Orange Blossom Baklava Cheesecake

FOR THE CHEESECAKE

Delicate floral notes and warm sweet spices perfume this silky cheesecake and crunchy topping.

Hands-on time 35min, plus (overnight) chilling and cooling. Cooking time about 10min. Serves 12

 100g unsalted butter, melted, plus extra to grease

 250g shortbread biscuits

 50g pistachio kernels

 3 cardamom pods, bashed open

 500g mascarpone, at room temperature

 125g icing sugar, sifted

 1tbsp runny honey

 2tbsp orange blossom water, we used Nielsen-massey

 300ml double cream

FOR THE BAKLAVA TOPPING

 50g pistachio kernels, finely chopped

 50g blanched almonds, finely chopped

 1tsp ground cinnamon

 100g runny honey

 2tbsp caster sugar

 1tbsp rosewater

 Red/pink food colouring, optional

 2 filo pastry sheets, we used Jus-rol

 25g unsalted butter, melted

TO DECORATE, OPTIONAL

 Crystallised rose petal pieces

 Gold leaf

1 For the cheesecake, lightly grease and line the base and sides of a 20.5cm round springform tin with baking parchment (see GH Tips). In a food processor, whizz the shortbread, pistachios and the seeds from the cardamom pods (discard husks) until finely crushed. Add 50g melted butter and pulse to combine.

2 Empty into the lined tin and press firmly with the back of a spoon to level. Chill until needed.

3 In a large bowl, using a handheld electric whisk, beat the mascarpone, icing sugar, honey, orange blossom water and remaining 50g melted butter until smooth. In a separate bowl, whip the cream until it just holds its shape. Using a large metal spoon, fold the cream into the mascarpone mixture until just combined.

4 Scrape into the tin and spread to level. Cover loosely and chill for at least 6hr, ideally overnight.

5 For the baklava topping, in a medium bowl, mix the chopped pistachios and almonds. Set aside 2tbsp of the nuts for decoration. Mix the cinnamon into the remaining nuts.

6 In a small pan, heat the honey, sugar and rosewater over low heat, stirring until the sugar dissolves. Remove from heat and mix 21/2tbsp of the honey syrup into the cinnamon and nut bowl. If you like, stir a drop of food colouring into the remaining syrup to dye it pink. Set aside.

7 Preheat oven to 200°C (180°C fan) mark 6. Lay the filo sheets side by side and brush the top of each sheet with melted butter. Slice each into 8 and spoon the sticky nut mixture into the centre of each piece. Working 1 piece at a time, lift the corners and loosely scrunch so the pastry stands upright. Repeat with remaining pieces.

8 Arrange on a baking tray and bake for 5-8min, until pastry is golden. Cool completely.

9 To serve, transfer the cheesecake to a cake stand or plate. Arrange the baklava pastries on top. If needed, mix a few drops of water into the honey syrup to loosen, then drizzle most of it over the cheesecake. Scatter over the reserved nuts and crystallised rose petal pieces and gold leaf, if using. Serve with remaining syrup.

PER SERVING 657cals, 7g protein, 52g fat (29g saturates), 39g carbs (27g total sugars), 1g fibre

GET AHEAD Prepare to end of step 8 up to 2 days ahead. Chill cheesecake and store cooled baklava pastries and syrup in separate airtight containers at room temperature. Assemble up to 1hr before serving.

TO STORE Keep loosely covered in the fridge for up to 3 days. The pastries will soften over time.