Video
Strawberries & Cream Cheesecake
Silky smooth and creamy white chocolate cheesecake swirled with fresh strawberry cheesecake, topped with fresh whipped cream and juicy strawberry compote.
Ingredients
Strawberry compote:
- 1 lb (454g) fresh strawberries (3 ½ - 4 cups) hulled, halved or quartered depending on size
- ¼ cup (50g) granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon (8g) corn starch
- 1 tablespoon (15ml) lemon juice
Crust:
- 1 ⅓ cups (160g) graham cracker crumbs from about 24 individual squares
- 2 tablespoon (30g) packed dark brown sugar
- 5 tablespoon (70g) unsalted butter, melted
Cheesecake filling:
- 18 oz (500g) brick cream cheese, softened
- ¾ cup (150g) granulated sugar
- 3 large eggs, at room temperature
- 3 oz (85g) pure white chocolate
- ½ cup (120ml) full fat Greek yogurt
- 1 teaspoon (5ml) pure vanilla extract
- ½ cup (120ml) pureed Strawberry Compote
Whipped cream topping:
- 1 cup (237ml) cold 35% whipping cream
- 1 tablespoon (12g) granulated sugar
- ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Instructions
- Make the strawberry compote. Combine chopped strawberries and sugar in a small saucepan and cook over medium heat for 3 minutes until softened but not mushy. Turn of heat. Stir together corn starch and lemon juice in a small bowl to make a slurry and then stir it into the strawberries. Return to medium heat and cook until it just starts to boil and thickens right up. Transfer to a bowl to cool completely. Remove a heaped ½ cup of strawberry compote and puree until smooth – you will use this to make the strawberry swirl in the cheesecake.
- Preheat your oven to 350°F. Line the bottom of an 8-inch round non-stick springform pan with a round of parchment paper and then wrap the outside base of the pan with two large sheets of aluminum foil. This will prevent water from getting in when you bake it in a water bath.
- Make the crust. Place graham crackers and brown sugar in the bowl of a food processor and pulse until it forms fine crumbs. Add the melted butter and pulse until combined. You can also crush the graham crackers in a resealable bag with the bottom of heavy pot or a rolling pan and then mix them together with the sugar and melted butter in a bowl. Tip the mixture out into your prepared baking pan and press it evenly over the base and about 1-inch up the sides of the pan.
- Bake the crust for 10 minutes until lightly golden and feels dry. Reduce oven temperature to 325°F. Bring a kettle to the boil for the water bath.
- Make the filling. Beat soft cream cheese in a large bowl on medium speed until very smooth. Add sugar and beat until smooth and creamy, about 30-45 seconds. Do not over-beat because large bubbles will cause the cheesecake to crack during baking and cooling. Beat in eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition so that the batter is smooth before you add the next egg. Mix in melted white chocolate, then mix in yogurt and vanilla. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl as necessary to ensure there are no lumps. Transfer 1 cup of cheesecake batter to a clean bowl and stir in the reserved strawberry puree.
- Pour the vanilla cheesecake batter into the pre-baked crust, spreading it out evenly and popping any air bubbles that you see. Gently spoon the strawberry batter on top and then very gently swirl it in with a small spoon, lifting up some of the vanilla batter so that you get defined swirls and the strawberry batter reaches into the middle of the cheesecake. Also, don’t swirl too much or it will fade into the batter and don’t go too deep or you will disturb the crust.
- Carefully place cheesecake on a rimmed baking tray large enough to contain it and place it in the oven. Pour boiling water into the baking sheet to come about ½-inch up the sides of the springform pan and bake for 35-45 minutes until set around the edges but still very wobbly in the middle. Turn the oven off and leave it in for another 15-20 minutes without opening the oven. Don’t try to check on it as all the heat will escape the oven. It is ready when the filling is set but the center is just slightly wobbly or jiggles when the pan is shaken. Transfer pan to a wire rack to cool. After 10 minutes of cooling, run a knife around the edges of the cake to loosen it from the sides and then remove sides of pan.
- Let the cheesecake cool completely, then refrigerate for at least 2 hours or overnight.
- Make the cream topping. Place heavy whipping cream and sugar in a medium bowl and beat or whisk until it holds soft peaks. Add vanilla and mix it through, beating a few more seconds until it reaches almost firm peaks so it is easier to pipe. Fill a piping bag and pipe it onto the chilled cheesecake around the edges. Spoon the chilled strawberry compote into the middle and keep refrigerated before serving.
