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Chocolate, Brandy and Ginger Cheesecake is the perfect way to start feeling like it’s Christmas, without being too traditional.
As Christmas is just around the corner, I wanted to make a cake that managed to generate that festive feeling, but without it being sometime too obvious, like mince pies or Christmas cake. Looking over the past 11 months of cakes, I realised that there had only been one cheesecake made, so I thought it was about time to add another one, and this Chocolate, Brandy and Ginger Cheesecake seemed to fit the bill perfectly.
Ginger and Brandy always taste of Christmas to me, and even if that feeling isn’t shared by everyone, I think we can all agree that they’re warming to eat, so this chocolate, brandy and ginger cheesecake is the perfect sweet treat during the freezing cold winter months!
I got the recipe for this chocolate, brandy and ginger cheesecake from My Kitchen Table: 100 Cakes and Bakes book which I’d picked up earlier this year, and having made a few recipes from it, I can honestly say, it’s a really nice book that’s filled with cake recipes of all types, so well worth picking up if you don’t already own it. The recipe for this cheesecake called for gelatine, which as a vegetarian, I can’t use, but there are plenty of meat-free alternatives, such as Agar-agar and VegeSet which work just fine.
Why not try baking your own chocolate, brandy and ginger cheesecake using the recipe below?
To make this chocolate, brandy and ginger cheesecake, grease a 20cm (8in) loose-based cake tin or a springform tin.
Put the biscuits into a plastic bag and crush finely with a rolling pin. Melt the butter in a medium-sized pan. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the biscuit crumbs and sugar. Press into the prepared tin and leave to set.
To make the chocolate, brandy and ginger cheesecake filling, melt the chocolate gently in a bowl set over a pan of hot water, stirring occasionally. Allow to cool slightly.
Sprinkle the vegeset or gelatine over the measured water in a small bowl and leave for 10 minutes to ‘sponge’. Stand the bowl in a pan of gently simmering water until the vegeset/gelatine has completely dissolved. Leave to cool slightly.
Beat together the egg yolks, sugar and cheese in a large bowl. Add the soured cream and cooled chocolate. Stir in the dissolved vegeset/gelatine. Whisk the egg whites until frothy and fold into the cheese mixture along with the brandy and chopped fresh ginger. Pour onto the biscuit base and chill in the fridge to set.
When the chocolate, brandy and ginger cheesecake is set, carefully remove it from the tin before decorating with the whipped cream, chocolate curls and slices of stem ginger.
Enjoy!
