baked vanilla and lemon cheesecake with marinated strawberries recipe

Serve chilled - it needs to be really cold. Doves Farm organic digestives are less sweet than the usual ones and are ideal here.

for 8

• 12 digestive biscuits
• 50g butter, melted
• 500g cream cheese
• 120g caster sugar
• 1 tablespoon plain flour
• juice and grated zest of 2 lemons
• 2 eggs, plus 1 yolk
• 1 x 170ml carton of soured cream
• 3 teaspoons vanilla extract, or seeds scraped from 1 vanilla pod
• double cream, to serve

For the marinated strawberries

• 450g fresh strawberries
• 2 tablespoons Cointreau
• juice and grated zest of 1 small orange
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh mint
• 2 teaspoons caster sugar or honey

Preheat the oven to 160°C/gas mark 2-3.

Put the digestives into a small plastic bag and bash them gently with a rolling pin, or whizz them for a minute in a food processor. Mix with the melted butter and press into the bottom of a 20cm spring-form cake tin to cover the base.

Put the rest of the cheesecake ingredients into a large bowl and beat or whisk together until light and fluffy. Pour on top of the biscuit base.

Place the tin on a baking tray in the middle of the oven for 40-50 minutes, or until firm and very slightly wobbly in the middle. Turn off the oven and leave the cheesecake in it to cool as this prevents it from cracking. (Don't worry if cracks slightly) When cold, remove from the tin and place in the fridge to chill.

Hull and halve the strawberries. Place in a bowl with the Cointreau , orange juice and zest, mint and sugar. Allow to marinate for at least 30 minutes. To serve, spoon the strawberries over the top of the cheesecake and pour cream on the top.

This recipe features on p207 of Sarah's Food for Friends and Family cookbook.