Goat Cheese Cheesecake
Summary Stats:
Serves 10-12.
Time: Active Prep (5 min), prep (1 hour), crust 20 minutes, filling 20 minutes, baking 50 minutes, cooling (5 hours).
Total active time: 50 minutes.
Total time: 8.5 hours.
Ingredients:
For the filling:
- 2 blocks Philadelphia cream cheese
- 3 small tubes goat cheese, as high a fat content as you can find
- 1 250 ml container sour cream
- 4 large eggs
- 3/4 cup sugar
- zest and juice of one lemon
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
For the crust:
- 2 cups of storebought gingerbread crumbs
- 6 tbsp (85 grams) melted butter, plus more for the pan
- 2-3 tbsp sugar
- pinch of salt
Instructions:
For the filling:
The key to making the filling is to keep air out of it.
- Cut up the cream cheese and goat cheese into slices, and let them sit on the counter for an hour to soften (you can work on the crust while you wait).
- Preheat the oven to 350 when the cheese is soft.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, gently combine the two cheeses until they are smooth. Add the sour cream, most of the sugar, the lemon zest and juice, and the vanilla extract.
- Taste, and add more sugar, salt, or lemon juice as appropriate.
- Use a spatula to scrape the bowl and blade of the mixer to ensure the ingredients are well mixed.
- In a small bowl, combine the eggs gently, then slowly pour into the stand mixer while the mixer is on low.
- As soon as you have finished pouring the eggs in, use a spatula to mix it until combined
- Bang the bowl of the mixture against the counter. Air bubbles with emerge. Keep banging until the bubbles stop.
For the crust:
- Break up the cookies in a stand mixer, until small crumbs. Add more ginger if necessary.
- Mix in a bowl with the melted butter - this is fastest done by hand. Add sugar to taste and a pinch of salt.
- Coat a springform pan with melted butter. Put a circle of parchment paper at the bottom of the pan, and coat the top of the circle with melted butter. Cut two strips of parchment paper 4 inches thick and stick the to the sides of the pan. Use melted butter to stick the ends of the two pieces of parchment paper to each other.
- Pour the cookie crumbs into the bottom of the pan and use an offset spatula or bottom of a glass to flatten.
- Wrap a soaking wet towel around the outside of the pan, and secure with string.
Cooking:
- Pour the filling into the pan. Bang on the table as before to flatten the top and get the bubbles out.
- Place on a baking sheet in the bottom middle of the oven. Pour 1 cup of water into the baking sheet
- Cook for 30 minutes and then rotate. Add more water to the pan as needed.
- Cook for another 15 minutes, then check the temperature. When it reaches 150 degrees, turn the oven off and open the door. The cheesecake is very delicate at this stage.
- After an hour, transfer to a fridge to cool for at least 4 hours.
- Best served with a strongly flavoured fruit sauce, like blackberry, rasberry, or quince.