Ingredients
- 500g strawberries, hulled and roughly chopped, plus 250g extra whole-hulled strawberries to serve
- 2 cups (440g) caster sugar, plus additional two tabs
- Shortbread or Butternut Cookies 250g
- 90g butter unsalted, melted and cooled
- Cream cheese 1.5 kg, room temperature
- Four eggs
- One tbsp vanilla extract
- Two tablespoons cornflour
- Pink food coloring
- 3 tsp dried edible lavender
- Whip 300ml thickened cream
Method
- Stirring to dissolve the sugar, add half of the sugar, 1 cup (250ml), and the strawberry into a saucepan. Over medium heat, boil for 6-8 mins or until strawberry has broken down and thickened. Let cool completely, and then blend in a blender until smooth. Set aside.
- Preheat oven to 140 degrees C. Line the bottoms of two 15cm or one 24cm pan with baking paper. Grease them. Line the sides of the pans with two layers of baking paper, greasing each layer to ensure they stick together. This will prevent the sides from browning. In a food processor, whiz the cookies until they are fine. Add butter to the food processor and blend until combined. Divide evenly between 2 pans, and press into base.
- Beat cream cheese in a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment until it is smooth. Beat in remaining sugar (1 cup, 220g), then add eggs one at a time. Add vanilla, cornflour, and puree to the mixture. Color with food coloring. Divide the mixture between two pans, and bake. Bake for one hour and 25 minutes, or until the edges are firm but the center wobbles. Turn off the heat and cool the cakes in the oven completely. Then chill them for up to 4 hours or overnight.
- Set aside extra strawberries and sugar for 15 minutes. Top cheesecakes off with cream, lavender strawberries, and lavender sugar.
