Strawberry n Almond Cheesecake

My fiance made this cheesecake for me for my birthday a few months back. I was very impressed even though he used a packet of continental cheesecake mix by White Wings. To make it differently he folded in hulled and sliced strawberries into the cheesecake mix. When the cheesecake was firm he then decorated it with loads of toasted almonds and strawberries. It was a hit!


Recipe from White Wings Site (bold text indicate extra ingredients and extra instructions for the strawberry and almonds)

Smooth Continental Cheesecake (with Strawberries and Toasted Almonds)

Preparation time:
10 minutes
Chilling time:
60 minutes
Serves:
12

Ingredients:
Base
90g (4 1/2 Tbsp) margarine spread or soft butter, melted

Filling
375mL (1 1/2 cups) milk

Additional ingredients:
1/2 cup of strawberries hulled and sliced
1 cup of toasted silvered almonds (you can buy these from Woolworths)


Method

Bake: Empty contents of biscuit base mix sachet into a bowl. Add melted margarine spread or butter and mix with a metal spoon to combine. Press the mixture firmly over the base and 5cm up the sides of a 20cm round springform pan. Refrigerate while preparing filling.

Mix: Place the milk into a large bowl. Sprinkle the filling mix over the milk. Using an electric mixer beat on low speed for 30 seconds to combine. Increase speed to high and mix for 2 minutes until thick.

Here fold in the sliced strawberries. Don't mix or the mixture will become gluggy and not that thick.

Chill: Spread filling into biscuit base. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour or until firm.

While the filling is chilling in the fridge toast the silvered almonds either in a preheated oven at 180 degrees or in a pan until it becomes a nice toast colour.

When the filling is chilled decorate with the toasted almonds and strawberries however you like :)

Tips: In place of a springform pan, use a 20cm round cake pan lined generously with cling film or baking paper such that the edges overlap the sides of the pan. Once the cheesecake has set, use the overlapping film or paper to lift out of the pan and transfer to a serving plate.