Time is of the essence for me at the moment. In between feeding, changing and playing with my baby (and changing and changing and changing), there is precious little time to do anything other than get myself showered and dressed – some days I even fail to do that!

I find most cheesecakes very easy to make except for the part where you must have patience and leave it to chill down overnight. This is no exception and the combination of white chocolate and raspberries is heavenly.

Like any baked cheesecake this must be made the day before you want to eat it.

ease:  4/5
mess factor:  3.5/5 – few bowls to clean up
cooking time:  1 hour
total:  11 hours

taste: 4.5/5

Ingredients
1 x 250g packet of biscuits
100g ground almonds or hazelnuts
150g melted butter

750g cream cheese (3 x 250g packs)
140g (2/3c) caster sugar
1 tsp vanilla bean paste or extract
3 eggs
200g good white chocolate chopped into chunks
200g frozen raspberries

Grease a 20cm springform pan. Place biscuits, ground nuts and butter in the bowl of a food processor and process until finely crushed and well combined. Transfer mixture to prepared pan. Use a straight-sided glass to spread and press mixture firmly over base and side of pan (Try to get it all the way up the sides – I was using the wrong size pan). Cover with plastic wrap and place in the fridge for 30 mins.

Preheat oven to 160°C. Use an electric beater or mixer to beat together cream cheese, sugar and vanilla until smooth. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Use a spatula to gently fold in chocolate and raspberries.

Pour mixture into the biscuit base. Bake in preheated oven for 1 hour until just set in the centre (Gently shake the pan, the middle should still wobble a little). Turn oven off. Leave cheesecake in the oven, with the door open a crack, for 2 hours or until cooled completely (this *should*prevent cake from cracking). Cover with plastic wrap and place in the fridge overnight to chill.

140g (1 1/4 sticks) unsalted butter
1 cup sugar
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (use some good stuff)
1/4 teaspoon salt (skip if using salted butter)
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cold large eggs
1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1 egg yolk
250g cream cheese
4 tablespoons sugar
splash of vanilla

Preheat the oven to 160°C (325°F). Line the bottom and sides of an 8-inch square baking pan.

Combine the butter, sugar, cocoa, and salt in a saucepan over very low heat. Stir until the butter is melted and the mixture is smooth and hot so that the sugar has started to dissolve a bit but the butter is not burning. Remove from the heat and set aside until the mixture is just slightly warm.

Stir in the vanilla, then add the eggs one at a time, stirring hard after each one. Add the flour and mix thoroughly for about 1 minute with a  wooden spoon or a rubber spatula. Spread evenly in the lined pan (the batter will be very thick).

Beat egg yolk, cream cheese, 4 tablespoons sugar, vanilla until blended. Spoon ontop into approximately 8 lups. then blend in with a knife tip till swirly (try and do a better job than me).

Bake until a toothpick emerges with some moist crumbs sticking to it (but not wet with batter), 20 to 25 minutes. Cool completely on a rack, then put in the fridge!! Best served cold.

Pecans and Butterscotch have never really appealed to me, but somehow this recipe did…

I have never ever made a cheesecake before, shock horror, and so I have no idea whether or not this is going to set. Not only that, but I screwed up my oven timer melting butter for the banana cake I was making simultaneously and so I have no idea how long I baked it for. Stay tuned for is it set… /edit: it set perfectly

butterscotch pecan cheesecake (adapted from Australian Women’s Weekly Cheesecakes)
base
150g plain chocolate biscuits
50g melted butter

filling
500g cream cheese
1 tsp vanilla extract
3/4cup (165 grams) caster sugar
2 eggs
1tbsp plain flour
1/2 cup (60 grams) pecans, chopped finely

topping
1/3 cup (75 grams) brown sugar
40g butter
1tbsp cream

Preheat oven to 160°C (140°C fan forced).
Process biscuit until fine. Add butter, process until combined. Press mixture over base of 20cm spring-form tin.

Make filling by beating cheese, vanilla extract and sugar in a bowl until smooth. Beat in eggs, stir in flour and pecan nuts.

Pour filling into tin, bake approximately 45mins. Allow to cool down in oven with door ajar.

Make butterscotch topping by heating all ingredients in a soucepan till smooth. Spread topping over cheesecake. Refridgerate at least 3hrs or overnight.

Serves 8.