New York Cheesecake Minis ~ Sous Vide

We just adore rich, creamy, dense, luxurious cheesecake.  The problem though, when there's a large cake in the house, everyone keeps trying to "even out" the slices or the cake, eating more and more with no stopping.  Come on, you know you do it too!!  So when we want a treat, the best solution for our waistlines is portion control and making these mini cheesecakes works beautifully.  Also, it allows us to customize the cheesecakes.  For example, in Maisie's cheesecake we use gluten-free Graham cracker crumbs. Eammon gets a regular Graham cracker crumb crust and personally, I prefer no crust at all, so mine is crumb-free.  Easy-peasy to customize when you're making minis!! The sous vide method produces cheesecake perfection... dense, smooth, rich, & creamy deliciousness.

New York Cheesecake Minis ~ Sous Vide

makes 10

10 - 4oz. canning cars with lids and rings

1 1/2 TBS. Ghee or butter

1/2 cup Graham cracker crumbs or gluten free Graham cracker crumbs

1 lb. cream cheese - the block, not whipped or light - room temperature

1/2 cup sour cream

1/3 cup sugar or sweetener of your choice

2 eggs

1 egg yolk

1 TBS. pure vanilla extract

1 tsp. vanilla bean paste

Pre-heat the sous vide to 176F. 

In a pan on medium heat, melt the ghee and add the Graham cracker crumbs.  Stirring regularly, toast the crumbs.  Remove from heat and divide equally between the jars.  Press down on the crumbs to even them out and create the crust.  

Add the cream cheese to the bowl of a mixer.  Using a paddle blade, blend until smooth. Scrape down the bowl as necessary. Add the sour cream, sugar, eggs, egg yolk, and all the vanilla.  Blend until perfectly smooth.  Divide the cream cheese mixture evenly between the jars.  Add the lid and tighten the ring finger-tip tight.  

Once the sous vide has come to temperature, add the jars, making sure that they stay upright.  A few air bubbles may come from the jars, but if the ring are fingertip tight, no worries.  Set the timer for 1.5 hours.  At the end of the time, remove the jars to a cooling rack.  Once you can handle the jars, place in the refrigerator for at least 12 hours.  The flavor improves after a 24 hour chill so if you can wait that long, we would advise you do.  

Serve cheesecakes right in the glass jars.

Enjoy!

Special Dark Chocolate Cupcakes with Chocolate Fluff Frosting ~ Gluten, Egg & Dairy Free

Today is a triple special day, it's my A-Maisie-ing Maisie's eighth birthday, it’s Improv Cooking Challenge reveal day AND after weeks of neglect I'm finally adding a new recipe to the blog. How appropriate is it that this month for the Improv Cooking Challenge our hostess Kristen of Frugal Antics of a Harried Homemaker challenged the participating bloggers to make any recipe of their choosing using the specified ingredients of cake & frosting! She must have known that it was my girl's day and that she adores cake and frosting.

Of course Maisie with her allergies, I had to make her special treats gluten, egg & dairy free...but still delicious. These cupcakes were a big hit with my girl and since I made them just for her, I only frosted one and then wrapped and put the extras in the freezer to be thawed, frosted and enjoyed another day.

Special Dark Chocolate Cupcakes with Chocolate Fluff Frosting ~ Gluten, Egg & Dairy Free

• 1 1/2 cups pitted dates
• 1 1/2 cup unsweetened chocolate almond milk
• 1/4 cup coconut cream
• 2 tsp. vanilla bean paste
• 1 cup brown rice flour
• 1/2 cup cornstarch
• 5 TBS. Hershey's Special Dark unsweetened cocoa powder
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. salt

Frosting:

• Marshmallow Fluff
• Unsweetened cocoa powder
• Pinch of salt

Preheat oven to 350F.

Using a food processor, combine the dates, almond milk, coconut cream & vanilla bean paste, pulsing until you have a smooth and creamy paste. In a separate bowl whisk together the rice flour, corn starch, cocoa powder, baking powder & salt. add the wet to the dry ingredients. Beat the mixture by hand for two minutes. Portion the batter into 4-6 cupcake liners.

Bake 15-20 minutes, until a tester inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool completely before frosting. To make frosting, stir together the desired amount of Marshmallow Fluff and flavor to taste with cocoa powder and a pinch of salt. Pipe frosting onto cupcake and decorate with sprinkles.

Enjoy!

My previous Improv Cooking Challenge entries:

• September 2013 Macaroni & Cheese: Creamy Mac & Cheese, Gluten, Egg & Dairy Free
• August 2013 Vanilla & Chocolate: Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Rice Krispy Treats with Vanilla Coconut Frosting
• July 2013 Peaches & Herbs: Peachy Cola Ribs
• June 2013 Fish & Chips: Salt & Vinegar Crab Cakes
• May 2013 Cinnamon & Sugar: Cinnamon Bun Cookie Bars
• April 2013 Bacon & Eggs: Mini Bacon & Swiss Quiche Cups
• March 2013 Carrots & Peas: Mom’s Beef Vegetable Soup
• February 2013 Hearts & Flours: Three Ingredient Fudgy Nutella Brownie Bites
• January 2013 Bananas & Nutmeg: Baked Bananas
• December 2012 Chocolate & Marshmallows: White Chocolate Marshmallow Cranberry Cashew Bark
• November 2012 Sweet Potatoes & honey: Sweet Potato Glass Noodles with Honey Garlic Lime Shrimp
• October 2012 Oatmeal & Raisins: S’mores Granola Bars
• September 2012 Zucchini & Brown Sugar: Zucchini with Onion & Brown Sugar
• August 2012 Tomatoes & Peppers: French Fries Hash Browns
• July 2012 Corn & Butter: Fritos Crusted Pollock
• June 2012 Cherries & Almonds: Dried Cherry Almond Tart
• May 2012 Strawberries & Cream: Strawberry Soup
• April 2012 Peanut butter & Jelly: Peanut Butter & Jelly Bars
• March 2012 Potato & Cheese: Loaded Potato & Buffalo Chicken Casserole
• February 2012 Ginger & Carrots: Shrimp & Avocado Salad with Carrot Ginger Dressing
• January 2012 Lemon & Sour Cream: Ponderosa Lemon & Sour Cream Tart
• December 2011 Eggnog & Cranberries: Eggnog Popovers with Cranberry Butter
• November 2011 Pumpkin & Cream Cheese: Praline Pumpkin Cheesecake
• October 2011 Caramel & Apples: Caramel Stuffed Apple Cider Cookies

 

Cinnamon Bun Cookie Bars

This month for the Improv Cooking Challenge our hostess Kristen of Frugal Antics of a Harried Homemaker challenged the participating bloggers to make any recipe of their choosing using the specified ingredients of cinnamon and sugar!  I wanted to bake something sweet to share with some friends, so what better ingredients than cinnamon and sugar?  I thought about all my favorite cookie and bar recipes but realized that I tend to make the same cookies over and over again and I wanted to try something different.  So what did I do?  I checked out Pinterest of course and happened upon these cinnamon roll cookie bars from Blissful Whimsy.  

The bars sounded really good but I almost passed on making them because they use a box cake mix.  I don’t know what it is about me but I generally have this thing about using boxed mixes of any kind, thinking everything needs to be made from scratch…but something about these bars just allowed me to look past the whole cake mix thing and I’m so happy about that as these cookie bars are just wonderful.  There’s no trace of that cake mix flavor, in fact these cookie bars taste just like cinnamon buns.  Everyone really loved the crunchy edges and top and the chewy center and the glaze on top was the perfect amount of frosting.  Boxed cake mix and all, I hope that you’ll make these the next time you’re craving a sweet cinnamon treat.

Cinnamon Bun Cookie Bars (recipe from here)  

• 1 box yellow cake mix
• 1/2 cup melted butter
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 1/2 TBS. cinnamon
• 2-3 TBS. milk
• 2 cups powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 350F.  Mix the cake mix, butter, eggs, brown sugar and cinnamon together in a bowl and then spread into a greased 9"x13" baking dish. Bake for 20-25 minutes.  Bake until the top is crispy and a pick inserted into the center comes out clean.  Remove from the oven and allow to cool a bit before piping on the icing.  To make the icing whisk the milk and powdered sugar together until smooth. 

Enjoy!

My previous Improv Cooking Challenge entries:

April 2013  Bacon & Eggs:  Mini Bacon & Swiss Quiche Cups 
March 2013  Carrots & Peas:  Mom’s Beef Vegetable Soup 
February 2013  Hearts & Flours:  Three Ingredient Fudgy Nutella Brownie Bites
January 2013  Bananas & Nutmeg:  Baked Bananas 
December 2012  Chocolate & Marshmallows:  White Chocolate Marshmallow Cranberry Cashew Bark    
November 2012  Sweet Potatoes & honey: Sweet Potato Glass Noodles with Honey Garlic Lime Shrimp 
October 2012  Oatmeal & Raisins:  S’mores Granola Bars   
September 2012  Zucchini & Brown Sugar:  Zucchini with Onion & Brown Sugar 
August 2012  Tomatoes & Peppers:  French Fries Hash Browns 
July 2012  Corn & Butter:  Fritos Crusted Pollock 
June 2012  Cherries & Almonds:  Dried Cherry Almond Tart 
May 2012  Strawberries & Cream:  Strawberry Soup 
April 2012  Peanut butter & Jelly:  Peanut Butter & Jelly Bars 
March 2012  Potato & Cheese:  Loaded Potato & Buffalo Chicken Casserole 
February 2012  Ginger & Carrots:  Shrimp & Avocado Salad with Carrot Ginger Dressing 
January 2012 Lemon & Sour Cream:  Ponderosa Lemon & Sour Cream Tart 
December 2011 Eggnog & Cranberries:  Eggnog Popovers with Cranberry Butter 
November 2011 Pumpkin & Cream Cheese:  Praline Pumpkin Cheesecake
October 2011 Caramel & Apples:  Caramel Stuffed Apple Cider Cookies

Pumpkin Pie Bars ~ Gluten, Egg & Dairy Free

Yummy Pumpkin Pie Bars.  Cake-like on the top and bottom and chewy creamy in the middle.

 

April is National Soyfoods Month and I was contacted by Soyafoods* and asked to try and use their products in one of my recipes.  We use a number of soy products here in the Cook Lisa Cook house as we all adore edamame and go through a package in nothing flat.  Snacks like Sunrich Honey Nutz are always a favorite, especially for Maisie at school or at the gym where it gives her that extra protein and calories she needs to make it through her long gymnastics practices . I use tofu in a number of recipes and because Maisie’s allergic to milk, I often substitute soy milk for dairy milk when baking.  I was totally onboard with featuring a recipe which includes soy, in this case, Westsoy soy milk.  Today’s recipe is for some absolutely delicious Pumpkin Pie Bars, which are Maisie “safe” as they don’t contain any wheat, egg or dairy…but you’d never know that from the flavor.  These bars are sort of a cross between cake and pie because the top and bottom of the bars have the texture of cake and the middle has a nice moist and somewhat chewy creamy texture, not quite as custardy as pumpkin pie, but close.  The bars are simple to make and of course, totally delicious!!

Maisie’s been cooped up at home for a the past few days, recovering from sinus surgery and avoiding our outrageous pollen counts so she was excited to help Mama cook, especially as the final product was for her!

Licking the spatula is always a delicious treat.

I love using my Slice Solutions Pan as it makes perfect portions.  One note though, when using this pan with the insert, it cooks faster than an undivided pan so you’ll have to adjust your cooking time depending on your oven and which pan you use. 

Pumpkin Pie Bars fresh from the oven, with the insert removed.

 Maisie approved, Pumpkin Pie Bar success!!

Pumpkin Pie Bars ~ Gluten, Egg & Dairy Free

• 1 1/2 cups brown rice flour
• 1 cup tapioca flour 
• 1/2 cup corn starch
• 1 tsp. xanthan gum  
• 1/8 tsp. ground cloves
• 1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
• 6 tsp. cinnamon
• 2 tsp. baking soda
• 4 TBS. ground golden flax seed
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 2 cups granulated sugar
• 3/4 cup Westsoy soy milk
• 1 cup vegetable oil 
• 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
• 1 – 15 oz. can 100% pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie mix) 

Preheat oven to 350F.  Spray a 9 x 13-inch Slice Solutions Pan or baking pan with cooking spray and set aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer combine the rice flour, tapioca flour, corn starch, xanthan gum, cloves, nutmeg, cinnamon, baking soda, flax seed, brown sugar and granulated sugar.  With the mixer on low, slowly add the soy milk, oil and lemon juice.  Once the wet ingredients are fully incorporated, scrape down the sides of the bowl and add the pumpkin puree.  Mix on low until fully incorporated.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan.  Add the Slice Solutions Pan insert and then bake for 50-60 minutes until the tops of the bars are golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center of the bars comes out clean.  (Note, when I cook with the Slice Solutions Pan my baked goods cook faster so if just using a regular undivided pan, your baking time could be as much as 30 minutes longer so keep checking to make sure that your bars aren’t over or under baked.)

Enjoy!

April is National Soyfoods Month so it’s the perfect time to learn about the place for soy in a healthy diet and easy ways to incorporate it into everyday meals.  Packed with protein and fiber, soyfoods are a tasty way to reduce calories, saturated fat and maintain your weight.  Many soy products like veggie burgers cook and thaw faster than traditional meat sources so that means more time and convenience—who couldn’t use more of both?

The Soyfoods Association of North America (SANA) provides information about the health benefits and nutritional advantages of soy. SANA offers fun recipes and convenient ways to incorporate soy into meals for everyone – from athletes to families. SANA is dedicated to spreading the word about soy, especially during National Soyfoods Month in April!  Here are just a few ways that soy can help make your life easier and healthier: Take this mixed berry smoothie up a notch with creamy and delicious WESTSOY Soymilk made from whole organic soybeans: Berry Smoothie WESTSOY Soymilk.  Need a snack on-the-go? Grab some gluten free SOYJOY bars to fuel up with nutrients in seconds, SOYJOY bars. On those busy weeknights, add some Wildwood tofu to the standard stir-fry for more protein or this spinach fettuccini to your favorite pasta sauce, Wildwood Tofu.  Packing lunches with the same snacks can get a little boring, but honey roasted soy nuts are a sweet and crunchy snack packaged in individual sizes, perfect for the lunch box, Honey Roasted Soy Nuts.  Packed with protein and fiber, soyfoods are a great way to reduce calories, cholesterol and saturated fat. They also serve as a great source of iron, calcium, vitamin B-12, magnesium and zinc.  Including soyfoods into your diet is easy and convenient. See the recipes below: Soymilk adds a healthy twist to any smoothie and these scalloped potatoes: Soy Milk Scalloped Potatoes.  Edamame makes a great energy-boosting snack and puts in an interesting twist on this hummus: Edamame Hummus,  Easy recipes to get cooking with soy ingredients: Easy recipes to get cooking with soy

Follow the SoyFoods Association on Twitter at @SocialSANA

Follow SoyFoods Association on Facebook

 

Disclosures:

* This sponsorship is brought to you by Soyfoods Association who we have partnered with for this promotion. I was provided with a box of products to sample.  This is a compensated post but all the views and opinions expressed are my own and based upon my experiences with Soyfoods Association products.

Laura Goodenough’s Apple Coffeecake

It’s Secret Recipe Club time and this month I was assigned Stephanie’s blog, Sustainable Cooking for One.  Stephanie is a single gal who is pursuing a PhD in community nutrition and is passionate about eating local, gluten-free, low/no meat, in-season sustainable foods.  Also as the title of her blog suggests she focuses on cooking for one and even has a cookbook called One Bowl: Simple Healthy Recipes for One.

A number of Stephanie’s recipes appealed to me, her Red Lentil & Squash Soup as it’s been cold here, I had all the ingredients in my home and soup is always a wonderful meal, I thought that we’d all enjoy her Carrot Edamame Salad, and because I’ve been on a bit of a cauliflower kick lately, both her Creamy Cauliflower Carrot Custard and Roasted Cauliflower with Lemon & Mustard sounded like good options.  In the end though I decided that I wanted to make a cake for a friend and her family as her husband is going through chemotherapy and radiation and I thought that they would enjoy a sweet, homemade treat, so I chose Stephanie’s Laura Goodenough’s Apple Coffee Cake.  Really, just like Stephanie, what appealed to me first about the cake was the name but when I read the recipe and saw the large amount of fresh apples and the flavor profile, it sounded like a delicious and perfect cake for my friend.

When Stephanie made her cake she adapted the recipe making it gluten-free but as my friends don’t have gluten issues, I made the cake with plain all-purpose flour.  Also, I didn’t have cider in my home but in my freezer I had frozen apple juice concentrate so I used that instead and because I felt that the concentrate was sweeter than the cider, I cut the sugar in the recipe a bit.  I also decided to add a little vanilla bean paste and salt to the batter just for some additional depth of flavor.  

Stephanie made two loaves from the recipe but I was really making this cake for my friend and trust me when I say, we don’t need lots of sweet treats in our home, but I did want to try the cake and of course get a picture, so I made one large loaf and a mini loaf for us to try and enjoy.  After eating our mini loaf I was sort of sad that I didn’t double the recipe as the cake was absolutely delicious and we would have loved more.  The strong cinnamon apple flavor and the slightly sweet cake with a nice crispy edge…well it was just perfect.  The cake was easy to make and we really loved it so I know that I’ll make it again and I know that my friend will love and appreciate the cake too.  Check out Stephanie’s blog for her gluten-free version.

Laura Goodenough’s Apple Coffee Cake (adapted from here)

• 5 - 6 apples, peeled, cored, and sliced thinly (about 4 cups), I used a mix of Fuji & honey crisp 
• 1 1/2 cups sugar, plus 2 TBS.
• 2 TBS. cinnamon
• 1 cup vegetable oil 
• 4 large eggs
• 1/4 cup apple juice concentrate
• 1 TBS. vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract 
• 3 cups all-purpose flour 
• 1 TBS. baking powder 
• 1/2 tsp. sea salt 

Heat the oven to 375 F. Grease a bundt pan or two loaf pans with cooking spray.

In a large bowl combine the apples with the cinnamon & 2 TBS. sugar and toss to coat, set aside. 

In a large bowl combine the vegetable oil, eggs, apple juice concentrate & vanilla.  Using a wooden spoon mix well.  Add the 1 1/2 cups of sugar, flour, baking powder & salt and combine well.  Spoon 1/3 of the batter into the bottom of the pan(s). Drain away any accumulated liquid from the apples and layer half the apples into the pan,  not allowing them to touch the sides. Spoon another 1/3 of the batter over the apples. Add the remaining apples, again not allowing them to touch the pan. Top with the remaining batter.

Bake for 60-70 minutes or until a knife comes out clean. Cover with foil if the top begins to overbrown.

Cool to warm or room temperature before slicing.

Enjoy!!

My previous Secret Recipe Club Recipe Posts: 

Loaded Potato Soup
Lemon Almond Biscotti 
Creamy Mints 
Thai Peanut Noodles with Chicken 
Baked Buffalo Chicken Wings 
Fried Green Tomatoes 
Chicken Satay Noodle Salad 
Double Chocolate Mousse Cake 
Candied Popcorn
Fruit, Nut & Poppy Seed Chicken Salad 
Broiled Sushi 
Health(ier) Peanut Brittle 
Crunchy Fudgy Heart Bites 
Texas Chicken with Lime Butter 
Pork Belly Soup with Collard Greens 
Thin Mint Irish Coffee 
Levain Chocolate Chip Walnut Cookies 
Welsh Cakes 
Nutella Crêpes 
Cilantro Lime Chicken 
Holy Guacamole 
and
Home Style Chicken Curry

Double Chocolate Mousse Cake

I love this time of month as it’s Secret Recipe Club time, woohoo!!  This month my assigned blog was Holly’s Phemomenon which is a blog that I just adore so I was super excited to dig through the multitude of recipes she has to find the “one” that I wanted to make and feature.  Finding that one recipe wasn’t easy because Holly not only cooks for her family but she also cooks and does television demonstrations and participates in numerous online cooking challenges so her blog is just chockablock with fabu recipes and tempting pictures.  Just as a funny aside, last month for our Secret Recipe Club posts Holly and I both, from two different blog assignments, each decided to make versions of candied popcorn.  I guess great minds think alike  ;-)

In the end I chose a recipe which Holly made for one of her online cooking groups, French Fridays with Dorie and the Michael Rostang’s Double Chocolate Mousse Cake.  I have been trying to avoid white…you know flour & sugar and this recipe was perfect as it didn’t contain flour and I could easily substitute the sugar and as I needed a dessert for a dinner I was making, well it was just a perfect pick.

I read that Michael Rostang is Michelin-starred chef in Paris and that this recipe is considered a classic at his restaurants, so off the top I figured it was going to be good.  I was also intrigued by the recipe as it uses only six ingredients and you make only one chocolate mousse and then bake some of it and then pile the rest of the mousse on top and either chill it or bake it again so you can enjoy it either warm or cold, but in the end it’s six ingredients, one batter, two layers, two textures, “my” diet friendly…and it’s chocolate….need I say more?

Let me start by saying, I took a LOT of liberties with this recipe.  First, because I didn’t have the correct sized pan for the recipe (I used a 10-inch springform pan) I doubled the original recipe so that my cake would have some depth and didn’t turn out pancake thin. Then to also mess around with what is probably chocolate perfection, I mean the originator IS a Michelin-starred chef, I used sugar-free chocolate chips instead of good high quality bittersweet chocolate and I also substituted Whey Low Gold for the sugar AND cut the amount of sweetener. 

Even with all my messing about this cake was absolutely amazing and I love the two layers, so I can’t even begin to image how delicious and wonderful the original recipe would be.  Either way you choose to make this, my lower-carb no-added sugar version or the original, this is a simple and winning recipe.

Double Chocolate Mousse Cake

• 8 oz. sugar-free chocolate chips
• 2/3 cup hot brewed espresso
• 14 TBS. butter, at room temperature, divided
• 1 cup Whey Low Gold
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 8 large eggs, separated
• Whey Low Powdered, for dusting

Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 400 F.  Using the base of a 10-inch springform pan as a guide, cut a piece of parchment paper to fit into the bottom of the pan.  Re-assemble the springform pan and generously butter the sides and bottom.  Add the cut sheet of parchment paper to the bottom of the springform pan and smooth it down.

In a large microwave safe bowl melt the chocolate along with 4 Tablespoons of the butter.  Do not over heat the mixture, once the butter is all melted and hot stir to finish melting the chocolate until it's smooth.  Whisk in the espresso and then whisk in the remaining 10 Tablespoons of butter one tablespoon at a time. Gently whisk in the Whey Low Gold and one pinch of salt.  Then add the egg yolks, one at a time, whisking until you have a lovely, velvety mixture.

Using an stand mixer and a clean, dry bowl, whip the egg whites and the remaining salt until they are firm but still glossy. Very gingerly whisk about 1/4 of the egg whites into the chocolate mixture. Switch to a rubber spatula and gently fold in the remainder of the egg whites.

Scrape a generous third of the mixture into the buttered springform pan and place on a baking sheet. Cover and refrigerate the remaining mousse.

Bake the mousse in the springform pan for 15 minutes, at which point it will be puffed. Transfer the baking sheet to a wire cooling rack  and let the cake cool to room temperature. There will be a dip in the center of it. Place the cake, still in the springform pan, in the refrigerator for at least an hour.

Now you have a choice:

TO SERVE BAKED AND CHILLED (recommended and how I proceeded): Chill the base of the cake for at least an hour. Preheat the oven to 400 F. Scrape the remaining unused chilled mousse onto the chilled baked base and place on a baking sheet. Bake for 30 minutes or until top is puffed and dry. It will crack and a knife inserted inside a crack will come out almost dry.

Transfer the baking sheet to a wire cooling rack and cool to room temperature. Chill in the refrigerator for at least four hours or overnight. Remove the sides of the springform pan. (Run a blunt knife around the edges or warm the pan with a hairdryer.) Carefully transfer the cake to a serving plate, and dust with Whey Low Powdered.  Serve with whipped cream or ice cream if desired.  

TO SERVE BAKED AND WARM: Bake as for "baked and chilled" (above). After you have transferred the baking sheet with the cake on it to a cooling rack, wait five minutes and then run a blunt knife around the edges of the cake and remove the sides of the pan. The cake will sink, so just let it settle for another five minutes. Transfer to a serving platter and dust with Whey Low Powdered. Serve with whipped cream or ice cream if desired.

TO SERVE CHILLED: Let the base of the cake chill thoroughly. Scrape the remaining mousse over the base. Cover and refrigerate at least six hours or overnight.  Transfer the springform pan to a serving plate and remove the ring. (Run a knife around the edges or warm the pan with a hairdryer.) Dust with Whey Low Powdered. Serve with whipped cream or ice cream.

Enjoy!

My previous Secret Recipe Club Recipe Posts:

Candied Popcorn
Fruit, Nut & Poppy Seed Chicken Salad 
Broiled Sushi 
Health(ier) Peanut Brittle 
Crunchy Fudgy Heart Bites 
Texas Chicken with Lime Butter 
Pork Belly Soup with Collard Greens 
Thin Mint Irish Coffee 
Levain Chocolate Chip Walnut Cookies 
Welsh Cakes 
Nutella Crêpes 
Cilantro Lime Chicken 
Holy Guacamole 
and
Home Style Chicken Curry

Double Chocolate Meyer Lemon Mousse Cake

It’s Crazy Cooking Challenge time again and this month our hostess Tina of Moms Crazy Cooking challenged the participating bloggers to search non-celebrity blogs looking for the ultimate chocolate cake recipe.  Once we find what we think is the ultimate recipe we are to make and feature that recipe and the blog where we found it.  I posted recently in my Dark Chocolate Dipped Candied Lemon Peel post that since making my Ponderosa Lemon & Sour Cream Tart I’ve been on a major lemon kick so when I saw Mimi’s Double Chocolate Tangerine Mousse Cake I knew immediately that I could tweak the recipe a bit switching out the tangerine for lemon and I could get my tangy lemon fix, still meet the requirements of making a chocolate cake while also making the ultimate chocolate cake.

This cake used both white and dark chocolate and that combined with tangy lemon, well it was exactly what I had been craving.  The chocolate cake is flourless so it’s dense and rich.  The mousse uses gelatin which is something that I haven’t done before but it seemed to help the mousse keep it’s shape but the mousse remained light, soft, rich and creamy.  Everyone who tried the cake thought it was beautiful and adored the rich flavors…and they were rich so small slices are a must.  If you adore dark chocolate and lemon like we do, I think you will find this to be a favorite in your home too.

My previous Crazy Cooking Challenge entries:
Chicken Noodle Soup Challenge: Thai Chicken Noodle Soup
Fudge Challenge: Biscoff Fudge
Mashed Potato Challenge: Aloo Tikki
Chocolate Chip Cookie Challenge: Chocolate Chip Gingersnaps
Mac & Cheese Challenge: Velvety Mac & Cheese 

Double Chocolate Meyer Lemon Mousse Cake  (Adapted from here)

Cake
1 cup butter
9 oz. dark chocolate chips
3/4 cup sugar
5 large eggs
1/2 cup ground toasted walnuts

Mousse
1 cup fresh Meyer lemon juice
1/3 cup lemon sugar syrup from making the Dark Chocolate Dipped Candied Lemon Peel
2 1/2 teaspoons unflavored gelatin
12 oz. white chocolate chips 
6 TBS sour cream
2 cups chilled whipping cream

Garnish:
Dark Chocolate Dipped Candied Lemon Peel
walnut halves, toasted

For Cake:
Preheat oven to 325°F. Butter an 8-inch round cake pan with cutter and then dust with cocoa powder.  Melt the butter and chocolate chips in a microwave safe bowl, checking and stirring often until smooth.  Whisk in the sugar, eggs and ground nuts. Pour the batter into prepared pan. Bake the cake until a toothpick inserted into center comes out with very moist crumbs attached, about 45 minutes. Cool completely on rack (cake will fall and crack).  Once cool, using the pan’s cutter release the cake from the pan.

Lightly brush the sides of a 10-inch springform pan with vegetable oil. Set the cooled cake in center of pan (there will be space around cake that will be filled in with mousse). Refrigerate cake.

For Mousse:
Place 3 TBS of the lemon juice in a small bowl and sprinkle in the gelatin. Let stand for 10 minutes to allow the gelatin to soften.  Meanwhile, simmer the remaining lemon juice and lemon sugar syrup, stirring until combined, about 3 minutes.  Add the gelatin mixture to the lemon juice mixture and stir to dissolve.  Add 12 ounces white chocolate and whisk over low heat just until melted.  Remove from heat and whisk in the sour cream. Pour the lemon white chocolate mixture into a large bowl. Chill the mixture until cool and thickened but not set, whisking occasionally, about 1 hour 45 minutes.

Beat the chilled whipping cream to stiff peaks. Fold into the lemon white chocolate mixture. Pour the mousse over the chocolate cake in the springform pan, covering the top and sides completely. Refrigerate cake overnight.

Run a small sharp knife around pan sides to loosen cake. Release pan sides. Place cake on platter. Garnish as desired.

Enjoy!