ribena marble cheesecake

Saw this beautiful cake by HHB and told myself i HAD to try it. My friend had lotsa cream cheese left over and she suggested that i could get them from her since she wouldn't be using them.

Got her to take a look at HHB's cake and she wanted me to make one for her. HHB omitted the jelly topping step since she thought it's gonna cover up the beautiful marble swirls and indeed it does! I actually tried making those swirls (which is now hidden below the jelly layer) and obviously it not visible anymore.

Pardon the really lousy photos. My house's lighting is terrible and it was "too bright" the swirls can't be seen properly and the jelly keeps reflecting the light big time. *roar*

After an attempt on Rei's strawberry cheesecake with the gorgeous design, i decided to do something similar, that is, to play around with the jelly topping and cheesecake using various shapes. After experimenting the other time, things went on more smoothly this time and yep! Ready for more desgins!

Sorry, no pics of innards as this was, as promised, a request for my friend, SJ. I hope you like it!



Ribena Marble Cheesecake

Ingredients

crust:
150g digestive biscuits, finely crushed
60g butter, melted
[I found the base too thick, so i'm gonna reduce it to 120g digestive biscuits with 40g melted butter]


filling:
100ml water
20g (2 tablespoons) gelatin granules/powder
250g cream cheese, soften at room temperature
75g caster sugar
250ml (1 cup) natural plain yogurt
75ml Ribena blackcurrant juice cordial


topping:
100ml water
2 teaspoons gelatin granules/powder
80ml Ribena blackcurrant juice cordial


Method:
Line the sides of a 18-20cm round pan (with a removable base) with parchment paper or clear plastic sheet (I cut out a strip of plastic sheet from a cookie bag), set aside. [i just used a 7" cake ring with a 8" cake base as i intended to give it away. if not, a 7" cake ring on a flat plate would work perfect too. that is if you don't have a springform or cake pan with a removable base]

To make the crust, combine crushed digestive biscuits and melted butter together in a mixing bowl. With the back of a spoon, press the biscuit crumbs onto the base of the prepared pan. Chill in the freezer compartment for at least 1 hour. (To ensure the crust is even, I used the base of a flat-bottom glass to press down the crumbs.) [i let it chill about 30min in the fridge. still worked]


Filling:
Measure water into a bowl and sprinkle in the gelatin (without stirring with a spoon). Set aside to allow the gelatin grains to swell (10 mins) before setting the bowl over a pot of simmering hot water. Stir with a spoon and once the gelatin melts, remove the bowl from the pot and set aside to cool to room temperature. [its important to allow the granules to swell and they indeed melt much easier and faster after "swelling"]

With an electric mixer, beat cream cheese and sugar together until smooth. Add in the gelatin solution and yogurt, beat till the mixture turns smooth.

Divide mixture evenly into two bowls (about 1 cup each). Add 75ml of Ribena into one of the bowls and mix well with a spatula.

Spoon the two mixtures in alternate blobs into the chilled crust. Level top and swirl with a knife through the mixture to create a marble effect. Refrigerate until set. [i didn't have to level the top, it just somehow came together] see here!


Topping:
Measure water into a bowl and sprinkle in the gelatin. Set aside to allow the gelatin grains to swell (10 mins) before setting the bowl over a pot of simmering hot water. Stir with a spoon and once the gelatin melts, remove bowl from the pot and stir in 80ml of Ribena. Set aside to cool.

When completely cooled, pour mixture over the cheesecake and chill for several hours or overnight until set.

*it is important to allow the cheesecake to set before pouring the jelly topping. Also, when pouring the jelly topping, do be gently. If possible, spoon the jelly mixture. This it to prevent the pressure of the jelly mixture from "eroding" your cheescake. In which, you might end up with floating bits of cheese

adapted from happyhomebaking