Baked Mango Cheesecake (No Gelatin, With Cottage Cheese)

Mangoes are in season. Yay!

This is the right time to get hold of proper, good, juicy, ripe mangoes, according to me. We got the first batch of the season very recently, and are absolutely loving gorging on them. I simply had to make something using them, of course, which is how this Baked Mango Cheesecake came about.

I have adapted a recipe by Tarla Dalal ji to make this Baked Mango Cheesecake. It uses paneer aka Indian cottage cheese in place of the cream cheese that is commonly part of cheesecakes. There is no gelatin or agar agar used, and it is eggless too. This is, therefore, a great choice of dessert when you don’t have access to fancy ingredients.

I was surprised by just how beautiful the Baked Mango Cheesecake turned out – soft and rich and light all at once. It tasted gorgeous, the proof of this in the fact that the entire cheesecake got gulped down by family before the day was out. It is quite a simple thing to put together as well.

So, go on, try this recipe out. Give yourself and your loved ones a sinful summer treat!

Ingredients (yields 1 medium-sized cheesecake):

For the base:

1. 10-12 biscuits
2. 2 tablespoons powdered sugar
3. 2 tablespoons salted butter

For the middle layer:

1. 200 grams paneer aka cottage cheese
2. 200 ml sweetened condensed milk
3. 2 tablespoons fresh curd

For the top layer:

1. 1 small ripe mango
2. 1/4 cup water
3. 2 tablespoons sugar

Method:

We will first make the base for the Baked Mango Cheesecake.

1. Break the biscuits roughly and place them in a mixer jar.
2. Pulse the biscuits a couple of times, or till you get a fine powder. Transfer this powder to a mixing bowl.
3. Add in the butter and the powdered sugar.
4. Mix to form a soft dough.
5. Line the bottom of a medium-sized cake tin with this biscuit dough. Make sure it is evenly lined, neither too thin nor too thick.
6. Cover the cake tin and place in freezer for at least 20 minutes for the base to get firmer.

Meanwhile, we will prepare the middle layer of this Baked Mango Cheesecake.

1. Crumble the paneer well and place it in a mixer jar.
2. Add in the sweetened condensed milk and the curd.
3. Grind till smooth. Keep aside.

Now, we will proceed to make the top layer of the Baked Mango Cheesecake.

1. Remove the skin and seed of the ripe mango. Chop the flesh into cubes.
2. Puree the mango cubes using a mixer.
3. Place the mango puree in a pan, along with the water and sugar. Cook on medium flame till the puree thickens a little, 2-3 minutes.
4. Set this mango puree aside and let it cool down completely.

Now, we will bake the cheesecake.

1. Preheat oven at 200 degrees for 10 minutes.
2. Get the cheesecake base (which has had about 20 minutes of resting time) out of the freezer.
3. Uncover and pour the paneer mixture (as prepared above) over the base.
4. Place in oven and bake at 180 degrees for 15 minutes.
5. Remove the cake from the oven and let it cool down completely.

Lastly, we will use the mango puree to make the top layer of the cheesecake.

1. Spread the mango puree (as prepared above) over the cooled-down cheesecake. Use as much quantity as needed to spread it evenly, neither too thinly nor too thickly.
2. Cover the cake tin and place in the refrigerator (not freezer) for about an hour, for the top layer to set well.

Now, the Baked Mango Cheesecake is ready!

1. Unmould the cheesecake carefully, to ensure there is no breakage.
2. Cut into pieces and serve immediately.

Notes:

1. I used milk biscuits to make the base of this Baked Mango Cheesecake. I didn’t have to add much sugar, since the biscuits were already sweet. Adjust the quantity of sugar you use in the bottom layer, as per your personal taste preferences. Honey can be used instead of sugar, too.

2. I have used salted butter to make the bottom layer, because I like a slight saltiness to it. You may use unsalted butter instead, if you so prefer.

3. For the middle layer of this Baked Mango Cheesecake, I have used store-bought Milky Mist paneer. You may use any other brand of paneer that you prefer or even home-made cottage cheese, instead.

4. I have used Amul Mithai Mate (sweetened condensed milk) to make the middle layer.

5. Use fresh curd that is not sour, to make the middle layer of this Baked Mango Cheesecake. The curd, apparently, helps in proper setting of the cheesecake.

6. I didn’t feel the need to add any sugar to the middle layer here. The condensed milk-paneer-curd mixture was just the right amount of sweet for us. If you want to, you may add some sugar to the middle layer as well.

7. I have used fresh, ripe mango to make the top layer of this cheesecake, because the fruit is in season (and everyone at home loves it). You can use some other fruit instead, too – blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, for instance. Adjust the quantity of sugar you use to make the top layer, depending upon how sweet the fruit is.

8. Use as much mango puree (as prepared above) as you need, for the top layer of the cheesecake. Any leftover mango puree can be stored in a clean, air-tight container and kept refrigerated for 3-4 days. This can be used to top up pancakes, ice cream, cakes, puddings and other desserts.

Do try out this Baked Mango Cheesecake recipe, and let me know how you liked it!

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This post is for the Foodie Monday Blog Hop. The theme for this week is ‘Cakes’.

I’m sending this to Fiesta Friday #225, co-hosted this week by Antonia @ Zoale.com.