Black Cherry Cheesecake

Serves: 10

Takes: 1.5 hours + chilling

For the base:

  • 150g (5oz) digestive biscuits
  • 75g (3oz) unsalted butter, melted
  • 1tbsp caster sugar

For the filling:

  • 800g (1 ¾lb) cream cheese, at room temperature
  • 150g (5oz) caster sugar
  • 3 medium eggs, lightly whisked
  • 1 x 142ml tub double cream
  • zest and juice of 1 lemon

For the topping:

  • 2 x 125g punnets black cherry, stones removed (or use 1 can of black cherry in light syrup)
  • 3tbsp caster sugar
  • 1tsp cornflour

Method:

  1. Preheat the oven to 160 degree C (gas mark 3).
  2. Crush biscuits, put in a bowl. Stir in butter and sugar. Tip into a 22.5cm (9 inch) springform tin and press firmly. Chill until set.
  3. Beat cream cheese with sugar until smooth. gradually beat in the egges. Stir in cream and lemon and pour onto base.
  4. Bake for an hour, until set. Cover and leave to cool on a wire rack, then refrigerate for at least five hours or overnight.
  5. Heat topping ingredients until black cherry soften. Pour over cheesecake and chill until set, or spoon over just before serving.

N.B. Blueberry as topping is delicious too. 🙂

*** Lemon Jelly topping***

  • 4 sheets gelatine
  • 250ml cold water
  • 180g caster sugar
  • 1 lemon – both juice & zest

Dissolve gelatine in 100 ml of water. Put 150ml of water in a pan with sugar, lemon juice and zest and heat until sugar dissolved. Take off the heat then add gelatine. Pour over cheesecake and chill until set.