Key Lime Pie

4 egg yolks, beaten
1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
1/2 cup key lime juice (I only had about 1/3 cup but I think it was even better because the consistence of the tart was just perfect)

1 cup finely ground graham cracker crumbs
2 tbsp sugar
1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
zest of a few key limes

Preheat oven to 190 degrees C.

Mix graham cracker crumbs, sugar, zest and melted butter. Press mixture into a tart plate. Refrigerate while you make the filling.

Combine the egg yolks, sweetened condensed milk and lime juice. Mix well and pour into unbaked graham cracker shell.

Bake in preheated oven for 15 minutes. Allow to cool and refrigerate for at least one hour or overnight before serving.

Cappuccino Cheesecake

Cappuccino Cheesecake

For the base:
1 cup graham cracker crumbs
1 tsp instant espresso powder
1 tsp cocoa powder
3 tbsp butter, melted*

For the cake:

500g cream cheese, at room temperature 
125g brown sugar
50g white sugar
2 1/2 teaspoons instant espresso powder
2 large eggs
2 large egg yolks
1 tablespoon coffee liqueur 

For the topping:
50g dark chocolate (I used 62%)

1/3 cup sugar

50g butter

¼ cup strong coffee

1 tbsp coffee liqueur

For the base:
1) Mix the graham cracker crumbs with espresso powder and cocoa. Melt the butter and add to the mixture. Press into bottom of a pan and place in refrigerator.

For the cake:
2) Heat oven to 160 degrees. Fill a kettle with water and bring to a boil. Wash bowl of food processor, and combine in it the cream cheese, brown sugar, white sugar, espresso, eggs, egg yolks and liqueur. Process to make a smooth mixture with no coffee powder visible.

3) Cover outside of a pan with a protective layer of plastic wrap covered with a double layer of foil. Fill with cake batter, and place in a roasting pan. Pour boiling water into roasting pan to come about halfway up side of springform pan. Bake until middle of cake is set but not firm (it should still wobble), 40 to 50 minutes.

4) Remove cheesecake from water bath and place on a rack. Remove outer layers from pan and allow to cool completely. Refrigerate for at least a few hours, preferably overnight.

5) Remove cheesecake from refrigerator 20 to 30 minutes** before serving. To remove from pan, slide a knife around inside edge of pan, then release sides. Place cheesecake on a platter.

For the topping:
6)  In a small saucepan, combine 25 grams of chocolate, butter, sugar and coffee. Heat the mixture and stir until the sugar dissolves. Add liqueur. Let cool a bit and pour over the cheesecake. Sprinkle with remaining chocolate shavings.

Serve chilled or at room temperature.

*I needed more butter. 

**I didn't use a water bath so maybe because of that I had to bake the cake much longer. It took about 1 hour 25 minutes. 

Yum!

The Best Apple Pie

The best apple pie I've tried! 

Apple Pie


For the dough: 
300g flour
1 tsp baking powder
200g cold butter
160g icing sugar
a pinch of salt
1 egg yolk


50g icing sugar


For the filling:
80g raisins
800g apples, cut into thin cubes
2 tbsp cinnamon
2 tbsp icing sugar


1 egg, beaten


Directions:


1. In a mixing bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, sugar and salt. Fold in cold butter and mix until the mixture resembles bread crumbs.


2. Add an egg yolk and mix until it becomes smooth and soft.


3. Put 2/3 of batter into the prepared baking dish, covering the bottom and the sides. Wrap the remaining dough and transfer to the refrigerator. 


4. Preheat the oven to 180C.


5. Mix apples with raisins, cinnamon and icing sugar. 


6. Sprinkle 50g of icing sugar over the batter and pour mixed apples on top. 


7. Take the dough out of the refrigerator and roll it into a thin rectangular. Cut it into stripes and put over the filling.


8. Brush the top of the pie with the beaten egg.


9. Bake for 1 hour 10 mins or until golden brown. 


10. Take out of the oven and cool at least for one hour. 

Enjoy!

Citrus Cookies

These simple cookies are perfect with a cup of coffee or tea. They are soft and lightly sweet. The icing gives more sweetness but the lemon zest gives some bitterness. I prefer them more bitter so if you want you can add more lemon zest. Here's the recipe!

For the cookies:
125g unsalted butter
90g icing sugar
185g all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons lemon zest
2 teaspoons lime zest
80g sour cream
1 tbsp lemon juice

For the orange icing:
150g icing sugar
2 tsp orange zest*
2 tbsp orange juice*

*I didn't have any orange so I substituted it with lemon zest and juice.

1) Preheat the oven to 180C. Line two baking trays with parchment paper. Place butter, icing sugar, flour, lime and lemon zest in a food processor. Process for 10 seconds or until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs (I didn't have a food processor so I made it by hand. I mixed all ingredients and finally cut the butter in it, it takes more time but the result is the same). Add the sour cream and lemon juice and process for 10 secs or until the mixture is well combined (The mixture for me looked too dry so I added some additional juice and sour cream. I'm not sure if it was necessary but I was afraid that my cookies will be too hard).

2) Drop level tablespoons of mixture onto the prepared trays. Bake for 15 minutes, or until lightly golden. Cool completely on a wire rack. 

3) To make the orange icing, combine all ingredients in a bowl  and stand it over a pan of simmering watter, stirring until the icing is smooth and glossy. Spread the icing over the cookies with a flat-bladed knife (I dipped each cookie into the icing because this looked easier for me).


Enjoy!

Pear Tart

Pear Tart

Pastry:

1-1/3 cups all-purpose flour

3 tablespoons sugar

1/4 teaspoon salt

7 tablespoons cold butter, cubed

2 to 3 tablespoons cold water

                           
Filling:

3/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup slivered almonds, toasted

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

1-1/2 teaspoons dried grated lemon peel

1/2 to 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

4 medium ripe pears, peeled and sliced

1 tablespoon butter

                           
Topping:

1 egg white

1 teaspoon water

1 tablespoon coarse sugar

                           
Glaze:

1/4 cup confectioners' sugar

1-1/2 teaspoons milk

1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/4 cup slivered almonds, toasted

·  Combine the flour, sugar and salt; cut in butter until crumbly. Gradually add water, tossing with a fork until dough forms a ball. Roll out to a 14-in. circle. Transfer pastry to a pan.

combine the sugar, almonds, flour, lemon peel and cinnamon. Add pears; toss to coat. Spoon over the pastry to within 5 cm of edges; dot with butter. Fold edges of pastry over pears.

For topping, beat egg white and water. Brush over pastry; sprinkle with coarse sugar. Bake at 190° for 45-50 minutes or until golden brown.

For glaze, combine the confectioners' sugar, milk and vanilla. Pour over warm tart. Sprinkle with almonds. Cool on a wire rack. Store in the refrigerator.