What do you do with the very best of in-season cherries? You combine them with rich organic cocoa to make this lovely summertime cheesecake. Perfect for making with the kids or for bringing along to parties and barbecues!

Cherry and Chocolate Cheesecake

Serves: 6

INGREDIENTS

125g digestive biscuits, broken up
25g cocoa powder
75g unsalted butter
300g cream cheese
60g icing sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
½ tsp lemon juice
250ml double cream

For the cherry compote:
300g cherries
170g jam sugar
½ lemon, juice

METHOD

Into a food processor, blitz together the biscuits and cocoa powder until the biscuits turn to crumbs. Heat the butter into a saucepan and tip in the biscuits. Coat the biscuits in the butter, making sure they don’t catch on the pan, before setting to one side.

Taking a 9 inch cake tin with removable base, press the biscuit mixture into the bottom.

Combine the cream cheese, icing sugar, vanilla extract and lemon juice together, until smooth. Into a separate bowl, whisk the double cream until it thickens up, before folding it into the cream cheese mixture. Press the cream mix into the tin and place into the fridge for a couple of hours.

To make the cherry compote, heat the cherries, along with 50ml of water on a medium heat and bring to the boil. Cook for 15 mins or until soft. Tip in the sugar, until it dissolves and follow with the lemon juice. Bring back to the boil and simmer for a further 15 mins. Taking a chilled plate, add a spoon of the compote and leave to cool for 30 secs. If the jam wrinkles when pushed, it’s set.

Take the cheesecake out of the fridge and pour over the cherries once they’ve cooled a little. Serve up and enjoy!