This glorious recipe adds a sweet touch to any celebration. A dreamy blend of toasted brioche, cheesecake and wild strawberries make this a canapé to remember.
Blend both sets of ingredients together and pass through a fine sieve to remove any lumps. Pour the cheesecake into a 5cm deep tray and cook for 45 minutes. Check after 20 minutes
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Once cooked, allow to cool before refrigerating
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Once cold, beat back the cheesecake until smooth and place in a piping bag with a nozzle
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Slice the over-ripe strawberries into a bowl, cover with cling film and place over a bain marie. Heat until all of the juice has been extracted from the strawberries, then pass the juice through a chinois lined with muslin cloth
Bloom the gelatine by soaking it in cold water until soft. Pour 125g of the strawberry liquid into a small pot and mix in the gelatine until it has completely dissolved. Allow to set in the fridge and reserve the remaining juice
1 sheet of gold gelatine
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Wash the wild strawberries carefully. Dip half of them, one-by-one, into the strawberry juice and drain off the excess liquid. Dip into the Mannitol powder to form a crisp outer shell. Set the remaining strawberries aside on paper towels
Cut the brioche into 3cm cubes. Using a Parisian scoop, remove a dip from the cube, dust with icing sugar and lightly toast on all sides until golden brown under the grill
Pipe some cheesecake into the dips and decorate with a couple of fresh strawberries, a couple of the Mannitol-coated strawberries and a scoop of strawberry jelly. Finish with a couple of small sweet cicely leaves
It is always a pleasing moment when a talented apprentice steps out and succeeds on their own terms. After working as head chef at Marcus Wareing at The Berkeley for five years, Alyn Williams has done exactly that; taking over the Westbury in the autumn of 2011 and quickly winning a Michelin star, which he maintained until he parted ways with the restaurant in 2019.
