Guest Blog Introduction.
This blog was guest written by Hazel over at Jam Moo Kow. Jam Moo Kow are a local family business who create preserves from home grown and locally sourced ingredients. Not only did JamMK send us this fantastic recipie, they also made an InstaTV so you can watch and follow along. You can find out more about Jam Moo Kow and their stockists here.
It’s Over to Hazel.
For me, nothing says summer more than the soft fruit season. I love going out every day to pick the fruit and then bringing it back to the kitchen to enjoy the smells and tastes of freshly cooked jam and beautiful desserts.
Probably everyone’s favourite soft fruit are strawberries and it is very easy to whip up an impressive dessert with them. One of my favourite recipes is my “no-weigh” strawberry cheesecake. Very basic ingredients are transformed into a sophisticated dessert with little effort and just everyday equipment. In fact, it is so straight forward that I have even been known to pack my cheesecake tin and make it when we are away on a caravan holiday park!
It is a great recipe to make with children too and if you don’t have homegrown strawberries to hand then pop along to Molly’s Pantry to pick up a punnet of locally grown ones. I would, of course, also recommend using my strawberry jam for the recipe as not only is it delicious and made from local strawberries but it comes in a handy jar, just the right size for the recipe.
You will need;
13 digestive biscuits
Slightly less than half a block of 250g unsalted butter
1 x 397g tin of condensed milk
250 or 280g tub of soft cream cheese
The juice of 2 lemons
1 x 110g jar of strawberry jam
A punnet of strawberries weighing something close to 300g
You will also need the following equipment:
A 20cm spring form cake tin
A plastic food bag
A bottle of water or other heavy object
A tin opener (depending on the brand of condensed milk)
A large bowl or Pyrex dish
A large spoon or a whisk
A knife
A suitable container to store the jam/strawberry mix in
Some Clingfilm or similar to cover the cheesecake once made
A fridge
The Fun Bit.
Grease the cake tin with butter and set aside. Put the biscuits into a plastic sandwich bag and tie up then repeatedly bash the biscuits with a bottle of water or similar until the biscuits are crumbs. Melt the butter either in the microwave or in a saucepan on the hob. Next mix together the butter and biscuits in a bowl until well combined. Press the biscuit mix firmly into the tin to form the base and place the tin in the fridge to set whilst you prepare the creamy cheesecake bit.
Clean out the bowl and dry it then empty the tin of condensed milk and tub of cream cheese into it and stir well to combine and make smooth. Cut the lemons in half then use a citrus juicer to extract the juice. If you don’t have one, you can squeeze the lemon over a small bowl and fish out any pips. Add the lemon juice to the cream cheese mix and stir well to thicken the mixture. Please note that the lemon juice seems to have some sort of chemical effect on the cheese mix, causing it to thicken up so it is essential to add it.
Spoon this mixture onto the biscuit base and level out. Cover and return to the fridge and leave to set for a couple of hours or overnight. When ready to serve, slice up the strawberries and place in a bowl with the jam and stir well.
Cut the cheesecake up into slices and spoon the strawberries mix over each slice to serve.
If not serving all the cheesecake in one sitting, do not add the strawberries to the bit you are keeping. Put the cheesecake back in the fridge, with the strawberries in a separate container.
Some notes from The Pantry team
We can veganise/ G.f by..
This recipe contains animal products that can be easiliy subbed for vegan ones. Here is a great vegan mascarpone recipe by Veggies Don’t Bite, but if you’re short on time a good ready alternitives can be found Here. Digestives are usually vegan but gluten free solutions are availiable in most “free from” sections in the usual supermarkets. Vegan Butter alternitives are aplenty in almost any shop these days, so are easily accessible.
Get in touch!
If you give this recipie a go we would love to see your photos and receive your feedback during this summer holiday. You can leave comments on this post, send an email to info@mollyspantry.co.uk or get in touch on our socials; Insta, Facebook and Twitter. We love receiving your food pics and suggestions moving forward.
Enjoy the sunshine,
Mollys x
