chocolate, raspberry and cream cheese brownies

chocolate, raspberry and cream cheese brownies

8 Sept 2025

We've had a very wet winter here in Sydney, so one rainy Sunday I decided to do a spot of baking. I picked up my copy of Beatrix Bakes Another Slice and browsed through the book. I was intrigued by the brownie recipe which used ingredients with which I was familiar but the technique used was wildly different.

The brownies are made from pantry staples and cream cheese, all of which I had in the kitchen, so I decided to make a small batch. Just as I was about to put the brownies in the oven, I topped them with some frozen raspberries to make the fruity 'adaptrix', a Natalie'ism.

Here's the recipe for you (in Natalie's own words) adapted from here, which makes a 17-cm square tin of brownies. For all my recipes I use a 250ml cup and a 20-ml tablespoon, unsalted butter and 60g eggs. My oven is a conventional gas oven so if your oven is fan forced you may need to reduce the oven temperature by 20°C. If you'd like to make a larger batch please refer to the original recipe.

Chocolate, raspberry and cream cheese brownies - makes 12 bite-size brownies

Ingredients
Cooking oil spray 
100g egg (2 eggs) 
150g raw caster sugar 
55g good bittersweet chocolate (around 50-60% cocoa)
120g unsalted butter 
45g plain flour, regular or gluten free
30g Dutch (unsweetened) cocoa powder 
heaped ¼ tsp sea salt flakes
90g good extra-dark chocolate (around 70% cocoa)
55g full-fat cream cheese, softened to room temperature
50g frozen raspberries

Method
Heat the oven to 170°C, conventional. Lightly spray a 17-cm square, 5 cm deep cake tin with cooking oil and line the base and sides with baking paper. Ensure any flappy paper edges are trimmed flush with the tin or secure them with clips.

Combine the egg and sugar in the bowl of an electric stand mixer. Using the paddle attachment beat on speed 4 (below medium) for 8 minutes until you have a thick and pale foam.

While the mix beats, weigh the bittersweet chocolate into a small heatproof bowl. Heat the butter to bubbly hot (stovetop or microwave) and pour it over. Stir until the chocolate has melted and is smooth.

 
Scrape the warm chocolate/butter mix into the egg mix and beat for 5 minutes on speed 5 (medium) - it will look like a fluffy and flowy chocolate mousse. While it mixes weigh the flour and cocoa together and sift into a small bowl. Weigh the salt flakes on top. Chop the extra-dark chocolate into fine shards and add 65g to a separate bowl. Tear up the cream cheese into small hazelnut-sized chunks to sit on top of the chocolate. Set aside.

Stop the mixer and tip in the sieved dry ingredients. Beat on speed 2 (above low) for 1 minute until the flour is absorbed. Take the bowl off the mixer and stir in the chocolate and cream cheese. Some cream cheese lumps will remain and some will smear through, lightening the batter slightly all of this is good. Scrape the batter into the prepared tin and smooth the top with an offset spatula. Press the frozen raspberries (fresh ones will scorch) into the top after smoothing the batter and then scatter the remaining extra-dark chocolate on top.

If you find a few too large nuggets of cream cheese when scraping and smoothing, massage them into the ideal size with the tip of your offset spatula. Bake for 25-30 minutes (mine took 40-45 minutes at 170°C, conventional) until the top of the brownie is slightly puffed, has a noticeable cracked border about 2 cm from the edge and fine fissures further across the surface. My Perfect Squidge Temperature (PST) hits at 95°C (205°F), with sticky clumps of mottled paste (not liquid chocolate).

Bake for 5 - 10 minutes longer if you want a more cakey brownie (internal temperature 100°C/210°F). If you want super-gooey filling, cook it for 5-10 minutes less, but you will definitely have to chill before cutting. Internal temperature taking is genius for brownies - no matter the batter, recipe or oven, you can always get the squidge right.

Cool at room temperature for around 30 minutes before cutting with a hot, damp knife, or chill it for a creamy fudge texture. The first warm bar, with still-molten chocolate chunks, is one of the greatest kitchen gifts bestowed upon a home baker. The brownies can be kept covered in the fridge for up to 2 weeks. Allow the brownies to soften to room temperature or zap to re-soften before eating.

Adaptrix

It's a bit nutty
Add 60g roughly chopped (to about the size of your pinky fingertip) lightly toasted nuts, keeping a smattering to sprinkle on top. Pecans and walnuts are faves for the mellifluous texture. Avoid almonds, as they are too jarring against the soft brownie texture. Hazelnuts get a hall pass if chopped to a medium coarseness (half pinky fingertip). Heads up, they are very, very good with the Mocha Adaptrix.

Mocha
Coffee, more than salt or vanilla, will elevate the chocolate flavour - I add this for adults. Add 3g of instant coffee powder to dissolve with the hot butter.

The big chill
Score maximum brownie points and make the batter, then delay the bake. After smoothing the batter into the tin, chill overnight, uncovered is fine. Bake as above - just increase the time by 10+ minutes to allow for the cold start. Some baking boffins swear this melds the ingredients to make a better brownie. I just like that I can mix, rest and bake for easy warm brownie joy.

As promised, these brownies were very rich and squidgy, so I cut them into 12 small pieces. I shared the brownies with my neighbours and they were big fans.

See you all again next week with some more baking from my kitchen.

Bye for now,

Jillian

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lemon poppyseed morning buns/lemon poppyseed scrolls

lemon poppyseed morning buns/lemon poppyseed scrolls

4 Aug 2025

I recently watched a Danish baking video which featured one of the bakers from Duo Bakery making their famous lemon poppyseed scrolls. They looked absolutely delicious. The baker didn't provide a recipe but he described the process involved, so I set to work making my own version.

I've made laminated dough before but this time I made a batch of the Croiss-ain't/faux-ssaint dough - from Beatrix Bakes – Another Slice. It's made more like rough puff pastry, something I've not made before and is a tiny bit less labour intensive than laminated dough. 

I followed Natalie's instructions for the Orange ras el hanout sunshine buns from her book which are baked in an 11cm springform pan but I made the buns a little smaller to fit into a Texas muffin tin. However when I rewatched the video, I realised they'd made scrolls and as I wanted to recreate their recipe, I made another batch of Croiss-ain't/faux-ssaint dough. This time I used a food processor to sort out the butter because grating butter is a very messy process and with that batch of dough, I made scrolls. The dough yields 8 scrolls and the bake time is much the same. 

Here's the recipe for you which makes 6 morning buns or 8 scrolls and you’ll need to start the process the day before baking. For all my recipes I use a 250ml cup and a 20-ml tablespoon, unsalted butter and 60g eggs. My oven is a conventional gas oven so if your oven is fan forced you may need to reduce the oven temperature by 20°C.

If you're making the morning buns, as well as a Texas muffin tin you'll need a baking tray to place on top of the buns while they're baking. If you're making the regular scrolls, you'll just need 2 baking paper lined trays and of course, a cooling rack.

Croiss-ain't/faux-ssaint dough - from Beatrix Bakes – Another Slice - makes approximately 570 g (1 lb 4 oz) dough.
Ingredients
120g unsalted butter
200g bakers' flour
50g wholemeal plain flour
50g caster sugar
½ tsp fine sea salt
1 tsp bread improver (optional)
1½ tsp dry yeast
70 g/ml full-cream milk
70 g/ml water

Method
Grate the butter on the coarse side of a box grater. Line a shallow tray with baking paper and loosely distribute the butter over the surface - tease it out if it is clumping. Keep chilled. You can also cut the cold butter into 1 cm cubes and pulse in a food processor with the flour, sugar, salt and improver until the butter is pea sized before decanting into a large bowl and continuing with the recipe.

In a small bowl, whisk the yeast into the milk and water with a hand whisk until it has dissolved, then set aside.

Swizzle the flours, sugar, salt and improver (if using) together in a large mixing bowl. Add the grated butter to the dry ingredients and toss together, squeezing the butter through your fingers just a few times. Rubbing too much butter in will diminish the final flakiness - still a great dough though!

Add the liquid/yeast mix to the butter/flour mix and toss together. Squeeze and press with your hands until it comes together. Lightly form into a small, thick rectangle, 15 cm x 20 cm (6 in x 8 in) and wrap lightly in plastic wrap. Chill for 30 minutes.

Place the dough on a generously flour-dusted work surface. Roll the dough out to a long wide rectangle around 45 cm x 25 cm (17½ in x 10 in). If any large cracks start forming at the edges, just smoosh them back together to keep the sides as smooth and neat as possible. The rectangle will neaten after each roll, and the final block will have tidy sides. Fold into thirds like a letter, re-wrap and chill for 30-60 minutes.

After the rest, bring the dough out again to a lightly floured work surface and position the dough with the open end facing you. Re-roll the dough to a rectangle 45 cm x 25 cm (17½ in x 10 in) again. The butter will be lovely and lumpy and may poke through the surface throughout. Fold into thirds like a letter and chill, lightly wrapped, for 30-60 minutes.

Repeat the roll a third (final) time exactly as above. Wrap fully but not restrictively tight and chill overnight, for a long prove (cold ferment). The dough won't proof dramatically, but you will feel a subtle pillowy puff. It will be ready to use between 24-48 hours. Freeze after that.

Lemon Poppyseed Morning Buns/Scrolls – makes 6 morning buns or 8 scrolls 
1 batch croiss-ain’t/faux-ssaint dough (see above)
Filling
100g caster sugar
4 tsp grated lemon rind
Pinch salt
80g room temperature unsalted butter
1 tbs almond meal

For the tin
20g softened butter
¼ cup of poppyseeds

Lemon Syrup
¼ cup (55g) caster sugar
30mls water
¼ cup lemon juice

Lemon sugar
1/3 cup sugar
1 tbs finely grated lemon rind

Filling
Combine the sugar, lemon zest and a pinch of salt in a small bowl then using your fingers rub the lemon zest into the sugar. Add the remaining ingredients and mix with a spoon until you have a smooth paste.

To assemble
Generously butter the wells of a jumbo muffin tray and then coat with poppyseeds.

Take the cold dough from the fridge and roll the dough out on a lightly floured surface to form a 40-cm x 12 cm rectangle. Using a very sharp knife or pastry wheel, cut the dough on the short side into 6 x 2 cm pieces. If making scrolls, roll the dough into a 25 x 24cm rectangle and cut the dough on the short side into 8 x 3 cm pieces. Spread the filling evenly out onto the dough then roll each piece up firmly, again from the short side. 

Set the buns into the wells of the prepared muffin tins. If making the scrolls, wet your finger and tuck one end of the dough under the bun and lightly brush the outside of the scroll with your damp finger. Place the poppyseeds into a small bowl and roll the scroll on it's side to coat with the poppyseeds. Place 4 of the buns onto each prepared baking trays, spaced well apart. Spray the tops of the buns lightly with cooking oil, then cover loosely with plastic wrap. Leave in a mildly warm space or at room temperature in a warm kitchen (longer in cooler conditions) to have the final proof for 2-3 hours. 

These buns need a very long cool proof to fully puff the internal structure. Too warm and the butter will melt before the dough is fully proofed and fluffed. If this happens, bake them still delicious. In addition to the poke test, look for the internal layers to separate and puff a little. I do like to take an internal temperature of 25°C (75°F) for the perfect proof - underproof and the baked bun dough will be gummy inside.

While the buns are proofing, prepare the syrup and lemon sugar.

Syrup
For syrup, combine sugar and water in a small saucepan over medium-low heat, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Mix in the lemon juice; bring to a simmer and cook for a few minutes until thickened. Take off the heat and set aside until needed.

Lemon sugar
Place the sugar and lemon rind into a bowl. Thoroughly combine, then set aside until needed.

Bake
When the buns are almost proofed, preheat the oven to 200°C, conventional. Remove the plastic; place a second baking tray on top of the muffin tin, then place in the oven. Turn the heat down to 180°C conventional and bake for 20 minutes until pale gold, then take the top tray off and bake another 8-12 minutes, until tanned brown. If they look like they are browning too fast, carefully cover with a sheet of foil. No second tray is needed if you're making the scrolls.

To test for doneness, tug at the heart of a swirl. The interior should look fluffy and bready (not raw and stretchy) and should have an internal temperature 95-98°C. The exterior should be a deep tawny brown. Remove the tray from the oven and place it on a cooling rack. 

Using a knife loosen each bun from the tin/tray before the melted sugar sets, then brush 1-2 tbs of the syrup over each bun. Cool in the tin for about 10 minutes to let the buns absorb the syrup then remove from the tin. Dredge each bun with the lemon sugar then place on a wire rack to cool. Allow the buns to cool for 30 minutes before eating, so the butter re-sets. Can be eaten warm or at room temperature.

Cooling briefly before removing the buns from the tin helps keep the scroll from unravelling while ultra-hot. Too long and the dough will sweat and compromise the crisp exterior. The second cooling, after removing from the tin, sets the butter-laden structure beautifully for a proudly set form.

The morning buns are nice, but the scrolls are next level. The baker from Duo described these scrolls as a guilty pleasure and I have to agree. These lemon poppyseed scrolls are absolutely magnificent!

See you all again next week with some more baking from my kitchen.

Bye for now,

Jillian

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lemon cream tart

lemon cream tart

21 Jul 2025

A few weeks ago I bought a small 18cm fluted tart tin from Daiso, something I've wanted for ages. Whilst I love my straight sided 17cm tin, it's really deep so it takes double the filling and double the time to bake.

So what to make in my new tin? Obviously it needed to be a tart and with a clutch of lemons from my brother's lemon tree, a lemon tart seemed just the thing. I looked through my copy of 'Beatrix Bakes, Another Slice' by Natalie Paull and came upon her recipe for Lemon Cream Tart. I used my regular almond shortcrust pastry for the tart shell but was keen to try the filling.

Now I have a lemon tart recipe that I've used for years, but I was keen to try out another recipe. My regular tart filling is made with double cream and when I've made it with single cream, the filling has cracked. Natalie's recipe is made with single cream, so as I made it I kept my fingers crossed that the filling wouldn't crack as the tart cooled. The filling cracked. Thankfully the recipe makes a little more filling than you need and I'd already cooked the curd to setting point so I spooned some of the leftover curd over the top of the tart, smoothed it out with my off-set spatula then put the tart back into the fridge for a while to allow the curd to set. Whilst not perfect, it looked good enough that my neighbours were none the wiser.

Here's the recipe for you, almost word for word from Natalie, which makes a 3cm deep 18cm tart.  For all my recipes I use a 250ml cup and a 20-ml tablespoon, unsalted butter and 60g eggs. My oven is a conventional gas oven so if your oven is fan forced you may need to reduce the oven temperature by 20°C. The tart can be kept at room temperature on the first day then chilled up to 2 days but bring to room temperature before eating.

Lemon Cream Tart – serves four

Almond shortcrust pastry
55g cold unsalted butter, diced
25g icing or caster sugar 
15g almond meal
100g plain flour

pinch sea salt flakes
1 egg yolk, lightly beaten
iced water water

Method
To make the pastry, combine all the dry ingredients in a food processor, and whiz for a few seconds until well combined and free of lumps. Add the cold butter and whiz until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Add the egg yolk and a little iced water and whiz until a soft dough just starts to form around the blade. Remove the dough from the food processor and gather the pastry into a ball; flatten slightly before wrapping in plastic and placing in the fridge. Refrigerate the pastry for 30 minutes.

Roll out the soft pastry to 4mm between two sheets of baking paper. Remove the paper and drape the pastry into the tart case, gently pressing it into the edges and base. Place the lined tart case into the freezer until the pastry is firm, around 30 minutes, or in the fridge for an hour.

To blind bake

The uncooked tart case can be made in advance and kept in the fridge for 2 days. Trim before filling by cutting the edge with a sharp knife. Reserve any remaining pastry or offcuts for later use. 

Preheat the oven to 170°C, conventional. Place aluminium foil, dull side down, into the chilled and lined tart then fill with weights - baking beans, sugar or raw rice work well. Bake for 40 minutes until dry, then remove the weights and bake for another 5-10 minutes until golden. Place on a wire rack to cool

Lemon custard filling 
150g egg (3 eggs) 
20g egg yolk (1 egg, reserving the white to seal the tart shell) 
2 large lemons 
120g caster sugar
150g/ml cream, preferably double 

1/4 tsp sea salt flakes

Fill a 25 cm wide saucepan with 5 cm of water, place on the stovetop and bring to a low simmer. Choose a stainless-steel bowl to sit on top that is slightly wider than the pan so the bottom of the bowl won't touch the water. Into that bowl (before placing it over the saucepan), place the 3 eggs and the yolk. Place the egg white in a separate small bowl and lightly whisk to break it up you'll use this to seal the tart shell later.

Finely grate the zest of 1 lemon, then juice all the lemons, strain and weigh 90 g/ml of juice. Add the zest into the juice and set aside.

For the next step, have all the components separate and ready to build the filling fast. This will stop the sugar and lemon juice reacting with the egg yolk and little hard orange lumps forming. Add the sugar into the egg bowl and hand whisk together until combined, but not frothy. Whisk in the lemon juice/zest, then whisk in the cream and salt until fully combined. Place the bowl on the double boiler, gently whisking often until the mix reaches 60°C (140°F) around 8-10 minutes. The custard will get a little thicker, the foam will dissipate, and the custard will turn a more sunshiny yellow.

If the filling cooks fast and gets chunky and set at the edges of the bowl, just give the mix a vigorous whisk off the stove to redistribute the heat. Pre-cooking the filling gives you a creamier mouthfeel and means the custard won't separate into layers during baking.

Remove the bowl from the heat and pour the filling through a fine sieve into a measuring jug. Discard the zest. If you have a little froth on the top you can spoon this off, but it's not vital. Set the filling aside at room temperature while you prepare the crust.

Preheat your oven to 140°C conventional and adjust the oven racks - set one in the lower part of the oven and remove all the ones above it, allowing space to manoeuvre a jug in easily to pour the filling in later.

Place the blind-baked crust, still in the tin, on a shallow baking tray. If there are any large cracks or dipped sides, massage a little leftover dough to a soft paste consistency and gently patch any large fissures taking care not to press hard and break the crust. Then meticulously brush the inside of the tart with the whisked egg white.

Return the baking tray and crust to the oven and bake for 5 minutes to seal the crust before filling. With the tart still in the oven, and your eye on where the crust edge is lowest, carefully and slowly pour the custard into the crust to fill as far as you can. If your jug, when tilted, is too big for the oven, switch to a smaller cup to scoop in the last of the mix. Don't overfill, or the filling will cascade between the crust and tin.

If you're using a shallow tin, bake for 25-30 minutes (start checking at 20 minutes and then check in 5-minute increments) until there is a 2 to 3 inches diameter centre of quivering, thickshake like filling in the middle of the tart. If using a deep tin, bake for 40-50 minutes but start checking at 35 minutes. This wobbly centre will continue to cook and set firmer upon cooling. Turn the oven off, keep the door closed and leave for 5 minutes. The wobbly centre should have set firm and feel like the most delicate bouncy custard trampoline when touched lightly with your fingertips. 

Remove from the oven and place on a cooling rack. Cool at room temperature for at least 1 hour (longer for deeper tarts) before cutting the first slice. You can also chill to hasten the setting (and eating).

I have given you a little extra filling in case you need it (slightly larger tin, super tall crust sides with no blind-baking shrinkage you genius!). You can cook the leftover in the double boiler to 80°C (175°F), then chill to set in a wee dish. 

Please note, if you've overcooked the tart or if you keep the tart for a few days, cracks will appear along the crust line. To repair, a little smear across the crack towards the crust with a small palette knife will cover it up. 

To serve - after baking, cool to room temperature for 1 hour, then chill for 30 minutes (unchilled, the filling is a little too tremulous). Or chill further for creamier, stable slices. If the tart surface is a little uneven in colour, dust with icing sugar and wait until the sugar dissolves. Your tart should now be smooth. If all else fails, dredge the surface thickly with icing sugar to cover any imperfections.

This makes a lovely, soft set gently lemon flavoured tart. If I were to make this tart again, I'd make it with double cream just to see if that would keep the cracks at bay.

See you all again next week with some more baking from my kitchen.

Bye for now,

Jillian

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passover week 2025 - passover raspberry frangipane tart

passover week 2025 - passover raspberry frangipane tart

9 Apr 2025

At Passover I like to challenge myself by making a dessert which involves pastry. The most successful pastry recipe I've used is adapted from an Aran Goyoaga gluten free pastry recipe but unfortunately the link to the pastry recipe is broken. 

I use a combination of superfine matzo meal, almond meal and potato or tapioca starch. This year the superfine matzo meal was very dark and a little more grainy than usual. The pastry came together easily, rolled out quite well but when baked it was very fragile and crumbly and I was quite sure I had a disaster on my hand. Once the tart had cooled, I put it in the fridge and left it in there for a few hours after which time the crust had firmed up and I was able to unmould the tart shell and cut neat slices of the tart. The pastry was quite crunchy and whilst not unpleasant, it's not how it normally bakes. I blame the superfine matzo meal.

Initially I was going to make an apple galette but at the last minute decided to make a frangipane tart instead. The brown butter frangipane filling is adapted from a Natalie Paull recipe and you can top the tart with almost any fruit you like. Pears, figs, plums, oven roasted rhubarb, apricots and other berries would all work. Natalie recommends using frozen berries when making the tart as fresh berries won't hold up to the long cooking time. 

Here's the recipe for you which makes an 11 x 35cm oblong tart or a 2cm deep 16cm round tart. For all my recipes I use a 250ml cup and a 20 ml tablespoon, unsalted butter and 60g eggs. My oven is a conventional gas oven so if your oven is fan forced you may need to reduce the oven temperature by 20°C.

Passover raspberry frangipane tart
Pastry 
125g superfine matzo meal
25g almond meal
2 tbs tapioca or potato starch
1 tbs caster sugar
pinch sea salt
110g unsalted butter, cut into 1cm pieces
1 egg 
4 tablespoons iced water

Frangipane 
120g unsalted butter, squidgy soft
100g caster sugar
1 tsp finely grated orange rind
1 room temperature egg 
110g almond meal
pinch fine sea salt 
1 tbs orange juice
1 tsp vanilla extract or the seeds of 1/2 a vanilla bean
½ cup raspberry jam

For the topping
100g frozen raspberries
50 g flaked almonds
15 g unsalted butter
20 g raw sugar

Pastry
Combine the first 5 ingredients in the food processor and pulse to aerate. Add the diced butter and pulse ten times until butter is the size of peas. Whisk together the egg and 2 tablespoons of ice water. Add it to the dough and pulse until it comes together. Add more ice water if needed. Knead the dough a couple of times and wrap it in plastic wrap forming a flat disc and refrigerate for 1 hour.

Place the pastry on a floured surface then cover the pastry with baking paper and roll to 5mm thick. Carefully line either a 2cm-deep x 16cm-diameter tart ring or an 11 x 35cm oblong tin with the pastry. The pastry will break apart easily, but just press it with your fingers to bring it together. Trim and refrigerate the pastry for 60 minutes.

Frangipane
Start the frangipane by cooking half (60g) of the butter in a small saucepan over medium heat until it turns a foamy tan brown. Scrape it into the bowl of an electric stand mixer to cool for 15 minutes. 

Add the remaining butter, sugar and orange rind with the browned butter to the bowl of the electric stand mixer. With the paddle attachment, beat the ingredients on medium for about 8 minutes until the mix is pale and fluffy. Scrape the bowl down with a stiff plastic spatula twice during this. Add the egg in two additions, allowing the creamed base to re-fluff up between additions. If the creamed mixture separates from the temperature difference of too fast egg addition, just keep going, it will be dense but still delicious.

Weigh the almond meal and salt and set aside. Stop the mixer and scrape the mix off the paddle attachment. We are working by hand and using a stiff plastic spatula now. Add the orange juice and the vanilla and mix well. Tip in the almond meal and salt and stir thoroughly. 

To assemble
Spoon the jam into the base of the tart. Dollop the frangipane over the jam and level the frangipane with an offset spatula. Chill the filled shell, uncovered, for an hour (or covered overnight) before topping. 

To bake
Preheat the oven to 190°C, conventional and place a heavy baking tray on the middle shelf. 

Remove the tart from the fridge and place the still frozen raspberries over the top of the filling then pinch small fingerfuls of the flaked almonds and push them into the frangipane around and alongside the berries. Melt the butter and drizzle over the top of the tart with a spoon or pastry brush, then sprinkle the raw sugar over the top.

Place the tart onto the preheated tray in the oven and immediately lower the temperature to 170°C conventional. Bake for 50-60 minutes or until the top and sides of the crust look deeply golden tanned. Place on a rack and cool completely. The crust will be very tender and will disintegrate if you try unmoulding the tart. When cool, place the tart in the fridge for a few hours or overnight until the crust is firm.

If you like, you can serve the tart topped with a few fresh berries and a dusting of icing sugar.

The tart was devoured by neighbours with nary a comment about the pastry so it all worked out in the end. Phew. 

See you all again tomorrow with another bake for Passover Week 2025.

Bye for now,

Jillian

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pistachio butter layer cake with lemon cream cheese icing

pistachio butter layer cake with lemon cream cheese icing

9 Mar 2025

My next door neighbour turned 11 last week and I promised that I'd make her a birthday cake. A kind work friend sourced a very large bottle of pistachio cream a few months ago and it has been lurking in my cupboard ever since. The pistachio cream is a key ingredient in the Skye Mcalpine cake I made a few years ago,  however I couldn't find any pistachio cream at the time so I used the home made version. 

Armed with my very large jar of pistachio cream I remade the cake and decided to make it into a layer cake. As it was going to be a birthday cake, I wanted it to look a little bit fancy. I made the cake on Friday but didn't ice it until Sunday. I was a bit worried that the cake might have dried out a little, so at the last minute I made a lemon soak which I brushed over each cake layer. I then sandwiched the cake layers together with my favourite Natalie Paull lemon flavoured fluffy cream cheese icing and I piped the rest onto the top of the cake. Piping isn't my forte but a sprinkle of chopped pistachios covered up the wonky bits.

Here's the recipe for you which makes a 17cm cake. For all my recipes I use a 250ml cup and a 20 ml tablespoon, unsalted butter and 60g eggs. My oven is a conventional gas oven so if your oven is fan forced you may need to reduce the oven temperature by 20°C.

Cake
125g caster sugar 
125g unsalted butter, softened 
1 tsp vanilla extract 
pinch salt 
120g pistachio cream
100g plain yoghurt
2 large eggs 
150g self-raising flour

Lemon soak (Optional)

30mls water

30mls lemon juice

2 tbs caster sugar

Tiff’s Zingy lemon stuff (makes 150g)
2 small lemons
2 tbs (40ml) water 

Lemon cream cheese icing
150g full fat softened cream cheese
150g squidgy soft unsalted butter 
pinch salt
50g yoghurt powder or dried milk powder
175g icing sugar
55g Tiff’s lemon zingy stuff

To decorate
A handful of coarsely chopped pistachios
 

Cake
Heat the oven to 180°C, conventional. Grease, flour and line the base of a 17cm round tin with baking paper. Set to one side.

In the bowl of a stand mixer combine the caster sugar, butter and vanilla and mix on a low speed until light and creamy.  Add the pistachio cream and a generous pinch of salt, and beat until smooth. Slowly beat in the yoghurt and eggs until well combined. Sift in the flour and mix until you have a smooth batter.

Pour the batter into the tin and level the top with an offset spatula. Bake on the centre rack of the preheated 180°C, conventional oven for 45 minutes, then cover with a sheet of foil and bake for a further 10-15 minutes or until the cake is lightly golden on top and a skewer comes out clean when inserted into the middle. Place the cake on a cooling rack and cool for 10 minutes before unmoulding from the tin. Allow the cake to cool completely before decorating. 

Lemon soak

Combine all the ingredients in a small saucepan. Bring to a simmer over a medium heat, stirring until the sugar has dissolved. Take off the heat and cool a little before using.

Tiff’s Zingy lemon stuff (makes 150g)

Juice one lemon and place the juice in a non-reactive saucepan with the water. Trim the stalk end off the other lemon, halve it, and remove any visible seeds, then slice into thin half-moons and add to the lemon juice in the saucepan. Cover the saucepan with a lid and simmer over a low heat until all the pith is translucent. Take care the lemon doesn't catch any colour as it simmers. You can also use the microwave - cover with a lid and zap for 3 - 5 minutes on high. Cool, then whiz to a paste in a small food processor. Scrape the paste into a small container, doing a final seed check, and chill.

Icing
Place the cream cheese, butter and yoghurt or milk powder and salt in the bowl of an electric stand mixer. Sift the icing sugar over the top. Beat with the paddle attachment for 10 minutes on speed 4 (below low) until pale, and fluffy. Store covered in the fridge until needed. If refrigerated, rewarm in the microwave in 20-second bursts until softened. Finish the icing by stirring in 55g of the zingy lemon stuff. 

To assemble
Once the cake has cooled, use a long serrated knife to slice horizontally through the centre of the cake. Use the loose bottom of a cake or tart tin to slide in between the layers and lift off the top layer. Slide the bottom layer off the cooling rack and on to a serving plate or cake stand. 

Using a pastry brush gently dab the cut surface of each cake layer with the lemon soak. Place one cake layer on a serving dish and spoon 3/4 cup of the icing over the first layer. Top with the second layer and either pipe or spoon the rest of the icing over the top of the cake using the back of a spoon to smooth it out, then sprinkle over a few chopped pistachios for decoration.

Store the decorated cake in a sealed container the refrigerator but let it stand for about 30 minutes to bring it to room temperature before serving.

We did a food swap on Sunday morning. In exchange for birthday cake, I received a still hot from the oven bagel from my neighbours. How was the cake? Absolutely delicious. I'm not sure if the lemon soak was necessary but it did add a little extra lemon flavoured goodness to the cake.

See you all again next week with some more baking from my kitchen. 

 

Bye for now, 

Jillian

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xmas week 2024 - Ban-Almond Double Crunch Cheesecake

xmas week 2024 - Ban-Almond Double Crunch Cheesecake

6 Dec 2024

I know at Christmas time that a cheesecake topped with tropical fruits is out of reach for my Northern hemisphere readers, but it's perfect for my Southern hemisphere readers. Without the tropical fruit topping it's still delicious - imagine a velvety smooth banana flavoured cheesecake. Please note that this is not a spur of the moment recipe, as you need to make the cheesecake the day before serving to allow it time to set.

This is another Natalie Paull recipe adapted from Beatrix Bakes: Another Slice. As you know from previous recipes I've made from the book, the temperatures indicated in the book do not work in my gas oven. I've written 2 temperatures in the recipe, the lower temperature comes from the book, whilst the higher temperature is what I used in my own oven.

Here's the recipe for you which makes a 17cm cheesecake. For all my recipes I use a 250ml cup and a 20 ml tablespoon, unsalted butter and 60g eggs. My oven is a conventional gas oven so if your oven is fan forced you may need to reduce the oven temperature by 20°C. If you'd like to make an 8 inch cake, you can find the recipe here.

Ban-Almond Double Crunch Cheesecake - makes a 17cm cake
Toasted Almond Crumb
55g raw almonds, skin on
65g unsalted butter, roughly chopped
55g light brown sugar
80g plain flour
pinch fine sea salt

Cheesecake Filling
225g ripe banana (approx 2 large bananas), roughly torn
100g caster sugar
15ml lemon juice
pinch fine sea salt
375g full-fat cream cheese at room temperature
150g egg (approx 2 eggs)
35g crème fraiche/greek yoghurt
1 tonka bean/1 tsp vanilla bean paste

Tropical Fruit Topping
1 lime
20g caster sugar
tropical fruits: passionfruit, pineapple, mango

Method
Preheat the oven to 140°C/160°C, conventional. Line a shallow baking tray with baking paper.

Start the crumb base by chopping the almonds finely. Melt the butter, then combine with the almonds and the remaining crumb ingredients in a wide mixing bowl. Mix together with your hands to form very damp clumps.

Scatter the mix onto the tray and bake for 15 minutes. Take the tray out and, using a metal spoon, stir and break up the mix to help the crumb brown evenly. Return to the oven and continue to bake for another 15 minutes, then cool. Reserve a few tablespoons for decoration.

Reduce the oven to 130°C/160°C, conventional. Start the cheesecake mix by putting the banana, sugar, lemon juice and salt into the bowl of a food processor. Whiz to a smooth liquid. Add the softened cream cheese, breaking it into chunks as you add it. The goal is silky smooth, so stop the processor and scrape a few times or break up large chunks that aren’t processing. Weigh the egg and crème fraîche/yoghurt and finely grate the tonka bean on top or add the vanilla bean paste if using. Add this in one addition and process until the mixture forms a smooth, homogenous mix. Transfer to a bowl and set aside.

Clean the food processor bowl. When the crumb has cooled, whiz in a food processor to a coarse damp sand consistency.

Grease and flour a 17cm × 7.5cm round deep cake tin and line the base with baking paper. Set up a high-sided roasting tin for the water bath and place a piece of paper towel in the base to stop the cheesecake tin slipping. Fill the base of the cake tin with half the crumb, packed lightly. Pour the filling into the prepared cake tin, then place the cake tin in the roasting tin. Gently scatter the remaining crumb evenly over the top. Smooth with an offset spatula.

Pour enough hot tap water into the roasting tin to just reach the first joint on your index finger. Carefully lift the roasting tray into the oven. Bake for 60–90 minutes until the cheesecake, when jiggled, barely wobbles. The internal temperature will be 70°C.

When ready, turn off the oven and leave the door ajar for 30 minutes before removing the cheesecake. Leave to cool. Lightly cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight until set.

The next day, juice the limes and simmer to a syrup with the caster sugar. Cut the tropical fruits into thin slices and lay on a plate. Cool the lime syrup, then pour it over the fruit. Set aside.

Immerse the cake tin in a shallow roasting tray of hot water for 20 seconds to warm the butter in the crust and loosen the cheesecake from the tin. Place a flat plate or board on top of the cake in its tin. Flip over confidently and place the plate on the work surface. Peel the paper off the crumb crust and re-invert. Decorate the top with pretty and relaxedly strewn peeled slices of tropical fruits and some of the reserved crumb. Serve chilled.

Eat soon after decorating, as the fruit can oxidise quickly. The un-decorated cheesecake can be refrigerated for up to 3 days.

The cheesecake is utterly delicious and one I'll certainly be making again.

See you all again tomorrow with another bake for Xmas week 2024.

Bye for now,

Jillian

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