Watermelon Cheesecake Dessert

Slicing open a lovely fresh watermelon is very much a family event in our home. Everyone gathers around, plates at the ready as we chop huge, delicious slices for everyone – the kids’ laughter flowing almost as quickly as the sweet watermelon juice.

This gorgeous Watermelon Cheesecake Dessert is out just in time for International Watermelon Day on August 3. It’s the perfect way to incorporate fresh watermelon juice in a very eye-catching dessert.

And some exciting news … after SO MANY requests for T-Shirts and literally thousands of people voting for their favorite slogans and designs … the first batch of my Tees are finally here. How awesome!

Your two most popular designs (by a long way) were the bright ‘How To Cook That’ cookie logo and my sign-off catch-phrase “Make it a Great Week”. Let me just say, I really love this T-Shirt, especially in silver foil. And it also looks super cool on coffee mugs (or hot chocolate mugs in my case).

T-shirts and mugs are now available here: http://goo.gl/CwmyUZ

Watermelon Dessert Recipe

Crumb Base
200g (7.05 ounces) plain cookies
100g (3.53 ounces) butter or margarine
a few drops of green gel food coloring

200g (7.05 ounces) plain cookies
100g (3.53 ounces) or 1/2 cup butter or margarine
a few drops of red gel food coloring

Use a rolling pin to crush the biscuits (cookies) into fine crumbs. If you have a food processor you can use that instead.
Melt the margarine in the microwave or on the stovetop then pour in the biscuit crumbs and the food colouring. Stir really well to incorporate the colour.

Pour the red crumbs into a loose based cake tin, mine is 21cm (8.27 inches) in diameter and use the back of a spoon to squash it flat. Make a space around the edge for the green.

Take a small handful of green and squeeze it together to make it stick together, squash it and then press it onto the side of the tin.

Cheesecake
10g (0.35 ounces) or 2/3 Tbsp powdered gelatin
25millilitres (0.85 fluid ounces) or 1 Tbsp plus 2 tsp room temperature water
250g (8.82 ounces) block or 1 cup cream cheese
1/3 cup or 73g (2.57 ounces) sugar
1/4 cup or 63millilitres (2.13 fluid ounces) milk (4% fat)
1/4 cup or 63millilitres (2.13 fluid ounces) (35% fat) cream (FAQ: What cream should I use?)

Add the gelatin to the water and stir well, then set aside to allow it to absorb the water.

Whip the cream to make soft peaks then set that aside.

Beat the cream cheese with electric mixers until it is smooth, then add in the sugar. Pour in the milk.

Heat the gelatin in the microwave until it is melted. Pour it into the cream cheese mixture and beat quickly.
Fold in the whipped cream.

Place 1 cup of this mixture into a bowl and colour it red. Spread this over the red crumb base to seal it.

Add a bowl upside down in the centre and pipe your white cheesecake mixture around the edge. Place that in the fridge to set.

Watermelon Jelly
345g (12.17 ounces) fresh seedless watermelon (to make 375millilitres (12.68 fluid ounces) or 1 1/2 cups of juice)
1 packet strawberry jello / jelly
45millilitres (1.52 fluid ounces) or 3 Tbsp water

Tip the jelly crystals into the water and stir well.
Place the watermelon into a blender and blitz to make juice.

Strain through a fine sieve to get rid of any seeds and the coarse bit of the pulp so that you end up with a smooth clear jelly.
Heat the jelly mixture in the microwave until the sugar and gelatine are melted. Add to the watermelon juice and mix well, then allow to cool. Take the cheesecake out of the fridge and remove the bowl from the centre. Pour the watermelon jelly mixture into the middle. Use the back of a spoon to pop any bubbles then place it in the fridge to set.

Watermelon seeds
100g (3.53 ounces) compound dark chocolate

Melt the chocolate and pipe seeds onto non-stick baking paper.

Remove the desert from the tin, add the seeds and slice to serve.

Resource: howtocookthat.net