Blueberry Cheesecake

While cheesecakes aren’t usually pitched as a recipe for beginners, you don’t need to be an experienced cook to make this blueberry cheesecake. I’ll walk you through it so you can have confidence that you’ve got this, even if you’re a first timer. Baked to achieve that elusive light-yet-rich creamy cheesecake filling, topped with blueberries and smothered in an incredible glossy blueberry sauce topping. It’s magnificent!

Ingredients

For a biscuit base:

7 oz crackers or other plain biscuit

8 tbsp unsalted butter, melted

For the filling:

1 lb cream cheese, well softened

2 tbsp flour, plain/ all-purpose flour

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 cup sour cream (full fat, sub yogurt)

1 1/2 cups caster sugar (superfine sugar)

zest of 1 lemon (optional)

3 eggs, at room temperature

8oz blueberries (fresh or frozen)

Blueberry topping for cheesecake:

13 oz blueberries

2 tbsp lemon juice (or water)

1/2 cup white sugar

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1 1/2 tsp cornflour/cornstarch

2 tbsp water

Directions

Step 1

Preheat oven to 320 °F. Place shelf in middle of oven.

Step 2

Line inverted base: Get a 8" springform cake tin. Turn the base upside down (the base of springform pans have a slight ridge. By inverting it, there is no ridge which makes it easier to slide the cheesecake on a serving platter without ruining the crust. There is no risk of batter leakage as the crust is thick enough to hold it all in), butter lightly then press on a square piece of parchment/baking paper. Then clip into the springform pan. Line sides: Butter and line the side of the pan.

Step 3. Cheesecake biscuit base: Break up biscuits roughly by hand and place in a food processor. Blitz until fine crumbs. Add butter, briefly blitz until dispersed and it resembles wet sand.

Step 4

Pour into the prepared cake tin. Use a spatula to roughly spread it out over the base and up the walls. Use something with a flat base and vertical edges (I use a measuring cup) to press the crumbs up the wall almost to the top of the sides, and flatten the base.

Step 5

Filling: Cream cheese. Use a stand mixer or handheld beater to beat the cream cheese until just smooth, no longer than 20 seconds. Add flour, beat for 5 seconds on speed 4 until just incorporated. Add vanilla, sour cream, sugar and lemon zest. Beat until just combined (10 sec max). Eggs: add eggs one at a time - beat for 5 seconds on speed 4 in between each. After the last egg, beat as needed until batter is smooth - but stop beating immediately once smooth.

Step 6.

Bake for 65-70 minutes. The top should be a bit puffed, very light golden brown, not cracked, and near perfectly flat. It should jiggle slightly when you gently shake the pan.

Step 7

Cool the cake in the oven with the door open for about 2 hours, then refrigerate for 4 hours+ in the pan or overnight. Cake will sink and surface should be flat.

Step 8

Remove sides of springform pan. Use overhang paper to slide cheesecake off the cake pan base. Then slide the cheesecake off the paper. Now let's make the blueberry sauce.

Blueberry sauce for cheesecake:

Place 1 cup of blueberries (4oz), vanilla, sugar and lemon juice in a saucepan. Stir then bring to simmer over medium heat. Simmer for 7 minutes until blueberries breakdown. Mix cornflour and water, then stir in - it will thicken quickly. Stir in the remaining blueberries. Sauce should be syrupy - remove from stove and cool. Will thicken as it cools.

Once cool, stir. Adjust thickness 1/2 teaspoon of water at a time to make it the perfect "oozing" consistency - be careful, don't make it runny!

Spoon onto cheesecake so it's completely covered - you'll have maybe 1/2 cup sauce left, good for touch ups. Refrigerate 2 hours+.

Slice and serve!

Cake is at its best consumed within 4 days, after that I feel like it starts getting denser but still really fab, most people wouldn't notice a difference! Ideal to top the day or day before.

Bon Appetit!