Blueberry Almond Cheesecake Recipes

BLUEBERRY CHEESECAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 160°C/320°F (140°C fan). Place shelf in middle of oven.
• Line inverted base: Get a 20cm/8" springform cake tin. Turn the base UPSIDE DOWN (Note 4), butter lightly then press on a square piece of parchment/baking paper. Then clip into the springform pan - excess paper will stick out, see photos in post and video.
• Line sides: Butter and line the side of the pan.
• 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.(Note 5)
• 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.
• Cream cheese: Use a stand mixer (with paddle) or handheld beater to beat the cream cheese until just smooth, no longer than 20 seconds on speed 4. (You do not want to aerate cheesecake filling too much as it causes cracks when it bakes)
• 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, speed 4).
• 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.
• Blueberries: Stir in blueberries with a rubber spatula. Pour into prepared crust.
• Bake: Bake for 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, see video at 1 min 23 sec (sets in next step).
• Cool: Cool the cake in the oven with the door open approx 20 cm / 8" for about 2 hours (Note 6), then refrigerate for 4 hours+ in the pan or overnight. Cake will sink and surface should be flat.
• Release: Remove sides of springform pan. Use overhang paper to slide cheesecake off the cake pan base. Then slide the cheesecake off the paper.
• Place 1 cup of blueberries (125g/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 wil thicken quickly.
• Stir in remainig 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 (see video, Note 7) - 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!

BAKED ALMOND, BANANA & BLUEBERRY CHEESECAKE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4 and lightly grease a 20cm round non-stick springform cake tin. Melt the butter and syrup in a pan, then stir in the oatcakes and almonds until well mixed and coated. Press firmly into the base of the tin to make a compact layer, then bake for 10 mins. Remove from the oven and increase it to 240C/220C fan/gas 9.
• To make the filling, mash the bananas in a large bowl. Add the ricotta, yogurt, eggs, syrup, vanilla and almonds, and beat with a wooden spoon until everything is very well mixed. Pour onto the base, scatter over the blueberries and bake for 10 mins, then turn the oven down to 110C/90C fan/gas 1 /4 and cook for 30-35 mins more. It should still have a bit of wobble in the middle when you gently shake the tin. Turn off the oven and leave the cheesecake inside to cool and set. Chill before serving.