Cheese and pineapple is practically a British institution. The cheese in this recipe might sound bonkers, but rest assured Hix Restauraurants’ Ronnie Hix doesn’t need to be institutionalised – this cheesecake is a winner.

Strawberry & Castello Pineapple Halo cheesecake

Makes 20

Ingredients:

  • 250g Hobnobs or other biscuits
  • ½ tsp vanilla extract
  • 50g butter
  • 250g Castello Pineapple Halo cheese
  • 250g double cream
  • 75g caster sugar
  • 150g strawberries

Method:

  • Put the Hobnobs or other biscuits in a plastic bag and crush with a rolling pin.
  • Tip the crumbs into a saucepan with the butter and heat, stirring until the butter melts and the crumbs come together.
  • Spoon the mixture into a biscuit cutter and press down until you have a base with roughly 5mm thickness.
  • Repeat until all the crumbs have been used. This should make around 20 bases for your cheesecakes.
  • To make the strawberry compote, put the strawberries in a pan on a low heat, add 25g sugar, and reduce until the strawberries start to lose their form and you have a rich syrup. Leave to cool.
  • For the topping, whip together the Pineapple Halo cream cheese with the double cream and remaining caster sugar and vanilla essence until thick.
  • To assemble the cheesecake, spoon the strawberry compote onto the biscuit base and top with a quenelle of the cream cheese mixture.
  • Serve immediately or keep chilled until required.

 For more information on Castello cheese, visit www.castellocheese.co.uk

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