Monday, April 27, 2009

Sweet avocado cheesecake with mango and citrus ‘salsa’

avocado cheesecake3

Sounds weird, I know!

1. I had half a dozen ripe avocados staring at me from the fruit basket and

2. I had a Daring Bakers Challenge to do. The challenge was to make a cheesecake and a basic recipe was posted with instructions to make it ‘unique’ and get creative with flavors and presentation.

Put these two entities together and what do you get? Sweet Avocado Cheesecake!

I remembered an avocado cheesecake a couple of years ago at the innovative Cafe Red Onion, a Latin fusion restaurant. It was delicious. Avocados, being neutral in flavor, lend themselves to savory or sweet renditions. I believed that the velvetiness would enhance the creamy texture of my cheesecake. I would add lots of lime juice in an attempt to keep the color fresh. I was so excited about the idea I began baking right away.

The verdict: I liked it! My neighbor, Carolina loved it! She couldn’t detect the taste of avocado at all. Her daughter thought it was a pretty good lime cheesecake. Husbie wouldn’t go near it! And my sister and her family expressed a distinct dislike for the texture and color. Thanks, Ve and co. for your honesty! My friend Alma did not care for it. Her charming son, Joey, thought it was ‘interesting’ but liked it! And her husband John… haven’t heard back from him yet!

So, I’d say it’s a clear winner!!! I guess it’s not for everyone!

The Daring KitchenThe April 2009 challenge is hosted by Jenny from Jenny Bakes. She has chosen Abbey’s Infamous Cheesecake as the challenge. You can click on her site to find the original recipe. Thanks to Jenny and the founders of the Daring Bakers, Lis and Ivonne for keeping the ‘daring’ in over a thousand bakers all over the world!

I modified Abbey’s Infamous Cheesecake a little so that I could incorporate the avocados and lime juice. Next time I make it (yes, there will be a next time), I will use one avocado less so that the cheesecake is a more pleasing color. Some people just couldn’t handle it! The mango and citrus ‘salsa’ is sweet and tart and is a nice contrast to the creaminess of the cheesecake.

Sweet avocado cheesecake with mango and citrus ‘salsa’ Make the cheesecake the day you plan to serve it because it needs to chill overnight. The ‘salsa’ should be made the day of serving (see instructions below).

  • Almond Crust
  • 1/4 cup almonds
  • 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
  • 2 tablespoons sugar
  • 5 tablespoons butter, melted

Put almonds in processor and pulse until finely chopped. Add graham cracker crumbs, sugar and melted butter and pulse until blended but still crumbly. Pat into the bottom and a little up the sides of a 9” springform baking pan (I made two small cakes – one 5” round, and one 6 1/4” round). Set aside.

avocado cheesecake4

  • Cheesecake batter
  • 2 packages cream cheese, softened to room temperature
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 3 eggs
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla essence
  • 2-3 (I’d go with 2) ripe avocados, peeled and pitted
  • zest of 1 lime
  • 1/4 cup fresh squeezed lime juice
  • 1 cup sour cream
  • 1 tablespoon rum
  • pinch of salt

Prepare a water bath by half filling a shallow roasting pan with very hot water. Place the pan on the lowest rack in the oven. Place another rack in the middle of the oven. Preheat oven to 300 degrees F.

In a mixer, combine cream cheese and sugar. Beat on medium speed until smooth. Add vanilla and eggs, one at a time until all are incorporated.

Place avocados in a food processor. Blend until very smooth. Add zest, lime juice, sour cream, rum and salt. Blend well.

Add avocado mixture to cream cheese mixture and blend on low speed until well blended. Pour into cake pan. Place pan on middle rack in oven. If you’re using a 9” pan, bake for 45 minutes than check to see if it set but still a little ‘jiggly’ in the middle after you bump the pan a little.

Remove from oven and cool completely on a rack. Chill overnight.

  • Avocado ‘Salsa’
  • You can make the salsa without the avocado ahead of time. Peel and cut avocado not too long before you plan to serve it so that it doesn’t discolor.
  • 1/2 ripe avocado, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch pieces
  • juice of 1/2 lime
  • 1 orange, peeled and segmented then cut into 1/2 inch pieces.
  • 1/2 grapefruit, peeled and segmented then cut into 1/2 inch pieces
  • 1 mango, peeled, flesh cut into 1/2 inch pieces
  • 1/2 teaspoon lime zest

Combine avocado and lime juice in medium bowl. Add the rest of the ingredients and let it sit for about 5 minutes. Place fruit mixture in a sieve and drain juices off before decorating cheesecake.

avocado cheesecake1

Prijatno!

Avocado on Foodista

21 comments:

  1. It was very rich and creamy, just as a cheesecake should be! I also liked how tall it was. Great creativity, Dragana. I still can not believe people could actually taste the avocado. I could not detect it at all~

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  2. To me, avocadoes have a buttery flavor and texture. I've never had it in a dessert, but I can imagine it's wonderful! Very creative, Dragana. Wow!

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  3. Cesto sam vidjala recepte za sladoled od avokada. A posto sam se bukvalno navukla na doticni, mislim da bi mi se ovaj tvoj cizkejk bas svideo :)

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  4. Wow, cheesecake with avocado, that's so new to me.

    Here in Indonesia, we usually make avocado juice, just avocado, condense milk, ice cubes and water blended together, very nice :)

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  5. I love avocado, so I'm sure that your cheesecake tastes great! It's really pretty with the assorted fruits on top too!

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  6. Brilliant! I adore avocados and they have the perfect texture for a cheesecake!

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  7. That is simply magnificent! Beautiful pics!

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  8. Wow! I was a little unsure when I read avocado but the photos completely won me over. The decorations look great and the texture of this cheesecake looks amazing.

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  9. Those pictures are pure decadence...wonderful and exotic use of avaocados...Kudos!

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  10. Interesting combination of flavors. It does look beautiful.

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  11. Hi Dragana, It's gorgeous, and I would be game to try it ~ delightfully inventive.

    And as always, such beautiful, beautiful photos. You always provide great inspiration (and fantastic eye candy!!) Many thanks for sharing your talents with us. xo~m.

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  12. Delicious!Hope you wont mind but I'd love to guide Foodista readers to your site, just add this little widget here to this post and it's all set to go, Thanks!

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  13. Very inventive Dragana. Your cheesecake looks smooth and luscious and I would be very pleased to try it. To be honest I do find the topping a bit overwhelming. I would prefer to eat a slice of the avocado cheesecake with maybe some mango puree and cream on the side. Thanks for the imaginative recipe.

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  14. Oh yum, and I bet the texture of the avocado just added to the creaminess. I'm late in getting to your post, but love what you did with this challenge!

    Jenny of JennyBakes

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  15. I know it's been years since you made this, but what did you use to pipe the white border with? I'm thinking possibly whipped cream with sour cream? Planning on trying your recipe come summertime.

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  16. Hi gaillc! Yes, it is whipped cream with a bit of confectioner's sugar. You can add sour cream in the end to thicken it a little but be careful not to over beat or you'll end up with sweet butter!

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  17. Thank you! Yes, I've been known to serve slightly low-volume, not so smooth whipped cream a time or two. I like stiff whipped cream, and once you get it close, it can curd so fast!

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  18. I've been dying to try this for 18 months. Finally offered to do a "green" dessert for St. Patrick's Day party. It was my first cheesecake -- followed the directions to the letter, and it was fabulous!!! And the most beautiful pale green color -- much loved at the party. Thank you so much for sharing !!!!
    Robin Jones, from Kentucky

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    1. Anon. - I'm so glad you enjoyed the cheesecake! I considered adding a drop of green coloring to boost the color, but I'm not much for artificial ingredients.

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