Lemon cream cheese cake by Chef Waka. Photo by Yoko Morihiro

by Chef Waka of bushi-tei

One of Japantown’s premier restaurants, bushi-tei offers fine dining created by Chef Waka. Today’s recipe is a dessert with lemon flavor that is perfect for the summer season. Chef Waka serves this at bushi-tei on special occasions. You will need a 3” 24-hole muffin tray for this dish. Try making it at home today!

Ingredients:
Cream cheese.............12 oz.
Eggs................................(8)
Sugar..............................130g
Lemon peels......4 lemons’ worth
Cake flour.........................150g
Unsalted butter.....................75g

Directions:

(1) Mix the cream cheese and egg yolks and about a third of the sugar until the mixture becomes a smooth cream.

(2) Add the flour to the cream and mix until it becomes a paste, then add the lemon peels.

(3) Make a meringue with the egg whites and remaining sugar. (With regard to making a meringue, refer to a cookbook. There will be tips, such as the egg whites should be chilled and the sugar should be added in portions rather than all at once.)

(4) Separate the meringue three or four times and add it to the mix of (3).

(5) Melt the butter and add it to the resultant mixture of (4) and mix lightly with a rubber spatula.

(6) Butter the muffin tray and then pour the mixture in so the muffin holes until each is about four-fifths full of mixture. Then bake for 8 minutes in a preheated oven at 325 degrees and then it’s done!

(7) You can spice up this dessert by spreading on your favorite marmalade or berry jam, extra virgin oil, or top with ice cream or whip cream and serve.

Point!

* When pouring the meringue into the muffin molds, mix it four different times. The first and second times, mix until it becomes a paste. The third and fourth times, just mix lightly.

* When garnishing with berry jam, mixing the jam with ginger juice brings out the berry flavor.

* For those who don’t like sweets, the dessert can be garnished with sour cream instead of ice cream and the like.