Vanilla cheesecake with raspberry sauce

Cheesecake with raspberry sauce — doesn’t that sound irresistible? The raspberry swirl is baked into charming heart shapes, making this a perfect dessert for Valentine’s Day. This cheesecake is intentionally not too tall — made from a slightly smaller quantity — so the raspberry flavour can truly shine without being overpowered by the creamy vanilla filling. Highly recommended!

Ingredients for the base:

• 160 g chocolate sandwich biscuits (“Oreos”- style)
• 30 g butter, melted

Place the biscuits and melted butter into a food processor and blend until the mixture resembles wet sand. (Alternatively, crush the biscuits in a sealed bag with a rolling pin, then mix with melted butter.)

Line the base of a 23 cm springform tin with baking parchment. Press the biscuit mixture firmly into the base.

Bake at 175°C for about 10 minutes, until lightly golden. Remove and allow to cool slightly.

Wrap the outside of the tin twice with foil — the cheesecake will be baked in a water bath.*

Ingredients for the cheesecake filling:

• 500 g curd cheese (full-fat or semi-fat, finely ground)
• 125 ml double cream
• 2 large eggs
• ½–⅔ cup caster sugar
• 1 tablespoon potato starch
• 1 tablespoon plain flour
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract (or vanilla paste / vanilla sugar)

All ingredients should be at room temperature.

Place all ingredients in a mixing bowl and mix until just combined. Do not overmix — incorporating too much air will cause the cheesecake to rise and then collapse. We don’t want that; the cheesecake should be perfectly flat after baking.

Pour the filling over the pre-baked base.

Ingredients for the raspberry sauce:

• 170 g raspberries (fresh or frozen, no need to defrost)
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 2 teaspoons potato starch

Place the raspberries, sugar and lemon juice in a small saucepan. Heat gently until the sugar dissolves, the raspberries thaw and release plenty of juice. Strain through a sieve to remove the seeds. Add the potato starch to the purée and mix until smooth.

Spoon the raspberry sauce onto the cheesecake batter in large dots or circles. Using a skewer or the tip of a teaspoon, drag through the centres of the dots to create heart patterns (I made two circular patterns).

Bake in a water bath* at 160°C for about 40 – 45 minutes. The cheesecake should be set and slightly springy on top. Remove from the oven, take it out of the water bath and leave to cool completely on the worktop. Refrigerate overnight — this is when the cheesecake develops its proper texture.

Water bath method:* A water bath means placing the cheesecake tin into a larger tin or ovenproof dish and pouring boiling water into it so it reaches halfway up the sides of the cheesecake tin. This creates a humid baking environment, ensuring even baking, preventing cracks and giving the cheesecake a perfectly smooth, creamy texture.

Enjoy!