Mango Cheesecake

 

Mangoes are one of my favorite fruits–though blueberries will always win my heart. Cheesecake is my favorite dessert. Likewise, Cheesecake Factory is my single most important food destination when I head back to the US. “What could be better,”  I thought, “than to meld 2 of my most dearly loved sweet treats into one?”  And so was born this splendid mango cheesecake.As other bakers have noted, it is quite difficult to infuse cheesecake with enough mango presence to really give the fruit credit. Unfortunately, even though I used 2 mangoes in 3 different ways, this also was the case with this cheesecake. In conclusion, I’d say that unless one is willing to add loads of mango into the filling (along with extra cornstarch or flour), slice the fruit thinly and lay it over the crust, or top the cheesecake with thick slices or curls of mango, the big mango flavor will not be very detectable. Nevertheless, this cheesecake was very tasty, and it would be just as delicious without the mango.

The baking time stated in the recipe upon which I based this dessert didn’t quite work for me. As you can see in the photos, the cheesecake is baked enough to stand on it’s own, but it is not as firm as I would have liked. Next time, I will bake it at a higher temperature following the 10 minutes of 450F.


Mango Cheesecake with Shortbread Crust

1 1/2 c. AP flour

1/3 c. sugar

1 yolk

1/2 c. soft butter

1/4 t. salt

1 c.+2T. sugar

24 oz. cream cheese

1 t. vanilla

1 c. sour cream

3 eggs plus 3 yolks

1/4 t. salt

2 T. flour

2 large mangoes, divided

remaining mango puree

1 t. gelatin powder or 1 sheet

3T. lemon juice

3 T. sugar

1. Preheat oven to 400F. Grease a 9-10″ springform pan.
2. Combine all crust ingredients until blended and press or smooth into the bottom of the pan. Bake 15-20 minutes, or until lightly golden brown. Set aside to cool.
3. Increase oven temperature to 475F. Place pan on the bottom rack of the oven and fill with 2 c. boiling water.
4. Peel both mangoes. Chop 1/2 of one into very small cubes, and puree the other half, along with the other entire mango. In a small bowl, mix together mango cubes and 1/3c. puree.
5. In a large bowl beat cream cheese on low until smooth. Add remaining ingredients and blend on low, scraping sides of bowl often, until completely smooth. Allow to sit 5 minutes, and run a knife through the batter in a figure eight form to break down any air bubbles. Rest 5 more minutes and repeat.
6. Grease sides of springform and fill with 3/4 of the batter. Pour the mango cube-puree mixture atop. Pour in remaining cheesecake batter and swirl with a knife.
7. Bake 10 minutes and then lower oven temperature to 300F for one hour to 1hr. 15min.(I baked mine at 200F and it wasn’t done on time.)  Cheesecake is done when the edges are firm, yet the center within a 2-3″ diameter is still jiggly. Turn off oven and allow cheesecake to cool for at least 1 hour (up to 3) in the warm oven. Prop open oven doorwith a wooden spoon 30 minutes before removing. Allow to cool to nearly room temperature before adding mango gelee.

To make mango gelee:

In a small saucepan over medium low heat,stir together remaining mango puree, sugar, and 2T.  lemon juice. In a small measuring cup, add 2 T. lemon juice and sprinkle gelatin on top to bloom 3 minutes. Add gelatin to warm puree in saucepan and stir to dissolve. Cool 5-10 minutes, and smooth on top of the cheesecake. Chill cheesecake 8 hours to overnight before serving.