Baking Recipe: Caramel Pear Cheesecake or Tart or Pie

Oh look! Is that a cheesecake, nope I think it's a tart, or maybe a pie?!?!. Gosh.. I give up. Either way you look at it, I only have one word to sum it up.. Delish!! Don't you just love the combination of caramel and pear? Then add some fluffy cream cheese and to take the sweetness level down a notch, the caramel pear cheesecake is paired with an aromatic light gingersnap cookie base.

To digress for a bit before I jump down to just talking about food, how many of you follow the TV reality series The Bachelor or The Bachelorette? Honestly, I don't follow but I do watch it once a while when I am completely bored out of my mind. That got me thinking.. "Really?? Can people find their soul mate and love by just smooching or chatting to every single gal or guy???.. for real.. can you just find love in just 9 weeks or is it close to 3 months? All of the gals or dudes looks too good to be true right? Then pop the biggest question where I think most people would take forever until they are ultra sure about it". Call me a skeptic.. but my optimism level could only go so far sometimes. Hmmmph.. anyways that is just my crazy mind talking and I do think the latest bachelor, Ben Flajnik is pretty cute, nerdy cute? He's a wine maker from Sonoma. Not bad eh? Doesn't he reminds you a little like Josh Groban? Those dark wavy hair and 'innocent' eyes? I am beginning to think that I admire a certain type of man. Anyways, we shall see who's the lucky gal. Okay enough of my gibberish thoughts..

It was time I gave a spin to using digestives. Instead, I opted for gingersnap cookies and yes, they do sound slightly festive, but hey! I think I just found a way for you to switch up your gingersnaps. Sick and bored over with your Christmas cookies, make them into another dessert. Don't toss them out. Reading through my post right now, I sound like an info-mercial. LOL..

For recipe: Click on image + zoom

For those of you who cringe just thinking of gingersnaps, well don't. This is year 2012, time to open up to possibilities and new beginnings. I may not be overly crazy on gingersnaps, but I think I found a way to tone down the ginger-y taste by slathering a wicked amount of soft caramel spread bought from La Boulangerie. Their caramel spread is ultra smooth and soft. So soft that it was seriously tempting me to dip my finger into the jar just to feel the smooth texture.

Till then, and have you been keeping up to your New Year 2012 resolution? As for myself? I say "What resolution?!?!.. Just Live Life and Let Good Music Move You!!"

xx

Baking Recipe: Creamy Lemon Cheesecake (Chilled)

Non dairy lovers, I suggest you look away now, because this cake is so lusciously creamy that I think you will be drooling over it. Therefore, you are not to blame me to convert you.. LOLs.

Today's my daddy dearest birthday, and ever since I was a kid; I knew his all time favourite cake has always been the cheesecake. Lets just say I have quite a lot of vague memories of us walking down the frozen or chilled section at a supermarket, and we never failed to pick up Sara Lee's Strawberry Cheesecake. That's also one of my very first encounter of this sinful treat.

Now that I'm older, I am not into all the frozen cakes unless I've got no choice or a craving. Otherwise, home made or baked from scratch is the way to go now for me. I dare say this Creamy Lemon Cheesecake is one of the best recipes and I hope you enjoy making it as much I did.. In my opinion this is a fantastic summer dessert too.

In a nutshell it is CREAMY. LIGHT. FLUFFY. LEMONY. MELTS IN YOUR MOUTH!!

Note: I've ran out of digestive biscuits, so I decided to bake the base of the cake. The base is an aromatic butter cookie base which is crumbly and melts in the mouth when you eat it. So take note that it's not a hard base where you have to chew with all your might.

Recipe

For the base
Do prepare base in advance before preparing the filling.

*Baked from scratch
1 1/4 cups all purpose flour, sifted
1/2 cup or 1 stick unsalted butter, cut into small cubes
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1-2 tsp vanilla extract

**Using digestives
1/3 cup butter, melted
250g digestive biscuits, approx 1 packet or 8 ounces
2-4 tbsp powdered sugar (adjust according to your level of sweetness, but don't go overboard)
1-2 tsp vanilla extract

*To prepare biscuit base (baked from scratch):

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a food processor, blend flour, butter, 1/3 cup sugar and salt until moist crumbs form (this may take up to approx1-2 minutes).

2. Make sure to lightly grease pan with butter and sprinkle flour over the pan.

3. Transfer dough to a 9-inch spring form cake pan with a removable bottom.

4. With floured fingers, press dough evenly into pan and up sides. Dip a dry measuring cup in flour, and use it to press dough firmly into bottom and against sides of pan. Freeze crust until firm for about 10-15 minutes.

5. Using a form, prick crust all over. Bake until golden, 20-25 minutes, pressing down gently once or twice with a spoon during baking if crust puffs up. Let cool completely in pan.

**To prepare biscuit base (using digestives):

1. With a food processor, blitz digestives until bread crumbs like texture. Make sure to not over blitz, otherwise you will get powdered biscuits.

2. Meanwhile in a microwave, melt butter for about 30secs or up to 1 minute if required.

3. In a mixing bowl, using a spatula mix butter, digestive crumbs, powdered sugar and vanilla extract until well combined.

4. In a 9-inch spring form cake pan, press dough evenly, and chill in refrigerator until set.

For the filling:

500g philly cream cheese, 1 1/2 ounces
120g castor sugar, approx 1/3 cup
50ml lemon juice, approx 6 tbsp + 2 tsp
lemon zest, grated from 2 lemons (optional)
1 1/2 tbsp powdered gelatine, dissolved in 100ml cold or room temperature water
350ml thickened cream, whipped
1-2 tsp clear vanilla extract

To prepare filling:

1. With a wired whisk in a stand mixer, whip whipped cream until stiff peaks. Set aside.

2. Using the same mixing bowl with a paddle attachment at medium, cream cream cheese, sugar, lemon juice and zest until smooth. Swith to low speed and pour in gelatine and vanilla extract until well combined. With a spatula, gently fold in whipped cream, making sure to not over beat it. Otherwise mixture will turn runny.

3. Pour mixture on to biscut base. Cover cake pan and refrigerate for at least 6 hours or over night. Thaw for about 1-2 minutes before serving.

xx