So, I had to find some good recipe(s).
A few years ago, we had some strawberry cheesecake at our friends', and when we got home my hubby gave me some "adept's advice" - just make the bottom softer and the jelly less gummier and it will be perfect!
I took a note of this and asked our friend for her recipe. I tried to make it soon, but I failed to fulfill the first "request" as the base was still too hard and was not quite merging with the cream. So I gave it another try the next time I prepared it, and I finally got the version that we liked and that I'm sharing with you here.
Aside from the two things I managed to "fix", I made some unsolicited changes I thought would be appropriate. Namely, I changed something in the cream too.
The original recipe was asking for whipping cream. However, the second time I made it I used whipping cream powder instead, and I keep using it since. I like its texture and taste better, I can adjust the firmness of the cream by reducing the liquid I add, and last but not least, it's half of the price of whipping cream here.
Another change I made was the sugar quantity in the cream. Believe it or not, I reduced it! Yup, me, the one who always craves for more sugar, reduced the quantity of sugar in a cake! :) The thing is, this whipping cream powder I'm using has some sugar already added, and I found it sweet enough. Besides, I didn't wanted to "kill" the freshness of the cheese with some excessive sweetness. If you, however, use unsweetened whipping cream, you'll have to add some. Check out step 3 for more info on this.
And one more thing before I go to the recipe. It is certainly the easiest way to shape a cheesecake with those cake molds with removable sides, but if you don't have one, you can use any other cake pan or even a soup pot. All you need to do is to fully cover the inside of the pot with a plastic foil (bottom and sides), allowing it to overlap the edges. Then make the layers as usual and leave the cake to cool well, then carefully lift it holding the foil that overlaps the edges and transfer onto a plate. "Peel" the foil and remove it by cutting with a sharp knife following the cake outer line. The cake will be firm enough to lift it and remove the foil from the bottom as well, but if you feel uncomfortable to do that, you can just leave it and remove it from every single piece of cheesecake just before serving. Don't worry, you won't forget it :) The foil won't stick to the bottom layer of the cake and it will practically slip out by itself while you're picking up the piece.
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for the base layer:
- 250 g ground biscuits (Petit Beurre, Animal cracker and similar)
- 180 g butter or margarine
- 5 tablespoons milk
for the cream layer:
- 450 g cream cheese
- 375 g whipping cream powder OR 500 ml whipping cream
- 150 powdered sugar* (see step 2)
- 10 g gelatin powder
for the fruit jelly layer:
- 400 g strawberries (or other fruits to taste, peeled and seeds removed-if any), fresh or frozen
- 4 tablespoons sugar
- 10 g gelatin powder
Directions:
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If using unsweetened whipping cream, add 150 g of powdered sugar before whipping.
If using whipping cream powder, combine it with 375 ml of cold water or milk, then whip until stiff.
3. Add cream cheese and mix for an additional minute, or until fully combined.
4. Combine gelatin powder with 50 ml of hot (not boiling) water until dissolved and set aside for 8-10 minutes, or until lukewarm. Then stir in a few tablespoons of the cheese cream. At the end, pour the gelatin mixture into the cream and mix one last time.
Pour the cheese cream over the biscuit base into the cake mold, even and put back in the fridge.
5. For the jelly layer, put fruits into a pot, add sugar and 120 ml of water and bring to boiling over medium fire. There is no need to defrost fruits if using frozen ones.
Meanwhile, stir in gelatin powder into 50 ml of hot (but not boiling) water and set aside.
6. When fruits have come to boiling, remove from fire and mash the fruits using a blender or a potato masher. Strain the mixture if you want to get a clear jello. We prefer it "rustic" and crispy, so I skip the straining.
Stir in dissolved gelatin and set aside until lukewarm. Then, pour it over the cheese cream and put back into the fridge for at least 6-8 hours.
You can decorate the cake with some whipped cream and fresh fruits once it's cooled if you want. I left it with no decoration this time.
Enjoy and bon appétit!