I originally created this recipe for Easter. Around Easter, the tulips are starting to make their way out of the frozen earth and the trees are hinting at color. It’s usually been a long winter and all of these little changes are so very welcome. It seems fitting to make a cake that is full of color and blooms. But, as a nod of respect to winter, I created this cheesecake with an all white blanket of roses over a swirl of color within.
To decorate the cake and pipe the roses you will need some special equipment. Here is a list of everything I used:
Two 16-inch Featherweight Piping Bags – I like to use reusable bags but for one you will need to cut a large hole to fit the tip that covers the cake in a large fluted ribbon. If you don’t want to cut the reusable bag for that then consider getting a disposable piping bag for that large tip.
Large Icing Piping Tip #789 – this is how I created the fluted ribbon of buttercream.
Flower Nail #13 – this is what you will pipe the rose onto. See the YouTube video for a tutorial
Cake Turner – this is not essential but makes decorating much smoother and easier.
It’s also a perfect dessert to celebrate the moms and mother figures in your life, be it your mother, grandmother, daughter, aunt, sister, neighbor, or friend. A basic cheesecake is perfect as well, but this one is elevated for an extra special occasion with lovely flowers on the outside and swirls inside.
How to Make the Cheesecake
Find the full recipe below.
Here is a tutorial on piping a rose for those who haven’t done so before.
To Make the Cheesecake
In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (I really like the kind with the rubber blades), cream the cream cheese until there are no lumps. Add the sour cream, sugar, honey and salt, and mix until smooth. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each. Blend in the cornstarch and then stir in the buttermilk and vanilla.
Divide the cheesecake into 3 or 4 bowls and add food coloring to achieve the colors you’d like.
I baked my cheesecake in a tempered 2.5 quart glass bowl so that it would be rounded when I unmolded it on the plate. Very lightly coat the bowl with melted butter. Pour the colored batter into the bowl, being careful not to pour too fast or the colors will blend together. In the end you will have a fun pattern.
Preheat oven to 300°F.
In a very large roasting pan or soup pot (A deep roasting pan will be easier to lower the bowl into), coil a kitchen towel for the bowl to sit on, this will prevent it from moving around. Pour very hot water over the towel until it is about 2 inches deep. Very carefully lower the bowl into the pan of water. Place foil over the top and cut a hole in the top so the steam can escape.
Bake for about 2 to 2 1/2 hours. It is done when the top is set to the touch. Remove from the oven, uncover and allow the cheesecake to cool to room temperature while still in the water. This will prevent it from cracking. You may also want to run a paring knife around the edge of the bowl so that the cake won’t crack as it cools. Once it is cool, remove the bowl from the water, cover with plastic and refrigerate for several hours or overnight.
To unmold the cake place the bowl over a pot of simmering water for a couple of minutes. Run a pairing knife around the edge and then invert onto a serving dish. If the cake doesn’t easily unmold return it to the simmering water for another minute. Refrigerate the cake once it has been unmolded from the bowl.
Prepare the buttercream and pipe out the roses. Use scissors to place the roses on the cake, starting in the middle and working your way to the edges. Refrigerate the cake once it is done. To cut the cake use a thin bladed knife dipped in hot water.
Equipment
- 2 16-inch featherweight pastry bag
- Cake Icer Piping Tip #789
- Rose tip – you can use whatever size you like. I used a Wilton #125.
- Rose nail #13
- Scissors for removing the rose from the nail
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 lbs (678g) cream cheese at room temperature
- 3/4 cup (184g) sour cream
- 1 1/2 cups (300g) sugar
- 2 tbsp honey
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 6 large eggs at room temperature
- 3 tbsp cornstarch
- 1/2 cup (118ml) heavy whipping cream
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- Food coloring gel or paste or best for bold colors
- Butter for coating the bowl
- 1/2 inch-thick layer of cake to match the size of your bowl – may need to be trimmed to fit. (optional)
American Buttercream
- 6 cups (720g) confectioners' sugar
- 1 1/2 cups (339g) unsalted butter softened
- 1 Tbsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp 1 tsp almond extract or whatever fits the flavor of your cake
- Pinch salt
- 4-6 Tbsp heavy whipping cream enough to make buttercream pipeable
Instructions
- In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the cream cheese until there are no lumps. Add the sour cream, sugar, honey and salt, mix until smooth. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each. Blend in the cornstarch and then stir in the buttermilk and vanilla.
- Divide the cheesecake into 3 or 4 bowls and add food coloring to achieve the colors you'd like.
- I baked my cheesecake in a tempered 2.5 quart glass bowl so that it would be rounded when I unmold it on the plate. Very lightly coat the bowl with melted butter. Pour the colored batter into the bowl, being careful not to pour too fast or the colors will blend together. In the end you will have a fun pattern.
- Preheat oven to 300°F.
- In a very large roasting pan or soup pot (A deep roasting pan will be easier to lower the bowl into), coil a kitchen towel for the bowl to sit on, this will prevent it from moving around. Pour very hot water over the towel until it is about 2 inches deep. Very carefully lower the bowl into the pan of water. Place foil over the top and cut a hole in the top so the steam can escape.
- Bake for about 2 to 2 1/2 hours. It is done when the top is set to the touch. Remove from the oven, uncover and allow the cheesecake to cool to room temperature while still in the water. This will prevent it from cracking. You may also want to run a paring knife around the edge of the bowl so that the cake won't crack as it cools. Once it is cool, remove the bowl from the water, cover with plastic and refrigerate for several hours or overnight.
- To unmold the cake place the bowl over a pot of simmering water for a couple of minutes. Run a pairing knife around the edge and then place the disk of cake over the cheesecake and top with a cardboard round, which will help ease the cake out of the bowl. Gently invert the cheesecake onto the cardboard round and place it on a serving plate. If the cake doesn't easily unmold return it to the simmering water for another several seconds. Refrigerate the cake once it has been unmolded from the bowl.
American Buttercream
- Cream together the sugar, butter, vanilla, almond extract and heavy cream and beat slowly until smooth. Add color in smaller bowls if you are making more than one color.
- With a piping bag fitted with the Icing Tip #789, cover the cake in a thin layer of the buttercream. Fit the second bag with the Rose Tip #125 and pipe out the roses onto the flower nail #13. Use scissors to place the roses on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. See my rose piping tutorial on YouTube for instructions.Refrigerate or freeze the piped roses until they are stiff enough to pick up and place on the cake. To cut the cake use a thin bladed knife dipped in hot water.
For those of us lucky enough to celebrate both I have recipe collections for both Easter and Passover!
I wish I found you before Easter, but oh well, I found you now, and I am here to stay.
BTW, So glad to meet you at the Leela & Aran’s workshop 🙂
Hi Pang,
It was such a pleasure to meet you too!
Cheers, Zoë
My grandmother used to make thousands of these piped roses and other flowers every year. She decorated every cake she made with them, and she made about five a week 🙂 Used to love them, and to watch her making them. Brings back lots of memories.
Thanks for this – and, yes, a beautiful cake!!
Does it need the honey and cornstarch? Because On other cheesecakes they don’t have this. Please reply soon…☺
Hi User 123,
The honey is just for flavor, but the cornstarch is a binder and not using it will effect the texture of the cheesecake.
Thanks, Zoë
This is so pretty!!
So thanks Zoe.So pretty & beauty.I think this cake is very delicious.
So pretty!
Wow these look incredibly delicious ! Yummy , gread work !
Best wishes chrissi
I love this idea! I bet it would look fabulous decorated like an Easter egg too.
why is the cake baked with water? to keep it moist?
Hi Guest,
It creates a very even heat, which helps the cheesecake bake without cracking. It produces a very dense custard style cheesecake.
Thanks, Zoë
This cake is so freaking pretty!! LOVE the idea!
Happy…. everything, Zoe! What an absolutely stunning dessert! You never cease to amaze me with your talent and creativity! Beautiful! (as are the photos). And thank you for the link love!