La Storia ~

At the holidays, I would often make a blue cheese cheesecake and serve a small slice atop our holiday salad. Then, I came up with this mini and very Mediterranean, sweet & savory take. There’s NO going back now!  The moderately sweet Biscotti, Spanish  candied almond ~ crystallized ginger  crust…is fantastic…and the Italian Gorgonzola  filling with a hint of lemon, thyme and rosemary…is heavenly! Here’s to the mini  cheesecake this Holiday season!

The Filling ~

2.5 oz Italian Gorgonzola

1 package cream cheese (room temp)

1 small shallot minced

2 eggs

Salt & white pepper

1 teaspoon each ~ Chopped Fresh thyme & rosemary

2 tablespoons Honey

3 tablespoons Crème Fraiche

2 teaspoons champagne vinegar

½ teaspoon Lemon zest

The Crust ~

7 of the 5″  – store purchased biscotti (I used original flavor)

2 tablespoons candied Spanish Almonds (You can use plain, slivered almonds instead.)

1  tablespoons crystallized ginger (chopped)

1/2 teaspoon lemon zest

3 tablespoons butter (melted)

Pulse the biscotti, almonds, ginger and zest in a food processor…. then add the melted butter…pulse again. Tamp down equal portions in a buttered ~ 12 serving cheesecake pan with removable disks (Sur la Table). Bake for approximately 8 minutes at 325. Allow to cool. Spoon in the filling 3/4 of the way up…each cheesecake mold. Place the cheesecake pan on a baking sheet and bake for 25 to 30 minutes at 300 degrees or until a toothpick comes out clean. Allow to cool, before popping the cheesecakes out and removing the metal bottoms.

I served the cheesecakes on top of a mixed green salad with a Lemon Vinaigrette…delicious!

Enjoy!

Ciao,

Monica