Tuesday, July 14, 2009

Blueberry Cottage Cheese Cake




I don't know what possessed me to make this, other than I had all the ingredients on hand and it sounded simple enough. It was-as long as you read through and do all the prep-work ahead. The custard sets up pretty quickly in an ice-water bath, so save yourself scrambling and bet the egg whites and whipped cream immediately after you take the custard off the heat. I actually did the whipped cream ahead.

This is so light and nice. Sometimes it is nice to make something without a crust, or complicated moulds. After an hour of chilling I was able to slice a piece for the photo and it held together beautifully. I expect to use the basic recipe again with other fruits. I can't think of a nicer Summer dessert.


It does contain uncooked egg white, so if that's a problem, or you can't trust the source of your eggs, you might want to skip it.

From The Women's Day Encyclopedia of Cookery, 1966


You Will Need:

1 tablespoon soft butter
4 cups blueberries, washed
2 envelopes unflavoured gelatin
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 egg, separated-egg white beaten stiffly
3/4 cup milk
1 teaspoon grated lemon rind
3 cups cottage cheese pressed through a sieve
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup heavy cream

Spread butter in a shallow 1 1/2 quart dish. Arrange 3 1/2 cups of the berries along the bottom and sides to create a shell.

In the top of a double boiler (like, duh. Would anyone use the bottom?) mix the gelatin, sugar and salt. Beat the egg into the milk and add. Whisk continually until gelatin dissolves-about 6 minutes. Remove from heat and beat in the lemon rind. Cool slightly. While it rests, make the whipped cream and beat the egg white until stiff.

When custard mixture has cooled, add cottage cheese, lemon juice and vanilla extract. Mix well. Fold in the beaten egg white and whipped cream. Pour into shell of blueberries and use remaining blueberries to decorate top. Chill well before serving. Will serve 8-10 people if the get here before I demolish it myself.

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