I think this may be my favorite cheesecake of all time. I don't eat
cheesecake much these days, but I remember when I was maybe 6 years old
asking my mom to make her honey lemon cheesecake with cherries for my
birthday.
I'm all about slightly savory desserts - this has a delicate but not overwhelming flavor of goat cheese. If you didn't know it was in there, you might not even guess.
And now you can buy great logs of chevre (soft goat cheese) so
inexpensively at Costco! I
love the unusual rosemary and red grape topping with or without walnuts. The flavor and texture of this cheesecake are exceptional - creamy, tangy and firm, not gloppy - and it's actually pretty easy to whip up.
The
recipe comes from Cuisine at Home magazine - my mother-in-law gave me a
subscription a few years ago, and we've gotten several great recipes
from it.
Crust:
1 cup graham cracker crumbs
1 cup toasted walnuts (if you're allergic, just use all graham cracker crumbs instead)
2 Tbs sugar
1/2 stick (1/4 cup) butter, melted
Filling:
1 lb goat cheese, room temperature
4 oz cream cheese, room temperature
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup sour cream
3 eggs, room temperature
2 Tbs heavy cream
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
Grape and Rosemary Compote
3/4 cup dry red wine (or substitute 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar and 1/2 cup water)
1/3 cup sugar
2 tsp cornstarch
Pinch of salt
2 cups red grapes, halved
1/2 cup toasted walnuts, chopped
1 tsp chopped fresh rosemary
1 tsp fresh lemon juice (omit if using balsamic vinegar)
Freshly ground pepper
Take the goat cheese,
cream cheese, and eggs out of the refrigerator to warm up while you
prepare the crust. Preheat oven to 350F. Chop graham crackers and
walnuts finely (a food processor comes in handy here, but you can also
just put them in a ziploc and bang them gently with a hammer). Mix
thoroughly with sugar and butter. Press onto the bottom and about 1 inch
up the sides of a 9-inch springform pan. Bake until golden, about 10
minutes, and let cool. Reduce oven temperature to 250F.
Beat
the cheeses, sugar and sour cream together with an electric mixer on
low speed, scraping the sides down often, until light and fluffy. Add
eggs one at a time, beating well and scraping down the sides after each.
Beat in the cream and vanilla. Pour into crust and bake at 250F for
60-75 minutes. The center should still be slightly wobbly. Let stand at
room temperature until completely cooled, then cover the pan without
letting wrap touch the top, and chill overnight.
Whisk
together wine (or balsamic vinegar), sugar and cornstarch until smooth.
Simmer over medium-high heat, whisking constantly until thickened,
about 3 minutes. Pour syrup over remaining ingredients and toss to
coat.
Remove ring from springform and cut slices with a long knife, rinsing the knife with hot water and wiping dry after each cut. Top each piece with compote and a small sprig of rosemary.