Quick Dessert - Mini Mango Cheesecake

Mini Mango Cheesecakes

We, in the SaffronHut household have been feeling a bit under the weather recently. I have received a lot of comments and emails from my blogger buddies inquiring about us. I am really touched and feel very lucky to have made so many friends in cyberspace in such a short while. THANK YOU all very much, for the well wishes!!

We are all bouncing back to normal health - that makes us sound a bit like rabbits doesn't it? Whoever "bounces back" to normal health? Ok, let's just say that we are feeling pretty much back to our normal selves. Ok, I have a few friends that might snicker at that idea too - us? normal? he he!!

well, anyways, illness or no illness, I didn't want to miss contributing to lovely Indira's “Jihvā For Mangoes event.

As I lay in bed, several ideas raced through my mind. What could I make with mangoes?

How about the ever popular "Poori and Aamras"? Nah, didn't feel up to frying pooris!
How about "Amarkand?" that delectable union of srikand and mangoes? Nope, didn't have time to make srikhand.
How about "Mango Moorkootan?" a typical palakaad delicacy - a sweet, sour and spicy combination of tangy yogurt, ripe mangoes, sweet coconut and fiery green chillies? No, didn't have any shredded coconut in the freezer.
Ok, how about "Mango with yogurt rice?"a combination that may sound weird to some, but is a well loved dish in some households.
How about a "Mango Pie?". Hmmm, I would have to go shopping for ingredients.
Ok, let's see what's in the pantry...

I rummaged around and found a box of Jello No-bake Cheesecake - a relic from the days when I was trying out different boxed mixes from the store. I like cheesecakes in general and was curious to see if the boxed mix comes close to the real thing. Take my word for it - it does not!! and contrary to what the name might suggest, it does not have any Jello in it!

So, armed with the boxed mix for cheesecake, some nuts, a lemon and a mango, I came up with "Mini Mango Cheesecake". From my previous experience with the mix, I knew that the basic mix needs a little something to hold it's own against the lusicousness of the mango. I pepped it up with a little lemon and orange zest. Perfect! just the right amount of tartness to offset the creamy sweetness of the filling. The citrusy undertones go well with the sweet/sour taste of the mango. Btw, if the filling for a cheesecake is tart, is it still a cheesecake????

The assembly of the cheesecake is very simple. I just followed the instructions on the box with a few simple additions.

mini mango cheesecake

Ingredients:
1 box of Jello No Bake Cheesecake mix (I just used half of the box contents)
2 tbsp butter or margarine
1 tbsp sugar
3/4 cup milk (2% milkfat)
1/2 tsp lemon zest
1/2 tsp orange zest
8-10 walnuts
1 ripe mango
a few strawberries for garnish

Method:

1. Spread the walnuts in a single layer in a microwave safe plate and nuke for 1-1.5 minutes. Alternatively, you can roast them in the oven or in a heavy bottomed pan on the stove.
2. Cool and roughly chop/powder them in tiny pieces.
3. To prepare the crust, mix 1/2 the crust mix packet, 1 tablespoon sugar, 2 tbsp melted butter (or margarine) and the walnut powder.
4. Line a mini-muffin pan with paper cups.
5. Spoon 1 tbsp of crust mix into each paper cup. Press well with fingers or with a small rounded spoon. The mix will cover the entire bottom and a little bit of the sides.
6. Refrigerate the crusts while you prepare the filling.
7. For the filling, mix 3/4 cup of cold milk with 1/2 the contents of the filling mix from the box.
8. Beat with a wooden spoon till the filling thickens and gets fluffy. The directions on the box advise beating with a electric mixture, but I like the old fashioned way of mixing with a spoon. This so, because it gives the arms quite a workout and also because I don't own an electric mixer!
9. Add the lemon and orange zest to the filling.
10. Refigerate the filling mixture for 1 hour
11. Spoon the filling onto the chilled crusts.
12. Top with diced mango and garnish with chopped strawberries

Makes for nice bite sized dessert nibbles. Because these were made in a mini muffin tin, they were just the right size to pop whole into the mouth. You can use this same recipe to make a regular sized cheesecake and top with sliced mango.

This is my contribution to the event “Jihvā For Mangoes” .

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