New York Cheesecake | Recipe

This is what you think of when you think of cheesecake! The classic New York-style cheesecake which is creamy and has a buttery crust - yum!

Ingredients - enough to make for one 6 inch cake

100g digestive biscuits/graham crackers,

60g unsalted butter

600g cream cheese,

170g sugar,

1 tsp vanilla extract,

2 tbs plain/all-purpose flour,

2 eggs,

190g of sour cream

95g sour cream,

1 tbs powdered sugar,

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Method

1. Crush the biscuits in a food processor into fine crumbs. Alternatively you may place these in a strong ziploc bag and crush them with a rolling pin.

2. Melt the butter and mix into the crumbs until a wet sand consistency is achieved.

3. Pour the crumbs into a lined 6 inch springform pan, spread evenly and pack tightly using the back of a spoon.

4. Place the biscuit base into a pre-heated 180c oven for 10 minutes. Once baked, let it cool whilst you prepare the cheese filling.

5. Whisk together the cream cheese, sugar, flour and vanilla extract until well combined. Whisk in the eggs until well mixed.

6. Finally, whisk in the sour cream until a smooth batter is formed.

7. Spray the inside of your cake pan with cooking spray.

8. Pour the cheese mixture onto your biscuit base and bake in a pre-heated 220c oven for 10 minutes.

Decrease the temperature to 110c and bake for a final 50 minutes.

9. Once baked, turn off the oven and open the oven door slightly, using an oven mitt to keep it open and let the cake cool completely inside.

10. Meanwhile, combined the remainder of the sour cream with the icing sugar and vanilla extract until no lumps remain.

11. Once the cake has cooled, remove from the oven and pour on the sour cream. Spread it evenly right to the edges.

12. Cover the cake with foil and refrigerate for at least 8 hours or overnight.

13. Take the cheesecake out and run a knife around the edges to loosen the cake. Lift the main part of the springform pan up.

14. Slide the cheesecake onto a plate and pull the parchment paper from underneath it.

15. Slice and serve.

Fluffy JAPANESE CHEESECAKE | Recipe

This cheesecake is so light and airy you have to give this a try!

Japanese Cheesecake | Recipe
180g of cream cheese,
75ml of milk,
1 + 1/2 tbsp sugar,
1 tsp vanilla extract,
2 egg yolks,
5 tbs flour,
2 + 1/2 tbs corn starch

3 egg whites,
60g of sugar

Method
1. On low heat, melt the cream cheese, milk and sugar in a pot. Whisk occasionally. Then, pour into a bowl and let cool.
2. Once cooled, whisk in vanilla extract and egg yolks until well combined.
3. Sift in the flour and corn starch and whisk these in until a thick batter is formed.
4. In another large bowl, whisk together the egg whites and sugar until stiff and glossy peaks form.
5. Gently fold the egg whites into the cheese mixture until no streaks remain taking caution so as not to overmix and deflate the batter.
6. Wrap a lined 6 inch cake pan tightly in tin foil (by tightly I mean very tight- use 2 layers of foil if need be to take extra caution to prevent water from leaking in).
7. Place this cake pan into a larger, deeper pan. Pour the cake batter into the cake pan. Drop the cake pan 2-3 times to release any superficial air bubbles.
8. Pour cold/room temperature water into the larger pan and fill halfway full.
9. Bake at 130c for 1 hour, then at 150c for 25 minutes. After this, let the cake cool for around 15 minutes in the oven (with the heat switched off), then let it cool completely with the oven door left ajar (open it slightly and keep it open with a towel). This helps prevent shrinkage.
10. Peel off the parchment paper and serve. Slice and dust with powdered sugar.

Green Tea Matcha No-bake Cheesecake | Recipe

Matcha Cheesecake | Recipe
75g of digestive biscuits / (around 5-7) graham crackers,
40g (1/3 stick) of unsalted butter, melted,

8g (~4 tsp) of green tea matcha powder,
70ml (~1/3 cup) of hot water,

70ml (~1/3) of cold water,
9g (~4 tsp) of gelatine powder,

225g (8oz/one block) of cream cheese,
60g (~1/3 cup) of sugar,
250ml (1 cup) of whipping cream

Method
1. Using a food processor, grind the biscuits up into a fine powder. Then, add in the butter and blend until a wet sand consistency is achieved. Alternatively, you may use a zip-loc/food-grade plastic bag and a rolling pin to crush the cookies up.
2. Line the bottom of a 6 inch springform cake pan with parchment paper.
3. Pour the biscuit mixture into the pan and press to form an even layer.
4. Set aside to chill in the refrigerator.
5. Whisk together the matcha powder and hot water until well dissolved and then set aside to cool.
6. Sprinkle the gelatin powder over the cold water and then set aside for it to set.
7. In a large bowl, whisk together the cream cheese and sugar until well combined.
8. In another bowl, whip up the whipping cream until soft peaks form.
9. Whisk the green tea matcha mixture into the cheese mixture until well combined.
10. Melt the gelatin mixture in hot water until fully dissolved, stirring occasionally. Whisk this into the cheese mixture.
11. Gently fold in the whipped cream until no streaks of cream remain. Pour the complete batter into the pan on top of the chilled biscuit base.
12. Gently the shake/nudge the pan to even out the mixture.
13. Refrigerate for 7-9 hours, preferrably overnight, until the cake is fully set.
14. Release cake from springform pan and dust with matcha powder before cutting and serving.

TOP TIPS:

• Make sure you don't over-whip the cream otherwise it will be hard to fold it into the cheese mixture.
• You can substitute agar agar in place of gelatin if you do not eat pork-based products.
• When you are forming the crust, make sure you press the mixture tightly so that it doesn't crumble when you cut it once it is ready to be served. A good tool here would be to use a flat bottomed glass to press and pack down the mixture.

Where to buy matcha powder from: http://amzn.to/2BAdKx2

Blueberry Swirl Cheesecake Recipe

A soft, creamy cheesecake on top of crunchy, buttery Oreo and Digestive cookies, swirled with a decadent blueberry sauce.

Blueberry Swirl Cheesecake Recipe                                                                     Recipe by iSaamuel

INGREDIENTS;
100g of Oreo Cookies,
100g of Digestive Cookies,
4 Tablespoons of Butter- 2 for each cookie, melted
 
400g of Cream Cheese,
3 Egg Whites,
1/2 Cup of Sugar,
1 Tsp of Pure Vanilla Extract,
The seeds of 1 Vanilla Bean/ Pod,
2 Tbsps of Heavy Whipping Cream

1/2 Cup of Blueberries,
2 Tbsps of Sugar.

For the Blueberry Sauce
1. Blend together the fresh or frozen blueberries along with the sugar until a smooth sauce is formed. You're done!

For the Cheesecake crust
1. Crush Oreo cookies and Digestive biscuits with a rolling pin in two separate sealable food bags. Place the crumbs into two separate bowls and mix 2 tablespoons of Butter into each bowl until the mixture resembles wet sand.
2. Place the Oreo crumbs in a lined cake pan and divide into half, leaving space for the Digestive biscuits.
3. Place the Digestive crumbs into the other half of the cake pan.
4. Press firmly with the back of a spoon. Set this aside.

For the Cheesecake batter
1. In a large bowl, whisk together the Cream Cheese and Sugar until well combined, and fluffy.
2. Add vanilla extract and the seeds of 1 vanilla bean/pod. Whisk well.
3. Scrape the sides of the bowl to make sure all the ingredients are combined. Fold in the heavy whipping cream. Pour the batter on top of the cookie crust.
4. Place tablespoons of the Blueberry Sauce on the batter and swirl with a knife to create a pattern.
5. Bake at 190C until the edge of the cake is the set but the centre should still be slightly wobbly, to ensure the cheesecake isn't overbaked and won't crack.

Eat with family and friends and decorate with Greek yogurt and fresh blueberries. Enjoy!