Anyone who knows me will tell you that chocolate freckles are my absolute favourite treat. Celebration time? Freckles. Tough week? A bag of freckles is the answer.
To turn this chocolate favourite into a dessert worthy of being our cover star for February, I decided it needed to become a no-bake cheesecake. There’s a reason no-bake cheesecakes are so popular. They’re easy to prepare ahead, no oven needed, and a simple two-ingredient biscuit base never lets you down.
To combine these two favourites, at first I considered topping the whole cheesecake with a crunchy freckle layer. It didn’t take long to realise trying to cut through hard-set chocolate into cheesecake would be a nightmare!
Instead, I created a silky chocolate ganache topped with hundreds and thousands. It delivers that nostalgic freckle flavour, but with a much easier texture to cut and serve. And if you’re as freckle-obsessed as I am, you could also make a few classic freckles to serve with the cheesecake, too!
Ingredients
Method
Lightly grease and line the base and sides of a 19cm round springform tin with baking paper.
Add biscuits to a food processor and blitz to a fine crumb. Add melted butter and process to combine. Using the back of a spoon, press mixture evenly over the base of prepared pan. Chill while making filling.
Dissolve gelatine in boiling water. Set aside.
In a stand mixer, beat the cream to form firm peaks. Transfer to a separate bowl. In a bowl of a stand mixer, using a paddle attachment, beat cream cheese, condensed milk and vanilla on high speed until light and fluffy. Slowly pour in gelatine mixture, beating on high speed to combine. Fold through the whipped cream.
Pour mixture over biscuit base. Smooth to level. Chill for 5 hours.
For the freckle top, melt the chocolate and cream in a bowl in the microwave on MEDIUM/50% power in 30-second bursts until smooth. Cool slightly. Pour over the set cheesecake and use the back of a spoon to level. Immediately cover with hundreds and thousands. Chill for 4 hours to set.
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