New York Cheesecake with Raspberries

I am so so so excited to share what I'm about to say! I've been mentioning my constant studying and thesis writing for quite some time now. So... It all came to an end! I am a college graduate!!!!!!!!! It's all so weird for me to grasp it yet but it is such an amazing feeling... All my hard work paid off so I am officially an international relations expert. Or something like that :) Oh and I can't help but brag about my nerdy grade on my final exam. An A!!!! I was in such a trance-like state of mind the entire time I was studying for that exam because I had basically a huge amount of studying ahead of me and not a lot of time for that! And I'm the kind of person that if I study then I will study every single detail. So there's no little knowledge about everything. No, I either know something or I don't. That's why I was sooo stressed that what if I pick a topic that I didn't study for...But I kept a positive attitude and knew that whatever will be asked, I will know. And I did!!! So yes. Sorry for babbling about this for so long but I am way too excited! 

Okay, okay let's talk about cheesecake, too. :) So there was a major cookout at my house this weekend and I made the cake. The request was something fruity so a fruity cheesecake came immediately to my mind. I've been eyeing a new york cheesecake recipe by Pierre Hermé that I was more than eager to try! Oh My!!

This cheesecake was probably the best I've ever eaten. And I've had my fair share of good cheesecakes since it's my most favorite cake EVER. Light, fluffy and rich with flavor. I'm not exaggerating when I say it was heavenly. There were two kinds of cake at the party and the other one was a Sacher cake but this cheesecake pretty much kicked its butt a hundred times. It was such a huge hit! So if you are looking for the perfect cheesecake recipe, look no further, I am handing it to you on a silver plate :P

ps: I made a few changes because I didn't have time to make the crust but I will next time. I am sharing the Hermé crust not the one I used. I simply crushed oat cookies, mixed with melted butter and baked for 10 minutes prior pouring the cream cheese on it. Pretty simple. But I am sure this one is a whole lot better than this cookie crust.

New York Cheesecake with Raspberries

recipe is from Pastries by Pierre Hermé

2 and 1/4 pounds (1 kg) Philadelphia cream cheese

1 and 1/2 cups (300 grams) superfine granulated sugar - I processed the sugar so it was                                         superfine, almost powdered sugar

2 egg yolks

5 eggs

5 tbsp (70 grams) heavy cream

7 tbsp (50 grams) all-purpose flour

for the crust

1 stick plus 2 tbsp (150 grams) butter, at room temperature, cut into pieces

3/4 cup (95 g) powdered sugar

1/4 cup (30 g) ground almonds

2 dashes of sea salt

1/4 vanilla bean

1 large egg

2 cups (250 g) all-purpose flour

7 tbsp (100 g) butter, softened

for the raspberry top

1 package gelatin 

200 grams raspberries plus 15 blueberries

To make the crust, beat the butter until smooth. Add, in the following order, the powdered sugar, ground almonds and sea salt. Split the vanilla bean and scrape out the seeds. Add the seeds and the egg, then the flour. Process until the dough forms a ball.

Divide the dough into 3 pieces. Wrap each in plastic and chill them in the fridge for 4 hours. Keep one portion out ready to work with and place the other two in the freezer to be used another time.

Preheat oven to 350F (170C). Butter a baking sheet. 

Roll out the dough into a round until it is 1/16 inch (2mm) thick. Transfer it to the baking sheet and put it in the oven. Bake for 12 minutes until golden brown.

Allow the dough to cool, then break it into pieces and place it in a food processor. Grind it to a powder. Add in the softened butter and blend it until crumbly. 

Spread the dough in a 9 1/2 inch (24 cm) diameter pastry ring, patting it down with your fingers and refrigerate for an hour.

Preheat oven to 300F (150C). Place the pastry ring in the oven and bake the dough for 12 minutes. Cool the dough. 

Reduce the oven temp. to 194F (90C). 

To make the cream cheese filling, process the cream cheese and superfine sugar for 2 minutes. Add the egg yolk, eggs and heavy cream. Mix until smooth the add the flour and process again. 

Pour the cream cheese filling onto the cooled pastry base. Place the cake in the oven and bake it for 1 3/4 hour. Note: it was not enough for me and I turned the heat up to 150C and baked it 15 more minutes. The cheesecake filling shouldn't wobble. Remove from the oven and put it in the fridge for overnight.

Before serving, slip a knife inside the ring and remove it. 

To make the top, prepare the gelatin as the package instructs. Place the berries on top of the cheesecake and just pat them with the gelatin. Don't pour it over, just pat so it will get a nice glowy surface and holds the fruits together. Enjoy :)