GLUTEN-FREE CHERRY MASCARPONE CHEESECAKE
One of the most memorable meals of my early life was in a very small apartment of the mother of a friend. I’m talking Berlin 1978, long before the wall came down and when many in West Berlin were doing it tough too, along with the East Germans.
This did not stop Mutti from showing kindly hospitality to three holidaying Aussie girls who turned up for dinner with her son. We ate kassler, sauerkraut and potatoes and, as clichéd as that sounds, it was utterly delicious.
And to follow, you’ve guessed, was a cherry-studded cheesecake. It was also utterly delicious. It probably didn’t have Italian mascarpone as one of its ingredients but I now make this Cherry Mascarpone Cheesecake in memory of Mutti, her warm-heartedness and generosity.
And because it’s really nice!
Caren
CHERRY MASCARPONE CHEESECAKE
Serves 12+
Base
115 gm Revenge Gluten-Free Plain Flour Mix
30 gm almond meal
½ teaspoon baking powder
30 gm brown sugar
65 gm cold unsalted butter, cubed
1 egg
½ teaspoon vanilla paste
Filling
500 gm mascarpone
250 gm cream cheese
100 gm caster sugar
2 eggs
50 ml strained lemon juice
140 gm drained, preserved Morello cherries
300 ml thickened cream
Fresh or brandied cherries and sugared almonds for decoration, all optional
Preheat oven to 180°C. Grease and line a 22cm spring form cake tin.
For the base, combine flour, almond meal, baking powder and brown sugar in the bowl of a food processor. Add the butter, egg and vanilla paste then pulse until the mixture is just combined.
Tip the base mixture into the prepared tin and press with wet fingertips to evenly compact over the bottom of the cake tin. Place in the fridge for 30 minutes.
(Clean the blade and bowl of the food processor.)
Bake for 20-25 minutes until lightly golden. Set aside to cool for 5 minutes.
Reset the oven to 160°C.
Meanwhile prepare the filling. In the food processor, combine the mascarpone, cream cheese and caster sugar. Add the eggs and lemon juice then blend until smooth.
Spoon half the mascarpone mixture onto the cooked base, scatter over the cherries then add the remaining mascarpone mixture. Smooth the top and bake for 55-60 minutes or until just set. There should be a wobble in the centre of the cake.
Cool on a rack then refrigerate in the tin for at least 4 hours or overnight.
Remove the cake from the tin and place on a serving plate. Whip the thickened cream and spread over the top of the cheesecake. Refrigerate until required but remove about 15 minutes before serving. If decorating do so just before serving.