Step into Christmas with a festive Yorkshire Dama ricotta cheesecake
Christmas dessert ideas?
Count us in.
We are feeling the festive spirit at Yorkshire Dama Cheese and can’t wait for the culinary treats this Christmas will bring. This year we are thinking of putting cheesecake on the Christmas Day dessert menu – and we have just the ricotta cheese to make it perfect!
We’ll need your help in deciding which of these Christmas-inspired ricotta cheesecakes is the winning Christmas dessert idea, so roll up your sleeves and let’s get baking!
Candy Cane Cheesecake with Ricotta Cheese
This peppermint cheesecake is a festive end to your turkey dinner! The chocolatey Oreo base is a perfect match with the minty filling.
Ingredients:
Oreo base:
300g Oreos (crushed)
100g butter (melted)
Filling:
840g Yorkshire Dama Ricotta Cheese
100g sugar
½ cup double cream
¼ cup flour
3 eggs
1 tsp peppermint extract
¼ tsp salt
½ cup crushed candy canes
Topping:
85g white chocolate
1 ½ tbsp double cream
Crushed candy canes (for decorating)
Instructions:
1. Grease an 8-inch springform cake tin.
2. Combine the Oreos with the butter in a small bowl. Press evenly over the bottom of the cake tin. Refrigerate for 30min.
3. Heat oven to 175 degrees. Mix the ricotta cheese, sugar, cream, flour and peppermint extract in a large bowl, beating until smooth.
4. Add the eggs one at a time. Blend until smooth, then fold in the crushed candy canes.
5. Bake in the oven for about 1 hour or until the centre is just set. Cool in the oven with the door ajar for at least 30mins. Refrigerate for a few hours.
6. When the cheesecake has chilled, prepare the ganache. Melt the white chocolate and cream in a pan over low heat. Stir continuously until the chocolate has melted. Beware – white chocolate burns easily!
7. With the back of a spoon, spread the white chocolate mixture on top of the cheesecake and immediately decorate with crushed candy canes. Enjoy!
Gingerbread Ricotta Cheesecake
It’s like a mouthful of Christmas…! The gingerbread dough makes extra so why not bake some gingerbread biscuits at the same time.
Ingredients:
500g Yorkshire Dama Ricotta Cheese
4 large eggs
85g sugar
½ tsp ground cinnamon
¼ tsp ground cloves
A pinch of cardamom
About 350g gingerbread dough (ready-made or make your own – recipe below)
Gingerbread dough:
100ml dark syrup
100ml sugar
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp ground cloves
1 egg
125g butter
450-500ml flour
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
Instructions for the gingerbread dough if making your own:
1. Bring the syrup, sugar and spices to a boil. Add the butter, stirring until the butter has melted. Set aside to cool down.
2. Mix the bicarbonate of soda with the flour.
3. Add the egg into the cooled syrup mixture. Then add the flour. Mix well.
4. Cover the dough with cling film and leave to harden in the fridge preferably overnight. This recipe makes about 700g of gingerbread dough.
Instructions for the cheesecake:
1. Roll out the gingerbread dough into a circle of about 28cm. Butter a 24cm springform cake tin. Line the tin with the dough.
2. Whisk the eggs and sugar until pale and frothy. Fold in the ricotta cheese. Add the spices.
3. Spoon the filling over the gingerbread base.
4. Bake in a preheated (200 C) oven for approximately 40-45 mins or until the filling is just set (it should be slightly wobbly as the filling will set fully once out of the oven).
5. Cool completely. Serve with berries of your choice or enjoy on its own!
A Festive White Chocolate Ricotta Cheesecake
This light and mouth-watering cheesecake makes for a moreish Christmas Day dessert. As a tip, decorate it with upside down strawberries with a little whipped cream on top to make for fun Santa hats!
Ingredients:
500g Yorkshire Dama Ricotta Cheese
150g digestive biscuits
50g amaretti biscuits
2 large eggs (separated)
50g butter (melted)
6 tbsp milk
5 leaves gelatine
300ml double cream
50g icing sugar
200g white chocolate (chopped)
Oil (for greasing)
For decorating:
Strawberries
Whipped cream
White chocolate curls
Instructions:
1. Preheat the oven to 200C/180C fan. Melt the butter.
2. Crush the biscuits together well and mix with the butter. Press firmly into the base of a 20cm round springform cake tin. Bake for 6mins and once cooled, grease the sides of the tin with a little oil.
3. Soak the gelatine in water while you make the filling.
4. Tip the chocolate into a bowl over a pan of simmering water. Add the milk. Gently heat until the chocolate has melted and then stir together.
5. Squeeze the gelatine dry, add to the chocolate mixture and stir to dissolve.
6. Beat the ricotta, cream, sugar and egg yolks together. In a different bowl, whisk the egg whites.
7. Stir the chocolate and ricotta mixtures together. Fold in the egg whites. Gently pour the filling onto the cooled biscuit base. Cover the tin with cling film and chill until firm (preferably overnight).
8. To decorate, wash the strawberries and remove the green stalks. Line the edges of the cheesecake with upside down (narrow end up!) strawberries and squirt a little whipped cream to make the bobble for the strawberry Santa hat. Add white chocolate curls to the centre of the cheesecake.
Do you have a favourite ricotta cheesecake recipe? Tag us on Facebook to show us your mouth-watering masterpieces!