Baked tangelo cheesecake with Campari tangelo salad

The intense, sweet yet slightly tart flavour of the tangelo (a hybrid of a tangerine and either a pomelo or grapefruit) is the perfect match for a rich and creamy baked cheesecake – especially when teamed with Campari-soaked tangelo segments.

Baked tangelo cheesecake with Campari tangelo salad Credit: Alan Benson

• serves

  10

• prep

  25 minutes

• cook

  1:10 hour

• difficulty

  Mid

Ingredients

• 375 g cream cheese, at room temperature, cubed (see Baker’s tips)
• 3 eggs, at room temperature
• 185 g (¾ cup) sour cream
• 125 ml (½ cup) pouring cream
• 165 g (¾ cup) caster sugar
• 1 tbsp finely grated tangelo rind
• 2 tbsp freshly squeezed tangelo juice
• icing sugar, to dust, optional

Base

• 100 g plain wholewheat sweet biscuits
• 80 g butter, melted

Campari tangelo salad

• 6 tangelos, segmented, juice reserved
• 55 g (¼ cup) caster sugar
• 1 tbsp Campari (see Baker’s tips)

Chilling time 3 hours

Cooling time 1 hour

Instructions

Preheat oven to 150°C. Line the base of a 20cm (base measurement) springform tin with non-stick baking paper (see Baker’s tips). Brush the side of the tin with a little of the melted butter to grease.

To make the base, put the biscuits in a food processor and process until finely crushed. Add the butter and process until well combined. Sprinkle the crumb mixture over the base of the tin and then use the back of a metal spoon or the base of a glass to press down to cover evenly. Put the tin on a baking tray and place in the fridge.

Put the cream cheese in a clean food processor bowl and process until smooth. Add the eggs and process until smooth. Add the sour cream, cream, sugar and tangelo rind and juice and process until well combined and smooth, scraping down the side and base of the bowl when necessary. Pour into the tin over the base.

Bake for 1 hour and 10 minutes or until the cheesecake is just set but the centre still trembles slightly when the tin is shaken gently. Turn off the oven. Use a wooden spoon to keep the oven door ajar and leave the cheesecake inside for 1 hour (this helps prevent the top of the cheesecake cracking). Transfer the cheesecake to the fridge and chill for at least 3 hours or until well chilled before serving.

To make the Campari tangelo salad, peel and segment the tangelos over a bowl to catch any juices. Place the segments in a serving dish, cover and set aside while making the syrup. Combine the reserved juice and sugar in a small saucepan over low heat. Stir with a wooden spoon until the sugar dissolves. Bring to the boil and simmer, without stirring, for 10-15 minutes or until the syrup is reduced by about half. Remove form heat and set aside. Add the Campari to the cooled syrup, pour over the tangelo segments, cover and chill for at least 1 hour.

Sprinkle the cheesecake with icing sugar, if desired, and serve in wedges with the Campari tangelo salad.

 

Baker’s tips

• Having the cream cheese at room temperature means that it will easily become smooth and creamy when processed in the food processor. You can use it straight from the fridge but it will take longer and you need to make sure you are really careful about scraping the sides and base of the food processor so that no lumps are left after processing.

• Turn the base of your springform tin upside down before you clamp the side in place to use it – it will have a nice flat surface without a small lip that can make getting an egg slice under the cheesecake to remove it a little tricky.

• For a non-alcoholic version, you can replace the Campari with 1 tbsp orange flower water.

Anneka's mission is to connect home cooks with the magic of baking, and through this, with those they love. Read our interview with her or for hands-on baking classes and baking tips, visit her at BakeClub. Don't miss what's coming out of her oven via Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest.

Photography by Alan Benson. Styling by Sarah O’Brien. Food preparation by Kerrie Ray. Creative concept by Lou Fay.

For more recipes, view our online column, Bakeproof: Citrus.

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.