Name: Silvia Maulini*
Class Year: 1980
Country of Residence: The Netherlands

* Silvia is one of this competition’s judges, so this recipe will not be considered – it’s simply delicious, and needs to be shared!

Why is this recipe great? What’s its backstory? 

I have always found most (American) cheesecake recipes rather daunting and alarmingly rich in fats and cream. A few years ago, my daughters and granddaughters gave me a wonderful new cookbook by Cees Holtkamp, whose patisserie in the center of Amsterdam is a true monument to high quality pastries and cakes. His simple, not exceedingly fat and apparently foolproof recipe for cheesecake immediately caught my attention. It seemed too easy to be true, but Cees’ cheesecake turned out to be amazing and it has now become a classic at our family birthday celebrations. This is the cake that has been requested by all family members for our first physical gathering after the lockdown period: I can’t wait to bake a few of them!

Cheesecake with Fresh Berries

Serves 6. Takes approx. 20  minutes + 35 minutes (ca) in the oven

Ingredients (for a small cheesecake):

• 100 gr of biscuits (whole wheat or digestive)
• 5 or 6 tablespoons of melted butter
• 270 gr full-fat cream cheese (low fat can work, if really needed) – Philadelphia or similar
• 80 gr fine granulated sugar
• 1 egg + 1 yolk
• 1 tablespoon raspberry jam
• 200 gr ca. of berries (strawberries, blueberries, raspberries)

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 190C/350F/Gas 4.

Grease and line the base of a 16 cm. spring form cake tin.

Place the biscuits in a food processor and reduce them to crumbs (or place the biscuits in a plastic bag and crush them with a rolling pin to fine crumbs)

Mix the melted butter with the biscuit crumbs, stir to combine. Place in the base of the cake tin and spread in an even layer, then flatten (use your fingers or a spoon).

In a large bowl, beat together the cream cheese, sugar, egg and egg yolk and sugar until smooth. Pour this mixture on to the biscuit base then bake in the oven for ca. 35 minutes. The cheesecake should be set and slightly golden all over.

Take the cheesecake out of the oven and let it cool completely on a rack. When cool, take the cheesecake out of the tin and spread the top with the raspberry jam.  Decorate with the berries and enjoy!  The cheesecake can be frozen (without berries) and decorated after thawing.

For a special occasion you can also bake individual cheesecakes, using small baking rings placed on a baking tray lined with parchment paper. . Baking times should obviously be adjusted.

Source:

Cees Holtkamp – De Banketbakker – 2010