Labneh Cheesecake with Cardamom and Syrupy Saffron Apricots
and my July round-up
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Since I am still on sick leave for a few more weeks and under firm instructions from my doctors to leave any and all household chores (including cooking and baking) to my husband, recipe testing will have to wait a few more weeks. In the meantime, I wanted to share the recipe for this Labneh cheesecake with you - which those of you who have joined me here from my old Wordpress blog might have seen before. And yes, it is also another Labneh recipe. What can I say, I adore Labneh and this cheesecake recipes is too good not to share again right now. Because it is the perfect cheesecake to pair with the last of the season’s apricots (or peaches) or the first of this year’s plums. And if you don’t have any labneh, you can simply use cream cheese instead.
Before we get to the recipe, below is my July round-up.
Reading
I am in the middle of a big writing project so have not managed to read as much as I would have liked considering I am spending my days stuck in bed or on the sofa. But after finishing reading some of my food writing anthologies that had been sitting on my nightstand for far too long, I am now almost through Kazuo Ishiguro’s Klara and the sun which I’m really enjoying.
I thought this was also a useful guide if you are planning a trip to London anytime soon and need some bakery inspiration.
Eating / Baking / Cooking
Before I was put on sick leave and had to stop cooking for the time being there were quite a few Greek-ish dinners featuring grilled chicken, roasted oregano and lemon potatoes, Greek salads and tzatziki. Always a hit in our house, including with the almost 2 year old little mister.
I also finally managed to try the ice cream at Miska near the Grand Place - as luck would have it I was at a two day conference just around the corner from Miska. They do artisanal Lebanese ice cream so offer flavours right up my street - think Pistachio, Ashta, Orange Blossom Water etc. Of the flavours I tried, the Baklava was my favourite by far - the crunchy yet chewy pieces of Baklava were the perfect contrast to the rich and creamy ice cream. Also, Miska does fun toppings like candy floss (which I obviously could not resist). If you do go, make sure you check their opening times. The first day of the conference I stood in front of closed doors when I arrived.
We also enjoyed some spinach gnudi - Kaja and I used to do gnudi for some of our cooking classes and it’s so easy to forget what a simple and delicious meal they make. Plus, they are also pretty low carb if that is something you care about.
The favourite thing I made this month were by far the Fig Leaf Bostocks which I wrote about a few weeks ago. I am just obsessed with the fig leaf flavour and the green colour of that Frangipane. If you haven’t yet had a chance to make them, I highly recommend you give the recipe a try. Plus now that figs are appearing at the market you could even nestle some fig quarters in the frangipane before baking.
Drinking
If like me you are currently going through a mini heatwave (or simply no longer used to what actual summer temperatures feel like), below are a few ideas for quenching your thirst beyond sugary soft drinks made from ingredients you might already have in your pantry:
Iced homemade Horchata.
Iced unsweetened tea - my favourite teas for this include Oolong, Soba-cha (roasted Buckwheat tea), Masala Chai, Jasmine and Osmanthus (for the delicate peach notes) but really any of your favourite teas should work.
Pomegran-ade - simply stir a few teaspoons (or more if you prefer) of pomegranate molasses into some sparkling water and add some ice.
What have you been enjoying reading / cooking / eating / baking / drinking this past month? Let me know in the comments below.
Labneh Cheesecake with Cardamom and Syrupy Saffron Apricots
Inspired by the cheesecake with Apricots and Amaretto in ‘Sweet’ by Helen Goh and Yotam Ottolenghi
Notes: As is the case with many cheesecake recipes, this one lends itself to numerous variations. You can easily substitute the apricots with other stone fruits, be it peaches or nectarines which are also still in season or some of the first plums (which would work beautifully with the cardamom in the cheesecake). Similarly, if cardamom is not your thing, you could simply use vanilla or grated tonka bean and maybe serve this with some syrupy cherries.
You will need a small ovenproof dish to make this - I used a small roasting tin measuring 26x20cm
Ingredients
For the crust
200g digestive biscuits
80g butter
Pinch of salt
1 tsp ground mahleb (optional but adds a nice marzipan/bitter almond note to the crust)
For the cheesecake layer
600g Labneh* (or cream cheese)
Seeds of 5 cardamom pods, ground
120g sugar
3 eggs
For the apricot topping
400g apricots, some halved, some quartered
2 tbsp sugar
2 tbsp water
Pinch of saffron
*I used homemade labneh for this recipe. If you start with 1kg of Greek yoghurt (ideally with a fat percentage of 6-10 per cent) you should end up with around 700g Labneh if you leave the yoghurt to drain overnight. If you end up with a small amount of excess Labneh, it makes an excellent bed for all manner of things, including roasted carrots and fried eggs and otherwise is a delicious stand-in for cream cheese (think Bagels and smoked salmon or simply a sprinkle of Za’atar).
Directions
Pre-heat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius and line your pan with parchment paper.
To make the crust, pulse the digestive biscuits with the butter, salt and mahleb (if using) in a food processor until sandy. Evenly distribute the mixture over the bottom of the pan and press down into an even layer (an offset spatula comes in handy for this). Place in the fridge while you prepare the filling.
In the bowl of a standmixer (or in a large bowl and using a handheld mixer), beat the labneh, cardamom and sugar until light and fluffy, then beat in the eggs one by one until incorporated. Spread the filling over the cheesecake base and bake for ca. 30-35 minutes or until the edges of the cheesecake are set but the centre retains a slight wobble. Switch off the oven and leave the cheesecake to cool inside the oven with the oven door propped ajar with a wooden spoon. Once at room temperature, place the cheesecake in the fridge until ready to serve.
To prepare the roasted apricots with saffron, preheat the oven to 200 degrees Celsius. Add the halved and quartered apricots to a small roasting tin. Mix together the sugar with the saffron and scatter over the fruit. Drizzle with the water.
Roast the apricots for ca. 25 minutes, spooning the pan juices over the apricots every 5-10 minutes or so. Once done, the apricots will have softened but should still retain their shape.
Carefully pour the apricot juices into a small saucepan and reduce until bubbly.
To serve, spoon the apricots over the cheesecake and drizzle with the syrup.
I hope you are getting some rest and recovering. Before I even got to the cheesecake recipe, I was struck by the Pomegran-ade. I actually have pomegranate molasses on hand and never thought to use it this way. I’ll try it tomorrow. Thank you! Now onto the cheesecake recipe! :)