Tiramisu` Cheesecake

Equipment necessary:

• 1 spring form pan
• 1 large, deep roasting pan (large enough to hold the spring form pan)
• Aluminum foil
• 2 large mixing bowls

For the crust:

• 18 ladyfingers (crushed completely into granules)
• 4 tbsp unsalted butter (melted)

For the filling:

• 2 (8oz) packages of cream cheese (at room temperature)
• 2 (8oz) packages of mascarpone (at room temperature)
• 1 ½ cups sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 4 eggs (at room temperature)
• 1/3 cup espresso (cooled to room temperature)

Discussion:

This cheesecake, like many other cheesecakes, will be baked in a “Bagno Maria.” In other words, the spring form pan will be placed inside of a deep roasting pan filled with enough water to cover at least half the height of the spring form pan. The “bagno maria” method shares the same concept as a double boiler in that the cooking temperature does not go above 100° C (boiling point of water). The ultimate purpose of using “bagno maria” is to prevent the cheesecake from cracking as it cools down to room temperature.

Procedure:

The crust:

The spring form pan does not have a perfect seal so, to prevent water from seeping into the cake, we will wrap the bottom half of the exterior of the spring form pan with several sheets of aluminum foil. Make sure to cover the whole circumference of the pan. Preheat the oven to 350° F.

The quickest way to crush the ladyfingers is in a food processor. Transfer the crushed ladyfingers into a bowl and mix with the melted butter. Press the mixture into the spring form pan, making sure to cover the whole bottom surface. Place the spring form pan (NOT in “bagno maria”) in the 350° F oven for 10 minutes. Take out and let it cool to room temperature.

The filling:

Separate the egg whites from the egg yolks, each into their own large mixing bowl. Make sure that there is no egg yolk in the egg whites, as that will prevent the egg whites from fluffing up. Into the egg yolks add the sugar and the vanilla extract, mix well. Add the cream cheese and mascarpone and beat until the mixture is creamy and has no clumps.

With another mixer/whisk (or after thoroughly cleaning the one used for the above mixture) beat the egg whites until they are completely fluffed. Remember, if any egg yolk gets into the egg whites they won’t fluff.

Using a spatula, carefully fold the egg whites one spoonful at a time into the creamy mixture. If you notice that some of the egg whites have resettled into their liquid state, whisk them into a fluff and continue folding them in. Make sure that all of the egg whites you fold in are fluffed.

Take 1/3 of the mixture and pour it into the – what should now be empty - mixing bowl that was used to fluff the egg whites. Add the espresso to the 1/3 mixture and fold carefully, so as not to deflate the fluffed egg whites.

Start by pouring a thin layer of the regular mixture on top of the crust. Then pour some of the espresso mixture. Repeat until you’ve poured both mixtures completely. You can choose to leave the cake layered horizontally or you can use the spatula to “swirl” the two mixtures.

Place the spring form pan in a “bagno maria” (see above) and bake in a 325° F oven for one and a half hours (1 ½). To check if the cheesecake is done baking, gently shake the spring form pan. The outer 2 inches of the cheesecake should be firm, while the center should jiggle slightly. Remove the whole “bagno maria” assembly from the oven. Take the spring form pan out of the “bagno maria” and carefully remove the aluminum foil (preferably near a sink since there will be some water accumulated on the bottom). The water will be near 100° C so be careful when removing the aluminum foil. Make sure the outside of the spring form pan is completely dry. Place the pan on a cooling rack and let it sit at room temperature for one hour. Cover the top of the pan with aluminum foil and refrigerate overnight (or at least 6 hours).

Enjoy!

Bruschetta

Ingredients

• 5 Medium-sized tomatoes
• 3 cloves of garlic
• 10 large leaves of basil
• 1 cup of extra virgin olive oil
• Salt and pepper to taste

A few notes before I explain the procedure.

1) You will notice that the garlic will not be chopped or minced. This is done so that the garlic can be kept separate from the rest of the ingredients. Many don’t want chunks of garlic in their bruschetta. The great thing is that the garlic will still give its flavor off into the bruschetta, even if it’s only crushed.

2) When choosing tomatoes, make sure of a couple of things. The tomatoes should be ripe, therefore red. And secondly, the tomatoes should be firm on the inside. Unfortunately, I am not familiar with the many varieties of tomatoes out there but can suggest using “Romana” tomatoes from Costco. They are much like “Roma” tomatoes, but larger and juicier.

3) It is best to prepare this several hours before serving. This way the garlic has a chance to give off its flavor. If you plan on using it quickly you don’t need to refrigerate it – the olive oil provides its own “seal.” If you make it the day before, you can refrigerate it overnight and take it out an hour before serving.

4) When the tomatoes are all eaten there will most likely be left over olive oil and crushed garlic cloves. Don’t throw them away! You can reuse them in the next batch of bruschetta.

Dice the tomatoes into 0.5 cm x 0.5 cm cubes, throwing out the piece on the top where the stem connects. Place in a large bowl.

Peel the garlic and crush it using the side of your knife. Throw in with the diced tomatoes.

Finely chop the basil leaves. Add to tomatoes and garlic. Add the olive oil and season with salt and pepper to your liking. Mix everything well.

Once the bruschetta “mix” has marinated, slice some French bread or any bread that you like and toast it slightly. Take a clove of garlic (either from the bruschetta mix or a new one) and rub one side of the toasted bread with it. Holding the side with the rubbed garlic up, bring the toast over the container with the bruschetta and top it, making sure to drain excess olive oil from the spoon first.

Enjoy!

 The only bread we had left in the house was hamburger buns, so we made do with what we had!

Guaccamolo (Guacamole)

I was on vacation with my father here in the US and we decided to make guacamole. When I introduced the word "guacamole" to my father he never really picked it up. In fact, from the beginning he decided to give it his own Italian name: "Guaccamolo." I haven't been able to call it anything else since then.

Ingredients:

• 5 avocados
• ¾ cup finely diced red onion
• ½ cup finely chopped cilantro
• ½ lime, squeezed
• 2 small tomatoes, chopped into very small cubes
• Salt and pepper to taste

Procedure:

When picking the avocados make sure to get those that are ripe. There are two ways to tell if they are ripe: The color of their shell is so dark it could almost be considered black, or they are soft to the touch. The latter is a better determinant since it can happen that avocados have a dark shell but are still too firm on the inside.

Cut the avocados in half along the longer axis and around the seed. Don’t try to cut the seed, it’ll come out easier if whole. Remove the seed. You can either peel the shell off if the pulp is still firm enough to stay together or you can scoop the pulp out. Place the flesh into a large bowl along with the diced red onion, the chopped cilantro, and the juice from ½ of a squeezed lime (lime juice from a bottle can also be used, ~ 2 tbsp perhaps).

Mash the contents until you get the consistency of a dip, some small chunks are allowed. In fact, some prefer chunks in their guaccamolo.

We add the chopped tomatoes after mashing so the tomatoes can maintain their shape. Add salt and pepper as you wish.

Enjoy!

Grilled Eggplant and Zucchine

• 1 large eggplant
• 3 medium zucchini
• 5 cloves of garlic
• 1/3 bunch of parsley
• ½ cup of olive oil
• Salt and pepper

This is a typical Italian summer side dish. It is best when the vegetables are cooked on a grill but, if a grill isn’t available, it can be done on a griddle.

Wash the vegetables and cut the ends off. Cut the eggplant perpendicular to its length axis, such that you get circular slices ¼ inch thick. Since eggplants are very bitter fruits, they should be placed in a large bowl and covered completely with salt water. Put something heavy on top so as to keep the eggplants submerged. They should be allowed to sit in the salt water for at least half an hour.

Cut the zucchine half way perpendicular to their length axis, then slice them lengthwise, also ¼ inch thick.

Grill the vegetables on both sides until they are soft and have nice grill marks. Put them aside.

Finely chop the garlic and the parsley. Mix together with olive oil, add salt and pepper to taste.

Drizzle the parsley and garlic “sauce” on top of the vegetables. You can serve right away or let the “marinated” vegetables sit in the refrigerator overnight. They’ll be a lot tastier.

Enjoy!

Chicken Salad Sandwich

I had some left over chicken breasts so I decided to make chicken salad for tomorrow's lunch. I cut about one breast and a half of the chicken into small pieces, chopped a small stalk of celery, added 2 heaping tablespoons of mayonnaise and one heaping teaspoon of mustard. Salt and pepper, naturally.

I used costco bread and since I was out of tomatoes I used fresh red peppers. Then I added lettuce. Gnam!

Potatoes

There are many different potatoes out there and I've tried my luck with several. Most often I bake them with olive oil, salt, pepper, and chopped rosemary. I've noticed that the best potatoes to use all-around are "Yukon Gold." They are flavorful and they keep rigid in the oven. Other types of potatoes are either tasteless or tend to crumble easily.

Espresso at home for a good price

Who says you need to spend several hundred dollars to have good espresso at home?

This neat little stovetop gadget can be purchased off of Amazon.com for $20-25 and makes excellent espresso. It might not be a pump machine (so you won't necessarily get the gold "cream" that you get with the industrial pump machines) but it gives the perfect consistency for caffe` e latte. In the US these machines are sold in 1-, 3-, 6-, 9-, and 12-Italian cups (1 Italian cup = 2 US fl oz). Typically the 1-cup machine serves me well for the one US cup of caffe` e latte that I have in the morning.

The "Moka Express," as it is called in Italy, separates into three parts:

1) The water reservoir

2) The coffee 'portafilter'

3) The spout/top

The water reservoir is filled with water up to the small circular "steam outlet," which you can see both on the outside and on the inside. The portafilter is then placed on top of the water reservoir. If any water comes up through the filter, quickly remove the filter and shake the water out of the funnel. Place the portafilter on the reservoir and continue the previous process until water no longer seeps through.


Fill the portafilter with espresso coffee. Twist the top on tightly and place over a small flame/electric element. Make sure to keep the handle outside of the heat source. I have known too many people who had their handle melt because they put it over the fire!

When you order the Moka Express, make sure you order extra gaskets (of the same size). Gaskets need to be replaced every 6 months or so as they become worn out. The gasket fits between the porta filter and the top section.

My recommendation for coffee is Lavazza Crema e Gusto. It is one of the most flavorful and cheapest coffees available in the US. The Sovrana Store (located in California) provides the best price for a case of 20 "bricks" at $82 ($4.10/brick) not including shipping.


http://sovrana.stores.yahoo.net/lavcremgus.html

 

If you have friends and/or family who either live in Italy or will visit you can ask them to send you/bring you back Lavazza Qualita Oro. This is by far my favorite coffee. I do not recommend buying the Qualita Oro sold here in the US - it is nothing like the one available in Italy.