Baked honey and strawberry cheesecake

Cheesecake is the dish of the month and oh do we love a spoonful! Try this creamy baked honey and strawberry cheesecake on your next baking day.

Baked honey and strawberry cheesecake

Serves 8-10

Cool cheesecake at room temperature and then refrigerate to chill completely. This will deliver a deliciously smooth texture and avoid cracks forming.

Ingredients

For the crust

2 packets (100g each) nuts of choice (we used raw almonds and peeled pistachios)
1 packet (200g) tennis biscuits
¾ cup (180g) butter, melted

For the filling

3 tubs (250g each) full-fat cream cheese
¾ cup sour cream
1 cup (220g) caster sugar
½ cup (125ml) honey
3 large eggs + 1 egg yolk
2 tsp (10ml) vanilla essence

For the topping

1 cup (200g) caster sugar
½ cup (125ml) water
1 punnet (400g) strawberries, halved
½ Tbsp (7ml) cornflour
Mint and edible flowers

Method

Preheat oven to 160°C. Grease and line a 23cm loose-bottomed cake tin.
Blitz nuts in a food processor until very fine (or chop by hand).
Add biscuits and blitz until fine. Then stir in the melted butter.
Press crust mix into the base and sides of your tin.
Blend filling ingredients in a food processor or with a stick blender until smooth. Pour over crust base in the cake tin.
Bake for 80-90 minutes, until the outer edges of the cake are set but the centre is still slightly wobbly (like firm jelly). Turn oven off, open door slightly and cool the cake in the oven for an hour.
Remove and cool completely at room temperature, then chill for at least 3 hours (or overnight).
For the topping, simmer sugar, water and half the strawberries in a pot on low heat for 5 minutes – take care not to let the berries disintegrate.
Mix cornflour with a little water to make a paste and add to the strawberry compote.
Simmer for 3 minutes to thicken. Remove, cool completely and strain to remove any broken-down bits.
Toss remaining fresh strawberries through the compote.
To serve, spoon topping over cheesecake, then scatter with mint and flowers.