Chocolate cherry cheesecake

I've never really been a fan of cheesecake - usually it's a bit too......well cheesy for me. I particularly dislike those American-style baked ones which tend to have a texture which makes me gag.

I like the idea though, and have created this version which has just a hint of cheesiness but is creamy, sweet and delicious.

I've used this basic idea to make different versions such as soaking raisins in rum and mixing through the cream, adding Chambord to the cream and topping with fresh raspberries or using coconut biscuits for the base and topping with mango purée.

This is still my husband's favourite though, he'd be very happy if I made this twice a week!

Ingredients:

200g Bourbon biscuits
30g salted butter
150ml double cream
150g Philadelphia Light
15g vanilla extract
15g icing sugar
370g cherry pie filling
A chunk of dark chocolate

How to make it:

1. Put the biscuits into a large bowl and crush to a fine crumb with the end of a rolling pin.

2. Melt the butter by putting it into the microwave for 1-2 mins - keep an eye on it to make sure it doesn't boil.

3. Tip the butter into the crumbs and stir thoroughly making sure that it covers all of the biscuit.

4. Pour the biscuit mix into the bottom of a springform tin and press down with the back of a dessert spoon, making sure the base is even.

5. Put the tin into the fridge while you make the topping.

6. Whip the cream, Philadelphia, vanilla and icing sugar to stiff peaks. Be careful though as it can go to far and solid in a few seconds.

7. Take the tin back out of the fridge and spread the creamy topping onto the base.

8. Gently pour the cherries onto the topping - you may need to move them about a bit to make sure they're evenly distributed.

9. Grate some chocolate over the top.

10. Put back into the fridge for at least a couple of hours for it to set.