This blackcurrant cheesecake is different from the traditional baked cheesecake because it’s so light-set. The blackcurrants give it the right balance of sweet and tart, the bold blackcurrants livening up the creamy dessert.
Thanks to the chef at The Crown at Stoke by Nayland for sharing this recipe with us. Their summer desserts use locally-grown seasonal fruit – try the other recipes they’ve shared with us.
Ingredients for blackcurrant cheesecake
- 1kg blackcurrants
- 500g sugar
- 1 lemon
- 550ml water
- 250g digestive biscuits, crushed
- 125g butter
- 130g sugar
- 375g cream cheese
- 30g plain flour
- 1 vanilla pod
- 1 egg
- 150ml (1/4pt) double cream
Directions
- To make the blackcurrant jam: put fruit and water in a large pan and cook on medium heat for 10-15 minutes (depending how ripe the fruit is).
- Warm the sugar, add to the fruit and stir until dissolved.
- Increase the heat, add lemon juice and boil to setting point for jam: 113°c. This may take about 15 minutes.
- Turn off heat, then leave to rest for 15 minutes and then pot and cover in usual way.
- Grease a 20cm (8″) loose-bottom cake tin, or line with a cake tin liner.
- To make the base: Melt butter and stir in the crushed biscuits.
- Press the biscuit mixture into the prepared tin – cover the bottom with an even layer and smooth the top.
- Pre-heat the oven to 120ºC.
- To make the cheesecake mixture: Cream the sugar, cream cheese, flour, and scrapings from the vanilla pod.
- Lightly whip the cream, and lightly beat the egg.
- Fold in the egg and cream into the cream cheese mixture, until well mixed.
- Gently fold about 250g of the blackcurrant jam through the cheesecake mixture so it creates a marbled effect – do not over mix.
- Pour the blackcurrant cheesecake mixture on top of the base.
- Bake the cheesecake for about 30-40 minutes, until the mixture sets and feels firm to the touch.
- Let the cheesecake cool, then serve slices with vanilla ice cream and a dash of the remaining blackcurrant jam.
