I love a good cheesecake but I gotta tell you... I really do
not love a not-so-good cheesecake. There are lots of things that can go wrong with cheesecake: the top can crack, the crust can get soggy, the filling can be dry or cloying, and it's heartbreaking to invest all that time and expectation on something that doesn't work out. So, I tend to be skeptical when testing a new cheesecake recipe. I panic if I have to make one for someone since this is when all the things that could go wrong probably would go wrong, you know? Murphy's Law. This is why I loved the idea of making the cheesecake filling sous vide-style using the Anova immersion circulator. It's thrilling, actually! I love having the control of a low and slow cooking time without the worry of over-cooking. Not having to bake the filling in the oven would eliminate any possibility of a dry cracked cheesecake, and I realized that I could push the fresh raspberries right into the top of the cake adding to the fresh taste overall. Some of the recipes that I came across did not bake the crust. But the possibility that the filling would turn out deliciously creamy was compelling enough that baking the crust separately until it set would be worth the effort. I was right. Amazing. The sous vide lemon raspberry ricotta cheesecake filling was very creamy and light. My entire family loved it!
Temperature: 177 F / 77 C
Time: 2 hours
Filling Ingredients:
- 2 whole eggs
- 1 egg yolk
- 2/3 cup sugar
- finely grated zest of one lemon
- 7 oz cream cheese, softened
- 9 oz ricotta cheese
- 1/2 cup Greek yogurt
- 1/2 cup cream
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt (if you are using regular table salt then decrease to 1/4 teaspoon)
Crust Ingredients:
- 1 1/2 cup graham cracker or digestive biscuit crumbs
- 1/3 cup butter, melted
- 1/3 cup sugar
- 1 tablespoon flour
- pinch sea salt
Garnish:
2 pints fresh raspberries
Method:
Preheat the Anova immersion circulator to 177 F / 77 C.
For the cheesecake filling whisk all of the filling ingredients together and seal in an airtight bag. Immerse the bag and cook for two hours.
For the crust, preheat oven to 375 F/190C. Combine all of the crust ingredients together and press into the bottom of a 9 inch/22cm spring form pan.
Bake for seven to ten minutes or until the crust is set and slightly browned. Cool.
Once the filling ingredients are done and the crust has been baked, remove the bag from the water and clip the bottom corner off of it. Use the bag to pipe the filling directly into the cake pan over the crust.
Press the berries into the surface of the cheesecake filling and refrigerate the cake for several hours until completely set.
Slice and serve!
