Cheese cake might be one of the most festive dessert. Although baked cheese cake originally came from Greece, non-baked creamy type cheese cake was invented in America. There are different types of cheese cakes in the world, using different types of soft cheese (and baked or non-baked,) but this recipe is typically known as cheese cake, using cream cheese. Awesome fact: without the decoration layer (= only cookie layer and cream cheese layer) you can freeze it!
Ingredients: (this recipe is enough to make a large 26-28 cm diameter form.)
For the cookie layer (bottom.)
300 g graham cracker (Digestive)
150 g melted butter
For the cream cheese layer (middle)
2.5 dl cream
200g cream cheese
180 g Crème fraîche
100 g powder sugar (melis)
1 box of lemon jelly (with half amount of required water.)
For the decoration layer (top): this is for using frozen strawberries.
(If you use fresh strawberries, there is no need to add jelly coating.)
ca. 350 g frozen strawberries
1 box strawberry jelly (with 60% of required water.)
Directions:
For the cookie layer (bottom.)
1) Heat up the oven: 180 C degrees
2) Place graham crackers (digestive) into a large plastic bag, and crush them with a rolling pin.
Tips: Crushing in a plastic bag makes it easier (and clean!) to crush crackers. If you are not sure about the thickness of the bag, make it double!
3) Mix crushed crackers with melted butter.
4) Spread the crust evenly in a baking form.
Tips: Use cling film between crust and your hands. It makes it much easier to spread the crust even. If you have surgical glove, use it! :-)
5) Bake ca 15 minutes or until edges start to be brown. Set aside to cool.
For the cream cheese layer (middle)
1) Cook one box of lemon jelly with half amount of required water. (If the direction on the box says 5 dl, use 2.5 dl instead.) Set aside.
2) In a large mixing bowl, whip cream lightly (until the thickness of vanilla sauce.)
3) Add cream cheese and keep mixing.
4) Add Crème fraîche and powder sugar. Keep mixing.
5) Slowly drizzle lemon jelly into the cream mixture.
6) Slowly pour the cream mixture into the cake form with graham cracker layer.
Tips: Make sure to pour slowly, using support with something flat - like spatula. Otherwise, the stream of the cream would make a hole on cracker layer.
7) Cool it in fridge until it gets hard (I prefer leaving in fridge overnight.)
For the decoration layer (top)
1) Line up frozen strawberries on the top of cheese layer.
Tips: I usually freeze fresh strawberries. You can buy a bag of frozen strawberries, but they can be crushed and/or uneven.
2) Cook one box of strawberry jelly with about 60-65% required water (If the direction on the box says 5 dl, use 3-3.5 dl instead.)
Tips: Reduced amount of water is due to the fact that juice from strawberry come out when thawed. If you use whole amount of jelly (in this case 5dl) it would be very runny.
3) Brush hot jelly on each strawberries. It would harden in a second and makes beautiful coating.
Tips: Yes, we need to be patient for the best result...
4) Drizzle rest of the jelly over the whole cake. Make sure to drizzle evenly.
5) Keep the cake in fridge until serving.