Lemon Meringue Cheesecake

I hope everyone had a wonderful Easter Sunday, we certainly did. My son, his family and my in laws came over for the day and we had a lovely day. We spent the majority of the day in the garden enjoying the abnormally hot weather we are having this Easter. Hubby prepared the leg of lamb for our roast dinner in our favourite way, using a lemon, rosemary and garlic paste that is smeared all over. I made this Lemon Meringue Cheesecake for dessert to follow. It was my first time making this cheesecake and although I cheated and used a good quality shop bought lemon curd it was an absolute hit.

The huge variety of flavours from the custard cream biscuit base, lemony & white chocolate cheesy middle and finished with a lemon curd and sweet meringue topping, came together to compliment each other perfectly. Delivering a surprisingly light and refreshing dessert to finish the meal with a stream of compliments. My in-laws loved it so much they took home a wedge for the next day!

Lemon Meringue Cheesecake

Serves 6

Ingredients
For the meringue:
3 egg whites
150g caster sugar
2-3 splashes vanilla extract

For the biscuit base and cheesecake filling:
400g packet biscuits, (custard creams)
100g butter, melted
50ml water
1 lemon, finely grated zest only
25g caster sugar, plus 1 tsp caster sugar
250g mascarpone
175ml double cream, lightly whipped
175g white chocolate, melted

For the lemon curd:
80ml freshly squeezed lemon juice
60g butter
3 egg yolks
2 whole eggs, lightly beaten
75g caster sugar

For the meringue: preheat the oven to 110C/gas 1/4. Line 1 baking tray with non-stick baking parchment and draw a 9inch circle on the baking parchment and set aside. Whisk the egg whites in a large, clean bowl until stiff but not dry, then gradually whisk in the sugar and vanilla extract to make a stiff meringue mixture. Add the meringue into onto the circle on the baking parchment, creating peaks with a fork and bake in the oven for about 2-3 hours or until crisp and dry. Remove from the oven, leave to cool, then remove from the paper.

Meanwhile, for the biscuit base and cheesecake filling: put the custard creams and melted butter in a blender or food processor and blend together until well mixed. Add the crumb mixture to the cake tin pressing down to level the surface. Set aside. Put the water, lemon zest and 1 teaspoon of sugar in a small pan and bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool. In a bowl, mix together the mascarpone cheese and remaining 25g of sugar, then fold in the whipped cream. Fold half of this mixture into the melted chocolate, then fold the chocolate mixture into the remaining mascarpone mixture, together with the cooled lemon mixture, stirring well. Spoon the lemon mixture over the biscuit base, and spreading it evenly. Chill in the fridge for several hours or until set.

For the lemon curd: put the lemon juice and butter in a heavy-based pan and heat gently until the butter is melted. Whisk in the egg yolks, whole eggs and sugar and bring gently to the boil then simmer for 4-5 minutes until thickened, whisking continuously. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool. To serve, unmould the cheesecake and place on a serving plate. Smear the top of the cheesecake with the lemon curd, then arrange the meringue on top.

Lime Cheesecake with a Chocolate Crunch

It’s been a lovely sunny and warm weekend, with most of the time spent meeting up with friends for drinks, pottering around the house and garden and catching up with our son who came home for the weekend; after working with his girlfriends dad and staying at theirs during the week.

With my son and Sophie, his girlfriend, over for the weekend I couldn’t go without making something special. I would normally use my tried and trusted recipe for Lime and Chocolate Cheesecake from Nigella Bites, but this weekend I decided to try out an alternative from a new cookbook, Fay’s Family Food, that I had not yet cooked or baked from (that's what happens when you own over 200 cookbooks and the collection keeps growing)! This is a great cookbook and I have quite a few recipes book-marked that I can’t wait to try!

This cheesecake is creamy, light and refreshing with its chocolate crunch base that compliments the subtle tangy lime wonderfully. The cheesecake was a hit and I will definitely be making this easy, simple and lush dessert again!

Lime Cheesecake with a Chocolate Crunch

Ingredients
40g butter
20g dark chocolate
50g ground almonds
100 dark chocolate digestives biscuits or similar, crushed
800g light cream cheese
185g soured cream
175g caster sugar
4 large eggs and 2 large egg whites
Zest of 3 limes
1½ tbsp lime juice (I added 2½ tbsp)

Line the base of a loose-bottomed cake tin (24cm) with baking paper.

Melt together the butter and chocolate in a bowl over simmering water. Leave to cool, then mix with the almonds and crushed biscuits. Press down into the tin to form a base and pop into the fridge for 15 minutes or so.

Pre-heat the oven to 150oC (fan), 170oC, gas mark 3. With your electric whisk, beat the cream cheese, soured cream and sugar till light and fluffy. Add 4 of the eggs, one at a time. When combined, add the lime zest and juice. Mix.

Separately whisk 2 eggs whites to soft peaks, then fold into the creamy mixture and combine. Pour over the base and bake for 1 hour, 20 minutes in the middle of the oven.

Leave to cool for 2-3 hours at room temperature, then pop into the fridge overnight.

Oreo Cheesecake

Hi everyone, hope this post finds you all well. I know it’s been a while since my last post but I decided to take some time out to spend with family and friends and keep busy. My sister and 16 month old nephew came over from Spain and stayed with us for a couple of weeks, which was really nice. We also celebrated my son’s 18th birthday last week; wow still can’t believe my baby is 18. Hubby and son marked the occasion with both of them getting tattoos of the family clan motto, followed by a great evening in our local pub with close friends and family. I haven’t done any baking for what feels like ages and to be honest baking in the heat wave we are having now is not the most enjoyable. I’m hoping to get some baking done and resume normal service; I know my boys have missed my baked goodies!

I was going to blog about this cheesecake before the sad news about Jules but could not bring myself to do so once the news broke. I still find it hard hearing myself say that our beloved Jules/Rosie has gone but I know she would have wanted me to continue doing what we both loved and enjoyed. I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who left such lovely comments for Jules, they were a great comfort to her family.

I baked this cheesecake whilst I had my parents visiting back in May and the recipe hails from Cook in Boots by Ravinder Bhogal. This is an exceedingly naughty cookie cheesecake with its dense, pillowy cake texture. This sinful cheesecake is best served in bed when absolute comfort eating is required!

Oreo Cheesecake

Serves 12

Ingredients
For the base
250g Oreo cookies
50g unsalted butter, melted

For the topping
500g cream cheese
1 tbsp vanilla extract
4 large eggs, separated
100g golden caster sugar (I upped the sugar to 200g as I felt it wasn't sweet enough)
200g soured cream
200g Oreo cookies

Preheat the oven to 170oC/150oC fan/325oF/gas 3. To make the base, put your Oreo cookies into a freezer bag (I used my food processor) and bash with a rolling pin until they are smashed into fine smithereens. Mix with the melted butter and then press down firmly into a 20cm/8in spingform cake tin. Bake for 15 minutes just to harden the crumb slightly and then leave to cool.

Now for that heavenly topping. Beat the cream cheese, vanilla extract, egg yolks and sugar together, add the soured cream and beat again. Crumble in the remaining Oreos and stir to make sure they are evenly spread through the mix. Whisk the egg whites until they form soft peaks – this is what is going to give your cheesecake that wonderfully yielding texture. Carefully fold the egg whites into the cheese mixture, being careful not to knock out the air.

Pour the mixture over the cooled base and then bake for 1 hour 45 minutes. Don’t be tempted to open the oven door, not even for a peek – good things come to those who wait! Once the cooking time is up and the cake is golden brown, turn off the oven. Open the door and leave the cake to sit in the oven for a further hour.

Serve cool.

The Ultimate Autumn Cheesecake!

I spotted this amazing cheesecake recipe in last month’s Sainsbury’s magazine and knew I had to make this pronto! I don’t normally make big desserts during the week but this weekend I will be busy baking my Christmas cake, puddings and mincemeat and won’t have time to bake anything elaborate. Plus this recipe was calling out to me! This cheesecake is heavenly with the pairing of apples and cinnamon and all those wonderful flavours of autumn. The filling is a decadent, light and airy consistency and not heavy like your average cheesecake, giving this a unique texture. It would make the perfect dessert for Thanksgiving or anytime during these autumn and winter months!

Pink Lady Cheesecake

Serves 8

Ingredients
12 digestive biscuits, crushed
85g (3oz) butter, melted
500g (1lb 2oz) cream cheese
100ml (3 ½ fl oz) double cream
2 large eggs, plus 2 egg yolks
3 tablespoons caster sugar (I would definitely suggest adding more sugar. It wasn't sweet enough with 3 tbsp of sugar.)
½ teaspoon cinnamon
2 Pink Lady apples, cubed
3 Pink Lady apples, for garnish, sliced
1 tablespoon butter, melted

Preheat the oven to 150oC, 130oC fan, gas 2. Mix the biscuits and butter and press into a 20cm (8in) cake tin. Bake for 10 minutes, remove from the oven and cool. Put the cream cheese, cream, eggs, sugar and cinnamon into a bowl and beat until smooth. Pour a third of the mixture into the tin and add the cubed apple. Pour over remaining mixture and bake for 30-40 minutes (I had to bake mine for 60 mins) until set. Remove from the oven and cool. Brush apple slices with butter and grill for one minute each side. Place on top of the cake.

Cheesecake Heaven!

Double Chocolate Orange Cheesecake

Caramel Toffee Cheesecake

This weekend has been one with family visits on both Saturday and Sunday, which involved entertaining. Something which I really enjoy as it involves cooking, baking and an opportunity to try new recipes. I wanted to try out 2 cheesecake recipes and this was the perfect excuse. The Double Chocolate Orange Cheesecake is a dream come true for all those who love the choc/orange combination! This is a rich cheesecake with a mascarpone filling made with a simple no-bake method. I did tweak the recipe and instead of making individual portions, I made a single regular 8inch size. I then added melted orange chocolate to the surface and swirled, giving it the marble effect. My other choice of cheesecake (my favourite of the 2) was a Caramel Toffee Cheesecake, a recipe I found on a wonderful blog and it was love at first sight. This is a truly decadent dessert and one that was enjoyed by my mother in law who now wants the recipe. The freshly made hot caramel sauce poured over before serving was the perfect topping. Words can not describe how good this cheesecake was, infact both of them were a big hit with my guests!

If you would like to re-create both recipes, click on the links below.

Double Chocolate Orange Cheesecake

Caramel Toffee Cheesecake

Pink Flowers and Chocolate Cheesecake

My hubby loves buying me flowers and my favorite colour is pink. Today he surprised me with a gorgeous pink bouquet after popping out to the shops. Below is a pic of one of the gorgeous blooms from the bouquet. Maybe it's the girlie girl in me but the pink of this flower is the perfect pink ;o)

Who can resist a slice of decadent cheesecake? I certainly can not! I love cheesecake. It is the perfect dessert for entertaining guests or family and so easy to make. In celebration of the lovely spring-like weather we have had this weekend I thought what better choice of dessert than a cheesecake, so Chocolate Cheesecake it had to be. My son loves chocolate cheesecake and his been feeling unwell with a cold/sore throat for a few days, and what mother doesn't hate seeing her kid poorly, so I knew this would put a smile on his face :o). Lately with the cold weather, steamed puddings and crumbles with custard have graced our table after our Sunday meal but this cheesecake was a lovely change and a reminder of the eagerly awaited spring and summer.