Fresh Blueberry Cheesecake with a homemade crust

Blueberry Cheesecake Components

Here are the 3 parts to this Blueberry Cheesecake (which, by the way, is a rendition of this Strawberry Cheesecake, in case you’d like to browse reader feedback!):

1. The biscuit crust – I’m a cheesecake crust tragic. I just love the texture contrast of the sweet crunchy crust with that insanely creamy filling. So my cheesecake crusts go up the sides, rather than just being on the base. But you can skip the sides if you prefer;
2. The creamy rich-yet-light filling – a juxtaposition you can only achieve with baked cheesecakes, the consequence of which is that it’s not sickeningly rich (ie we can eat more! 🙌🏻);
3. Blueberry sauce topping – with a syrup that drips slowly down the side of the cheesecake as you plough your way through it….

1. Cheesecake biscuit crust

Here’s what you need for the cheesecake crust – just plain sweet crackers (any type will do – loads of options listed in the recipe) and butter (the glue).

How to make the cheesecake crust

Blitz to make crumbs (or bash a ziplock bag with a rolling pin – very therapeutic), mix with butter then press into the cake pan.

TOP TIP: Make quick work of the crust by using something round with a flat base and straight walls to press the crumbs into the pan.

Everybody thinks cheesecake biscuit walls are really fragile – but they are actually rather sturdy once the cake is cooled. I don’t have fairy fingers – and I’ve never destroyed one!

2. Blueberry cheesecake filling

Here’s what goes in the cheesecake filling. Standard baked cheesecake ingredients, with the addition of blueberries.

• Cream cheese – must use block, not the spreadable cream cheese in tubs (too soft). If you can only get spreadable, just skip the sour cream;
• Blueberries – fresh or frozen is fine here. If using frozen, do not thaw it (otherwise it bleeds when you stir it in and you’ll end up with a purple cheesecake!);
• Sour cream – lightens up the mixture a touch so it’s not ridiculously rich. Just 1/2 cup makes such a difference!
• Flour – just a tiny bit really helps stabilise the filling to keep it slightly aerated (rather than dense so it sticks to the roof of your mouth) and so it doesn’t collapse in the middle;
• Eggs – the key ingredient that gives this cheesecake aeration. You don’t need to whip it – eggs just naturally rise when baked (you can see in these Egg Frittata Muffins how much egg rises);
• Vanilla – for flavour;
• Lemon zest – because the flavour of lemon is terrific to bring a touch of freshness to cheesecakes, and is a natural pairing with blueberries; and
• Sugar – white, to keep the colour of the filling white.

How to make the cheesecake filling

Here’s how the filling is made and baked:

The cheesecake filling is very straightforward to make – everything just gets mixed in a bowl, poured into the crust then baked.

TIP: Only mix until each ingredient is incorporated and the batter is smooth. No need to beat to aerate the batter. If the filling is beaten too much and becomes very aerated, then the cheesecake might rise a lot in the oven which will cause cracks. Not a big deal though because flaws get hidden under the Blueberry Sauce!

You don’t need to fuss with a water bath to prevent surface cracks. That’s only required to rectify recipes that don’t make the filling correctly, bake at the wrong temperature, or for too long.

WHY COOL CHEESECAKE IN THE OVEN?

The cake is cooled in the oven for two reasons:

1. If you cook the cake all the way through in the oven, it puffs up too much which causes surface cracks; and
2. To keep the cheesecake creamy inside. The oven is turned off before the cake is fully cooked, then it finishes cooking in the turned off oven. The gradual drop in temperature creates an environment such that the cheesecake finishes cooking but cannot overcook.

3. Blueberry sauce for the cheesecake

Here’s what you need for the blueberry topping:

• Blueberries – frozen or fresh is fine here;
• Sugar – to create the syrupy consistency;
• Vanilla – for flavour;
• Lemon – to cut through the sweetness and because it goes so well with blueberries; and
• Cornflour/cornstarch – to thicken the syrup so it drips slowly down the cake when you cut it, rather than running everywhere.

How to make blueberry sauce for cheesecake

We cook some of the blueberries with the sugar, lemon and vanilla so they break down to create the vibrant purple sauce.

Then stir in cornflour/cornstarch to thicken, and lastly stir in whole blueberries.

Word of warning: this blueberry sauce stains! The pictured wooden spoon is now permanently purple!

Cheesecake FAQ

Here are some key tips for cheesecake making that may have been the cause of issues you’ve had with recipes in the past:

WHY DID MY CHEESECAKE CRACK?

Cracks occur because the cheesecake rises too much. This can happen because filling that was beaten for too long so it aerated too much, or overcooking.

• Excess beating = aerated batter = cheesecake rises too much = cracks in surface
• Overcooking = cheesecake rises too much = cracks in surface

But don’t forget, it doesn’t matter if your cheesecake cracks because you’re smothering it with sauce!

SO HOW DO I ENSURE MY CHEESECAKE WON’T CRACK ON THE SURFACE?

3 key tips:

1. Make sure you don’t over beat the batter by using room temperature ingredients so they incorporate faster, and follow my recipe beating time directions;
2. Cook in a moderate oven, not hot – if the oven is too hot, the cheesecake will rise too fast, causing the surface to crack;
3. Turn the oven off while the cake is still jiggly (partially undercooked) then leave it in the turned off oven to cool – it will finish cooking during this time.

This is how jiggly the cheesecake should be when you turn the oven off – more jiggly than you’d expect!

Also note how it’s quite puffy and even a big sunken in the middle. That doesn’t matter because it sinks back down to a level surface once it cools in the oven.

DO I NEED TO USE A WATER BATH TO BAKE CHEESECAKES?

NO. Though you’ll see many recipes swearing by the water bath method to ensure the surface of your cheesecake doesn’t crack, it’s not necessary if you make the filling properly, don’t over beat, cook in a moderate oven and don’t overcook.

In fact, when I published the Strawberry Cake recipe, I did a side by side comparison of water bath vs no water bath cheesecakes. As you can see in the photo below, there is no difference in the surface of the two cheesecakes – except the water bath one was a LOT more of a hassle to get into the oven!

MY CHEESECAKE FELL APART WHEN I REMOVED IT FROM THE CAKE PAN!😩

I feel your pain – that was the disaster that occurred to me with my very first cheesecake!

Here’s how to make it easy (and safe) to remove your cheesecake: flip the base UPSIDE DOWN, line it with baking/parchment paper and secure the sides so the excess paper is sticking out.

If you do this, you don’t need to lift the cheesecake over the ridge of the base, it just slides right off. Similarly with the paper, grab the overhang then push the cheesecake off the paper. Voila! Cheesecake in tact!

Blueberry sauce optional!
I know I’ve been going on and on about how great the blueberry sauce is. And it certainly adds an extra special touch here, but I only do it when blueberries are in season – and cheap! Because this cheesecake calls for 250g/8oz blueberries IN the cake (2 Australian punnets) and 375ml / 13oz ON the cake (3 punnets)

For the rest of the year, I only use blueberries inside the cake and a serve it with cream.

Nobody has ever complained.😉