Kefir Cheese Cake

Serves 8-10. Requires an 8 inch diameter by 2 1/2 inches deep pyrex dish, or a 9 inch springform. Makes an 8 inch by 1 1/4 inch thick cheese cake. If you wish to make a cheesecake that is 2 inches thick then just double the quantity of filling. The base is quite thin.

Ingredients

Base:

• 3/4 cup almonds.
• 1/2 cup pecans
• 3/4 cup of Californian dates.

Kefir and Kefir Cream:

• 1/4 cup kefir grains
• 3 cups milk
• 1/2 cup kefir
• 1 1/2 cup double weight cream

Filling:

• 2 eggs (separated at room temperature)
• 3/4 cups of milk
• 1 tblspn gelatin
• 2 cups kefir cream
• 1/4 cup raw honey
• 1/4 tsp vanilla essence
• 2 tsp lime/lemon juice
• Pinch of salt

Advance Preparation - 2 days ahead

• Nuts - To prepare the almonds in advance, soak them in water for 12 hours, rinse then leave to sprout for 12 more hours in a jar turned on its side. Rinse once more, then dry the almonds in a oven at low heat or a dehydrator at 65C, turning the almonds occasionally until they are dry and crisp.
• Kefir - Mix 1/4 cup of real kefir grains with 3 cups of raw full cream jersey cows milk. Culture at room temperature for 12-24 hours then refrigerate. Remove the kefir grains from the kefir with a fork before use.
• Kefir Cream - Mix 1/2 cup of kefir with 1 1/2 cups of raw double weight cream and leave to culture for 12-24 hours. Refrigerate the kefir cream until ready for use. If you are new to culturing kefir you may wish to visit http://www.rejoiceinlife.com/kefir/riln14.php to get more detailed instructions.

Method:

1. Grind the nuts as finely as possible in a grain mill, blender or food processor. Chop the dates then process in a food processor with the nut flour. Press the nut and date mixture into a buttered dish with your fingers and the bottom of a glass to form a thin crust.
2. Put milk into a small saucepan, sprinkle with the gelatin and warm slightly stirring with a flat wooden spoon until the gelatin is dissolved. It may help to beat slightly with a wire whisk. Sit the saucepan in a bowl of cool water to cool the milk gelatin mixture to body temperature.
3. In a food processor, combine the kefir cream, raw honey, egg yolks, vanilla and lime/lemon juice, and process at low to medium speed for 20-30 seconds, or until smooth, being sure that all the honey has been mixed in and has not stuck to the bottom. (To prevent the honey from sticking to the bottom of the processor make sure you spread the kefir over the bottom first.) If you over process at this stage you risk the cream turning to butter.
   
4. Beat egg whites with a pinch of salt until they form peaks. At this point you will need to work quickly
5. Combine the egg custard with the kefir cream in the food processor and mix at slow to medium speed for 20- 30 seconds, until smooth.
6. Transfer the kefir cream and egg custard mixture to a bowl then gently fold in the egg whites with a spatula. Pour the mixture onto the crust and refrigerate for several hours before serving.

 


 Idaho Web Design