February 2020 – Page 2 – Just Plain Susan

LemonThyme Cupcakes with LemonThyme Mascarpone Frosting

I started with a lemon cake mix for time’s sake. But you can make a lemon cake from scratch and add the other things. I made the cake mix according to the box instructions and added a teaspoon of lemon baking emulsion, 1 TBSP of fresh thyme leaves chopped, 1 TBSP fresh lemon zest. Bake as directed. The frosting is 8 ounces of mascarpone cream and 8 ounces of butter both at room temp. Beat these together and add 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice, 1 TBSP fresh lemon zest, 1 TBSP fresh thyme leaves chopped and 1 tsp lemon baking emulsion. Beat all this together and then add 2 pounds icing sugar and beat on high until fluffy. Super fast and not quite as good as scratch but better than boxed – which is what I was going for today.

Our favorite classic cheesecake recipe.

Scale

Heat oven to 325 degrees.
Combine crust ingredients, mix well until no dry spots remain. Should clump when pressed together.
Press crust evenly into the bottom and at least 1 1/2 inches up the sides of a 8 or 9 inch springform pan. Use the bottom of a measuring cup to make sure the bottom is as even as possible. Bake on the middle rack until crust is set and just starting to brown around the edges. About 20 minutes.
Remove pan from the oven and set aside while you prepare the filling. Reduce oven to 300 degrees.
Combine cream cheese, sour cream, sugar vanilla and salt. Beat on medium until mixture is completely smooth, scraping down the sides and bottom of the bowl often – about 4 minutes.
With mixer still on medium add eggs one at a time, scraping down the sides and bottom after each egg. With the mixer on low, add flour and beat until blended with no lumps.
Pour filling into prepared crust. If the filling goes past the crust sides that’s okay. Bake until edge of the cheesecake are completely set and a 2 inch circle in the center is still a little wobbly. 60-70 minutes.
Turn heat off and let cheesecake remain in the oven for another 10 mintues.
Remove cheesecake from oven and let sit on wire rack to cool completely at room temperature.
When cool, transfer to refigerator until totally set, at least 6 hours, preferably overnight.
Serve with fresh fruit if you like. But in my opinion it needs no additions.