Red velvet cheesecake
Prep time: 45 minsTotal time: 
Red velvet cheesecake
Prep time: 45 minsTotal time: 
Tamsin Burnett-Hall
Tamsin Burnett-Hall
Ingredients
For the base
- 100g butter, melted, plus extra for greasing
- 2 x 154g packs Oreo biscuits (chocolate creme, or regular), or 300g dark chocolate digestives
For the cheesecake layer
- 150g white chocolate, chopped
- 700g full-fat soft cheese
- 175g caster sugar
- 4 large eggs
- 2 tbsp cocoa powder, sifted
- 300ml soured cream
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 tubes Dr Oetker food colour gel (or use 2 x 38ml bottles liquid red food colouring, but the colour will be a less intense red)
For the topping (optional)
- 1 x 350g pack frozen raspberries, defrosted
- 3 sheets leaf gelatine
- 100g caster sugar
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- 50g white chocolate, chopped
Step by step
Prepare the cheesecake the day before serving. Leftovers keep for 2-3 days in the fridge.
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Preheat the oven to 150°C, fan 130°C, gas 3. Grease and line a 20cm x 30cm traybake tin (not loose-based) with baking paper.
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Crush the biscuits into fine crumbs in a food processor, or in a large plastic food bag, using a rolling pin. Mix with the melted butter; press firmly into the base of the tin. Chill while you make the cheesecake layer.
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Put the chocolate in a heatproof bowl over a pan of gently simmering water, making sure that the base of the bowl doesn’t touch the water. Leave to melt, then stir until smooth and set aside to cool slightly.
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In a food mixer, or in a bowl with an electric hand whisk, mix the soft cheese and caster sugar for a couple of minutes until well blended. Add the eggs, one at a time, followed by the cocoa, soured cream and vanilla, then the melted chocolate. Finally, add the food colouring until tinted to your preferred shade of red.
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Pour the cheesecake filling over the chilled biscuit base, then sit the tin inside a large roasting tin and put on the oven shelf. Pour hot water into the roasting tin so it comes about two thirds to three-quarters of the way up the outside of the traybake tin. Bake for 1 hour, or until the cheesecake is set but still has a slight wobble. Turn off the oven, but leave the cheesecake inside to cool for an hour with the door closed.
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Remove the cheesecake from its water bath and leave to cool completely. Cover and chill overnight.
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For the jelly topping, if adding, blend the raspberries to a purée and press through a sieve, discarding the seeds. Soak the gelatine leaves in cold water for a few minutes. Dissolve the sugar in 100ml water in a small saucepan, then remove from the heat and add the squeezed-out gelatine sheets and stir. Combine with the raspberry purée and lemon juice and pour evenly over the top of the chilled cheesecake. Chill for 2-3 hours until set.
- Melt the chocolate in a bowl over a pan of gently simmering water, then spread out on a baking tray lined with baking paper to a thickness of 2-3mm. Freeze until set, then break or cut into shards and chill until needed.
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When ready to serve, lift the cheesecake out of the tin, in its paper, then peel the paper away from the sides. Cut into squares and arrange on a platter with a chocolate shard in each square.TipTo ensure your squares are perfect, use a sharp knife that has been dipped into a jug of hot water then quickly wiped dry.
