Pear and Butterscotch Cheesecake

Step 01

Whizz the biscuits in a food processor until they resemble crumbs. Tip the crumbs into a 20cm loose-bottomed cake tin, add the melted butter and mix well, then use the back of a metal spoon to press the crumbs firmly into the bottom of the tin. Cover with foil and chill.

Step 02

To make the sauce, melt the butter, sugar and cream in a saucepan over a low heat. Bring the mixture to the boil, then simmer for 5 minutes to thicken. Add the pear pieces, remove from the heat, pour into a jug and leave to cool. Leave any firm pears sitting in the caramel for longer before removing from the heat so they soften slightly.

Step 03

In a bowl, beat the cream cheese and icing sugar. Initially the cream cheese will thin, but keep beating and eventually it will start to thicken. In a separate bowl, beat the 275ml cream until stiff peaks form. Fold the cream into the cream cheese mixture until well combined. Pick out as many of the pear pieces as you can from the butterscotch sauce and add these to the cheesecake mixture, a bit of sauce will come with them but try not to bring too much as it will stop the filling from setting.

Step 04

Fold the pears into the mixture, then tip this onto the chilled biscuit base, smoothing with a spatula. Cover with cling film and return to the fridge along with the jug of sauce. Leave to set for at least 1 hour, ideally 3-4 hours.

Step 05

Remove the cheesecake from the tin, slice and share, letting guests pour over the sauce.