Developed by former Great British Bake Off contestant Kate Henry – this is a wonderful twist on the classic 70’s cake. It looks very complicated and technical – but it isn’t. Give it a go!
For the Chocolate Shortbread base:
90g Unsalted Butter
40g Caster Sugar
100g Plain Flour
1 ½ Tablespoons Cocoa Powder
For the Cheesecake Filling:
280g Cream Cheese
200g Double Cream
100g Icing Sugar
Juice ½ Lemon
1 Jar of Opies Black Cherries with Kirsch
For the Jelly Layer:
Liquor from the Opies Black Cherries with Kirsch
3 Sheets of Gelatine
For the Chocolate Ganache
100ml Double Cream
100g Dark Chocolate – Chopped Finely
15cm/6inch high sided spring form or loose bottomed cake tin. Lined (base and sides) with baking paper.
Set Oven to Fan 160C
- To make the shortbread. Rub together all ingredients and mix well until it form a dough. Squish the dough into the base of the cake tin and smooth surface. Prick the surface with a fork all over and place in preheated oven for 20 minutes. Remove and allow to cool completely.
- To make the cream cheese layer, whisk all the ingredients together apart from the cherries until thick and stiff.
- Spoon half of the mix into cake tin on top of cooled shortbread layer. Take the jarred cherries and drain them retaining the liquor, set aside 10 of the best looking ones to decorate at the end and squish the other cherries into the cream cheese mixture in the tin then scoop the rest of the cream cheese over the top. Refrigerate.
- Next make the jelly layer. In a small bowl filled with cold water, place the gelatine leaves to soften for around 10 minutes.
- Meanwhile add the kirsch liquor from the jar into a small saucepan and gently heat.
- Squeeze out the excess water the gelatine leaves and add to the warmed kirsch liquor, stir to dissolve.
- Allow to cool to room temp and then pour over the cream cheese layer and replace back in the fridge to set.
- Next make the ganache. Place the chocolate (finely chopped) into a heat proof bowl and heat the cream in a saucepan until just boiling. Pour the hot cream over the chocolate and nudge the chocolate very gently to help melt.
- Once cool, whisk the ganache until light and fluffy and place in a piping bag.
- Remove the chilled cheesecake carefully from the tin and unwrap the baking paper.
- Pipe swirls of ganache in a circle around the edge of the jelly layer on the top of the cheesecake and pop a cherry on top of each swirl to finish.
Opies Black Cherries in Kirsch (390g £3.99) available from Tesco, Waitrose & Ocado.
