Knockalara Farmhouse Cheese makes an unusual range of sheep's and cow's milk cheeses.
Ingredients
Base:
- 40g unsalted butter, fridge cold and cut into 2cm dice, plus 20g extra, melted for greasing the moulds.
- 50g pumpkin seeds, toasted
- 5 digestive biscuits (75g), roughly crumbled
- 40g coarsely grated Parmesan
Cheesecake filling:
- 20g unsalted butter
- 1 medium leek, trimmed, white and green parts finely sliced (125g)
- 360g cream cheese
- 170g crème fraiche
- 80g double cream
- 2 garlic cloves, crushed
- Large handful of finely sliced wild garlic
- 100g Knocklara cheese
- 4 eggs, lightly beaten
To serve
- 40g runny honey (mixed optionally with a few drops of truffle oil)
- 30g hazelnuts, toasted and lightly crushed
- Wild garlic
Method
- Preheat oven to 20oC/180 fan/gas mark 6. Lightly grease eight 12cm wide ramekins or soufflé tins and place a circle of baking parchment in the base of each.
- Place all the ingredients for the cheesecake base in a food processor, with ½ teaspoon of salt. Blitz well to form fine crumbs, then divide between the ramekins, pressing down evenly and firmly. Set aside until ready to use.
- Place the butter for the cheesecake in a small pan and add the leek. Cook on a medium heat for about 7 minutes stirring from time to time until the leek is soft but still retains its colour.
- Set aside to cool, then transfer to a large mixing bowl along with the cream cheese, crème fraiche, double cream, garlic, wild garlic, ½ teaspoon of salt and a good grind of black pepper.
- Mix well to form a smooth paste before adding the blue cheese and eggs.
- Fold gently then pour mixture into the individual ramekins.
- Bake for 25-30 minutes until the mixture is cooked and a skewer inserted into the middle of one of the cakes comes out clean.
- Remove from the oven and serve at once, in the ramekins or soufflé tins, with a drizzle of the honey, hazelnuts and wild garlic on top.
