No-bake Goat Cheesecake

Don’t worry, the creative juices are still flowing! Still cooking and working on recipes to post! A couple of weeks ago for Father’s Day, we were driving through Southern California for some family celebrations. It was a bit of a busy time, but I made some mini no-bake goat cheesecakes that came along for the ride, in a cooled container of course. I think that my dad’s favorite animal are goats, hence the goat-themed dessert.

Here’s a picture of my dad and brother with a goat at a petting zoo. Maybe Disneyland? Very cute picture. I love looking at these old photo albums. My dad grew up in the Philippines in a farm of sorts with lots of animals. He can tell so many stories about taking care of animals and harvesting rice with the water buffaloes. He has definitely influenced me in my love for animals. I loved hearing his stories and learning about how they lived off the land. I would love to have a farm if I could. When we were kids, my siblings and I didn’t like that he would go with friends who had goats and he would help butcher them. We would plead to my dad to keep the goats as pets. Boo hoo! 😦 Sometimes I opened up the freezer and found a goat head in there. Odd and gory huh? I think he was going to cook something with it. To family and friends, in addition to gardening and giving his various homegrown fruits and veggies, he’s known for the goat stew that he makes. He’s a master at it.

Now back to the cheesecake, something that’s not as gory! For some variety, I made two types of crusts for the cheesecakes:  pistachio and the classic graham cracker. You could go without the crust if you like. Super tasty too!

Photo credit:  http://www.summerhilldairy.com

For extra goat-y kick, I used goat milk, which my dad and I love to drink. You can get it in the supermarkets, health food type markets, or at Trader Joe’s. This Summerhill brand was what I found and like to use. I found evaporated goat milk as well, but I like the fresh milk for this recipe. If you can’t find goat milk, just use your favorite milk. Just don’t use the type of milk that a MasterChef season 4 hopeful did in the video below!

Making the filling is pretty easy. Just minimal heat needed to warm some milk to make a gelatin mixture. Then whip together all the filling ingredients using a mixer. Refrigeration is what gets you that decadent, rich, smooth, fluffy, and light texture of a cheesecake.

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These were fun to make and convenient for the summer as you don’t have to crank up the oven! I think no-bake cheesecakes are ideal for the hot season. They aren’t as dense as the baked variety, but it still has that characteristic cheesecake-y experience when eaten. Being cup-cake sized and in individual serving portions it  doesn’t make you feel like a fatty or guilty about it either, LOL. Make the crust as high or as thick as you want. Top it with anything you like too! This time I used goat cheese crumbles and raspberries as toppings. For more of an intense goat flavor experience, use cajeta!

Mini No-Bake Goat Cheesecakes

~2 dozen cup-cake sized cheesecakes

Ingredients

Classic Graham Cracker Crust; makes ~12 cupcake-sized crusts

• 1.5 cups of graham cracker crumbs
• 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 2 teaspoons lemon zest (or other citrus zest)
• 1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
• 5 tablespoons butter, melted and cooled
• Melted butter, oil spray, or coconut oil

1. Mix together crumbs, sugar, zest and salt in a bowl. Pour in the melted butter and combine.
2. Line 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners. Brush or spray with oil or melted butter.
3. Evenly divide the crumb mixture in 12 portions for the prepared muffin tin. Press the crumb mixture on the bottom and along the sides of the greased and lined tin. Set aside.
4. Cover with plastic wrap and set aside in the refrigerator.

Pistachio Crust (adapted from The New York Times); makes ~12 cupcake-sized crusts

• 1 cup shelled pistachios (can also use other nuts–will be trying cashews next!)
• 1.5 teaspoons grated orange zest (or other citrus zest)
• 1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 2.5 tablespoons sugar
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled
• More melted butter, oil spray, or coconut oil

1. Place pistachios, zest, salt, cinnamon, and sugar in a food processor. Pulse until combined and the nuts are ground.
2. Place in a bowl and mix in the melted butter.
3. Lie 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners. Brush with oil or melted butter.
4. Evenly divide the nut mixture in 12 portions for the prepared muffin tin. Press the nut mixture on the bottom and along the sides of the greased and lined tin.
5. Cover with plastic wrap and set aside in the refrigerator.

Goat Cheesecake Filling (adapted from Gourmeted)

• 8 grams powdered gelatin (Knox brand is my go-to, you could also use 8 grams agar-agar powder)
• 1/2 cup goat milk, divided
• 16 ounces goat cheese, at room temperature (or 11 ounces goat cheese and 5 ounces cream cheese)
• 1/4 cup evaporated cane sugar
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 1 cup mascarpone cheese, at room temperature
• 1/2 cup goat milk
• 1/3 cup Greek yogurt (I like Fage brand or Trader Joe’s whole Greek yogurt)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. Whisk the gelatin into 1/4 cup of goat milk. Let the gelatin bloom for ~5 minutes. Heat another 1/4 cup goat milk until warm or pop in the microwave set on high for 30 seconds. Pour into the bloomed gelatin mixture and whisk until dissolved. Set aside and allow to cool.
2. In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add the goat cheese, sugar, and lemon juice. Beat on low for about 30 seconds to break down the goat cheese and then mix on medium for a minute.
3. Add the mascarpone cheese, goat milk, Greek yogurt, and vanilla extract. Beat on medium-high for 2 minutes until fluffy.
4. On low speed, gently pour in the gelatin mixture and then mix on medium speed for 1 minute until smooth. Scrape down the sides at 30 seconds to fully combine.
5. Pour into prepared muffin tins with the crusts. Alternatively, you can use a pastry bag or gallon-sized plastic bag to pipe the filling onto the crusts.
6. Refrigerate at least 3 hours covered with something like plastic wrap. Tastes best if made 2-3 days before serving. Keep covered so the surface doesn’t get dry.
7. Top with fruit, nuts, goat cheese crumbles, chocolate sauce, fruit compote, whipped cream, etc.  and enjoy!

They still look great even if they traveled trough SoCal to my parent’s house. Still fluffy, creamy and decadent, with a goat-y tang. I’m glad that my family loved these mini desserts, especially my dad.

To the goat fans out there like my dad, I hope you enjoy this recipe + this song (featuring a great performance from The Voice, a reality show that is my guilty pleasure).

😀

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