Ricotta Cheesecake With Almonds Food

RICOTTA CHEESECAKE WITH ALMOND PRALINE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 150°C (300°F).
• Lightly grease a 22cm round springform cake tin and line the base with non-stick baking paper. Set aside.
• To make the base, place the flour, sugar and butter in a food processor and process for 1 minute or until a rough dough forms.
• Using the back of a spoon, press the mixture into the base of the prepared tin. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until golden and just cooked. Set aside to cool slightly.
• While the base is baking, make the filling. Place the cream cheese, ricotta, sugar, lemon juice, lemon rind and vanilla in a food processor and process until smooth. Place the cornstarch and water in a small bowl and mix until smooth. Add the cornstarch mixture and the eggs to the filling and process to combine.
• Lightly re-grease the sides of the cake tin and pour the filling over the base, tapping gently to remove any air bubbles.
• Bake for 50 minutes-1 hour or until light golden and just set. Allow to cool in the closed oven for 50 minutes.
• Refrigerate for 1 hour or until chilled.
• To make the almond praline:
• Preheat oven to 200°C (400°F). Sprinkle the sugar over a large lightly greased baking tray lined with non-stick baking paper. Bake for 12-15 minutes or until melted. Sprinkle with the almonds and allow to set completely on the tray. Crush the praline into small pieces. Sprinkle the cheesecake with the almond praline to serve, pressing gently to secure.

ALMOND RICOTTA CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Grease an 8-inch springform pan and line with parchment paper.
• Combine butter and 3/4 cup sugar in a large bowl; beat with an electric mixer until creamy, about 3 minutes. Add vanilla sugar, lemon zest, and lemon juice; mix until well combined. Add egg yolks, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition.
• Fold in almond flour and ricotta cheese with a silicone spatula.
• Wash and dry the beaters and beat egg whites in a glass, metal, or ceramic bowl until foamy. Gradually add 1/3 cup sugar, continuing to beat until stiff peaks form. Fold stiff egg whites into the batter. Pour batter into the prepared pan. Sprinkle with sliced almonds.
• Bake on the center rake of the preheated oven until edges of the cake are lightly browned, about 50 minutes. Cake will still be a little wobbly in the middle.
• Remove from the oven and let the cake to cool completely in the pan before transferring to a cake platter, about 1 hour. Dust with confectioners' sugar before serving.

RICOTTA PIE WITH AMARENA CHERRIES

Steps:

• Crust:
• Place a rack in middle of oven and preheat to 325°F. Generously butter pan and set aside. Pulse almonds, flour, sugar, and salt in a food processor until almonds are finely ground and mixture is combined. Add egg yolks and pulse to incorporate. Add 3 Tbsp. butter to mixture and pulse until dough is the consistency of wet sand.
• Press crust into the bottom and 3/4" up the sides of prepared pan using a straight-sided measuring cup. Chill until firm, about 10 minutes.
• Bake crust until evenly golden brown and set, 12-14 minutes. (If it slumps during cooking, you can always press it back into place with the measuring cup while it's still warm.) Transfer pan to a wire rack and let crust cool.
• Filling and assembly:
• Keep oven at 325°F. Using an electric mixer on medium speed, beat cream cheese in a medium bowl until no lumps remain, about 1 minute. Add ricotta and sour cream and beat until well incorporated. Add egg yolks and egg one at a time, beating well between each addition. With the motor running, gradually add sugar and salt and beat until filling is creamy and smooth, about 2 minutes. Add almond extract, vanilla extract, lemon zest, and orange zest and mix just to incorporate.
• Set pan with prepared crust on a large sheet of foil and fold up foil tightly around sides of pan (you can turn 2 small sheets of foil into 1 large sheet by folding their edges together several times, then opening up like a book). Repeat with several more pieces of foil to create a waterproof seal around the bottom and up the sides of the pan. Set inside a large roasting pan or baking dish and pour filling into crust (it will go above the crust).
• Set roasting pan on oven rack and carefully pour in very hot water to come about halfway up the side of the springform pan. Bake ricotta pie until the top is set and dry to touch but the filling still wobbles underneath (it will firm as it cools), 65-75 minutes. Transfer to the refrigerator and chill until cool and firm, 3-4 hours.
• Slice ricotta pie and serve topped with amarena cherries.
• Do Ahead
• Crust can be baked 1 day ahead. Store tightly covered at room temperature. Ricotta pie can be made 3 days ahead. Keep chilled.

ALMOND RICOTTA 'CHEESE'

Steps:

• Place blanched almonds into a bowl and cover so that there is about an inch of water above the almonds. Soak for 12 hours. (To blanch, simple boil almonds in water for approximately 3 minutes. Rinse under cold water and remove skins.).
• Add the almonds, lemon juice, and water to food process. Process for about 2 minutes. Add dill, thyme, and garlic. Process until mixture is semi-smooth, 5-8 minutes. If you want to use different herbs, go right ahead!
• Refrigerate and serve!
• Tip: If after you process for the first 2 minutes and the mixture has a lot of excess liquid, strain through a cheese cloth or small strainer and then return the solid mixture to the food processor. Continue with the steps as written.