Coffee Cheesecake Slice
175g butter, softened
125g caster sugar
2 tbsp milk
185g plain flour
Pinch of salt
Cheesecake topping
250g full-fat soft cream cheese
2 eggs, separated
100g caster sugar
100ml brewed Robert Timms Italian Style Espresso coffee, cooled
1 tbsp plain flour
50g good quality dark chocolate, grated
Preparation:
Preheat oven to 180°C. Prepare and chill coffee if not already done. Grease and baseline a 21cm x 21cm x 4cm baking tin. Put butter and sugar in a bowl and whisk with electric beaters until pale and fluffy. Whisk in milk.
Add flour and salt and mix with a wooden spoon until mixture forms a dough. Spoon into the tin and spread out smoothly using a blunt knife. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes until lightly browned around the edges. Increase oven temperature to 190°C. To make cheesecake topping, combine the cream cheese, egg yolks and caster sugar using an electric whisk. Gradually whisk in coffee until the mixture is smooth.
Add the flour and chocolate and mix in. In a separate bowl, whisk egg whites until firm peaks form then gently fold into the mixture. Pour over the biscuit base. Bake for 35 minutes. Cool in the tin. Makes about 15 pieces.
Espresso Biscotti
2 cups of flour
2 tablespoons of ground espresso powder
½ teaspoon of ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon of baking soda
½ teaspoon of baking powder
1 cup of sugar
½ teaspoon of salt
2 tablespoons of grated orange zest
3 large eggs
1 teaspoon of vanilla.
¾ cup of natural almonds, toasted and chopped
Preparation:
Preheat oven to 175°C. In a bowl with an electric mixer, mix together flour, ground espresso powder, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder, sugar, salt and orange zest. In another bowl, beat together the eggs and vanilla. Add all at once to the dry ingredients and beat until a dough is formed. Stir in the toasted chopped almonds.
Turn the dough out onto a floured board and knead it into a ball. Halve it and form each half into a log 12 inches by 2 inches. Arrange the logs on a buttered and floured baking sheet approximately 3 inches apart. Bake the logs in the middle of oven for 45 minutes or until they are browned and firm all over. Remove from the oven and allow cooling.
On a cutting board, cut the logs diagonally into slices one inch thick. Position the slices on baking sheet and return to the oven and bake for 10 minutes on each side or until golden throughout.