Gastrono-me | www.gastrono-me.com
Gemma Simmonite of Gastrono-me in Bury St Edmunds has this Wimbledon-inspired cake for us
This is a deliciously light cheesecake finished with just about everything associated with Wimbledon season – juicy summer strawberries, raspberries, crushed meringues, and of course a slightly sinful Pimm’s glaze. Anyone for tennis?!
Serves 8-10
INGREDIENTS
For the cheesecake case
100g of butter, melted
225g of digestive biscuits
2tbsp of caster sugar
½ tsp of salt
For the filling
900g of Philadelphia cream cheese, room temperature
250g of caster sugar
3tbsp of plain flour
2tsp of vanilla extract
3 large free-range eggs plus 1 yolk, room temperature
200ml of sour cream, at room temperature and stirred until smooth
For the Pimm’s glaze
100ml of Pimm’s
300ml of cloudy lemonade
1tbsp of strawberry jam
1tsp of grenadine
For the cheesecake decoration
A selection of strawberries and raspberries
Thinly paired cucumber
Crushed meringue shells
Mint sprigs
METHOD
Heat the oven to 180°C
Tip the biscuits, melted butter, caster and salt into a food processor and blitz to make fine crumbs, press into the tin firmly and bake for 10 minutes remove and allow to cool
Increase the oven temperature to 220°C
With an electric hand whisk or tabletop mixer beat the cream cheese on a low speed for about 2 minutes
Slowly add the caster sugar, when incorporated add the flour, making sure to scrape down the sides
Now add the vanilla extract, lemon zest, eggs, and the egg yolk, again scraping down to make sure all the ingredients are incorporated
Add the soured cream and whisk on low until just blended
Pour in the filling and bake for 10 minutes
Reduce the oven to 110°C and bake for a further 40 minutes
Turn off the oven and open the door and leave for a further 2 hours.
Pimm’s glaze
Put the Pimm’s, lemonade, grenadine and jam into a small saucepan and slowly bring to the boil. Boil for 8-10 minutes until reduced and syrupy. Strain into a jug and cool.
To decorate
Arrange the strawberries, raspberries, meringue pieces, coiled cucumber slices, and mint.
Drizzle with the Pimm’s glaze to make your toppings glisten.