Polish wild blueberry cheesecake

This delicate wild blueberry cheesecake is inspired by my melba peach cheesecake. It has a light sponge finger base, though you can use your favourite biscuits instead, and is topped with blueberry jelly and plenty of fresh wild blueberries. It’s a real treat! We haven’t had wild blueberries for years, so this dessert was an absolute delight ;). If you can get hold of wild blueberries, do give it a try!

An important note: unfortunately, cultivated blueberries are not a suitable substitute for wild blueberries in this recipe. The dessert will still set successfully, but it won’t have the same beautiful colour or flavour.

Ingredients for the base:

• 100 g sponge fingers

Line the base of a 25 cm springform tin with baking paper. Arrange the sponge fingers in a single layer, trimming them if necessary to cover the base completely.

Ingredients for the cheesecake filling:

• 500 g wild blueberries
• freshly squeezed juice of half a lemon
• 1 sachet blueberry jelly powder (for 375 ml water)
• 4 tsp (12 g) powdered gelatine + 60 ml cold water
• 250 g mascarpone, chilled
• 300 ml double cream, chilled
• icing sugar, only if needed, to sweeten

Place the wild blueberries and 3 tablespoons of sugar in a small saucepan. Heat until the sugar has dissolved, then bring briefly to the boil. Blend to a purée and pass through a sieve to remove the seeds. Add the lemon juice, stir and set aside.

Sprinkle the powdered gelatine over the cold water, stir and leave to bloom for 10 minutes.

Dissolve the blueberry jelly powder and bloomed gelatine in 150 ml boiling water. Stir thoroughly until both have completely dissolved. Leave to cool to room temperature, making sure there are no lumps remaining. If necessary, warm the mixture gently without allowing it to boil, then leave it to cool again.

Place the mascarpone in the bowl of a stand mixer and beat briefly until smooth. Add the prepared blueberry purée (it will be very runny) and mix until combined. Pour in the cooled jelly and gelatine mixture and mix briefly again. Whip the double cream until stiff peaks form. Add it to the blueberry mixture and fold in very gently with a spatula, keeping as much air in the mixture as possible. Taste and, if necessary, add some sifted icing sugar, folding gently until combined. Immediately pour the filling over the sponge fingers in the prepared tin and smooth the surface. Refrigerate for several hours, until the blueberry filling has set completely.

Additionally:

• 1 sachet blueberry jelly powder (for 375 ml water)
• 300 g wild blueberries
• desiccated coconut, for decoration

Dissolve the blueberry jelly powder in 250 ml boiling water. Leave to cool completely to room temperature.

Arrange the blueberries evenly over the set cheesecake filling. Carefully pour the cooled jelly over the top and refrigerate for several hours, until completely set. Remove the finished cheesecake from the springform tin and coat the sides with desiccated coconut. Store in the fridge.

Enjoy!