Ginger Strawberry Cheesecake

It just had to be something with strawberries for a Christmas Day dessert – particularly when I had my own strawberries ripe and bursting with flavour.  I wanted to try something a bit different and found a recipe for a cheesecake with a ‘gingernut’ base and fresh macerated strawberries on top.  It was very easy and not too sweet.

250g (1 packet) Gingernut biscuits

75g butter, melted

250g cream cheese

1 cup sour cream

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 tbsp finely chopped crystallised ginger

2 punnets (about 500g) strawberries

1/4 cup brown sugar

1 tbsp water

1/2 cup whipped cream or marscapone

1 tbsp strawberry jam, for glazing (I hadn’t made my jam yet so I used apricot jam)

Edible flowers (optional)

Preheat oven to 180C and grease a 24 cm loose-bottom flan tin.

In a food processor, pulse the biscuits to a fine crumb.  Add melted butter and pulse to combine.  Pour mixture into tin and press firmly to the sides and base to line the tin evenly, making sure it is well compacted.  Bake for 10 minutes.  Remove from oven and leave to cool in the tin.

Place the cream cheese, sour cream and vanilla in a bowl or food processor, mix to combine and then stir in chopped ginger.  Pour filling into the cooled crust, smooth the top and put in fridge for 3-4 hours, or overnight, to set.

Rinse, hull and halve the strawberries.  Place in a bowl with sugar and water.  Leave for at least 30 minutes at room temperature to macerate.

To serve, spread whipped cream or marscapone over the filling, then spoon the strawberries over the top, discarding the liquid.  Warm the jam, and when runny, brush over the strawberries to give them a lovely shine. Decorate with edible flowers if desired.  Keep refrigerated until ready to serve.