Golden Raisin Cheesecake Recipes

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 180°C (300°F ) or 160°C (320°F ) if fan forced.
• Combine the golden raisins and the half cup of Kahlua in a small bowl. Cover in clingwrap. The raisins will absorb most of the liqueur. Set aside.
• Grease and line the base and sides of a 22cm (8 2/3 inches) round springform round tin. A smaller tin will result in a higher cheesecake with a thicker base. A larger tin will have a very fine base and not be as tall.
• Combine all of the ingredients for the base in a bowl. Mix with a spoon until thoroughly combined.
• Press the base mixture into the base of the prepared cake tin (do not press the mixture up the sides). Press down firmly.
• Bake the base in a preheated oven 10 minutes. The base should not be a golden cover. Remove from oven- cool and put aside, or refrigerate until required.
• In a small bowl thoroughly mix the boiling water and the gelatine. Stir until the gelatine dissolves. Set aside.
• Beat the cream cheese with the brown sugar, until smooth and creamy. Best to use electric beaters for this step.
• Add the gelatine mixture, the melted chocolate and any of the Kahlua that you can drain from the soaking raisins, to the cream cheese mixture. Beat well to combine.
• In a separate bowl, beat the 300mls of cream until soft peaks form.
• Fold firstly the beaten cream into the cream cheese mixture. Then lightly fold in the soaked golden raisins.
• Pour the cheese mixture over the base in the springform tin. Level and smooth over the top of the cheesecake using a spoon. Refrigerate for several hours, or overnight.
• For the topping. Whip the remaining 300mls cream with the tablespoon of Kahlua, until thick.
• Spread the cream over the cooled cheesecake. Sprinkle with chocolate and decorate the edges of the cheesecake with the additional pecans.

Steps:

• Crust: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. In a bowl, mix the ingredients together. Thickly butter a 9 or 10-inch springform pan and press the mixture into the bottom of the pan. Refrigerate, uncovered, while you make the filling.
• Filling: Filling: In a mixer fitted with a whisk attachment (or using a hand mixer), mix the ricotta, sour cream, egg yolks, and flour until smooth (the mixture will remain a bit grainy from the ricotta). Add the sugar, lemon juice, and vanilla and blend until creamy. Fold in the raisins.
• In a clean dry bowl, whip the egg whites until stiff but not dry. Fold them into the filling mixture. Pour into the prepared pan and bake until the top of the cake is set and dry to the touch, though still a bit soft in the center, 70 to 80 minutes. It should "shimmy" a bit when you shake the pan; it will firm up more as it cools. Let cool in the pan. The cake will deflate a bit as it cools. Cover and refrigerate the cake at least 2 hours. (Or refrigerate until ready to serve, up to 48 hours.) Remove the sides of the pan and serve cold.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325°. Securely wrap a double thickness of heavy-duty foil (about 18 in. square) around and under a greased 9-in. springform pan. In a bowl, combine crushed gingersnaps and sugar; stir in 4 tablespoons butter, adding more as necessary. Press onto bottom and 1-1/2 in. up sides of prepared pan., Beat cream cheese until fluffy, gradually adding 2/3 cup honey, lemon juice and minced ginger root. Add eggs; beat on low speed just until blended. Fold in 1 cup chopped pears and raisins. Pour into crust. Place springform pan in a larger baking pan; add 1 in. hot water to larger pan. Bake until center is just set and top appears dull, 1-1/2 to 1-3/4 hours. Remove from oven; remove springform from water bath. , Cool cheesecake on a wire rack 10 minutes. Loosen sides from pan with a knife; remove foil. Cool 1 hour longer. Refrigerate overnight, covering when completely cooled. Remove rim from pan., In a large skillet, melt butter over medium heat. Add remaining honey and pears; cook and stir until pears are tender. Stir in pecans. Top cake with pear-pecan mixture.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly butter 10-inch-diameter glass pie dish. Mix crumbs and melted butter in small bowl. Press crumb mixture evenly over bottom and up sides (but not onto rim) of prepared dish. Refrigerate while preparing filling.
• Blend cream cheese, 1/2 cup sugar and flour in processor until smooth. Add vanilla. Gradually pour in milk and process until smooth, occasionally scraping down sides of bowl. Add eggs; process until blended. Transfer batter to prepared crust. Mix remaining 2 tablespoons sugar with cinnamon in small bowl; sprinkle over filling. Carefully place raisins atop filling (some may sink).
• Bake pie until set in center, about 1 hour. Transfer to rack and cool 1 hour. Refrigerate uncovered until cold, about 2 hours; cover and chill overnight.