Raspberry brownie cheesecake

Chocolate and raspberry.....match made in heaven 😀. Rich, dark brownie base and tangy cheesecake filing, what's  not to love ?

Ingredients:

For the brownie base

• 200g butter
• 200g light brown sugar
• 40g unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 3 medium eggs
• 100g plain flour
• 11/2 tbsp cornflour

For the raspberry cheesecake filling

• 400g fresh raspberries
• 75g sugar
• 50 ml water
• 250g Mascarpone cheese
• 200 ml double cream
• 3 tsp unflavoured gelatine 

For the garnish

• 100g fresh raspberries

Method:

To make the brownie base, dice the butter into a  pan. Sift in the cocoa powder, and melt it over medium heat until well blended. It may seem like the ingredients are not going to come together, but the butter melt slowly and mix with the cocoa. When it's completely melted, add the brown sugar, and mix well. Set it aside for a few minutes, until it cools down slightly. Add the fist egg to the warm batter and immediately whisk it in very well. Add two more eggs in the same fashion, and add the vanilla and blend really well.

When the eggs are blended in, sift in the plain flour and cornflour and gently fold it in the batter. Do not overmix, about 20-30 strokes with a spatula should be enough. Take a round baking pan with a removable bottom or sides (23 cm; 9"), grease and flour the bottom and sides, pour in the batter and gently level it. Bake it in a preheated oven, at 160C  for about 20-25 minutes. Check it with a toothpick, to make sure it isn't overbaked. Do not run your knife around the edges, you need it to be somewhat stuck to the pan so the cheesecake filling won't leak out. Let it cool completely in the pan.

For the cheesecake filling, take the Mascarpone out of the fridge so it can come to room temperature. Place the raspberries, water and sugar in a saucepan, and bring it to a simmer over medium heat. Let it simmer for about 10 minutes, then remove it from the heat and let it stand for a few minutes,  then blend the raspberries into a puree. Sieve the raspberry puree to remove seeds. Place the gelatine in a small bowl, pour over 4 tablespoons of cold water and leave it for about 10 minutes, to bloom. Once the raspberries are cooled and the Mascarpone has softened, place both in a large bowl and combine it with an electric mixer on medium.

Melt the gelatine over low heat (or in the microwave), take a few teaspoons of the Mascarpone mixture, mix it well with the gelatine, then pour everything back in the bowl and blend well on low. In a separate bowl, whip the double cream until stiff peaks form, and gently fold it in the previous batter. Pour the filling over the cooled brownie base and place the whole cake in the fridge overnight. Serve it with fresh raspberries.