Crumb Crust

Crumb Crust

(This is Maida's recipe for a basic graham cracker crumb crust. I have tried this recipe twice with dismal results. I think it simply too much work and I've never been able to get the crust to stay together. The crust is dry so perhaps adding more butter might make it more moist. But really, a graham cracker crust is easy to do without going to this much trouble. Here is a good one.)

1 1/4 cups graham cracker crumbs
1/4 cup granulated sugar
Scant 1/4 tsp. nutmeg
2 oz. (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted

Adjust a rack to the center of the oven and preheat oven to 375°.  In a bowl, mix the crumbs with the sugar and nutmeg.  Then add the butter and stir with a rubber spatula until the butter is evenly distributed; the mixture will not hold together.  Although the crumb mixture can be pressed into place directly in the pie plate, I line the plate with foil first, and then remove the foil before filling the crust.  This guarantees easy serving - the crust cannot stick to the plate.  It is a bit more work (or play) but I think well worth it.

For a 9-inch pie plate (I use a glass one), use a 12-inch square of foil.  Turn the plate over on a work surface.  Place the foil shiny side down over the outside of the plate and, with your hands, press it firmly against the plate all around.  Remove the foil.  Turn the plate over again and place the shaped foil in the plate.  Press the foil firmly into place in the plate with a potholder or a folded towel.  Fold the edges of the foil down over the rim of the plate.

Turn the crumb crust mixture into the foil-lined plate.  Using your fingertips, distribute the mixture evenly and loosely over the sides first and then the bottom.  Then press the crust firmly and evenly on the sides, pushing it up from the bottom a bit to form a rim slightly (barely) higher than the edge of the pie plate.  Be careful that the top of the crust is not too thin.  To shape a firm edge, use the fingertips of your right  hand against the inside and press down against it with the thumb of your left hand.  After pressing the sides and the top edge firmly, press the remaining crumbs evenly and firmly over the bottom.  There should be no loose crumbs.

Bake for 8 minutes.  Then cool to room temperature.

Freeze for at least 1 hour, overnight if possible.  It must be frozen solid.

Remove from the freezer.  Raise the edges of the foil and carefully lift the foil (with the crust) from the plate.  Gently peel away the foil as follows: Support the bottom of the crust on your left hand and peel away the foil, a bit at a time (do not tear the foil) with your right hand.  As you do so, rotate the crust gently on your left hand. 

Supporting the bottom of the crust with a small metal spatula or a table knife, ease it back into the plate very gently in order not to crack it.  It will not crack or crumble if it has been frozen long enough.

Lemon Cream Cheese Pie

Lemon Cream Cheese Pie
Source: Maida Heatter's Pies & Tarts (Andrews & McMeel Publishing, 1997 ed.), pg.74.

Here is an easy recipe that is quick to put together - just remember to have your cream cheese at room temperature. It is creamy smooth and the topping is very tart from the addition of sour cream. However, when combined with the lemon filling, it is quite tasty. As I've mentioned previously, the crumb recipe is time consuming so if you prefer, you can use a faster crumb recipe or even a bought one.


Crumb Crust

1 1/4 graham cracker crumbs
1 TBS. granulated sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 tsp. ground ginger
Pinch of allspice
3 oz. (3/4 stick) unsalted butter, melted 

Mix together the above ingredients and follow the directions for a crumb crust using a 9-inch pie plate.

Filling

Finely grated rind of 1 lemon
3 TBS. lemon juice
3/4 cup creamed cottage cheese or ricotta cheese (large or small curd, regular or low fat)
8 oz. Philadelphia brand cream cheese, at room temperature
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
2 eggs

Preheat the oven to 350 and adjust a rack to the middle of the oven.

Mix the lemon zest and the lemon juice.

In a food processor with a metal blade, blend the cottage cheese (or ricotta) until smooth.

In a mixer bowl, beat the cream cheese until it is very smooth.

Add the sugar.

Add the vanilla.

Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well (scraping the bowl as necessary).

Add the lemon juice.

Pour into pie crust.

Bake for 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool.

Topping:

1 cup sour cream

1 cup whipping cream

2 TBS. granulated or powdered sugar

Chopped pistachio nuts for garnish (optional)

Combine the sugar and sour cream.

In a chilled bowl with chilled beaters (I always use the whisk attachment for this), whip the whipping cream until it holds a firm shape.

Gently fold the sour cream mixture into the whipped cream.

Spread the topping over the pie.

Refrigerate for a few hours. You can garnish this with chopped pistachios or fruit but it is fine just like this!

Lemon Meringue Pie

Lemon Meringue Pie
Source: Maida Heatter's Pies & Tarts (Andrews & McMeel Publishing, 1997 ed.), pg. 43.

This pie reminded me of the one my mother used to make. The filling is tart and although to me is has a somewhat chemical taste, I'm thinking this is quite normal as they all have that flavor. The jury is still out on that...

The trickiest aspect of lemon meringue pie is the meringue. It often separates from the side of the crust. Parts of mine did as well. Maida instructs that you be sure that the meringue touches all sides but even that doesn't assure it won't happen. The dreaded part for me is always the beaded moisture that often appears on top of the meringue. I remember my mother's pies did this sometimes. Maida mentions this and says that it is caused from cooling the pie in drafty areas. She suggests putting it in the dish cabinet. So, I did -

I think it worked because I didn't notice any moisture droplets. Hooray for that!

This pie is fairly easy to make and it doesn't take that long if you have all of your ingredients lined up. There is minimal stirring but you do have to be fast once you start the filling.

For the crust, I used my go-to recipe. You can, of course, use Maida's pie crust recipe or purchase a ready-baked one. Many recipes call for a cookie crumb type crust and I think that would be a nice option.

This recipe makes 1 9" pie. 

1 9-inch baked pie crust (she recommends her pie crust recipe here but you can use any crust you prefer, even a purchased one)

Finely grated zest of 3 lemons
1/3 cup fresh lemon juice
4 egg yolks (reserve the whites for the meringue)
1/3 cup cornstarch
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/4 tsp. salt
1 1/2 cups warm water
2 tbsp. unsalted butter, diced, at room temperature

Meringue

4 egg whites
Pinch of salt
1/2 tsp. cream of tartar
1/2 cup granulated sugar

Preheat the oven to 400.

Combine the lemon zest and juice. Set aside. 
Place the egg yolks in a small bowl and also set aside.

In a heavy saucepan (at least 2-quart size), combine the cornstarch, sugar and salt. Gradually add the water and stir with a rubber spatula. Over medium heat, stir constantly until the mixture begins to boil. Continue to stir for 1 1/2 minutes. The filling will become very thick and develops an opaque appearance.

Add the butter.

 Stir until melted. Remove the pan from the heat.

Add a little of the hot mixture to the bowl of eggs and mix well. Add more until the egg mixture is hot.

Now add the egg mixture into the cornstarch mixture. Stir well.

Mix in the lemon juice.

Bring the pot to a boil again and boil for one minute, stirring constantly.

Pour the filling into the pie shell and proceed to the meringue.

To make the meringue, beat the egg whites, cream of tartar and salt at high speed until soft peaks form. Reduce the mixer speed and add the sugar, a few tablespoons at a time, beating 20 seconds between additions. Increase the speed to high and mix until stiff peaks form.

Apply the meringue while the filling is still warm. Use a spoon and make sure the meringue touches all sides of the crust. Do an upward sweep with the spoon to form peaks.

Bake for 7-9 minutes until the meringue is slightly browned. Let the pie cool in a draft-free area (she recommends the dish cabinet). Refrigerate after cooling.

Polka Dot Cheesecake

Polka Dot Cheesecake
Source: Maida Heatter's Cakes (Andrews & McMeel Publishing, 2011 ed.), pg. 132.

Maida has a lot of cheesecake recipes and I'm surprised I'm just now getting around to making one. This one immediately caught my eye because it is so unique. As Maida says in her introduction, it is not difficult at all and your friends will be amazed. It is also very creamy and delicious!

First of all, it is recommended that you use a round cheesecake pan measuring 8 x 3 inches. I only have a 9" springform pan so I used that. I think the polka-dot effect would be more noticeable if I had used the smaller pan (and the cake would have been taller).

Also a note about the crust. The recipe calls for you to make the cake without the crust and apply the graham cracker crumbs with your hand after the cake has finished baking. This sounds like a huge kitchen mess waiting to happen so I made the traditional cheesecake crust that I normally do (see below). Aside from the crust, I followed the recipe exactly. 

The Crust:
Forgive me Maida for not following your directions for the crust but I wasn't going to attempt inverting the cake and then applying the crumbs by hand to the bottom of the cake. Instead I relied on the graham cracker crust I always use. Combine 2 cups of graham cracker crumbs, 1/4 cup sugar and 1 stick of melted butter in a bowl. Mix thoroughly with a fork. Place the crumb mixture in the baking pan and press it firmly on the bottom. Bake at 350 degrees for 8 minutes. Set aside and allow to cool.

Ingredients:

2 oz. unsweetened chocolate
2 lbs. cream cheese, softened (use Philadelphia brand)
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp almond extract
1 3/4 cup sugar
4 eggs

Adjust oven rack to lowest position in the oven and preheat to 350. Butter an 8x3 cheesecake pan (or springform pan) all the way up the rim. A larger pan will be also be needed for the water bath as the cake is baking. Set aside.

Melt the chocolate in the top of a double boiler over hot water on low heat. Set aside.

Place the cream cheese in the bowl of an electric mixer and beat until it is completely smooth, scraping the sides occasionally. Add the vanilla and almond extracts and the sugar. Beat well and then add the eggs one at a time. After adding the eggs, do not beat any more than necessary to mix.

Remove the bowl from the mixer and place 2 cups of the mixture in a separate bowl. Add the melted chocolate and mix well (you can use a hand mixer for this).

Spray the buttered cake pan with nonstick spray and pour in the light-colored mixture (not the chocolate mixture).

Place the chocolate mixture in a large pastry bag (or you can use a decorator press like I did). Place the tip of the tube in the center of the cake (about 1/4 to 1/2 inch in) and squeeze out some of the chocolate mixture (about the size of a golf ball).

Now, using the same procedure as above, add more dots around the edges. (To do evenly, first add a ball of chocolate to the 12:00 position, then the 6:00 position, 3:00, 9:00, etc.) The dots around the edges should be smaller than the center one).

The top of the cake will not be smooth and level but it will level during baking. 

If using a springform pan, wrap it in foil. Set the pan inside the larger pan and add hot water about 1 - 1 1/2 inches high. Bake for 1 1/2 hours (90 minutes).

After baking, the top of the cake will be golden brown. Remove from the oven and cool in the pan for 2 1/2 hours. After cooling completely, refrigerate for several hours or overnight. To serve, run hot water over a sharp knife and make your cuts through the center of the dots.

Longchamps' Cheesecake

Longchamps' Cheesecake
Source: Maida Heatter's Cakes (Andrews & McMeel Publishing, 2011 ed.), pg. 138.

This cheesecake is named after a restaurant chain in New York. It is very easy to make and wonderful. The lemon zest gives the cheesecake a nice touch. After making this I realized that the crust was your basic graham cracker crust and not the nightmarish way she normally does it (maybe she discovered this later??)  

Although the recipe does not call for a water bath, I always use one when making a cheesecake. However, since this one will be covered with topping, that might not be important to you.

About the topping - she recommends either fresh blueberries or strawberries.  I had frozen strawberries on hand and used those. Her method was different (I will explain both ways in the recipe). Enjoy!

Crumb Crust

1 3/4 cups graham cracker crumbs
1/3 cup granulated sugar
2 tsp. cinnamon
7 TBS. plus 1 tsp. (1 stick minus 2 tsp.) unsalted butter

Butter the sides of a 9 x 2.5 or 3 inch springform pan. (Leaving the bottom unbuttered makes it easier to transfer to a serving plate). Combine crumbs, sugar and cinnamon. Add melted butter and stir until evenly distributed. Remove and reserve 1 1/2 cups of the mixture. Press the remainder on the sides of the pan. Press the reserved crumbs on the bottom. Press firmly all over. Place in refrigerator or freezer until you are ready to use it.

  
Filling

16 oz. Philadelphia brand cream cheese, at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
1/4 tsp. salt
6 eggs
1 cup heavy cream
1 tsp. vanilla extract
Finely grated rind of 2 large lemons


Adjust oven rack 1/3 up from the bottom and preheat to 350.

In a large mixer bowl, beat the cream cheese until soft and very smooth. Add the sugar and beat well, scraping the sides of the bowl to fully incorporate.

Add the salt.

Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.

Beat in the cream.

Add the vanilla.

Remove the bowl from the mixer and stir in the lemon zest. Pour the mixture into the prepared crust and bake 80 minutes (I baked it for 70 minutes since I have a hot oven). Turn the oven off, open the door about 6 inches and let the cheesecake cool in the oven. (Note: I used a water bath)

After the cheesecake has cooled, remove it from the pan and refrigerate for a few hours or longer.

Topping

Since I was using frozen strawberries for the topping, I didn't follow Maida's instructions. It probably would have worked however. Her Method: Use 2 cups of fresh strawberries or blueberries and 1/2 to 3/4 cup of seedless red currant preserves. Wash the berries and dry them thoroughly. Melt about 1/2 cup of the preserves in a small saucepan, stirring over low heat. Let it come just to a boil. Mix it with the berries and spread over the cake.

The Method I Used: Allow the frozen strawberries to thaw. Drain them, reserving the liquid. Add enough water to reserved liquid to measure 1/2 cup. Mix cornstarch and reserved liquid in medium saucepan until well blended. Bring to boil on medium heat, stirring constantly. Boil 1 minute. Cool. Stir in strawberries; spoon over cooled cheesecake.