These beautiful mini cheesecakes are flavoured with ube – a purple, slightly nutty and vanilla-like sweet potato from the Philippines. The cakes are served with the acetate still attached, which is then removed at the table to create a 'tsunami' of bright purple sauce.
You can of course make these cheesecakes without acetate and just serve the sauce alongside, but it is an easy way to add some theatrics to your dessert! They can also be made up in advance, so all you need to do on the day is take them out of the fridge and practice your acetate-removing skills.
Begin by lining 6cm metal rings with sheets of acetate that are 6cm in height
Blend the ginger snaps and butter together to create the base, then push the base into the bottom of each ring, approx 5mm high. Place in the fridge to set
In a bowl, beat together the soft cheese, icing sugar and vanilla essence
In a separate bowl, whisk the double cream into soft peaks, then fold this through the soft cheese mixture. Spoon this into each mold, leaving 2cm space at the top of the acetate for the ube sauce. Place in the fridge to set for 2 hours
To make the ube sauce, bring the milk and cream to the boil with 50g of the sugar. Meanwhile, whisk the remaining sugar together with the yolks until thick and pale
Once the milk mixture reaches the boil, remove from the heat and slowly whisk into the whisked yolks. Transfer back to the pan and place over the heat, stirring until it reaches 70ºC, then whisk in the ube essence and remove from the heat
Measure out 200ml of the sauce into a bowl and reserve the rest in the fridge. Whisk the powdered gelatine into the 200ml of sauce and leave to cool to room temperature. Once at room temperature, pour the sauce onto each cheesecake to create a 5mm-thick topping. Place in the fridge to set fully for at least 2 hours
When ready to serve, carefully pour the remaining sauce into each mould until it reaches the top of the acetate. Decorate with the white chocolate balls
Very gently remove the metal rings, leaving the acetate in place. Bring the cheesecakes to the table, then quickly peel off the acetate in front of your guests to create a 'tsunami' of sauce, which will pool around the base of the cheesecakes
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