Chef Ryan Thompson at Al Samar Cake Boutique
‘This recipe is simple but very tasty and quick to prepare. I learned it while working with the Madinat Jumeirah’s pastry chef at the Grove Hotel in the UK. I like the simplicity and the texture of the cheesecake, and you can easily add any flavour to the mix to suit your personal taste. All the ingredients are readily available at any good supermarket.’

Ingredients
(For one cake that feeds five, or five individual cakes)
750g cream cheese
500g sour cream
300g granulated sugar
60g all-purpose flour
2 hen’s eggs
2 lemons, juiced and zested
1 vanilla stick (deseeded)
200g digestive biscuits
80ml melted butter
To serve: a selection of strawberries, raspberries, blueberries and redcurrants

Method
1 In a large bowl, whisk the cream cheese and sour cream together, ensuring they’re properly mixed. Then add the flour, sugar, lemon juice and zest and continue to combine well. Crack the eggs separately to ensure no shells fall into the mix, then add them to the bowl.

2 Line a cake tin with melted butter and fill three-quarters full with the cake mix. Fill a large, deep tray with tap water (this is referred to as a ‘bain marie’) and place the tin into the tray, then bake at 175˚C for 25 minutes.

3 While the cake is in the oven, crush the biscuits using a rolling pin. Combine with a little melted butter to ensure they stick together.

4 Use the rolling pin to roll out the biscuit mix between two sheets of grease-proof paper to the desired thickness. Then cut to the same size as the cake tin. Allow the biscuit to set in the fridge.

5 When the cake is baked, remove from the oven and allow to cool before turning the cake out carefully onto the base.

6 To serve, garnish the cheesecake with fresh berries.