Strawberry, Mascarpone & Passionfruit Cheesecake

Strawberries have got to be one of the most popular fruits. They make for the perfect healthy low GI snack, and are jam packed full of antioxidants.

If you manage to find strawberries in your fridge that were not instantly devoured the second they were bought, resist the urge to eat them there and then, hard I know, instead try cooking with them. Strawberries are so versatile and easy to cook with that your efforts will not be wasted, I assure you!

Transforming bowls of strawberries into sticky, sweet jam is one of my favourite things to do on a cold winter’s day. However if you only have one or two punnets of Strawberries to cook with don’t worry, the great thing about strawberries is that a punnet goes a long way.
 
This recipe for Strawberry, Mascarpone and Passionfruit Cheesecake only uses one punnet of strawberries to create a dessert that, whether it be served up for afternoon tea or for a decadent dinner party desert, is sure to be a crowd pleaser.
 
Strawberry, Mascarpone and Passionfruit Cheesecake
Recipe by Elle Vernon
 
Ingredients & Shopping List
Serves 4
250g mascarpone
2 tbsp icing sugar mixture
250g punnet strawberries,
Hulled, thinly sliced
1 tsp vanilla extract
16 savoiardi biscuits
Extra ¼ cup passionfruit pulp
Icing sugar mixture, to dust
 
 
1. Place mascarpone and sugar into a medium bowl. Stir until just combined.
2. Place strawberries and vanilla into a medium bowl and toss to coat. Set aside.
3. Spread the top of 8 biscuits generously and evenly with mascarpone mixture. Arrange these, mascarpone side up, side by side on serving platter to form a rectangle.
4. Top with 3/4 of the strawberries followed by remaining biscuits to form a log. At this stage you can refrigerate the cake for an hour if you want the biscuits to slightly soften, but if you are after a bit of crunch and want to serve straight away, top with remaining strawberries, and drizzle over extra passionfruit. Dust with icing sugar and serve.