s’mores cheesecake via Rick Rodgers, plus a double cookbook giveaway

Here’s the thing about all the cheesecakes that I’ve made in the past...they all seem pretty discontented with their own existence. 

Thick and cranky, they were always draped in some sickly red liquid topping, as if they were covering up some integral inadequacies (which could describe me some days). It’s irritating to make something that takes a bit of effort, and then feel forced to be overly enthusiastic with yourself about the final product, because I worked kind of hard on this, and it should be better than it is, so if I pretend it’s wonderful by saying “but it’s CHEESECAKE” over and over, then maybe it will be good, as if it is some holy grail of impossibility, the last perfect dessert in the wild. It’s like a spastic cheerleader trying to whip up the crowd during the final game of an already lost season. You just want that cheerleader to pick up her pompoms and megaphone and admit that the entire season was kind of pointless even if there were a couple of mildly pleasant if inadequate moments along the way. Bag it, cheerleader. Game over. Stupid cheesecake.

But game on, my friends. Game on.

All thanks to Rick Rodgers, we have made the perfect cheesecake. S’mores cheesecake. Rick is a very well-known author, and from this great profile in the Star-Ledger, it turns out he’s nearly our neighbor here in NJ (waving to you, Rick. Expect us to show up at your house with our three kids for Thanksgiving. You will never be the same).

  

Rick has two new books out, and we were lucky enough to win them both via The Secret Ingredient Facebook page from Morrow Cookbooks. They did a drawing for Rick’s spanking-new cookbooks, Tea and Cookies and Coffee and Cake (that's two books in there, one for tea and one for coffee). Hey, Rick, we like all those things in your book titles. We like free things, clearly. But we really like your new books. We like them so much that we’re giving them away (Morrow Cookbooks hinted they might replace ours, so that’s good, because we, um, like them a lot).

But first, let’s get it on with the cream cheese...

As we were flipping through the books, we wanted to put a recipe to the test, and Rick has a very special s’mores cheesecake recipe. And a very pretty picture of it. And I sort of wanted to call Rick’s bluff. Really, Rick? Is it really that good? Given our history with cheesecake, I was a bit skeptical.

Oh, yeah. It’s that good. You want to make this now. Because Rick has smart tips to make the perfect cheesecake. His number one recommendation? Use a food processor to mix the filling. Apparently, incorporating too much air with a mixer is what caused my past c-cake unpleasantness. Too much air makes it sort of souffle-y, and it’s bound to fall on itself, and crack and densify (not a word) in unhappy ways. I will never go back to a mixer for the c-cake. Ever. You shouldn't either. Unless you like your cheesecake to be less awesome than it could be.

Yes, this cheesecake is sweet. It’s a s’more after all. What else could it be? But you know what really cuts through the sweetness? A cup of coffee. (Thinking Rick may have thought through the title of his book fairly well).

You could bring this out at the end of a really fancy meal and completely delight everyone, or you could serve it over a coffee break with friends. Or you could make it for yourself for that special occasion that I call “Tuesday.”

You want these books. Trust us.

And a confession...I failed to put my springform pan together correctly when I made this. I know. Embarrassing. We had some (not a lot) of the filling seep out the bottom of the pan, and it caused a mess, and that’s totally my fault. So with some quick thinking/panicking, I pulled the pan out and placed it on a baking sheet. The leaking stopped, and that cheesecake still came out perfectly. Rick’s recipes are also fool-proof, me being the fool. Test your pans, kids. Test your pans.

the contest

Congrats to Jen Thomson Caplet & Heather Jurczyk for winning the Rick Rodgers' cookbooks!

Before we get to the recipe, here’s how to win one of these two books (yes, we’re splitting them up, so you just doubled your chances to win).

• You get one entry for “Liking” the peche on Facebook. Just go and hit the “Like” button on our page. If you’re already a fan on Facebook, you’re already entered. You don’t have to tell us you Liked us; we can see you.
• You get another entry for “Liking” Morrow Cookbook’s The Secret Ingredient page. Morrow Cookbooks didn’t ask us to do that, but we like their authors a lot, including Rick, and we think you’ll want to stay in the know on what’s coming from them. If you do “Like” them, come back and tell us in the comments below.
• Your “Liking” must be completed by noon on Monday, 8 November.
• Sadly, this is open to US and Canadian residents only. Sorry rest of the world. We love you, but we cannot afford the postage.

Now, on to this perfect recipe...

recipe | s’mores cheesecake from Rick Rodgers’ Coffee and Cake cookbook

Published by Morrow Cookbooks

Reprinted by permission 

Crust

• Softened unsalted butter for the pan
• 1 1/2 c graham cracker crumbs
• 3 T sugar
• 6 T (3/4 stick) unsalted butter, melted

Filling

• 9 oz milk chocolate, coarsely chopped
• 1 pound cream cheese, softened
• 3/4 c sugar
• 1/8 t salt
• 3/4 c heavy cream, at room temperature
• 3 large eggs, at room temperature

Topping

• 1 c sugar
• 2 large egg whites
• 1 t cream of tartar
• 1/8 t salt
• 12 large marshmallows, snipped into quarters with wet scissors
• 1/2 t vanilla extract

1. Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350F. Lightly butter the inside of a 9-inch springform pan.
2. To make the crust, stir together the cracker crumbs, sugar, and melted butter to moisten in a medium bowl. Press firmly and evenly into the bottom and 1/4 inch up the sides of the pan. Bake until lightly toasted and fragrant, 12 to 15 minutes. Remove from the oven. Reduce the oven temperature to 325F.
3. To make the filling, melt the chocolate in the top part of a double boiler over very hot, not simmering, water, stirring occasionally, until smooth. Remove from the heat and cool until tepid.
4. In a food processor, process the cream cheese, sugar, and salt together until smooth, stopping to scrape down the sides of the work bowl with a rubber spatula. With the machine running, add the cream and then stop it to scrape down the bowl. With the machine running again, add the chocolate, then the eggs, one at a time, processing and scraping until the mixture is smooth. Pour into the crust.
5. Bake until the side of the cheesecake are slightly risen and the cheesecake looks set (the very center of the filling will look shiny and unset), about 1 hour. Transfer to a wire cake rack. Run a wet, sharp knife around the inside of the pan to loosen the cheesecake from the sides. Let cool completely.
6. Cover the cheesecake with plastic wrap and refrigerate until chilled, at least 4 hours. (The cheesecake can be refrigerated for up to 1 day).
7. To make the topping, combine the sugar, egg whites, 3 T water, the cream of tartar, and salt in the top part of a double boiler or a heatproof bowl. Place over a saucepan of simmering water and whisk until the sugar dissolves and the mixture is hot and opaque, about 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and add the marshmallows to the sugar mixture. Let stand to soften the marshmallows, about 3 minutes. Return to the simmering water and beat with an electric hand mixer set on high speed until the topping stands in stiff, shiny peaks, about 5 minutes. Beat in the vanilla.
8. Unwrap the cheesecake and remove the sides of the pan. Using a metal icing spatula, spread the topping over the cheesecake, swirling it in peaks. Let stand until cooled and set, about 15 minutes.
9. Using a kitchen torch, wave the flam over the cheesecake until lightly browned. Or broil the cheesecake in a preheated broiler about 4 inches from the source of the heat until lightly browned, about 1 minute. (The marshmallow-topped cheesecake can be refrigerated for up to 1 day.) Using a sharp, thin knife rinsed under hot water, cut into slices and serve.

s'mores bars (via The Hungry Mouse)

A few months ago, our friend, Kelly (aka) “Rakna,” posted a note on my Facebook page that said, “You must make these. TO DIE FOR!!!!”

Now, we love Rakna. Adore her. 

We have been attacked by monkeys with her at the Batu Caves outside Kuala Lumpur. 

We watched her eat giant meat kabobs in Sydney (Massive. Obscene, almost). 

We watched her skip through the Imperial Gardens in Tokyo because of delirious sleep exhaustion (we have video and are prepared to use it against her if needed). 

So if Rakna says something must be made, then it must be made.
Of course, she was right. These s’mores bars from The Hungry Mouse are perfect. Indulgent, substantial, delicate. Exactly like campfire s’mores, but every bite has exactly the right mix of chocolate, marsmallow, and graham cracker crust.


This is a fantastically easy recipe to make. You just need a mixer for the crust. Smash half of the dough by hand into the bottom of the 9x13 pan. Place on top of the unbaked crust a layer of chocolate and one of marshmallow fluff. And then a top layer of dough crust.





shortcut (lazy)
I've made these twice now, but I took a shortcut last week. My mom and I made the s'mores bars together for a Labor Day family gathering of 40+ people, and most had never seen our children. So it was a big deal. I decided to make the s'mores bars the night before, just after my mom had cleaned the kitchen for the evening. Mom agreed to help me, but I knew I couldn’t make a mess for us to clean up. 

The top crust layer is to be rolled out, then pieced together (great pics of this procedure over at The Hungry Mouse). The first time I made them, I rolled as told. But this time, I wanted to minimize the mess. I took a chance and sprinkled on the top layer dough, then pressed the pieces together. No rolling. Sprinkling and artful smashing. Fingers crossed...

And it worked. The top layer is much more delicate than the rolled version, which is great for eating, but not so great when stacking them on a platter for presentation. Don’t stack these. Just eat them.

So, thanks to Rakna for the spot on recommendation. You can read the blog she maintains with friends, My Mom Genes. She’s always right. About everything. Except meat skewers.

And be sure to visit The Hungry Mouse for more awesomeness.

recipe | s’mores bars via The Hungry Mouse