Blood Orange Cheesecake and Bureaucracy Blues...

So, last weekend with temperature hovering around -15 during the day, Mr. Zack and I decided we'd head to the Marjorie McNeeley Conservatory at Como Zoo because it was a) essentially free and b) WARM! Apparently everyone else in the greater Twin Cities area had the same idea. I've never seen the conservatory so packed! Despite the initial crowd-pushing and the fact that the orchid show was later in the year than I expected and not happening when we were there - boo :( - we still managed to have a lovely time. Pictures to come, soon, I promise! We ran some errands and decided on a quiet night in, making dinner together and catching up on some housework. We quickly decided 'twas a night for parmesan chicken and risotto, but what for dessert? We wracked our little brains, and I came up with cheesecake, possibly citrus, then remembered organic blood oranges were on sale at The Wedge, and found this amazing recipe HERE - thanks to the good ol' blogosphere and food blogger extrodinaire - Aimee from Under the High Chair

Blood Orange Cheesecake
makes a 10-inch round, serves between 8 and 16, depending on how generous you are.

Crust:
1 1/4 cups graham cracker crumbs
1/3 cup butter

Filling:
675 grams cream cheese
3/4 cup sugar
1/3 cup sour cream
zest and juice of one lemon
zest and juice of one blood orange (or regular orange)
5 large eggs, room temperature

Topping:
1 1/2 cups sour cream
juice and zest of one blood orange
1/4 cup sugar

Preheat oven to 350F.
For the crust, melt butter and add to crumbs. Mix well and press into a ten-inch springform pan. Bake for about 8-10 minutes until slightly golden. Cool.

Beat together cream cheese and sugar until smooth. Add citrus zest and juice. Mix well. Add eggs, one at a time, combining well after each addition, but not too vigorously. Pour over crumb crust and bake for about 40 minutes. Middle will still be slightly jiggly.

Remove from oven and run a sharp knife around the sides, but do not remove ring. Cool 15 minutes on the counter.

Meanwhile, prepare topping. Combine sour cream, citrus zest, citrus juice and sugar. Pour over slightly cooled cheesecake and let stand for half an hour at room temperature.
Chill completely. Remove ring and serve.



This cheesecake is simply AMAZING! :) Light and citrusy, full of flavor, and super easy! I think it might be the dessert I bring to Easter this year!

Also, if you don't have a springform pan (rather essential in cheesecake production!) I noticed that they were on sale at Target, $13.00 for a set of three different sizes! :)

Aside from cooking and baking delicious things, we've been busy doing a little mid-winter cleaning and I am excited to say I finally have a desk I fit under! Thanks to Zack and Ikea! In other news, school is still being a pain about academic appeals and its all just a nerve-wracking waiting game...I can't register because I have holds, but I have holds because I have cancer, and I can't continue to be insured for my surgery to treat my cancer unless I can make my holds go away and register for classes...its a vicious cycle full of red tape and administrative hoo-hah!

Oh well, nothing to do but wait...wait, and eat cheesecake... :D

Or I could just take a nap...