Sweet and Hot Chevre: Chevre-Habanero Cheesecake

I made a chevre-habanero cheesecake for our book club meeting. What is a habanero chile doing in a cheesecake? Believe me, it works.  The creamy sweetness of the goat cheese offsets the spiciness of the pepper and it gives it a little kick.  I was inspired by one of my favorite TV chef's, Nadia G's, recipe for Key Lime Habanero Cheesecake.  I only used one habanero chile but I think the recipe can handle two.  Next time. 

Click here for a printable recipe.

Ingredients:

Crust:
30 ginger snap cookies
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1 cup unsalted butter, melted


Filling:
5 egg yolks
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 teaspoons lemon juice
2 teaspoons lemon zest
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 to 2 habanero peppers, minced, no seeds
2 cups cream cheese, softened and cut up into half inch pieces
1-8 ounce log goat cheese


Meringue:
5 egg whites
3 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon white vinegar

 

Directions

For the crust: Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.  Butter bottom and sides of a 9-inch spring form pan.  Place ginger snap cookies in a food processor and pulse until crumbly.  In a medium sized bowl, mix together the cookie crumbs, chopped pecans, and melted butter until they hold together when squeezed.  Press mixture onto bottom of buttered pan and up the sides a little, about 1/2 an inch.  Bake until set, 8 to 10 minutes.  Set aside to cool.

For filling: Place the egg yolks in a bowl of a stand mixer and add sugar, vanilla extract, lemon juice, lemon zest, salt, and habanero pepper(s).  Beat on medium speed until well blended.

 

  

While mixer is on, add the cream cheese, one 1/2-inch piece at a time.  Add the goat cheese a bit at a time.  Increase the mixer speed and beat for about 2 minutes.  Turn out filling into a large mixing bowl and set aside.

For the meringue:  Beat the egg whites, sugar and vinegar until soft peaks form.  Delicately fold the meringue into the cheesecake mixture, being careful not to deflate the meringue.  Pour evenly into pan, over ginger snap crust.

To bake the cheesecake, you will bake it in a bain-marie but because you are using a spring form pan, you will need to create a barrier with aluminum foil.  Take 2 to 3 layers of foil paper and place in middle of a roasting pan.  Place cake in middle of foil paper and bring foil paper up sides of pan to form the barrier.  Pour water into the roasting pan, half way up sides of cheesecake.  Bake  at 350 degrees F for 1 to 1 1/2 hours until cake is set.

The meringue makes this cheesecake light and fluffy.  Almost like a souffle.  It is so airy and smooth.

Enjoy!

Book Review: The Devil in the White City

Spoiler Alert

They say the devil is in the details and in Erik Larson's book, The Devil in the White City, it has never been more true, in more ways than one.  Daniel H. Burnham, the architect in charge of the Chicago World's Fair of 1893 was certainly no stranger to this notion.  He faced obstacle upon devilish obstacle as he set out to plan and build a fair unlike anything the world had yet seen.  Larson does a magnificent job in providing a multitude of detail and peppers it with interesting characters and events like Buffalo Bill, Susan B. Anthony, Thomas Edison, the invention of the Ferris Wheel, the Titanic and much, much more to keep you engaged.  The true demon in this book, however, comes in the form of a man.  H. H. Holmes, born Herman Webster Mudgett, was one of the first documented serial killers in America.  The fair and the town's preoccupation with it provided a constant inflow of unsuspecting victims for Holmes.  Larson cleverly intertwines the two plots that offer many parallels.  For one, America enjoyed the beauty of the White City, the centerpiece of the fair, and its many pleasures despite the ugliness and struggles behind its birth.  So it is with Mr. Holmes, both men and women fell victim to his charisma and good looks, unknowing the ugliness that existed inside of him.  In the end, the beautiful young, but temporary buildings of the fair were burned to the ground, the bodies of Holmes' young and beautiful victims were also burned.  The fair paved the way for modern architecture and city planning while the bones of Holme's victims, being re-articulated by his accomplice, provided scientific advancement in many colleges.

Larson never ceased to amaze me with his intriguing story-telling and incredible details that read like a novel, but the most incredible detail of all is that it is all true.  Bravo for Larson.