Cheesecake is my favourite type of dessert. This is my easy go-to bake at home recipe. It's totally worth the effort!
This is my family's favourite dessert. Once I've sliced up the cake and stored it away in a container, it never lasts long in our fridge. This cheesecake recipe isn't hard to follow but you need to make it in advance if you're wanting to serve it on a special occasion.
Ingredients:
250g Nice biscuits (crushed)
125g unsalted butter (melted)
1kg cream cheese (room temperature)
1 cup caster sugar 2 eggs 2 teaspoons vanilla essence 3 tablespoons cornstarch 300g sour cream
Method:
1. Crush the biscuits finely or use a food processor to speed up the process. Stir in the melted butter, mixing until you achieve a wet mixture. Press the crumbs onto the bottom and sides of a 9" or 23cm diameter springform pan. 2. Beat the cream cheese in a stand mixer or with an electric handmixer until smooth. Add in the sugar and beat until smooth and creamy, remembering to scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl every now and then.
3. Add the vanilla essence and eggs, one at a time, letting each incorporate fully before adding the next. Then, with the beaters on, add in the cornflour one tablespoon at a time. When the mixture is smooth and the sides and bottom have been scraped, add in the sour cream, mixing until it becomes smooth once again.
4. Pour the cream cheese mixture over the biscuit base and bake in a 200°C (392°F) oven for 10 minutes before turning the oven down to 180°C (356°F) and baking for another 40 minutes. It will be slightly brown on top and feel a little jiggly in the centre, but that will set once it has cooled completely and I mean completely.
5. Leave the cheesecake to cool completely and refrigerate overnight to allow the cheesecake to solidify completely.
Notes:
1. You can easily tweak this recipe by adding different flavourings to the cake. I like substituting the vanilla extract with 1 teaspoon of lemon extract to make lemon cheesecake.
2. Fruit can be added to the mixture by pouring three-quarters of the cake mixture into the crumb and sprinkling your fruit of choice before topping it with the remainder of the cheese mixture. I especially love to add mangoes when they're in season. Alternately, you can serve the cake with fruit.
3. Keep the cake refrigerated.
4. Use a sharp knife to cut the cake into slices. You can heat the knife a little to ease the process or wipe the knife in between cuts.
5. If you prefer your cake to have a more brown caramelised top, bake it in the oven for an additional 10 minutes.
