Apricot Cheese Cake

Apricot Cheese Cake
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Nutritional Info
  • Servings Per Recipe: 12
  • Amount Per Serving
  • Calories: 244.2
  • Total Fat: 22.7 g
  • Cholesterol: 84.5 mg
  • Sodium: 178.3 mg
  • Total Carbs: 5.7 g
  • Dietary Fiber: 0.4 g
  • Protein: 5.4 g

View full nutritional breakdown of Apricot Cheese Cake calories by ingredient


Introduction

This cheesecake is as delicious as it is beautiful! This cheesecake is as delicious as it is beautiful!
Number of Servings: 12

Ingredients

    The Cake Base

    Ingredients:
    1/3 c Flour, sifted
    1/4 tsp Baking powder
    Pinch of Salt
    2 lg Eggs, separated
    1/3 c Splenda
    1 tsp Vanilla
    Zest of 1/2 Lemon
    2 Tbs Butter, melted, unsalted
    1/4 tsp Cream of Tartar

    Preliminaries:
    Remember to preheat your oven to 350° F, 180°.


    The Filling

    Ingredients for Purée:
    3-5 Apricots: fresh enough to make 3/4 cup puréed.
    1 tsp Cornstarch
    1-2 Tbs Slenda

    Ingredients for Cheese Filling:
    3 ozs Reduced Fat Cream Cheese
    1/4 c Cornstarch
    1-1/3 c Splenda
    1 Tbs Vanilla
    2 lg Eggs
    2/3 c Whipping Cream

Directions

Preliminaries:
Preheat oven to 350° F, 180°

The cake goes in four stages: bake the cake bottom, pureé the apricots, mix the filling and bake.

It needs at least 3 mixing bowls. Read the recipe through and follow the tips for a seamless baking session.


The Cake Base

Using a spring form pan, grease all inner surfaces very well with butter. If using a pan with a removable bottom, place a sheet of baking paper inside.

Wrap the entire outside with tin foil. This is necessary because at the second stage of baking, the cake will bake inside a water bath.

Have ready a pan into which your baking pan will fit easily, for the water bath. Sift the flour, baking powder, and salt together into a small bowl.

Zest the lemon. Melt the butter. Separate the eggs, with the yolks in a large bowl and the whites in a bowl big enough to contain them whipped.

Measure the sugar, leave it in its measuring cup, and put a measuring spoon on top of the measured sugar. This spares last-second hunting for the spoon when you’ll need to remove a little of the sugar.

Method:
Beat the yolks for 3 minutes, using an electric mixer set on high. Keep the mixer running and add 2 tablespoons of the sugar from the 1/3 measured cupful. Beat another 5 minutes. Beat in the lemon zest and vanilla. Sift the dry ingredients over the egg yolk/sugar mix and beat in on low, just to blend lightly. Blend the melted butter in.

Wash the beaters absolutely clean. In the second bowl, beat the egg whites with the cream of tartar till stiff. With a spatula, remove about 1/3 of the whites and fold them into the batter. Then add the remaining whites, mixing lightly. Stop when the whites are evenly distributed throughout the batter.

Spread the batter evenly in the pan. No water bath yet – that’s for when the whole cake is assembled. Bake 10-12 minutes or until just set and the center springs back when touched. It shouldn’t be baked till brown.

Keep the oven on. Leave the crust in the pan – you will bake the cheese filling on top of it. Put the pan on a rack to cool while you’re preparing the filling.


The Filling

Directions for Purée:
Blend apricots and cornstarch and add sugar to taste. The amount of sugar will depend on the sweetness of the apricots. The purée should still be tart.


Directions for Cheese Filling:
In a large bowl, mix 1 cup (1 package) of the cream cheese, 1/3 cup sugar, and the cornstarch. Beat on low for 3 minutes or until all is creamy. Beat in second cup (package) of cream cheese, then the third.

Increase the speed to medium and beat in 1 cup sugar, vanilla, and eggs, one at a time. Beat in the cream. Mix thoroughly but stop when everything is mixed; don’t overmix.

Spread the batter over the prepared crust.

Spread the apricot purée over the cheese filling, pushing it down with the back of the spoon here and there. Cut through the purée and batter in a figure of 8, going deep enough to just feel the cake on the bottom. Do this three times, but no more or the cake will will be yellow instead of marbled.

Put the cake in the second pan. Carefully pour hot water between the two pans, up to an inch from the top of the cake pan. Bake for 1 to 1-1/4 hours until completely set or a toothpick comes out clean.

Remove the cake from the water bath and put it to cool on a wire rack. Don’t move it for 2 hours lest it fall. When it’s totally cool, wrap it in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 4 hours to overnight.

Leftovers stay delicious if wrapped well and kept cold, for 4 days.

Adapted from Junior’s Cheesecakes by Fine Cooking, The Taunton Press


Serving Size: 1 9-inch cake – 12 slices

Number of Servings: 12

Recipe submitted by SparkPeople user VEHAMILTON1.