Hello All,
A very very different post so far! Of a recipe! :D
I made a lot of cheesecakes in Stockholm but then, the ingredients were really easy to come by. In India, I've to hunt things down and keep them affordable as well :)
Strawberry Cheesecake Recipe
Ingredients (for a 1.5 kg cheesecake)
Large eggs - 4
The Laughing Cow Cream cheese spread - 3 boxes (128 g each) [You can substitute this with Amul plain cheese spread, NO FLAVOUR], in Pune, it is available in Ozone, Aundh.
Powdered sugar (not icing sugar, you can grind it in your home grinder) - 300 g
Amul Fresh Cream - 2 cartons of 200 ml each
Britannia Nutri-Choice multi-grain biscuits - 400 g
Butter (preferably unsalted but you can use salted butter also) - 130 g
Strawberry syrup (or fresh strawberries, if you can lay your hands on them) - 40 ml
Weikfields Cornflour (or corn starch or corn meal, the names may vary) - 2 tablespoons
Vanilla essence - 1 teaspoon full
Sugar (for glaze) - 150 g
Crust:
Break the multi-grain biscuits into small crumbs (don't grind them in the mixer, that makes a crumbly crust). Soften the butter by putting the butter in a cup and putting that cup into a bowl of warm water. Add the butter to the biscuit crumbs and mix thoroughly.
In a baking tin (if you have a springform tin, nothing like it), make a complete lining of aluminium foil and pour the biscuit crumb + butter mix. Make a uniform layer at the base by gently pressing with your hands. Pre-heat the oven to 180 degrees celsius and bake the crust till you get a strong cookie baking smell. While the crust is getting baked, prepare the batter for the cheesecake.
Batter:
Bring the cream cheese to room temperature and beat either by hand or using a food processor until it's absolutely smooth. Add fresh cream to it, one carton at a time and mix until smooth. Now add the eggs, one at a time and beating to a smooth consistency. Add the powdered sugar the same way, little at a time and beating till it becomes a smooth mixture. Add the vanilla essence and 20 ml strawberry syrup. This will give gentle flavour to the cake.
Pour the batter GENTLY (don't pour fast, it'll upset the crust at the bottom) over the crust and allow to bake until the centre of the cake is no long jiggly-wiggly upon shaking the tin. You can also use a skewer but I prefer the shake and check method. Once done, take the cheesecake out and allow it to cool. Once it is cool enough, cool it in refrigerator.
Glaze:
Take 200 ml water in a small (preferably non-stick) bowl and add the cornflour to it. Stir until no lumps remain. Now boil this at a REAL low heat, stirring all the time. Add 20 ml strawberry syrup and the sugar, stirring continuously. The mixture will begin to thicken. Don't allow it to become a gel (you will need to keep checking the consistency all the time). Once it has thickened, pour it gently over cooled cheesecake. Allow to cool and then, put in the fridge. The glaze will become a light pink gel and HOLA! Your cheesecake is ready! :) Enjoy.....................
Happy Cooking
Pritesh
A very very different post so far! Of a recipe! :D
I made a lot of cheesecakes in Stockholm but then, the ingredients were really easy to come by. In India, I've to hunt things down and keep them affordable as well :)
Strawberry Cheesecake Recipe
Ingredients (for a 1.5 kg cheesecake)
Large eggs - 4
The Laughing Cow Cream cheese spread - 3 boxes (128 g each) [You can substitute this with Amul plain cheese spread, NO FLAVOUR], in Pune, it is available in Ozone, Aundh.
Powdered sugar (not icing sugar, you can grind it in your home grinder) - 300 g
Amul Fresh Cream - 2 cartons of 200 ml each
Britannia Nutri-Choice multi-grain biscuits - 400 g
Butter (preferably unsalted but you can use salted butter also) - 130 g
Strawberry syrup (or fresh strawberries, if you can lay your hands on them) - 40 ml
Weikfields Cornflour (or corn starch or corn meal, the names may vary) - 2 tablespoons
Vanilla essence - 1 teaspoon full
Sugar (for glaze) - 150 g
Crust:
Break the multi-grain biscuits into small crumbs (don't grind them in the mixer, that makes a crumbly crust). Soften the butter by putting the butter in a cup and putting that cup into a bowl of warm water. Add the butter to the biscuit crumbs and mix thoroughly.
In a baking tin (if you have a springform tin, nothing like it), make a complete lining of aluminium foil and pour the biscuit crumb + butter mix. Make a uniform layer at the base by gently pressing with your hands. Pre-heat the oven to 180 degrees celsius and bake the crust till you get a strong cookie baking smell. While the crust is getting baked, prepare the batter for the cheesecake.
Batter:
Bring the cream cheese to room temperature and beat either by hand or using a food processor until it's absolutely smooth. Add fresh cream to it, one carton at a time and mix until smooth. Now add the eggs, one at a time and beating to a smooth consistency. Add the powdered sugar the same way, little at a time and beating till it becomes a smooth mixture. Add the vanilla essence and 20 ml strawberry syrup. This will give gentle flavour to the cake.
Pour the batter GENTLY (don't pour fast, it'll upset the crust at the bottom) over the crust and allow to bake until the centre of the cake is no long jiggly-wiggly upon shaking the tin. You can also use a skewer but I prefer the shake and check method. Once done, take the cheesecake out and allow it to cool. Once it is cool enough, cool it in refrigerator.
Glaze:
Take 200 ml water in a small (preferably non-stick) bowl and add the cornflour to it. Stir until no lumps remain. Now boil this at a REAL low heat, stirring all the time. Add 20 ml strawberry syrup and the sugar, stirring continuously. The mixture will begin to thicken. Don't allow it to become a gel (you will need to keep checking the consistency all the time). Once it has thickened, pour it gently over cooled cheesecake. Allow to cool and then, put in the fridge. The glaze will become a light pink gel and HOLA! Your cheesecake is ready! :) Enjoy.....................
Happy Cooking
Pritesh
