in the kitchen x cheesecake cloud

With the arrival of warm weather, desserts become lighter and more refreshing. To showcase some of the amazing fruit in store, I like to simplify my desserts to showcase the produce. I love cheesecake and I wanted to make one that was lighter than the traditional NY cheesecake that's popular. I love cream cheese, but sometimes it's a bit too rich for my taste. I opted for fromage blanc for that reason. It's also a great base to compliment fruit. Folded with whipped cream, this cake is airy and light. Pictured is a fromage blanc cheesecake mousse, blueberry compote, vanilla compote, vanilla cake, & sesame seed tuile. The cheesecake is tangy and light, with a spongy vanilla cake base. Topped with juicy blueberries, crunchy crumble, and nutty tuile, its a simple but satisfying end to a spring meal. 

in the kitchen x lime, date, & toffee

This is a dish of mistakes. The meringue wasn't suppose to crack, the sauce should be thicker, and does lime even go with dates?! Mistakes happen, but this is a trifecta of nothing turning out right. Out of the entire batch, I had one meringue kiss that wasn't cracked and honestly it was not that appealing. I loved the cracked meringues. They were imperfectly gorgeous and resembled something The Flintstones would eat. While I should have thickened the sauce, I didn't want the texture to compete with the thick toffee. And dates and lime? Yes, they go together like peanut butter and jelly. This dessert is composed of meringue filled with lime curd, moist brown sugar date cake, a decadent toffee sauce, and blueberry compote. It's not your typical flavor pairings, but sometimes, things work out. Mistakes can be a blessing in disguise. 

in the kitchen x the first bundle of rhubarb

This dessert was made out of the desire for the warm weather to just arrive. And arrive it has. The first of shipment of rhubarb is here and they are beautiful. I wanted something simple to showcase the rhubarb, and went with a cheesecake/baked crumble approach. This dessert consist of a quark cloud cheesecake, vanilla cake, white wine poached rhubarb, rhubarb raspberry sauce, and crushed crumble. I like adding crushed raspberries to poached rhubarb as a natural food coloring, as sometimes the green stalks can turn the final product a muddy brown. When the warm weather arrives, desserts tend to become simpler. The fruits that are coming into season are delicious alone, and they need a light hand to really showcase their true flavors. If you're wondering what quark is, it's a fresh dairy product that is similar in taste to a cream cheese, or sour cream although with more tang. It can be considered a fresh cheese, although some methods in producing it do not contain rennet. Alone, it's a delicious snack (and cheesy spread when strained in cheesecloth overnight), but like any other fresh dairy product, can really be delicious when paired with seasonal fruits. I probably would have never heard of it if it wasn't for working for a German chef as it is common in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. 

in the kitchen x green tea pavlova mashup

It has been such a cold winter and even thought its officially Spring, there's still a chill in the air. I have been craving all things beach, sun, sand, and all things tropical. The closest I've come to escaping this NYC tundra is this mashup pavlova. It looks innocent enough, but there's a lot going on. Underneath is a green tea white chocolate mousse enrobed in a passion fruit whipped cream. Covering the outside is crispy meringue, candied kumquats, and starfruit. Let's just say, even though I'm lounging near a palm tree, this kind of feels like one.

in the kitchen x lemon curd, yogurt, & fresh figs

The arrival of spring immediately brings to mind one of fruit, lemon. While citrus is a winter fruit, I can't help but correlate the tart and crisp flavors of lemon to spring. It's refreshing, and March is all about hitting refresh on your daily routines. The layers of clothing slowly come off, the sun doesn't disappear after 4pm, and the warm weather is energizing. Once I learned how to make lemon curd, I was hooked. The combination of eggs, fresh lemon juice, sugar, and butter is tangy, citrusy, and delicious. To highlight one of my favorite flavors, this dessert is a play on a lemon meringue tart. It is made with lemon curd, shortbread shell, meringue crisps, yogurt with blood orange juice, and fresh figs. Just imagine a creamy and citrusy curd, with a buttery tart shell, crispy and crunchy meringue, tangy yogurt, sweet blood orange juice, and a ripe fresh fig. Separately, they're good. But together all the components add up to a light and refreshing dessert perfect for the arrival of spring.