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Cooking with love….

Today is the first day of the most loving month of the year…

Valentine’s Day falls on a Saturday this year, giving you a full weekend to plan some lovely treats for you and your beau.

If you’re looking to show off your culinary skills this year, why not make these simple but very impressive Mini Blueberry Cheesecakes (in the shape of hearts… awww!).. Good luck!

Mini Blueberry Cheesecakes recipe

Ingredients
For the biscuit base:
75g (3oz) digestive biscuits
10g (1/4oz) butter
10ml (½fl oz) golden syrup
For the cheesecake:
300g (11oz) full fat cream cheese
65g (21/2oz) caster sugar
1 lemon, grated rind and juice
200ml (7fl oz) double cream
For the topping:
5ml (½fl oz) cornflour
juice of ½ lemon
10ml (½fl oz) water
40g (11/2oz) caster sugar
200g (7oz) blueberries

Add the biscuits to a small plastic bag, seal the top then crush the biscuits with a rolling pin. Heat the butter and golden syrup in a small saucepan until melted, stir in the biscuit crumbs and mix together. Divide between 8, 75ml (3fl oz) heart shaped sections in a flexible silicone cake mould. Press the biscuits into a thin layer with the back of a teaspoon. Chill while making the filling.

Add the cream cheese, caster sugar and lemon rind to a bowl and whisk together briefly until just mixed. Gradually whisk in the lemon juice and the cream until smooth and thick.

Spoon the cheesecake mixture into crumb lined moulds then spread into an even layer and swirl the tops with the back of a spoon. Chill for 5 hours or overnight.

To make the blueberry topping, add the cornflour to a small saucepan, stir in the lemon juice and mix until smooth then add the water, sugar and blueberries. Cook over a medium heat for 2-3 minutes, stirring until the blueberries are just beginning to soften and the sauce has thickened to become a rich blueberry colour. Leave to cool, cover and chill until ready to serve.

To serve, loosen the edges of the heart moulds and press up from the base, removing the cheesecakes with a small spatula. Transfer to serving plates and spoon the blueberries on top.

Cook’s tip
If you find the cheesecakes a little tricky to remove from the moulds or haven’t had much time to chill them, freeze for 30 minutes to firm up then try again.

Oh and don’t forget the candles and flowers….