Gingerbread Cheesecake

Recipe

Serves:  10 people

British | Dessert

Ingredients

Cheesecake

  • 200g Gingernut Biscuits
  • 75g Unsalted Butter, melted
  • 675g Cream Cheese
  • 250ml Double Cream (plus 200ml to serve)
  • 125g Brown Sugar
  • 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
  • 3 Medium Eggs
  • 3 tbsp Plain Flour
  • 1 tbsp Ground Ginger
  • 1 tsp Ground Cinnamon
  • 2 tbsp Caster Sugar

Poached Pears

  • 5 Pears, ripe and peeled
  • 75ml Maple Syrup (plus extra for serving)
  • 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
  • 300ml Water
  • 1 tsp Ground Cinnamon
  • 23cm/9in Loose Bottom Cake Tin
  • Greaseproof Paper

Method

  1. Pre-heat the oven to 180°C/350°F/Gas Mark 4.
  2. Line the cake tin with greaseproof paper.
  3. Blitz the biscuits into crumbs with the melted butter.
  4. Press into the base of the cake tin and slightly up the sides.
  5. Whisk the cream cheese until fluffy. Add the cream, sugar, cinnamon, ginger and vanilla and whisk again until fully combined.
  6. Add the eggs one at a time, stirring and then stir in the flour.
  7. Pour over the crumb base and bake for 45-50 minutes until set, but a slight wobble remains.
  8. In the meantime, heat the water with the maple syrup, vanilla and cinnamon.
  9. Add the pears and cover, poaching for approx. 15-20 minutes.
  10. Whip the extra 200ml of double cream with the caster sugar.
  11. Remove the cheesecake from the oven and, when cooled, pile the whipped cream on to the centre of the cake and place the pears around the edge.
  12. Serve the cheesecake drizzled with maple syrup.