Avocado and lime cheesecake with a crunchy hazelnut and pumpkin seed base

prep time: 30 mins

Cooking time: 10 mins

Ingredients serves 10

For the base:

• 125g hazelnuts, peeled
• 100g digestive biscuits
• 30g pumpkin seeds
• 2 tbsp coconut oil, melted and at room temperature
• 50g melted butter

For the filling

• 4 avocados, peeled
• 200ml lime juice (roughly 8 to 10 limes)
• 300g cream cheese
• 200g Quark
• 1 tsp lime zest
• 190g honey
• 4 leaves of gelatine

Method

Preheat the oven to 150°C/300°F/gas mark 2.
Place the hazelnuts and pumpkin seeds on baking-tray and place in the oven for 4-5 minutes, until lightly toasted. Transfer the hazelnuts and pumpkin seeds to a food processor and add the rest of the base ingredients. Blend until the mixture is crumbly (don’t let it go completely smooth) and holds together when pinched.

Line the base of a 20cm round cake tin with baking-paper and tip in the base mixture. Press this down firmly and evenly with the back of a spoon, ensuring it is neat and flat where it meets the tin. Transfer the tin to the fridge while you prepare the filling.
Bring the lime juice, lime zest & honey the boil and stir well. Remove from the heat. Soak the gelatine sheets in a little cold water, then melt in the warm lime juice.
Place all of the peeled avocadoes, cream cheese, quark and limejuice in a bowl blend until the mixture is completely smooth and silky.

Remove the cake tin from the fridge and pour the filling over the base. Cover the tin with clingfilm, and return it to the fridge for at least 3-4 hours or overnight. To serve, run a knife between the tin and the cake and carefully push the base up from the bottom. Transfer to a plate and serve immediately.