Use ready-made ginger cake as a base for these individual cheesecakes topped with strawberries infused in balsamic vinegar.
Ingredients
• 50g/2oz readymade gingerbread, sliced
• 450g/1lb cream cheese
• 250g/9oz caster sugar
• 250g/9oz crème fraîche
• 475ml/17fl oz double cream
• 2 vanilla pods seeds scraped out
For the strawberries
• 200g/7oz strawberries
• 2 tsp caster sugar
• 2 tsp balsamic vinegar
Preparation method
- Place the gingerbread onto a tray and leave out overnight to dry.
- When dry and hard, place into a food processor and pulse until fine crumbs are formed. Set to one side.
- Place the cream cheese, caster sugar, crème fraîche, double cream and vanilla seeds into a large bowl. Whisk together until smooth.
- Place the cream mixture into a plastic piping bag and carefully pipe into 4.5cm/2in deep by 5.5cm/2½in
wide chefsÂ’ rings.
- Smooth off the top with the back of a flat knife and place in the fridge for two hours to set.
- When set, remove from the fridge and leave at room temperature for five minutes.
- Place the ginger crumbs onto a plate and carefully pick up the chefsÂ’ rings and dip each end of the cheesecake into the ginger crumbs.
- Lightly shake each cheesecake onto a plate, removing the ring.
- Meanwhile, for the strawberries, heat a frying pan over a high temperature, add the strawberries and sugar to the frying pan and fry briefly for a minute, then pour over the balsamic and cook for a further 30 seconds.
- To serve, spoon some of the strawberries onto the plate, alongside the cheesecake