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August Daring Bakers Challenge: Dobos Torta

2009-08-27T21:20:36-05:00

This month's challenge was one I hadn't heard of. (No surprise there. I think "cheesecake" is the only one with which I've actually had prior experience.) I did hear from a Hungarian friend that it's pronounced with an "sh" sound at the end, and that it's delicious. All I needed to hear!

So the Dobos Torta is a layered sponge cake, filled with a chocolate buttercream and topped with thin wedges of caramel. I decided from the get go to do a miniaturized version, as I knew this was destined for the office, and having everyone hack into a round layer cake just sounded like a bad idea.

I did not have the energy to play with the original recipe as handed down by the Daring Bakers hostesses myself, so I kindly borrowed Brynna Clark Grogan's, with minor changes:

Sponge Cake

2 1/2 Cups plus 2 T. pastry flour
1 1/2 Cups Granulated Sugar
2 tsp Baking Powder
1/2 tsp Baking Soda
3/4 tsp Salt
1/4 Cup plus 2 Tbs Earth Balance
2 Tbs Fresh Lemon Juice
1 Cup Water
3/4 Cup Soy Milk
1 1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract

Preheat oven to 350º F. Brush a jellyroll with a light layer of oil. Use a sheet of parchment to cover the bottom. (The oil helps the parchment stick to the pan.)

Mix the dry ingredients together. Add Earth Balance, water, and lemon juice and beat well (with an electric mixer) for a minute or so. Add the remaining ingredients and beat again. Pour the batter into the jellyroll pan and bake for 25-30 minutes, until the edges are golden brown and the top is lightly browned, and the center springs back to your touch. Set aside to cool.

While the sponge layer is cooling, mix the chocolate buttercream. This version is courtesy of Daring Baker Mahima, and it was delicious:

1 cup Earth Balance
1 tbsp soymilk or little more, if needed
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup semisweet chocolate, melted and cooled)
1 and a half cup confectioner sugar

Mix all ingredients together with an electric mixer. Pour into a bowl to set aside. Lick beaters.

Next, release the cake from the pan. I then cut off the crusty edges (and ate them), and then cut the cake with a serrated knife into small squares, about 2 inches by two inches. I then sliced each of those squares into 2 layers. I stacked 4 layers of the small squares together, spreading chocolate buttercream in between. Then, ice the tortas. I realized early on I didn't have enough icing to ice the entire exterior of every mini-torta. So, half of them were fully iced, while half only had icing on the top and between the layers. I sprinkled toasted, chopped hazelnuts around the sides. Be sure to leave a few top-layer squares to use as caramel-covered wedges for garnishing the top.

Next, make the caramel topping. This portion of the recipe I took straight from the original, although I definitely made a couple missteps here. After previous kitchen disasters, I'm a little gun-shy about melting sugar on the stove. My fear of burning meant that I took the syrup off the stove too early, and never really reached the caramel color or texture. It tasted fine, but never achieved what the recipe calls for.

Caramel topping

1 cup (200g) caster (superfine or ultrafine white) sugar
12 tablespoons (180 ml) water
8 teaspoons (40 ml) lemon juice
1 tablespoon neutral oil

Directions for the caramel topping:

1.Cut the leftover squares into smaller-sized wedges.

2.Stir the sugar, water and lemon juice in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil over a medium heat, stirring often to dissolve the sugar. Once dissolved into a smooth syrup, turn the heat up to high and boil without stirring, swirling the pan by the handle occasionally and washing down any sugar crystals on the sides of the pan with a wet brush until the syrup has turned into an amber-coloured caramel.

3.Pour the caramel over the wedges, let cool.

Finally, take each of the caramel-coated wedges, and prop them up against a toasted hazelnut atop each torta.

The tortas were definitely yummy, and I got compliments from my coworkers. The only bummer was that without the proper execution of the caramel-coated wedges, instead of tasting like an incredibly special, traditional Hungarian dessert handed down over generations (as if I know what that is supposed to taste like), they sort of tasted like birthday cake with extra-yummy icing. (Not that there's anything wrong with that, of course.)

The Hostesses for this challenge have requested that we include the following message:

The August 2009 Daring Bakers' challenge was hosted by Angela of A Spoonful of Sugar and Lorraine of Not Quite Nigella. They chose the spectacular Dobos Torte based on a recipe from Rick Rodgers' cookbook Kaffeehaus: Exquisite Desserts from the Classic Caffés of Vienna, Budapest, and Prague.

June Daring Bakers Challenge: Bakewell Tart(lets)

2009-06-27T13:23:35-05:00

From the very beginning, I had an inkling that this might have to be my first Daring Bakers challenge to sit out. It was shaping up to be a hectic month already. And a Bakewell Tart? Never heard of it. It seemed rather egg-reliant and I just wasn't sure I had the energy for it. The only real appeal was that it featured frangipane, made from ground almonds. Yum.

I was convinced that I was not making this one. No how, no way. But then I found myself on a Sunday afternoon, with some unexpected free time on my hands after my earlier plans fell through. I thought to myself, "Well, I could try for that tart." So I decided that I would forge ahead as long as a trip to the grocery store was not required. I was a little concerned that there wouldn't be enough natural light left to get any decent photographs (as it was already after 6pm), but it was the longest day of sunlight of the whole year. The universe seemed to be sending me a message: Make the tart. Not having any real need for a whole tart to myself, I decided to go with the much more fun tart-let approach, making them easier to transport and pawn off on unsuspecting co-workers Monday morning.

Now, on to the recipe! (Note: I halved the full recipe below, and got exactly 12 tartlets made in a mini muffin pan.)

Sweet Shortcut Pastry

225g (8oz) all purpose flour
30g (1oz) sugar
2.5ml (½ tsp) salt
110g (4oz) Earth Balance, briefly frozen
Ener-G egg replacers, equivalent of 2 eggs
2.5ml (½ tsp) almond extract (optional) [Note: I used vanilla]
15-30ml (1-2 Tbsp) cold water

Sift together flour, sugar and salt. [I skipped this step, naturally.] Grate butter into the flour mixture, using the large hole-side of a box grater. Using your finger tips only, and working very quickly, rub the fat into the flour until the mixture resembles bread crumbs. Set aside.

Lightly beat the egg replacer with the extract (if using) and quickly mix into the flour mixture. Keep mixing while dribbling in the water, only adding enough to form a cohesive and slightly sticky dough.

Form the dough into a disc, wrap in cling and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

Frangipane

125g (4.5oz) Earth Balace
125g (4.5oz) icing sugar
Ener-G egg replacer, equivalent of 3 eggs
2.5ml (½ tsp) almond extract [Note: I subbed vanilla here too]
125g (4.5oz) ground almonds
30g (1oz) all purpose flour

Cream Earth Balance and sugar together for about a minute or until the mixture is primrose in colour and very fluffy. Scrape down the side of the bowl and add the egg replacer, beating well. Pour in the extract and mix for about another 30 seconds and scrape down the sides again. With the beaters on, spoon in the ground nuts and the flour. Mix well. The mixture will be soft, keep its slightly curdled look (mostly from the almonds) and retain its pallid yellow colour.

Place the chilled dough disc on a lightly floured surface. If it's overly cold, you will need to let it become acclimatised for about 15 minutes before you roll it out. Flour the rolling pin and roll the pastry to 5mm (1/4”) thickness, by rolling in one direction only (start from the centre and roll away from you), and turning the disc a quarter turn after each roll. When the pastry is to the thickness, use a biscuit cutter to cut circles a little larger than each muffin cup. Transfer each circle to the muffin pan, press in and trim the excess dough. Patch any holes, fissures or tears with trimmed bits. Chill in the freezer for 15 minutes.

Remove shell from freezer, spread as even a layer as you can of jam onto the pastry base. [Note: Homemade jam or preserves, of course, were encouraged. I used jarred peach jam in half, and strawberry jam in half.] Top with frangipane, spreading to cover the entire surface of the tartlet. Smooth the top and pop into the oven for 30 minutes.

The finished tartlets will have a golden crust and the frangipane will be tanned, poofy and a bit spongy-looking. Remove from the oven and cool on the counter. Serve warm.

Keeping with the tart's medieval roots, I plated then on some pewterware on a wooden table (as I imagined William the Conqueror might have done.)

I have to confess that considering this whole thing was a rushed job and involved many unresearched substitutions (both to veganize the recipe and account for the fact that I made no trip to the grocery store in preparation and had to go with what I happened to have on-hand), I was quite impressed with the result. I feel like the egg replacer did a fantastic job. I have not ever used it in recipes in which I felt like the eggs really played a crucial role, but I think that was the case here and the result was quite good. The fangipane in particular was delicious (I had a hard time not eating it by the spoonful waiting for the dough to chill.) Not sure the Bakewell Tart will ever be part of my regular rotation, but I'm glad that in the end I chose not to sit this one out.

Our Daring Baker hostesses have asked that we include the following message:

The June Daring Bakers' challenge was hosted by Jasmine of Confessions of a Cardamom Addict and Annemarie of Ambrosia and Nectar. They chose a Traditional (UK) Bakewell Tart... er... pudding that was inspired by a rich baking history dating back to the 1800's in England.

Vegan Birthday Cupcakes

2009-06-22T20:26:21-05:00

It was my girlfriend's birthday recently, and I was set on surprising her with old-fashioned vanilla cupcakes with chocolate frosting, just like we all had as kids (and since she has two actual little kids herself, making something they would like was important.)

I was looking for a relatively simple recipe, using ingredients on-hand, that no one would suspect was dairy and egg-free. When I've needed something of that sort in the past, I've always turned to Colleen Patrick-Goudreau's The Joy of Vegan Baking, and she has yet to fail me. The cupcakes were delicious, and I cite two toddlers (and okay, two grown up women) with chocolate frosting mustaches as evidence.

Restaurant Review: Lotus (Chantilly, VA)

2009-06-03T18:38:24-05:00

I have often lamented that although I am fortunate enough to live in an area with a significant number of vegetarian restaurants, I tend to visit my couple favorites without trying new places. But, I finally made it out to visit Lotus, a mostly Asian restaurant located in an unassuming strip mall in a suburb of Washington, DC. It's certainly not the first place you'd expect to find a vegetarian restaurant, but that's part of what's exciting. How glorious that vegetarian eateries are no longer exclusively in big cities or college towns or hippie communes, but in suburbs and exurbs and small towns and medium towns.

The restaurant was casual, and although it was clear that take-out was a considerable focus, a waitress greeted us at the door and showed us to a booth. Traffic was light, although I thought it wasn't too bad considering it was the middle of the afternoon.

The menu is extensive, and with no prior experiences or recommendations to go on, it took me a while to decide. My dining partner and I, as fans of the ever-popular Fried Chicken appetizer at Vienna, VA's Sunflower Vegetarian Restaurant, we settled on the Golden Chicken Nuggets. Unlike Sunflower's free-form shapes, these were more oblong - a la Chicken McNuggets, and the portion seemed smaller. I was skeptical, and I still was unsure after the first couple of bites. But, they had a nice crispy breading, and somehow, they grew on me.

The menu also included a limited selection of brown-rice sushi. Since sushi restaurants rarely offer more than the standard cucumber or avocado rolls, we were happy to try the Rainbow Roll, which featured vege-ham, tofu skin, organic carrots, pickled radishes, asparagus, cucumber, and soy protein strips. They were unique and tasty. The radishes provided a sour tang, the asparagus was crunchy, and the rice was soft and almost creamy. I would order it again.

The menu also had soups, salads, burgers and sandwiches, rice and noodles, but we decided to try two entrees to try to really see what they could do. I chose Savory Eggplant, described as "eggplants stewed with vege ham, jicama, wood ear and Thai basil in ginger sauce." This Thai-style eggplant is a dish I frequently have, and this was a very good version. Often, they sauce is too thick and cloying, or the chef overdoes the spice. Neither were a problem here. The eggplant was tender, there was just the right amount of basil, and the light sauce was just the right balance of sweet and heat.

Our second entree, the Vege-Chicken with Cashews, had "diced soy protein sauteed with sugar peas, zucchini, organic carrots, jicama, white mushrooms with cashew nuts in brown sauce." The dish was good: the sauce was light, the nuts were nicely toasted, and the vegetables were plentiful and fresh. However, beyond the fact that a restaurant meal featuring "vege-chicken" is already special, it just wasn't, well, particularly special. It was a solid dish, though.

Oh, and how could I forget? My dining companion, a vegan and French fry fan, just couldn't resist the "organic" fries on the menu. Because, as he said, "When do you get to have organic French fries!?!?" And so, we did. They were thin-cut (I hate to make another McDonald's reference here...) and lightly salted and good enough, I suppose. But I have French fries so rarely that when I do have them I want them to be delicious, and these were a hair short of that. They were not quite crispy enough for my taste, and even being "organic" didn't quite make up for it.

It's hard not to compare the restaurant to Sunflower, not only because both are Asian, vegetarian restaurants in the DC suburbs, but because so many items on the menu are similar. On the whole, Sunflower still gets my vote. Although their menu does have a few misses, they offer unique dishes and seem to provide a better value. That being said, I'm glad for the efforts made by every vegetarian restaurant out there, and I would happily return to Lotus again.

Veglicious Turns One

2009-05-31T22:21:51-05:00

Here's celebrating 365 days and 164 posts. Happy Birthday!

Review: Kashi's Mayan Harvest Bake Frozen Meal

2009-05-29T03:48:33-05:00

I tend not to eat frozen meals. For work, I generally grab a little container of something I myself have prepared at some previous point in time and frozen, like veggie lasagna, red beans and rice, or a hearty soup. Frozen entrees generally seem a poor value, have a measly vegan selection, and sometimes I doubt the portion is sufficient to keep a small mammal alive.

So I can't say I was all that excited when I heard Kashi had come out with a new vegan frozen meal: Mayan Harvest Bake.

But, I also couldn't help but notice how many people, people whom I had no reason to suspect of having poor judgment, were declaring it the absolute best frozen meal they'd ever eaten. I was intrigued, and as soon as I noticed it on the grocery store shelf, I bought it.

The box describes the meal as "Plantains with roasted sweet potato, black beans and kale. Spicy ancho sauce with pumpkin seed garnish served over Kashi seven whole grain polenta, plus amaranth." Certainly not your typical frozen meal. And, happily, it didn't taste like it either.

It's not much to look at, but it was indeed delicious. Just as described, it was a unique combination of sweetness and smoky spiciness. And, it was enough to make me feel like I'd eaten an actual meal, which is not bad considering it comes in at only 340 calories and 9 grams of fat (just 1 of which is saturated.) It also has a whopping 8 grams of fiber, and just 380 mg of sodium, which is less than many frozen products. Of Kashi's 13 frozen entrees, a respectable 5 are vegan.

One negative which I must mention, for those to whom this might matter, is that the cooking instructions are rather complex for a frozen meal. First you microwave for 5 minutes at 50% power, specifically at the outer rim of the microwave's rotating tray. Then, cook an additional 3 minutes at full power. Finally, let the meal sit in the microwave for 3 minutes to complete cooking. Does my office micro even have reduced cooking power capabilities? Yes, turns out it does, but it took me several minutes to figure it out. And, at my workplace at least, good luck trying to leave your food in the microwave for 3 minutes after it's done cooking. You will return to the kitchen to find that your entree has been moved out of someone's way, likely haphazardly set atop the water cooler.

But if you can master the tricky microwaving techniques and don't mind shelling out $4+ for a lunch served in a plastic tray, you won't be disappointed with this one.

May Daring Bakers Challenge: Apple (well, Apricot) Strudel

2009-05-27T07:00:00-05:00

I was both excited and a little scared at this month's challenge of Apple Strudel. I liked the idea, but I've had woefully little pastry experience in my life. And, have I ever even had strudel? Unclear. I have to keep reminding myself that this is why they call it a "challenge." But, the best part was that I didn't even have to do any goofy tofu substitutions to veganize it. This was one ready to go, right out of the box.

The real test of this one was making the tissue-thin dough. As such, the hostesses allowed lots of flexibility on the filling. As much as I like apples, I truly love apricots.

Strudel dough
from “Kaffeehaus – Exquisite Desserts from the Classic Cafés of Vienna, Budapest and Prague” by Rick Rodgers (Note: For my strudel, I halved these quantities.)

1 1/3 cups (200 g) unbleached flour
1/8 teaspoon salt
7 tablespoons (105 ml) water, plus more if needed
2 tablespoons (30 ml) vegetable oil, plus additional for coating the dough
1/2 teaspoon cider vinegar
2 tablespoons or so Earth Balance (just for brushing the dough)
2 teapsoons breadcrumbs

Combine the flour and salt in a stand-mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix the water, oil and vinegar in a measuring cup. Add the water/oil mixture to the flour with the mixer on low speed. You will get a soft dough. Make sure it is not too dry, add a little more water if necessary.
Take the dough out of the mixer. Change to the dough hook. Put the dough ball back in the mixer. Let the dough knead on medium until you get a soft dough ball with a somewhat rough surface.
Take the dough out of the mixer and continue kneading by hand on an unfloured work surface. Knead for about 2 minutes. Pick up the dough and throw it down hard onto your working surface occasionally.
Shape the dough into a ball and transfer it to a plate. Oil the top of the dough ball lightly. Cover the ball tightly with plastic wrap. Allow to stand for 30-90 minutes (longer is better).

Apricot-Walnut Filling

1 1/2 cups chopped dried apricots
1/2 pint of apricot jam
juice from 1 lemon
1 cup unsweetened coconut
1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Mix together dried apricots, apricot jam, and lemon juice in a saucepan over medium heat until jam is melted.
Add the shredded coconut and walnuts and mix well.
Set aside until cool.

Try to find a work area that you can walk around on all sides like a round table or a large work surface. Cover your working area with table cloth (I used a cheesecloth); dust it with flour and rub it into the fabric. Put your dough ball in the middle and roll it out as much as you can.
Pick the dough up by holding it by an edge. This way the weight of the dough and gravity can help stretching it as it hangs. Using the back of your hands to gently stretch and pull the dough. You can use your forearms to support it.

The dough will become too large to hold. Put it on your work surface. Leave the thicker edge of the dough to hang over the edge of the table. Place your hands underneath the dough and stretch and pull the dough thinner using the backs of your hands.
Stretch and pull the dough until it's about 2 feet (60 cm) wide and 3 feet (90 cm) long, it will be tissue-thin by this time. If necessary, cut away the thick dough around the edges with scissors. The dough is now ready to be filled.

Lightly spread melted (not too hot) Earth Balance onto the dough, and then sprinkle the dough with a couple teaspoons of breadcrumbs. (This will ensure that air can circulate between the layers of dough.)
Add the filling along one edge of the dough. Fold the short end of the dough onto the filling.

Lift the cloth at the short end of the dough so that the strudel rolls onto itself.
Continue rolling, using the cloth as needed to maneuver it, until all of the dough is used.

Transfer the strudel to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. (If you do a full batch, you may need to curve it into a horseshoe to fit.)
Tuck the ends under the strudel. Brush the top with just a little melted Earth Balance. (I also added some turbinado sugar to the top.)

Bake the strudel for about 30 minutes or until it is deep golden brown. Cool for at least 30 minutes before slicing.
Use a serrated knife and serve either warm or at room temperature. It is best on the day it is baked.

I must say, I think this was my most successful Daring Bakers challenge to date! It was absolutely wonderful. I served it with a drizzle of dark chocolate and a scoop of coconut sorbet.

The challenge itself wasn't nearly as difficult or time-consuming as I thought it might be, and the dough was way easier to work with than I had feared. I think this would also make a great savory dish, by filling the dough with eggplant, mushrooms, red peppers, onions, etc. Next time!

Our Daring Bakers hostesses have requested the that we include the following message:

The May Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Linda of make life sweeter! and Courtney of Coco Cooks. They chose Apple Strudel from the recipe book Kaffeehaus: Exquisite Desserts from the Classic Cafés of Vienna, Budapest and Prague by Rick Rodgers.

Web Site Helps You Buy Green

2009-05-05T09:00:00-05:00

Do you ever stand in a store aisle, overwhelmed by the rows and rows of products, just wishing you had a way to know which products really are safe for you and the environment? Which are the healthiest? Which companies are socially and environmentally responsible?

The Web site GoodGuide.org aims to do just that: arm you with information about the social, environmental, and health impacts of products so that you can make purchasing decisions that reflect your values. Developed by a professor at UC Berkeley, the Web site lets you search among tens of thousands of products (food, personal care, toys, household) and see expert recommendations on the best choices, as well as reviews from other users. You can even create and store your own list of favorite products.

So there are no more excuses. Get out there and stimulate the economy!

Hooray, I made the CSA!

2009-05-03T19:22:19-05:00

I have wanted to participate in a CSA for a while now. CSA stands for "community-supported agriculture." It's a method of food distribution in which consumers buy food directly from a farm by purchasing a "share" in advance of the harvest season. Localharvest.org, a Web site that lets you search for farmers' markets, family farms, and other sustainable sources of local food by zip code, describes the benefits of the CSA model as follows:

Advantages for farmers:

Get to spend time marketing the food early in the year, before their 16 hour days in the field begin
Receive payment early in the season, which helps with the farm's cash flow
Have an opportunity to get to know the people who eat the food they grow

Advantages for consumers:

Eat ultra-fresh food, with all the flavor and vitamin benefits
Get exposed to new vegetables and new ways of cooking
Usually get to visit the farm at least once a season
Find that kids typically favor food from "their" farm – even veggies they've never been known to eat
Develop a relationship with the farmer who grows their food and learn more about how food is grown

I had done some research a while back and decided that, for a variety of reasons, Even' Star Organic Farm in Maryland was the right choice for me. But, it apparently is the right choice for lots of people, because every year the farm's 320 shares sell out, and therefore I have been patiently sitting on the waitlist.

But I finally got the news that this year I'm finally IN! So I am happily counting the days until the season begins, looking forward to the bounty I can expect to enjoy this summer, including 18 kinds of tomatoes, French heirloom squash, three kinds of basil, okra, four varieties of sweet potatoes, watermelon, three varieties of eggplant, cucumbers, baby turnips, carrots, six kinds of peppers, and MORE! Hurrah! I can hardly wait. So stay tuned--I think this will be a summer of inspired recipes full of delicious, fresh vegetables.

March Daring Bakers Challenge: Abbey's Infamous Cheesecake

2009-04-26T23:00:00-05:00

This month's Daring Bakers Challenge was a little more my speed, in that it was actually a dessert this time. The challenge recipe was for a cheesecake, but considerable latitude was given in terms of style. With spring in full swing, I wanted to do something bright and fresh. Although I'm no enemy to chocolate, with warmer days upon us, I just wasn't in the mood for some kind of turtle something or other.

I have always heard of meyer lemons and seen them used in various recipes, but I had never actually tried them myself. Knowing them to be sweeter than conventional lemons, this seemed like the perfect opportunity to take them out for a spin. And, a citrus approach seemed just the kind of thing I had in mind. Luckily, my local specialty market had some in stock, so I grabbed some and headed home to begin. I settled on the idea of a meyer lemon cheesecake with a rosemary shortbread crust. To me, rosemary is a lovely addition for spring, and I just happened to have some growing in my windowsill.

I thought that doing some candied lemons would give me something to use as a decoration on top, while also adding a different flavor dimension and contrasting texture to the soft cheesecake.

Candied Lemon Slices

Ingredients

2 meyer lemons
2 cups sugar

Directions

Slice the lemons into 1/8" - 1/4" slices. Combine 2 cups water with 2 cups sugar in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium. Cover, and simmer for 30 minutes. Remove pan from the heat and let the lemon slices cool in the syrup.

Next, on to the crust. I love shortbread crusts, and I thought that adding the rosemary would give it a little extra interest - something unexpected. I used a basic shortbread recipe, then just added minced rosemary and some of the zest from the meyer lemons.

Meyer Lemon Rosemary Shortbread Crust

Ingredients

1/2 cup Earth Balance, room temperature
1/4 cup sugar
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 t minced fresh rosemary
1 t meyer lemon zest

Directions

Preheat over to 400°F. In a stand mixer with an electric mixer, beat mix sugar and butter until fluffy. Stir in flour until mixture is crumbly in appearance.

Add rosemary and zest. Gather dough into a ball.

Press firmly into a spring form pan, lined with parchment paper. Refrigerate 10 minutes. Bake crust for about 15-20 minutes or until golden and firm. Set aside until cool.

Because I was using small-sized springform pan, I had some dough left over from the crust. Refusing to let the extra dough go to waste (we are in a recession after all!), I formed the dough into small cookies. I baked them in the same 400 F oven for 14 minutes. They were golden and buttery and crisp and fantastic. They would make wonderful tea cookies.

I had made a vegan cheesecake in the past, and so I went with my standard approach and just added some of the juice of the meyer lemons.

Cheesecake Filling

Ingredients

1 -14 oz package firm silken tofu
1 -8 oz package Better than Cream Cheese (the version without trans fat)
2/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup meyer lemon juice
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2 tbsp cornstarch

Directions
Reduce oven to 350 F. Place tofu and cream cheese in the food processor. Blend for 1 minute, then add sugar. Process until smooth, 3-5 minutes. In a small bowl, combine lemon juice and vanilla extract. Whisk in cornstarch until no lumps remain. Pour mixture into the food processor and process until very smooth. Pour into prepared crust. Set pan in large casserole pan and fill with hot water to the half-way point of the springform pan. Bake for 45 minutes. Turn off oven, and allow cake to sit in cooling oven for 1 hour. Allow to cool at room temperature for 2 hours, then refrigerate 8 hours or overnight.

Once cooled, I decorated the top of the cheesecake with the candied lemon slices, and springs of sugared rosemary. The cheesecake had a bright flavor and nice texture. The meyer lemons did give it that perfect mix of sweet and tangy-sour. I do think I should have cooked it just a few minutes longer -- the very center of the cake never completely set. It tasted very good, but it made the cutting and presentation a little messier than I would have liked. And, despite my best tinfoil-wrapping efforts, a little water did still seep into my springform pan and get the crust wet. Amazingly it crisped up well after cooling and sitting in the fridge overnight. The crust was my favorite part. I definitely think those lemon-rosemary shortbread cookies will make a future appearance in my kitchen.

Our Daring Bakers hostesses have requested the that we include the following message:

The April 2009 challenge is hosted by Jenny from Jenny Bakes. She has chosen Abbey's Infamous Cheesecake as the challenge.