bergamot basque cheesecake

and how to use every part of a citrus

After a sunny Christmas break in India, returning to live in English winter has been… bleak. The bright side of that has been all the excellent citrus varieties peaking at this time of year and the availability of the marvel that is forced rhubarb. With how expensive some of these varieties are, I really endeavoured to get as much out of them as possible.

The stalls at Borough Market are overflowing with choices, but I chose Bergamots (thought to be a cross between a lemon and bitter orange) and Tarocco Blood Oranges (pigmented, sweet and fragrant, with little to no seeds). This was also the perfect opportunity to grab Yorkshire forced rhubarb.

Inspired by BRAT* and their wood-fired cheesecake, which is perfumed with citrus peel and served with seasonal fruits, I mixed generous amounts of bergamot zest into a basic Basque cheesecake batter and turned my oven to its hottest setting. 

I baked it until it formed a caramelised (charred) crust but still wobbled in the middle. Once it reaches room temperature, it needs to have a long rest in the fridge for the fats to set, yielding its signature soft centre. The bitterness of the bergamot zest beautifully offsets the sweetness of the cheesecake.

To use all the juice from the zested bergamots, I made a silky bergamot curd with equal parts juice, sugar, eggs and butter. After cooking the juice, sugar, and eggs on low heat till they thicken, the butter is added and emulsified with a hand blender.

The rhubarb was cut diagonally and marinated in one-third of its weight in sugar and blood orange juice, peel, and crushed cardamom pods. Once it rested and released some liquid, it was oven-poached at 135C till tender.

I candied the rest of the blood orange peel, blanching it thrice, and then simmered it in simple syrup and blood orange juice until translucent.

It all worked together better than I imagined, combining sweetness, acidity, and bitterness on one plate.

As good as it was to eat, this was my favourite part: