To help you understand the origins of this recipe, I must
first tell you a little love story.
The story started out back in 1978, when a young country buck
named Rob married his sweetheart Robyn.
Now Rob was a cheesecake-lover and no-one could whip up a cheesecake
quite like his dear old mum.
But he was a married man now, so couldn’t very well be
popping home to mum for a cheesecake every other day.
Robyn was proficient in the kitchen to say the least, but
she didn’t share Rob’s love of cheesecake so it didn’t feature on their marital
menu.
It soon became clear that no amount of pudding or pavlova
would produce that satisfied smile from Rob, so Robyn decided she needed to up
her dessert game.
She did just that. And ever since, Robyn’s Rum and Raisin
Cheesecake has been a firm favourite in the recipe repertoire -with a few minor
tweaks along the way.
The once dessert-crossed lovers now share a love of Robyn’s
cheesecake, as do their children, grandchildren and surrogate children who
occasionally pop in to see what’s on the menu (ahem, that’s me).
A big thank you for Robyn for sharing this treasured recipe.
Robyn’s Rum & Raisin Cheesecake
Ingredients
Crust
1 ½ packets granita biscuits
½ teaspoon cinnamon (or according to taste)
125g butter, melted
Filling
½ cup raisins
3 tablespoons dark rum
500g cream cheese
1 egg yolk
2 tablespoons caster sugar (recently Robyn has been using
dextrose, in the same quantity)
300ml whipping cream
2 teaspoons gelatine
2 tablespoons hot water
Method
To make the crust, melt the butter and mix with the crushed
biscuits and cinnamon. Press into spring form pan and refrigerate while filling
is made.
To make the filling, place the raisins and run in a small
bowl and put aside to soak.
Combine cream cheese, sugar and egg yolk, beat until creamy.
Sprinkle the gelatine over the water to dissolve and allow
to cool slightly before adding to the filling.
Fold rum and raisin mixture in with the cream cheese and
gelatine.
Pour into prepared crumb crust and refrigerate, leaving to
set overnight.
Adorn with whipped cream, grated chocolate or strawberries.
Enjoy!
