Rhubarb Swirl Cheesecake

I'm a sucker for tart and sour flavour sensations, which is why I adore citrus fruits, sumac and vinegar, and I especially like the sharpness of fruit in a dessert. 

Rhubarb can be aggressively tart, I remember my old friend and next door neighbour, Hazel, being given a stalk and a bowl of sugar to dip it in to to make it palatable. 

With the aid of the dullingly sweet cheesecake, some ground ginger and a smattering of caramelised demarara sugar on top this is a grown up but indulgent teatime, or indeed any time, treat.

Rhubarb Swirl Cheesecake

Base

60g wholewheat flour

60g white flour

85g soft butter

60g sugar

pinch salt

Cheesecake mixture

450g cream cheese

150g sugar

3 eggs

1 tsp ground ginger

Rhubarb purée 

100g rhubarb, diced

2 tbsp sugar

40g demerara sugar

Turn oven on at 160C./Gas Mark 3

To make the base, mix all ingredients with electric hand-whisk until uniform in consistency. Line a loose bottomed spring-form tin with baking paper and press the base mixture in until evenly distributed. Bake for 10-15 minutes or until base is golden brown, allow to cool.

Turn the oven down to 140C/Gas Mark 1

Put rhubarb and sugar in a pan over a medium heat until soft, around 10 minutes. Purée in a food processor and set aside to cool.

Use clean electric hand-whisk to mix cream cheese, sugar, eggs and ground ginger until smooth and pour into prepared spring-form tin on top of the base. 

Spoon rhubarb purée into a piping bag and pie a swirl of rhubarb on to the cheesecake.

Bake for 1 hour and a half, then sprinkle with demerara sugar and turn up to 200C and bake for 5 until caramelised, not burned. Checking every few minutes.

Leave to cool. Refrigerate. Serve.