Creamsicle Cheesecakes

Or (Blood) Orange Curd Swirled Cheesecakes with Creamsicle Cookie Crust.

Whatever is easiest for you.

First, the creamsicle cookies:

No wait first – take 5 large eggs, 2 sticks of butter, two packages of cream cheese, and 1/2 cup crema (or sour cream) out of your fridge to temper.  Cut 1/2 stick of butter into chunks and set aside. Preheat the oven to 325.

Ok, now the cookies:

4 ounces butter, softened 2  oz powdered sugar 2 oz granulated sugar 1 tsp vanilla 1 ounce milk (you could probably get away with orange juice here) 1 zest of one (blood) orange 7 ounces all-purpose flour heavy pinch of salt

Cream the butter, sugars, vanilla, and orange zest together until light and smooth.  Meanwhile, mix flours and salt. Add ounce of milk and beat until incorporated.  Fold in flour mixture.  Turn onto plastic wrap, roll into a log, and place in fridge for 1/2 hour.

Meanwhile, make the blood orange curd:

3 eggs 1/4 cup sugar zest of two blood oranges juice of two blood oranges – you could use regular oranges, but aren’t these pretty?) juice of half a lemon 1/2 stick butter, cubed large pinch of salt

Whisk egg and sugar together in large saucepan until combined. Add zest and juice, and turn on heat to medium.  Whisk constantly, occasionally adding butter, chunk by chunk, adding each piece as the last one disappears.  Continue to whisk until the mixture has thickened and large bubbles break in the center.  Take immediately off heat. Strain through a fine mesh strainer into a bowl.  Add salt and stir. Cover the top with plastic wrap, pressing down so the plastic wrap comes into full contact with the surface of the curd.  Put in fridge until cool.

Cookies Continued:

Cut cookies into 1/2″ slices, and bake on a parchment lined sheet tray for 15-20 minutes, until the edges are golden brown.  Allow to cool. You can freeze the other half and bake them off whenever, or you could have an extra dozen cookies around. Either way.

Cookie Crust –

1 dozen of the creamsicle cookies 2 tablespoons of sugar 2 -3 tablespoons of melted butter

When cool, pulse one dozen of the cookies to crumbs in a food processor.  Add the sugar and 2 tablespoons melted butter and stir to combine. (I happened to have some orange sugar around, so I used that to make the crust prettier.) If it’s not coming together, meaning you can’t pinch it into clumps, add the extra tablespoon of butter. Fill a muffin tin with liners.  Add about 1 tablespoon of crust mixture to each muffin liner.  Press down firmly.

Bake for 5 minutes to set crust.

Prep for cheesecake –

2 8-ounce packages of cream cheese 1/2 cup crema (or sour cream) 2/3 cup sugar 2 large eggs 1 tsp vanilla pinch of salt

Beat cream cheese, crema, and sugar together until fluffy.  Add eggs, one at a time, fully incorporating each one.  Add tsp of vanilla and pinch of salt. Stir.

Final Assembly:

Bump oven temp to 350.

Fill the muffin tin about halfway to the top with cream cheese mixture.  Add a healthy dollop of curd.  Fill to almost the top with cream cheese mixture.  Add another dollop of curd.  Swirl with a knife, being careful not to go all the way to the bottom, to avoid stirring up cookie crumbs.

Bake for 15-25 minutes, until the cheesecake has puffed and the center no longer jiggles.  Be warned, these will sink.  It’s ok.  It’s the nature of egg to souffle, then deflate. Chill for 1-2 hours in the fridge.  serve cold, with an additional dollop of curd if you like (there should be some leftover).