Photo of Easy Breezy Merlot Cheesecake

Easy Breezy Merlot Cheesecake

Who wants a piece of our easy-peasy Merlot Cheesecake? It’s super easy and will impress your guests. Just follow the instructions then go to town on the toppings! Tastes great, of course, with a delicious glass of Merlot!

Ingredients

  • FOR THE RED WINE SYRUP

  • 250 ml Barefoot Merlot
  • 50 g caster sugar
  • FOR THE CHEESECAKE

  • 50 g unsalted butter, melted, plus extra to grease
  • 200 g dark chocolate digestive biscuits
  • 500 g cream cheese, at room temperature
  • 40 g icing sugar
  • 75 g white chocolate, broken into pieces
  • 300 ml double cream

Directions

  1. Make the red wine syrup. Pour wine in a pan and bubble for 10 mins. Turn off the heat, stir in the sugar until dissolved. Leave to cool.
  2. Lightly grease the base and sides of a 20.5cm (8in) round springform tin and line with baking parchment.
  3. Whiz the biscuits in a food processor until finely crushed. Add the melted butter and pulse until the mixture clumps together. Press into the base of the prepared tin using a spoon, pop in fridge.
  4. In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese, icing sugar and 3tbsp of the cooled red wine syrup together with an electric handwhisk.
  5. Melt the white chocolate (we used a pan over simmering water). Quickly fold the chocolate into the cream cheese bowl until combined.
  6. In a separate bowl, whip the cream until it just holds its shape, then gently fold it into the cream cheese bowl.
  7. Tip the cheesecake mixture into the tin and spread to make an even layer. Chill in the fridge for at least 6hr or overnight.
  8. Take cheesecake out tin and drizzle some of the wine syrup over the cheesecake and add toppings of your choice.