Terry’s chocolate orange cheesecake

A wonderful chocolate orange cheesecake made with Terry’s Chocolate Orange chocolates. If you can’t find them, simply replace them with milk chocolate and add the finely grated zest of two oranges plus 1 teaspoon of orange extract to the cheesecake filling. These are classic winter flavours — although judging by the weather outside, winter still refuses to leave…  Another great advantage is that this cheesecake requires no gelatine and is wonderfully simple to prepare. Highly recommended!

Ingredients for the base:

• 160 g digestive biscuits
• 40 g butter, melted

Place the biscuits and melted butter into a food processor and blitz until the mixture resembles wet sand. (If you don’t have a food processor, place the biscuits into a sturdy zip-lock bag and crush them finely with a rolling pin, then mix with the melted butter.)

Line the base of a 23 cm springform tin with baking paper.

Press the biscuit mixture firmly into the bottom of the tin and smooth with the back of a spoon. Place in the fridge while preparing the filling.

Ingredients for the cheesecake filling:

• 300 ml double cream
• 200 g Terry’s Chocolate Orange
• 500 g chilled full-fat cream cheese (Philadelphia-style)

Heat the double cream in a small saucepan until just boiling. Remove from the heat, add the Terry’s Chocolate Orange pieces and leave for 2 minutes. Stir until the chocolate has completely melted and the mixture is smooth. (If necessary, strain through a sieve to remove any lumps.) Allow to cool, then refrigerate for at least 12 hours.

Once thoroughly chilled, whip the chocolate mixture using a mixer fitted with whisk attachments until thick and creamy. Add the cream cheese in three additions, whisking after each addition until smooth and combined. Do not overmix. Spread the cheesecake filling over the chilled biscuit base and smooth the top. Refrigerate until fully set, preferably overnight.

Ingredients for the chocolate ganache:

• 80 g milk chocolate, finely chopped
• 40 ml double cream

Heat the cream until just boiling. Remove from the heat, add the chocolate and leave for 2 minutes. Stir until smooth and glossy. (Again, strain if necessary.) Leave briefly until the ganache thickens slightly.

Ingredients for decoration:

• 150 ml double cream, chilled
• 1 teaspoon icing sugar
• extra Terry’s Chocolate Orange chocolates for decoration

Remove the cheesecake from the tin and pour over the chocolate ganache. Return briefly to the fridge until the topping thickens slightly.

Whip the cream with the icing sugar until stiff peaks form. Decorate the cheesecake using a piping bag fitted with a large open star nozzle (such as Wilton 1M). Finish with pieces of Terry’s Chocolate Orange.

Store the cheesecake in the fridge.

Enjoy!