Let's get right to it today. We are going to pick up with our No-Bake Cheesecake which has been prepared and, since we are adding a fruit topping, has been refrigerated at least overnight. If you are just serving this cheesecake alone, then refrigerate for an hour. If you add this fruit topping, let it cool in the refrigerator overnight so that it is nice and firm and can accept the weight of the fruit.
This was refrigerated overnight and removed to countertop after I sliced these golden kiwi. A full outside ring of kiwi for this presentation. We talked about golden kiwi not long ago and my affinity for them over traditional green kiwis. They have a smoother skin than the green and are sweeter and the pulp is softer than the green. I find that green kiwi can sometimes be too tart and bitter for my liking. That is never a problem with the golden variety.
Next, a ring of ripe strawberries. Simple prep on the strawberries. I used a very sharp paring knife and cut the tops off. Then I sliced the strawberry in about 1/4" slices. The smaller end pieces I mixed together in a little sugar and placed them in the refrigerator. Use only the heart of the berry for this presentation.
Then, a second row of berries on top of the first, inverted. I think this is really imperative for this particular design, so I will not say that adding the second layer of strawberry is optional. It is not. It must be added.
A handful of fresh blueberries in the center. Again, if you wanted to stop here, you could. This is quite lovely. You could cover this, again using the Glad Press and Seal cling wrap and put it back in the refrigerator to be served later the same day. I'll say this now and again later - this needs to be served the day the fruit is added. Do not make it a day or two or three days ahead of time. That will not work.
If you are going all the way with me to glazing the fruit, read on.
To make our fruit glaze, we need a jar of jelly. Many people use Apricot jelly for glazes, but it can be difficult to find. I prefer Apply jelly and it is not hard to find, so in my opinion, Apply jelly is the way to go. You can use preserves, but it takes additional time and effort. Preserves are made from whole chunks of fruit, so if you boil down preserves to use as a glaze, you have to put the boiled liquid through a sieve and even then you are not going to get a perfectly clear glaze. It's not worth it.
Start with a half cup of Apple Jelly.
Add this to the melting pot along with two tablespoons of water.
Watch the jelly carefully. When you start to see tiny bubbles forming around the edge of the jelly, begin stirring gently. You can see here that it is starting to melt.
Here, a couple of minutes later, the jelly and water mixture was ready to be added to the fruit.
I used a natural bristle pastry brush to apply the glaze. Now here is where you really need to read. Do not BRUSH the glaze on the fruit. I will tell you right now that you will be severely and swiftly disappointed with how this turns out if you attempt to brush on the glaze. Brushing moves the fruit around and makes a mess of the whole thing. Instead, dip your pastry brush in the glaze and then lightly tap the brush on top of the fruit. Go over the entire surface like that and you will end up with a creation that looks just like the one in this picture. So pretty.
Once you are done, cover and place back into the refrigerator because, as I said earlier in this post, we are going to serve this the same day we make it. If you have any sort of glass dome, like a cake plate dome, cover it with that. About 20 - 30 minutes before serving, remove it from the refrigerator and place it in the freezer. This will make slicing a far easier task than if you do not take this step.
Finally, a slice of our beautiful cheesecake with glazed fruit topping. You will see that the crust is not like a piece of shoe leather. It actually crumbled a little when I plated this, which is a good sign.
A little whipped cream, if you like, and you will be proud to serve this to your guests. The cheesecake filling on its own is very good, but with the addition of the apple glaze which makes it way through the fruit and into the cheesecake, you have a real taste sensation.
So, the bottom line is this, if you want to make a real cheesecake - if you have the time and you want to do that and to add glazed fruit to it - then, by all mans, do it. If you are short of time and you want to serve a spectacular dessert and you don't know what to do, serve this. I assure you that you will be most pleased with how this presents and how it tastes.
This was refrigerated overnight and removed to countertop after I sliced these golden kiwi. A full outside ring of kiwi for this presentation. We talked about golden kiwi not long ago and my affinity for them over traditional green kiwis. They have a smoother skin than the green and are sweeter and the pulp is softer than the green. I find that green kiwi can sometimes be too tart and bitter for my liking. That is never a problem with the golden variety.
Next, a ring of ripe strawberries. Simple prep on the strawberries. I used a very sharp paring knife and cut the tops off. Then I sliced the strawberry in about 1/4" slices. The smaller end pieces I mixed together in a little sugar and placed them in the refrigerator. Use only the heart of the berry for this presentation.
Then, a second row of berries on top of the first, inverted. I think this is really imperative for this particular design, so I will not say that adding the second layer of strawberry is optional. It is not. It must be added.
A handful of fresh blueberries in the center. Again, if you wanted to stop here, you could. This is quite lovely. You could cover this, again using the Glad Press and Seal cling wrap and put it back in the refrigerator to be served later the same day. I'll say this now and again later - this needs to be served the day the fruit is added. Do not make it a day or two or three days ahead of time. That will not work.
If you are going all the way with me to glazing the fruit, read on.
To make our fruit glaze, we need a jar of jelly. Many people use Apricot jelly for glazes, but it can be difficult to find. I prefer Apply jelly and it is not hard to find, so in my opinion, Apply jelly is the way to go. You can use preserves, but it takes additional time and effort. Preserves are made from whole chunks of fruit, so if you boil down preserves to use as a glaze, you have to put the boiled liquid through a sieve and even then you are not going to get a perfectly clear glaze. It's not worth it.
Start with a half cup of Apple Jelly.
Add this to the melting pot along with two tablespoons of water.
Watch the jelly carefully. When you start to see tiny bubbles forming around the edge of the jelly, begin stirring gently. You can see here that it is starting to melt.
Here, a couple of minutes later, the jelly and water mixture was ready to be added to the fruit.
I used a natural bristle pastry brush to apply the glaze. Now here is where you really need to read. Do not BRUSH the glaze on the fruit. I will tell you right now that you will be severely and swiftly disappointed with how this turns out if you attempt to brush on the glaze. Brushing moves the fruit around and makes a mess of the whole thing. Instead, dip your pastry brush in the glaze and then lightly tap the brush on top of the fruit. Go over the entire surface like that and you will end up with a creation that looks just like the one in this picture. So pretty.
Once you are done, cover and place back into the refrigerator because, as I said earlier in this post, we are going to serve this the same day we make it. If you have any sort of glass dome, like a cake plate dome, cover it with that. About 20 - 30 minutes before serving, remove it from the refrigerator and place it in the freezer. This will make slicing a far easier task than if you do not take this step.
Finally, a slice of our beautiful cheesecake with glazed fruit topping. You will see that the crust is not like a piece of shoe leather. It actually crumbled a little when I plated this, which is a good sign.
A little whipped cream, if you like, and you will be proud to serve this to your guests. The cheesecake filling on its own is very good, but with the addition of the apple glaze which makes it way through the fruit and into the cheesecake, you have a real taste sensation.
So, the bottom line is this, if you want to make a real cheesecake - if you have the time and you want to do that and to add glazed fruit to it - then, by all mans, do it. If you are short of time and you want to serve a spectacular dessert and you don't know what to do, serve this. I assure you that you will be most pleased with how this presents and how it tastes.
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