Blackberry half-cheesecake

This year we had an enormous harvest of blackberries. I put blackberries into literally every dish I made: into fruit salads, milkshakes, smoothies, buns... This particular recipe was just an experiment: I was playing with ingredients trying to use another batch of blackberries which I picked in my garden, and the cake turned out so nice that my husband ate it all and demanded another one next day.

Why half-cheesecake? Well, because that's what it is: it is not exactly a cheesecake in a traditional view, but it does contain enough cream-cheese in it to claim some of the the fame.

Texture-wise it's so soft and tender that it melts in your mouth. And blackberries give it a fresh fruit ting, not to mention a stunning colour which will make this cheesecake a centrepiece on your table. I hope you will like it just as we did!

Blackberry half-cheesecake

Recipe

Cheesecake:
400 g of blackberries (I used fresh)
150 ml of double cream
250 g of cream-cheese
2 eggs (divided)
1/2 cup of sugar
1/2 cup of semolina
1/4 cup of AP flour
1/4 tsp of cream of tartar

Ganache:
150 ml of cream
100 g of dark chocolate
100 g of milk chocolate
3 Tbsp of agave nectar (you can replace it with any flower honey)

Heat blackberries in a saucepan over medium heat till they are soft and the juice released from the berries just start to bubble. Remove from the heat and puree berries with a blender. Strain through a sieve to get rid of seeds. To the puree add cream, sugar and cream-cheese.

Separate egg yolks from egg whites. Keep the whites for the time being in the fringe. Add yolks to the mixture and blend well.

Add semolina to the mixture and let sit for one hour. Do not omit this step! Semolina needs some soaking time in order to become soft. After one hour add flour to the mixture.

Finally take your egg whites from the fridge and whisk them with cream of tartar to stiff peaks. Using a spatula carefully fold whites into your batter. Pour the batter into a greased spring form tin (mine is 24cm in diametre) and bake for 55 minutes at 180C. Unlike a proper cheesecake where the centre should still be wobbly when you finish baking, this half-cheesecake should be springy to the touch.

Once the cake is baked, cool it completely in the tin.

Make ganache: melt all the ingredients together in the microwave in 30 second bursts. Pour on top of the cake and put it in the fridge. Chill for 3-4 hours (or better overnight).

Enjoy!

Caramel mini-cheesecakes

With Christmas and New Year coming soon I have already started thinking about my menu for the holidays. My favourites for holiday season are buffet-style dishes. The guests can help themselves, and this takes pressure off me as a host so I can enjoy the party with everybody else. And these cheesecake cupcakes are perfect for a buffet dinner!

If you are a caramel lover (as I am)  these lovely treats will not leave you indifferent. They are full of flavour, and whipped cream topping balances the caramel taste wonderfully. I hope you and your guests will love them!

Caramel mini-cheesecakes

Recipe

1 cup of biscuit (or cracker) crumbs
60g of butter
300g of cream cheese
1/2 cup (125ml) of sour cream
2 eggs
1/2 cup of caramel sauce (I used store bought)
1 Tbsp of AP flour
1/2 Tbsp of corn starch
200ml double cream
1-2 Tbsp of icing sugar (or to taste)

Pre-heat the over to 180C.

Melt butter in the microwave. Combine with biscuit crumbs. (I was running out of butter, so I used less than 60g, and you can see on the picture that the bottoms of the cheesecakes are a little crumbly).

Line the muffin tin with paper cases. Divided the biscuit mixture evenly between 12 holes. Press the crumbs firmly to the bottom with a spoon.

Mix cream cheese, sour cream, eggs and caramel sauce till smooth. Try the mixture at this stage: if it's not sweet enough to your taste add a little sugar. I personally do not like overly sweet desserts, so for me the taste was just right. I also did not add any salt to the mixture, because there was some salt in my cream cheese.

Finally add flour and corn starch. Pour the mixture on top of the crumbs and bake in the pre-heated oven for approximately 25 minutes (or till the edges of the cheesecakes become firm and the centre is still a little wobbly). The cakes should not crack or become brown on top - these are the signs that you have overcooked your cheesecakes.

Cool your cakes in the tin and put them in the fridge for 3-4 hours. Whip cream with icing sugar to soft peaks, transfer to a pastry bag and decorate the cheesecakes. You can serve them right away - or you can actually freeze them until you need them for your party. They can be kept in the freezer for up to 1 month. To defrost, simply transfer them from the freezer compartment to the fridge section and leave overnight.

Enjoy!