Well, it's here.
It's baby day, but not unusually, there is no baby. Yet.
Let's just say I am more than ready.
I'm ready to;
Sleep on my stomach again.
Sleep in general really....
Eat an over easy egg with buttered toast.
Walk without waddling.
Be able to put my shoes on without any acrobatic feats.
Wear pants with real buttons.
Drink a very large glass of good red wine.
Have a really long, sweaty workout.
Not worry that if I sneeze, the baby will fall out. ( I know it doesn't happen that way, but wouldn't it be nice?)
I'm also really ready for;
Tiny baby feet.
Being able to finally see what she looks like.
Introducing her to her loving and anxious, annoyingly impatient family.
Being able to start this roller coaster they call parenthood.
In the meantime, while we sit in a holding pattern for baby time. We shall eat cheesecake.
I made this over a month ago for my mom's birthday. I looked for a new cheesecake recipe that involved all of the things I love about cheesecake. Sweet, yet tangy, texture should be fluffy and not too dense, the crust should be buttery and not too firm.
This recipe nailed every one of those. It was so good, my mom had 2 pieces of it for dessert.
Mascarpone Cheesecake
[ from Gourmet ]
crust:
70 vanilla wafers, finely ground in the food processor
10 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled
filling:
20 oz cream cheese (from 2 1/2 8oz packages), softened
8 oz mascarpone cheese (about 1 cup), room temperature
3/4 cup sugar
3 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon salt
topping:
1 cup sour cream
1/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1/8 teaspoon salt
Preheat oven to 350 degrees and place rack in middle of the oven. Butter the bottom and sides of a 9-inch spring form pan.
To make the crust, stir together the cookie crumbs and butter until everything is thoroughly moistened. Reserve 1/4 cup of the mixture for sprinkling on top of the finished cheesecake. Press remaining mixture firmly into the bottom and 1/2-inch up the sides of the spring form pan. Make sure the crust is spread evenly throughout and pressed quite firmly. Bake until golden, about 10 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool. Leave oven on.
To make the filling, in a stand mixer or a large bowl with a hand mixer, beat together the cream cheese, mascarpone, and sugar at medium-high speed for 3 - 5 minutes, or until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.Add the vanilla extract, lemon juice, and salt. Mix to combine. Pour filling into cooled crust, bake until filling is set but the centre will still jiggle slightly when pan is shaken lightly, about 25 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool slightly on a wire rack, about 20 minutes. Cheesecake will firm as it cools.
For the topping, in a medium bowl, stir together all of the ingredients. Spoon over cheesecake, spreading into an even layer. Sprinkle top with reserved crumb mixture. Bake until topping is set, about 10 minutes. Remove from oven and run a thin knife along the edges. Let cool completely on a wire rack and then let rest overnight, or for 8 hours minimum, in the refrigerator loosely covered.
