Eli's Raspberry-Mango Cheesecake with a Walnut Crust

Mango cheesecake with raspberry puree and a walnut crust

For Eli's 23rd birthday, I decided to drive to Waltham to wish him a proper birthday. The week before, I had an incredibly packed schedule. Luckily, I had been planning his birthday cake for weeks, so I didn't have to quickly figure something out. The night before I left, I decided to bake the cake and then drive it to his house instead of baking it when I got there. It was my first time making a cheesecake! It was a good decision to make it the night before, though, because cheesecake needs to be refrigerated overnight anyway.  

I knew I had to incorporate mango into Eli's cake no matter what. It's his favorite fruit! I had a list of things that I knew he'd like, most of which were fruit. I finally decided on a mango cheesecake when I found recipes online with great reviews. 

I went to the Rochester Public Market and picked up some raspberries and mangoes. I knew they wouldn't last until I was ready for them almost a week later, so I threw them in the blender separately and pureed away. I then stuck them in the freezer. This worked out great, and it has encouraged me to puree and freeze the fruit I have that might be going bad soon. 

I adapted my recipe from epicurious. In the crust, I added finely chopped walnuts (done in my blender). Walnuts are one of Eli's favorite things, and I had been making maple-honey walnuts for him.  I also had a deeper pan, so I added to the baking time. To make the cake taste a little bit more like mango, I poured the extra puree over the top of the cake before baking it and swirled it in. The swirl really helped add a mango flavor to the cheesecake. After the cake had baked and cooled (and traveled 400 miles in my trunk), I poured raspberry puree over the top. It was pure raspberry, so it added just the right amount of sweetness without giving it too much! After a night of sitting on the cake, the raspberry puree soaked in a little, increasing the flavor and moisture of the cake.

Graham cracker crust with crushed walnuts

After baking the crust

Lots of cream cheese! I actually only used three of these, but they came in a club pack at Wegmans for a deal!

Mango puree

The cheesecake batter

Mango swirl added to the cheesecake

The final product

Not bad for my first, right?

Make a wish, Eli!

The birthday boy (wearing the shirt I got him)

Hopefully he was pondering his birthday wish

Attempting to make a clean cut

How's that for a slice?

Cheesecake is up there on my list now! Yum!

This cake was one of my favorites. The walnuts, raspberry, and mango swirl all made it so delicious! Pure fruit seems to bring any cake up a notch!