Triple Berry Japanese Cotton Soft Cheesecake

The best thing about the warmer months is the abundance of fresh berries. They are so colourful and delicious and I just want to put them on every single dessert I make. This week I happened to walk past a big batch of fresh mulberries and I had to get them. For me mulberries bring back incredibly strong childhood memories of picking them off my neighbour's mulberry bush in Perth, gathering them in a big white ice cream container and washing them off with the garden hose before eating the whole lot in one go with my brother. I love them.

To go with my haul of fresh berries I made this light and fluffy Japanese Cotton Soft Cheesecake. We've talked about this type of cheesecake before. We like this cheesecake. It's the perfect balance between a cheesecake and a spongecake. It's only downside is that it doesn't have a crust. I do like a good cheesecake crust...but it's still pretty great without it.

I got a little fancier with it this time by making three separate layers, each flavoured with a different berry. I love how pretty it looks with the separate layers, almost like an ombre cheesecake. But to be honest when you're eating it with all the fresh berries you can't really taste the difference between the layers, so it's mostly just there for the visual effect.

I couldn't resist pulling out my heart-shaped tin for this one. The only time I get uneasy about baking heart-shaped things is around Valentines day. Any other time of the year it's all good! Because it was such a fluffy cheesecake it ended up rising a LOT higher than the edges of my tin, so it was a good thing I reinforced the sides higher with lots of baking paper. After topping off the cheesecake with fresh berries, I decided to add a lemon jelly glaze over the top to give it a bit of shine and an added bit of tang. I love how luscious it makes the berries look!

The important thing with this cake is to make sure you bake it for long enough and cool it down slowly so the middle doesn't collapse in on itself. You'll always get a tiny bit of shrinkage as it cools but if it's set enough and you are patient then you'll end up with a fairly smooth top. I was pretty pleased with myself this time, I usually tend to rush it and turn the middle into a pancake. This time it stayed tall and so pretty with those three distinct layers. The cheesecake on its own is not very sweet at all so it really benefitted from having all the berries on top. Ooh or you could try covering the top of it in lemon curd, that would be great!

Triple Berry Cotton Soft Cheesecake

(adapted from Diana's Desserts)

250g/9oz cream cheese

50g/1.75oz butter

100 ml (1/3 cup + 1 tbsp) fresh milk

60g/2 oz plain/all-purpose flour

40g/1.5 oz cornflour (cornstarch)

1/4 tsp salt 

1 tbsp lemon juice

6 egg yolks

6 egg whites 

140g/5oz fine granulated sugar (caster sugar)

1/4 tsp cream of tartar

3 cups (about 300g) berries, fresh or frozen (and thawed), I used 1 cup blueberries, 1 cup strawberries, 1 cup blackberries

Optional: Fresh berries to decorate 

 

Puree (and strain if you prefer not to have seeds) your berries, keeping each type of berry separate if you want different flavoured layers, otherwise blend them together. Preheat oven to 160°C (320°F). Grease base and sides, and line the base and sides of a 20cm (8inch) round (or heart) baking tin with baking paper (it's best to avoid springform tins as it will be placed in a water bath). Melt cream cheese, butter and milk in a heatproof mixing bowl over a pot of simmering water, whisking until smooth. Cool the mixture. Fold in the flour, the cornflour, egg yolks, lemon juice and mix well. In a separate mixing bowl, whisk egg whites with cream of tartar until foamy. Add in the sugar and whisk with an electric mixer until soft peaks form. Add cream cheese mixture to egg white mixture and stir until combined. If making separate layers, split mixture between three bowls. Fold in berry puree. 

Pour one layer of cheesecake into the prepared tin and bake in a water bath  for about 10-15 minutes until the surface is just set, then pour the next layer on top carefully and bake for another 10 minutes. Pour on the final layer of cheesecake and bake for a further 50-60 minutes, until the top is turning golden and the middle is set. Gently cool the cheesecake to prevent the centre from collapsing, I did this by turning the heat down by half 10 minutes before it was done, then turning off the heat for another 10 minutes, and leaving it to cool with the oven door crack open for another 10 minutes. If you are baking a single layer cheesecake, bake for about 1hour 10-15 minutes until done. 

If the top starts to brown too quickly, carefully cover with a sheet of foil. Make sure your cheesecake is set before removing from oven, don't worry about it drying out as the berries will stop this. Cool in tin and then carefully transfer to a cake plate to serve. Top with extra berries. (I also glazed the top of the cake and the berries with a lemon jelly by mixing 1 tbsp gelatine powder with 1 tbsp hot water to dissolve, plus 1 tbsp lemon juice and 1 tbsp icing/powdered sugar). Keep in fridge until ready to serve.

Pandan Cotton Soft Cheesecake with Kaya

I didn't make this cake for Christmas, I made it for my brother's birthday a couple weeks ago. But I thought I'd share it with you guys because it is SO GOOD, and it's red and green so it's still relevant to the season. I've made plain Japanese cotton soft cheesecake before, the such a magical hybrid of cheesecake and sponge cake but this one has a Malaysian spin to it. This one is flavoured with pandan, and the cake is filled with kaya. If you've read my blog for a while and you don't know what either of those are then I will be sad. I've written about it a lot. Pandan-flavoured stuff is awesome. Kaya is AWESOME. This cake is awesome.

The pandan flavouring gives the cake that neon green hue, and I think the strawberries work really well as a topping, both looks and flavourwise. The super light and soft pandan cheesecake is fun alternative to the usual pandan chiffon cake, and it works really well as a cheesecake flavour. Because the cake itself is so light and has a bit of a tangy flavour from the cream cheese, it goes well with that thick layer of coconut jam in the middle. Kaya is the sort of thing that shouldn't be eaten in moderation.

I'm silly and completely forgot that I needed to bake cakes in a water bath, which is why the outside is a little browner than you might expect. But when you cut into the cake it looks pretty impressive. If you couldn't be bothered splitting the cake into two separate layers you can bake it as one cake and spread the kaya on top instead. And if you can't be bothered making your own kaya or buying some from the Asian supermarket, you could try filling the cake with some coconut flavoured cream.

Anyway, I wanted to wish all of you a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. I hope everyone has a safe and happy holidays. I'll be back next year with more sugary, buttery recipes!

Pandan Cotton Soft Cheesecake with Kaya

(serves 12, adapted from this recipe from Diana's Desserts)

140g/5 oz fine granulated sugar

6 egg whites

6 egg yolks

1/4 tsp cream of tartar

50g/2 oz butter

250g/9 oz cream cheese

100 ml/3 fluid oz fresh milk

2 tsp pandan paste (you will need more if using pandan essence, adjust to taste)

1 tbsp lemon juice

50g/1.75 oz plain/all-purpose flour

30g/1 oz cornflour (cornstarch)

1/4 tsp salt

1 cup kaya (Malaysian coconut jam, available at most Asian groceries or here's a recipe to make your own)

Optional: Fresh strawberries or other fruit to decorate

Preheat oven to 160°C (320°F). Grease base and sides, and line the base of two 18cm round cake tins with baking paper. Melt cream cheese, butter and milk over a double boiler. Cool the mixture. Fold in the flour, the cornflour, egg yolks, lemon juice and pandan paste and mix well. In a separate mixing bowl, whisk egg whites with cream of tartar until foamy. Add in the sugar and whisk until soft peaks form. Add cream cheese mixture to egg white mixture and stir until combined. Split mixture between the two cake tins. Bake cheesecake in a water bath (I forgot the water bath, this isn't the end of the world it will just be a little drier on the outside) for about 50 mins or until set and golden brown at 160°C (320°F).

When cakes are ready, cool them very slowly to stop the cakes from collapsing in the centre. Turn the oven off first for 5 mins, then open the oven door and let it cool for another 10 mins, then cool in tin for 15 mins. Remove from tin and cool completely on a wire rack. Sandwich the two cake layers together with the kaya in between. I topped my cake with strawberries, which had been hulled, halved and marinated in sugar for an hour. Serve immediately or store in the fridge in an airtight container for up to about 3 days.

Strawberry Cotton Soft Japanese Cheesecakes

Who else is in love with Japanese cheesecake? They have the most beautiful texture; soft, light and fluffy, nothing like the super rich, heavy cheesecakes that you normally get. I've been dying to try this fabulous Cotton Soft Japanese Cheesecake recipe from Diana's Desserts for the longest time, and if you haven't tried it before, you must!

I got totally hung up on the idea of making toadstool cupcakes in the last few weeks. And though it seemed like a cute idea, a plain cupcake decorated to look like a toadstool seemed a little blah. So I was really excited when I got the idea to combine it with my attempt at these cotton soft cheesecakes. The result was better than I had hoped, the cheesecake recipe is lovely and completely matches its name. I was surprised that the cheesecake itself wasn't that sweet, so it ended up matching very well with the strawberry jam and white chocolate buttons that topped it off. I would have made my own strawberry topping with fresh strawberries, sugar and gelatine, but unfortunately I didn't have the time or the ingredients. So if you feel like trying that, be my guest because I'm sure it will make it taste even better!!

I know it's been a little quiet on this blog recently, but I'm taking it pretty easy and only baking it when the mood strikes, because I don't want my entries to feel forced and rushed. There are so many amazing food blogs around at the moment and I think it's important to do what you love and are passionate about, without comparing yourself against others.

Anyway, if you are in a cheesecake mood, or even a sponge cake mood, this is the recipe for you. The cake is somewhere between a baked cheesecake and a very light sponge, and I think I could eat about 3 of them in one sitting if I had no self control. Of course, I love splitting them up into individual portions, and decorating them to look like toadstools makes it all the more fun. They would be great for a kid's tea party I think! Though now I'm totally regretting not putting a pair of eyes on one of them, but that might make me want to create more Mario characters as baked goods.

Strawberry Cotton Soft Japanese Cheesecakes
(adapted from this recipe, makes about 14 cupcake sized cheesecakes)
140g/5 oz. fine granulated sugar
6 egg whites
6 egg yolks
1/4 tsp. cream of tartar
50g/2 oz. butter
250g/9 oz. cream cheese
100 ml/3 fluid oz. fresh milk
1 tbsp. lemon juice
60g/2 oz. cake flour /superfine flour
20g/1 oz. cornflour (cornstarch)
250g strawberry jam
Optional: White chocolate buttons

Melt cream cheese, butter and milk over a double boiler. I used a whisk to break up any lumps. Cool the mixture. Fold in the flour, the cornflour, egg yolks, lemon juice and mix well.

Whisk egg whites with cream of tartar until foamy. Add in the sugar and whisk until soft peaks form.

Add the cheese mixture to the egg white mixture and gently fold until just combined. Spoon into cupcake tray lined with paper liners, filling to about 5/6ths full.

Bake cheesecake in a water bath (I placed my cupcake tray in a roasting tray that was 3/4 filled with water) for approximately 30 mins or until set and golden brown at 160 degrees C (325 degrees F). A skewer inserted into the centre should come out with some moist crumbs attached. To avoid the cheesecakes cracking or collapsing, turn the oven off right before they are ready and then leave the oven door slightly open so they cool gradually. After 5 minutes, remove them from the oven and let them sit in the tray for another 10 minutes. Remove from the tray and leave to cool completely on a wire rack.

While the cheesecakes are baking, place strawberry jam in a small saucepan and gently heat, stirring until smooth. Set aside to cool and set slightly. When your cheesecakes have cooled, spoon a layer of strawberry jam over the top.

Optional: Decorate with white chocolate buttons to make them look like toadstools, which is kind of awesome. Leave to set for about half an hour and then remove paper cases before serving. Can be stored in fridge overnight.