Baked Cheesecake

New York style

You will love this baked cheesecake. It can be eaten as it is, with fresh fruit or, topped with caramel sauce and sliced banana. My personal favourite topping is just a drizzle of melted plain chocolate,(70% cocoa solids if possible) and one or two cherries preserved in Kirsch.

For the base.

175g digestive biscuits, crushed

65g unsalted butter, melted

Filling

225g ricotta cheese

225g creme fraiche

225g cream cheese

3 eggs, lightly beaten

225g caster sugar

Grated rind and juice of 1 lemon

1 1/2tsp corn flour

1. Crush the biscuits in a blender or food processor, then mix with the melted butter. Spoon into a lightly greased 20cm spring-release cake tin and spread evenly. Chill while preparing the filling.

2. Put all the filling ingredients in a food processor and pulse briefly until smooth. Spoon over the biscuit base and bake at 150°C / fan oven 140°C / 300°F / Mark 2 for 1 ¼ hours. At this stage the cheesecake will still be slightly soft in the middle.

3. Turn off the heat but do not open the door. Leave the cheesecake to cool completely in the switched-off oven, for 3-4 hours. It will continue to firm up during this time.

Refrigerate until you are ready to serve.