I had some real cheesecake yesterday

• Despite the intemperate weather, and despite the present situation, there’s been a continental food market in Weston over the last few days. It had been booked from last year, apparently so it went ahead and we drifted down, masked up, to support the traders and also to support our town. So many businesses have closed down, even before the present crisis, and to be honest sometimes it looks quite sad. It has so much potential but somehow it’s never realised. You might thinking going to a street market won’e help the town traders, but it brings people in and maybe they will go and buy a local ice-cream, or fish and chips, or a new hat or a pair of shoes.

There was a nice variety of stalls and after a delicious gyros we noticed a stall selling Dutch cheese and of course, thinking of our friends in the Netherlands, we bought some! We also spotted an American cheesecake company. The first time I ever had cheesecake was when I first went to Manchester and it was what is now called American, but what I think of as real cheesecake. I love it and really don’t like the slimy goo which is what you normally get.

I found a recipe for it in my mum’s scrap book of recipes, so I might try and make it! This recipe has sultans in which is like the first ever cheesecake I tried.

American sultana cheesecake

• 4 oz softened butter
• 8 oz caster sugar
• 1 lb curd cheese
• 3 large eggs, separated
• 3 oz ground almonds
• 3 oz sultanas
• grated zest and juice of 2 lemons

1. beat together the butter, sugar, curd cheese until very light and creamy
2. beat in the egg yolks one at a time
3. stir in the almonds, lemon zest and juice
4. in a separate bowl beat the egg whites until stiff but not dry then fold into the mixture
5. turn into a lightly greased 9″ spring-released or loose bottom tin, lined with baking parchment
6. bake for 1h at 190º C, 375º F, gas mark 5, loosely covering with foil halfway through
7. turn off oven but leave the cheesecake in for 1h
8. remove from the tin and dust with icing sugar if desired