Grandmother’s old-fashioned cheesecake

This deeply decadent cheesecake is one of those dishes that takes me straight back to my childhood. My Grandmother’s recipe is studded with sultanas and has a lemony sharpness that cuts through the richness perfectly. I prefer to make mine in a deep tin, but if you only have a shallower springform tin use the smaller quantities given in brackets for the filling ingredients. The larger quantity works in a tin at least 9cm deep.

INGREDIENTS Pastry base:

200g soft unsalted butter 100g caster sugar 300g plain flour

1 large egg beaten

Filling:

750g -1kg curd cheese (medium fat soft cheese) (150g) 200g caster sugar (75g) 100g sour cream Zest of (½ )1 lemon (75g ) 100g sultanas (2) 3 medium eggs (2) 3 medium egg yolks (50g) 75g plain flour. Mixed berries to serve.

METHOD

● Lightly grease and line a 22cm regular or deep (at least 9cm) spring form cake tin .

● Beat the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy either by hand or in a mixer. Add the plain flour and mix to combine. Press half the dough into the bottom of the cake tin. Add half the beaten egg to the remaining dough and mix well to combine. Shape into a disc, wrap in clingfilm and refrigerate along with the pastry-lined tin and remaining beaten egg for one hour.

● Heat the oven to 180°C (160°c fan). Prick the pastry in the tin with a fork and bake for approximately 15 minutes until cooked and pale gold. Allow to cool. Take the remaining pastry out of the fridge and roll between two sheets of baking parchment to a thickness of approx ¼ cm. Cut the pastry into long strips and refrigerate.

● For the filling: combine the cheese and half the sugar in a bowl. Add the sour cream, lemon zest and sultanas and mix well. Beat the eggs, egg yolks and remaining sugar then fold into the mixture. Fold in the flour.

● Scrape the mixture onto the pastry-lined tin, level off the surface, then arrange the pastry strips in a lattice pattern over the top. Brush with the reserved beaten egg and bake for approximately 60 - 70 minutes until the top is browned.

● Allow to cool in the tin before removing to a serving plate. Serve with fresh berries of your choice.