No Bake After Eight Cheesecake

Every Christmas (yes, I know we’re in late February) my very kind family always gift me a large box of After Eight Mints, due to my love of all things mint this has practically become a tradition (apart from the disappointing Christmas of 2014 which we shall not mention). Slowly word spread of just how easily pleased this baker is when it comes to gifts & now I find myself with a plethora of bottle green boxes every year.

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Normally I am content with devouring half a box of these dark, minty squares without any remorse. However, these thin, little after dinner (any time of day) confections can be a little sickly when consumed in excess. Here we are in February, spring is hinting towards an appearance & I find myself with three large boxes of After Eights still stashed in the pantry. This year, armed with a bowl & a whisk, I decided to try & find an inventive way to use up my surplus stock. Mint is a difficult flavour to work with when it comes to cakes & I already have one of these in my repertoire so I turn to desserts, one of my favourites to be exact.. cheesecake.

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Smooth, creamy & with a buttery biscuit base, cheesecake truly is a gratifying treat that I simply cannot refuse. Usually, I favour a cheesecake of the baked variety however this doesn’t always suit fresher flavours. For the cool, refreshing flavour of mint a refrigerated cheesecake is ideal. I have previously concocted a mint cheesecake, however I irresponsibly failed to write down the recipe (this was in my pre-blogging days). All I remember of my minty green dessert was how ridiculously indulgent & moorish each slice was.

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Luckily this time around, I learnt from my mistakes & wrote down this wonderfully satisfying recipe for all to try. I you’re lucky enough to have grown up in the UK during the 80’s / early 90’s then you may remember Viennetta. A mint ice-cream cake, only brought out on special occasions such as Christmas & birthdays, it was our version of an elegant dessert. As a child, I would sneak thick slices of this from the freezer when my mother wasn’t looking (although I’m sure I wasn’t the only one). This cheesecake is so reminiscent & similar in flavour as mint Viennetta that I felt the need to covertly devour my dessert behind closed doors.

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NO BAKE AFTER EIGHT CHEESECAKE
(makes one 23cm cheesecake)

Ingredients:

For the base:

  • 320g bourbon biscuits
  • 100g butter

For the filling:

  • 600g cream cheese
  • 284ml double cream
  • 100g icing sugar
  • 3 tsp peppermint extract
  • A drop of green food colouring
  • 150g After Eight mints

For the decoration:

  • 150g After Eight mints
  • 7 tbsp icing sugar
  • A few drops peppermint extract

Method:

  • Grease & line the base of a 23cm springform cake tin
  • Using a food processor, blitz the biscuits until they resemble fine breadcrumbs
  • Gently melt the butter in a small saucepan set over a low heat or in the microwave
  • In a bowl, combine the biscuit crumbs with the melted butter, ensuring that all of the biscuit has been coated by the butter
  • Tip the mixture into the prepared tin & use the back of a spoon to press the mixture down evenly into the base of the tin
  • To make the filling, add the cream cheese, double cream, icing sugar, peppermint extract & food colouring to large bowl & whisk together until well combined & smooth
  • Take 150g (half a box) of the After Eight mints & use your hands to break break them up into irregular sized pieces
  • Stir the pieces through the filling & pour this over the biscuit base
  • Evenly spread the surface before placing the cheesecake in the fridge & leave to chill overnight
  • Bring the cheesecake back to room temperature for 30 minutes before releasing from its tin
  • To decorate, use your hands again to break up the rest of the After Eight mints & arrange them in a circle on top of the cheesecake
  • Mix the icing sugar with just enough water to make a pourable icing before adding in 1-2 drops of peppermint extract to taste
  • Drizzle the icing over the After Eights & serve

whisk

8 Comments

  1. I remember Viennetta desserts, my mum used to buy them for special occasions when I was growing up. The youth of today don’t know what they’re missing out on! This After Eight minty cheesecake looks delicious – I’ll have to bookmark this someplace and give it a try when I’m back in the UK when I have more people to consume it with 🙂

  2. Yes please!

    My dad is obsessed with any combination of mint + chocolate and my mother is the cheesecake queen so I’ll have to give this one a whirl. Love the pictures!

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