Strawberry and Meringue Cheesecake
Cook Time 90 minutes
Servings 9-12
Ingredients
Cheesecake filling
3 egg yolks
16g sugar
165g mascarpone cheese
165g cream cheese
165g sugar
675g whipped cream
12g gelatine leaf
25g lemon juice
Sponge
300g whole egg
180g castor sugar
180g sponge flour
Swiss meringue
100g egg white
200g castor sugar
Strawberry glaze
300g strawberry jam
75ml water
3 drops of red color
To serve
Fresh strawberries
Pistachio slivers
White chocolate curls
Method
For the sponge, whisk eggs and sugar in a mixer till light and fluffy. Sift flours and fold through egg mix. Place sponge mix in a baking pan & bake for approximately 25-35 minutes at 180ºC .
For the cheesecake filling, heat the egg yolk and sugar over a hot water bath and whip until light and fluffy. Put egg yolk mixture aside. In a separate bowl, mix together the mascarpone, cream cheese and sugar. Add together the cream cheese and yolk mixtures and then gently fold through the whipped cream. Soak the gelatine in cold water for a few minutes, then add it to a small pot and dissolving the gelatine in lemon juice on a low heat (be careful not to boil). Once dissolved, add to cheesecake mix last. Pour the cheesecake mix on top of the vanilla sponge and freeze overnight.
For the swiss meringue, whisk sugar and egg white in a bowl and gently heat over bain-marie till 45ºC. Transfer over to a mixing machine and whisk on a fast speed for 3 minutes. Then switch to a lower speed until it is lukewarm. Use meringue when ready.
For the strawberry glaze, place jam, red colouring and water into a saucepan and bring to the boil. Once the mixture comes to a boil, strain through a sieve and let cool slightly before using. Be sure that the consistency of glaze is just right to brush on top of strawberries without being too runny or thick.
To assemble, remove cake from freezer, top with fresh strawberries and glaze with strawberry flavoured jam. Use the back of a spoon/spatula or piping back to arrange the swiss meringue around the entire parameter of the cake. Gently flame the meringue with a blow torch to sear the edges and create a golden colour. Decorate with pistachio slivers & white chocolate curls (if desired).
Tip: Make sure the Strawberry jam has set firmly before masking the edges with swiss meringue. When flaming the meringue with a blow torch, gently sear the edges lightly as the meringue may change colour quickly.