When I say ‘cheesecake’, you say…

Lemon Cheesecake?
New York Cheesecake?
Chocolate Cheesecake?

Strawberry & Pistachio Cheesecake?

No? Not that last one? Well, you will after you try this recipe… Hubby and I devoured this cake in less than two days (with only a little help from Amelia!), it was that good!

       

There are a few parts to this recipe, but it’s still super easy and well worth the extra effort. Even the rosebuds were a happy accident!

    

I’d intended to make chocolate curls but my chocolate was too soft… and suddenly I was staring at a sweet little rosebud sitting between my fingertips and wondering where on Earth it came from.

Strawberry & Pistachio Cheesecake Recipe

 

This recipe uses baked marinated strawberries, so you will want to plan for this. I marinated my strawberries for a day before baking them for 1.5 hours.

For the strawberries

Ingredients

500g strawberries
40ml Cointreau
1 Tbsp sugar

Method

Cut the tops off your strawberries and place them whole on a baking tray. Sprinkle with sugar, then pour in the cointreau and toss to coat. Leave in the fridge to marinate overnight if you can.

Bake strawberries for 1.5 hours at 150°C/300° F/Gas Mark 2.

Transfer strawberries and syrup to a bowl and mash with a fork. Allow to cool completely before adding to your filling.

For the base:

Ingredients

200g biscuits
50g blanched almonds
100g melted butter
1 Tbsp plain flour
2 tsp honey

Method

Preheat oven to 180°C/350° F/Gas Mark 4, and line a 8 – 9 inch springform pan with baking paper.

Place the biscuits, flour and almonds in a food processor and pulse until you have a fine crumb.

Melt the butter with the honey and then pour it in with the crumbs. Pulse again until mixture comes together.

Press the crumbs into the base of your lined cake tin, then bake for 10 minutes.

Leave to cool, then refrigerate before adding your filling.

    

For the filling:

Ingredients

Strawberry mixture (above)
600g cream cheese
160g (3/4 cup) caster sugar
2 tsp vanilla bean paste
2 large eggs + 1 egg yolk
25g (2.5 Tbsp) plain flour
100ml double cream
100ml sour cream

Method

Preheat oven to 180°C/350° F/Gas Mark 4.

Beat cream cheese until smooth, then add the sugar and vanilla and beat until sugar has dissolved.

Add the eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition until just combined.

Sift in the flour, add the sour cream and double cream and beat briefly to incorporate, then fold in the mashed strawberries.

Tip: It’s important to make sure all your ingredients are mixed together, but we don’t want to over beat and incorporate too much air as this will cause your cheesecake to sink or crack. Scrape the sides and bottom of your bowl with a spatula in between beating after each addition.

Take your prepared base and wrap tightly in foil using at least two layers to make sure there are no leaks, then pour the filling onto your base.

Place your cheesecake into a large, deep baking tray, then place in the oven and fill the tray with boiling water so that it reaches just past halfway up your cheesecake tin.

Lower the oven temperature to 165°C/325° F/Gas Mark 3 and bake for 1.5 hours, or until cheesecake is set but still slightly wobbly in the centre.

Turn off the oven, leaving the cheesecake inside to cool with the door ajar. Move to refrigerator once completely cool.

For the Topping:

Ingredients

200ml double cream
200g cream cheese
135g (3/4 cup) icing sugar
150g pistachios

Method

Place pistachios in a food processor and pulse until finely ground.

Beat double cream until thick, taking care not to over beat, then set aside.

In a separate bowl, beat the cream cheese and icing sugar until smooth and creamy.

Fold in the cream, and, once blended, the pistachios.

Leave your cheesecake in it’s tin and spread the topping evenly over the surface, then refrigerate for a few hours.

When ready to serve, remove from fridge and run a knife around the sides before removing the tin.

   

For the rosebuds:

Ingredients

100g white chocolate

Method

Gently melt the chocolate over a double bolier or in the microwave.

Spread melted chocolate in a thin layer over a sheet of baking paper and leave to cool and harden.

Run a knife under the chocolate, cutting out uneven lengths as below.

 

Roll your length of chocolate, pinching one side to assist in moulding the other side outwards.

Decorate your cake with the chocolate flowers and serve!

        

Enjoy… x