Often times the recipes that I try out or create are a reflection of my parents' recent trip to the grocery store, and this year my grandfather's birthday cake was no exception. Last week my mom went to Costco and came back with a bag full of at least a dozen limes. Her reason for the purchase: they were on sale. I've noticed that when it comes to sales at Costco, my parents can hardly resist and that's usually how we end up trying new products. Of course that's the whole idea behind a sale marketing strategy; reel in the customer with a good deal and hope that they like the product enough to buy it again at the regular price next time.
Regardless of how the limes ended up in our kitchen the point is that we suddenly had a lot, more than we could possibly consume in a reasonable time frame before they went bad. Limes, I find, have a very strong flavor and therefore have the tendency to be used sparingly in dishes. I knew that I needed to make something that would require more than just a half of a lime. I had previously seen a recipe on Annie's Eats for a lime cheesecake and I decided to make it for my grandfather's birthday.
Since I make cheesecakes so often I decided that I wanted to try something new and rather than make my classic graham cracker crust, I made a crust which combined ground almonds with the graham crackers. Although the cheesecake was impeccably smooth and creamy the crust, unfortunately, got mixed reviews. Personally, I found that both the texture and taste took away from the soft feeling of the cake and I didn't enjoy it. However, the lime flavor of the actual cheesecake was quite pronounced and the blackberry sauce that I drizzled on top complimented it well. Next time I will stick to my classic crust and I'm sure the cake will be 100% delicious.
Lime Cheesecake with Blackberry Sauce
For the crust:
Note: This is my classic crust recipe, which I feel would be better suited for the cake. To make the almond crust simply substitute 1 cup of finely ground almonds for 1 cup of graham crackers and then use an additional 1 cup of graham cracker crumbs.
- 2 cups graham cracker crumbs
- 1/3 cup sugar
- 1/3 cup unsalted butter, melted
For the lime cheesecake:
- 2 lbs (4 blocks) cream cheese, room temperature
- 1 1/2 cups sugar
- 4 large eggs
- 1 1/2 cups sour cream
- 3 limes, juiced and zested
- Beat the cream cheese on medium-high speed for about a minute, until smooth.
- Beat in the sugar and then the eggs, one at a time, at low speed. Scape down the sides of the bowl as necessary.
- Beat in the sour cream and then the lime juice and zest and mix on medium speed until everything is well incorporated.
- Pour the mixture into the cooled springform pan and bake for 55 minutes at 325 degrees Fahrenheit using a hot water bath or by placing a pan of hot water on the lowest rack beneath the cake.
- Without opening the oven door, turn off the oven and leave the cake to cool for 1 1/2 hours inside the oven. Afterward, remove from the oven and cool to room temperature before refrigerating for at least 4 hours, though preferably overnight.
Note: The recipe for the blackberry sauce makes about 1/4 of a cup. I drizzled some over top of the cake in a nice pattern and served the rest in a small bowl alongside it for people to individually spoon onto their own pieces.
- 6 oz blackberries
- 2 tbsp sugar
- 1 1/2 tsp cornstarch
- 1 1/2 tsp cold water
- Combine the blackberries and sugar in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Cook, stirring occasionally until the berries start to release some of their juices.
- In a separate bowl combine the cornstarch and cold water and whisk together until smooth. Add the mixture to the blackberries and mix well.
- Reduce the heat to medium-low and continue to cook and stir until the mixture comes to a low boil. If necessary, add a little water so that it doesn't start to burn.
- Remove from the heat and press the mixture through a fine mesh sieve to remove all the seeds.
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