Clementine Orange Cheesecake

Clementine Orange Cheesecake.

Cheesecake topped with clementine

Prepare a 23 cm/ 9-inch spring form pan with parchment paper at the bottom.

Pastry
The pastry can be made by hand with your finger tips, by using two butter knives or simply in a food processor using the pulse button.

In a bowl, cut together with two knives, until it resembles crumbs.

1 cup flour
1/4 cup sugar
125gm/4oz salted butter
Zest of one orange

In a small bowl, combine all of the ingredients and add to the dough.

1 egg yolk
1 tsp vanilla extract


Knead it together and leave it to rest. 

Cut into 3 equal pieces. Use 2/3 to cover the base of the pan, pressing it down with your finger tips. ( It is simpler to do this with your hands than with a rolling pin.)

Bake in a preheated oven of 160C |325 F for 8 to 10 minutes until a slight colour shows on the pastry.
Allow it to cool.
Using the rest of the 1/3 pastry, cover the sides of the pan. Using your thumb, go around the edge to make it equal in height.

Filling

In the food processor, blend until smooth.

500 g/ 1.1lb Paneer ~ home made ricotta
1 1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup cream
3 eggs
2 egg yolks
1 tsp vanilla
3 tbsp plain all purpose flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup fresh lemon and/or lime juice
3 tbsp orange juice
Optionally zest of an orange


Once it is smooth, pour it into the prepared shell.
Place it in a hot oven at 200C | 400 F and immediately reduce the heat to 140C | 275 F. Allow it to set for 40 minutes. Turn off the oven and let the cheesecake cool for an hour until it sets. Chill before serving.

The cake must jiggle in the center.  It will then set as it cools, and that softness is what the creaminess depends upon. It tastes delicious.

For the topping

Clementine work best for this cake. The skin is softer and less bitter. The juice from it is tangy and flavorful. When ready to serve, evenly slice 2 clementine and grill them on a hot skillet for 2 minutes, turning once. Top the cooled cake with the slices. The juices of the fruit will enhance the flavours of this cake.

Tips

The texture of this cheese cake is dependent on two things. The smoothness of the filling is crucial, so make sure it's silky and not at all grainy. This, in turn, is dependent on the cottage cheese you are using. For best results, use freshly made paneer while it is warm or bring it to room temperature before use.
Secondly, the baking. Over baking makes the texture grainy. Allowing it to set at a lower temperature slowly ensures that the mixture does not curdle or get too hot at any point. The "jiggle in the middle" is crucial when you finish. 

Optional choices for toppings

While the cheese cake is delicious on its own, but a mixed berry compote alternately to oranges, makes it look pretty and tastes good too. Lemon curd topping for the lemon lover, and dark cherries topped all over can be delicious. Passion fruit curd is my very favourite. It has a strong taste and starts with mixing lemon and passion fruit to avoid the pungent flavour, which may not be to everyone's delight.

Do not freeze this cake as the texture is ruined.

This crust can be made in minutes when you use the food processor and the texture remains the same. Use the pulse button for best results. 

Place the spring-form pan on a tray to avoid having to clean up any "drip" from the pan.

My published cookbooks are available for sale through myself and on Amazon.

The World of Parsi Cooking: Food Across Borders is a 3 award winning book. It has been self published in July 2019 and will be going into its second print in 2022. 

The Art of Parsi Cooking; reviving an ancient cuisine was published in 2016 by Austin Macauley and continues to be available through amazon book depot book depository and from the publishers.

Photo courtesy William Reavell