white chocolate raspberry cheesecake

hehe.. yes. another cheesecake. my friend requested one.. so i had to deliver, right?? anyway, i made the white chocolate strawberry cheesecake recipe from epicurious but with many changes. i actually made a white chocolate raspberry cheesecake with swirled in coulis (raspberry puree).

i'll repost the recipe here with my changes...

White Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake
adapted from Epicurious.com
Makes 12 to 14 Servings

Bake this at least one day ahead.

crust
1 9-ounce package chocolate wafer cookies, broken into pieces
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted

filling
1 pound good-quality white
chocolate (such as Lindt or Baker’s), finely chopped
4 8-ounce packages cream cheese, room temperature
1 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 large eggs
1/2 cup sour cream
1/4 cup whipping cream
2 tablespoons vanilla extract

coulis
12 oz. (1 package) frozen raspberries, thawed
1/4 c sugar + 2 or so tbsp
2 tsp lemon juice

white chocolate curls, to decorate (optional)
whipped cream, to decorate (optional)

for crust: Position rack in center of oven; preheat to 325°F. Butter 10-inch-diameter springform pan. Finely grind cookies in processor. Add melted butter; process until crumbs are moist. Press crumbs onto bottom and 2 inches up sides of pan. Bake until set, about 15 minutes. Cool on rack. Maintain oven temperature.

for coulis: Cook over medium heat the thawed raspberries and 1/4 cup sugar. Bring to a simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, for 10 more minutes until all sugar has dissolved. Puree either with a hand blender, food processor, or blender. Strain out the seeds with a sieve. Stir in lemon juice and additional sugar until desired sweetness is achieved. Set aside to cool.

for filling: Stir white chocolate in top of double boiler set over barely simmering water until melted and smooth. Remove from over water. Cool to lukewarm, stirring occasionally.

Using electric mixer, beat cream cheese in large bowl just until smooth. Gradually add sugar, then salt; beat until smooth. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Scrape the bowl down occasionally. Add sour cream, whipping cream and vanilla; beat until well blended. Gradually add melted white chocolate, beating until mixture is smooth. Swirl in half of the coulis (keep the other half for serving), but don't blend in. Pour filling into crust.

Bake cake until top begins to brown but center still moves slightly when pan is gently shaken, about 1 hour 20 minutes. Open oven door slightly; turn off oven. Leave cake in oven 30 minutes. Chill cake uncovered overnight. (Can be made 2 days ahead. Cover; keep refrigerated.)

Run small knife between pan sides and cake. Release pan sides. Decorate with white chocolate curls and whipped cream, if desired. Serve each slice with reserved coulis.

recipe archives

i'm going to keep an archives of all the recipes i post and the stuff that i make for easy reference. :P

apple financier tart
caramel cheesecake bars
"the chewy" chocolate chip cookie
chocolate cake squares
chocolate espresso bars
chocolate whoppers
cook's illustrated chocolate chip cookies
french silk pie
granny twichell's secret chocolate cupcake recipe
mocha chocolate chip cheesecake
nigella's chocolate fudge cake
nutella tart
oreo congo bars
pineapple upside-down cake
white chocolate macadamia blondies
white chocolate raspberry cheesecake

new books new books!

yesssss... MORE cookbooks!!!! just what you need to keep you going through a slow week or for that matter, year. new acquisitions: feast by nigella lawson, luscious chocolate desserts by lori longbotham, flavors by donna hay, i want chocolate! by trish deseine.. and soon to come: the new best recipe by cook's illustrated, bouchon by thomas keller, sweet miniatures by flo braker, and appetite by nigel slater. OH MY!!!!!! i think i've gone crazy, i really do think so.... will someone help me?? i have a very large addiction indeed. but, on the bright side, i'm LOVING all of the ones i've gotten so far and i totally cannot wait until i get all the others. all the books i've already received are BEAUTIFUL and amazingly delicious looking. i'm sure the ones to come will be as well. quite excited about feast :) the luscious chocolate desserts is also very nice.. recommended. it's a cute little book full of pictures for almost every recipe and they seem great. i've tried the french chocolate macaroons.... tasty tasty! anyway, that's what i've been doing lately. allow me to go bury myself in more books! :)

apple financier tart

i made this for the sugar high fridays.. apples! this is from "simply sensational desserts" by francois payard. it's a really great book that i recommend! the tart came out really well.. i used his tart shell recipe as well. the shell came out buttery and tender and the filling was very flavorful and delicious. it smelled so great when it was baking. definitely not an apple pie that you are used to. it was delicious though! it was a tart shell with apples that were sauteed in honey and flambeed with brandy and then on top was a honey financier batter. after it came out of the oven, it was glazed with honey. another successful sugar high friday!! thanks for the fun, jennifer! i hope this will continue. :)

a slice of the tart