugar mixture off the heat, and while beating with the whisk on the lowest setting, I slowly poured it into the beaten egg whites.  I added the vanilla and beat on high for about seven minutes, until the fluff was thick, sticky, and shiny.

Finally, I removed the cheesecake from the fridge.  Over time, the cheesecake should look like it has "fallen" and solidified.  I spread a layer of the marshmallow fluff on top, crumbled another graham cracker on top of that, and sprinkled a few mini marshmallows over it.  And there you have it: s'more cheesecake.

DEEMS THIS RECIPE:
Actually easier than pie, even though I probably made it more difficult for myself.



*Say that three times fast.
**I may or may not have just eaten some of the fluff with graham crackers.
***9" cakes fit perfectly on this plate, so even though it's a Christmas plate, I use it all year round when I have baked goods that need to go in the fridge; there isn't enough room for a cake stand in there.

A Sticky Situation.

The first time I made sticky buns, I was so excited to taste them.  They are really a whole-morning or afternoon endeavor--though during the dough rises you're free to do other things--so I felt a sense of accomplishment when they were finally baked and ready.  Unfortunately, I was disappointed in the "sticky" part of the sticky bun.  I made the glaze as directed by the recipe that went with the buns themselves, and it called for light corn syrup.  Since then, I've automatically ignored any recipe containing it, because it just makes a sort of chewy, gluey artificial-sweetener-tasting mess rather than a smooth, melts-in-your-mouth glaze.  The next time I made sticky buns, I used the bun recipe with a different glaze, and I think all the rolls were gone in a day.

What I did wrong the first time:
1) Used a glaze containing light corn syrup.  Unless you're making hard candy (and sometimes even then), steer clear of recipes including it.  While I'm not "against" it, in most recipes, it just tastes bad.
2) Didn't use a large enough pan.  Keep in mind that the rolls more than double in size during rising and baking.  You'll need a ~10-12" pan.  I used two 6" cake pans for this batch and had a little room left over in the second one, though I should have filled both.
3) Didn't soften the butter enough to easily spread on the dough for the filling.  It needs to be almost melted.

Here is the recipe for the rolls (from Taste of the South magazine):
Dough:
~3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 package dry active yeast (.25 oz)
1/2 cup whole milk
1/2 cup sour cream
1/3 cup butter, cubed
1/3 cup sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla
1 large egg, lightly beaten

Filling:
1/4 cup butter, very soft
1/4 cup sugar
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp orange zest
1 tsp all-purpose flour
1/8 tsp salt

And here is the recipe for the glaze (from Bon Appetit):
1/2 cup unsalted butter
3/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
3/4 cup heavy cream
1/3 cup honey
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/4 tsp orange zest

The recipe says to combine 1 1/2 cups of flour and yeast and set it aside and then incorporate more flour after adding the other ingredients, but the last two times I accidentally combined all the flour and yeast beforehand, and it worked just fine, as long as I only stirred until everything just came together and still made a sticky, soft dough.  In a medium saucepan, I combined the butter, milk, sour cream, sugar, and salt, cooking and stirring occasionally until the mixture reached 125°F.  I poured it over the flour mixture and added the egg and vanilla.  If you use all the flour at the beginning like I did, there will be a good cup of extra flour left at the bottom once you've stirred to make the dough.

I turned the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and kneaded it until smooth and elastic, about five minutes, adding flour as needed to keep the dough from sticking.  Then I formed it into a ball, placed it in a bowl, sprayed the top with non-stick spray, covered, and let it rise for 1 hour and 15 minutes until it had doubled in size.  You can set it in any warm, draft-free place, but I use the oven's bread-proof setting on 85°F (its lowest).  

Once the dough was almost done rising, I made the glaze, combining all the ingredients and bringing them to a boil over medium heat, then lowering the heat and letting it all cook together for another three minutes.  I poured a thin layer of it into the bottom of each cake pan, then set it aside. 
  

Then I removed the dough from the oven, punched it down, and let it sit while I combined the sugar, cinnamon, orange zest, flour, and salt and softened the butter for the filling.  I rolled out the dough into a ~20" X 12" rectangle (the recipe says 14 X 10, but I couldn't get that to roll up properly).  
  

I spread the butter in a thin layer on the dough and spread the cinnamon mixture on top of that. starting with the long side, I rolled the dough into a log, pinching the seam together.  

I cut off ~1 inch sections and placed the rolls, sides touching, into the pans.  I placed the pans back in the oven to let the rolls rise for another 45 minutes, again until doubled in size.

As you can see, I should probably have spread them evenly

into the two pans to give them a little more room to rise.

Then I baked them at 350°F for 25 minutes until golden brown.  Depending on how hot your oven runs, it could take anywhere from 20-30 minutes.  I prefer to take them out when they're still a little soft. 

I topped both pans with the remaining glaze, and spread toasted pecans on one batch. Although they are best the same day they are made or the next morning, you can store these, covered, at room temperature for two days or refrigerated for 4-5.  You can reheat them in the oven, but I usually just pop one into the microwave for about 20-30 seconds before eating.

DEEMS THIS RECIPE:
Not much easier than pie, but worth it when you have spare time.