Baked cheesecake

I know most people would trade their firstborn child for a piece of chocolate cake, but I am much more partial to a piece of baked cheesecake.

The first time I attempted to bake a cheesecake one unfortunate Christmas, it was one of the most epic disasters I have ever had in a kitchen. I put way too much butter in the crust which resulted in it being a greasy mess. I tried using a normal cake tin instead of a springform pan. There is a reason why no one has ever attempted to make an upside down cheesecake. My family was forced to have that reason for dessert.

The second attempt was more successful. I had acquired a springform pan and a simpler recipe, but the crust to filling ratio left much to be desired because the pan was too big.

I am proud to say that I have finally baked a cheesecake that I would gladly serve to anyone who comes to visit.

Baked cheesecake

Base
1/2 packet of tennis biscuits, crushed into fine crumbs
50 ml melted butter

Filling
3 eggs
125 g icing sugar
500 ml cream cheese
125 ml double cream
100 ml lemon juice
5 ml vanilla essence

Preheat the oven to 150 degrees.

Combine the tennis biscuit crumbs and melted butter. Press the mixture into the bottom of a springform tin to make the base. The one I use is 21 centimeters in diameter. Leave it in the fridge until the filling is ready.

Beat together the eggs and icing sugar an electric hand mixer. The frothier you make this mixture, the lighter your cake will be, but stop well before it reaches the meringue stage. Add the cream cheese and beat until the mixture is completely lump free. Fold in the double cream. Don't mix it too much or you will lose all the air in the filling and the cake will be very dense.

Pour the filling into the tin and spread out using a spatula. Bake for 1 hour. Now comes the part when copious amounts of patience is required. The cake has to cool down completely. The first cooling stage happens in the turned-off oven. Open the door and leave the cake in the oven until it has cooled down completely. The second stage happens in the fridge. The cake has to stay in the fridge for at least three hours. I know this is absolutely torture after putting so much effort into making your cake, but it will pay off in the end.

Once the cake has cooled down completely, place the tin on a can and then take off the outer part. I have absolutely no idea how to get it off the bottom part, so if you could leave some advice in the comments section I would really appreciate it!

The best part about eating cake is having someone to share it with. My friend Grethe has been begging me to bake a cheesecake and I was more than happy to reward her persistence with a slice. I don't want to pat myself on the back, but I do believe she enjoyed it and will start another cheesecake campaign very soon.