Recipe: Best New York cheesecake

Chopped strawberries and passionfruit complete the New York cheesecake.

Serves 10

2 cups crushed round wine biscuits
145g butter, melted
1 tsp lemon zest
500g traditional cream cheese
1 cup sour cream
1 cup cream
1 cup caster sugar
4 large eggs, beaten
1 lemon, juice and zest

1: Preheat the oven to 165C. In a mixing bowl, combine the crushed biscuits with the melted butter and zest.

2: Line the bottom of a 23cm spring-form pan tin with the biscuit base, pressing down firmly using a glass. You could line the base of your tin with baking paper and also line the sides. Annabelle didn't, but it can make removing the cheesecake easier.

3: Mix all the ingredients in a food processor until just smooth. Pour the mix into a spring-form pan and bake for 60-70 minutes.

4: The cheesecake needs to be set but still have a slight "wobble" in the centre. Turn off the oven and leave the cake to cool down in the oven for about one hour to prevent the top from cracking. Chill the cake in the fridge overnight and dust the top with icing sugar.

TOPPING

½ cup sour cream
1 cup chopped strawberries (or other smaller berry fruit left whole)
2 tbsp passionfruit syrup

1: Smear the top of the cheesecake with the sour cream.
2: Toss the berries in the passionfruit pulp and then pour all over the sour cream topping. If you have fresh passionfruit, scoop out the seeds and pulp from 6 and discard any white pith. Make a sugar syrup by boiling 1 cup of water with 1 cup of caster sugar with the zest of half a lemon until well-combined. Strain and cool. Add the pulp and store in the fridge for future use.