Recipe - Macadamia Cheesecake

Three fourths cup Macadamia nuts,salted
One half cup Graham cracker crumbs
2 tablespoon Butter or margarine,melted
One half cup Sugar
1 pack Cream cheese (3 oz)
2 pack Cream cheese (8 oz)
4 Large egg yolks
3 tablespoon Liqueur*
1 teaspoon Vanilla
Whipped cream (opt)
Strawberries (opt)
Mint sprigs (opt)

LILIKOI SAUCE
1 One fourth cup Passion fruit puree
1/3 cup Sugar
1 tablespoon Cornstarch

STRAWBERRY SAUCE
One half cup Strawberries

1. In a blender, whirl One fourth cup nuts until ground; scrape into an 8" cake
pan with removable rim. Add cracker crumbs, butter, and 1 tablespoon sugar;
mix and press over pan bottom.
2. Chop remaining nuts. In a bowl, beat smoothly with a mixer the remaining
sugar, cream cheese, yolks, liqueur, and vanilla; scrape bowl as needed.
Mix in chopped nuts.
3. Spread batter onto crust in pan. Bake in 325'F. oven until cake jiggles
only slightly when gently shaken, about 40 minutes. Let cool on a rack,
then cover and chill until cold, at least 2 hours or up 1 day.
4. Run a knife between cake and rim; remove rim. Spoon 2 tablespoons
lilikoi sauce ont each dessert plate; spoon strawberry sauce in dots onto
lilikoi sauce. Pull a knife tip through dots to make designs. Set cake
wedges on plates; garnish with cream, berries, and mint.

*** LILIKOI SAUCE ***
1. To make passion fruit puree, cut 24 passion fruit (about 2 pounds total)
in half; scoop pulp and seeds into a fine strainer over a bowl. Rub firmly
to remove all pulp from seeds; discard seeds. (For frozen puree, call
Gourmet France, Inc., at 8187684300; cost is about $12 for 2 pounds, plus
shipping.)
2. In a 1 to 1 One half quart pan, mix sugar and cornstarch; add puree. Stir
over mediumhigh eat until boiling, 45 minutes. Let cool; stir
occasionally. If made ahead, chill airtight up to 1 day.

*** STRAWBERRY SAUCE ***
In a blender, smoothly puree strawberries. Rub through a fine strainer into
a bowl; discard seeds. If made ahead, chill airtight up to 1 day; stir to
use.

From Gemini's MASSIVE MealMaster collection at www.synapse.com/~gemini