1261. Strawberry Cheesecake

This cheesecake recipe, one of plenty galore on MWC, is probably the most factory-imitation one of all, in the sense of taste, texture, and cuts like a dream. To fully industrialize it, use a can of cheesecake topping and call it a day. I however went the from-scratch route, as I often tend to, and opted of a loose compote from fresh strawberries.
The compote here is meant to be loose and syrupy. If you want a firmer topping, just increase the cornflour ration a bit. When mixing the filling, do it slowly as you want to avoid mixing in too much air.

Ingredients:

For the base:
300g digestive biscuits
120g butter , melted

For the filling: 
500g cream cheese, softened
2 Tbsp flour
1 tsp vanilla extract
125g sour cream
1 1/2 cups sugar
Zest of 1 lemon
3 eggs , at room temperature

For the strawberry topping:
500g strawberries, half diced and half halved
2 Tbsp lemon juice
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 tsp cornflour mixed with 2 tbsp water


Method:

Preheat oven to 320F.
Get a 20cm/8" springform cake tin. Turn the base UPSIDE DOWN, butter lightly and place a square piece of parchment/baking paper on the base. Then clip into the springform pan - excess paper will stick out. Butter and line the side of the pan.
To make the crust: Blitz up biscuits in a food processor until fine crumbs. Add butter, briefly blitz until dispersed and it resembles wet sand. Pour into the prepared cake tin. Use a spatula to roughly spread it out over the base and up the walls. Use something with a flat base and vertical edges to press the crumbs up the wall almost to the top of the sides, and flatten the base.
To make the filling: Use a mixer or beater to beat the cream cheese until smooth - about 30 seconds on medium high. Add flour, beat until just combined (10 sec). Add vanilla, sour cream, sugar and lemon zest. Beat until just combined (10 - 15 sec). Add eggs one at a time, beat in between until just combined (10 sec each). Don't over beat, do not want to aerate the batter. Pour into prepared crust.
Bake for 55 minutes. The top should be a very light golden brown, not cracked, and near perfectly flat. It should jiggle slightly when you gently shake the pan. Cool the cake in the oven with the door open 20 cm / 8" (Note 6), then refrigerate overnight in the pan. Remove sides. Use overhang paper to slide cheesecake off the cake pan. Then slide the cheesecake off the paper.
To make the topping: Place chopped strawberries, vanilla, sugar and lemon juices in a saucepan. Stir then bring to simmer over medium heat. Simmer for 10 minutes until strawberries breakdown.
Add cornflour and stir - it will thicken quickly. Add halved strawberries and cook for 1 minute to soften. Sauce should be syrupy - remove from stove and cool. Will thicken as it cools.
Spoon onto cheesecake so it's covered with a single layer of strawberries. Flip strawberry halves so they are facedown. Refrigerate 2 hours+ before serving.

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