32 | 52 Lemon Blueberry Cheesecake Streusel Bars

I know, I know...

This name is way too long.

Maybe we should call this week's recipe LBCSB?

Or something like: The Perfect Summer Treat?

No, not very convincing...

But no matter its name - it's just pure yumminess.

It combines everything you love (or at least everything I love):

Lemon. Blueberries. Cheesecake. Streusel.

Summer. Freshness. Yum.

So give these a try. And do let me know if you come up with a good, short name.

Lemon Blueberry Cheesecake Streusel Bars

From Inspired Taste

For the crust

9 graham cracker rectangles

2 tablespoons sugar

1 teaspoon lemon zest, grated

57 g (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted

For the filling

454 g (16 oz) cream cheese, room temperature

2 eggs

2 tablespoons lemon zest, grated

60 ml (1/4 cup) fresh lemon juice

100 g (1/2 cup) sugar

150 g (1 1/2 cups) fresh blueberries

For the topping

1 cup light brown sugar

100 g (3/4 cup) flour

85 g (3/4 stick) butter, cold

• Preheat oven to 160ºC (325ºF). 
• For the crust, place graham crackers, sugar, and lemon zest into your food processor and pulse until you have fine crumbs. Add melted butter and pulse again until crumbs are moistened. If you don't have a food processor, make crumbs the old-fashioned way: place crackers in a plastic bag and hit with a rolling pin (or the like) until you get crumbs. Place crumbs in a bowl together with the remaining crust ingredients and stir until crumbs are moistened. 
• Press crumb mix into your prepared square pan (23 cm / 9 in) and bake for 10 minutes. Cool for 10-15 minutes. 
• For the filling, mix together cream cheese, eggs, lemon zest, lemon juice, and sugar until smooth. Pour the filling over the crust and top with blueberries. 
• For the streusel topping, combine all ingredients with your hands until you have a (more or less) crumbly dough. Crumble over the filling. 
• Bake for 35-40 minutes. Cool 1 hour at room temperature, then at least 1 hour in the fridge before serving.

My modifications:

None.

The taste:

Delicious! It really combines so many good things that you can't go wrong with it. And it tastes like pure summer. Not light but still refreshing.

What's your favorite baked summer treat?

13 | 52 Easter Egg Cookies

There's still enough time to makes these for Easter!

Maybe you can even include them in your egg hunt!

(What do you mean, you don't do any egg hunting anymore?!)

Browsing through Easter recipes online, I found these two Easter Egg Cookie recipes and couldn't decide which one to make. 

Chocolate? Chocolate! Lemon? Lemon! Alright. Both then. 

It's Easter, after all. And if we can't eat them all, I'm sure the Easter Bunny will help us...

(Maybe I should start ironing my tea towels...)

Filled Chocolate Easter Egg Cookies

From Donna Hay

Cookies:

65 g (1/3 cup) butter, cold and in pieces

40 g (1/4 cup) powdered sugar

75 g (1/2 cup) flour

2 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch

1 tablespoon cocoa powder

1 1/4 egg yolk

white chocolate, melted, for decorating

Filling:

200 g (7 oz) dark chocolate, chopped

125 ml (1/2 cup) cream

• Preheat oven to 180ºC (355ºF). 
• Process all cookie ingredients (except for the white chocolate) in a food processor until a soft dough forms. Or - the way I do it - use your hands to knead all ingredients together until you have a soft dough. Wrap and put in the fridge for 30 minutes.
• Roll dough between two sheets of baking paper to about 3mm thick. Using your Easter egg cooie cutter, cut out cookies, place on cookie sheet (on baking paper) and bake for 8-10 minutes. Let cool.
• For the filling, melt chocolate and cream together in a small saucepan over low heat. Put in the fridge until cooled down. Spread a bit of filling on half of the cookies, making sandwiches with the other half.
• Melt white chocolate and decorate cookies to your taste.

My modifications:

None. Oh actually, yes. I only used 1 egg yolk. Because 1 1/4 egg yolks? Seriously???
And I only needed half of the filling...

The taste:

I haven't tasted them yet! Will update you asap!

Sunny Side Up - Lemony Easter Egg Cookies

From Chefkoch.de

For the cookies:

150 g (2/3 cup) butter, cold and in pieces

75 g (1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon) powdered sugar

1 tablespoon milk

150 g (1 1/4 cups) flour

75 g (1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon) cornstarch

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract or 1/2 sachet vanilla sugar

lemon peel of 1 lemon, grated

For the filling and glaze:

lemon curd

40 ml (3 1/2 tablespoons) fresh lemon juice

130 g (1 cup) powdered sugar

• Preheat oven to 180ºC (355ºF). 
• Process all cookie ingredients (except for the white chocolate) in a food processor until a soft dough forms. Or - the way I do it - use your hands to knead all ingredients together until you have a soft dough. Wrap and put in the fridge for 30 minutes.
• Roll dough between two sheets of baking paper to about 3mm thick. Using your Easter egg cooie cutter, cut out cookies (half of them with an additional small round hole in the lower half), place on cookie sheet (on baking paper) and bake for 8-10 minutes. Let cool.
• Make a simple glace from lemon juice and powdered sugar and put on the cookies with hole. Let dry. Put a blotch of lemon curd on the other half of the cookies and sandwich with glazed tops.

My modifications:

The original recipe used a different method of combining the ingredients for the dough and said to bake the cookies at 200ºC (390ºF). But that's it.

The taste:
Yummy! Very lemony. But I love that. Lemony is good.

What's your favorite baking recipe for Easter?

11*52 Cake Pops

Ah, cake pops. Finally. But not the real deal to some...

Let me explain: I bought one of those silicone cake pop pans a while ago because it was on sale.
I know that a lot of people will say that baking cake pops (as opposed to mashing them up with cream cheese or the like) is not the real thing.

Okay, maybe it is not the original thing but it sure is cake pops.

Anyway, my godson turned 2 last week so what better occassion to try the pan?

I found it very hard to find a recipe online for baked cake pops. The recipe that was included with the pan didn't really appeal to me because it called for 3 eggs and no baking powder. To me, that just sounded like it's going to be really omelett-y and not very rising, if you know what I mean...

Lemon Cake Pops

Adapted from 'Yuki Sunaneko' who posted it in a forum on Chefkoch

150 g (1 1/4 cups) flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

125 g (1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons) sugar

1 egg

75 ml (1/3 cup) vegetable oil

75 ml (1/3 cup) Sprite

300 g (10 oz) white chocolate, for dipping

sprinkles, glitter if you wish

Chocolate Cake Pops

ingredients as above but

35 g (1/4 cup) cocoa powder (in addition)

90 ml (1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon) milk (instead of Sprite)

300 g (10 oz) milk chocolate, for dipping (instead of white chocolate)

• Mix all ingredients (except for the chocolate). Fill into prepared cake pop mold. 
• Bake in preheated oven at 180°C (355°F) for 20 minutes.
• Let cool before opening the mold and taking out the cake pop balls.
• Melt chocolate, dip sticks into chocolate before inserting into balls. Coat all cake pops with melted chocolate and decorate with sprinkles or glitter.

My modifications:

I made the lemon cake pops first and I wouldn't make them again. This recipe might be nice for muffins or even a cake but the Sprite makes it too fluffy for cake pops. It was a lot of trouble to get them out of the pan in one piece, then onto the sticks in one piece, and covered in chocolate without falling apart. They did taste good though.

The chocolate ones I created myself and they were a lot more dense than the lemon ones (but still moist enough) so they were a lot easier to get out of the pan and to cover with chocolate.

The taste:

Yummy. And they look so pretty!

But they would taste even better if it wasn't that much work. I'm not sure when I will make them again.

Have you ever baked something that wasn't really worth the effort?

9*52 Strawberry-Lemon-Bars

Remember, right after Valentine's Day I told you that I had planned to bake something pink and heart-shaped but then was too sick?

I couldn't get the recipe for that pink and heart-shaped something out of my head so I made it now.
Just not heart-shaped. But pink. And full of summer flavors. Lemon and strawberry.
What could be better? Not much, I think.

Strawberry-Lemon-Bars

Adapted from Backbube

300 g (0.7 lb) strawberries, frozen

300 g (1 1/2 cups) sugar

300 ml (1 1/4 cups) lemon juice (about 6 lemons)

150 g (1 1/8 cups) flour

50 g (1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon) powdered sugar

2 x 75 g (2 x 1/3 cup) butter

pinch of salt

6 egg yolks

75 g (1/2 cup) corn starch

• Defrost strawberries.
• For the crust, combine flour, powdered sugar, salt, 2 tablespoons cold water and half the cold butter (in pieces) and knead until combined to a nice shortcrust dough.
• Distribute dough evenly on the bottom of a prepared square spring form. Let cool in the fridge for about 30 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 175°C (350°F). Using a fork, poke some holes into the crust and bake for 20 minutes.
• Blend together strawberries and lemon juice until smooth and without fruit pieces. Add sugar and remaining butter and bring to a boil in a saucepan. 
• Mix starch with 7 tablespoons water and stir well to avoid clumps. Add to the strawberry mix, let boil for 1 minute, stir constantly. 
• Take pan off the heat. In a small bowl, mix egg yolks with 2 tablespoons of the strawberry 'jam', then put back into the saucepan to combine with all the strawberry 'jam'. Pour on top of the crust and bake for 20 minutes.
• Let cool. Cut into squares or bars.

My modifications:

None.

Except for not cutting out hearts. Just plain old squares/bars.

Oh, and I changed the name. Backbube called them 'Pink Lemon Hearts' but I think 'Strawberry-Lemon-Bars' is more fitting (especially since I didn't make hearts).

The taste:

You usually have me at 'strawberry'. And this is no exception. These bars are so so so so good! I could really bathe in them. 

The strawberry puree/jam/topping was a bit wobbly and gooey and I am not really sure if it is supposed to be like that. But it was so very tasty nonetheless. I might try a little less starch next time, that might do the trick.

What fruit do you love, especially in or on cake?

51.2/52 Lemon-Curd-Cookies

What's not to love about lemon curd?

Lemon-Curd-Cookies

Adapted from freundin special 23/2009

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

150 g butter, room temperature

75 g powdered sugar

1 egg

pinch of salt

150 g ground almonds (without skin)

150 g flour

1 teaspoon grated lemon zest

1 tablespoon Limoncello

125 g lemon curd

1-2 tablespoons powdered sugar

• Beat vanilla, butter, and powdered sugar until light and fluffy. Add egg and salt. Add almonds, flour, lemon zest and Limoncello and knead until you have a smooth dough. Let cool in fridge for about 1 hour.
• Preheat oven to 150°C (300°F). Roll out dough on a floured surface and cut out about 70 hearts (or any other shape). Cut out a smaller heart in the middle of half of the already cut out hearts (these will make the top ones later when you put them together). Bake for 10-12 minutes and let cool.
• Put a small amount of lemon curd on each bottom heart (without hole), put top hearts (with hole) on top. Dust with powdered sugar.

My modifications:

None.

The taste:

Very good! But they could be even more lemony. Maybe add a bit more lemon zest to the dough or even lemon juice instead of Limoncello?

32/52 Lemon Crinkle Cookies

I just can't help it. I loooooove the taste of lemons. 

Not pure lemons, but you know what I mean...

Doesn't a little lemon flavor brighten up your mood no matter where you are and what season it is?

Doesn't the yellow color of lemons lift your spirits even on darker days?

See - that's why you can never bake or cook enough with lemons.

Lemon Crinkle Cookies

Adapted from Lauren's Latest

Makes about 3 dozen cookies

60 g (1/2 cup) butter, softened

210 g (1 cup) sugar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 egg

1 teaspoon lemon zest

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/8 teaspoon baking soda

225 g (1 1/2 cups) flour

60 g (1/2 cup) powdered sugar

• Preheat the oven to 175°C (350°F).
• Mix butter and sugar until fluffy and light.
• Beat in vanilla, egg, lemon zest and lemon juice.
• Except for the powdered sugar, add all dry ingredients and mix until just combined.
• Pour powdered sugar onto a plate. Roll balls out of one heaped teaspoon of dough and roll around in powdered sugar. Place on cookie sheet.

• Bake for 9-11 minutes until they have a matte look. Remove from the oven, let cool for a couple of minutes before removing onto a cooling rack.

My modifications:

I used a little less sugar (170 g instead of 210 g or about 7/8 cup instead of 1 cup) just to save some (very few) calories.

The taste:

Very nice but not as lemony as I hoped they would taste. Next time (and there will be a next time!), I will double the amount of lemon zest and lemon juice. But who knows, maybe they need a little time to really take on the lemon flavor, so I will keep you updated.

As you can see in the pictures, my cookies did not flatten much but I don't think that's a bad thing. The crinkle turned out pretty though.

They could have been a bit more gooey but I think that's just me. I'm a gooey-cookie-person...

What's you favorite citrus fruit? And what do you make/cook/bake with it?

26/52 Lemon Bars

I feel bad for sounding lazy again, but hey - it's summer (yay!). And it's hot.
And I really do want to bake. Just nothing complicated. And not for hours.

But Lemon Bars sounded summery, quick and easy enough so I thought I would give them a try.

The good thing about only baking new recipes for this blog is that I get to choose and try so many new cakes, cookies, and the like. But on the other hand, I just never know if I will end up with something yummy or not. This week it was more of the latter... But read more about that at the end of the post...

Lemon Bars

Adapted from allrecipes.com

Crust:

225 g (1 cup) butter, softened

100 g (1/2 cup) white sugar

250 g (2 cups) all-purpose flour

Topping:

4 eggs

300 g (1 1/2 cups) white sugar

30 g (1/4 cup) all-purpose flour

(2/3 cup) lemon juice

• Preheat oven to 175°C (350°F). 
• For the crust, mix together softened butter, sugar, and flour. Press into an ungreased pan of about 20 x 30 cm (9 x 13 in).
• Bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until golden. 

• Whisk together the ingredients for the topping and pour over the baked crust.
• Bake for another 20 minutes.

•  Let cool and cut into small squares.

My modifications:

According to some comments on the recipe, I used 2/3 cup of lemon juice (the original recipe called for the juice of 2 lemons which is less).

The taste:

As already mentioned above, this was not one of those recipes that deserve 5 stars. When I tasted the first small piece I was completely disappointed. It tasted like a lemon-omelette. I honestly could only taste the egg. A day later I had a friend visiting and she felt the same. Another day later, I wanted to give it a try again, and it actually tasted more like lemon, very good indeed and like I originally expected. 

Now, I am not sure why that is. Maybe it gets better (= more lemony, less eggy) the longer it sits in the fridge, or the egg didn't distribute evenly in the pan and the one side that I tried first got more egg. I'm not sure. So I leave it up to you if you want to take the chance or not. Just don't say I haven't warned you :)

Did anything you ever baked turn out different than you expected?

17/52 Lemon Poppy-Seed Cake

I totally had no idea which cake to make this week. So I started thinking...

Something simple and plain but not boring.

Something healthy but not too healthy.

Something with a little less calories but still full of flavor.

Something citrusy to match the sun that's coming out more and more.

And after random searching, I found this recipe and decided to give it a go:

Lemon Poppy-Seed Cake

Adapted from Eating Well

Cake:

350 g (2 1/2 cups) flour

25 g (1/4 cup) poppy seeds

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soday

1/4 teaspoon salt

250 ml (1 cup) buttermilk

50 ml (1/4 cup) vegetable oil

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 tablespoons lemon zest, freshly grated

2 tablespoons lemon juice

2 eggs

2 egg whites

300 g (1 1/4 cup) sugar

Glaze:

75 g (3/4 cup) powdered sugar

3 tablespoons lemon juice

1 tablespoon water

• Preheat oven to 180°C (360°F).
• Mix flour, poppy seeds, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a bowl.
• Combine buttermilk, oil, vanilla extract, lemon zest and juice in a cup or bowl.
• Beat eggs and egg whites with sugar on high for about 5 minutes until thick and pale yellow.
• Taking turns, fold in flour mix and buttermilk mix with a spatula.

• Pour batter into prepared pan and bake for 35-40 minutes.
• Let cool in pan for about 10 minutes before taking out of pan.
• For the glaze, sift powdered sugar into a bowl, add lemon juice and water and mix well. With a brush, coat cake with glaze and let cool and dry completely.

My modifications:

The original recipe calls for 1 1/2 cups whole-wheat pastry flour and 1 cup all-purpose flour. I only used all-purpose flour because that's what I had at home.

I did not toast the poppy seeds in a dry skillet just because I was a bit lazy.

I used sunflower seed oil instead of canola oil.

For the glaze I used lime juice to give it extra citrus flavor. I also didn't poke any holes into the cake before glazing which still worked fine.

The taste:

I love it. The cake is moist, light and fluffy. The lemon or lime glaze adds flavor and makes it more interesting. You can't really taste the poppy seeds but maybe that's because I didn't toast them beforehand.

What cake are you in the mood for at the moment?