Japanese White Chocolate Almond Cheesecake

I'm so glad I stumbled across this recipe. It makes a really unique and tasty cake, reminiscent of the airy sponge cakes you get at Chinese bakeries. The recipe for a 9-inches cake only has 3 tablespoons of flour and 1 1/2 tablespoon of cornstarch. It's lightened with beaten egg whites, and baked in a water bath. The first time I made it, I simply flavored it with vanilla, and found that it tasted too much of cream cheese and egg. I adapted the recipe this time by adding in melted Ghirardelli white chocolate and almond extract. It got the approval of me and some of my friends. It doesn't rise very much and comes out smooth and flat on top. I'm thinking of tripling the recipe and making a layer cake next time.

Japanese White Chocolate Almond Cheesecake
Makes 1 9" Cake

3 ounce package of cream cheese
1/3 cup milk
2 egg yolks
4 tbsp white sugar, divided
3 tbsp all purpose flour, sifted
1 1/2 tbsp corn starch, sifted
2 egg whites
1/3 tsp cream of tartar
1/4 cup white chocolate chunks
1/2 tsp almond extract

Combine cream cheese, milk, and white chocolate chunks in a small saucepan over medium heat. Stir occasionally until cream cheese and chocolate has melted. The mixture wouldn't be completely smooth, but try to get out the big lumps. Let cool.

Meanwhile, beat the egg yolks and 2 tbsp sugar until light and fluffy. Add in the cooled cream cheese mixture and beat until smooth. Add in almond extract. Stir in sifted flour and cornstarch until combined.

Using an electric mixture with clean beaters, beat the egg whites with the cream of tartar until soft peaks form. Gradually add in 2 tbsp of sugar until white whites reach stiff peak stage. Gently fold egg whites into the cream cheese mixture. The mixture should be smooth and look like clouds. Pour into a 9" parchment-lined pan, or a greased springform pan with a removable bottom. If using a springform pan, wrap the pan in foil so that water will not leak in.

Bake in a preheated 350 degrees oven in a water bath for 20 minutes. Then turn the oven down to 300 degrees and continue to bake for 15 minutes. Allow cake to cool before removing from pan. If using a springform, simply remove the side of the pan. If using a regular baking pan, invert cake onto a plate, peel off the parchment and re-invert onto another plate.

A few notes:

• When beating egg whites, make sure there are no fats coming into contact. That means no bits of egg yolk and clean beaters and bowl. Any amount of fat would prevent the egg whites from reaching stiff peaks. Since they are the leavening agent (in a sense of speaking) in this recipe, it is very important that they are well beaten.
  
• A water bath is used to maintain a moist environment so the cheesecake doesn't dry out. To make a water bath: place the cake pan inside another larger baking dish. Pour hot water into the baking dish until it comes about halfway up the side of the cake pan. Be careful to not get water into the cake mixture itself. It is best to set the baking dish on the oven rack first, place the cake pan inside, and fill with water from a kettle. You can prevent a lot of grief and potential burns this way.
  
• The top of the cake never takes on much color. If you like it pale yellow (which is still pretty) you can just follow the baking instructions above. I like to turn on the broiler for about 30 seconds at the end to brown the tops. Just a matter of preference.
  

an adaptation

With an intense craving for sweets one night and being quite lacking in ingredients, I made these pear almond cheesecake tartlettes, adapting the cheesecake recipe from alpineberry. They turned out really pretty and tasty. The filling is almost custard-like, contrasting nicely with the crust. You can bake them longer to get a firmer cheesecake. Unfortunately I didn't have almonds on hand, but I'm sure using them in the crust and also sprinkled on top would enhance the flavor and appearance of the tartlettes.

Pear Almond Cheesecake Tartlettes

Crust:
1/3 cup all purpose flour
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup oats*
1/8 tsp baking soda
pinch salt
2 1/2 tbsp melted butter
1 tbsp honey

Filling:
8 oz cream cheese (softened)
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 medium egg, beaten
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp almond extract
3 tbsp butter, melted

Topping:
2 pears, sliced thin
**

For crust:
Combine flour, sugar, oats, baking soda, and salt. Stir in honey and melted butter until mixture is crumbly. Place about 1 1/2 tbsp of mixture into each mini tart pan, and press down. Bake in a 350 degrees preheated oven for 8-10 minutes until golden. Remove and let cool.

For filling:
While the crust is cooling, beat cream cheese with sugar until mixture is smooth and the sugar has dissolved. Mix in egg until combined. Stir in vanilla and almond extract, and melted butter. Mixture should be smooth and free of lumps.

To assemble:
Pour filling into cooled crust, about 3/4 full. Arrange pear slices on top. Bake in a 350 degree preheated oven for 30 minutes until top is golden and cheesecake is set.

Let cheesecake cool before topping with sifted powdered sugar.

*substitute with 1/3 cup coarsely ground almonds
**top finished cheesecake with toasted sliced almonds

small piece of heaven...

I came across a recipe for Mini Mocha Rocha Cheesecake by Alpineberry. I thought I'd try it on my family while I'm home. I made a few modifications based on the ingredients I had on hand and they turned out very tasty. My mom has been complaining that no one's eating our large container of Brown & Haley's Almond Roca, so I grounded up a few for the filling of the cheesecake. I also substituted the cashew in the crust for toasted walnuts, which lend a wonderful fragrance and texture to the crust, complementing well with creamy cheesecake and melty filling.

My cheesecake cracked on the top and some of the almond roca filling oozed out. I don't think I used enough cream cheese batter on the top. However, since the cheesecakes sink in the middle after they come out of the oven, I topped them with more ground almond roca and they looked fine.

Mini Almond Roca Cheesecake (adapted from Alpineberry)
make 9 mini cheesecakes

Crust:
1/3 cup all purpose flour
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1/3 cup walnuts, toasted
1/8 tsp baking soda
pinch salt
2 tbsp butter, softened
Filling:
8 oz cream cheese, softened
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 medium egg
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
3 tbsp butter, melted
1/2 cup almond roca, grounded (enough for filling and topping after baking)

For crust: Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line 9 wells of a standard cupcake pan with liner. Process toasted walnuts, flour, powdered sugar, baking soda, and salt in food processor until walnut is finely ground. Add in butter and pulse until mixture resemble crumbles. Divide crust mixture evenly between the 9 wells and press down. Bake for 8 minutes until slightly brown.

For filling: Beat soften cream cheese with sugar until smooth. Blend in beaten egg and vanilla. Add in butter and mix until smooth.

To assemble: Add about 1 tablespoon cream cheese mixture to cooled crust, spread so that the crust is covered. Add in about 1 1/2 teaspoon ground almond roca. Top with another tablespoon or so of cream cheese mixture, making sure that the almond roca is completely covered. Bake at 350 degrees for about 20-25 minutes until golden brown. They will sink a bit as they cool.

To serve: Peel off the liner; there will be slight sticking along the edges. You can top the cheesecakes with more ground almond roca for additional crunch and decoration. Or add a dollop of whipped cream.