Velvet cheesecake recipe

gistfile1.md

(Originally from Evelyn Rose’s “Complete International Jewish Cookbook”, ISBN 1861057326.)

Pastry

This is enough for a 20 cm tin, about 5 cm deep. Mix 175 g self-raising flour (or plain flour with 1½ tsp baking powder), 125 g butter, 50 g icing sugar, 1 egg yolk, and 1 tbsp water, until the ingredients form a dough of a suitable texture. Chill for 30 minutes, then roll out on a floured board to fit your desired tin. Return to the fridge while you prepare the filling.

Filling

Separate 2 eggs. Beat the yolks with 450 g curd cheese, ½ teaspoon vanilla, juice and rind of half a lemon, 50 g melted butter, 50 g caster sugar, 2 level tbsp cornflour, and 150 ml soured cream, until smooth and thick. Whisk the whites to stiff peaks, then whisk in an additional 2 tsp caster sugar. Fold the whites into the cheese mixture, then fill the prepared pastry. Ensure the top is smooth and level.

Bake at 180 °C for 35–40 minutes. When cooked, the area round the rim will feel firm to the touch; the cake will continue to set as it cools. Chill once fully cooled.

Maybe a couple of helpful tips:

• first roll the dough, then chill. also, you can make an entire stack of ready made pate brise/pate sucre/pate sable this way and just freeze them as a handy stack.
• pinch of salt makes the dough differently yummy and less "sweet only"
• do not overbeat, overwhip and overcook - whatever step you're at: gently does it!
• if you're not sure if cake is ready: it should be still "wiggly" in the middle (about a quarter/third of the cake) - it will continue to set after baking. if it looks all set, it's already over done.

The german "käsekuchen" version would be the same recipe, but with "Quark" (highest fat content you can find!) and 150ml whipped cream instead of sour cream. also, add a pinch of salt for contrasting the sweetness

• the more egg/stiff egg white/whipped cream you add, the higher the cake will rise during baking - add a standing sheet of baking paper around the INSIDE of the form. the cake will later fold into itself and fit into the form again when cooling but rise HIGH during baking.
• german Käsekuchen may also contain sour cherries (frozen and rolled carefully in a mix of corn starch and sugar (soaks up the liquids and makes a "creamy" surrounding) or raisins soaking in rum.
• the mixture can be baked as bottomless cheesecake in either version. (no flour/wheat/gluten)
• bottom can be made of amaretti instead of pate or cookies/bisquits if you like the almondy amaretto flavor - particularily nice if you added sour cherries.
• an extremely heavy, chocolatey variety is "Russischer Zupfkuchen" (not at all russian to my knowledge :) - very dense, heavy, creamy and a mix of cheesecake and chocolate cheesecake:

http://www.balticmaid.com/2012/03/traditional-german-cheesecake-russischer-zupfkuchen/

http://tastykitchen.com/recipes/desserts/russian-chocolate-cheesecake-russischer-zupfkuchen/