Bake of the Week: Cherry and coconut cheesecake

THIS bake is about as indulgent as it gets. Cherries and coconut work really well together and it’s a lovely summery treat.

We reckon the recipe works perfectly well as it is. But if you want yet more creaminess, use a third pack of soft cheese in place of the Quark.

150g digestive biscuits

25g desiccated coconut

50g butter, melted

2 x 180g packs soft cheese

250g tub Quark

4 medium eggs

25g caster sugar

1 tsp vanilla bean paste

160ml can coconut cream

200g Waitrose Sweet & Juicy Cherries, pitted

25g fresh coconut chunks, thinly sliced with a vegetable peeler

Preheat the oven to 180°C/160°C fan/gas 4.

Place the biscuits in a food processor to make into fine crumbs.

Mix well with the desiccated coconut and butter and press into a 20cm round loose-bottomed cake tin.

Whisk the soft cheese, Quark, eggs, sugar, vanilla and coconut cream in a large bowl, and pour over the crumb base.

Roughly chop half the cherries and scatter over the top with the coconut slices.

Bake for 1-1¼ hours until golden on top but still with a slight wobble. Remove from the oven and cool completely in the tin.

Remove from the tin and place on a platter.

Serve topped with whole cherries and shavings of toasted coconut, cream or ice cream.