This is an unusual cheesecake version. It is a no-bake recipe. This cheesecake is a creamy mousse made of white chocolate with pieces of candied ginger, and the ginger nuts biscuits complement the ginger flavour. I love how the sweetness and creaminess of the white chocolate contrasts the spiciness of the ginger. The toffee sauce tops it off perfectly. You can buy the stem ginger (or candied ginger) ready-made but I added the recipe for those who want to make it from scratch. The cheesecake keeps well in the fridge for a week (caramel sauce stored separately in a sealable container).
Mix whip it powder with milk and water, added little by little. Remove from mixing bowl and put aside. Melt the white chocolate. Break up the cream cheese with the mixer, then add the melted chocolate little by little. Add the whip it mixture to the cream cheese mixture and mix well. Put the mix on the biscuit base and refrigerate overnight.
For the ginger toffee sauce, heat the sugar in a pan but be careful not to burn it. It will begin to form a golden caramel. Take the pan off the heat and mix in the butter. Pour in the cream, whisking all the time and add the stem ginger and tablespoon of syrup. Stir until all of the ingredients are combined and smooth.
Once cheesecake is set, decorate with the Raffaello chocolates. To serve drizzle the ginger toffee sauce over the cheesecake.
Ingredients:
Makes 12 servings (23cm diameter cheesecake)
Cheesecake:
Pre-heat oven to 180 degrees Celsius. Break up the biscuits into crumbs and mix with the melted butter. Spread out in a round tin with a removable base. Flatten with the back of the spoon. Put in the oven for 5 minutes until the base is golden. Put aside to cool. Makes 12 servings (23cm diameter cheesecake)
Cheesecake:
- 1 1/2 packets ginger nuts biscuits (350g)
- 125g unsalted butter
- 200g white chocolate
- 200g whip it powder
- 1/2 cup evaporated milk + 1/2 cup water
- 2 packets cream cheese (400g)
- 1 tbsp stem ginger, chopped finely (about 10g)
- 12 Raffaello truffles to decorate
Ginger Toffee Sauce:
- 50g caster suger
- 1 tbsp unsalted butter
- 120ml double cream
- 1 tbsp stem ginger , chopped finely (about 10g) + 1 tbsp stem ginger syrup
Directions:
Mix whip it powder with milk and water, added little by little. Remove from mixing bowl and put aside. Melt the white chocolate. Break up the cream cheese with the mixer, then add the melted chocolate little by little. Add the whip it mixture to the cream cheese mixture and mix well. Put the mix on the biscuit base and refrigerate overnight.
For the ginger toffee sauce, heat the sugar in a pan but be careful not to burn it. It will begin to form a golden caramel. Take the pan off the heat and mix in the butter. Pour in the cream, whisking all the time and add the stem ginger and tablespoon of syrup. Stir until all of the ingredients are combined and smooth.
Once cheesecake is set, decorate with the Raffaello chocolates. To serve drizzle the ginger toffee sauce over the cheesecake.
A beautifully tangy lemon cake which tastes like summer. While my cake took about 55 minutes to cook, make sure to check it every once in a while after the 30 minute mark.
Ingredients:
Makes 1 bundt cake
Lemon Glaze:
Directions:
Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius. Grease a bundt pan very well making sure to really get into all crevices then lightly flour pan. Set aside. Lightly whisk flour, baking powder and salt in a small bowl and set aside.
In the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat eggs on low until they are thickened and very pale yellow in colour. Turn mixer on low and slowly add sugar to running mixer and beat on medium-high speed until light and fluffy. Stir in vanilla, lemon juice and lemon zest. Slowly pour in dry ingredients on low speed until combined.
In a small saucepan, heat milk until very hot and butter is just melted. Do not boil and whisk the mixture to help the butter along. Pour into batter and mix until smooth. Batter will be very thin. Pour into prepared baking pan and bake for about 50-55 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out with a few moist crumbs.
Once done, remove cake from oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes in pan. Release the sides of the cake with a butter knife to ensure it isn’t going to stick. Turn cake onto a large round platter or cake stand. Allow cake to finish cooling until warm to the touch.
While cake is cooling, prepare lemon sugar and glaze. For the lemon sugar, thoroughly mix the lemon zest and sugar together and let it sit for 5 minutes.
For the glaze, whisk powdered sugar and lemon juice, using more or less lemon juice as needed to get desired consistency. Once cake is cooled down slightly, drizzle glaze over warm cake. Alternately, you can drizzle the glaze over each individual piece being served. Sprinkle lemon sugar on top. Cake will stay soft and moist for 3-4 days stored in an airtight container.
Adapted from Original Recipe
Makes 1 bundt cake
The Cake:
- 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 1/4 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 4 eggs
- 2 cups sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 tbsp lemon zest
- 2 tbsp + 2 tsp lemon juice
- 1 1/4 cups whole milk
- 10 tbsp unsalted butter, cubed
- 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
- 3-5 tbsp lemon juice
Lemon Sugar Topping:
- 1 tbsp lemon zest
- 1 tbsp granulated sugar
Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius. Grease a bundt pan very well making sure to really get into all crevices then lightly flour pan. Set aside. Lightly whisk flour, baking powder and salt in a small bowl and set aside.
In the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat eggs on low until they are thickened and very pale yellow in colour. Turn mixer on low and slowly add sugar to running mixer and beat on medium-high speed until light and fluffy. Stir in vanilla, lemon juice and lemon zest. Slowly pour in dry ingredients on low speed until combined.
In a small saucepan, heat milk until very hot and butter is just melted. Do not boil and whisk the mixture to help the butter along. Pour into batter and mix until smooth. Batter will be very thin. Pour into prepared baking pan and bake for about 50-55 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out with a few moist crumbs.
Once done, remove cake from oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes in pan. Release the sides of the cake with a butter knife to ensure it isn’t going to stick. Turn cake onto a large round platter or cake stand. Allow cake to finish cooling until warm to the touch.
While cake is cooling, prepare lemon sugar and glaze. For the lemon sugar, thoroughly mix the lemon zest and sugar together and let it sit for 5 minutes.
For the glaze, whisk powdered sugar and lemon juice, using more or less lemon juice as needed to get desired consistency. Once cake is cooled down slightly, drizzle glaze over warm cake. Alternately, you can drizzle the glaze over each individual piece being served. Sprinkle lemon sugar on top. Cake will stay soft and moist for 3-4 days stored in an airtight container.
Adapted from Original Recipe
A delightfully rich chocolate cake.
Ingredients:
Ingredients:
Makes 1 cake
For the cake:
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 160 degrees Celsius and butter your pan. Melt the 145g of chocolate and the butter over a double boiler, add 1/2 cup water and the cocoa powder. Stir until cocoa is dissolved and set aside to cool.
Sift together the flour, salt, baking soda and baking powder. In a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, beat the eggs a few seconds to combine, add the sugar and whip until light and very thick (about 3-4 minutes). Add the vanilla and beat until the mixture forms a wide ribbon when the beater is lifted out (about 5-8 more minutes)
Gently fold the chocolate mixture and sour cream into the eggs and sugar, and fold in the flour mixture in thirds. Pour half of the mixture into the pan and add the 60g of finely chopped chocolate. Fill the pan with the rest of the cake mixture, and bake for 50-60 minutes.
Cool about 30 minutes on a rack, and turn out of the pan. In a small saucepan, bring the cream to a boil. In a heatproof bowl, combine 3 ounces of chopped chocolate with the golden syrup. Pour the hot cream over the chocolate and let stand until melted, about 5 minutes. Whisk until smooth. Let the ganache glaze cool until thick but still pourable, about 5 minutes. Pour the ganache over the cooled cake. Let the cake stand until the glaze is set, at least 30 minutes, before serving.
Adapted from Original Recipe
For the cake:
- 145g dark chocolate, plus 60g finely chopped dark chocolate
- 115g unsalted butter, plus enough to grease the pan
- 1/2 cup cocoa powder
- 1 3/4 cups flour
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 2 tsp baking soda
- 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 3 large eggs
- 1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup brown sugar, packed
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup sour cream
For the ganache glaze:
- 85g dark chocolate, chopped
- 1/2 tablespoon golden syrup
- 1/3 cup heavy cream (or a bit more to achieve desired consistency)
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 160 degrees Celsius and butter your pan. Melt the 145g of chocolate and the butter over a double boiler, add 1/2 cup water and the cocoa powder. Stir until cocoa is dissolved and set aside to cool.
Sift together the flour, salt, baking soda and baking powder. In a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, beat the eggs a few seconds to combine, add the sugar and whip until light and very thick (about 3-4 minutes). Add the vanilla and beat until the mixture forms a wide ribbon when the beater is lifted out (about 5-8 more minutes)
Gently fold the chocolate mixture and sour cream into the eggs and sugar, and fold in the flour mixture in thirds. Pour half of the mixture into the pan and add the 60g of finely chopped chocolate. Fill the pan with the rest of the cake mixture, and bake for 50-60 minutes.
Cool about 30 minutes on a rack, and turn out of the pan. In a small saucepan, bring the cream to a boil. In a heatproof bowl, combine 3 ounces of chopped chocolate with the golden syrup. Pour the hot cream over the chocolate and let stand until melted, about 5 minutes. Whisk until smooth. Let the ganache glaze cool until thick but still pourable, about 5 minutes. Pour the ganache over the cooled cake. Let the cake stand until the glaze is set, at least 30 minutes, before serving.
Adapted from Original Recipe
A simple cake-in-a-mug recipe which results in a perfectly-sized moist cake. It can also be modified to have different flavours! For my cake I did a cinnamon flavoured cake with no crumb topping, then I topped it up with caramel sauce and chopped hazelnuts to serve.
Ingredients:
Makes 1 serving
For the cake:
Add a tablespoon of butter to a mug. Soften it in the microwave for 10-15 seconds. Don’t melt, just soften. Stir in 2 tablespoons of sugar until it’s fluffy and creamy, maybe 30 seconds. Add the 1/2 egg and stir it up. Then stir in 2 tablespoons of sour cream and a few drops of vanilla, being careful not to add too much. Stir in 1/4 cup of flour and 1/8 teaspoon baking powder.
If you want some crumb topping, in a separate bowl add 1 tablespoon butter, 2 tablespoons flour, 1 tablespoon of brown sugar, and 1 teaspoon of cinnamon. Mach it together with a fork. Add the crumb topping mixture to the cup.
Cook the cake in the microwave. Start with 1 minute, then do 10 seconds more until it’s done to your liking. For my microwave it took 2 minutes and 30 seconds. It will be really hot when you take it out of the microwave, so let it cool down for a few seconds, then dig in.
You can change the flavour of the cake very simply by adding or replacing some ingredients. For an almond flavoured cake simply replace the vanilla flavouring with almond flavouring. For a cinnamon cake just add 1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon. For a chocolate cake you can replace a tablespoon of flour with a tablespoon of cacao powder.
Adapted from Original Recipe
Ingredients:
Makes 1 serving
For the cake:
- 1 tbsp butter
- 2 tbsp brown sugar
- 1/2 egg
- 2 tbsp sour cream
- few drops vanilla
- 1/4 cup flour
- 1/8 tsp baking powder
For the crumb topping:
Directions:- 1 tbsp butter
- 2 tbsp flour
- 1 tbsp brown sugar
- 1 tbsp cinnamon
Add a tablespoon of butter to a mug. Soften it in the microwave for 10-15 seconds. Don’t melt, just soften. Stir in 2 tablespoons of sugar until it’s fluffy and creamy, maybe 30 seconds. Add the 1/2 egg and stir it up. Then stir in 2 tablespoons of sour cream and a few drops of vanilla, being careful not to add too much. Stir in 1/4 cup of flour and 1/8 teaspoon baking powder.
If you want some crumb topping, in a separate bowl add 1 tablespoon butter, 2 tablespoons flour, 1 tablespoon of brown sugar, and 1 teaspoon of cinnamon. Mach it together with a fork. Add the crumb topping mixture to the cup.
Cook the cake in the microwave. Start with 1 minute, then do 10 seconds more until it’s done to your liking. For my microwave it took 2 minutes and 30 seconds. It will be really hot when you take it out of the microwave, so let it cool down for a few seconds, then dig in.
You can change the flavour of the cake very simply by adding or replacing some ingredients. For an almond flavoured cake simply replace the vanilla flavouring with almond flavouring. For a cinnamon cake just add 1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon. For a chocolate cake you can replace a tablespoon of flour with a tablespoon of cacao powder.
Adapted from Original Recipe
The Prinjolata is a traditional Maltese dessert made during the Carnival Period. Its name derives from the pine nuts used in the recipe (prinjol in Maltese). It is made from a mixture of sponge (or biscuits), candied cherries, pine nuts and chocolate and then covered in Italian Meringue. It is quite painstaking to do from scratch, and will take most of a day's work.
Ingredients:
Ingredients:
Makes one Prinjolata
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 200 degrees Celsius. For the sponge, beat together using a mixer the eggs, sugar, vanilla extract and grated lemon rind for about 8 minutes or until a smooth soft mixture is formed. Add the flour to the mixture and mix with a wooden spoon until well incorporated. Pour the mixture into a greased cake tin. Bake the sponge until a skewer inserted near the centre comes out clean, about 25 minutes. Remove to a rack to cool completely.
For the prinjolata filling, break the sponge into very small pieces in a large bowl. Sprinkle the whiskey over the sponge pieces. Add the chopped pine nuts, glace cherries and chocolate bits; mix well. Using a mixer, beat the margarine and sugar until a smooth mixture is formed. Add the cake mixture, vanilla extract and vermouth and beat together using a mixer. Mould the mixture in the form of a dome and place on a plate. You can do this easily by covering a bowl with cellophane and then turning the bowl upside down.
For the Italian Meringue, combine sugar and water in a small pan and bring to the boil, stirring continuously with a wooden spoon until sugar dissolves. The temperature should be 116 degrees Celsius. In the meantime, start whisking the egg whites with the cream of tartar or lemon juice in a clean, grease-free bowl of an electric mixer until soft peaks form. Bring sugar syrup to 121 degrees Celsius. This should be the hard ball stage, that is, when you drop some sugar syrup into cold water, the sugar should form into a hard ball. Increase the mixer speed to high and, with motor running, gradually pour syrup into meringue. Beat at medium speed until cooled to room temperature and meringue is thick and glossy, about 15 to 20 minutes.
Cover the prinjolata dome with the meringue. There is no need for it to be perfectly smooth. Put the halved glace cherries on top along with the pine nuts, and drizzle with the melted chocolate.
Prinjolata recipe from Original Recipe
Italian Meringue recipe from Original Recipe
For the sponge:
- 4 eggs
- 200g caster sugar
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp grated lemon rind
- 200g self-raising flour
For the prinjolata mixture:
- 1 tbsp whisky
- 50g pine nuts, roasted and chopped
- 50g glace cherries, chopped
- 2 tbsp chocolate chips
- 250g softened margarine
- 2 tbsp icing sugar
- 1 tbsp vermouth
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
For the Italian Meringue:
- 75g egg whites (from 2 large eggs)
- 150g sugar
- 45g water
- pinch of cream of tartar or 1/8 tsp lemon juice
For decorating:
- glace cherries, halved
- chocolate, melted
- pine nuts (optional)
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 200 degrees Celsius. For the sponge, beat together using a mixer the eggs, sugar, vanilla extract and grated lemon rind for about 8 minutes or until a smooth soft mixture is formed. Add the flour to the mixture and mix with a wooden spoon until well incorporated. Pour the mixture into a greased cake tin. Bake the sponge until a skewer inserted near the centre comes out clean, about 25 minutes. Remove to a rack to cool completely.
For the prinjolata filling, break the sponge into very small pieces in a large bowl. Sprinkle the whiskey over the sponge pieces. Add the chopped pine nuts, glace cherries and chocolate bits; mix well. Using a mixer, beat the margarine and sugar until a smooth mixture is formed. Add the cake mixture, vanilla extract and vermouth and beat together using a mixer. Mould the mixture in the form of a dome and place on a plate. You can do this easily by covering a bowl with cellophane and then turning the bowl upside down.
For the Italian Meringue, combine sugar and water in a small pan and bring to the boil, stirring continuously with a wooden spoon until sugar dissolves. The temperature should be 116 degrees Celsius. In the meantime, start whisking the egg whites with the cream of tartar or lemon juice in a clean, grease-free bowl of an electric mixer until soft peaks form. Bring sugar syrup to 121 degrees Celsius. This should be the hard ball stage, that is, when you drop some sugar syrup into cold water, the sugar should form into a hard ball. Increase the mixer speed to high and, with motor running, gradually pour syrup into meringue. Beat at medium speed until cooled to room temperature and meringue is thick and glossy, about 15 to 20 minutes.
Cover the prinjolata dome with the meringue. There is no need for it to be perfectly smooth. Put the halved glace cherries on top along with the pine nuts, and drizzle with the melted chocolate.
Prinjolata recipe from Original Recipe
Italian Meringue recipe from Original Recipe
