Burnt basque cheesecake with cherry and balsamic jam ripple

Start by making the cherry and balsamic jam. Add the cherries, caster sugar, balsamic vinegar and lemon juice to a large pot. Bring to a gentle simmer over a medium-low heat and leave to thicken and cook down for around 30–40 minutes

Meanwhile, prepare the sweet pickled cherry topping. Add the quartered cherries to a mixing bowl along with the sugar, red wine vinegar and water. Stir to dissolve the sugar then leave to pickle in the fridge while you prepare the cake base

Line an 8 inch round cake tin with baking paper then preheat the oven to 200°C fan

Beat the cream cheese until smooth in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, then add in the sugar on a low speed

Once the sugar has dissolved, add in one egg at a time on low speed

Check that the mix is smooth then add in the flour, vanilla extract, and salt

Finally – still on low speed – add in the cream. Once smooth pour half of the mix into the lined cake tin, then add in half of the jam and use a spoon or cake stick to swirl the mix through the batter. Top with the remaining basque cheesecake mix

Bake for 40 minutes

After 15 minutes of baking the cake should start to brown on top. If not, turn the oven up to around 220°C

After 40 minutes of baking, and once the cake is a deep brown colour, turn the oven off with the cake inside and crack the door open. Keep the cheesecake in the oven for 5–10 more minutes then remove and leave to cool for 1 hour. The cheesecake will sink slightly in the middle as the cake sets

Once the cake is cooled, remove it from the parchment paper and top with the remaining jam and pickled cherries. Slice and serve with extra jam and a dusting of icing sugar