Food & Drink

Baked Cheesecake Recipe with Roasted Rhubarb

June 18, 2013
Baked Cheesecake Recipe with Rhubarb or Strawberries

Photo credit: Mona Wise of www.wisewords.ie

At last, the rhubarb season is here! On Sunday I dusted off the domestic halo that’s been in a bottom drawer for several months and made this Baked Rhubarb Cheesecake for a Fathers Day treat.

The recipe by Mona and Ron Wise was published in The Sunday Times newspaper in their weekly food column, and I’m reproducing it here with kind permission.

Rhubarb Cheesecake

Photo Credit: Mona Wise

Custardy Baked Cheesecake Recipe with roasted Rhubarb
(makes 8 – 10 slices)

For the base

250 g digestive biscuits
100 g cream crackers
100 g pistachios
100 g pecans
150 g butter, melted

For the cheesecake filling

500 g Kilbeg mascarpone cream cheese, room temp
300 g crème fraîche
100 g caster sugar (or honey)
2 eggs
Zest of one orange

For the roasted Rhubarb topping

550g rhubarb
85g golden caster sugar

How to prepare it

The base

Line the base of a springform pan (with a removable base) with parchment paper. Place the biscuits, cream crackers, pistachios and pecans into the food processor and process until finely crushed. (Alternatively, if you do not have a food processor, place them in a ziplock bag and use a rolling-pin to grind the biscuits and nuts to a small crumb-like texture.

Add the melted butter and continue to mix it in until well combined. Transfer the biscuit mixture to the prepared pan and press firmly over the base and sides of the pan. Place in the fridge for 30 minutes, giving it time to set.

The roasted rhubarb

Pre-heat the over to 200°C

Rinse the rhubarb in cold water and shake off the excess. Trim the pieces to around 5cm and place into a shallow baking dish. Toss the sugar with the rhubarb then arrange into a single layer. Cover with foil or a baking sheet and roast for 15 minutes until the rhubarb is tender and syrupy but still keeping it’s shape.

The cheesecake

Turn down the oven to 160ºC

Place the cream cheese and crème fraîche and sugar in a bowl and mix until smooth. (Ideally you should use a stand mixer with the paddle attachment). Add the eggs and zest of orange and process until well combined (4 mins).

Place the (already prepared) biscuit base pan on an oven tray (in case of overflowing) and pour the filling into the base and bake in pre-heated oven for one hour, or until just set. Turn off the oven and leave the cheesecake in the oven for a half hour with the door open. Cover with cling film and refrigerate for 2 hours.

When ready to serve, top the cheesecake with the roasted rhubarb.

Optional .. you can serve a small dollop of whipped cream on top of this if desired but it is not needed.

Strawberry Baked Cheesecake

Strawberry Baked Cheesecake

Strawberry Cheesecake

Because the roasted rhubarb is added to the top of the baked cheesecake it can be replaced with any favourite seasonal fruits. I added strawberries to half of it as our polytunnel is overflowing with them right now and our girls aren’t big fans of rhubarb.

Strawberry Cheesecake

Strawberry Cheesecake

So if you have an occasion coming up and are looking for a special dessert, why not give this one a try. Your friends will love you for it.

17 Comments

  • Reply speltforchoiceblog June 18, 2013 at 11:27 am

    Sinfully indulgent. I’d nearly risk being sick to indulge in that. Love cheesecake:) Great pics

    • Reply greensideupveg June 18, 2013 at 2:14 pm

      It is and really only for special ocassions Marian. Being sick for it a bit extream tho! Wonder could you make a glutten free base?

      • Reply speltforchoiceblog June 18, 2013 at 6:29 pm

        I wouldn’t really just yours reminded me of a pineapple one I used to make. Oh my it was delicious. Yours was just a blast to the past of how it used to be.

        Am making raw ones at the minute as avoiding dairy etc as well and they are going down well. Different though

        • Reply greensideupveg June 19, 2013 at 2:32 pm

          I’d really miss cheesecake Marian if I had to give it up for any reason, if though I only eat it on special ocassions. Feel your pain.

  • Reply WiseMona June 18, 2013 at 11:31 am

    Oh Dee – the strawberries look ah-mazing!!
    Fab … thanks for all the ‘links of love’ there too. Much appreciated.

    • Reply greensideupveg June 18, 2013 at 2:12 pm

      They’re deliciously sweet Mona and complement the cheesecake beautifully. And you’re more than welcome, thanks for sharing your creations 🙂

  • Reply Colette June 18, 2013 at 11:53 am

    Both look fab, Dee. Don”t know which to try first 🙂

    • Reply greensideupveg June 18, 2013 at 2:10 pm

      Make it half and half Colette. One of the good things about it is you can add any topping.

  • Reply ayearinredwood June 18, 2013 at 11:53 am

    Dee love the photo of the strawberry cheesecake…. you going for the food photography category this year 🙂 Seriously though it looks delicious, really really delicious.

    • Reply greensideupveg June 18, 2013 at 2:09 pm

      No I haven’t Margaret, though vibrant there’s no comparison with Mona’s standards, winner of last year of that category, wouldnt stand a chance! (And it is) will make it/bring it next time we share food 🙂

  • Reply Dr Hows Science Wows (@sciencewows) June 20, 2013 at 12:23 pm

    Kind of wish I hadn’t see this post Dee, now I have to try it, and that means another weekend that the housework gets shelved for “more important things”… looks delicious thanks for sharing!

    • Reply greensideupveg June 20, 2013 at 1:47 pm

      🙂 life’s too short for housework in the summer months Niaomi. I’ve ditched it today in favour of more seed sowing. Mum-in-law visit next week though so a transformation will be taking place soon. Hope you enjoy the cheesecake recipe as much as we did.

  • Reply elainebutler August 20, 2013 at 9:21 pm

    Thought this recipe might interest you. Seems easy enough to do. http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/nigella-lawson/rhubarb-and-muscat-jelly-recipe/index.html

    • Reply greensideupveg August 20, 2013 at 10:10 pm

      Thanks for sharing that Elaine, it does look interesting. Will keep it in mind next time I’m harvesting rhubarb 🙂

  • Reply 5 reasons why we should eat 'in season' (& eat rhubarb cake too!) May 18, 2014 at 8:36 pm

    […] you’re searching for other rhubarb recipes, I’ve one here that the lovely Mona Wise published in her newspaper column last year for rhubarb cheesecake and another from Sarah of Cake in the Country for rhubarb lemonade that’s very refreshing at […]

  • Reply Rhubarb.... growing, caring for and eating - Greenside Up September 13, 2014 at 12:33 am

    […] There are many recipes using these delicious stalks, rhubarb crumble wins hands down in our household every time, although I did taste a delicious rhubarb cake last year as well as a divine roasted rhubarb cheesecake. […]

  • Reply Strawberry Smoothie RecipeGreenside Up July 10, 2015 at 10:51 pm

    […] at the end of May, enjoying a few fresh ones with our muesli every morning as well as on the occasional strawberry cheesecake, but the long hot days quickly brought them on […]

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