The Best Baked Vanilla Cheesecake

Serves: 12

I’m not usually one for baked cheesecake, I’m more of a fridge/gelatin set cheesecake girl. But when I tested out this recipe I haven’t eaten another since. This recipe is the perfect base for you to add whatever you like to the crumb base or even to the cheesecake mixture itself. I’ve even made a chocolate marbled cheesecake with this recipe and it worked out just as well!

Ingredients:

• 250g butter snap biscuits
• 50g walnuts or pecans
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 60g melted butter
• 500g softened cream cheese
• 2 tablespoons plain flour
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 270g caster sugar
• 125g sour cream
• 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 3 eggs, at room temperature
• 250g strawberries
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 5-7 basil leaves thinly sliced

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 160ºc. Lightly grease and line a 20 cm spring form cake pan.
2. Process biscuits and nuts in a food processor (or just place in a zip lock bag and bash with a rolling pin) until finely crushed. Add the cinnamon and butter and process till the mixture resembles wet sand. Pour mixture into the tin, press down and refrigerate until needed.
3. Using an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese until soft and fluffy. Beat in flour and salt. Beat in the sugar, sour cream and vanilla until well combined. Then beat in the eggs one at a time, until just combined. Pour mixture over the biscuit base.
4. Place cheesecake into a roasting pan and fill the pan up with boiling water about halfway up the cake pan and bake for 45-55 minutes or until just set, but still has a slight wobble in the centre. Turn the oven off and open the oven door about 10cm and cool the cheesecake in the oven, then refrigerate for 4 hours or over night.
5. Meanwhile, chop the strawberries into quarters and place into a bowl with the sugar and basil and let sit until ready to serve with the cheesecake.