Baked Custard Cakes and Pudding

Day 12: Recipes for White Chocolate Pumpkin Cheesecake, Flourless Chocolate Cake, Liquid Center Chocolate Lava Cakes, and Double Chocolate Pudding

White Chocolate Pumpkin Cheesecake
6 oz Graham Cracker Crumbs
2 oz Almond Flour
½ tsp Ginger
½ tsp Cinnamon
3 oz Butter
1 lb 3 oz Cream Cheese
8 oz White Chocolate, melted
3 Whole Eggs
30 ml Maple Syrup
1 oz Brandy
1 tsp Ginger
1 tsp Cinnamon
½ tsp Nutmeg
¾ cp Pumpkin Puree

Preparing White Chocolate Pumpkin Cheesecake
-It is another baked custard.
-The first ingredients are for the crust. Adding an egg yolk will tenderize the crust.
-The cream cheese can go into the mixer right away blending with the paddle to soften it. This will also keep the custard dense, without a lot of air; air changes the texture of the product.
-Have everything at room temperature; it is a blending issue for fats, if it is cold it doesn’t emulsify.
-Take time to blend the cheese, ensuring no lumps. Scrape the bowl down often, mixing on speed 2 for 5-8 minutes/
-Melt the chocolate in the microwave or double boiler. You want it melted but not too hot. Turn the water on for the double boiler, bring to a boil, and let the chocolate sit. You don’t need to stir or mess with it.

-Add the eggs to the cream cheese very slowly; warm them up if you can, it makes the emulsion easier.
-Add some cream cheese to the pumpkin to act as an insulator.

-It is a simple custard with the incorporation of cheese.
-Bake in a water bath; this cooks slowly and evenly.
-For the crust: Melt the butter, add the dry ingredients. It will be crumbly but pulls together.








-Pour into cake pan, apply pressure to condense it; you want a flat uniform base.

-Bake crust for 10 minutes to dry it out a little; the egg helps it set.

-With the cream cheese mixing, add the eggs, one at a time.

-Mix in the melted chocolate.

-Add all the flavorings, and then add the pumpkin.

-Mix until combined. Pour into the pan and place in a larger cake pan. Bring pan to the deck oven then fill with water.

-Bake at 325 degrees around 45-50 minutes. Cake should still have slight jiggle to center and center will feel barely firm to the touch.

Flourless Chocolate Cake
1 lb 58% Chocolate
1 lb Butter
8 oz Espresso
8 oz Light Brown Sugar
8 Whole Eggs

Preparing Flourless Chocolate Cake

-It has no flour so the eggs serve as the structure.
-It is close to custard, and you tread it like custard by cooking it at a low temperature in a water bath.
-Melt the butter and chocolate over a double boiler in your mixing bowl.

-You don’t want a lot of heat because you don’t want the eggs to start coagulating.
-Add the brown sugar, flavoring, and then the eggs.

-Be cautious of the temperature when incorporating the eggs. It should be around body temperature at 98 degrees.

-You don’t want a lot of air.
-Pour the batter into a parchment lined pan.

Our flourless cakes baked in a water bath in the convection oven for about 40 minutes, but because there was so much moisture in the oven with all of the cakes in water baths, they were not baking well. We moved them to the deck oven and finished them there. They souffleed a bit and when they looked set, we took them out. They fell back down, but because of the condensation that was on the pan above mine in the convection oven, water fell onto the top of the cake, which made it look the way it did.

Finishing Flourless Chocolate Cake
-Cut off the top so it is level.
-With the cake on a rack over a sheet pan, pour ganache over the top, making sure enough has also dripped down and coated the sides of the cake.
-Smooth it out by gently tapping the rack; shaking out any bubbles. If small bubbles still remain on top, pass over the top with a torch and the bubbles should melt out.
-When it appears no more ganache will drip further down the side, put the cake on a cake board and gently press chocolate shavings and pieces onto the sides, creating a crust.
-Portion out the cake visually and place a raspberry about 1/2” from the outside edge, on each piece. Since it is a very rich, dense cake, portion sizes are smaller and a 9” cake may end up with 10-12 servings.
-Dust around the berries with powdered sugar; keep the center clear of any sugar.

Chocolate Liquid Center Lava Cake
100 g Butter
90 g 64% Chocolate
40 g Yolks
100 g Whole Eggs
100 g Powdered Sugar
40 g Cake Flour

Preparing Lava Cakes

-Melt chocolate and butter.

-Sift flour and sugar.
-Add the beaten eggs.

-Fold in the flour and sugar.

-Spray the baking cups with pan spray.

-Bake in the deck oven for about 9 minutes. They should still have a liquid center.

Double Chocolate Pudding
18 oz Milk
2 oz Sugar
1/8 t Salt
4 oz Sugar
16 g Corn Starch
1 oz Cocoa
2 oz Milk
1 egg
2 Yolks
4 oz 58% Chocolate
1 oz Milk Chocolate
1 oz Butter
1 tsp Vanilla

Preparing Double Chocolate Pudding
-Method here is the same as baked custard but it is cooked on the stove.
-Bring the milk, sugar, and salt to a boil.

-Sift the dry ingredients.

-Have the eggs whisked in a bowl.

-Add the 2 oz of milk to the dry ingredients to make a paste.

-Temper the eggs.
-Add the dry ingredients.
-Put the mixture back on the heat.

-Stir until thick and then remove from the heat.
-Melt the chocolate and butter together.

-Add the chocolate to the pudding and stir until smooth.