Chelsea’s white chocolate & berry cheesecake
This is still one of my most popular recipes ever – especially around Christmas time! People make it year after year, and can you blame them? It looks a million bucks and isn’t the slightest bit difficult to make. It can be made in advance and kept in the fridge for a day or so – then you add the berries just before serving. I’ve also had people drizzle it with melted chocolate, and make individual cheesecakes in ring moulds or muffin tins.
You can also freeze the whole cheesecake – chill it in the tin, wrap it tightly in a double layer of clingfilm then a layer of foil, and freeze for up to 4 weeks.
Gluten-free: This recipe is easy to make gluten-free just by choosing gluten-free biscuits for the base. You can find these at most supermarkets. Any sort will work.
Ingredients
350g double or triple chocolate cookies (GF if needed)
75g softened (almost melted) butter
500g cream cheese – not the spreadable kind, and not light
250g good quality white chocolate, chopped
1 cup cream
3 punnets ripe strawberries (or a mix of summer berries raspberries, even pomegranate seeds)
1/3 cup berry jam melted with 1 tbsp water (optional)
Method
Bring the cream cheese out of the fridge 20 or so minutes before you start, to lose it’s chill. (Or you can microwave on medium power in a heatproof bowl for 10-15 seconds or so).
Line the base of a round 20-25cm diameter springform cake tin with a cut round of baking paper.
Place the biscuits in a food processor and process to a very fine crumb (you can also very finely smash the biscuits in a bag with a rolling pin if you don’t have a food processor). Add the butter and process until well combined and smooth. Tip the crumbs into the cake tin and using clean moistened fingers, press the crumb firmly into the base.
Beat the cream cheese in a large mixing bowl until smooth. Set aside.
Place the chopped white chocolate in a heatproof bowl sitting over a saucepan of gently simmering water (don’t let the bowl touch the water), and heat until just melted, stirring only every now and then. (If it seizes and goes grainy, remove from the heat, add a little cream and stir in a circular motion until it’s smooth again. You can also add a splash of rice bran oil to help it along.) Remove the chocolate from the heat and and let sit for 10 minutes.
Fold a quarter of the melted chocolate into the cream cheese, then repeat with the remaining chocolate in three parts.
Whip the cream until thick and cloudy, but stop before it gets too firm. Gently fold it through the cream cheese mixture. At this point, you can also fold in a handful of fresh raspberries if you like.
Scrape the mixture on to the biscuit base and smooth out the top. Cover and refrigerate for at least 3 hours to set, or until needed (it’s fine overnight or for a couple of nights, if it’s well sealed).
Just before you’re ready to tuck in to your cheesecake, sit the tin on a sturdy wide bowl. Carefully release the spring latch on the tin and let the sides of the tin drop down. Gently remove the metal base with a metal spatula or fish slice, and peel off the baking paper if you can. Carefully slide the cheesecake on to a serving platter (it’s easier doing this when it’s cold straight from the fridge). Smooth out the sides with a warm knife.
Arrange the fresh berries on top.
Drizzle with a little of the melted jam if you like, dust with icing sugar, slice with a hot knife and serve. If you have freeze dried berries, you could also crumble some up and throw some on top for a bit of zing.
It’ll go soft quickly on a hot day so put any leftovers back in the fridge right away. Enjoy, my friends!
Note: You can freeze the whole cheesecake without the berries on it – wrap it tightly in a double layer of glad wrap and a layer of foil, and freeze for up to 4 weeks.
I make this for the guys at a mining camp I’m a cook at and they adore it. I do add 1 tbsp gelatine to firm it up though.
LOVE your recipes Chelsea.
this cheesecake was so awesome and it was super easy to make
is there something i can use to subtute for the cream cheese?
Hey chelsea!! It’s not strawberry season anymore and thinking to try this with frozen strawberries, would that work though? Thank you!!
What would you suggest at different times of the year, when berries are not available? Could I do frozen or tinned, or something else? Or leave out?
If I use frozen raspberries should I put some through the cheesecake or just put the mixture you suggested to another reader on the top (2 cups with 1/4 cup of sugar simmered together)
I’ve made this recipe a lot but often switch white choc for dark choc and I put fresh blueberries instead of raspberries and then I tell myself that it’s practically a super food ;-) it’s SO good!! I’ve made it heaps for people when they have babies too (often along with one of your dinner recipes) and they always rave about it!
Has anybody made this with light cream cheese ? If so how did it turn out
Hi Chelsea merry xmas! I made your cheesecake however the filling for me had a bitter taste and i couldnt taste the chocolate. I used whittakers 50% white chocolate – could that be the reason? Also i think I whipped the cream a tad too long. Otherwise the base was gr8 and the whole thing set and looked gr8 and on the whole it was still enjoyed. I would very much like your feedback. Thanks
I’ve just made this for Christmas Day and can’t wait to tuck into it. I folded through fresh raspberries – licking the bowl was glorious!
Hi Chelsea, Would this work with Passionfruit instead of berries ? Thanks! :)
Any way to safely add baileys ??
IF you freeze the cheesecake do you leave it in the tin?
I would, yes.
I love this recipe!! I am thinking of doing a little twist this year and doing a lemon berry cheesecake instead of white choc. How would I adapt this recipe to be lemon instead?
If I freeze it do I just defrost in fridge overnight. Thanx sounds delicous
Hi Chelsea, I love this cheesecake, and have been making it from a written down version for a few years. I printed it out this year (for ease of reading around the berry stains!), and it appears slightly different? More cream cheese, less cream and no lemon… is this a new and improved version?!?
Hi Chelsea, this recipe sounds delicious and I am looking forward to making it for Christmas. Just a couple of quick questions, how many serves does this make and also is it possible to substitute the berries for other flavours sometimes, such as passionfruit?
Hi Chelsea! I am wanting to make a unicorn cheesecake for the adults for my daughters birthday party on Saturday – I love this recipe and want to use it. Do you think splitting the filling into separate bowls and colouring with food colouring before putting it all back in layers on the base would work?
What kind of biscuits also work well ? Could I use fruit digestive ?
Yes that would work :)
Hi Chelsea :) I was just wondering if this would work as individual mini cheesecakes? I am wanting to make this for my daughters daycare Christmas party.
Yes :)
Hi Chelsea, I would like to freeze the base would it be ok to replace fresh fruit with freeze dried raspberries in the filling ?
Thank you, Chelsea, for another great recipe! I wasn’t into cheesecakes but we would buy them occasionally because my husband loves them. I had to try this recipe out after seeing all the great comments and not only did the family go back for seconds, I am now a fan myself.
Hey chelsea would it be okay to use dark chocolate or would it need some tweaking
please reply
Should be fine!
Hi Chelsea, I am Lachlan and I am 12 years of age. My mum is a huge fan and loves following your recipes for baking. My friend and i were cooking for our family’s one night and we didn’t know what to do foe dessert so my mum said we should look in one of your books. We did and saw this recipe and both agreed it should be the dessert for the night so we followed this recipe and every one loved it. Thank you so much.
i normally dont eat desert but my daughter made it for me for my 60 birthday,,,,,ooooh yeah….back to deserts and thats why im on this web site,,lookin for a nice choc one…il make it,,,il keep mu posted.
This is my favourite cheesecake recipe and it never fails when I make it. It was really helpful when I used the Whittaker’s white chocolate and raspberry chocolate but now I don’t see it in Stock.
A memorable dessert…
Funny story: made this for Christmas lunch and served it on a cake stand similar to this. Between bench and table it got airborne and (momentarily) landed on the floor! – yikes! Obeying the 5s rule I swooped, tidied up with a hot butter knife and more berries, and my family duly polished it off. A pav may not have been so resilient! #gotawaywithit
Hi Chelsea. I wanted to make this for christmas but ran out of time. As I have all the ingredients I’ve decided to make it for my daughters engagement in 3 weeks time. Just wondering about when freezing it – Do you remove it from the cake tin or are you able to freeze it still in the tin?
Freeze it in the tin, well wrapped! x
Hi Chelsea can I freeze the cheesecake if the handful of raspberries have been folded into the mixture.
Hi Chelsea, I nade this in weekend as practice for xmas &wondering if alternating some cream for Greek yoghurt would alter the taste much? Half cup cream half cup yoghurt? Would adding lemon juice make it too tart? Will leave as is if need be but just saw a few pppl mention yoghurt. Pretty decadent sugar/fat filled dessert haha!
I love this recipe and have made it many times.
I have always used raspberry&white chocolate but I can no longer find it at the supermarket ?
I’m going to try freeze dried raspberries added to the chocolate just I mix it together.
Merry Christmas Chelsea
Great recipe. When you say freeze, in or out of the tin please?
In the tin x
First cheesecake ever and so delicious. I used oreos for the base and put some coffee culture white chocolate sauce over top with frozen rasps. Amazing. Thankyou
When you mix cookies and butter, there is a slight ‘mouth feel’ of the butter and sometimes slight unevenness of the base. My favourite quick tip is once pressed into the tin, bake in 180 degree oven for ten minutes. The smell and texture is amazing ? Will do this recipe for Xmas day, yum!
Does anyone have any suggestions as to what kind of biscuits they used for the base?
Im thinking of using this but turning it into a cookies and cream cheesecake. Im not a fan of really set cheesecakes which is why the no gelatin appealed to me. But my question is can I add more whipped cream to make it lighter or will it not work? If so how much would you recommend? Thanks :)
Yes that would be fine!
Omg! This is so going to be a family favorite. Made it for a family dinner and had awesome feedback from everyone. Thank you Chelsea for such an amazing, easy to make cheesecake recipe.
I love this recipe. I use it as a base for making different flavour cheesecakes. Made a white/dark choc marble one with a Krispie biscuit base and it lasted about 5 minutes around my friends. Thanks so much Chelsea! Also I like how you explain WHY you need to do things (like underwhip the cream) and tips on how to fix components. It helps to know incase something does go wrong =)
By far the best cheesecake I have ever tasted, thank you Chelsea! I have made this several times and its always a massive hit.
Hello this is the reciepe in your Everday one??
Its a little diffrent in the cook book..? I dont know which one to do …Help :(
It’s a little different – both are great, just go for the one you have made before :)
Gonna try this tomorrow how long does it take to make ?
Hi Chelsea, I saw a photo today in a recipe book of a cheesecake and i thought mmm i really feel like cheesecake its been around 20 years since i made my favourite coffee cheesecake but couldn’t find one similar…. i came across yours and went down to get ingredients (biscuits were chocolate fudge lol i think that counts as double or triple) and then with no time to waste to let set, set about rushing around doing all three tasks at once pulling hubby into hand whip the cream lol and it was 30 degrees today and so hot in the kitchen… its now setting in the fridge and kids have discovered and are so excited. The frozen berries are thawing in a bowl ready to go on top and mmm looks good now i just have to go make my Nadia Lim Beetroot and Feta tart with rocket and pear on top …. now still 30 + degrees i am chilling with a Chardonnay :) I will be posting the results Chelsea thanks
Simple and YUM…I made it for numerous Christmas gatherings with varying berries/ glaze. Always a hit!
Hi, I made this for an extra dessert on Christmas day…my family devoured it over 2 days and raved about it! So I will be making it again…thanks Chelsea. I also have made your Christmas cake 3 years in a row, and its THE most amazing cake, you can’t stop eating it…x
Wohoo Cheesecake is in the fridge chilling ready to be enjoyed on Christmas day. I used Rice Biscuits and doubled the filling mixture to get an extra large cake. I will post a pic to your Facebook page once it is on the table looking pretty. Thanks Chelsea for the awesome recipe
Hi Chelsea, Love this cheesecake, so easy to make and fail proof. Tastes and looks amazing, great for time poor people. This time I have frozen it as per your suggestion by chilling and wrapping in glad wrap & tin foil. Just wondered what the defrosting instructions are? Many thanks.
Hi Chelsea, LOVE this recipe it’s so delicious! Just wondering, I’m a bit white chocolate fan and I didn’t think the white chocolate taste was too strong when I last made this… if I were to sneakily naughtily add say, 300gms of white chocolate instead of 250, would I need to alter any other ingredients? Or do you think I should just stop being a pig and stick to the recipe? ;) Thanks a bunch!
Hi Chelsea, I was wondering what type (brand) of chocolate biscuits is best?
WOW, WOW, and WOW, did I say WOW. I have made a few cheesecakes over the last couple of years and I made this one yesterday (along with a small ramekin one so I could do some “quality control” and make sure it tasted ok). Well definitely the most delicious of the ones I have made so far hands down DELICIOUS. Just have to decorate it tomorrow – if it wasn’t for a special occasion I likely would have had a bit of the full chessecake . . . . Also not too many ingredients and not quite as pricey as some of the others I have made :-). Can’t wait to get your books when I have some money.
THANKS CHELSEA, love your recipes, big fan :-)
Hi there what jam do you recommend using for this cheesecake ? Thanks can’t wait to try it :)
Any berry jam is cool!
Hi Chelsea
I made this cheesecake for the first time for my bbq in the weekend. It turned out really well and tasted delicious. Everyone who tasted it loved it….
Diane Johnson