Pineapple & Mango Cheesecake Bites

aka ananas (it's a Belgian joke...). I've been in a baking slump for some time, in fact I haven't written a recipe for at least 5 months which is a while for me. Originally the thought behind this recipe was passionfruit, and as you can see, not a single passionfruit was harmed in the making of this cake. Well, in all honesty I thought about the cost which is why I swapped to frozen tropical fruits. The base originally was going to be chocolate shortbread but it was far too overpowering in terms of flavour. Black pepper has always rattled around my head when I think of pineapple and so I thought I would come up with a base which incorporated it. I should note I've also written up the base as separate biscuits should you want to make them. This is a fridge set cheesecake with jelly and so it does involve gelatine. Not all cheesecake of this nature use gelatine, some even use eggs and I know people can be iffy about using raw eggs. For me, I didn't want it to be too rich which is why I opted not to use them. I did use gelatine in the cheesecake itself though as it does need some stability for the jelly top. Not to mention a bit of resistance for when you cut it up.

Makes 20 portions

Hands-on Time 45 minutes

Chilling Time +12 hours

Baking Time 20 minutes

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Ingredients

600g frozen pineapple
400g frozen mango
100g rolled oats
175g wholemeal flour
1/4 tsp fine salt
1 tsp baking powder
70g light soft brown sugar
140g unsalted butter (plus extra for greasing)
50ml milk
30g desiccated coconut
1 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
30g dark chocolate
9 tsp powdered gelatine
240g double cream
400g full-fat cream cheese
175g caster sugar
2 tsp vanilla essence
2 tbsp water
2 tbsp lime juice
2 tbsp rum

Equipment

Large saucepan with lid
Food processor
Fine sieve
Bowl
Baking parchment
20cm x 20cm deep-sided tin
Microwaveable bowl
Microwave
Mixing bowl
Electric whisk
Spatula
Palette knife
Teaspoon
Knife

Method

1. Make the Pineapple & Mango Purée

Place the frozen pineapple and mango into a saucepan. Cover and cook over a low heat for 15–20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the fruit has softened.
Blend the fruit until there are no large visible chunks.
Pass the purée through a fine sieve over a bowl. You should have approx. 525-550 grams.
Refrigerate until needed.

2. Make the Ginger, Coconut & Black Pepper Base

Preheat the oven to 170°C/150°C (fan)/325°F/Gas Mark 3.
Grease and line a 20cm x 20cm deep-sided tin with baking parchment.
Combine the oats, wholemeal flour, salt, baking powder, brown sugar, desiccated coconut, ginger and black pepper in a food processor.
Add the cold butter and milk and blend until you have a dough.
Press the dough evenly into the lined tin.
Bake for 20 minutes, or until lightly golden.
Remove from the oven and leave to cool completely in the tin.
Melt the chocolate in a microwaveable bowl in 30-second bursts, stirring between each blast, until fully melted.
Drizzle the melted chocolate over the cooled base.

3. Make the Pineapple & Mango Cheesecake

Sprinkle 3 teaspoons of gelatine over 75g of the pineapple and mango purée, stir.
Gently heat the purée and gelatine mixture until the gelatine has completely dissolved. Do not boil.
Place the cream cheese, 100g of caster sugar and vanilla essence into a mixing bowl and whisk until smooth.
Add the purée and gelatine mixture and double cream to the cream cheese.
Lightly whisk until completely combined.
Pour the mix over the oat base. Level with a spatula and place into the fridge to chill for at least 6 hours until set.

4. Make the Pineapple & Mango Jelly

Sprinkle 6 teaspoons of gelatine over the water, stir and leave to bloom.
Measure 450g from the remaining pineapple and mango purée into a saucepan and add the remaining 75g of caster sugar.
Heat gently over a medium heat, stirring until the sugar has dissolved. Do not boil.
Remove the purée from the heat and stir in the bloomed gelatine mixture until the gelatine has completely dissolved.
Add the lime juice and rum and stir to combine.
Leave the jelly mixture to cool at room temperature for approximately 30 minutes before pouring it over the cheesecake.
Return the cheesecake to the fridge for at least 6 hours until set.

5. Portion the Cheesecake

Once fully chilled, carefully lift the cheesecake from the tin using the baking parchment.
Use a sharp knife to portion the cheesecake into up to 20 pieces, cleaning the knife between cuts for the neatest finish.

Enjoy!