Shrikhand cheesecake with tamarind-glazed fruit

Shrikhand is a great dessert in itself. When you make a cheesecake out of it, it lightens up and works wonders with the combination of tamarind glazed fruits and crushed spices. [caption id=“attachment_8959” align=“alignright” width=“380” caption=“Courtesy: The Cinnamon Club”]  [/caption] Preparation time: 30 minutes. Cooking time:25 minutes. Serves: 4-6 Ingredients: For the cheesecake: 250gm Greek yoghurt ( hung in muslin overnight) 100gm Mascarpone or any other full fat soft cheese 100ml double cream, whipped to soft peaks 50 gm sugar 1/2 tsp cardamom powder For the crumble base: 250 gm flour 250 gm sugar 180 gm almonds, ground 250 gm salted butter, diced 10 gm carom seeds or ajwain For the tamarind glaze: 100 gm sugar 200 gm tamarind puree 1tsp fennel seeds 1/2 tsp coriander seeds Few sprigs of mint, finely chopped Juice of a lemon Recipe: 1) Mix all the ingredients for the crumble base till a homogeneous mixture is achieved. 2) Spread it on a baking tray lined with greaseproof paper and bake it in the over for 10-12 minutes. Allow it to cool and crumble. 3) Fold all the ingredients for the cheesecake together gently and chill. 4) Place the crumble at the bottom of a dish to form a 8mm thick layer. Fill the rest of the mould with the cheesecake mix and chill for a few hours before serving. 5) Gently heat the sugar till it starts to caramelize in a heavy bottomed pan. Once it turns golden in colour, add the fennel and coriander seeds together with tamarind puree. Continue to cook on a low heat for ten minutes until the mixture thickens and coats the back of the spoon. Allow it to cool before adding the mint and the lemon juice. 6) To serve, slice up a few strawberries or figs, toss it with a little tamarind glaze and place on top of the cheesecake. Recipe courtesy: Cinnamon Club: Indian Cuisine Reinvented_, published by Random House India; priced at Rs 899**.** For more recipes, get the book authored by Vivek Singh with Abdul Yaseen and Hari Nagaraj._