TAHINI, HONEY AND CINNAMON BAKED CHEESECAKE

This delicious middle-eastern inspired cheesecake recipe is by dessert loving, tahini obsessed, food writer Felicity Spector for the incredible #BakeforSYRIA cookbook.

#BakeForSyria started as a single event in London: the ultimate charity bake sale on Columbia Road. The country’s best bakers came together to create and sell the most delicious pastries and baked goods with a Syrian inspired twist to raise money for Unicef’s appeal for the children of Syria.

SERVES:

12

COOKS IN:

2 hours plus chilling time

DIFFICULTY:

Super easy

INGREDIENTS

200g digestive biscuits

200g speculoos biscuits

Approx. 100g butter, melted

800g full-fat cream cheese (at room temperature)

2 large eggs (at room temperature)

200g golden caster sugar

60g runny honey

50g cornflour

250ml whipping cream

2 tablespoon tahini

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

METHOD

Preheat oven to 130°C and lightly grease a 25cm springform baking tin and line the base with parchment paper.

For the base:

Crush the biscuits in a food processor or bash with a rolling pin inside a sealed freezer bag until they resemble fine sand.

Add the melted butter, mixing thoroughly so all the crumbs are coated. Press a small amount into a ball: if it comes together and then crumbles when you touch it, that’s the right amount of butter.

Press the base into the prepared tin with the back of a spoon so that it’s level, and put in the fridge for 30 minutes while you make the topping.

Put the cream cheese into a stand mixer with the paddle attachment and add the sugar: mix until smooth and the sugar has melted. Add the honey and mix again to combine. Add the eggs, one at a time, until thoroughly incorporated – making sure you scrape down the sides of the bowl a couple of times. Sift in the cornflour and stir through, then add the tahini, the whipping cream, vanilla and cinnamon and mix again to combine.

Pour the topping on top of the chilled biscuit base, and bake on the middle shelf of the oven for approx 1 hr 20 mins – or until the top no longer looks wet and shiny and the centre jiggles just a bit when you gently shake the tin.

Turn off the oven, prop open the door with a wooden spoon and leave the cheesecake to cool inside for an hour to prevent cracking, then cool completely on a wire rack before covering the tin with foil and refrigerate for 8 hours – or overnight.

Release the springform tin to unmould and slide carefully onto a plate, sliding the greaseproof paper from under the base before serving.

Recipe by dessert loving, tahini obsessed, food writer Felicity Spector for the incredible #Bake for SYRIA cookbook.