Orange Raspberry Cheesecake

This cheesecake is made up of a base layer of crushed digestive biscuit mixed with orange zest. Cointreau, an orange liquor, is added to the cheese cake layer to further infuse the cake with the orange flavour.  

Orange, Raspberry Cheesecake
(makes one 6" cheesecake)
Ingredients:
Filling
500g cream cheese, room temperature
100g sugar
1/8 tsp salt
2 tsp vanilla paste or 1 Tbsp vanilla extract
3 eggs
90 ml Greek yogurt, room temperature
1 Tbsp of Cointreau, orange liquor  
1 Tbsp apricot jam
2 punnet of raspberries

Base
50g butter
90g digestive biscuits, about 6 pieces
1/8 tsp salt
2 tsp orange zest, from 3 medium size oranges

Steps to base:

• Butter and line the base of a 6" round pan. I used a regular cake pan as it will ensure that there will not be any leakage of water into the cake when placed into a water bath in the later steps.
• Preheat oven to 180 degrees C.  
• Place digestive biscuits into a zip lock bag and using a rolling pin roll over the bag to crush the biscuits into fine crumbs. 
• Pour the crushed biscuits into a mixing bowl and stir salt, orange zest and butter well, until mixture resembles wet sand. 
• Press the mixture evenly over the bottom of the cake pan and bake in the oven for 8 - 10 min. Cool and set aside.

Steps to filling: 

• Turn the temperature of oven to 150 degrees C.

• In the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese, sugar, salt, vanilla paste or extract on medium-high speed, scrapping down the bowl several times until the mixture is completely smooth, about 5 min.
• Turn the mixer to low and beat in the eggs, one at a time, until blended, scrapping down the sides of the bowl after each addition. Beat in the Greek yogurt until blended.
• Pour the cream cheese mixture into the 6" cake pan that was contained the cooled biscuit base.
• Boil some water in a kettle.
• Place the filled 6" cake pan in a roasting pan or another bigger cake pan, like a 9" cake pan, this is to create a water bath while baking the cheese cake.
• Place the roasting pan or the bigger cake pan in the oven with the rack set such that the cake will be in the center of the oven. Very carefully pour the boiling water into the roasting pan or the bigger cake pan until the water is 3cm up the sides of the 6" cake pan.

The 6" cake pan sit inside a 9" cake pan, which is used to create the water bath

Let the cheesecake cool for 2 -3h before chilling it in the fridge

• Bake until the filling is set but still jiggles slightly in the center, 1h 5min to 1h 10min. 
• Remove the cake from the water bath very carefully and let it cool to room temperature, 2 - 3h. Leave the cake to cool and do not move it. Then chill the cake in the fridge for 4 to 6 h, or preferably overnight, in the pan.
• Once totally chilled, heat up the base of the cake by placing it in hot water for 1 minute and invert the pan onto a 6" cake round or a large plate. Remove the pan from the cake and invert once more onto a 6" round or large plate so the crust is on the bottom. 
• In a small saucepan, warm the jam over low heat until liquid. Strain through a fine strainer. Brush the top of the cheesecake with the jam and cover the top of the cake with a single layer of raspberries. 

 Note:

• Let all the ingredients, especially cream cheese, eggs and Greek yogurt, come to room temperature before starting.
• The water bath must cover at least 3cm of the base of the cake pan when baking. This ensures even and gentle baking of the cheesecake.
• Remove cake once the 2cm of the side of the cake have set while the center of the cake jiggles. As the cake cools, the residual heat will continue to cook it. 

You can find me on
Facebook : https://www.facebook.com/incookiehaven?fref=nf
or
Instagram: incookiehaven