How I love summer...mostly for its delicious, fresh fruits. If I could, I would pick them out of a tree or bush all year long, so I can bake with them Unfortunately, there are 3 more seasons. I think this is the reason I don`t like winter: no fruits and veggies. All dead, gone.
I have to admit that, like everybody else, I`d rather eat something juicy and fresh than warm, gooey and sticky during summer. Also, I choose sweet-and-sour rather than very sweet. Do you know what I`m talking about? Never mind, back to our cheesecake
The first time I baked a cheesecake was a while ago. Yeah, it was pretty good, but the crust was almost invisible. And that was a pity because it was made of pretzels with cinnamon. I wanted more. So this time, I almost filled my pan to the half with the crust. I just want to warn you and mention that you can reduce the amount of crackers in this recipe, or use another recipe for homemade graham cracker crust.
Then, the filling. Ah, the filling! It has everything you wish from a cheesecake: creamy texture, sweet yet tart and there are chunks of peaches in there. That`s a bonus, in my opinion.
Oh, I apologize for the pictures. They are horrible, I`m aware of that.
Ingredients:
Crust:
275 gr graham crackers or any digestive biscuits
90 gr butter-melted
a quarter (1/4) teaspoon ground cinnamon
Cheesecake batter:
1 kg room temperature cream cheese
4 eggs
3/4 cup sweetened condensed milk
2/3 buttermilk
1/4 cup sugar
4 peaches, pit removed and diced in medium sized chunks/cubes
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Peach Topping:
2 large peaches, pit removed and chopped
2 Tablespoons water
3 Tablespoons sugar
Directions:
For the Crust:
1. In a food processor or using a rolling pin and a bag, crush the biscuits until they resemble breadcrumbs. Make a well in the center and pour melted butter and add cinnamon. Stir with a fork or a spoon until the mixture resembles "wet" sand, it should stay together when pinched between your index finger and your thumb. If it falls apart, add 20 more grams of melted butter until you reach the right consistency.
Butter a 9-inch(23 cm) diameter round cake pan with removable walls and press the biscuit mixture into it, making sure you cover everything evenly. Bake at 180 C/375 d F for 7 minutes. Take it out and let it cool, but don`t turn the oven off.
For the Cheesecake batter:
1. Cream the cream cheese and sweetened condensed milk until homogenized. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the sugar and beat for 2 more minutes.
2. In a small bowl or a regular cup, mix the buttermilk, vanilla extract and cubed peaches. Add them to the cream cheese batter and beat it well for another minute or so.
3. Pour the resulting batter over the crust in the pan, tap it a few times on your counter to get rid of any air bubbles( so you don`t have cracks in the cheesecake). Put the pan in a high-side square or rectangular cake tin and fill it with hot water until it reaches halfway the wall of the round cake pan. Bake it at 160 d C/325 d F for about 1 hour and 15 minutes or until the edges look set and the center is still jiggly.
4. Turn off the oven and let the cheesecake cool completely in there with the door ajar (slightly opened). About 2-3 hours. After such time, remove the cheesecake from the water filled pan and put it in your fridge to set for about 4 hours or overnight.
Just before serving, make the topping:
Put the chopped peaches, sugar and water in a food processor or a blender and turn them into a smooth puree. Put the puree in a medium saucepan, set it over low to medium heat and cook until bubbly, about 5 to 10 minutes. Immediately pour the resulting topping over the cheesecake and even it out with a spoon or a spatula. Set it in the fridge for 1 hour, but you can cut into it immediately.
Enjoy. :D
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