Whether you’re into the horse races or not,

The Spring Racing Carnival has probably impacted your life at some stage or another!

One massive way that the Carnival has forged memories into my life…

Is by the food memories I’ve created over the years.

As a kid…

The Cup Day tradition was a BBQ at my Uncle Nick & Auntie Jenny’s place.

Lamb cutlets…

Beef burgers…

Prawns skewers wrapped in bacon…

Shandies for the mums…

Beers for the dads…

And a can of Solo or Coke for the younger ones!

Salads & bread would round out the luncheon festivities.

Being kids,

My sister & I were always more interested in what came after lunch…

Namely dessert!

Pavlova, baklava, fruit platters & choc ripple cake was the standard dessert line up.

Once in a while,

A cheesecake would make an appearance.

Oh the joy on those occasions!

Of all the Cup Day desserts,

It was the cheesecake that I looked forward to the most.

It’s hard to say exactly why…

But if I had to guess,

I’d say it was the classic combo of crunchy, sweet biscuit…

Paired with silky, creamy, tangy & delectable cream cheese filling.

As always…

I’ve had a go at putting my Mediterranean spin on things,

With ricotta replacing the traditional cream cheese…

And crème fraiche taking the place of thickened cream.

My take is a lot silkier and more luxurious than the traditional recipe,

But it doesn’t set quite as well as the traditional version…

With both ricotta & crème fraiche lighter than cream cheese & thickened cream.

I quite like the softer set…

But if you’re not going to serve it straight out of the fridge I would suggest making individual portions…

In a glass or a small dessert dish.

That way,

Even if it doesn’t set hard,

It’ fine because it’s contained in each person’s individual serve!

You could also strain the ricotta and the cream fraiche before you use them.

That way,

You’ll get rid of some of the water in them,

Making for a thicker pair of ingredients to go into your cake.

Our base is a very simple…

2 ingredient combo…

Of Butternut Snaps & Salted Butter.

And to top it off…

We’ve gone for Joe’s Pick Of The Week…

Mixed berries…

Which have given the desert the necessary freshness…

And an amazing burst of colour,

To ensure that it doesn’t only taste great…

But it also looks the part too!

Spring Racing may be coming to a close…

But there’s still plenty of time to forge a lasting food memory,

By trying my take on an old classic.

All that’s left to say now is…

Buon Appetito!

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Ingredients for the Base

250g butternut biscuits
100g salted butter

Ingredients for the Filling

400g ricotta
200g crème fraiche
½ cup caster sugar
1 tbsp lemon juice
½ tsp lemon rind
Pinch of salt
2 cups fresh mixed berries
Mint for garnish

Method

Add the biscuits to a food processor and blitz until the biscuits become a sand-like consistency. Pour into a bowl.

Melt the butter and add it to the biscuit mix and stir to evenly combined.

Grease an 18cm cake tin and press the biscuit mixture lightly using the base of a cup into the tin to form the crust of the cake. Cover the whole base and halfway up the side of the cake tin. Cover and chill in the fridge for an hour.

In a bowl add the ricotta, sugar, lemon juice, lemon rind and salt and beat with an electric mixer until very smooth. Set aside.

In another bowl, beat the crème fraiche on medium-high speed until it forms stiff peaks. Fold the crème fraiche into the ricotta mixture.

Pour the ricotta mixture into the cake tin and even with a spatula. Chill in the fridge overnight.

Top with the mixed berries and serve.