Salty cheesecake with smoked salmon and rocket salad

• 15 minutes to prepare •  20 minutes to cook •  3 hours to cool •  Serves 4

 

 

May your vacation be stronger than your toddler

Alive and kicking. Here I am, back from vacation!

Kind of tired from travelling with Nina, but happy because of all the time I spent with her.
This year we went back to the South of Sardinia, in the same village we had visited in 2016. Last year was our baby moon - our last vacation of true relaxation because this year was a little different...we had baby.

There was no time spent reading on the beach or sleeping in. In fact it was the opposite - we spent more of our time at home, or walking, and not much on the beach. Our tiny monster decided indeed that 6 AM was an acceptable time for waking up. I didn't spend any time fussing with my five or six books - it was just half an hour a day during Nina's nap in the afternoon (after having cleaned the house, prepared the broth, washed her clothes, et cetera...ha ha)
We were tired by the end with little monkey's 6 AM wake-up calls and all the exploring we did to keep her entertained.
But it was worth it! We made some great memories. I hope we'll have the opportunity to enjoy next year summer vacation even more.

I dreamt about new recipes to try during all my holiday...but when we were back, reality check! The weather was still too hot to cook. Who wants to turn on the stove and heat up the house?
It was time for me to stop complaining. Creativity to the rescue and one of my very favorite appetizers: salty cheesecake with smoked salmon and rocket salad.
It’s the same creamy, luscious texture of your favorite dessert, but this time, crescenza cheese, cream cheese and ricotta, flavored with rocket salad and smoked salmon, make a trendy new appetizer with classic flavor appeal.
Wow! I love it and I bet you will, too.


Here's what you will need for the 10-serving recipe:

200 g crushed Taralli
100 g butter
300 g ricotta cheese
200 g crescenza cheese
200 g cream cheese
2.5 g gelatine sheets
100 g rocket salad
200 g smoked salmon
1 tablespoon poppy seeds
salt and pepper

1. Preheat oven to 150°C
2. Melt the butter in a bain-marie and let it cool down
3. Mix the crushed Taralli in a bowl with the melted butter
4. Take a large cheesecake mould and place in a round platter. On the base, place a layer of the Taralli mix of about 1 centimeter and press gently
5. Bake for 15 minutes at 150°C. Then, let it cool down
6. Meanwhile, pour 1/2 cup of water in a medium bowl and dunk the gelatine sheets in it. Let them soften about 5 minutes
7. In another bowl, mix the cheeses to make a spreadable mixture. Wash and finely chop the rocket salad, then add it to the mixture and mix well. Add salt and pepper
8. Drain the gelatine sheets and place them in a small pan. Melt them over low heat and add it to the mixture, too. Mix again
9. Pour the cheese mixture over the Taralli baked layer and place in the refrigerator for about 3 hours
10. Cut the slices of smoked salmon into large pieces, about 5-cm long
11. Remove the cheesecake from the mould and place salmon and few leaves of rocket salad on top. Sprinkle with poppy seeds and serve

In the following, Nutrition Facts of this dish are indicated. Data is provided per serving.

If it requires a bikini, my answer is yes.