Raspberry Cheesecake

As my last hope of clutching on to what is left of this beautiful summer, I made one last fruitful dessert : a deliciously tart and creamy raspberry cheesecake.

I know I have mentioned before how it is shocking how little foods I have tried at this point in my life, and here is no exception. Last week when I made this cheesecake was the first time I've ever tried raspberries...I know,I know, it's madness! I can tell that you're blown away by my deprived youth, like so many others. Alas,now I have tasted the sweetness that is a raspberry and I have made cake with it!

Raspberry Swirl Cheesecake  
original recipe from Not so Humble Pie
1 cup (5oz) finely ground graham crackers
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
6 ounces (1 1/2 cups) raspberries
2 tablespoons sugar
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
4 (8 oz) packages (32 ounces total) cream cheese, room temperature
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
pinch salt
4 large eggs, room temperature
pot of boiling water, for the roasting pan

1. Pre-heat the oven to 350°F.
2. Place a 9" spring form pan onto a double layer of aluminum foil. Wrap up the sides of the pan to make it water tight (you don't want any foil seams or edges on the bottom or low on the sides of the pan) 
3. Combine the graham crackers, 2 tablespoons sugar and the melted butter in a large bowl and mix, I usually just mix it with my hands. Firmly press the crumbs into the bottom of your spring form pan. I just used a cup.

I prefer making the crumbs myself :)

     4. Bake the crust until set, roughly 10 minutes and then allow it to cool on a wire rack and then reduce the oven's temperature to 325°F. 

     5. Purée the raspberries and then strain out the seeds and any solids.

Looks a little gruesome...

Post puree it should look like this.

Add 2 tablespoons of sugar to the puree. 

Pour into a small sauce pan and bring the raspberry sauce to a bare simmer over medium low heat. Reduce the sauce for 1-2 minutes until it has thickened slightly and then set aside to cool.

      6. Beat the cream cheese on medium speed until smooth and fluffy (roughly 3 minutes). Add the 1 1/2 cups of sugar in a slow steady stream. Beat in the salt and vanilla and then beat in the eggs, one at at time, fully mixing after each one. Take care not to over mix. Pour the batter into your prepared crust.

Dot the top of the batter with drops of the raspberry sauce (I actually used a turkey baster for this and it worked perfect, but you can use a knife or skewer).

Swirl the surface of the batter to create the marbled effect by dragging a toothpick through each dot. Reserve the remaining sauce for garnishing.

      7.Set the cake into a large roasting pan and place into the oven. Carefully ladle the boiling water into the roasting pan. Fill the pan no higher than the lowest edge of the foil. Bake until the cake is puffy and set but the center is still has a slight wobble. This will take approximately 65-90 minutes, just keep checking it.

      8. Allow the cake to cool completely in the pan on a wire rack. Transfer the cake to the refrigerator and allow to chill overnight (or a minimum of 6 hours).

          
Serve with the remaining raspberry sauce.