The Journey to Perfecting Japanese Cheesecake

Hello All!

I can't believe its already 2018! Sorry for the inconsistent blog posts...

but here's another! XD

If you have been following my blog you would know I've had had few struggles with baking Japanese Cheesecake. They would either not rise, have cracks or just look ugly!

My friend introduced me to a recipe and it's been AWESOME! I have baked this a number of times and each time the cake has been light and fluffy! So just wanted to share the recipe with you all. I'm still working out how to minimise the cracks on top but nothing that a bit of icing sugar doesn't fix =p

You can find the original recipe by Craft Passion here. They have really good tips for what ingredients and equipment to use. They also have a handy video!

Hope you give it a go :D

Japanese Cheesecake

 

Recipe adapted from Craft Passion

Ingredients

Cream cheese batter

250g block cream cheese, cut into cubes

6 egg yolks

70g caster sugar

60g unsalted butter

100ml milk

1 tbs lemon juice

2 tsp lemon zest

60g cake flour (I replaced this with 50g plain flour + 10g corn flour)

20g corn flour

1/4 tsp salt

Meringue

6 egg whites

1/4 tsp cream of tartar (I didn't have this so replaced with the same of lemon juice)

70g caster sugar

1. Pre-heat oven to 200oC (Although the original recipe says no fan force... I don't have that option! Still turned out ok).

2. Grease 20cm x 8cm round cake pan with butter, line bottom with baking paper. (It is best to use a one piece cake tin i.e. one that the bottom does not come out)

3. To make cream cheese batter, whisk cream cheese until melted and smooth over a warm water bath.

4. Add egg yolks and whisk.

5. Add sugar and whisk.

6. Warm milk and butter in microwave/stove and fold into mixture.

7. Add salt, lemon juice, lemon zest and whisk.

8. Remove from water bath, sift in cake flour and corn starch. Fold into mixture.

9. Whisk egg whites in a separate bowl at low speed until foamy.

10. Add cream of tartar (or lemon juice) and beat at high speed till bubbles become very small but still visible.

11. Gradually add the caster sugar and beat till soft peaks.

12. Fold whites into batter a third at a time.

13. Pour into cake pan (make sure to leave around 2cm from the rim) and tap the pan on the counter to release air bubbles.

14. Place a tea towel in a large roasting tin then place cake pan on top (to protect bottom of cake pan from direct heat). Form water bath by pouring hot water into roasting tin (~1.5cm high) and place into oven.

15. Bake for 18 minutes then lower temperature to 140 degrees and bake for further 30 minutes. Turn off oven and leave cake in the closed oven for another 30 minutes. Remove water bath but leave cake in the oven with the oven slightly open for another 30 minutes to cool.

16. Unmold cake. Allow to cook before placing in fridge.

17. Decorate cooled cake by dusting icing sugar on top.

look at that height!!

light and flufffyyy

I AM BACK!!!

Hi all!!!
Baking Tray is BACK!!!! It's been a very very long time since my last post.. 2.5 years in fact! 
Many things have happened in the last 2.5 years... I think I got a lot busier and also stopped work catering so stopped the weekly blog post. I also got an instagram account so I used that to post my bakes ^^" It was easier to post a photo then blog about it =p (lazy...)

I have also recently got married and moved interstate!! So lots have been going on! But as I am currently unemployed I thought might as well revive the blog! I have still been baking a lot! Baked for my own wedding ^^" I've also found my own blog useful as a collection of recipes for whenever I feel like baking something.

So to begin a new year (2017... and yes I realised it's February so already a month into the year.. but hey! Chinese new year was just a few days ago :P) here is my FIRST POST!!! And hopefully many more to come in the future =)

I've begun a journey to bake the most perfect light and fluffy Japanese Cheesecake! I've yet to find the best recipe but this one is very easy with only 3 ingredients! Although it does not have the height that I would like, it still tastes delicious :)

Japanese Cheesecake
Recipe adapted from Epicurious

Ingredients
250g white chocolate melts
250g block of cream cheese (at room temperature), cubed.
6 eggs, separated (at room tempterature)

1. Preheat oven to 180oC. Grease and line 8 inch cake tin. 
2. Melt white chocolate in bowl over a double boiler.
3. Add cubes of cream cheese and melt.
4. Remove from heat and mix in 6 egg yolks.
5. In a separate bowl, beat egg whites with electric beater until stiff peaks form.
6. Add one third of egg whites into chocolate mix and gently fold in. Fold the remaining egg whites in 2 additions until just combined.
7. Pour mix into prepared cake tin. Place pan in a baking dish/roasting pan and add warm water to reach halfway up the side of the cake tin. Bake until cheesecake is set (around 40-45 minutes). 
8. Turn off the oven and leave tin in oven for 15 minutes then transfer to wire rack to cool completely. Remove cheesecake from tin and transfer to a platter. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours before serving. 

Things to improve: Mine did not turn out so light and fluffy. It may have been due to not beating egg whites enough and also the size of the pan. I will try again!! 

Work Catering #49: Oh Hello Oreo!

This week I stuck with an Oreo theme! Bought these cute mini oreos (they are about the size of a 10c coin!) and searched for some interesting Oreo recipes. First up are what I like to call "Inception cookies" - a cookie within a cookie ^_^ it was so funny seeing people's reaction when they bit into the choc chip cookie: "THERE'S AN OREO IN HERE!? AWESOME!!" xD

Mini Oreo Stuffed Chocolate Chip Cookies
Recipe adapted from Teenie Baker

Ingredients
1/2 cup (115g) butter, softened at room temperature
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup caster sugar
1/2 tbs vanilla essence
1 egg
1 3/4 cups plain flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 cup chocolate chips
30 mini oreos

1. Preheat oven to 180oC and line two baking trays with baking paper.
2. Beat butter and sugars in large bowl until pale and fluffy. Beat in eggs and vanilla, until well combined.
3. In a separate bowl, mix together the baking powder, salt and flour. Slowly add to the butter mixture and stir until full combined. Fold in the chocolate chips.
4. Take a teaspoonful of cookie dough and place on baking tray. Place one mini Oreo on top then cover with another teaspoon of cookie dough. Pinch the edges together, then roll into a ball using your hands.
5. Bake for 8-11 minutes or until golden.

they just look like normal cookies but wait till you see the surprise!

The next is a recipe that I've tried a few times (and somehow each time turns out different..) and this time I've used Oreos as the flavouring. I have also made it just plain and a layered one with Tim Tams which I will blog about another time XD

Oreo Japanese Cheesecake
Recipe adapted from All recipes

Ingredients
85g cream cheese
1/4 cup (60ml) milk
2 egg yolks
1/4 cup (55g) caster sugar, divided
2 egg whites
1/3 tsp cream of tartar
3 tbs plain flour
1 1/2 tbs corn flour
50g oreos, crushed (I used mini oreos)

1. Preheat oven to 175oC. Line 23cm round cake tin with baking paper.
2. Warm cream cheese and milk in small saucepan over medium-low heat. Stir occasionally until cream cheese is melted. Remove from heat and set aside.
3. In medium bowl, beat egg whites with cream of tartar until soft peaks. Gradually sprinkle in half of sugar and continue to beat to stiff peaks.
4. In a separate bowl, beat egg yolks and remaining sugar until light and fluffy. Fold in cream cheese mixture then sift in flour and corn flour. Stir until combined. Fold in egg whites and oreos.
5. Pour into prepared tin and place in larger baking tray. Place tray into oven and pour water into the baking tray until half way full. Bake for 20 minutes then reduce to heat to 150oC and continue to bake for 15 more minutes. Let cake cook before removing from pan. Refrigerate for a few hours before slicing.

Didn't rise as much as I would have liked...

but love the chunks of oreo and golden brown top :D

soft, fluffy clouds of oreo japanese cheesecake

I like Japanese cheesecake because it is really LIGHT!!! So you can eat multiple slices but feel like you haven't eaten much at all! hahahha

Japanese Cheesecake - not your average cheesecake ^_^

This has been on my "to-bake-list" for a while so when cream cheese was on sale, I knew exactly what I was going to bake! I love the texture of this cake.. it really is light and fluffy and not too heavy as some cheesecakes can be. So you can eat many slices and not feel sick =p

Japanese Cheesecake
Recipe adapted from Christine's recipes

Ingredients
250ml (1 cup) milk
250g cream cheese, cubed, softened at room temperature
60g butter, softened at room temperature
6 egg yolks
55g plain flour
20g corn flour
1 lemon zest 
6 egg whites
1/4 tsp cream of tartar
130g (3/4 cup) caster sugar

1. Preheat oven to 150oC. Grease and line 2 rectangle pans.
2. Place large bowl over pot of simmering water making sure the bottom of the bowl doesn't touch the water. Pour in milk. Add cream cheese, stir occasionally until completely dissolved and mixture turns smooth.
3. Stir in butter till dissolved.
4. Remove from heat and let mixture cool down. Add egg yolks and combine well. Make sure the mixture isn't too hot as to cook the egg yolks.
5. Combing plain flour and corn flour. Sift flours into cream cheese mixture, a little at a time. Mix well between each addition making sure there aren't any lumps.
6. Stir in freshly grated zest and set aside (I forgot to add this!!! So I think it made the cake taste a little eggy ><)
7. Place egg whites into a clean bowl and beat with electric beater for ~3 minutes. Add cream of tartar and continue to beat. Gradually pour in sugar and blend until very stiff peaks form (I think I may have not beaten enough and so I didn't quite get the height I was looking for).
8. Fold in egg whites into cream cheese mixture with spatula (a third at a time) until incorporated. DO NOT stir or beat.
9. Pour mixture into 2 baking pans. Place pans into larger baking tray. Add hot water in the tray up to half way. Bake for 50-60 minutes.
10. Turn off oven. Leave door ajar for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool completely on wire rack. Chill in fridge for at least 3 hours.

Not too happy with the height...but LOVE the flavour =D

I really love this kind of cheesecake (well I love all kinds of cheesecake but this type especially because it just melts in your mouth =p). The texture also got a thumbs up from my food critics XD which is a big deal! haha

So give it a go!! I think I'll want to try again too :)