I actually started writing this blog post about a month ago, at that time I felt no inspiration. What story should I share to make this post interesting? I guess there never is really a story in all of my posts, it’s just about the food, about the experience and about the love for all these small little cakes, brownies, cheesecakes… that can make my life feel so perfect for such a tiny moment, in the midst of all the hectic schedule of quizzes, tests and homework.
After my final quiz for this semester, I finally found myself sitting down in front of my laptop and start typing out this blog post. It is embarrassing, for I have not been posting stuff at all for the past one month. Every week is the same for me – study from Monday to Friday; go back home on Friday evening, staying at home for only Saturday and Sunday before moving back into hall on Sunday night. Weekends seem to be the only days to bake right now, however, with the extremely lazy moi, I often wasted it away sleeping or watching all the drama series. I don’t bake as often anymore, but I still cook. Funny though, I don’t really have the habit to take photos of cooked food. Maybe because I don’t’ know how to make them look presentable and pretty, unlike cakes and other baked goods – there are a lot of ways to make them look presentable, cute, lovely and yummy all at the same time.
I baked this cheesecake for my friend’s birthday (once again). I am in this phase that I don’t want anything that is too overly chocolaty. Chocolate cakes? No. Chocolate brownies? Nay. Chocolate, chocolate chocolate? No, nope, nah. I still love chocolate, mind you, but I do not want to bake something that is wholly chocolate. Only parts of it. I think this phase is passing and I will be back to baking chocolate baked goods. While I am out of the chocolate phase, I am into the cheesecake phase. It’s funny, how a cheesecake-disliker like me gets wound up into loving cheesecake so much. Did I tell you how I got that ‘enlightenment’? Haha. I still remembered clearly that it was on a Primary class gathering at our friend’s house. And one of them brought a cheesecake made by her brother. It was so delicate, not overly sweet, light and luscious all at the same time. It was a no-bake cheesecake, with graham crackers as the base, and then layered with various fruits and then the cheesecake batter is poured over the fruits and then refrigerated into perfection. That’s the first time I have eaten a cheesecake and at that moment I know I am in for something good.
Cheesecakes sold at bakeries and cafés are normally big, fat and tall. The crumb crust is normally thin and the cheesecake batter is so overwhelmingly too much that sometimes I find it hard to finish it, especially when they are rich and creamy. This cheesecake that I baked was a very short cheesecake. They are only about 2 inches tall, and I think 4 inches in diameter, crumbs and all, but I think they offer a much better balance than traditional cheesecakes. And obviously, they are much cuter to look at!
