Halloween Cheesecake
·Make the crust
Crush the cookies with a rolling pin or in a food processor and tip them into a bowl. Add the sugar, cocoa and melted butter, then mix well.
Press into the pan
Line the base of the pan with baking paper and close the springform ring around it. Fill with the cookie mixture and press down firmly – a glass with a flat bottom works well for this. Press a low rim up the sides. Bake in a preheated oven at 175°C for about 15 minutes (160°C fan).
Whip the cream cheese with sugar
Whisk the Philadelphia cream cheese first to loosen and lighten it, then mix in the sugar and whisk again.
Add the rest and whisk together
Add the eggs and whisk in. Pour in the cream and whisk, then add the vanilla essence and the melted baking chocolate (mixed with butter and sugar), and give it one final whisk.
Bake
Pour the mixture over the pre-baked crust and smooth the top. Bake in a preheated oven for 15 minutes at 175°C, then lower the temperature and continue baking at 140°C for another hour. In a fan oven, bake at 160°C for 15 minutes, then at 130°C for 1 hour.
Let it cool
As soon as you take the cheesecake out of the oven, run a knife around the edge. Let it cool completely and set well, ideally overnight.
Blood glaze and decoration
Simmer the strawberries with sugar, then blend with a hand blender. Simply pour the glaze over the cake and finish with worm decorations.
