Chocolate Ricotta Icebox Cake

summertime chocolate perfection...and no baking ! it's magically delicious !  

Chocolate cake in the heat of summer can be a bit of a tricky proposition. Certainly, you don't want to eat anything warm. Even cakes that are usually eaten cold - like, say, cheesecake - require turning on the oven, which seems a bit of a waste (especially when you have 3 AC's going full blast). Plus you really don't want to eat anything so heavy that it might cause you to pass out into the pool. And sure, you can always do a chocolate mousse or something instead...but what if you just need cake ? Like, cake you can stick birthday candles in and pass out slices of ?

Readers, I think I found the solution :

Sadly, I only got to snap the slices after it was almost all gone...with two men with forks looking over my shoulder waiting for the last piece. Trust me when I say it served up MUCH neater than this !!

Well, actually, Martha Stewart really found it. And truth be told, my original intent wasn't to beat the heat; my mother had requested one of my "decadent flourless chocolate cakes" for her birthday/retirement party (turning 65 will do that to you :).) I have a few cakes that fit that bill, but unfortunately they all involve nuts - and we had a possible attendee with a severe allergy. Clearly, a new recipe was in order. I'd been thinking about trying to make a cake with a really delicious ricotta cheese that we've been buying at Russo's...and I knew I wanted to make something chocolate. Googled "ricotta" and chocolate"...and before I knew it, I had a new favorite summer chocolate cake. And - super bonus - there was no turning on of the oven ! Yes, I love it when a plan comes together...

Top to bottom - killer ricotta, chocolate wafers (in package and deployed), Ghiradelli chocolate

I think one of the keys to this cake is that you absolutely have to use quality ingredients - you'll see that there aren't too many actual ingredients in this thing, so you'll really want to make sure the few you use are the best stuff you can possibly get. The ricotta I used in this is from a New England company called Liuzzi Angeloni and it is a revelation -a big muffin-top bulge of cheese, packaged in little white pails with tiny holes and water all around to keep it fresh. It tastes like no ricotta you've ever had - creamy, slightly sweet and a little tangy at the same time. We've been known to eat it by itself on a plate, with a little salt, pepper, olive oil and fresh basil snipped over...but I digress; back to dessert. Use the best ricotta you can find, as local as you can get (I'm also itching to try and make my own, which would be perfect for this). Oh, and go for the full fat instead of the part skim - you'll taste the difference, and it's not like you're going to eat this every day. (Or maybe you are...hey, whatever does it for you :) Quality chocolate is also key (Ghirardelli is a reliable standby you can find in most supermarkets), and the Nabisco Famous Chocolate Wafers are absolutely necessary - they're the perfect thickness to make this whole thing work. Do not be tempted to grind them up - they form a solid base for the cake layers to set up on, and then absorb just enough moisture to turn into a delicious cake-like layer and base...it's like magic !   The whole thing turns out like a cross between a chocolate mousse and the smoothest cheesecake you've ever had...definite Culinary Orgasm.

Chocolate Ricotta Icebox Cake

Adapted from Martha Stewart

Nonstick cooking spray

16 ounces semisweet chocolate (do not use chips)

30 ounces ricotta cheese, room temperature (see below)
3/4 cup heavy cream
1 tablespoon Godiva Liquor or Kaluha (optional)
1 package (9 ounces) chocolate wafers (about 44 cookies)
 

Place your ricotta in a strainer (best to line with cheesecloth or even a paper towel) and let as much water drain out as possible. Set aside to let it come to room temperature.

Prepare your pan: Remove sides from a 9-inch round springform pan. Place a sheet of waxed paper over bottom, leaving an overhang; lock sides onto bottom, firmly securing paper. Spray inside of pan with cooking spray; line sides with a strip of waxed paper 28 inches long and wide enough to match the height of your pan (mine was about 3 inches)  

Make chocolate-ricotta mixture: Break 12 ounces of the chocolate into pieces. Place in a double boiler (or a heatproof medium bowl set over, not in, a pan of barely simmering water.) Cook, stirring occasionally, until chocolate has melted, 8 to 10 minutes.

In a food processor (do not use a blender; you need power for this step!) blend ricotta until very smooth, a couple of minutes, scraping down sides of bowl. Add warm chocolate (and liquor if using); blend until smooth. In a large bowl, beat cream until stiff peaks form. With a rubber spatula, gently fold in chocolate-ricotta mixture.

Assemble cake: Arrange half the cookies in an overlapping pattern to cover bottom of pan (see picture). Spoon half the chocolate-ricotta mixture on top of cookies; smooth top. Cover with remaining cookies; top with remaining chocolate-ricotta mixture, and smooth top. Cover with plastic wrap; refrigerate at least 6 hours and up to 2 days.

This cake is much easier to serve if you can pop it in the freezer for about 30 minutes before serving. Before you put it in the freezer, use a vegetable peeler to shave curls off the last 4 oz of chocolate over top of cake.

After it comes out of the freezer (or just before serving, after adding the chocolate curls) release sides of pan and remove waxed paper from sides.

Wiping the blade after each slice will help immensely!

Lazy Lemon Tart

"Squeeze my lemon..."

I know, I know..."lazy" probably isn't an adjective that comes to mind when one thinks about my cooking...not in any way, shape or form. Surprisingly, though, I do like to do things other than cook (it's true, I swear !!) And one of the things I really like to do is be outside, particularly this time of year when the weather starts getting nice. I'm always on the lookout for recipes that meet my criteria when I find something that looks like a sweet, delicious Culinary Orgasm , yet actually gets me out of the house and into the sunshine. Not only does this tart get me into the sunshine...it IS sunshine. I mean, just look at it !!

"Good day sunshine !"

Variations on this tart have been popping up in my internet perusing for some time now - most recently in the form of "Lazy Mary's Lemon Tart" (thank you to my friend wild apache for pointing me towards that particular gem). Smitten Kitchen also has a few variations on this theme...this tart , and a bar recipe in Deb's wonderful cookbook.  The theme, though, is a bit weird in that it involves whole lemons. Not just the juice and zest, but actual, whole lemons - you don't do a dang thing to them, other than barely cut them. And that's not the only thing that makes it lazy...said whole lemons are simply thrown in a blender or food processor with the other filling ingredients (which only consist of butter, sugar and eggs), processed into oblivion, poured into a shell, and baked. Doesn't matter what temperature the butter is, no egg separating, no nothing - mix and go. This is totally bizarre - well to me anyway. I'm the mistress of complex desserts - the more steps and more elaborate, the happier I get. When I play with lemons, I get crazy - recreating restaurant cakes, or making delicate souffles. Mix and go ? Are you crazy ? Well, yes I am...and this one came with enough provenance that it was worth getting my crazy on. And this thing is CRAZY good.  The filling is light, but not overly so...nice and lemony, but not overly tart. It's delicious plain, but dresses up pretty too (whipped cream, raspberries, glazed almonds....whatever moves you.

A few notes :

• I did make my own tart shell (the recipe I use is here . Yes, that probably means it's semi-lazy instead of full-on couch potato...trust me, for me this is semi :) .) If you are not adverse to frozen or refrigerated pie crust, by all means go for it - and if you don't have a tart pan, use your biggest pie plate (it won't look the same but it will still taste really great. Really, though, a good tart pan is less than $20, and it will make your pastries look totally cool and professional. And that shell recipe is so easy - no rolling, it's basically just playing with sand in a pan.)  I've also seen online comments where folks have made this in a graham cracker crust and even in a chocolate cookie crumb crust; I think those would work great as well.
• The tart pan I used was 11"; the filling amount was perfect, and I didn't have any of the problems with overflow or not setting up that other folks reported. If your tart pan is smaller, just make sure you don't overflow - any extra can be poured into a custard cup or ovensafe bowl and baked right along with the tart.
• Superfine sugar - if you don't have this, just grind up some regular sugar before you start. (Superfine dissolves easier; I'm guessing that's why this recipe uses it) Use an extra 2 tablespoons or so, then measure again after grinding.
• Lemons - I did use Meyer lemons, as they are available at my favorite local market (Russo's). Meyer lemons are sweeter and thinner-skinned than standard lemons; I was worried about this thing being too bitter as it was, Meyers just seemed like a safe bet. This was definitely NOT bitter at all, and I do think this would work fine with regular lemons as well - though I would probably do what a lot of other commenters did and remove as much as the white pith from the peel as I could easily get off (basically just peel the lemon and take a sharp knife or veggie peeler to the white part of the peel, getting whatever you can off without making yourself crazy. ) I did remove the seeds from the Meyers, as well as the hard nipple-like bits from either end  - just couldn't see them ending up in something I wanted to eat !) Whatever you use, you want to end up with about 5 oz of lemon parts (no, you don't have to weigh it - just throwing that out there :) )

In conclusion, definite Culinary Orgasm...the lazy way !

mmm Meyers

ready to bake

 

Lazy Lemon Tart

Filling :

2 small Meyer lemons or one large standard lemon,  cut into 8 pieces, seeds and excess white pith removed

1 1/2 cup superfine suger

1 stick butter

4 eggs

 

1 partially baked tart shell, your favorite (mine is here )

 

Put all filling ingredients into a blender or food processesor, and process until smooth.     

Pour into tart shell.

Bake 35 - 40 minutes at 350 degrees  , or until filling is set (should barely jiggle) and top has just started to go a very light brown.

Let cool completely before serving.

 

 

 

Sláinte !

By popular demand...the annual reposting of our St. Patrick' Day Feast. You may also enjoy :

A Full Irish Breakfast : http://culinaryorgasm-karen.blogspot.com/2012/03/full-irish-breakfast-culinary-orgasm.html

Irish Soda Bread : http://culinaryorgasm-karen.blogspot.com/2012/03/irish-soda-bread.html

'Beannachtam na Feile Padraig!'
Happy St. Patrick's Day! !
~CO~

Apple Crisp with Irish Oatmeal topping and Whiskey Whipped Cream

Our annual St. Patrick's Feast was held this past weekend, and a grand, super, brilliant time it was, too. We somehow crammed 14 people in our tiny apartment for the usual Irish-American spread of corned beef and cabbage, potatoes, turnips and other various and sundry vegetables, apple crisp, and of course, plenty of beer and whiskey !

plenty of wet whistles !

Recipes at the end of the entry...

First, a word about the meal itself. Corned beef is actually not really a particularly Irish dish. Much more popular in Ireland is Boiled Bacon and Cabbage - but you need real Irish bacon for that, not always available here. The dinner we served is actually pretty much a New England Boiled Dinner...except that often is made with a picnic shoulder instead of corned beef, and has more vegetables. Confused yet ? You should be !!

Here's a bit more on corned beef, from Wikipedia : "Despite being a major producer of beef, most Irish...did not regularly consume the meat product in either fresh or salted form. This was due in large part to its prohibitive cost in Ireland, the fact that the beef cattle were owned by the British colonisers and not by the Irish, and that most if not all of the corned beef was exported. Despite the popular assumption in North America that corned beef dishes are typical of traditional Irish cuisine, it was not until the wave of 18th century Irish immigration to the United States that much of the ethnic Irish first began to consume corned beef. In Ireland today, the serving of corned beef is geared toward tourist consumption and most Ireland Irish do not identify the ingredient with native cuisine. The popularity of corned beef over bacon to the immigrated Irish was likely present due to that fact that corned beef in their native land was considered a luxury product, but was cheaply and readily available in America". Pretty interesting stuff !

Back to our spread...first, we started with a selection of Irish cheeses (two farmhouse cheddars and a Cashel Blue, which is an Irish blue cheese ..very delicate and sweet. )

Next up, the main course :

Here's the Beef !

Vegetables, Soda Bread

Mark's Corned Beef is really amazing. He adds a secret ingredient to the boiling water : grapefruit juice. I'm not 100% sure what it really does in there...I know it's a natural enzyme, so it makes things more tender. And I know that whatever it does, his is the best corned beef I've ever had and the only one I'll usually eat.

My Irish Soda Breadwas written up a few months ago...click on the link for the details. This meal is really when I get into it...made six loaves this year, and they ALL went !!

The dessert for this meal - Irish Apple Crisp with Whiskey Whipped Cream - is really just amazing. I've been making apple crisps for years, of course...it's one of my family's favorite desserts. I have two that I make - one with a flour and sugar crust, and one with an oatmeal topping...I wanted something Irish, so Irish Oatmeal it was. The whiskey whipped cream is something I saw mentioned years ago in connection with another recipe, which I thought might work here...and oh, baby, does it work. Something about the whiskey, the oats, the apples and the spices all combines for, well, a Culinary Orgasm :

starting the topping

finished product

After all this feasting, of course, all we really wanted to do is sit around and drink whiskey. Good thing we had plenty !

a few of my favorite things...

Another year, another amazing dinner party...seriously, I love my family and friends. Sláinte to you and yours...and may you be in Heaven a half hour before the devil knows you're dead !!

Mark's Corned Beef

Mark says "If you can find a whole brisket, buy it - that way you get the point and flat at the same time, and some people prefer one or the other. The corned beefs made from eye of the round are also great, as they don't shrink and have less fat. On gray vs red...go with your personal preference. Gray is tougher and saltier, but more traditional in New England."

Recipe is given for one whole brisket...adjust accordingly. It's corned beef, pretty hard to get the proportions wrong !

1 whole corned beef brisket
water to cover (will change once)
2 cups grapefruit juice (unsweetened - 100% juice)
1/2 tablespoon pickling spice (if the beef comes with a packet, great !)
1 tsp whole peppercorns
3 medium onions, skinned but left whole
6 lbs small whole white potatoes (leave skins on)
2 whole yellow turnips (good sized)
2 pounds carrots, peeled
2 heads cabbage, cut in eighths (leave a bit of the core on to hold it together

Rinse meat and put aside spice packet. Place in pot with water to cover. Bring to a low boil, and let boil for about 30 minutes. Drain and change the water in the pot, adding the grapefruit juice, onions and spices to the meat. Make sure you have enough liquid in the pot to add some vegetables later. Boil for about 2 1/2 hours. Add the potatoes and turnips at about the 2 hour 15 minute mark. Pull the beef out and cover (leave the potatoes and turnips in), and add the carrots and cabbage. Boil the vegetables for another 15 minutes, or until tender.

Apple Crisp with Irish Oatmeal

6 cups apples -- peeled and sliced
3 teaspoons cinnamon (or more to taste), divided
1 ½ teaspoons nutmeg (or more to taste), divided
Half a lemon
1 cup rolled oats (McCann’s Quick Cooking is best)
3/4 cup all purpose flour
3/4 cup brown sugar (I usually do light, or half light half dark)
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, room temperature

Heat oven to 375 degrees. Place apples in ungreased 2-quart rectangular baking dish or pan. Toss with 2 teaspoons of the cinnamon, 1 teaspoon of the nutmeg, and the juice from the lemon half.

In large bowl, combine remaining ingredients including rest of cinnamon and nutmeg; mix with pastry blender or fork until crumbly. Sprinkle crumb mixture evenly over apples. Bake 25 to 35 minutes or until apples are tender and topping is golden brown. Serve warm with cream, ice cream or whipped cream...or, to really do it right :

Whiskey Whipped Cream

1 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons powdered sugar
2 tablespoons (or to taste) Irish whiskey (recommended : The Knot)

Whip the cream until it begins to form soft peaks. Add the sugar and whiskey and beat until stiff peaks form. Cover and chill until needed.