Tag: mascarpone cheese

Apple Tiramisu

This week I’m bringing you a twist on some traditional desserts, a Fall twist that is with the addition of apples to both. Up first an Apple Tiramisu, and later this week an Apple Crisp Cheesecake.

So, where did the idea for an Apple Tiramisu come from? Well, I had a pack of ladyfingers that were quickly approaching their expiration date and while I was planning on making a traditional tiramisu with them, I started to think that maybe something a little more seasonal would work. And thankfully I was right. Truth be told I had some reservations that the apple filling, similar to what you would make for apple pie, would work in the tiramisu.

To start, I made the apple filling since it needed to be completely cooled before assembling the tiramisu. After peeling, coring and chopping my apples I tossed them with lemon juice, light brown sugar, cinnamon and flour. I then cooked them in melted butter along with a few tablespoons of water in a medium saucepan. The apples were soft, but still had a slight crunch to them.

While the apples cooled, I made a bourbon whipped cream and the mascarpone filling. I folded some of the bourbon whipped cream into mascarpone cheese and reserved the rest for the topping of the tiramisu. I also made the dipping mixture for the ladyfingers by whisking together milk, sugar, vanilla extract and bourbon.

Once all the components were done it was time to start assembling the tiramisu. I began by dipping half of the ladyfingers in the milk mixture and arranging them in an even layer in the bottom of an 8×8-inch baking dish. I spread half of the mascarpone filling over the ladyfingers and then topped it with half of the apple mixture. I repeated the layer one more time and then spread the reserved bourbon whipped cream over the top. I covered the tiramisu with a piece of wax paper and aluminum foil and refrigerated it overnight.

The following day I made a small and quick batch of caramel sauce. After sprinkling chopped walnuts on top of the tiramisu I then drizzled the caramel sauce over it.

This was a nice Fall twist on the traditional Tiramisu. It was light with just the right amount of sweetness from the apples.

Apple Tiramisu

Ingredients:

7oz. package of Ladyfingers

1/2 cup chopped walnuts, for topping

For the Apple Filling:

3 large Granny Smith Apples, peeled, cored & chopped

2 tablespoons lemon juice

2 tablespoons light brown sugar

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 tablespoon flour

3 tablespoons unsalted butter

4 tablespoons water

For the Mascarpone Cream:

8 oz. mascarpone cheese, at room temperature

3 teaspoons vanilla extract, divided

2 cups heavy cream

1/3 cup sugar

2 tablespoons bourbon

For the Ladyfingers Dipping Mixture:

1 1/2 cups milk*

1 tablespoon sugar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 tablespoons bourbon

For the Caramel Drizzle:

1/4 cup light brown sugar

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 tablespoon milk

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

*I used whole milk

Directions:

Apple Filling: In a medium bowl toss the apples with the lemon juice. Add in the sugar, cinnamon and flour and toss together until the apples are well coated.

In a medium saucepan melt the butter over medium heat, add the apples and water and toss everything together. Lower the heat to medium-low and cook the apples until they are soft but still have a slight crunch to them, 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally so the apples don’t stick to the pan. Remove from the heat and cool completely.

Mascarpone Cream: In a medium bowl stir together the mascarpone cheese and 1 teaspoon of the vanilla extract until well combined.

In another medium bowl, beat together the heavy cream, sugar, bourbon and the remaining 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract with a hand mixer on medium speed until stiff peaks form. Reserve about 1 1/4 cups of the whipped cream mixture.

Gradually fold the remaining whipped cream mixture into the mascarpone cheese mixture. Start with a quarter of the of the whipped cream mixture and then the remaining amount. Continue folding the two mixtures together until no streaks of either remain and they are well incorporated.

Dipping Mixture: In a shallow bowl whisk together all the ingredients – milk, sugar, vanilla extract and bourbon – until combined.

Assemble: Dip the rounded side of half of the ladyfingers in the dipping mixture and arrange them in an even layer in the bottom of an 8×8-inch baking dish. Top with half of the mascarpone cream and then spread half of the cooled apple mixture over the cream. Repeat the layers once more. Top with the reserved whipped cream mixture. Cover with a piece of wax paper and them aluminum foil and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, or overnight.

For the caramel drizzle: An hour before serving, make the caramel sauce. In a small saucepan combine the sugar, butter and milk. Heat over medium heat until sugar melts and the mixture boils. Boil for a minute or two stirring occasionally, until the sauce thickens. Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla extract. Allow to cool. The sauce will continue to thicken as it cools. If it looks like it’s separating while it’s cooling, whisk it for a minute or so.

Right before serving, sprinkle the chopped walnuts over the tiramisu and then drizzle with caramel sauce.

Store leftovers in the refrigerator.

Recipe first appeared on Bead Yarn & Spatula.

Pumpkin Tiramisu Cake

If at first you don’t succeed you must try again. That’s what’s been happening with some of the cakes I have been posting as of late. I have been trying to come up with recipes myself as opposed to relying on Google to give me a nice list of whatever idea pops into my head. On my first try it’s sometimes a complete fail, a great flavor but horrible texture or a so-so flavor and the right texture. And let’s be honest, if you can’t get the flavor and texture to be just right the cake is just not good to eat. That’s what happened with the first pumpkin cake I made for today’s Pumpkin Tiramisu Cake. I used an entire can of pumpkin puree for the cake and the end result was a cake that had an odd indentation around it, but tasted good. I had a feeling that it was the result of too much liquid (i.e. wet ingredients) in the cake and my suspicions were correct. I ended up tweaking the recipe a bit and ended up with a cake that had smooth edges and a much more cake-like consistency.

So, what makes this a tiramisu cake? Well, if you are thinking ladyfingers you won’t be finding any on this cake. It’s more about the flavor. The filling is basically the same filling that is used in your typical tiramisu… A custard that is mixed with mascarpone cheese and homemade whipped cream. To get that coffee flavor, each cake layer is brushed with a coffee and Kahlua mixture. And to top it off, the cake is covered in a Mascarpone Kahlua Frosting (YUM!). I had some leftover frosting after finishing the cake and I may have enjoyed a spoonful or two of it. It’s not sweet at all and the Kahlua gives it a very light coffee flavor. And finally, the cake is dusted with unsweetened cocoa powder to get that finishing look of Tiramisu.

The end result, a pumpkin cake that is perfectly complemented by the traditional flavors of Tiramisu.

If you are looking for a more traditional Tiramisu with the flavors of pumpkin instead, check out the recipe below from a few years ago.

Pumpkin Tiramisu

Pumpkin Tiramisu Cake

For the Pumpkin Cake:

1 15.25oz box of yellow cake mix (I used Duncan Hines)

1/2 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice

1 cup pumpkin puree

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

3 large eggs

1/2 cup milk

For the Tiramisu Filling:

3 egg yolks

1/3 cup + 1 tbsp sugar

1/3 cup whole milk

1/2 cup mascarpone cheese

1/2 cup heavy cream

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the coffee soak:

1/4 cup coffee

2 tablespoon Kahlua

For the Mascarpone Kahlua Frosting:

1 1lb. mascarpone cheese

2 cups heavy cream

2 cups Confectioners’ sugar

2 tablespoons Kahlua

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Unsweetened cocoa powder, to dust on top of the cake

Directions:

For the cake:

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Spray 2 8-inch round cake pans with baking spray.

In a large bowl whisk together the cake mix and pumpkin pie spice. Add in the pumpkin puree, vanilla extract, eggs and milk. Beat with a hand mixer on low speed for 30 seconds and then increase the speed to medium and beat until just combined.

Divide the batter among the prepared pans and bake in the preheated oven for 24-28 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean.

Let the cakes cool in the pan for 10 minutes and then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

For the filling:

In a small saucepan, over medium heat, whisk together the egg yolks and sugar until blended. Whisk in the milk and stir constantly until it boils. Allow the mixture to boil for 1 minute. Remove from heat and transfer to a container and cool to room temperature. Place a piece of plastic wrap directly on the surface and then cover tightly and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

Beat the heavy cream and vanilla together until stiff peaks form.

Beat the mascarpone cheese and chilled egg yolk mixture together until blended. Fold the whipped cream mixture in until no streaks remain. Refrigerate until ready to use.

For the frosting:

Add the mascarpone cheese, heavy cream, Confectioners’ sugar, Kahlua and vanilla extract to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Start the mixer on low and beat for 30 seconds to 1 minute to allow the ingredients to come together. Gradually increase the speed of the mixer to medium high and continue to beat until the frosting is light and fluffy. At first there may seem like there is too much heavy cream but as you continue to beat it, the heavy cream will be incorporated, and the frosting will become light and fluffy.

To assemble:

If necessary, level the cake layers. In a small bowl whisk together the Kahlua and coffee and brush it on the top of both cake layers.

Place the bottom cake layer on a cake board or serving platter. Transfer about a cup of frosting to a piping bag and pipe a dam around this bottom layer and then fill with the tiramisu filling. Place the second cake layer on top and then crumb coat the cake. Refrigerate for 30 minutes and then finish frosting the cake with the remaining frosting. You should have enough frosting to pipe decorative dollops on top of the cake. Finish the cake by dusting the top with cocoa powder using a fine mesh sieve.

Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Recipe first appeared on Bead Yarn & Spatula.

Strawberry Tiramisu

It’s the dog days of summer which usually means you will do anything to avoid turning on your oven. Thankfully there are many delicious recipes out there that can prevent you from doing just that and today I am sharing one, a Strawberry Tiramisu. This spin on tiramisu is perfect for the summer with the abundance of perfectly ripened strawberries available this time of year.

To begin, you will make the strawberry sauce. In a large bowl combine sliced strawberries with orange liqueur, balsamic vinegar, salt and sugar. After letting it sit for about 15 minutes puree half of it along with seedless strawberry jam in a food processor until smooth and then return the mixture to the strawberries and stir together. It may seem like the mixture is a tad watery, but it will be absorbed by the ladyfingers. No need to fear, your dessert will not be a runny mess when sliced.

Next you will make the mascarpone – whipped cream mixture. Beat heavy cream with confectioners’ sugar and vanilla extract until soft peaks form. Next, fold in mascarpone cheese & orange zest until the whipped cream and mascarpone cheese are well incorporated and no streaks of either remain.

Now it’s time to assemble. Begin by spreading some of the strawberry mixture in the bottom of your dish. Then add a layer of ladyfingers on top and then spread half of the mascarpone cheese mixture over them. Repeat the layers ending with the remaining half of the mascarpone cheese mixture. Decorate the top with sliced strawberries and then cover and refrigerate for at least 8 hours before slicing and serving.

This is a light and refreshing dessert that isn’t overly sweet… Perfect for these warmer days!

Strawberry Tiramisu

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons orange liqueur*

2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar

1/8 teaspoon Kosher salt

3 tablespoons granulated sugar

4 cups sliced strawberries, divided**

1/4 cup seedless strawberry jam

1 1/2 cups heavy cream

2 tablespoons confectioners’ sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 8oz. container mascarpone cheese

1 teaspoon grated orange zest

1 7oz. package ladyfingers

*I used Cointreau

**About 1.5 lbs

Directions:

In a large bowl stir together 3 cups of the sliced strawberries, the liqueur, balsamic vinegar, salt and granulated sugar. Let stand for 15 minutes, stirring a few times. Transfer half of the mixture to a food processor (or blender) along with the strawberry jam and blend until smooth. Pour the pureed mixture back into the bowl with the remaining marinated strawberries and stir together. Set aside.

In a medium bowl beat the heavy cream with the confectioners’ sugar and vanilla extract with a hand mixer on medium speed until soft peaks form. Fold in the mascarpone cheese and orange zest until both are incorporated well and no streaks of either remain.

To assemble: Spread 3/4 cup of the of the strawberry mixture in the bottom of an 8×8 square baking dish. Top with a single layer of ladyfingers. Spread half of the mascarpone cheese mixture over the ladyfingers. Top the ladyfingers with the remaining strawberry mixture and then top with another layer of ladyfingers. And finally, spread the remaining mascarpone cheese mixture over the ladyfingers. Top with the remaining cup of sliced strawberries. Cover and refrigerate for 8 hours or overnight before slicing and serving.

Recipe modified from Food and Wine

Almond Tiramisu

If you love the flavor of a Good Humor Toasted Almond Bar you are going to love this dessert. The recipe calls it a Toasted Almond Cream Cake but I am calling it an Almond Tiramisu since the ingredients and assembly are quite similar. Where it differs is that instead of dipping the ladyfingers in a coffee mixture you dip them in a milk mixture that contains Amaretto. You can use any type of milk that you like as well. As with your traditional Tiramisu this one also has a layer of mascarpone cream, it’s just given an extra almond flavor kick with almond extract and some more Amaretto. There’s also a layer of coarsely chopped almond slices and Amaretti cookies, that also get used for the topping.

When you slice into it, you can see those perfect layers of deliciousness that you get from any Tiramisu… The layers of ladyfingers and cream.

Looking for more variations on Tiramisu. Check out these recipes:

Salted Caramel Tiramisu

Pumpkin Gingersnap Tiramisu

Pumpkin Tiramisu

White Chocolate Blackberry Tiramisu

Tiramisu

Tiramisu Pudding Cakes

Tiramisu Cheesecake

Almond Tiramisu

Ingredients:

7oz. package of Ladyfingers – about 24 cookies

Mascarpone Cream:

8 ounces mascarpone cheese, at room temperature

1 teaspoon almond extract

1 cup heavy cream

1/4 cup sugar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 tablespoon Amaretto liqueur

Amaretti Topping:

20 Amaretti cookies*

1/2 cup sliced almonds

Dipping Mixture:

1 1/2 cups milk**

1 tablespoon sugar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 tablespoon Amaretto liqueur

*If you can’t find Amaretti cookies, you can substitute with almond cookies or biscotti

**I used whole milk, but you can substitute with the milk of your choice

Directions:

In the bowl of a food processor add the Amaretti cookies and the sliced almonds and pulse until both are coarsely chopped. Set aside.

Mascarpone Cream: In a medium bowl stir together the mascarpone and almond extract until well combined. In another bowl beat the heavy cream along with the sugar, vanilla extract and Amaretto with hand mixer on medium speed until soft peaks form. Fold a quarter of the whipped cream mixture into the mascarpone mixture until incorporated. Continue to fold in the whipped cream mixture in batches until the two are well combined and no streaks remain. Set aside.

Dipping Mixture: In a shallow bowl combine the ingredients for the dipping mixture and whisk together.

To Assemble: Dip the rounded side of half of the ladyfingers in the dipping mixture and then arrange them in the bottom of an 8 x 8 – inch square baking dish. Top with half of the mascarpone cream and then sprinkle with Amaretti / almond mixture. Repeat the layers once more, ending the remaining Amaretti / almond mixture. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, or overnight. Slice into squares to serve.

Recipe from Mangia Bene Pasta

Salted Caramel Tiramisu

Tiramisu is a great dessert to make during the summer months since you don’t need to turn on your oven. While traditional tiramisu is delicious, variations offer a nice twist and a melding of flavors. I’ve made a Pumpkin version, a White Chocolate Blackberry version and today I am sharing with a Salted Caramel version.

I always like to look at the back of my wrappers, packages and so forth when I buy things. You never know what delicious recipe you may come across. That’s exactly where I found this recipe. It was on the back of a package of ladyfingers I bought.

I started by prepping all the ingredients to assemble the tiramisu. First, I made the salted caramel. I must say, I have made caramel before and had more failures than successes and I was able to ace this salted caramel on my first try. So, this will definitely be my go-to when a recipe calls for caramel, I will just omit the salt. While the caramel cooled, I made instant espresso and allowed it to cool before whisking in Kahlua and I beat together mascarpone cheese along with heavy cream.

Then it was time to start assembling. I dipped 12 ladyfingers in the espresso mixture and then arranged them in an 8 x 8 baking dish and drizzled the top with a few tablespoons of the salted caramel.

I then spread half of the mascarpone mixture on top and then repeated the layers.

And finally, I dusted the top with cocoa powder before covering and refrigerating it for at least 4 hours before serving.  And I must say, this may be my favorite variation of tiramisu I have made to date.

Salted Caramel Tiramisu

For the salted caramel:

1/2 cup sugar

1/4 cup water

1/2 cups heavy cream

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 teaspoon Kosher salt

For the Tiramisu:

1/4 cup sugar

8oz. mascarpone cheese, at room temperature

1 1/2 cups heavy cream

1 1/2 cups brewed instant espresso, cooled

3 tablespoons Kahlua

24 Ladyfingers

2 teaspoons cocoa powder

Directions:

For the caramel: Clip a candy thermometer to a medium saucepan. Add the sugar and water to the saucepan and let simmer for 5 minutes or until the sugar dissolves over medium-low heat. Increase the heat to medium and bring the mixture to boil. Cook undisturbed until the temperature on the candy thermometer reaches 350 F.

Decrease the heat to low and slowly whisk in the heavy cream and cook for an additional 2 minutes until smooth, whisking constantly.

Remove the saucepan from the heat and whisk in the butter and salt. Allow the caramel to cool for 25 minutes before using.

For the tiramisu:  In a large bowl combine the sugar, mascarpone cheese and heavy cream. Using a hand mixer on medium-high speed beat the mixture until soft peaks form.

In a medium bowl stir together the cooled espresso and Kahlua. Dip half of the lady fingers in the mixture and arrange them in an even layer in an 8-inch square baking dish.

Drizzle the arranged ladyfingers with 3 tablespoons of the cooled salted caramel. Top with half of the mascarpone mixture.

Repeat the layers one more time. Store the leftover salted caramel in an air-tight container in the refrigerator.

Dust the top of the final layer of the mascarpone mixture with the cocoa powder. Cover with a piece of wax paper and aluminum foil and refrigerate for at least 4 hours before serving.

Mascarpone Cake

After making the Tiramisu Cheesecake I posted two weeks ago I still had about a cup of mascarpone cheese left. While I could have used it to spread on toast or crackers, I decided to bake something else with it. I came across a recipe for a Mascarpone Cake that sounded simple and delicious, so I decided to give it a try.

This is one of those recipes that most people love… It comes together in one bowl. No need for sifting or mixing your dry ingredients in one bowl and then combining them with your wet ones in another. You simply mix all of your wet ingredients first and then add the dry ones at the end. And after baking and cooling it’s time to enjoy.

This cake tasted just as the recipe sounded… delicious. It was reminiscent of a pound cake for me, just not as a dense. And not sweet at all. If you do you need a bit for sweetness to it, you can follow the original recipe and dust the cake with confectioners’ sugar once it has completely cooled.

Mascarpone Cake

Ingredients:

3 eggs

3/4 cup sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup mascarpone cheese

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1 1/2 cups flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

 

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Spray a tube pan with baking spray (or coat with butter and lightly dust with flour) and set aside.

In a large bowl beat together the eggs and sugar with a hand mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy. Add in the vanilla extract, mascarpone cheese and oil and continue beating until combined. Add the flour and baking powder and beat until smooth.

Pour the batter into the prepared ban and 30-40 minutes in the preheated oven, or until a cake tester inserted near the center comes out clean.

Let the cake cool in the pan for 15 minutes and then invert onto a wire rack to cool completely.

Store in an airtight container at room temperature.

Recipe from An Italian In My Kitchen

Tiramisu Cheesecake

I attempted to make Tiramisu Cheesecake before but the recipe I had just wasn’t a good one. The cheesecake filling didn’t have that classic coffee flavor that traditional Tiramisu has and with the two times I tried making it, neither time produced a cheesecake that firmed up. I was determined though. I had a tub of mascarpone cheese in my refrigerator that was quickly approaching its expiration date and I wanted to make something with it besides a traditional Tiramisu. So, I did a Google search for “desserts using mascarpone cheese” and what came up was nothing too exciting. Then I did a search for Tiramisu Cheesecake and came across a recipe that I decided to slightly tweak in hopes of finally making a cheesecake that sliced well and had the coffee flavor I am used to when it comes to Tiramisu.

I began by making the crust. In my food processor I processed about 20 ladyfingers into fine crumbs and then added in melted butter and Kahlua and processed it for a few more seconds to combine everything. I then transferred the mixture to a 9-inch springform pan and pressed it into the bottom and up the sides of the pan. I baked it on a baking sheet in a 350 F preheated oven for 6 minutes and let it cool on a wire rack while I made the cheesecake filling.

One thing I like about making cheesecakes is that it is a one-bowl dessert. Which means it’s quick and there’s not a lot of clean-up afterwards. In a large bowl I beat cream cheese, mascarpone cheese, flour and salt with a hand mixer on medium speed until it was combined and smooth. I then added in sugar, Kahlua, vanilla extract and espresso granules. Finally, I added 4 eggs, one at a time, and beat everything until it was just combined.

I then poured the cheesecake filling into the cooled crust and placed it on a baking sheet and baked at 325 F for about an hour.

After letting it cool completely on a wire rack, I refrigerated it overnight. Unfortunately, it did end up with a small crack in it.

Using a fine mesh sieve, I dusted the top of the cheesecake with cocoa powder. I then carefully removed the ring from the pan.

I made a small batch of whipped cream which I used as a “glue” to place ladyfingers I cut in half around the cheesecake. I used 13 ladyfingers.

I filled a piping bag fitted with a large star tip with the remaining whipped cream and pipped dollops of it around the cheesecake. I thought about dusting the top of the whipped cream with more cocoa powder, but I decided that what was already on the cheesecake was enough. I didn’t want the cheesecake to be overpowered by it.

And while the ladyfingers around the cheesecake gave it a pretty look, they were a bit of a pain when it came to slicing it. I ended up removing them as I sliced. And while the decorative ladyfingers may have been a bit of a fail the flavor wasn’t. It had the perfect amount of coffee flavor. If you want to reduce the coffee flavor in your cheesecake, I suggest omitting the instant espresso and/or reducing the amount of Kahlua you use in the cheesecake filling.

Tiramisu Cheesecake

Ingredients:

For the Crust:

18 ladyfingers

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

2 tablespoons coffee liqueur*

 

For the Cheesecake:

3 8oz. bricks cream cheese, at room temperature

8oz mascarpone cheese (1 cup)

2 tablespoons flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

4 tablespoons coffee liqueur*

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

2 teaspoons instant espresso**

4 large eggs, at room temperature

 

For Topping:

Cocoa Powder

1 cup heavy whipping cream

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

3 tablespoon confectioners’ sugar

13 ladyfingers, cut in half

 

*I used Kahlua

**I used Café Bustelo

 

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 F.

To Make the Crust: In a food processor, process the ladyfingers into fine crumbs. Add in the melted butter and coffee liqueur until combined. Press the mixture into the bottom and up the sides of a 9-inch springform pan. Place the pan on a baking sheet and bake in the preheated oven for 5-7 minutes. Cool on a wire rack while making the cheesecake filling and lower the oven temperature to 325 F.

For the Cheesecake: In a large bowl beat the cream cheese, mascarpone cheese, flour and salt with a hand mixer on medium speed until smooth. Add the sugar and continue to beat until incorporated. Add in the coffee liqueur, vanilla extract and espresso granules and beat until incorporated. Add the eggs 1 at a time, beating until just blended. Pour into the prepared crust.

Place the cheesecake on a baking sheet and bake in the oven for 50 – 60 minutes, until the sides of the cheesecake are set but the center is still jiggly.

Cool on a wire rack and then refrigerate overnight.

To decorate: Make whipped cream by beating together the whipping cream, vanilla extract and confectioners’ sugar until stiff peaks form.

Using a fine mesh sieve, dust the top of the cheesecake with the cocoa powder. Carefully remove the ring from the pan and using some of whipped cream place the halved ladyfingers around the cheesecake. Transfer the remaining whipped cream to a piping bag fitted with a large star tip and pipe dollops of the whipped cream around the cheesecake.

Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Recipe for Tiramisu Cheesecake filling slightly modified from Spruce Eats

Banana Cake with a Mascarpone Whipped Cream Frosting

Has your cooking and baking gotten a tad bit creative in these crazy times? As we all try to adhere to social distancing our runs to the grocery store may have become non-existent or minimal. On those times we do go our selections may be slim pickings or restricted. So, what are we to do? We have to make do with what we have at home or get creative with what we can get on our grocery runs.

I recently picked up a bunch of bunch of bananas on one of my runs and I always make the mistake of getting a few too many or not eating them fast enough. I prefer my bananas to not have any spots on them. So, with three overripe bananas staring at me I decided to make a banana cake. And initially I was thinking of making a whipped cream frosting to top it, but, then I remembered I had a slightly used container of mascarpone cheese in my fridge that was quickly approaching its expiration date, so I decided to make a Mascarpone Whipped Cream frosting instead. Now, I wasn’t all that sure how the two flavors would go together, but, since mascarpone is closely related to cream cheese (both are essentially the same but mascarpone has a higher fat content than cream cheese, hence it having a richer and creamier taste) and a lot of banana cakes do have a cream cheese frosting I figured they would work together. So, if you don’t have either mascarpone or whipped cream on hand but you do have cream cheese and confectioners’ sugar you could easily just make a cream cheese frosting to top the cake. Or, to make things even easier, and just as delicious, you can enjoy the cake on its own without frosting. Hopefully that wasn’t too much information or rambling.

Once I had baked the cakes I let them cool completely before refrigerating them overnight before frosting them.

I wasn’t sure if I had enough frosting to fill and cover the cake so I decided to just lightly frost the cake and use the remaining frosting to pipe a few swirls on it.

Final verdict… The two flavors worked well together.

 

Banana Cake

  • Servings: 10 to 12 people
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Ingredients:

3 overripe bananas, mashed

3 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon salt

3/4 cups unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup light brown sugar

3 large eggs, at room temperature

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups buttermilk, at room temperature*

*To make your own buttermilk combine 7 teaspoons of white vinegae with 1 1/2 cups whole milk in a measuring cup. Stir to combine and let stand for 10 to 15 minutes. The buttermilk is ready when the mixture begins to curdle.

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Spray two 8-inch round cake pans with baking spray (or coat with butter and flour) and set aside.

In a medium bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Set aside.

In a large bowl, using a handheld mixer, beat the butter on high speed until creamy. Add both sugars and continue beating until creamed together. Lower the speed to medium and add the eggs and vanilla extract and continue beating until well combined. Add the mashed bananas and beat until just combined. Reduce the speed to low and add the dry ingredients in three parts alternating with the buttermilk. Do not overmix the batter, a few lumps is okay.

Divide the batter amongst the two pans (about 3 cups each) and bake in the preheated oven for 35 – 40 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted in the middle comes out clean.

Let the cakes cool in the pans for 15 minutes and then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Recipe from Sally’s Baking Addiction

 

Mascarpone Whipped Cream Frosting

Ingredients:

1 1/4 cups heavy cream

3/4 cups confecitioners’ sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

8oz. mascarpone cheese*

*You can substitute cream cheese for the mascarpone cheese, or just make a cream cheese frosting with the addition of the heavt cream

Directions:

Remove the mascarpone cheese (cream cheese) from the refrigerator 15 minutes prior to making the frosting. You want the cheese to be softened but still cold.

In a medium bowl, using a handheld mixer, beat together the heavy cream, confectioners’ sugar and vanilla exract on medium speed until soft peaks form. Add in the cheese and continue beating until stiff peaks form.

 

 

 

Strawberry Trifle with Mascarpone Whipped Cream

Hope you all had a wonderful 4th! Unfortunately the holiday weekend is now over and it’s back to the daily grind of work, but, on the bright side there is still more summer to enjoy. I had my annual BBQ on the 4th and it was a great time… You can never go wrong with great friends, delicious food and yummy desserts.

This year, one of my friends and his mother-in-law decided to have a rib throw-down. Everyone was a winner in this throw-down. One of them was declared as having the best ribs and the rest of us got to enjoy them. In all honesty both were equally delicious in my book… One had a bit of a kick and the other one had a nice amount of homemade BBQ sauce on it.

I made a few salads (macaroni, potato, black and a Greek chickpea salad), macaroni and cheese, slow cooker baked beans and of course dessert.

I made this very patriotic funfetti cake…

A Strawberry Blueberry Icebox Cake (this is actually a dessert I make every year for the 4th)…

And for the first time ever I made a trifle. It had layers of Angel Food Cake, Mascarpone Whipped Cream and Mint Macerated Strawberries. I took a major time-saving shortcut and used a store-bought Angel Food Cake as opposed to baking one from scratch. If you’re not keen on Angel Food Cake, a Pound Cake would be a nice substitute. And, if you don’t have a trifle bowl you could use a large flat-bottomed glass bowl.

 

Strawberry Trifle with Mascarpone Whipped Cream

Ingredients:

Store-bought or Homemade Angel Food Cake or Pound Cake, cut into cubes

For the macerated strawberries:

2 lbs. strawberries, hulled and quartered

1/2 cup sugar

2 tablespoons chopped fresh mint

For the mascarpone whipped cream:

1 1/3 cups mascarpone cheese

1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar

2 cups heavy whipping cream

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:

For the Mascarpone Whipped Cream:

Using a handheld mixer on medium speed beat the mascarpone cheese and sugar until combined. Add the heavy cream and vanilla extract and continue beating until stiff peaks form. Use immediately or cover and refrigerate for up to 2 days.

For the strawberries:

In a large bowl stir together the strawberries, sugar and mint. Let stand at room temperature until the strawberries begin to release their juices, about 15 minutes.

To assemble the trifle:

Place a single layer of cake in the bottom of the bowl. Spoon a third of the macerated strawberries over the cake and then spread a third of the mascarpone whipped cream over the strawberries. Repeat these layers two more times ending with a layer of mascarpone whipped cream. Place a few strawberries in the center of the whipped cream for decoration. Serve immediately or cover and refrigerate for a few hours before serving.

Recipe slightly modified from Williams-Sonoma

Mini Fruit Tarts

I recently made a bunch of bite-sized treats (and cookies) for a party some friends of mine were having. A lot of brainstorming went into what I should make. I was all over the place with ideas. At one point I was actually thinking of making petit fours, but, I quickly nixed that idea when I couldn’t find or come up with a recipe that would be completely foolproof. I knew I was going to make cheesecake brownie bites (which are always a hit, you can find the recipe here), Raspberry Ripple Cupcakes, Rugelach (another hit), Chocolate Chip Cookies and Peanut Butter Cookies, but, I wanted something new to make. So, after some random Google searches I settled on Mini Fruit Tarts. They seemed simple enough, and, I made things even easier for myself when at the last minute I decided to buy frozen phyllo shells instead of making the dough myself.

I found these phyllo shells at my local supermarket in the frozen food section. To prep the shells I simply placed them on a baking sheet and baked them in a 350 F preheated oven for four minutes to make them crispy.

While they were cooling I made the filling. I combined mascarpone cheese, heavy whipping cream and confectioners’ sugar in a large bowl and used a handheld mixer to beat the ingredients until stiff peaks formed. I transferred the mixture to a piping bag fitted with a medium-sized round piping tip and piped the filling into each of the shells, but, you could use a small spoon to spoon the mixture into them as well. I then placed the filled tarts in the refrigerator while I chopped up strawberries and kiwis to top them. Once the fruit was ready I topped each of the tarts with a piece of strawberry and kiwi and a blueberry. I honestly think that I had 45 tarts done in less than an hour. You can’t beat that!

Here are some pics of all the desserts I made. Oh yeah, at the last minute (the night before) I decided to make mini carrot cupcakes as well. I ended up using my go-to Carrot Cake recipe and since I didn’t halve it I ended up with about 100 mini cupcakes. I only ended up frosting half of them and the rest ended up being the perfect little snack to munch on.

 

Mini Fruit Tarts

  • Servings: 22 (2 each)
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Ingredients:

3 boxes of phyllo shells*

1 cup mascarpone cheese

1 cup heavy whipping cream

5 tablespoons confectioners’ sugar

Fruit for topping**

 

*I used Athens Phyllo Shells, each box contains 15 shells

**I used chopped strawberries and kiwis and blueberries

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Place phyllo shells on a large baking sheet and bake for 3-5 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool on the pan.

In a large bowl combine the mascarpone cheese, heaving whipping cream and confectioners’ sugar and using a handheld mixer beat the ingredients until stiff peaks form.

Transfer the mixture to a piping bag fitted with a round tip and pipe the mascarpone cream into the cooled shells. You could also use a spoon to spoon the mixture into the shells.

Top with your desired fruit and chill until ready to serve.

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