I came up with this by happy coincidence. I love when a lot of different factors or scenarios line up and I end up making a really cool dish. In this case, I was recipe testing a baked cheesecake filling, and happened to have more cheesecake filling compared to the crust I prepped. Rather than just dumping that down my sink, I figured, why not try baking this separately in silicone cube molds, and seeing what the end result is? And I was super happy to report that the cheesecake cubes were actually a success! I was already intending on doing this bruleed purin cube dessert, so I figured, let’s switch out the purin with these cheesecake cubes instead, since texturally, they will be very similar, with both being baked custard-types of things. Then came what to pair it with. My original idea was a bruleed purin cube with a kinako(toasted soy bean) crumble and macerated berries. But as I thought it through more, I wanted to replace the kinako crumble with something else: sata andag, or Japanese brown sugar doughnuts. I’ve made air-fried sourdough sata andagi in the past, but in this case, I wanted to take that rich, dense brown sugar dough and bake it in small pieces to form my crumble. The crumb that resulted was tender and soft, but with crispy edges. I swear one of these days I will make true and traditional sata andagi(so deep-fried), but for now, that style of dough continues to be made into so many unique and fun desserts that I can’t be made at that. For my other components, I had a hachiya persimmon granita and nasturtiums. The granita came about because I was gifted a super ripe hachiya persimmon(which is delicious and tender when ripe), but since I did not know what to do with it, I stuck it in the freezer, where it was sitting for at least a month. I was debating back and forth between using the persimmon or tangerines, since those were the fruits I had on hand, but I went with persimmon since that paired better with brown sugar and cream cheese. The nasturtiums were actually grown from my garden that I completely neglected/forgot about, but was pleasantly surprised to see still bore so many herbs and edible flowers that I am excited to use in recipes moving forward! They add a nice pepperiness to counteract the inherently sweet components(which all three components are), making this a relatively balanced dessert!

For the parts in this recipe, we have the cheesecake brulee cubes, the sata andagi crumble, the persimmon granita, and the fresh nasturtiums. In terms of time, the cheesecake and the granita probably take the longest amount of time. The granita, you need a ripe hachiya persimmon, and that needs to be frozen solid, so plan for that to be done in advanced before even starting any other component in this recipe. Fortunately, actually making the granita takes 2 seconds and a cheese grater, so it’s really just about getting the persimmon ripe and frozen enough first. The cheesecake needs time to bake and set, but the bigger commitment, similar to the persimmon, is getting it frozen solid so that you can safely remove it from the silicone cube molds. Right before serving, sugar is sprinkled on top and bruleed(make sure you own a blowtorch for this) in a caramelized layer on top. This is important since the bittersweet brulee layer helps to contrast the plainly sweet flavor in the crumble and the granita. The crumble itself came be made while everything else is sitting in the freezer, and comes together fairly easily. You do need to make brown butter and you need to rest the dough for 10 minutes in the fridge prior to baking it, but outside of that, it’s just mixing ingredients together then baking them, and then giving the crumble enough time to cool down so that it’s not super hot/melts the granita. For the nasturtiums, you might be able to get them from a specialty herb store, but mine grew in my garden. Prior to that, I was able to forage nasturtiums(and their gorgeous flowers) relatively easily, but that’s here in Southern California, so their availability in the wild may vary depending on where you live. Worst case, you can try using watercress, which does have a similar pepperiness, instead!

Makes 6 servings:
For the cheesecakes:
4oz cream cheese
2oz sour cream
1/4 cup sugar
1 egg
1 egg yolk
.1 oz vanilla bean paste
a pinch of salt

Place all of the ingredients into a blender and puree until combined. Pass the batter through a sieve to remove any lumps. Pour the batter into 2 inch by 2 inch silicone cube molds, filling up 6 of them. Place the molds into a deep sheet tray and fill the trays halfway up with water. Bake at 325 degrees F for 30 minutes. Allow the cubes to cool at room temperature before freezing them solid for easier unmolding.

For the persimmon granita:
1 really ripe hachiya persimmon

Freeze the persimmon solid, at least 2 hours in the freezer. Right before plating, grate the still-frozen persimmon with a cheese grater.

For the sata andagi crumble:
1.5oz dark brown sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 tbsp red miso paste
1oz unsalted butter, browned
1oz soy milk
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking powder

In a bowl, mix together the brown sugar, vanilla, miso paste, brown butter, and milk. Fold into that the other ingredients to form your dough. Refrigerate the dough for 10 minutes. Break the dough apart into 1 tsp-sized pieces. Bake the dough at 375 degrees F for 10 minutes.

For plating:
Granulated sugar
Fresh nasturtium leaves

To plate, start by crumbling the sata andagi into smaller pieces, the size of your pinkie nails. Then sprinkle sugar on top of each cheesecake cube and using a blowtorch, carefully caramelize the sugar on top. Place one of cubes onto the center of a plate. Around it, place down the pieces of sata andagi crumble, then around that, the granita, and finally, the nasturtium leaves to finish.