Zia's Cannoli

Ahhh cannoli! I don't know if it's because I'm Italian, or because it reminds me of childhood trips to the Italian bakery in Baltimore or because my dad's favorite line from The Godfather is, "Leave the gun, take the cannoli", but I have a definite soft spot for these cream-filled pastry shells.

I was so happy when I came upon this recipe from a friend and former co-worker of mine. There are so many great things about this recipe. Let me outline them below because I don't want to miss a thing!


1. It was generously passed on to me from a former co-worker,Rita, who shares my Italian-American heritage. She had posted a status update and some photos on Facebook about her weekend making her great-Aunt Zia's homemade cannolis. I was interested immediately! I messaged her and asked if she could send me the recipe.

2. Not only did she agree to share her family's recipe that they've been making for generations, but she also offered me a sample of the cannoli shells she had just made!! What's better than being passed a tried-and-true tested recipe complete with a taste of the final product?? I was very excited!

3. On top of passing on the recipe and a few finished shells to boot, she went over the process with me step-by-step telling me some hints that worked for her, which made the whole process that much more foolproof for me.

4. I love that the grease spots and aged look of the original recipe came through on the photocopy. It makes me feel like I've been handed a little piece of my friend's family history.


5. These cannoli are DELICIOUS!!! The shells turn out light, crispy and airy and the filling is perfect, not too sweet or grainy.


My mom and I made these this past Christmas and I will say, it's a time-consuming process. I spent practically a whole day making the cannoli shells.

Having a deep fryer made the process go quite smoothly - rather than frying them in a pot on the stove.

Also, you do need one essential piece of speciality equipment to make cannoli shells called cannoli forms. These hollow metal tubes are what you'll wrap your rolled cannoli dough around to hold their shape while they fry. You can buy them online in sets of 4. I suggest buying the forms that are at least 6 inches long and 1 inch wide. My friend who gave me the recipe, Rita, had a set of cannoli forms her father cut himself years ago out of heavy pipe, so if you're industrious enough these can be gotten on your own for very cheap. I found the investment in a nice set of cannoli forms worth it since I plan on making these for many Christmases to come.

The only change we made to the recipe was using butter instead of shortening in the cannoli dough. My mom and I just like the flavor that butter lends to something, whereas shortening can be kind of bland. Hopefully Rita's Aunt Zia would approve. As much as I wish I could claim this was one of my Italian family's age-old recipes, at least from this point on we can incorporate it into our family traditions to be passed on to future generations. And that is very exciting! Enjoy!!


Zia's Cannoli


FILLING:
3 cups (1 1/2 lbs) Ricotta cheese (drain through a cheesecloth or papertowels at least 48 hours prior to mixing - DO NOT SKIP THIS STEP!!! Otherwise you'll have very runny filling)
1 cup sugar
2 teaspooons vanilla extract
3 drops of cinnamon oil
1/4 cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup finely chopped candied citron (I OMITTED THIS INGREDIENT)

Combine and beat the drained ricotta, sugar, vanilla and cinnamon oil until smooth, about 10 min. with electric mixer on medium speed. Once combined, stir in the chocolate chips, and citron if using. Place mixture in refrigerator to chill.

SHELLS:
3 cups sifted flour
1/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons butter
2 eggs, beaten
2 tablespoons white vinegar or Sauterne wine
2 tablespoons cold water

1 egg white, slightly beaten (for sealing dough around forms)

Sift together the flour, sugar, cinnamon and salt. Cut in the butter with a pastry blender until the pieces are the size of small peas and the mixture is crumbly. Next, stir in the beaten eggs. Finally blend in the vinegar and water one tablespoon at a time. Once the dough is combines, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and knead. Wrap in waxed paper and chill in the refrigerator for 30 min.

Set out your deep fryer and fill with vegetable or canola oil and heat to 360 degrees.

Roll the chilled dough out to 1/16 in thickness on a floured surface. Cut 4 to 5 in long ovals from the dough. I made a form out of cardboard and used that to measure and cut my ovals.

Wrap the dough loosely around the tubes and seal at the top by brushing with some slightly beaten egg white. Press edges together to seal. Place two tubes each into a fryer basket and lower. Be sure not to overcrowd the fryer (two shells per basket at maximum). Fry until golden brown. Once done, lift and drain fat before removing WITH TONGS to absorbent paper. Do not remove with your hands because the forms will be hot. Once forms have cooled slightly you can remove the shells. The first one or two shells on each tube may stick a little, but after that they should remove pretty easily. Just wiggle the shells back and forth to loosen them from the tube.

Fill the shells when ready to serve for best taste. Filling them too early will result in soggy shells. Dust lightly with confectioners sugar and sprinkle ends of cannoli with finely chopped pistachio nuts if desired.

Makes 40-45 thin shells. Shells will keep for about 2-3 weeks in an airtight container at room temperature.

Braciole (Italian-Style Rolled Flank Steak)

Braciole, pronounced bra-shoal, is an age-old Italian meat dish. It's a very southern Italian, Italian-immigrant dish. My older relatives (think grandparents and their generation) used to make it all the time. I haven't had it in years and when I saw a post recently on Proud Italian Cook's blog, it made my mouth water and my tastebuds yearn for that melt in your mouth tender meat. The trick to braciole is the braising process - basically you sear the meat rolls and then simmer them for hours in a rich, winey tomato sauce. The end result is the most flavorful, fork-tender meat you'll ever eat. In my family, we usually rolled the pounded out flank steak with slabs of lard, which helps tenderize the meat. I noticed Proud Italian Cook used thinly sliced prosciutto and I absolutely loved this idea. I used pancetta however, and then I followed her basic stuffing combination and the rolls were delicious.
My mom was in charge of wrapping up the rolls and I think she went a little overboard! Check out those sailor knots LOL!

You don't need to use as much twine, not that it will mess with the taste but it did take quite a while to open these little packages when dinner was served. Mom was just being extra-cautious though so you can't fault her for hog-tying the rolls. She just didn't want the rolls to break up in the sauce. I'm sure it comes as no surprise that Italians are good with rope (lol little bad mob humor there, not sayin' anything of course! Just kidding!)
Anyway, here are some rough measurements I came up with for the recipe. In the true Italian tradition, PRC's blog doesn't provide measurements on her post, but I know not everyone can just improvise and I don't want that to be a reason why you didn't try this dish because it's out of this world. For the tomato sauce you can just use any basic tomato sauce recipe you like - one that has red wine in it might be nice, but not required. I think the wine helps tenderize the meat even more. You need kitchen twine to tie your rolls together. I prefer to cut the steak into strips in order to make individual rolls, but if you do an online search for braciole you'll find many recipes that have you rolling up the flank steak in one large piece and tying it that way. Do whatever works for you. Enjoy! We served this for Christmas dinner with some homemade crab and red pepper ravioli.

Braciole
Source: adapted from Proud Italian Cook


4-5 lbs flank steak, pounded thin and cut into long strips about 3 inches wide
3/4 lb pancetta, sliced thinly (get this from your deli counter at your grocery)
1/2 cup minced garlic (almost one whole small bulb)
2/3 cup chopped parsley
2/3 cup grated pecorino romano cheese
1/4 - 1/2 cup breadcrumbs (use more if your mixture is looking too thick with parsley and garlic)
olive oil

Mix together your garlic, parsley, cheese and breadcrumbs. Use a little olive oil, about a tablespoon or two to bind the mixture. Lay out your flank steak, make sure it's been pounded to about 1/2 inch thick, or thinner if you can without breaking the meat too much. Season lightly with salt and pepper.
Layer the pancetta in a single layer on top of each flank steak. Then top evenly with the stuffing mixture and pat flat. Finally, roll up your flank steak and secure with kitchen twine.
In a high-sided saute pan, cover the bottom with olive oil in a thin layer and heat. Once the oil is hot, add your rolls, a few at a time, and brown on all four sides.

Remove once browned and set aside. Once all your rolls are browned, add them to your simmering homemade tomato sauce and let them cook on low heat for a few hours until the meat is tender. Be careful when stirring the sauce pot so you don't break up the rolls within the pot. Once done, remove and serve with more sauce and grated romano cheese and your favorite pasta. Enjoy!

Pizzelles - Italian Waffle Cookies

These cookies have been a Christmas tradition in my family starting with my great-grandmother, and possibly before. My mom and I have made them every Christmas since I can remember. She nearly quadruples the basic recipe, which has been in her recipe box on this index card in a plastic sleeve for decades, and then passes them out to tons of family and friends.

Everyone has come to expect them from our family at Christmas time. In order to meet the demand, we bought two pizzelle waffle irons and make a day of it. My mom and I get out the Christmas DVDs and spend nearly a whole afternoon into the early evening pressing these beautiful cookies out two by two while watching White Christmas, Miracle On 34th Street, A Christmas Carol and It's A Wonderful Life . This year however, our antique waffle iron, the one we've been using for decades, died on us. So we were working with one machine and not the better of the two. The one that crapped out on us was an Italian model, all metal waffle iron that made the cookies extra thin. The second iron, more modern, has a non-stick surface. This makes the baking much easier but doesn't make the pizzelles quite as thin and delicate as the Italian iron. Oh well. We made the best of what we had.

Nonetheless, the season doesn't feel like it has arrived until we bake pizzelles. The house fills with the sweet smell of butter, sugar and anise. The best part of the whole process is eating the ones that bake a little too long or accidentally break when being packed up or pulled from the iron. The challenge is not to eat too many as you go along. Every year for the past 10 years we've had an eager kitchen helper, as you can see. She gladly eats up the scraps and crumbs along the way.

There are hundreds of recipes out there for pizzelles. They are a very simple cookie. Nothing real fancy. They almost taste like a waffle cone and can be a canvas for any flavors you prefer. In my family we have always used anise seed. My mom takes her basic recipe, pictured above, and adds in anise extract and anise seed. My grandmother used to also add lemon or orange zest, but my mom has omitted that ingredient. You can add a little cocoa powder to make chocolate pizzelles, substitute almond extract for the anise seed, or any other kind of extract really. In the end you get a light, wafer-like butter cookie that resembles a snowflake and literally melts in your mouth.

Like most Italian desserts, they go excellently with a nice, hot cup of espresso or other strong coffee. The bad thing about pizzelles is you can eat 6 of them and not even notice. They are addictive and go down like potato chips! You do need a pizzelle waffle iron to make these cookies, an investment that is worth it if, like in my family, you make hundreds of these every Christmas season. Buon Natale!!

Pizzelles

1/2 cup shortening (my mom uses butter)
3/4 cup sugar
3 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 to 2 tsp anise extract
3 tb anise seeds
1 3/4 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
pinch of salt

In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter and the sugar together. Add in the eggs and incorporate. Next add in the vanilla and anise extract and mix in the anise seeds. In a separate bowl, mix together the dry ingredients (flour, powder). Stir into the eggs, butter and sugar mixture until the dry and wet ingredients are fully incorporated. Chill batter, covered, in the fridge until it's slightly firm, about an hour. Get your waffle iron hot. Once hot, put a tablespoon of batter into each side of the waffle iron. Close and bake. When you close the lid you'll hear the steam hiss and rise out of the iron. After about 15 seconds open up the iron to check your progress. Bake until they are firm but not brown. Burnt cookies will taste bitter because of the anise seed. The time may shorten up as you move along since the iron will get a little hotter. You may burn the first few trying to figure oput how long you need to bake each one for, but eventually you'll figure out how much time your particular iron needs to cook up the batter to a crisp cookie. Remove the cookies gently with a fork and place on a rack to cool. Once cool you can stack your cookies and store them in an airtight container. Cookies will stay fresh for up to two weeks. Enjoy!

Chocolate Cherry Almond Biscotti

This is a quick, pre-Christmas cookie post. We made these beauties to accompany the date and pistachio biscotti below. These are so good!! I switched the semisweet chocolate for white chocolate and in my opinion it really makes these cookies. It adds just the right amount of sweetness and helps bring out the cocoa flavor in the cookie.
One other thing I changed were the almonds. I couldn't find whole unblanched almonds so I just opted for blanched slivered almonds and used about 3/4 of a cup so as not to overwhelm the batter with almond slivers. It worked out fine. Another note to whoever takes on these cookies - they bake up HARD. These are not biscotti for the wimpy. These are the real deal. Crunchy and a small workout on the teeth. So if you have some weak molars etc. then be sure to soak your biscotti in some strong espresso first, or maybe a little cappuccino. I read that the absence of butter in biscotti recipes gives them that authentically hard, tack-biscuit consistency. If you're not a fan of the harder biscotti then find a recipe that uses butter. I found these to be just perfect though.
On top of that, they are just plain ole' pretty. The color contrast is nice and the little colored beady sprinkles stand out nicely against the snowy white chocolate background. They just put me in the holiday mood. How about you? I hope you get a chance to enjoy some delicious cookies this season.

Dried Cherry and Chocolate Biscotti with Almonds
Source: Emeril Lagasse, www.foodnetwork.com

2 cups flour
1/4 cup cocoa powder
2 teaspoons baking powder
Pinch of salt
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1 cup unblanched whole almonds
1 cup dried cherries
3 large eggs
3/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
8 ounces semisweet chocolate, melted
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

In a mixing bowl, sift the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, salt and cinnamon. Stir in the almonds and cherries.

In another mixing bowl, whisk the eggs, sugar, and vanilla until smooth. Stir the dry ingredients into the egg mixture. Mix well. Lightly dust the work surface. Turn the dough onto the surface and knead the dough a couple of times. Shape the dough into a log, about 12 inches long and 4 inches wide. Place the dough on a parchment lined baking sheet and bake for about 30 minutes, or until golden and firm to the touch. Remove from the oven and cool completely on a wire rack. Using a serrated knife, slice the bread diagonally into 1/4-inch slices. Place the slices on a parchment lined baking sheet and bake for an additional 12 to 14 minutes or until golden and crispy.

Remove from the oven and cool completely a second time on a wire rack. Dip half of each biscotti in the melted chocolate and place on a parchment lined baking sheet and refrigerate until the chocolate sets.

Chocolate-Dipped Date and Pistachio Biscotti

For years my mom and I always made the same cookies for Christmas. Gingerbread men and sugar cutout cookies (which both involve rolling, cutting and decorating), Mexican tea cookies (also called Russian tea cookies or Pfefferneusen or something like that), chocolate chip cookies and Pizelles. This year I just didn't have the energy or the time for making that many labor-intensive cookies so I decided to keep it simple. We made Pizelles, which I will post about shortly, as well as two kinds of biscotti. I find biscotti to be a pretty simple, quick cookie to make since there is no rolling or even dropping by the tablespoon involved. You simply cut the dough in quarters or halves, form it into logs and bake it whole. Then you cut it and toast the biscotti - making them twice-baked cookies. For a special touch, we dipped these particular fruit and nut biscotti in melted semi-sweet chocolate.

These biscotti were inspired by a recipe for Fig and Pistachio Biscotti on Proud Italian Cook's blog. I made a lot of changes and omissions however, so here is my version below. I substituted dates for figs because my mom had bought a huge bag of dried medjool dates to make an appetizer for Thanksgiving and we had plenty left over so instead of spending more money for figs, we used what we had. Also, since the Pizelles we make every year are anise flavored, I didn't want the biscotti to be as well. Plus, I'm not a huge fan of anise so I eliminated that ingredient. I just put in extra vanilla extract. Also, as I've said before on this blog, you won't catch me within 50 yards of a piece of zest. I'm not a fan, no matter how hard I try to like it, I just don't. Orange, lemon or lime, it doesn't seem to matter. I just don't like citrus zest. Sorry, not happening to my baked goods! Oh well. So, in short (ha), I left that ingredient out as well. Lastly, I dipped them in melted chocolate to add a holiday touch. I also added in a touch of cinnamon to give them a warm finish.

They turned out nice and crumbly. Apparently, biscotti made with butter have more of a cakey texture and those without butter have more of a traditional hard, crunchy consistency. These leaned toward the cakey end, but still had a nice toothy crunch. Hopefully you have time to enjoy a little holiday baking this season! These aren't too hard to make inbetween shopping and trimming the tree. Enjoy!

Chocolate-Dipped Date and Pistachio Biscotti

1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temp
3/4 cup sugar
2 large eggs
2 t. vanilla extract
1/2 tsp cinnamon
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 t. baking powder
1/4 t. salt
1/2 cup shelled pistachios
1 cup chopped pitted dates
8 oz semisweet chocolate chips


Heat oven to 350 degrees.
With your mixer, beat butter and sugar on medium-high until smooth, about 2 minutes.
Add eggs and extract beat until creamy and light.
Combine dry ingredients together, then add to the butter mixture, add the dates and the nuts last.
Mix everything on low speed until incorporated then remove dough and divide in half.
Form two 7×3 inch logs, place on parchment lined baking sheet apart from each other, and bake until lightly browned (25 to 30 minutes).
Remove from oven, and let them cool down, you can't cut them when they're hot they'll crumble.

Using a serrated knife, take your time and slowly cut logs into 1/2″ thick slices.
Arrange biscotti on their sides on the baking sheet. Return to oven, and bake until golden, about 10-15 minutes. Turn biscotti over on the other side and bake for another 10-15 minutes more, or until desired crispiness. Cool on racks.
Once cool, melt your chocolate over a double boiler. Once melted, dip the tops of your biscotti in and sprinkle with jimmies or cookie decorations if desired. Chill in the refrigerator until the chocolate sets back up and then enjoy!
Makes around 36-40.

White Bean and Brussel Sprout Soup

Well, it's here. Winter. Cold, blustery, bitter and raw. They are even calling for snow flurries today! I guess I shouldn't complain. It is December, after all (as I keep hearing people say). Nothing could be as crazy as last winter when we had blizzard after blizzard of unrelenting snow. I swear it didn't melt till May!
At least it puts you in the holiday spirit. Speaking of holidays, do you have your tree up yet? We do! I've also already watched the obligatory Christmas movies and had the required festive eggnog while tree trimming. That is required, right?? Hee.

And in the spirit of Christmas here is a nice abstract shot of our tree from outside our house:

And here's a pic of our most favorite Christmas blessing of all, sleeping in "HEAVENLY" peace, as the song so beautifully says:


Anyway, the one redeeming thing about cold weather is the host of foods it inspires me to cook. Mainly - soup. I love a hearty bowl of warm, homemade soup on a cold, winter's night. There is NOTHING better in my opinion. I have some favorites, onion soup, traditional minestrone and roasted tomato bisque. However, last night we were looking to use up some brussel sprouts in the fridge so I fashioned up a tasty soup that made these mini-cabbage heads the star. You can just rinse them, cut them in half and throw them into the soup raw. They will boil in the broth while the beans soften up, floating like little green apples while your soup simmers.

You can easily make this with canned beans, but it's not that much harder to use dried beans and you really get your money's worth as well as a major flavor payback with dried beans. If you use canned beans however, you'll want to probably cook your brussel sprouts ahead of time since you won't have to simmer the soup as long.
Another tip, I like a thicker soup consistency, so, as you'll see in my recipe, I pureed two cups of beans once they were cooked, and then stirred them back into the soup to thicken up the broth. If you like a thinner, clearer type of soup then just skip that step. We topped our soup with crispy cubes of prosciutto and a generous spoonful of grated Romano cheese.
Finally, a word of warning. Eat this soup with ones you love. Beans and brussel sprouts can be a dangerous combination, if you know what I mean. So tread lightly but don't be afraid - the taste is worth it! Or Beano before if you must.
Enjoy!

White Bean and Brussel Sprout Soup


1 lb dried white beans
1/2 cup cubed prosciutto
1 onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 carrots, chopped
1 celery stalk, chopped
2 tb fresh rosemary, finely chopped
2 tb olive oil
1 qt chicken stock
2 cups water
1 can diced fire-roasted tomatoes with juice
1 bay leaf
1 lb brussel sprouts, rinsed, trimmed and then cut in half
salt and pepper for seasoning
grated pecorino romano cheese for serving

Soften the beans first. Rinse the beans, place in a large soup pot, and add cold water to cover by 2 inches. Bring to a boil and let simmer for 2 minutes, cover, and remove from the heat. Let stand for about 1 hour, then drain. Place aside.
In the bottom of that same soup pot, place your cubed prosciutto and crisp up over medium heat. Once the prosciutto has browned and crisped, remove it from the pot and set aside. You'll use this to top your soup when serving.
In the same pot, throw in your onion, garlic, carrots, celery, rosemary and olive oil. Saute them in the prosciutto grease and brown bits until softened. Once softened, add your drained beans to the pot along with the rest of your ingredients, stock, water, tomatoes, bay leaf and brussel sprouts. Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer. Allow soup to simmer uncovered until the beans are tender and the brussel sprouts have cooked. Miraculously, these two things seem to happen at the same rate, which ends up being about 30-40 minutes, depending on your stove.
Once done and the beans are tender, strain out two cups of beans (these will unavoidably include celery, onion, carrots and garlic but if you can try to avoid whole brussel sprouts and leaves within these two cups). Puree the beans and miscellaneous vegetables in a food processor until smooth. Return this puree to the soup pot and stir to combine. This will help thicken your soup to a nice consistency. Ladle soup into bowls, top with crispy prosciutto and grated romano cheese and serve.

Almost-Famous Pumpkin Cheesecake

I didn't bestow that title on this seemingly celebrity-status dessert. That's the name it came with! I was determined to make a pumpkin cheesecake for Thanksgiving and I found several recipes in magazines and online. This particular recipe seemed special to me however. It made a large, restaurant size cheesecake with a super-buttery crumb crust and I just couldn't resist it's name. They totally reeled me in with the guarantee of "almost famous". It must be good then...right?? Well, fortunately, it was. It was more than good. It was stupendous!

Cheesecake on Thanksgiving is definitely a risk since you're asking people to eat a huge meal and then throw down a very rich dessert. Our crowd took on the challenge however, and did pretty well. And those who couldn't stuff in dessert took home slices of this spicy pumpkin dessert. I think those who took pieces home might actually enjoy it more than those who shoved it in after overloading their tastebuds on turkey and fixins. I would rather enjoy this cheesecake as a meal the day after Thanksgiving. It definitely deserves that kind of special attention.

A few notes about the recipe. For one, I substituted gingersnap cookies for the graham crackers in the crust. Another note about the crust, the 12 tablespoons of butter is too much, in my opinion. If I was to do it again, I'd probably use half the amount of butter. I used the whole 12 tablespoons and during the pre-baking process the butter was dripping out of my springform pan onto the oven floor causing my oven to smoke horribly. The house was full of thick smoke from the burning butter on the bottom of my oven. And honestly, it was just too much damn butter (and I thought I'd never say that, too much butter? How is it possible right?). But it's true. A little less and believe me you won't notice the difference in taste. The cheesecake part itself packs enough punch. Enjoy!

Almost-Famous Pumpkin Cheesecake
www.foodnetwork.com


12 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
2 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
2 3/4 cups sugar
Salt
2 pounds cream cheese, at room temperature
1/4 cup sour cream
1 15-ounce can pure pumpkin
6 large eggs, at room temperature, lightly beaten
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
2 cups sweetened whipped cream
1/3 cup toasted pecans, roughly chopped
Directions
Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.

Brush a 10-inch springform pan with some of the butter. Stir the remaining butter with the crumbs, 1/4 cup of the sugar and a pinch of salt in a bowl. Press the crumb mixture into the bottom and up the sides of the pan, packing it tightly and evenly. Bake until golden brown, 15 to 20 minutes. Cool on a rack, then wrap the outside of the springform pan with foil and place in a roasting pan.

Bring a medium pot of water to a boil. Meanwhile, beat the cream cheese with a mixer until smooth. Add the remaining 2 1/2 cups sugar and beat until just light, scraping down the sides of the bowl and beaters as needed. Beat in the sour cream, then add the pumpkin, eggs, vanilla, 1 teaspoon salt and the spices and beat until just combined. Pour into the cooled crust.

Gently place the roasting pan in the oven (don't pull the rack out) and pour the boiling water into the roasting pan until it comes about halfway up the side of the springform pan. Bake until the outside of the cheesecake sets but the center is still loose, about 1 hour 45 minutes. Turn off the oven and open the door briefly to let out some heat. Leave the cheesecake in the oven for 1 more hour, then carefully remove from the roasting pan and cool on a rack. Run a knife around the edges, cover and refrigerate at least 8 hours or overnight.

Bring the cheesecake to room temperature 30 minutes before serving. Unlock and remove the springform ring. To finish, place a dollop of the whipped cream on each slice and sprinkle with the toasted pecans.