12 servings; 40 min preparation; 30 min cooking time.

Happy Tuesday, foodies! It’s been awhile since my last cake, so it’s time for something sweet again. I made for you today a delightful mango cheesecake. 

I was planning to make a no-bake cake, but I’m not a big fan of the cookie bottoms that normally go with it. They are too sweet for my liking and they crumble a lot. So I made a sponge bottom for this recipe. Actually I put it in top as well for extra texture.

Sponge cakes are buttery and light. You can make them as sweet as you like and they certainly don’t crumble. So in my opinion they are much better option for a cheesecake. Of course, you can use just the bottom if you prefer.

And because I find the normal cream cheese too heavy, I normally use mascarpone. It gives the texture, but it’s much lighter.

Ingredients

for the sponge cake:

• 4 eggs, room temperature
• 150 g light brown sugar
• 225 g all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 225 g butter, melted
• 1 tsp lemon zest
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

for the syrup:

• 1/2 cup caster sugar
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 tsp lime juice

for the creme:

• 500 g mascarpone
• 500 g whipping cream
• 2 tbsp caster sugar
• 3 sheets gelatine
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 15 g mint leaves

• 2 mangos

Preparation

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees C/360 degrees F. Cover the bottom of two 9 inch spring forms with baking paper.

Sponge cake: Beat eggs and sugar together until smooth. Add vanilla extract and lemon zest. Sift the dry ingredients and add them to the eggs. Beat until fully incorporated. Continue beating as you add the melted butter.

Divide the mixture evenly between the spring forms. Bake in the preheated oven for 25-30 min or until the toothpick comes clean. Remove from the spring forms and let the cakes cool completely.

For the syrup: Heat sugar and water to a small sauce pan over medium low heat. Add the lemon. Don’t stir, but shake the pan until the sugar turns into a syrup. Set aside to cool down.

For the creme: Prepare the gelatine according to the instructions on the package. Set aside to cool down completely.

Beat the whipping cream and the sugar. Add the mascarpone and vanilla extract. Add the melted gelatine. Beat a little longer, but don’t overbeat the mixture.

Peel the mangos and remove the seeds. Cut the mangos in small cubes. Divide in three parts. Put one part in a food processor or a blender together with the mint leaves. Blend until smooth and silky. Add the blended mango-mint mixture to the mascarpone.

Take the second part mangos and add them to the mascarpone using a spatula. Leave the third part for topping.

Assembling the cake: Take one of the sponge cakes and place it on the bottom of a spring form. Pour 1/2 of the syrup on top. Make sure that it’s fully covered with the syrup. Cover with the cream as you leave 1/4 of it to cover the cake. Place the second sponge cake on top. Pour the rest of the syrup. Cover with the cream. Finish with mango pieces as topping. Chill in the fridge for a couple of hours or overnight. Enjoy!