Blueberry and Lavender Baked Cheesecake

The subtle, floral flavour of lavender mixes beautifully with tangy, sweet blueberries in this elegant dessert, but you can leave it out if you prefer.

Hands-on time 30min, plus cooling and (overnight) chilling. Cooking time

about 1hr. Serves 10 FOR THE BLUEBERRY SAUCE  4tsp food-safe dried lavender flowers, ours were from souschef.co.uk  50g caster sugar

 300g blueberries, plus extra to decorate, optional

 Juice 1/2 lemon FOR THE CHEESECAKE  60g butter, melted, plus extra to grease  250g shortbread biscuits

 600g full-fat cream cheese

 175g caster sugar

 25g plain flour

 1tsp vanilla extract

 Finely grated zest 1/2 lemon, plus 1tsp juice

 2 large eggs, plus 1 large egg yolk

1 Using a pestle and mortar, grind the lavender flowers until fine. For the blueberry sauce, in a medium pan over low heat, gently cook the sugar,

blueberries, lemon juice and 3/4 of the ground lavender, stirring to help the sugar dissolve. Increase the heat to medium and simmer for 15min, until saucy and thick, mashing the berries occasionally to help them release liquid.

2 Blend until smooth (or leave as is if you prefer a chunkier texture). Cool completely.

3 For the cheesecake, lightly grease and line a 20.5cm round springform tin with baking parchment. In a food processor, whizz the shortbread to fine crumbs. Alternatively, bash in a food bag with a rolling pin. Pulse/stir in the remaining ground lavender and melted butter.

4 Tip into the prepared tin and firmly press to level with the back of a spoon. Chill for 10min. Preheat oven to 160°C (140°C fan) mark 3.

5 Meanwhile, in a large bowl using a handheld electric whisk, beat the cream cheese until smooth. Beat in the sugar and flour, followed by the vanilla, lemon zest and juice. Beat in the eggs 1 at a time, then beat in the yolk.

6 Spoon 150g of the cheesecake mixture into a separate bowl and mix in 1/2 the cooled blueberry sauce (reserve remaining sauce). Dollop alternate spoonfuls of the plain and blueberry mixtures into the tin on top of the biscuit base. Carefully marble with a skewer or cutlery knife, being careful not to disturb the base. Tap tin gently on a work surface to level.

7 Put on a baking tray and bake for 40min, or until set with only a slight wobble in the centre when the tin is gently tapped. Turn off oven and leave cheesecake inside with the door ajar to cool completely. Chill for 4hr, or ideally overnight.

8 To serve, transfer cheesecake to a cake stand or plate. Decorate with berries and drizzle over some of the reserved sauce. Serve in slices with the remaining sauce. PER SERVING (without decoration) 452cals, 7g protein, 27g fat (17g saturates), 44g carbs

(31g total sugars), 1g fibre

GET AHEAD Prepare to end of step 7 up to 2 days ahead. Chill cheesecake. Cool, cover and chill sauce. Complete recipe to serve, loosening sauce with a little water, if needed.