Sweet and salty Cheesecake with cherries

General

• There are three components here—I know, but they’re all quick and simple to do, can all be made well in advance, and there’s no work to do on the day you’re serving apart from some informal assembly. The cheesecake (which keeps for 3 days) and compote (which keeps for 5 days) need to be kept in the fridge, and the crumble (which keeps a good week or so) just needs to be kept in an airtight container at room temperature. The compote and crumble are also lovely for breakfast—if you have any left over or want to make more—served with Greek yogurt.
• Serves six to eight
• Source: Ottolenghi, Simple

Ingredients

Cheese cake

• 3½ oz/100g feta
• 10 oz/300g full-fat cream cheese, at room temperature
• 3 tbsp granulated sugar
• 1 small lemon, finely zested to get 1 tsp
• ½ cup plus 1 tbsp/130ml heavy cream

Crumble

• ¾ cup/100g blanched hazelnuts, roughly chopped
• 2 tbsp unsalted butter, fridge-cold and cut into ¾-inch/2cm dice
• ⅔ cup/80g almond flour
• 2 tbsp/25g granulated sugar
• 1 tbsp black sesame seeds (or white)
• ⅛ tsp salt

Cherry compote

• 1 lb 5 oz/600g frozen pitted cherries, defrosted
• 7 tbsp/90g granulated sugar
• 4 whole star anise
• 1 orange: peel finely shaved to get 4 strips
• 2 tbsp olive oil, to serve

Instructions

1. Using a spatula, break the feta down in a large bowl to make it as smooth as possible. Add the cream cheese, sugar, and lemon zest and whisk to combine. Pour in the cream and gently whisk until the mixture has thickened enough to hold its shape. Leave to set in the fridge until ready to use.
2. Preheat the oven to 400°F.
3. To make the crumble, place the hazelnuts, butter, almond meal, and sugar in a bowl. Use the tips of your fingers to rub the butter into everything else until the consistency of breadcrumbs is formed. Stir in the sesame seeds and salt, then spread out on a baking sheet. Bake for about 12 minutes, until golden brown
4. To make the compote, put the cherries, sugar, star anise, and orange peel into a medium saucepan and place over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil, then simmer for 10–15 minutes, until the sauce has thickened (but it will continue to thicken as it cools down). Set aside to come to room temperature. Discard star anise and orange peel.
5. When ready to serve, spoon a large scoop of the cheesecake into each bowl and top with some crumble. Spoon the compote on top and finish with the remaining crumble. Drizzle with the olive oil and serve.