Irish Baked Cheesecake Recipe

WARM SAVOURY BAKED CHEESECAKE

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Cooking time: 1 hour 5 minutes

Serves 6-8



Ingredients:

125g/4oz plain flour

Pinch salt

75g/3oz Cuinneog butter

25g/1oz Flahavan’s Porridge Oats

50g/2oz walnut halves, finely chopped

4 medium eggs

300ml/ ½ pint milk

175g/6oz each of Cashel blue, St Tola, Gubbeen, crumbled, grated or finely chopped

2 tsp Dijon mustard

75g/3oz fine breadcrumbs

225g/8oz trimmed runner beans, cut into 1inch/2.5cm pieces

3 firm tomatoes, skinned, deseeded and cut into thin wedges

Handful fresh basil leaves

1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

Squeeze fresh lemon juice

Freshly ground black pepper



Method:

· Preheat the oven to 200*C/fan oven 180*C/Gas mark 6. Line the base of a lightly greased 8inch/20cm loose bottomed spring form tin with greaseproof paper.

· Sift the flour and salt into a large bowl and rub in the butter until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add the oats and walnuts. Separate one egg and add the egg yolk to the walnut mixture (the egg white can be kept and made into meringues). Stir in 1-2 teaspoons cold water if necessary to form a firm dough.

· Press into the base of the prepared tin to cover the base completely. Cover with greaseproof paper and baking beans and bake blind for 10 minutes. Remove the baking beans and paper and bake for a further 5 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 170*C/fan oven 150*C/Gas mark 3.

· Warm the milk in a large saucepan. Remove from the heat and stir in the cheese, mustard, breadcrumbs and freshly ground black pepper (no need to add salt as the cheese has enough salt in it), cool slightly. Separate the remaining eggs and beat the egg yolks into the cheese sauce.

· Whisk the egg whites until stiff and fold into the cheese sauce using a large metal spoon. Pour the mixture into the prepared tin. Level the surface. Bake for 50 minutes covering with foil towards the end of cooking time if browning too much.

· Ten minutes before the end of cooking time. Cook the beans in lightly salted boiling water for 4-5 minutes drain and toss with the tomatoes and oil and return to the heat just to warm through. Squeeze over the lemon juice to taste and seasoning to taste. Serve warm with the warm cheesecake.



Cook's tip

Try using the Oak smoked Gubbeen cheese as an alternative.