can cheese cake make you happy

Can Cheesecake make you happy?

Lime and Pistachio Cheesecake. I promise it will make you happy.

Maggie Beer, arguably one of Australia’s happiest personalities sat on a panel at a previous years Happiness and its Causes conference discussing the link between happiness and food and spoke with her customary warmth and energy about “the feeling of warmth that comes not from heating but from the people around you. That’s the really important thing.” I have long admired Maggie’s cooking and religiously watched every episode of the Cook and the Chef,  but in recent years have come to admire her for so much more.

maggie-beer-2010-1-of-1

I met Maggie a few years ago at the Masterchef Live event and even watching her from a distance, she exudes an energy and an exuberance that is a rare quality. As I sat with her in a question and answer session I witnessed her warmth and ability to engage with people in such a personable way and I developed a new admiration for her.

More recent research, suggests that there is a direct correlation between mindfulness and happiness. Mindfulness can be defined as “Bringing one’s complete attention to the present experience on a moment-to-moment basis.”  (Marlatt & Kristeller) In recent times this has become a hot topic in western psychology and one has to wonder what the Dalai Lama thinks of this revelation of modern research. Possibly his customary laughter would fill the room. And if you haven’t heard his infectious chuckle you must watch this hilarious piece of footage.

And so you ask, what does this have to do with cheesecake? Today I was grumpy. For no particular reason and so I was wondering, is it really possible to change your “happiness level” just by deciding to?

I was recently watching a documentary called “happy”, and one of the things this documentary argues is that once basic necessities like food and shelter are provided for, economic factors have relatively little to do with overall satisfaction in life.

By studying identical twins, happiness scientists such as Sonja Lyubormirsky from University of California Riverside have found that 50 percent of our happiness level is genetic. They call this our set point.

Our circumstances, our job, income, social status, age and health accounts for another 10 percent of our happiness. But the really good news is that there is a great deal you can do to make yourself happier, as 40 percent of our overall happiness is determined by intentional behavior. These are things people can do on a regular basis to become happier.

This weekend I was happy. Pretty much all weekend. I was away, away somewhere that makes me happy. I was with someone who keeps me warm, even without heating, and in small appreciated moments there was novelty, joy and pure unadulterated happiness.

And one such moment was cheesecake.

After taking a bite of an exceptional pistachio cheesecake that I had made it occurred to me that it could be more. I cut up a lime and squeezed the tart juice over my slice of cheesecake.

And there it was. In a few seconds, an idea, a tiny bit of novelty and a happy moment. The perfect mix. I realise now it doesn’t take much. Just try something new. Sometimes it will work and sometimes it won’t but when it does you’ll feel it. Lime on your cheesecake.  Happy.

Lime and Pistachio Cheesecake. I promise it will make you happy.

lime-and-pistaschio-cheesecake-1-of-1Lime and Pistachio Cheesecake Recipe

The base

(The base of this is taken from Sarah Wilsons I quit sugar cookbook. The filling is from my “lets just wing it” cookbook in my head)

1 cup coconut

1 cup pistachios,

1 cup (150g) almond meal

1⁄2 cup butter, softened to room temperature

The filling

2 1/2 boxes of full fat Philidelphia cream cheese

2 eggs

1/2 cup sugar

A good handful of crushed pistachios to sprinkle on top and lime wedges to serve

Preheat oven to 160 C. Crush pistachios. Now I would recommend this in a food processor or with a mortar and pestle but we had a very under equipped kitchen where we were staying, so my lovely boyfriend did this with a saucepan and an empty wine bottle. THis meant the chunks were varied and there were some really chunky bits but this gave it a delicious extra nutty quality.  Add in coconut, almond meal and butter and rub with your fingers.

Press into a baking paper-lined spring form pan . Cover the base and a little up the side, about 1 inch. I don’t like the whole side to be base. I like the browning of the baked cheesecake to be visible.

Bake for 8 minutes, until it starts to turn golden. Remove and allow to cool fully.

Meanwhile, in a large bowl, mix all remaining ingredients. Spoon the mixture into the base and return to the oven for 20-30 mins or until the mixture pulls away from the base a little and the centre is almost firm.

Cool in the fridge. Once cooled, sprinkle a handful of the crushed pistachios over the top and serve lovely big slices with lime wedges for squeezing.

Happiness. Yes in a cheesecake.

You may be interested

On Key

Related Posts