cheesecakes

I know it's probably much cheaper to go and buy a cheesecake from the cheesecake shop (in Australia anyway!) than to make it yourself - but they taste so much better homemade.  There a a few cheesecake recipes here - Debbie Wijers chocolate cheesecake (which I used to make a lot in Zim), Mandy's lemon cheesecake, Lindy's grapefruit cheesecake and Ness' white chocolate and raspberry cheesecake.  They are all rich and yummy and worth a try!

Debbie’s chocolate cheesecake

Topping

500 g cottage cheese

65 ml caster sugar

15 ml gelatine

100 g dark chocolate (grated)

5 ml vanilla essence

3 eggs (separated)

250 ml whipped cream

50 mil cold water

Base :

1 pkt Romany cream biscuits (crushed)

50 g melted butter

Mix biscuits and butter.  Press into a round greased spring-form tin and put in the fridge to set.

Beat the cheese, vanilla and sugar together.  Add the egg yolks and beat well.  Dissolve the gelatine in warm water and stir into the cheese mixture.  Add 2/3 of the grated chocolate.  Whisk the egg whites until stiff and fold into the mixture using a metal spoon.  Finally fold in the whipped cream.  Pour into the tin and leave to set in the fridge.  Sprinkle with the remaining grated chocolate before serving.

*  I don't know what the Australian equivalent of  Romany Cream biscuits would be.  I get them at our local South African shop but if you can't find them you need a chocolate-coconut type biscuit.

Mandy's lemon cheesecake

Ingredients:       

1 ½ packets of lemon jelly

4 x 15ml spoons water

2 eggs separated

300ml milk          

Grated rind 2 lemons    

6 x 15ml spoons lemon juice      

500g cottage cheese

1 x 15ml spoon castor sugar

150 ml double cream whipped

For crumb base:

100g digestive biscuits( or half digestive half ginger)

50g castor sugar               

50g butter melted

Crush the biscuits, stir in the butter and sugar, press it into the bottom of a greased 20 cm spring release pan. Put it in the fridge to set.

Put the jelly and water in a small pan and warm gently over low heat (important that it’s not too hot!)

Stir until dissolved. Beat together egg yolks and milk pour onto thejelly and stir, return the mixture to the heat for a few minutes WITHOUT boiling.

Remove from the heat and add lemon rind and juice. Put jelly and cottage cheese in an electric blender. Mix until smooth. Whisk the egg whites until stiff peaks form, fold into cool cheese mixture.

Fold in the cream. Put mixture into a 20 cm spring release cake tim

Mandy usually adds blueberries on top, fresh cooked in a little sugar and water or tinned if fresh not available.

* 15 ml spoon = 1 tablespoon

Lindy’s Grapefruit Cheesecake

(aka Pamplemousse Cheesecake)

Base

175 gms plain sweet biscuits  (eg ginger snaps, digestive biscuits etc)                 

90 gms melted butter 

Filling

230 gms cream cheese                         

1 tsp grated grapefruit rind

2 grapefruit

1/2 cup lemon juice

1 large tin sweetened condensed milk

Crush biscuits very finely & combine with melted butter.   Mix thoroughly.

Press mixture into a 23 cm (9 inch) pie plate covering base & sides evenly.

Refrigerate for at least one hour.

Remove all the skin & pith from the grapefruit, cut fruit into segments over a bowl

to save juice.   Keep four segments for decoration & cut rest into small pieces.

Beat cream cheese & grated rind until creamy.   Gradually beat in condensed

milk, lemon juice & any juice from grapefruit.   Fold in chopped grapefruit.   Pour

mixture into prepared case.   Decorate with reserved grapefruit segments.

Refrigerate for 2 - 3 hours until well set.

Ness' White Chocolate and Raspberry Cheesecake to come ....