Recipe developed and contributed by Maureen Gualtieri
Cheesecake is my absolute favourite dessert. I love it so much I’d have it every day if it wouldn’t eventually be the literal death of me! In that spirit, this month’s recipe whisks cheesecake away from the dessert table and finds a secure spot for it among the mains. A savoury blue cheese filling rests on a double digestive biscuit crust, the whole thing swirled through with DFC’s Mango Pear Maple Chutney. This cheese-plate-in-cake-form has umami aplenty and is super-rich; serve with plenty of extra crackers, and pile the top with a fresh garnish that includes salad greens, fruit, and other balancing vittles.
Blue Cheese Chutney Cheesecake
(Yield: 16 servings)
for crust
3 c. (300 g.) crushed digestive biscuits
scant 2/3 c. (140 g.) unsalted butter, melted
for filling
2 x 250g bricks plain, full fat cream cheese
2 X 125g pkgs blue cheese, crumbled
3 large eggs
1 c (225g) sour cream
1/3 c. (70ml) milk, at least 2% fat
1/4 c. (45ml) cooking wine or sherry
1/2 tsp freshly cracked black pepper
6 – 8 tbsp (approx. 75ml) DFC’s Mango Pear Maple Chutney
for garnish:
salad greens and/or microgreens
nuts – like walnuts, Marcona almonds, praline pecans
dried fruit – like apricots, dates, cranberries
fresh fruit – like figs, berries, apples
More DFC’s Mango Pear Maple Chutney
Take your filling ingredients out of the fridge at least an hour before starting; they’ll be smoother to mix if at room temperature. When ready to go, preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Line the bottom of a 9-inch springform pan with parchment paper. In a bowl, stir together your digestive biscuit crumbs and melted butter until well combined. Tip the mixture out into the springform, and press the mixture firmly into an even layer at the bottom of the pan. Bake for about 5 minutes until lightly browned, then remove and allow to cool. Leave the oven on.
Divide your blue cheese in half: crumble one half and leave the other half as-is. Place the room-temperature cream cheese, un-crumbled blue cheese, eggs, sour cream, milk, and cooking sherry in the large pitcher of your blender; blitz until blended. On a lower speed, stir in the black pepper and crumbled half of blue cheese. Pour the mixture over your crust. Dollop 6 – 8 tablespoons of DFC’s Mango Pear Maple Chutney evenly into the cheese filling, then take a skewer or butterknife and swirl the chutney attractively throughout.
If you have the means and patience to do a bain marie to prevent the top of the cheesecake from cracking, feel free! But we’re going to be decorating the top in such a way no cracks will be visible anyway. Either way, pop the cheesecake into your oven and bake until the centre is very nearly set about 60 – 65 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool on a rack for 15 minutes. Loosen the sides. Refrigerate AT LEAST 4 hours, preferably overnight.
When ready to serve, remove the springform sides and transfer the cake to a serving plate. Choose your toppings and arrange them over the entire top of the cheesecake, to taste – It’s a good idea to start with a base of greens and stack exuberantly from there! Now’s the chance to add more DFC’s Mango Pear Maple Chutney as well. Slice, and serve with crackers.
